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Tom, I love your story and this thread.
In the late 70's through the early 80's, I would go on house calls with my Uncle.
My Grandpa would go on some as well, and he could be a little "crusty"
3 stories come to mind...
1) Went to this old maids house. Prissy, kinda MEAN old lady. House was spotless and I don't think one thing had been replaced since the day she moved in. She had a 50 or 51 RCA. Picture tube was so dim you could hardly see it. We tried to get her to not put any more money in repairs, but.. she was kinda mean, and would accuse us of ripping her off every time a mention of a new set was brought up. We go out on the call. Set needed a tube, and after the replacement, while the set was running.. the picture tube simply burned out like a light bulb. My uncle muttered an "Oh shit" buttoned up the set and told her it was too old to get parts for. Don't know where she got a new set from, but it wasn't from us.
2) The town vet was well to do, and lived in a cool LARGE mid century house. Sadly his wife had Alzheimer's, and had taken the back off, and wrapped everything in tin-foil (so the people in the set couldn't spy on her) and managed to blow up the set in the process. That set was a tubed Zenith color
3) We had a weirder than weird family that was Catholic to the extreme. I'm talking statues all over the house and the goriest life size crucifix bolted to the wall behind the TV. I remember grandpa imitating the pose and I couldn't stop laughing. On the way home.. in all seriousness he said "Why the hell would you want that behind a brand new Zenith?"
There were many house calls in that era when you would pull the set out, only to discover "kitty" liked to go behind it to poop on the shag..... YUCK!
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