The Price Was Right: The Cost Of Living In The 20th Century (mostly '40s to '70s)

Adjusted for inflation, many things actually were MORE costly 50 or so years ago. But it's fun to look at the old prices anyway.

[@janupczak5059]

Thank you for another fun reminder of better days. I remember going to Piggly Wiggly every Friday night with my mom. She always had 30 dollars for a family of 6. What a treat it was to get the new Mad Magazine! She always made sure she had enough money left to buy me my magazine and a pack of Juicy Fruit. Then we would walk home (she didn't drive and my dad was at work) and I'd curl up with the magazine, Wild Wild West, and beg to watch Twilight Zone. Was there any better feeling than Friday night? Guess I got off on a rant again, but grocery shopping is so anchored in my mind with Friday night and all the magic that went with it. Thank you Fred... You're always so nice to come home to!❤

[@FredFlix]

Aw, that's sweet, Jan. How can I not like a girl who loved Piggly Wiggly, Mad Magazine, Wild Wild West and T-Zone? But what has happened to Juicy Fruit? It used to be the same color as their spearmint gum, but now it's yellow and is too soft. It withers in my pocket. They don't make it like they used to.

[@robertscott2210]

FredFlix They don't make anything like they used to anymore. :(

[@hankaustin7091]

Right there with ya Jan! My Mother did the same thing back in the day.. fed all 6 of us (4 kids, Mom and Dad) on $30-35 a week and we always had plenty of food. I'd go grocery shopping with her on Saturday mornings, and with the money she'd save with all her coupons, she'd treats us both to Burger Chef for lunch, but we weren't allowed to tell my brother and 2 sister cuz they would have gone in to a jealous fit LOL!!!

[@janupczak5059]

@@hankaustin7091 Isn't it amazing to realize how far 30 dollars went? What a fun memory of going to Burger Chef and keeping it a secret! It makes me smile to picture it... Good memories my friend. Thank you for the smile!❤❤❤

[@hankaustin7091]

@@janupczak5059 Thank you for the chance to remember! and of course, a gigantic thanks to Fred for his never-ending fabulous videos down memory lane!

[@queenangel1976]

Such a shame that things aren't still that cheap. They lasted longer and were much better made than nowadays.

[@csfan65]

A relaxing Sunday afternoon watching Fred's videos AND getting to hear Julie London sing "Black Coffee" at the same time!!! Fred, you are THE MAN!!!!

[@araymond1able]

January 25 1950 the minimum wage was $0.75 per hour. In 1972 I made like 2.50 an hour. In 2009 $26.00 an hour. If you had kept some older items that cost No more then 12 cents you would have quite a fortune. Amazing Spiderman #1 (1963).12 cent comic. Today in VG condition 12-15 thousand. 1963 Pete Rose Rookie card 5-10 cents a pack. PSA 8 NM-MT $9,000. Never mind the Barbie Dolls from the 1960's. Cost $3 bucks and now go from hundreds to thousands. Just think if you could go back in time and know what you know today. Gotta buy $2,000 worth of Microsoft stock 1986 you would have over 3 million dollars today. Okay time for me to get back working on that Time Machine.

[@conniecrawford5231]

Tennessee Ernie Ford and “Sixteen Tons”- great song for a great singer!

[@5argetech56]

Ground Beef 3lbs for a Dollar... I remember Finast Supermarkets. Piggly Wiggly is still around in Georgia! I showed this to my Mom (89) She was amazed at all the stuff she remembered and bought through the years.. Me too for that matter.. Thanks again Fred!

[@FredFlix]

You're welcome, 5arge. I'm glad you showed it to your mom.

[@tomkelly9714]

Milk deliveries / no bottled water.drink from faucet,,,

[@tomkelly9714]

A&P,Kroger,National,kwik marts...IGA, Certified ..stores

[@5argetech56]

@@tomkelly9714 Kroger is still alive and well in Georgia in 2019 :)

[@thomaslevy2119]

I hate to guess how much things will cost 50 years from now. But you can bet that people then will fondly recall how cheap things used to be in the early 2010's . . .

[@elleendeavor6429]

Thomas Levy I remember going to the grocery store in the early 2000s with my momma and for $70.00, we had almost two buggies worth of food for our family. Now, $70.00 is maybe a half a buggy’s worth at my local Walmart m, and it’s food for just myself and my husband. It’s crazy how so much can change in your life time.

[@squakeyvoice61]

i'ama single man up here in Toronto Canada, and i can spend per week like $60 per week on groceries,when i was a teen in 1967, my mother spent like $30 for a family 4@@elleendeavor6429

[@elleendeavor6429]

scottish accent that’s really somethin’, isn’t it?! Crazy how much prices go up!

[@wildearth3992]

Elle Endeavor Same thing in France. The price really go up for the food and the rent !!!

[@breAnnasmama]

Thomas Levy depends on inflation and the value of The dollar. It’s all relevant to those things. When we look back and see all these cheaper prices , they weren’t quite as cheap as ppl think in comparison to the market / value back then.

[@AndyHartmann]

You know, there were people back then complaining about those prices.

[@markjeffels3327]

I remember my gran losing it when butter was raised to 50 cents a pound! She was amazing! :(

[@rickb06]

Posthumously screw those people and their cheap asses. Life has never been harder, more uncomfortable and uncertain than it is now, excluding obvious exceptions like post world war 2 bomb ravaged Europe. Things right now are incredibly bad, the only difference is, the government is covering up and spackling over much of the pain, misery and soon to be mass death. This nation, and pretty much every other first world nation cannot function, remain profitable and peaceful (but that hasn't been the case since the early 70s) while all goes well and most everyone is at bare minimum surviving, not even thriving but the chickens are coming home to roost my friend, our check is bound to be called up as past due here soon and the first two checks bounced and the repo man, sheriff's swat team and the IRS tactical assault team are pulling down the driveway, tick tock. tick... tock.......

[@markjeffels3327]

@@inkey2 So true, but you still received more for your money then you do today!

[@pfromturri194]

First off these prices are relative to those of today when you take into account salaries, inflation, etc. As a percentage of an annual salary the prices are very similar. Second, thanks to the Federal Reserve, IRS, and leaving the gold standard the dollar has steadily devalued over time. This has led to inflated prices and salaries. In 1913 ( before the Federal Reserve and the IRS) $1,600 was an upper middle class salary. You could afford your own house, a car and most likely a maid.....

[@breAnnasmama]

Paul Moran exactly what I was saying. Almost word for word lol 😂 well said. Idk why ppl don’t think in those terms.

[@loveistruth5713]

I grew up in San Francisco during the 60s. I remember on Saturday I would take my $3 allowance which I worked hard for. And I would go down and watch 3 movies for $0.50. Usually Clint Eastwood trilogies . Or 3 classic horror movies. My dad managed the Shawmut hotel. On the corner of O'Farrell and Jones. Around the corner with the Jones Cafe my dad work 12 to 14-hour days so a lot of times he would flip me to or three bucks to go around and eat dinner. And for a little over two bucks. I would get drink salads main course with veggies and potatoes in a piece of pie. Or I would order their Chinese food because it was a Chinese restaurant also they had the best spare ribs. Never went hungry in San Francisco. Left there in 1974 and moved to Minnesota

[@charlesscatola7001]

Did anyone notice the free glass giveaway with fill up on the Exxon sign? That must have been early 70's. I remember Mobil gas always gave away glasses or coffee mugs.

[@luisreyes1963]

An NFL game ticket for $5? Oh, the days before team owners & players got greedy. Thanks, FredFlix. 🏈

[@freeguy77]

No, the NFL did NOT suddenly get "greedy" only since 1964! The last year of 90% silver coins . Everybody always wants more, but you can only get what the market will bear before natural competition beats too-high sellers down to the market level again, or the too-high seller goes out of business! Unless, a giant money-creation machine (the Federal Reserve banking cartel) forces ALL prices higher over time. The best professional athletes always can command higher prices (labor) because their supply is so small relative to the general population.

[@FredFlix]

Um, what freeguy said.

[@hankaustin7091]

@@FredFlix yeah.. what he said..

[@Rbyrd77]

I have an NBA ticket stubb from 1975, that shows the price of $3.00 to get in the game. Wont ever see that again !

[@ricardoestrada1176]

I remember buying a hamburger and a Coke for $0.35 sense

[@HenauderTitzauf]

When I was on my first hitch in the USAF, I got married in 1964. Every payday we had our twice a month trip to McDonalds, we got two cheeseburgers, two fries, two small drinks, just right at two dollars. That was all we could afford to eat out. But, we enjoyed it, didn’t know any better with the pay we had. Just my 2 cents.

[@steveprimeau1407]

Henauder, your two cents are worth a dime, today! 😉

[@heygetoffmylawn1572]

Loved this history lesson on the cost of things from what feels like ancient times. Imagine how rich we would be if we could pay those prices now.

[@freeguy77]

Exactly the point, Larry! Inflation is a MONSTER TAX on everyone (and is NOT caused by nature or natural economics), but harder on the poor and working class than the upper class! This (declining value of the currency) is the reason for the common complaint quote on class warfare: "the rich get richer and the poor get poorer." Under a gold/silver standard, the gap between the two classes consistently narrows over time, while the opposite happens under a fiat, paper money system, with a private central bank (Federal Reserve, is not Federal and has no reserves) oligarchy controlling the supply of the number of dollar units in circulation, creating the dreaded boom-bust cycles.

[@FredFlix]

Um, what freeguy77 said.

[@heygetoffmylawn1572]

@@freeguy77 ...Thank you for your 2 cents or maybe it's 20 dollars worth of information by now. You put it much better than I can articulate. Sooner or later it will be the Weimar Republic...USA version. The politicos never learn and those they govern are just as much at fault.

[@robertscott2210]

FredFlix He sure says a lot.

[@wesleyhackney]

Love the Tennessee Earnie Ford song. The Exxon sign for gas also said free glass with fillup I remember when they gave away all kinds of kitchen ware plus green Stamps, and checked the oil and water Ievel without getting out of your car. Those were the days

[@scoobycarr5558]

Wesley Hackney Ayyy guys anyone else here who was treated to superior service at a gas station in the "full serve" island with the attendant taking good care of your car? That's something that we hardly have today.

[@kathleensheridan2063]

Great video! It would be nice to roll back prices today. I think our country would be in better shape, happier people and home ownership for everyone. Thank you for sharing.

[@FredFlix]

You're welcome, Kathleen.

[@chuckschafer6728]

YOU HAVE TO ROLL BACK THE WAGES

[@illuminatedcrosshairs7865]

The McDonald’s price sign was so accurate in the late 60’s , I remember my dad giving me a dollar and I got a cheeseburger, fries and coke and got almost 30 cents change back! Even way back then, I knew that was a really good deal. In the early 70’s the convenience stores in NC would sell a 12-13 year old a pack of cigarettes for 25-30 cents a pack, no questions asked. If nobody was around or looking? A six pack of beer for $ 1.25-$1.50 That’s just how it was back then and remarkably,,, nobody got arrested or convicted of any crime whatsoever? Imagine that liberal snowflakes?

[@jonimichalski9193]

Memories PLEASE gets us back to those times And back to our old normal soon Jesus

[@terrymasters1176]

That song truly fits how we feel looking at those prices today.

[@__hjg__2123]

OMG... PuuPuus platter!!!!! as a kid I would stare at that flame from the second it hit the table!! and...... i can just barely remember gas stations raising prices 1/2 a cent every once in a while. - and the free glasses we received from a fill-up (8 gallon minimum)!............ :::sigh::::

[@DavidBDavis-lz7bt]

Loved the McDonald's menu board. Carl's Jr.(at least the ones in Desert Hot Springs and Cathedral City) feature a classic menu board, framed and matted, as part of their decor. Can't wait till they all open again!🌞

[@gregggoss2210]

Very nice Fred. Here's wishing prices were still that awesome. Here's a sobering thought for sure. I had to go get a tooth pulled today and I don't have any insurance at my new job yet. One extraction plus consultation, and add in the cost of the nitrous oxide, $505. Please return me to my happy times of the 60's and 70's.

[@FredFlix]

Wow, that's crazy, Gregg. And it would cost about $8K to get a replacement implant.

[@darrellross1]

@@FredFlix Yes, that's right. I need 3 implants and I was quoted $15,000.

[@FredFlix]

@@darrellross1 A three for the price of two special.

[@janupczak5059]

Gregg Goes... That's awful! I hope you're not in too much pain. I had to take out a bank loan the last time I had extensive dental work done! Insane. Sure wish one of my kids would have gone to dental school. Take care and feel better.❤

[@gregggoss2210]

@@janupczak5059 , thanks. My son started to head for the dental field but changed his mind and went into something completely different. If only.....

[@cyclenut]

Food prices have gone through the roof. In the 70's as a kid, my parents neglected me and had to feed myself. Coke bottles had a deposit. I would pull a toy wagon to the store picking up bottles from the side of the road. Stores paid 2 cents to 5 cents a bottle. A wagon load would buy food for me and as much two other poor families for two or three days. This was from 72- 9 years old to 77-13. When I was 14 and 15 I worked in a grocery store (77-78) and prices were much cheaper, all though money was harder to make, it went farther. In 2012 I rode a bicycle across the US. In the S.W. states, some towns had much cheaper food prices. Where I live today (Chattanooga) grocery prices are going up, 20% to 50% markups.

[@Zoetropeification]

2:10 Things are not much different today, there is a club here in town advertising an 8oz sirloin, baked potato and a domestic draft beer for $5.00. Just don't expect to see Betty Page there.

[@steveprimeau1407]

In my case, my story doesn't take place in the States, and it wasn't in the sixties. It was during the seventies in Eastern Ontario Canada. I couldn't tell you exactly how much it was for a hamburg steak - a large glass of milk with a side order of mashed potatoes and a piece of apple pie with two scoops of vanilla ice-cream for dessert, but I can assure you it was much cheaper than you'd pay today. That was my order - every Saturday - with my mom at a little restaurant called Miss Cornwall, located in Cornwall Ontario inside the Brookdale Mall. We'd have our supper there after grocery shopping at Dominions. I can still see the inside of that little restaurant like it was yesterday. We'd sit in the same area, so we'd get the same waitress every weekend. We got to know her after awhile. Her name was Bernadine. She loved giving me a hard time. She'd get her little digs in on me every chance she'd get about how much I could eat or whatever it was that would come to mind for her, but it was all in fun. Little did she know - little did anyone know that this boy sitting in the restaurant with his mom every Saturday - the one she loved to hassle - the one she loved to get a rise out of when she could - would oneday be her son-in-law. That's right folks. Ten years later, I would take her daughter's hand in marriage. We met while attending the same college. We've had some pretty good laughs over this through the years. The marriage ended in divorce, and both of Judy's parents passed away several years ago, but the memories remain. I'm sorry guys. I know my comment is sort of off topic considering we're talking about American inflation and all, but after watching one of Fred's videos, I never know where my thoughts will lead me. One thing I can tell you for sure though.......these walks down memory lane....... are bittersweet. They are bittersweet. 😊😭

[@johnkaczinski468]

Fred: Two things... I remember my Father’s weekly paycheck was around $60 per week. Looking at the TV prices. I just got a 43” 1040p flat screen, new, fo $89. Not the best but fine for the bedroom. It’s all relative.

[@FredFlix]

Not really. Your father would have had to save all his paycheck for month or more to buy a TV. Your TV cost you a fraction of one week's pay. And it's a far better TV.

[@freeguy77]

Thank you, Fred, for your continuing high quality videos that illuminate some part of everyday life, or of yours personally! Love watching and learning from them.

[@FredFlix]

Thanks, freeguy77, but I think I learned more from your economic lessons in the comments than you learned from me.

[@freeguy77]

@@FredFlix I'm glad, Fred! I always try to spread the word about our phony monetary system that frauds the masses, who changed it, and why! JFK murder set the stage for the corrupt and deceitful LBJ who was the instigator in going to war (very expensive!), with both the hidden cost of it (inflationary tax), and of course the 58,000 American deaths + 3 million Vietnamese on both sides.

[@darrellross1]

@@freeguy77 The military industrial complex that President Eisenhower warned about in his farewell speech. Many military contractors profited enormously from the prolonged Vietnam war. In 2003 the illegal invasion of Iraq was promoted by Vice President Dick Cheney, another Neocon with ties to Halliburton which also profited from the war, and cost the lives of 5,000 American servicemen.

[@freeguy77]

@@darrellross1 And guess who also profited greatly from that illegal and un-necessary war that killed 58,000 Amricans and 3 million Vietnamese? LBJ and his war buddies in the Pentagon and the other stock investors of Bell Helicopter (Lady Bird Johnson) and other associated industries who were promoting the war just to make huge profits at our soldiers, sailors, and pilots risk and deaths. JFK was in the process of extricating the US from Vietnam with his NSAM 263 (Oct. 11) that was to remove the first 1,000 of the 16,500 army advisors by the end of 1963, and the bulk of them out by 1965. LBJ reversed the #263 with his own #273 on Nov. 26, the day after JFKs funeral. JFK never put regular army fighters or Marines in Vietnam, but LBJ did after the pretext of N. Vietnam's tiny gunboats "firing" on big US Destroyers as the Maddox and Turner Joy in early Aug. 1964. LBJ later admitted the phony attacks saying in a paraphrase, "As much as the Navy knew, they could have been shooting at whales out there." Those first regular army and Marines landed in S. Vietnam on Mar. 8, 1965, the real start of the Vietnam War disaster we all remember today.

[@darrellross1]

@@freeguy77 I've always been intrigued by the mystery behind the JFK assassination ever since that Nov day in 1963, when as a 9 year old boy, I came home for lunch from school and my mom said "somebody shot the President." My parents always felt a deep connection to the Kennedy"s. They were married the same week in 1953 as them, and my mom was born a week later than Jackie in 1929. I've followed all of the conspiracy theories and read books on the subject over the years, and most have blamed the CIA, Mafia, or even Castro. It's only in the past 5 years or so online, that I've noticed Johnson's name come up as a suspect, and lately, some sites mention George Bush senior's involvement. What's your take on who killed JFK? From the sounds of it, I don't think you believe in the official lone gunman theory.

[@angelasotolongo9243]

I remember my mother buying a box of detergent that came with a free towel. Can't remember the name of the soap though.

[@Zombywoof92553]

Love this song! 16 tons

[@bernie2231]

Well, at least TVs are cheaper. Watching them just costs a lot more.

[@FredFlix]

We have to pay with twice the commercials.

[@terrymasters1176]

Bernie22 You still watch TV?

[@bernie2231]

@@terrymasters1176 I get what your saying. But the winters are cold in PA, and yelling at my TV when I'm watching college hoops is the only exorcise that I get.

[@bernie2231]

@@FredFlix BTW...thanks for your work!

[@FredFlix]

@@bernie2231 You're welcome, sir.

[@FawleyJude]

The food and housing look really cheap, but the prices for electronics look expensive. $149 today would get you a stereo receiver better than the one shown from Radio Shack. And $398 for a TV/stero combination back then, it would be the equivalent of about $3000 now. I kind of marvel at how much disposable income people spent on stuff like that.

[@FawleyJude]

@Thomas Ritter But, you know, you could actually get the TV repaired. Now, if something goes wrong (which seems inevitable in about 5 years), you throw the whole thing out and buy another because it would cost more to fix it.

[@draculimpaler4507]

Was digging around in some ancient boxes we had in storage the other day and found a menu for a "fancy" restaurant the family would go to in the late 60s.....2lb prime rib with 2 sides salad and a drink (even an alcoholic one!) $2.95 lol...bar item whiskey sour (my dad's drink of choice when it wasn't beer) ...85 cents. Will someone please hurry and invent time travel...back only will be fine.

[@hankaustin7091]

Right there with ya Dracul !

[@chuckkennedy5656]

What a Fantastic Trip Down Memory Lane. Thank You So Very Much.

[@FredFlix]

You're welcome, Chuck.

[@tomkat5626]

0:22 Check out the prices on the McDonalds menu. A dollar went a long way in those days.

[@randallsage6740]

9 cents, for Corn Flakes. That was a while back. That was good Fred, thank you !!

[@FredFlix]

But the price of FredFlix remains the same, Randall.

[@randallsage6740]

True sir, very true. Snowing really hard here.

[@chevken1831]

Thank you for putting all this time into your channel. I don't know how you are able to do it all, but is AMAZING work. Thank you!

[@FredFlix]

@@chevken1831 You're welcome, ChevKen.

[@tomkelly9714]

Today food we eat fill of ..hormone s....../ chemicals

[@billschlafly4107]

While the prices of things seem tiny by today's standards, the vast majority of things we buy today are in fact cheaper. People spent 18% of their income on food in 1965. Today people spend about 10% on food. Cars were super cheap decades ago but they lasted a few years. Cars today run for a decade or more with very little maintenance and we drive them further in that time as well. Our standard of living is higher which means our goods are cheaper. Cheers to all.

[@freeguy77]

Bill, I'm sorry to report that your analysis is somewhat faulty. Some items may have higher quality, but the much steeper price levels make them UN-affordable to those poor, working, and middle-class people who just can't save enough of their (declining) disposable income to afford a better car or house. Yes, many items sold then are of higher quality today, but the incredible price increases negate the quality increase. Houses used to be $7,000-$10,000 on the average up to the mid-1960s when they suddenly became affordable only to those who could put a large down payment or were upper-middle class. Otherwise, they had to settle for smaller houses, or less valuable property (read: inner-city slums or violent areas) they would not have voluntarily chosen except forced to by the declining value of the currency. You are also mistaken as to the higher standard of living, when in the '50s and '60s, ONE worker in the family (usually the man) could work full-time, while the other (usually the wife) could stay home and take care of rearing the kids. Nowadays, because of the declining value of the fiat, paper dollar, it takes TWO workers to bring home the same (or lower!) amount of purchasing power one could have in the 1950s or 1960s. This decline in the 'dollar' created massive social changes with latchkey kids, left alone for hours until one of their parents (some had only one, with higher divorce rates!) came home from work.

[@FredFlix]

Um, what freeguy77 said.

[@cargo4441]

I'm goining with Bill on this one even if eggs were 44 cents a dozen at a 1.70 per hour your food wiped that check out and remember having a major part on your car go out meant unemployment.

[@freeguy77]

@@cargo4441 And losing a higher and higher proportion of your paycheck to the deliberate policy of "watering down the milk" (which is analogous to inflating away the value of the money) is nothing short of FRAUD, and it is a deliberate policy of the government-banking axis. In other words, it is THEFT, just as all taxes are, with the poor and lower-classes bearing the brunt of the tax load, as a percentage of their disposable income, until there is very little remaining. Cars can always go out with a part going bad, and can be fixed, but with higher and higher prices (lowered value of the 'dollar'), the car repair will also be too high. BTW, today we have alternatives to cars: public transportation (buses and subways), hitching a ride, LYFT and UBER ride-sharing, which was not around in the past. Many people do not own cars and they get to work just fine in other ways. But a deliberate policy of THEFT (secretly, via inflation of the currency) is cruel and the fact it is still a secret to the vast majority of people make it the worst tax ever designed to separate people from their income and wealth. Under a gold-silver standard, the gold-silver has to be mined, making it difficult to create out of nothing, as contrasted to paper, plus the mining amount increase yearly is about 1%, and it does not create the dreaded boom-bust economic cycles that DO put unknowing people out of work in the recession phase of the cycle. That makes it much worse than having a car suddenly have a problem that makes it inoperable, but can usually be fixed! Productivity gains are almost always over 2% yearly, making wages go up over time, and with prices steady or declining gradually in a gold-silver standard, a worker's REAL WAGES GO UPWARDS over the decades as they did from 1792 until 1972, exactly the opposite of what has occurred since Aug. 15, 1971, when the gold-dollar link was severed by Nixon's cruel, illegal and unconstitutional decision in unilaterally proclaiming the end to any precious metal redeemability (1792 Coinage Act), acting like a dictator.

[@darrellross1]

@@freeguy77 The new GE TV at 4:02 looks like a 1954-55 model my parents bought when I was a kid. $289.00 was almost a months wage. The average wage in 1955 was $4000. Because everything was made in the US during those years, they weren't cheap like today when you can still buy a new TV for $300 made in China or Korea. Everything is relative. Don't get too excited about those 1960 grocery prices when many people still made $1.25 per hour. You made a valid point about the wife staying home. My mom and most women on the block, stayed home after children were born. Most middle class families lived this way. Remember that my parents generation lived through the Great Depression, and were a lot more frugal than modern households. Most families had only one TV and Hi-Fi Stereo. Most families only had one Pontiac or Ford in the driveway. Middle class kids going to Cancun for spring break was unheard of. Now my 10 year old granddaughter has her own Smartphone. People are spoiled these days. That's why both parents have to work. A lot more gadgets to buy, laptops, Big screen TV's and dining out a lot more.

[@ClayLoomis1958]

2:43 I'm not particularly confident in the quality of food at Buddy Boys' Diner. The placemat menu offers Beff Burgers, Icecream "Sunday", a Mixed Sausage Omeleete, and French Fried. You can wash that down with a Chocalate or Stawberry Milkshake. I think the explanation for the spelling problems is right there too. The one picture of a food item on the entire menu is a Martini glass with an olive in it.

[@FredFlix]

Good catch, Clay.

[@sarjim4381]

@@FredFlix Looks like a non-US menu to me. The pork and beef steaks are listed as "200 g", presumably 200 grams. Not something we'd see on a US menu. It also lists a pork burger, also not something we'd see here. Note there are no decimal points in the prices, so it appears something like that pork steak is 250 of whatever the local currency was. I've seen menus like this in Thailand for US themed diners, and the prices look right for Bhat. it's for sure not a US menu.

[@6omega2]

Yeah, I was just going to post a comment about Buddy Boy's spelling ability myself! LOL!

[@ClayLoomis1958]

@@sarjim4381 I think you're right. Those are the right kind of spelling mistakes for a translation problem.

[@ChristopherUSSmith]

That martini probably was stirred, not shaken. lol

[@tedmckenna8339]

I worked for Finast during HS and college. It was fun

[@parabellum1002]

That Turkey price is REALLY high. There were turkeys at thanksgiving 2019 for .79 cents a pound. That’s only 10 cents more 40 - 50 years later

[@robertcampbell8027]

I remember McDonald’s All American Meal deal. Burger, fries and shake $.45. That’s about the same time that if a person made $10,000- $12,000 a year, they were wealthy. Everything is relative to its time.

[@gilliankingston8259]

When we first had a McDonalds in Winchester, Hampshire, UK (many years ago), they served Root Beer - I wish they still did, I loved it.

[@conniecrawford5231]

Remember when banks gave a free toaster if you opened a money market account?

[@johncollins7423]

Thank you, Fred Flix! It sure brought back some memories of great times, some of which I'd completely forgotten, as your videos tend to do. Fred Flix= Automatic like

[@FredFlix]

Nice of you to say, John.

[@johncollins7423]

FredFlix You are quite welcome.

[@timbarrett3631]

Yet another great production Fred!

[@FredFlix]

Thanks, Tim.

[@BoffinGrusky]

Even at $2.00, I'm not sure I'd ever be inclined to eat dinner at the Chez Paree.

[@robertscott2210]

watcherjohnny I'm pretty sure nobody went there for the cuisine.

[@junkersish]

Chez Paree is a high end strip joint in Montreal Canada

[@robertscott2210]

@@junkersish I kinda figured that by the picture, that's why I said that.

[@heeder777]

Lobster actually had a price other than “market value”.

[@tom7601]

heeder777: Many years ago, lobsters were sea-spiders and despised by high society. They were so cheap they were finally used to feed prisoners since no one else would eat them.

[@chevken1831]

How did it all change?

[@heeder777]

tom7601 amazing history, my wife to this day won’t eat them for the same reason, she calls the, and rightly so scum sucking bottom feeders. Personally I love them but I much prefer the cold water ones from Maine. That said they are a member of the roach family if I recall. They probably didn’t give the prisoners drawn butter and lemon! Now that’s the way to punish them!

[@chevken1831]

@@heeder777 The ROACH family?!!

[@garyarvin2094]

If those prices were today I would be a king

[@Crustymarine]

Change from your dollar with a burger, fries and drink.

[@mikeaball2142]

Fred,my dad would cuss at these high prices!

[@FredFlix]

But I ended up making 5 times the money my dad did.

[@FredFlix]

@Thomas Ritter Nice job. Being a journalist (retired), I never made more than $52K.

[@Actonrf]

The problem is you factor in the price of goods and services then to the average wage then. A burger may cost .15 cents but one in only making $1.50 an hour. Then back then a computer can set up back $120000. Also I would have to travel to Hong Kong and India to find deacent Chinese and Indian food. I black man orn in 1960 but I love 2019

[@Andrew-pu8ly]

Food prices in America are a SAD JOKE ....on us !!!! Remember when food prices EXPLODED with the " oil crisis " ??? Oil now at historic lows , improved growing , shipping and distribution . Do you think prices would actually creep DOWN ?!?!!!!

[@hankaustin7091]

I sure do remember that! and in my opinion, we've never really fully recovered to our wonderful standard of living we once enjoyed BEFORE the oil crisis.. both in 1973 AND 1979... sad.

[@johnprovince5304]

My $485k SoCal house originally sold for $7k in 1962.

[@lucano57]

Great stuff Fred , keep up the good work.

[@FredFlix]

Thanks, lucano57.

[@DrumWild]

When pennies were meaningful.

[@SuV33358]

Ikr.... pretty worthless today

[@saintmichael1779]

Chez Paree with Bettie Page! The only one I think, among the ladies who did burlesque better, is Tempest Storm. There is a film where Bettie plays a lady's maid and Tempest plays the lady. Tempest gets dressed, rather than undressed, with Bettie assisting her. Go to "Something Weird" to see this film, and others like it. I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Julie London singing "Black Coffee." I swear, she made love to the microphone. Hubba, hubba!

[@FredFlix]

I'm familiar with Something Weird. Nice comment, Michael.

[@Zoetropeification]

1:35 I can remember when canned hams were kind of a special thing to eat. This same ad has Porterhouse steak for $1.09 per pound. Can't even find a true porterhouse cut in most meat cases anymore.

[@JeffFrmJoisey]

Great vid!! Wish the dates for the ads were visible to see how it compares to today's $$

[@xyrzmxyzptlk1186]

That was interdimensional. Once again, nice work xilFderF. 👍🏼

[@FredFlix]

To reach your dimension is an honor, Mxyzptlk.

[@xyrzmxyzptlk1186]

FredFlix - Yeah, it’s pretty nice here when the Moon is in the Seventh House and Jupiter aligns with Mars. Peace guides the planets and love steers the stars. 👁 🚀

[@larrynunnery7914]

I miss the 20th century.

[@osbangloromerog.3559]

Those Big Years... Very, very Special Prices!!

[@Andrew-pu8ly]

Pea Pickin' Tennessee Ernie Ford , singing ....

[@ChristopherUSSmith]

Yep. He had a Jones for Martha White too. :)

[@23pamolson]

haha it took me one note to figure out the song, good one as usual, my friend, thanks!

[@breAnnasmama]

Ok. The price may have been right as the title claims , when we’re looking from today’s market/ economy back to the past ... but people often forget inflation and what the costs would’ve been in comparison to the value back in those times . Yeah I rem. When things were much cheaper and just hearing or seeing a lower dollar amount conveys a better feeling as a consumer lol but it’s all relative now days to what the value of a dollar /inflation adds up to be in terms of worth. So was it that much cheaper back then ? Maybe on some levels but not always.

[@tedmckenna8339]

Slower power point, introduce each slide in chronological order would be compelling

[@monkey-trial...6578]

Was this an oversight? The company store song in an otherwise happy video? The company store was a depressing hell of debt, an unending hell of debt. I love your videos but can't get past this song. Almost want to off myself.

[@FredFlix]

You're taking it too seriously. It's a great song. This video is getting only a one percent thumbs down. Even my best videos get at least 5 percent.

[@ChristopherUSSmith]

Too much inflation since then. :O

[@lastweek3606]

The worst in history!

[@sickofthestupid1067]

on the gold standard when our money was backed by gold and silver there was no inflation ....

[@moviesgalore9947]

Gas was 35 cents a gallon when I was a boy now it's $3.50 a gallon but really the same price since everything is at least 10 times as expensive now as it was then.

[@714Geo]

A Cadillac for $1300? Dam man :0

[@johnprovince5304]

Prices began seriously rising in the mid 1970's as women entered the workforce and family incomes increased. Prices always adjust to negate higher earnings. Now they have to work just to survive.

[@LynxSouth]

The commenter called freeguy77 has written a few comments on this page (and others) about economics and he explains it all really well. Inflation was caused primarily by unconstitutionally taking the US off the gold standard (by Nixon in 1971), not women in the workforce (that's a nonsense story spread by people who either don't understand economies and/or want to keep us divided and arguing instead of hunting down the true guilty parties).

[@didforlove]

modern slavery not living just surviving

[@jehobden]

I'd love to pay those gas prices at 1:52.

[@speedracer1945]

A house for the cost of a bottom line car nowadays. For $ 20 you could feed a house with three people.

[@LeslieGMN]

Reminds me, funnily, of the years I spent packing lunches for my sons (and sometimes for friends in residence). I would say I had “professional training,” as I’d packed lunches for visiting scholars while at uni, a welcome sideline from dishwashing!

[@cori1396]

WOW..can we go back in time and get these prices....😍😱🙆🙋

[@Lizmarie1965]

Awesome Fred!! Great music choices too!!

[@FredFlix]

Thanks, Elizabeth.

[@draculimpaler4507]

Three bedroom, two bath house no money down.....less a month than today's internet for a month. I should stop watching these Fred, as much as I like them, they depress the shit outta me

[@FredFlix]

Fang it, Dracul!

[@roxcyn]

Thanks for sharing Fred!

[@marthawelch4289]

FredFlix, bless your lil' pea-pickin' heart for using Tennessee Ernie's finger-snapping "Sixteen Tons".

[@FredFlix]

Nice comment, Martha.

[@cymoncyrado2879]

2:43 **chuckles at the "Beff Burger". 4:41 The difference in pricing depending on which time of day is a bunch.

[@stvitalkid7981]

In the 1960s, we had that Philco portable TV shown @ 4:29. My grandpa sold Philco among other brands at the small-town furniture store he owned. So he probably got it for us ‘wholesale’. We had a Philco radio-record player too.

[@pheadrus77]

Fallout Shelter - haven’t heard that term in years. I use to be my father to get one.

[@thedreadtyger]

killer sound track!

[@FredFlix]

Thank you.

[@bernardlerner1913]

Knockout audio!!!!

[@xyrzmxyzptlk1186]

FredFlix - That 2nd song was pretty breathy. Made me feel all squishy inside. What was it? 😍

[@FredFlix]

@@xyrzmxyzptlk1186 Black Coffee by Julie London.

[@heedmywarning2792]

no one is taking into account the amount of money you made vs the cost of things back then. Percentages and ratios.

[@FredFlix]

Everyone knows about that. You're not taking THAT into account.

[@hankaustin7091]

@@FredFlix Fred, there's always one party pooper in every crowd.. this clown is it...

[@sagbrady8414]

You know it's hard to believe its so long ago when it reminds me of yesterday

[@bmasters1981]

And newspapers were only 5 to 15 cents, and gave you more content than today's overpriced rags (I got a reprint of the New York Times from July 20, 1969 about the moon landing [from the Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville], and back in 1969, the Times had a mere 10-cent cover price [or was it 15?], and you got more for that cover price than you do today)!

[@merce10554]

Brief and to the point: fantastic vid. :)

[@FredFlix]

Thanks, merce.

[@princessgrace66]

Although We're still Virus contained I can still count on Your Vidz to keep the Party rolling...Tku

[@FredFlix]

You're sweet, Princess.

[@princessgrace66]

@@FredFlix Tks FF👍

[@tom7601]

And wages were less than $1.00/ hour. My dad was making $0.25/day in the 30s.

[@FredFlix]

That's amazing, Tom.

[@freeguy77]

The price level drastically declined during the deflationary 1930s, until the artificially-pumped-up money supply was able to create higher prices after WW2 started for the US in 1942. The minimum wage was maybe 50 cents/hour in the 1930s, later in the 1940s it was then 75 cents. I remember when it was $1.25 in the early 1960s, and people could still comfortably have a ONE-worker in the family pay a mortgage and pay for a new or almost-new car! Not any more, thanks to the Federal Reserve Banking cartel and its government ally that it lends to, which has to be paid back to the Fed, with interest. The latest annual interest on the debt is over $343 BILLION every single year, and threatens to go much higher with higher interest rates and debt level now over $21.9 TRILLION. That $21.9 TRIL debt is only the cash payment debt, not counting mandatory, future, unfunded obligations in the established law that must pay Social Security, Medicare (fastest-growing program), civilian and military pensions, plus the Offense Dept., and the growing Interest payments. That total is now almost 75% of the total budget, with the other 25% the discretionary part (NASA, Weather, Foreign Aid, Parks, and Museums, etc.) the Congress controls in its annual budget appropriation, which is almost $4.2 TRILLION yearly. Soon, the government will have to start making massive cuts in most of its high expense programs or risk losing the entire 'dollar' to hyper-inflation to pay off its debts. That is what governments usually do, because people still don't recognize higher prices on almost everything as a TAX, and the worst TAX of all falling most heavily on the poor and working classes, imposed by a government on its citizens, while the upper-class does not spend such a high proportion of its income and does most of the saving that is critical to future economic growth. usdebtclock.org

[@thanksfornothing5636]

Wow a brand new 1952 Mercedes Benz was only $500

[@thanksfornothing5636]

49jubilee just like Foreigners dont trust American cars now huh??

[@freeguy77]

$500 gold dollars. At $35/ounce, that equals 14.286 ounces. At today's $1,287 per ounce, it equals $18,386.

[@geo386]

Everything was better and less expensive back then. I use to go to the movies when I was young and still have money for popcorn and soda.

[@supremepartydude]

Wow! it has been a long long time since I remember seeing many of these signs

[@sharonramone7186]

Great video as usual!

[@FredFlix]

Thanks, Sharon.

[@MadMatt1984]

I would love to get Steelers tickets today for $5.00

[@schallrd1]

Yeah I remember. But didn't have much money then either.

[@jamesswain2923]

Now we can't even live. It's food or gas or rent. It's crazy

[@SillySam665]

Butters sings this song on southpark

[@stimpy_thecat]

Oh, to make my 2020 salary but live in 1957...

[@georgehenderson7783]

2:16 $150 for a radio?! Back then???!!! Wait - comes with an amplifier... and a metal case! Still expensive back then though!

[@piper888]

Yeah but Dad was making about $37 a day. I joined the airforce in 1983 and was making $20 a day. What the heck is soup cream 2:46 ⁉️⁉️⁉️😛 I bought a 32in flat screen for that same price about $289 4:00

[@freeguy77]

Replying to Fred's introduction in saying, 'adjusted for inflation, many things were MORE costly 50+ years ago'; that is un-true, except for computers because there is no government regulation or a Dept of Computers! The overall price level in a fiat money environment (since Aug. 15, 1971 with the "Nixon shock" of no more gold redeemable from a paper 'dollar', the year after no more silver in any circulating coinage) ALWAYS outpace wages. Always, because the Central Bank and the banking industry can always create more "money" no limit, with a printing press or now, computer entries! That is why paper-only fiat money (no precious metal in the coins or redeemable in gold), is so devastating to people's standard of living over the years, and decades. Which is one big reason why Trump was able to win in 2016 in the key States (PA, MI, and WI) that wrested the "certain" win from his opponent, who did not care about those men that were suffering from wages that never could keep up with prices. On that day in Aug. 1971, it was the first time in U.S. history there was no more gold (or silver) redeemable from a 'dollar'! A 'dollar' in the 1792 Coinage Act, was defined as 371.25 grains of silver or 24.75 grains of gold. That specific definition had never been removed or altered, but the Congress ignored the Constitution [*] and illegally removed silver from the coinage (1965 dimes-quarters, 1970 half-dollar Acts) and then Nixon unilaterally removed the gold demand from any currency--listed on each note near the bottom, as it was until Aug. 15, 1971. Any wonder the 1970s defining economic characteristic was an explosion of "inflation" as secondarily defined as noticeably frightening rising prices? The first definition of inflation is this: INFLATING the amount of 'money' in an economy, always by paper/computer entries, and from many countries, a Central Bank; labeled the Federal Reserve in the U.S.! End the Fed, and its money monopoly since Dec. 23, 1913! [*] Article 1, Section 8, Clause 5 "Congress shall coin money, and of foreign coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures" and Article 1, Sec. 10, a concurrent command on the States: "No State shall...make anything but gold and silver coin a [legal] tender in payment of debts." Therefore, without a circulating medium of precious metal, how could the States obey their command to "make anything but gold and silver coin a [legal] tender in payment of debts?" They can't, which is why Congress MUST re-mint a precious metal medium of exchange (used to be from 1792 to 1970), when afterwards half-dollars were suddenly reduced from 40% silver to 0%! The dimes and quarters were previously eviscerated of all silver (from 90%) suddenly after 1964, so the increasingly expensive Vietnam War could be funded secretly by more fiat paper money, which was a cruel and vicious tax that made people poorer, but the government, its high-level wealthy bureaucrats, the politically-connected, and armament manufacturers richer! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_One_of_the_United_States_Constitution#Enumerated_powers en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_One_of_the_United_States_Constitution#Clause_1:_Contracts_Clause

[@libertyann439]

A time machine would be great-especially if I could bring today's money with me!