The 1950s (pronounced nineteen-fifties; commonly abbreviated as the "Fifties" or the "'50s") (among other variants) was a
decade that began on January 1, 1950, and ended on December 31, 1959.
The 1956 FA Cup final was the final match of the
1955–56 staging of English
football's primary
cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, better known as the
FA Cup. The showpiece event was contested between
Manchester City and
Birmingham City at
Wembley Stadium in London on Saturday 5 May 1956. Two-time winners Manchester City were appearing in their sixth final, whereas Birmingham City were seeking to win the competition for the first time, having lost their only previous
final in 1931.
Each club needed to win five matches to reach the final. Manchester City's victories were close affairs, each settled by the odd goal, and they needed a replay to defeat fifth-round opponents
Liverpool. Birmingham City made more comfortable progress: they scored eighteen goals while conceding only two, and won each match at the first attempt despite being drawn to play on their opponents' ground in every round. They became the first team to reach an FA Cup final without playing at home. (Full article...)
Central Studios initially planned on creating a film based on the Parasakthi play and T. S. Natarajan's play En Thangai; however, the idea was dropped after Natarajan objected. The film rights of Parasakthi were later bought by P. A. Perumal of
National Pictures, with the patronage of
A. V. Meiyappan. The soundtrack was composed by
R. Sudarsanam, cinematography was handled by
S. Maruti Rao, and Panju edited the film under the alias "Panjabi". Filming began in mid-1950, but took over two years to complete (Full article...)
The plot follows the conflicts of the Varner family after ambitious drifter Ben Quick (Newman) arrives in their small Mississippi town. Will Varner (Welles), the patriarch, has doubts about his son, Jody (Franciosa) and sees Ben as a better choice to inherit his position. Will tries to push Ben and his daughter Clara (Woodward) into marriage. (Full article...)
Image 3
Loving You is a 1957 American
musicaldrama film directed by
Hal Kanter and starring
Elvis Presley,
Lizabeth Scott, and
Wendell Corey. The film was Presley's first major starring role, following his debut in a supporting role in the 1956 film Love Me Tender. The film follows a delivery man who is discovered by a music publicist and a country–western musician who wants to promote the talented newcomer.
The film was written by
Herbert Baker and Hal Kanter, and based on the short story "A Call from
Mitch Miller". Kanter expanded the script after being inspired by Presley's last appearance on the Louisiana Hayride and his manager
Colonel Tom Parker's antics.
Paramount Pictures chose to ignore the first-run theater system, opting instead to release the film in sub-run neighborhood theaters, a system later dubbed the "Presley Pattern". (Full article...)
Image 4
Darah dan Doa ([daˈrahˈdandoˈa]; Indonesian for Blood and Prayer, released internationally as The Long March) is a 1950
Indonesian war film directed and produced by
Usmar Ismail, telling the story of the
Siliwangi Division and its leader Captain Sudarto on a march to
West Java. Following Ismail's Dutch-produced Tjitra (1949), Darah dan Doa is often cited as the first
'Indonesian' film, and the film's first day of shooting – 30 March – is celebrated in Indonesia as National Film Day.
Produced on a budget of 350,000
rupiah and intended to be screened at the
Cannes Film Festival, financial difficulties led production of Darah dan Doa to almost stop before the director received financial backing. After raising controversy for its subject material, the film underwent censorship and was finally released to commercial failure. Retrospective analysis has, however, been more positive, and Ismail has been dubbed the "father of Indonesian film". (Full article...)
Image 5
I Vampiri (
lit. The Vampires) is a 1957 Italian
horror film directed by
Riccardo Freda and completed by the film's cinematographer,
Mario Bava. It stars
Gianna Maria Canale,
Carlo D'Angelo and Dario Michaelis. The film is about a series of murders on young women who are found with their blood drained. The newspapers report on a killer known as the Vampire, which prompts young journalist Pierre Lantin to research the crimes. Lantin investigates the mysterious Du Grand family who lives in a castle occupied by Gisele Du Grand who is in love with Lantin. She lives with her aunt, who hides her face in a veil, as well as the scientist Julian Du Grand, who is trying to find the secret to eternal youth.
The film was developed during a growth in the Italian film industry which allowed for the market to expand beyond a local Italian audience and would allow Italian film makers to explore new genres of filmmaking. Freda made a deal with producers at the Italian film studio
Titanus to create a low budget horror film by writing a story in one day and filming it in two weeks. The producers agreed and Freda began filming. On the final day of shooting, Freda left the set which led to the cinematographer Mario Bava to direct the rest of the film, which changed various plot points and added the inclusion of stock footage. (Full article...)
Image 6
The Hideous Sun Demon (sometimes billed as The Sun Demon, or in the UK as Blood on His Lips) is a 1958 American
science fictionhorror film produced, directed, and cowritten by
Robert Clarke, who also starred in the title role. It also stars Patricia Manning, Nan Peterson, Patrick Whyte, and Fred La Porta. The film focuses on a scientist (portrayed by Clarke) who is exposed to a
radioactive isotope and soon finds out that it comes with horrifying consequences.
The film was inspired by the financial success of The Astounding She-Monster, in which Clarke had starred earlier that year. The crew was made up of
University of Southern California film students, while the cast consisted of unknowns in addition to Clarke's family and friends. Shooting took place under three different cinematographers over 12 consecutive weekends. Originally budgeted at $10,000, the film ended up costing $50,000. Distributed by Clarke's own Pacific International Pictures, The Hideous Sun Demon premiered on August 29, 1958 as part of a
double bill with
Roger Corman's Attack of the Crab Monsters. The film received mostly negative reviews upon its release, but has since become a
cult film and has been referenced and parodied many times. An unauthorized sequel, the 1965
short filmWrath of the Sun Demon, was produced by
Donald F. Glut. Two
redubbed versions of the original film have been released: the comedic Hideous Sun Demon: Special Edition and What's Up, Hideous Sun Demon (also known as Revenge of the Sun Demon), the latter of which was produced with Clarke's permission. (Full article...)
Ben-Hur had the largest budget ($15.175 million), as well as the largest sets built, of any film produced at the time.
Costume designerElizabeth Haffenden oversaw a staff of 100 wardrobe fabricators to make the costumes, and a workshop employing 200 artists and workmen provided the hundreds of
friezes and statues needed in the film. Filming commenced on May 18, 1958, and
wrapped on January 7, 1959, with shooting lasting for 12 to 14 hours a day and six days a week.
Pre-production began in Italy at
Cinecittà around October 1957, and
post-production took six months. Under cinematographer
Robert L. Surtees, executives at
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer made the decision to produce the film in a
widescreen format. Over 200 camels and 2,500 horses were used in the shooting of the film, with some 10,000 extras. The sea battle was filmed using miniatures in a huge tank on the back lot at the
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios in
Culver City, California. The nine-minute chariot race has become one of cinema's most famous
action sequences, and the score, composed and conducted by
Miklós Rózsa, was at the time the longest ever composed for a film, and was highly influential on cinema for over 15 years. (Full article...)
Ashes and Diamonds (Polish: Popiół i diament) is a 1958
Polishdrama film directed by
Andrzej Wajda, based on the 1948
novel by Polish writer
Jerzy Andrzejewski. Starring
Zbigniew Cybulski and
Ewa Krzyżewska, it completed Wajda's war films trilogy, following A Generation (1954) and Kanal (1956). The action of Ashes and Diamonds takes place in 1945, shortly after World War II. The main protagonist of the film, former
Home Army soldier Maciek Chełmicki, is acting in the
anti-Communist underground. Maciek receives an order to kill Szczuka, the local secretary of the
Polish Workers' Party. Over time, Chełmicki increasingly doubts if his task is worth doing.
Ashes and Diamonds, although based on the novel that directly supported the postwar
Communist system in Poland, was subtly modified in comparison with the source material. Wajda sympathized with the soldiers of the Polish independence underground; thus, he devoted most of the attention to Chełmicki. During the three-month development of Ashes and Diamonds, the director made drastic changes to the baseline scenario, thanks to his assistant director
Janusz Morgenstern, as well as Cybulski, who played the leading role. The film received permission from the authorities to be distributed only through Andrzejewski's intercession. The film did not receive permission to be screened at the main competition at the
Cannes Film Festival. However, Ashes and Diamonds appeared at the
Venice Film Festival, where it won the
FIPRESCI award. (Full article...)
Presley later indicated that of all the characters he portrayed throughout his acting career, the role of Danny Fisher in King Creole was his favorite. To make the film, Presley was granted a 60-day deferment from January to March 1958 for beginning his military service. Location shooting in
New Orleans was delayed several times by crowds of fans attracted by the stars, particularly Presley. (Full article...)
The film is loosely based on the story of
Veerapandiya Kattabomman, the 18th-century South Indian king who rebelled against the
East India Company. It was an adaptation of the play of the same name by
Sakthi T. K. Krishnasamy which featured Sivaji Ganesan as the title character, and premiered in August 1957.
Principal photography began in October the same year, and took place mainly in
Jaipur and Madras (now
Chennai) until late 1958. This was the first full-length Tamil film released in
Technicolor. (Full article...)
Image 12
Theatrical release poster
Warning from Space (
Japanese: 宇宙人東京に現わる,
Hepburn: Uchūjin Tōkyō ni arawaru,
lit.'Spacemen Appear in Tokyo') is a Japanese tokusatsuscience fiction film directed by
Koji Shima. Produced and distributed by
Daiei Film, it was the first Japanese science fiction film to be produced in color and predates Daiei's most iconic tokusatsu characters,
Gamera and
Daimajin. In the film's plot,
starfish-like
aliens disguised as humans travel to Earth to warn of the imminent collision of a
rogue planet and Earth. As the planet rapidly accelerates toward Earth, a
nuclear device is created at the last minute and destroys the approaching world.
The film was one of many early Japanese monster films quickly produced after the success of
Toho's Godzilla in 1954. After release, the film was met with negative reviews, with critics calling it "bizarre" and accusing it of using science fiction
clichés. Warning from Space influenced many other Japanese science fiction films, such as Gorath. The film, along with other 1950s tokusatsu science fiction films, influenced director
Stanley Kubrick, who would later direct 2001: A Space Odyssey. (Full article...)
Image 13
Theatrical release poster
The Incredible Shrinking Man is a 1957 American
science fiction film directed by
Jack Arnold, based on
Richard Matheson's 1956 novel, The Shrinking Man. The film stars
Grant Williams as Scott and
Randy Stuart as Scott's wife, Louise. While relaxing on a boat, Scott is enveloped by a strange fog. Months later, he discovers that he appears to be shrinking. By the time Scott has reached the height of a small boy, his condition becomes known to the public. When he learns there is no cure for his condition, he lashes out at his wife. As Scott shrinks to the point where he can fit into a dollhouse, he has a battle with his family cat, leaving him lost and alone in his basement, where he is now smaller than the average insect.
The film's storyline was expanded by Matheson after he had sold the story to
Universal-International Pictures Co., Inc. He also completed the novel upon which the film is based while production was underway. Matheson's script was initially written in flashbacks, and
Richard Alan Simmons rewrote it using a more conventional narrative structure. Director Jack Arnold initially wanted
Dan O'Herlihy to play Scott, but O'Herlihy turned down the role, leading Universal to sign Williams as the lead. Filming began on May 31, 1956. Scenes involving special effects were shot throughout production, while others used the large sets of Universal's backlot. Production went over budget, and filming had to be extended; certain special effects shots required reshooting. Williams was constantly being injured on set. (Full article...)
Fellini described La Strada as "a complete catalogue of my entire mythological world, a dangerous representation of my identity that was undertaken with no precedent whatsoever". As a result, the film demanded more time and effort than any of his other works, before or later. The development process was long and tortuous; there were problems during production, including insecure financial backing, problematic casting, and numerous delays. Finally, just before the production completed shooting, Fellini suffered a nervous breakdown that required medical treatment so that he could complete principal photography. Initial critical reaction was harsh, and the film's screening at the
Venice Film Festival was the occasion of a bitter controversy that escalated into a public brawl between Fellini's supporters and detractors. (Full article...)
Image 15
Madhumati is a 1958 Indian
Hindi-language
paranormal romance film directed and produced by
Bimal Roy, and written by
Ritwik Ghatak and
Rajinder Singh Bedi. The film stars
Vyjayanthimala and
Dilip Kumar in lead roles, with
Pran and
Johnny Walker in supporting roles. The plot focuses on Anand, a modern man who falls in love with a tribal woman named Madhumati. But they face challenges in their relationship finally leading to a paranormal consequence. The film was ranked 11th in the
Outlook Magazine's 25 leading Indian directors' poll for selecting Bollywood's greatest films in 2003.
Madhumati was filmed in various Indian locations, including
Ranikhet,
Ghorakhal,
Vaitarna Dam and
Aarey Milk Colony. The soundtrack album was composed by
Salil Chowdhury and the lyrics were written by
Shailendra. The film was released on 12 September 1958. It earned ₹40 million in India and became the
highest-grossing Indian film of the year, and one of the most commercially successful and influential Indian films of its time. It received highly positive reviews from critics, who praised the technicality, soundtrack, and performance of the cast. (Full article...)
Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a
RepublicanU.S. Senator from the state of
Wisconsin from 1947 until his death at age 48 in 1957. Beginning in 1950, McCarthy became the most visible public face of a period in the United States in which
Cold War tensions fueled fears of widespread
communistsubversion. He alleged that numerous communists and
Soviet spies and sympathizers had infiltrated the United States federal government, universities, film industry, and elsewhere. Ultimately, he was censured for refusing to cooperate with, and abusing members of, the committee established to investigate whether or not he should be censured. The term "
McCarthyism", coined in 1950 in reference to McCarthy's practices, was soon applied to similar
anti-communist activities. Today, the term is used more broadly to mean
demagogic, reckless, and unsubstantiated accusations, as well as public
attacks on the character or
patriotism of political opponents.
Born in
Grand Chute, Wisconsin, McCarthy commissioned into the
Marine Corps in 1942, where he served as an
intelligence briefing officer for a
dive bomber squadron. Following the end of
World War II, he attained the rank of
major. He volunteered to fly twelve combat missions as a gunner-observer. These missions were generally safe, and after one where he was allowed to shoot as much ammunition as he wanted to, mainly at coconut trees, he acquired the nickname "Tail-Gunner Joe". Some of his claims of heroism were later shown to be exaggerated or falsified, leading many of his critics to use "Tail-Gunner Joe" as a term of mockery. (Full article...)
The following are images from various 1950s-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1The world map of military alliances during the Cold War in 1959 (from 1950s)
Image 2Elvis Presley was the best-selling musical artist of the decade. He is considered as the leading figure of the
rock and roll and
rockabilly movement of the 1950s. (from 1950s)
Image 5The 1950s was the beginning period of rapid television ownership. In their infancy, television screens existed in many forms, including round. (from 1950s)
Image 12The creation and expansion of many multinational restaurant chains still in existence today, including the likes of
McDonald's (as a franchise),
IHOP,
Pizza Hut and
Burger King, all occurred in the 1950s. (from 1950s)
Image 13The
jukebox was particularly popular in the 1950s, and was used as entertainment in public establishments such as diners and
malt/soda shops. (from 1950s)
Image 15Castle Bravo: A 15 megaton hydrogen bomb experiment conducted by the United States in 1954. Photographed 78 miles (125 kilometers) from the explosion epicenter. (from 1950s)
Image 16In the 1950s lengthy
poodle skirts were popular with women, as were
leather jackets with men. Pictured is a 1950s leather jacket label. (from 1950s)
Image 17Harry Belafonte in 1954, whose breakthrough album Calypso (1956) was the first million-selling LP by a single artist. (from 1950s)
Image 23Top, L-R: U.S. Marines engaged in street fighting during the
Korean War,
c. late September 1950; The first
polio vaccine is developed by
Jonas Salk. Centre, L-R: US tests its first
thermonuclear bomb with code name Ivy Mike in 1952. A 1954 thermonuclear test, code named Castle Romeo; In 1959,
Fidel Castro overthrows
Fulgencio Batista in the
Cuban Revolution, which results in the creation of the first and only communist government in the Western Hemisphere;
Elvis Presley becomes the leading figure of the newly popular music genre of
rock and roll in the mid-1950s. Bottom, L-R: Smoke rises from oil tanks on Port Said following the invasion of Egypt by Israel, United Kingdom and France as part of the
Suez Crisis in late 1956; The
Hungarian Revolution of 1956; The
Soviet Union launches Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite to orbit the
Earth, in October 1957. This starts the
Space Race between the Soviet Union and the
United States. (from 1950s)
Image 24Leading figures of the Nepali Congress and King Tribhuvan (from 1950s)
Image 25Israeli troops preparing for combat in the Sinai peninsula during the
Suez Crisis. (from 1950s)
Image 26Liz Taylor in the 1950s, a fashion icon of the era (from 1950s)
... that on the 1950s game show Across the Board, crossword answers were clued by both a phrase and an image?
... that Cusrow Baug in
Mumbai had only a few tenants in the 1950s even at a low rent of 40
rupees per month?
Wikiprojects
You are invited to participate in
WikiProject Years, a WikiProject dedicated to developing and improving articles about years, decades, centuries, and millennia.