# What I've learned about American every day life from tv and movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 12, 2012, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532 "2012-09-12T19:10:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/61 "2012-09-13T15:54:37Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > Aha, _two_ effeminate nerds on the same network! Well, the shows are produced by the same person (Chuck Lorre). I don’t know what that says about him though. ---
**Author:** ![Rubixcube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Rubixcube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubixcube)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/62 "2012-09-13T16:03:28Z")
A few interesting facts courtesy of daytime television. 1. Everyone has a lookalike, normally some form of evil twin, who will show up to cause all sorts of chaos and hijinks. 2. Plastic surgery can change your entire appearance seamlessly. 3. It’s essentially impossible to remain in a monogamous relationship for more than a few years without cheating or divorce happening by both partners multiple times over. 4. If you raped somebody in the 80’s it just means that you’re destined to be together forever. 5. Everyone in town has been accused of and is likely guilty of at least one murder. 6. Regardless how over the top and thorough your death was, regardless of the fact that you had an open casket wake that the whole town attended, regardless of how long you’ve been buried, and regardless of the fact that you’ve reappeared as a ghost, you _will_ come back to life eventually. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/63 "2012-09-13T16:10:23Z")
> [@Kimballkid](#): > > Must not be a lot of single story ranch-style homes where you live. Or mobile homes either for that matter. I also know of a lot of older homes that have the front door opening directly into the living room. Both my grandmother’s houses were like that. I’ve seen a lot of houses like that in the US, but also many which weren’t. But on TV and movies, it’s either that, the White House, or Huge Southern Mansion (with double staircases in the hall). Older movies may have a Huge double-staircased Mansion which is not in the South. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/64 "2012-09-13T16:10:25Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > American homes have no entry halls, you step directly into the living room from the street. > [@Kimballkid](#): > > Must not be a lot of single story ranch-style homes where you live. Or mobile homes either for that matter. I also know of a lot of older homes that have the front door opening directly into the living room. Both my grandmother’s houses were like that. Yes, this one is entirely accurate, of some American homes (including the house I grew up in, but not of the Simpsons’ house). ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/65 "2012-09-13T16:11:29Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Elementary schools have fully enclosed corridors, and each student from first-grade up has their own full-size metal locker. > > School assemblies are impromptu affairs which require no advance notice or reworking of class schedules, and are often held without any students or faculty knowing ahead of time what the assembly is about. The only forewarning of an assembly is an announcement by the principal over the PA, which all schools have. > > All students eat school lunch in the indoor cafeteria. These are sort of true IMO. The school corridors were fully enclosed, rooms on both sides (what’s the alternative, outdoor entrances to each classroom like a motel?) We had lockers from about grade 5 and up. The _students_ often had no idea of assemblies, it was a surprise at times. Most everyone ate inside, there was only one school I attended that had a courtyard outside the cafeteria. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/66 "2012-09-13T16:14:12Z")
Married couples always fight about family, the home, or sex - never money. No wife gets along with her mother-in-law. The American South comprises: rural backwoods communities full of odd, possibly savage rednecks who make moonshine, hunt alligators, or catch fish with their hands; Small, pretty towns full of antebellum homes, where women still wear hoop skirts and everybody is Baptist. These towns all have a courthouse in a central square and no black residents; And Atlanta. Which is where all black Southerners live. There are no Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists or Catholics in the South. And English is the only language used, ever. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/67 "2012-09-13T16:19:33Z")
“Canada” is an imaginary place consisting of moose and syrup. “The Midwest” does not exist even in the imagination. ---
**Author:** ![Rich\_G7subs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85e7bf/32.png) [@Rich\_G7subs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rich_G7subs)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/68 "2012-09-13T16:48:07Z")
EVERY American family consists of: 1. A bumbling idiot of a father/husband 2. A loud Obnoxious Mother/Wife who whines and complains non stop 3. A wisecracking Preteen daughter who has no respect for the parents 4. A slacker son that always finds elaborate ways to get himself in trouble “Oh no, I have 2 dates to the Prom!” Hilarity ensues. 5. Grandparents that hate each other and should have divorced 30 years ago. Oh crap, this might actually be TRUE. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/69 "2012-09-13T18:10:20Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > American homes have no entry halls, you step directly into the living room from the street. > [@Kimballkid](#): > > Must not be a lot of single story ranch-style homes where you live. Or mobile homes either for that matter. I also know of a lot of older homes that have the front door opening directly into the living room. Both my grandmother’s houses were like that. Our house, built in 1890, originally had an entry hall, but the wall separating it from the living room has been removed. ---
**Author:** ![Rubixcube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Rubixcube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubixcube)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/70 "2012-09-13T18:25:13Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > (what’s the alternative, outdoor entrances to each classroom like a motel?) Actually yes. The few (three that I’ve actually been on the campus of) Elementary schools I’ve seen were divided into buildings with doors on the outside leading directly to the actual classrooms. Now I have no idea whether this is common or not but it is the case here. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/71 "2012-09-13T18:53:47Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > “Canada” is an imaginary place consisting of moose and syrup. No, this part is actually true. I have driven across the supposed “border” into the mythical Canada and all I found were more 'mericans who were paying too much for beer. I don’t think Canada is a real place. It’s an idea, Lake Wobegon, only colder. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/72 "2012-09-13T19:18:13Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > American homes have no entry halls, you step directly into the living room from the street. > [@Kimballkid](#): > > Must not be a lot of single story ranch-style homes where you live. Or mobile homes either for that matter. I also know of a lot of older homes that have the front door opening directly into the living room. Both my grandmother’s houses were like that. Yup, the ranch-style house I grew up in was like that. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/73 "2012-09-13T19:20:12Z")
> [@Rubixcube](#): > > Actually yes. The few (three that I’ve actually been on the campus of) Elementary schools I’ve seen were divided into buildings with doors on the outside leading directly to the actual classrooms. Now I have no idea whether this is common or not but it is the case here. Weird. Every school I’ve attended or visited had the doors to the classrooms on the inside. ---
**Author:** ![Sister\_Vigilante](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Sister\_Vigilante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sister_Vigilante)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/74 "2012-09-13T19:39:13Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > Married couples always fight about family, the home, or sex - never money. > > No wife gets along with her mother-in-law. > > The American South comprises: rural backwoods communities full of odd, possibly savage rednecks who make moonshine, hunt alligators, or catch fish with their hands; > > Small, pretty towns full of antebellum homes, where women still wear hoop skirts and everybody is Baptist. These towns all have a courthouse in a central square and no black residents; > > And Atlanta. Which is where all black Southerners live. > > There are no Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists or Catholics in the South. And English is the only language used, ever. And the Atlanta Highway is a dirt road, not a [4-lane highway](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Atlanta+Highway,+Athens,+GA&hl=en&ll=33.934957,-83.450089&spn=0.047925,0.104628&sll=32.678125,-83.178297&sspn=6.221485,13.392334&oq=atlanta+highway,+athens&hnear=Atlanta+Hwy,+Athens,+Georgia&t=m&z=14&layer=c&cbll=33.939244,-83.45527&panoid=_XB3oouTIuvdaHbfmKl-sg&cbp=12,84.9,,0,0). In my ranch home growing up, the technical front door led directly into the living room. But we used the carport door, which technically led into the kitchen, but if you took one step to the right, you were in the living room. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/75 "2012-09-13T19:44:32Z")
When the world is about to end, the US President is a black man with a deep voice\*. \*This is no kind of rigorous survey ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/76 "2012-09-13T20:26:26Z")
> [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > When the world is about to end, the US President is a black man with a deep voice\*. That’s Allstate. ---
**Author:** ![Abortion\_Fanatic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/76d3ee/32.png) [@Abortion\_Fanatic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abortion_Fanatic)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/77 "2012-09-13T21:01:26Z")
> [@Rubixcube](#): > > A few interesting facts courtesy of daytime television. > > 1. Everyone has a lookalike, normally some form of evil twin, who will show up to cause all sorts of chaos and hijinks. > > 2. Plastic surgery can change your entire appearance seamlessly. > > 3. It’s essentially impossible to remain in a monogamous relationship for more than a few years without cheating or divorce happening by both partners multiple times over. > > 4. If you raped somebody in the 80’s it just means that you’re destined to be together forever. > > 5. Everyone in town has been accused of and is likely guilty of at least one murder. > > 6. Regardless how over the top and thorough your death was, regardless of the fact that you had an open casket wake that the whole town attended, regardless of how long you’ve been buried, and regardless of the fact that you’ve reappeared as a ghost, you _will_ come back to life eventually. 1. All doctors, lawyers, and high power business people have endless amounts of free time in the afternoon. ---
**Author:** ![SecretaryofEvil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SecretaryofEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecretaryofEvil)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/78 "2012-09-13T21:08:38Z")
> [@Rubixcube](#): > > Actually yes. The few (three that I’ve actually been on the campus of) Elementary schools I’ve seen were divided into buildings with doors on the outside leading directly to the actual classrooms. Now I have no idea whether this is common or not but it is the case here. I’ve never seen a school like that. Where’s “here?” ---
**Author:** ![SecretaryofEvil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SecretaryofEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecretaryofEvil)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/79 "2012-09-13T21:11:04Z")
Everyone always sleeps with a comforter or heavy blanket, even if it’s in Southern California during the summer. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532/80 "2012-09-13T21:11:13Z")
95% of Americans live in New York City or Los Angeles. Most of the rest of the U.S. (except for NYC and LA) looks an awful lot like Vancouver, British Columbia. (And even some parts of NYC and LA apparently look like Vancouver.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ive-learned-about-american-every-day-life-from-tv-and-movies/634532.md?page=5)