"Comments made in 1955" — silly errors

Shown below is one of those allegedly humorous/ironic emails that get passed around endlessly.

Obviously, nobody ever made these comments. But artistic liberty aside, why not get the facts straight?

As someone who peddled newspapers, counted pennies, and actually remembers prices from that decade, I note these fatuous fallacies:

Stamps were still 3 cents in 1955. They only went up to 4 cents in 1958, and weren't increased to 7 cents for many more years. 

Even in my hick town, haircuts cost at least fifty cents. (When I was in Germany in 1960, I considered 35-cent PX haircuts a marvelous bargain.) 

Language in movies in 1955 was as pure as it was in 1939.  There were no expletives or oaths.  In 1953, you had to be 16 to see The Moon is Blue, which used the words "pregnant" and "virgin." 

Nobody thought about putting a man on the moon except us science-fiction fans. There were no astronauts anywhere in 1955, let alone "peparing for it down in Texas." Sputnik didn't happen until 1957. 

Electric typewriters were not a novelty. IBM produced the first commercially-successful one in 1935. Almost everything that could be electrified in a kitchen was done so in the thirties, though nobody could afford it until the postyear years. 

And any moron knows that new cars didn't cost $1,000 at that time. A 1955 Ford cost at least $1600. (Actually, since there were no sticker prices in those days, it was a matter of what a dealer could get away with.)

Why do people insist on making stuff up instead of citing actual facts, which are often more vivid?

This is what I call the Retard Factor in the Internet (RFI).

The email as typically circulated:

Comments made in the year 1955! That's only 55 years ago! 

"I'll tell you one thing, if things keep going the way they are, it's going to be impossible to buy a week's groceries for $10.00." 

"Have you seen the new cars coming out next year? It won't be long before $1,000.00 will only buy a used one..." 

"If cigarettes keep going up in price, I'm going to quit. 20 cents a pack is ridiculous." 

"Did you hear the post office is thinking about charging 7 cents just to mail a letter." 

"If they raise the minimum wage to $1.00, nobody will be able to hire outside help at the store." 

"When I first started driving, who would have thought gas would someday cost 25 cents a gallon. Guess we'd be better off leaving the car in the garage." 

"I'm afraid to send my kids to the movies any more ever since they let Clark Gable get by with saying '****' in GONE WITH THE WIND, it seems every new movie has either '****' or '****' in it." 

"I read the other day where some scientist thinks it's possible to put a man on the moon by the end of the century. They even have some fellows they call astronauts preparing for it down in Texas." 

"Did you see where some baseball player just signed a contract for $50,000 a year just to play ball? It wouldn't surprise me if someday they'll be making more than the President.." 

"I never thought I'd see the day all our kitchen appliances would be electric. They are even making electric typewriters now." 

"It's too bad things are so tough nowadays... I see where a few married women are having to work to make ends meet." "It won't be long before young couples are going to have to hire someone to watch their kids so they can both work." 

"I'm afraid the Volkswagen car is going to open the door to a whole lot of foreign business." 

"Thank goodness I won't live to see the day when the Government takes half our income in taxes. I sometimes wonder if we are electing the best people to government." 

"The drive-in restaurant is convenient in nice weather, but I seriously doubt they will ever catch on." 

"There is no sense going on short trips anymore for a weekend, it costs nearly $2.00 a night to stay in a hotel." 

"No one can afford to be sick anymore, at $15.00 a day in the hospital, it's too rich for my blood." 

"If they think I'll pay 30 cents for a hair cut, forget it."