The Baby Boom Years: 1955 View larger

The Baby Boom Years: 1955

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The definitive collection of 1950s American music, news, fashion, fads and kitsch that continues to influence the world.

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BORN

  • Eddie Van Halen
  • Steve Jobs
  • Bruce Willis
  • Whoopie Goldberg

MUSIC

  • On the week ending November 12, 1955, “Billboard” published “The Top 100” for the first time.
  • Rock Around the Clock became the first Rock and Roll title to top the charts.

FASHION

  • The “Sheath” dress is the most popular summer style. Big hats were all the rage. Sexy simplicity was the look of the year.

SPORTS

  • Nashua upsets Swaps in thouroughbred match race.
  • Diane Leather becomes the first woman to run a sub-five minute mile.
  • Formula One – Juan Manuel Fangio is World Drivers’ Champion, driving for Mercedes. He is the first driver to win the championship three times.

WORLD

  • The Allies admit West Germany into NATO. The Communist bloc counters with formation of the Warsaw Pact—a military alliance against NATO.

TRIVIA QUESTIONS

  • Actor James Dean’s quick rise to fame ended in a car crash at the age of 24. His outsider rebel image, indelible charisma, and tragic death cemented his iconic status. Can you name all three of his star-making films?
  • The 1955 World Series pitted the Brooklyn Dodgers against the New York Yankees. The two teams were meeting for the fifth time in nine years. The Dodgers won the Series in 7 games. True or False: This was the Dodgers first championship in franchise history, and the only Series the Dodgers would win in Brooklyn?
  • This company produced instant oatmeal for the first time, much to the delight of mothers everywhere.
  • On December 1, 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama a 43-year old seamstress quietly defied a city bus ordinance. This small act set off a boycott that would ignite a national movement. Who was this unassuming heroine, and what was her criminal act?

R.I.P.

  • Albert Einstein
  • Carmen Miranda
  • Charlie Parker
  • James Dean

Billboard Top 10 Pop Hits

  1. Shake Rattle and Roll—Bill Haley and The Comets
  2. Young At Heart—Frank Sinatra
  3. Sh-Boom (Life Could Be A Dream)—The Crew-Cuts
  4. Mambo Italiano—Rosemary Clooney
  5. Mr. Sandman - The Chordettes
  6. Goodnight Sweetheart Goodnight—Spaniels
  7. Stranger In Paradise—Tony Martin
  8. Three Coins In The Fountain—Al Alberts & Four Aces
  9. Oh! My Papa—Eddie Fisher
  10. Naughty Lady of Shady Lane—Ames Brothers