1950s Essay
There is a reason why the 1950s are so memorable : It is a decade where a huge amount of noteworthy and life-changing events happened. This is the decade that the King, Prince, and the future King of Pop were born. While Elvis Presley was singing “Can’t Help Falling in Love”, Marilyn Monroe was actually falling in love with Joe DiMaggio. The movie Grease is a great representation of life in the 1950s and the wild lifestyle they had. The 1950s was the most influential decade due to the developments in the fields of inventions, entertainment & celebrities, and historical events. Throughout the years, as innovation was improving, a wide variety of useless and important everyday items were created. This was around the time that the television
…show more content…
had started becoming popular, 1954, so naturally TV dinners were created to allow people to eat dinner and not miss a minute of their favorite show. In some cases, dinnertime conversation had been lost in some families and most families spent their nights in front of the television (Lindop 76). As a result of everyone watching TV, many commercials were broadcasted about things that had just been invented and how they can “change your lives”. This is known to be a possible reason for the skyrocketing in the sales of toys such as hula hoops, Mr. Potato Head, and Barbie dolls. Hula hoops first came around in 1958 when two toy makers learned about some gym classes in Australia using bamboo hoops in their workout exercises (Lindop 86). They decided to put a twist on this idea and make it their own, so they began manufacturing plastic rings and called them hula hoops. This invention became a hit rapidly and over 30 million of them were sold in just 6 months (Lindop 86). Unlike the hula hoop, the Barbie doll made its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York in 1959 and was created by Ruth Handler. She named the doll after her daughter, Barbara, because she was the one who inspired her to construct the plastic doll (The Barbie Story). Ruth would always watch Barbara play with her paper dolls and this got Ruth thinking about the idea of a three-dimensional doll. Mr. Potato Head was patented in 1952 and the original toy was actually just pieces that you put onto a real potato (Pillai). This toy became a hit because children were fascinated with the idea of making their food have funny faces. As more and more new and exciting things were being invented, people began to spend more money on them. Thankfully, credit cards were introduced and used throughout the decade to help purchase items. They are pieces of plastic that eliminated the need to carry cash and brought about a new age of shopping and marketing (Pillai). Many of the inventions of the 1950s have improved our lives and made them more enjoyable. As the years dragged on, entertainment adapted and developed with the new technologies and many people became famous as a result.
Televisions were not that dispersed until the 1950s,when manufacturers turned out six to seven million sets a year (Lindop 74). Although the TV did help to spread news and make the public more aware, there were several people who criticized it and claimed they were not important. “Boob tube” and “idiot box” were some of the most common nicknames the critics would call them. Several people even said that “...in the single year of 1954, more people were murdered on TV than the United States lost in the entire Korean War” (Lindop 75). Although, the opinions of all these people did not matter because Americans loved the idea of television and quickly became obsessed with it. In fact, so many people started buying TVs instead of going to the movies and several theaters had to close down because attendance was extremely low (Lindop 75). One of the reasons this technology was so desired was all of the talent that was being presented in movies and programs. Marilyn Monroe was a legendary actress who was also considered to be the sex symbol of the decade. Some films she is known for are Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), Some Like It Hot (1959), and The Seven Year Itch (1955). Everywhere she went, men and women rushed to get a glimpse of her and see all of her beauty. She was married to Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller. Tragically, she died in 1962 because she overdosed on sleeping pills. She did not like the way the public viewed her and all of the fame pushed her to the edge (Rich). Another rising star from the 1950s was James Dean. Even though he died young, he still had a spectacular career. He was only in Hollywood for a year before he died in a car accident, but he did complete three films, Rebel Without a Cause (1955), East of Eden (1955), and Giant (1956). Due to his role in these movies, he was an idol to many teenagers and sort of
represented a younger generation (Rich). Aside from television, there were also many well known singers, one being Frank Sinatra. He won awards for his acting and singing. Some of his famous screen performances are in From Here to Eternity, The Manchurian Candidate, and The Man With the Golden Arm (Rich). Frank died in 1998 being known as a renowned singer and several people today still believe him to be one of the most influential music artists of the 20th century. Along with the invention of TV, many stars were born and it helped to form the basis of entertainment that we have today. During the 1950s, several tragic and/or important events occurred that helped to shape the world we have today. Racial segregation was a very important issue that was being targeted and people worked to put an end to it. This movement started in the government in 1954 when the Supreme Court voted to end segregation between races in schools (Sherman 7). Moreover, this did not account for several of the black adults in the world. In many areas, there would be two seperate places to separate the whites from the blacks. The colored people always got worse treatment and were referred to as three fifths of a person. In 1955, Rosa Parks started the bus boycott in Alabama by not moving when she was ordered by a white male to move to the back of the bus because he wanted the spot. She did not acknowledge the man and continued to sit there (Sherman 7). Later on, she was arrested, but this helped to inspire colored people to fight for their rights. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. also decided to stand up for his rights and lead a fight against prejudice in 1955 (Sherman 7). All of these protests and marches forced the public to pay more attention to this issue and soon people were doing all they could to make things equal. In fact, in 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower declared that black students are allowed to go to the same schools as white kids and should be treated the same. The first school to do this was Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas after being ordered by federal troops to allow their attendance. Racial segregation is nowhere near being eliminated from today’s society, but 1950s was definitely the start of the push towards a more equal nation. Due to so many icons being born in this era (Prince, the future King of Pop, Marilyn Monroe), the 1950s can be credited as incredibly notable and critical in shaping America and the world. The 1950s was a time when America was just getting over the wars and people were beginning to start doing more things. As a result of this level of motivation, many improvements were made to the forms of entertainment, how people were treated, and inventions that enhanced our everyday lives. These attributes are to accredit for why the 1950s was the most influential decade of all.
Works Cited
Lindop, Edmund. America In The 1950s. Brookfield, Connecticut: Twenty-First Century
Books, 2002. Print.
Pillai, Prabhakar. “23 Seriously Useful Inventions of the 1950s You DIdn’t Know About.” buzzle.com Buzzle.com, 8 August 2016. Web. 23 March 2018.
Rich, Michael. “1950s Famous People.” fiftiesweb.com. RichWeb, 2018. Web. 9 March
2018.
Sharman, Margaret. Take Ten Years 1950s. Austin, Texas: Raintree Steck-Vaughn
Publishers, 1993. Print.
The Barbie Story. “The History of Barbie.” barbie.mattel.com Mattel, 2018. Web. 22
March 2018.
had started becoming popular, 1954, so naturally TV dinners were created to allow people to eat dinner and not miss a minute of their favorite show. In some cases, dinnertime conversation had been lost in some families and most families spent their nights in front of the television (Lindop 76). As a result of everyone watching TV, many commercials were broadcasted about things that had just been invented and how they can “change your lives”. This is known to be a possible reason for the skyrocketing in the sales of toys such as hula hoops, Mr. Potato Head, and Barbie dolls. Hula hoops first came around in 1958 when two toy makers learned about some gym classes in Australia using bamboo hoops in their workout exercises (Lindop 86). They decided to put a twist on this idea and make it their own, so they began manufacturing plastic rings and called them hula hoops. This invention became a hit rapidly and over 30 million of them were sold in just 6 months (Lindop 86). Unlike the hula hoop, the Barbie doll made its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York in 1959 and was created by Ruth Handler. She named the doll after her daughter, Barbara, because she was the one who inspired her to construct the plastic doll (The Barbie Story). Ruth would always watch Barbara play with her paper dolls and this got Ruth thinking about the idea of a three-dimensional doll. Mr. Potato Head was patented in 1952 and the original toy was actually just pieces that you put onto a real potato (Pillai). This toy became a hit because children were fascinated with the idea of making their food have funny faces. As more and more new and exciting things were being invented, people began to spend more money on them. Thankfully, credit cards were introduced and used throughout the decade to help purchase items. They are pieces of plastic that eliminated the need to carry cash and brought about a new age of shopping and marketing (Pillai). Many of the inventions of the 1950s have improved our lives and made them more enjoyable. As the years dragged on, entertainment adapted and developed with the new technologies and many people became famous as a result.
Televisions were not that dispersed until the 1950s,when manufacturers turned out six to seven million sets a year (Lindop 74). Although the TV did help to spread news and make the public more aware, there were several people who criticized it and claimed they were not important. “Boob tube” and “idiot box” were some of the most common nicknames the critics would call them. Several people even said that “...in the single year of 1954, more people were murdered on TV than the United States lost in the entire Korean War” (Lindop 75). Although, the opinions of all these people did not matter because Americans loved the idea of television and quickly became obsessed with it. In fact, so many people started buying TVs instead of going to the movies and several theaters had to close down because attendance was extremely low (Lindop 75). One of the reasons this technology was so desired was all of the talent that was being presented in movies and programs. Marilyn Monroe was a legendary actress who was also considered to be the sex symbol of the decade. Some films she is known for are Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), Some Like It Hot (1959), and The Seven Year Itch (1955). Everywhere she went, men and women rushed to get a glimpse of her and see all of her beauty. She was married to Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller. Tragically, she died in 1962 because she overdosed on sleeping pills. She did not like the way the public viewed her and all of the fame pushed her to the edge (Rich). Another rising star from the 1950s was James Dean. Even though he died young, he still had a spectacular career. He was only in Hollywood for a year before he died in a car accident, but he did complete three films, Rebel Without a Cause (1955), East of Eden (1955), and Giant (1956). Due to his role in these movies, he was an idol to many teenagers and sort of
represented a younger generation (Rich). Aside from television, there were also many well known singers, one being Frank Sinatra. He won awards for his acting and singing. Some of his famous screen performances are in From Here to Eternity, The Manchurian Candidate, and The Man With the Golden Arm (Rich). Frank died in 1998 being known as a renowned singer and several people today still believe him to be one of the most influential music artists of the 20th century. Along with the invention of TV, many stars were born and it helped to form the basis of entertainment that we have today. During the 1950s, several tragic and/or important events occurred that helped to shape the world we have today. Racial segregation was a very important issue that was being targeted and people worked to put an end to it. This movement started in the government in 1954 when the Supreme Court voted to end segregation between races in schools (Sherman 7). Moreover, this did not account for several of the black adults in the world. In many areas, there would be two seperate places to separate the whites from the blacks. The colored people always got worse treatment and were referred to as three fifths of a person. In 1955, Rosa Parks started the bus boycott in Alabama by not moving when she was ordered by a white male to move to the back of the bus because he wanted the spot. She did not acknowledge the man and continued to sit there (Sherman 7). Later on, she was arrested, but this helped to inspire colored people to fight for their rights. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. also decided to stand up for his rights and lead a fight against prejudice in 1955 (Sherman 7). All of these protests and marches forced the public to pay more attention to this issue and soon people were doing all they could to make things equal. In fact, in 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower declared that black students are allowed to go to the same schools as white kids and should be treated the same. The first school to do this was Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas after being ordered by federal troops to allow their attendance. Racial segregation is nowhere near being eliminated from today’s society, but 1950s was definitely the start of the push towards a more equal nation. Due to so many icons being born in this era (Prince, the future King of Pop, Marilyn Monroe), the 1950s can be credited as incredibly notable and critical in shaping America and the world. The 1950s was a time when America was just getting over the wars and people were beginning to start doing more things. As a result of this level of motivation, many improvements were made to the forms of entertainment, how people were treated, and inventions that enhanced our everyday lives. These attributes are to accredit for why the 1950s was the most influential decade of all.
Works Cited
Lindop, Edmund. America In The 1950s. Brookfield, Connecticut: Twenty-First Century
Books, 2002. Print.
Pillai, Prabhakar. “23 Seriously Useful Inventions of the 1950s You DIdn’t Know About.” buzzle.com Buzzle.com, 8 August 2016. Web. 23 March 2018.
Rich, Michael. “1950s Famous People.” fiftiesweb.com. RichWeb, 2018. Web. 9 March
2018.
Sharman, Margaret. Take Ten Years 1950s. Austin, Texas: Raintree Steck-Vaughn
Publishers, 1993. Print.
The Barbie Story. “The History of Barbie.” barbie.mattel.com Mattel, 2018. Web. 22
March 2018.