John F. Kennedy Born to Joseph and Rose Kennedy on May 29, 1917, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was the second child in a family of nine children. Competition amongst the children, both physical and intellectual, was fierce. Raised Roman Catholic and Democratic, JFK was blessed with parents who were able to set up trust funds for each child, making them all independently wealthy.

Joseph Kennedy had expected his eldest son, Joe, to follow in his footsteps as a politician. But Joe’s 1945 death in the war meant that the mantle was passed on to JFK, who was hoping to get into academics or journalism.

No stranger to the war himself, JFK served a distinguished military career. In spite of a severe injury in a patrol torpedo boat that the Japanese sank in enemy waters, JFK was able to lead his men back to safety. Because of his bravery, he earned the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Medal for heroism.

This not only set JFK apart as a war hero, but also set him up for a lifelong drug addiction to amphetamines, which at the time were thought harmless. The addiction was under enough control, however, that JFK was able to work his way up in a strong political career, eventually becoming the 35th president of the United States.

A young and energetic president with a lovely wife, JFK was loved by the nation. He secured the Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty and the Alliance for Progress, during his presidency. But his presidential success was cut short by tragedy. In 1963, he was riding next to his wife in a motorcade in Dallas, Texas, when an assassin shot him with two rifle shots, ending his life immediately and with it, his presidency.

The nation truly mourned the loss of their beloved president, killed so brutally and so publically that millions of people were traumatized by viewing the scene, both on site and over the television. In spite of much controversy surrounding the president’s private life, such as that involving Marilyn Monroe, JFK has held his beloved status in the hearts of the people.

JFK said, “We need men who can dream of things that never were and not ask why.”

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James Dean Born on February 8, 1931, in Marion, Indiana, James Dean was the son of Winton and Mildred Dean. He originally moved to Los Angeles with his family when he was five. But after the death of his mother, Dean was sent back to Indiana, to be raised by his aunt and uncle on their farm.

Following his high school graduation, Dean decided to move back to California to attend Santa Monica Junior College and then UCLA. James Whitmore became his mentor, putting him in commercials, films, and plays.

At Whitmore’s recommendation, Dean moved across country to New York, in pursuit of strengthening his acting career. At first working as a busboy, he managed to get himself into several television shows and then in a small part on Broadway.

Finally, after many attempts, Dean was accepted as a member of the Actor’s Studio, a free school for top-notch actors that was very selective. Shortly after, the actor returned to Hollywood to continue his film work. From 1954 into the next year, Dean was rapidly becoming a national icon. Three films in one year sealed his fame, in Hollywood.

To celebrate his success, Dean bought a Porsche, in March, and began competing in auto races. Sadly, on September 30, 1955, Dean was on his way to one of those races when he crashed on the highway and died. Dean did not live to enjoy his two Academy Award nominations later that year. The nation mourned his loss and made a place for him as a legend.

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Elizabeth Taylor A legend in Hollywood, Elizabeth Taylor debuted in the film “One Born Every Minute” in 1948. Remarkable for her stunning looks and heartfelt acting, Taylor became an international sensation, earning awards ranging from Oscars and Academy Awards, to a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute. She was also honored with a royal title from England.

Taylor was born in London on February 27, 1932 to parents who were art dealers. Interestingly her mother had worked as an actress until she married. Taylor began dancing at age 3 and performed as a small child for Princesses Margaret and Elizabeth.

The beginning of World War II prompted her parents to make an across-the-world move to Los Angeles, California. And it wasn’t long before a family friend, there in LA, recommended to Taylor’s parents that they take her in for a screen test. She was ten when she starred in her first movie.

It was two years later when Elizabeth was rocketed to stardom with her performance in National Velvet. Most child actors struggle to make it in the adult acting world, but Elizabeth Taylor was a definite exception. With her career spanning over 60 years, she is one of the longest working actors ever.

Adept in various genres, Taylor showed her talents in drama, comedy, and romance. In addition to her movies, Taylor made a name for herself with eight marriages, a vast jewelry collection, her perfumes, repeated suffering with various health conditions, attending drug rehab, and her stand in the fight against AIDS. Elizabeth Taylor has immortalized herself in the history of Hollywood and will forever be remembered as the violet-eyed remarkable beauty that she was.

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Women’s Girdles and Undergarments in the 1950s The 1950s were years of rather restrictive grooming standards for women. While women had been wearing underwear, corsets, and bras for years, the manufacturers of the 1950s at least began paying attention to increased comfort.

The bullet bra, an invention of the 1940s, was a huge success in the 1950s. Marilyn Monroe and Lana Turner were famous for their bullet bra look, for as certain shirt materials clung to the bras, one could clearly see the pointy cone-shape of the bra underneath. This was called the “sweater look.” The cone-shaped bra helped smaller-breasted women appear to have a larger breast size.

Corsets worn in the 1950s were skin-tight undergarments that were meant to squeeze the waist, lift the butt, and raise the breasts. This was the look that all the stars had. So, everyday women flocked to the stores to buy their restrictive corsets in hopes of improving the look of their figures.

Just like the old corsets depicted in the movie, “Gone with the Wind,” these corsets had to be tied in the back. Wives would ask their husbands to help them pull it tight and secure it in the back, so they could squeeze into their slim-fitted clothes.

The girdle came in answer to women’s’ desire for greater comfort. Only running from the waist to the bottom of the buttocks, the girdle not only tightened the buttocks area, but also had straps for holding up the all-too-popular hose women wore at the time. The 1950s was a time of attempted perfection, in which each woman hoped to appear to have a movie-star body, using tight undergarments to achieve the effect.

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Women’s Makeup and Hair in the 1950s Lucille Ball was a TV legend of the 1950s, famous for her red lipstick, perfectly coifed hairdo and her ability to make everyone laugh. She represented the style of the decade, with hair-treatments to add red sass to her hair color, bold lipstick to define her pouty lips, soft eye-shadow to make her eyes pop, and carefully curled and shaped hair topping off the look.

While today’s women apply fake tanner to darken the shade of their skin, the women of the 50s wanted flawless white skin. They used powder and liquid foundations to cover up any blemishes and smooth out their appearance.

While the lipstick was often bold and dazzling, blushes and eye shadows were softer and more subtle. It was something of a Snow White look, with women trying to achieve the natural look of innate beauty, albeit with makeup and curlers.

Women wore their nails long and rounded, with white painted tips. It was something like the French nail look often achieved with acrylic today. But, in the 1950s there were no acrylic nails, so women made do with what they had.

Some women began using hair dryers in this decade, as the handheld blow dryer came out. Women often washed their hair at night and wore curlers to bed to shape their hair into curls. Then, they undid their ringlets in the morning. But, for those with hair dryers, they began to have the ability to wash and style all in the same morning.

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Elvis Elvis Aaron Presley was born on January 8th, 1935. Born in Tupelo, Mississippi, his parents moved him to Memphis, Tennessee in 1948. Just 6 years later, he was working with Sun Records’ owner Sam Phillips, a man who wanted to bring an African American influence to the music of the day.

Elvis was able to adapt to the morphed style of music they called Rockabilly. It was a faster bluesy fusion of country and rock.  Shortly after his successful start, RCA Victor bought his contract from Sun Records. “Heartbreak Hotel” was his first number one hit, with RCA Victor, recorded in 1956.

With his looks as popular as his voice, he fast became a TV star, making several TV appearances and touring performances. Again and again, Elvis topped the charts with his singles like “Love me Tender” and “You Ain’t Nothin’ but a Hound Dog.”

The movie, “Love me Tender,” was a wild success, with people packing the theatres to catch a glimpse of “The King.” After taking a two-year break to serve the military, Elvis was back in 1958 to pursue his career.

At first, he struggled to regain his success in albums, and spent much of his time making movies that also did not do as well. But, when he returned to the stage in 1968, he became hugely successful again. The first concert to be broadcast globally, the “Aloha from Hawaii” concert gave him worldwide acknowledgement and fame. 1.5 billion people watched the concert.

Sadly, Elvis Presley was a prescription drug abuser. At age 42, in 1977, Elvis Presley overdosed on narcotics and died of cardiac arrest. Refusing to believe he was dead, many fans tried to keep his memory alive by reporting Elvis sightings and developing theories of how his death had been faked.

Truthfully, one of the greatest singing legends of all time, Elvis had passed away, ending what was still a growing career. To this day, his music, movies, and memorabilia continue to sell, as generation after generation of fans grow to love his timeless music.

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Buddy Holly Buddy Holly was born Charles Hardin Holly, On September 7, 1936. A Texan by birth, he was a very popular singer and songwriter at the peak of his short career, when he tragically died in an airplane crash in 1959.

While the brief year and a half he was in the public eye was shorter than nearly all famous singers in history, Buddy Holly’s career became the inspiration for dozens of soloists and bands in the years to follow. Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, The Rolling Stones, and the Beatles all profess to have been influenced by the innovative music of Buddy Holly.

Buddy was one of the first artists inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, 27 years after his death. Buddy was also listed as number 13 in Rolling Stone’s 2004 “Fifty Greatest Artists of All Time.”

A budding artist from the start, Buddy was so-named by his family because he was such a friend to everyone. His older brothers, Larry and Travis, helped him learn how to play the guitar and other similar string instruments.

Buddy won a singing contest at age 5 singing “Have You Ever Gone Sailing.” And at age 13, he sang a soprano version of “My Two-Timin’ Woman into a wire recorder his friend helped him borrow from the music shop.

Just 3 years later, Buddy befriended Bob Montgomery at Hutchinson Junior High School. They became a bluegrass duet and sang in local talent shows and clubs. When Buddy saw Elvis perform in his hometown of Lubbock, Texas in 1955, he quickly began performing in a more rockabilly style. When he opened for Elvis later that year, a talent scout saw him and signed him up to a contract.

Buddy began recording hits, performing in concerts, and even appearing on TV. But, after a performance in Iowa, on February 3, 1959, his small plane crashed killing him, two of his crew, Valens and Richardson, and the pilot. Waylon Jennings, another member of the crew, had given up his seat on the plane to Buddy and rode the bus instead. Buddy Holly had been in the climax of his career when he passed away and, as such, was frozen in time as a rock and roll legend.

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60’s Hairstyles for Women During the 50s, women were constrained to short, curly, perfectly formed styles. These styles took hours of effort, starting the night before in curlers, and resuming in the morning with a good deal of hair products.

So, it may not be any wonder that in the 1960s, women rebelled against the perfectly coifed “domestic goddess” look and went for long, relaxed styles. While most people believe straight, un-styled hair was the order of the day, that was generally just reserved to the hippies.

Most women actually styled their hair, but they did tend to grow it long and let the curls hang loose and soft over their shoulders. Unfortunately, the hair dryer had still not been invented and women had to set their hair on curlers and let it dry that way.

Another style started with long straight hair and was swept back smooth at the crown. Like a ponytail, it was combed straight and gathered into a single rubber band, but only using the hair in the front and pulled up to the top back of the head. The rest of the hair beneath was left straight down the back.

Moptops were common for both women and men. This was a rather unsophisticated look with hair circling around the head at just below ear level or lower. The Beatles were famous for this look. Another short style for women was inspired by a supermodel of the day, “Twiggy,” whose short boyish hair went with her “twiggy” boyish body. But, somehow, she really pulled it off.

Finally, Jackie Kennedy’s pageboy haircut was all the rage, as women all over the U.S. attempted to look and dress like her. The 1960’s was a time of long, mid-length, and short haircuts, but one thing most of these hairstyles had in common was feminine elegance.

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60’s Hairstyles for Men Men in the 1960s were influenced by a variety of social forces such as Vietnam, the Beatles, and the pro-peace hippy movement. Thus, the hairstyles were varied as well.

In the 1950s, men had piled on the greasy hair products and combed frequently to perfectly shape and mold their hair. At home, their wives and daughters had worn curlers all night and got up each morning to start the tremendous routine of perfecting the curly coif.

In contrast, 1960s were a time of rebellion against social conformity, for many individuals. In the early part of the decade, the Beatles made the bowl cut popular, a mop-top look. This hairstyle was a shaggy but combed hairstyle about the length of a bob.

Later in the 60s, John Lennon, of the Beatles, began growing his hair out much longer. Shaggy, long, un-styled hair became a popular trend, especially among the young people and the hippy crowd. Facial hair became in vogue. In stark contrast to the perfectly formed hair and squeaky clean face of the 50s, the fashion for many men of the 60s was a nonchalant, devil-may-care look. Instead of a hat, if anything, men wore bandannas over their hair.

As curly-haired and African American men grew their hair long as well, the Afro came into being. Malcolm X spoke against blacks straightening their hair. So, the natural curly look was worn as a sign of black pride. Some of the Afros were grown out rather large.

Most common of all, however, was the aforementioned mop-top look. While businessmen, in general, kept their hair short and styled, many young and middle-aged men grew their hair into mop-tops, a trend that lasted into the 70s.

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50’s Hairstyles for Women During the hard times of the 1940s, women could not afford hair products, in general. Those who worked on farms and in factories firmly tied back their hair and covered it with a scarf. The minority upper class, however, wore their hair long and soft with wavy curls down to their shoulders.

In the early 1950s, the utilitarian look persisted, to some degree, with a straight ponytail being the most popular look. For evening attire, a chignon or French pleat was the principal choice.

In the mid-1950s, as families became more comfortable with increased prosperity, most women had the time and motivation to spend hours doing their hair. Starting the night before, many young women and middle-aged hair wives would carefully part small sections of washed hair, wrap each section in curlers, and pin them tightly in place.

Sleeping on the curlers all night long must have been an uncomfortable affair, but undaunted, the women carried on. The ponytail was completely out of vogue, as the glamorous domestic diva took over. Women were expected to look like they just stepped out of a salon, even though they’d been washing, cleaning, ironing, and cooking all day.

Famous actresses of the day were often mimicked for their flawless hairstyles. Some of the most popular looks were those of Doris Day, Liz Taylor, Sophia Loren, Audrey Hepburn, Brigitte Bardot, Leslie Caron, and even Queen Elizabeth II. Lucille Ball spread the popularity of the poodle cut, which framed the face in round curls. The 1950s was a time of glamor and femininity in hairstyles.

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50’s Hairstyles for Men Grease, the popular movie about the 50s, with John Travolta, typified many of the hairstyles of the period. Regularly pulling a comb from his sleeve to smooth back his slick, shiny hair, “Danny” never had a hair out of place whether he was walking on a windy beach with “Sandy” or dancing vigorously with an old fling for a televised dance contest.

Some men wore their natural curls with pride, in short cuts, with the sides cut short and combed straight back. Middle aged men often had the smooth swoop over the top, sometimes hiding a thinning top. But one of the most popular styles was the slicked look.

Starting with a swoop across the top, the rest of the hair was smoothed flat and straight back. Sometimes the hair on the sides was cut shorter to achieve this look, while the hair on the back of the head was allowed to grow longer, to add to the smooth look behind the head.

Popular with the younger crowd was the wavier look. Still shiny and well-greased, their locks were carefully formed into one or more waves, to achieve a more youthful look. James Dean was one of the stars of the day sporting the somewhat wavy look referred to as the ducktail.

Elvis Presley, on the other hand, popularized the look of the pompadour. The sideburns were worn long and the top of the hair was formed into a poof, with lots of volume and height. Finally, the bangs were worn with a piece of hair pulled down over the forehead to finish the look. The 50s was an era of sleek hairstyles, for men.

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Michael Hamilton and Poodle Skirts Another name often associated with the poodle skirt is Michael Hamilton. Michael Hamilton takes credit for inventing poodle skirts in the early 1950's. Hamilton says she made poodle skirts in her neighbor's barn in Montecito, California near Santa Barbara.

Hamilton became known as "the Poodle Skirt Lady" as these skirts were very popular. Her original designs included imprints of circus horses, monkeys and pigs. These fun skirts became the symbol of the 1950's fashion.

Poodle skirts were made out of full circles of felt fabric. Designs were placed around the skirt for embellishment and to add personality. Many poodle skirts were made by the girls who wore them.

Decorations on poodle skirts reflected what teenagers of the time were interested in. Some designs included appliqués of 45 rpm records. Rock and roll music was popular, and these skirts made dancing to the music even more fun.

Circle skirts were worn by women of all ages during the 1950's. Poodle skirts, however, were seldom worn by any besides the teenagers. Poodle skirts have become what we typically associate with when we think of 1950's clothing styles.

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Where Did Poodle Skirts Come From? When you think of the 1950's, you automatically envision girls dancing around in poodle skirts. Circle skirts were very popular during the 1950's, but they actually got their start in the late 1940's. After WWII ended, skirts began to get fuller and longer.

In 1947, actress turned designer, Juli Lynne Charlot, designed some skirts for Christmas. These skirts were made from a complete circle of fabric and were decorated with felt appliqués of Christmas trees. They were soon sold out at the local store.

Her next project involved featuring dogs. One of the dog skirts she designed was with a poodle, and the rest is history. These poodle skirts were a huge success and were soon widely copied.

Circle skirts were easy to make, so many were made at home by the wearer. Major pattern companies carried skirts with a wide variety of designs, including the poodle, black records and decks of cards. Other embellishments were added as desired by the wearer.

These decorated skirts really caught on with the teenage crowd. Poodle skirts were a young, casual, trendy fashion of the time. Most embellishments reflect teen interests of that time period.

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Juli Lynne Charlot and the Poodle Skirt Juli Lynne Charlot was born Shirley Ann Agin.  She was an actress turned designer. In 1947 she designed a full circle skirt which she decorated with the appliqué of Christmas trees.

This skirt was so successful that she continued making other similar skirts with embroidered and appliquéd designs. Many credit her with the first design of the poodle skirt. The poodle skirt was a big hit with the teenage crowd during the 1950�s, and has become a symbol of that era.

Poodle skirts were made from wool felt that was cut out in the shape of a big circle. A hole was cut in the center, and a waistband was added to secure it to the waist. Many of these skirts carried an appliqué of a poodle, along with other embroidery work.

Besides creating poodle skirts, she also decorated marvelous sweaters.  Sometimes she made matching sweater and skirt sets. The juli lynne charlot label also included some matching accessories to go with the outfit.

Today, when we think of 1950�s clothing, the image that most often pops into our mind is the poodle skirt. Poodle skirts were fun to wear and fun to dance in. They were widely worn by all the girls at that time.

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Why Are They called Poodle Skirts? Circle skirts first appeared in Harper?s Bazaar in 1949. These skirts got their name from the way they are made ? they are literally a large circle of fabric with a hole cut out for the waist. Less expensive skirts were made using two pieces of fabric sewn together with two seams.

These circle skirts were made from many types of fabrics and often were quilted, hand-painted, embroidered or appliquéd. The circle skirt most often associated with the 1950?s is the poodle skirt. Poodle skirts were usually made from wool felt and were decorated with appliqués, embroidery, beading and/or spangles.

These first felt poodle skirts were appliquéd with poodles, hence their name. Later on, they were decorated with many other designs such as Cray fish or artist?s palettes. Teenagers especially liked poodle skirts with lavish appliqués, sequins and other decorations, and wore them to school as well as to parties.

Women in the 50?s always wore dresses or skirts. Most wore circle skirts that were plain. Circle skirts were sold in inexpensive clothing stores as well as in the high end stores. During the day, most women wore plain circle skirts.

Poodle skirts never caught on with the adult crowd, but were worn extensively by teenagers. Felt was inexpensive and easy to sew. Girls could have fun with the appliqués, adding a silvery telephone or black record surrounded by the words ?See ya later, alligator.?

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How Women Stayed Fit in the 50s Was staying fit in the 50s as hard for housewives then as it is today? What did they do for exercise? For one thing, housewives in the 50s were more likely to walk to the store when they needed something for dinner than we are today. For another, many families only had one car, and some didnt even have a car, so walking or riding a bike was a more common means of transportation than it is for most of us today.

Keeping their figure was still important to many women in the 50s. Women tried all sorts of dieting plans, just as many do today. One way women of the 50s tried losing weight was by taking Ayds, a specially made candy containing health giving vitamins and minerals.

Many women understood the value of exercise as a means of staying fit. Jack LaLanne had a series of television exercise programs during the 1950s that taught nutrition along with the exercises. One of his programs was specifically designed for women.

Spot exercising to tone specific areas of the body were common. Exercises aimed at reducing fat on the insides of the knees advocated slapping the knees together and kneading the fatty deposits. Other exercises were aimed at reducing flabby arms or stomachs.

Fitness and exercising was still in its infancy in the 50s. The groundwork laid then, helped to prepare the way for our better understanding of how nutrition and exercise affect our health. While many things have changed since the 50s, our need for fitness and exercise hasnt.

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Some Good Old Fashioned Cooking A woman used to be highly valued if she was a good cook. While I suppose that is still true to some extent today, it doesnt seem all that important anymore. In the old days, long before I was born, preparing the family meal took a lot of time and effort.

To top off that well prepared meal, a good cook also wanted to have a great dessert ready to serve. You can see that a woman in the olden days spent a lot of time in the kitchen just to keep her family well fed and happy. We dont have it nearly so hard.

Today we can enjoy some good old fashioned cooking without having to spend nearly as much time in the kitchen as our grandmothers (or great grandmothers) did. We no longer have to go out and catch a chicken to pluck and prepare, we can just go to the freezer and pull out a piece of boneless, skinless chicken breast or a roast. We dont even have to wait for the meat to thaw naturally; we can speed up that process using a microwave.

When I think of good old fashioned cooking, I think of flavorful roasts with vegetables, stews and soups, served with homemade bread and rolls. We can still cook these hearty meals today with a lot less fuss, using our modern crock pots and stovetops, and can even use a bread machine to make the bread. It doesnt take long to quickly put together a fruit cobbler for dessert, using purchased ice cream to top it off.

It seems unfortunate to me that so many people have lost the art of cooking, and that the family meal is becoming a thing of the past. With so many ready to eat foods available, younger generations are growing up without a clue about how to really cook. What are you serving for dinner tonight?

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Cookies in the 1950’s Moms in the 1950’s were still very much into home-cooking.  School children looked forward to some of mom’s cookies waiting for them after school. Naturally, each mother had her own favorite cookie recipe.

Towards the middle of the 50’s, Pillsbury introduced their brownie mix. While this was the beginning of quicker cookies for mom, it contributed to the decline of cooking from scratch. In 1957 Pillsbury introduced their refrigerated cookie dough, this made cookie making even faster for busy moms.

Some favorite cookie recipes of the 1950’s include oatmeal cookies, chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter cookies. Snicker doodles, gingersnaps and shaped sugar cookies were also traditional favorites. There were many varieties of each type of cookie, depending on what you liked to add.

The Peanut Butter Blossom cookie debut was in 1957, when it was introduced at a Pillsbury Bake Off Competition in Ohio. While it didn’t win first place, its popularity spread as Hershey printed the recipe on their Kisses candy bags. This favorite of the 1950’s is still a favorite in my family today.

Cookies are still a child’s favorite after school greeting. Whether the cookie is freshly made from scratch, or baked from already prepared dough, there is something about a warm, freshly baked cookie that makes us feel at home. What is your favorite cookie?

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Rock Music for Kids The 50’s ushered in a new style of music known as rock and roll. Some of the older folk at the time had a hard time swallowing this style of music; to them it was too rebellious. It’s a lot easier to accept new music, once it’s no longer new.

Rock and Roll music from the 50’s included songs with teenager themes such as first love crushes, breaking hearts, fast cars and dancing. Today’s kids still enjoy the fast paced tempo of many of the 50’s music. Monster Mash is on a popular dance game that recently came out.

It’s hard to hold still when good old rock and roll music is playing. The beat and tempo make us want to get up and dance. “Hop Around the Clock” and “At the Hop” are good examples of fun 50’s dancing music. Some 50’s music is making a comeback in some circles; my kids even have some on their ipods.

Some still famous Christmas music from the 50’s include “Frosty the Snowman” and “I Saw Mommy Kissin’ Santa Claus”.  Other 50’s music lives on through 50’s themed parties. The upbeat tempo of 50’s music will always be a hit with children of all ages.

There is an on-going effort to create Rock music for babies and toddlers. The idea is to create sweetened, softened versions of rock music for kids, which their parents will consider “cool”. The music needs to appeal to the parents, since they are the ones who buy it, while it also needs to help calm, soothe and quiet the baby.  This is creating a new niche for adapted rock music.

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Throw a Sock Hop for Charity If you are looking for a way to raise money for a charity, why not throw a sock hop? A sock hop is lots of fun; turning it into a charity event can make it even better. Requesting a small donation at the door
could bring in enough to make a difference in someone else’s life.

You will need to publicize the event to bring in the most money. Keep in mind the size crowd you want to handle, so you can keep things manageable. You will need to find a place large enough to handle the
number of people you expect come.

Decorations in the 50’s theme can be rather easy to do. Since it is a charity event, you may even be able to find someone who will let you borrow a jukebox instead of renting it out. Stores may be willing to
throw in some of the decorations, paper goods, or food – it never hurts to ask.

Invite others to help you with decorations and food. The more people involved, the more talked about the event will be. Word of mouth will encourage others to come. Encourage everyone to wear 50’s
clothing to add to the 50’s feel.

Depending on who the event will benefit, you could make the recipients guests of honor at the sock hop. This would need to be handled tactfully of course as not to cause embarrassment. At the end of the
evening you will have given people a good time, and a good way to help others.

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Decorate for a 50’s Sock Hop The right decorations can turn a ho-hum event into a real blast. If you are planning a 50’s party, adding a few special decorations can make a huge difference. Planning ahead is a must for this kind of party, especially if you’re going for authenticity.

As you plan your decorations, make a list of what you will need so you don’t forget anything. Keep your budget in mind, and know the layout and over-all plan of the party. If there will be dancing, leave plenty of space for a real swinging party.

Add design to the walls by covering them 50’s type memorabilia.  50’s themed cut outs at party supply stores can have record shapes, guitars, Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe posters. Old 45’s purchased at a thrift store can be added to the menagerie. Posters of old cars can also be used.

The jukebox is the classic 50’s image, so if you can get a real jukebox, great! If you can’t get a real one, even a cardboard one will still add to the atmosphere. Decorate tables with red and white checkered tablecloths. Black and white pictures of movie stars from the 50’s can be used as center pieces, with some 50’s themed confetti tossed around.

A balloon archway would be a great entrance for your party. You can make the arch with PVC pipes on the side and an aluminum frame curving across the top. Attach black and white or red and white balloons to the frame for dramatic impact.

You can make a balloon drop for the end of the party by attaching netting to the ceiling and filling it with balloons. At the end of your sock hop, release the balloons for even more fun! With decorations like these, your next 50’s party will be the talk of the town.

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Have an Educational Sock Hop How can you make learning about the 50's fun? Have an educational sock hop, of course! Take a break from your normal routine and add an educational twist to your party, or a party to your educating.

More fun, and extra credit, can be had for dressing the part. Costumes can be kept simple, such as jeans and t-shirts, or poodle skirts for the girls. Remind everyone to wear white socks so it can be a true sock hop when they take off their shoes.

Decorate in black and white. Hang up cutouts of music notes and old records. Feature Elvis Presley music, and have hair combs and black glasses to hand out to guests.

Burgers and malted shakes will keep the 50's feeling going while filling up the guests. Posters of old cars, a jukebox, or of 50's movie stars can add to the 50's aura. You could re-create a mock diner set-up, or go with a mock movie drive-in setup and even watch an old movie.

For a true sock hop experience, have the guests take off their shoes and teach them some swing dancing, or just have them do the twist. Dancing is a great way to liven up a party, while also using up some of the energy young guests are so full of. Educational activities such as worksheets, wordfinds, or crossword puzzles can add to the learning experience.

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Have a 50’s Themed Graduation Party This Year Congratulations, your son or daughter has finished high school! Now you want to throw them a graduation party to celebrate the occasion. Having a 50’s themed graduation party can be great fun, especially for teenagers.

The first step is to decide on a date and time. Sometimes this can be the hardest step as the end of the school year is often quite busy. If you have guests coming from out of town for the graduation, consider having your party the night or day after graduation while everyone is still around.

The next step is to figure out your budget. If you are trying to keep costs down, you may want to combine your party with some of your friends to share costs. You have many options when it comes to selecting the place for the party: your backyard, a park, a restaurant, hotel or the beach could all work.

Now it’s time to make your guest list. Remember to include school friends, teachers, and family members. Prepare your invitations to include all the basic information in writing. If you are having a 50’s themed party, it’s a good idea to encourage them to wear 50’s clothing to the party by putting that on the invitation.

Plan the food you will be serving to reflect the theme of your party. You can assign others to help you prepare the food, or even hire a caterer if you have the money. Last, but not least, don’t forget the decorations, selected to match your 50’s theme of course.

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Planning the Menu For Your 50s Themed Event Planning fifties events is always a fun venture. There are invitations to create, activities to do, 50s costumes to find, and decorations to think of. Another great aspect of any party is the food. The right food can make a mediocre party in to a great one.

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Top Fifties Toy Options When you think of the 50's what do you think of? Do visions of sock hops, 50's clothing and Elvis come to mind? Well those were definitely there, but there were lots of other things to go along with those 50's clothing styles too. Kids have always needed something to do to keep themselves occupied, and you might be surprised that you might have used the same things now or in your youth. The following are just a few samplings of toys and games found in the 50's.

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