Frontier House

I have just revisited this show in 2020 after watching when it first aired.

The first thing that struck me was that the show has been edited since the original broadcast. The whole ridiculous scene with Oprah has been removed and I'm pretty certain that other embarrassing moments were as well.

But this is still a useful study in human behavior and worth a re watching. Some of the behavior of the participants is just as disappointing as it was back then.

So living like 1883 is not so important. The real story here is isolating three families, depriving them of all comforts and watching them duke it out.

This would make a great term paper.

None of the three stocked enough firewood for one winter . Wood gathering is a daily chore . You need wood to cure, a covered area for storage, kindling. Every evening gathering, chopping, storing. Comical to see the "rounds". None of them , nor the animals, would make it through a Montana winter. First things you do on a property , fences, trees, put in your potatoes. Felt bad for the Karen lady, she is a perfect frontier wife, she was in her element, chastised for being good at her job. The Clune man, a simp. The children, all lovely and learnt what life is really about. Wonder where they are now?

It goes without saying that if you want quality programming, you have to tune into PBS, and the "House" series beats anything network television has to offer hands down. Best of the series? "Frontier House".

So many of us grew up reading the "Little House" books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. The television show based upon her works took great liberties with the stories over the years and ultimately disappointed.

Interested in a taste of what her life was REALLY like? Check out "Frontier House"! Mrs. Wilder's books might be viewed as simplistic or idealized in comparison to what you'll view in this show, but it should be remembered that she was raised a pragmatic frontier's woman whereas the participants in this PBS mini, for the most part, had no real conception of exactly how tough 1880's pioneer life could be. She took the difficulties of her life in stride, just the facts of life, and was therefore later able to share with us her story without dwelling on the unpleasant daily realities of her life.

Contemporary Americans on the other hand, can only stare in wonder at three families willing to do without, for Four & 1/2 months, niceties such as baths or showers, shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste & floss and perhaps most importantly, toilet paper.

And that's not even mentioning near starvation, sickness, fickle weather and feuding neighbors.

These three families have been plopped down in some of the most beautiful country on earth. The contrast between the beauty and romance of the locale with the harshness of the living conditions is a real eye opener for viewers, accustomed as we are to filmed period pieces where issues like B.O., poor dental hygiene, and lack of toilet and bathing facilities are largely glossed over.

It's wonderful to have an opportunity to live out this adventure with these families, and PBS has outdone itself, but you'll find yourself grateful that you can sit in your clean, comfortable home eating a bowl of popcorn or ice cream while you do so.

Our ancestors were indeed made of stronger stuff than we today.

I've spent the last two weeks off and on watching this amazing experience. To slap on the title of 'reality show' would be a disgrace. Few shows, if any, can get so deep as to question our society and our place in the world.

It starts out simple. You think it's a show about modern day families trying to experience what it was like to live in 1883. But you are wrong. There are three "families": The Clunes: A wealthy Malibu family consisting of four children (one of them is a niece) and a father who is smart, but weak. His wife is a drama queen, though has a degree in culinary arts. The Glenns: A middle class suburban family from Tennessee. They are competitive people by nature, and see this as a game. There are two children, and the parents who are having marital problems. The Brooks': They start out as a father and his grown son, but half way through the father leaves to make room for his son's new bride. They are without a doubt the most positive and helpful people on the program.

So for five months we see them all struggle and work together to prepare for winter. Tears are shed, anger is expressed, and love is shared. There are some funny moments as well as some enlightening. But the show really makes it's point after the families go home.

The Brooks': They were married on the frontier, but before the show they lived together in Boston and were sharp young people with a good future ahead of them. After leaving the frontier, they are found in Mexico, just drifting through their honeymoon. They state they have been 'gypsies' since their return. Driving from place to place. Sure modern society holds so many more opportunities for them than the frontier did, but they still don't know what they are going to do with their lives.

The Clunes: They return to find the mansion that was under construction when they left completed. Only, there are so many rooms unused, it seems like a waste. In fact, it all seems like a waste at times.

The Glenns: The family with marital problems separates upon their return home. The wife turns to the church, while one of her children becomes addicted to video games, a habit that was not in place before the frontier. The father has moved into an apartment in Nashville, and hides there from the world. You can tell he misses the frontier. He says that the 21st century is so empty and hollow, they need to have support groups for victims of the 21st century. Upon further research, I discovered he moved back to Montana.

So we were conned. Here we thought we were watching an intelligent reality show about people seeing what life was like during another time period. But what they found was that the society we live in now is empty. Sure we have unlimited possibilities, and everything is instant. But is that the route we should be taking?

This show is what reality television is all about. You take a real family and place them in a "real" situation to work in and out of. This show is nothing like the reality competitions you see on prime time television. This show isn't about winning or losing it's about interaction and life--what people are REALLY like. This is a wonderful show especially for families. To me, this is much more entertaining than "Survivor", "Fear Factor", or the "Bachelor". These shows are just exploitive in nature. Frontier House is wholesome and real. PBS has also come out with a line of several other shows such as 1940's house, which are worth checking out.