Vintage 1950s TV

The Mickey Mouse Club was a variety television show for children that aired from 1955 to 1959 and broadcast by ABC on weeknights. It was created by Walt Disney and produced by Walt Disney Productions.

                    The show was hosted by Jimmie Dodd, a songwriter and the Head Mouseketeer, who provided leadership both on and off screen. In addition to his other contributions, he often provided short segments encouraging young viewers to make the right moral choices. These little homilies became known as "Doddisms". Roy Williams, a staff artist at Disney, also appeared in the show as the Big Mouseketeer. Roy suggested that the Mickey and Minnie Mouse ears be worn by the cast members which he, along with Chuck Keehne, Hal Adelquist, and Bill Walsh helped create.

               This was Walt Disney's second venture into producing a television series, the first being the Walt Disney anthology television series. Disney used both shows to help finance and promote the building of the Disneyland theme park. Being busy with these projects and others, Disney turned The Mickey Mouse Club over to Bill Walsh to create and develop.

          The show had regular features:  a newsreel, a cartoon, and a serial, as well as music, talent and comedy segments. One unique feature of the show was the Mouseketeer Roll Call, in which many of that day's line-up of regular performers introduced themselves by name to the television audience. Mickey Mouse himself appeared somewhere in every show.

          The opening theme, "The Mickey Mouse March," was written by Jimmie Dodd. It was also reprised at the end of each episode, with the slower it's-time-to-say-goodbye verse. Dodd also wrote many other songs used in individual segments over the course of the series.

1956 cast photo. Front row; L–R: Annette Funicello, Karen Pendleton, Cubby O'Brien, Sherry Alberoni, Dennis Day. Row two: Charley Laney, Sharon Baird, Darlene Gillespie, Jay-Jay Solari. Row three: Tommy Cole, Cheryl Holdridge, Larry Larsen, Eileen Diamond. Row four: Lonnie Burr, Margene Storey, Doreen Tracey. Back row: Jimmie Dodd, Bobby Burgess.

          Although the show remained popular, in September, 1959 ABC decided to canceled it after its fourth season. It was revived in 1977 by Walt Disney Productions.

For a waltz down memory lane,  listen to the theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJg1hA1Q-8w

Vintage 1950 Ladies Fashion

1950s Winter Sweaters

          1950s sweaters followed the New Look shape of the hour glass with protruding bust, tiny wasp waist and full hips. The look was snug tight to balance out the full circle skirt bottoms or match the confining pencil skirt. In reality they were no more snug than most sweaters on the 1940s but the lingerie made them look more fitted.

          To keep women modest and refined was still the moral game of the 1950s. A new invention, the sweater set, allowed a woman to wear a tight short sleeve sweater top but was covered up with a matching (usually, not always) cardigan. The cardigan was usually worn with the top button buttoned only- otherwise it would defeat the peek-a-book seduction. Button size was also small and dainty. Sleeves were slender with a long narrow cuff that could be folded over.

               The look was also rich with finer knit yarns of lambs wool, angora, nylon Dracon and acrylic synthetic Orlon. Milk beads were an expensive embellishment sewn into the sweater around the collar and lapels or all over if you were rich enough to afford one. Designs were floral and maybe snowflakes in winter or other novelty themes.

          In the early years it was a fad for teens to wear their cardigans backwards but by the end of the decade it just meant they were too poor to own a real pullover. Nearly all girls owned and wore a cardigan or pullover sweater twin set with their school clothes. It was so polished and pretty to do so!

Vintage 1950s Homes

Bathrooms

          The decade of the 1950’s in the United States was a time of monumental change in homes. Soldiers coming back from WWII were ready to settle down, buy houses, and start families. Money generated from the war gave people the income to not only buy houses, but to buy the latest technologically advanced home appliances and cars. Optimism soared in the huge demand for housing. The first prefabricated homes and quickly built homes were popular.

          The space race between the United States and Russia inspired architects, artists, and car manufacturers. The cold, dreary war had ended and people were ready for color. Home interiors were painted with bright, cheery colors such as green, pink, orange, turquoise, and yellow. Bathrooms and kitchens were commonly painted pink, even pink appliances were sold.

          People craved color, style, and technology in their homes including the bathrooms.

Vintage 1950s Cars

          The DeSoto Fireflite is an automobile produced by DeSoto in the United States from 1955 to 1960.

          The Fireflite was introduced in 1955 as De Soto's flagship model. It was wider and longer than previous DeSoto models and it came equipped with a V8 engine producing 200 hp when equipped with the 4 barrel carburetor and PowerFlite automatic transmission. The transmission was operated by a Flite-Control lever located on the dashboard.

          The 1956 model car was best known for its long, tapering tail fins, often accentuated by a two-tone exterior finish. The interior had bench seats that could accommodate six passengers. The Fireflite had a 0 to 60 mph acceleration time of 11 seconds and a top speed of 110 mph.

          The Fireflite’s bold design increased sales for DeSoto. In 1955, DeSotos sold well with over 114,765 examples produced, making 1955 the best year for the company since 1946. By 1956, DeSoto placed eleventh in U.S. production with an annual production of 110,418 cars. The success was short-lived, however when Chrysler Corporation discontinued the DeSoto brand in November 1960.

          In 1956 a gold and white Fireflite convertible was the Official Pace Car for the 1956 Indianapolis 500. The Fireflite convertibles are rare, only 186 were produced. The most popular color was red and cream.

          It was assembled in Los Angeles (Maywood) Assembly  

Vintage 1950s Dessert

Magic Tomato Soup Cake

Cake eaters’ delight! Tomato soup cake. You must taste it to believe anything could be so good!

Ingredients:

2 T butter or margarine
1 c sugar
2 c sifted cake flour
1 t each clove, cinnamon, nutmeg
1/4 t salt
1 can (10 oz) tomato soup
1 baking soda

Directions:

Cream butter, sugar well.  Sift flour; measure; resift 3 times with spices, salt. Alternately add dry ingredients with soup-soda mixture. Pour into greased loaf pan. (Size important; about 8-1/4 x 4-1/2 x 2-1/2). Bake (50 to 60 min 350 F oven). 

The Creamy Chocolate Frosting

1 (3 oz.) pkg cream cheese, 3T milk, 3 c sifted confec. sugar, 2 sq. bitter chocolate melted, 1/2t slat. 1 t vanilla. Mash cheese. Add mil grad,. beating till blended. Add sug. grad. beating till smooth. Add melted chocolate, slat, vanilla. Beat till smooth.