Highpoint of 20th Century American Culture?

[CountDeMoney]

That was a lot of shark fins in the late 1800's, man.

[Queequeg]

60s for music
40s or 70s for film
90s for TV
20s for architecture
30s for books

Actually pretty convincing.  I like that the 80s are kept out, too.

[Eddie Teach]

Not gonna accept that our best era for music is one dominated by British bands.

[The Brain]

80s for music. Who can stand against Puppets and Justice? Rhetorical.

[Savonarola]

Not gonna accept that our best era for music is one dominated by British bands.

It was the high point of Motown and Stax.  John Coltrane released "A Love Supreme."  Classical music started coming back from the awfulness of serial music with the beginning of minimalism; most notably Terry Riley's "In C."  Brian Wilson hadn't gone completely crazy yet.  Even if the Beatles dominated the charts, the Americans had a solid decade.

[The Brain]

If "solid" is what America can hope to achieve then I don't want to be American anymore.

[The Larch]

I'd say that Motown, Beach Boys, Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Joan Baez, Peter Paul & Mary, Grateful Dead, Ray Charles, James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, The Mamas & The Papas, Simon & Garfunkel, The Doors, MC5, Creedence Clearwater Revival, as well as Johnny Cash at his peak, Elvis and Sinatra already icons, bubblegum pop and dance crazes..that's way more than solid in my book.