Pop Culture and Consumerism in the 50’s

Matthew Lewis and Rylee Boyd

A New Way to Live

With the boom in the 50’s, Americans were given brand new ways to entertain themselves and new were given more convenience in their lives.

Pop Culture

The 1950s introduced many new movie stars, professional musicians, TV shows and magazines/books to entertain yourself with.

Marilyn Monroe

Among these movie stars were Marilyn Monroe. She starred in many movies including Niagara. Her role as a beautiful woman popularized sexuality during the 50s.

Elvis Presley

A notable musician during this era was Elvis Presley. Famous for his rock and roll style, he sang many songs, such as “Blue Suede Shoes”.

“I Love Lucy”

Many shows were popularized in the 1950’s such as “I Love Lucy”. Over 50 million people tuned in to watch this show.

Magazines and Books

Published in 1955, Playboy introduced a new way to entertain men… Books published around this time frame include The Lonely Crowd written by David Riesman.

Consumerism

With WWII finally over American’s lifestyle changed from a life of worry into a life of leisure. With this came the spending of lots of money on items like TV’s to keep American’s entertained.

TV

With consumerism came the purchase of many items like TV’s. By 1951 over 7 million TV’s had been sold. 442 TV stations were in operation, and by 1960 almost every single American owned a TV.

Locations and FoodIn 1955 the world famous theme park opened up in Anaheim, California. Many popular restaurants and fast food places opened such as McDonalds. A McDonald’s hamburger stand opened for the first time ever in San Bernardino, California.

Ways to Spend Money.

The company Diner’s Club gave Americans a new way to make purchases. The plastic credit card came to the public right before the turn of the decade in 1949.

An Eventful Decade

The 1950s offered a whole plethora of ideas, ways to have fun, ways to eat, and ways to make our lives more convenient. Overall, many of the creations during this time period lasted all the way until today. These 10 years helped shape the America that we know today.

CitationsBook Used:

Kennedy, David M., Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas A. Bailey.The American Paeant. 13 ed. Boston, New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006. Print.