It was perhaps a more altruistic time, or maybe one that just relied on telvision more. The era of after-school specials, from 1972 to 1997, was a time when these shows caused so many awkward moments at the dinner-table, but admittedly were also the teacher of life lessons mom and/or dad were too uncomfortable in sharing.

It also worked the other way around, too, like when parents were confused as to why their kid suddenly became a punk. So, from the 1987-'88 season of the ABC Afterschool Special, comes this photo. See a full version below.

"What do you do when your bright, loveable, talented kid turns into a punker overnight? The Nelsons are about to find out."

This sounds like the tagline to a horror movie more than anything, but hopefully the result was junior bringing home a few joints and perhaps a Poison Idea records for dad -- he looks pretty square.