When one door closes, the saying goes, another one opens. Or when one TV show ends, another begins. In our case, farewell “Mad Men” and welcome to earth “The Astonaut Wives Club.”
ABC is currently advertising the series, which is set during the ’60s Space Race; it will debut in June.
Oh wow, I better watch this, as I babysat for these USAF officer families as my father ran the test pilot flight line.
I loved The Right Stuff. And I love photos of Snoopy hanging out with the astronauts. I have a feeling I’ll love this. Buzz cuts, narrow ties, narrow lapels, short trouser hems. PENS IN THE SHIRT POCKET! And, of course, fins everywhere!
Spoke too soon… Just watched the trailer. I have little faith in the show. Might eat it while I’m watching fried rice at my lunch for office.
“Housewives Of Cape Canaveral.”
It looks as though this TV show will be, like Mad Men before it, a vehicle for imposing modern immorality on a time much more decent than our own.
I’ll pass, as I did on Mad Men (what little I saw of that show repulsed me).
And the good news is that this new show is set in EARLY 60s (1959-1965).
Mad Men by then was in the horribles very late 60s.
Henry,the astronauts can not be immorals..maybe mischievous sometimes (all that secretaries,at the Cape and in Houston) but never immorals.
Interesting point Henry. What did happen to decency? I too passed on Mad Men, as I shall on this. Then again, I pass on tv generally these days.
Can’t see this working – The real astronauts were too well known and the real story, more interesting than any fiction, has been told by Tom Wolfe in ‘The Right Stuff’, and filmed filmed as well. I thought ‘Mad Men’ was brilliant and I’ve been hooked. I’m just rewatching series one. Its by far the best as the suits are sharper, the haircuts neater, the women’s clothes more elegant. Stylewise, its downhill from there to the 1969 nadir of Pete Campbell’s sideburns and Betty wearing sofa covers.
ABC just cant learn a lesson the easy way…they already tried this formula once with Pan Am, and that flopped. I have to be honest, and I say this with no intent to disrespect those who are truly from the Ivy-heyday, but as a black man I have almost no interest whatsoever in watching a show glorifying the 50′ or 60’s as some sort of innocent, or fun-loving time. Sort of gives me the “nose pressed up against the glass” feeling. Certainly can appreciate the clothes, cars, and music…but it gets shaky after that.
Good point Ryan.
From an European perspective the things are differents.
In Europe,and in Italy we had not racial tensions or civil right problems.
Apart fot the French. Algerian ( a limited conflict closed in 1962),we had nothing similiar to Vietnam war.
So in old continent 50s and 60s (until 1968) were a wonderful age,that we look today with much nostalgia;
A true “belle epoque”.
“Mad Men”,”Pan Am” (that in Europe was a good success),and now this new series, bring back we at that wonderful (for us) age.
Now in Europe is very popular a Spanish series named “Velvet” on a fashion house of Madrid in late 50s-early 60s,very glamourous elegant and charming.
About clothes:
well the first seasons of “Mad Men” were a joy for the eyes (also if in Italy at time clothes were almost all custom and without exagerated narrowness in lapels of ties,and of course our cars had not fins).
Yes,the series is grim,but i believe that is to cause of the politically correctness that in our times rule in Americans media: “in that age blacks,women and gays were not completely free and emancipated,so It must be represented hypocritical, kinky, and without any joy.
Well,i don’t agree with this vision.
@Carmelo
You never heard about the French war in Indochina?
No racial tensions or civil rights problems in Europe in the 50s and 60s? You should ask members of racial minorities about this.
I showed up at a hotel on the beach in Normandy in 1969 without a reservation and I was offered a choice of several rooms. Ten minutes later I was sitting in the lobby drinking coffee and a Vietnamese couple came in and asked for a room, and the same clerk I’d just dealt with told them there were no vacancies in the hotel.
What’s with the stupid modern pop music playing during the trailer?
Carmelo learned that from the leftists on FNB, only Americans are evil racist bigots , never Europeans.
Having read Carmelo’s comments here for quite some time now, I think that George might have overreacted to Carmelo’s post here.
Carmelo didn’t say there was no discrimination in Europe; he just said, in essence, that the situation was different. He’s also spot-on that the modern ideology requires people to portray the “unenlightened” past as a hotbed of evil.
Carmelos posts are usually spot on but ” In Europe and in Italy we had no racial tensions or civil rights problems ” Come on.
My landlord and his brother are old men from Sicily and once spoke about the bullying and discrimination they faced in Italy because of their accents and place of origin. It was especially bad when they were in the army, serving their country.
That’s hardly the same as America’s centuries-old legacy of slavery, of course.
Christian
Those old Sicilians were discriminated against because they wore Gucci bit loafers and Sansabelt pants with extra long rises. 😉
Almost funny, except that I doubt they had ever heard of Gucci and still wouldn’t know what a bit loafer is.
How about the World’s centuries old scourge of slavery, on all continents. It still exist in some places.
@Carmelo”You never heard about the French war in Indochina”?
Yes,of course,Indochina and Algeria.
The sife of these conflicts was limited compared at Vietnam War,and concerned only the France.
@Carmelo”No racial tensions or civil rights problems in Europe in the 50s and 60s? You should ask members of racial minorities about this”.
In Italy which racial minority?
In UK,in Notting Hill was a sort of riot in 1958,nothing to compare to USA racial problems.
Anyway in none European country was the segregation or similiar.
“Carmelos posts are usually spot on but ” In Europe and in Italy we had no racial tensions or civil rights problems ” Come on”.
??
In Italy in 50 and 60 which racial tensions and and with whom?
Even wanting,with whom?
I don’t said that in Italy were not racist or bigots (there were and there are),but in those decades in my country was not any racial minority.
The black Americans could get in in any club,restaurant,hotel; segregation did not exist (and was (and is) aganist our Constitution of 1948,and our laws).
For the other European countries,immigration from Asia and Africa in 50s and 60s were still limited,so were not significant problems.
For these reason we in Europe see to 50s and 60s in a different way that in USA;
for us was a rose without thorns.
Christian said:
“My landlord and his brother are old men from Sicily and once spoke about the bullying and discrimination they faced in Italy because of their accents and place of origin. It was especially bad when they were in the army, serving their country”.
Yes,in some industrial cities of north as Milan or Turin,in early 60s were problem of integration with south Italians immigrates from rural areas, for cultural reasons.
But was not for “racial” reasons; was a classic “conflict between poors”; a wealthy or white collar middle class Sicilian or Neapolitan was welcomed without none problem.
Anyway in few years the immigrants from south were fully integrated.
“That’s hardly the same as America’s centuries-old legacy of slavery, of course.”
Yes, the slavery that ended over a century-and-a-half ago, the slavery that no living American has any direct connection with (and even those whose ancestors were slaves or slave owners are untainted by it). The historical slavery of America is irrelevant to the modern day—unless you’re a professional grievance monger.
@Carmelo,
As Martino said, if one wants to know whether racial (and religious) discrimination exists/existed in Italy, one should not ask a White Christian Italian, just as if one wants to know about gender discrimination, one should not ask a man.
Fulvio,the problem is that in 50s and 60s in Italy ALL were white christian Italians (oh well,about christian..in our way,of course).
I don’t said that we were goods and nice more than other peoples,i said simply that in those times were not racial minorities of any kind in Italy.
@Carmelo
Our Italian Constitution only recognizes and protects linguistic minorities, not racial minorities.
@Carmelo
Re: “in 50s and 60s in Italy ALL were white christian Italians “.
Not quite true, in spite of this:
http://www.holocaustresearchproject.org/nazioccupation/italianjews.html
Fulvo,again,in 50s and 60s which racial minorities?
Merrister,after the fall of fascism and the return of democracy,Italian Jews were simply Italians.
We are talk about 50s and 60s,not about infamous fascist period.
Quote from Henry: “The historical slavery of America is irrelevant to the modern day”
I had a very long conversation with a black friend once that was life-changing. The main revelation was that even when I think I’m being enlightened, etc., I’m still thinking like a white person.
I think it would be good for you to go through the same experience, Henry. And I’m not suggesting you need to change your stance on any particular social or political issues, as you’re certainly entitled to your beliefs. But it would help you to see that appeals to an abstract sense of truth and justice in matters such as this are a privilege of being white. You’re not seeing it as blacks see it.
“Those scars run deep,” my friend said.
He also pointed out that the oppressor group does not get to decide for the oppressed group when they should, for example, “get over it and move on.” You would never tell the families of 9/11 victims, he offered as analogy, when they’ve had enough mourning.
Another example are the so-called “Django moments” from the Tarantino film “Django Unchained.” There’s a scene with KKK figures in white sheets that’s played for laughs. White audience members would laugh, as did I, because we’re enlightened now, we know how wrong and evil they are, but we see an ironic undercutting of them arguing about whether or not they can even see through their hoods.
But seeing that as modernist and existential humor (to get literary and philosophical for a moment) — showing the absudity of evil — is a privilege of being white and educated. To blacks, there can never be anything funny about a gang of men in white hoods.
@Carmelo
“Merrister,after the fall of fascism and the return of democracy,Italian Jews were simply Italians.”
Vorrei che fosse vero.
“Vorrei che fosse vero”(I wish it were true).
Merrister,one of the many reasons for which i regret the 50s and 60s is because back then was true.
Today i don’t know; times are grim,very grim.