Back in the 1950s the man was the undisputed family breadwinner.

But fast forward 60 years and men today are apparently happy to play second fiddle to their wives when it comes to money.

Three-quarters of men now say it is no longer important for them to be the one who earns the most, new research reveals.

A study carried out by the US edition of Men’s Health magazine claims it marks the death knell for ‘1950s man’.

Husbands as depicted in the hit TV show Mad Men apparently no longer exist - 45 percent of men are now ‘very willing’ to look after the house if their wives earn more.

While one in five are already doing so and happily play house husband to their wealthier partners.

But there is a price for some - half of men think they have to give up some of their masculinity to become what they considered to be a ‘nurturing father’.

Men’s Health found that another big change was how men see other men earning less than their wives - nowadays there is less peer pressure than before to be the breadwinner.

The magazine’s US editor Peter Moore said: ‘The ’50s are over. Father didn’t even always know best back then.

‘So, if one of the things a woman knows best is how to bring in a big income, more power to her - and more money to pay for the holiday trip to Aruba.’

He added that men who are stuck in the daily grind look at their colleagues who are at home with their family and think: ‘Dude, you’re a kept man. Congratulations!’

Some of the other figures in the study suggested that old fashioned ideas of being a man had not gone away entirely.

Some 89 percent agree that protecting your family is a vital characteristic of being a man today. Only 29 percent strongly agree that it’s OK to cry as a man.

(Read by Emily Cheng. Emily Cheng is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)

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(Agencies)