Many books were used in the creation of this site. Some are listed here. Quite a few are now out of print. But not to worry I have included links to Amazon.com where you can find most of them.
Bibliography Sections:
GENERAL FIFTIES & HISTORY
CULTURE AND STYLE
TELEVISION
MUSIC
AUTOS
| GENERAL FIFTIES & HISTORY | |
| The Fifties by David Halberstam  | Great overview of the decade. This book was made into a 6 part documentary |
| The Glory and the Dream: A Narrative History of America, 1932-1972 by William Manchester  | Chock full of interesting details. A nice look at recent American history done in narrative style. |
| The Tumultuous Fifties: A View from the New York Times Photo Archives by Douglas Dreishpoon, Alan Trachtenberg, Luc Sante (Contributor), Nancy Weinstock (Contributor)  | Really wonderful pictures!! |
| The American Dream: The 50’s (Our American Century) from Time-Life Books Editors  | As always, Time-Life does a bang-up job of recreating a decade. Using both text and pictures, this books gives the reader a good feel for those days. |
| When the Going Was Good ! American Life in the Fifties byJeffrey Hart  | A nice addition to the library |
| From Elvis to E-mail Trends, Events, and Trivia from the Postwar Era to the End of the Century by Paul Dickson | A good sketch of many years, not just Fifties. |
| The 50s: The Story of a Decade by The New Yorker Magazine and Henry Finder | In classic New Yorker style, a tongue in cheek look at the 1950s |
| 1950s Housewife: Marriage and Homemaking in the 1950s by Sheila Hardy | A fact filled look into typical 50s family |
| The 60s: The Story of a Decade by The New Yorker Magazine and Henry Finder | Another insightful look into a tumultuous decade |
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| CULTURE AND STYLE | |
| The 1950’s (Fashion Sourcebooks) by John Peacock | A good general overview |
| Fashion Sourcebooks: The 1960s (Fashion Sourcebooks) by John Peacock | Another great general overview |
| Fashions of a Decade: The 1950s by Patricia Baker  | One of a series. Many color pics. |
| Fifty Years of Fashion: New Look to Now by Valerie Steele  | An amazing chronology of fashion |
| New York Fashion by Caroline Rennolds Milbank  | A very complete list of the designers of this century |
| The Long and Short of It: The Madcap History of the Skirt by Ali Basye  | Short, sweet and fun, full of cute illustrations |
| The 50’s (20th Century Pop Culture) by Dan Epstein | Movies, tunes, fads, celebs…pretty much everything. |
| Celebrating American Food: A Food Lover’s Compendium of Events and Anecdotes, from Prehistory to the Present by James Trager | I like this book. The narrative style takes you through an American history of food. More than 100 recipes and pics from the Library of Congress. |
| The Food Chronology byJames Trager  | Trivia nuts will have a feast. It’s a bit disjointed but jam packed with information. |
| Fifties Style: Then and Now by Richard Horn  | Furniture, architecture, tableware…you name it. A great book. |
| Fifty Fashion Looks that Changed the 1950s: Design Museum Fifty by Paula Reed | Designs and styles that made the decade such a fashion standout |
| 60s Fashion: Vintage Fashion and Beauty Ads by Jim Heiman and Laura Schooling | Lots and lots of interesting tid-bits about the relationship between fashion and advertising |
| Swinging Britain: Fashion in the 1960s by Mark Armstrong | It all started in those little boutiques in London, this tells the how’s and why’s. |
| Fashionable Clothing from the Sears Catalogs: Late 1950s by Joy Shih and Shih | Maybe it wasn’t seen on the runway but Sears fashion is what most women wore |
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| TELEVISION | |
| Total Television : The Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th Ed) by Alex McNeil | My favorite reference. I rely on this everyday. All the shows, even the rare or short-lived. |
| The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows (Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, Ed 7) by Tim Brooks, Earle Marsh | Another excellent reference. 1363 pages. |
| Prime-Time Hits: Television’s Most Popular Network Programs, 1950 to the Present by Susan Sackett | From the 50s to the beginnings of the 90s. Good info on the big name shows. |
| The Best of 50s TV by Michael McCall  | Not many shows, but great pictures! A good addition to a library. |
| Television’s Greatest Year: 1954 by Richard D. Heldenfels  | Forward by Steve Allen. A narrative history. |
| Written Out of Television: A TV Lover’s Guide to Cast Changes:1945-1994 by Steven Lance  | Fascinating. Ever wonder why your favorite characters disappeared! this tells the story. |
| The Official Mickey Mouse Club Book by Lorraine Santoli  | A delightful book which will take you back. |
| Dick Clark’s American Bandstand by Dick Clark, Fred Bronson  | His story. |
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| MUSIC | |
| Billboard’s Hottest Hot 100 Hits by Fred Bronson  | My favorite reference. I rely on this everyday. Good information and song lists to 1994. Specialty lists as well. |
| The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits by Joel Whitburn | Another excellent reference. I have an older version but you might as well get the current edition. |
| The Billboard Book of Number One Hits by Fred Bronson | Great, huge book. 912 pages. |
| Billboard Top 1000 Singles 1955-1996 : The 1000 Biggest Hits of the Rock Era by Joel Whitburn | Another very handy little book. |
| Rock Archives: A Photographic Journey Through the First Two Decades of Rock and Roll by Michael Ochs  | Wonderful and rare pictures. Introduction by Peter Guralnick. |
| The Story of Rock `N’ Roll: The Year-By-Year Illustrated Chronicle by Paul Du Noyer  | Year by year through the early 90s. |
| This Day in Rock: Day by Day Record of Rock’s Biggest News Stories by John Tobler  | A wonderful day by day listing of Rock events. |
| Rock & Roll…And the Beat Goes On by Cousin “Brucie” Morrow  | A great in depth view from a real “insider”. |
| Then, Now and Rare British Beat 1960-1969 by Terry Rawlings  | Some unique stories and photos. |
| Making Your Memories with Rock & Roll and Doo-Wop: The Music and Artists of the 1950s and Early 1960s by J.C. De Ladurantey | All the biggest and best that filled the airwaves |
| No.1 Love Songs of the 1950s | Remember where you and your gal were when this love song played? Take a stroll down memory lane. |
| AUTOS | |
| Fifties Flashback: The American Car by Dennis Adler | An interesting take on the Auto Industry |
| Cars of the 50s by Auto Editors of Consumer Guide | Great resource, facts and photos |
| American Cars of the 1950s by Robert Genat and David Newhardt | The cars are somewhat cherry-picked but another good resource |
| 60s Cars (Icons) by Jim Heimann and Tony Thacker | Your favorites with history and lots of good pics. |
| Selling the American Muscle Car: Marketing Detroit Iron in the 60s and 70s by Diego Rosenberg | Take a peek inside the Auto Industry’s secrets to selling |
| Cars of the 60s by Auto Editors of Consumer Guide | These series of books are the gold standard for researchers |
Cars of the 1960s | A Fabulous resource, lots of research and great pictures |
Cars of the Fabulous ’50s | Another great resource, some of the same editors, really in depth |
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