What Was it Like in the 1950s? |
| Music |
"Too Young", Nat King Cole
"Glow-Worm", The Mills Brothers
"Hound Dog", Elvis Presley
"Smoke Gets in Your Eyes", The Platters
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| Literature |
The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger
Ideas and Opinions, Albert Einstein
Lord of the Flies, William Golding
Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison
Old Man and The Sea, Ernest Hemingway
Cat in the Hat, Dr. Seuss
Dr. Zhivago, Boris Pasternak
On the Road Jack Kerouac
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| Entertainment |
Mickey Mantle hits his first home run. The Ernie Kovacs Show debuts on NBC.  Willie Mays begins playing for the New York Giants. The first human birth is televised to the public in Denver, Colo. Comedians Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara marry. The Milton Berle Show last airs on NBC. Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin end their long partnership after completing 16 films. On the Beach is the first movie to open simultaneously in major cities. Peanuts comic strip debuts. The King and I, Sound of Music, and Gypsy on Broadway. Marlon Brando oozes masculinity in Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire. Dick Clark breaks ground with American Bandstand; Alan Freed also with the first rock and roll concert. Elvis, Bill Haley, and Chuck Berry release hit songs. Rebel Without a Cause star James Dean dies in accident. Berry Gordy forms Motown Records. Billie Holiday and Buddy Holly die.
Best Pictures: An American in Paris, The Greatest Show on Earth, Around the World in 80 Days, and Ben-Hur
Best Actors: Humphrey Bogart for African Queen, Gary Cooper for High Noon, Yul Brenner for The King and I and Charlton Heston for Ben-Hur
Best Actresses: Vivien Leigh for A Streetcar Named Desire, Shirley Booth for Come Back, Little Sheba, Ingrid Bergman for Anastasia and Simone Signoret for Room At The Top
And on television: 77 Sunset Strip, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Dennis the Menace, Dragnet, Father Knows Best, Fireside Theatre, Ford Theatre, General Electric Theatre, Gunsmoke, I Love Lucy, Lassie, Maverick, Name That Tune, Perry Mason, Peter Gunn, Rawhide, The $64,000 Question, The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Danny Thomas Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show, The Honeymooners, The Jack Benny Show, The Jackie Gleason Show, The Life of Riley, The Millionaire, The Price is Right, The Rifleman, This Is Your Life, Topper, What's My Line, You Bet Your Life and Your Hit Parade.
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| Average Salary: $5,019.00 |
| Cost of Living |
| Loaf of Bread: |
.18¢ |
| Gallon of Milk: |
.97¢ |
| Dozen Eggs: |
.79¢ |
| Average House: |
$17,400.00 |
| Average Car: |
$1,991.00 |
| Gallon of Gas: |
.29¢ |
| First Class Stamp: |
.03¢ |
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| World Events |
Korean War starts when North invades South Korea. Iran nationalizes oil industry. Libya becomes independent. Unhappy Kikuyu launch the Mau Mau Rebellion in Kenya. King Farouk is overthrown and Republic of Egypt is declared. Tito heads communist Yugoslavia. Hillary and Norgay reach Mt. Everest. French rule declines in Vietnam, split into North & South. Juan Peron  overthrown in Argentina. Prince Rainier marries Grace Kelly. Castro revolts against Batista in Cuba; Morocco wins independence; Pakistan declares as Muslim state. USSR launches Sputnik I and Khruschev's regime. Charles DeGaulle elected president of France. The Dalai Lama forced to flee Tibet. Killer fogs begin in London, England, and the word "smog" is coined to describe it. The first successful separation of Siamese twins takes place. After 72 years, Britain gives up the Suez Canal to Egyptian control. The first color photograph of the earth from outer space is taken. Twelve nations sign a treaty for scientific, peaceful use of Antarctica.
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| U.S. History |
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Alger Hiss convicted of perjury and Joseph McCarthy fights the Red Menace, communism. Boston Brinks bank booty brings burglars biggest bucks. Smokey the Bear is fire safety icon after rescue from New Mexico blaze. Julius & Ethel Rosenberg are executed, accused of espionage. Dwight Eisenhower elected president, Richard Nixon VP. DNA is discovered and cancer linked to tobacco. Segregation struck down in Brown vs. Board of Education. McDonald's and KFC start serving. Jonas Salk discovers polio vaccine. Disneyland opens. Martin Luther King boycotts in Montgomery, AL, on behalf of Rosa Parks; a federal court rules that racial segregation on buses is unconstitutional. The first hydrogen bomb is tested on Eniwetak Atoll. Jay Forrester patents computer core memory. Dacron men's suits are introduced. Mickey Mantle hits his first homerun. Willie Mays begins playing for the New York Giants. The Federal interstate highway system act is signed. Alaska and Hawaii become states. Barbie and the microchip are introduced.
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| At Salem Teachers College |
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In 1952, Salem appoints its first dean, Helen J. Keily. A year later, President Sullivan retires; Bruce Jeffery is appointed temporary president. In 1954, Frederick Meier is inaugurated as president. The first master's degree is awarded in 1955. Senator John F. Kennedy speaks on campus, urging action against Communism. The College fields its first intercollegiate men's soccer team. In 1959, Salem Teachers College is renamed State College at Salem.
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| Toys and Games |
 Barbie, Game of Life, Fisher-Price Little People, Risk, Roller Derby Skateboard, Troll Dolls, Chatty Cathy, Hula Hoop, Frisbee, Tonka Trucks, Radio Flyer "Radio Rancher", Yahtzee, Corgi Die Cast Vehicles, Uncle Milton's Ant Farm, Play-doh, Robert the Robot, Whee-Lo, Plastic Army Men, Matchbox Cars, Mr. Potato Head, Pez, Colorforms and Clue
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1950s |
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1990s
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