Headlines & Tidbits from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s & 80s
World News & the American Experience:
1941 – Hitler took complete command of the German Army.
1941 – US Office of Censorship created to control information pertaining to World War II.
1958 – The first radio broadcast from space happened. It was President Eisenhower’s voice, “To all mankind, America’s wish for Peace on Earth and Good Will to Men Everywhere.”
1963 – The Berlin Wall was opened for the first time, with 4,000 people crossing over to visit relatives during the holidays. It closed again on January 6, 1964.
Movies & TV:
1939 – “Gone With the Wind”, premiered at Loew’s Grand Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia.
1944 – “National Velvet” with Elizabeth Taylor premiered.
1951 – “Dragnet” premiered on TV during “Chesterfield Sound Off Time”.
1954 – Walt Disney’s TV series showed “Davy Crockett, Indian Fighter” for the first time.
1961 – “Judgment At Nuremberg” opened in New York City.
1964 – “The Pink Panther” cartoon series premiered.
1966 – Dr Seuss’ “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” aired for first time on CBS.
1967 – “The Graduate,” starring Dustin Hoffman & Anne Bancroft premiered.
1969 – The Jackson Five appeared on the “Ed Sullivan Show” for the first time.
1971 – “Diamonds are Forever” premiered in US.
1971 – Stanley Kubrick’s “A Clockwork Orange” premiered.
1976 – “Wonder Woman” debuted on ABC.
1976 – “A Star is Born,” with Barbra Striesand, premiered.
1977 – “Saturday Night Fever,” with John Travolta, premiered in New York.
1989 – “I Love Lucy” Christmas episode was broadcast for first time in over 30 years.
Music & Radio:
1949 – “Captain Midnight” was broadcast for the last time.
1952 – Jimmy Boyd reached the #1 spot on the record charts with the Christmas song of the year, “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”.
1955 – “Blue Suede Shoes” by Carl Perkins hit the top of the rock, country, and rhythm & blues charts.
1960 – “Calendar Girl” by Neil Sedaka was released on RCA Victor Records.
1960 – Frank Sinatra recorded “Ring-A-Ding-Ding” and “Let’s Fall in Love” with his very own record company, Reprise Records.
1962 – The Osmond brothers debuted on the Andy Williams Show.
1967 – Ian Anderson & Glenn Cornick formed the rock group Jethro Tull.
1968 – “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” by Marvin Gaye was at the top of the charts.
1969 – “Leaving on a Jet Plane” by Peter, Paul & Mary reached #1.
1971 – One of the longest songs ever, Don McLean’s “American Pie” was released, with a play time of over 8 minutes.
1975 – Ron Wood joined the Rolling Stones.
1977 – Elvis Costello & The Attractions made their first US TV appearance on “Saturday Night Live.”
Arts & Entertainment:
1957 – “Music Man” opened at Majestic Theater in New York City for 1375 performances.
1981 – “Dreamgirls” opened at Imperial Theater New York City, playing for 1522 performances.
1985 – “Jerry’s Girls” opened at St James Theater in New York City.
Celebrity Headlines:
1957 – Elvis Presley was given draft notice to join the US Army for National Service.
1966 – Walt (Walter Elias) Disney died in Burbank, California at the age of 65.
1973 – Singer Bobby Darin died following open-heart surgery at the age of 37.
1985 – Sylvester Stallone married Brigitte Nielson.
Sports:
1953 – The Brooklyn Dodgers signed Sandy Koufax, age 19. He had only played 20 games in his life!
1973 – Sandy Hawley won 500 races in a single year, the first jockey in history to do this.
1985 – Howard Cosell retired from television sports after 20 years with ABC.
1989 – Larry Bird (Celtics) began NBA free throw streak of 71 games.
Technology & Inventions:
1934 – New York Central Railroad introduced the first streamlined locomotive, nicknamed the Commodore Vanderbilt.
Automobile News:
1942 – Massachusetts issues the first US vehicular license plate tabs.
Famous Birthdays:
1943 – Keith Richards
1946 – Patty (Anna Marie) Duke
1946 – Steven (Allan) Spielberg
1949 – Bill (William Joseph) Buckner, baseball player
1949 – Don Johnson, actor
1957 – Kevin McHale (Basketball Hall of Famer: Boston Celtics)
1963 – Brad Pitt
1966 – Kiefer Sutherland
0 Responses
Stay in touch with the conversation, subscribe to the RSS feed for comments on this post.