The Gay Nineties is an American

nostalgic Nostalgia is a sentimentality for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. The word ''nostalgia'' is a learned formation of a Greek compound, consisting of (''nóstos''), meaning "homecoming", a Homeric wo ...

term and a periodization of the history of the United States referring to the decade of the

1890s The 1890s (pronounced "eighteen-nineties") was a decade of the Gregorian calendar that began on January 1, 1890, and ended on December 31, 1899. In the United States, the 1890s were marked by a severe economic depression sparked by the Panic of ...

. It is known in the United Kingdom as the Naughty Nineties, and refers there to the decade of supposedly decadent art of

Aubrey Beardsley Aubrey Vincent Beardsley (21 August 187216 March 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His black ink drawings were influenced by Japanese woodcuts, and depicted the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. He was a leading figure in the ...

, the witty plays and trial of Oscar Wilde, society scandals and the beginning of the suffragette movement. Despite the term, part of the decade was marked by an economic crisis, which greatly worsened when the Panic of 1893 set off a widespread economic depression in the United States that lasted until 1896.

Etymology

The term ''Gay Nineties'' itself began to be used in the 1920s in the United States and is believed to have been created by the artist Richard V. Culter, who first released a series of drawings in ''

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...

'' magazine titled "the Gay Nineties" and later published a book of drawings with the same name.

History

Novels by authors like Edith Wharton and

Booth Tarkington Newton Booth Tarkington (July 29, 1869 – May 19, 1946) was an American novelist and dramatist best known for his novels '' The Magnificent Ambersons'' (1918) and '' Alice Adams'' (1921). He is one of only four novelists to win the Pulitz ...

documented the high life of the "old money" families. By the 1920s, the decade was nostalgically seen as a period of pre-

income tax An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...

wealth for a newly emergent "society set". The railroads, the agricultural depression of the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

, and the dominance of the United States in South American markets and the Caribbean meant that industrialists of the Northern United States seemed to have been doing very well. It was also the name of a nostalgic radio program in the 1930s, hosted by a prominent composer of popular songs of the 1890s, Joe Howard, as well as an 1890s-themed New York cafe, "Bill's Gay Nineties", during that same period. From the 1920s to the 1960s, filmmakers had a nostalgic interest in the 1890s, as can be seen in the films ''

The Naughty Nineties ''The Naughty Nineties'' is a 1945 American film starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello. The film is noteworthy for containing a filmed version of the duo's famous " Who's on First?" routine. This version is shown at the National Baseba ...

'', ''

She Done Him Wrong ''She Done Him Wrong'' is a 1933 pre-Code American crime/comedy film starring Mae West and Cary Grant. The plot includes melodramatic and musical elements, with a supporting cast featuring Owen Moore, Gilbert Roland, Noah Beery Sr., Rochelle Hu ...

'', ''

Belle of the Nineties ''Belle of the Nineties'' is a 1934 American Western film directed by Leo McCarey and released by Paramount Pictures. Mae West's fourth motion picture, it was based on her original story ''It Ain't No Sin'', which was also to be the film's t ...

'', ''

The Strawberry Blonde ''The Strawberry Blonde'' is a 1941 American romantic comedy film directed by Raoul Walsh, starring James Cagney and Olivia de Havilland, and featuring Rita Hayworth, Alan Hale, Jack Carson, and George Tobias. Set in New York City arou ...

'', ''

My Gal Sal ''My Gal Sal'' is a 1942 American musical film distributed by 20th Century Fox and starring Rita Hayworth and Victor Mature. The film is a biopic of 1890s composer and songwriter Paul Dresser and singer Sally Elliot. It was based on a biographi ...

'', ''

The Nifty Nineties ''The Nifty Nineties'' is an animated short film produced in Technicolor by Walt Disney Productions and released to theaters on June 20, 1941 by RKO Radio Pictures. The animated short was directed by Riley Thomson and animated by Ward Kimball, Wa ...

(''a Mickey Mouse cartoon)'','' '' By the Light of the Silvery Moon'', '' Hello, Dolly!'', and '' Heaven Can Wait''.

Roger Edens Roger Edens (November 9, 1905 – July 13, 1970) was a Hollywood composer, arranger and associate producer, and is considered one of the major creative figures in Arthur Freed's musical film production unit at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during the "go ...

' song, "The Gay Nineties", opens a production number spoofing period melodramas in the 1940 film '' Strike up the Band'', one of MGM's smash vehicles for

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in '' The ...

and Mickey Rooney.

References

{{US history 1890s in the United States Fin de siècle Eras of United States history

1890s economic history 1920s neologisms Nostalgia in the United States

Etymology

History

See also

References