Culture during the 1950's, 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's was always changing. Below is a guide to the times, and how the culture was then.
1950's: This was a great cultural time, fast food, suburbs, the baby boom, cars, and hotels were all being created. Post war veterans were coming in and reuniting with their wives, or getting married. They then had kids, known as the baby boom. 76 million baby were born between 1946 and 1964! These new families needed a place to live so suburbs were created by William Levitt. He applied the Henry Ford assembly line to building houses and could build 36 houses in one day!! Those families now have houses but with this new culture and the new roads that Congress was building, they need to get away for a vacations. General Motors had cars booming and then the McDonald brothers built their major fast food restaurant for families to eat in while they are on the road, but where would they stay? Kemmons Wilson created his hotels, the Holiday Inns, to house those vacationers. Meanwhile, Elvis Presley was bringing the black style of rock'n'roll to whites, with his hits such as Jailhouse Rock and Hound Dog.
Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley was a major influence of youth culture in the time period. Known as the 'King of Rock 'n' Roll', he became one of the most famous musicians of all time. Elvis helped mix the crooning vocals of R&B, a style developing among African-Americans, and the music at the roots of rock and roll, such as country, into a new and original sound. At the time, he was one of the most controversial musicians, for his shaking hips, new "edgier" sound, and the influence he had upon society. He is still known to this day as a rock an roll icon. Elvis wasn't just good at singing, he also good at acting, making a few movies, changing culture and talking the world by storm. But when Uncle Sam Called, Elvis came running. Elvis was drafted by the US army. On March 24, 1958 Elvis started basic training in Fort Hood, Texas. Then on September 17, 1958 he was sent to Friedberg, Germany with the Third Armored Division for his one and a half year stint in the army. Elvis hoped that people would see him as a soldier who was just fighting to protect his country, but that was hard for people. Elvis then donated all of his earnings in the war to charity and bought TV's for the base. But once he got back to the United States he was the same man he had been before he left, lightening up the spirits of those who were down and entertaining fans from all over the country.
1960's:Culture had changed. New culture was forming. It was called "Counter-culture" because it countered most of the normal culture. Young people liked it but it was dangerous. The Vietnam war was in full swing but many were protesting. These protesters wanted peace and they became known as "hippies". The Vietnam war was also bringing in new fashionable things to the United States such as drugs.
The Beatles, the most popular singers of their time
Bob Dylan was very influential with his anti-war songs
Many actors and singers would die from drug overdose including Elvis. New music was forming, and after Elvis came a long line of great singers starting off with the Beatles. Everyone seemed love their music and they were the most popular singers of the time period. They were backed by many other great singers such as Bob Dylan, Billie Holiday, and Aretha Franklin. These singers were all found by a descendant of Cornelius Vanderbilt the famous railroad company owner back at the beginning of the century. His name was John Henry Hammond Sr. and he liked rock'n'roll a lot. He had enough money to go around and choose some extraordinary singers to get large record deals. He also showed a lot of bravery when he chose Billie Holiday, who was black and a woman. These singers, especially Bob Dylan were against the war and for civil rights which made the counter-culture ever stronger.
Some hippies, which was a very popular style of the time period.
1970's: At home jobs were becoming more and more common. People were moving out of the city and the suburbs were being expanded. These new cities were called edge cities. These edge cities had everything anyone would need to live. Supermarkets, shopping malls.
1980's: This was a quiet decade when business was changing. Government and Unions weren't doing as well because people thought they were not to solve social problems. "Yuppies" (young urban professionals) were setting trends and ignoring old ideas. Computers that had been developed in the late 70's were becoming more and more common. This was the information age and everyone needed an education to get by. Both parents were working more often than not. Television was becoming the monster it will become. On average a person was watching 30 hours of TV in a week. Politics now took large amounts of money to run commercials on the tube.
1990's:This was a time of turmoil in youth culture. The new 'grunge' scene erupted, based in Seattle and lead by Kurt Cobain. There also was a spike in school shootings and when it was made illegal to bring guns to school, 6,000 kids were expelled from school. Many parents and officials blamed violence on video games, which were appearing in about this time. They thought the kids wanted to emulate the video games and the violence they held. People were scared, and the media was projecting it more than ever. There was also a spike in personal computer and internet use, and that helped the economy boom.
Cultures of the Time Period
Culture during the 1950's, 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's was always changing. Below is a guide to the times, and how the culture was then.
1950's: This was a great cultural time, fast food, suburbs, the baby boom, cars, and hotels were all being created. Post war veterans were coming in and reuniting with their wives, or getting married. They then had kids, known as the baby boom. 76 million baby were born between 1946 and 1964! These new families needed a place to live so suburbs were created by William Levitt. He applied the Henry Ford assembly line to building houses and could build 36 houses in one day!! Those families now have houses but with this new culture and the new roads that Congress was building, they need to get away for a vacations. General Motors had cars booming and then the McDonald brothers built their major fast food restaurant for families to eat in while they are on the road, but where would they stay? Kemmons Wilson created his hotels, the Holiday Inns, to house those vacationers. Meanwhile, Elvis Presley was bringing the black style of rock'n'roll to whites, with his hits such as Jailhouse Rock and Hound Dog.
Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley was a major influence of youth culture in the time period. Known as the 'King of Rock 'n' Roll', he became one of the mostfamous musicians of all time. Elvis helped mix the crooning vocals of R&B, a style developing among African-Americans, and the music at the roots of rock and roll, such as country, into a new and original sound. At the time, he was one of the most controversial musicians, for his shaking hips, new "edgier" sound, and the influence he had upon society. He is still known to this day as a rock an roll icon. Elvis wasn't just good at singing, he also good at acting, making a few movies, changing culture and talking the world by storm. But when Uncle Sam Called, Elvis came running. Elvis was drafted by the US army. On March 24, 1958 Elvis started basic training in Fort Hood, Texas. Then on September 17, 1958 he was sent to Friedberg, Germany with the Third Armored Division for his one and a half year stint in the army. Elvis hoped that people would see him as a soldier who was just fighting to protect his country, but that was hard for people. Elvis then donated all of his earnings in the war to charity and bought TV's for the base. But once he got back to the United States he was the same man he had been before he left, lightening up the spirits of those who were down and entertaining fans from all over the country.
1960's: Culture had changed. New culture was forming. It was called "Counter-culture" because it countered most of the normal culture. Young people liked it but it was dangerous. The Vietnam war was in full swing but many were protesting. These protesters wanted peace and they became known as "hippies". The Vietnam war was also bringing in new fashionable things to the United States such as drugs.
Many actors and singers would die from drug overdose including Elvis. New music was forming, and after Elvis came a long line of great singers starting off with the Beatles. Everyone seemed love their music and they were the most popular singers of the time period. They were backed by many other great singers such as Bob Dylan, Billie Holiday, and Aretha Franklin. These singers were all found by a descendant of Cornelius Vanderbilt the famous railroad company owner back at the beginning of the century. His name was John Henry Hammond Sr. and he liked rock'n'roll a lot. He had enough money to go around and choose some extraordinary singers to get large record deals. He also showed a lot of bravery when he chose Billie Holiday, who was black and a woman. These singers, especially Bob Dylan were against the war and for civil rights which made the counter-culture ever stronger.
1970's: At home jobs were becoming more and more common. People were moving out of the city and the suburbs were being expanded. These new cities were called edge cities. These edge cities had everything anyone would need to live. Supermarkets, shopping malls.
1980's: This was a quiet decade when business was changing. Government and Unions weren't doing as well because people thought they were not to solve social problems. "Yuppies" (young urban professionals) were setting trends and ignoring old ideas. Computers that had been developed in the late 70's were becoming more and more common. This was the information age and everyone needed an education to get by. Both parents were working more often than not. Television was becoming the monster it will become. On average a person was watching 30 hours of TV in a week. Politics now took large amounts of money to run commercials on the tube.
1990's: This was a time of turmoil in youth culture. The new 'grunge' scene erupted, based in Seattle and lead by Kurt Cobain. There also was a spike in school shootings and when it was made illegal to bring guns to school, 6,000 kids were expelled from school. Many parents and officials blamed violence on video games, which were appearing in about this time. They thought the kids wanted to emulate the video games and the violence they held. People were scared, and the media was projecting it more than ever. There was also a spike in personal computer and internet use, and that helped the economy boom.