e greatest f its time. itS f> NO orcu, ore ' year to the ;uage and ds gain new pplement to s published in IT more sup- volumes were ;tween 1972 rte Second fas published, jnal edition ipplementary I thousand >90s, three litions were >rk is being .tion of the > be published L-volume ref- ng 21,730 out $1,500 US suitable for •e is a_minis- of om- mt uous The Roaring Twenties editions of dictionary, Marc Skulnick looks at a vibrant decade of peace, prosperity and social change tations, con- withnew AFTER THE DARK times of the previous decade, the The Roaring Twenties was the decade of the US's led all the 1920s offered a welcome respite, a time to kick back failed attempt at Prohibition, of speakeasies and boot- ms of John- and enjoy the prosperity and promise that was evi- leggers — when it was illegal to drink but only if you Iso still avail- dent in nearly every facet of society. got caught. Organized crime, borne out of the wide- Technological innovation and advancement meant spread lawlessness of Prohibition, saw the age of the and specialist that more "life-improving" products than ever before gangster — of Al Capone and Bugs Moran — thrust .ous publish- were available. The economy was booming, the stan- itself into the mainstream of a nervous American public. nted as every- dard of living was improving, jobs were plentiful and It was the decade that saw the rise of Lenin and writers consumers were looking to buy: from cars and houses Communism in Russia, the rise of fascism and Mus- word. to fridges and radios. Industrialization and mass pro- solini in Italy and the disturbing popularity of the Ku duction made many goods — previously considered a Klux Klan in America, which saw the secret society's luxury — affordable. And if they couldn't afford it, membership hit an all-time high. It was a time of Life of Samuel banks and businesses were more than willing to let treaties, most notably the Washington Naval Treaty, rmondsworth, people buy on credit. Not only were people spending, which attempted to quell an arms race, in this period but the stock market had them investing as well, so of uneasy peace, by limiting the size of the naval The Meaning much so, that throughout the decade, the Dow Jones armaments. y of the Oxford climbed to record highs. A collapse, some of the more Politically, the suffrage movement scored a long ford: Oxford pessimistic experts warned, was all but inevitable. overdue victory at the beginning of the decade when This vibrancy was evident in the bold jazz music, women were given the right to vote (Canadian women '')• The Professor and fancy night clubs that inspired everything from had been allowed to vote federally since 1918). It soon e of Murder, the controversial fashions of the flappers to the movie became obvious that women weren't afraid to flex '.g of the stars of the silver screen. The entertainment medium their new power, both politically and socially. ary (Oxford: — radio and movies — came to the fore, as did sports Unaware of the hardship and poverty that was to and literature. The '20s were the decade of Valentino follow, the Roaring Twenties, allowed people to forget and Hemingway, of a mouse named Mickey and a about the Great War and look to the future with a rare baseball player called Babe. sense of optimism. History Magazine October/November 2005 —11 1920 - The US Government's 18th Mickey Mouse Amendment prohibiting the mak- "Mickey Mouse is the symbol of good- Disney took full advantage. He ing, selling, possession and con- will, surpassing all languages and quickly added sound to Mickey sumption of alcoholic beverages cultures. When one sees Mickey Mouse's previously ignored silent goes into effect, ushering in fee Mouse, they see happiness." cartoons and began production on era of Prohibition. — Former US President Jimmy a fourth Mickey Mouse feature, Carter The Barn Dance. Soon audiences Arthur Meighen is sworn in as Prime Minister of Canada, replacing Robert Borden. MICKEY MOUSE, the cheerfully ani- mated rodenirsynonymous with- Republican Warren Harding Disney for over 75 years, made his becomes president of the United silver screen debut on 18 Novem- States of America. ber 1928 in Steamboat Willie. According to popular legend, Fourteen British officers are exe- Walt Disney came up with Mickey cuted by the IRA, sparking a day of violence and murder Mouse as he was returning, via throughout Ireland. train, from a business meeting in New York to his home in Los United States passes the 19th Angeles, California. Disney had Amendment, giving women the just lost the rights to his most right to vote. recent creation, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and the crestfallen 26-year- : . 1921 "^0:^ Canadians Frederick Banting and old cartoon artist was determined Charles Best discover insulin. to come up with a replacement character to work on back at his The Russian navy mutinies to small studio. protest food shortages and the By the end of the journey, Dis- '*— 11.1 ^ -.. f - - . • -••--."-. ..: -.---•'. ongoing economic crisis. The Bol- ney had come up with a red velvet STEAMBOAT WILUE shevik government crushes the clad mouse he christened Mor- revolt, which leads to Lenin's timer Mouse. However, Disney's Mickey Mouse made his silver screen debut in Steamboat Willie. economic policy reforms. wife, Lillian, hated the name Mor- Oklahoma race riots erupt, as timer and recommended Mickey across the US couldn't get enough many as 300 people are killed instead. The name stuck and it of Mickey and over the next year, and 35 city blocks are destroyed. wasn't long before Disney's 12 more Mickey Mouse cartoons newest creation starred in Plane would be released. Britain's post-war recession wors- Crazy and The Gallopin' Gaucho. Steamboat Willie also heralded ens, with unemployment at 18 The only problem was,*Al Jolson's the introduction of Minnie Mouse, percent (two million people). The Jazz Singer, the first feature Mickey's eventual girlfriend. An ••.; ; '"'.;.' ',.: 1922 : . '•'. -: film to have synchronized sound, interesting bit of trivia is that James Joyce's Ulysses is published. has just been released and nobody Mickey — voiced by Disney him- wanted silent cartoons anymore. self until 1946 — did not speak Pope Benedict XV, who reigned Not only could Disney not find a until The Karnival Kid in 1929, as pope of the Roman Catholic studio willing to finance his ani- although purists can note that Church since 1914, dies and is mated shorts, but audiences didn't Mickey Mouse does whistle in replaced by Pope Pius XL seem all that impressed with his Steamboat Willie. Even back then, it The German mark begins to mouse to begin with. Disney and didn't take long for the Disney devalue due to heavy WWI repa- his team of animators went back merchandising juggernaut to ration demands, ushering in a to the drawing board. swing into action and the first period of hyperinflation. In late November 1928, Disney Mickey Mouse merchandise — a — who had invested everything children's school book — hit the The Washington Treaty is signed he had into a mischievous dancing shelves by the end of the decade. by the US, Britain, Japan, France mouse — screened Steamboat The first Mickey Mouse Club start- and Italy. The agreement limits Willie, complete with sound, for a ed around that time also. the size of the naval armaments group of film exhibitors. Three Mickey Mouse would go on to of the nations involved. weeks later, Mickey Mouse was become the world's most famous Andrew Bonar Law becomes running at the Colony Theater and cartoon character, starring in more Prime Minister of Britain. taking New York cinema-goers by than 120 animated features and storm. Although sound was still a helping to spawn a multi-billion Vladimir Ilych Lenin proclaims relatively new development in fea- dollar animation and theme park the formation of the Union of ture films, most theaters in the US empire. Talk about the mouse that Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR): had installed sound systems and roared! 12 — History Magazine October/November 2005 Prohibition Ivantage. He WHEN THE 18th Amendment to the ed offenses. In Chicago alone, the hard-earned wages on alcohol. nd t~ Mickey US Constitution went into effect first six months of Prohibition saw Even the seemingly lawful use of y i id silent on 16 January 1920, it became ille- over 600 liquor violation charges. alcohol for medicinal purposes n p Auction on gal to manufacture, sell or trans- In short, the legal system was col- was being abused; in 1928 alone, it .ouse feature, port alcohol of any kind, any- lapsing under the weight of the is suspected that doctors pre- on audiences where in the United States of apparent lawlessness and blatant scribed over one million gallons America. America was officially disregard for Prohibition. Orga- and earned as much as $40 million dry and the era of National Prohi- nized crime was rampant in New US by illegally prescribing medici- bition-would soon usher in a York and Chicage-and in-the-first - nal-alcohol'to thirsty patients. For - vibrant but deadly subculture of three years, more than 30 prohibi- a law that was aimed at reducing organized crime, speakeasies crime and other illegal behav- and bootleggers. ior, it was proving to do any- However, the seeds of thing but. prohibition were sown In the late 1920s, an decades earlier during the increasing number of Ameri- aggressive temperance (anti- cans, politicians included, drinking) movements of the began to find the idea of mid 19th century.