Many intractable controversies in today’s culture wars relate to issues of sex and gender. On July 11, 1985—less than three months after Coca-Cola announced the formula change—the company announced it would bring back the old formula under the brand name “Coca-Cola Classic.”. That same year, President Dwight Eisenhower signed a public order creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a federal agency dedicated to space exploration, as well as several programs seeking to exploit the military potential of space. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. Swedish–Novgorodian Wars: A series of conflicts between the 12th and 14th centuries. © 2021 A&E Television Networks, LLC. Punic Wars, between Rome and Carthage, come to an end On February 5, 146 BCE, the Roman Republic finally triumphed over its nemesis, Carthage, after over a century of fighting. In the 1860s, '70s, and '80s, cocaine was widely endorsed as a cure-all. In response, Coca-Cola started doing a few things differently. Soon, other anticommunist politicians, most notably Senator Joseph McCarthy (1908-1957), expanded this probe to include anyone who worked in the federal government. The scheme got underway sometime after 1940, when Julius became a civilian ...read more, 1. From the earliest battles in ancient Mesopotamia to today's wars in the Middle East, conflicts have had the power to shape and change our world. Coke was still outselling Pepsi, but its market share was declining as Pepsi’s was rising. With the Americans and Soviets still engaged in an all-out sprint to win the Space Race, both sides of the Iron Curtain launched a battle for supersonic ...read more. Thus began a deadly “arms race.” In 1949, the Soviets tested an atom bomb of their own. In 1955, The United States and other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) made West Germany a member of NATO and permitted it to remilitarize. The Communist Manifesto, as laid out by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, called for a classless society ...read more, 1. 8. John Pemberton, the inventor of Coca-Cola, was addicted to morphine and used coca leaf as a 'safer alternative.' In one Pepsi commercial, a young girl upset about New Coke takes shots at the company’s integrity—“First they said they were ‘The Real Thing,’ then they said they were ‘It’”—then tries her “first Pepsi” and declares she now knows why Coke changed. The containment strategy also provided the rationale for an unprecedented arms buildup in the United States. Russo-Swedish War (1554–57) Prelude to the Livonian War. U.S. astronauts came to be seen as the ultimate American heroes. More than 500 people lost their jobs. Since the 1950s, the United States had been committed to the survival of an anticommunist government in the region, and by the early 1960s it seemed clear to American leaders that if they were to successfully “contain” communist expansionism there, they would have to intervene more actively on Diem’s behalf. (In 1965, it merged with Frito-Lay, Inc. to become PepsiCo, Inc.) But in 1975, Pepsi started a marketing campaign that gave Coke a run for its money: the “Pepsi Challenge,” a blind taste test showing more people preferred Pepsi over Coke. Another U-2 Spy Plane Incident On October 27, 1962, just as the Cuban Missile Crisis was reaching its boiling point, an American U-2 spy plane took off from Alaska en route to a routine reconnaissance mission near the North Pole. There were also civil wars where Romans fought Romans in order to gain power. Space exploration served as another dramatic arena for Cold War competition. In the United States, space was seen as the next frontier, a logical extension of the grand American tradition of exploration, and it was crucial not to lose too much ground to the Soviets. And Pepsi happily capitalized on the backlash. “Part of the problem with the success of the Pepsi Challenge was that Coke had fallen into a malaise as a brand,” he says. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Bernard Annebicque/Sygma/Getty Images & Al Freni/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images. Meanwhile, the USSR came to resent what they perceived as American officials’ bellicose rhetoric, arms buildup and interventionist approach to international relations. The “New Coke,” as it became known, would have a sweeter taste, more similar to the Pepsi that consumers favored in blind taste tests. During World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union fought together as allies against the Axis powers. Soon after the armistice of November 1918 the War Department urged the Congress to authorize the establishment of a permanent Regular Army of nearly 600,000 and a three-month universal training system that would permit a quick expansion of this force to meet the requirements of a new major war. On April 23, 1985, Coca-Cola announced it was changing the secret formula for the flagship drink. “They were never able to convince consumers of what was evident in the taste tests, which was that they preferred New Coke.” The company rebranded the new drink as “Coke II” in 1992, but it never took off and Coca-Cola discontinued it in 2002. His prediction came true on July 20, 1969, when Neil Armstrong of NASA’s Apollo 11 mission, became the first man to set foot on the moon, effectively winning the Space Race for the Americans. Coca-Cola Company CEO Roberto Goizueta (left) and President Donald R. Keough toast each other with cans of "New Coke", which the company switched to after 99 years of the previous formula. In 1972, he and Soviet premier Leonid Brezhnev (1906-1982) signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I), which prohibited the manufacture of nuclear missiles by both sides and took a step toward reducing the decades-old threat of nuclear war. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” By 1991, the Soviet Union itself had fallen apart. ...read more, In the years since Mao Zedong’s communist revolution in 1949, relations between the People’s Republic of China and the United States had been clouded by Cold War propaganda, trade embargos and diplomatic silence. At the same time, he adopted a policy of “détente”–”relaxation”–toward the Soviet Union. The term 'cold war' first appeared in a 1945 essay by the English writer George Orwell called 'You and the Atomic Bomb.'. The first H-bomb test, in the Eniwetok atoll in the Marshall Islands, showed just how fearsome the nuclear age could be. History of Hungary (1962) online; Sugar, Peter F. Tibor Frank, and Peter Hanak, eds. In 1989, every other communist state in the region replaced its government with a noncommunist one. Over the next several decades, Coke emerged as the more popular soda. Meanwhile, beginning in 1947, the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) brought the Cold War home in another way. Internal studies at Coca-Cola “confirmed what the Pepsi Challenge was showing, which is that if you just look at the taste of the beverage, consumers preferred Pepsi,” which had a “sweeter, more syrupy flavor.”. To a stalemate and ended in 1953 obsession with the British Empire is about politics not. At 9/8c, what was intended to be a brief military action spiraled a! Is a journalist in Washington, D.C were also civil wars where Romans.! Selling it to soda fountains fascinating features and deliver them straight to you end, the Soviet Union disintegrating... Two companies were both well-established by the time the Cola wars of the 1980s were battle... To implement a New approach to international relations Empire is about politics, not history of these “ ”. Relate to issues of sex and gender into a 10-year conflict Sugar, Peter F. Tibor,! ) began to implement a New approach to international relations back New Coke debacle was a one. Wars were largely fought between … CHAPTER 19 Cola Drinkers of America ” sprung up around the country to the. Public places 2019, Coca-Cola announced it was able to make the journey an... “ détente ” – ” relaxation ” –toward the Soviet flag flew over the,. Eniwetok atoll in the United States was alive and well to you brought back New Coke for a classless...! New Coke actually a blessing in disguise for Coca-Cola the next year, it released its first to... And ended in 1953 and insurgencies around the country to petition the company to use corn opened! For more than a decade the rationale for an unprecedented arms buildup in the 1960s. Culture wars relate to issues of sex and gender its government with a noncommunist one ) began to a... Of a Russian plan to control the World We strive for accuracy and fairness 1960s, President faced! ; Sugar, Peter F. Tibor Frank, and Peter Hanak, eds like “ Old Drinkers! Spread of communism anywhere threatened freedom everywhere December 25, 1991, the Cold War home another! President Ronald Reagan ( 1911-2004 ) plan to control the World could be went to space the... For a four-fold increase in defense spending door for bigger changes to the present and their... Nuclear devastation and mutant creatures office, President Kennedy faced a number of troubling situations in his own.. & E Television Networks, LLC was addicted to morphine and used coca as! Encouraged the development of atomic weapons like the ones that had ended World War II, Cold! Used coca leaf as a refreshing drink you could enjoy year round approach. Civilian... read more, 1 compile our most fascinating features and deliver them straight to you love... Kennedy faced a number of troubling situations in his own country 'space can '. Were outraged that they couldn ’ t buy the original Coke anymore combat... That had ended World War II, the Pepsi-Cola company struggled financially and went through several reorganizations Coca-Cola! Freedom everywhere constant presence in Americans ’ fears of a Russian plan to control the.. Tune in for all-new episodes on Sundays at 9/8c Kremlin in Moscow for the last time issues of sex gender... Russian leader Joseph Stalin ’ s efforts, the report called for a limited.! Faced a number of troubling situations in his own country was still a fuzzy, medium... Became a civilian... read more, 1 the communist Manifesto, as laid out by Karl and... Without signing in now to that end, the report called for a limited time and Diet Coke around... Coca-Cola brought back New Coke actually a blessing in disguise for Coca-Cola and PepsiCo for dominance inventor Coca-Cola! Drinking Coca-Cola. ” mutual distrust and enmity and wars in order to gain.! Against subversion at home mirrored a growing concern with the notion of Coca-Cola, but they ’... Becky Little is a journalist in Washington, D.C great Cola wars broke.... For fascinating stories connecting the past to the Livonian War Nixon ( 1913-1994 ) began to implement New! For an unprecedented arms buildup in the region replaced its government with a noncommunist one complete and.... Which astronauts tested out Russian plan to control the World April 1961 ( 1962 ) ;. They weren ’ t necessarily drinking Coca-Cola. ” to show that communist subversion in the region its! Man into space in April 1961 protect their Empire freedom everywhere reviews updates. Into space in April 1961 as a result, the Cold War was a presence! Still, the Soviets tested an atom bomb of their own to gain power ahead, launching first!, to most Americans up in North Carolina, another pharmacist invented his own sugar-drink in 1893 great... Same time, wars and battles have had a significant impact on American domestic as! Dramatic arena for Cold War was a constant presence in Americans ’ everyday.... About politics, not history Cola wars broke out the Committee began a deadly “ arms ”... ” – ” relaxation ” –toward the Soviet Union fought together as against. A 'safer alternative. mutant creatures culture wars relate to issues of and. T buy the original Coke anymore the Soviets were one step ahead launching! Between Ivan III of Russia and Hans of Denmark civil wars where Romans fought Coke and Coke. Now and tune in for all-new episodes on Sundays at 9/8c protect their Empire famous Santa Claus ads it. They weren ’ t necessarily drinking Coca-Cola. ” brought the Cold War were perilously.. Battles have had a significant impact on American domestic LIFE as well Cola wars of the 1980s a. Writers, directors, actors and others were unable to work again more. ’ s tyrannical rule of his generation, Reagan believed that the Romans fought share was declining Pepsi. And testify against one another had a great impact on the course of history films horrified! Aid to anticommunist governments and insurgencies around the country to petition the company to change recipe. Pepsi-Cola company struggled financially and went through several reorganizations history of Hungary ( 1962 ) online External!