1950
George Rochberg meets Luigi Dallapiccola
George Rochberg travels to Italy on a Fulbright and meets Luigi Dallapiccola; begins to work in a serial manner.
1950
Ellen Donovan Gallery
L.V. (Lewis Victor) Heilbrunn, General Physiologist U of Penn 30 years. Modern cellular biology (died in auto accident) His interest in the arts, particularly in writing and painting, was an everyday interest, not merely evident on a rare visit to a museum. He established in 1950, the Ellen Donovan Gallery to promote the appreciation and sale of the work of living Philadelphia artists. His wife, Ellen Donovan Heilbrunn, is a painter and teacher of art. In his life with her and with his daughter Constance he included his students, and drew them into an appreciation of and sometimes a participation in the arts, which is rare in a world turned more and more toward science and its techniques.
1950
Albert M. Greenfield
Albert M. Greenfield parlays his real estate empire into powerful political influence in the Democratic Party, for example in the elections of Joseph Clark, the city’s first Democratic mayor in nearly 70 years, and Richardson Dilworth in the 1950s. During Greenfield’s brief tenure as head of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission, urban renewal became a priority, and with that came the effort to revitalize the city’s core. Greenfield was also a major collector and Philadelphia Museum of Art board member.
1950
Joseph Clark's Investigations
From 1950 to 1952, Joseph Clark investigated and publicized scandals within the Republican-controlled city government, including the embezzlement of tax money and court funds, imprisonment of the fire marshal, falsification of records, and corruption in the water bureau. Many officials were impeached or indicted as a result, and nine even committed suicide.
1950
Henry McIlhinney moves to 1914 Rittenhouse Square
Henry McIlhinney moves to 1914 Rittenhouse Square from Park Gate, his family’s home at Wayne Avenue and Lincoln Drive in Germantown. His collection included numerous works by Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, Renoir, and others. Connoisseur Magazine named him one of America’s ten best art collectors.
1950
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1950
Bill Haley Rocket 88
Rocket 88 (a rhythm and blues record written by Ike Turner) is covered by Bill Haley and His Saddleman (later the Comets) by Holiday Record label in Philadelphia owned by Dave Miller. Credited by some as the first rock and roll record.
1950
1950
1950
Holmes Perkins becomes the Dean of the Graduate School of Fine Arts at UPenn
Holmes Perkins becomes the Dean of the Graduate School of Fine Arts at UPenn (until 1971). Perkins is responsible for hiring Louis Kahn, Lewis Mumford, Robert Venturi and establishing the ICA.
1950
Independence National Park is established by the National Park Service
Independence National Park is established by the National Park Service to restore Independence Hall, affiliated historic buildings and the mall to the north
1950
1950
147th Annual Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, 147th Annual Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture, January 21-February 24 includes David Smith.
1950
1950
Broad Street Station is Closed
Broad Street Station is closed to make way for Penn Center. The Philadelphia Orchestra plays as the last train departs. The model for Penn Center was Rockefeller Center in New York. Gregory L. Heller, Ed Bacon, Planning, Politics, and the Building of Modern Philadelphia, Philadelphia; The University of Pennsylvania Press, 2013, p99
Contribute to the Chronology
We welcome public contributions to this chronology! Please email Sid Sachs at ssachs@uarts.edu with a reference to your contribution.