The 1970s may have yielded some epic disappointments, including Watergate, the gas crisis, and Disco Duck, just to name a few, but the 1970s also delivered some extraordinary delights: The Fonz, leisure suits, Star Wars, Farrah Fawcett and the biggest red, white, and blue celebration the nation has ever known. LIFE: Celebrate the ’70s is a brilliant visit back in time that chronicles and celebrates the so-called “Me Decade” through its unique and lasting cultural mainstays; think disco music, Saturday Night Fever, The Joy of Sex, and never forget the clothes! Featuring a special section devoted to the Bicentennial Year of 1976, with LIFE’s unmatched photography and a sweet, often hilarious narrative, this is a keepsake for anyone who wants to remember the ’70s or experience them for the first time
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LIFE Celebrate the ’70s
Sunshine Days • A decade remembered for some epic bummers (Watergate, gas crises, Disco Duck), the 1970s also delivered some extraordinary delights—the Fonz, for one, the leisure suit for another, and, here before you: an Angel on a skateboard
Images of an Era • The ’70s yielded some imperishable characters, moments, and scenes
Early ’70s • In the wake of the turbulent 1960s, the President assured the nation that he was not a crook—a line often parodied in a time when parody was plentiful
Bicentennial 1976 • America’s long-anticipated, and then long-lasting, birthday party showed off the nation’s great splendor, optimism, and marketing chops
Late ’70s • President Carter took his oath, club-goers pledged allegiance to disco, and the years were marked by episodes of chaos—as well as satire, the best of which came live from New York on Saturday night
Credits
That ’70s Thing
The Spirit of ‘76