"The end of an era..."

Say it ain't so, again... Tonight watched Mary Hart's final show at Entertainment Tonight. She started 29 years ago in 1982. 29 years.... And she looks much younger than her 60 years, so I'm not sure why she's decided to leave the show, which seems to have been a pretty sweet deal interviewing celebrities. But maybe she's tired of it. Or maybe they told her she needed to quit or be fired due to her age? Maybe she wants to do something new, although that's hard to imagine.

All I know is that my entire adulthood Mary Hart has been on TV. We've had dinner together all these weeknights. As I fed my babies, or got home from work, she was there with her smiling face. Her ever smiling face. Yes, they've replaced her with a younger model, but it's not the same. It's not Mary. She has been the consummate professional. She has had dignity and class. She's just someone I would want to be friends with; positive and personable.

Like all goodbyes, I wish her well. But I'm not sad for her; she will be okay. It's me I'm feeling sorry for. It's the end of an era. Seems to be a lot of those lately... Oprah's last show will be next week. And Katie Couric left CBS, although I don't really care for her style. The Baby Boomers are starting to pass the baton and I don't like it. I know it's a part of getting older, but I don't like that either. The next generation just doesn't seem to want to make a difference for the most part. They just seem to want to be at the top, but not willing to work for it. They just don't have the soul of my generation....

Next Monday at dinner time, I will turn on Entertainment Tonight and will watch her replacement. And I'll still hear the entertainment news. And life will go on.

But it just won't be the same...