I recently rediscovered this show from the 1990s. It is about a group of lifeguards in Los Angles, California. At its height this show was, quite frankly, a phenomenon. It had a worldwide following and was on the air for more than 10 years. I am pretty sure I watched it when it aired but I remember very little of it.
As I was watching a few episodes I started to notice a number of things. At its heart it was a drama about lifeguards and it showed them in the most heroic manner. It also highlighted what was most important in life. It showed good people caring about others. It showed people doing the right thing, even when it hurt. It highlighted the importance of telling the truth and of honesty and compassion. I think it is as relevant today as it was titillating in the 90s.
When people talked about Baywatch they always commented on the skimpy bathing suits and the women running down the beach (in slow motion) with their bits jiggling away. They talked about how good-looking the lifeguards were and how their muscles glistened and their hair was… Yes, the focus of the audience was on the surface.
It was fun, it was pure escapism, it was Hollywood. It wasn’t high drama or even politically correct by today’s standards. I believe we all need a little mindless distraction. Isn’t it so much better when that mindless distraction actually has a message underneath and one that is so positive? David Hasselhoff was the main character and he is still known for that show. Several other actors started on Baywatch and went on to have quite successful careers. Putting aside all the jingling, it’s nice to see lifeguards portrayed as more than pretty bimbos. They even had an actual LA lifeguard as one of the regular cast. He had a career as a lifeguard for over 20 years.
The show put me in mind of Aesop‘s fables. There is a story on the surface but there’s a message imbedded. I remember those fables as a child and the lessons they taught me. Maybe Baywatch is a grown-up version.
Butterfly Sand 
I’d forgotten that show Pam, so long ago 😀
I suppose it was just like life Pam, has many lessons for us…now if I could just take these blinkers off I’ll be fine 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Your blinkers keep you from seeing the bad parts of people. We should all wear them sometimes.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Aha, so that is why mine are ‘tinted’ 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I enjoyed Baywatch too and I loved your rendition of it. So astute too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you my friend.
LikeLiked by 1 person
🤗🤗💕
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m afraid that at the time I was blinded by the beauty of the show. You are right that in retrospect. the messages of the show were positive ones. Would they have been as noticeable of the actors were ordinary looking people?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I would love to be able to say yes but probably not. Society is a fickle beast.
LikeLike
My gosh, I too remember watching Baywatch, but I can’t remember much about the shows content. You’re right that this show had a really good theme of heroes and goodness and caring and honesty, but that got buried under the shows other theme….sex, bimbos, boobs, bikinis and muscles. Sigh….
It was no small feat to pull off a show that on the surface might’ve seemed ‘trashy’, but at the heart of that show, they were on the same level as Little House On The Prarie!
🐾Ginger 🐾
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow! Good catch! I never thought of that. Two totally different shows with the same message.
LikeLike
I watched it now and then. Of course I loved Knight Rider with David in it also. Last night we started watching Greatest American Hero again. I was so hooked on that show as a teen, and watching it again saddens me to think that our world truly has taken steps backward in that it is so relevent to what is happening now. It feels as though idealism and hope have been replaced with cynicism and apathy. All those shows were themed with moral fortitude and growth, and not just steeped in human frailty and stark visual shock. We all live reality. I always felt it was good to view a bit of possibility…
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is so well said Cheryl! I too loved Greatest American Hero. I think we all need a little more of their optimism.
LikeLike
This is great. 🙂 While I didn’t watch ‘Babewatch’ I knew all about it back then. It’s good to know there was that message, like Aesop’s fables, which I read and enjoyed as a kid. 🙂
I find these old shows had better content and values than today’s shows. I re-watched ‘your’ Mountie in ‘Due South’ last year – great wholesome fun. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ah yes, “Due South”. It is sometimes hard to live up to Constable Fraser’s example but if that is how others see Canadians, I’ll take it. I loved the show.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ah we knew he was an exaggeration – but yes, we do think all Canadians are like Fraser! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I loved this one too.
LikeLiked by 2 people
😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I remember it well……… if only for Partner to oggle the set when Pamela Anderson filled it with her assets.
LikeLiked by 1 person
hahaha . Another Canadian girl!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ramblings about Aesop: I wonder if children still read Aesop’s fables. Their lessons stay with you once you read them. Aesop himself may not have written any of them. Aesop is part legend, and his historical existence is nebulous.
LikeLiked by 1 person
But his words live on!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I didn’t watch the show very often. Maybe you’re right about it. If I see it available out there, I’ll give it a look.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I read somewhere that it has not been off the air ever since it first aired. It is seen worldwide.
LikeLiked by 1 person