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I think this is going to differ quite a bit depending on the age a person goes back as. I see as a person who lived the 50s as a teenager. For me it was the best devade of my life. But reading through the posts people of different ages had different experiences.
I am certain my view would be different if I had been a black women living in a large city instead of an oriental boy (who passed for white) living in a rural area.
If I were able to stay in the same location (Salinas in Monterey County), not having air conditioning would not be a major factor as temps seldom exceed 80 around here. I believe the 1950's was when that first started...may be wrong on that though.
I would enjoy the lesser congestion, but would have to learn to walk on eggshells a bit or better yet not say a word before mentioning anything like gay rights as indicated in a previous post or they may want me to appear before the Un-American Activities committee (seriously mean it).
I have watched a few Leave It to Beaver re-runs and they were not that bad. It would be refreshing not to have the silly reality shows. Some of the late 50's science fiction movies were actually good as they could not just rely on special effects. I could get used to getting just four or five channels on TV. Another plus would be the professional athletes in those days made about the same amount of money as the general populace (if it was more, it was only slightly more) and far fewer prima donna types than today.
I think President Eisenhower was generally a good guy and helped put a stop to the McCarthyism smears in its committees and its trampling on the First Amendment rights of American citizens. He is not given enough credit for that in the history books. He also started the nationwide highway system. I am a Democrat providing these compliments.
I generally think it would be easier for a man than a woman. Woman had the right to vote, but were routinely fired upon pregnancy back then and the general consensus was that they should "know their place". It was not until the mid-60's that it started changing. It would also be easier for white people than people of color obviously. The Civil Rights Act was not signed until 1964.
Going to the malt shops and being served by waitresses on roller skates would be sort of cool like in the American Graffitti movie. People not having to lock the doors of their suburban homes would certainly be nice. I do not think this was always the case for people in the largest cities, though. People also had more courtesy back then from everything I have heard about that era.
Overall, it would be a big adjustment process, but at least the Vietnam War was not happening. I may be wrong on this, but I think the concept of late night was not around back then except in the 3 or 4 largest cities. Even nightclubs were likely shuttered by midnight and forget about eating a meal later than 9:00 at restaurants.
It would be interesting to say the least.
More than likely woman were not hired because they could get pregnant or they could get married and quit to raise families. The fact that some women had to support families or were interested in careers and not marriage, the horror! was inconceivable. It kept many intelligent women from obtaining so-called "men's jobs."
Companies were allowed to ask women all kinds of person medical questions too. I remember when I applied for a job at Time Magazine being asked how much and how often I menstruated. It was right on the employment application form and was not unusual to see. I believe the reasoning behind this questioning was they wanted to anticipate if I would miss work due to my periods. Questions like "When do you plan to marry and how many kids do you plan to have were?" SOP in those days too.
These were the things the original people who formed the women's movement were trying to strike down with the equal employment opportunity issues and not just equal pay and daycare as women are fighting for today.
You receive a knock at your door. Opening up, a man in a very out of fashion suit and hairstyle walks in and introduces himself as "Rob", insisting you write it in all capital letters and tells you have important news. Taking a seat, he informs you that in one week you will be forced through a time vortex to live in a standard suburban American town circa 1952. Your life will continue there from that point, and you can never return (although if you live long enough you might see the present day as an old man/woman)
As you reel from the shock, he informs you of further rules.
You will receive a fully paid off and furnished suburban house to live in, large enough to start a family but small enough that it wouldn't be unusual if you didn't.
You will be given a job that is the closest approximation possible of your current one. For example, a person in IT now will be given a job working on the very basic computers of the time.
You get one small suitcase to pack anything you want, technology can be brought but electronic items cannot have a total modern price value over 300 USD.
If you are economically dependent on someone else, they will come as well but will be mind wiped into thinking they always lived in that era.
If you are not American, you are given an excuse of having recently immigrated.
What can you do to adapt to your new life? Do you face any special challenges from 50s culture and/or technology?
I would face a severe challenge being a Black man. I wouldn't be able to adapt. I believe that I should have the same rights,privileges, and freedoms as anyone else. And in those days, I wouldn't have had that. I would have been limited in what suburbs I could live in. Life would have been much harder for me back then.
As a white male, I'd get by easily, but I'm well aware of the drawbacks for practically everyone else, which stinks.
That being said, I'm sure I'd be in better shape - back then, having a mechanical engineering degree and a decade of experience was worth something and jobs could be easily found vs. today's joke of an economy. These days, a mechanical engineering degree isn't worth the paper it's printed on, and your experience is useless if it's not in the exact industry for which you wish to work, often right down to company-specific requirements involving software packages, etc. I'm pretty sure no job requirement in the 1950's said "must have 3 to 5 years experience with Sharp brand slide rules and a grey drafting board." but the equivalent level of lunacy is common today. Back then, I could have easily obtained a CAREER - vs. today, where even jobs are hard to find - easily bought a nice, little home, and lived out a decent, productive life. Most of those options are off the table these days.
On the other hand, the racism, sexism, and dislike of "those people" - anyone who's different - would have grated on my nerves since I'd still be a product of this era and thus not raised in ignorance to hate anyone who's different. I'm sure I'd have problems holding my tongue when people went off on rants about "those people" and how they need to be "kept in their place." Sadly, having worked with bigots in this era who are still living in the 1950's... or 1850's... it can be tiring to endure that stupidity and hatred on a daily basis.
Oh, and the smoking... I forgot about that... Many businesses allowed smoking throughout, which would have been annoying as heck, as well as unhealthy.
So, assuming I could get around the smoking and put up with the bigots, I'd say I'd make out like a bandit back then, but that's mostly because of my race, gender, and skill set.
In 1951, my haircuts were .25 cents, the movie was .09 cents, a pair of tennis shoes was .50 cents. In 1953 my very first job had me carrying out the trash cans at an apartment complex. I was paid 10. dollars a month. 1959, my dad made 75. dollars a week. My mom stayed home. My next job in 1957 as grocery sacker paid .11 cents an hour. My next job at a service station in 1959 paid .50 cents an hour. Woohoo!!!... Super Shell gas was .21 cents a gallon and regular was .19 cents a gallon. My mom would go grocery shopping and come home with 8 brown paper bags of food. All for 30 dollars. In my first year out of high scholl in 1962 I made less than 3,000. dollars for a 40 hour a week job. I almost broke that amount the next year. Ah, the good ole days.
I would be an assassin with sniper rifles from the 20th century and the best kevlar and body armor. Essentially I would go back in time to kill people to show father time who was boss.
I would have no choice but to commit suicide in short order. As a gay man, economically dependent on my gay partner (disabled by way of deafness), I'd not be able to continue my existence in that era, as we could no longer be partners. So yeah, I'd pack a Glock in that suitcase and nothing else, and once I was sent through that vortex, I'd use it on myself immediately. At least it'd be quick...
In 1951, my haircuts were .25 cents, the movie was .09 cents, a pair of tennis shoes was .50 cents. In 1953 my very first job had me carrying out the trash cans at an apartment complex. I was paid 10. dollars a month. 1959, my dad made 75. dollars a week. My mom stayed home. My next job in 1957 as grocery sacker paid .11 cents an hour. My next job at a service station in 1959 paid .50 cents an hour. Woohoo!!!... Super Shell gas was .21 cents a gallon and regular was .19 cents a gallon. My mom would go grocery shopping and come home with 8 brown paper bags of food. All for 30 dollars. In my first year out of high scholl in 1962 I made less than 3,000. dollars for a 40 hour a week job. I almost broke that amount the next year. Ah, the good ole days.
Looks like we are near the same age. My memories are very much the same except my first job was in the spring of 1948 on a dairy farm. And by 1959 I was in the Air Force. My first base pay was $30 a month but after being commissioned went up to $210 Bad part I then had to pay for meals and housing etc, My take home ended more like $20 a month
Well the Unions were more powerful in my country (Australia) in the 1950s and there was greater job security in that time then than today. that is an aspect I will like most about the 1950s and I wish workers rights today (for all employees of course) were like the 1950s.
I agree. People fail to realize that much of the prosperity of the nifty fifties was bought with Union wages and Union pensions and Union stability.
I grew up in Florida in the 50s. My parents ran a small hotel on the beach and everyday my dad piled all the black maids into the station wagon and hauled butt back to the mainland. I asked him about it years later and he told me it was "understood" there would be no blacks on the beach past 6PM. I can remember the White and Colored bathrooms and drinking fountains vividly. Same with the segregated restaurants.
The one good thing about the 50s is people weren't so concerned accumulating excess "stuff", but that's probably only because it wasn't available.
I agree. People fail to realize that much of the prosperity of the nifty fifties was bought with Union wages and Union pensions and Union stability.
I grew up in Florida in the 50s. My parents ran a small hotel on the beach and everyday my dad piled all the black maids into the station wagon and hauled butt back to the mainland. I asked him about it years later and he told me it was "understood" there would be no blacks on the beach past 6PM. I can remember the White and Colored bathrooms and drinking fountains vividly. Same with the segregated restaurants.
The one good thing about the 50s is people weren't so concerned accumulating excess "stuff", but that's probably only because it wasn't available.
Interesting you bring up the story about Florida. My father is from Milwaukee, and he is Black. He was born and raised there. When he was a child, he went on a trip to Mississippi to see relatives. He recalled seeing the "White" and "Colored" signs. However, things were not that much better in the north. He was born in the 50s and there were certain parts of Milwaukee Blacks couldn't live in during those days. You could even get jumped if you in a certain part of town.
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As a gay man, economically dependent on my gay partner (disabled by way of deafness), I'd not be able to continue my existence in that era, as we could no longer be partners. So yeah, I'd pack a Glock in that suitcase and nothing else, and once I was sent through that vortex, I'd use it on myself immediately. At least it'd be quick...
