The 1920s was known as the "jazz age" because was just beginning to become popular. Many musicians during the "jazz age" influenced the music during the period.  Some of the well-known entertainers that are still remembered today are Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Bessie Smith. Louis Armstrong was one of the few that helped change the way music was written and played during the 1920s. Other than changing the music and changing it for the better Louis Armstrong also made one of his famous recordings, which was West End Blues. Another famous musician that helped impact the music of the 1920s was Duke Ellington he is known as America's greatest composer, when he would perform at concerts he composed and played all his own music. Bessie Smith was known as the "Blues Empress" she is considered the most famous blues singer of the 1920s. Her first recorded song was Down Hearted Blues, which sold over 2,000,000 copies in the first year. These musicians changed the way music was written and performed not just during the 1920s but also for music today.  ^[1]

 

 

 

                                     

 BESSIE SMITH                                      DUKE ELLINGTON                                          LOUIS ARMSTRONG

 

                                                    LOUIS ARMSTRONG-    What a Wonderful World.mp3 

  

DUKE ELLINGTON-IT DON"T MEAN A THING.                        

BESSIE SMITH-DOWN HEARTED BLUES.                                  

                             

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other than popular music that helped keep people entertained there were cartoons, movies, books, games and radio programs.  The radio was the first type of broadcasted entertainment and the broadcast that ever came out was in November of 1920. If you turned on your radio on the right time you could listen to comedy shows, news, some live events, jazz, variety shows, dramas, and operas they were all on the radio and was used daily by the people in the 1920s. During the time when the radio was one of the most popular sources of entertainment two disc jockies by the names of Amos and Andy came on to the radio. In the year of 1928 the television was invented all shows were in black and white, and soon it replaced the radio. During the year the television came out so did the first Mickey Mouse cartoon titled Steamboat Willie. The first Mickey Mouse Along the same period of the Mickey Mouse cartoon the first book of Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne was published. Other than Mickey Mouse another very famous cartoons that came out during the 1920s was Betty Boop. The people in the 1920s didn't just listen to the radio and watch TV they went to sports games, and played Mahjong a very popular fad that came over from China it came to the United States in 1922 and by the 1923 it was purchased more than the radio. ^[2] [3]

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Jazz Singer was the first "talkie" or movie with taking actors. It was created in 1927 and was directed by Allen Crosland. It was considered a milestone for films and a cinematic landmark. Before the "talkies" there was an era of movies with out verbal use called "silent movies." Films such as Greed, The Great Parade, and the very famous Ten Commandments were influencing young directors to finally create films with sound. In the roaring 20s there were five big movie studios that still exist today. These studios were Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, RKO, MGM, and 20th Century Fox. Warner Bros. introduced "talkies" like The Jazz Singer. Brothers Jack, Harry, Albert, and Sam started Warner Bros. in 1923. Paramount Pictures was created by Adolf Zukor and produced many silent movies with actors such as Bob Hope, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks.RKO Pictures was established in 1928 owned by Joseph P. Kennedy. RKO produced movies know today such as the famous King Kong. MGM Studios aka Metro Goldwyn-Mayer was founded in 1916 but produced movies throughout the 20s such as The Big Parade, and Broadway Melody. Finally 20th Century Fox was another huge studio that still exists today.   ^[4]

 

 

Short Clip of THE JAZZ SINGER.

 

 

 

Rin Tin Tin the beloved dog of the 1920s.  

He was an army dog and became the most famous dog to star in movies during the year 1923.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 1920s was the year for sports especially baseball, this was the year Babe Ruth joined the New York Yankees. Ruth then after hit 54 homeruns, which became the new record. But one of his best years ever was 1927 when Ruth hit 60 homeruns. Then in 1923 Ruth won the Most Valuable Player and also led the New York Yankees to win their first world series. ^[5]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       

      Charlie Chaplin was a great figure for the 1920's. He contributed with a film by the name of The Gold Rush with some of his best comedy sequences. This Film is still remembered up to this date and was in fact selected as one of the greatest American films ever made by by the American Film Institute. Chaplin was noticed for his brilliancy in acting, writing, directing, and producing films. Although he was a genius in filmaking, he had many problems he was faced with. He was later exiled from the United States for allegedly having communist views which the United States government was against. Even though he could not stay in the U.S he still was able to go on with his career in England and after in Switzerland.

                                        Charlie Chaplin 1925 The Gold Rush

        

 

 

 

          Francis Scott Fitzgerald is known to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His first book, This Side of Paradise, was published in 1920. His first book was a big success for him, but after he had written his first novel he decided to start writing short stories. His short stories weren't very successful because he would write them carelessly. Fitzgerald moved on and wrote another book, The Beautiful and damned, which was a big disappointment, after his first written novel The Side of Paradise. After all the criticism Francis gained, he immediately started writing his next novel, which was published in 1924. The title of his third novel was The Great Gatsby. This novel really captured the 1920's and it is still read today by many people across the nation.  Francis Scott Fitzgerald is remembered by his well-written novels, which are still being read today by schools across America. ^[6]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some of the slang used in the 1920s have been carried throughout the years and are still used today.

Here are some examples: ^[7]

 

Baloney- nonsence!

Beat it- scram or get lost!

Beeswax- business "none of your beeswax."

Double Cross- to cheat, stab in the back

Dough- money

Gold Digger- a woman who associates with a man for his wealth

Joe- coffee

You Slay Me- that's funny!