Have to admit that I love science fiction stories of the 40s and 50s, and movies of the 50s, that attempted to show the future, but were helplessly stuck in their own time period.
Examples: “Dealer Dan’s Used Spaceships” I believe this one is from Heinlein. Just drop by the lot, put down fifty credits and blast off. Guaranteed only up until you achieve orbit.
Televisor. Bradbury was fond of using this instead of television.
Brylcream. All the guys in Forbidden Planet have more than a “little dab.”
Flying Cars. As Avery Brooks says in that commercial: “Where are my flying cars?!”
Why was every pulp story written in 1951 set in 1997? It was a very good year.
I’m leaving out hundreds of charming examples. Any others that spring to mind?
There always seemed to be ‘heat rays’: light guns of some sort. Projectile weapons seemed to be obsolete.
Not that the authors or publishers were overtly racist, but the future seemed to be all white, usually white males (except for the obligatory damsel in distress).
Surgery or psychological techniques to modify bad behavior were also fairly common.
Computers were giant, and usually either pure calculators or evil intelligences. Often you communicated with them most effectively through speech.
Flying cars…
Well developed space program… (I can only wish)…
Global government…
FTS land transportation…
Automated home…
Genetic engineering for better _______ (fill in the blank)
Personal laser weapons…
The obligatory space ship mechanic. Remember him? Sounded like he came from the Bronx and while responsible for the ship’s engines, he always acted like he never finished 10th grade?
Men in their middle 20s looked to be in their late 30s.
Research engineers wore white lab coats, glasses and were going bald.
Dad came home from work and a fully made up, immaculately dressed Mom sailed in to cheerfully greet him in high heels, full skirt and red lipstick after a day spent cleaning house. (As if!!)
Household robots resembled junkyards on wheels.
Everyone smiled too much. It made you suspect that the government was drugging their water supply or something.
…bald white guys wearing skin tight PJs, living in what appears to be a California mall,traveling in flying
cars or moving through tubes between buildings…vacation on the moon, TV phones and ray guns, universal free education,
everyone actualizing their potential,communal state child rearing, oh and lets not forget that, to facilitate all
this, computers have now FREED us from drudgery and we all work a 2o hr. week…
It is indeed interesting to look back on the predictions from the 1950’s, about what the future would bring. I remember the famous prediction that every family would have a helicopter-can you imagine the accident rate if this came true? The 50’s futurists were often shortsighted-one prediction was that mail would be sent by rockets! Another one was message tubes within cities. I guess none of them anticipated the internet. The other big miss was on nuclear power-just about everybody felt that nuclear power would be so cheap, that everything would be powered by electricity. Events soon proved otherwise.
About the clothing-clearly, we don’t dress anywhere near the way the futurists anticipated-this I don’t understand-we have actually frozen our styles-men’s suits today look pretty much the way they did in 1900!
Interesting comment about men’s ‘business’ clothing. You’re right. Go dig up the old books and there is not much change, except in the lapels, which have become a bit narrower. Women’s and casual wear has changed dramatically.
The full skirt of the 50’s predictions – of course in shiny, silvery material, never anticipated the mini and hot pants, or by Mary Tyler Moore introducing Capri slacks. I’m glad the brief predictions of men wearing those hideous ‘puffed’ trousers like genie pants never came to pass, except in the very brief image of Zoot Suits (one of the most astonishing and absolutely awful clothing creations of all times).
Shoes were predicted to become various forms of ‘boots’.
Then there were those who favored the ‘toga’ look, were everyone would wear Roman-like togas and saunter around in idyllic luxury and conceit - sometimes with flapper style helmets on.
We have air cars, only not like what was predicted and the small, personal models, used as ATV’s are a pain in the butt to steer - or stop. They don’t sell very well. Anyone recall the ‘flying car’? You carried wings, tail boom and prop in a trailer behind this little gem. When you had the urge to buzz off, it all snapped together and you used a clear stretch of road to take off.
I thought it was cool.
I’m still waiting for the Jetsons car to come into production.
If you kinda sorta narrow the definition of internet to a basically “ask a question, get an answer” (vocal) on-line service, then Murray Leinster did predict it in a 1945 story entitled “A Logic Named Joe.” It’s still a readable story, quaint, but fun.
That reminds me. I recently watched Iron Giant. An animated movie abot a giant robot from nether worlds that lands here by accident and befriends a little kid. The most remarkable effect throuout the whole move is the texture of the animation, made like (or to look like) it was drawn in freehand (not the app, the limb). Set in the 50s-ish, but almost realistic-ish. Neat technology.
Anyhow, feeling nostalgic, there is a good flik (bring tissues, lots of tissues).
Let’s not forget 2001, which was a sixties view of the future.
Seriously though, if you are interested in past views of the future, I recommend you go out to your local comic book store, search through their back issues, and get all the copies of Terminal City you can find. The entire series was based on the idea of the past view of the future. It’s not only interesting as a sociological view of how previous generations imagined the future to be, it’s one hell of a good story.
If you really want to follow through on this thread I suggest you check it out.