In the 50's, why would a husband & wife sleep in seperate twin beds in the same room?

Question

I'm sure this was the case in other eras too, but I've often seen married 1950's couples shown this way. For example, in the movies "Pleasantville" and "A Christmas Story". Why didn't a husband and wife sleep in the same bed?

Answer 1

In real life, my parents slept in a little double bed during the 50's and 60's, but on TV it was too scandalous to have them sleeping in the same bed!

Answer 2

They did. Movies *made* in the 50s showed them in separate beds so the censors wouldn't have a problem. In the movie Pleasantville, the characters are not transported to the past, but to a 50s-style movie.

Answer 3

In Pleasantville in particular, it's a joke about how TV shows of the era couldn't show a married couple sleeping in the same bed.

I don't know about you, but I'm a terrible person to sleep with. I snore, thrash about, and don't wake up easily or respond to suggestions while I'm asleep. You only really need to be in the same bed for one activity anyway.

Answer 4

Back in the fifties, the censors didn't allow programs to show a couple in bed together. So in scenes at bedtime, the married couple would go sleep in twin beds in the same room. It's hilarious to see a married couple with separate beds, at least a happy couple.

Answer 5

In the 50s they weren't allowed to show a man and a woman in the same bed on TV. That was considered to be too risqué for people to watch.

Answer 6

Believe it or not because they thought it was sinful to show a husband and wife in the same bed. It was censored. Crazy Huh?

Answer 7

They didn't. That was just on television because it used to be considered indecent to show a man and woman in the same bed.