1963
The Swinging Sixties
A Star-Struck Nation
As teens longed to be like their favorite stars and parents aspired to trendy extravagance, the celebrities basked in the adulation of both groups. As a result, the early Sixties wavered between classy polish and crass materialism! On the high end of the spectrum, the First Lady was America's paragon of style. Women rushed to imitate Jackie Kennedy's pillbox hats, streamlined gowns, tailored suits, and soft-spoken charm.
Pills, Taboos, and "American Cool" The Sixties also swung America loose from social constraints. With the introduction of convenient and effective birth control, The Pill quickly affected conventional views on sexuality and morality. Hollywood stars stimulated America 's secret, worldly desires. "The Rat Pack," the swinging minstrels of Camelot, flushed the nation with drunken machismo, urbane sophistication, and irreverent humor. Adult drug addiction was on the rise, yet in 1962 the nation was still shocked when 36-year-old blonde bombshell Marilyn Monroe became one of the first celebrities to fatally overdose on sleeping pills. |
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