Decade: 1950s
Two Cars in Every Garage
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1950
◦ For the first time, according to
the 1950 census, the US has a
population of over 150 million.
◦ Korean War begins when North
Korean troops with Soviet
backing invade South Korea.
The war would last for 3 years.
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1953
◦ The Cold War continues when
President Eisenhower approves
a top secret document stating
that the US nuclear arsenal
must be expanded to combat
the communist threat around
the world.
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1954
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1955
◦ Joseph McCarthy begins
televised Senate hearings into
alleged Communist influence in
the United States Army.
◦ Racial segregation in public
schools is declared
unconstitutional by the US
Supreme Court in Brown vs.
Board of Education.
◦ The Supreme Court orders that
all public schools be integrated
with deliberate speed.
◦ Rosa Parks, an African-American
seamstress, refuses to give up
her seat on the bus to a white
man, prompting a boycott that
would lead to the declaration
that bus segregation laws were
unconstitutional by a federal
court.
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1956
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1957
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1959
◦ Federal-Aid Highway Act is
passed. The interstate highway
system would enable quick
and efficient travel for
business and leisure travelers.
◦ President Eisenhower is reelected to a second term.
◦ National Guard is called to
duty by Arkansas Governor
Orval Faubus to bar nine black
students from attending a
previously all-white Central
High School in Little Rock. The
students would eventually be
admitted to class.
◦ Alaska is admitted to the US as
the 49th state. Hawaii would
also be admitted to the union
as the 50th state.
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1950
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1951
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1952
◦ Peanuts, the comic strip written
and drawn by Charles Schultz,
debuts in seven US newspapers.
◦ I Love Lucy, starring Lucille Ball,
premieres on CBS.
◦ Gunsmoke debuts as a radio
drama. Three years later it
would move to the TV where it
lasts until 1975.
◦ American Bandstand, a popular
teen-oriented music program,
debuts as a local show in
Philadelphia. Dick Clark, its
most famous host, comes
aboard in 1956.
◦ The Today Show debuts on
NBC.
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1954
◦ “That’s All Right, Mama” and
“Blue Moon of Kentucky,” by
Elvis are released on Sun
Records.
◦ The Tonight Show debuts
on NBC.
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1955
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1957
◦ The $64,000 Question
debuts and soon becomes
the most popular game
show of the 1950s.
◦ The landmark musical West
Side Story, a modern-day
adaption of Romeo and
Juliet opens on Broadway.
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1956
◦ Dan Larsen pitches the first
no-hitter, a perfect game,
in post-season baseball
history when his New York
Yankees beat the Brooklyn
Dodgers in the 5th game of
the 1956 World Series.
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1959
◦ The Daytona 500 stock car
race is run for the first time,
with Lee Petty taking the
first checkered flag.
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1950
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1951
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1952
◦ 1st credit card issued (Diner’s
Club)
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Super glue invented
Power steering invented
First video tape recorder
Color TV introduced
◦ Seat belts introduced
◦ Polio vaccine created by Jonas
Salk
◦ Mr. Potato Head patented
◦ First diet soft drink sold
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1953
◦ Black box flight recorder
invented
◦ DNA discovered
◦ 1st Playboy magazine produced
(Marilyn Monroe)
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1954
◦ Large scale vaccination of
children against polio begins
in Pennsylvania.
◦ The “pill” is invented.
◦ Report says cigarettes cause
cancer
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1957
◦ Gordon Gould, an American
physicist, invents the laser. He
would not win patent rights
until 1977.
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1958
◦ LEGOs first introduced

1959
◦ Pacemaker invented
◦ Barbie Doll invented
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1950
◦ The Brinks robbery in
Boston occurs when 11
masked bandits steal $2.8
million from an armored
car outside their office.
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It was believed the Rosenbergs
passed information about the atomic
bomb to the Soviet Union.
1951
◦ Julius and Ethel Rosenberg
were found guilty of
conspiracy of wartime
espionage and sentenced
to death. They would be
executed in 1953.
◦ The inauguration of transcontinental television
occurs with the broadcast
of President Truman’s
speech at the Japanese
Peace Treaty Conference in
San Francisco.
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1952
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1953
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1954
◦ Winter Olympics open in Helsinki,
Finland with 30 participating nations.
During these games, the first triple
jump in figure skating history is
performed by Dick Button, who won
one of the four gold medals gained by
the US athletes.
◦ The first hydrogen bomb, named Mike,
is detonated on the Eniwetok Atoll.
◦ Panty raids on college campuses
◦ The first color televisions go on sale.
◦ Rosenbergs executed for espionage
◦ Ray Kroc founds the idea for the
McDonald’s corporation. He opens his
first franchise the following year.
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1955
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1956
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1957
◦ Disneyland opens in Anaheim,
CA.
◦ James Dean dies in car accident
◦ Emmett Till brutally murdered
in Mississippi for supposedly
flirting with a white woman.
◦ The first transatlantic telephone
cable began operation.
◦ Elvis gyrates on Ed Sullivan
show
◦ The FBI arrests labor leader
Jimmy Hoffa under a bribery
charge.
◦ Sputnik launched by Soviets
◦ The first attempt by the US to
launch a satellite into space
fails when it explodes on the
launchpad.
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1958
◦ Explorer I, the first US space
satellite, is launched at Cape
Canaveral.
◦ NASA founded
◦ The first major world’s fair
since the end of WWII opens in
Brussels, Belgium. Over 41
million visitors attended the
event.
◦ An Alaskan earthquake occurs
at Lituya Bay. It registered 7.5
on the Richter scale,
producing a landslide that
caused a mega-tsunami. Only
two people were killed in the
incident.

1959
◦ NASA selects the
first seven
military pilots to
become the first
astronauts in the
US. They were
known as the
Mercury Seven.
◦ A plane crash
kills rock and roll
legends Buddy
Holly, Richie
Valens, and the
Big Bopper (J.P.
Richardson).
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During the 1950s, people were beginning to feel a
little more freedom when it came to their fashion
choices. No longer did they feel like they had to
conform to a certain look for certain situations.
Women: the waistline was a major issue. Some
women really liked the snug fit of the Dior dresses
while others liked dresses with no waistline, often
referred to as “sack dresses.” This decade was known
for the “wondering waistline” in women’s fashion.
Poodle skirts were popular during this time.
Men: the fashion trendsetter, of course, was Elvis
Presley, as Rock and Roll entered mainstream. Not
surprisingly, the 1950s welcomed the youth
movement in fashion that echoed a more rebellious
look – greaser look.
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Made in the shade – something or someone that was
guaranteed to be or is a success
Peepers – glasses
Split – to leave, very quickly
Threads – clothing
Burn rubber – to accelerate a car quickly
Hot rod – American muscle car modified with large
engines
No sweat – something that was no problem or easy
Pad – someone’s home
Greaser – rebellious teenage boy, usually with tons of
hair product in his hair
Heat – police
Ankle-biter – young child who was often found
crawling around on the floor