Events
January
*February
* February 10 – The United States Seventh Fleet helps theMarch
* March 2 –April
* April 1 –May
* May 5 – West Germany becomes a sovereign country, recognized by important Western countries such as France, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. * May 6 – The Western European Union Charter becomes effective. * May 7 – Newcastle United F.C. in England win their fourth (and, as of 2022, last)June
* June 7 – The television Game show, quiz program ''The $64,000 Question'' premieres on CBS-TV in the United States, with Hal March as the host. * June 11 – 1955 Le Mans disaster, Le Mans disaster: Eighty-three people are killed and at least 100 are injured, after two race cars collide in the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans. * June 13 – Mir mine, Mir Mine, the first diamond mine in the Soviet Union, is discovered. * June 16 – ''Lady and the Tramp'', the Walt Disney company's 15th animated film, premieres in Chicago. * June 26 – The Freedom Charter of the anti-apartheid South African Congress Alliance is adopted, at a Congress of the People (1955), Congress of the People in Kliptown.July
* July 1 – Transformation from the Imperial Bank of India to the State Bank of India is given legal recognition through an Act of the Parliament of India. * July 7 – The New Zealand Special Air Service is formed. * July 13 – Ruth Ellis is hanged for murder in London, becoming the last woman ever to be executed in the United Kingdom. * July 17 ** The Disneyland theme park opens in Anaheim, California, an event broadcast on the American Broadcasting Company television network. ** The first atomic-generated electrical power is sold commercially, partially powering Arco, Idaho, from the U.S. National Reactor Testing Station; on July 18, Schenectady, New York, receives power from a prototype nuclear submarine reactor at Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory."1955". ''Houghton Mifflin Guide to Science & Technology''. * July 18 – Illinois Governor William Stratton signs the Loyalty Oath Act, that mandates all public employees take a loyalty oath to the State of Illinois and the United States or lose their jobs. * July 18–July 23, 23 – Geneva Summit (1955), Geneva Summit between the United States, Soviet Union, United Kingdom and France. * July 22 – In Long Beach, California (United States), Hillevi Rombin of Sweden is crowned Miss Universe. * July 27 – El Al Flight 402 from Vienna (Austria) to Tel Aviv, via Istanbul, is shot down over Bulgaria. All 58 passengers and crewmen aboard the Lockheed Constellation are killed. * July 28 – The first Interlingua Congress is held in Tours, France, leading to the foundation of the Union Mundial pro Interlingua.August
* August 1 – The prototype Lockheed U-2 reconnaissance aircraft first flies, in Nevada. * August 18 ** The First Sudanese Civil War begins. ** The first meeting of the Organization of Central American States ( es, Organización de Estados Centroamericanos, ODECA) is held, in Antigua Guatemala. * August 19 – Hurricane Diane hits the northeastern United States, killing over 200 people and causing over $1 billion in damage. * August 20 – Hundreds of people are killed in anti-French rioting in Morocco and Algeria. * August 22 – Eleven schoolchildren are killed when their school bus is hit by a freight train in Spring City, Tennessee. * August 25 – The last Soviet Army forces leave Austria. * August 26 – Satyajit Ray's film ''Pather Panchali'' is released in India. * August 27 – The first edition of the ''Guinness Book of Records'' is published, in London. * August 28 – Black 14-year-old Emmett Till is lynching in the United States, lynched and shot in the head for allegedly grabbing and threatening a white woman in Money, Mississippi; his white murderers, Roy Bryant and J. W. Milam, are acquitted by an all-white jury.September
* September 2 – Under the guidance of Dr. Humphry Osmond, Christopher Mayhew ingests 400 mg of Mescaline, mescaline hydrochloride and allows himself to be filmed as part of a ''Panorama (TV series), Panorama'' special for BBC TV in the U.K. that is never broadcast. * September 3 – Little Richard records "Tutti Frutti (song), Tutti Frutti" in New Orleans; it is released in October. * September 6 – Istanbul pogrom: Istanbul's Greek minority is the target of a government-sponsored pogrom. * September 10 – The long-running Western (genre), Western television series ''Gunsmoke'' debuts, on the CBS network in the United States. * September 14 – Pope Pius XII elevates many of the Apostolic vicariates in Africa to Metropolitan Archdioceses. * September 15 – Vladimir Nabokov's controversial novel ''Lolita'' is published in Paris, by Olympia Press. * September 16 ** The military coup to unseat President Juan Perón of Argentina is launched at midnight. ** A Soviet Navy Zulu-class submarine becomes the first to launch a ballistic missile. * September 18 – The United Kingdom formally annexes the uninhabited Atlantic island of Rockall. * September 19–September 21, 21 – President of Argentina Juan Perón is ousted in a military coup. * September 19 – Hurricane Hilda (1955), Hurricane Hilda kills about 200 people in Mexico. * September 21–September 30, 30 – Hurricane Janet, one of the strongest North Atlantic tropical cyclones on record, sweeps the Lesser Antilles and Mexico, causing more than 1,020 deaths. * September 22 – Commercial television starts in the United Kingdom with the Independent Television Authority's first ITV (TV network), ITV franchises beginning broadcasting in London, ending the BBC monopoly. * September 23: A 1955 Yuzha earthquake, 6.8 earthquake shakes the Chinese county of Huili, leaving 728 dead and 1,547 injured. * September 24 – Dwight D. Eisenhower, President of the United States, suffers a coronary thrombosis while on vacation in Denver, Colorado. Vice President Richard Nixon, Nixon serves as Acting President while Eisenhower recovers. * September 24 – the body of Glycine Watch SA founder Eugène Meylan, age 64, found stoned to death * September 30 – Actor James Dean is killed when his automobile collides with another car at a highway junction, near Cholame, California.October
* October 2 – ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' debuts on the CBS TV network in the United States. * October 3 – ''The Mickey Mouse Club'' debuts on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC-TV network in the United States. * October 4 – The Reverend Sun Myung Moon is released from prison in Seoul, South Korea. * October 5 – Disneyland Hotel (California), Disneyland Hotel opens to the public in Anaheim, California. * October 11 – 70-mm film for projection is introduced, with the theatrical release of Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical film, ''Oklahoma! (1955 film), Oklahoma!''. * October 14 – The Organization of Central American States secretariat is inaugurated. * October 20 – Disc jockey Bill Randle of WERE (Cleveland) is the key presenter of a concert at Brooklyn High School (Ohio), featuring Pat Boone andNovember
* November 1 ** Official start date of the Vietnam War between the North Vietnam, Democratic Republic of Vietnam and Republic of Vietnam; the north is allied with the Viet Cong. ** A time bomb explodes in the cargo hold of United Airlines Flight 629, a Douglas DC-6B, over Longmont, Colorado, killing all 39 passengers and 5 crew members on board. * November 3 – The Rimutaka Tunnel opens on the New Zealand Railways Department, New Zealand Railways, at 5.46 mi (8.79 km), the longest in the Southern Hemisphere at this time. *December
* December 1 – In Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks refuses to obey bus driver James F. Blake's order that she give up her seat to make room for a white passenger, and is arrested, leading to the Montgomery bus boycott. * December 4 – The International Federation of Blood Donor Organizations is founded in Luxembourg. * December 5 ** The American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations merge, to become the AFL–CIO. ** The Montgomery Improvement Association is formed in Montgomery, Alabama, by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and other Black ministers to coordinate the Montgomery bus boycott by Black people. * December 9 – Adnan Menderes of Democrat Party (Turkey, historical), DP forms the new government of Turkey (22nd government). * December 10 – 1955 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' Liberal Party of Australia, Liberal/National Party of Australia, Country Coalition (Australia), Coalition Menzies Government (1949-66), Government is re-elected with a substantially increased majority, defeating the Australian Labor Party, Labor Party led by H. V. Evatt. This election comes in the immediate aftermath of the devastating Australian Labor Party split of 1955, split in the Labor Party, which leads to the formation of the Democratic Labor Party (historical), Democratic Labor Party. The DLP will preference against Labor, and keep the Coalition in office until 1972 Australian federal election, 1972. * December 14 ** The Tappan Zee Bridge (1955–2017), Tappan Zee Bridge over the Hudson River, in New York (state), New York State, opens to traffic. ** Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Finland, Hungary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Laos, Libya, Nepal, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and Sri Lanka join the United Nations simultaneously, after several years of moratorium on admitting new members that began during the Korean War. * December 20 – Cardiff is declared by the British Government as the capital of Wales. * December 22 – American cytogeneticist Joe Hin Tjio discovers the correct number of human chromosomes, forty-six. * December 31 ** General Motors becomes the first American corporation to make a profit of over 1 billion dollars in 1 year. ** Austria becomes independent, under terms of the May 15 Austrian State Treaty.World population
* World population: 2,755,823,000 ** Africa: 246,746,000 ** Asia: 1,541,947,000 ** Europe: 575,184,000 ** South America: 190,797,000 ** North America: 186,884,000 ** Oceania: 14,265,000Births
January
* January 1 ** Mario Andreacchio, Australian film director ** Bonnie Arnold, American film producer ** Mary Beard (classicist), Mary Beard, English classicist ** Akissi Kouamé, Ivorian army general (d. 2022) ** Simon Schaffer, English academic and historian of science and philosophy ** Mulatu Teshome, Ethiopian politician and 8th President of Ethiopia * January 4 – Mark Hollis (musician), Mark Hollis, English musician (d. 2019) * January 5 – Mamata Banerjee, Indian politician, Chief Minister of West Bengal * January 6 – Rowan Atkinson, English comic actor * January 7 – Belinda Meuldijk, Dutch actress * January 8 – Mike Reno, Canadian musician * January 9 ** Michiko Kakutani, American literary critic ** J. K. Simmons, American actor * January 10 ** Michael Schenker, German guitarist (Scorpions (band), Scorpions, UFO (band), UFO, Michael Schenker Group) ** Jimmy Vivino, American guitarist * January 12 – Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Canadian politician * January 13 ** Paul Kelly (Australian musician), Paul Kelly, Australian musician ** Jay McInerney, American writer * January 15 ** Andreas Gursky, German photographer ** Enrico Mentana, Italian journalist * January 16 ** Mary Karr, American poet ** J. S. G. Boggs, American artist * January 17 – Steve Earle, American musician * January 18 ** Kevin Costner, American actor, producer and director ** Frankie Knuckles, American disk jockey and record producer (d. 2014) ** Marilyn Mazur, Danish percussionist * January 19 ** Sir Simon Rattle, English orchestral conductor ** Paul Rodriguez (actor), Paul Rodriguez, Mexican American actor and comedian * January 20 – Wyatt Knight, American actor (d. 2011) * January 21 – Jeff Koons, American artist *February
* February 1 – Hans Werner Olm, German television and film comedian * February 2 – Leszek Engelking, Polish poet, writer and translator (d. 2022) * February 3 ** Kirsty Wark, Scottish television presenter * February 4 – Joseph D. Kernan, American military officer, Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence * February 6 ** Michael Pollan, American journalist ** Irinej Dobrijević, American-born Serbian Bishop of Australia and New Zealand * February 7 – Miguel Ferrer, American actor (d. 2017) * February 8 ** Janusz Cisek, Polish historian (d. 2020) ** Jim Neidhart, American professional wrestler (d. 2018) ** John Grisham, American novelist ** Ethan Phillips, American actor ** Xu Bing, Chinese artist * February 9 – Charles Shaughnessy, English actor * February 10 ** Chris Adams (wrestler), Chris Adams, English wrestler and judoka (d. 2001) ** Pablo Borges Delgado, Cuban artist ** Jim Cramer, American television personality ** Greg Norman, Australian golfer * February 12 ** David Owen Brooks, American convicted murderer (d. 2020) ** Bill Laswell, American bass guitarist * February 13 – Hank Risan, American scientist * February 14 ** Guillermo Francella, Argentine actor ** Mitsuhisa Taguchi, Japanese footballer (d. 2019) * February 15 ** Janice Dickinson, American model, photographer, author and talent agent ** Christopher McDonald, American actor * February 16 – Bradley Byrne, American business attorney and politician, Alabama * February 17 – Mo Yan, Chinese writer * February 18 – Cheetah Chrome, American musician *March
* March 1 ** Sir Timothy Laurence, English vice admiral and second husband of Anne, Princess Royal ** Denis Mukwege, Congolese gynecologist, Nobel Peace Prize laureate * March 2 – Shoko Asahara, Japanese cult leader (Aum Shinrikyo) (d. 2018) * March 3 – Kent Derricott, Canadian TV personality in Japan * March 4 – Dominique Pinon, French actor *April
* April 1 – Ockie Oosthuizen, South African rugby union player (d. 2019) * April 2 ** Sirindhorn, Princess Royal of Thailand ** Chellie Pingree, Democratic politician, Maine's 1st congressional district * April 3 – Mick Mars, American rock guitarist (Mötley Crüe) *May
* May 2 ** Willie Miller, Scottish footballer ** Donatella Versace, Italian designer ** Dave Winer, American software pioneer * May 4 ** Avram Grant, Israeli football manager ** Robert Ellis Orrall, American singer * May 6 – Tom Bergeron, American television host * May 7 – Peter Reckell, American actor * May 8 ** Betsy Baker, American actress ** Meles Zenawi, 10th Prime Minister of Ethiopia and 3rd President of Ethiopia (d. 2012) * May 9 ** Kevin Peter Hall, American actor (d. 1991) ** Anne Sofie von Otter, Swedish mezzo-soprano * May 10 ** Chris Berman, American sports broadcaster ** Mark David Chapman, American murderer of musician John Lennon * May 14 ** Big Van Vader, American professional wrestler and football player (d. 2018) ** Dave Hoover, American comic book artist and animator (d. 2011) ** Robert Tapert, American television producer * May 15 ** Mohamed Brahmi, Tunisian politician (assassinated 2013) ** Lee Horsley, American film, television and theater actor ** Hege Skjeie, Norwegian political scientist and feminist (d. 2018) * May 16 ** Olga Korbut, Soviet gymnast ** Olli Kortekangas, Finnish composer ** Jack Morris, American baseball player ** Richard Phillips (merchant mariner), Richard Phillips, American merchant mariner and captain of the ''MV Maersk Alabama'' ** Debra Winger, American actress * May 17 – Bill Paxton, American actor (d. 2017) * May 18 – Chow Yun-fat, Hong Kong actor * May 19 ** Mark Staff Brandl, American and Swiss artist and art historian ** James Gosling, Canadian software engineer ** Th. Emil Homerin, American theologian * May 20 ** Diego Abatantuono, Italian actor ** Steve George (keyboardist), Steve George, American keyboardist and singer ** Zbigniew Preisner, Polish film composer * May 21 – Sergei Shoigu, Russian politician, (Russian Defence Minister) * May 22 ** Chalmers "Spanky" Alford, American jazz guitarist (d. 2008) ** Iva Davies, Australian singer and musician; lead singer of Icehouse (band), Icehouse ** Dale Winton, English radio DJ and television presenter (d. 2018) * May 24 – Rosanne Cash, American entertainer * May 25 – Connie Sellecca, American actress * May 26 – Doris Dörrie, German actress and screenplay writer * May 27 – Richard Schiff, American actor and comedian * May 29 ** John Hinckley Jr., attempted assassin of Ronald Reagan ** Mike Porcaro, American bass guitarist (Toto (band), Toto) (d. 2015) * May 30 ** Brian Kobilka, American physiologist ** Paresh Rawal, Indian actor ** Colm Tóibín, Irish novelist * May 31 ** Tommy Emmanuel, Australian guitarist ** Susie Essman, American actress ** Lynne Truss, English writerJune
* June 1 **Chiyonofuji Mitsugu, Japanese sumo wrestler (58th Yokozuna grand champion) (d. 2016) **David Schultz (professional wrestler), David Schultz,"Dr. D" American professional wrestler * June 2 – Dana Carvey, American actor and comedian * June 3 – Daniel Filmus, Argentine politician, member of the Chamber of Deputies of Argentina * June 4 ** Precious (wrestling), Precious, Canadian professional wrestling valet ** Mary Testa, American film actress * June 5 – Fernando Borrego Linares, Cuban singer and songwriter (aka Polo Montañez) * June 6 ** Sandra Bernhard, American comedian, actress, author and singer ** Chris Nyman, American baseball player ** Sam Simon, American filmmaker (d. 2015) * June 7 ** Jo Gilbert, English film producer and casting director (d. 2018) ** Bob Beatty, American football coach ** Tim Richmond, American race car driver (d. 1989) * June 8 ** Duke Aiona, 10th Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii ** Tim Berners-Lee, English computer scientist and World Wide Web inventor ** Griffin Dunne, American actor and director * June 10 ** Floyd Bannister, American baseball player ** Andrew Stevens, American actor, producer and director * June 11 – Yuriy Sedykh, Ukrainian hammer thrower (d. 2021) * June 12- Jagadish Kumar, Indian Malayalam film actor * June 12 – William Langewiesche, American author * June 13 – John E. Jones III, American justice * June 14 ** Tito Rojas, Puerto Rican salsa singer and songwriter (d. 2020) ** Kim Lankford, American actress, businesswoman and horse wrangler ** Paul O'Grady (also known as "Lily Savage"), English talk show host and comedian * June 15 ** István Levente Garai, Hungarian physician and politician (d. 2018) ** Polly Draper, American actress, screenwriter, playwright, producer and director ** David A. Kennedy, son of Robert F. Kennedy (d. 1984) * June 16 – Laurie Metcalf, American actress * June 18 – Sandy Allen, American, world's tallest woman (d. 2008) * June 20 – Tor Nørretranders, Danish author * June 21 ** Aloysius Amwano, Nauruan politician ** Tim Bray, Canadian computer programmer ** Jean-Pierre Mader, French singer-songwriter ** Leigh McCloskey, American actor ** Michel Platini, French retired football player and President of UEFA * June 22 – Choi Kyoung-hwan, South Korean politician; Prime Minister of South Korea * June 23 ** Jean Tigana, Malian-French international footballer ** Glenn Danzig, American rock singer (Misfits (band), The Misfits, Samhain, Danzig (band), Danzig) * June 24 – Nobuhiro Kiyotaki, Japanese economist and professor * June 25 – Víctor Manuel Vucetich, Mexican footballer and manager * June 26 ** Gedde Watanabe, American actor and comedian ** Yoko Gushiken, Japanese former WBA light flyweight champion boxer * June 27 – Isabelle Adjani, French actress * June 30 – Egils Levits, President of LatviaJuly
* July 1 ** Sanma Akashiya, Japanese comedian and actor ** Nikolai Demidenko, Russian born British classical pianist ** Christian Estrosi, French sportsman and politician ** Li Keqiang, Premier of the People's Republic of China ** Lisa Scottoline, American novelist * July 2 ** Andrew Divoff, Venezuelan actor ** Stephen Walt, American political scientist ** Sylvie Le Noach, French swimmer ** Randy Burchell, Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender ** Chau Giang, Vietnamese-born American professional poker player ** Proceso Alcala, Filipino politician * July 3 ** Bruce Altman, American actor ** John Cramer (announcer), John Cramer, American game show announcer ** Matt Keough, American baseball player * July 4 ** Eero Heinäluoma, Finnish politician ** Víctor Reymundo Nájera, Mexican politician * July 5 ** Sebastian Barry, Irish playwright, novelist and poet ** Shannon Bell, Canadian performance philosopher ** Mia Couto, Mozambican writer ** Muhammad Aslam Khan Raisani, Pakistani politician ** Henry Lee Summer, American singer * July 7 ** Paul Bahoken, Cameroonian footballer ** Rolf Saxon, American actor ** Ludo Vika, Dominican actress * July 8 ** Vladislava Milosavljević, Serbian actress ** Mihaela Mitrache, Romanian actress * July 9 ** Lindsey Graham, American politician, lawyer, United States Army, U.S. Army soldier, United States Senate, U.S. Senator (Republican Party (United States), R-South Carolina, Sc.) and unsuccessful 2016 United States presidential election, 2016 presidential candidate ** Fred Norris, American radio personality ** Jimmy Smits, American actor * July 10 ** Andrea Bruce, Jamaican athlete ** Vinnie Curto, American professional boxer ** Ray Goff, American football player and coach ** Dan Newhouse, American politician * July 11 ** Balaji Sadasivan, Singaporean politician and neurosurgeon ** Søren Sætter-Lassen, Danish actor * July 12 ** Timothy Garton Ash, English modern historian ** Nina Gunke, Swedish actress ** Tadashi Miyazawa, Japanese voice actor * July 13 – Yoshitaka Tamba, Japanese actor * July 14 – Ramon Jimenez Jr., Filipino attorney (d. 2020) * July 15 ** Željko Burić, Croatian politician and doctor ** Didier Etumba, Congolese Army general ** Pooran Prakash, Indian politician * July 16 ** Zohar Argov, Israeli singer (d. 1987) ** Patrick Bernasconi, French business executive ** Ritva Elomaa, Finnish professional female bodybuilding champion, pop singer and politician ** Janet Huckabee, American politician ** Saw Swee Leong, Malaysian badminton player * July 17 ** Janina Buzūnaitė-Žukaitienė, Lithuanian painter, poet, creator of accessories and metal sculptures ** Fei Yu-ching, Taiwanese singer-songwriter ** Sylvie Léonard, French-Canadian actress ** Alvin Slaughter, American gospel singer-songwriter and worship leader * July 18 ** Bernd Fasching, Austrian painter and sculptor ** György Matolcsy, Hungarian politician and economist ** Sergey Zimov, Russian geophysicist and creator of Pleistocene Park * July 19 – Karen Cheryl, French singer, actress, radio and television presenter * July 20 – Edgar Zambrano, Venezuelan lawyer and politician * July 21 ** Adrienne King, American actress ** Dannel Malloy, American politician ** Howie Epstein, American musician and producer (d. 2003) ** Béla Tarr, Hungarian film director * July 22 ** Gbenga Bareehu Ashafa, Nigerian politician ** Willem Dafoe, American actor * July 25 – Iman (model), Iman, Somalian model * July 26 ** Michele Pillar, American Christian musician ** Asif Ali Zardari, 11th President of Pakistan * July 27 – Allan Border, Australian cricketer * July 31 – Jakie Quartz, French singerAugust
* August 1 – Paul Shrubb, English professional footballer, coach and scout (d. 2020) * August 2 ** John Battaglia, American convicted murderer (d. 2018) ** Caleb Carr, American writer * August 3 ** Corey Burton, American voice actor ** Roger Gifford, Lord Mayor of London 2013 * August 4 ** Gerrie Coetzee, South African boxer, 1983-1984 World Boxing Association, WBA heavyweight champion. ** Billy Bob Thornton, American actor, director and screenwriter * August 6 ** Gordon J. Brand, English golfer (d. 2020) ** Ron Davis (pitcher), Ron Davis, American baseball player ** Earl "Chinna" Smith, Earl Smith, Jamaican Reggae guitarist * August 7 ** Wayne Knight, American actor and comedian ** Vladimir Sorokin, Russian writer * August 8 – Diddú (Sigrún Hjálmtýsdóttir), Icelandic soprano and songwriter * August 9 – Doug Williams (quarterback), Doug Williams, American football quarterback * August 10 – Mel Tiangco, Filipina television anchor, journalist and humanitarian * August 12 ** Heintje Simons, Dutch singer and actor ** Gish Jen, American fiction writer * August 13 – Daryl (magician), Daryl, American magician (d. 2017) * August 17 – Richard Hilton, American businessman * August 19 ** Peter Gallagher, American actor ** Terry Harper (baseball), Terry Harper, American baseball player ** Apisai Ielemia, 10th Prime Minister of Tuvalu * August 20 – Agnes Chan, Hong Kong-born TV personality in Japan * August 22 ** Chiranjeevi, Indian actor ** Gordon Liu, Chinese actor * August 24 – Mike Huckabee, American politician, Governor and 2008 Presidential candidate * August 25 – John McGeoch, Scottish musician (d. 2004) * August 27 ** Laura Fygi, Dutch singer ** Diana Scarwid, American actress ** Sergey Khlebnikov, Soviet speed skater (d. 1999) * August 30 ** Mayumi Muroyama, Japanese manga artist ** Andy Pask, English bass player and composer (Landscape (band), Landscape) ** Helge Schneider, comedian, jazz musician and multi-instrumentalist, author, film and theatre director * August 31 – Edwin Moses, American athleteSeptember
* September 1 ** Billy Blanks, American martial artist; inventor of the Tae Bo exercise program ** Bruce Foxton, English musician * September 2 ** Robert C. Duncan (astrophysicist), Robert Duncan, American astrophysicist ** Claus Kleber, German television journalist ** Natalya Petrusyova, Soviet speed skater ** Michelle Yim, Hong Kong actress * September 4 ** David Broza, Israeli singer-songwriter and activist ** Teodor Frunzeti, Romanian general ** Hiroshi Izawa, Japanese actor * September 6 – Raymond Benson, American author * September 7 – Efim Zelmanov, Russian mathematician * September 9 ** Edward Hibbert, English-American actor and literary agent ** John Kricfalusi, Canadian cartoonist ** Ivan Smirnov (guitar player), Ivan Smirnov, Russian composer and guitar player (d. 2018) * September 12 – Peter Scolari, American actor and comedian * September 13 – Dan Ghica-Radu, Romanian general * September 14 – Daniella Levine Cava, American lawyer and politician * September 15 ** Željka Antunović, Croatian politician ** Brendan O'Carroll, Irish actor and comedian ** Bruce Reitherman, American filmmaker and voice actor ** Renzo Rosso, Italian clothing designer * September 16 – Robin Yount, American baseball player * September 17 ** Marina Lima, Brazilian singer and songwriter ** Charles Martinet, American voice-actor * September 18 – Bob Papenbrook, American voice actor (d. 2006) * September 19 – Richard Burmer, American composer, sound designer and musician (d. 2006) * September 21 ** Richard Hieb, American astronaut ** Israel Katz, Israeli politician * September 24 – Shinbo Nomura, Japanese manga artist * September 25 ** Zucchero Fornaciari, Italian singer-songwriter ** Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, German football player * September 27, Joice Erna, Indonesian Actress * September 28 – Stéphane Dion, Canadian politician * September 29 ** Joe Donnelly, American politician ** Gwen Ifill, American journalist (d. 2016) * September 30 ** Janet Arceo, Mexican actress, TV presenter, announcer, director and businesswoman (Doña Eduviges in ''El Chavo del Ocho'') ** Andy Bechtolsheim, German electrical engineer and Co-founder of Sun Microsystems.October
* October 1 – P. B. Abdul Razak, Indian politician (d. 2018) * October 2 – Philip Oakey, English synth-pop singer-songwriter (The Human League) * October 3 – Tommy Wiseau, American film director and actor, known for the 2003 "dark comedy" ''The Room'' * October 4 – Dane Sorensen, New Zealand rugby league player * October 5 ** Bart D. Ehrman, American religious studies scholar and writer, specialist in textual criticism ** Jean-Jacques Lafon, French singer-songwriter ** Caroline Loeb, French singer and actress * October 6 – Wang Huning, Chinese politician * October 7 – Yo-Yo Ma, French-born Chinese American cellist * October 8 ** Bill Elliott, American racing driver ** Darrell Hammond, Comedian (''Saturday Night Live'') * October 12 – Pat DiNizio, American singer-songwriter (The Smithereens) (d. 2017) * October 13 – Sergei Shepelev, Russian ice hockey player * October 15 ** James B. Aguayo-Martel, Mexican-born physician, surgeon, scientist and inventor ** Kulbir Bhaura, Indian-born British field hockey player ** Emily Yoffe, American journalist and advice columnist * October 17 – Tyrone Mitchell, American murderer (d. 1984) * October 18 ** Hiromi Go, Japanese singer ** Timmy Mallett, English television presenter * October 19 ** Lonnie Shelton, American basketball player (d. 2018) ** LaSalle Ishii, Japanese television personality ** Roland Dyens, French classical guitarist and composer (d. 2016) ** Dan Gutman, American writer * October 20 ** Tony Hanson, American basketball player (d. 2018) ** Thomas Newman, American composer * October 21 ** Yasukazu Hamada, Japanese politician ** Rich Mullins, American Christian musician (d.November
* November 1 – Joe Arroyo, Colombian salsa and tropical music singer (d. 2011) * November 3 ** Howard Michaels, American businessman (d. 2018) ** Teresa De Sio, Italian singer-songwriter ** Phil Simms, American football player ** Yukihiko Tsutsumi, Japanese film director * November 4 ** Rita Bhaduri, Indian actress (d. 2018) ** Alhaj Moulana Ghousavi Shah, Moulana Ghousavi Shah, Sufi teacher and author, Secretary General of The Conference of World Religions ** Matti Vanhanen, Prime Minister of Finland *December
* December 3 ** Melody Anderson, Canadian actress and social worker ** Steven Culp, American actor ** Warren Jeffs, American criminal ** Andrea Romano (voice director), Andrea Romano, American casting director, voice director, and voice actress * December 4 – Maurizio Bianchi, Italian musician * December 9 – Janusz Kupcewicz, Polish footballer (d. 2022) * December 10 – Ana Gabriel, Mexican singer and songwriter * December 12 – Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, Greek politician and businesswoman * December 13 – Manohar Parrikar, Indian politician (d. 2019) * December 14 – Hervé Guibert, French writer and photographer (d. 1991) * December 16 – Xander Berkeley, American actor * December 17 – Brad Davis (basketball), Brad Davis, American basketball player * December 21 – Jane Kaczmarek, American actress * December 23 ** Keith Comstock, American baseball player ** Carol Ann Duffy, Scottish poet ** Stefan Arngrim, Canadian actor * December 24 ** Mizuho Fukushima, Japanese politician ** Clarence Gilyard, American actor and college professor * December 27 – Barbara Olson, American television commentator (d. 2001) * December 28 – Liu Xiaobo, Chinese literary critic and human rights activist, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (d. 2017) * December 31 – Jim Tracy (baseball), Jim Tracy, American baseball player and managerDeaths
January
* January 1 – Shanti Swaroop Bhatnagar, Indian scientist (b. 1894) * January 2 – José Antonio Remón Cantera, 19th President of Panama (assassinated) (b. 1908) * January 6 – Yevgeny Tarle, Soviet historian (b. 1874) * January 11 – Rodolfo Graziani, Italian general (b. 1882) * January 15 ** Johannes Baader, German artist (b. 1875) ** Yves Tanguy, French painter (b. 1900) * January 21 – Archie Hahn, American athlete (b. 1880) *February
* February 3 - Vasily Blokhin, Soviet executioner (b. 1895) * February 6 – Constantin Argetoianu, 41st Prime Minister of Romania (b. 1871) * February 10 – Mokichi Okada, Japanese religious leader (b. 1882) * February 11 – Ona Munson, American actress (b. 1903) * February 12 ** Tom Moore (actor), Tom Moore, Irish-American film actor (b. 1883) ** S. Z. Sakall, Hungarian actor (b. 1883) * February 20 – Oswald Avery, American physician and medical researcher (b. 1877) * February 23 – Paul Claudel, French poet, dramatist, and diplomat (b. 1868) * February 27 – Trixie Friganza, American actress (b. 1870)March
* March 3 – Katharine Drexel, American Roman Catholic foundress and saint (b. 1858) * March 8 – William C. deMille, American screenwriter and director (b. 1878) * March 9 ** Miroslava Stern, Czechoslovakian-Mexican actress (b. 1926) ** Matthew Henson, American explorer (b. 1866) * March 11 – Sir Alexander Fleming, Scottish scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1881) * March 12 – Charlie Parker, American saxophonist (b. 1920) * March 16 – Nicolas de Staël, Russian painter (b. 1914) * March 19 – Mihály Károlyi, 1st President of Hungary and 20th Prime Minister of Hungary (b. 1875) * March 23 – Arthur Bernardes, 12th President of Brazil (b. 1875) * March 24 – John W. Davis, American politician, diplomat, and lawyer (b. 1873)April
*May
* May 2 – Alexander Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie, 10th Governor-General of Australia (b. 1872) * May 4 ** Louis Charles Breguet, French aircraft designer and builder and early aviation pioneer (b. 1880) ** George Enescu, Romanian composer (b. 1881) * May 10 ** Tommy Burns (Canadian boxer), Tommy Burns, Canadian boxer (b. 1881) ** John Radecki, Australian stained-glass artist (b. 1865) * May 11 – Gilbert Jessop, English cricketer (b. 1874) * May 14 – Charles Pelot Summerall, American general (b. 1867) * May 16 – James Agee, American writer (b. 1909) * May 17 – Owen Roberts, American jurist (b. 1875) * May 18 – Mary McLeod Bethune, American educator (b. 1875) * May 19 – Concha Espina, Spanish writer (b. 1869) * May 26 – Alberto Ascari, Italian race-car driver (accident) (b. 1918) * May 29 – Rudolf Klein-Rogge, German actor (b. 1885) * May 30 – Bill Vukovich, American race-car driver (accident) (b. 1918)June
* June 3 – Barbara Graham, American criminal (executed) (b. 1923) * June 10 – Margaret Abbott, American golfer (b. 1878) * June 11 – Walter Hampden, American actor (b. 1879) * June 12 – Redcliffe N. Salaman, British botanist (b. 1874) *June 13 - Walter Braemer, German Nazi war criminal (b. 1883) * June 17 – Carlyle Blackwell, American actor (b. 1884) * June 26 – Engelbert Zaschka, German helicopter pioneer (b. 1895) * June 29 – Max Pechstein, German painter (b. 1881)July
* July 9 – Adolfo de la Huerta, 38th President of Mexico (b. 1881) * July 13 ** Ruth Ellis, British-born murderer, last woman to be executed in the United Kingdom (b. 1926) ** Stanley Price, American film and television actor (b. 1892) * July 20 – Calouste Gulbenkian, Armenian businessman and philanthropist (b. 1869) * July 23 – Cordell Hull, United States Secretary of State, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1871) * July 25 – Isaak Dunayevsky, Soviet film composer and conductor (b. 1900) * July 31 – Robert Francis (actor), Robert Francis, American actor (b. 1930)August
* August 1 – William Hamilton (athlete), William Hamilton, American Olympic athlete (b. 1883) * August 2 ** Rupprecht, Crown Prince of Bavaria, Bavarian military leader and last Bavarian crown prince (b. 1869) ** Wallace Stevens, American poet (b. 1879) * August 5 – Carmen Miranda, Portuguese-born Brazilian singer and actress (b. 1909) * August 11 – Frank Seiberling, American inventor, co-founder of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (b. 1859) * August 12 ** Thomas Mann, German novelist, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1875) ** James B. Sumner, American chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1887) * August 13 – Florence Easton, English opera soprano (b. 1882) * August 17 – Fernand Léger, French painter and sculptor (b. 1881) * August 28 – Emmett Till, American murder victim (b.September
* September 20 – Robert Riskin, American screenwriter (b. 1897) * September 23 – Martha Norelius, American Olympic swimmer (b. 1908) * September 30 ** Michael Chekhov, Russian actor, theatre director, and writer (b. 1891) ** James Dean, American actor (b. 1931)October
* October 4 – Alexander Papagos, Greek Field Marshal (b. 1883) * October 7 – Rodolphe Seeldrayers, German journalist and administrator, 4th President of FIFA (b. 1876) * October 9 ** Theodor Innitzer, Cardinal Archbishop of Vienna (b. 1875) ** Alice Joyce, American actress (b. 1890) * October 13 ** Manuel Ávila Camacho, 45th President of Mexico (b. 1897) ** Alexandrina Maria da Costa, Portuguese Roman Catholic mystic, victim soul and blessed (b. 1904) * October 17 – Dimitrios Maximos, Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1873) * October 18 – José Ortega y Gasset, Spanish philosopher (b. 1883) * October 19 – John Hodiak, American actor (b. 1914) * October 25 – Sadako Sasaki, Japanese leukemia, atomic bomb sickness victim (b. 1943) * October 27 – Juan de Dios Martínez, 23rd President of Ecuador (b. 1875)November
* November 1 – Dale Carnegie, American writer and lecturer (b. 1888) * November 4 ** David Julius, American physiologist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine laureate (b.1903) ** Cy Young, American baseball player (Cleveland Spiders) and member of the MLB Hall of Fame (b. 1867) *December
* December 5 – Jirō Minami, Japanese general and Governor-General of Korea (1936-1942) (b. 1874) * December 6 – Honus Wagner, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates) and a member of the MLB Hall of Fame (b. 1874) * December 8 – Hermann Weyl, German mathematician, theoretical physicist and philosopher (b. 1885) * December 13 – António Egas Moniz, Portuguese neurologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1874) * December 15 – Otto Braun, German politician, former Minister President of the Free State of Prussia (b. 1872) * December 18 – Anna Murray Vail, American botanist (b. 1863) * December 21 – Garegin Nzhdeh, Armenian statesman (b. 1886) * December 24 – Nana Bryant, American actress (b. 1888)Nobel Prizes
* Nobel Prize in Physics, Physics – Willis Eugene Lamb and Polykarp Kusch * Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemistry – Vincent du Vigneaud * Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Physiology or Medicine – Axel Hugo Theodor Theorell * Nobel Prize in Literature, Literature – Halldór Laxness, Halldór Kiljan Laxness * Nobel Peace Prize, Peace – not awardedReferences
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