Popular Culture and Television
Few inventions have had as much effect on contemporary American society as television. Before 1945 the number of U.S. homes with television sets could be measured in the thousands. The number of television sets in use rose from 6,000 in 1946 to some 12 million by 1951. No new invention entered American homes faster than black and white television sets; by 1955 half of all U.S. homes had one.
1952 episode of I Love Lucy
By 1949 Americans who lived within range of the growing number of television stations in the country could watch any number of sitcoms. The power of television sitcoms cannot be over exaggerated, because it was through this media that American culture shaped its fifties family values. The majority of Americans accepted 1950s uniformity and prosperity and this acceptance was no more obvious than in gender roles in the 1950s. Media portrayed women as the perfect housewives in television shows. I Love Lucy was a landmark sitcom that was the most watched television show in America for all of its six seasons. It was also the first television series to portray an interracial couple. |
1952 Coca Cola commercial
Beginning in the 1950s teenagers became economic commodities, consumers, who today drive one of the most profitable markets in the United States. Television became a powerful medium to advertise to teenagers. Commercials sold everything from chewing gum to presidents. Commercials — originally presented live — began to be filmed and edited together in order to perfect the message, and prevent mistakes. Youth occupied a unique place in fifties America. Teens were perceived as different from other human beings and so were more set apart by a generation gap. Teens bought youth products for the status and the sense of identity they received, and businesses provided these luxury goods to make money. |
1956 broadcast of the Milton Berle Show featuring Elvis
Perhaps the most pivotal figure in the evolution of the modern teenager is Elvis Presley. As the king of rock n’ roll and the first teen idol to teenage girls and boys, Elvis can indeed symbolize the generation gap that has marked American culture in the 1950s. Elvis challenged the status quo and set trends that shaped youth culture. He gave this new youth culture an identity much like pop singers do today. The way he dressed, spoke, the lyrics he sang and the way that he danced provoked an energy in teenagers that adult society found licentious and offensive. Television shows like American Bandstand and the Milton Berle Show featured rock ‘n’ roll stars like Elvis, Johnny Cash, Buddy Holly, and many more. |
1969 - the first man walks on the moon
John F. Kennedy spent his short, three years as president using his skill as a speaker to deliver the precisely crafted words of his speeches. The result was a body of oration and media performance that endures in popular culture. One unforgettable speech was Kennedy’s challenge to put a man on the moon. The Cold War tensions were increasing and the space race was well under way. NASA eventually accomplished the goal set forth by President Kennedy when Neil Armstrong set foot on the lunar surface in July 1969. The moon landing was the most watched televised event in history at that point in time. |