The 1950s were a period of American pride and honor. Times were great following World War II, the postwar economy was booming and never have so many people had so much time on their hands. People were in the spending mood and the businessmen found a medium in which they can get their products to the consumers. The television came into be the medium in communicating to the people. Unlike the radio before it, the television made it possible to view live events right in one's living room. The earliest television sets started appearing households was in the mid-1940s. By 1949 the tides were turning and the television was overtaking the radio. By 1955 the television had taken over completely, and one can be found in almost every American household. It became a way for families to bond in the newly created suburbs. The television united the American society by showing the nation's politics, promoting capitalistic consumerism in advertising, and portraying images of the ideal!

By the end of 1952, the television had permeated well into America with 19 million sets in American households. People were now being introduced to politics through the t

aper into little shreds; hands sweating (Halberstam: The 1950s). Costello did not come off to the people as a respectable businessman making an honest living. People around the world were witnessing this drama unfold live right in their own living room. The hearings became the subject of national talk.

. Car advertisements pictured the ideal family while, Leave It To Beaver, I Love Lucy, and all other entertainment shows focused around a strong nucleus family that loved each other dearly portraying American values that everyone admired. It seems as if the power of television was used to unify a nation by setting the tone for society's values, while enforcing capitalist consumerism.

ver fought nor acted in a disobedient manner. During the war many women took up jobs due to the men leaving for war, so when the war was over there was a push for the women to back into the homes and the men back to the work force. The television sitcoms, as well as many commercial advertisements, were aimed in getting the women back in the home and the men back out in the working world. With the exception of the I Love Lucy show, every family was pureblooded American, promoting American values, and in the end defining how the ideal American family was to be structured. What was portrayed to society was a "perfect world" in which everything ran smoothly, however, that was not always the case. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz was a married couple in real life and also played a married couple in the show, I Love Lucy. To the audience, Lucille and Desi seemed to be living a great life. Since they were married in real life, that made the show itself all more believable. The true!

aper into little shreds; hands sweating (Halberstam: The 1950s). Costello did not come off to the people as a respectable businessman making an honest living. People around the world were witnessing this drama unfold live right in their own living room. The hearings became the subject of national talk.

The television also brought forth images of ideal American families. Sitcoms, like Leave It To Beaver, Father Knows Best, and I Love Lucy, portrayed an unflawed American society reflecting and reinforcing much of the social conformity of the time. There was no divorce, no serious sickness, families liked one another, and they tolerated each other's idiosyncrasies. The parents were fair and just, and never raised their voices at their children (Halberstam: The 1950s). Sitcoms always reinforced the family structure. In the Cleaver family, the family always ate breakfast and dinner together. June Cleaver symbolized the ideal housewife, not having a job, but staying home and making sure the house is clean and the dinner is on the table. June became a role model, and wives all around the nation soon inspired to be the next 'June Cleaver'. Ward Cleaver was the breadwinner of the family and he had a respectable job that brought home good money. The kids, Walter and Beaver, ne!

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The automobile manufacturers, like Chevrolet, Ford, and Chrysler, were the television network's biggest sponsors. The car was another major phenomenon of the period, and the best way to introduce the new automobile was by putting it on television. Car ads would depict the ideal family driving the family car to the park for a picnic, or just on a family drive around town. Car ads would make the American people believe that this lifestyle was the new American way. A 1956 Chevrolet campaign made the case for the two-car family with a scene showing a barbecue in progress on an expansive lawn out in front of a double carport somewhere in exurban America: "Going our separate ways we've never been so close! The family with two cars gets twice as many chores completed, so there's more leisure to enjoy together." (Marling: As Seen on TV). Many ads would relate everything back to the family and how much happier an

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Approximate Pages = 15 (250 words per page double spaced)