American Pastimes and Heroes

Journal question 100 How did news coverage change in the 1920s? How did education change in the 1920s?

Increasing… By 1926 – 4 million young adults were preparing for college or higher skilled industry jobs. Due to prosperous times & increase in education standards for employment (good job = high school diploma) School costs doubled between 1920-1926. Increase in taxes Emergence of the modern high school.

Education Immigrants Leading up to WWI, approx. 1 million people arrived in the US. Students and teachers (schools) were determined and worked hard Higher proportion of these students learned to read and write than native-born white Americans.

New News Coverage During and after the war, interest in the news increased. First weekly news magazine, Time, was published in 1923. Newspapers bought radio stations.

Introduction of Tabloids Half the page size of regular newspapers. Used pictures – large & violent Like yellow journalism Specialized in murders, actors/actresses, gangsters, & kidnapping. Ballyhoo media hype. Insignificant events blown way out of proportion.

Charles Lindbergh 5/20/27 – began solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean in Spirit of St. Louis. Took 33 ½ hours Called “Lucky Lindy” and “Flying Fool” by the press.

American Sports Heroes George Herman “Babe” Ruth: hit 60 HRs in one season, 714 in total. Harold Edward “Red” Grange: halfback; scored 4 touchdowns in the first 12 min of a game. Jack Dempsey: Heavyweight champion for most of 1920s. Defeated in 1927. Bobby Jones: won the “grand slam” of golf

Hooray For Hollywood Rise of Hollywood as the center for movie entertainment. Warner Brothers – 1923; Colombia - 1920 Chinese Theater – opened in 1927 First Academy Awards - 1927

Famous Actors & Actresses Buster Keaton James Cagney Douglas Fairbanks Mary Pickford

Model T Car designed by Henry Ford Mass Produced Affordable 1908 to 1927 Ford produced more than 15 million Model Ts

American Authors F. Scott Fitzgerald: This Side of Paradise William Faulkner: The Sound and the Fury T.S. Eliot: The Waste Land Ernest Hemingway: The Sun Also Rises

Other Stories Bambi – 1923 Felix Salten Winnie the Pooh- 1926 A.A. Milne Velveteen Rabbit – 1922 William Nicholson