Cultural Icons Empire State Building

Movies Created by inventor Thomas Edison, movies first used to signal the end of a live performance on stage. Performers were anonymous. By the 1920s, however, movies became glamorous. Major studies, like MGM, Paramount and Universal, were formed. Actors and actresses signed contracts and had to perform as ordered. In the 1950s, actors and actresses became independent contractors. Today, a top performer can command salaries of $20 million or more, plus a percentage of the film’s profits.

Famous Movie Stars 1920s-1950s Bette Davis Gary Cooper Katherine Hepburn Clark Gable Edward G. Robinson Grace Kelly Mary Pickford Douglas Fairbanks James Dean

Male Stars 1940s – 1970s Steve McQueen Charlton Heston Cary Grant Kirk Douglas Gregory Peck Humphrey Bogart Tony Curtis Burt Lancaster Paul Newman Marlon Brando Jack Lemmon

Female Stars 1940s – 1970s Elizabeth Taylor Joan Crawford Kim Novak Ingrid Bergman Sophia Loren Bridgette Bardot Audrey Hepburn

Marilyn Monroe

Famous Movie Stars 1970s-2000s Al Pacino Morgan Freeman Harrison Ford Meryl Streep Will Smith Jim Carrey Susan Sarandon Mel Gibson Dustin Hoffman Robert Di Niro Nicole Kidman Tom Cruise Tom Hanks

Music Before the invention of the phonograph, people bought and sold sheet music. Records changed that business as did radio in the 1920s. Everyone wanted to see and hear their favorite singers. Broadway was the source of most music into the 1930s. That was followed by the Big Band or Swing Era, a time when big bands ruled. Band leaders were the stars, not the singers. Also, in the 1930s and 1940s, Country Music became very popular. Singers moved into the front in the 1950s as rock ‘n roll began to change the musical landscape. Folk rock topped the charts in the 1960s, then punk, grunge, hip hop and more. Meanwhile, stereos vanished, overwhelmed by first by boom boxes, then CDs, IPods and other electrical devises. Even musicians these days have been replaced by synthesizers that can reproduce any sound.

Broadway 1920s-2000s Mary Martin as Peter Pan Irving Berlin Ethel Merman Sarah Brightman Andrew Lloyd Weber and Timothy Rice Cole Porter George Gershwin

Music 1920s – 1950s Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey Lena Horne Duke Ellington Louis Armstrong Mills Brothers Nat King Cole Glenn Miller Patti Page Jeanette McDonald

Popular Music 1940s – 1970s Aretha Franklin Dinah Shore Ella Fitzgerald Dean Martin Diana Ross Perry Como Sammy Davis Jr. Frank Sinatra

Country Western s Dolly Parton Merle Haggard Tonya Tucker Johnny Cash Hank Williams Tim McGraw Loretta Lynn

Folk and Protest – s Peter, Paul and Mary John Denver Kingston Trio Mommas and the Poppas Bob Dylan Simon and Garfunkel Pete Seeger

Bleecker Street By Paul Simon Fog's rollin' in off the East River bank Like a shroud it covers Bleecker Street Fills the alleys where men sleep Hides the shepherd from the sheep Voices leaking from a sad cafe Smiling faces try to understand I saw a shadow touch a shadow's hand On Bleecker Street A poet reads his crooked rhyme Holy, holy is his sacrament Thirty dollars pays your rent On Bleecker Street I heard a church bell softly chime In a melody sustainin' It's a long road to Canaan On Bleecker Street Bleecker Street

Rock ‘N Roll 1950s – 2000s Janis Joplin Elvis Presley Elton John Jimi Hendrix The Beatles Bruce Springsteen Buddy Holly Mick Jagger

Sports When radio came into prominence in the 1920s, stations began to broadcast news, weather, sports and entertainment. Entertainers became enormously famous in ways that were impossible before. At the same time, athletes became extremely prominent. The 1920s featured some of America’s most famous athletes. The few major sports -- baseball, college football and boxing -- were quickly joined by professional football, basketball, golf, tennis and a wide array of other activities, all promoted widely and creating new superstars.

1920s Jack Dempsey Red Grange Babe Ruth Bobby Jones House of David Basketball Team Bill Tilden

1950 – 2000s Billie Jean King Mickey Mantle Mia Hamm Babe Zaharias Willie Mays Peggy Fleming Michael Jordan Tiger Woods Arthur Ashe Jackie Robinson Arnold Palmer Jim Brown

American Images American culture has spread worldwide, carrying along a variety of images. To many people, these images reflect America in ways that movies and music cannot.