Lesson aims

1. Lesson aims • Brief recap on what we’ve learned so far about culture in the USA • Test your own knowledge – super fun quiz! • Attempt an exam style question on Jazz

2. ‘The Roaring Twenties’The image • 1920s America – “One long, crazy party, with jazz music playing on the radio, young fashionable women known as flappers wildly dancing the Charleston, large quantities of illegal alcohol being consumed, and everyone behaving in a scandalous manner.”

3. Roaring 20’s • The 1920’s were a period of great turmoil and contrast for the USA. • There was liberation and rebellionagainsttraditional values for some • And great anxietyfor others who felt that the American way of life was being destroyed. • Hence the term “roaring 20’s”

4. ‘The Roaring Twenties’The reality • In the aftermath of the war people were determined to have fun. • They had more money and more leisure time. • Women were freer than ever • The entertainment industry boomed. • The 1920s were the golden age for Hollywood films. • It was also the Jazz Age with its crazes for new music and dances.

5. Entertainment • During the 1920’s the entertainment industry blossomed. • The average working week dropped from 47.4 to 44.2 hours so people had more leisure time. • Average wages rose by 11% • A lot of this spare time and money was channelled towards entertainment.

6. Music/Radio ‘The Jazz-Age’

7. Radio/jazz • Almost everyone in the USA listened to the radio. • In August 1921 there was only one licensed radio station in America. • By the end of 1922 there were 508 of them. • The radio enabled people to listen to JAZZ music.

8. Jazz • Jazz music became an obsession among young people. Black people moved from the countryside and brought jazz and blues music with them. Jazz was played on the radio with dance marathons and dance crazes like the charleston. The 1920’s became known as the JAZZ AGE. The older generation saw Jazz as a corrupting influence on the young people of America.

9. Super Fun Quiz!!!! • What type of music became popular in the 1920’s? (1) • Where did it originate from? (1) • Name three dances popular in the twenties (3) • Name two musicians famous at this time (2) 5. Name a famous black female singer who died because she wasn’t allowed to go to a white hospital (1)

10. 6. How did people listen to this new music at home? (2) 7. Why did some dance halls ban Jazz music from playing? (1) 8. Did this make Jazz music more or less exciting to young people? (1) 9. Which types of establishments did Jazz music flourish in? (1) 10. Why did so many people have radios at home? (2) Let’s check the answers! – Score out of 15

11. Second Lesson • Set up homework on fads, games and crazes • To understand why sport and other leisure activities became so popular during 1920-1929 • To practice an exam style question

12. TASK You must carry out detailed research on ALL of the following: to be presented on Monday 23rd January either through a power point presentation, website, Windows Movie Maker, or a leaflet. Possible to do this in pairs if you can meet up in your spare time. It is vital that you do this properly as there is no room for us to make notes in the booklets and there will be exam questions on this topic

13. Fads, Crazes and Popular Language In the 1920s

14. Dance Marathons Dance Marathons became very popular in the 1920s. They gained popularity because it was suppose to be quick easy money for out of work people. Most people went for the money, but other went to gain stardom. The music was played slow to hopefully lull you to sleep, but twice an hour it would be picked up, these were called sprints. The only real rule was, no falling asleep. Some contests would have breaks, but usually only a half hour for the first week, and it would go down until there were none left. There was the occasional staged contestants, to help cause fights and to entertain onlookers. The longest dance marathon recorded was twenty-two weeks and three and a half days. Dancers would do anything to win, one woman would even pickle her feet. Dance marathons were later outlawed due to the hard physical strain.

15. Games Games started to gain popularity in the 1920s. Whether you were playing with your family or friends, it was a guaranteed good time. Some popular game were, Mahjong, Ouija boards, and Crossword puzzles. Mahjong - is a game similar to Dominos. Ouija boards - a game where you supposable talk to “spirits”. Crossword puzzles - a word game where you fill in the blanks, with the information they give you.

16. Popular Language/Slang In the 1920s, slang started to gain popularity. Morals were now being questioned, and youth culture was on the rise because of urbanization. Prohibition was causing people to use slang to hide bootlegging, and to help keep speakeasies hidden. Other people just wanted to be unique. Some slang popular back in the 1920’s are the following:

17. baloney • cheaters • darb • dumb Dora • flat tire • gaga • gam • hard-boiled • hotsy-totsy • Jake • ritzy • Sheba • Sheik • spifflicated • white cow Slang

18. baloney - nonsense • cheaters - glasses • darb - excellent person or thing • dumb Dora - stupid girl • flat tire - dull, boring person • gaga - crazy/silly • gam - girl’s leg • hard-boiled - tough • hotsy-totsy - pleasing • Jake - okay • ritzy - elegant • Sheba - young woman with sex appeal • Sheik - young man with sex appeal • spifflicated - drunk • white cow - vanilla milkshake Slang

19. Sport Sport was another area that boomed in the 1920’s , Baseball became a big money sport with teams like the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. Prominent figures such as Al Capone were Baseball fans. The greatest sports hero of the 1920’s was George Herman Ruth-’Babe Ruth’. He was the star of the NYY. Another great sportsperson was Oscar Charleston who played in the Negro League. He, too is regarded as one of the best players of all time but because of the colour of his skin he wasn’t allowed to play in the major leagues

20. Boxing Spectators flocked to see all big sporting events, especially boxing matches. The country’s most famous boxing star was Jack Demsey. A fearsome world heavyweight champion known as the ‘Manassa Mauler’.

21. American Football In American Football Red Grange and Knute Rockne were the two stars of the time. At a time when the average salary was $100 per game, Grange earned $100,000 for the 19 game schedule

22. Tennis Bill Tilden and Helen Wills were the two stars of tennis and their success helped to foster the growth of the sport. As a result, participation in tennis increased dramatically. By the end of the decade there were more than 1000 tennis clubs and enough municipal courts to accommodate more than 1 million players across the USA

23. Sporting Icons As a result of this growth in sporting activity a fascination developed with sporting records and sports stars. Matches and results were analysed player’s technique discussed. The 1920’s witnessed an emergence of sporting icons, whose activites and lifestyles received constant media attention. This in turn helped to popularise and increase participation in sporting events amongst the population at large

24. Overview -*The 1920’s brought on the rise of youth culture.* -Popular Language - Used to seem unique, urbanization played a big role. -Clothing Trends - Also used for uniqueness, to get away from tradition, to be risqué. -Dance Marathons - Big way to make quick money, something to do in spare time. -Games - Help to kill time, Mahjong, Ouija boards, Crossword Puzzle. -Music - Jazz was popular, mainly among youth, blamed for everything, if you danced to Jazz you were considered morally loose. -Flappers - Modern woman of the 1920s, short hair, short skirts, sleeveless baggy dresses, rolled down hose, powdered knees, lots of makeup, thought to be morally loose, offended older generations.

25. Cars • During the 1920’s the car became a fundamental feature of American life. • It was a factor that made all the other features of the roaring 20’s possible. • Cars helped the cities to grow by opening up the suburbs. • Cars carried their owners to and from the entertainment. The biggest retailer of cars in 1920’s America was Henry Ford who was producing the Model T Ford at only $290.

26. Model T Ford