Reverbiage: Stories from NPR tagged '1950'

Lingering Love And Loss In 'Lark & Termite'

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:13:00 EST

Maureen Corrigan reviews Jayne Anne Phillips' Lark & Termite, a novel that weaves together the story of an American soldier fighting (and dying) in Korea in 1950, with that of his family struggling with their loss nine years later.

Satire, Race And The 'Magic Negro'

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 10:00:00 EST

Chip Saltsman, one of the candidates for chair of the Republican National Committee, sent a CD full of song parodies to several RNC members. Among them, "Barack the Magic Negro." The 'magic negro' is an old term that dates to the 1950s. Used today, is it satire or racism?

Bettie Paige Dies At 85

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST

Bettie Paige, the pinup bombshell from the 1950s, has died in Los Angeles. She was 85. Paige was a secretary-turned-model who helped inspire the sexual revolution.

Obama Warns Economy Is 'Going To Get Worse'

Sun, 07 Dec 2008 17:47:00 EST

President-elect Barack Obama has called for the most ambitious stimulus program since the government built the interstate highway system in the 1950s.

In 'Rickles' Letters', 'Mr. Warmth' Goes Postal

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 10:43:00 EST

The 1950s insult comic Don Rickles made a name for himself by poking fun of audiences and public figures. His new book, Rickles' Letters, is a collection of imaginary correspondences to a variety of historical and contemporary figures.

How A-Bomb Testing Changed Our Trees

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 13:54:00 EST

British, American, Russian and French nuclear bomb tests in the 1950s and '60s left permanent records in trees around the globe. Scientists have found chemical signatures of the explosions in the wood of old trees in many countries.

Betrayal in Brooklyn: 'A View from the Bridge'

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

William Bolcom's searing opera, after a play by Arthur Miller, is a sometimes bleak, yet always vivid drama set in the Italian-American community of Red Hook, Brooklyn, in the 1950s.

Artificial Intelligence Prize Goes To Chatty Computer

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 06:18:00 EDT

In 1950, a mathematician asked, if a computer could think, how could we tell? His answer: it could hold a conversation. In this spirit, the annual Loebner Artificial Intelligence Prize goes to the most human-like computer. This year, to a program called Elbot. When asked, how's it going? Elbot responded: I feel terrible today. This morning I poured milk over my breakfast instead of oil, and it rusted before I could eat it.

Snake River Outlaws: No 'Imitation'

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:12:00 EDT

In the early 1950s, the Snake River Outlaws' members played popular songs of the day, and some of their own, to crowds in Missoula, Mont. Forgotten recordings of the band have recently resurfaced, giving listeners a glimpse at those unsettled days.

In 'Indignation,' Roth Draws On His College Days

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 09:44:00 EDT

In his newest novel, Philip Roth looks at the moral norms imposed on college kids in the 1950s. He says it was only many years after his own college days that he saw how repressive the environment was.

S.F. Eyes Amends For 1950s Uprooting Of Blacks

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:00:00 EDT

Between 1950 and 1970, the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency relocated thousands of primarily black-owned businesses and homes in the name of urban renewal. Now, city officials are considering a plan to pay "reparations" to displaced individuals or their descendants by giving them top priority in the lottery for affordable housing units.

Inside HBO's 'The Black List'

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 10:23:00 EDT

The term, "black list," once defined Communist investigations by the U.S. government in the 1950s. But now, an HBO documentary is redefining that term. The Black List is a documentary with 22 prominent black Americans — from Gen. Colin Power to erotica writer Zane — having their say.

'The Exiles' Portrays Woman's Real-Life Struggle

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 12:00:00 EDT

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, American Indians began leaving reservations in search for a better life in big cities. Yvonne Williams was one of them, and her story was depicted in the 1961 movie The Exiles, which has since been restored. Williams opens up about the film, and describes its impact on her life.

Political Comedian Mort Sahl: Still Laughing

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 11:23:00 EDT

Mort Sahl has skewered presidents from Eisenhower through George W. Bush. The political comedian broke ground back in the late 1950s and early 1960s as a stand-up who looked to the day's headlines for his routines rather than relying on one-liners.

Club Passim: 50 Years Of Folk Legends

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 14:59:00 EDT

In the 1950s and '60s, the small venue in Cambridge, Mass., featured the likes of Joan Baez, Tom Rush and Bob Dylan on its stage. Now, the club is celebrating its 50th anniversary of fostering strong folk-music communities.

Paul Anka: Once A Teen Idol, Now A Classic

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 10:50:00 EDT

Last month, Paul Anka was given the 2008 Johnny Mercer Award by the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Anka was a teen idol during the 1950s and 1960s, singing number-one hits like "Put Your Head On My Shoulder" and "Diana."

Auntie Mame: An Antidote To Social Caution

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:27:00 EDT

Auntie Mame was a popular novel in the 1950s that was made into a famous movie, play and a musical. It tells the story of the adventures of a boy being raised by his eccentric aunt, the free spirit more commonly known as Mame Dennis.

Earl Warren's Legacy

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 16:52:00 EDT

Earl Warren served as U.S. chief justice through much of the 1950s and 1960s, a time when the court made landmark civil rights decisions and other rulings with wide-ranging social importance. Warren's retirement came 40 years ago this month.

John Coltrane: Saxophone Icon, Pt. 2

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 05:00:00 EDT

After years of playing with Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk, the saxophonist emerged as a jazz virtuoso by the end of the 1950s. But it was the restless exploration to follow that made him a pioneer of American music.

Andrew Sean Greer Chronicles a 'Marriage'

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:02:00 EDT

Best known for his novel The Confessions of Max Tivoli, Andrew Sean Greer explores the hidden secrets of one suburban, 1950s couple in his new book, The Story of a Marriage.

John Coltrane: Saxophone Icon, Pt. 1

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 05:22:00 EDT

The most influential jazz musician after bebop, the tenor saxophonist nurtured a career marked by rapid growth in improvisational technique and ideas. By the late 1950s, he had already produced his first masterpieces.

In France, Bush Says Rift Is Not Permanent

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 16:00:00 EDT

President Bush gave the keynote address of his current European tour in France today. This is his last scheduled visit to Europe as president. Bush acknowledged that there had been strains in the U.S.-European relationship during his administration but he said the U.S. and Europe had also had disagreements in the past — the Suez Crisis in the 1950s, for example, and the basing of missiles in Europe in the 1980s. "Yet with the distance of time," he said, "we can see these differences for what they were...fleeting disagreements between friends." Before flying to Paris, the president met with the pope at the Vatican.

A Monument to an American's Selflessness in Iran

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 00:01:00 EDT

The nomadic Bakhtiari tribe has named a mountain after Helen Jeffreys Bakhtiar to mark her public health work in Iran in the 1950s. It's a high honor for a woman born in Weiser, Idaho, at the start of the 20th century.

Calif. Professor Fired for Rejecting Loyalty Oath

Wed, 28 May 2008 08:41:00 EDT

California still requires public employees to swear a patriotic oath that hasn't been updated since the 1950s. The pledge was designed to keep Communist influence out of government jobs. Now it's blocking decidedly innocuous job candidates, like Quakers and pacifists, from employment.

Ricky Ricardo: The 'Mr. Babalu' Next Door

Sun, 18 May 2008 11:41:00 EDT

In the 1950s, the man who loved Lucy helped introduce mainstream America to a slice of Latin culture. He was based on Desi Arnaz — yet Arnaz was hardly just playing himself. Felix Contreras has a musical portrait of the fictional Cuban-American bandleader.