You’ve no doubt heard the term “Baby Boomer” before, but do you know the exact definition? Baby Boomers are the demographic between the Silent Generation and Generation X, perhaps known best for being the product of the explosive birth rate post World War II. If you were born between 1946 and 1964, it’s generally agreed that you fit into this category!
In recent years, many Baby Boomers have reached the age of retirement, which has launched the group back into the public’s conversation. At Coventry, we work closely with people of all generations, but primarily with people age 65 and older looking to sell their life insurance policy. So, we know a thing or two about the experiences this generation went through – particularly, their unique experience with television and fun new technology.
We thought it would be interesting to take a look at what popular things from Baby Boomers’ childhoods (the 1960s and the 1970s) still have a following today. Could the resurgence of these items have anything to do with the Millennial generation’s obsession with nostalgia and vintage items? To find out, we looked at the Google Search Interest for various items and television shows bound to cause some serious nostalgia, and we broke down our results by state. Read on to discover what we found!
Some iconic experiences that every Baby Boomer remembers from their childhood include listening to vinyl records, watching a television set with antennas, and riding around in their parent’s station wagon (with wood paneling, no doubt!). And clearly, many of these items are still of interest to the Google users of today. People in Utah are still searching for Jello Salad, Kentucky is stuck on the Sears catalog, and Tennessee loves a 20th-century drive-in movie.
As you can see, some of the most popular retro items in the U.S. today include polaroid cameras, station wagons, and typewriters. We’ve seen many of these particular items, especially record players and polaroids, come back around in popularity with Millennials. Clearly, many of these items of the past are here to stay!
Did you know that the Baby Boomer generation was the very first to grow up with television? Many Baby Boomers have a deep love for the television shows they grew up with, and they’re in luck because plenty of them have become classics that many generations to come will enjoy. For example, there are still people across the U.S. using Google to search for TV shows like The Partridge Family, I Love Lucy and Gilligan’s Island.
According to Google, the most popular retro TV shows in the U.S. include the sitcom All in the Family, the police procedural Dragnet, and the educational program Schoolhouse Rock! Perhaps the availability of streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu have made many retro TV shows popular again, or perhaps these shows are so good that they’ve stood the test of time!
We love these items and TV shows just as much as the next person, but really, we found this a fun exercise into the lasting impact a generation can have on culture, and the best example of this we’ve found so far are the Baby Boomers. Here at Coventry, we celebrate Baby Boomers comfortably entering retirement, which is why we offer solutions and information on how to sell your life insurance policy and increase your retirement funds. Find out if you qualify!