Chapter 777 Spring Festival Gala and New Year Customs
Due to the brilliant success of the Spring Festival Gala for two consecutive years, it has completely changed the habit of staying up late on New Year's Eve in the Republic.
On New Year's Eve in 1985, sitting in front of the TV and watching the Spring Festival Gala has almost become the most anticipated thing for people on this day.
Unfortunately, being brave in innovation does not always mean great success, and even a competent director cannot make every decision correct. Director Huang, who fought against all opinions to bring the sketch "Eating Noodles" to the audience, single-handedly invited compatriots from Hong Kong and Macao to the Spring Festival Gala stage, and single-handedly contributed to the birth of the classic theme "Unforgettable Tonight", this time he really It’s fun………………
To be honest, from the very beginning of the Spring Festival Gala, the effect on the TV screen was not satisfactory.
If nothing else, Zhao Zhongxiang, who introduced the situation in a rich voice, made people uncomfortable when he appeared.
According to Director Huang’s original idea, there were many spectators in the stadium, so the atmosphere at the venue should be particularly warm and cheerful.
But in fact, the audience is far away from the stage, and the light contrast is large, so the entire stadium environment is dark, which makes the scene look dull and devoid of joy.
In addition, no one expected that there would be a major mistake in the first official program.
According to the program list, the first place on the list is the Peking Opera "One Hundred Monkeys Welcome the Spring" performed by the National Peking Opera Company.
Speaking of which, it would have been puzzling to start the Year of the Ox with a group of monkeys.
But who would have thought that right in the camera lens, the protagonist of this drama, Sun Dasheng, who was flying on a rail, actually collided with the railing!
Looking at the tragic accident where the Great Sage was knocked over by the railing, it was really a scene that made everyone laugh and feel a little embarrassed.
I don’t know how many people sighed in front of the TV!
Fortunately it's not a real person, just a prop. Otherwise, how could this show go on if people were killed?
And that’s pretty good.
If this scene can still make everyone understand, it is also somewhat amusing.
Then when the instrumental music played "Chime Music", it suddenly turned into a creepy and disgusting one.
Because of performances in large venues, the lighting requirements are relatively high.
However, China Television at that time had never conducted such large-scale cultural activities. It was accustomed to the requirements of indoor environment but could not adapt to outdoor environment and underestimated the lighting effects.
As a result, the actors in ancient costumes began to play music, just like a bunch of ghosts and snake gods from the underworld, with a ghostly atmosphere.
In other words, no matter how you look at it, it feels like the scene of doing nothing in the past.
So by now, the elderly group is the first to be unable to bear it.
How many elderly men and women were frowning or shaking their heads in front of the TV screen.
What's worse is that they curse, turn around and walk away in frustration, no longer being stimulated by this.
As a result, many families who watched the Spring Festival Gala experienced audience attrition in varying degrees.
But the failure of the party did not stop there.
You know, the song "The Great Wall Will Never Fall" is the theme song of the hit TV series "Fearless" and is highly anticipated by everyone.
But for such an important performance, it is puzzling that the Spring Festival Gala does not use the original singer Ye Zhentang, but uses Lu Nianzu to sing the cover.
The immediate feeling of the audience was that they were quite disappointed.
Also, Luo Wen sang the songs "Share Happy Years" and "In My Life", and the response was also mediocre.
This is mainly because "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" was not widely broadcast in mainland China through television stations.
Except for young people and children who love watching videos, few people in the mainland have heard of Luo Wen's "Iron Blood".
Luo Wen is not well-known in the mainland, so the audience will naturally not catch a cold.
Moreover, the contemporary aesthetics in mainland China have not yet reached the point of being “completely in line” with the world, and they really look down upon “monster men” who have become effeminate.
When watching Luo Wen's performance, many viewers inevitably have a question in their minds.
Why did the TV station find such a "Master Rabbit"?
Further down, Huang Ayuan performed on-site fund-raising, national songs, opera singing... one after another without excitement, completely brought the rhythm of the party into a loose and slow state, completely reaching the A drowsy, hypnotic effect.
Since the children were already having fun during the day, most of them fell into dreams when these programs were broadcast.
In addition, there is a major mistake in the programming of this Spring Festival Gala, that is, the number of folk art programs is pitiful.
However, Wang Jingyu’s acrobatic cameo was nothing new, and the product placement for “Jinmen Sportswear Factory” was extremely far-fetched and inferior.
In addition to Ma Lao's "Dale Te Le" in cross talk, there is also Jiang Kun's "Watching TV".
As a result, Mr. Ma’s style is inherently gentle, and it was impossible to see his performance clearly when performing stand-up comedy in such a large venue.
And Li Wenhua was sick again, so Jiang Kun could only partner with others, so the response was obviously not good.
The only praiseworthy highlight of the folk art program that made people feel refreshed and smile from ear to ear was the sketch "Making a Movie".
However, in a performance environment of minus ten degrees Celsius, Chen Peisi, who performed wearing only a vest and a small coat, almost "sacrifice his life" and was sent to an ambulance as soon as the performance was over
There is no doubt that this It is also something that no one wants to see and should never happen.
As for song programs, although there are many, they are still lackluster.
Except for Fang Xinhua's "Little Grass", Dong Wenhua's "Fifteenth Moon", Huang Jinbo's "Descendants of the Dragon", and Wang Mingquan's "The Great Wall Tens of Thousand Miles Long", there are no other high-quality songs. A quality song.
Even the performances of Xi Xiulan and Zhang Mingmin, who were very popular last year, were mediocre...
In short, every household watching the Spring Festival Gala this night was filled with smoke and fire.
It is precisely because the first two Spring Festival Galas have aroused people's "appetite" that most people do not think highly of this performance.
Many families have given up on TV sets even out of disappointment with the program.
In turn, we resumed our old traditions, setting off firecrackers in the streets, chatting and laughing, and passing the time by playing cards and chess.
It is worth mentioning that the mahjong tiles, which had long disappeared in the capital, were officially revived this night.
Most of them were obtained by self-employed people who went to Guangdong to stock goods.
Basically, they are made of low-quality plastic shells in green and white colors, bonded together with low-quality glue, hollow, and filled with sand to increase their weight.
After a few laps, the sheets used as linen blankets are too uncomfortable to sleep on, not just for humans, but even for hedgehogs.
No matter what, it is much more interesting than watching this Spring Festival Gala.
From this perspective, I am afraid that the 1985 Spring Festival Gala played a certain role in promoting the popularity and promotion of mahjong tiles.
At least let this year be the first year that Beijing fully begins to restore the mahjong tradition after liberation.
I don’t know how many families started preaching about mahjong purely because of the boredom of the Spring Festival Gala.
As for Ning Weimin, because he had predicted this in advance, since he had no expectations, there was no need to be disappointed. On this New Year's Eve, he focused all his energy on chatting with the old man, talking about the old days and how people in the past celebrated the New Year.
Probably in the past few months, Ning Weimin has become busy, and the master and apprentice have not been so relaxed together for a long time, and have chatted so close.
The apprentice even stopped watching the Spring Festival Gala on TV and concentrated on chatting with himself. Kang Shude was in a good mood, and he really remembered some past events that he had almost forgotten.
To Ning Weimin, many of them are quite interesting.
For example, the dusk of this last day is still a precious time for many vendors to make money.
According to the old man, in the old capital, the streets were the quietest when New Year’s Eve approached dusk.
The shops closed early and there were almost no people in the alley.
Except for the cold wind blowing the wires on the telephone poles and the dead branches on the trees, there was no sound.
Only when you walk into a large courtyard or a large courtyard can you hear the sound of "ping ping ping pong" chopping dumpling fillings on the chopping board.
It was coming from every home, as if you were getting along with me, just like a prelude to the New Year.
But often at this time, shouts of "Buy water chestnuts! Buy water chestnuts!" will come from the alley.
Due to the quiet surroundings, the sound was particularly clear, with a melodious echo rippling in the wind, and everyone could hear it.
At this time, someone from each household usually walks out of the house and comes to the alley to greet the water chestnut seller.
“Hey, buy some water chestnuts!”
The water chestnut seller does not ask about the quantity at first, but will deliberately ask again. "Are you buying water chestnuts?"
The buyer will say, "Yes, water chestnuts!"
The water chestnut seller will definitely ask again, "Have you prepared all the New Year's goods?"
The adults will happily answer, "All ready! All ready!"
Then they laugh at each other. Smile and nod in greeting, which is considered to be an early New Year greeting.
Water chestnut means "preparation".
At that time, the water chestnut sellers came here specifically to make money.
People who buy water chestnuts are just trying to get good luck from the homophony of water chestnuts.
At that time, the water chestnuts sold by vendors were generally divided into two types: raw water chestnuts and cooked water chestnuts, which were very cheap.
There are also adults who are busy with work and cannot get out, so they ask their children to run out and buy it.
In short, every family must have a few water chestnuts.
For children, of course they don’t understand the meaning of water chestnuts when they are ready, they only know how to eat them.
In that year, there were no fruits in the winter, so water chestnuts were regarded as fruits.
Especially the raw water chestnuts, which are crispy and juicy. It has a lot of flavor when eaten at the end of the year.
In the old man's memory, except for the years when Peiping fell, when New Year's Eve approaches dusk, there must be the sound of water chestnuts being sold in the alleys.
Everyone in Majia Garden, whether the owner or the servant, the owner or the tenant, will abide by the tradition of the capital and always feel that it is auspicious.
Mr. Lan, who is caring for Mr. Song in the hospital, usually boils the water chestnuts he buys in water, adds a little sugar, and then lets Mr. Song’s children eat the water chestnuts and water together. To get rid of the fire.
The old man also said that as he became more and more valued by Mr. Song and got along with Mr. Lan for a long time, the relationship became better and better, and he would also get a share later.
But this is already another function of water chestnuts on New Year’s Eve.
It is practical rather than folk custom, just like taking down the offered fruit and eating it.
It’s still the evening of New Year’s Eve, if the time is a little further back.
It seemed dark but not dark that day. Even if it wasn’t dark, everything looked a bit blurry.
Often you will hear another kind of shouting in the alley, "Old lady, old lady, the God of Wealth is here for you!"
After all the things that should be done and bought during the New Year, I hear some half When the older children carry a dozen paper statues of the God of Wealth under their arms and go door to door to deliver the God of Wealth to people, this is considered the last thing in preparation for the New Year.
If you have invited the God of Wealth, you can reply "I have invited you", but it is taboo to say "No more". If you don’t have one yet, you can take one with a large one.
Children from poor families, as long as they are not afraid of meeting strangers, are sweet-tongued and can talk.
At least I can take advantage of this good opportunity to earn some food for my family for a day or two.
Especially for a large family like the Ma family, they often accept everyone who comes.
Whenever a child comes to the door, the concierge will leave a large statue of the God of Wealth sent by them.
The best thing is that they are delivered outside and in the garden.
Children of the concierge like Li Li, Xiao Zhong and others have always been responsible for "sending the God of Wealth" in the garden.
But if they send it once, it won’t be this number.
Because in Ma's Garden, both the owner and the tenants are all wealthy people, and with at least a dime of banknotes, their income is twenty-five times that of the children outside.
Of course, it is even more impossible for these wealthy people to refuse such auspiciousness. That's Han Xin's order, the more the better.
So since it doesn’t affect their own income, they don’t mind taking Kang Shude along with them.
Especially when they become friends, this is an even more blessed moment.
In fact, if your legs are more diligent, you can run down all the houses and get one or two yuan each.
It's no use even if adults look jealous, because this is a job that adults can't do. It's an exclusive bonus for half-grown adults.
After hearing what the old man said, Ning Weimin suddenly felt something in his heart, as if he had some realization.
I think the annual custom of "giving the God of Wealth a gift" is quite special, and it seems a bit similar to Western Halloween.
The only difference is that foreign kids dress up as monsters and ghosts and intimidate others by making mischief in exchange for some candy.
And our children say good things, give good luck, and exchange for some pocket money.
Can we also see cultural differences and racial advantages and disadvantages from this aspect?
An ancient oriental country like ours with five thousand years of civilization seems to be much kinder after all than the barbaric peoples who have not even lost their body hair.
(End of this chapter)