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Decade Study The 1950s

Decade Study The 1950s. The American Influence. Australia was influenced by other nations, mainly the United States. The 1950s was the decade when the United States put itself on the world map – politically, militarily and culturally.

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Decade Study The 1950s

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  1. Decade Study The 1950s

  2. The American Influence • Australia was influenced by other nations, mainly the United States. • The 1950s was the decade when the United States put itself on the world map – politically, militarily and culturally. • The United States exported its culture through advertising, film, music and tv.

  3. Teenagers • Before the 1950s, people were either children or adults. • Teenagers became a separate, unique and targeted market for advertisers. • US rock’n’roll music and films like “Rebel Without a Cause” gave teenagers their own music, language and fashion.

  4. Teenagers were beginning to challenge conservative ideas, challenge their parents ideas and values. • Bright shirts and tight jeans, riding motorbikes and looser morals were concerning older people. • In Australia, rebellious boys were known as “bodgies” while the girls were called “widgies”.

  5. Rock’n’Roll • Before the 1950s, music had been “nice”, sedate and white – Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Perry Como. • That changed with Bill Haley and the Comets – “Rock around the clock” 1954. • Elvis Presley really ignited the rock’n’roll revolution. He frightened white conservative people in the United States.

  6. His music was seen as dangerous, sexual and black. • Australian artists copied Elvis, most notably Johnny O’Keefe, who was known as “The Wild One”.

  7. Elvis Presley

  8. American actor James Dean Australian Rock’n’Roll star Johnny O’Keefe

  9. Entertainment • Rock’n’roll was one obvious new style of entertainment. The other was television, which arrived in Australia in 1956. • By the end of the 1950s, teenagers were watching up to 12 hours of television a week. • Televisions were expensive and required a licence, but by 1960 ½ of Sydney homes had one.

  10. People would invite friends around for tv evenings or stand outside shops and watch the picture. • US programs like “I Love Lucy” were the most popular. • Australia was still a movie watching nation and films like “Ben Hur” and “South Pacific” ran for weeks.

  11. American shows dominated Australian television. • Comedies such as I love Lucy, Gidget and Gilligan’s Island. • Westerns such as Bonanza and Rawhide. • Cop and legal shows such as Perry Mason, Hawaiian Eye and 77 Sunset Strip.

  12. Graham Kennedy Comedian King of Australian television Bruce Gyngell First television broadcast in 1956 Australian family watching tv 1950s

  13. Sport • In the 1950s Australia was a sporting giant. • Australians excelled in Tennis, both at Wimbledon and in the Davis Cup (Lew Hoad, Ken Rosewell). • The 1956 Melbourne Olympics showcased Australian athletic excellence – ranked third in the medal tally (Dawn Fraser, Murray Rose, Betty Cuthbert)

  14. Jack Brabham won the Formula One Drivers Championship. • Jimmy Carruthers retired as undefeated World Bantamweight boxing champion.

  15. VFL 1950s Dawn Fraser Olympic Gold Medal winner Ken Rosewell Test Cricket Team 1950

  16. Life in the 1950s – the Good and the Not so Good

  17. Class rooms 1950s

  18. Politics • Cold war: Space race. The Soviet Union put the first man in space and Sputnik was the first craft in space. • Fear of communism. • Robert Menzies was Prime Minister and he was anti-communist. • Korean War.

  19. Transport • The most obvious change in Australian life in the 1950s was the growing use and reliance on the motor vehicle. • In 1949, 130 people out of every 1000 had a car; by 1961 it was 271. • The dominate car of the 1950s was the Holden. • The first Holden sold for 675 pounds plus tax. • In 1953, Holden introduced the FJ. 170,000 were sold.

  20. FJ Holden Ute FJ Holden

  21. Bibliography

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