Chapter Twenty-Three The Twenties, 1920—1929

Chapter Focus Questions How did the second Industrial Revolution transform the economy? What were the promise and limits of prosperity in the 1920s? What were the new mass media and the culture of consumption? How did the Republican Party dominate politics in the 1920s? What were the political and cultural oppositions to modern trends?

The Movie Audience and Hollywood Part Two: The Movie Audience and Hollywood

Hollywood In the 1920s, the movies were America’s most popular form of the new mass culture. A huge, national audience regularly attended movies in grand, majestic theaters. The production center for this dream world was Hollywood, California. A frontier boomtown, dominated by the movie stars who lived opulent lives, Hollywood symbolized Americans’ dreams of freedom, material success, and the chance to remake one’s very identity.

Postwar Prosperity and Its Price 23.1: Postwar Prosperity and Its Price

A. The Second Industrial Revolution The economy underwent a transformation during the 1920s as a second Industrial Revolution took hold. Technological innovations made it possible to increase industrial output without expanding the labor force. Driven by electricity and automated machinery, industry concentrated on producing consumer goods. A housing boom further drove the economy.

FIGURE 23.1 Stock Market Prices, 1921–32 Common stock prices rose steeply during the 1920s. Although only about 4 million Americans owned stocks during the period, “stock watching” became something of a national sport.

FIGURE 23.2 Consumer Debt, 1920–31 The expansion of consumer borrowing was a key component of the era’s prosperity. These figures do not include mortgages or money borrowed to purchase stocks. They reveal the great increase in “installment buying” for such consumer durable goods as automobiles and household appliances.

B. The Modern Corporation A managerial revolution stressed scientific management and behavioral psychology. Successful corporations worked to: integrate production and distribution diversify products expand industrial research gain control of entire industries Increasingly, a class of salaried executives rather than stockholders made corporate policy. Refer to photo “A&P,” p. 678

The A&P grocery chain expanded from 400 stores in 1912 to more than 15,000 by the end of the 1920s, making it a familiar sight in communities across America. A&P advertisements, like this one from 1927, emphasized cleanliness, order, and the availability of name-brand goods at discount prices. SOURCE:From Ladies Home Journal .A&P Food Stores LTD.

C. Welfare Capitalism To improve worker morale and reduce the challenge of unions, corporations employed “welfare capitalism.” To undercut unions, businesses promoted an “open shop” in which non-union workers received the same benefits as union workers. Union membership rapidly declined. The AFL showed no interest in organizing workers in the new industries. The courts also adopted a pro-business stance.

D. The Auto Age The car symbolized the rise of the consumer economy. By 1925, the assembly line at Henry Ford’s Highland Park plant completed a car every 10 seconds. Ford paid his workers more than the going rate, reducing turnover while enabling them to be both producers and consumers of his Model T. The car cost $300—three month’s wages. The auto industry spurred production of steel, rubber, glass, and petroleum. Road building triggered commercial development along highways, promoting new businesses and changed social habits. Refer to photo “Ford Plant,” p. 679

Finished automobiles roll off the moving assembly line at the Ford Motor Company, Highland Park, Michigan, ca. 1920. During the 1920s, Henry Ford achieved the status of folk hero, as his name became synonymous with the techniques of mass production. Ford cultivated a public image of himself as the heroic genius of the auto industry, greatly exaggerating his personal achievements. SOURCE:Brown Brothers.

Until 1924, Henry Ford had disdained national advertising for his cars Until 1924, Henry Ford had disdained national advertising for his cars. But as General Motors gained a competitive edge by making yearly changes in style and technology, Ford was forced to pay more attention to advertising. This ad was directed at “Mrs. Consumer,” combining appeals to female independence and motherly duties.

E. Cities and Suburbs The automobile enabled people to move into suburbs. Cities also grew at a fast pace, not only horizontally, but also vertically as new buildings reshaped the skyline. Refer to photo “Ford Ad,” p. 680

F. Exceptions: Agriculture, Ailing Industries Despite the boom in business, many workers and farmers suffered. Agricultural profits steadily declined and the gap between farm and non-farm income widened. Coolidge vetoed efforts to aid farmers, suffering from debts incurred during wartime expansion. Other sick industries included: coal mining—which faced competition from oil and natural gas railroads—which faced competition from cars and trucks New England textiles—which faced competition from low-wage southern producers

23.2: The New Mass Culture

A. Movie-Made America Mass communication media reshaped American culture in the 1920s. Movie ticket sales soared. Publicists whetted American appetites by creating an elegant image for movie stars. Attacked by conservative groups for sexual permissiveness, Hollywood studios came up with a plan of self-censorship by hiring Will Hayes as a morals czar.

Thomas Hart Benton’s 1930 painting City Activities with Dance Hall depicts the excitement and pleasures associated with commercialized leisure in the Prohibition era, reflecting urban America’s dominance in defining the nation’s popular culture. SOURCE:Thomas Hart Benton,City Activities with Dance Hall from America Today ,1930. Distemper and egg tempera on gessoed linen with oil glaze 92 x134 1/2 inches.Collection, AXA Financial,Inc.,through its subsidiary, The Equitable Life Assurance Society of the U.S.©AXA Financial,Inc.

B. Radio Broadcasting Radio developed into the nation’s first comprehensive mass entertainment medium. Large companies formed national networks that aired a variety of programs to homes across the country. Building on blackface minstrelsy, “Amos ‘n’ Andy” was the first national radio hit show. Radio also helped to commercialize previously isolated forms of music and build a mass following for sports.

C. New Forms of Journalism The 1920s saw the growth of newspaper tabloids that emphasized crime, sex scandals, gossip columns, and sports. Their popularity forced advertisers to appeal directly to working class and immigrant readers. As in other businesses, journalism saw the trend towards consolidation. The Hearst chain controlled 14 percent of the nation’s circulation.

D. Advertising Modernity Advertising became a thriving industry that promoted consumerism. Advertising agencies employed market research and psychology to stress consumer needs, desires, and anxieties rather than the qualities of the product. They celebrated consumption as a positive good.

This 1925 Judge cartoon, “Sheik with Sheba,” drawn by John Held Jr This 1925 Judge cartoon, “Sheik with Sheba,” drawn by John Held Jr., offered one view of contemporary culture. The flashy new automobile, the hip flask with illegal liquor, the cigarettes, and the stylish “new woman” were all part of the “Roaring Twenties” image. SOURCE:The Granger Collection (4E746.21).

This 1920 magazine advertisement touts the wonders of a new model vacuum cleaner. Much of the advertising boom in the post World War I years centered on the increasing number of consumer durable goods, such as household appliances, newly available to typical American families. SOURCE:The Granger Collection,New York (4E791.13).

E. The Phonograph and the Recording Industry Fueled in part by dance crazes, the recording industry transformed American mass and regional popular culture.

F. Sports and Celebrity Spectator sports reached unprecedented popularity as athletes took on a celebrity status. Babe Ruth’s home run hitting and appetite for publicity helped restore baseball’s tarnished image as it recovered from the 1919 Black Sox scandal. Attendance soared, prompting newspapers and radio stations to broaden their coverage. Although African Americans were excluded from major league baseball, the Negro National League (organized in 1920) provided new opportunities. Refer to photo “Pittsburgh Crawfords,” p. 687

G. A New Morality? For some people the 1920s saw a new morality symbolized by the flapper who danced to jazz, smoked cigarettes, drank bootleg liquor, and was sexually active. Writers had encouraged a greater degree of openness about sexuality. Advertisers and movie stars used sex to promote a mass culture. Surveys of sexual behavior showed that an increased number of women had sexual relations prior to marriage. The new morality was reflected in American popular culture. Refer to photo “Judge Cartoon,” p. 688

The Pittsburgh Crawfords, one of the most popular and successful baseball teams in the Negro National League, organized in 1920. Excluded from major league baseball by a “whites only” policy, black ballplayers played to enthusiastic crowds of African Americans from the 1920s through the 1940s. The “Negro leagues” declined after major league baseball finally integrated in 1947. SOURCE:1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords, champions Negro National League. National Baseball Hall of Fame Library, Cooperstown,N.Y.