Topic 4 - Changing Quality of Life (LEISURE/TRAVEL)

Question 1

discuss Hollywood and the Movies

Answer 1

• movie industry was big business but there were regional differences e.g. stark contrast in quality and number of cinemas between North and South
• Movies often portrayed American Dream
• but also reflected realities of society
• Hollywood offered escapism to a frequently disillusioned society - idealistic - Hays Code
• liberal divide more opportunities for leisure in the North
• Griffin led the way to make Hollywood movie capitol of world - Birth of a Nation
• Bow - Casa Blanca - Escapism

Question 2

what limited leisure and travel from 1917-1940

Answer 2

• 1917-20 - war limited it
• 1920-30 time limit
• 1930-40 money limit

Question 3

discuss leisure and travel before the SWW

Answer 3

• life dull before SWW
• 1920s and 30s people worked long hours, little time for leisure - trip to movies was height of excitement
• roaring 20s so people had money but haven’t had FDRs working rights act/40 hour week
• no time to spend money on leisure
• economic depression in 30s meant it was a luxury that could not be afforded
• prohibition made it worse though speakeasies did offer some release - alcohol and gambling illegal till 33

Question 4

what massively impacts the ability to travel and experience leisure

Answer 4

federal policy

Question 5

discuss the growth of the spectator industry

Answer 5

• spectator sports esp baseball became super popular
• listening on radio revolutionary
• but demand to watch games too
• stadiums extended to cope with demand
• NY Yankee Stadium e.g. rebuilt in 1923 with capacity of 53,000+
• annual support for Yankees quadrupled over 5 years just because of Babe Ruth
• FDR encouraged games to continue during war to keep morale high but qual dropped as many players in armed forces
• some teams blocked radio broadcasting to boost tickets sales
• but game attendance hit hard by TV in 50s

Question 6

when was baseballs big break

Answer 6

• 1920s
• key reason is because of the radio
• people got feel for it - desire to watch
• babe ruth arguably greatest player of all time - key reason for Yankees success
• the babe - franchise grew
• made one of most controversial transfers of all time - reputation

Question 7

who was Jackie Robinson

Answer 7

• first AA to play in the major baseball league
• before this separate leagues
• white time Brooklyn Dodgers were struggling and took a risk signing him
• trailblazer - pioneer - MVP in 1949
• played for them 1947-56
• at a time of segregation and extreme segregation towards AA

Question 8

discuss Hypocrisy of Race in Sport

Answer 8

• hypocritical to celebrate their success if you won’t give them equal rights
• AA sports stars benefited white people - it wasn’t going to take their jobs away from them or anything
• they were a source of leisure
• perhaps it made people feel better about racial inequality

Question 9

discuss the rise of American Football

Answer 9

• baseball had been flavour of nation since 1920s
• but after SWW football took over
• games quicker and more exciting to watch both live and on TV
• quality of TV meant baseball hard to watch as can’t see the ball

Question 10

what was American Football like as a part of society

Answer 10

• every city and state had either a pro or college team to get behind - something baseball could not match
• college stars like Red Grange where the talk of the nation
• success/plight of teams was heartbeat of communities
• viewership different as baseball male orientated but football seen as something for the whole family including women - mascots, family days and theme days etc…
• spread across America not just North
• if a team lost people would be really sad and wouldn’t spend money in restaurants celebrating

Question 11

what other sports emerged in 60s and 70s

Answer 11

• baseball, boxing and football had biggest TV crowds and revenue but other sports like Basketball, Hockey and Tennis began to grow

Question 12

when was sports desegregated

Answer 12

• late 50s

- highlighting the hypocrisy of society as CRA and VRA were a decade later

Question 13

impact of radio and Tv on sports industry

Answer 13

• initially boosted revenue
• eventually impacted attendances
• sponsors began to offer fan deals and family days to draw fans back to games and away from their TVs

Question 14

when was the first Super Bowl

Answer 14

• 1967
• most viewed spectacle every year in USA
• attracts audiences of 100mil +
• advertising revenue of over 300mil
• American dream, capitalist, leisure, sport
• america stops to watch it
• prominence of sport

Question 15

what happened to Muhamned Ali that shows the hypocrisy of sport

Answer 15

• boxed in 60s-80s
• key AA rights
• refused to serve in V war as didn’t agree with draft
• was stripped of his titles and banned from boxing for a number of years

Question 16

discuss the rise of motorcar ownership

Answer 16

• after FWW cars became easier to manufacture
• cheaper as result and so ownership grew
• increase in number of roads meant travel out of cities easier
• got cheaper in 20s
• issue was at start there wasn’t many interstate roads and in 20s people shackled by time but when they did get the odd leisure time off work it allowed people to go to national parks, theme parks and coastal resorts which had impact on growth of tourism industry
• a lot of people had to sell it in 30s though as couldn’t afford to run it anymore - needed to buy food as a priority

Question 17

what was the impact of the motorcar on US society after SWW

Answer 17

• (-) pollution, congestion, increased rich/poor divide
• jobs in production, maintenance, garages and mechanics required
• reliance on petrol and fuel
• more roads built which provided interconnectivity - Ike Highways agency act
• new work industries, delivery drivers and far our leisure facilities
• access to suburbs and ability to commute
• boom in tourism - Disneyland and national parks
• development of the car as a status symbol - people want best cars available

Question 18

henry ford and motorship

Answer 18

• mass car ownership began in 20s as Ford introduced a new type of manufacturing - fordist production
• heralded one of the biggest influences on US society and changed the nature of US forever
• demand for cars created jobs in every city and kept employment high
• high levels of car production kept cost low
• the Model T Ford only cost $250 which was reasonable enough for many households to afford

Question 19

what act did Ike do for cars

Answer 19

• as tech advanced cars made faster and more elegant with new features like built in radio which made journeys more comfortable to drive longer - more sturdy and reliable
• 1956 Federal Aid Highways Agency Act - created interstate highway system

Question 20

why did people have more time for leisure after SWW

Answer 20

• 1938 Fair Labour Standards Act introduced 40 hour max working week
• new deal - after war people have more money and freedom
• rising incomes
• time saving household goods
• baby boom at end of 40s so in 50s people want to spend time with their kids
• golden years to be a teen
• average families spent 1/6th of earnings on leisure even poorer families still listened to sport on radio, attended games and went to the cinema as both activities were cheap

Question 21

discuss white and blue collar workers after the SWW

Answer 21

• for first time after SWW more white collar workers than blue ones
• meant average household income higher than ever
• blue collar - manual labour industries and tended to earn less money
• white collar - more officer work which generally had higher wage

Question 22

discuss the fuel crisis of the 1970s

Answer 22

• 1970 car ownership widespread - traffic jams, pollution and delays
• fuel crisis made matters worse
• partly caused by the US gov supplying arms to Israel as in response many Arab nations who were part of OPEC group refused to supply US with oil
• increased fuel prices - petrol companies ran out
• limited leisure and travel
• becomes least priority for people even if they want cheering up it just isn’t viable
• no confidence, v war, watergate

Question 23

what was leisure and travel like in 60s for young people

Answer 23

• liberalism

- some young people started to rejected leisure travel and materialism

Question 24

discuss the late 40s early 50s baby boom

Answer 24

• led to high demand for new types of leisure to entertain the whole family
• family themes entertainment began to open up across the USA e.g. theme parks, bowling alleys and shopping malls etc…
• men and sons at sports
• women and daughters - shopping
• milk the cash cow

Question 25

discuss technology of the 1970s

Answer 25

• by 70s cassette and video recorders had been released as well as better TV and Radios
• movies more sophisticated exploring new frontiers
• first computers started to emerge
• 1975 microsoft founder Bill Gates released Altair 8000 and idea of learning BASIC and getting into computing became a hobby and leisure activity for some

Question 26

discuss reading as a leisure opportunity

Answer 26

• paperback market expanded rapidly after SWW
• as whole population now literate reading was a hobby for the masses
• almost doubled in sales in 50s
• growth of TV did not heavily impact on book industry
• 1954-87 an average of 283 new bookstores opened every year while book sales rose by 11.3%

Question 27

discuss the significance of aviation

Answer 27

• before SWW it existed but was scare and dangerous as cabins not yet pressurised
• commercial airlines didn’t exist but people could travel on mail planes
• war advanced the tech - jet engines and radar
• US invested much defence spending in it - key in race against soviets

Question 28

what was first major passenger aircraft and its impact

Answer 28

• Boeing 747
• introduced in 1969
• carried 450 people
• so successful that it dominated sky for nearly 40 years
• could travel cross country far quicker than by car
• created more business and employment opportunities
• opened up to international tourism
• more people to US than US travelling out so didn’t take money out of USA