In 1943, "I've Heard That Song Before" topped the charts, This Is the Army packed theaters, a stamp cost 3¢, the average home went for about $3,600.
🎵 Top songs of 1943
"I've Heard That Song Before" — Harry James
"Paper Doll" — The Mills Brothers
"Pistol Packin' Mama" — Al Dexter
🎬 In theaters
This Is the Army
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Casablanca
What things cost in 1943
$0.21
Gallon of gas
3¢
Postage stamp
$0.29
Movie ticket
$0.62
Gallon of milk
$3,600
Average home
$900
New car
$2,100
Household income
A $0.21 gallon of gas in 1943 has the buying power of roughly $3.90 today, while the 29-cent movie ticket equals about $5.40 in today's dollars.
The biggest moments of 1943
The musical Oklahoma! opened on Broadway in March 1943 and changed American theater forever.
Rationing expanded to shoes, meat, cheese, and canned goods, and families carefully counted their ration stamps.
Young "bobby-soxers" swooned over a skinny crooner named Frank Sinatra, who packed New York's Paramount Theatre.
The Pentagon was completed in January 1943 after just sixteen months of construction, instantly becoming the world's largest office building.
Paycheck income-tax withholding began in July 1943, the start of the pay-as-you-go system Americans still use today.
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League played its first season in 1943, keeping ballparks busy while many major leaguers served overseas.
Toys, TV & trends of 1943
With metal needed for the war, toys were made of wood, cardboard, and paper, and kids made do with hand-me-downs.
Batman leapt from the comics page to the movie screen in his first film serial in 1943.
Kids tuned in daily to radio adventure serials like Captain Midnight, Terry and the Pirates, and Hop Harrigan.
Pennies turned silver-colored in 1943, when the Mint struck cents from zinc-coated steel to save copper — kids loved finding the odd "steelies" in their change.
Lassie Come Home hit theaters in 1943, introducing a collie named Pal and a young Elizabeth Taylor, and starting America's love affair with Lassie.
America's favorite teenager came to radio when The Adventures of Archie Andrews debuted in 1943, bringing Riverdale's gang to the airwaves.
The music scene
With the recording strike still on, 1943 produced some unusual hits — Columbia backed Frank Sinatra with a vocal choir instead of an orchestra because singers, unlike instrumentalists, were not on strike. In October the military began pressing V-Discs, special records made just for the troops, with the union's blessing. And when Decca settled with the union, it recorded the original Broadway cast of Oklahoma! — widely considered the first true original cast album, and a million-seller.
At the movies
At the March 1943 Academy Awards, winners received statuettes made of painted plaster because metal was needed for the war effort — they could trade them in for real gold-plated Oscars afterward. At the Hollywood Canteen, servicemen could dance with movie stars and be served coffee by the likes of Bette Davis and John Garfield, all free of charge.
Cartoons kids loved
Droopy the deadpan dog debuted in the Tex Avery cartoon Dumb-Hounded.
Donald Duck's wartime short Der Fuehrer's Face won the Academy Award for best cartoon.
Tom and Jerry starred in The Yankee Doodle Mouse, which earned them an Oscar.
In 1943 a bumbling cartoon soldier named Private Snafu began appearing in the Army-Navy Screen Magazine, teaching GIs what not to do — with scripts co-written by Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, direction by Chuck Jones, and the voice of Mel Blanc. Civilian audiences never saw these shorts; they were made strictly for the troops.
The world in 1943
World population: about 2.3 billion
U.S. President: Franklin D. Roosevelt
Allied forces invaded Italy, and Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met together for the first time at the Tehran Conference.
President Roosevelt met Churchill at the Casablanca Conference in January 1943, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to travel by airplane.
Mussolini was deposed and arrested in July 1943 as Italy's Fascist government collapsed.
The Battle of Kursk, fought in the summer of 1943, was the largest tank battle in history.
1943 birthday questions
How old is someone born in 1943?
Someone born in 1943 turns 83 in 2026 (82 if their birthday has not come round yet).
What was the number one song in 1943?
"I've Heard That Song Before" by Harry James was among the biggest hits of 1943.
What movie came out in 1943?
This Is the Army was one of the films packing theaters in 1943.
How much did gas cost in 1943?
A gallon of gas ran about $0.21 in 1943, and a postage stamp cost 3¢.
How much did a house cost in 1943?
The average home went for roughly $3,600 in 1943, against a typical household income of about $2,100.