December 1959
Encyclopedia
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The following events occurred in December 1959.
Emily Susie Winn was born.
January 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in January 1959.-January 1, 1959 :...
– February
February 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in February 1959.-February 1, 1959 :...
– March
March 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in March, 1959.-March 1, 1959 :...
– April
April 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in April 1959.-April 1, 1959 :...
– May
May 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in May, 1959.-May 1, 1959 :*A patent application January – February – March – April – May –...
– June
June 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in June 1959.-June 1, 1959 :...
– July
July 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in July 1959.-July 1, 1959 :...
– August
August 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in August 1959.-August 1, 1959 :...
– September
September 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in September 1959.-September 1, 1959 :...
– October
October 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in October 1959.-October 1, 1959 :...
– November
November 1959
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in November 1959.-November 1, 1959 :...
– December
The following events occurred in December 1959.
December 1, 1959 (Tuesday)
- The Antarctic Treaty was signed by all 12 nations that had stations in Antarctica. It came into force on June 23, 1961. Article I provides that "Antarctica shall be used for peaceful purposes only."
- Humble Oil Company was acquired by Standard Oil of New Jersey, later ExxonExxonExxon is a chain of gas stations as well as a brand of motor fuel and related products by ExxonMobil. From 1972 to 1999, Exxon was the corporate name of the company previously known as Standard Oil Company of New Jersey or Jersey Standard....
. - Allegheny AirlinesAllegheny AirlinesAllegheny Airlines was an airline operating out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, from 1952 to 1979. It was a forerunner of today’s US Airways. Its headquarters were located on the grounds of Washington National Airport in Arlington County, Virginia....
Flight 371, flying from Philadelphia to Cleveland, crashed, killing 24 of the 25 persons on board. - Born: Billy ChildishBilly ChildishBilly Childish is an English artist, painter, author, poet, photographer, film maker, singer and guitarist...
, English artist; as Steven Hamper in Chatham, Kent; Wally LewisWally LewisWalter James "Wally" Lewis AM is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and coach. Currently a commentator of the sport, he is widely regarded as the greatest rugby league player of all time...
, Australian rugby star and sportscaster, in Hawthorne, QueenslandHawthorne, QueenslandHawthorne is an inner riverside suburb of Brisbane, Australia. It is east of the Brisbane central business district.Hawthorne started as a farming district in the 1860s, and was gradually subdivided as Brisbane grew...
December 2, 1959 (Wednesday)
- The collapse of a dam at MalpassetMalpassetMalpasset was an arch dam on the Reyran River, constructed approximately 7 km north of Fréjus on the Côte d'Azur, southern France, in the Var département. It collapsed on December 2, 1959, killing 421 people in the resulting flood. Various sources indicate death numbers of 361, 400, 423, 429 or 510...
released the waters of the Reyran River and killed 433 people in the French city of FréjusFréjusFréjus is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.It neighbours Saint-Raphaël, effectively forming one town...
. At , cubic metres of water were released twelve kilometers from Frejus. - Kurt FranzKurt FranzKurt Hubert Franz was an SS officer and one of the commanders of the Treblinka extermination camp. Franz was one of the major perpetrators of genocide during the Holocaust.-Early life:...
, who had been a deputy commander of the Treblinka concentration camp, was arrested in Düsseldorf after 14 years working as a cook. He was released from prison in 1993. - Behind the Great Wall, presented by Walter ReadeWalter ReadeWalter Reade Sr was the man behind a chain of theatres which grew from a single theatre in Asbury Park, New Jersey to a chain of forty theatres and drive-ins in New Jersey, New York and neighboring states that lasted into the mid seventies. Known as the “Showman of The Shore,” his name was...
, Jr. in "AromaRama", made its debut at the DeMille Theater in New York. The Italian film was edited by Reade to include various scents circulated by the theater air conditioning system. The release preceded, by three weeks, the debut of Scent of MysteryScent of MysteryScent of Mystery is a 1960 mystery film that featured the one and only use of Smell-O-Vision, a system that timed odors to points in the film's plot. It was the first film in which aromas were integral to the story, providing important details to the audience...
, in Smell-O-VisionSmell-o-visionSmell-O-Vision was a system that released odor during the projection of a film so that the viewer could "smell" what was happening in the movie. The technique was created by Hans Laube and made its only appearance in the 1960 film Scent of Mystery, produced by Mike Todd, Jr., son of film producer...
.
December 3, 1959 (Thursday)
- U.S. President Dwight D. EisenhowerDwight D. EisenhowerDwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
departed the United States for a "mission of peace and goodwill" that would last nearly three weeks, take him 22,000 miles and bring him to eleven nations on three continents. The American president visited Italy, Turkey, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, India, Greece, Tunisia, France, Spain and Morocco.
December 4, 1959 (Friday)
- "Sam"Little Joe 2The Little Joe 2 was a test of the Mercury space capsule. It was the first American animal spaceflight, carrying the Rhesus monkey Sam close to the edge of space. He was sent to test the space equipment and the adverse effects of space on humans.The flight was launched December 4, 1959, at 11:15...
, a rhesus monkey, was launched into space from Wallops IslandWallops IslandWallops Island is a island off the east coast of Virginia, part of the barrier islands that stretch along the eastern seaboard of the United States of America.It is located in Accomack County, Virginia...
, VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, at on a suborbital flight to test an emergency escape mechanism. At 19 miles altitude, the capsule was jettisoned and climbed 34 miles, then returned to Earth. The capsule was recovered by the USS BorieUSS Borie (DD-704)The USS Borie , an , was the 2nd ship of the United States Navy to be named for Adolph E. Borie, Secretary of the Navy under President Ulysses S. Grant.-Construction:...
. - Died: Hubert MarischkaHubert MarischkaHubert Marischka , brother of Ernst Marischka, was an Austrian operetta tenor, actor, film director and screenwriter.- Career :...
, 77, Austrian director
Emily Susie Winn was born.
December 5, 1959 (Saturday)
- The Syracuse University Orangemen defeated the UCLA BruinsUCLA Bruins FootballThe UCLA Bruins football program represents the University of California, Los Angeles in college football as members of the Pacific-12 Conference at the NCAA Division I FBS level. The Bruins have enjoyed several periods of success in their history, having been ranked in the top ten of the AP Poll...
36–8 to finish as college football's only unbeaten and untied (10–0–0) team. The following Monday, Syracuse became the national champion, finishing No. 1 in both the AP and UPI polls.
December 6, 1959 (Sunday)
- The Stadio San PaoloStadio San PaoloStadio San Paolo is a multi-purpose stadium in the western suburb of Fuorigrotta in Naples, Italy, and is the third largest football stadium in Italy after the San Siro and Stadio Olimpico. For the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, it hosted the football preliminaries. It is currently used mostly for...
, with a capacity for 85,012 fans, opened in FuorigrottaFuorigrottaFuorigrotta is a western suburb of Naples, southern Italy.-Geography:It lies beyond the Posillipo hill and has been joined to the main body of Naples by two traffic tunnels through that hill since the early 20th century....
, Italy, as the home stadium for the NapoliS.S.C. NapoliSocietà Sportiva Calcio Napoli, commonly referred to as Napoli, is a professional Italian football club based in Naples and founded in 1926. The club has spent most of its history in Serie A, where it currently plays its 2011–12 season....
soccer football club. The "Azzurri" beat visiting Juventus, 2–1. - CantonCanton, OhioCanton is the county seat of Stark County in northeastern Ohio, approximately south of Akron and south of Cleveland.The City of Caton is the largest incorporated area within the Canton-Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, OhioOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, began its quest to host a Pro Football Hall of FamePro Football Hall of FameThe Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
, with an editorial in the Canton Repository. - Born: Satoru IwataSatoru Iwatais the fourth president of Nintendo, succeeding the long-standing previous president of the company, Hiroshi Yamauchi in 2002. He was responsible in great part for defining Nintendo's strategy both before and during the release of its Nintendo GameCube video game console in 2001, a vision which...
, Japanese CEO of Nintendo, in Sapporo
December 7, 1959 (Monday)
- Olongapo, a U.S. Navy base at Subic BaySubic BaySubic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...
, was turned over to Philippine control, along with its infrastructure. Its 60,000 Filipino residents became citizens of the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, and the area became the municipality of Olongapo CityOlongapo CityThe City of Olongapo is a highly urbanized city located in the province of Zambales, Philippines. According to the latest census, it has a population of 227,270 people in 50,300 households.-History:...
.
December 8, 1959 (Tuesday)
- Nikita KhrushchevNikita KhrushchevNikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
sent a secret memo to the Soviet Politburo, outlining his proposal for a change in Soviet defense strategy, with an emphasis on building the nation's nuclear arsenal as a deterrent against invasion. The Politburo approved the proposal on December 14, followed by the CPSU Central Committee on December 26, and the announcement was made public on January 14. - Louis G. Cowan was fired from his job as President of the CBSCBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
Television Network as a result of the quiz show scandalsQuiz show scandalsThe American quiz show scandals of the 1950s were a series of revelations that contestants of several popular television quiz shows were secretly given assistance by the show's producers to arrange the outcome of a supposedly fair competition....
of 1959. Cowan had become President after the success of a show that he had created, The $64,000 Question. - A ColombiaColombiaColombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
n airliner with 45 persons on board disappeared while bringing vacationers home from the San Andrés island resort.
December 9, 1959 (Wednesday)
- U.S. President Dwight D. EisenhowerDwight D. EisenhowerDwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
continued his foreign trip, being greeted by more than a million people in New DelhiNew DelhiNew Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
before meeting the King of Afghanistan in KabulKabulKabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
. No American President visited Afghanistan again until 2006. - The Norwegian freighter Oslo Motorship Buffalo was turned over by high winds, on the fifth day of a storm that claimed more than 100 lives across Europe. All 20 persons on board were killed.
December 10, 1959 (Thursday)
- The People's Republic of China began a campaign urging Chinese people worldwide to "come back to the arms of the Motherland", and sent four ships to foreign ports for that purpose. Approximately 100,000 people took advantage of the offer.
- The United States withdrew its last military personnel from IcelandIcelandIceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, where it had 5,200 people at KeflavikKeflavíkKeflavík is a town in the Reykjanes region in southwest Iceland. In 2009 its population was of 8,169.In 1995 it merged with Njarðvík and Hafnir to form a municipality called Reykjanesbær with a population of 13,971 .- History :...
. - The "Old Location Massacre" took place in WindhoekWindhoekWindhoek is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level. The 2001 census determined Windhoek's population was 233,529...
, the capital of the colony of South West AfricaSouth West AfricaSouth-West Africa was the name that was used for the modern day Republic of Namibia during the earlier eras when the territory was controlled by the German Empire and later by South Africa....
(now NamibiaNamibiaNamibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
). Police killed eleven black Africans who were protesting their forced relocation to the new "township" of KatuturaKatuturaKatutura is a township of Windhoek, Khomas Region, Namibia. Katutura was created in 1961 following the forced removal of Windhoek's black population from the Old Location, which afterwards was developed into the suburb Hochland Park. Sam Nujoma Stadium, built in 2005, is located within Katutura...
. - In college basketballCollege basketballCollege basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
, Bowling Green State hit only 35.4% of its shots in a 74–68 loss to DePaulDepaulDepaul, de Paul or DePaul may refer to:* DePaul University, is the largest Catholic university in North America located within and around Chicago, IL* Vincent de Paul* DePaul Catholic High School...
. Two days later, Bowling Green lost to Bradley, 99–72. Falcons' player Billy Reed later testified that he and other players had been point shavingPoint shavingIn organized sports, point shaving is a type of match fixing where the perpetrators try to prevent a team from covering a published point spread. Unlike other forms of match fixing, sports betting invariably motivates point shaving. A point shaving scheme generally involves a sports gambler and one...
after being paid by Jack MolinasJack MolinasJacob "Jack" L. Molinas was an American professional basketball player and one of the key figures in the point shaving scandal that almost destroyed NCAA basketball...
.
December 11, 1959 (Friday)
- The city of Albert Lea, MinnesotaAlbert Lea, MinnesotaAlbert Lea is a city in and the county seat of Freeborn County in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 18,016 at the 2010 census....
, was placed under martial lawMartial lawMartial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
by order of GovernorGovernor of MinnesotaThe Governor of Minnesota is the chief executive of the U.S. state of Minnesota, leading the state's executive branch. Forty different people have been governors of the state, though historically there were also three governors of Minnesota Territory. Alexander Ramsey, the first territorial...
Orville FreemanOrville FreemanOrville Lothrop Freeman was an American Democratic politician who served as the 29th Governor of Minnesota from January 5, 1955 to January 2, 1961, and as the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture from 1961 to 1969 under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson...
, as 80 National Guardsmen occupied the town to intervene in a strike at the Wilson Packing Company. A federal court ruled twelve days later that Governor Freeman had overstepped his authority, holding that "military rule cannot be imposed upon a community simply because it may seem to be more expedient than to enforce the law by using the National Guard to aid the local civil authorities". - U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director Allen Dulles received a top secret memo from J.C. King, Director of the agency's Western Hemisphere Division, recommending that "thorough consideration be given the elimination of Fidel CastroFidel CastroFidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
". The first of many CIA-sponsored assassination attempts, none of them successful, took place the next July.
December 12, 1959 (Saturday)
- The first elections in NigeriaNigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
took place in advance of the West African nation's independence from Britain. Nigeria became independent on October 1, 1960. - ASECNAASECNAThe Agency for Aerial Navigation Safety in Africa and Madagascar is an air traffic control agency based in Dakar, Senegal...
, which regulates air traffic controlAir traffic controlAir traffic control is a service provided by ground-based controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and in the air. The primary purpose of ATC systems worldwide is to separate aircraft to prevent collisions, to organize and expedite the flow of traffic, and to provide information and other...
in Africa, was created by a treaty signed in Saint-Louis, SenegalSaint-Louis, SenegalSaint-Louis, or Ndar as it is called in Wolof, is the capital of Senegal's Saint-Louis Region. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar, it has a population officially estimated at 176,000 in 2005. Saint-Louis...
. The acronym stands for Agence pour la SECurité de la NAvigation aérienne en Afrique et à Madagascar. - UNCOPUOS, the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer SpaceUnited Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer SpaceThe United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space was established in 1958 as an ad hoc committee...
, was established. - The test launch of an unmanned TitanTitan (rocket family)Titan was a family of U.S. expendable rockets used between 1959 and 2005. A total of 368 rockets of this family were launched, including all the Project Gemini manned flights of the mid-1960s...
rocket from Cape CanaveralCape CanaveralCape Canaveral, from the Spanish Cabo Cañaveral, is a headland in Brevard County, Florida, United States, near the center of the state's Atlantic coast. Known as Cape Kennedy from 1963 to 1973, it lies east of Merritt Island, separated from it by the Banana River.It is part of a region known as the...
failed four seconds after ignition, with the rocket collapsing on the launch pad and exploding. Nobody was injured, but the film clip of the launch remains a feature in documentaries about the American space program. - ParaguayParaguayParaguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
an forces drove off an attempted invasion by rebels, who crossed over from Argentina to attack at Pilar and Encarnacion.
December 13, 1959 (Sunday)
- The Archbishop Makarios IIIMakarios IIIMakarios III , born Andreas Christodolou Mouskos , was the archbishop and primate of the autocephalous Cypriot Orthodox Church and the first President of the Republic of Cyprus ....
was elected the first President of Cyprus, with 67 percent of the votes of the Greek Cypriot community. - The Wizard of OzThe Wizard of Oz (1939 film)The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
, began its annual run on CBS Television. The film had been shown once before on TV (November 3, 1956). - Two apartment houses in a suburb of DortmundDortmundDortmund is a city in Germany. It is located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Its population of 585,045 makes it the 7th largest city in Germany and the 34th largest in the European Union....
, West GermanyWest GermanyWest Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
were levelled by an explosion at . Of 34 people in the Aplerbeck buildings, 26 were killed. - Born: Johnny WhitakerJohnny WhitakerJohnny Whitaker is an American actor and singer notable for several performances for film and television during his childhood...
, American actor ("Jody" in Family AffairFamily AffairFamily Affair is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966 to September 9, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do civil engineer and bachelor Bill Davis as he attempted to raise his brother's orphaned children in his luxury New York City apartment. Davis' traditional...
), in Van Nuys, California
December 14, 1959 (Monday)
- Test pilot Joe JordanJoe JordanJoseph or Joe Jordan may refer to:* Joe Jordan , Scottish football coach and former player* Joseph Louis Jordan, Canadian politician* Joe Jordan , ragtime and jazz musician...
became the first human being to reach an altitude of more than 100,000 feet, flying an F-104 StarfighterF-104 StarfighterThe Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is a single-engine, high-performance, supersonic interceptor aircraft originally developed for the United States Air Force by Lockheed. One of the Century Series of aircraft, it served with the USAF from 1958 until 1969, and continued with Air National Guard units...
to an altitude of 103,395 feet. - The Heritage RangeHeritage RangeThe Heritage Range is a major mountain range, long and wide, situated southward of Minnesota Glacier and forming the southern half of the Ellsworth Mountains in Antarctica...
, southern portion of the Ellsworth MountainsEllsworth MountainsThe Ellsworth Mountains are the highest mountain ranges in Antarctica, forming a long and wide chain of mountains in a north to south configuration on the western margin of the Ronne Ice Shelf. They are bisected by Minnesota Glacier to form the northern Sentinel Range and the southern Heritage...
in Antarctica, was seen for the first time, on a reconnaissance flight originating from Byrd StationByrd StationByrd Station refers to a research station established by the United States during the International Geophysical Year by the U.S. Navy during Operation Deep Freeze II in West Antarctica at 80°, 120°W...
. - The Strategic Rocket ForcesStrategic Rocket ForcesThe Strategic Missile Troops or Strategic Rocket Forces of the Russian Federation or RVSN RF , transliteration: Raketnye voyska strategicheskogo naznacheniya Rossiyskoy Federatsii, literally Missile Troops of Strategic Designation of the Russian Federation) are a military branch of the Russian...
was created in the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
as a separate branch of the military, with responsibility over all Soviet ballistic missiles. The SRF is now administered by the Russian Federation. - Gus HallGus HallGus Hall, born Arvo Kustaa Hallberg , was a leader and Chairman of the Communist Party USA and its four-time U.S. presidential candidate. As a labor leader, Hall was closely associated with the so-called "Little Steel" Strike of 1937, an effort to unionize the nation's smaller, regional steel...
was elected the new General Secretary of the Communist Party of the United States, at the CPUSA's 17th National Convention, held in Harlem. Hall led the CPUSA until his death in 2000.
December 15, 1959 (Tuesday)
- John L. LewisJohn L. LewisJohn Llewellyn Lewis was an American leader of organized labor who served as president of the United Mine Workers of America from 1920 to 1960...
announced that he would retire as President of the United Mine Workers of America, after 40 years. - Major Joseph W. Rogers became the first person to travel faster than 1,500 miles per hour, and almost reached 2,500 kilometers per hour, breaking the world speed record at 1525.96 mph (2,455.8 km/h), in an F-106 Delta DartF-106 Delta DartThe Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft for the United States Air Force from the 1960s through the 1980s. Designed as the so-called "Ultimate Interceptor", it has proven to be the last dedicated interceptor in USAF service to date...
jet fighter.
December 16, 1959 (Wednesday)
- The improvisational comedy troupe Second CityThe Second CityThe Second City is a improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
was founded at 1842 N. Wells Street in ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Its cast has included such stars as Alan ArkinAlan ArkinAlan Wolf Arkin is an American actor, director, musician and singer. He is known for starring in such films as Wait Until Dark, The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Catch-22, The In-Laws, Edward Scissorhands, Glengarry Glen Ross, Marley & Me, and...
, Bill MurrayBill MurrayWilliam James "Bill" Murray is an American actor and comedian. He first gained national exposure on Saturday Night Live in which he earned an Emmy Award and later went on to star in a number of critically and commercially successful comedic films, including Caddyshack , Ghostbusters , and...
, Mike MyersMike Myers (actor)Michael John "Mike" Myers is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and film producer of British parentage...
, Chris FarleyChris FarleyChristopher Crosby "Chris" Farley was an American comedian and actor. Farley was a member of Chicago's Second City Theatre and cast member of the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live from 1990 to 1995....
, Julia Louis-DreyfusJulia Louis-DreyfusJulia Scarlett Elizabeth Louis-Dreyfus is an American actress and comedienne, widely known for her sitcom roles in Seinfeld and The New Adventures of Old Christine....
and John CandyJohn CandyJohn Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle... - Also in Chicago, Prohibition-era gangster Roger TouhyRoger TouhyRoger Touhy was an Irish-American mob boss and prohibition-era bootlegger from Chicago, Illinois. He is best remembered for having been framed for the 1933 faked kidnapping of gangster John "Jake the Barber" Factor, a brother of cosmetics manufacturer Max Factor, Sr...
was killed outside of his home at 125 North Lotus Avenue. He had been released from prison on November 24 after serving nearly twenty-six years. - The Supreme Court of JapanSupreme Court of JapanThe Supreme Court of Japan , located in Chiyoda, Tokyo is the highest court in Japan. It has ultimate judicial authority to interpret the Japanese constitution and decide questions of national law...
reversed lower court ruling in the Sunakawa case, and held that the presence of United States forces in Japan did not violate that nation's ConstitutionConstitution of JapanThe is the fundamental law of Japan. It was enacted on 3 May, 1947 as a new constitution for postwar Japan.-Outline:The constitution provides for a parliamentary system of government and guarantees certain fundamental rights... - China AirlinesChina AirlinesChina Airlines is both the flag carrier and the largest airline of Republic of China . Although not directly state-owned, the airline is owned by China Airlines Group, which is owned by the China Aviation Development Foundation...
, the TaiwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
ese national carrier, was founded.
December 17, 1959 (Thursday)
- On the BeachOn the Beach (1959 film)On the Beach is a post-apocalyptic drama film based on Nevil Shute's 1957 novel of the same name. The film features Gregory Peck , Ava Gardner , Fred Astaire and Anthony Perkins...
, the Stanley KramerStanley KramerStanley Earl Kramer was an American film director and producer. Kramer was responsible for some of Hollywood's most famous "message" movies...
film adaptation of Nevil ShuteNevil ShuteNevil Shute Norway was a popular British-Australian novelist and a successful aeronautical engineer. He used his full name in his engineering career, and 'Nevil Shute' as his pen name, in order to protect his engineering career from any potential negative publicity in connection with his novels.-...
's novel about World War III, premiered in 18 cities around the world, including New York, London and Moscow. - Bruno SammartinoBruno SammartinoBruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino is an Italian-American former professional wrestler, best known for being the longest-running champion of the World Wide Wrestling Federation , holding the title across two reigns for over 11 years in total, as well as the longest single WWE Championship reign...
, who reigned as World Wrestling Federation championWWE ChampionshipThe WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
from 1963 to 1971, and again from 1973 to 1977, made his professional wrestlingProfessional wrestlingProfessional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
debut, pinning Dmitri Grabowski in 19 seconds in a match in Pittsburgh. - Born: Gregg ArakiGregg ArakiGregg Araki is an American independent filmmaker. He is involved in New Queer Cinema.-Early life:Araki was born in Los Angeles but grew up in Santa Barbara, California...
, indie film director, in Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
December 18, 1959 (Friday)
- Abd al-Karim Qasim, IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
's leader, declared that the Khūzestān ProvinceKhuzestan ProvinceKhuzestan Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq's Basra Province and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahwaz and covers an area of 63,238 km²...
of IranIranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
"was part of Iraqi territory". Tensions over the disputed territory finally triggered the Iran-Iraq WarIran-Iraq WarThe Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century...
, which lasted from 1980 to 1988. - Project SCOREProject SCOREProject SCORE was the world’s first communications satellite. Launched aboard an Atlas rocket on December 18, 1958, SCORE provided a first test of a communications relay system in space, as well as the first successful use of the Atlas as a launch vehicle...
launched the first communications satellite from Cape Canaveral. Newsmen did not learn until two hours after the missile launch that it was putting a payload in orbit. A recording of President Eisenhower saying "Peace on Earth, good will toward men," was relayed and returned from the satellite. - DESYDESYThe DESY is the biggest German research center for particle physics, with sites in Hamburg and Zeuthen....
, Germany's particle physics research center (Deutsches Elektronen SYnchroton), was founded in HamburgHamburg-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. - Filming began for the infamous "shower scene" from PsychoPsycho (1960 film)Psycho is a 1960 American suspense/psychological horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Janet Leigh and Anthony Perkins. The film is based on the screenplay by Joseph Stefano, who adapted it from the 1959 novel of the same name by Robert Bloch...
and continued for five days.
December 19, 1959 (Saturday)
- The nuclear submarine USS ScorpionUSS Scorpion (SSN-589)USS Scorpion was a Skipjack-class nuclear submarine of the United States Navy, and the sixth ship of the U.S. Navy to carry that name. Scorpion was declared lost on 5 June 1968 with 99 crew members dying in the incident. The USS Scorpion is one of two nuclear submarines the U.S...
was launched from Groton. Elizabeth Morrison, whose father had died in the 1944 loss, with all hands, of the previous submarine USS ScorpionUSS Scorpion (SS-278)USS Scorpion — a Gato-class submarine — was the fifth ship of the United States Navy to be named for the scorpion, an arachnid having an elongated body and a narrow segmented tail bearing a venomous sting at the tip....
, christened the sub. The new USS Scorpion was lost with all hands on May 22, 1968. - Born: Waise LeeWaise LeeWaise Lee Chi-hung is a Hong Kong film and television actor best known for playing the roles of villains and antagonists in various films.-Biography:...
, Chinese action film star, in Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour... - Died: Walter Williams, claimed to have been the last surviving veteran of the American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, died in Houston, and was eulogized nationwide. However, not everyone believed that Williams was 117 or that he had served in the Confederate army. In September, researcher Lowell K. BridwellLowell K. BridwellLowell K. Bridwell was an American journalist and official with the Federal Highway Administration.-Biography:He was born on June 14, 1924 in Westerville, Ohio. His father worked for the Anti-Saloon League...
concluded that there was no evidence to prove Williams's claimed service or his 1842 birthdate. In 1991, researcher William Marvel, writing for the magazine Blue and Gray, concluded that Williams had been born in 1854 and only ten years old when the war ended.
December 20, 1959 (Sunday)
- Nine people were killed and 21 injured when a cattle truck struck a GreyhoundGreyhoundThe Greyhound is a breed of sighthound that has been primarily bred for coursing game and racing, and the breed has also recently seen a resurgence in its popularity as a pedigree show dog and family pet. It is a gentle and intelligent breed...
Scenicruiser bus near Tucson, ArizonaTucson, ArizonaTucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
. The force of the impact was severe enough that calves were hurled into the bus.
December 21, 1959 (Monday)
- The royal wedding in Iran saw the ShahPahlavi dynastyThe Pahlavi dynasty consisted of two Iranian/Persian monarchs, father and son Reza Shah Pahlavi and Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi The Pahlavi dynasty consisted of two Iranian/Persian monarchs, father and son Reza Shah Pahlavi (reg. 1925–1941) and Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi The Pahlavi dynasty ...
, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, go through a Muslim ceremony with 21 year old student Farah Diba. Farah provided her husband with a male heir in 1960, and fled with him when the monarchy was abolished in 1979. - The city of Grover Beach, CaliforniaGrover Beach, CaliforniaGrover Beach is a city in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. The population was 13,156 at the 2010 census, up from 13,067 at the 2000 census. This city was originally called, "Grover City". The name was changed by popular vote in 1992 to emphasize the seaside...
, was incorporated. - Born: Florence Griffith Joyner, American track star, in Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
(d. 1998)
December 22, 1959 (Tuesday)
- Chuck BerryChuck BerryCharles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...
was arrested in St. Louis shortly after midnight, after completing a concert at his Club Bandstand nightclub, and charged with violating the Mann ActMann ActThe White-Slave Traffic Act, better known as the Mann Act, is a United States law, passed June 25, 1910 . It is named after Congressman James Robert Mann, and in its original form prohibited white slavery and the interstate transport of females for “immoral purposes”...
. Berry was convicted and served in jail until 1961 - On the last day of his overseas goodwill tour, U.S. President Dwight D. EisenhowerDwight D. EisenhowerDwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
, in conjunction with King Mohammed V of Morocco, announced that U.S. forces would be issued a statement that all American forces would be withdrawn from the North African nation by the end of 1963. At the time, there were 10,000 American servicemen in Morocco, serving at the Port Lyautey Naval Base, and U.S. Air Force bases at Ben GuerirBen Guerir Air BaseBen Guerir Air Base is a former United States Air Force base located in Morocco, later operated by the Royal Moroccan Air Force, which served as a Transatlantic Abort Landing site for the Space Shuttle...
, Boulhaut, SaléSaléSalé is a city in north-western Morocco, on the right bank of the Bou Regreg river, opposite the national capital Rabat, for which it serves as a commuter town...
and Sidi SlimaneSidi SlimaneSidi Slimane is a newly formed province and is a small city in the western centre of Morocco. It is located between two major cities: Kenitra and Meknes....
. - Born: Bernd SchusterBernd SchusterBernhard Schuster is a German football manager and former player, currently unemployed. His nickname is "der Blonde Engel" .-Club career:...
, German footballer and manager, in AugsburgAugsburgAugsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a... - Died: Gilda GrayGilda GrayGilda Gray was a Polish born American actress and dancer who became famous in the US for popularizing a dance called the "shimmy" which became fashionable in 1920s films and theater productions....
, 58, actress who popularized the shimmyShimmyA shimmy is a dance move in which the body is held still, except for the shoulders, which are alternated back and forth. When the right shoulder goes back, the left one comes forward. It may help to hold the arms out slightly bent at the elbow, and when the shoulders are moved, keep the hands in...
December 23, 1959 (Wednesday)
- At Stanford UniversityStanford UniversityThe Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, heart surgeon Dr. Richard Lower, with the assistance of Dr. Norman ShumwayNorman ShumwayNorman Edward Shumway was a pioneer of heart surgery at Stanford University.-Early life:Shumway was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan...
, performed a successful heart transplant of one dog's heart into the heart of another dog. Previously, the longest that a host animal had survived with a transplanted heart had been 7½ hours. The mongrel survived for eight days before being painlessly put to sleep on December 31 because of an infection. One of the breakthroughs made by Dr. Lower was the prevention of venous clots by leaving part of the original heart auricles in the host. - Died: Lord Halifax, 78; Viceroy of India 1926–29; British Foreign Secretary 1938–40
December 24, 1959 (Thursday)
- Newly appointed as a Roman Catholic Bishop, Karol Wojtyla defied authorities in PolandPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
by celebrating a midnight Mass in an open field in Nowa HutaNowa HutaNowa Huta - is the easternmost district of Kraków, Poland, . With more than 200,000 inhabitants it is one of the most populous areas of the city.- History :...
, the first Polish city to be constructed without a church. Wojtyla continued to celebrate the annual Mass until he later became Pope John Paul II. - The colonial government in the Belgian CongoBelgian CongoThe Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...
formally recognized the legality of the Kimbanguist Church. - In the first significant instance of anti-SemitismAnti-SemitismAntisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
in postwar Germany, a swastikaSwastikaThe swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
was painted on the synagogue in CologneCologneCologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
. Over the next nine days, over 600 instances of anti-Semitic vandalism were reported in Europe. - Born: Keith DellerKeith DellerKeith Deller is an English darts player, who won the Embassy World Professional Darts Championship in 1983. He was the first qualifier ever to win the championship and remains one of the youngest champions in history...
, English darts champion, in IpswichIpswichIpswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
December 25, 1959 (Friday)
- In SeoulSeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, South KoreaSouth KoreaThe Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, General Carter B. MagruderCarter B. MagruderCarter Bowie Magruder was a United States Army four star general who served concurrently as Commander in Chief, United Nations Command/Commander, United States Forces Korea/Commanding General, Eighth United States Army from 1959 to 1961.-Military career:Magruder was born in London, England, where...
, Commander of the United Nations Forces, announced that warned that "North Korean forces have large caliber artillery for which atomic warheads might be provided." General Magruder did not elaborate further on the North Korean "atomic cannon". - Born: Michael Phillip AndersonMichael Phillip AndersonMichael Philip Anderson was a United States Lieutenant Colonel and NASA astronaut, who was killed in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster when the craft disintegrated after reentry into the Earth's atmosphere....
, shuttle astronaut, in Plattsburgh, New York; died in last mission of the Columbia, 2003
December 26, 1959 (Saturday)
- Twelve days after it was first seen by humans, the Heritage RangeHeritage RangeThe Heritage Range is a major mountain range, long and wide, situated southward of Minnesota Glacier and forming the southern half of the Ellsworth Mountains in Antarctica...
in Antarctica was visited for the first time, by a team led by Campbell Craddock, Edward C. Thiel, and Edwin S. Robinson, who landed near Pipe Peak. - Nelson RockefellerNelson RockefellerNelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st Vice President of the United States , serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York , as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions...
announced that he would not seek the Republican Party nomination for 1960.
December 27, 1959 (Sunday)
- Johnny UnitasJohnny UnitasJohn Constantine Unitas , known as Johnny Unitas or "Johnny U", and nicknamed "The Golden Arm", was a professional American football player in the 1950s through the 1970s, spending the majority of his career with the Baltimore Colts. He was a record-setting quarterback, and the National Football...
led the Baltimore ColtsIndianapolis ColtsThe Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
to a 31–16 win over the New York GiantsNew York GiantsThe New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
to win the NFL Championship. - Born: Gerina DunwichGerina DunwichGerina Dunwich is a professional astrologer, occult historian, and New Age author, best known for her books on Wicca and various occult subjects...
, American Wiccan author
December 28, 1959 (Monday)
- In Jersey City, New JerseyJersey City, New JerseyJersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
, 69 year old Matthew Jaksch was robbed by two men as he was going to the bank. Taken in the robbery were two relicRelicIn religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
s from the Crucifixion, which had been given to Jaksch's Austrian ancestors by Pope Benedict XIV: a piece of a thorn from the Crown of Thorns ($40,000) and a splinter from the Cross ($30,000). - Tom LandryTom LandryThomas Wade "Tom" Landry was an American football player and coach. He is ranked as one of the greatest and most innovative coaches in National Football League history, creating many new formations and methods...
, defensive coach for the Giants, was signed as the new coach of the Dallas RangersDallas CowboysThe Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
, which were seeking admission as the NFL's 13th team. Landry coached the renamed Dallas CowboysDallas CowboysThe Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
for 29 seasons. - The city of Lawndale, CaliforniaLawndale, CaliforniaLawndale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 32,769 at the 2010 census, up from 31,711 according to the 2000 census...
, was incorporated. - Died: Ante PavelićAnte PavelicAnte Pavelić was a Croatian fascist leader, revolutionary, and politician. He ruled as Poglavnik or head, of the Independent State of Croatia , a World War II puppet state of Nazi Germany in Axis-occupied Yugoslavia...
, 70, puppet ruler of Nazi state of Croatia 1941–45; Walther BuhleWalther BuhleGeneral Walther Buhle was an infantry General in the German army who was the Chief of the Army Staff of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht from 1942 and chief of armaments for the army in 1945....
, 65 German general; Karoly Jordan, 88, Hungarian mathematician
December 29, 1959 (Tuesday)
- On a day marked as the birth of nanotechnologyNanotechnologyNanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
, Professor Richard FeynmanRichard FeynmanRichard Phillips Feynman was an American physicist known for his work in the path integral formulation of quantum mechanics, the theory of quantum electrodynamics and the physics of the superfluidity of supercooled liquid helium, as well as in particle physics...
presented a lecture at the annual meeting of the American Physical SocietyAmerican Physical SocietyThe American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
at Caltech, entitled "There's Plenty of Room at the BottomThere's Plenty of Room at the BottomThere's Plenty of Room at the Bottom is the title of a lecture given by physicist Richard Feynman at an American Physical Society meeting at Caltech on December 29, 1959...
", posing the famous question, "Why cannot we write the entire 24 volumes of the Encyclopedia Britannica on the head of a pin?". - President Dwight D. EisenhowerDwight D. EisenhowerDwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
announced that the United States would not renew the voluntary moratoriumMoratorium (law)A moratorium is a delay or suspension of an activity or a law. In a legal context, it may refer to the temporary suspension of a law to allow a legal challenge to be carried out....
on nuclear testingNuclear testingNuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine the effectiveness, yield and explosive capability of nuclear weapons. Throughout the twentieth century, most nations that have developed nuclear weapons have tested them...
, set to expire on December 31. - The Brave and the Bold No. 28 (Feb.-Mar. 1960) reached newsstands. The DC comic book introduced the Justice League of America.
December 30, 1959 (Wednesday)
- Hubert H. Humphrey, U.S. Senator from MinnesotaMinnesotaMinnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, became the first person to announce his candidacy for the 1960 Democratic PartyDemocratic Party (United States)The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
presidential nomination (which John F. KennedyJohn F. KennedyJohn Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
would win). - USS George WashingtonUSS George Washington (SSBN-598)USS George Washington , the lead ship of her class of nuclear ballistic missile submarines, was the third United States Navy ship of the name, in honor of George Washington , first President of the United States, and the first of that name to be purpose-built as a warship.-Construction and...
, the first nuclear missile submarine, was commissioned. - The Inter-American Development BankInter-American Development BankThe Inter-American Development Bank is the largest source of development financing for Latin America and the Caribbean...
formally began operations.
December 31, 1959 (Thursday)
- Charles Maillefer patented the barrier screwPlastics extrusionPlastics extrusion is a high volume manufacturing process in which raw plastic material is melted and formed into a continuous profile. Extrusion produces items such as pipe/tubing, weather stripping, fence, deck railing, window frames, adhesive tape and wire insulation.-Process:In the extrusion of...
, which increased the quality of plastic products manufactured through the process of extrusion. - Michel DebréMichel DebréMichel Jean-Pierre Debré was a French Gaullist politician. He is considered the "father" of the current Constitution of France, and was the first Prime Minister of the Fifth Republic...
, the Prime Minister of FrancePrime Minister of FranceThe Prime Minister of France in the Fifth Republic is the head of government and of the Council of Ministers of France. The head of state is the President of the French Republic...
, proposed legislation that ended the "school war" (guerre scolaire) between France's public and private (mostly Catholic) schools. Under the "loi-Debré" that passed, the church schools could receive state support provided that they entered into an "association contract" with the government setting academic standards. - Born: Alfie AnidoAlfie AnidoAlfie Anido was a popular Filipino matinee idol best remembered for his death at the age of twenty one...
, Filipino actor (d. 1981); Val KilmerVal KilmerVal Edward Kilmer is an American actor. Originally a stage actor, Kilmer became popular in the mid-1980s after a string of appearances in comedy films, starting with Top Secret! , then the cult classic Real Genius , as well as blockbuster action films, including a supporting role in Top Gun and a...
, American actor, in Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
; Baron WaqaBaron WaqaBaron Divavesi Waqa is a Nauruan politician.-Policial role:He was elected in the May 2003 elections to the Parliament of Nauru, representing the constituency of Boe. Under president Ludwig Scotty he served as Minister of the Interior and of Education; he had, however, to leave the post upon...
, Nauruan politician and composer