POPULAR CULTURE Popular Culture 1940 1959 Nick Hunter Heinemann LIBRARY Chicago Illinois
Contents What Is Popular Culture Culture in the Shadow of War Going to the Movies Home Entertainment Music Design and Clothes The Printed Word The Birth of the Teenager Changing Times What Did the 1940s and 1950s Do for Us Timeline Best of the Era Notes on Sources Find Out More Glossary Index
What Is Popular Culture On the evening of September 9 1956 eight out of ten people watching television in America were tuned into The Ed Sullivan Show The awestruck studio audience and millions watching at home had not tuned in to see the show’s host Ed Sullivan was not even appearing that night They all wanted to catch a glimpse of a young singer from Memphis Tennessee Elvis Presley was already hugely popular with young people and his appearance on the show was a major step in establishing him as one of the most famous faces and voices in the history of popular culture 1 Presley’s music and the huge numbers of people he could reach through the new medium of TV are examples of pop culture at its most exciting Pop or popular culture is designed to be seen or heard by as many people as possible It appeals to the general public or a section of the general public rather than a cultural elite Pop culture includes films music magazines and even advertisements Even the design styles of products such as cars and household appliances can be part of pop culture because they are produced to appeal to people as desirable as well as useful objects Most of the things we think of as popular culture began to develop from the late nineteenth century Just as industrial
