popular culture in 20th century popular culture in 20th century
 4 The Gilded Age of American civilization
It was in the latter half of the 19th century, however, the Gilded Age of American civilization, that society most flagrantly bent its pleasures to display. The newly rich born of industry's great advance since the Civil War-owners of railways, coppermines, textile-mills, steel-plants, packing-houses, and cattle ranches -- sought to establish social leadership through their extravagance in entertainments and amusements. Read More
4 The pleasures of vacation touring
The pleasures of vacation touring were depicted with even more fulsome praise of the joys of the open road. Every section of the country invited the growing army of motorists to visit it. Chambers of commerce, resort proprietors, and oil companies united in publicizing the attractions of seashore and mountain. New England was a summer vacation land, and Florida a popular winter resort. Read More
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4 Rise of the Sports
Baseball developed from its humble beginnings in the days before the Civil War to its recognized status as America's national game. The rapid spread of croquet caused the startled editors of The Nation to describe it as the swiftest and most infectious epidemic the country had ever experienced. Read More
4 Art and Escapism
"The movie is the art of the millions of American citizens," an English writer in the Adelphi discovered, "who are picturesquely called Hicks-the mighty stream of standardized humanity that flows through Main Street. . . . The cinema is, through and through, a democratic art; the only one." Nor would this commentator have had it otherwise. The attempt to educate the public to higher standards of taste except through the movies' natural evolution in response to a gradually maturing public sentiment was pious humbug. Europe had failed to realize the possibilities of the moving picture and was hiding behind that "singularly putrescent hypocrisy that masquerades as 'artistic culture.'" Read More
4 Popular Culture and Leisure
Leisure as a bulk of time, qualitatively distinct from other time, such as the evening.
Leisure as freedom from those activities that have to be done, such as work or household chores.
Leisure as an end, distinct from work as a means.
Leisure as a minimum of obligation to others, to routine, even to oneself.
Leisure as re-creation, to prepare for better work, to store up energy or knowledge. Read More
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4 Popular Culture and Social Change
Because popular culture charts social change exactly and swiftly, it is commonly held responsible for the changes it reflects, and denounced as the harbinger of social disIocation. in the early years of the century, jazz and the movies were held responsible for juvenile deIinquency, as television to be today. Read More
 4 Hollywood and Cultural Imperialism
There is only one Hollywood in the world. Movies are made in London, Paris, Milan and Moscow, but the life of these cities is relatively uninfluenced by their production. Hollywood is a unique American phenomenon with a symbolism not limited to this country. It means many things to many people. For the majority it is the home of favored, godlike creatures. For others, it is a "den of iniquity"; a center for creative genius, or a place where mediocrity flourishes and able men sell their creative souls for gold; an important industry with worldwide significance, or an environment of trivialities characterized by aimlessness; a mecca where everyone is happy, or a place where cynical disillusionment prevails. Read More
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