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By now, more than 45 million American
households have television sets. |
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The John Birch Society, a radical
anti-Communist organization, is created in the U.S. |
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Dr. Zhivago is published in the US.
Banned in the USSR, Zhivago won author Boris Pasternak the Nobel Prize which he
was forced to decline due to political forces at home. |
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The price of 1st class US postage is
raised to 4¢ from 3¢ where it had been for 26 years. Hard to believe
- only a penny in 26 years! |
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Charles de Gaulle becomes premier of
France, a position he will hold until 1969. |
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Dodger catcher Roy Campanella is
paralyzed when the car he was driving skidded into a telephone pole. Campanella
wsa the NL's MVP in '51, '53 and '55. |
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The Jolly Green Giant appears on TV with
less than stellar results! In his first incarnation he looks like a monster
which scares kids. So they lightened him up and added "Ho, ho, ho" and the
lilting "Good things from the garden" song. |
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Modern consumer credit is born. The
American Express Company introduces a charge card meant to compete with the
successful Diners Club card. The Bank of American introduces the BankAmericard,
which will become the Visa card. |
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Crest toothpaste inaugurates the "Look,
Ma! No cavities!" ad campaign. |
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Eighteen-year-old Frank Carney sees a
story in the Saturday Evening Post about the "pizza fad" among teenagers and
college students. With $600 borrowed from his mother, he opens the first Pizza
Hut in Wichita, Kan. |
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On the Air! You'd find 3,156 AM radio,
537 FM radio and 492 TV Stations. |
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31.3% of all domestic passenger travel
was by railroad; 27.7% by bus; and 38% by air. |
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30.6% of all advertising dollars are
spent on newspapers - 13.3% on TV. Complete
allocation of ad dollars. |
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It's Here!
The Hula Hoop! For more, see the
FADS section. |
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Sweet n' Low is introduced as an
artificial Sweetener, using saccharin instead of sugar. Sweet'N Low received
U.S. trademark patent no. 1,000,000. |
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Nelson Mandela weds Winnie
Madikizela. |
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UP & International News Service merge
into United Press International |
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Vice President Richard Nixon is shoved,
stoned, booed & spat upon by protesters in Peru as he makes a goodwill tour
of South and Latin American. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy :>) |
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And the winner is...Oscar stuff. |
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NASA is created and Explorer is launched.
A big year for the US in the Space
Race. |
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RIAA awards the very first Gold record -
to Perry Como. Some gold album
stats. |
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The first ever
Grammy Awards! |
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In Sports... |
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Sterophonic recordings, which use two
separately recorded channels of sound to recreate a sense of space, come into
commercial use. Now this is progress! |
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Friskees introduces the first dry cat
food |
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Japan’s new Datsun (Model 211) cars
begin shipping to the U.S. but only 52 will sell. An especially meager number
since in 1958 America will import 430,808 passenger cars. |
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Pope Pius XII declares Saint Clare of
Assisi patron saint of television. Her placement on the television set is said
to guarantee good reception. Maybe I should send one to my cable operator. |
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Right after that, Pope Pius XII died. No
"connection", I'm sure. Angelo G Roncalli crowned Pope John XXIII. |
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Harry Winston, Inc. donates the 45.52
carat Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian Institution. |
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This is the peak year for drive-in movies
with 4,063 outdoor screens nationwide. |
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In the worst recession since World War
II, nearly 5.5 million people are out of work. |
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400 million frozen pot pies are sold in
the U.S. There's a statistic you won't see just anywhere. |
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The first women are admitted to the
British House of Lords. Oh, jolly good! |
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Bill and Mark Richards of Dana Point, CA,
invented the first skateboard. They attached rollerskate wheels to a square
board and sold them at their Val Surf Shop for $8 each. |
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The first domestic jet-airline passenger
service is begun by National Airlines between New York City and Miami. |
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Rice-a-Roni, The San
Francisco Treat, is introduced. |
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9,000 scientists of 43 nations petition
UN for nuclear test ban. |
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Prime commercial paper (4 to 6 mos) was
at 2.46%. In New York City a commercial loan ran 4.12% |
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Pulitzer prize awarded to James Agee for
his book Death in the Family
Buy the book! |
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Air Force Academy opens in Colorado
Springs, CO. The all male facility won't go co-ed unto 1976. |
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Mao Tse tung start "Great leap forward"
movement in China |
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Charles Starkweather and Caril Fugate go on their killing
spree. |
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The nuclear submarine Nautilus traverses
the North Pole under the polar icecap. |
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The National Association of Broadcasters
bans subliminal ads.An
important story. |
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There is a 55.9% business failure rate.Chart for 1946-1964 |
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The Chevrolet Impala is introduced! |
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Cocoa Krispies breakfast food is
introduced by the Kellogg Company; it's 45.9% sugar. |
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Cocoa Puffs is introduced by General
Mills; it contains 43% sugar. |
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This year in the
Civil Rights movement. |
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Dr Ake Senning installs the first
pacemaker. |
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American will import 430,808 passenger
cars. |
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There are 36,981 motor vehicle related
deaths. While in the air, there were 8 accidents resulting in 125 fatalities.
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Unemployment is 6.8% |
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U.S. GNP (Gross National Product) is
$468.3 billion |
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