1950s in a Nutshell

Brad AdamsLindsey StewartVirginia St. Clair

Melissa McCarthy

Thomas B. Hess 1920-1978

By Elaine de Kooning (1918-1989)Oil on board, 1956National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.

I Love Lucy: top situation comedy of the 50s Episodic series

Gunsmoke (1955-75) Dragnet (1951-59)

The drama Twilight Zone (1959-64) Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955-65)

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Leave It To Beaver

BY 1958 THERE WERE MORE THAN 5,000 DRIVE IN THEATRES IN THE UNITED STATES FOR ENTERTAINMENT, WHICH LET COUPLES AND FAMILIES ENJOY MOVIES TOGETHER

OUTSIDE OF THE HOME.

More than 45,000 deaths occurred before the invention of polio by 1962 the number dropped to 910 cases in the United States.

The Korean War was a conflict precipitated when the Soviet supported North Korean Army invaded neighboring South Korea on June 25th

1950. The main hostilities were during the period from June 25th 1950 until the agreement

was signed July 27th 1953.A FEW FACTS ABOUT "THE FORGOTTEN WAR"

•33,741 US Dead•23,615 Killed In Action•92,134 US Wounded•4,820 US Missing In Action (Declared Dead) 7,245 Prisoners Of War•2,847 Died in POW Camp•389 POWs known to have been alive after all U.S. POWs supposedly returned

• By 1950 people generally recognized that the nation's economy—the financial performance of its businesses—affects every American personally. The security of our jobs and how much we earn doing them, the cost of the goods we buy, the price we pay to borrow money, and the interest we get by saving it are all directly related to the health of the economy. During the 1950s the American economy was the strongest in the world.

The First US Plastic…

In 1950, Diners Club and American Express launched their charge cards in the USA, the first 'plastic money'. In 1951, Diners Club issued the first credit card to 200 customers who could use it at 27 restaurants in New York.---

Why Important?

• Clearly big business reigned supreme in the United States. In 1951 AT&T became the first American corporation to have one million stock-holders.

Small Successes….Despite the dominance of big business in American industry (General Motors was the largest company in the world, Bank of America the largest financial institution), the 1950s also witnessed a boom in small businesses, many of which became well known. Companies such as Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream, McDonald's, Church's...

• American farmers continued to dwindle in number during the decade. In 1950 the farm population of 23 million stood at slightly more than 15 percent of the total population. Ten years later only 15.6 million farmers remained, constituting 8.7 percent of the total population. The American farmers of the 1950s did not necessarily resemble the gentleman farmers of Thomas Jefferson's day: they had become specialized and mechanized "agri-businessmen.

Importance of the Decline of FarmingWhat would they do for jobs?!?!?

Farming in the 1950s and 60s had serious challenges, and millions of farmers left for jobs in town or the city.

The "television industry" actually comprised two industries: one that manufactured television receiver sets, and one that manufactured the shows that people watched. Both of these industries developed quickly in the years after World War II, and both were thriving by the middle of the 1950s. The percentage of American homes with television sets rose dramatically throughout the decade, from slightly less than 20 percent in 1950 to nearly 90 percent in 1960. By then few aspects of American life remained untouched by the new medium.

Why Important?

ENTERTAINMENT!

“Lord of The Flies “By William Golding- 1954

“Fahrenheit 451 “By Ray Bradbury- 1953

“Live and Let Die”- 1954By Ian Fleming

“From Russia with Love”- 1957By Ian Fleming

“Doctor No”- 1958By Ian Fleming

These readings were important because some of them were later made into James Bond movies.

Patient under anaesthesia

In the 1950's the first safer, non-volatile anesthetic halothane was developed through studies on rodents, rabbits, dogs, cats and monkeys. This was important because it paved the way for a whole new generation of modern general anesthetics.

Tennesse WilliamsAmerica’s Greatest Playwright

He was important because his plays were made into motion pictures which helped the

entertainment business.

Retro HousewifeKristin TollotsonNothing can keep the 1950’s housewife down.

Political Leaders of the 1950s

Dwight David Eisenhower was elected President of the United States of America in 1952.

President Eisenhower

Richard Milhous Nixon was the Vice President during Eisenhower’s administration.

Vice President Nixon

Senator Joseph McCarthy launches a crusade to rout out communism in America. "McCarthyism" is born in February of 1950.

Eisenhower was an important political figure to members of the United States because he was our Commander and Chief.

As the Vice President Nixon was important during this time and he later became president.

McCarthy was important because of “McCarthyism”.

President Dwight David Eisenhower

This is an important viewpoint from the leader of the United States during the 1950s.

The Hula - hoop was noted to be a fad of the 1950s.

In 1955 children and adults were excited about purchasing merchandise related to Walt Disney’s television series “Davy Crockett”.

Davy Crockett

1950's Patterns by McCall's, Butterick, Simplicity and Vogue

The Second World War left women craving for glamour which they were able to recreate themselves.  Dressmaking Pattern manufacturers such as Butterick, McCall's, Simplicity, Vogue along with magazines such as Woman, Woman's Own and Woman's Weekly all responded by creating stylish dress patterns.

Popular TV shows that we still enjoy reruns of today became popular, Leave It To Beaver, I Love Lucy, etc.The Hula-Hoop and Drive in Movies were also popular.

Anesthesia was developed and it paved the way for modern general anesthetics.