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Events
- January 1 - Independence of Cameroon
- January 11 - Chad declares its
independence.
- January 23 - Jacques Piccard and Don Walsh in the
bathyscaphe USS
Trieste break a depth record when they descend to the bottom of Challenger Deep 35,820 feet (10,750 meters) below sea level in the Pacific Ocean.
- January 25 - The National Association of Broadcasters reacts to the Payola scandal by threatening fines for any disk jockeys who
accepted money for playing particular records
- February 9 - Joanne
Woodward receives the first star on the Hollywood Walk
of Fame.
- February 13 - Nuclear testing: France tests its first atomic bomb.
- February 21 - Cuban leader Fidel Castro nationalizes all businesses in Cuba.
- February 29 - Earthquake totally destroys Agadir, Morocco.
- March 6 - Vietnam War: The
United States announces that 3,500 American troops are going to be sent
to Vietnam.
- March 21 - Apartheid: Massacre in Sharpeville, South Africa: Afrikaner police open fire on a group of unarmed
black South African demonstrators, killing 69 and wounding 180.
- March 22 - Arthur Leonard Schawlow & Charles Hard Townes receive the first patent for a laser.
- April 1 - Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni Almarhum Tuanku Muhammad, 1st Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia dies in office. He is replaced by Hisamuddin Alam Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Alaeddin Sulaiman
Shah, Sultan of Selangor.
- April 1 - The United
States launches the first weather satellite, TIROS-1.
- April 21 - In Brazil, The Country's
capital (Federal District) is shifted from Rio de Janeiro to Brasília. The
Estado da Guanabara
(State of Guanabara) is founded to succeed Rio de Janeiro as the
Brazilian Federal District.
- April 27 - Togo gains independence from
French-administered UN trusteeship.
- May 9 - Reproductive
rights: The Food and Drug
Administration approves sale of the birth control
pill.
- May 10 - The nuclear submarine USS Nautilus completes the first under water circumnavigation of the earth.
- May 11 - In Buenos Aires four
Mossad agents abduct fugitive Nazi Adolf Eichmann who was using the assumed name "Ricardo Klement."
- May 13 - First ascent of Dhaulagiri, 7th highest mountain
- May 15 - Sputnik 4 is
launched into Earth orbit.
- May 16 - Nikita
Khrushchev demands an apology from US President Dwight D.
Eisenhower for U-2 spy plane flights over the Soviet Union thus ending a Big Four
summit in Paris.
- May 23 - Prime Minister of Israel David
Ben-Gurion announces that Nazi war
criminal Adolf Eichmann has been captured.
- May 27 - In Turkey, General Cemal Gürsel leads a military coup d'etat removing President Celal Bayar and the rest of the democratic
government.
- June 20 - Independence of Mali and Senegal
- June 24 - Avro 748 first flight at
Woodford, UK
- July 1 - A Soviet MiG fighter north of Murmansk in the Barents Sea shot down a six-man RB-47 crew. Two young United States Air
Force officers survived and were imprisoned in Moscow's dreaded Lubyanka prison. (see RB-47H shot down)
- July 4 - With the admission of Hawaii as
the 50th U.S. state earlier in the year, the 50-star flag of the United States debuts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- July 20 - Sri Lanka (then Ceylon)
elected Sirimavo Bandaranaike Prime Minister, the world's
first female head of government.
- August 6 - Cuban
Revolution: In response to a United States embargo, Cuba nationalizes American and foreign-owned property in the nation.
- August 7 - Côte
d'Ivoire becomes independent.
- August 16 - Joseph
Kittinger parachutes from a balloon over New Mexico at 102,800 feet (31,333
m). He sets unbeaten (as of 2003) world records for: high-altitude jump;
free-fall by falling 16 miles (25.7 km) before opening his parachute; and fastest speed by a human without
motorized assistance, 982 km/h (614 mi/h).
- August 16 - Cyprus gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
- August 17 - Gabon gains independence
from France.
- August 19 - Cold War: In
Moscow, downed American U-2 pilot
Francis Gary Powers is sentenced to ten years imprisonment by
the Soviet Union for espionage.
- August 19 - Sputnik program: The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 5 with the dogs Belka and Strelka (Russian for
"Squirrel" and "Little Arrow"), 40 mice, 2 rats and a
variety of plants. The spacecraft will return to earth the next day and all animals will
be recovered safely.
- August 20 - Senegal breaks from
the Mali federation, declaring independence.
- September 1 - Hisamuddin Alam Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Alaeddin Sulaiman
Shah, Sultan of Selangor and 2nd
Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia dies in office. He is replaced by Tuanku Syed Putra ibni Almarhum Syed Hassan Jamalullail,
Raja of Perlis.
- September 1 - Disgruntled railroad workers effectively halt operations of the Pennsylvania Railroad, marking the first shutdown in the history of the company (event lasted 2
days).
- September 8 - In Huntsville, Alabama, US President Dwight D. Eisenhower formally dedicates the Marshall Space Flight Center (NASA had already activated
the facility on July 1).
- October 7 - Second notable flood in Horncastle
- October 12 - Cold War:
Nikita Khrushchev pounds his shoe on a table at a General
Assembly of the United Nations meeting to protest discussion of
Soviet Union policy toward Eastern Europe.
- October 14 - US presidential candidate John F. Kennedy first suggests the idea for the Peace
Corps.
- October 29 - In Louisville, Kentucky, Cassius Clay (who later took the name Muhammad Ali) wins his first professional fight.
- November 1 - While campaigning for President of the United States, John F. Kennedy announces his idea of the Peace Corps.
- November 2 - Penguin
Books is found not guilty of obscenity in the Lady Chatterley's Lover case.
- November 8 - U.S. presidential election, 1960: In a close race, John F. Kennedy is elected over Richard M.
Nixon, becoming the youngest man elected to that office.
- November 15 - The Polaris missile is test launched.
- November 28 - Mauritania becomes independent of France.
- November 30 - Production of the De Soto automobile brand ceases.
- December 1 - Patrice Lumumba, the deposed premier of the Republic of the Congo was arrested by troops of Col. Joseph Mobutu
- December 1 - A 5-ton Soviet space ship containing animals, insects and plants was
launched into orbit. The spacecraft burned up upon re-entry.
- December 2 - The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. Geoffrey Francis Fisher, talked with Pope John XXIII for about an hour in the Vatican. It was the first time in more than 500 years that a head of the Anglican church had visited the Pope.
- December 2 - U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower authorized the use of $1M for the relief and
resettlement of Cuban refugees in Florida. Cuban refugees were arriving in Florida at the rate of 1,000 a week.
- December 4 - Admission to the United Nations of Mauritania was vetoed by the USSR.
- December 5 - Pierre Lagaillarde, who led
1958 and 1960 insurrections in Algeria, failed to appear in a Paris court. He was reported to have fled
with 4 fellow defendants to Spain en route to Algeria.
- December 7 - The United Nations Security Council was called into session by the USSR to
consider the Soviet demands that the U.N. seek the immediate release of former Congolese Premier Patrice
Lumumba.
- December 9 - French President
Charles de Gaulle's visit to Algeria was marked by bloody riots by European and Muslim mobs in
Algeria's largest cities, killing 127 people.
- December 12 - A Federal Court ruling that Louisiana's anti-integration laws were unconstitutional was upheld by the U.S.
Supreme Court.
- December 13 - While the Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia was on a visit to Brazil, a revolt against his rule was carried out by his Imperial Guard. The rebels proclaimed
the emperor's son, Crown Prince Asfa-Wossen.
- December 14 - Antione Gizenga proclaimed in
Stanleyville in the Republic of the Congo that he had assumed the premiership.
- December 15 - King Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah Deva of Nepal deposed the government and took power into his own hands.
- December 16 - U.S. Secretary of
State Christian Herter announced that the United States would
commit five atomic submarines and 80 Polaris missiles to NATO by the end of 1963.
- December 16 - A collision of a United Airlines DC-8 and a TWA
Super-Constellation over New York City killed 128 on planes and 6 on the ground.
- December 17 - Troops loyal to Haile Selassie I in Ethiopia suppressed the revolt that
started on December 13 and gave power back to their leader upon his return
from Brazil. Haile Selassie absolved his son of any guilt.
- December 19 - Fire swept through the USS Constellation, the U.S.'s largest aircraft carrier, while
it was under construction at a Brooklyn Navy Yard pier,
injuring 150 and killing 50.
- December 20 - Discoverer XIX was launched into
polar orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base, to
measure radiation.
- December 27 - France set off
its third nuclear test blast at its atomic proving grounds at Reggan, ireland was very good
- December 31 - The farthing coin, used in Britain since the 13th century, ceases to be legal
tender.
Year in topic
- 1960 in film
- 1960 in literature
- 1960 in music
- 1960 in sports
- 1960 in television
- February 11 - Jack Paar
walks off his TV show because his monologue had been edited the night before, in
favor of a three minute news update. Parr walked out at the beginning of the show, announced that he was quiting, said "There's
got to be a better way to make a living," and walked off the stage. After network executives personally apologized, Parr returned
to the show a month later. His first show back started with the words "As I was saying before I was interrupted..."
- American Presidential Candidates John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon debate live on television. The candidates behavior during
the debate most likely altered the outcome of the election. In addition to being the first Presidential debates to be broadcast
on television, the debates also marked the first time "split screen" images were used by a network.
- The Andy Griffith Show premieres
- Hanna Barbera's The Flintstones make their debut
- 90% of homes in the United States now own a television set, and over one hundred million television sets in use
worldwide
Births
- January 3 - Joan Chen,
actress
- January 4 - Michael
Stipe, singer for R.E.M.
- January 6 - Nigella
Lawson, celebrity chef, writer
- January 6 - Howie Long, American football star
- January 11 - Stanley
Tucci, actor
- January 12 - Oliver
Platt, actor
- January 13 - Kevin
Anderson, actor
- January 22 - Michael Hutchence, musician ("INXS") (d. 1997)
- January 24 - Nastassja Kinski, actress
- January 29 - Greg
Louganis, Olympics gold medalist in diving
- February 7 - James
Spader, actor (Pretty in Pink, Stargate, The
Practice)
- February 11 - Richard Mastracchio, astronaut
- February 13 - Pierluigi Collina, football
referee
- February 19 - Prince Andrew, second son of Queen Elizabeth II
- February 29 - Tony
Robbins, motivational speaker
- March 4 - Mykelti Williamson, actor
- March 7 - Joe Carter, baseball star
- March 7 - Ivan Lendl, tennis
player
- March 13 - Adam Clayton,
bassist for the rock band U2
- March 21 - Ayrton Senna,
automobile racer (d. 1994)
- March 26 - Marcus Allen, American football
star
- March 29 - Marina
Sirtis, actress (Star Trek: The
Next Generation)
- April 4 - Hugo Weaving,
actor
- April 14 - Brad Garrett,
actor (Everybody Loves Raymond)
- April 26 - Roger Taylor, musician ("Duran Duran")
- May 10 - Bono, singer of U2
- May 18 - Jari Kurri, Hockey Hall of Famer
- May 18 - Yannick Noah,
tennis player
- May 20 - John
Billingsley, actor (Star Trek:
Enterprise)
- May 21 - Jeffrey Dahmer,
serial killer (d. 1994)
- June 6 - Gary Graham, actor
(Alien Nation, Star Trek: Enterprise)
- June 8 - Mick Hucknall
singer/songwriter of Simply Red
- August 4 - José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Prime Minister of Spain
- August 7 - David
Duchovny, actor (The X-Files)
- August 10 - Antonio
Banderas, actor (Desperado, Spy Kids)
- August 24 - Cal
Ripken, Jr., baseball star
- August 26 - Branford Marsalis, jazz musician
- September 9 - Hugh
Grant, actor (Nine Months, Notting Hill, Bridget
Jones's Diary)
- September 10 - Colin
Firth, actor (Shakespeare in Love, Bridget Jones's Diary, Love Actually)
- September 16 - John
Franco, baseball relief
pitcher
- October 5 - Daniel
Baldwin, actor (Homicide: Life on the
Street)
- October 30 - Diego
Maradona, soccer player
- November 10 - Neil
Gaiman, author
- November 25 - John F. Kennedy, Jr., lawyer and journalist (d. 1999)
- November 25 - Amy Grant, contemporary Christian music star
- December 4 - Glynis
Nunn, Australian heptathlete
- December 10 - Kenneth Branagh, actor, film director
- December 19 - Mike Lookinland, actor (The Brady
Bunch)
- December 31 - John Allen Muhammad, convicted Beltway sniper
Deaths
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