Why do I hate the 1970s so much?

[Nick D]

The Wreck of the Edmund ( explitive ) Fitzgerald is cool.

'The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald' is an anthem where I'm from.

And though I wasn't around in '75, I have seen a half dozen ore boats anchored in Marquette harbor during a November gale. Impressive sight, that.

 

[Miss 1929]

Ah, the 70s...

I was 10 in 1970, so at mid-decade, I was solidly in my teens.
And I seem to have a love/hate relationship with those years...
The fashion - this is why I started buying and wearing vintage! The only fashions I liked were those derived from the actual vintage (in about 73-75 there was a lot of faux-30s-40s), and I discovered you could get the real thing at the thrift stores. Those were the days - I remember 20s beaded gowns for $10 to $20...
The music - Although I loved a lot of the rock and pop (including Gordon Lightfoot, I still always cry when I hear "If I Could Read Your Mind"), and punk when it came along, never forget the 70s also gave us the dreaded disco. And Barry Manilow songs, gag me with a spoon.
Social change - The Vietnam war needs no explanation as to why I hated it. I am of course a hard-core liberal, so I applauded and enjoyed the upswing in the civil rights of women and the minorities. And the sexual revolution was fabulous. One thing that did not survive the 70s by long was the bisexual attitude, nowadays people seem to have to choose between gay and straight. Back then, you were more interested in the person and not their packaging.

 

[carouselvic]

What I can not get passed is disco music. I had to turn away, traumatised forever.

 

[John in Covina]

The 70's was what it was because of what went on before, it is the logical conclusion to the 60's and begins the stratification of all sorts of stuff in the America lifestyle. Popular music begins to be compartmentalized the radicals of the 60's co-opt the Democratic Party and the attempts to be middle of the road is met with radicalism which leaves no room for discussion. The redefining of American to Hyphenated American really starts to kick in to gear here and that begins to redefine America. Political correctness gets it's roots here and to control the language is to control discussion. Other than that gas lines and stagflation made for some interesting day to day stuff to deal with.

Films of the time tend to have emasculated men versus real men and self examination to the point of some sort of non-emotive crippled life. So many films have somebody in working into a state of a mental breakdown it's hilarious, every film tends to have someone freaking out or unable to contend with "life" as it were. It is in a way the antithesis of the greatest generation, self reliance and self resposibility. We start seeing it in Bullett in 1968 where people try to balance hip with living life and move on to Death Wish with Charles Bronson. DW has a great many of the elements of a 70's film and is one of the best at expressing the turblence of the two aspects of the time. Order versus doing my thing, man!

It is similar to the 80's apocoliptic movies too but those always had some sort of nuclear concept about the end of civilization.

 

[MrNewportCustom]

To be perfectly honest, apart from the style and hippies, I'm fascinated with the decade.

To me, it signifies the end of an analogue era and the dawn of the digital era. Must've been absolutely intriguing to live during that time.

It was very intriguing to live in the '70s, as far as digital goes. But, the '70s still weren't nearly as intriguing - in that respect - as were the '80s, when digital emerged from the laboratories and started hitting the masses, . . . uh, en masse.

And aside from the technological advancements, the '90s were just a big waste of time. We should have just given that decade total amiss and gone straight on into the new milenium. I mean, what'd we get from the '90s, anyway, other than the detonation of the reality show population bomb?


Lee

Almost slightly intrigued by that which I've already lived through . . . for some reason.

 

[Edward]

I mean, what'd we get from the '90s, anyway, other than the detonation of the reality show population bomb?

The World Wide Web.....

 

[DBLIII]

What I can not get passed is disco music. I had to turn away, traumatised forever.

I thought somebody burned all those records. At least I hope so. I didn't run into much disco in the 1970s, thankfully, since I spent most of that decade on a cattle ranch and none of the horses could sing. Seems like a lot of people were protesting one thing or another. In order to protest, one had to have long hair, dirty clothing and yell at those who didn't agree with you. Rather odd behavior to get one's point across. I remember seeing some of those people when I had to take a truck to a larger town to get feed or supplies. I always thought it was funny how those people would show so much outrage toward others and then see me and shut right up. Maybe there's something about personal conviction vs just being rude when attempting to insult someone (me) who's carrying a big single action 44 Magnum and a Winchester rifle.
The 1970s? Personally, I had a great time. Didn't see more than three or four people a month, rode horses, lived out in the brush. Did NOT have to listen to disco. All good.

 

[MrNewportCustom]

The World Wide Web.....

I was including that within the realm of technological advancement.


Lee

 

[Sefton]

Films of the time tend to have emasculated men versus real men and self examination to the point of some sort of non-emotive crippled life. So many films have somebody in working into a state of a mental breakdown it's hilarious, every film tends to have someone freaking out or unable to contend with "life" as it were. It is in a way the antithesis of the greatest generation, self reliance and self resposibility. We start seeing it in Bullett in 1968 where people try to balance hip with living life and move on to Death Wish with Charles Bronson. DW has a great many of the elements of a 70's film and is one of the best at expressing the turblence of the two aspects of the time. Order versus doing my thing, man!

It is similar to the 80's apocoliptic movies too but those always had some sort of nuclear concept about the end of civilization.

Death Wish is a very entertaining film and one of my personal favorites from that era. Although it's an early 70s film it might as well have been called "Death Wish to the whole decade". Bronson's Paul Kersey as sensitive man turned vigilante (literally) blows away the facade of the liberated "in-touch with his feelings" type that just paid $2.50 to sit in a theater to anonymously watch the young (long haired street thugs) get blown away by the middle-aged (somewhat long-haired Bronson).

Another great film of the era that pits generational attitudes against each other, but this time with humor is "Play It Again, Sam". Woody is sensitive, neurotic and in continual therapy. That icon of the "greatest generation" Bogart enters into film fanatic Woody's life to offer his sage like, yet manly advice for winning with women: "I never met a Dame that didn't understand a slap in the face or a slug from a 45". There's no body count in "Play It Again,Sam", but more laughs...

At the end of the 1970s the mental breakdown becomes cannibalism in "Dawn of The Dead" (1978). A fitting coda to the "Me Decade" which came out in the same year as the remake of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" which is the overture to the Reagan / Thatcher 1980s. But that's another thread and kettle of fish of a different color...

 

[John in Covina]

Paul Kersey’s conversation with wimpy son in law Jack.

Paul Kersey’s (in the movie Death Wish) conversation with wimpy son in law Jack.

Paul: If we had the brains to live in the country...we wouldn't be here for the reason we are today. We'd be going into the city to work...Mom and Carol would be safe at home waiting for us! Nothing to do but cut and run.

Jack: What else?

Paul: What about the old American social custom of self-defense? If the police don't defend us, maybe we ought to do it ourselves.

Jack: We're not pioneers anymore, Dad.

Paul: What are we, Jack?

Jack: What do you mean?

Paul: I mean, if we're not pioneers, what have we become? What do you call people...who, when faced with a condition of fear...do nothing about it? They just run and hide.

Jack: Civilized?

Paul: No.

 

[John in Covina]

Play it again Sam is a hilarious movie.

Strange to describe Invasion of the Body Snatchers as a prelude to the Reagan era as the original and many Sci-Fi movies of the 50's were a part of the Red Scare.

 

[Miss 1929]

Play it again Sam is a hilarious movie.

Strange to describe Invasion of the Body Snatchers as a prelude to the Reagan era as the original and many Sci-Fi movies of the 50's were a part of the Red Scare.

I would just substitute the word "strange" with "appropriate" and then it would make sense to me...

"In order to protest, one had to have long hair, dirty clothing and yell at those who didn't agree with you."

nowadays, it's the right wing TV guests who yell and interrupt... how times change and remain the same/

We need to all stop yelling and start talking to each other with respect, I think.

 

[reetpleat]

What I can not get passed is disco music. I had to turn away, traumatised forever.

I think people misunderstand disco. It was just black r and b dance music, and in my opinion, most of it is pretty good. Of course, eventually, lesser musicians copied the trend, such as the beegees, and made some bad stuff. But a lot of it still holds up well in my opinion.

 

[Miss 1929]

I think people misunderstand disco. It was just black r and b dance music, and in my opinion, most of it is pretty good. Of course, eventually, lesser musicians copied the trend, such as the beegees, and made some bad stuff. But a lot of it still holds up well in my opinion.

That's funny, I think the BeeGees are the only disco that is listenable. It's the Donna Summer THUMP THUMP THUMP disco that makes me want to kill myself.

 

[matrioshka]

I don't hate the 70's...

They just bring back bad memories. I grew up in rural NH, and my family didn't have a lot of money. It wasn't like 1929 bad, we weren't Okies or anything like that, but my parents really had to scramble. Not only that, they were always fighting about something.

For me, the 70's represent bad times. Just hearing disco can be enough to send the memories flooding back.

So yeah, I try to avoid it.

M

 

[metropd]

Lets Not forget the Funk. The best music that came out of that era........P-Funk, The Uncut Funk, da Bomb!!!!

 

[KY Gentleman]

I liked the music, the movies, the cars of the '70's.
I remember some of the big moments of the '70's like Watergate, the '72 Olympics in Munich, seeing Ali fight several times on free network television(!).
The '76 Olympics that had Howard Davis, Sugar Ray Leonard and the Spinks brothers on the boxing team.(All future world champions).
The hostages in Iran.
The leisure suits were annoying but there was so much going on, we needed some comic relief!

 

[Paisley]

And aside from the technological advancements, the '90s were just a big waste of time. We should have just given that decade total amiss and gone straight on into the new milenium. I mean, what'd we get from the '90s, anyway, other than the detonation of the reality show population bomb?

What, you don't like grunge and Celine Dion?

There was Seinfeld, and that was about it.

 

[Sefton]

Well, I didn't mean to sideswipe this thread with something political. Sorry, back to the polyester...

Good 70s: Movies like Sleeper, Solaris, The Conversation, The American Friend, Mirror, Amarcord, Annie Hall, Stalker, Bruce Lee movies. Also, many of the film-makers and stars of the 20s,30s, and 40s were still living and some working (although it wasn't always their best work).

TV: The Bob Newhart Show, Saturday Night Live, "Mary Hartman,Mary Hartman", All In The Family, The Prisoner (on PBS), Doctor Who (also PBS, the Jon Pertwee ones followed by Tom Baker), The Late, Late Show with Tom Snyder, (Local San Francisco TV greats); Creature Features with your host Bob Wilkins on KTVU 2, Videowest's Test-tube on KQED 9, Movies til Dawn on KEMO ch. 20.

Early cable TV: They just didn't have enough programming to fill out the schedule back then. It was common to see strange European "art" films after 11pm. My young impressionable mind was warped by the films of people like the directors Mario Bava and Jess Franco and stars like Udo Kier and Slyvia Krystal.

Radio: There were real radio stations in the 70s. Local DJs and programming directors knew their markets and played music and talk accordingly. In San Francisco you could tune into KSAN and listen to a wide variety of Rock, Jazz, Blues, and just about anything and everything else might be heard depending on what the DJ felt like playing. Now it's all programmed back at corporate headquarters (which might be a couple of thousand miles away or even overseas).

The bad 70s: Love them or hate them (most here obviously pick the latter), the 70s was a decade remarkable in it's ability to take tacky fashions to epic proportions. Personally, I find the excesses of 70s clothing to be fun to look back on. I wouldn't want to wear most of that stuff now, but it sure is good for a "god, what were we thinking" laugh.

More not so good 70s: Extreme male facial topiary. Not since Victoria reigned had such displays of elaborate moustache and sideburns been seen. The hirsute wonders of the face were possibly only surpassed by those of the scalp and (shivers) the flagrant airing of chest hair acreage! (a close runner up in this category is female under-arm and leg hair. For reference see Patti Smith album covers or photos from UC Berkely / San Francisco State,etc.). Of course there is the truely important bad stuff: Politics, Wars, Corruption, civil unrest, pollution. The same script as now with different actors...

The indifferent 70s: DISCO. A lot of people claim to hate it, but personally I can't get worked up enough about it. It's just another music that I don't really care for, that's all. I prefer Jazz and Classical, but if I wanted to (or could) dance, I'd listen to 60s SKA which to my ears, is much more interesting.
I think it's easy to hate Disco because of the association with the awful clothes that went with it. However ,there was a lot of music you could listen to back then and nobody was forced to play Donna Summer albums (although my sister did force my father to take us to see Saturday Night Fever. Yecch!)

 

[Nick D]

Lets Not forget the Funk. The best music that came out of that era........P-Funk, The Uncut Funk, da Bomb!!!!

Of the music that came out of the era, I'll take Fusion. Though I still prefer earlier Miles.