DESTINATIONS: THEN AND NOW

published 10 April 2007

It's a faster paced world today than when Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine first hit the newsstands in 1947. More than just a new periodical, Kiplinger's magazine introduced an entirely new kind of journalism -- advice on personal money management for an audience of affluent, well-educated readers. So to celebrate our 60th anniversary, we went back and researched prices for travel and leisure at the dawn of the baby-boomer generation.

Pack your bags. Our journey begins with the navigation bar to the right. . .

Topics

Lists Travel

Sail the Seven Seas

Transatlantic Cruise Aboard the Queen Mary

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Up, Up and Away

Flight to Paris

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Light Up the Silver Screen

Price of a Movie Ticket

The late 1940s marked the beginning of the end of the Hollywood studio system, as major motion picture makers were forced to sell off the theaters they owned. Today's multiplex theaters are luxurious, equipped with stadium seating that offer cup holders and chairs that rock. Elia Kazan won the Academy Award for Best Director in 1947 with Gentleman's Agreement. In 2007, Martin Scorsese finally won his first Oscar as Best Director for The Departed.

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Take Me Out to the Ball Game

Seat Behind Home Plate at a Yankees Game

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Fill 'er Up

Cost of a Gallon of Regular Gas

Back in the 1940s, the service station came with a friendly attendant who pumped your gas, cleaned your windshield and checked the air pressure in your tires. In 2007, self-service stations with computerized pumps let you gas and go with a credit card. Alternative fuels are under development, from ethanol in the U.S. to fuel created from sugar cane in Brazil. But none has yet to come close to quenching America's thirst for liquid fossil fuels.

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Zero to 60

Considered Good Gas Mileage

The year 1947 was a big year for technological advances in the auto industry. Packard introduced power seats and windows. A year later, General Motors introduced curved glass windshields. The ignition key became standard on all Chrysler cars by 1949. Today, auto manufacturers are turning to new, more fuel-efficient technologies as hybrids, such as the Toyota Prius, gain traction in the marketplace.