The Gay Nineties is an American nostalgic term and a periodization of the history of the United States referring to the decade of the 1890s. It is known in the United Kingdom as the Naughty Nineties, and refers there to the decade of supposedly decadent art of

Aubrey Beardsley Aubrey Vincent Beardsley ( ; 21 August 187216 March 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His black ink drawings were influenced by Woodblock printing in Japan, Japanese woodcuts, and depicted the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. ...

, the witty plays and trial of

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

, society scandals and the beginning of the

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

movement. Despite the term, part of the decade was marked by an economic crisis, which greatly worsened when the Panic of 1893 set off a widespread

economic depression An economic depression is a period of carried long-term economic downturn that is the result of lowered economic activity in one or more major national economies. It is often understood in economics that economic crisis and the following recession ...

in the United States that lasted until 1897.

Etymology

The term Gay Nineties began to be used in the 1920s in the United States, and it is believed to have been created by the artist Richard V. Culter, who first released a series of drawings in ''

Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...

'' magazine titled "the Gay Nineties" and later published a book of drawings with the same name.

History

Novels by authors like Edith Wharton and Booth Tarkington documented the high life of the "old money" families. By the 1920s, the decade was nostalgically seen as a period of pre-

income tax An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...

wealth for a newly emergent "society set". The railroads, the agricultural depression of the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

, and the dominance of the United States in South American markets and the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

meant that industrialists of the

Northern United States The Northern United States, commonly referred to as the American North, the Northern States, or simply the North, is a geographical and historical region of the United States. History Early history Before the 19th century westward expansion, the ...

seemed to have been doing very well. '' The Gay Nineties Revue'' was a nostalgic radio program in the 1930s, hosted by a prominent composer of popular songs of the 1890s, Joe Howard. The television series '' The Gay Nineties Revue'' was broadcast in the 1940s. There was an 1890s-themed New York cafe, "Bill's Gay Nineties", during the 1930s. Billy Rose's " Diamond Horseshoe" was an 1890s themed establishment, and the subject of the film '' Billy Rose's Diamond Horseshoe'' (1945). There is also a popular pizza restaurant in Pleasanton, California with the name Gay Nineties. From the 1920s to the 1960s, filmmakers had a nostalgic interest in the 1890s as seen in the films '' She Done Him Wrong'' (1933), '' Belle of the Nineties'' (1934), '' The Strawberry Blonde'' (1941), '' The Nifty Nineties'' (a Mickey Mouse cartoon) (1941), '' My Gal Sal'' (1942), '' Heaven Can Wait'' (1943), '' The Naughty Nineties'' (1945), '' I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now'' (1947), '' By the Light of the Silvery Moon'' (1953) and '' Hello, Dolly!'' (1969). Roger Edens' song "The Gay Nineties" opens a production number spoofing period melodramas in '' Strike Up the Band'', a 1940 MGM film starring Judy Garland and

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Ninnian Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nearly nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last survivi ...

. There were 1890s nostalgia albums. "Nineties Nostalgia"Sprengler. Screening Nostalgia. 2009
p 35
for the "Gay Nineties" or 1890s was a form of decade nostalgia, and existed by the 1920s and 1930s. 1890s nostalgia was part of the broader phenomenon of

Neo-Victorian Neo-Victorianism refers to a contemporary cultural, aesthetic, and literary movement that engages with, reimagines, and rewrites the literature, history, and aesthetics of the Victorian period. Emerging prominently in the late 20th century, Neo ...

nostalgia. In Japan, 1890s nostalgia was part of the broader phenomenon of Meiji nostalgia.Sandra Buckley. "nostalgia boom". The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Japanese Culture. Routledge. 2002. Taylor & Francis e-Library. 2006
p 365

References

*Martha Shearer. "The Gay Nineties". New York City and the Hollywood Musical: Dancing in the Streets. 2016. p
78
to 82. *"Leg O'Mutton Era Revived By Mode". The Montreal Gazette. 30 March 1936
p 9
*"Gay Nineties Nostalgia Returns To Athabasca".

Edmonton Journal The ''Edmonton Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It is part of the Postmedia Network. History The ''Journal'' was founded in 1903 by three local businessmen — John Macpherson, Arthur Moore and J.W. Cunn ...

. 3 February 1961
page twenty
{{US history 1890s in the United States Fin de siècle Eras of United States history 1890s 1890s in economic history 1920s neologisms Nostalgia in the United States Gilded Age

Etymology

History

See also

References