The "Age of Aquarius"
In 1968, a new musical called Hair celebrating rock music, hippies, alternative lifestyles, long hair, drugs, and free love opened on Broadway. The opening song proclaimed, "This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius...peace will guide the planet, and love will steer the stars." The staid New York Times called it “…so likeable. So new, so fresh and so unassuming…” even though it included a much-publicized (and outrageous for the time) nude scene. The counterculture, long dismissed by critics as silly, marginal, and even harmful to American society, was becoming mainstream.
Poster for the musical "Hair"
Evidence of the influence of the counterculture could be seen everywhere in 1968. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, the psychedelic album by the Beatles, won Album of the Year—the first rock ‘n’ roll album to do so. The Graduate, a film about a middle-class college graduate rejecting his parents’ lifestyle, was nominated for Best Picture of the Year. Two books celebrating psychedelic drugs were best sellers: Tom Wolfe’s The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test and Carlos Castaneda’s The Teachings of Don Juan.
Cast of "Hair"
As elements of the counterculture began to gain prominence, they pushed society’s boundaries in fashion, art, movies and television, and music. This often forced the generations even further apart, creating a “generation gap” between the old and young and increasing tensions around the country.
Take Notes
Like other symbols of the 1960s, fashion often signaled a rejection of social conventions. Consider the 1968 cast photograph from Hair above. The actors' costumes represent hippie-style clothing and hair styles. What specifics do you notice about their appearance? How does it express the rebellious attitude of young people in the late 1960s?
Calderwood Writing Course: U.S. History
