Ralph and Alice Kramden lived in a sparse, Brooklyn apartment and struggled to achieve the American Dream. The Kramden’s were a very famous television couple from the “Honeymooners” television show, created by Jackie Gleason, who were always arguing about money and trying to make a better life for themselves. He wanted to become a part of what was then referred to as post-war America. This was a time where America “found that national and personal identities were increasingly defined by the ability to produce, purchase, and accumulate consumer pleasures” (Sheehan, 2010). Audiences related well to Ralph Kramden and Jackie Gleason since they all shared the frustrations as a working class man and the different masculinities that arose from it.
Post-war America saw the materialization of a masculinity where the man had a job, made the money and then spent it on pricey items i.e. appliances, televisions and cars. This was a way for the man to assert his role as “head of the household” (Sheehan, 2010). Consumption played a large role in one’s masculinity. Of course, all this spending helped fuel the economy through the cycle of production and consumption too.
Jackie Gleason was a comedian and entertainer who started in the 1950’s. When he created Ralph Kramden, he used himself and his Brooklyn borough upbringing as his model. Jackie saw himself as a working-class guy who worked hard to make money to give his family nice things. Gleason also loved physical comedy and approached it rather roughly. He had a “theory that the public likes a guy better when they can see him taking a beating to earn a buck” (Sheehan, 2010). Ralph Kramden became this persona, which made him very relatable to the working class guy.
Interestingly enough, Jackie Gleason always seemed to be relatable to the working class guy as well. Even after he gained fame and fortune, Gleason still was embraced as that guy from Brooklyn. He not only worked hard and made money to buy his family nice things, he was well-known for another form of masculinity that developed in post war America – male-centered recreation. Ralph Kramden would go bowling or to the bar with the guys. Jackie Gleason spent lavish amounts of money for pleasure and still made enough to provide for his family. For a long time, people still embraced Jackie Gleason as a working-class guy because that is what a working man does. He makes the money, spends it on durable goods for his family and then spends some on himself too.
Ralph Kramden always liked to think he was “king of the castle” (Sheehan, 2010). It is what helped him keep his manhood alive, believing he made the final decisions since he made the money. However, there were always arguments about Ralph’s inability to provide for those durable goods for his family. Many post-war American families were having the same arguments, especially when it came to spending money on the man’s leisure activities before spending on the family. This same situation contributed to what caused Jackie Gleason’s own divorce. He spent lavish amounts of money on his friends, going to the bar and other activities. It was reported he was having extramarital affairs as well. His soon-to-be ex-wife indicated she took care of him, he took care of himself, but failed to take care of his family in the end. This goes against the ideology of the consumer’s republic.
The Kramden household on the Honeymooners was often full of marital tension due to Ralph’s inability to provide for the family. There seemed to always be the threat of some possible domestic aggression. There is a line that Ralph always used on Alice that is still a part of pop culture today. Even though Alice really seemed to always have the upper hand, he would let her know he was in charge with sayings like, “Pow! right in the kisser” (Sheehan, 2010). Men achieved a sort of satisfaction watching a man exert such control over the wife, since post-war America saw the female start to achieve some marital equality. Although Ralph and Alice Kramden had bitter fights over their lack of consumption, they always made up. Ralph always felt inadequate and Alice always reminded him of his inadequacies, but they loved each other and another famous line came out of that love – “Baby, You’re the greatest!” (Sheehan, 2010). Jackie Gleason, on the other hand, had all the money he could need to consume durable goods and provide for his family. He always made sure to spend a lot of money on himself too. However, although his marital problems often resembled the Kramden’s, they rarely ended with the same humor or warm embrace.
The domestic problems in the post-war American home were often about the family’s financial state and the husband’s ability to provide for the family. The man’s frustrations over not being able to meet his family’s wants often left them frustrated and worried. It was hard for men to handle their feelings of failure without possibly falling into more destructive behaviors i.e. drinking or withdrawal or even violence. “The Honeymooners confronted these areas of tension within the working-class home and provided and identifiable, humorous, and cathartic outlet in Ralph Kramden’s anger” (Sheehan, 2010).
Jackie Gleason and Ralph Kramden demonstrated what it was like to be a working-class man in America in the 1950’s - angrier and more frustrated than the middle class man. The ability to consume durable goods defined masculinity and domestic happiness.
References
SHEEHAN, S. T. (2010). “Pow! right in the kisser”: Ralph kramden, jackie gleason, and the emergence of the frustrated working-class man. The Journal of Popular Culture, 43(3), 564-582.
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