Mass Media, Youth Culture, Beat Movement & African American Entertainers

 A new era of mass media led by television emerged in the 1950s  In 1948, only 9% of homes had T.V  In 1950, ____% of homes had T.V.  By 1960, ____% of American homes had T.V.

 Variety of shows: news reporting, interviews, westerns, and sporting events  Kids’ shows like The Howdy Doody Show and The Mickey Mouse Club  In the 1990s : JT, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera & Ryan Gosling I’m Howdy Doody!!

 “Golden Age of Television”  Variety Shows:  Ed Sullivan Show Mix of comedy, opera, popular songs, dance, acrobatics, and juggling  Comedies were the main attraction  I love Lucy Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball starred in I Love Lucy

 Lucy appears as a scatter- brained homemaker  Turns ordinary household chores into a complete disaster  People set up their work schedule around the show  Even Marshall Fields (Macy’s) switched its sales to a different night  “We love Lucy too, so we’re closing on Monday nights”

 Due to the growth in the TV industry, the film business suffered after the war  1946: 82 million move-goers; 1950: 36 million  Creation of 3-D films & the “Big Screens”  Panoramic, wide screens  Racism in the film industry:  African Americans often played stereotypical roles: Maids, servants, & sidekicks

 Capitalized on runaway consumerism  Encouraged more spending  Spending  $170 million in 1950  $2 billion in 1960  Ad agencies increased their spending 50% Advertising is everywhere today in America

 1953 : You don't need a knife, a bottle opener or even your husband to unscrew the cap of this bottle — just a little twist and that ketchup is ready to pour!

 Musicians in the 1950s added electronic instruments to traditional blues music  DJ Alan Freed was the first to play this music in 1951  He called it “rock and roll” FREED

 Chuck Berry, Bill Haley and the Comets, and especially Elvis Presley brought rock and roll to the forefront  The dance rhythm and lyrics feat. love, cars, and problems of being young — captivated teenagers across the country

 Presley’s rebellious style captured young audiences  Girls screamed / fainted  Boys tried to imitate him  Parents condemned Presley’s dance & music as “loud, mindless, and dangerous for teenagers”

 Dissenting voices emerged  “Beat Movement” clashed with the 1950s tidy suburban views of life  Criticized conformity, meaningless politics, and the emptiness of popular culture

 Centered in San Fran, L.A. and NY, the Beat Movement expressed social nonconformity  Followers, called “beatniks,” tended to shun work and materialism  They sought understanding through Zen Buddhism, music, and the experimentation of drugs Beatniks often performed poetry or music in coffeehouses or bars

 As the Beatniks rejected American culture, African Americans struggled to find acceptance among it…  TV tended to shut out African Americans  In 1956, NBC gave Nat King Cole his own 15-minute musical variety show  Ended 2 years later because of the failure to find a national sponsor  Rock & Roll singers had more luck  Chuck Berry, Ray Charles, and Little Richard  Many were inspirational for the Beatles