Bringing You the Wonder of Yesterday – Today
The mid-late 1940s was a breakthrough period of women swimwear, with its peak was the birth of the bikini in 1946. And it really boomed in the 1950s.
A postcard set of 69 women swimsuits from the 1940s and 1950s will bring to you a clearer view.
Television is the first audiovisual device that changed the way people see entertainment. It opened the realm of recreation and mass communication. It made possible for people and families to watch live events in the comforts of their drawing room. By 1950s, the aftermath of World War II had faded away. Economy was booming again and people had cash in their wallets. Prosperity was returning to America.
That’s the reason why the decade of the 1950s is also known as ‘The Golden Age of Television’. Even though, television broadcasting had been active since the 1930s, it was only in the 1950s that it actually caught people’s fancy.
It was in the 1950s, when the television started influencing the lives of the common men. Also according to a survey, approximately 3.1 million people had television sets in America in the 1950s.
To attract buyers, there were many interesting ads that launched in this decade. And these are some of them.
The Hague is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the western coast facing the North Sea. It is the administrative and royal capital of the Netherlands and its seat of government, as well as the capital of the province of South Holland. It hosts the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court.
With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam. The Hague is the core municipality of the Greater The Hague urban area, which comprises the city itself and its suburban municipalities, containing over 800,000 people, making it the third-largest urban area in the Netherlands, again after the urban areas of Amsterdam and Rotterdam. The Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area, with a population of approximately 2.6 million, is one of the largest metropolitan areas in Europe and the most populous in the country; the area holds the Rotterdam The Hague Airport. Situated on the west coast of the Netherlands, The Hague lies at the southwest corner of the larger Randstad conurbation, one of the largest conurbations in Europe.
The Hague is the seat of the Cabinet, the States General, the Supreme Court and the Council of State of the Netherlands, but the city is not the constitutional capital, which is Amsterdam. King Willem-Alexander lives in the Huis ten Bosch and works at the Noordeinde Palace in The Hague, together with Queen Máxima. Most foreign embassies in the Netherlands are located in the city. The Hague is also home to the headquarters of many Dutch companies, with Shell plc having major offices in the city as well.
The Hague is known as the home of international law and arbitration. The International Court of Justice, the main judicial arm of the United Nations, is located in the city, as are the International Criminal Court, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, Europol, and approximately 200 other international governmental organizations. (Wikipedia)
Formerly known as Longacre Square, Times Square was renamed in 1904 after The New York Times moved its headquarters to the newly erected Times Building – now One Times Square – the site of the annual New Year’s Eve ball drop which began on December 31, 1907, and continues today, attracting over a million visitors to Times Square every year.
The general atmosphere of Times Square changed with the onset of the Great Depression in the early 1930s. City residents moved uptown to cheaper neighborhoods, and many popular theaters closed, replaced by saloons, brothels, “burlesque halls, vaudeville stages, and dime houses.” The area acquired a reputation as a dangerous and seedy neighborhood in the following decades.
Nevertheless, Times Square continued to be the site of the annual ball drop on New Year’s Eve. The ball drop was placed on hiatus for New Year’s Eve in 1942 and 1943 due to lighting restrictions during World War II. Instead, a moment of silence was observed at midnight in Times Square, accompanied by the sound of chimes played from sound trucks.
On May 8, 1945, a massive crowd celebrated Victory in Europe Day in Times Square; and on August 15, 1945, the largest crowd in the history of Times Square gathered to celebrate Victory over Japan Day. The victory itself was announced by a headline on the “zipper” news ticker at One Times Square, which read “*** OFFICIAL TRUMAN ANNOUNCES JAPANESE SURRENDER ***”, the six asterisks representing the branches of the U.S. Armed Forces.
Brightly adorned with billboards and advertisements, Times Square is sometimes referred to as “The Crossroads of the World”, “The Center of the Universe”, “the heart of The Great White Way”, and the “heart of the world”.
Women’s fashion in the 1930s was more conservative than that of the optimistic 1920s. Another contrast in fashion in the 1930s from that of the decade before was a return to a more feminine look for ladies.
Women’s curves were no longer being de-emphasized, skirts became longer, and clothes returned to being near the natural waistline.
So what did Swedish women wear in the 1930s? Check out this gallery below of 50 stunning studio photos taken from 1930 to 1935.
Some Like It Hot made its debut around the world in March 1959. Premiere’s were held in Chicago (which Marilyn attended) and Memphis on 17th March and then in Washington on the 21st March. But it was the New York premiere at the Lowe’s Capital Theatre on 29th March 1959 that fans remember most for the photographs and video footage of Marilyn arriving at the theatre arm in arm with her then husband Arthur Miller, greeting fans and photographers and still looking every inch the movie star in a gorgeous silver evening gown and fur wrap.
On the night of the premiere, 60 years ago today, Monroe, accompanied by Miller, told reporters Lemmon was the “funniest man in the world” and like the rest of the audience laughed all the way through the film. Critics also loved it and Some Like it Hot is now regarded as one of the all-time great film comedies.
“The film did go considerably over budget. However, when it was all done and we looked at the film, I must say we were immensely enthused and we genuinely felt that this was a truly wonderful comedy. I don’t know that I would have believed then that it could have stood the test of all the time that has passed since it was first shown, but we sure thought it was good. I didn’t know it would last fifty or a hundred years.
It became the cornerstone of the long relationship that we developed with Billy because he remained with us the longest of all the directors that we booked to our company. The film was a huge success and of course was a great launching pad for our company because it was very early on in our history and so it’s highly significant in my life and my career. With all the incredible movies that Billy’s made, this is in the top three. I like to think that it’s maybe the best American comedy ever made.”
Walter Mirisch (Producer).
Founded in 1941 by Mary Ingraham in response to a request from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is a nonprofit organization that provides live entertainment, such as comedians and musicians, and other programs to members of the United States Armed Forces and their families.
During World War II, the USO became the G.I.’s ‘home away from home’ and began a tradition of entertaining the troops that continues today. After disbanding in 1947, it was revived in 1950 for the Korean War, after which it also provided peacetime services. During the Vietnam War, USOs were sometimes located in combat zones.
‘Slapsie Maxie’ was an ex-boxer named Max Rosenbloom, who was a nightclub owner, and comedian. His co-star was Gloria Pall, an aspiring actress who had a moment of notoriety later in 1954 when she starred as ‘Voluptua’ in a TV show.
These snapshots are a part of slides taken by U.S. Army photographer Edward Jay, 25th Replacement Co, 25th Inf. Division, US Army in 1954.
The Shimada is a women’s hairstyle in Japan, similar to a chignon. Generally the hair is gathered together at the crown of the head and a small portion of the bun is sectioned off to point outward.
This hairstyle was from the Edo period, and used still to this day. It became one of the traditional hairstyles of Japanese women.
Nihongami (日本髪, lit., “Japanese hair) is the term used for a number of traditional Japanese hairstyles considered to be distinctive in their construction and societal role.
Traditionally, the construction of most nihongami hairstyles consisted of two “wings” at the side of the head, curving upwards towards the back of the head to form a topknot or ponytail, with a long loop of hair below this also drawn into the topknot. Styles were accessorised with traditional hair accessories, though typically only by women; the combination of both style and accessories formed hairstyles that distinctively varied based on gender, age, job role and social standing.
Most styles of nihongami were hardened and shaped with wax, known as abura, and were styled with specially-carved combs made of either bamboo or boxwood, with heated tongs used to straighten the hair before styling. Hair styled in this manner was typically restyled weekly, and in some cases would necessitate sleeping on a pillow raised from the floor, known as a takamakura.
Nihongami are no longer commonly worn, and today are most often seen on maiko, geisha and sumo wrestlers. A number of different styles of nihongami are also worn by courtesan re-enactors, and many styles once common in the Edo period are seen faithfully reproduced in kabuki plays, which themselves also commonly date to the Edo period. Though some styles of nihongami are well documented, others have, over time, fallen into obscurity, with little in the way of documentation in regards to their appearance, name, origin and method of styling.
Here is a photo collection of Japanese women with their lovely Shimada hairstyle in the early 20th century.
Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah, as well as the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 199,723 in 2020, the city is the core of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a population of 1,257,936 (as of the 2020 census). Salt Lake City is further situated within a larger metropolis known as the Salt Lake City–Ogden–Provo Combined Statistical Area, a corridor of contiguous urban and suburban development stretched along a 120-mile (190 km) segment of the Wasatch Front, comprising a population of 2,606,548 (as of 2018 estimates), making it the 22nd largest in the nation. It is also the central core of the larger of only two major urban areas located within the Great Basin (the other being Reno, Nevada).
Salt Lake City was founded in 1847 by early pioneer settlers, led by Brigham Young, who were seeking to escape persecution they had experienced while living farther east. The Mormon pioneers, as they would come to be known, entered a semi-arid valley and immediately began planning and building an extensive irrigation network which could feed the population and foster future growth. Salt Lake City’s street grid system is based on a standard compass grid plan, with the southeast corner of Temple Square (the area containing the Salt Lake Temple in downtown Salt Lake City) serving as the origin of the Salt Lake meridian. Owing to its proximity to the Great Salt Lake, the city was originally named Great Salt Lake City. In 1868, the word “Great” was dropped from the city’s name.
Immigration of international members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, mining booms, and the construction of the first transcontinental railroad initially brought economic growth, and the city was nicknamed “The Crossroads of the West”. It was traversed by the Lincoln Highway, the first transcontinental highway, in 1913. Two major cross-country freeways, I-15 and I-80, now intersect in the city. The city also has a belt route, I-215.
Salt Lake City has developed a strong tourist industry based primarily on skiing and outdoor recreation. It hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics. It is known for its politically liberal and diverse culture, which stands at contrast with the rest of the state’s conservative leanings. It is home to a significant LGBT community and hosts the annual Utah Pride Festival. It is the industrial banking center of the United States.[14] Salt Lake City and the surrounding area are also the location of several institutions of higher education including the state’s flagship research school, the University of Utah. Sustained drought in Utah has more recently strained Salt Lake City’s water security and caused the Great Salt Lake level drop to record low levels. (Wikipedia)
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest borough of New York City in area; it is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long Island to its west and Nassau County to the east. Queens also shares water borders with the boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island (via the Rockaways).
With a population of 2,405,464 as of the 2020 census, Queens is the second most populous county in New York State, second to Kings County (Brooklyn), and is therefore also the second most populous of the five New York City boroughs. Were it a city, Queens would rank as the fourth most-populous in the U.S. Approximately 47 percent of the residents of Queens are foreign-born. Queens is the most linguistically diverse place on Earth and is one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the United States.
Queens was established in 1683 as one of the original 12 counties of the Province of New York. The settlement was presumably named for the English Queen Catherine of Braganza (1638–1705). From 1683 to 1899, the County of Queens included what is now Nassau County. Queens became a borough during the consolidation of New York City in 1898, combining the separate towns of Long Island City, Newtown, Flushing, Jamaica, and western Hempstead. With the exception of Hempstead, all are today considered neighborhoods of Queens.
Queens has the most diversified economy of the five boroughs of New York City. It is home to two of New York City’s airports: John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia. Landmarks in Queens which support its economy include Flushing Meadows–Corona Park; Citi Field, home to the New York Mets baseball team; the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, site of the U.S. Open tennis tournament; Kaufman Astoria Studios; Silvercup Studios; and the Aqueduct Racetrack. Flushing is undergoing rapid gentrification with investment by Chinese transnational entities, while Long Island City is undergoing gentrification secondary to its proximity across the East River from Manhattan.
The borough has diverse housing, ranging from high-rise apartment buildings in some areas of western and central Queens, such as Ozone Park, Jackson Heights, Flushing, Astoria, and Long Island City, to neighborhoods with many low-rise structures in the eastern part of the borough. (Wikipedia)
