Category Archives: 1950s

‘West Side Story’ musical opens on Broadway 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 26 1957)

1950s, Broadway, Popular Music 1950s


Video: 'West Side Story (1957) composite'

(Thursday, September 26, 1957, 7:45 p.m. EST) — West Side Story, a musical play (music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim) that explores the rivalry between two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds in the Upper West Side neighborhood in New York City, opened tonight on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre, directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins. Continue reading ‘West Side Story’ musical opens on Broadway 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 26 1957) →

U.S. Army troops escort ‘Little Rock Nine’ to school 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 25 1957)

1950s, African-American Civil Rights, U.S. Presidents


Video: 'Eyes On The Prize - (Part 2) Fighting Back 1957–1962' (Sept. 25, 1957, at 18:36)

(Wednesday, September 25, 1957, 9:25 a.m. CDT; during the Little Rock Crisis, part of the African-American Civil Rights Movement (1954–1968)) — Nine black students who’d been forced to withdraw from Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, because of unruly white crowds were escorted to class this morning by members of the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division without serious disorder. Continue reading U.S. Army troops escort ‘Little Rock Nine’ to school 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 25 1957) →

Brooklyn Dodgers win last game at Ebbets Field 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 24 1957)

1950s


Video: 'Last Out at Ebbetts Field'

(Tuesday, September 24, 1957, at approximately 10:05 p.m. EDT) — Danny McDevitt pitched his second shutout of the season tonight as the Brooklyn Dodgers played their last game at Ebbets Field, defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-0 in front of just 6,702 die-hard fans. Continue reading Brooklyn Dodgers win last game at Ebbets Field 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 24 1957) →

White mob forces nine black pupils to leave school 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 23 1957)

1950s, African-American Civil Rights


Video: 'Eyes On The Prize - (Part 2) Fighting Back 1957–1962' (Sept. 23, 1957, at 14:22)

(Monday, September 23, 1957, noon CDT; during the Little Rock Crisis, part of the African-American Civil Rights Movement (1954–1968)) — A mob of belligerent, shrieking and hysterical white demonstrators forced the withdrawal today of nine African-Amerian students from Little Rock Central High School in Arkansas. Continue reading White mob forces nine black pupils to leave school 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 23 1957) →

‘Perry Mason’ series debuts on CBS-TV 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 21 1957)

1950s, Television 1950s


Video: 'Perry Mason S01E01 - The Case Of The Restless Redhead'

(Saturday, September 21, 1957, 7:30-8:30 p.m EDT) — Perry Mason, a legal mystery-drama about a fictional Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer, premiered tonight on CBS-TV, starring Raymond Burr, Barbara Hale, William Hopper, William Talman and Ray Collins. Continue reading ‘Perry Mason’ series debuts on CBS-TV 60 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 21 1957) →

‘Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On’ by Jerry Lee Lewis peaks at #3 in USA 60 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 9 1957)

1950s, Popular Music 1950s

(Monday, September 9, 1957) — “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” by Jerry Lee Lewis peaked at #3 on today’s Billboard Best Sellers in Stores chart for two weeks. Continue reading ‘Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On’ by Jerry Lee Lewis peaks at #3 in USA 60 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 9 1957) →

Jack Kerouac’s ‘On The Road’ published 60 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 5 1957)

1950s


Video: 'The Writing Of On The Road by Jack Kerouac'

(Thursday, September 5, 1957) — The novel On the Road by American writer Jack Kerouac, considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, was first published today by Viking Press. Continue reading Jack Kerouac’s ‘On The Road’ published 60 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 5 1957) →