Popular Culture: 1920-1939

Popular Culture: 1920-1939 — page 7 — During the 1930s there was also widespread fear of communism By 1929 Joseph Stalin had become leader of the Soviet Union and taken total control of the Russian people’s lives 4 Many people feared that communist ideas would spread to Europe and America A world of entertainment Faced with serious problems at home and abroad many people chose to escape into the comforting world of entertainment Movies and radio were immensely popular and they brought people together in a new kind of community In particular romantic movies such as Gone With the Wind and The Wizard of Oz attracted massive audiences around the world The 1930s also saw the growth of celebrity culture as people worldwide identified with movie stars singers and musicians

Popular Culture: 1920-1939 — page 8 — The Great Depression hit families especially hard as parents struggled to find enough food to feed their children Breaking the law In the desperate years of the Great Depression many people in the United States were driven to crime Most lawbreakers stole small amounts of money to keep their families alive But some armed outlaws moved from town to town breaking into shops gas stations and banks The most famous outlaws of the period were Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow Bonnie and Clyde drove through Texas and the

Popular Culture: 1920-1939 — page 9 — surrounding states robbing banks as they went Eventually the police caught up with them and shot and killed them in 1934 5 After they died Bonnie and Clyde became glamorous figures in American popular culture and were widely admired for their daring and style

Popular Culture: 1920-1939 — page 10 — Jazz Blues and Swing The 1920s are often known as the Jazz Age because jazz really took off in those years The craze for jazz began in America but soon spread to Europe People went to bars and clubs to listen to jazz musicians and singers Fans bought sheet music to play at home and millions of people bought records by stars such as Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith Jazz begins Jazz had its origins in the early years of the twentieth century It began in New Orleans Louisiana where a group of talented African American musicians developed a new kind of music 1 Their music was based on the songs their ancestors had sung when they were working as slaves on cotton plantations Jazz stood out from other popular music of the time because of its very strong rhythms and its use of blues notes notes in a minor key to create a sad and haunting mood Jazz music was often played by a small group of musicians on a range of instruments such as a saxophone a trumpet a banjo and a piano There were parts for solo players who were free to improvise some of the music as they went along From New Orleans to Chicago Most of the early jazz musicians were based in the city of New

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