In 1974, "The Way We Were" topped the charts, Blazing Saddles packed theaters, a stamp cost 10¢, the average home went for about $35,900.
🎵 Top songs of 1974
"The Way We Were" — Barbra Streisand
"Seasons in the Sun" — Terry Jacks
"Love's Theme" — Love Unlimited Orchestra
🎬 In theaters
Blazing Saddles
The Towering Inferno
Young Frankenstein
What things cost in 1974
$0.53
Gallon of gas
10¢
Postage stamp
$1.89
Movie ticket
$1.57
Gallon of milk
$35,900
Average home
$4,441
New car
$11,200
Household income
A $0.53 gallon of gas in 1974 has the buying power of roughly $3.35 in 2024 dollars. A 10¢ stamp is around 64¢ today, and a $1.89 movie ticket is about $12.
The biggest moments of 1974
Hank Aaron hit home run number 715, breaking Babe Ruth's legendary career record.
Happy Days premiered and made 1950s nostalgia — and soon the Fonz — a national sensation.
People magazine hit newsstands for the first time and daredevil Evel Knievel attempted to rocket across Snake River Canyon.
The streaking fad peaked when a streaker dashed across the stage at the 1974 Academy Awards — host David Niven's quip became Oscar legend.
On June 26, 1974, a pack of Wrigley's gum in Troy, Ohio became the first product ever scanned with a UPC barcode.
Muhammad Ali stunned George Foreman in the "Rumble in the Jungle" in Zaire on October 30, 1974, regaining the heavyweight crown.
Toys, TV & trends of 1974
A brand-new game called Dungeons & Dragons was released, inviting players on imaginary adventures.
Connect Four debuted and quickly became a family game-night favorite.
In Hungary, professor Erno Rubik invented his soon-to-be-famous twisting cube puzzle.
The Magna Doodle magnetic drawing toy was invented in 1974, letting kids sketch and erase with a satisfying slide of the bar.
A little character named Hello Kitty made her debut in Japan in 1974, first appearing on a coin purse.
Little House on the Prairie premiered in September 1974, bringing the Ingalls family into living rooms for nearly a decade.
The music scene
"The Way We Were" gave Barbra Streisand the first #1 single of her career — remarkable for a star already a decade into superstardom. 1974 was also the year disco first crept onto the charts, with the Hues Corporation's "Rock the Boat" and George McCrae's "Rock Your Baby" often called the first disco chart-toppers. And in April, a Swedish quartet named ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest with "Waterloo."
At the movies
The Godfather Part II became the first sequel ever to win the Best Picture Oscar, and Francis Ford Coppola had two Best Picture nominees that year. Mel Brooks pulled off his own double feature, releasing Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein just ten months apart. The Towering Inferno solved a Hollywood ego standoff with famous "diagonal billing" so Steve McQueen and Paul Newman could each appear first.
Cartoons kids loved
Hong Kong Phooey
Super Friends
Valley of the Dinosaurs
Hong Kong Phooey — voiced with a chuckle by Scatman Crothers — was Saturday morning's answer to the kung-fu craze sweeping theaters and TV in 1974. Dinosaurs were suddenly big business too: Valley of the Dinosaurs and the live-action Land of the Lost premiered the very same month, each following a modern family stranded in a prehistoric world.
The world in 1974
World population: about 4 billion
U.S. President: Richard Nixon (until August), then Gerald Ford
Farmers digging a well in China discovered the Terracotta Army, thousands of life-size clay soldiers buried for over 2,000 years.
Portugal's Carnation Revolution in April 1974 ended decades of dictatorship almost bloodlessly, with soldiers carrying flowers in their rifle barrels.
West Germany defeated Johan Cruyff's brilliant Netherlands side 2-1 to win the 1974 World Cup on home soil.
In November, scientists in Ethiopia unearthed "Lucy," a 3.2-million-year-old human ancestor — named after the Beatles song playing at camp.
1974 birthday questions
How old is someone born in 1974?
Someone born in 1974 turns 52 in 2026 (51 if their birthday has not come round yet).
What was the number one song in 1974?
"The Way We Were" by Barbra Streisand was among the biggest hits of 1974.
What movie came out in 1974?
Blazing Saddles was one of the films packing theaters in 1974.
How much did gas cost in 1974?
A gallon of gas ran about $0.53 in 1974, and a postage stamp cost 10¢.
How much did a house cost in 1974?
The average home went for roughly $35,900 in 1974, against a typical household income of about $11,200.