10 things worth missing from the 1970s
Quick, what decade are we in?
The 20-teens? The 20-tens? The decade with no name?
In order for nostalgia to find a nest, a decade needs a proper nickname. For those of us born in the 20th century, we remember each decade — the ’60s, for example — as a distinct cultural unit, defined by the products and popular culture of the day.
But what about our 21st-century kids? What will they hold dear from the 2010s?
My wife and I have two sons, ages 15 and 10, and sometimes I wonder what pop-culture icons of this decade will come to seem quaint as they grow older. Let me guess a few: Trump, iPhones, fidget spinners, TV talent shows, designer sneakers, SUVs.
My formative decade was the 1970s. I was 12 years old when the decade began and a 22-year-old college senior when it ended. I can still see, feel, taste and smell the 1970s. In fact, it took me about two minutes to make a list of 10 random things I miss from the so-called “Me” decade.
So, here goes:
› Whitewall tires. We forget now, but whitewall tires (really, white sidewall tires) had a long run, from the 1900s to the 1970s. As the designated car washer in our family, part of my job was scrubbing the whitewalls on the family station wagon with a Brillo pad.
There was something deeply satisfying to me about watching the whitewalls go from dingy gray to dazzling white. Alas, alloy wheels became bigger, tire sidewalls became shorter and whitewalls eventually disappeared.
› Drive-in movies. Yes, I know they still exist, but in the 1970s there was a drive-in theater in nearly every small town. There was something about waiting for sunset for the premovie cartoons to start that added to the anticipation.
I remember going to see James Bond movies with my