Life in the Roaring Twenties

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What were the popular sports and fads during the 1920s?

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The 1920s saw a surge in popular sports and fads, influenced by mass media like radio and magazines. Baseball, driven by Babe Ruth, and boxing, with Jack Dempsey, were immensely popular. College football, golf, tennis, and swimming also gained traction, highlighted by figures like Red Grange, Bobby Jones, and Gertrude Ederle. Fads included evolving clothing styles, jazz music from the Harlem Renaissance, and cultural contributions from artists and writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway.

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Not only did the sporting world emerge during the 1920s, but the rise of Hollywood, radio shows, and music spread through the United States like wildfire.  The mass media like radio, moves, newspapers, and magazines helped reach a broader audience.  Fads strongly emerged throughout the United States just as much as sports.  Some fads that rapidly changed during the 1920s were clothing styles, music, art and literature.  Examples of clothing styles changing were modern clothing for women had gone from covering up most of the boy to a new style of shortening dresses and skirts to show more of the body.  Also, women wore stylish hats that emphasized bold colors and a freer design.  The clothing styles during the 1920s reflected the carefree, happy-go-lucky feeling of the time.  The music in the 1920s also helped change peoples attitudes and ways of living.  The African American culture was greatly influenced by music during the 1920s, especially by the Harlem Renaissance.  Two examples were the jazz age rhythm and blues.  Famous musicians during the 1920s were Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington.  Artists and writers challenged the traditional ideas by exploring the emerging challenges of the modern world.  Famous artists were John Marin, Charles Scheeler, and Edward Hopper.  Famous writers during this time were F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway.

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There were multiple sports that emerged during the 1920s, which provided Americans the opportunity to enjoy popular entertainment.  The sports that emerged during the 1920s were baseball and boxing because they reached new heights of popularity.  Baseball was famous for Babe Ruth, while boxing was famous its idolized heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey.  Other sports that emerged were college football, golf, tennis, and swimming.  College football was eagerly followed because of Red Grange, who played for the University of Illinois and was known was the “Galloping Ghost.”  Golf was recognized by Bobby Jones because of his accomplishments of being the first golfer to win the U.S. Open and the British Open in the same year.  Tennis players Bill Tilden and Helen Willis dominated the tennis world.  Swimming was noted by many viewers because of Gertrude Ederle who shattered records by swimming the English Channel.

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