1950's
Life Magazines from the 1950's
By the 1950s, Life Magazine had made a name for itself as the country’s leading news magazine. LIFE photographers were and are respected as some of the best photojournalists in history. Their tenacity and talent for getting the best story helped them show America coming to terms with its new role as leader of the free world.
The atomic bomb placed America at the forefront of scientific advancement. LIFE Magazine ran multi-issue features on the nature of the universe, the origins of man, the growth of civilization, and even new advancements in medicine. During a time when outer space captured the national imagination, LIFE ran stories about the legitimacy of flying saucer sightings (“Have We Visitors from Space?” from April 7, 1952) and America’s first astronauts (1959). Even after the USSR launched the first man-made satellite, Sputnik, before American scientists could launch their own, LIFE Magazine spent pages and pages extolling the virtues of America’s space program.
Movies we call classics today, including musicals like “Singin’ in the Rain” and “Guys and Dolls” (which LIFE Magazine featured on the cover of the April 21, 1955 issue), can be found in reviews and advertisements in LIFE Magazine issues throughout the 1950s. Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe, both featured on LIFE Magazine covers throughout the decade, illustrate the two faces of sex appeal during the 1950s – the free, sensual bombshell and the demure, classic beauty. Even handsome, young politician John F. Kennedy and his beautiful wife would capture American imaginations from LIFE Magazine’s pages.
Other stories captured the essence of a nation coming to understand a new definition of morality, and LIFE Magazine had no problem exploring any controversy that arose. A heart-wrenching account of Anne Frank’s life after her capture was first given in the pages of LIFE Magazine in August of 1958, reminding the American public of the dangers of discrimination. The epic Brown vs. Board of Education decision on the desegregation of schools prompted a 5-issue series on segregation in America that highlighted both sides of the issue, ending with a poignant plea to end segregation on Biblical grounds authored by a young Billy Graham.
In 1959, America began its involvement in Vietnam, a move that would dictate the political and social climate of the country for decades to come. A whole generation of young people who learned to rebel with rock ‘n roll and civil rights marches were about to change the world in a very real and sometimes violent way, and LIFE Magazine would follow them into the turbulent 1960s.
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June 5, 1950 Life Magazine Actress Stasia Kos
Starting at: $17.95
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June 12, 1950 Life Magazine Hopalong Cassidy
Starting at: $21.95
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June 19, 1950 Life Magazine Girls holding hands on beach
Starting at: $17.95
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June 20, 1950 Look Magazine Liz Hastings in a two piece swimming suit
Starting at: $15.95
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June 26, 1950 Life Magazine Cecile Aubry
Starting at: $17.95
Out of stock
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June 4, 1951 Life Magazine Ursula Thiess
Starting at: $17.95
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June 5, 1951 Look Magazine beautiful photo, her eyes match her jewelry and dress
Starting at: $15.95
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June 11, 1951 Life Magazine Vivian Blaine
Starting at: $17.95
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June 16, 1951 Saturday Evening Post Receptions Line
Starting at: $16.95
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June 18, 1951 Life Magazine Iran's royal crown
Starting at: $17.95
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June 19, 1951 Look Magazine Five small photos of Martin and Lewis
Starting at: $15.95
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June 25, 1951 Life Magazine Janet Leigh
Starting at: $17.95
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June 2, 1952 Life Magazine Party clothes, fashion
Starting at: $17.95
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June 9, 1952 Life Magazine Woman in Wedding dress
Starting at: $17.95
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June 14, 1952 Saturday Evening Post High School Commencement Address
Starting at: $16.95
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June 17, 1952 Look Magazine Zsa Zsa Gabor
Starting at: $15.95
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June 21, 1952 Saturday Evening Post Dog License
Starting at: $16.95
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June 23, 1952 Life Magazine Mail-order fashions
Starting at: $17.95
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June 28, 1952 Saturday Evening Post Coming and Going to Work
Starting at: $16.95
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June 30, 1952 Life Magazine Nancy Kefauver
Starting at: $17.95
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June 1, 1953 Life Magazine Hollywood daughters
Starting at: $17.95
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June 2, 1953 Look Magazine Dorian Leigh
Starting at: $15.95
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June 6, 1953 Saturday Evening Post Farmer and Female Artist in Field
Starting at: $16.95
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June 8, 1953 Life Magazine Roy Campanella
Starting at: $18.95
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June 13, 1953 Saturday Evening Post Wedding Recessional
Starting at: $16.95
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June 15, 1953 Life Magazine Quen Elizabeth Coronation
Starting at: $17.95
Out of stock
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June 16, 1953 Look Magazine Joe McCarthy
Starting at: $15.95
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June 20, 1953 Saturday Evening Post Learning to Fly
Starting at: $16.95
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June 22, 1953 Life Magazine Graduations
Starting at: $17.95
Out of stock
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June 27, 1953 Saturday Evening Post Out of Ice Cream
Starting at: $16.95
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June 29, 1953 Life Magazine Cyd Charisse
Starting at: $17.95
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June 30, 1953 Look Magazine GREAT photo of sultry Marilyn Monroe with Lauren Bacall and Betty Grable
Starting at: $15.95
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June 1, 1954 Look Magazine Jackie Gleason
Starting at: $15.95
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June 5, 1954 Saturday Evening Post City Park
Starting at: $16.95
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June 7, 1954 Life Magazine Arctic barrens
Starting at: $17.95
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June 12, 1954 Saturday Evening Post Bike Riding Lesson
Starting at: $16.95
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June 14, 1954 Life Magazine California look, fashion
Starting at: $17.95
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June 15, 1954 Look Magazine Grace Kelly
Starting at: $15.95
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June 19, 1954 Saturday Evening Post Sleeping In
Starting at: $16.95
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June 21, 1954 Life Magazine Las Vegas chorus girl
Starting at: $17.95