Prom is an American tradition as true and blue as fireworks and corndogs. We can all look back and smile on the times of brace-faced kisses, first dances with “belt-buckles” rubbing into our crotches, and endless bottles of Smirnoff Ice. In American culture, prom is a rite of passage, a time to slut it up and break out our most stylish get-ups. Let’s take a little promenade to the proms of yester years …
Prom 1950
Photo source: ute_w68, David Zellaby on flickr (cc)
In the fifties, they slow danced under the disco ball to Elvis Presley’s “Love Me Tender” and went home with their virginity intact. (So they say … )
Prom 1960
Photo source: lobstar28, David Zellaby on flickr (cc)
The hot song choice in the sixties was the Beach Boys’ “Don’t Worry, Baby” and “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” by the Shirelles. The ladies’ dresses were purchased at Montgomery Wards and Sears.
Prom 1970
Photo source: vision63, Jack Russel Terror on flickr (cc)
The seventies was a time of big hair, big glasses, and big dresses. The buzzy and free-flowing teeny-boppers slow danced to Chicago’s “If You Leave Me Now.” The sexual revolution made prom a lot, lot more exciting.
