galacticjourney

by Gwyn Conaway

I have noticed trends swinging wildly these past few months. Shapes, colors, and patterns that we’ve rarely seen in the past are appearing in advertisements and our favorite magazines. We are in a transition phase, ladies and gentlemen.

Behind us, the Golden Age of the fifties is rosy and romantic, a time of economic surplus and increasing leisure. I see this past decade as the slow climb of a roller coaster. With John Glenn’s successful Mercury-Atlas 6 spaceflight just months behind us, I realize now that his success marks the top of the roller coaster’s first hill. We’re now looking down at a twisting, speeding track. It’s the sixties, and I can tell it’s going to be a wild ride.

Current Mood: devious
Current Location: San Diego, CA

[The Journey's "Fashion Columnist" returns with a timely piece on the latest advancement in sartorial science...]

by Gwyn Conaway

Last month, on February 20th, 1962, John Glenn became the second American to leave behind our earthly constraints for the majesty of space.

Less than one year after Alan Shepard’s historic suborbital flight on a Redstone rocket, John Glenn ascended to low Earth orbit in his spacecraft, Friendship 7. He circled the Earth three times at speeds upwards of 17,000 miles per hour, and persevered through the crushing force of nearly eight times the force of Earth's gravity Gs at reentry into our atmosphere.

What a time to be alive! We are witness to human history! This is a milestone in a long journey toward chasing the unknown. Never have I been more certain that we are explorers, creatures of adventure. And what better bedfellow to our curiosity than innovation? For to accomplish his mission, Colonel Glenn required two spacecraft: the bell-shaped Mercury, as well as his formfitting personal capsule – the Mark IV spacesuit.

(see the rest at Galactic Journey!)

Current Mood: mellow
Current Location: San Diego, CA
Current Music: Have Gun Will Travel
Crossposts: http://galacticjourney.livejournal.com/125100.html

When I started this endeavor, I never expected to find so many fellow travelers. Each has provided an unique insight into the worlds of science fiction, comics, science, fandom. I have tried to balance staying true to my original vision (which is why I promise to keep writing at least a majority of the articles here) with showcasing all of these lovely perspectives.

A few months ago, I met a remarkable young woman with a keen eye for fashion as well as an uncommon understanding of geopolitics. The premise of Galactic Journey is that context matters. This is why I leaven the fiction with nonfiction. And it's why the Journey now has...a fashion column. Read on – I think you'll agree that Ms. Conaway is a worthy addition to our constellation of authors...

by Gwyn Conaway

This is a time of change and uncertainty, but we are full to the brim with ambition. We hope for a future of technological mastery. An age of abundance and exploration. We see our society as a beacon of moral and economic high ground. The Reds do too.

You see, I observe the world in patterns of psychology, fear, and desire. I'm a costume designer, and I glean more from fashion trends and wardrobe choices than any newspaper. This shadow of nuclear war hanging over our heads is worrisome, but it seems to me, across the distance of ideology and oceans, that we still dream the same dreams.

“It seemed clear proof that an atom smasher is a poor match for an attractive young lady in a well-fitted blouse.”
The New York Times, Style Show - SRO Soviet Exhibition, NY NY - July 2, 1961

First Lady Jackie Kennedy recently met with Nina Khrushcheva, wife of Nikita Khrushchev, the current Premier of Soviet Russia. While many of my cohorts discussed the new president and the premier’s first encounter in Vienna, I was captured by the meeting of the wives.

Jackie Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva meet in Vienna, 1961.

(see the rest at Galactic Journey!)

Current Mood: hopeful
Current Location: San Diego, CA
Current Music: Hurt - Timi Yuro
Crossposts: http://galacticjourney.livejournal.com/114237.html

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Entries tagged with gwyn conaway

[May 19, 1962] I Sing the Future Electric (Fashion for the Future)

[Mar. 17, 1962] Our Knights in Shining Armor (Have Space Suit, Will Travel)

[December 3, 1961] Of Wives and Men (or First Ladies' Fashion)

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