This really dates me as I remember every single thing mentioned. A bit lengthy but it’s fun to read.
Bernie Sanders, September 1941
When Bernie Sanders was born, you could buy for $1.00 what would cost $16.33 today. The cost of gas was a mere 19¢ per gallon.
On his birthday, the top song was “Green Eyes” (Aquellos Ojos Verdes) by Jimmy Dorsey and His Orchestra, and the top film was “Citizen Kane,” which only cost 25¢ to attend.
The scandal that had everyone talking was Orson Wells and William Randolph Hearst’s feud over the wildly successful “Citizen Kane,” which Hearst thought was based on him. Sanders was born just three months before the tragic attack on Pearl Harbor.
Joe Biden, November 1942
The year Joe Biden was born, $1.00 was worth $15.74 today. Gas still cost 19¢ per gallon. Bing Crosby was having a great month, as his song “White Christmas” was number 1 when Biden was born, and he starred in the top film, “Road to Morocco,” which you could attend for 27¢.
However, November 1942 was also the time World War II was intensifying. American troops had landed in Africa, as the Nazis took over France.
Donald Trump, June 1946
Donald Trump was born when $1.00 could buy goods worth $13.16 today. Gas prices had risen to 21¢ per gallon. The top song was “The Gypsy” by The Ink Spots, and the top movie “The Farmer’s Daughter,” with an admission price of 35¢.
World War II had ended the year before. The biggest Hollywood story was Howard Hughes crashing his plane into three Beverly Hills homes.
Elizabeth Warren, June 1949
When Elizabeth Warren was born, $1.00 had equal purchasing power to $10.78 today. Gas prices had gone up again, rising to 26¢ per gallon. Country/Western music was succeeding on the charts, as “(Ghost) Riders in the Sky: A Cowboy Legend” by Vaughn Monroe and His Orchestra was the number one song.
The top film was Little Women, which only cost 46¢ to see in theaters. The end of a decade sees Cold War sensibilities increase the fear of Communism, with the beginning of Joe McCarthy’s House of UnAmerican Activities Committee trials, where he questioned suspected communists.
