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South Pacific
The prize-winning musical, opens on Broadway on April 7. -
Harry Truman
Elected after Roosevelt and made the decision to drop the bomb on Japan. -
Studebaker
A popular car company, begins its financial downfall. -
The King and I
Musical, opens on Broadway on March 29. -
Dwight D. Eisenhower
First elected as U.S. president, winning by a landslide margin of 442 to 89 electoral votes. -
Joseph Stalin
Dies on March 5, yielding his position as leader of the Soviet Union. -
Rock Around the Clock
Is a hit single released by Bill Haley & His Comets in May, spurring worldwide interest in rock and roll music. -
Albert Einstein
Dies on April 18 at the age of 76. -
Peyton Place
The best-selling novel by Grace Metalious, is published. Though mild compared to today's prime time, it shocked the reserved values of the 1950s. -
Sputnik
Becomes the first artificial satellite, launched by the Soviet Union on October 4, marking the start of the space race. -
California Baseball
Begins as the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants move to California and become the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. They are the first major league teams west of Kansas City. -
Buddy Holly
Dies in a plane crash on February 3 with Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper, in a day that had a devastating impact on the country and youth culture. -
Psycho
An Alfred Hitchcock thriller, based on a pulp novel by Robert Bloch and adapted by Joseph Stefano, which becomes a landmark in graphic violence and cinema sensationalism. The screeching violins heard briefly in the background of the song are a trademark of the film's soundtrack. -
Stranger In A Strange Land
Written by Robert A. Heinlein, is a breakthrough best-seller with themes of sexual freedom and liberation. -
John Glenn
Flew the first American manned orbital mission termed "Friendship 7" on February 20. -
JFK Blown Away
President John F. Kennedy is assassinated on November 22 while riding in an open convertible through Dallas. -
Birth Control
In the early 1960s, oral contraceptives, popularly known as "the pill", first go on the market and are extremely popular. Griswold v. Connecticut in 1965 challenged a Connecticut law prohibiting contraceptives. In 1968, Pope Paul VI released a papal encyclical entitled Humanae Vitae which declared artificial birth control a sin. -
Richard Nixon Back Again
Former Vice President Nixon is elected in the 1968 presidential election of the United States. -
Woodstock
Famous rock and roll festival of 1969 that came to be the epitome of the counterculture movement. -
Punk Rock
The Ramones form, with the Sex Pistols following in 1975, bringing in the punk era. -
Palestine
A United Nations resolution that calls for an independent Palestinian state and to end the Israeli occupation. -
Ronald Reagan
President of the United States from 1981 to 1989; first attempted in 1976 to run for president. -
Russians in Afghanistan
Following their move into Afghanistan, Soviet forces fight a ten-year war, from 1979 to 1989. -
Wheel of Fortune
A hit television game show which has been TV's highest-rated syndicated program since 1983. -
Bernie Goetz
On December 22, Mr. Goetz shot four young men who he said were threatening him on a New York City subway. Goetz was charged with attempted murder but was acquitted of the charges, though convicted of carrying an unlicensed gun. -
Hypodermics on the Shore
Medical waste was found washed up on beaches in New Jersey after being illegally dumped at sea. Before this event, waste dumped in the oceans was an "out of sight, out of mind" affair. This has been cited as one of the crucial turning points in popular opinion on environmentalism. -
Rock-and-Roller Cola Wars
Soft drink giants Coke and Pepsi each run marketing campaigns using rock & roll and popular music stars to reach the young adult demographic. -
George W. Bush
Was elected into office. -
Twin Towers
The Twin Towers were hit by two planes on September 11th, 2001. -
iPod
Line of portable media players that were released by Apple Inc. on November 10th, 2001. -
Google/Facebook/Twitter
Popular search engine and social networking sites that are used daily by many people in the world. -
Michael Jackson
Accused for a second time of child sexual abuse. -
Pluto
Pluto was no longer considered a planet in our solar system, but rather a "dwarf plant." -
Barrack Obama
The first African American to become president of the United States. -
Whitney Houston
Died on Febuary 11th, 2012 -
Bill Gates
Creator of Microsoft and eventually became the richest man in the world at one point. -
End of the World?
Based on the Mayan Calender, the world is supposedly going to end on December 21st, 2012.