How Much things cost in 1946
Average Cost of new house: $5,600.00
Average wages per year: $2,500.00
Cost of a gallon of Gas: 15 cents
Average Cost of a new car: $1,120.00

Chicken: 41 cents per pound
Coffee: 85 cents for a 2-pound bag

 

Unemployed: 8,120,000
GNP: $99.7 billion
Federal budget: $13.2 billion
National debt: $43 billion
Union membership: 8.1 million
Strikes: 2,508

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http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/1946.html

 

Harry's Spending

Spending $235 a day on hotel room

Inflation price for 2016 ≈ $2965.92

x60 days = $177,955.20

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Tipping a bellhop $20:

would be equivalent to a $253.56 tip in 2016.

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Paying Paul $200 per week:

Would equate to $2535.60 per week in 2016.

Over the course of the two months the play takes place, Paul would have made $1600 off of Harry. 

In 2016, that figure would have been $20,284.80. 

The minimum wage in Washington DC today is $11.50. If Paul were working 40 hours a week on a minimum wage job, it would take him over 44 weeks to make that amount - or three quarters of one year.

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https://www.minimum-wage.org/states.asp?state=District%20of%20Columbia

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Negotiating Prices when bribing Senator Hedges:

The original $50,000 would be a $633,899.31 bribe in 2016. 

The higher price of $80,000 would be a $1,014,238.90 bribe in 2016. 

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According to Harry, a senator makes $150 a week. In 2016, this number would be inflated to $1901.70 per week. Senator Hedges would then bring in $98,888.40 a year. According to this history of senate salaries, senator Hedges would, in real life, be making $10,000 annually. A senator's wages in 2016 came out to be $174,000.

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Maid's Wages

Helen the maid makes $18 a week. In 2016, she would be making $228.20.

x52 weeks in the year, her average income would be $11,866.40. 

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According to today's Federal Poverty Level, an individuals income should be $12,060 for individuals. This means, Helen the maid would be making $193.60 below today's poverty line if she was the only unmarried and supporting herself.

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https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/federal-poverty-level-FPL/

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Photo taken from the 1946 labor census. The highlighted portion depicts the average earning of a hotel worker, the average weekly hours, and the average hourly earning. It would seem that Helen the maid is being paid below the average of someone in 1944.

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http://www2.census.gov/library/publications/1946/compendia/statab/67ed/1946-03.pdf

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*All prices are taken from the average inflation rate calculated on these websites:

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http://www.westegg.com/inflation/

http://www.usinflationcalculator.com/

http://www.calculator.net/inflation-calculator.html