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1968
1968 was a year of triumphs and tragedies. While America reached new heights by introducing the first 747 and orbiting the moon, all was not well down on Earth. The United States lost a Navy intelligence ship and two proponents of peace the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and
Robert F. Kennedy. -
North Korea captures the USS Pueblo
credit When North Korea captured the American surveillance ship USS Pueblo, it sparked an 11 month crisis that threatened to worsen already high Cold War tensions in the region. The trouble started with the Pueblo. -
North Vietnam launches the Tet Offensive against the United States and South Vietnam
credit In many ways, the bloody Tet Offensive signified the beginning of the end of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. The coordinated attack by 85,000 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese targeted 36 major cities and towns in South Vietnam. It caught U.S. - led forces by surprise. -
Martin Luther King Jr. assassinated in Memphis, Tenessee
credit The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was standing on the second floor balcony of room 306 at the Lorraine Motel when he was struck by a bullet at 6:01 p.m. The 39 year old civil rights leader was rushed to nearby St. Joseph's Hospital but never regained consciousness. -
Robert F. Kennedy assassinated in Los Angeles
credit Just two months later, Kennedy himself was gunned down by an assassin at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. The attack took place shortly after Kennedy had wrapped up a speech in the hotel ballroom. -
Boeing introduces the first 747 "Jumbo Jet"
credit When demand for air travel reached sky high levels in the 1960s, the world's then largest passenger aircraft the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet was a game changer. -
U.S. athletes take a stand at the Summer Olympics
credit During the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, two black athletes staged a silent demonstration against racial discrimination in the United States. -
"Star Trek" airs American television's first interracial kiss
credit In 1968 "Star Trek" actors Nichelle Nichols and William Shatner performed the first interracial kiss on American TV. -
The Pueblo crew was allowed to safely return to South Korean territory
The crew was home in time for Christmas. But the USS Pueblo remains in North Korean
custody. -
Apollo 8 is the first manned spacecraft to orbit the moon
credit The weeklong mission was fueled by a Space Race rivalry with the Soviet Union and the nation's desire to fulfill President John F. Kennedy's wishes to land on the moon by decade's end.Apollo 11 seven months later.
