For me, this is the first recognizably modern decade. If you fell into a wormhole and ended up in any previous time, it would've been baffling. Yes, the 1920s were backwards by our standards in ways too long to list, this is the first place that I, at least, could time travel to and not feel completely out of my depth.
@RollandB I'm not so sure about that. My dad was born in 1940 and has significant difficulties with modern technology. My grandparents were much worse.
@@Dan-di9jd Really close! The 19th Amendment (Women's Suffrage / right to vote) was ratified on August 18, 1920. Check out the Sin City of that decade: Berlin ... they pushed the envelope there and then.
@@Dan-di9jd Women's right to vote: 1920 (USA- 19th Amendment to the US Constituion) UK had two dates: 1918 and 1928, 1918: women could vote at 30 with property qualifications or as graduates of UK universities, while men could vote at 21 with no qualification. 1928: women had equal suffrage with men.
My maternal grandmother was born in 1901. She thought the kids of the 70s and 80s were so dull! She often talked about parties that would start on Friday night and stretch to late Sunday night - in northern Wisconsin! I'll never forget her rants about President Wilson. Product of her time.
I am a huge Art Deco fan and the 20s is when art deco began. I also love the fashions, the music and dances. It was fun and it was breezy and bold. There was a real aura and style back then.
The 20s were a glorious time. The 60s were messed up times which led to a lot of libtard insanity that we unfortunately are still paying a price for today.
I wouldn't call the 1960's "great." Notable, yes, but not great. Full of huge change, yes, but not "great." That decade started in a way that felt great to many, but in the years that followed, there was a great deal of sorrow and turmoil.
I'm a vintage lifestyler AKA time warper. You enter through the door of my house and it's 1922 not 2022. I love documentaries like this and anything pertaining to the 1920s. My house is decorated that way I often dress in the 1920s reproduction clothes. Keep up the good work I love all your videos.
@@g-man8980 -- That's true. For most people it was a Model T or horse and buggy. I know that my Grandparents were still using a horse and wagon on the farm until the late 20's. They used two teams of wagons to harvest cord wood until the early 30's.
Being a huge fan of silent films, I find the culture represented in those films to be quite fascinating. Not sure if I would want to have lived in the era, but it would be neat to time travel and visit the big cities during that time.
I would definitely love to visit, but not stay in the 1920s. I would take some nice dresses and accessories back with me to the present too. It’s nearly impossible to find pristine clothing from that time period today.
I would gladly travel back in time to the 20s if I could. That era has always fascinated me. I could easily throw away all my electronics and my smart phone in a heartbeat to live then.
@@genebigs1749 Arguably the '20s was the most technological of all. Just imagine a world were only a couple decades ago, people were travelling in horse and buggy and lighting their homes with kerosene lanterns. And now, all of a sudden you got automobiles, and telephones, and record players, and radios, and electric lights, etc, etc. I don't think the internet or the smart phone even compares to the tech shock people experienced back then.
The 1920s seems like an exciting time to visit when you view snippets of that era's pop culture, but what was everyday life like for the average person? As this video points out, not everyone was a flapper, a jazz musician, a silent film star, or even a gangster.
I'm glad you included a pix of Colleen Moore. I've loved her since my childhood in the 1950s when I used to visit her amazing dollhouse at the Chicago museum of science and industry. Great videos.
@@Woozler554 1910s put the cake mix ingredients in the oven and it started cooking in the 1920s the cake is fully baked now but it's not time to slice and eat yet.
@@MrDewayne Whatever. The automobile was around by the 1910s, as well as electricity. And of course, WWI gave humanity it's first real experience with modern weapons and warfare.
@@Woozler554 point is that television fashion music Society were starting to change in the 1920s that's when it took off not that the 1910s didn't have its moments with inventions
I would say you summed it up pretty well. It's hard to be nostalgic about war or grinding poverty, and the dominant 1920's cultural influences are still attractive to many today. And the style was great. Thanks.
So interesting and good observations. The 1920’s and the 1960’s were “close cultural cousins” It is interesting how history repeats itself….Prosperity/hedonism…..Poverty/reality
i personally thought it was closer to the 1950s with post war boom and new technologies but now you mention it the social aspects was pretty close towards 1960s
You are spot on with most of your observations. I lived in an era to talk one on one with this 1920s generation , and yes they agreed that it ended when the crash hit. You can learn so much about a generation simply by listening to the music. I did just that.
My fascination with the 1920s is because my mother was a teen during the 20s (born in 1910). She was definitely a flapper. My grandparents had a Victrola with 78rpms of music of the time. Asking her about the time, she would regale me with stories of what it was like. I always thought I should have lived during that time.
When I hop in my time machine, I typically go back to the 1930s. However, for the past couple years I've had a new interest in the 1920s due in part to the videos you produce here. Well written and edited. Thanks
How I wish I had asked my grandparents what it was like for them coming of age in the 20s. I recall asking my paternal grandmother about Rudolph Valentino. Her response? Her eyes lit up and exclaimed, “He was so handsome!”
I love the heavily carved furniture, architecture, and women's hats from the 1920s. Also the men's excellent manners, dinner dress, and I love to watch people dancing in the 1920s movies They appear to be so good at it. Video of Valentino and wife dancing at all the cities they visited selling cosmetics would be so great to watch if you can find it. Thank you for this 1920s channel.
I agree with most of your observations. My grandparents were from that era and I spent a lot of time with my grandfather hearing wonderful stories from that era. I really appreciate your channel and feel blessed that I found it. Thank you
I'm from England and my grandmother was a teenager in the 1920's and she used to tell me that the 1920's was a time when everything was starting to become modern as well, especially the buildings. She also loved going to the movies and out with friends, something the older people of that day frowned on. The depression and WW2 ended all of that.
Enjoyed your overview of the decade. The beginning of broadcast radio was a major shift. Starting in 1922 home radios were available with loudspeakers and commercial broadcasts began in Pittsburgh. Prior to that radio had been restricted to hobbyists listening alone with headphones. Radio was the start of the 'free with ads' business model that is used today by FaceBook, TH-cam and other new media. It turned the audience, rather than movies, books or newspapers, into the thing that was being sold (eg to advertisers). The individuality that was celebrated in silent films and expressionist works was displaced by mass market culture. The US film business which had been the 5th largest industry in the US right after WW1 was devastated by radio. Sync sound technology had been around since at least 1909 but was not adopted widely until radio forced the film business to offer more. Film studios used Wall Street money to retrofit their production and exhibition facilities to sync sound. Radio is very underrepresented in our collective memory of the 1920s perhaps because few radio broadcasts survive while spectacular movies like "Metropolis" endure.
You're a real historian. At the end you kind of apologized for this video being based on your thoughts vs. "research". You also mentioned how a lot of people don't remember major historical events because they can't place them in a particular time. I think that's because when history is taught it is mostly a matter of "Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492" facts and figures. Your piece goes beyond that and provided an excellent and insightful analysis that is far more memorable than a series of names, events, and dates. Thank you.
Throughout the 1920s US farmers were already in a “great depression”. During WW1, the government highly encouraged farms to produce more than they usually did for the war effort. These production methods stuck after the war and overproduction of food was a big problem that led to very low prices and huge loss of profit. I often wonder what proportion of the population actually took advantage of the economic boom of the 1920s.
The '20's also was the widespread use of the tractor which had a huge impact on food production and displaced many farmhands with their efficiency. Farmers had no previous experience with these machines.
The 1920's beginning of the modern world in terms of pop culture one of the most unique decades along with the 40's 50's 70's 80's. But to me the 20's 70's and 80's are close when it comes to the most unique.
I have watched and listened to many TH-cam channels. And you have one of the most pleasant and enjoyable voices. You make the 1920's more entertaining. I enjoy watching and listening to your videos. Thank you for creating them.
I recently saw the movie Babylon. It takes place at the transition from silent films to talkies. This video helps to explain some of the more outrageous activities that occurred in the movie. Thanks.
@@hernameistiffaney8181 Same here! I’ve been drawn to this era since I was a toddler. I knew details about life and the culture from the end of the 1800’s and felt like the jazz age was my time...like my “golden years” which has made me feel haunted my whole life.
Very interesting, I love the art deco era, the stock market crash of 29 and prohibition were also very interesting, would love to see more, thanks for the videos!!!!
Good assessment of 20s culture. But as a fan of 30s jazz bands like those of Ambrose, Hylton, Hines and others, I don't agree at all that culture sunk so much in the 30s. There were also many great 30s films and fashions still stayed quite good, though I think the 20s had the 30s beat in fashion, and maybe all other decades too.
I very much enjoy when you focus on a single individual of that Era. Example, Brooks, Chaplin, etc. Might be interesting to do more on other individuals.... food for thought.
Even though there were 10 decades in the 20th (as with all centuries) the heart of the century starts and ends with the 1920s to the late 1980's. Although the '30s don't have the same popularity or seem that distinctive, they are, and are worth looking into. There's much more to them than just the Depression.
Loved this--hands down, for me, the best part of the 1920's was the sleek flappers' fashion aesthetic (men's versions, too). So romantic, elegant and no doubt a huge relief from the stuffiness of the Victorian Era. Nice work. 👌
My mind really LIVES in the 1920's!! lol My Mother was in her late teens and early 20's in the 1920. She told me SO much about this era and the wonderful music!! And I lOVED the music and the way ladies dressed!!
Loved your video and agree. I was lucky enough to have parents that grew up in the 20's & 30's. Loved hearing all the stories. I love anything related to music from the 20's & 30's. Plus the other show biz stuff too. A lot of still popular songs & musical stage shows came from those two decades.
My love spans about as long as jazz’s peak; the 1920s to the 1940s. Most obviously this is due part time the music. Though, I’ve always had a deep admiration for films of the time. We get to see the transfer from the silent era into talkies and that is beyond fascinating to me. People taking the opportunities they had and plunging fully into them. It’s like a giant domino effect we can both see and hear.
I like the way things looked. The Art Deco, the clothes, the marcelled hair...all of it. I like the old jazz. Later, a lot of jazz got low-key and subtle, but that old jazz was party music. And I like the way the flappers just did what they wanted. They didn't ask for permission or protest (though protest is necessary in some circumstances), they just did it. Drinking in public, makeup, riding in cars with men, things nobody bats an eye at these days - the flappers made them OK.
Great video....thanks for sharing your thoughts. Metropolis is a great touchpoint on the 1920s, especially from European lense. Fritz Lang was very eccentric, not unlike Howard Hughes, but his films still stand today as good dramatic art. Have you done an episode specifically on films like Metropolis?
In a complete fantasy world, I'd love to back to the 1920's with my friends, as the 1980's teenagers we were, to acquaint ourselves with Flapper culture. I rather suspect that a good time may have been had by all!
👆👌✌️🤌💕👁️👁️🎵🎶🎵🎶🎵🎶sharing around the world,great content,missed the 20's,but 60's incredible,enjoyed learned so much,keep filling us up,with knowledge ✍️👍
I've always been more of a dirty 30's guy. The 30's is what gave rise to the guitar. In the 20's, a blues combo may have consisted of a piano, stand up bass and a couple of horns. It's nothing like the twangy blues we all know and love today. But, you can't ride the rails with no piano. So the iconic 1930's guitar travelling bluesman was born. Leadbelly, Son House, Robert Johnson, Blind Lemon, Blind Willie McTell. Harmonica too. This style would go on to become electrified in Chicago in the 40's and eventually lead to rock and roll. I don't want to forget about all the great piano rock and roll legends but what would rock and roll be without the guitar?
The Roaring Twenties was one of my favourite TV shows. Dorothy Provine as Pinky was great! I also loved the Louise Brooks look from that period. She was iconic.
If there was any other era I could have lived in, I wish it was the Roaring 20s. It was a marvelous time when absolutely nothing could go wrong. Unfortunately, it was abruptly followed by the Depression 30s, when absolutely nothing could go right.
Thank you for sharing this video with us. I wish that when I was going to school as a kid, even in highschool that I could've had the perspective from a young person such as yourself. Keep doing what you're doing because it's educational & positive education friend. 💯
Thanks for your good videos. It's disheartening to know so many don't know WW1 years. It's impact on Europe was huge, loss of life staggering. Sometimes I wonder what schools are actually teaching these days. I agree as to why the 20s stand out as a decade. The crash of 29 ended that era virtually over night, and the 30s were the exact opposite. And the 20s seem to have burst out of nowhere after WW1 and the 1918 flu pandemic ended. I like that you point out that the decade we see as the Roaring 20s today was actually experienced by a small minority of the population, just like the hippie drug culture of the 60s/70s.
It all came together for most Americans in that decade with household electricity, automobiles, electronic mass media, women's rights, etc. which are all basic points of modern life.
I know this video is a year old but I'm gonna share my opinion anyway: I think when most people say they love the 1920's they mean the Hollywood version of it. The Great Gatsby starring Leonardo DiCaprio type of thing. A fictional version of the era. It's really unfortunate. I was like this. When someone said 1920's I thought of Halloween flappers (that is, historically inaccurate flapper costumes that everyone wears to a Gatsby themed party) and art deco (which was more of a 30's thing). I only knew of the fictional 20's stuff. But when I learned more about the era I fell in LOVE!! So what I'm saying is if people knew more about what the 20's were REALLY like they would love it and real 20's stuff would be popular. So yeah those are just my thoughts. But obviously not everyone is clueless about the era cuz this channel exists and people watch it lol. Anyway thanks for this video. Your points were valid for people like us who actually know what the era was like
While I agree that a lot of people are in love with a fictionalized 1920's as seen through the eyes of Hollywood looking back at the era, it doesn't diminish the importance of the decade in terms of it's fashion, music, social impact, etc. It really was the start of the modern age. Silent movies, radio, fashion, women's suffrage, Prohibition (or rather, the pushback against it), music, dancing, art, design . . . it was all happening. Which explains why the era still resonates. By the way, Art Deco started in the 1910's as was in full swing by the 1920's, so you're incorrect there. Its impact on everything from decorative painting, household design, architecture, was evident all over. The 30's brought in Streamline Moderne or Art Moderne, and its even more linear style.
@@CarlosEmilioEsq you're right about the 20s being very influential. It seems as if people don't realize just how relevance it is. Also, thanks for the clarification about art deco! Now that you mention it I see how it started in the 1910s. I've seen fashion from the 1910s that's quite geometric.
To me it always seemed like the 20's was this massive cultural, technological, social etc revolution that started (really before the 20's...in 1918 after WW1) and lasted right up until the market crash of 1929. In those 11 years you saw the automobile become prevalent, radio, cinema, movies...so much great art, literature, music. It's amazing how much smaller and more accessible things became in this decade...how fast life changed. Air travel was incredibly revolutionary and soon you'd be able to hop on a plane and fly to far off lands that at one point may have been on Mars to most Americans. People would have to go on weeks long ocean journeys to reach these lands You also saw the beginnings of suburbs, bedroom communities around cities. America before was either city life, or rural, in the 20s you started to see the middle class suburbs first start to appear
Your work is great!! As a history teacher you are correct on many angles. However WW1 to me was the "Major" event. Like u said, returning doughboys n others who saw the horror of war were awakened to mortality!! So...live now. Other aspects of society followed. Women found sex n freedom n work n INDEPENDENCE!!! Jazz was music n not a racial divide but brought many people together (I feel). Love your work
1950s rock 'n' roll brought people (young people, anyway) together as well. It was the first musical genre geared towards adolescents -- a phase of life that didn't even exist in the minds of early 20th century people -- rather than children or adults. Rock 'n' roll was the first major rallying cry against the conformism that took hold in the post-WW2 period and gave young people an identity distinct from the pre-WW2 generations. Post-WW2 youth knew the conformity brought about by the end of WW2 but never experienced the hardship that influenced the conformist mindset, meaning they had absolutely no use for it and were more than willing to trade it in for the tumult of rapid change, individualism, and protest. Had boomers experienced the hardship that brought about the post-WW2 mindset, they likely would have appreciated it more and understood its virtues, even though it was often oppressive and stifling and needed to be challenged.
Basically agree, but I think there's more, the creativity on top of creativity making it enigmatic as well as electrifying; the sentimentality hiding in the music, yet mot showing too much on the surface, a unique combination of discipline and freedom.
For me, this is the first recognizably modern decade. If you fell into a wormhole and ended up in any previous time, it would've been baffling. Yes, the 1920s were backwards by our standards in ways too long to list, this is the first place that I, at least, could time travel to and not feel completely out of my depth.
I'd just be happy NOT to find myself in a certain Chicago garage on Valentine's Day 1929.
@RollandB I'm not so sure about that. My dad was born in 1940 and has significant difficulties with modern technology. My grandparents were much worse.
Wasn't it true that most of the women featured in the video didn't have any sort of rights, even to vote?
@@Dan-di9jd Really close! The 19th Amendment (Women's Suffrage / right to vote) was ratified on August 18, 1920. Check out the Sin City of that decade: Berlin ... they pushed the envelope there and then.
@@Dan-di9jd
Women's right to
vote: 1920 (USA-
19th Amendment
to the US Constituion)
UK had two dates:
1918 and 1928,
1918: women could vote
at 30 with property
qualifications or as
graduates of UK
universities, while men
could vote at 21 with
no qualification.
1928: women had equal
suffrage with men.
My maternal grandmother was born in 1901. She thought the kids of the 70s and 80s were so dull! She often talked about parties that would start on Friday night and stretch to late Sunday night - in northern Wisconsin!
I'll never forget her rants about President Wilson.
Product of her time.
I am a huge Art Deco fan and the 20s is when art deco began.
I also love the fashions, the music and dances. It was fun and it was breezy and bold.
There was a real aura and style back then.
I mostly watch silent movies and listen to '20's Jazz. It drives my family crazy but I love that decade. Great video.
Same! I swear I was a flapper in my past life!
I don’t fell like I am the only one in that case anymore.
Clara Bow is my silent movie crush...hahaha
@@My1925World I have a bunch of silent movie crushes. Clara is one of them.
@@brennocalderan2201 Anita Garvin is always the first one I think of.
I find that the 20's in a strange way was kind of a futuristic era of the 20th century. Lightyears ahead of it's time.
The 20s and the 60s are both great decades where a lot changed in ten years..
The 20s were a glorious time.
The 60s were messed up times which led to a lot of libtard insanity that we unfortunately are still paying a price for today.
I wouldn't call the 1960's "great." Notable, yes, but not great. Full of huge change, yes, but not "great." That decade started in a way that felt great to many, but in the years that followed, there was a great deal of sorrow and turmoil.
You are clearly referring to the 1920s.
Because it was, and still is, an awesome friggin' decade.
I'm a vintage lifestyler AKA time warper. You enter through the door of my house and it's 1922 not 2022. I love documentaries like this and anything pertaining to the 1920s. My house is decorated that way I often dress in the 1920s reproduction clothes.
Keep up the good work I love all your videos.
That’s my dream.
I'm going to A 1920s themed party for my 50th Birthday Party
I've always dreamed about living in the 1920's, driving at night in a 1927 Duesenburg convertible with a beautiful flapper sitting by my side.
That's a weirdly specific dream.
@@g-man8980 -- That's true. For most people it was a Model T or horse and buggy. I know that my Grandparents were still using a horse and wagon on the farm until the late 20's. They used two teams of wagons to harvest cord wood until the early 30's.
Being a huge fan of silent films, I find the culture represented in those films to be quite fascinating. Not sure if I would want to have lived in the era, but it would be neat to time travel and visit the big cities during that time.
I have always loved the idea of time travel to go back in time to different eras. So fascinating 👏
I would definitely love to visit, but not stay in the 1920s. I would take some nice dresses and accessories back with me to the present too. It’s nearly impossible to find pristine clothing from that time period today.
I would gladly travel back in time to the 20s if I could. That era has always fascinated me. I could easily throw away all my electronics and my smart phone in a heartbeat to live then.
@@genebigs1749 Arguably the '20s was the most technological of all. Just imagine a world were only a couple decades ago, people were travelling in horse and buggy and lighting their homes with kerosene lanterns. And now, all of a sudden you got automobiles, and telephones, and record players, and radios, and electric lights, etc, etc.
I don't think the internet or the smart phone even compares to the tech shock people experienced back then.
The 1920s seems like an exciting time to visit when you view snippets of that era's pop culture, but what was everyday life like for the average person?
As this video points out, not everyone was a flapper, a jazz musician, a silent film star, or even a gangster.
The beginning of the 1960's started on February 9th, 1964. The Beatles on Ed Sullivan. Everything changed over night.
Elvis Presley
I'm glad you included a pix of Colleen Moore. I've loved her since my childhood in the 1950s when I used to visit her amazing dollhouse at the Chicago museum of science and industry. Great videos.
Once again another great video. In my opinion I think the 1920's was the beginning of the modern world as we know it.
It was really the 1910s that began the modern world.
@@Woozler554 1910s put the cake mix ingredients in the oven and it started cooking in the 1920s the cake is fully baked now but it's not time to slice and eat yet.
@@MrDewayne Whatever.
The automobile was around by the 1910s, as well as electricity. And of course, WWI gave humanity it's first real experience with modern weapons and warfare.
@@Woozler554 it was a metaphor
@@Woozler554 point is that television fashion music Society were starting to change in the 1920s that's when it took off not that the 1910s didn't have its moments with inventions
I’d love to see an episode about the developing advertisement/consumerist society that was developing then.
There's a documentary called "A Century Of Self" that talks about the advertising development that started in the 1920s. TH-cam always has it.
I would say you summed it up pretty well. It's hard to be nostalgic about war or grinding poverty, and the dominant 1920's cultural influences are still attractive to many today. And the style was great. Thanks.
I first got into the decade because of its architecture. I think it was the height of architecture, with styles like rococo revival and art deco.
So interesting and good observations. The 1920’s and the 1960’s were “close cultural cousins” It is interesting how history repeats itself….Prosperity/hedonism…..Poverty/reality
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thoroughly_Modern_Millie_(musical) Have you ever watched the 1960’s movie 🔹Thoroughly Modern Millie🔹
History does not repeat. It rymes
i personally thought it was closer to the 1950s with post war boom and new technologies but now you mention it the social aspects was pretty close towards 1960s
I didn't finish my previous comment---I think the end of the Spanish Flu also made people want to celebrate and party.
You are spot on with most of your observations. I lived in an era to talk one on one with this 1920s generation , and yes they agreed that it ended when the crash hit. You can learn so much about a generation simply by listening to the music. I did just that.
My fascination with the 1920s is because my mother was a teen during the 20s (born in 1910). She was definitely a flapper. My grandparents had a Victrola with 78rpms of music of the time. Asking her about the time, she would regale me with stories of what it was like. I always thought I should have lived during that time.
Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd were abhorrently underrated as stuntmen.
When I hop in my time machine, I typically go back to the 1930s. However, for the past couple years I've had a new interest in the 1920s due in part to the videos you produce here. Well written and edited. Thanks
I love the 1920’s. The fashion, the cars, everything. Thank you so much for this great video.
Well the racism, sexism and homophobia was horrible.
@@wrathofthelamb318 😂🤣 so fucking stupid
@@wrathofthelamb318 yeah no shit the decade had horrible moments same as every other decade
How I wish I had asked my grandparents what it was like for them coming of age in the 20s. I recall asking my paternal grandmother about Rudolph Valentino. Her response? Her eyes lit up and exclaimed, “He was so handsome!”
this made me think what people are gonna think in the future about the 2010s and the 2020s
So true, they will probably say the same thing young people are saying now. They will be fascinated with their elders world.
I love the heavily carved furniture, architecture, and women's hats from the 1920s. Also the men's excellent manners, dinner dress, and I love to watch people dancing in the 1920s movies They appear to be so good at it. Video of Valentino and wife dancing at all the cities they visited selling cosmetics would be so great to watch if you can find it.
Thank you for this 1920s channel.
I agree with most of your observations. My grandparents were from that era and I spent a lot of time with my grandfather hearing wonderful stories from that era. I really appreciate your channel and feel blessed that I found it. Thank you
I love hearing Ain't Misbehaving in the background!!!
My folks were kids back in the 1920's and they did indeed have some interesting stories and anecdotes of the era.
I'm from England and my grandmother was a teenager in the 1920's and she used to tell me that the 1920's was a time when everything was starting to become modern as well, especially the buildings. She also loved going to the movies and out with friends, something the older people of that day frowned on. The depression and WW2 ended all of that.
An excellent, concise essay of the era
You do great work.
Thanks :)
Enjoyed your overview of the decade.
The beginning of broadcast radio was a major shift. Starting in 1922 home radios were available with loudspeakers and commercial broadcasts began in Pittsburgh. Prior to that radio had been restricted to hobbyists listening alone with headphones. Radio was the start of the 'free with ads' business model that is used today by FaceBook, TH-cam and other new media. It turned the audience, rather than movies, books or newspapers, into the thing that was being sold (eg to advertisers). The individuality that was celebrated in silent films and expressionist works was displaced by mass market culture. The US film business which had been the 5th largest industry in the US right after WW1 was devastated by radio. Sync sound technology had been around since at least 1909 but was not adopted widely until radio forced the film business to offer more. Film studios used Wall Street money to retrofit their production and exhibition facilities to sync sound. Radio is very underrepresented in our collective memory of the 1920s perhaps because few radio broadcasts survive while spectacular movies like "Metropolis" endure.
You're a real historian. At the end you kind of apologized for this video being based on your thoughts vs. "research". You also mentioned how a lot of people don't remember major historical events because they can't place them in a particular time. I think that's because when history is taught it is mostly a matter of "Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492" facts and figures. Your piece goes beyond that and provided an excellent and insightful analysis that is far more memorable than a series of names, events, and dates. Thank you.
The music of the 1920s was cool but so was the music of the 1930s.
I love this era and you've captured it so well in all your videos.
You do exceptional work. I enjoyed it very much !
Throughout the 1920s US farmers were already in a “great depression”. During WW1, the government highly encouraged farms to produce more than they usually did for the war effort. These production methods stuck after the war and overproduction of food was a big problem that led to very low prices and huge loss of profit. I often wonder what proportion of the population actually took advantage of the economic boom of the 1920s.
Intetesting!
The '20's also was the widespread use of the tractor which had a huge impact on food production and displaced many farmhands with their efficiency. Farmers had no previous experience with these machines.
Agreed -- my Dad grew up on the vast wheat-producing plains of Saskatchewan then, and it was not at all like the flapper culture of the big cities.
The 1920's beginning of the modern world in terms of pop culture one of the most unique decades along with the 40's 50's 70's 80's. But to me the 20's 70's and 80's are close when it comes to the most unique.
I have watched and listened to many TH-cam channels. And you have one of the most pleasant and enjoyable voices. You make the 1920's more entertaining. I enjoy watching and listening to your videos. Thank you for creating them.
I recently saw the movie Babylon. It takes place at the transition from silent films to talkies. This video helps to explain some of the more outrageous activities that occurred in the movie.
Thanks.
And here we are 100 years later... thats wild!
It's my time. I've wished all my life I could have lived then.
ArchernAce if you believe in reincarnation, you might have lived in that time, hence your being drawn to that era in this time
@@mollyjane4628 I'm positive I lived in that era in a previous life. I love the 1920's.
@@hernameistiffaney8181 Same here! I’ve been drawn to this era since I was a toddler. I knew details about life and the culture from the end of the 1800’s and felt like the jazz age was my time...like my “golden years” which has made me feel haunted my whole life.
@@mollyjane4628 Interesting.
What a most delightful inflection you possess.
Great channel & video
Very interesting, I love the art deco era, the stock market crash of 29 and prohibition were also very interesting, would love to see more, thanks for the videos!!!!
Good assessment of 20s culture. But as a fan of 30s jazz bands like those of Ambrose, Hylton, Hines and others, I don't agree at all that culture sunk so much in the 30s. There were also many great 30s films and fashions still stayed quite good, though I think the 20s had the 30s beat in fashion, and maybe all other decades too.
I very much enjoy when you focus on a single individual of that Era. Example, Brooks, Chaplin, etc. Might be interesting to do more on other individuals.... food for thought.
The 20's had a fairly clear start too, with the Volstead Act. I really like your videos and observations.
Even now in 2023, "The 20's" still mean the 1920's!
A superb thoughtful analysis.
What a great video and I think the Narrator, was top notch. Very well done. Thank you.
Would love to see a video on Josephine Baker. Love all your videos
Even though there were 10 decades in the 20th (as with all centuries) the heart of the century starts and ends with the 1920s to the late 1980's. Although the '30s don't have the same popularity or seem that distinctive, they are, and are worth looking into. There's much more to them than just the Depression.
Yes, the heart of the twentieth century started with the 1920s and ended with the late 1980's.
As a proud part of Gen X I have to disagree. The 90s were/are iconic when it comes to music and pop culture!
Loved this--hands down, for me, the best part of the 1920's was the sleek flappers' fashion aesthetic (men's versions, too). So romantic, elegant and no doubt a huge relief from the stuffiness of the Victorian Era. Nice work. 👌
Great presentation. Thanks for the high definition footage; I agree with all you said. I only wish you'd named the famous actors and musicians.
I'm far more obsessed with the 1960s. But this is so interesting.
@1:21 “We Want Beer” 😂🤣😂
Just found this channel. Im hooked !
My mind really LIVES in the 1920's!! lol My Mother was in her late teens and early 20's in the 1920. She told me SO much about this era and the wonderful music!! And I lOVED the music and the way ladies dressed!!
If you have a time machine, let's borrow it, I badly want to spend a week in the 1920's.
terrific video
Your videos on this Era in time are wonderful!! Keep it up. I'm a new subscriber. Mike in Colorado
The 1920's is memorable today because it's the first decade that we can look back on and hear their voices on film.
Both my parents were born in the 1920's, so I've always felt a deep connection with that era. Thank you for posting; it meant a lot to me.
This was great. I know a lot about the era, and I think you captured it. 😊
Loved your video and agree. I was lucky enough to have parents that grew up in the 20's & 30's. Loved hearing all the stories. I love anything related to music from the 20's & 30's. Plus the other show biz stuff too. A lot of still popular songs & musical stage shows came from those two decades.
My love spans about as long as jazz’s peak; the 1920s to the 1940s. Most obviously this is due part time the music. Though, I’ve always had a deep admiration for films of the time. We get to see the transfer from the silent era into talkies and that is beyond fascinating to me. People taking the opportunities they had and plunging fully into them. It’s like a giant domino effect we can both see and hear.
Great content 🌹
Thanks :)
Thank you my friend for this interesting video. It give us a better insight, from a different point of view. Love the video.
Great channel. Wonderful commentary.
I like the way things looked. The Art Deco, the clothes, the marcelled hair...all of it.
I like the old jazz. Later, a lot of jazz got low-key and subtle, but that old jazz was party music.
And I like the way the flappers just did what they wanted. They didn't ask for permission or protest (though protest is necessary in some circumstances), they just did it. Drinking in public, makeup, riding in cars with men, things nobody bats an eye at these days - the flappers made them OK.
Literally had me at 2 minutes in...The FASHION of it all ❤
Great video....thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Metropolis is a great touchpoint on the 1920s, especially from European lense.
Fritz Lang was very eccentric, not unlike Howard Hughes, but his films still stand today as good dramatic art.
Have you done an episode specifically on films like Metropolis?
In a complete fantasy world, I'd love to back to the 1920's with my friends, as the 1980's teenagers we were, to acquaint ourselves with Flapper culture. I rather suspect that a good time may have been had by all!
Great series! One point: In the 1920's the "t" in "often" was silent.
👆👌✌️🤌💕👁️👁️🎵🎶🎵🎶🎵🎶sharing around the world,great content,missed the 20's,but 60's incredible,enjoyed learned so much,keep filling us up,with knowledge ✍️👍
I've always been more of a dirty 30's guy. The 30's is what gave rise to the guitar. In the 20's, a blues combo may have consisted of a piano, stand up bass and a couple of horns. It's nothing like the twangy blues we all know and love today. But, you can't ride the rails with no piano. So the iconic 1930's guitar travelling bluesman was born. Leadbelly, Son House, Robert Johnson, Blind Lemon, Blind Willie McTell. Harmonica too. This style would go on to become electrified in Chicago in the 40's and eventually lead to rock and roll. I don't want to forget about all the great piano rock and roll legends but what would rock and roll be without the guitar?
I had a Buster Keaton VHS tape. That's a great window into the past.
Art Nouveau....beautiful.
the 2020's (2019 included) will be remembered as horrifying, crazy, and catastrophic.
yo your channel is a treasure...
time 7.30 Dancing so cool, I love and so hope to know america's 1920's from my teenager.I'm 50 now korean.
Idea
Do a long video explaining Art Deco. It’s use, influences, growth. Special the Art Deco ads those are cool.
The Roaring Twenties was one of my favourite TV shows. Dorothy Provine as Pinky was great! I also loved the Louise Brooks look from that period. She was iconic.
If there was any other era I could have lived in, I wish it was the Roaring 20s. It was a marvelous time when absolutely nothing could go wrong. Unfortunately, it was abruptly followed by the Depression 30s, when absolutely nothing could go right.
Thank you for sharing this video with us. I wish that when I was going to school as a kid, even in highschool that I could've had the perspective from a young person such as yourself.
Keep doing what you're doing because it's educational & positive education friend. 💯
❤ 1920 my dad was born ❤ I learned the respect ment. Help other's when humanity wasn't good . Dresses were beautiful the men were so handsome ❤
I used to live in a apartment that was built in 1920. Sadly, it's gone.
I used to live in a 1912 farmhouse that had heritedge status. Sadly that did not save it either.
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ the 1929s were so coooooooooool!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️☮️🍟
Excellent observations and analysis! Your observations are very perceptive.
LOVE YOUR CHANEL AND THE MUSIC!!!
Great video
Thanks for your good videos. It's disheartening to know so many don't know WW1 years. It's impact on Europe was huge, loss of life staggering. Sometimes I wonder what schools are actually teaching these days. I agree as to why the 20s stand out as a decade. The crash of 29 ended that era virtually over night, and the 30s were the exact opposite. And the 20s seem to have burst out of nowhere after WW1 and the 1918 flu pandemic ended. I like that you point out that the decade we see as the Roaring 20s today was actually experienced by a small minority of the population, just like the hippie drug culture of the 60s/70s.
It all came together for most Americans in that decade with household electricity, automobiles, electronic mass media, women's rights, etc. which are all basic points of modern life.
I know this video is a year old but I'm gonna share my opinion anyway: I think when most people say they love the 1920's they mean the Hollywood version of it. The Great Gatsby starring Leonardo DiCaprio type of thing. A fictional version of the era. It's really unfortunate. I was like this. When someone said 1920's I thought of Halloween flappers (that is, historically inaccurate flapper costumes that everyone wears to a Gatsby themed party) and art deco (which was more of a 30's thing). I only knew of the fictional 20's stuff. But when I learned more about the era I fell in LOVE!! So what I'm saying is if people knew more about what the 20's were REALLY like they would love it and real 20's stuff would be popular. So yeah those are just my thoughts.
But obviously not everyone is clueless about the era cuz this channel exists and people watch it lol. Anyway thanks for this video. Your points were valid for people like us who actually know what the era was like
While I agree that a lot of people are in love with a fictionalized 1920's as seen through the eyes of Hollywood looking back at the era, it doesn't diminish the importance of the decade in terms of it's fashion, music, social impact, etc. It really was the start of the modern age. Silent movies, radio, fashion, women's suffrage, Prohibition (or rather, the pushback against it), music, dancing, art, design . . . it was all happening. Which explains why the era still resonates. By the way, Art Deco started in the 1910's as was in full swing by the 1920's, so you're incorrect there. Its impact on everything from decorative painting, household design, architecture, was evident all over. The 30's brought in Streamline Moderne or Art Moderne, and its even more linear style.
@@CarlosEmilioEsq you're right about the 20s being very influential. It seems as if people don't realize just how relevance it is.
Also, thanks for the clarification about art deco! Now that you mention it I see how it started in the 1910s. I've seen fashion from the 1910s that's quite geometric.
To me it always seemed like the 20's was this massive cultural, technological, social etc revolution that started (really before the 20's...in 1918 after WW1) and lasted right up until the market crash of 1929. In those 11 years you saw the automobile become prevalent, radio, cinema, movies...so much great art, literature, music. It's amazing how much smaller and more accessible things became in this decade...how fast life changed. Air travel was incredibly revolutionary and soon you'd be able to hop on a plane and fly to far off lands that at one point may have been on Mars to most Americans. People would have to go on weeks long ocean journeys to reach these lands
You also saw the beginnings of suburbs, bedroom communities around cities. America before was either city life, or rural, in the 20s you started to see the middle class suburbs first start to appear
Your work is great!! As a history teacher you are correct on many angles. However WW1 to me was the "Major" event. Like u said, returning doughboys n others who saw the horror of war were awakened to mortality!! So...live now. Other aspects of society followed. Women found sex n freedom n work n INDEPENDENCE!!! Jazz was music n not a racial divide but brought many people together (I feel). Love your work
1950s rock 'n' roll brought people (young people, anyway) together as well. It was the first musical genre geared towards adolescents -- a phase of life that didn't even exist in the minds of early 20th century people -- rather than children or adults. Rock 'n' roll was the first major rallying cry against the conformism that took hold in the post-WW2 period and gave young people an identity distinct from the pre-WW2 generations. Post-WW2 youth knew the conformity brought about by the end of WW2 but never experienced the hardship that influenced the conformist mindset, meaning they had absolutely no use for it and were more than willing to trade it in for the tumult of rapid change, individualism, and protest. Had boomers experienced the hardship that brought about the post-WW2 mindset, they likely would have appreciated it more and understood its virtues, even though it was often oppressive and stifling and needed to be challenged.
The very first clip is of the beautiful Jobyna Ralston from the Harold Lloyd full feature film "The Freshman". 🥰
Basically agree, but I think there's more, the creativity on top of creativity making it enigmatic as well as electrifying; the sentimentality hiding in the music, yet mot showing too much on the surface, a unique combination of discipline and freedom.
Very interesting video, thanks!
Very nicely done. Thank you for your insights! If you haven't done one, I'd like to see a video about the music specifically during the 1920s.