Were The 1950s A Great Time To Grow Up? And What About College In The 1960s? His Stories Sound Crazy

There is so much of what he says that relates to the attitudes that we have towards life today and of our impressions of what life was like back in the 1950s and 1960s.

I recorded this informal interview in 1989. I was speaking with baby boomers about their early life experiences for a television series that I was making on the 1960s. I asked them to reflect back and remember what those times were like for each of them personally. I was producing my series with the focus of making sense of the 1960s for the children whose parents grew up at that time, folks who were then maybe 20 years old.

The speaker is Arthur Levine. He paints a clear picture of what it was like growing up in a working class family in the 1950s. He felt it was an easier time. He describes the idealism, the longhair, the rebellious feeling, the American dream, Robert Kennedy, and more about what he felt and other young people felt as baby boomers growing up at that time.

But what is special about this interview is how he describes his first week at college as a freshman (at 2:09) - wild and crazy and drug filled with rock 'n' roll and other strange behavior, at least to him.

Dr. Arthur Levine went on to become a scholar with New York University’s Steinhardt Institute for Higher Education Policy, a senior fellow and president emeritus of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, and president emeritus of Columbia University’s Teachers College.

I asked each interviewee to describe their first experiences at college because my target audience for the series were of college age. Arthur Levine described it wonderfully. The picture he paints of being a freshman in college at that time sounds wild and crazy and it was surprising to me how many young college students had similar experiences.

Dr. Levine authored 12 books and dozens of articles and reviews on education, including a series of reports for the Education Schools Project on the preparation of school leaders, teachers and education researchers. He has received numerous honors, including Carnegie, Guggenheim, and Rockefeller Fellowships as well as the American Council on Education’s Book of the Year Award. He holds 25 honorary degrees and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is also the author of an extraordinary book about changes in America's education system –
The Great Upheaval: Higher Education’s Past, Present, and Uncertain Future.

As the president of the Woodrow Wilson Foundation, Levine transformed it into a national leader in educator preparation and school improvement. Staying true to the Foundation’s mission of identifying and developing leaders and institutions to meet the nation’s critical challenges, Levine created a portfolio of new and innovative programs designed to improve educational opportunities, particularly for high-need communities.

If you found this interview of value or even just entertaining, I would appreciate your clicking the super thanks button below the video screen. Your support allows me to have the luxury of digging into my archive and finding more video clips like this one.
Thank you
David Hoffman filmmaker

[Petersonmgee]

David Hoffman, you’re a real national treasure.

[vvision]

As a younger person, I greatly appreciate hearing these conversations. It’s vital to listen.

[garethcraddock]

As always, fascinating. I'm 45 this year; I'm English. I was 11 when this interview was conducted. So much of his experience relates to social history in the UK, as well as the US...

[stevepick]

This is spot on! I’m 73 and grew up during this same period. I don’t even recognize the world we live in today, Due to the Internet it has drastically changed for the worse.

[gregoryfilin]

It's always lovely to see these. It's nice being a 25 year old and to have some perspective on the past.

[Beau]

This man comes off so genuine.
God’s love on him.

Thank you David,
God Bless!

[lizzy-wxrx]

THANK YOU so much for this. My parents were children in the 40s; high schoolers in the 50s; went to college in the late 50s/early 60s. I have tried *so many times* to get descriptions from them of "what it was like, " but to no avail. ("Well, girls had to wear skirts to school." Oh really!) This is exactly the kind of thing I'm so curious about--you're right, his explanations are superb!

[KarlMarxFanClub]

Most Americans now believe it’s all about me, myself, and I. People are obsessed with consumption, materialism, and self-gratification no matter who suffers the consequences of it. We’ve been brainwashed to believe that the individual self overrides the collective good for the whole of society, and is actually seen as a virtue instead of a sin of destruction.

[Linda-]

Great interview. This man was very enjoyable to listen to.

[wilhelmhesse]

This video has greatly educated me on the 1960s higher learning experience in the US. A very important video. Thanks for sharing it sir.

[lowerclassbrats]

I was born in 78, I have tons of lifelong friends, I'm married with 3 sons, own a house and two cars. I guess I'm doing alright, but I feel an odd nostalgia for a time I've never known. I'm internally so out of step with society today it makes me sick, while being able to fake it enough be functional.

I was a child of the 80's and for that I am greatful. That said, the way the main character in The Twilight Zone: A Stop at Willoughby feels about the late 1890's-Early 1900's is how I feel about the 50's and very early 60's.

[thischannelisbackon]

Such great insight. Ive found myself stunned by the film youve captured. If you had not documented it, nobody would have. Thanks David, filmer and photographer.

[matthewstewart]

The idea of a generational feeling of hope and optimism, of looking to the future with excitement is very interesting, as a younger person. I'm 25, and my generation (and particularly those younger than me) is characterised by a sort of washed-out uneasiness and apathy, as if we're just waiting for *something*. We look to the future with dread, resigned to the fact that things are only going to get worse and there's very little we can do about it. It's sad. I wonder what happened.
Your videos are fascinating little time capsules, thank you.

[chriscarney]

The possibilities explained in this wonderful conversation I fear are completely impossible today

[matthewfarmer]

Hi David Hoffman 👋 I must be the first to write lol don't see any other comments on here. He's telling it like it is. He just moved his hands and head like to give you some kind of what he's taking about. Thanks for sharing David.🎥😉

[tjugofyra]

I recently came across the album Neighborhoods by Ernest Hood. It's instrumental music mixed with field recordings made in 1972. I read an article about Ernest Hood saying that Neighborhoods is Ernests memories of his childhood in the 1950's in musical form.

I played the album from the beginning and listened to this interview and the one with the wealthy baby boomers. Cool experience!

[SMElder-odcl]

I'm so glad I grew up in this time period. My parents were in charge. No question. You transgressed; there was punishment. You could count on it. Kids went to college. They got a job, an apartment. I never heard of drugs. I didn't drink. I didn"t smoke.

[willtwain]

Sad that the 60s hope died. It died alongside our rejection of government spending. This gentleman said it. Thank you.

[flagfootballhighlights]

This might be the most articulate man I've ever heard speak. And the way he summarized the 'Titanic mentality' is spot on and seemingly (unfortunately), evergreen. Thank you for sharing this gem.

[Madkalibyr]

Your videos are so priceless David Hoffman