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<br />three years to produce with l.ittle
<br />encouragement from the money lenders.
<br />Hollywood appeared more interested
<br />in the National League of Decency which
<br />urged film makers not to show nude babies,
<br />double beds, or long kisses. 'T;his might
<br />have been fine with Gary Coop;.r, butJoan
<br />Crawford, .Claudette Colbert, !Dorothy
<br />Lamour, Greta Garbo and otlier sirens of
<br />rhe Thirties thought the League was going
<br />too far. -
<br />
<br />The Fox Trot was what almost
<br />everyone danced in those days, but if you
<br />Minted to try something new, you gave
<br />yourself over to the chilling gyrations of
<br />the jitterbug or to the Big Apple, a
<br />modified square dance.
<br />When your night of reverie was over I
<br />and you looked at your newspaper on
<br />Sunday morning, you could read about
<br />more of Father Charles Coughlin's ranrings
<br />and ravings about Jewish bankers and
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<br />Music was another good escape, and
<br />1937 was smack in the middle of rhe era
<br />of big bands. The Thirties was the d~cade
<br />of swing and the King of Swing was ~nny
<br />Goodman. Not far behind in popularity
<br />were the bands of Artie Shaw, Glen Miller,
<br />Count Basie, Tommy and Jimmy IJ,orsey,
<br />Harry James, Duke Ellington, Guy:
<br />Lombardo and Bob Crosby. '
<br />That toe~tapping music, a ,
<br />modification of jazz, came into its o)vn in
<br />the Thirties as the vocalists (UCanaties")
<br />belted out tunes that are still familiar Ofty
<br />years later. \\Boo Hoo, II "Chapel in the
<br />Moonlight," uWhen the Moon Com;es
<br />Over the Mouncain," llHarbor Light$,"
<br />llSeptember in the Rain," uSa Rare,'!
<br />IIPennies from Heaven," "RedSaiIs in the
<br />Sunset" (could anyone sing it better that
<br />Rudy Vallee?), "Darling Je VOu< Ainle
<br />Beaucoup," "I've Got You Under My'
<br />Skin,lJ lIBegin the Beguine," "Stonny-
<br />Weather," "La Cucaracha," and Bob;
<br />Hope's classic, 'Thanks for the
<br />Memories" - all became a part of the;
<br />nation's music history along with singers
<br />Billie Holiday, Mildred Bailey, Ella i
<br />Fitzgerald, Martha Tilton and Helen '
<br />O'Connell who made them famous.
<br />
<br />"Communist" union leaders. You might
<br />note that more and more people were
<br />beginning to enjoy a five~day work week,
<br />or that the President had begun an
<br />organization called the March of Dimes to
<br />put an end to infantile paralysis
<br />(poliomiletis), the scourge of the Thirties
<br />for which there was no known cure and
<br />from which FDR suffered most of his adult
<br />life. You would learn about Okles dusted
<br />out and heading for Californial the death
<br />ofJohn D. Rockefeller, and the tragic loss
<br />of Amelia Earhart Putnam while flying
<br />from New Guinea to Howland Island in
<br />the Pacific.
<br />There were new styles for women:
<br />peaked hats, ankle-length socks. saddle
<br />shoes, and the appearance of new materials
<br />such as rayon and nylon. Sulpha drugs and
<br />synthetic vitamins were hot seUers for the
<br />sick and feeble, while other medical news
<br />celebrated the founding of the National
<br />Cancer Institute and new approaches to
<br />mental illness.
<br />All in all, it was a year filled with
<br />anticipation of better things to cornel along
<br />with frustration that full economic
<br />recovery was delayed and fear about the
<br />world situation.
<br />
<br />
<br />Careful observers of news events
<br />might have noted the arrival of the largest
<br />liner afloat, theS. S. Queen Mary in New
<br />York harbor on her maiden voyage;
<br />dedication of the Golden Gate Bridge, and
<br />the addition of Lincoln's face on Mt.
<br />Rushmore. But few would have realized
<br />that the unusual sizzling sound coming
<br />from the kitchen represented the initial
<br />marketing of a pulverized pork concoction
<br />called Sparn.
<br />Although we will all look back on
<br />1937 with different experiences, it would
<br />be hard to imagine anyone who has not
<br />eaten Spam - sliced, diced, cubed, fried,
<br />baked, griJIed, with all kinds of sauces,
<br />spices, and combinations. Even coday,
<br />memorable recipes include Spamchiladas,
<br />Spamghetti Carbonara, Mushroom
<br />Spamanaff, and Spamoni ice cream.. Since
<br />Spam's debut, the Harmel Company has
<br />sold more than 4 billion cans - enough to
<br />circle the earth ten times. Perhaps no other
<br />statistic could show how much the world
<br />has been linked together In the past fifty
<br />years and how much, after all is said and
<br />done, we aU have in common.
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