the decade where “the future” moved right into the kitchen with the 1950’s

Kitchen Appliances

• Refrigerators with freezer compartments
  Big deal because now people could store frozen food.
• Electric ranges — Sleek, chrome, lots of pastel colors.
• Toasters — Sunbeam made those automatic “magically lowering” models.
• Waffle irons & electric skillets
• Pressure cookers
• Electric mixers — Sunbeam Mixmaster was everywhere.

Laundry & Cleaning

• Washing machines — Automatic models started replacing wringers.
• Clothes dryers — Still fancy, but becoming more common.
• Vacuum cleaners — Electrolux, Hoover, the classics.
• Steam irons — No more sprinkling clothes by hand.

Living Room & Entertainment

• Black-and-white televisions
  By ’55 it felt like everyone had one. Zenith, RCA, Philco.
• Console radios & record players
  Some units were gorgeous furniture pieces.
• Hi-fi systems (late ’50s)
  People bragged about their “high fidelity” sound.

Home Convenience

• Rotary dial telephones in those great colors: mint green, pink, ivory.
• Electric clocks for kitchens and night tables.

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