Amazing Offers Fotos and Fun Facts
The novel takes place in Southern California from about 1938 to 1951. But events in the lives of the characters are referenced as far back as 1922. The population of Los Angeles County grew tremendously during this time period as water was brought in from the Owens Valley and Hoover Dam in Nevada and agriculture--particularly oranges--boomed. Land developers popularized sun and leisure lifestyles. A new housing tract called "Hollywood Land"--until the "land" part of it fell down and it was renamed "Hollywood"--was typical. The Great Depression of 1929-1939 cooled things off a bit. Prohibition prevented folks from drowning their sorrows in booze. But gangsters provided illegal alcohol and gambling until the outbreak of World War Two. The place was booming again, but sub-surface racial tensions were stressed by ill-will toward Japanese-Americans, and the huge influx of black Americans from the South, and agricultural workers from Mexico.
After WWII, everyone wanted a TV. Mass marketing campaigns targeted the suddenly prosperous Middle Class. "The American Dream" was something everyone knew they were supposed to be chasing, but were never quite sure if they succeeded in achieving it. Things haven't changed much since then.
