Paul Boyer, a U.S. cultural and intellectual historian with a Ph.D. from Harvard University, offers an in-depth look at American society in the 1950 in The 1950s: American Life in the Shadow of the Bomb, on March 10 at 7 p.m. at the Lorenzo Cultural Center on Macomb Community College’s Center Campus in Clinton Township.
A decade defined by affluence, suburbanization and an exciting new medium – television, Boyer notes that the Fifties also brought Cold War fears, a hot war in Korea and cultural protest in many forms – all overshadowed by anxiety about the atomic bomb.
Boyer is the author of several books related to the theme of his lecture and the overall topic of a new series of programs at the cultural center, The 1950s: Affluence and Anxiety in the Atomic Age. His publications include: By the Bomb's Early Light: American Thought and Culture at the Dawn of the Atomic Age; Fallout: A Historian Reflects on America's Half-Century Encounter with Nuclear Weapons and Promises to Keep: The United States Since World War II.
Retired from his teaching position at University of Wisconsin-Madison, Boyer is Merle Curti Professor of History Emeritus. Before coming to Wisconsin, he taught at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and has held visiting professorships at UCLA, Northwestern University, and William & Mary.
Boyer’s presentation is one in a four-part Speakers Series featuring award-winning authors and historians. The three additional presentations are:
• Polio: A Look Back at America’s Most Successful Public Health Crusade, featuring Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David M. Oshinsky, March 31
• McCarthyism to Terrorism, featuring Pulitzer Prize-winning author Haynes Johnson, April 14
• The Russians are Coming! Eisenhower and the Cold War, featuring author Susan Eisenhower, the granddaughter of the former Army general who served as president in the 1950s, May 5
Tickets are required for the Speaker Series presentations, all of which begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday evenings. A special package price of $60 provides entrance to all four presentations, in addition to Meet & Greet receptions with each presenter at 5:30 p.m. Individual tickets for each presentation are $15, or $5 for seniors, students, and military personnel; and individual tickets to a single presentation including the Meet & Greet reception are $20. To purchase tickets, call 586.286.2222 or visit www.MacombCenter.com.
The Lorenzo Cultural Center is open 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 1-4 p.m. Sundays. Additional information about the cultural center and on the 1950s program series is available at www.LorenzoCulturalCenter.com. Group visits are welcome during the series and may be arranged by calling 586.445.7348.
About the Lorenzo Cultural Center
The Lorenzo Cultural Center (www.LorenzoCulturalCenter.com) explores the influences and experiences that shape our community's heritage, examining topics from a variety of perspectives and creating interactive opportunities for learning, celebration and entertainment. Located on Macomb Community College's Center Campus, Hall and Garfield Roads in Clinton Township, the cultural center is adjacent to the Macomb Center for Performing Arts.
About Macomb Community College
Macomb Community College (www.macomb.edu) is one of the nation’s leading community colleges, providing learning experiences to more than 48,000 students annually. Macomb nationally ranks in the top two percent in the number of associate degrees awarded and as the largest grantor of associate degrees in Michigan. The college’s comprehensive educational programming includes pre-collegiate experiences, university transfer and career preparation programs, bachelor degree completion and graduate degree programs, workforce training, professional education and certification, and continuing education and enrichment opportunities.
Media Contact:
Tish Wirth
Communications & Community Relations
Macomb Community College
586.445.7560
wirthp@macomb.edu