The '50s was a time of honoring traditions, but oddly enough, it was also characterized by a lot of change and newness. It was a time when people were starting to live their lives again after the war. The decade was one focussed on progression for Americans who wanted to build a future for their families and their country. By 1954, Ernest Hemingway had won the Nobel Prize in Literature, Cleveland faced its defeat against the New York Giants in the World Series, and the movie On The Waterfront had taken out a number of Academy Awards. Meanwhile, Hernando's Hideaway and Mister Sandman earned recognition in the hit parade.
Amidst all of these great things, something else crept its way slowly into American homes: TV dinners. Television was a fascinating phenomenon, if not a breakthrough in technology. At the time, there were only three to four hours of programming every day, which came in the late afternoon until dinnertime. A typical American routine included watching television after work or school. However, this meant families didn't have time to prepare for their evening meal.
The '50s marked the middle of the post-war baby boom; women spent as much time outside as they did inside. They were either working or taking their children to school, ballet lessons, or little league. Women became so preoccupied with all these new activities that cooking became an afterthought for many.
Of course, it was only a matter of time before someone created something that would answer the issue. Betty Cronin, a 22-year-old bacteriologist, started a $1.3 billion per annum industry after carrying out an order from C.A Swanson & Sons of Omaha to try out the first fried chicken TV dinner. Today, she is widely known as the “Mother of The TV Dinner.”
The first TV dinner sold for 98 cents came in a package that bore a photo of a TV set and had little compartments to prevent food from running together. By 1954, Swanson had sold 5,000 of the ready-made meals, which gave them the power to do mass marketing. A year later, 10 million quickie meals in aluminum containers had been sold.
But of course, such a revolution in the food industry couldn't come without any competition. Banquet became Swanson's immediate rivals, soon followed by Buitoni, Stouffer, Le Menu, and Lean Cuisine.
Today, in an era where restaurant delivery runs rampant, the TV dinner craze has become something that people think less about. It's much easier to call the local pizza parlor, drop by a Chinese restaurant, or run to the nearest hamburger stand.