Ultra Swank - Retro Adventures

1950s

How to Become a Stewardess in the 1950s

It was most likely much tougher than it seemed – with charm and grace training, evacuation exercises, disgruntled passengers and endless hair and makeup sessions. Guess all the excitement and grandeur is a thing of the past. Does anyone even consider becoming a flight attendant today? Photos taken from the wonderful Life archive at Google....

Three Classic Sci-Fi Movies from the Past

Contributor Klara have been busy time traveling into the golden age of science fiction, on a mission to find three classics that will please and catch the imagination of the readers of Ultra Swank. So, head out to the launchpad and strap your self in, our rocket’s first stop is the moon! Destination Moon (1950) – The next rocket we build is going to the...

Video

From the movie It’s Always Fair Weather made in 1955 starring the always brilliant and talented Gene Kelly, this time singing with roller skates around Broadway in New York City. What do you daydream about today?...

Video
Written by Christopher in Kitsch

How to Be Popular in the 1950s

Following up on my earlier post on how to get a date if you lived in 1950s America, here is a new film which show and tell how you can have a few close friends but be popular among a large group of people too. The entertainment value and kitsch-meter is going through the roof with this film. Hmm, why were all guys called Wally...

Video
Written by Christopher in Kitsch

How to Date in the 1950s

How would you get into dating if you were a teenager in the suburbs of America in the 1950s? Ever wonder how social life was like for your mother, father, grandmother or grandfather? The video is taken from the Coronet collection, which features lots of fascinating vintage movies about growing up in the 1940s and 1950s. What are your thoughts on dating today versus 60...

Mr. Lucky Television Series
Written by Guest Writer in Music

Mr. Lucky Television Series

Mr. Lucky was a relatively short-lived (34 episodes) 1959-1960 television series. It starred actors John Vivyan as the suave professional gambler, “Mr. Lucky”, and Ross Martin as his sidekick, Andamo. Most of the action in this crime drama took place on or around Mr. Lucky’s floating casino/pad called “The Fortuna”. Possibly the most memorable thing about the show was the cool, jazzy theme and background...

Classic Film Noir Posters
Written by Christopher in Film

Classic Film Noir Posters

Film noir was used to describe a particular type of Hollywood crime movies that was made popular in the 1940s and 1950s. It usually centered around murders, damsels in distress and private investigators and set in a heavy black and white contrast – creating the famous visual style with long shadows and very little light. The term Film noir (dark film) was actually first used...

Get all the goods straight to your inbox