nevada test site

Starting in 1951, the US Army began testing nuclear ordnances just 65 miles north of Las Vegas in the Nevada desert. At night, the glow of the bombs lit up the sky, and mushroom clouds could be spotted rising over the horizon during the day.

The 1950s saw an explosion of science fiction films, many of which are free on YouTube. The science fiction craze/heyday switched to television in the 1960s with such shows as The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, and Star Trek.

As a boy, I gravitated toward these films and television shows, as I am sure many other boys and girls did. With every story, there was a moral, the music was good, and no blood and gore were ever shown.​

Story is key, not special effects.

Plumbbob-Hood, Nevada Test Site
Photo courtesy of the Atomic Heritage Foundation https://ahf.nuclearmuseum.org/ahf/location/nevada-test-site/