Essay On The 1950's

During the 1950s, the United States experienced a period of prosperity. Many inventions eased Americans workload and some just made life more enjoyable. One such invention was the color television. Television, in general, allowed people to catch glimpses of the world from their living room sofas. Now, sports fans on one coast to watch sporting events which were occurring across on the other coast in their own home. The sporting world of the 1950s gave viewers a lot to talk about and many great memories.

During the 1950’s the New York Yankee’s were the dominate team in baseball. They were the main subject of the many conversations. The Bronx Bombers dominates in many areas: infield, outfield, and batting. They lost one very prominent player after the 1951 season, Joe DiMaggio. Once Joe DiMaggio retired, he joined the single digit Yankee greats such as Babe Ruth (3) and Lou Gehrig (4). Mickey Mantle took over centerfield in 1952. In October, the Yankees had a four game sweep over the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series. The Yankees had their second straight title and their ninth baseball championship in fifteen seasons. The Yankees’ pitching squad overwhelmed the Philadelphia's hitters in the World Series. Starting the domination, Vic Raschi pitched a two-hit shut-out. This feat set the tone for the rest of the World Series. The Phillies batted only .203 and managed only five runs, with no home runs in the series. The Yankees played in eight World Series in the 1950’s winning six of them.

However,the city of New York team did not dominate the sport of basketball.

In basketball, the Rochester Royals beat the New York Knickerbockers in seven games to win the NBA title. Rochester won the first three games of the series, then lost the next three games. In the final game on April 21, 1951, Rochester edged out New York 79-75. In 1952, the New York Knickerbockers tried once again to bring the championship home, but the Minneapolis Lakers overpowered

them.

The Minneapolis Lakers won four NBA championships in the 1950s. In 1959, they tried for their fifth championship, but fell short to the Boston Celtics. During the decade, George Mikan was the dominant force for the Lakers. In 1950, Mikan averaged a league-best 27.4 points per game during the regular season. He stepped his performance up in the playoffs by averaging 31.3 points per game. He scored 40 points in a 110-95 victory over Syracuse in the last game of the NBA finals.

The sport of basketball had other momentous occasions in the 1950s. On March 2, 1951, more than ten thousand fans gathered at Boston Garden and watched the East beat the West, 111-94 in the NBA’s first All-Star Game. Earlier in that same year the longest game in NBA history was played. On January 6, Indianapolis beat Rochester 75-73. The game went to six overtime periods before producing a winner.

The 1950 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 8 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began in New York City on March 23, 1950, and ended with the championship game on March 28th. City College of New York (CCNY), coached by Nat Holman, won the national title with a 71-68 victory in the final game over Bradley, coached by Forddy Anderson. Irwin Dambrot of CCNY was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. CCNY became the only team to ever win both the NIT and NCAA tournaments in the same year. Because of rules regarding who can participate in each tournament, this currently cannot happen. CCNY is also the only championship team which is not currently a member of Division I, having dropped down to Division III. This demotion was due to CCNY point shaving scandal of 1950-51.

In football that same year, the Cleveland Browns joined the NFL from the defunct All-America Football Conference in 1950. The Cleveland Browns made it to the title game the next six years. They won three of these games. Cleveland’s Paul Brown, an innovative head coach, revolutionized the game with by using full-time coaching staffs and radio communication with his quarterback. Also, he did extensive college scouting. One of the successful highlights of the Browns’ reign occurred on November 25, 1951. Dub Jones, a halfback, scored six touchdowns in a 42-21 victory over the Chicago Bears. Two other players, Eria Nevers and Gale Sayers have also scored six touchdowns in an NFL game; however, no one has surpassed this record.

1950 was an anniversary year in the sport of golf. The 1950 U.S. Open was the 50th U.S. Open. It was held on June 8–11 at the East Course of Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania.This event is known as the "Miracle at Merion". Ben Hogan won the second of his four U.S. Open titles in an 18-hole playoff against Lloyd Mangrum and George Fazio. This marked the fourth of Hogan’s nine major titles. Lee Mackey established a new tournament record by shooting a 64 in the first round. Nevertheless, Mackey could not win because he followed this great performance up with an 81 and finished in 25th place. Mackey’s score of 64 would not be bettered in any other major championship until Johnny Miller finished with a 63 at the 1973 U.S. Open.
Having many great sporting moments, the 1950s left Americans with many incredible memories and topics of conversation. Events that occurred in this decade are still on the record books and may well never be broken. To have only been alive and watched it all unfold on a television or in person would have been wonderful.