Friday Funny: Super Bowl Time Warp

This weekend the Denver Broncos will take on the Carolina Panthers at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA in Super Bowl 50, marking the event’s golden anniversary.

Super Bowl Time Warp.Life sure has changed since that first NFL championship was played 50 years ago, when the Green Bay Packers beat the Kansas City Chiefs 35-10 on January 15, 1967 at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. To begin with, things seem more expensive: Fifty years ago, a gallon of regular gas cost 33 cents compared to $1.86 today. However, gas was actually more expensive in 1967: In 2015 dollars that gallon of gas would have cost you $2.13.

If you were bouncing a baby on your knee while watching the game in 1967, there’s a good chance he or she would answer to Michael or Lisa. In 2016, the tyke would more likely be named Noah or Emma. If little Michael or Lisa got thirsty, a gallon of milk that costs $3.31 today was $1.03 in 1967. (But that’s a whopping $7.32 in 2015 dollars, so like gas, no bargain).

Super Bowl Time Warp.In honor of the Super Bowl’s 50th year, the U.S. Census Bureau has compiled these and other facts looking at how life has changed from 1967 to 2016.

U.S. Population
1967: 197.5 million
2016: 322.8 million

Population of Santa, Clara, CA
April 1, 1970: 86,118
July 1, 2014: 122,192

World Population
1967: 3.5 billion
2016: 7.3 billion

Super Bowl Time Warp.Median Sales Price of a New Single-Family Home
1967: $22,700
2016: $282,800 (2014)

Cost of a First-Class Stamp
1967: 5 cents (36 cents in 2015 dollars)
2016: 49 cents

Super Bowl Time Warp.
Elvis Presley (32) and bride Priscilla Beaulieu Presley (21) on their wedding day in 1967. (Source: People.com)

Median Age at First Marriage
1967: 23.1 men; 20.6 women
2016: 29.2 men; 27.1 women (2015)

Number of Foreign-Born People
1967: 9.6 million (as of 1970: They comprised 4.7 percent of the total population, and Italy was the leading country of origin.)
2016: 42.4 million (as of 2014: They comprised 13.3 percent of the total population, and Mexico was the leading country of origin.)

Average Household Size
1967: 3.28 people
2016: 2.54 people (2015)

Super Bowl Time Warp.Number of People Age 65 and Older
1967: 19.1 million
2016: 46.2 million (2014)

Median Age of the Population
1967: 28.1
2016: 37.7 (2014)

Life Expectancy at Birth
1967: 70.5 years
2016: 78.8 years (2013)

Percentage of Women in the Labor Force, Age 16 and Older
1967: 41.1%
2016: 56.7% (2015)

Percentage of the Population, Age 25 and Older, who had at Least a High School Diploma
1967: 51.1%
2016: 88.3% (2014)

Super Bowl Time Warp.Median Annual Income
1967: $7,289 men; $4,198 women ($45,189 and $26,026, 2014 dollars)
2016: $49,400 men; $30,087 women (2014)

Active-Duty Military Personnel
1967: 3.4 million
2016: 1.3 million (Nov. 30, 2015)

One comparison the U.S. Census didn’t examine: the cost of beer and chips for a Super Bowl 1 party compared to Super Bowl 50. Using our crack investigation skills, we discovered a 24-pack of Budweiser beer would set you back about $4 in 1967, compared to $17 today. And a bag of chips that cost 79 cents in 1967 will cost about $2.60 today.