[Most??] moving lines of acceptance or tolerance?

[MikeKardec]

heavy handed was good.

Some of that heavy handedness was also just the requirements of the 1 hour (really 43-45 minute once you subtract ads) format. There's a limited amount of subtlety you can manage in that time. I'm always amazed at what "anthology shows" like Alfred Hitchcock Presents or Twilight Zone were able to do in their VERY limited format ... and they were introducing all new characters each episode!

It was also an era when TV was still climbing out of radio and there was some insecurity about simply showing certain things ... that or they expected much of their audience to be fixing dinner or doing something else as they "watched."