1957 In The Suburbs: Redbook Film About Life In The Early 'Burbs

The explosive growth of the 'burbs gave birth to the Shopping Center (or mall). It was, no doubt, far more convenient to park once and shop for everything from clothes to food to building supplies in what amounted to a single stop.

But as is evidenced by Sears, the once-mighty shopping mall has been humbled by online shopping--particularly Amazon and iTunes. Even I have to admit, especially living in a rural area, that it's mind-blowing to order precisely what you want and have it delivered to your doorstep (or your hard drive) either instantly or within a few days.

In the pre-online shopping days, I remember driving to Minneapolis (about 150 miles) and spending an entire day going from place to place looking for a particular piece of cookware or small appliance or CD or clothing and sometimes not finding it. Now it's click, click, click and the exact item you want is on its way to you. Hard not to be seduced by that.

Glad the film touched on the national/world political issues of the time, as well. It's easy to look back and think everything was wine and roses. It wasn't.

My sister, who was born in '47, talks about how scared parents (and kids, for that matter) were during the polio epidemic. Even though I was born a few years after that, I grew up knowing a handful of people who wore the braces that came with surviving polio.

At any rate, I thought it was an interesting little film, albeit designed to sell Redbook as a comprehensive guide through the young adult/young family years.


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Post# 954840 8/27/2017 at 13:06 (2,432 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie)
Checkrate/Likes 2 Two years before I was born. A shifting society centers itself on young adults. Worth nineteen minutes of your time.

Post# 954860 , Reply# 1 8/27/2017 at 14:32 (2,432 days old) by cuffs054 (MONTICELLO, GA)
Checkrate/Likes Great film! Interesting how all the issues that are now so current were just a current then. I wonder how our time will be remembered? I can imagine telling the great grand kids "we all used to sit in front of the fireplace and play a game that had pieces and used no power".

Post# 954959 , Reply# 2 8/28/2017 at 03:14 (2,431 days old) by tolivac (greenville nc)
Checkrate/Likes Good little film about the OLD DAYS when I grew up-and in places like that!And even played with toys that didn't need batteries and sometimes launched potentially dangerous projectiles-and cap pistols that fired SHOOTIN-SHELLS!

Post# 954980 , Reply# 3 8/28/2017 at 07:53 (2,431 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *another movie* which depicts the growth of post WW2 suburban life is Avalon. My favorite line from the film is "they cut the turkey vithout me."

Post# 954984 , Reply# 4 8/28/2017 at 08:14 (2,431 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie)
Checkrate/Likes 3 The explosive growth of the 'burbs gave birth to the Shopping Center (or mall). It was, no doubt, far more convenient to park once and shop for everything from clothes to food to building supplies in what amounted to a single stop. But as is evidenced by Sears, the once-mighty shopping mall has been humbled by online shopping--particularly Amazon and iTunes. Even I have to admit, especially living in a rural area, that it's mind-blowing to order precisely what you want and have it delivered to your doorstep (or your hard drive) either instantly or within a few days. In the pre-online shopping days, I remember driving to Minneapolis (about 150 miles) and spending an entire day going from place to place looking for a particular piece of cookware or small appliance or CD or clothing and sometimes not finding it. Now it's click, click, click and the exact item you want is on its way to you. Hard not to be seduced by that. Glad the film touched on the national/world political issues of the time, as well. It's easy to look back and think everything was wine and roses. It wasn't. My sister, who was born in '47, talks about how scared parents (and kids, for that matter) were during the polio epidemic. Even though I was born a few years after that, I grew up knowing a handful of people who wore the braces that came with surviving polio. At any rate, I thought it was an interesting little film, albeit designed to sell Redbook as a comprehensive guide through the young adult/young family years.

Post# 954997 , Reply# 5 8/28/2017 at 10:22 (2,431 days old) by ea56 (Cotati, Calif.)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *Eugene,* thanks for sharing this short film. It is very much like the way I recall seeing the world thru my then 6 year old eyes. And your comment about polio is right on. My Mom wouldn't let any of us drink out of playground drinking fountains as she was certain that they were a point of transmission for Polio. Two door down from us the family had a son that had Polio. They kept him at home and the only place big enough in their home for his iron lung was in their living room, in front of the bay window. I remember seeing him in it when I walked by their house. Mother's used to go out on designated evening and collect for the March Of Dimes, if people wanted to give they kept their porch lights on. Eddie