Generation X - Revisited

An old chestnut this one. But I've been asked several times to explain why I still stand by my theory that Charles Hamblett and Jane Deverson's UK book Generation X (1964) is the very first significant use of the now oft-used term 'Generation X'. Especially when the phrase was very likely first immortalised in print a dozen years earlier. If you've stumbled upon this post and wondering what it's all about - or fancy a refresher - please check out my previous article on the subject, dating back to 24th February 2014. 

Holiday Magazine December 1952

                                     

What the Holiday editors were previewing was a three-part article which ran in the January through to March 1953 issues of Holiday magazine. The project was initiated by Robert Capa with the collaboration of a team of his fellow Magnum photographers - but the 'Generation X' title (attributed to Capa himself) was actually ditched in favour of the rather bland billing 'Youth of the World'. 

So 'Generation X' what Holiday calls "the projection name" failed to get beyond starring in this snippet when published in the USA. It was also not mentioned at all in the UK when the same photo story ran in a special edition of the popular Picture Post magazine in January 1952.

But the term was actually fully revived in January 1954, when Capa's piece was rejigged for Switzerland's stylish DU magazine:

A marvelous cover - published by Conzett & Huber in Zurich, January 1954

Undoubtedly it is this publication that justifies the argument that the term was coined well before the 1960s or certainly Douglas Coupland's 1991 novel. But I think that sadly back in 1952 and 1954, Capa's Generation X concept simply failed to break through, and so swiftly slipped out of sight.

The major reason is that this was a much less-celebrated return to an earlier study of the lives of ordinary folk across the globe called 'People are People the World Over', which was first published in the Ladies' Home Journal in 1947. This also involved Capa, and the newly founded Magnum photographic agency. But also, the subjects of Generation X were 'young adults', already too old to be part of the emerging 'teenager', or the rock and roll generation that was waiting just around the corner. So too conventional perhaps, even though it was fascinating to hear from those people who were still children during WW2.

To sum up - here are some pages from DU (in German) where 'Generation X' first appears to enter the lexicon of our sociologists and cultural anthropologists. But it is interesting how the term was completely (and thus not conveniently) forgotten when the term would later be truly seized upon to describe a new breed of youth...

United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, 1975

It's just three weeks to go until the 'Referendum on the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union'. Yesterday, while searching for something else completely, I found two small objects that I'd held on to from my secondary school days in the 1970's that are very timely reminders of the very first referendum to be held nationwide in the UK. 

Of course I wasn't old enough to vote on the 5th June 1975 - forty one years ago this month - but this was big news which certainly spilled into the playground. 

"YES"

Above is my old ticket wallet courtesy of Southern Rail on which I'd affixed a SAY "YES" TO EUROPE red sticker on the front. These stickers would have been given out in the streets at the time, and a few handfuls found their way to us kids who'd stick them on exercise books, duffle bags and the like.

I've also discovered a KEEP BRITAIN IN EUROPE badge which was given to me by a class mate whose father I think was quite active in politics at the time. Interesting to note the address of the publishers - it's in Old Park Lane, a very smart apartment block just round the corner from Piccadilly's Hard Rock Cafe (which had opened in 1971, four years before the referendum).

Tin Badge, 1975

The '75 referendum demanded a simple Yes or No to the question: "Do you think the UK should stay in the European Community?". Back then the nation responded with a whopping 67% saying YES. 

It was just two years earlier that the UK had joined what was commonly termed 'The Common Market'. I also remember the various 'Fanfare for Europe' activities back in January 1973 - like the commemorative stamps that were issued by the Post Office. YES, just 3 pence to send a letter back then...

On the same day as the postage stamp issue, there was an unusual football fixture as part of the Fanfare for Europe which was held at Wembley Stadium - between The THREE new entrants into the Common Market and The SIX current members. A dazzling line-up of great players of the time included Northern Ireland's Pat Jennings, England's Bobby Moore and Bobby Charlton, and Scotland's Colin Stein playing for The THREE. And on the pitch for The SIX that night were the West German stars Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Muller, and Holland's Johan Neeskens.

Official Programme Cover

For the record The THREE won 2-0 in front of some 36,500 spectators - in a stadium that then held 100,000. The scorers were Henning Jensen (Denmark) and Scotland's Colin Stein.

And now, some 43 years on from the year that began as a Fanfare for Europe, the citizens of the UK are set to put a CROSS in the box next to their answer to the question "Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union".

Stickers printed in 2016 for the 'IN campaign', handed to me in the street this week 

Tracy '77

Tracy went to the same school as my sister. They were quite good friends for a while. When she came over to ours, Tracy always seemed rather curious about her friend's older brother - especially the kind of music that he was playing.

Anyway, we never got to speak much, but one day she presented me with one of her drawings as she thought I'd like it. It was a real surprise. This was the very first piece of artwork that had ever been given to me. She said it was about me, even though I never got into the safety-pin thing, and it felt a bit of a cliché which embarrassed me slightly.

But I had a bit of crush on Tracy. I remember that she was blond, very attractive, and had a scar below the corner of her bottom lip which seemed very cool to me. I just love the way she had signed the back of her drawing: 'Tracy '77'. Oh boy, such a very long time ago!

At some point, I'd put 'PUNK' inside the sleeve of 'The Whole World Turned Day-glo' single by X-Ray Spex, which I bought (on orange vinyl), but had stopped playing the 7" once the track appeared on their 'Germfree Adolescents' LP that was released about six months later. So 'PUNK' has been rediscovered. Perfectly and appropriately preserved between the picture sleeve and disc of a masterpiece from the era.

Thank you again Tracy '77, wherever you are...

'Punk' by Tracy '77

Central Electricity Authority at Hulton's Boys and Girls Exhibition, 1956

PRESS RELEASE

HULTON'S BOYS & GIRLS EXHIBITION

National Hall, Olympia, London

28th August - 8th September 1956

9am to 9pm

An exhibition of a kind never before seen in Britain is to be staged in London, specially for children. Supported by many of the country's major public and private industries, it takes place at Olympia and will provide an exciting end of school holidays treat. 

As the children swing through the doors of Olympia they will go 44 years on in time to the year A.D. 2000. Over £10,000 has been spent on creating the atmosphere of space conquest as a background to the whole exhibition. 

The decor of the Exhibition is the world of the new century and will show the fantastic progress of science and the conquest of space as the background to everyday life. The walls will carry a painted panorama of interplanetary flight. Spaceships and helicopters of 44 years ahead will span the roof of the National Hall, led by the United Nations flagship under the command of Colonel Dan Dare, and four gleaming rockets will sweep down to within 25 feet of the floor. Although the spaceships will be out of reach, children will be able to handle the great majority of exhibits and find out how they work.

There will be exciting mechanical games to try and opportunities to test their skill against famous sportsmen. A power station of A.D. 2000 will be displayed by the Central Electricity Authority.

On the Royal Navy stand will be a 30-ton submarine, 50 feet long, which has been specially sent up from Gosport, complete with its crew. The RAF stand will have a Vampire jet fighter, where pilots of the future will be able to sit at the controls with an officer beside them to introduce them to the first stages of high speed flight. 

As well as these, there will be exhibits by the Central Electricity Authority, British Railways, the Grenadier Guards, and even the governments of Australia and Canada to attract young immigrants, and France and Italy to attract young holidaymakers. 

There will be a special display by the United Nations - believed to be the first time the work of the organisation has been projected at an exhibition for children. 

Apart from entertainment value and the thrill of meeting leading personalities from the worlds of film, sport and theatre, the Exhibition shows a serious undertone, for British industry is making a determined effort to capture the attention of schoolchildren - the scientists, technologists, technicians and nurses of tomorrow...

Sponsors are Hulton Press Ltd, publishers of the children's comics 'Eagle', 'Girl', 'Swift' and 'Robin'.

Adults will not be admitted. 

At the Exhibition, these ten cards (7x4.5x0.2cms) were handed out from the Careers Enquiry Desk on the Central Electricity Authority’s stand.

The CEA ran the electricity supply in England and Wales between 1954 and 1957.

Original Badge available at the Boys & Girls Exhibition c.1956 (2.5cms diameter)

Karl Marx Grave at 60

Yesterday was the 133rd anniversary of the death of the political philosopher Karl Marx. Sixty years ago, after Marx and family members were dug up and re-interred at a prime location within the east side of London's Highgate Cemetery, a giant bronze head mounted on a huge stone bulk was unveiled. It was 1956, this was the Cold War, and a new grave of Karl Marx, complete with its massive monument, towered over the surrounding gravestones. The sculptor was Laurence Bradshaw.

Ever since, people from the world over have been drawn to Highgate's genteel landscape to gaze up at Marx, and contemplate those words inscribed below the head: “Workers of all Lands Unite”.

A rare image of Laurence Bradshaw's first sketch for the Marx Monument

Laurence Henderson Bradshaw (1899-1978) was never actually credited on the final work. A politically active Communist, in 1955 he'd won the Marx Monument Committee's competition to sculpt a special headstone for the Karl Marx grave.

Born in Wallasey, Bradshaw was also an engraver, painter, and theatre set designer. He had been elected Master of the Art Workers Guild in 1958. 

But, after his Marx head, Bradshaw was by-passed by the establishment, though commissions continued, mostly from within the Socialist community. 

Original Postcard produced by Judges Limited, Hastings. Date Unknown.

On March 18, 1978, ''Soviet Weekly' (London, G.B.) published the following news, titled ''Laurence Bradshaw'': 

''SOVIET WEEKLY deeply regrets to report the death in London last week of the noted sculptor Laurence Bradshaw, a long standing friend of our paper and for many years a prominent leader of the movement for friendship with the USSR. Mr Bradshaw was chairman of the British-Soviet Friendship Society. A fellow of British Sculptors, he was perhaps best known for his monumental statue of Karl Marx in Highgate Cemetery. Mr Bradshaw was 78.'' 

GERrY's NOSH, Southend-on-Sea

In 1965, Studio Vista: London published the wonderful paperback 'Signs in Action' as part of their ongoing 'Introductory Handbooks to Art and Design' series. These books are still instantly recognisable on the bookshelf because of the near-square 16 x 20 cms shape, and they look the part, totally capturing the fresh and vibrant spirit of typography, pop art and graphics during the 'sixties'.

In order to convey the language and form of signs, author James Sutton enlisted the help of several photographers including the graphic designer Herbert Spencer to snap examples of signs that "put the literal message across as directly as possible...or are illegible, yet attractive and full of expression".

There are so many lovely images contained within the 96 pages. I've plumped for three of Spencer's photos as a teaser to urge anyone interested in this kind of thing to track down a second-hand copy of the original book...

The original caption reads: A SOPHISTICATED POP SIGN FROM SOUTHEND 

Commercial Road, London

Throughout the book there are super examples of misspelt words that were either hand written or actually printed on signs. I 'definitely' had to present this one snapped in E1, as I well remember this petrol station...

...and there's the bizarre graphic on the round panel above the oddly-shaped hexagonal sign for Vehicle Entry in Deepfield Road. I've owned this book for over 30 years now, and I've never forgotten this image. 

Sign at Bracknell

Back to GERrY'S NOSH. there's a real tip of the hat to the pop artist Peter Blake by the signmaker. But for me it's even better than Blake's so-called 'real' art because it's not created to be hanging in an art gallery. It's a greasy, knowing, irreverent nod to Pop Art made to standout from the crowd on a congested seafront. 

I'm sure that Gerry's Hot Dogs, Burgers and "DOUGH-NUTS" are still well remembered by Southenders to this very day...

Faces in the Crowd 1967/1968

Following on from the most recent addition to my collection of 'Faces in the Crowd' postings, I've just discovered another example, and this time we're in the South Coast of Devon, and the year is 1967. 

It's early on in the season, and fans of Plymouth Argyle are snapped on the terraces of Home Park when their team were playing in the Second Division of the Football League. Just like all the previous images that I've posted, these photographs were published in the club's Official Programmes - with the highlighted individual winning a cash prize or tickets to the next home match. In Plymouth '67, along with Derby back in '56, the person's head is captured within a white square, as opposed to the more familiar method of using a circle.

However, for the first time, the photographer is actually name-checked - Bernard Prince, who was the official photographer of The Pilgrims (the club's nickname is taken from the religious group that sailed on the Mayflower from Plymouth to the 'New Word' in the 17th Century). 

Interesting also that the club described the feature as a 'competition', and they called it "SPOT THE FACE" rather than 'Faces in the Crowd'...

Mr Prince surely took this photo either before the match or during half-time, given that clearly nobody is looking at the pitch! Note that the club gave the One Guinea prize to the person who'd obviously coughed-up 6d on a programme. Perhaps to encourage more people to buy one?