Exercise: Using Reference

The 50’s

The end of World War II brought thousands of young servicemen back to America to pick up their lives and start new families in new homes with new jobs. With an energy never before experienced, industry expanded to meet peacetime needs. People began buying goods not available during the war, which created corporate expansion and jobs. The baby boom was underway...

Fifties clothing was conservative but rapidly changing. French fashion designers such as Dior, Chanel and Givenchy were popular. They introduced glamour to womens clothing with new fabrics, textures, colour and style. Hollywood stars such as Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly became icons for this period.

Men wore gray flannel suits and women wore dresses with pinched in waists and high heels. It was also the introduction of glamour with women wearing gloves and accessories like brooches and flower corsage. One unexpected facial accessory of 50s was spectacles. Frequently these were inlaid with diamante or scattered glitter dust. The exaggerated wings at the outer corners flared in the style of butterfly wings.

 

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Fashion in the fifties may seem odd now, but this was a period when revealing swimsuits had just made an appearance on the scene. Stretch fabrics and strapless swimwear became very popular. Two-piece bikinis were considered to be wearable only by the Hollywood stars because they were so risque. Women would also make it a point to wear bathing caps so that their hair would be protected while swimming. 

Until 1950 the term teenagers had never before been coined. These single young people with cash from paid work soon had their own fashions, own music, own cafes, and by the end of the decade even their own transport in the form of hot rods in the states and scooters in Europe. Teenagers suddenly dominated style in clothes, haircuts and even traveled abroad. A generation gap began to emerge between parents and teen offspring. It seemed almost unholy at the time and was viewed as rebellious, but compared to later anti-fashion and anarchic movements it was all rather innocent. 

For teens in the States, fashion successes were blue jeans, poodle skirts made of felt and decorated with sequins and poodle appliques, pony tails for girls, and flat tops and crew cuts for guys. Saddle shoes and blue suede loafers were popular. 

In the UK the main looks for teenagers were greasers and preppies. Greasers followed the standard black leather and denim jeans look set by Marlon Brando in "The Wild One". They raced about town on motorbikes and were consider outrageous while the preppies qualities were neatness, tidiness and gooming.

The UK Teddy Boy was an important look in fashion history of the 1950s. Teddy Boys sported the "Drape" a long knee length, single breasted wool jacket with narrow contrasting lapels and cuffs either of velvet or satin. They wore narrow drainpipe trousers, brocade waistcoats, stiff shirts and shoestring ties topped off with suede shoes. Teds also wore crepe soled shoes which helped with the dance movements of jiving. 

Cars were seen as an indicator of prosperity and cool-ness. The 1950s cars became lower, longer, and wider. The early 1950s saw the rise of chrome on cars, as an increasingly opulent society flourished and Drive-in movies became popular for families and teens.

Rock and roll is the first type of music to come to most people's minds in the 50’s. Developed from a blend of Southern blues and gospel music , this type of music was popular with teenagers who were trying to break out of the mainstream, conservative, American middle class mold. Popular artists such as Bill Haley, Elvis Presley, and Jerry Lee Lewis were promoted on radio by just as popular DJ’s. The influence of these early rockers has been felt in popular music worldwide. 

TV was perhaps the most far reaching change in communications worldwide. During the 1950s, television became the dominant mass media as people brought television into their homes in greater numbers of hours per week than ever before. In the early fifties, the number of hours young people watched TV steadily increased, a trend which has not changed greatly since that time. What was portrayed on television became accepted as normal. People began to accept what was heard and seen on television because they were "eye witnesses" to events as never before. The affect on print news media and entertainment media was felt in lower attendance at movies and greater reliance on TV news sources for information. 

But then, in 1954, black and white broadcasts became color broadcasts. Shows called "sitcoms "like The Honeymooners, Lassie, Father Knows Best, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet , and I Love Lucy featured popular characters whose lives thousands of viewers watched and copied. Families enjoyed variety shows like Disneyland and The Ed Sullivan Show on Sunday evenings.

News broadcasting changed from newsmen simply reading the news to shows which included videotaped pictures of events which had occurred anywhere in the world, and then to more and more live broadcasts of events happening at the time of viewing. This was made possible in 1951 with the development of coaxial cable and microwave relays coast to coast.

Families worked together, played together and vacationed together at family themed entertainment areas like national parks and the new Disneyland. Gender roles were strongly held, girls played with Barbie dolls and playing with girlie toys. Boys identified with Roy Rogers and Davy Crockett and were seen to be more adventurous.

Activities we liked were watching and dancing to Dick Clark's American Bandstand. Fad hits with kids were toys like hula hoops and Hopalong Cassidy guns and western gear, Davy Crockett coon skin hats and silly putty.