Maddy's+Pop+Culture

MADDY'S POP CULTURE PAGE =) 1940's -  What was happening in the world in the 1940’s?
 * World War 2
 * Nazi Germany invades Denmark, Norway, Benelux, and the French Third Republic from 1940 to 1941
 * Germany faces the United Kingdom in the Battle of Britain 1940. It was the first major campaign to be fought entirely by air forces, and was the largest and most sustained aerial bombing campaign up until that date
 * Germany attacks the Soviet Union June 22, 1941

Why were dance bands and their music so popular? Another fact now little recalled is that all of the 'big bands' of the 1930's and '40's were really dance bands. Their prime job was to provide dance-able music for the patrons of the clubs and hotels, where they were booked to play. Even the vocalists were secondary to this goal. They were called "stand up singers". Vocalists would sit on a plain chair, off to one side of the orchestra and would stand and go to the front of the band for perhaps two or three songs in any 45 minute set of music. Their main function was to add some interest to a dance number being played by the band. Who were the great music stars in the 1940? In the 1940s, the major strands of American music combined to form what would eventually be coined as Rock and Roll. Based most strongly off an electric gutair-based version of the Chicago blues, rock also incorporated jazz, country, folk, swing, and other types of music in particular, bepop jazz and boggie woggie blues were in vogue and greatly influenced the music style. The style had developed by 1949, and quickly became popular among blacks nationwide see 1949 in music. Mainstream success was slow to develop, though in spite of early success with "Bill Harey& his coments " Rock round the clock ", and didn't begin in earnest until Elivis Prelsey "Hound Dog" began singing rock, R&B and rockally songs in a devoted black style. He quickly became the most famous and best selling artist in American history and a watershed point in the development of music. Chuck Berry refined and developed rhythm and blues into the major elements that made rock and roll distinctive, with lyrics focusing on teen life and consumerism, and utilising Guiter solo and Showmanship that would be a major influence on subsequent rock music. 1950's - What was the Baby Boom? When soilders came back from war and married and have babies.

Where did rock’n’roll originate? Rock 'n' roll originated from the evolution of rhythm and blues. The term rock 'n' roll was coined by Alan Fried, a Cleveland, Ohio USA disc jockey. Although difficult to nail down to an exact year, it is safe to say that rock and roll began in the mid fifties in the United States. It was a mixture of two traditions black rhythm and blues and white romantic crooning black beat combined with white sentiment. What began in the mid fifties was an aggressive, sexual noise that arose from the beat of the music. The beat was bigger and louder than any beat before it and the reason was simple electric guitars.If one were to try to nail down a year, it would be 1954-55 when Bill Haley recorded "Rock Around the Clock." It was a hit first in America and then in Britain. It stayed on the charts for over a year, and sold 15 million copies world wide. It also started Rock and Roll, and Bill Haley is considered the "father of rock and roll ".

What threats to world peace flared during the 50’s? The cold war was a time when citizens of the United States viewed themselves as competitors. He had to win the Space Race he had to land a man on the moon first, He had to have the fastest cars, He had to have the best fighter pilots, He had to beat the Communists in Vietnam, The United States had a purpose and America had to win.

In what ways were the 50’s conservative? The end of World War II brought thousands of young servicemen back to America to pick up their lives and start new families in new homes with new jobs. With an energy never before experienced, American industry expanded to meet peace time needs. Americans began buying goods not available during the war, which created corporate expansion and jobs ,Growth everywhere, the baby boom was underway. The purpose of this web and library guide is to help the user gain a broad understanding and appreciation for the culture and history of the fabulous fifties. In a very small way, this is a bibliographic esay. While there is no way we can link to everything, America have attempted to find areas of special interest and to select information that we hold dear today movies we watch, songs America sing, events that move America, people America admire.

In what ways did peacetime encourage economic and industrial change? The Special Period in Time of Peace in Cubu was an extended period of economic crisis that began in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union and, by extension, the comecon. The economic depression of the Special Period was at its most severe in the early-to-mid 1990s before slightly declining in severity towards the end of the decade. It was defined primarily by the severe shortages of energy resources in the form of gasoline, diesel, and other petroleum derivatives that occurred upon the implosion of economic agreements between the petroleum-rich Soviet Union and Cuba. The period radically transformed Cuban society and the economy, as it necessitated the successful introduction of sustainable agriculture, decreased use of automobiles, and overhauled industry, health, and diet countrywide.

1960's In what ways were the 1960’s revolutionary? Progressing at a dizzying frenetic peace, the 1960s were synonymous with rebellion and conflict. No other decade in the 20th century was so tumultuous this gripping and engagingly written guide to the forces that shaped the 1960s cultural revolution examines the New Left. The antiwar movement, and the counterculture a narrative historical overview puts the decade in perspective. Easy follow on each of the above topics, and a concluding essay discusses the legacy of the era. Bringing to life the passion of the era are the texts of primary documents such as statements from the Students for a Democratic Society, speeches by leaders of the student protest movement and the Hippies, interviews, and responses from establishment politicians. The analytical essays, primary documents, and ready-reference material will help students to gain a deeper understanding of the period. How did the ‘Space Race’ impact on the world? The space race increased much of the technology available today. Before this age, space travel was just a dream. And no one imagined satelites would be so importants as they are today without them we can't do nothing in terms of communication, transportation and all media resources. Just NASA has, in the period of space race, registered about 300,000 patents, including digital clock, waterproof pen and the velcro. We can't imagine the future of human being out of the space exploration. The space research help us to understand ourselves as kind on this little platform of life that we call Earth. As Werner Von Braun once said: the space race opened the gates to the heaven. What was social change’? The origins of modern sociology can be traced to attempts to understand the dramatic changes shattering the modern world and promoting new forms of social order. An example of this is globalization. For examples throughout human history the vast majority of people produced their own food and shelter and lived in tiny groups or small villages. Even at the height of the most developed civilizations- such as ancient Rome or China- fewer than 10% of the population lived in urban areas. In present day United States only 2%-3% of people work in agriculture and 90% of people now live in urban areas. Urbanization in the rest of the world is also changing at a rapid pace due to economic activity. By 2030, about 60% of the world population is expected to live in urban areas and in more developed regions as high as 81% of people are expected to be urbanized. Other examples of social change include:
 * Technology influx in recent years such as email, cell phone, online social networks. In the past communicating with other was held to certain constraints such as mail or face to face interact
 * Increased voting rights in the United States for women and people of other ethnicity
 * Everyone is required to go be educated to an elementary standard education "Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory.

What topics were the subjects of political demonstrations? Throughout the 1990s, two opposing views were put forward about the political conditions that are conducive to the success of economic reforms. According to the first, success of reform depends on factors that can diminish the chances of politicising issues of economic transformation, such as strong power concentration, insulation of reformers from political pressures or a speed of reforms that does not allow time for the potential opponents of reforms to get organised and resist change Przeworski 1991, Lipton and Sachs 1990. According to the second camp, the presence of actors and institutions that could put issues of reform in a contested and plural political frame represented the ideal conditions for reforms enjoying stable support Dewatripont and Roland 1992a and 1992b, and Murrell 1992.Explicitly, or implicitly, both camps have attached independent explanatory power to variation in the properties of civil societies. But neither of these viewpoints have yet quantified and measured the variation in the properties of civil societies in the dying days of the state-socialist regimes. This is precisely what we have attempted in recent research Bruszt et al. 2010. To that effect, we compiled a new and unique dataset covering the period between the start of Glasnost and the fall of communism i.e. from 1985 to 1989 for the 27 former centrally-planned economies of Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The data, collected from the Open Society Archives in Budapest, measure the frequency and nature of a broad range of political-opposition events. These events were reported by Radio Free Europe and other news sources that specialised in reporting on the formerly communist countries and on dissident activities there. 1970's- What was the ’Civil Rights’ movement and how did it affect society? It gave them freedoms they had never had the pleasure of expieriencing before. Public facilities were desegregated, schools and businesses were integrated, the Civil Rights Act was passed, and life was better not just for African-Americans but for Asians ,Mexican-Americans and even some Caucasians.

What advancements were there in the women’s movement in this decade? During the Colonial era and the first decades of the Republic, there were always women who strove to secure equal rights for themselves. Some assumed the business interests of a husband after his death. A few women challenged male domination of religious life, though they met with criticism from their communities or banishment, as in the case of Anne Hutchinson. Women were also active in the fight against the Crown and organized boycotts of British goods. During the struggle for independence, prominent females such as Abigail Adams wrote and spoke privately about the need for male leaders to rectify the inferior position of women, promising rebellion if their words were not heeded. But only later, over the course of the nineteenth century, did women's demands for equal rights change from a series of isolated incidents to an organized movement. This movement was far from unified, however; strife and division often arose as activists faced the difficulties of meeting the diverse needs and priorities of the women of America. How/why did the Environment become an important issue? Environmental issues became a problem when global warming stared to take over and when many countries used up most of our natural, nonrewnewable, and fossil resources.

1980's Why are the 1980’s seen as the ‘Me’ years? The 1980s became the Me! Me! Me! generation of status seekers. During the 1980s, hostile takeovers, leveraged buyouts, and mega-mergers spawned a new breed of billionaire. Donald Trump, Leona Helmsley, and Ivan Boesky iconed the meteoric rise and fall of the rich and famous. If you've got it, flaunt it and You can have it all! were watchwords. Forbes' list of 400 richest people became more important than its 500 largest companies. Binge buying and credit became a way of life and 'Shop Til you Drop' was the watchword. Labels were everything, even (or especially) for our children. Tom Wolfe dubbed the baby-boomers as the 'splurge generation.' Video games, aerobics, minivans, camcorders, and talk shows became part of our lives. The decade began with double-digit inflation, Reagan declared a war on drugs, Kermit didn't find it easy to be green, hospital costs rose, we lost many, many of our finest talents to AIDS which before the decade ended spread to black and Hispanic women, and unemployment rose. On the bright side, the US Constitution had its 200th birthday, Gone with the Wind turned 50, ET phoned home, and in 1989 Americans gave $115,000,000,000 to charity. And, Internationally, at the very end of the decade the Berlin Wall was removed - making great changes for the decade to come! At the turn of the decade, many were happy to leave the spendthrift 80s for the 90s, although some thought the eighties totally awesome.

Who were the influential musicians of the 1980’s and how did they impact this era? Music of the 1960s was characteristic of the revolution that was going on during the decade. It was a time of rebellion and counter-culture in which the younger people were questioning everything, including authority, corporations, the government, and other aspects of everyday life. It was essentially a revolution of the status quo. This gave rise to the Civil Rights Movement of the decade along with other movements that affected the rights of society as a whole.The Beatles also created a great deal of controversy while their popularity flourished. John Lennon, one of the band’s leaders, made a statement at the height of their popularity, saying that The Beatles were more popular than Jesus. How did the removal of the Berlin Wall impact on western culture? The Berlin Wall German: Berliner Mauer was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) starting August 13, 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin. The barrier included guard towers placed along large concrete walls which circumscribed a wide area (later known as the "death strip" that contained anti-vehicle trenches, "fakir beds" and other defenses. The Soviet-dominated ,Eastern Block officially claimed that the wall was erected to protect its population from fascist elements conspiring to prevent the "will of the people" in building a Socialist State in East Germany. However, in practice, the Wall served to prevent the massive emigration and defection that marked Germany and the communist Eastern Bloc during the post-World War II period.

1990's In what ways were the 90’s the ‘Electronic Age’? The first electronic water marketing system has been established in Westlands Water District near Fresno, California. The system, called WaterLink, went on-line in Westlands in March 1996, and it may soon be expanded to additional water districts. WaterLink was designed by members of the Collaborative Field Demonstrations Project, a joint effort among the University of California Berkeley and Davis, the Natural Heritage Institute a non-profit natural resource conservation organization, farmers, and water district administrators. The project is funded by a grant from the Bureau of Reclamation. WaterLink enables water users to buy and sell water using their home computers. They can post and read bids and asks, access information on average prices and trading volumes, and negotiate.

How did the advent of personal computers impact on language? In 1990, the station workstation computer went on sale for "interpersonal" computing as Steve Jobs described it. The Nextstation was meant to be a new computer for the 1990’s and was a cheaper version of the previous next computer. The Nextstation was some of a commercial failure and then shut down hardware operations in 1993.The CD-RM and CD-RW drives became standards for most personal computers.The early 1990s saw the advent of the CD ROM as an oncoming industy standard, and by the mid-90's one was built-in to almost all desktop computers and towards the end of the 1990's in laptops as well. Although introduced in 1982, the CD ROM was mostly used for audio during the 1980’s and then for computer data such as operating systems and applications into the 1990's. Another popular use of CD ROMs in the 1990's was multimedia, as many desktop computers started to come with built-in stereo speakers capable of playing CD quality music and sounds with these sound blasters, sound card on PCs.The ROM in CD-ROM stands for Read Only Memory. Later rewritable CD-RW drives were included instead of standard CD ROM drives. This gave the personal computer user the capability to “burn” standard Audio CD's which were playable in any CD player. Later, as computer hardware grew more powerful and the MP3 format became pervasive, "ripping CD's into small, compressed files on a computer's hard drive became popular.

Where were the beginnings of terrorism evident? Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship provided headquarters, operating bases, training camps, and other support to terrorist groups fighting the governments of neighboring Turkey and Iran, as well as to hard-line Palestinian groups. During the 1991 Gulf War, Saddam commissioned several failed terrorist attacks on U.S. facilities. Prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the State Department listed Iraq as a state sponsor of terrorism. The question of Iraq’s link to terrorism grew more urgent with Saddam’s suspected determination to develop weapons of mass destruction WMD, which Bush administration officials feared he might share with terrorists who could launch devastating attacks against the United States. 2000's In what ways has ‘terrorism’ become a part of life? Sociology is one of the rare disciplines that offer effective analytical and theoretical tools to investigate, analyze and interpret events in individuals social life. It not only offers vast venues to its students to better grasp the realities around them, but at the same time sociology presents alternative windows for them to observe them. Usually each of those windows enables one to focus on particular aspects of the social phenomenon at hand. This characteristic of sociology should not be taken as its weakness at all. As a matter of fact it is that characteristics of sociology that makes it a powerful tool, because after healthy application of its theoretical perspectives one can easily see social realities in their purest form. What world events have had an impact on our lives?


 * === === ||

Confirmation of Hydrogen Bomb Programme by President Truman. Credit card system introduced in America. Pucci opened the Fashion House of Emilio Pucci. Mass production of computers began. First organ transplant takes place. The world population numbers 2.52 billion. (World population now estimated at 6,442,515,501 (CIA)) 1 in 7 UK families owned a car. Average UK annual salary £101.USA average annual salary $2992 - when dollars were $4 to £1 ||<  ||
 * <  ||< [|1950] ||<   ||< War in Korea.
 * <  ||< [|1950] ||<   ||< War in Korea.

Rock and roll and colour TV starts in USA. Identity cards made essential for South Africans to identify race. Dresses without waistlines were shown by Balenciaga. Ready to wear boutiques from designer Balmain, opened in New York. A new beauty competition: Miss World. The still camera is given a built in flash. UK population was 50,290,000, by May 2005 it was estimated at 60,422,986. USA population was 154,877,889, by May 2005 it was estimated at 295,376,287.In 1959 the population of India was approx 364.127,000. India in 2005 is now estimated at 1,078,432,720 persons. ||<  ||
 * < [|1951] ||<  ||< Festival of Britain and nationwide celebrations in UK.

The Neo Edwardians, Teddy Boys or Teds are seen around London. Churchill became Prime Minister in UK under Conservatives. Identity cards and then food rationing ended. Givenchy showed his first collection in Paris. Salk polio vaccine used to save humans from poliomyelitis infection. In UK the family norm was 2.2 children, compared to 3.5 children in 1905 and 1.7 children in 1997. Clean Air Act 1952 - UK compulsory use of smokeless fuels eventually end smogs and winter deaths.In London John Cavanagh and Victor Stiebel open fashion salons. ||<  ||
 * < [|1952] ||<  ||< New USA president Dwight Eisenhower elected.

Mount Everest conquered by Hillary and Tensing. DNA the secret of life discovered by James Watson and Frances Crick. McCarthy witch hunt hearings took place in USA. A new regime took over in Russia when Stalin died.Dupont began commercial production of Dacron at a plant in North Carolina, to produce Dacron (polyester) ||<  || US segregation made illegal in USA. The four minute mile is broken by Britain's Roger Bannister. 54% of American homes had television sets.Coco Chanel reopened her Paris fashion salon after a long closure. ||<  ||
 * < [|1953] ||<  ||< Queen Elizabeth II crowned in june 1953.
 * < [|1954] ||<  ||< French power and dominance in Vietnam ended when French forces were defeated at Dien Bien Phu.
 * < [|1954] ||<  ||< French power and dominance in Vietnam ended when French forces were defeated at Dien Bien Phu.

Warsaw Pact agreement signed. In England, the felt-tip pen was introduced. Tests begin on fibre optics for future mass digital communication. Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock" rocks the world. In UK MaryQuant opened boutique, Bazaar, in Kings Road London. Film idol of teenagers James Dean dies in a car accident.60% of Americans were in the "middle class," having incomes between $3,000 and $10,000 per year. ||<  ||
 * < [|1955] ||<  ||< In the USA the civil rights campaign got underway.

Elvis Presley became an international, world acclaimed star with Love Me Tender film. IBM created the first hard disk drive. Prince Rainier III of Monaco married film star Grace Kelly.Velcro fastening introduced to public. ||<  ||
 * > [|1956] ||  ||> The Suez Crisis. The Suez Canal was nationalized and control taken from Britain and France.

European Economic Community established and Channel tunnel (the Chunnel) between England and France seriously proposed. [|Christian Dior] dies. Givenchy launched famous sack line a forerunner of 60's shifts. Lasers developed. Average price of a UK house was £2170.Premium Bonds and Ernie monthly money draw started in UK. ||<  ||
 * < [|1957] ||<  ||< Sputnik 1 the first satellite to orbit the earth launched into space by the Russians. The space age becomes a reality.

NASA Founded. Stereo LP records first sold. Experiments first began in a desire to create the modem. Paris fashion dictated shorter skirts above the knee. Yves St.Laurent introduced the trapeze line. Last debutantes presented at Court in UK.USA annual family income reaches $5000. ||<  ||
 * < [|1958] ||<  ||< De Gaulle became President of France.

Barbie dolls invented for children. The microchip was invented, making way for future home computers. Mary Quant designed suit shapes that later hallmark the 60's fasion look. Alaska and Hawaii join the USA and become states of North America. 1 in 3 UK families owned a car. Average UK male annual salary £190. USA population reaches 177,829,628.Motown Records start up setting new styles of music in the sixties. ||<  ||
 * < [|1959] ||<  ||< Castro took power in Cuba and became the new Dictator.

By the end of the fifties most American households owned their own car and washing machine. Approximately 90% of Americans owned at least one television set. World Population in 1960 grown to 3 billion.CIA estimated World population in 2005 at over 6 billion at 6,442,515,501 ||<  ||
 * < === [|1960] === ||< Almost 60% of American families owned their own homes.

What world events are shaping our lives now? 11 things: 1) Y2K - remember that if not go to wiki. 2) A presidential election 3) Worst terrorist attacks in American history -9/11/2001 aka World war 3 4) National airspace completely shutdown. 5) Phase 1 of war on terror - Afghanistan Invasion 6) Phase 2 of war on terror -Iraqi Invasion 7) Another presidential election 8) 2004 Tsunami killed 500,000 people 9) Global warming no longer a debate 10) Global warming debate changed to "global climate change" due to falling temperatures since 1998,11) Oil prices now at record highs.