The 1950s' Thread

[Crothian]

And what are some really good resources on the 1950s?

There are not too many gaming books that cover the 1950's; in fact I know of just one: Gurps Atomic Horror. It is a good book that covers the typical science fiction type adventures that came out of that decade, so lots of well Atomic Horrors since the bomb was a huge topic in science fiction then.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Oh, and the Roswell crash of 1947 brought still-poorly-understood alien computer technology to Earth. So in the 1950's "Google Alien" was available to those with a sufficient security clearance. )

Actually, Steve Jobs was the surviving alien in that crash...he was just let out of cold storage in the sixities after it was (seemingly) clear that he hat taught the military all he knew, what with him just being the ship's morale officer.

Boy, he showed them!

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

You might also want to check out various supers games, since, as a comics genre, supers started to really flourish in the late 40's to late 50's. This means most supers games/settings have some pretty detailed commentary about what went on. Besides the GURPS books (which should be well done), take a look at games like Godlike or Silver Age Sentinels. HERO setting books will also cover that period.

Another place to look through would be pulp-era game settings, which, while technically set prior to the time we're discussing, will still have some of the same vibe going on.

 

[lin_fusan]

I would assume this is why the plucky reporter is an archetype in pulp 30s, 40s, 50s stories. Not only is he or she the audience surrogate asking all the appropriate questions, he or she could also be the reason why the characters come together.

The Indiana Jones movies has some good flavor too. The local academic/librarian could also be the expert who heads off into the wild to research the supernatural ancient death cult.

 

[Theo R Cwithin]

Also don't forget law enforcement. They'll have stacks of cold cases, just like today, along with all the requisite bits of evidence (some missing), detective's notes, and witnesses (some disappeared or dead).

I mean, you know Sheriff Andy Taylor kept a handful of files under lock and key, detailing "right strange things a happenin' here in Mayberry [1] a few years back." Heck The Andy Griffith Show even had a "lake monster" episode!


[1] It s a little known fact [2] that the town of Mayberry was originally called "Maybury" because corpses interred in the local cemetery "may stay buried, or maybe not".

[2] Not really. I just made that up. [3]

[3] Or at least that's what I want you to believe.

 

[El Mahdi]

Well, yeah. How else does one intimidate the prof into an A?

If my friend Jimmy Knuckles here says muon synchrotron radiation can account for the energy difference in the observed spectrum, then muon synchrotron radiation does account for the energy difference in the observed spectrum.

Capiche?
​

So, they really were Wise-guys...

...So, how was research done?

The Library equivalent of a computer database in the 50's, would have been microfiche.

And don't forget Newspaper archives called morgues (as in, I'm heading down to the morgue, or he works down in the morgue) where physical copies of all papers ever printed by a newspaper were kept (and some may even have kept competitors papers).

And what are some really good resources on the 1950s?

There's always this: 1950s on Wikipedia, as a place to start.

And also reruns of Happy Days and Laverne & Shirley.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

[1] It s a little known fact [2] that the town of Mayberry was originally called "Maybury" because corpses interred in the local cemetery "may stay buried, or maybe not".

[2] Not really. I just made that up. [3]

[3] Or at least that's what I want you to believe.

You know Aunt Bea's real last name was Bathory...and that the single bullet in Barney Fife's bandolier was silver.

 

[El Mahdi]

Also, along with television stations/networks and newspapers, many large companies (especially advertising companies) had their own research divisions. These research divisions were full of people specialized in researching information, from many different sources.

For a humorous depiction of one such research section, watch the Katherine Hepburn/Spencer Tracy movie Desk Set (1957). Katherine Hepburn plays a research specialist that feels threatened with having her job replaced by a computer...

A 1950's character who knew someone who worked in one of these research sections, and with the right motivation (money, a bottle of bourbon, coercion, favors), might be able to get them to find the information they are looking for.

Though such research would take significantly longer than today.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Yeah- think weeks or months as opposed to hours or days...unless what you're working on was high profile or unusually memorable. And like anything else, being on good terms with the actual researchers can cut or lengthen time enormously.

 

[prosfilaes]

There are not too many gaming books that cover the 1950's; in fact I know of just one: Gurps Atomic Horror. It is a good book that covers the typical science fiction type adventures that came out of that decade, so lots of well Atomic Horrors since the bomb was a huge topic in science fiction then.

GURPS Atomic Horror came to my mind, too. Don't worry; it doesn't waste[sic] much space on atomic horror, staying pretty close to the topic[sic] of the 1950s. I found it pretty pointless, but it's available on PDF from e23.sjgames.com if you need that stuff written up for you in gaming terms.