# 1942 American



## BryanJ62 (Mar 30, 2015)

*Need some brainstorming and this tired brain of mine needs some help. 

Here's the setting:

The hero of the story wakes up in a strange room. The reader and the main character have no idea they went back in time to 1942. Slowly they see details that tell them something is not right. What does he see?

This is what I have so far -

1) ashtray
2) typewriter
3) poster
4) calendar 

what else?????*


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## BryanJ62 (Mar 30, 2015)

*I meant '1942 America". Sorry about that. *


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## Riis Marshall (Mar 30, 2015)

Hello Bryan

It depends on the room. Other interesting stuff would be: the furniture, a radio, some magazines, the cars outside the window and a clock. If it's a kitchen all the kitchen stuff would date it pretty clearly.

Goggle photographs of that year to give you loads of ideas.

All the best with your writing.

Warmest regards
Riis


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## Plasticweld (Mar 30, 2015)

The curtains, which are no longer in fashion along with the wall paper which is no longer used today everything it painted today.  The light fixtures from the bulbs to the switches will be different.  The rug will be of both different material along with the fabric covering the furniture.  The place will also smell different.  Today we have central air and functional heating systems.  The house could have been heated with steam heat or coal, an oil boiler would have be rare, so the place would have a mildew smell or a smell of whatever was used for heat.   Also things that are missing there would be paintings on the walls, unlikely to have any photos because of the cost of having something enlarged back then would have been prohibitive.  The windows would have been single pane no thermal glass or storm windows would have been noticeable from the period.   

The other noticeable things would be the silence, while you had radio it was seldom that it would be on in the middle of the day. Traffic would have be light and the sound of cars very different than today. I am also assuming you are pre-Dec 7th


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## BryanJ62 (Mar 30, 2015)

*Hey guys! Thanks! He wakes up in a cot that was rolled into a private office. From there he ends up in the bathroom and the kitchen. He starts getting suspicious in the private office. There's a little girl in the room who is from 1942. In fact she is the reason he's there. She isn't suppose to tell him anything but being a six year old she can't help it. He figures it out through her words and the home he is in. The final hurrah is when he runs out side and sees the cars. This is May of '42 so we are knee deep in WWII. I'm guessing there's a lot of signs and posters as well. I keep thinking of that scene in Back to the Future where Marty slowly walks through town after reading the date on the newspaper. *


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## Sonata (Mar 31, 2015)

I was born in March 1942 but in England, not in America, therefore I do not think I can help you.  There were no cars in our street and very few men to be seen - those that were around were in uniform.


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## InstituteMan (Mar 31, 2015)

First, I really, really like Plastic's suggestions about home heating/cooling and pretty much everything above. Those are the sorts of things that are easy to forget, but they would make for a big change.

Clothing would be a big difference, especially women's clothing.

Also, you talk about a cot, and even that might be different in 1942 than what your protagonist would expect from contemporary America. There wouldn't be nylon or synthetic fibers used anywhere, and depending upon the kind of cot you have in mind it could even have a folding wooden frame.


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## BryanJ62 (Apr 1, 2015)

*I was thinking of that today. The folding wooden frame. Interesting how the image is becoming clear. That's what I love about story telling. Thanks everyone!*


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## aj47 (Apr 1, 2015)

Go to imdb and look for movies that are copyright 1942.  Try to locate and watch some with contemporary plots/settings.  See what you notice. Those would be the same kinds of things your character would notice.


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## BurntMason84 (Apr 1, 2015)

InstituteMan said:


> Clothing would be a big difference, especially women's clothing.



Absolutely, I think hat stands would have been really common back in the day.  Old rotary style telephones, matchbooks, newspapers definitely.  Kids playing in the streets and outside.  Depending on where he is too and just beginning in World War 2, you might hear a lot of planes roaring outside.  Also, baseball was huge back in the war, so you might here radios tuned to that, or kids playing that, etc.

Another thing you might see, as distasteful as it is, but relevant for the era, is segregation was still in full swing at that point.  Again, really depends where your character is that they'd see it, but you might still see "Whites Only" or "No Blacks" signs, or other degrading terms written, here and there on shops and what have you.


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## aggieamy (Jun 17, 2015)

Plasticweld said:


> Today we have central air and functional heating systems.  The house could have been heated with steam heat or coal, an oil boiler would have be rare, so the place would have a mildew smell or a smell of whatever was used for heat.



I wanted to piggy back on this idea a bit.  My grandparents had a fan from that era and the thing was powerful.  It was also loud.  If  you were laying in bed listening to it you would have realized that it wasn't one of our modern box fans.  Just an idea for something that would jump out at a person before they were fully awake.


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## Nicadeamas (Jun 17, 2015)

.
You could also capitalize on what you _do not_ see.
Focusing on what you_ don't see_ is a huge help in discovering what you _should see_ instead.
First and foremost, Computers, wide-spread electronics, three pronged outlets, cheap trim, cell phones, wall phones, digital indicators, PLASTIC, smoke detectors, in-wall light switches, vent ducts, hand sanitizers, asbestos based products (Primarily floor tiles, ceiling tiles, pipe insulation, wire insulation, and paneled siding.), AC, wheel chair ramps, those stupid little plastic wheels china makes for every chair in the world, miscellaneous small 'trinkets', cute little white digital thermostats, clocks, etc. :loyal:


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## egpenny (Jul 12, 2015)

Don't forget the icebox, not the refrigerator. I'm old and we had an icebox in 1947. The kitchen stoves were huge, as well. Forget the rotary phones. There was probably a crank phone hanging on the wall. Think party lines. 1942 was after Pearl Harbor, so think about that. Patriotic calendars etc. Don't forget radios only, big monster ones with lots of knobs. The bathroom might have a toilet with a water tank above it and a pull chain to flush, and only a single sink.


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## Riis Marshall (Jul 12, 2015)

Hello Folks

In Western Pennsylvania in 1942 some folks had refrigerators - often called the 'Frigidiare' because this was the most popular make. Most telephones were rotary dial, some still the stand with the mouthpiece on top and the earpiece hanging from a hook. Some radios were huge but ours was smaller than a shoebox and only had two knobs on it - on/off and tuner. Bathrooms ranged from a sink and tub with the toilet in the back yard, others were complete with sink, tub and toilet, and some even with showers.

Also in America in 1942 you would have seen a rationing sticker on the windshield of all cars. They ranges from A to D according to how much gasoline you were allocated. I don't remember which way the letters went but a doctor, for example, was allocated more because of her or his work.

I think the best advice is from Annie who suggests you watch loads of films of that era.

All the best with your writing.

Warmest regards
Riis


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## LeeC (Jul 12, 2015)

Other than all the differences already mentioned, keep i mind that regional differences existed, some strikingly more "modern" than others.

For instance the kitchen I remember in '40s Wyoming wasn't nearly as "advanced" as farther east in the population centers. This image is from early 1900 New England, but it has all the components of the early '40s kitchen I remember. Specifically the wood cooking stove (ours had a water cistern for heating water), and the hand-pump sink. There was a wood box in the corner where the chair is.




Electricity hadn't reached the ranch yet, and the telephone had its own battery.



And this was the bathroom, but ours was a two seater.



We did have one "modern" convenience, that being a B&S gasoline engine powered wringer washing machine 

Oh, and us kids were never at a lack for something that needed doing ;-)



PS: Now if you want to go back to Victorian times, maybe Bazz or Olly can help


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## Winston (Jul 19, 2015)

_...two pronged outlets_, like Nicadeamas said.  Only one per room.  Light switches were push buttons on brass plates.

Start ground up.  No 'wall-to-wall' carpet.  Coarsely laid wood floors, with a well worn wool rug (oriental, with fringe) on top.  An occasional jagged, rusty flooring nail sticking up.  

Peeling, faded floral wallpaper.  Chipped, painted, rough window frames with slightly opaque panes.  One picture or painting per wall, with a thick varnished frame.

Doorbells used to be actual bells.  Near the front door, long brass cylinders. Wrought iron hinges and fireplace, including accessories.  Rust.

The smell of wood.  And dirt.  And food.  Cooking stoves had poor ventilation.  Possible coal smell as well.  Again, wool.

Dimly lit, with piercing shafts of light slashing each room though soiled, worn curtains.

You can actually hear sounds outside.  Birds, wind, coyotes...  You can also hear the house creak and moan.

If there is rain, water will find it's way in.  If it's windy, a breeze will penetrate.  If there is a fire in the distance, you will smell that as well.

*Region Specific:  *In 1942 all coastal communities were under "blackout' orders to prevent U-boats and "jap" bombers from finding targets.  Light blocking material was drawn over all windows sun down to sun up.  Old men were tasked with enforcing this, wearing "tommy" helmets emblazoned with the Civil Defense emblem.  

Ration books.  Meatless Tuesdays.  Cars with tires so worn they were more patches than rubber.  Victory Gardens.  Nylons worth their weight in Gold.

Xenophobia.  My mom had Japanese friends.  They disappeared in 1942.  Along with her childhood and her innocence...


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## BryanJ62 (Jul 19, 2015)

*Above and beyond. This will fill in the gaps. The story is finished all it needs is info. Thanks!*


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