What was life like in the 1970's?

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The music was better, the jeans and trousers were more comfortable and there was more to watch on TV. I was born in 1974, so I'm describing things I remember from 1976 to 1979.

There was also somewhat of a 1940s revival. I was born in the right decade.

I remember seeing comet Kohoutek.

I remember 1977 had an exceptionally clear moonlit night where I watched the Perseids.

the employers-parents had hard times after the 60s ended,
but the socialist grandparents dropped by everyday to rant on capitalists
---------were they all autistic?

Obsession with having the biggest flares... mine are 16"... then your mother would iron them sideways and they'd flap together when you walked.
Wearing an ex-army greatcoat all the time... even in July.
Had to go round the corner to granny's if you wanted to make a phone call.
Tank tops and cheesecloth shirts.
Women wore halter necks and chokers... which didn't help with my raging hormones.
And... as someone mentioned above... everything was orange and brown.

Nearly forgot... split-knee loons... wow!

... and kipper ties with enormous knots... and shirts with penny collars...

those leather suede Mexican hats and fringy leather vests

And I believe homosexuality was still considered a mental illness during this time if I remember correctly.

Homosexuality became legal in the US in 1967.

In 1973, homosexuality was taken out of the DSM-II. Therefore, for all intents and purposes, it wasn't a "mental illness" any more in the United States and much of the world.

Gay Rights made lots of progress in the 1970s.

Disco was very gay oriented and there was gay activism. All of that did not help you much in the schoolyard and you still needed to be “in the closet” in order to get and keep most jobs. The sometimes violent anti disco backlash was partially about homophobia.

Many words and phrases for people with different kinds of disabilities acceptable back then would be considered quite politically incorrect and offensive today. Just today I saw a craft book printed in 1974 called Easter Eggs for Everyone. And by "everyone" they meant including "the mentally ret*d, spastic, and culturally-deprived child", and said that "even the quite seriously handicapped need not be deprived of the fun of decorating eggs."

When somebody was killed unnaturally from crime or accident impromptu memorials did not spring up at the location where the death happened.

When I went away to college my dad dropped me off and went home. Parents did not advocate for me or have any part in my course selection and that was typical. I called them Sunday night after 11 PM because that is when the rates were cheapest. They knew little of what we were up to.

Yep...."long distance calls," meaning all calls outside your immediate area code, were quite expensive.

When somebody received a long distance call, everybody had to shut up, so the person receiving the long distance call can hear the other person. Connections were not always good.

Most people still had to get up and change the channel on the TV. A few people had remotes.

In order to get "UHF," where the "cool" channels were, you had to manipulate the TV dial (where you changed the channel) a certain way.

If your mother found out you "manipulated," the dial in the above way, she'd get pissed!! !

Last edited by kraftiekortie on 14 Mar 2018, 7:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.

From my UK perspective:

Early 70s: Lots of orange and brown. T. Rex and David Bowie ruled the airwaves. Knitted tank tops, usually in aforementioned colours with vivid patterns on the front were in. Collars got ever bigger. More people got colour TVs. Maggie Thatcher took away the milk of schoolchildren, sparking protests.

Mid 70s: More colours started gradually seeping in. Popular musicians included Sparks, David Essex and the Bay City Rollers. Tank tops still in, but with a little more diversity in colour and style. Collars still enormous. The majority of the British population had a colour TV by now.

Late 70s: An electronic revolution was heralded by the launch of the personal computer. Glam rock made way for punk and disco. Trousers and collars got narrower; tank tops were replaced by casual jackets. Thatcher became PM.

I remember "Rock on," by David Essex. Really sort of a haunting song.

"Rock on....Rock and Roll...Rock on..."

That 70's Show was first created, but it was originally just called "That Show". It didn't do well so they took it off the air and waited until 1998 to air it again, but changed the title to "That 70's Show", and it became much more successful.

That was a joke, obviously. Ha ha.