Two decades ago there was a television show that detailed the life of the rich-but-loveable Ricky Stratton.

“Silver Spoons” aired with the idea that being rich doesn’t necessarily mean being happy. But how can you be unhappy when you have a train going through your house and a bed frame in the shape of a race car?

Darn rich brats. Before Ricky Schroeder became an “NYPD Blue” detective, he was pulled from military school and “forced” to live with his spoiled father. Ricky is paired off with two buddies, Alfonso and Derek. Derek was played by the lead actor in “Teen Wolf Too,” Justin Bateman, and Alfonso was played by actor Alfonso Ribeiro. You may remember him as Carlton on “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.”

The three musketeers of upper-class mayhem pulled off pranks and antics that had Edward Stratton III pulling out his hair. The young Ricky Stratton comes to grips with his lot in life as a sulking rich boy that still deals with teen problems.

“Silver Spoons” is a show that delivered laughs and a message back when sitcoms still addressed topics like teen-age abandonment, divorce, an irresponsible father and what it’s like to have every toy you could possibly want. These are the important issues in the greed of the ’80s.

“Silver Spoons” introduced some other stars while highlighting the decade’s finest stars. Cameos on the show came as often as the mail and trouble always showed up with each and every harebrained scheme Ricky and his buddies could devise.

The show ran for four seasons during prime time on Sunday nights. Families around the country could huddle around their tiny Zenith televisions with poor reception. The popcorn and soda were close at hand as we watched a young boy become a man. Some looked on with envy at the fact that he had arcade games in his living room, which I never saw get played. Why?

And then there were others who looked on with pity as Ricky fought and learned life lessons on his way to becoming a very rich man. It’s nice to know that there was a pot of gold for the boy at the end of his rainbow. Ricky did find that he and his father were two of a kind. They took their time each day and in the end they did find their way, together.