AskHistorians

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While he was president of the Screen Actors Guild, Reagan fought for the members of the union to get residuals, healthcare, a pension and the ability to strike. When he became President of the US, Reagan was staunchly anti-union. What changed in that short 20-year period?	6415
In 1963, Japanese singer Kyu Sakamoto's "Sukiyaki" became a surprise number one hit in the United States, the only Japanese song to top the chart. How did this happen? Was there an interest in Japanese culture at the time, or was the song just an anomaly?	1379
In the Beach Boys song "409", the song states that the singer "saved my pennies and saved my dimes" to buy a brand new Chevy Impala 409. While I expect this line not to be taken literally, would it have been difficult for a teen (the band's audience) to buy a brand new car at the time?	747
How popular was L. Ron Hubbard as an author before Dianetics and Scientology? Was he a household name?	121
In “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” Sally rants that she missed out on trick or treating, and that she could have gotten candy and money. Was money a common thing to give out on Halloween at the time of the special? Were there other items that aren’t given out to children anymore?	114
I recently came across a horror movie from 1907. Were these films considered terrifying by their audiences? When did movies start becoming scary?	72
When did media piracy really begin to take form? Did it exist in the days before things like VHS?	16
What was Gutzon Borglum’s thought process in choosing Theodore Roosevelt, a fairly recent president at the time, for Mount Rushmore?	12
Did L. Ron Hubbard expect Scientology to turn out the way it has?	9
A lot of the greatest albums of all time in music now seem to be rock/pop/rap albums. What works would have been considered the greatest 50 to 60 years ago?	7

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