Has a name been devised for 1950s retro SF? The example that comes to mind is Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Not at all steampunk, but the same sort of layering of futurism on top of a past era.
I’m going to suggest Jetpunk.
As a rant I give it a 7 out of 10, but the derailment (the distance off-topic) gets a full 10/10. I swear I could hear the spittle hitting the monitor.
Bravo. Well done.
Saltire – “Dieselpunk” pretty much covers “Doc Savage” up to WWII, with “Atompunk” for the 1950s flavour. I feel Sky Captain is Dieselpunk, since the planes are propeller- driven. These are, of course, very flexible definitions. A genre tag should be an aid to identify major elements, it should not be used as a straight jacket.
Jetpunk would be cool for scifi based on the 50’s and early 60’s, without the atomic stuff (but where’s the fun of leaving the atomic stuff out?)
From a stylistic point of view, would you say that Steampunk is Neoclassical, Dieselpunk is Art Deco and Atompunk is Modernist?
If I knew anything about “Neoclassical,” “Art Deco,” or “Modernist,” then I would probably say yes. But my visual arts ignorance is profoundly deep and unyielding.
Only at the cultural level, in self-conscious atavisms like the Neo-Victorians, and Judge Fang’s Confucianism. The technology is strictly post-Singularity. Not a steam-powered mechanical computer in sight.
No, in those terms, clockpunk is neoclassical, just as the 18th Century was when the West was fascinated with the mechanical simplicity of the Universe, and at the same time sought classical order, harmony, balance and simplicity in art. Steampunk is neo-Victorian, as the 19th Century was when the West was fascinated by the biological complexity of the Universe and art was all romantic and emotional. Steampunk features too many frills and ruffles and technokludges – and too much high adventure! – to be classical in style.
But, yes, dieselpunk is art deco and atompunk is modernist – that is, the corresponding artistic/architectural style for both is (variant stages of) what is variously known as “googie” or “populuxe” or “Raygun Gothic” or “Zeerust.” See William Gibson’s classic story, “The Gernsback Continuum.”