Kids Say the Darndest Things

Yesterday I received an e-mail from my favorite neighbor Sandy Mitchell telling me to go to the enclosed web site (http://carolynspreciousmemories.com/Videos/artlinkletterkidsntribute.html) and watch the little kid on the left of Tennessee Ernie Ford. “He’s so cute!” The site was wrapped in doilies and was led by a old kinescope of Ernie singing a song surrounded by kids. 

As he sang, one of the kids really got into the rhythm and he truly was really cute.

However, below that “video” were three from the late Art Linkletter’s show, “The Kids Say the Darndest Thing.” In one, Linkletter introduced the segment by saying the kids are all between the ages of 6-9 and “I follow two rules: 1- I don’t tell them what to say because they can say things much funnier than I can tell them. And, 2- I don’t tell them what not to say because they are innocent and whatever they say would never embarrass me.” Not surprisingly, they were sometimes funny, sometimes embarrassing, but always entertaining.

I’ll not spoil your viewing by picking my favorites, but below are a few I remember from long ago watching Art Linkletter and listening to my own kids. He had a wonderful rapport with the kids, much like Bill Cosby when he reprised the show years later after it had gone off the air - remember his Jello commercials..

From memory and I don’t remember the specific questions asked, but they are fairly obvious.

“Well, I guess that’s the last we’ll see of her...”

“Big boys sleep alone and three-year-olds are too big to sleep with me.”

“Superman sleeps by himself.”

“Daddy, Daddy! Mommy didn’t sleep with anyone while you were gone.”

“Dad, did they get their money by genetics or did they earn it?”

I think the reason that stories about children are always popular is the fact that, for the most part, they’re always honest.

Children hug when they feel like hugging and kiss only when they want to express emotion. The things that make them the greatest gift, however, is the fact that they never say they love you unless they mean it.

You know, growing up is not all its cracked-up to be.