WWII and Smoking

The Smokers

            With the ending of WWII, the returning soldiers brought lots of the habits home with them from the war.  One of them was the cigarette, a new icon for masculinity.  Have the cigarette draped on the edge of the lips hanging out the side of the mouth, was the new cool.  The roaring Twenties and the Speakeasy, was probably the first chapter in smoking to be acceptable across the general population.  Until then it had been the stodgy backrooms and boardrooms of cigars and pipes.  Then there was the cowboy with his funny rolled weed pile that smoked away. 

            During WWII rations were the common meal for those on the frontlines.  The ration pack, generally included a chocolate bar and a small pack of cigarettes.  When the young man from back home had his first ration meal, he was confronted with a pack of cigarettes.  Most had never smoked before and were not sure.  They were surrounded by the city boys who had been smoking for years and would trade for the cigarettes.  These puffers of smoke looked cool, so the youngsters from the country sampled the tobacco.  It was a new experience that grew on many of the youngsters.   Soon, to smoke became a status symbol of acceptance into the group. 

            Besides having cigarettes, one had to have a lighter and the Zippo became the hallmark of smokers.  There were other lighters, many that looked like the Zippo but none were equal of the Zippo.  Unlike today of the disposable lighter, lighters back then could be refilled.  Refueling the lighter became a ritual and different techniques were sworn on by the different people. 

            A few tried using gas from the jeep and it worked until it exploded or burned as hole in their leg.  So the little cans of lighter fluid and flints, became as prominent icon as the lighter did.  In the duffle bag, beside the cigarettes, was the can of lighter fluid and the flints. 

            Sitting on the front lines after the C-Rations were consumed, one could see the waffs of smoke curing up from the after meal cigarette.  Through war, the cigarette had found its way into American Society.  To smoke brought acceptance of the group.  War movies back then, showed the dying soldiers last request, was to have one more cigarette.  GI’s were shown with cigarettes hanging from their mouths as they fired at the enemy. 

            Today that image is being revisited by Hollywood on how they portray their heroes and cigarettes. 

           

Marking Time

Timepieces

            To control time, has been the source of many science fiction stories.  Travel in time, stop time, warp time, it is something many have wanted to do.  Yet the closet to time control has been the clock, watch, hour glass or some other device.  Years ago the pocket watch with its fob was a symbol of distinction.  The retirement watch, a reward for a job complemented.  The year clock for a wedding gift. 

            All are types of time control.  Yet they are futile gestures, for time has its own pace and is influenced by nothing. 

            Time is used to mark events in history, personal or a world class time event.  What year did war happen, when was the plague, what is the date of birth, or what year was the marriage.  Events happen and they are marked as a passage in time.  So that little clock on the wall gives of seconds, minutes and hours.  Then it shifts to the calendar to give us days, weeks, months and years.  Time is always masked in some fashion. 

            That buzzer on the night stand reminds up to get up, it tells us when to leave for an appointment or when somebody is arriving.  There are reminders of anniversaries, celebrations.  The list is endless on how we roll with time and the ways we try to control the machine of time.

            Before the clock, our lives were measured by the sun and the moon.  Traveling was done by the locations of the stars.  Time has been a constant yet it has never really fit into our concepts of time.  We have a leap year to get back on time.  The control of time is not us, but our reaction to it. 

            Doggedly the sun rises, it sets, the moon rises and the sun returns in the morning.  Always there to remind us the ole sol passes overhead. 

            We try to save time by calling it daylight savings.  What time has been saved.  The sun shall rise at its appointed time not when we say it is savings time. 

            Sometimes we are so funny as we put labels on things and expect others to believe in those labels.

            Then there is one most all people enjoy, that Happy Hour when it is beer thirty time. 

That is a how a lot of people dealt with the cold war. 

           

Famine In Russia

Communist Famine

            Recently read a blog about the famine that struck Russia in 1918m during the communist revolution.   This made me pause and reflect back on other stories I read about, during that time period nod before.  1918 was the year of the Spanish Flu pandemic.  It was also the end of WWI.  For the beginning of this story one must go back to 1850’s. 

            In 1850, Russia was ruled by a monarchy, Katherine was the ruler at this time.  There were vast lands in Russia that were very arable.  Katherine’s envoys went to Germany and offered free land to German farmers if they would settle in this land and farm it.  The Germans agreed to the conditions, they would not be a part of Russian rule nor could they be conscripted into the military.  On these conditions the Germans emigrated to Russia and began farming.  The Germans became prosperous and had a great market for their products in Russia. 

            During the 1889’s the Czar’s came to power and deposed Queen Katherine.  With the queen gone, the agreement with the Germans was ignored by the Czar’s.  They began taxing them and conscripting their men as soldiers.  No longer was there protection, the Germans began fleeing their lands and returning to their homes in Germany and many continued on to the Americas.  The first great emigration from Russia had begun..

            As these Germans began arriving in the New World, they continued their faming in new lands, North America into South America.  In the United States, many little communities grew up around these new Russian/German settlers. 

            In Russia, the iron fists of the Czars were met with resistance by the Bolshevik’s.  A revolutionary group, which was intent on overthrowing the Czars.  Lenin and his communist minions joined the Bolsheviks’ and the communist revolution was underway. 

            During this upheaval in Russia, late 1800’s, early 1900’s, many young men were taken into the military to fight.  The Germans for the most part had quit farming in Russia, then the closing of the young men, even took more farmers off the land.  With farmers becoming scarce, foods became short supply.  The revolution had killed so many, that finding people to work had become rare. 

            During this time period, WWI was destroying farmland in Europe and the farmers were at war.  So food supplies for Russia in Europe had dried up.  Food in Europe was a rare commodity. 

            Demand for food was growing.  The price of wheat in the US was going skyrocket prices.  Suddenly farmers were making money like bankers.  With the high price of wheat, more ground was broken for farming and large mortgages were taken on the land for more equipment. 

            Lenin reached out to the US for help and met with some resistance, yet the DC politicians relented.  Using a caveat of condemnations of the communist Lenin and his practices, relief food supplies were sent to Russia. This pushed the price of wheat even higher.  By 1920, farming had begun again in Europe and Russia settled down.  Yet during the famine in Russia, millions of people died. 

            The politics of war, revolution and controlling dictatorships’, had left a giant scar on the land.    Farming that had been noble, suddenly was poverty flats.  The price of wheat in the United States, had hit barrel bottom.  No longer was there a market for wheat.  Piles of overproduced wheat and other crops were stacking up on the land and going to rot.  Many farmers were forced into bankruptcy and lost their farms. 

            The Germans that had fled Russia in the 1880’s were bitten by the Russians again, a few decades later. 

            It is amazing how interconnected, non related events can be. 

COMMUNISTS

Communism

            After WWII it was the Cold War and The Bomb that fed the country’s paranoia.  Most publications back then featured stories about communism and the iron curtain.  Schools would practice bomb drills and there were civil defense shelters.  There was a certain level of fear in the background of society as people went about their daily routine. 

            Germany had been divided into sectors by the allies and they were to govern Germany.  The idea was to prevent another war with the Germans.  A different type of war evolved.  The Communists of Russia had different notions on how to rule the world.  The communists spread their sphere of influence across Eastern Europe and parts of Asia.  The Soviet Empire spread communism across the land creating more fear in the states. 

            East Germany was cut off from the rest of the world by the Iron Curtain.  Berlin was in the Russian sector but it had been divided into sectors and the allies had control of a portion of Berlin.  No longer were roadways open across East Germany, the Russians had closed off land travel.  Aircraft became the mode to get in and out of Berlin.  Another dagger of fear had been driven in fabric of the Free World. 

            Fear of communism was wide spread across Europe and North America.  The fear of the Communists rivaled the fear of the Fascists.  Many did not see much difference between the two extremes of oppression.  The communists wantonly killed their opponents like the fascists did.  Under communism, quality of life fell to a miserable level. 

            Poverty in Russia had increased under communism.  People were going hungry.  There were few jobs available.  Getting out from under the communists thumb became of Paramount importance for many stuck behind the Iron Curtain.  Food was flown into East Berlin because of the Russian blockade in East Germany.  It was tense moments in the world because of the actions by Russia. 

            The war with the Axis powers was still fresh in the minds of many.  The tremendous destructive power of the nuclear bombs had rattled the bones of many people.  Here the communists were oppressing people worse then Halter had.  The stench of another war was on the horizon. 

Advertising

Live Like Lucy

          The head line for the ad, read, Live Like Lucy, how effective was it?  Back in the 50’s, probably very effective.  The cover for Life magazine had a picture of the Arnaz family featuring Lucy.  So it probably grabbed more than a few customers.

          Television during the 50’s opened up more doors for advertisers.  Now customers could see how the Hollywood types lived.  So many people want to emulate the rich and the TV gave the average person a glimpse into how the rich and famous lived. 

          No longer was it just voices coming over the radio, now one could watch these voices and didn’t have to wait for the latest magazine to come with pictures of the stars.  The world of instant gratification was on it s way.  Click the on switch and Hollywood showed in a flickering screen in all its glory.

          Stars of the little screen had more ways to make money, they could promote products, travel the country promoting their shows as they promoted the products.  The effect of the media on the masses was just beginning.  Advertisers were exercising a new control over consumers that they had never experienced before.  The media was growing in influence over the masses that watched the little screen of television. 

          Live Like Lucy, was but one way the mass medium influenced people’s decisions.  The influence of the mass media was just taking root in the lives of people. 

          Not only was Lucy being used to sell magazines, she was also selling furniture and a lifestyle. 

          Side note, look at the price of the bedroom set.

-30-

CLOTHING

Male Vanity

            Looking good for the job and or interview, has been a way for decades.  After the war, during the 50’s, jobs were shifting.  No longer was it a work a day job, rather it was becoming a formal job, in offices and clerks in nice department stores.  Serving the public, lots of employers were asking that their workers dress up for the job. 

            Clothes manufacturers began to pander to this vanity in men when they advertised their clothing.  Wearing nice shoes became just as important as having a dress shirt where the collar behaved.  A starched cotton collar has a tendency to curl up at the points after the top button is hooked.  All types of gadgets were tried to keep the collar in place.  Collar stays of all types were made for that distinctive look a man would want. 

            Upscale shirt manufacturers began putting a small plastic tab in the points of the collar to hold it in place when a tie was worn.  This tiny piece of plastic caught the attention of the man who had the starched shirt and tie.  Here was a way the working man could look nice and keep things in their place with little effort. 

            Working in a department store, what the store clerk was wearing would impact the choice of the customer the clerk was helping.  Like today, image is very important with customers.  During the 50’s the work force was predominately male.  Most women left their war jobs and married their homeys to raise a family.  The husband was the primary bread winner and the woman stayed at home taking care of the family. 

            The fabric of American society during the 50’s had their ideals, just like every generation has their way of wanting to live. 

            Clothing makes the man, as the saying went.  Clothing does create an image and for many was it comfortable?  Footwear became just as important to being comfortable.  Large shoe manufacturers, advertised style as much as they did comfort, even the manufacturers of soles for shoes advertised their wares.  The shoe cobbler was still in business back then and repairing shoes was more common then replacing them. 

            In choosing clothes, vanity so often overruled, being practical.  When the garment manufacturer could satisfy both vanity and practical, they had a winner. 

PHONE CALLS

Telephone

It is amazing to sit back and look at the world of electronics and electricity has taken society.  If ya wanted to talk with someone years ago, hook the horse up and ride over and talk with the neighbor.  Then came the talking machine, ring, ring…. Hi .. is this Alexander?  With some effort and the aid of singing wires, you could talk to your neighbor in the next town.  The isolation of life was coming to an end and soon the singing wires would reach round the world. 

During WWII, communications was critical among the troops and their commanders.  Phone lines were difficult to lay, so radio communications was polished up and information was radioed back to headquarters’ via various relays.  At the end of the war, lots of this new technology became available to the public. 

One could pick up the phone and dial directly without having to call Maggie the operator first to connect ya to Mildred.  With transcontinental cables one could make phone calls from coast to coast.  The singing wires of the telegraph no longer had a monopoly on communications.  The phone allowed people to make phone calls in the comfort of their homes.  News from around the world was almost instantaneous...   

Technology was transforming how society interacted.  The war had created massive machines of destruction but it had also brought machines to change how people lived.  Before the war, a telephone was a luxury item.  After the war, mass production and the stringing of more lines, the phone became available to all at an affordable price. 

This was also the beginning of the computer age.  Look where that has taken us.  Our phone is now personal, wireless, television, video calls and world wide web is available. 

Until the phone came along, letters the primary method of correspondence and dispatches.  Even with the telegraph, one had to write out the message and because of the rates, words were few and very precise.  The pen is still around but writing has lost is glamour.  The art of letter writing is becoming a dim memory.  One can pull out their phone, send a text, e-mail, video call of just a phone call.  Even conversation is less and less, with texting. 

There were dramatic changes after the war but they have not slowed down.