United States in 1974
You were born in 1974 — Nixon resigned, the Fonz said 'Aaaaay!', Ali won the Rumble in the Jungle, and Dungeons & Dragons invented a new kind of game.
💰 How much things cost in 1974
| Item | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Petrol | 0.53 USD/gallon | verified (U.S. EIA (post-embargo spike)) |
| Cinema ticket | ~1.87 USD | estimate |
| Coffee | ~0.15 USD | estimate |
| Ice cream | ~0.25 USD (scoop) | estimate |
Currency: USD
🎵 The music of 1974
The song of the year: Barbra Streisand – The Way We Were (Billboard Year-End Hot 100 #1)
Other songs people listened to in 1974:
- Barbra Streisand – The Way We Were
- Terry Jacks – Seasons in the Sun
- Redbone – Come and Get Your Love
- John Denver – Annie's Song
- Paul McCartney – Band on the Run
- John Denver – Sunshine on My Shoulders
- Elton John – Bennie and the Jets
- MFSB – TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)
- Charlie Rich – The Most Beautiful Girl
📺 TV, cinema and pop culture
Cartoons: Super Friends S2 / Scooby-Doo / Land of the Lost (NBC, premiere Sept 7, 1974) (on ABC / NBC). Nixon resigns August 9, 1974. The first and only US President to resign. Gerald Ford: 'Our long national nightmare is over.'
TV series: Happy Days (ABC, premiere Jan 15, 1974) — the 1950s seen through 1974 nostalgia. The Fonz.
At the cinema: Chinatown (Polanski) — Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, the darkest LA noir ever made.
Person of the moment: The Fonz (Henry Winkler) of Happy Days — 'Aaaaay!' and two thumbs up. Cool defined.
The cult toy: Dungeons & Dragons (launched Jan 1974) / Hot Wheels / Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle. Dungeons & Dragons launched January 1974. Dice, dragons, imagination. The grandfather of every RPG and video game ever made.
👗 Fashion and snacks
Fashion: Post-glam: jeans everywhere, peasant blouses, shag haircuts. The Fonz as style icon ironically.
Snacks: Cracker Jack, Cap'n Crunch, Oreos, Popsicles, Tang (still riding the space program halo)
📰 What happened in 1974
Event of the year: Nixon becomes first US president to resign — over Watergate. Ford pardons Nixon.
Sport: Super Bowl VIII: Miami Dolphins beat Minnesota Vikings 24-7. Larry Csonka dominant.
💻 Technology and everyday life
Tech news: Bar code scanners first used in US supermarkets. Rubik's Cube invented (released in 1980).
The gadget to have: Dungeons & Dragons (1974) — the game that spawned every video game RPG ever made
How people communicated: Nixon resigns August 9. Gerald Ford pardons him September 8. The country is furious and exhausted.
How people listened to music: Elton John at his commercial peak. John Denver. The Waltons and country-friendly pop.
The weekend: Muhammad Ali vs George Foreman — 'The Rumble in the Jungle' October 30 in Zaire. Ali wins. Impossible.
📵 What didn't exist yet in 1974
- personal computers for consumers (1975+)
- cell phones (1983)
- internet for all
- Star Wars (1977)
- Saturday Night Live (1975)
🎯 Guess the year — Every day a new mystery year from United States. You have 5 guesses: every miss reveals another clue.
More years from the 1970s
Main sources: EIA, Billboard, NATO