Back to USA menu    Go to Matrixes     Categories in This Page: 1. Political 2. Bus & Eco. 3. Sci. & Tech. 4. Mechanical 5. Education 6. Rel. & Spir. 7. Arts & Des. 8. Lit. & Pub. 9. Entertain. 10. Sports 11. Fashion 12. Lifestyles Summary Kala. Chart horizontal

go to... for decade   1973-1974 1974-1980 1980s  28y Physical 36y Emotional 44y Intellectual

Cycles in this page:     click to open folders ref. Physical Cycle         1.  Political       2.  Bus. & Economy       3.  Sci. & Technology       4.  Mechanical       5.  Education       6.  Rel. & Spirituality       7.  Arts & Design       8.  Lit. & Publication       9.  Entertainment     10.  Sports     11.  Fashion     12.  Lifestyles ref. Emotional Cycle         1.  Political       2.  Bus. & Economy       3.  Sci. & Technology       4.  Mechanical       5.  Education       6.  Rel. & Spirituality       7.  Arts & Design       8.  Lit. & Publication       9.  Entertainment     10. Sports     11. Fashion     12. Lifestyles ref. Intellectual Cycle         1.  Political       2.  Bus. & Economy       3.  Sci. & Technology       4.  Mechanical       5.  Education       6.  Rel. & Spirituality       7 . Arts & Design       8.  Lit. & Publication       9.  Entertainment     10.  Sports     11.  Fashion     12.  Lifestyles ref. Polyrhythms         1.  Political       2.  Bus. & Economy       3.  Sci. & Technology       4.  Mechanical       5.  Education       6.  Rel. & Spirituality       7.  Arts & Design       8.  Lit. & Publication       9.  Entertainment     10.  Sports     11.  Fashion     12.  Lifestyles

These Timelines are a detailed look at the time and the influence of Cycles. Significant events of the decade are analyzed through Twelve categories that serve as a kaleidoscopic lens through time, (see the clickable links above), as well as the position of Cycles at the time, (see the clickable folder links in the upper left corner). You can read and link up and down vertically through this Timeline, or, you can go any Category and link horizontally to the same Category in other Timelines (links are provided at the head of each Category). This cross linking is designed to provide a fast and easy way to make reading fun and interesting.

See the go to Overview here link near the top for a brief look at Cycles for this decade.

See the Matrix links above left for navigating through all Overviews and Timelines by Time, Subject, or Cycle as described in Introduction to Part II).

---

THE CHANGING SEVENTIES:  A NEW REFORM

 After the great crises of the 1973-1974 Double Downward Crossover, America regrouped into a more conservative era and an Emo-Intellectual Low.  Reform came to business and government in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr. and people were more inward.  Review of the past was prevalent.  "Oldies" were what we heard on the radio, watched as reruns on television, and took out of our attics to wear.  Fitness and sports became ever popular and we filled an all volunteer army to capacity.  The times overall were more materialistic, less idealistic, and reflective.

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
1. Political History:  Political  9.  18th Century 1770s  Political 1780s  Political 1790s  Political 10.  19th Century 1800s  Political 1810s  Political 1820s  Political 1830s  Political 1840s  Political 1850s  Political 1860s  Political 1870s  Political 1880s  Political 1890s  Political 11.  20th Century 1900s  Political 1910s  Political 1920s  Political 1930s  Political 1940s  Political 1950s  Political 1960s  Political 1970s  Political 1980s  Political 1990s  Political Present & Future:  Political 12.  21st Century 2000s  Political  1973 Pol. 1980s

The Presidential Election of 1976 was a victory for dark horse Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter.  Carter's born-again Christian morality, advocacy for human rights and a down home image appealed to voters who sought reform. 

Foreign Policy during this time included major events.  President Nixon held a summit with Soviet Chairman Leonid Brezhnev before leaving office in 1974 and signed a  10-year economic pact.     The US and Panama signed treaties with President Carter in 1977 to return the Canal Zone to Panama who would eventually control it by the year 1999.  President Carter mediated peace talks at Camp David, Maryland, between Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin as both sides ended their state of war that existed since 1948.  Congress and the president agreed to sever ties with Taiwan, whom we recognized since the Communists took over China in 1949, and  opened diplomatic ties with China the following month.  President Carter and Soviet leader Brezhnev signed the SALT II agreement (Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty) in 1979 to limit long-range missiles and bombers for each nation.  We were both expanding and contracting in world events as the Physical Cycle rose, and the Emotional and Intellectual Cycles declined.

1. Political  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

The US Expanded its Territory when the people of the northern Mariana Islands voted n 1975 to become American citizens and to make the islands a commonwealth of the US.  This was the first territorial acquisition by the US since the purchase of the Danish West Indies in 1917, (a previous Physical High).  The US also extended its territorial fishing zone to 200 miles in 1977.  This led to the first direct formal negotiations in sixteen years with Cuba, which lies only 90 miles off the US coast.

Capital Punishment Returned in 1976 as a decision by the US Supreme Court toughened law enforcement.  Enforcement is characteristic of a Physical High.  Gary Mark Gilmore became the first US prisoner executed in a decade in January 1977.

The Department of Energy was Created in 1977 resulted from the energy crisis and growing needs.  The Oil embargo during the Double Crossover four years earlier increased the need to manage resources. 

Physical 2nd Qtr. Expansion

(1978 - 1985)

The Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) was Split into two separate departments in 1979 as Congress responded to President Carter's recommendation.   One became the Dept. of Health and Human Services to over see government related agencies.   Entitlement programs expanded.   The other became the Dept.  of Education to handle programs of education improvement.   

1. Political  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

Emotional Low

(1973 - 1985)

A Decline in Confidence Came Across the Nation with the Emotional Low.  A national opinion survey revealed in 1975 that 69% of the population believed that national leaders had lied consistently over the past 10 years.  Faith in physicians fell from 73% in 1966, to 42%.  Trust in big business fell from 55% to 16%.  Pessimism in the market prevailed and “stagflation" worsened.  Music and entertainment of the times reflected a less romantic mood and became more prosaic and realistic.  The Emotional state of the nation was in decline.

1. Political  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

Intellectual Low

(1973 - 1995)

We Signed Away the Panama Canal when the Carter administration gave up our sovereignty in 1977.  The Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty of 1903 was revoked and control of the Canal is to go to Panama in 1999.  We did reserve the right to defend the Canal at any time.  The treaty passed by one vote against an outraged conservative minority the following year.  Stability in the region, however, would not be the same as Soviet communists moved into the Central American region.

 The canal in Panama faces obsolescence as planned supertankers will be too big to fit through the Panama canal.  The Panama canal was a massive project that only worked by building locks up to a lake to cross the area.  Locks were then built to bring ships back to the opposite sea.  The only other place where aquatic locks may adjoin the two oceans with a navigable lake is in Nicaragua.  That is the proposed sight for the new canal.  The Soviet Union became very interested in controlling this territory.  The Communist regime of the Sandinistas took over Nicaragua and set up  Daniel Ortega as leader. The Carter administration supplied the regime with ample financial support.  The stated idea was that would keep them from turning to the Soviet Union or its Cuban colony for aid.  After we paid supported them, however, the Sandinistas proved to be backed by the communists all along.  We were faced with Communism on American soil that the Soviet Union armed heavily.  We helped them set it up.

 The US Attempted a Grain Embargo Against the Soviet Union and halted cultural exchanges to dissuade Soviet advances in the Persian Gulf.  The Carter administration also halted cultural exchanges.  The Soviet Union had invaded Afghanistan that year and was one step closer to the Persian Gulf.  Huge westbound oil shipments from the oil rich Middle East pass through the Persian Gulf and its narrow choke point, the straight of Hormuz.  President Carter did take the courageous stand that further advances would mean war, but the grain embargo was ineffective and consequential.  The Soviets still got all the grain they needed by buying it from other nations.  American farmers suffered huge losses in sales and the only ones hurt by the embargo. 

The US Boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics, held in Moscow.  Modern Olympics was the one international event that was free from politics and war since it beginning in 1896.  The Carter administration broke this trend and athletes who spent years in training lost chance to compete.  The boycott was another attempt to dissuade Soviet expansion.  It also failed.

1. Political  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

Emo-Intellectual Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

The Watergate Scandal Spawned Investigations throughout government.  President Nixon now faced Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Reform.  Nixon resigned his office to avoid impeachment on August 18, 1974, becoming the first president in history to resign.  The New York state bar disbarred Nixon in 1976.  Watergate was the cataclysmic beginning of a reform period that would last for nineteen years.  In April 1976, subcommittees of both the House and Senate ended a 15-month investigation of the CIA, the FBI, the  IRS, and Army Intelligence staff.  President Ford announced the creation of an "oversight board" that would make sweeping reforms in all areas.

The Attorney General's Antitrust Scandal came as the judicial branch was under reform  in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.  Although Watergate prosecutor Leon Jaworski dropped any possible perjury charges against former Attorney General Richard Kleindeinst regarding the cover-up, Kleindeinst was charged with not testifying fully and accurately before a Senate committee investigating an antitrust case against IT&T.  When Kleindeinst pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor on May 16, 1974, he became the first Attorney General convicted of a crime.

Civil Intelligence Agency (CIA) Reform came in 1974 when Director William Colby admitted that the CIA illegally obtained thousands of secret files on American citizens.  The "New York Times" stated in December 1974, that government intelligence was conducting domestic espionage.  President Ford appointed an eight-man commission, headed by Nelson Rockefeller, in January 1975,  to investigate.  The commission reported in June that the CIA had been conducting domestic spying and illegal covert activities.  It recommended that a joint Congressional committee oversee intelligence during growing reform in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.

 The CIA was Charged with Abuses of Power in Foreign Affairs in 1974.  The Senate Foreign Relations Committee was ordered to investigate allegations that the CIA spent $8 million to overthrow former president of Chile, Salvador Allende Gossens.  The first elected Marxist leader in Chile was killed in a 1973 military coup.  Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, told the committee that the money was not spent to overthrow the government, but to keep political parties alive.  Nonetheless, former CIA director, Richard Helmes, was charged in 1977 with not testifying "fully, completely and accurately" before a Senate about CIA involvement with the overthrow of Allende.  Helmes did admit that the CIA sponsored assassinations of foreign heads of state, such as Castro, for example.  In that case, the CIA enlisted the aid of the Mafia to poison the Cuban leader.  These activities came into focus on the Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr.

 A New Command Structure to Reform Intelligence Services with the selection of a Senate committee to oversee intelligence gathering came with an executive order by President Ford in 1976.  Charges were made of unlawful investigation and surveillance of American citizens.  The "New York Times" reported in 1977 that the CIA had developed a program of mind control techniques.  The public took a hard view of this in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr. and saw it as a threat to rights and liberty.  The agency came under much stricter control and the CIA director was dismissed.

FBI Reform came with the discovery that the FBI was probing into the private lives of US citizens.  Attorney General Edward Levi revealed in 1975 that J. Edgar Hoover kept files on the most private lives of America's most prominent figures. Key entertainment figures were Included as well as members of congress, and US presidents.  FBI chief Clarence Kelly made a public apology in 1976 for surveillance done on some figures such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Black Panthers.  Reform came to the department in the Dbl. 3rd  Qtr. and the Associate Director was dismissed.

 The JFK Assassination was Reviewed in a Second Investigation by a House of Representatives select Committee on Assassination in 1973.  The Warren Commission, once accepted as a sufficient source of investigation, was now coming under scrutiny.  The Commission finding in 1964 that a lone assassin committed the assassination, was reconsidered.  In the Dbl. 3rd Qtr. the committee concluded in 1979 that Lee Harvey Oswald might not have acted alone.  The conspiracy came under review amid overwhelming evidence. 

A Campaign Reform Law was signed by President Ford in October 1974 to regulate  funding.  Public funds were provided for the majority of presidential candidates, and spending limits were imposed on presidential and congressional races.  Although the bill had been long debated in Congress, it passed in this Dbl. 3rd Qtr. after public outrage over abuses reported to have occurred in the 1972 election by the Nixon administration.

 Gifts From Nelson Rockefeller Became Controversial when it became known that he made substantial offerings and loans to key political figures.  It was also revealed that he helped to finance a derogatory biography of former Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg.  Although Nelson Rockefeller had wide public support as he was nominated for the Vice-presidency in 1974, public support for him waned in this 3rd Qtr. Review.

Viet Nam Draft Evaders Were Offered Clemency by President Ford in September 1974.  In this move to heal division a war that was now ending, offenders could take an oath of allegiance to the US and perform up to two years of public service to be accepted back.  The plan met with differing views.  Some favored it but many veterans thought it too lenient and evaders living in Canada saw it as an admission of guilt.  Cycles were in conflict over this kind of issue.  Double Third Quarter called for reform a controversial and confusing war, while a high Physical Cycle was raised nationalism and defense.  This brought conflicting and divided views on Veit Nam.  President Carter pardoned all draft dodgers in 1977.

Human Rights Was Focal Point of President Carter's foreign policy.  Even though some other nations were not as eager to amend internal policies to please the United States, the president did not relent in his efforts of humanity.  Whether it was synchronous with the rhythms in other nations or not, the US was seeking to export its era of reform to others in need.

 Settlement with Native Americans came in a land claim Suit by the Sioux nation for section of the Black Hills in South Dakota that was taken from them in 1877.  This reform of the past was settled during a Dbl. 3rd Qtr.  The Sioux were granted $17.5 million, plus interest, putting the estimated total at $100 million.  This was the largest amount ever awarded to an Indian nation.

Other Reforms in government were far and wide during the Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr.  The Safe Drinking Water Act was Passed in 1974 to set water pollution standards.  Testing of drinking water throughout the nation revealed cancer causing chemicals in every sample.  Rape laws Changed in nine states in 1975 to narrow the amount of required corroborating evidence, restricted questions into the victims past sex life, and make conviction more possible.  The Department of HEW Banned Discrimination of Disabled Persons living in the US IN 1975.  Massachusetts Raised the Legal Drinking Age from eighteen to twenty in 1979 and followed the lead of six other states.  House Democrats Made a Successful Challenge to the Seniority System in 1975, and removed three chairmen.    Former Commerce Secretary, Maurice Stans, Pleaded Guilty to Federal Campaign Law Violations in 1975.  A Senate Code of Ethics was approved by the Senate in 1976 that limited the outside income for Senators to 15% of their salary and mandated that they report gifts of more than $100.  Secretary of Agriculture, Earl Butz, Resigned Over Racist Remarks he was supposed to have said, causing public ire in 1976.  The Authority to Eliminate or Consolidate Redundant Federal Agencies was granted to President Carter in 1977.  Budget Director, Bert Lance, Resigned Over Past Banking Practices in 1977.  A Korean Lobbying Scandal in Congress was investigated by the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct in 1978.

Physical High with      Emotional Low

(1973 - 1985)

Women Advanced into Roles Traditionally Held by Men.  The high and rising Physical Cycle increased masculine energy, (yang), while the low and declining Emotional Cycle, (yin).  This brought women into the roles of men.  Nineteen-seventyfive was not only the International Woman's Year, it was a year in which military academies admitted women for the first time.  West Point accepted 118 women cadets, the Navy accepted eighty-one women, and the Air Forces accepted 157 women.  The US Marine Corps attained its first woman general, Brigadier General Margaret A. Brewer, in 1978.  The first woman two-star General in the Army, Brigadier General Mary Clarke, was named to the rank in 1978.  The Navy's first woman commander of a naval ship on regular patrol, Beverly Kelley, assumed the post in 1979.  An Army ad that ran in 1979 proclaimed, "some of our best men are women."

The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) received support in 1977 as 100,000 marchers who converged on Washington in 1977.  While the bill had been proposed during and Emotional High, Congress extended the ratification date of the bill, in 1978, from March 22, 1979, to June, 30, 1982.  This was the year that the Emotional Cycle hit the bottom.  Senator Sam Ervin denounced Bella Abzug and Gloria Steinem in 1978 and said that the ERA would nullify any laws that make any distinction between men and women.  Defeat of the ERA was praised as a victory for women's rights by Phyllis Schlafly in 1979.  The ERA never passed.

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
2. Bus. & Eco. History:  Business  9.  18th Century 1770s  Business 1780s  Business 1790s  Business 10.  19th Century 1800s  Business 1810s  Business 1820s  Business 1830s  Business 1840s  Business 1850s  Business 1860s  Business 1870s  Business 1880s  Business 1890s  Business 11.  20th Century 1900s  Business 1910s  Business 1920s  Business 1930s  Business 1940s  Business 1950s  Business 1960s  Business 1970s  Business 1980s  Business 1990s  Business Present & Future:  Business 12.  21st Century 2000s Business  1973 Bus. 1980s

Business Continued its Downturn after the Double Downward Crossover in 1973.  The Cycles were low and declining.  We had double-digit inflation, business cutbacks, soaring interest rates and escalating gold prices.  Banks even advertised that borrowing was a hedge against inflation.  Despite the ending of all wage and price controls in 1974, unemployment reached a 33-year high of 9.2% in 1975.

 Double Third Quarter Reform led to investigations into, bribery of US Corporations, bribery overseas, campaign contributions, actions of a Union president, product reform, and tax reform.  This movement gained momentum and continued well into the 1980s.

 The Energy Crisis was first and foremost.  OPEC increased crude oil prices by 10% in 1975, 5% - 10% in 1976, 14% in 1978, and 50% in 1979 to an $18 - $23.50 per barrel range.  Americans saw dollar-a-gallon gasoline for the first time and the cost of living escalated.  Leaders of major oil-consuming nations decided to limit their imports through 1985.  The Department of Energy sued nine large US oil companies on the allegation of overcharging customers by almost $1 billion since 1973.  The Sixties were over.

 America took steps to compensate.  In 1975, 55 nuclear power plants were producing some of the nation's electricity with many more plants planned.  The Alaskan pipeline began operation in 1977 to bring oil into the lower states, at a cost of $7.7 billion.  California became the first state to begin gasoline rationing in 1979.  This was done on alternate days.  Cars with license plates ending with an odd number were served on odd number days, and even plates on even days.  Many other states followed to compensate for the economic downturn that came with the Emo-Intellectual decline.  A Physical High did help construction and industry, however.

2. Business & Economy  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

Construction Boomed after the mid 1970s and into much of the 1980s, despite other downturns in the economy.  As the Physical Cycle rose, President Ford signed a 1974 bill calling for $11.8 billion in federal funds to  improve mass transit over the next six years.   The rebuilding of the Physical infrastructures of the nation became one of the stronger elements of our economy.

Unions Flexed Their Muscle as the Cycle neared its peak.  Labor unions move with the Physical Cycle.  The longest coal strike in history of 110 days, occurred in 1977, a second consecutive year of severe winter.  President Carter invoked the Taft-Hartley Act in 1978 and miners signed a new contract with mine operators to end the walkout.  Two major newspaper strikes occurred in 1978.  The "New York Post" was shut down for fifty-six days and the "Daily News" for eighty-eight days as unions went out on strike.  Use of force by labor unions often proves more effective means during a Physical High.

Farmers Came Forth to Protest during the Physical High that gives agrarian empowerment.  A farm protest movement was represented by 3,000 thousand farmers who brought tractors, trucks, and machines from many states to converge on Washington, D.C.  Downtown traffic was blocked in a move from farmers to draw attention to their problems of parity, farm prices and their lack of recognition from government.  Farmers united to show might in the Physical 1st Qtr.

Physical Appeal was Used by Advertising.  Cereal adds were filmed in health spas to stress their nutritional value.  Cars were sold on ruggedness.  Men's clothes were advertised with the machismo look.  A Sony Betamax advertisement that ran in 1976 that said, "Now your kids don't have to miss Monday Night Football because they're studying for a Tuesday morning exam."  Parents may have heard that add in the reverse.  "Virginia Slims" cigarettes had a hugely successful advertising campaign as it target the women's market with the slogan, "You've come a long way, baby, to get where you've got to today," as though smoking a cigarette could bestow empowerment, (Physical High, Intellectual Low). 

The Physically-based Southwest Rose while other parts of the nation were in decline.  The Southwest often moves with the Physical Cycle, (see Chapter XII, Georhythms).  Texas, for instance, had more jobs then people to fill them.  More than 1,000 families a month moved to the sun belt in 1978.  "U-Haul" carts were carried to other destinations aboard railroad flat cars as many more moved into the state than out.  Houston became a world oil capital and sold drilling equipment worldwide.  The Los Angeles area became a leader in aerospace, manufacturing, electronics, computers, fashions, construction, and finance.  It was a Physical High, Emo-Intellectual Low.  Areas that move with the Physical Cycle did well.  Others suffered layoffs and recessions.

The Miami Area Enclave Was Not Hit by Recession, (Miami is a Physically-based enclave, see Chapter XII, Georhythms).  The mayor of Miami said in 1979 that it was the only place in America that will escape major recessions because of the cash flow brought in by drugs, (cocaine was a leader and it is a Physically-based drug).  The mayor also said that Miami was not a trade center ten years earlier, (Physical Low), but that it had become one.  Engineering firms, hotels, condominiums, and banking contributed  to the rise.  Trade in and out of area more than doubled between 1974 and 1978 to about $6.5 billion.  The number of firms in the export-import business tripled from 1972, a year after the Physical Cycle crossed up, to 1979, a year after the peak.

2. Business & Economy  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

2. Business & Economy  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

2. Business & Economy  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

Emo-Intellectual Low

(1973 - 1991)

Support Could Not Be Rallied for Attempts to Turn the Economy Around.  The dollar declined and inflation grew.  President Ford responded by initiating the "Whip Inflation Now" program of 1974, (WIN).  A less than enthusiastic public reflected an Emotional decline.  Unemployment continued to climb and in 1979, it was at a post World War II high of %13.3 and the Consumer price index reached its biggest increase since 1946,  (also an Emo-Intellectual Low with a Physical High).  We invented new words to tell the story. The "misery index" became a term to describe unemployment combined with inflation in the 1976 presidential campaign.  "Stagflation" was the word in 1979 to describe inflation combined with stagnate productivity.

US Cities Were Faced with Bankruptcy in the Emo-Intellectual Decline.   New York City reported that its expenses exceeded tax revenues by 1975, and that it could not pay its maturing debt.  The fed refused to bail out the city, so the state legislature created the Municipal Assistance Corporation, (MAC), to take control of the city's finances.  Cleveland defaulted in 1978, the first American city to do so since the Great Depression.  The city had a $14 million debt with local banks while the city council and the mayor in opposition.  President Carter signed a bill guaranteeing $1.6 billion in federal loans and Congress revised laws regarding municipal bankruptcy to help the problem.

 Bankruptcy and Downsizing Came to Business in the Emo-Intellectual decline.  W. T. Grant stores filed for voluntary bankruptcy after reaching a billion-dollar debt in 1975.  Penn Central had a huge downfall.  Sagging sales in the auto industry meant a record 264.380 layoffs in 1975.  Car manufacturers offered rebates to help boost sales.  Cadillac and other large car manufactures began "downsizing" their luxury automobiles to make them more gas efficient in 1976, the same year that the US convertible ceased.  Chrysler's annual loss of $1.1 billion in 1979 was the largest in US corporate history.  The Senate approved a $1.5 billion federal bail-out for Chrysler that same year.

 The Trade Deficit Grew as foreign manufacturers seemed better able to supply goods.  The deficit reached a $26.72 billion in 1977 and oil imports were not the only factor.  Automobile imports that year reached a record breaking 1.5 million sales.  Rising prices at home hurt domestic prices and spawned a consumer boycott against things like high coffee prices.  The US dollar fell to record lows against the Japanese yen, the West German mark and the Swiss franc in 1978.  The price of gold in London reached a record $524 in 1979 and fears of recession followed our Cyclic Low in the Emotional and Intellectual Cycles put us in a weakened position against other nations.

Negative Signs Were Pervasive.  The Federal Reserve Board raised the discount rate to 15.75% in 1979, (the rate at which money is lent to other banks).  Despite a single-day trading volume in the New York Stock Exchange in April 1978, and a record breaking single day advance in the Dow Jones Industrial Average in November, Wall Street saw a record weekly decline of 59.08 points that ended when it closed at 838.01 on October 20, 1978.   Escalating interest rates and fear of a recession caused a selling frenzy.  As the Emotional and Intellectual energies declined, hopes for the falling economy declined.

Emo-Intellectual Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

Antiques Were Cherished During a Nostalgia Craze.  Third Quarter Review increased reverence for symbols of the past.  A Physical High added materialistic value to the objects that symbolized it.  As the economy took a typical decline during the Intellectual Low, profiteers sought to transfer their dollars into tangible items to beat inflation.  We auctioned antiques of all sorts from cars to paintings for record prices.  Accompanying this effect was the soar in real estate after the early 1970s, (greater value in the Physical aspect in land - bought with dollars that shrunk with the declining Intellectual Cycle).

 Product Reform came in full swing during Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Reform.  Consumer advocate Ralph Nader became notorious at this time as he sought to improve the conditions for American purchasers.  His foot soldiers were dubbed, "Nader's raiders" by journalist William Greider in 1974.  Freon Was Identified as Harmful to the Ozone Layer in 1974.  Warnings that Polyvinyl Chloride Used in Plastic Containers was Environmental Carcinogen were given to the public in 1974.  As per the Federal Trade Commission in 1974, Food Advertisers to Were Required to Support Their Nutritional Claims with information about vitamin, protein and caloric content.

 Business Reform Gained Momentum in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Former United Mine Workers, President, W.A.(Tony) Boyle, was Convicted in 1974 for the murder of union rival Joseph A. Yablonski in 1969, as well as his wife, and a daughter.  The IRS and the Security Exchange Commission Investigated Many US Corporations in 1975 for their political contributions both at home and abroad.  The Fair Trade Law was Repealed in 1976 to prevent the fixing of retail prices in an attempt to save consumers an estimated $2 billion by allowing more discount shopping.  The Lockheed Aircraft Co. was Investigated by a Senate Subcommittee in 1976, on allegations that it paid $24 million in bribes to overseas recipients to promote aircraft sales. “Koreagate” arose in 1977 as Leon Jaworski was named as prosecutor to investigate alleged bribing by US Corporations by Korean businessman and Washington, D.C. resident, Tongsun Park, who was indicted on allegations that he attempted to bribe members of Congress for the South Korean government.  The First Generic, No Frills Products Appeared on the shelves in 1977 and were successful with buyers who wanted lower prices and less hype.  Other than the deregulation of the Airlines, reform was far and wide for the rest of the decade.  Not that it was part of the reform movement, but it should also be mentioned that Teamster leader Jimmy Hoffa disappeared mysteriously in 1975.  Foul play was believed to be involved. He was never found.

Tax Reform Came with Overwhelming Public Support.  President Ford signed a $22.8 billion cut in taxes in 1975.  Congress passed the Tax Reform Act in 1976 that reduced the number tax shelters for the wealthy and increased their share of the tax burden.  Major changes followed in estate tax laws for the first time in almost thirty years. California voters approved Proposition 13 by almost 2 to 1 in a 1978 referendum.  It called for the huge cuts state property taxes by reducing them by 57%, (from $12 billion to $5 billion). The petition's organizer, Howard Jarvis, became a national hero for his efforts, and inspired similar intentions elsewhere.

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
3. Sci. & Tech. History:  Sci. & Tech.  9.  18th Century 1770s  Science & Technology 1780s  Science & Technology 1790s  Science & Technology 10.  19th Century 1800s  Science & Technology 1810s  Science & Technology 1820s  Science & Technology 1830s  Science & Technology 1840s  Science & Technology 1850s  Science & Technology 1860s  Science & Technology 1870s  Science & Technology 1880s  Science & Technology 1890s  Science & Technology 11.  20th Century 1900s  Science & Technology 1910s  Science & Technology 1920s  Science & Technology 1930s  Science & Technology 1940s  Science & Technology 1950s  Science & Technology 1960s  Science & Technology 1970s  Science & Technology 1980s  Science & Technology 1990s  Science & Technology Pres. & Fut.:  Sci. & Tech. 12.  21st Century 2000s  Science & Technology  1973 Sci. 1980s

Science continually moves forward, but more breaks-throughs come when the Cycles are high.  In 1974, for instance, science discovered a new particle of physics known as the "J" or "psi" during the Physical High.

The Space Program ended manned missions to the moon at the end of the Emo-Intellectual High in 1973.  NASA then concentrated less on advancing into new territory and more on working on we had gained what.  Progress did continue with the Physical High,  however.  The SMS-1 weather satellite was placed in 1974, the three-man crew of Skylab 3 return to earth after eighty-four days in space.  Mariner X flew by Venus to send back pictures.  Viking I and Viking II were sent to Mars in 1975 to land on Mars to send back photos.  American astronauts and Soviet cosmonauts docked crafts together in the “Apollo Soyuz Test Project” and conducted a joint news conference from space.  Voyagers I and II were launched this year to explore Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus.  NASA's Seasat I satellite in 1978 collected information on 95 percent of the world's oceans every thirty-six hours.  Pioneer probes I and II were launched to study the atmosphere of Venus in 1978 and Pioneer II returned photos of Saturn in 1979.  America, however, sent no human beings out of Earth's orbit during the entire Intellectual Low. 

3. Science & Technology  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

Science continually moves forward, but more breaks-throughs come when the Cycles are high.  In 1974, for instance, science discovered a new particle of physics known as the "J" or "psi" during the Physical High.

Missiles Advanced During the Military Build Up of the Physical High.  The Pershing I ground-to-ground guided missile system allowed firing from an un-surveyed site in 1976.  Cruise missiles traveled so low that they flew under radar systems for the first time.  The Navy test Tomahawk was a Sea-Launched Cruise Missile (SLCM) which had a high-explosive warhead.  The Air-Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) could confuse restrictions between strategic and conventional nuclear weapons.  They were developed in 1977 as the limited nuclear war advance that leaves most buildings intact but kills all living things within a certain radius.  Congress approved the MX missile system in 1979 at an estimated cost of $30 billion.  The B-2 Stealth Bomber may have also been developed in or around 1979.

Other Signs of the Physical High came in many forms.  Pulitzer Prize winner Carl Sagan was rose in popularity in 1978 as people were becoming more interested in the physical makings of the universe.  Heart Disease was Countered with the Balloon Compression method, developed in 1978 to open arteries.  Americans became more health conscious.  Sales of Bran Cereals and High-Fiber Bread were Up by 20% by 1976 after the medical community reported the benefits of fiber.

3. Science & Technology  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

3. Science & Technology  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

Intellectual Low

(1973 - 1995)

America was Losing its Lead in Science according to the conclusions of the National Science Foundation in 1975.  This was decline that would continue throughout the Intellectual decline.

Intellectual 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1984)

Reform Came to Technology in the Intellectual 3rd Qtr.  Freon, which is a fluorocarbon in aerosol sprays, was declared to be harmful to the ozone in 1974.  The National Academy of Science backed this up in 1976 when it reported that spray can gases can damage the atmosphere.  Vinyl chloride, used in making many plastics, was announced as a carcinogen in 1974. The National Cancer Institute officially linked caner to pollution in 1975. In 1977, Fluorocarbons were banned were also banned that year.  The FDA banned Red dye No. 2 from food, drugs, and cosmetics in 1977, as well as Red dye No. 4 from maraschino cherries, and Yellow No. 5.  Both the USDA and the FDA warned about the dangers of nitrites in some meat products in 1978 on the basis that sodium nitrite is potentially carcinogenic.  Nitrite-free hot dogs were then released on the market in 1979.  Many manufactures recalled hair dryers in 1979 because they were suspected of having cancer-causing asbestos.

3. Science & Technology  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

Physo-Emotional WHATEVER

(XXX)

...

Physo-Intellectual WHATEVER

(XXX)

...

Emo-Intellectual Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

Genetic Engineering Research Was Halted by the National Academy of Science in 1974, especially those involving E. coli bacteria, until safer techniques could be developed.  Scientists at the Asilomar Conference in California attempted to establish safety precautions in 1975 by which genetic engineering could be done.  The National Research Act was passed to set standards and limited research on human beings.  Controversy arose in 1978 over the claim that a human being had been cloned.  America felt a need for technological reform in the Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr.

The AMA Announced that Cigarettes Do Cause Heat Disease and might cause cancer according to the  results of a 14-year study in 1978.  Surgeon General Julius B. Richmond declared cigarette smoking to be the most important environmental factor contributing to early death, in 1979.  Adversaries against tobacco mounted during the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.

The Medical Community Faced a Record Number of Malpractice Suits against practicing physicians by a zealous public.  Emotion added to medical reform in the Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr.  California and New York were the sites of the first strike by doctors in 1975 as they sought to draw attention to the astronomical increases in medical insurance rates.  Twenty-one hospitals in New York reduced services and some doctors refused all but emergency services.  Work slowdowns occurred in other states pending agreement on shorter hours, and better insurance rates. In New York, premiums had increased by 93.5% in one year alone.  Some states saw rates quadruple and many insurance companies dropped malpractice coverage altogether because of the high damages awarded in the flurry of law suits.

The Anti-Nuclear Movement Gained Momentum after the Internal Aberration at Three Mile Island near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  On March 28, 1979, a partial meltdown occurred at a reactor when a cooling valve failed to operate, allowing the radioactive core to overheat.  A secondary failure occurred as a pressure relief valve stuck, causing cooling water levels to fall, and precipitating the partial meltdown. Clouds of radioactive steam were released into the atmosphere, and radioactive water was later released into the surrounding river.  No fatalities resulted, but the governor ordered pregnant women and children out of the area.  Many feared the long term effects of the invisible threat of radiation.  The anti-nuclear movement,  already in swing before the accident, emerged in groups like the Clamshell Alliance that had been organizing protest rallies.  The nuclear accident that came during a Dbl. 3rd Qtr. thrusted the movement forward.  Anti-nuclear rallies picked up throughout the country and members of an outraged public demanded an end to nuclear power.  Especially large rallies were held in Washington, D.C. and New York City.  Science had its own techigates.  Americans felt the need to reform technology ever more.

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
4. Mechanical History:  Mechanical  9.  18th Century 1770s  Mechanical 1780s  Mechanical 1790s  Mechanical 10.  19th Century 1800s  Mechanical 1810s  Mechanical 1820s  Mechanical 1830s  Mechanical 1840s  Mechanical 1850s  Mechanical 1860s  Mechanical 1870s  Mechanical 1880s  Mechanical 1890s  Mechanical 11.  20th Century 1900s  Mechanical 1910s  Mechanical 1920s  Mechanical 1930s  Mechanical 1940s  Mechanical 1950s  Mechanical 1960s  Mechanical 1970s  Mechanical 1980s  Mechanical 1990s  Mechanical Pres. & Fut.:  Mechanical 12.  21st Century 2000s  Mechanical  1973 Mech. 1980s

4. Mechanical  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

The Space Shuttle Appeared as a New Kind of Space Vehicle that appeared in the Physical 1st Qtr.  It could be vertically launched into orbit like a multistage rocket, and make horizontal landings like an airplane.  This allowed the craft to be reused and avoid huge costs.  The first space shuttle of the Physical First Quarter was the "Enterprise," which successfully completed space flights and landings in 1977.

The US Air Force Developed the SR-71 Jet Plane in 1974 in the Physical 1st Qtr.  This aircraft could fly from New York to London in one hour and fifty-five minutes by attaining speeds of 2,000 miles per hour.

4. Mechanical  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

4. Mechanical  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

4. Mechanical  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
5. Education History:  Education  9.  18th Century 1770s  Education 1780s  Education 1790s  Education 10.  19th Century 1800s  Education 1810s  Education 1820s  Education 1830s  Education 1840s  Education 1850s  Education 1860s  Education 1870s  Education 1880s  Education 1890s  Education 11.  20th Century 1900s  Education 1910s  Education 1920s  Education 1930s  education 1940s  Education 1950s  Education 1960s  Education 1970s  Education 1980s  Education 1990s  Education Pres. & Fut.:  Education 12.  21st Century 2000s  Education  1973 Education 1980s

5. Education  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

Fences Were Going up in the World of Education during the Physical High.  Territoriality increased as a reversal of trends of the 1960s.  Local opposition came to the attempt to achieve racial balance with court ordered school busing in 1974.  The Boston School Committee outwardly rejected the court order and the South Boston High School had violent protests as busing went into effect in September.  Many whites did not attend class and five were arrested for disorderly conduct.  Racial disturbances went on throughout the year and conflict arose throughout the nation.  

Toga Parties Became a Fad at Colleges in 1978.  This reach into history for a fad, (Emo-Intellectual Third Quarter), had a lot of Physical appeal and brief popularity.

More Students Attended Colleges, Not for Learning, But for Earning.  A degree became a means for higher income during the Physical High - Intellectual Low.  The era of the "Yuppy" was coming.

5. Education  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

5. Education  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

Intellectual Low

(1973 - 1995)

Average SAT Scores Dropped Between 1968 to 1976 from 501 to 472 points in math and from 480 to 435 points in English, (1968 was in the preceding Intellectual High).  In fact, SATs showed a steady decline among college-bound students since 1963, (near the Intellectual peak of 1962).  The "New York Times" editor, Fred M. Hedhinger remarked this in 1967, "The massive failure in basic skills-particularly reading and writing-is nothing short of scandalous."  It may have been nothing short of Cyclical.

Intellectual 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1984)

The Bakke Case Claimed “Reverse Discrimination” as medical student, Allan P. Bakke, took on the University of California Medical School, (at Davis), to be admitted.  A minority admission policy at the school excluded him, while admitting less qualified students because of their minority status.  Bakke challenged this in the Intellectual 3rd Qtr.  The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Bakke's case of in 1978 and stated that racial quotas are illegal, but that affirmative action might be considered as policy.

The Harvard U. Faculty Voted for a Return to a More Conventional Curriculum for undergraduates.  Gone was the trend toward greater scholastic options of "relevant" courses and other spin-offs that developed in the 1960s, (during Second Quarter Expansion). Now the institution looked to the past for traditional values during 3rd Qtr. Review.

5. Education  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
6. Rel. & Spirit. History:  Rel. & Spirit.  9.  18th Century 1770s  Religion & Spirituality 1780s  Religion & Spirituality 1790s  Religion & Spirituality 10.  19th Century 1800s  Religion & Spirituality 1810s  Religion & Spirituality 1820s  Religion & Spirituality 1830s  Religion & Spirituality 1840s  Religion & Spirituality 1850s  Religion & Spirituality 1860s  Religion & Spirituality 1870s  Religion & Spirituality 1880s  Religion & Spirituality 1890s  Religion & Spirituality 11.  20th Century 1900s  Religion & Spirituality 1910s  Religion & Spirituality 1920s  Religion & Spirituality 1930s  Religion & Spirituality 1940s  Religion & Spirituality 1950s  Religion & Spirituality 1960s  Religion & Spirituality 1970s  Religion & Spirituality 1980s  Religion & Spirituality 1990s  Religion & Spirituality Pres. & Fut.:  Rel. & Spirit. 12.  21st Century 2000s  Religion & Spirituality  1973 Rel. 1980s

6. Religion & Spirituality  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

6. Religion & Spirituality  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

Emotional Low

(1973 - 1985)

The Practice of Religion Declined for most Americans according to a 1974 Gallop Poll.  The adult population attending church services weekly was down from the 1950s and 1960s, (Emotional High), and stood at 40% in 1974.  Attendance at Roman Catholic churches was at 55%, down from 71% in 1963, and practice in general was in decline with the Emotional Cycle.

 Neo-conservatism was Seen in the Moral Majority, founded by Baptist Minister, Jerry Falwell in 1979.  Conservative, rather than liberal views are more often espoused during the Low half of a Cycle.  Conservative politicians received support as well as the return of prayer in school.  Abortion and pornography were opposed in the Emotional Low.

Emotional 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

Reform Came to the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church that had been inducting and training many young members who became known as "Moonies" by 1976.  Parents protested the brainwashing tactics that Moon was accused of using, and fought for the return of their offspring who seemed to lose their identities in the camps.  A California judge in 1977 granted parents of several young adults temporary custody.  Public ire demanding reform of this type of thing in the Emotional 3rd Qtr.  led to the demise of Moon.  

6. Religion & Spirituality  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

6. Religion & Spirituality  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
7. Arts & Design History:  Arts & Design  9.  18th Century 1770s  Arts & Design 1780s  Arts & Design 1790s  Arts & Design 10.  19th Century 1800s  Arts & Design 1810s  Arts & Design 1820s  Arts & Design 1830s  Arts & Design 1840s  Arts & Design 1850s  Arts & Design 1860s  Arts & Design 1870s  Arts & Design 1880s  Arts & Design 1890s  Arts & Design 11.  20th Century 1900s  Arts & Design 1910s  Arts & Design 1920s  Arts & Design 1930s  Arts & Design 1940s  Arts & Design 1950s  Arts & Design 1960s  Arts & Design 1970s  Arts & Design 1980s  Arts & Design 1990s  Arts & Design Pres. & Fut.:  Arts & Design 12.  21st Century 2000s  Arts & Design  1973 Arts 1980s

7. Arts & Design  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

Designers Were Called to Meet the Construction Boom of Urban Renewal during the Physical High of the 1970s and 1980s.  New office buildings sprang up throughout downtown areas.  We renovated older buildings, (Physical High - Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr.).  Construction became one of the stronger elements in a mixed economy.  Among this wave was the Sears Tower completed in Chicago 1974 as the world's tallest building.

7. Arts & Design  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

7. Arts & Design  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

7. Arts & Design  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

Emo-Intellectual Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

Merchants Found New Customers in Old Things as America Looked Back with a new wave of nostalgia in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.  Record stores featured re-releases from past artists.  Yesterday's clothes fit today's styles.  What was old was new.  Love of the past was everywhere.

Trirhythmic Effect

The World of Art and Objects Turned its Direction to the Past.  As reverence for symbols of  the past increased with Emotional 3rd Qtr. Review, the value of the dollar fell with the low and declining Intellectual Cycle.  The net result was that memorabilia sold for higher prices.  Added to this was a Physical High that caused a new era of materialism.  Antique furniture and cars went way up in price.  We bought old buttons and bottles at flea markets. We cherished any remembrance of the past.  Old works of art became even more valuable.  "The Icebergs," painted Frederick E. Church in 1861, brought in $2.5 million at auction during this period, making it the highest price ever paid for a painting by an American artist.  Pollock's painting, "Lavender Mist," was bought by the National Gallery of Art, in Washington, D.C., for $2 million in 1976, (it sold for around $1,500 in 1950).  Industrialist Armand Hammer bought "Juno," by Rembrandt for a record $3.2 million in 1976.  Records prices were paid left and right.  Even the very, very old captured the imagination as the traveling show of Tutankhamen's treasures drew overnight lines across the US in 1977.  Still, the most favored of all, and the common phrase of the time was, "Americana."    

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
8. Lit. & Pub. History:  Lit. & Pub.  9.  18th Century 1770s  Literature & Publication 1780s  Literature & Publication 1790s  Literature & Publication 10.  19th Century 1800s  Literature & Publication 1810s  Literature & Publication 1820s  Literature & Publication 1830s  Literature & Publication 1840s  Literature & Publication 1850s  Literature & Publication 1860s  Literature & Publication 1870s  Literature & Publication 1880s  Literature & Publication 1890s  Literature & Publication 11.  20th Century 1900s  Literature & Publication 1910s  Literature & Publication 1920s  Literature & Publication 1930s  Literature & Publication 1940s  Literature & Publication 1950s  Literature & Publication 1960s  Literature & Publication 1970s  Literature & Publication 1980s  Literature & Publication 1990s  Literature & Publication Pres. & Fut.:  Lit. & Pub. 12.  21st Century 2000s  Literature & Publication  1973 Literature 1980s

8. Literature & Pub.  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

Action and Adventure Dominated Cinema.  As the Physical Cycle rises, so does America's appetite for this genre.  Peter Benchley's 1974 publication, "Jaws," about a terrorizing shark became a success, then it was made into record-breaking film directed by Steven Spielberg.  Just one of many films of this type. 

The “Fitness Craze” was Ever Popular in books in the Physical High.  "Total Fitness in thirty minutes a Week," became a bestseller in 1975.  Jim Fixx earned $930,000 as his book, "The Complete Book of Running," became a bestseller in 1978 with more than 620,000 copies sold, (before he died of a heart attack while jogging).  Diets were also the big thing as people valued physical appearance and health. In 1979,  "The Complete Scarsdale Medical Diet," by Herman Tarnover, M.D. & Sam Sinclair, became a bestseller, as did "The Pritikin Program for Diet and Exercise," by Nathan Pritikin.  These were but two in of a hoard of books on dieting which became popular.

Even Psychology Was Taking a More Physical Approach in the Physical High.  In 1975, E. O. Wilson published, "Social biology:  The New Synthesis," took the view that social behavior patterns are controlled by genes.

8. Literature & Pub.  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

Emotional 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

Older Published Works Became Even More Valuable.  As the Emotional 3rd Qtr. reflected religion, and in 1978, a Gutenberg Bible sold at a New York auction for $2 million.  This was the highest price ever paid for a printed book.  In an entirely different genre, a copy of Marvel Comic, No. 1, sold for $43,000 in 1979, making it the highest price ever paid for a comic book.  The Comic strip character, "Spiderman," also made a comeback in popularity.  In 1976, Dr. Benjamin Spock revised his 1946 landmark book, "The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care."  He now redefined family roles in "The Father's Responsibility is as Great as the Mother's."  Actress Lauren Bacall found a bestseller in 1979 with her autobiography, "Lauren Bacall by Myself." Many actors and actresses, and many politicians, would write successful autobiographers during this time.

Optimism Declined the Emotional Low, making negative predictions easier to sell.  A bestseller in 1979 was "How to Prosper During the Coming Bad Years," by Howard J. Ruff and Patrick McGrady.  “The Late Great Planet Earth,” by Hal Linsey predicted cataclysmic demise and became the best-selling book of the decade.

8. Literature & Pub.  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

8. Literature & Pub.  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

Emo-Intellectual Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

“Watergate” was a Major Topic of Reformist Publications with popular demand for more material.  The "Washington Post" took a Pulitzer Prize for its investigative reporting on Watergate by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein.  Woodward and Bernstein then published "All the President's Men," which became a bestseller in 1974.  They followed this with "The Final Days" about the end of Nixon's presidency, which became a bestseller in 1976.  A bestseller in 1978 was "The Memoirs of Richard Nixon," and among Critic's Choice for 1979 was "Nixon and the Destruction of Cambodia," by William Shawcross.  The Dbl. 3rd Qtr. brought reform.

Publications Looked Back during the Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr. Review.  “Roots,” by Alex Haley Became a Blockbuster Seller in 1976 and 1977.  In this tale, Haley traced his ancestry through the days of slavery in America, and to back to villages of origin in Africa.  The television mini-series from the book captured enormous viewership and became talked about for years.  A growing interest in genealogy followed Haley's work.  "The Thorn Birds," by Colleen McCollough also went on to be a popular television mini-series.  A bestseller in 1978 was "In Search of History," by Theodore H. White. Critics' choice for this year was "Robert Kennedy and His Times," by Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., and "Intellectual Life in the Colonial South 1585 - 1763," by Robert Blake. Critics' Choices for the following year were, "Truth in History," by Oscar Handlin, and "Franklin D. Roosevelt and American Foreign Policy, 1932 - 1945," by Robert Dallek. These are but a few.  Americans were looking back.  Even the lens through which we reviewed things was reviewed.  We revised the US copyright laws in 1976 for the first time in sixty-seven years.

Trirhythmic

The “Me Generation” was described in Christopher Lasch's 1979 publication, “The Culture of Narcissism.”  As the Hearts and Minds of the nation where going asleep, (Emo-Intellectual Low), the body of the nation was alive, (Physical High).  A new generation was not interested in things larger than themselves.  The general trend showed less caring and shorter attention spans, but a greater interest in materialism and self-centered behavior.

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
9. Entertainment History:  Entertainment  9.  18th Century 1770s  Entertainment 1780s  Entertainment 1790s  Entertainment 10.  19th Century 1800s  Entertainment 1810s  Entertainment 1820s  Entertainment 1830s  Entertainment 1840s  Entertainment 1850s  Entertainment 1860s  Entertainment 1870s  Entertainment 1880s  Entertainment 1890s  Entertainment 11.  20th Century 1900s  Entertainment 1910s  Entertainment 1920s  Entertainment 1930s  Entertainment 1940s  Entertainment 1950s  Entertainment 1960s  Entertainment 1970s  Entertainment 1980s  Entertainment 1990s  Entertainment Pres. & Fut.:  Entertainment 12.  21st Century 2000s  Entertainment  1973 Ent. 1980s

9. Entertainment  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

Bruce Springsteen Exemplified Physically-based Rock 'n' Roll with the release of his "Born to Run" album in 1975.  This macho style of rock became a huge hit, putting Springsteen on the covers of both "Time" and "Newsweek."

Country Music rises with the Physical Cycle.  Stars like John Denver, and The Eagles moved onto the popular charts along with Rock and Disco artists.

Action and Adventure Came to Cinema With the Physical High.  Realism was over Romanticism came with the Emotional Low.  A declining dollar and inflated production costs came with the Intellectual Low.  The industry responded by making fewer films with high quality filled with action and realistic adventure.

Disaster films continued.  All of the biggest box hits in 1974 were in this genre that included, "Towering Inferno," about a skyscraper fire, and "Earthquake," where "sensurround" was introduced for realistic Physical effects in the Physical High.  Steven Speilberg's "Jaws" about a huge attack shark in 1975 set off "Jawsmania" and spawned sequels.

Science Fiction Rises with the Physical Cycle.  The blockbuster of them all was "Star Wars," released in 1977.  This first of a trilogy relied heavily on spell-bounding action and special effects to become the highest earning film in history, mostly  because of repeat viewers, (breaking the record set by "Jaws").  "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" also became a blockbuster sci-fi.

 Physically-Based Movie Stars were the Front-runners.  Notable figures were Newman, Redford, DeNiro, Bronson, McQueen, Reynolds, Nicholson, Eastwood, Pacino, and, of course, the Duke.  Sylvester Stallone became a star with the 1976 film "Rocky," about an aspiring boxer who makes it against the odds.  It won Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress.  Successful sequels followed.  The 1977 film, "Pumping Iron" helped to launch the movie career of body builder, Arnold Schwarzeneger.  "Saturday Night Fever" also came out in 1977 and helped popularize "Disco" music.  "Superman" came out in 1978, (assisted by an Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr. Review), and met with success and sequels.

Horror also Rises with the Physical Cycle.  Both "Nightmare on Elm Street," and "Friday the 13th," were very successful, as were the many sequels that went well into the Second Quarter.  Horror addresses danger by focusing on the Physical act of violence and aggression.  Films of this genre increased nationwide. 

Women Took on More Masculine Roles in Cinema and real life with the rise of Physically-based masculinity, and the decline of Emotionally-based femininity.  Sally Field won Best Actress in 1979 for her roles as a woman labor organizer in "Norma Rae."

Theater Audiences Preferred Vigorous Appeal to a Rigorous Speel, so the song and dance routine was the best pitch for a Physical High.  The 1975 musical "A Chorus Line," based on dancing, became an extremely long running success.

Television Shows that Did Not Focus on Review, Focused on Physical Appeal.  "The Six-Million-Dollar Man" starred a character who attained superhuman strength through cyborgnetic enhancement.  It was in the top ten in 1975 and 1976.  A spin off, "The Bionic Woman," was also in the top ten in 1975, and received an Emmy in 1976.  Twenty police or private eye shows playing cops and robbers on television came on in 1976.  "The Incredible Hulk" premiered in 1978 starring Bill Bixby and body builder, Lou Ferrigno.  “The Dukes of Hazard" was among the top ten in 1979 as it relied on stars with Physical appeal and numerous car chase scenes.  Genres, like the times were Physical.

Physical 1st Qtr. Foundation

(1971 - 1978)

Disco was the New Music for the 1970s in the Physical 1st Qtr.  This most acrobatic of styles arose around 1974 as dancers performed vigorous movements with a masculine display of kinetic energy.  By 1975, dances like "The Hustle," "The Bump," and the "Robot" were in.  The Bee Gees released the "Saturday Night Fever" album in 1978, (from the motion picture), which sold a record twelve million copies.  Disco peaked around 1979 with stars like Donna Summer and the Bee Gees leading the way.  Disco was the simplest of all beats, it had minimal accompaniment, and the lyrics were few and free of much meaning, (Emo-Intellectual Low).  People played it to dance.  Gymnasiums played Disco music while instructing exercise classes.  Most new forms of music to emerge in the late 1970s and 1980s were spin-offs of Disco.

9. Entertainment  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

9. Entertainment  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

9. Entertainment  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

Emo-Intellectual Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

The “Nostalgia Craze” came as the Double 3rd Qtr. (and following Physical 3rd Qtr.) To cause one of the longest and most intense periods of review and reform in our history, (1973 to 1992).  The craze received media attention and the past was the in thing.  Entertainment turned to the past, sometimes with social criticism, as it was the post-Watergate era.  Regression also accompanied the Cyclical Low.  A study titled "Museums USA," showed that 36% of museums made service and personnel cuts since 1967, nearly 57% were using volunteers, and 37% had to begin charging admission.  America was staying in, and looking back.

 Music was Dominated by “Golden Oldies” in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.  We filled tavern juke boxes with recordings from 9 to 10 years earlier, and from 18 to 20 years earlier as the 3rd Qtr. of the Emotional Cycle reflected the preceding 1st and 2nd Qtrs. year by year.  Radio stations switched over to "Oldies" programs.  Record stores and television advertisers would sell composite collections of favorite hits by old stars.  By the 1980s, parents and teenagers were attending the same music concerts.  The "generation gap" of the 1960s, was gone Review came in.  Don McLean's, "American Pie," was released in 1972, just before the Third Quarter.  We would play this nostalgic look at Rock ‘n' Roll for years to come.  Elvis Presley died in 1977, and two million Elvis records sold in one day.  Elvis impersonators sprang up everywhere as America remembered a pop icon.  Most, (not all), Rock groups followed the basic band structure of the early 1960s; vocals, rhythm guitar, lead guitar, bass guitar, and jazz drum set.  Much of the music stayed within the same genre or previously established spin-offs.  A Brief Revival came for Jazz, as well as  "Swing," "Fusion," and "Ragtime," all of which could be heard on conventional radio stations from 1977.  Many new jazz groups relied on the old jazz methods for their style.

 Review and Reform of the Past was Strong at the Box Office in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.  "That's Entertainment” came out in 1974 as a collage of musicals from the 1930s to the 1950s. It grossed $18 million.  In review, "Godfather 2" looked back on organized crime in 1974 and won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actor, (DeNiro). Woody Allen's "Network," presented and unusual view in 1975 on the power that television networks had acquired.  It brought Oscars for Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway and Beatrice Straight.  "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" from Ken Kesey's book was also released in 1975, starring Jack Nicholson.  It was a hard criticism on society's mental institutions that won: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Actor, and Best Screenplay for 1975, becoming the first film to win five Academy Awards since 1934.

 The Viet Nam War was Reviewed in Numerous films. "The Deer Hunter starring Robert DeNiro, Meryl Streep, Christopher Walken took Best Picture and Best Director for 1978.  "Coming Home," starring Jane Fonds, Jon Voight, and Bruce Dern, took Best Actress and Best Actor for 1978. Both movies looked at the difficulties that war veterans faced upon returning to the US. Coppola's compelling "Apocalypse Now," starring Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall and Martin Sheen in 1979, was set during the Viet Nam War.  A Dbl. 3rd Qtr. brought review to Viet Nam.

The 1950s and 1960s were Reviewed in Films.  "Grease" went from a musical to a film release in 1978.  "National Lampoon's Animal House" also came out this year as a humorous look back on 1960s college campus life.  "The Rose," in 1979, was somewhat based on the life of 1960s Rock singer, Janis Joplin.  In 1979, "All That Jazz," revived older styles of dance and music.  "Star Trek - The Motion Picture," spawned from the 1960s television program this year and began a long string of sequels.  Also to follow “Star Trek” the television series were three spin-off television shows, the beginning of the ever popular Star Trek conventions across the nation, and a special exhibit at the Smithsonian Institute.  Had television programmers known that a Dbl. 3rd Qtr. would bring review and a Physical High would boost sci-fi, would they ever have canceled "Star Trek?"

 Parody of the Past was Strong at the Box Office.  Parody of the high Cycle is popular during the Low Cycle.  Mel Brookes released "Blazing Saddles" in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr. in 1974 as a parody of the Westerns, to much success. "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" parodied old science fiction films in 1978 and developed a cult following.  It since became the longest running first-run film in American history.

 Musicals also Looked Back in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.  "Beatlemania," reviewed the "The Beatles," in 1977.  "Annie," very successfully spawned off from the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie," this year.  The musical "Grease" reviewed the 1950s and became the longest running Broadway show in 1979 after 3,243 performances.

 Review Came to Television as Americans looked back in the Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr.  “The Waltons," portrayed the life of a rural American family during the Great Depression and was in the top 10 shows of 1974.  "Happy Days," premiered this year and looked back on the 1950s.  It was in the top ten from 1976 through 1978.  One of its stars, Henry Winkler, earned one of TV's top salaries with $990,000.  A spin off "Lavern and Shirley," was in the top ten from 1975 through 1978.  "M*A*S*H," was set at an US Army medical during the Korean war.  It was in top ten in 1974, and from 1976 through 1979.  Norman Lear made a successful parody of daytime drama, or "soap operas," with the show "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman," in 1975. 

 Review Was the Trend in the Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr.  Televisions Highest Ratings to Date Came by Airing "Gone With the Wind," the 1939 film aired in 1976.  The Show, "Little House on the Prairie" portrayed frontier American life and hit in the top ten in 1977.  The Richard Nixon Interview by David Frost in 1977 became the highest rated interview in history with forty-five million viewers.  Religious review came in "Jesus of Nazareth" which aired in 1977.  The largest TV audience ever seen watched the television mini-series special, "Roots," in 1977.  It looked back on slavery in America and sought out the African origins of African Americans.  It drew 130 million viewers.  Another special, “Holocaust,” also appeared this year as a review of World War II.  It drew 120 million viewers.

Social Criticism Came to Some Situation Comedies with Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr. Reform.  Programs like, "the Jeffersons," "Sanford and Son," took a different view on black roles in America.  The multiple-emmy-award winning show, "All in the Family," was a top show for many years that served a lyceum for social change.  Investigative reporting was popular and "60 Minutes" was in the top ten from 1977 through 1979.  A similar program, "20/20" premiered in 1978.

Television Became a Medium of Reform, and a Medium Under Reform in the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.  Because of public concern about TV violence and pressure from the FCC, the National Association of Broadcasters networks agreed in 1975 that 8:00 to 10:00 would be suitable for family viewing.  The FCC then studied children's television in 1978 to see if there was enough time and educational content allocated to it.

The entertainment media in general used either Physical appeal, or review and reform throughout the remainder of the 1970s.

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
10. Sports History:  Sports  9.  18th Century 1770s  Sports 1780s  Sports 1790s  Sports 10.  19th Century 1800s  Sports 1810s  Sports 1820s  Sports 1830s  Sports 1840s  Sports 1850s  Sports 1860s  Sports 1870s  Sports 1880s  Sports 1890s  Sports 11.  20th Century 1900s  Sports 1910s  Sports 1920s  Sports 1930s  Sports 1940s  Sports 1950s  Sports 1960s  Sports 1970s  Sports 1980s  Sports 1990s  Sports Present & Future:  Sports 12.  21st Century 2000s  Sports  1973 Sports 1980s

10. Sports  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

The Sports and Fitness Craze was in Full Swing.  Aerobics was very big, sports clothing and equipment sold very well, and America's heroes were athletes.

Stunt man, Evel Kneivel Found Ready Audiences for outlandish feats in the Physical High.  The audience itself turned out to be Physical itself in 1974 when his failed attempt to launch his rocket propelled Sky-Cycle X-2 across the Idaho Snake River failed.  Riots and stampedes followed.  Amateur Mountain Climber, George Willing decided to scale the 1,350 ft. South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York in 1977, because it was there.

 Muhammad Ali Became One of the Most Popular Figures in Boxing during this time.  His fights with George Foreman and Joe Frazier captured national attention.  In 1978, Ali took the heavyweight boxing title for a record third time during a rematch with former Olympic champion, Leon Spinks, 70,000 million viewers paid more than $7 million to watch.  This event was seen by 34.7 million television viewers at home, making the match the most watched broadcast in the history of television.  Ali retired with a record fifty-six wins, with twenty-seven Knock outs, and an estimated $50 million in earnings.  Not since a previous Physical High had any boxer received so much notoriety.

 Sports Celebrities Enjoyed More Wealth and Bargaining Power.  In 1974, the US Olympic Committee adopted a bill of rights for its athletes.  Free-agent contracts were signed, like those of Rollie Fongers, Gary Matthews, Dave Cash and Don Gullett in 1977.  The National Basketball Association grew in 1977 as four teams merged with it after the disbanding of the ABA.  All across the country, sports figures earned high-priced product endorsements and became heroes to an exercising American public.  Children emulated pro-sports figures, such as basketball's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and played sports with fervor.  America was getting Physical in the Physical High.

Feminism Expanded Beyond Suffrage, Business, and Military, and Into Sports.  The Little League admitted Girls in 1974.  Pennsylvania became the first state to find it unconstitutional to ban girls from athletic competition with boys in 1975.  A federal judge in Ohio made a similar ruling in 1978.  The Fed ordered in 1975 that women be granted equal access to sports in schools, after finding that  financial allocations like UCLA's 1974-75 $3 million budget on sports had only $180,000 directed toward women's sports.  The first woman referee in heavyweight championship boxing appeared as Eva Shain refereed the fight between Ali and Shaver in New York City in 1977.  In 1978, a federal judge overrode the baseball commissioner's ban on female reporters in locker rooms.  Ann Meyers became the first woman to sign an NBA contract, which she did in 1979, for $50,000, though she did not play during the season.  Women's roles became masculinized in the Physical High, Emotional Low.

 Physical Fitness Was Big.  By the Physical peak in 1978: the number of adult who exercised daily - or almost daily was at 47%, up from 24% in 1961, (Physical Low); three million Americans played tennis, up from 50,000 in 1970, and one person in nine was jogging.  The jogging fad had roadsides, parks and trail ways everywhere and they were littered with joggers in sweat suits and new sneakers.  The sneaker became reinvented with soaring sales, despite soaring price tags.  Walking also came in, popularized by President Carter's walk back from his inauguration in 1977.  "Roller Disco" became a fad in 1977 and roller skating, and skateboarding was popular nationwide.

 More Sports Records Were Broken During the Physical High.  In 1974; Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth's record of 714 home runs and scored his 775th run, golfer Johnny Miller won a one-year record of $346,933, and women's tennis saw a record $40,000 earned by Chris Everet on the Virginia Slims tour.  When the seventh game of the 1975 world series was played, a record audience of 75.9 million viewers watched.  Archie Griffin of Ohio State was the first one to win the Heisman trophy - twice.  In 1977, Attendance in at US basketball events rose to more than 10 million. Football's Walter Payton of Chicago set a single-game rushing record of 275 yards.  A.J. Foyt won the Indianapolis 500 for a record fourth time. Seventeen-year-old jockey, Steve Cauthen, earned a record $6.1 million in purses with 487 wins in horse racing.  Ty Cobb's record, set in 1928 during a previous Physical High, was broken when St. Louis Cardinal outfielder, Lou Brock, stole 893 bases. Hockey's Gordie Howe became the first player to score 1,000 points.

 Even More Records Were Broken in the Physical Peak of 1978 than  just about any other time.  Pro football Increased from a fourteen game season to a sixteen game season.  North American Soccer League Attendance Rose with a 50% increase and soccer became the fastest growing sport.  Baseball Drew a Record forty million fans.  Pete Rose Set a National League Record consecutive-game streak of forty-four hits. Golfer Tom Watson Won a Record $462,636.  Nancy Lopez Earned a First-year Professional Golfer's Record of $153,336 and won five consecutive tournaments.  Tennis Player John McEnroe Exceeded $1 Million in earnings and won the US men's singles championship three years in a row, (1979, 1980 & 1981).  In the Summer Olympics in Germany, 15-year-old Tracy Caulkins, Set US Records in Fourteen Events and won five gold medals at the World Swimming Championships.  The First Crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in a Balloon was also done by three Americans this year from Maine to France. Irene Miller and Vera Komarkova were the both the first Americans, and the First Women to Climb Annapurna One, the 26,545 foot mountain, Annapurna One, in Nepal.  The New York City marathon had, 9,875 Runners with 8,748 completing the 26-mile course.

 Records Continued in 1979.  Football's Dan Fouts, of San Diego, Set a Rushing Record of 14,082 yards. In Baseball: St. Louis Cardinal, Lou Brock, made his 300th hit; Carl Yastremski, of the Boston Red Sox, hit his 400th home run, and Philadelphia Philly, Pete Rose, broke the National League all-time record with 2,427 hits.  Sixteen-year-old Tracy Austin became the Youngest Women's Tennis champion in US Open history when she took the women's singles tennis title in Queens, New York.

10. Sports  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

10. Sports  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

10. Sports  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
11. Fashion History:  Fashion  9.  18th Century 1770s  Fashion 1780s  Fashion 1790s  Fashion 10.  19th Century 1800s  Fashion 1810s  Fashion 1820s  Fashion 1830s  Fashion 1840s  Fashion 1850s  Fashion 1860s  Fashion 1870s  Fashion 1880s  Fashion 1890s  Fashion 11.  20th Century 1900s  Fashion 1910s  Fashion 1920s  Fashion 1930s  Fashion 1940s  Fashion 1950s  Fashion 1960s  Fashion 1970s  Fashion 1980s  Fashion 1990s  Fashion Present & Future:  Fashion 12.  21st Century 2000s  Fashion  1973 Fashion 1980s

11. Fashion  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

Materialism Influenced Fashion during the Physical High.  "Dress for success" was the title of a successful book by the end of the decade, and the code new money makers.  Women's bags in 1976 were business like and dresses were dark and professional looking.  Women cut their hair into shorter styles, (Emotional Low), like that of Olympic champion Dorothy Hamill, (Physical High).  Men's clothing became more conservative and tailored with more professional lines.  The width of neckties, lapels, collars and belts, all became ever more narrow, (Emotional decline).  Adornments that were worn were usually to show financial status, like gold chains - sometimes even Krugarands, and small diamond earrings.

Sports Clothing Was in by the Physical Peak in 1978.  Jogging outfits, tank tops, sweat gear, and sports shoes were all around.  Some 50% of all shoe sales in 1978 were sneakers that had a meteoric rise to 200 million sales.  People were wearing the sporty look, and the disco look.  Cheryl Tiegs became the highest paid model in the world in 1977, as she earned $1,000 a day.  She exemplified the plain, no nonsense look with simple appeal, (Physical High, Emotional Low).

11. Fashion  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

11. Fashion  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

11. Fashion  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

Emo-Intellectual Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

Older Styles Came Back in Fashion.  The "Fifties" were back with leather jackets, straight legged jeans and hair styles older hair styles.  The Forties made something of a comeback with wide brim hats and high rise baggy pants for men.  Women wore the broad and squared off padded shoulders and high heels for the "Joan Crawford look."  Accessories in 1974 used Art Deco geometry.  Victorian camisoles and capes were seen.  The ethnic look revived Russian tunics and boots, Chinese worker shirts and pants with quilted vests, and some Native American patterns.  Slit skirts, 1940s style came in near the end of the decade.

Tastes Toned Down as the Economy Declined.  The use of versatile accessories expanded wardrobes like camisoles and jackets in basic colors.   In 1975, some women's designers, such as Halstron, turned to men's wear, (showing a shift from feminine to masculine energy).  Jeans were still in for casual wear.  By 1977, women's fashion was austere and less adorned with accessories and jewelry.  Men were conservative with Oxford button-down collars and dark suits.  Clothing was more loose fitting for both men and women by the end of the decade.  Styles were either conservative, or reflective in the Emo-Intellectual Review.

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
12. Lifestyles History:  Lifestyles  9.  18th Century 1770s  Lifestyles 1780s  Lifestyles 1790s  Lifestyles 10.  19th Century 1800s  Lifestyles 1810s  Lifestyles 1820s  Lifestyles 1830s  Lifestyles 1840s  Lifestyles 1850s  Lifestyles 1860s  Lifestyles 1870s  Lifestyles 1880s  Lifestyles 1890s  Lifestyles 11.  20th Century 1900s  Lifestyles 1910s  Lifestyles 1920s  Lifestyles 1930s  Lifestyles 1940s  Lifestyles 1950s  Lifestyles 1960s  Lifestyles 1970s  Lifestyles 1980s  Lifestyles 1990s  Lifestyles Present & Future:  Lifestyles 12.  21st Century 2000s  Lifestyles  1973 Lifestyles 1980s

12. Lifestyles  1974-80

Physical Cycle

top

Physical High

(1971 - 1985)

Territorial Behavior Increased With the Physical High.  Sectarian fence building will manifest in pack behavior with everything from fraternity clubs to business mergers.  Membership increased for many organizations.  The United Farm Workers gained in membership and gained improvements for its workers.  By 1980, about 15% of the white-collar workers in America were unionized.  The Fed already permitted its employees to be unionized, and by the mid 1970s, almost all state and local governments had also permitted collective bargaining and employee unionship.  The American Federation of Teachers had about 570,000 members by 1980, and the National Education Association had about 1.7 million members.

Ethnicity Increased With the Physical High.  Hispanics, Chicanos, American Indians, Italians, Afro-Americans, Irish and more, proclaimed their identification with national derivation with pride.  Tricolor emblems showed national colors were adorned on automobile bumpers and windows.  Laws supporting bilingual education were passed, and regionalism came about.  Communities gained control within municipalities, towns won control among the county, counties made headway within the state, and states won sovereignty against the Fed.

Marital Arts Became Very Popular in the 1970s.  This was greatly enhanced by the hit television program, "Kung Fu" and a Physical High.  Centers teaching the arts arose across the nation. It had appeal as a means for fitness and defense.

 Violence and Acts of Vandalism Increased with a Physical High.  In 1975, homicides were up 20% in 1975, rapes and robberies were up 40% over the last ten years.  Crimes against students and teachers were up exponentially.  A bomb went off at La Guardia airport in New York killing 11 people in 1975.  Violence rose throughout the nation.

Streaking Became a Fad in 1974, bringing the lighter side of aggression.  College students would run naked across the most inappropriate venues, like public places and important social gatherings. Even a nationally televised award program fell victim to a streaker in 1974. A previous college fad that remotely resembled this might be the "panty raid" fad in 1950, (also a Physical High).

Per Capita Intake of Beef Increased from 85.1 pounds in 1960 to 128.5 pounds by 1976.  As the Physical Cycle rose, so did our consumption of meat.  Health food stores and bottled water also increased across the nation by 1977. Health food sales went from $140 million to $1.6 billion during the decade.

12. Lifestyles  1974-80

Emotional Cycle

top

Emotional Low

(1973 - 1985)

The Nuclear Family was Hard Hit by during the Emotional Low.  A high Physical Cycle also increased individuation and fence building.  As Tom Wolfe said in 1976, it was the "Me-Decade."  The result was that more people were living alone, some 60% more than before in 1978, or 23% of the population.  The divorce rate was already at a record high before it increased from 60% from 1978 to 1979 alone.  Some 40% of the children would know single-parent households - 90% headed by mothers.  Reform came to the family. New York City police began arresting wife beaters as of 1978.  True family unions seemed fewer.  A little less love flows in the nation during an Emotional Low.  Instead, it was becoming a time of self absorption, hedonism, and narcissism.

"For some reason, self-doubt appears to thrive in our Bicentennial year," said noted historian and former cabinet member, Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. that year.  Schlesinger is a believer in cycles of history who wrote, "The Cycles of American History."  The reason, may have been a Low in the 36-year Emotional Cycle.

12. Lifestyles  1974-80

Intellectual Cycle

top

12. Lifestyles  1974-80

Polyrhythms

top

Physical High with      Emotional Low

(1973 - 1985)

Greater Acceptance of Homosexuality came with the rising masculinization and declining feminization of the Physical High - Emotional Low.  At the same time, society was overpopulated and did not need to increase procreation.  A solution for society, was to accept homosexuality.  The gay movement affected both men and women, but in the 1970s, male homosexuality was more the issue, (Lesbianism was more the topic in the 1960s when the Physical and Emotional Cycles were reversed, bringing greater feminization).  The world's largest employer, AT&T, forbid discrimination against homosexuals in 1974.  The first known homosexual elected to state office was Elaine Noble in 1974.  When former Miss America winner and orange industry spokeswoman, Anita Bryant, publicly denounced homosexuality in 1977, she herself was denounced.  She attempted to bring repeal to the Dade County, California ordinance that forbids discrimination against homosexuals in housing and employment, she met with an unexpected tide of opposition.

Physical High with      Emo-Intellectual Dbl. 3rd Qtr. Review

(1973 - 1982)

On July 4th, 1976, the US celebrated its 200th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. We had exhibits, projects and commemorations for the occasion. Ships of all types from around the world came into New York Harbor to honor America.  A new feeling of nationalism came with the Physical High, and reverence for our history came with the Dbl. 3rd Qtr.  It was the birthday of a very great nation.

top	drop down to navigate category in other decades:		prev. next
Summary History:  Summary  9.  18th Century 1770s  Summary 1780s  Summary 1790s  Summary 10.  19th Century 1800s  Summary 1810s  Summary 1820s  Summary 1830s  Summary 1840s  Summary 1850s  Summary 1860s  Summary 1870s  Summary 1880s  Summary 1890s  Summary 11.  20th Century 1900s  Summary 1910s  Summary 1920s  Summary 1930s  Summary 1940s  Summary 1950s  Summary 1960s  Summary 1970s  Summary 1980s  Summary 1990s  Summary Present & Future:  Summary 12.  21st Century 2000s  Summary  1973 Summary 1980s

The Emo-Intellectual 3rd Qtr. brought strong reforms across the nation. We spent more time looking back, than looking forward. Meanwhile, the Physical Cycle peaked in 1978 to bring us sports legends, construction and a new sense of identification.

============

top