Kung Fu, Coca Cola and Nacho Cheese Doritos
David Carradine, who acted in 100 films and starred in the popular 70’s tv series Kung Fu has died.
I remember quite vividly looking forward to Thursday nights at 9:00 p.m. during the early 1970’s.
Right after soccer practice, my friend Roger and I would intently watch Grasshopper learn the mysteries of Kung Fu. We had never heard of such a thing. While sipping Coca Cola and munching on Doritos, we marveled at the sagacity and athleticism of Master Po and Master Khan. I loved everything about this show: the wisdom, the candles, the part where Cane would enter a small town and ask only for “water” and then eventually end up beating the #!!!!### out of six or seven Caucasian character actors. It was a genuine treat.
Kung Fu was a real novelty. Who would have thought you could make a Western drama where the hero is a Chinese guy wearing no shoes, no gun and riding no horse? He simply walked from town to town, helping out needy widows with chores and flashing back to his youth at the Shoaling Temple in China. This had never been done on tv before this.
Coincidentally, I recently purchased the complete 1st and 2nd season on DVD……with my WAMU credit card, of course ( I gotta throw one keyword into this post, huh?) The best episode, I must say was the very first pilot movie. The rest of the 1 hour shows are a bit ponderous and seem to lack the intensity of the pilot. But I still like the show and always light a couple of candles when I watch it.
You were a hero of mine, Grasshopper!
The Merchant Maven
