Animated television series such as The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Top Cat, Jonny Quest, Wacky Races, and The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends, became cultural staples and defined early primetime animation.Psychedelic rock emerged in the mid-1960s as part of the counterculture, with artists such as Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane, and The Doors using experimental sounds, extended improvisation, and surreal lyrics to define the era's music.The Civil Rights Movement influenced music, film, and television, bringing issues of race, equality, and social justice into mainstream American cultureMotown dominated popular music, launching the careers of The Supremes, The Temptations, Four Tops, The Miracles, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and The Marvelettes.Six Olympic Games were held in the 1960s, Squaw Valley and Rome in 1960, Innsbruck and Tokyo in 1964, Grenoble and Mexico City in 1968The folk revival, led by performers like Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, and Phil Ochs, became closely associated with civil rights activism and anti-war protest movementsThe superhero boom of the decade saw in media and popular culture, TV series like Batman, The Green Hornet, The Marvel Super Heroes, and Spider-Man were more popularThe 1960s art scene was shaped by Pop art, led by artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, blending mass media imagery with fine art.The 1960s were the height of the Space Age and space aesthetics in popular culture. In 1969, humans landed on the Moon for the first time.

The counterculture movement dominated the second half of the 1960s, its most famous moments being the Summer of Love in San Francisco in 1967, and the Woodstock Festival in upstate New York in 1969. Psychedelic drugs, especially LSD, were widely used medicinally, spiritually and recreationally throughout the late 1960s, and were popularized by Timothy Leary with his slogan "Turn on, tune in, drop out". Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters also played a part in the role of "turning heads on". Psychedelic influenced the music, artwork and films of the decade, and a number of prominent musicians died of drug overdoses (see 27 Club). There was a growing interest in Eastern religions and philosophy, and many attempts were made to found communes, which varied from supporting free love to religious puritanismThe rock 'n' roll movement of the 1950s quickly came to an end in 1959 with the Day the Music Died (as explained in the song "American Pie"), the scandal of Jerry Lee Lewis' marriage to his 13-year-old cousin, and the induction of Elvis Presley into the United States Army. As the 1960s began, the major rock 'n' roll stars of the '50s such as Chuck Berry and Little Richard had dropped off the charts and popular music in the U.S. came to be dominated by girl groups, surf music, novelty pop songs, clean-cut teen idols, and Motown music. Another important change in music during the early 1960s was the American folk music revival which introduced Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, The Kingston Trio, Harry Belafonte, Odetta, Phil Ochs, and many other singer-songwriters to the publicGirl groups and female singers, such as the Shirelles, Betty Everett, Little Eva, the Dixie Cups, the Ronettes, Martha and the Vandellas and the Supremes dominated the charts in the early 1960s. This style consisted typically of light pop themes about teenage romance and lifestyles, backed by vocal harmonies and a strong rhythm. Most girl groups were African-American, but white girl groups and singers, such as Lesley Gore, the Angels, and the Shangri-Las also emerged during this periodAround the same time, record producer Phil Spector began producing girl groups and created a new kind of pop music production that came to be known as the Wall of Sound. This style emphasized higher budgets and more elaborate arrangements, and more melodramatic musical themes in place of a simple, light-hearted pop sound. Spector's innovations became integral to the growing sophistication of popular music from 1965 onward.Also during the early 1960s, surf rock emerged, a rock subgenre that was centered in Southern California and based on beach and surfing themes, in addition to the usual songs about teenage romance and innocent fun. The Beach Boys quickly became the premier surf rock band and almost completely and single-handedly overshadowed the many lesser-known artists in the subgenre. Surf rock reached its peak in 1963–1965 before gradually being overtaken by bands influenced by the British Invasion and the counterculture movementThe car song also emerged as a rock subgenre in the early 1960s, which focused on teenagers' fascination with car culture. The Beach Boys also dominated this subgenre, along with the duo Jan and Dean. Such notable songs include "Little Deuce Coupe", "409", and "Shut Down", all by the Beach Boys; Jan and Dean's "Little Old Lady from Pasadena" and "Drag City", Ronny and the Daytonas' "Little GTO", and many others. Like girl groups and surf rock, car songs also became overshadowed by the British Invasion and the counterculture movementThe early 1960s also saw the golden age of another rock subgenre, the teen tragedy song, which focused on lost teen romance caused by sudden death, mainly in traffic accidents. Such songs included Mark Dinning's "Teen Angel", Ray Peterson's "Tell Laura I Love Her", Jan and Dean's "Dead Man's Curve", the Shangri-Las' "Leader of the Pack", and perhaps the subgenre's most popular, "Last Kiss" by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers.In the early 1960s, Britain became a hotbed of rock 'n' roll activity during this time. In late 1963, the Beatles embarked on their first US tour and cult singer Dusty Springfield released her first solo single. A few months later, rock 'n' roll founding father Chuck Berry emerged from a 2+1⁄2-year prison stint and resumed recording and touring. The stage was set for the spectacular revival of rock music.In the UK, the Beatles played raucous rock 'n' roll – as well as doo wop, girl-group songs, show tunes – and wore leather jackets. Their manager Brian Epstein encouraged the group to wear suits. Beatlemania abruptly exploded after the group's appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. Late in 1965, the Beatles released the album Rubber Soul which marked the beginning of their transition to a sophisticated power pop group with elaborate studio arrangements and production, and a year after that, they gave up touring entirely to focus only on albums. A host of imitators followed the Beatles in the so-called British Invasion, including groups like the Rolling Stones, the Who and the Kinks who would become legends in their own rightAs the counterculture movement developed, artists began making new kinds of music influenced by the use of psychedelic drugs. Guitarist Jimi Hendrix emerged onto the scene in 1967 with a radically new approach to electric guitar that replaced Chuck Berry, previously seen as the gold standard of rock guitar. Rock artists began to take on serious themes and social commentary/protest instead of simplistic pop themes.A major development in popular music during the mid-1960s was the movement away from singles and towards albums. Previously, popular music was based around the 45 single (or even earlier, the 78 single) and albums such as they existed were little more than a hit single or two backed with filler tracks, instrumentals, and covers. The development of the AOR (album-oriented rock) format was complicated and involved several concurrent events such as Phil Spector's Wall of Sound, the introduction by Bob Dylan of "serious" lyrics to rock music, and the Beatles' new studio-based approach. In any case, after 1965 the vinyl LP had definitively taken over as the primary format for all popular music styles.

Blues also continued to develop strongly during the '60s, but after 1965, it increasingly shifted to the young white rock audience and away from its traditional black audience, which moved on to other styles such as soul and funJazz music and pop standards during the first half of the 1960s was largely a continuation of 1950s styles, retaining its core audience of young, urban, college-educated whites. By 1967, the death of several important jazz figures such as John Coltrane and Nat King Cole precipitated a decline in the genre. The takeover of rock in the late 1960s largely spelled the end of jazz and standards as mainstream forms of music, after they had dominated much of the first half of the 20th century.

Country music gained popularity on the West Coast, due in large part to the Bakersfield sound, led by Buck Owens and Merle Haggard. Female country artists were also becoming more mainstream (in a genre dominated by men in previous decades), with such acts as Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, and Tammy Wynett Late 1960s also was the beginning of disco music, which became more popular in 1970s

1960s men’s fashion was a decade of rapid transformation. It evolved from the tailored, slim-fit Ivy League and Mod suit styles of the early 1960s into the wildly expressive, anti-establishment hippie trends of the late 1960s. The era was defined by bold colors, unconventional silhouettes, and cultural rebellion.The 1960s was a decade of massive hair evolution for men. The era began with sleek, tailored, and short styles, and shifted entirely towards rebellious, longer, and natural looks by the end of the decade1960s women's fashion was a dynamic, decade-long transition from the prim elegance of the early years to the bold geometric mod styles, and ultimately the free-spirited bohemian looks of the late 60s. The era is defined by the youthquake movement, synthetic fabrics, miniskirts, and iconic statement accessoriesThe 1960s was a revolutionary decade for hair, defined by sky-high volume, sharp geometric cuts, and carefree bohemian styles. Whether you are looking for the extreme height of the early '60s or the sleek mod cuts that followed, the era offers a variety of timeless looksSixties teen fashion was all about the "Youthquake"—a cultural shift that rebelled against conservative 1950s styles in favor of bold, youthful, and freeing designs. The decade was defined by two distinct eras: the early-60s preppy/mod look and the late-60s bohemian counterculture1960s teen hairstyles shifted dramatically from the voluminous, stiff bouffants and beehives of the early decade to the relaxed, long, and sleek looks popularized by the late-60s counterculture. Teens embraced playful cuts, heavy fringes, and iconic styles defined by pop culture and music