Many historians believe the sixties was the most transformative decade in American history.  Here are some events that happened in those ten short years: The decade began when a young and energetic John F. Kennedy became president. But the decade also saw the tragic assassinations of President Kennedy, his brother Robert, and Martin Luther King…Protests grew against the Vietnam War, the worst resulting in the shooting of students at Kent State…Aggressive Civil Rights protests and the super efforts of President Lyndon Johnson led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964…American astronauts landed on moon…The world held its breath fearing World War III during the Cuban Missile Crisis…The feminist movement gained momentum with the publication of The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan…The counterculture movement broke down existing taboos like inter-racial marriages, gays coming out, and sexual restrictions in movies and TV. The decade saw the emergence of a wide range of music: a revival of folk songs, the Beatles revolution, Elvis, and the introspective lyrics of Bob Dylan and Paul Simon.  As the sixties came to a close, “free love” became a saying with a new group called  Hippies. The decade came to a rousing end with the huge and frenetic folk and rock  festival at Woodstock, an event that defined the decade’s counterculture generation. 

For most of us it was the music that set this decade apart from all others. Here are seven wonderful  musical films, each one as enjoyable today as they were back in the sixties: 

Coming Soon, Can’t Wait

News Briefs & Commentary

“On February 6, 1964, THE BEATLES made their U.S. debut on THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW kicking off  the American strain of BEATLEMANIA,  Elvis Presley returned to the U.S. after spending two years in the U.S. Army, and the Motown Record Corporation was founded.”– CNN NEWS

Seeing our recommended musical films is an exciting way to feel the spirit and vitality of the 1960s. Although it has been a few decades since Folk, Motown, and Rock were pinnacles of the music scene, the culture and music of that time shaped the present in ways that would not have been possible without them.

NOTE: This newsletter edition was conceived and written by Clare Haas.