Happy+Days?



That's a great question, don't you think? We will answer it in class on Thursday in a (hopefully) fun activity, but to prepare, we should do a little background reading and watching. R**ead "The Fifties" in __Creating America__ (28-3, pp. 800-803), read over the ABC-CLIO links posted below, and w****atch the videos below.** 
 * FOR HOMEWORK, CREATE A LIST (IN YOUR ONLINE NOTEBOOK) OF POSITIVES AND NEGATIVES CONCERNING LIFE IN THE FIFTIES FOR CLASS ON THURSDAY. WE WILL USE IT TO WRITE SOME DIALOGUE ...**

[|The Cold War at Home] / [|The Economy Booms] / [|The Sky is the Limit] / [|Boom-Time for Babies and Houses] Positives of life in the fifties Negatives of the Life in the Fifties
 * The economy was booming
 * Hollywood made more westerns, musicals, and romance movies
 * TV shows like //I Love Luc////y, Father Knows Best, The Lone Ranger, The Howdy Doody Show, The Mickey Mouse Club// were watched by many families, 9 out of 10 houses owned a TV
 * Rock'n'Roll were liked by teenagers of the 50's, songs such as //Rock Around the Clock, Heartbreak Hotel,// and //Don't Be Cruel// were favored
 * Life in the suburbs was the American Dream
 * Parents sent their children to good schools
 * Americans shopped in malls where parking was free and easy to find
 * People didn't care if their houses looked alike
 * The priority was a safe place to raise their children
 * Car sales exploded
 * A fear of communism
 * A fear of Atomic Warfare and Atomic Annihilation
 * Still Racial tension and issues
 * 1 out of 5 Americans lived in poverty
 * Many people crossed the border illegally
 * Because men were home from wars, the women lost their job chances
 * Jobs were getting smaller and smaller in the foreign markets