Popular culture in 1930s

Question 1

How many homes had a radio by 1939?

Answer 1

28 million homes

Question 2

Name two new radio companies which were established in the 1930s.

Answer 2

The NBC and the CBS

Question 3

What became more common on the radio?

Answer 3

1. Advertisements selling consumer goods
2. Soap operas (such as Our Gal Sunday)
3. Comedians (such as Jack Benny)

Question 4

What type of film replaced silent movies in the 1930s?

Answer 4

“Talkies”

Question 5

What new genres of film became popular in the 1930s?

Answer 5

1. Movie musicals, such as The Wizard of Oz (1939).
2. Hollywood also contributed to the popularity of ‘county and western’ music. Gene Autry gained fame as a singing cowboy in films such as Git Along Little Doggies’ (1937).
3. Films that reflected the conditions of the time, such as that of the depression. E.g. Swing Time (1936) and The Grapes of Wrath (1940).

Question 6

What new music crazes became popular in the 1930s?

Answer 6

1. Big Band Jazz. Legendary band leaders included Count Basie and Tommy Dorsey.
2. Newer forms of pop-jazz, like swing music and Dixieland, became popular among mainstream audiences.

Question 7

What new dance crazes developed because the popularity of swing music?

Answer 7

The ‘Lindy Hop’ and the ‘Jitterbug’.

Question 8

What evidence is there that sport became increasingly popular in the 1930s?

Answer 8

1. Huge numbers travelled to watch baseball teams, such as the Harlem Globetrotters.
2. Some stadiums gave free admission to women to boost interest within families.
3. Those who could not travel to matches listened to sport on the radio.

Question 9

What genres of book became popular in the 1930s?

Answer 9

1. The modern comic book, such as Superman (1938).

2. Depression-era novels, such as Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (1937).

Question 10

Why did popular culture continue to grow and change in the 1930s?

Answer 10

1. The car continued to allow those who could afford it to travel to and from entertainments.
2. Many films and literature pieces reflected what life was like during the 1930s. This meant that many American people could empathise with the content, which led to the cinema’s continued popularity and rise of depression-era literature.
3. Not all American citizens were affected by the depression and could still afford to visit entertainments.
4. The continued development of the radio had an impact on the popularity of entertainments, e.g. sport; music; dance.