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One thing to remember about the 1971-72 period was how much the quality and reliability of cars had declined from the middle of the previous decade. This was the beginning of the "malaise" era of cars, initially brought on by emissions control requirements that, in the time before catalytic converters, effectively made cars sluggish and fuel-inefficient. The golden era of "muscle cars" in the 1960s when safety, environmental concerns and fuel economy were disregarded had definitely ended, and the quality of the cars produced by the Big 3 (really Big 4 at the time if you count AMC) was declining. Once the oil crisis hit in 1973, this left the American manufacturers highly vulnerable to competition from imports, mainly Japanese.
Most muscle car enthusiast will tell you 1972 models were the last desirable ones. The 1973 and 1974 models took on most of the safety and environmental regulations that diminished their power. I believe the very fastest muscle cara were built in 1970 however.
I drew John Mitchell’s blood when he passed through the lab at Maxwell AFB as he was processed into the Federal Prison camp at Maxwell. To this 19 year old Airman, he was polite but looked worn out.
A lot of relatively famous people did time at Maxwell.
Quite interesting. His being worn out shows that there is some justice in the world.
Not really that good of a memory. Had just recently gotten out of the military. 1970. Started university and during my very first quarter our campus was shut down because of anti war demonstrations. There were troops guarding the administration buildings with fixed bayonets. Tear gas in the air. And some people were very antagonistic to ex service members.
I remember rolling in dough. I had a part time job making $1.90 per hour. Minimum wage increased to $2.20 eventually but I had nothing to spend money on. I had about $190.00 dollars a month to spend on albums, clothes, and fast food. I didn't even own a car. I managed to have around $1500.00 dollars by the time I was a senior in high school in 1974.
To give you a frame of reference, a kid who worked with me offered me his 1960's T bird for $75.00 dollars, I backed out. I bought a 66' Buick Special for the same price. There are things that I could of bought in those days for under $100.00 that would be worth thousands today.
I was born in January 1972 and curious what was life was like for my parents of that year. If you remember it well feel free to share.
The good things, the bad things what was popular, what did you enjoy and what did you hate.
i remember...in 1971...
* the SF Giants making the playoffs only to lose to the eventual WS Champion Pirates, some with Bob Robertson slugging three HRs in one game. And I remember my principal wishing the Giants luck in a school assembly
* I remember the Oakland A's making the playoffs only to lose to the mighty Baltimore Orioles in three games
* I remember the LA Lakers 33 game win streak, and their 69-13 season culminating in a win over the Knicks for the NBA title
* I remember the SF Niners losing to the Cowboys
* I remember a super long Monday night football game won by a long field goal by Jan Stenarud (sp?)
In 1972,
* I remember the A's winning the world Series
* I remember the Immaculate Reception
* I remember the SF Niners losing to the Cowboys, again 30-28 on a 4th Qtr comeback
* I remember the Dolphins going undefeated and winning the Super Bowl
* I remember the Christmas bombings of Hanoi and the new reports that a number of B-52s were shot down.
In 1971/72, I remember straining to see if I could spot the Apollo command module orbiting the moon which astronauts were on the moot.
A perfect synopsis. Nixon's wage and price controls were designed to avoid the underside of the events of August 15, 1971, i.e. the devaluation of the dollar and the over-stimulation of the money supply, from coming into view. Unemployment dropped to just over 5% and inflation rose a bit, but held at 3.6% for 1972. By the end of 1973 inflation was at the top end of single digits, and unemployment bottomed at 4.7% in October 1973 and started to tick up.
The rest, in 1974, is history. The major gas lines were in 1974, and both the inflation rate and the prime lending rate peaked at 12%. I think unemployment rose to just over 8%.
Looking back and thinking about it a little more, it's clear that 1973 was the major turning point of the 1970s. From 1970-72, even though it was becoming a bit frayed at the edges, the postwar economy that peaked in the late 1960s was still rumbling on. The Nixon wage and price controls instituted in 1971 temporarily counteracted the devaluation of the dollar resulting from the cut of its tie to gold and the collapse of Bretton Woods. As it turned out, 1972 was the last good year of the 1970s from an economic standpoint.
By the end of 1973, the mood couldn't have been more different than it was at the outset of the year. In early 1973, a president recently re-elected by an overwhelming margin remained popular and the country was looking forward to his second term. In the previous year alone, he had made a historic opening to China, achieved detente and a strategic arms agreement with the Soviet Union, and was on the verge of ending US involvement in the Vietnam War, finally. Watergate was known but wasn't a major threat just yet. The economy seemed to be flourishing and the shock of the Arab oil embargo, and the haunting feeling of vulnerability that it inflicted on us, lay out in the future.
The year started well enough, with the Vietnam Peace Agreement signed in January and the POWs released soon after. It turned out to be the last good news of the year. By March, Watergate was breaking open and became a major threat to the president's continuation in office. In April, he first his top 2 White House advisors, Haldeman and Ehrlichman. As summer approached, the administration, weakened by Watergate, was forced to accept from Congress a total ban on any future military activity in, around or over Indochina, which meant that Nixon couldn't credibly threaten retaliation for ceasefire violations by the North Vietnamese. Though it took almost 2 years, this sealed the fate of South Vietnam.
Through the year, inflation picked up and reached the highest level in the postwar period. By the summer, there was signs of an impending economic slowdown. The worst turning point for the year was the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War in October. Simultaneously, Vice President Agnew was forced to resign and was replaced by Gerald Ford. The oil embargo and large price increases that resulted from the Yom Kippur war threw the US into a tailspin, economically and psychologically. Suddenly, a lifestyle and an economy that was built on cheap energy was deeply threatened, and the country suddenly woke up to a vulnerability that had building for year outside of our awareness. Detente was brought into question also when the US and Soviet Union, supporting opposing sides in the Yom Kippur war, nearly stumbled into conflict with each other.
The year stumbled on bleakly and by the time it gave way to an even bleaker 1974, the mood of the country was deeply depressed and worried about the future, a complete turnaround from the mood at the start of the year. The economy was headed for the worst recession since the Great Depression, and the foreign policy initiatives that the Nixon administration had dreamed of implementing early in the year, once Vietnam was out of the way, lay in ashes.
The mood that developed in 1973 is the mood that stayed with the country, to one degree or another, through the rest of the decade. Our energy vulnerability, high inflation, sluggish economic performance, and threats to our foreign policy position preoccupied Americans for the rest of the decade.
Most muscle car enthusiast will tell you 1972 models were the last desirable ones. The 1973 and 1974 models took on most of the safety and environmental regulations that diminished their power. I believe the very fastest muscle cara were built in 1970 however.
Thats part of it but Detroit went from gross HP to net HP and suddenly engines that were thought to be powerhouses in 1971 were suddenly being advertised as underated by a large percentage in 1972, despite being nearly the same.
One thing to remember about the 1971-72 period was how much the quality and reliability of cars had declined from the middle of the previous decade.
Very true, I was a teen in the 70s and I helped my dad repair all his cars, many things went wrong at low miles like 30-50K, hoses, belts, radiators, starters, alternators, U joints, plus lots of little things broke like door handles, window cranks, trim, etc. We lived in snowy Ohio, rust made holes in many cars within a short time. My dad bought a Ford Grenada in 1977 it was one year old and already had a rust hole on the door. In 5 years it had large rust holes in the undercarraige. None of my family's cars from the 70s made it over 90K miles, not even the Volvo or the VW. 1960s cars were much better built and smart people needing a used car bought those instead of 1970s cars, you could often get them in good shape for a few hundred dollars.
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