History Lounge: The 1950s Sitcom - Guide to American Life

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More About

• Melissa Williams
• Donna Reed
• University of Minnesota
• Housework and Homemaking
• House and Home

Husbands and wives never share a bed, it's always time for a cocktail and a cigarette, housework is best done in heels and pearls, and fighting communism is as simple as living the American way. These are only a few examples of things that television viewers have learned from 1950s sitcoms. The template that programs like Donna Reed, Father Knows Best, and The Honeymooners provided for patriotism and family values still echoes through the American psyche today. At this Tuesday's lecture, pop culture historian Melissa Williams from the University of Minnesota will discuss how shows from the era have influenced Americans and our culture over the decades, and if that is a good or bad thing.
Tue., Nov. 10, 7 p.m., 2009