I think the 50s as a decade had a sort of Romanticism, a yearning, a nostalgia if you like that underlied the inherent conservatism (McCarthyism, Race issues.etc) of the era. It can be seen in movies like 'On the Watefront', 'Rebel Without a Cause', 'From Here to Eternity,' 'Vertigo'.etc., and the Beat poetic movement (Jack Kerouac, Ferlinghetti.etc). What are your impressions of the decade?

I think the 50s as a decade had a sort of Romanticism, a yearning, a nostalgia if you like that underlied the inherent conservatism (McCarthyism, Race issues.etc) of the era. It can be seen in movies like 'On the Watefront', 'Rebel Without a Cause', 'From Here to Eternity,' 'Vertigo'.etc., and the Beat poetic movement (Jack Kerouac, Ferlinghetti.etc). What are your impressions of the decade?


It was my pre-teen years and TV was coming of age were I thought the "Father Know's Best" and "The Ozzie and Harriet Show" was how our life styles were suppose to be like and was sort of a mentors on how we schould live our lives.

It was an innocent time of Sunday backyard barbecues or drives to the country, 10 cent ice cream cones and 5 cent Blackjack gum from Joe's or Sally's Candy Store. Flat top hair cuts, white crewneck tee-shirts and a pair $4.00 Levis dungerees and engineer boots was the style of "cool". Rock and Roll was on the rise and Elvis Presley was it's leader. "I Like Ike", "Iron Curtain" and Communisim and the Atom Bomb scared the crap out of us, in school we had to do Atom Bomb drills where we had to get down in the hallways floors and put our coats over our heads to protect us from the Radiation from the bomb blast...Riiiiight! like that was going to help! and there was always one kid who would cut a loud fart while we were under our coats and of of course it started a chain reaction of our own A-bomb blasts even the teachers couldn't keep a straight face laughing with us.

The early 50's and there was the late 50's so much to mention in brief. Over-all on the surface it was a simple innocent time in our lives, but had a strong under tow of social problems and injustices that had to be addressed if everybody was to have that "Father's Knows Best" life and in the late 50's was it's starting point that made the 60's decade what it was.

HW       

Yeah, this innocence was like the shell of an egg - delicately resting above the darkness void that was the Cold War. Do you think the popular portrayals of the 50s in the popular culture convey an accurate impression of the decade?

Yeah, this innocence was like the shell of an egg - delicately resting above the darkness void that was the Cold War. Do you think the popular portrayals of the 50s in the popular culture convey an accurate impression of the decade?


Depending what race you were, it was a white world then and we didn't know any better other then what was taught to us in school books that were contaminated with half truths about the social order in the USA.

Depending what race you were, it was a white world then and we didn't know any better other then what was taught to us in school books that were contaminated with half truths about the social order in the USA.


Oh yeah, like those 'educational' films they showed to kiddies with the flowery music, and the smiling children.  :D

Depending what race you were, it was a white world then and we didn't know any better other then what was taught to us in school books that were contaminated with half truths about the social order in the USA.



Half -truths?  Maybe some, but not nearly like it is today (or was in the '80s).  And let's recall, this is all public education (i.e., government-controlled) we're talking about.

I'll take my mom's word.  She actually experienced it - came of age, HS and college.  She wasn't just a kid.  And she loved it; the "ideal" view of the '50s was very real to her.

Half -truths?  Maybe some, but not nearly like it is today (or was in the '80s).  And let's recall, this is all public education (i.e., government-controlled) we're talking about.

I'll take my mom's word.  She actually experienced it - came of age, HS and college.  She wasn't just a kid.  And she loved it; the "ideal" view of the '50s was very real to her.


As a pre-teen in the 50's growing up in a suburban town, our lives were as "ideal" as a "Father Knows Best" life. I went to one of our five out of six all white grammar schools, and not knowing any better, was an accept way of life in Sub-Urban USA in the 50's, protected and brain washed to keep us that way because it was always that way for generations and we were being programed to follow the traditions, again we didn't know any better than what was taught to us as a pre-teen in the 50's. If your mother lived this life as a pre-teen and went to school in the 50's, she was brian washed liked everyone else and lived the "ideal" life as programed. It wasn't a bad thing to live that "ideal" life of the 50's, but was not the right life if "everyone" couldn't live that "ideal" life.

The 60's changed everything for all the right reasons and I don't understand what you mean about the half truths of today or in the 80's, what do you mean by that?

HW