One aspect that I don't see mentioned yet is the change from academia as an upper-middle-class middle-aged white male club to a broader, more diverse group of people (that still needs to be more diverse). Clubs have in-jokes, secret handshakes, common interests aside from their common profession. Professional groups don't. 

(Since comments suggest this isn't clear, I'm talking about the 1950s, not the 19th century. If you're not familiar with the Old Boys Club that made up academia in the first half of the 20th century, look at photos and count the women, non-white members. Look up the Jewish quota, which was still *officially* in place until the 1960s in some places in North America - and unofficially, in many places.)

When you could assume that most people who would look at your title had a similar background to you, you could be pretty confident your clever little pun would register in the context you meant. Today, hopefully, that's not the case.