1956
| 1956 by topic |
| Subject: Archaeology – Architecture – Art – Aviation – Comics – Film – Literature (Poetry) – Meteorology – Music (Country) – Rail transport – Radio – Science – Sports – Television |
| Countries: Australia – Canada – People's Republic of China – Ecuador – France – Germany – Greece – India – Ireland – Israel – Italy – Japan – Malaysia – Mexico – New Zealand – Norway – Pakistan – Philippines – Singapore – South Africa– Soviet Union – UK – USA |
| Leaders: Sovereign states – State leaders – Religious leaders – Law |
| Categories: Births – Deaths – Works – Introductions – Establishments – Disestablishments – Awards |
|
1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar.
Events of 1956
January
February
March
A 1956 Chevrolet
April
May
June
July
- July 2 – A lab experiment at Sylvania Electric Products results in an explosion.
- July 8 – The mountain Gasherbrum II is first ascended.
- July 10 – The British House of Lords defeats the abolition of the death penalty.
- July 24 – At New York City's Copacabana Club, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis perform their last comedy show together (their act started on July 25, 1946).
- July 25 – 72 kilometers (45 miles) south of Nantucket Island, the Italian ocean liner SS Andrea Doria sinks after colliding with the Swedish ship SS Stockholm in heavy fog, killing 51.
- July 26 – Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalizes the Suez Canal sparking international condemnation.
- July 30 – A Joint Resolution of Congress is signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, authorizing "In God We Trust" as the U.S. national motto.
- July 31 – Cricket: Jim Laker sets an extraordinary record at Old Trafford in the fourth Test between England and Australia, taking 19 wickets in a first class match (the previous best was 17).
August
September
October
November
- November 1 – The States Reorganisation Act of India reforms the boundaries and names of Indian states. Two new states Kerala and Karnataka were formed.
- November 3 – MGM's screen classic, The Wizard of Oz, is shown on television for the first time by CBS, as the final installment of their Ford Star Jubilee.
- November 4 – 1956 Hungarian Revolution: More Soviet troops invade Hungary to crush a revolt that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country.
- November 6 – United States presidential election, 1956: Republican incumbent Dwight D. Eisenhower defeats Democrat challenger Adlai E. Stevenson in a rematch of their contest 4 years earlier.
- November 7 – Suez Crisis: The United Nations General Assembly adopts a resolution calling for the United Kingdom, France, and Israel to withdraw their troops from Arab lands immediately.
- November 13 – The United States Supreme Court declares Alabama and Montgomery, Alabama laws requiring segregated buses illegal, thus ending the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
- November 14 – Fighting ends in Hungary. Confirmation needed
- November 15 – Middle East Technical University is founded in Ankara, Turkey.
- November 20 – In Yugoslavia, former prime minister Milovan Djilas is arrested after he criticizes Josip Broz Tito.
- November 22 – The 1956 Summer Olympics begin in Melbourne, Australia.
- November 23 – The Suez Crisis causes petrol rationing in Britain.[2]
- November 28 – Roger Vadim's drama film And God Created Woman released in France (as Et Dieu… créa la femme) propels Brigitte Bardot into the public spotlight as a "sex kitten".
- November 30 – Floyd Patterson wins the world heavyweight boxing championship that was vacant after the retirement of Rocky Marciano.
December
Undated
Ongoing
Births
January–February
- January 1
- Mark R. Hughes, American entrepreneur (d. 2000)
- Kōji Yakusho, Japanese actor
- January 3 – Mel Gibson, Australian-American actor and director (Lethal Weapon)
- January 5 – Chen Kenichi, Japan-born Chinese chef
- January 7 – David Caruso, American actor (NYPD Blue)
- January 9 – Imelda Staunton, British actress
- January 10 – Shawn Colvin, American singer
- January 14 – Ben Heppner, Canadian tenor
- January 16 – Martin Jol, Dutch football manager
- January 17 – Paul Young, English musician
- January 18 – Tom Bailey, English musician
- January 20 – Bill Maher, American actor, comedian, and political analyst
- January 21 – Geena Davis, American actress
- January 24 – Lounès Matoub, Algerian Berber Kabyle singer
- January 25 – Bronwyn Pike, Australian politician
- January 27 – Mimi Rogers, American actress
- January 31 – Johnny Rotten, British punk musician and TV personality
- February 1 – Mike Kitchen, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- February 2 – Adnan Oktar (Harun Yahya), Turkish author
- February 3 – Nathan Lane, American actor (The Birdcage)
- February 3 – Lee Ranaldo, American musician (Sonic Youth)
- February 6 – Jon Walmsley, British actor (The Waltons)
- February 11
- Didier Lockwood, French jazz violinist
- Catherine Hickland, American actress
- February 13
- Yiannis Kouros, Greek-Australian ultramarathoner
- Paul Stojanovich, American television producer
- February 14 – Tom Burlinson, Australian actor
- February 15 – Desmond Haynes, West Indian cricketer
- February 18 – Thomas Gradin, Swedish hockey player
- February 19 – Roderick MacKinnon, American biologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- February 24
- Judith Butler, American philosopher
- Paula Zahn, American television journalist (CBS News)
- February 25 – Davie Cooper, Scottish footballer (d. 1995)
- February 26 – Keisuke Kuwata, Japanese musician
- February 29
March–April
- March 1 – Tim Daly, American actor
- March 5
- Teena Marie, American singer
- Marco Paolini, Italian stage actor, dramaturge and author
- March 7 – Bryan Cranston, American actor
- March 11 – Rob Paulsen, American voice actor
- March 16 – Vladimír Godár, Slovak composer
- March 18 – Ingemar Stenmark, Swedish alpine skier
- March 19 – Yegor Gaidar, Russian economist and politician
- March 20 – Catherine Ashton, British politician
- March 21 – Ingrid Kristiansen, Norwegian runner
- March 24 – Steve Ballmer, American CEO of Microsoft
- March 28 – Susan Ershler, American mountaineer
- March 28 – Evelin Jahl, German athlete
- March 30 – Shahla Sherkat, Iranian feminist journalist
- April 3
- Ray Combs, American game show host and comedian (d. 1996)
- Boris Miljković, Serbian TV & theatre director and video artist
- April 4
- Kerry Chikarovski, Australian politician
- David E. Kelley, American writer and television producer
- April 5 – Diamond Dallas Page, American professional wrestler
- April 6
- Sebastian Spreng, American-Argentinean visual artist
- Dilip Vengsarkar, Indian cricketer
- April 12
- Andy García, American actor
- Yasuo Tanaka, Japanese politician, novelist
- April 13 – Possum Bourne, New Zealand rally car driver (d. 2003)
- April 14 – Barbara Bonney, American soprano
- April 16
- David McDowell Brown, American astronaut (Columbia Disaster) (d. 2003)
- Lise-Marie Morerod, Swiss skier
- April 18 – Melody Thomas Scott, American actress
- April 19 – Sue Barker, British tennis player and television presenter
- April 21 – Phillip Longman, American demographer
- April 26 – Koo Stark, British actress
- April 28 – Jimmy Barnes, Australian musician
- April 30 – Lars von Trier, Danish film director
May–June
- May 1 – Alexander Ivanov, Russian-born American chess Grandmaster
- May 4
- David Guterson, American writer
- Ulrike Meyfarth, German high jumper
- May 6 – Vladimir Lisin, Russian business oligarch
- May 7
- Jan Peter Balkenende, Prime Minister of the Netherlands
- Jean Lapierre, Canadian politician and television host
- May 10 – Vladislav Nikolayevich Listyev, Russian journalist (d. 1995)
- May 12 – Greg Phillinganes, American keyboardist
- May 13
- Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Indian guru
- Kenneth Eriksson, Swedish rally driver
- May 15 – Dan Patrick, American sports commentator
- May 17
- Sugar Ray Leonard, African American boxer
- Bob Saget, American actor and television host
- May 20 – Ingvar Ambjørnsen, Norwegian author
- May 23
- Buck Showalter, American baseball player and manager
- Ursula Plassnik, Austrian politician
- May 24 – Michael Jackson, Irish Anglican bishop
- May 26 – Lisa Niemi, American actress, widow of Patrick Swayze
- May 28 – Jerry Douglas, American dobro player
- May 29 – La Toya Jackson, American singer
- June 3 – George Burley, Scottish football manager
- June 8 – Udo Bullmann, German politician
- June 5 – Kenny G, American grammy-award winning saxophonist
- June 6 – Björn Borg, Swedish tennis player
- June 9 – Patricia Cornwell, American novelist
- June 10 – Duke Georg Borwin of Mecklenburg, German head of the House of Mecklenburg
- June 11 – Joe Montana, American football player
- June 14 – King Diamond, Danish heavy metal musician
- June 20 – Cho Chikun, Korean professional Go player
- June 23 – Randy Jackson, African American musician and talent judge
- June 25 – Boris Trajkovski, President of the Republic of Macedonia (d. 2004)
- June 26 – Chris Isaak, American musician
- June 27 – Heiner Dopp, German field hockey player
- June 28 – Noel Mugavin, Australian rules football player
- June 30 – Ronald Winans, African American musician (d. 2005)
July–August
- July 2 – Jerry Hall, American model and actress
- July 3 – Rick Ducommun, Canadian actor and comedian
- July 9 – Tom Hanks, American actor
- July 11 – Sela Ward, American actress
- July 12 – Sandi Patty, American gospel singer
- July 14 – Vladimir Kulich, Czech actor
- July 15
- Ian Curtis, British rock musician (Joy Division) (d. 1980)
- Barry Melrose, Canadian hockey player, coach, and commentator
- Toshihiko Seko, Japanese long-distance runner
- July 16 – Tony Kushner, American playwright
- July 18 – Sheila Aldridge, American singer (The Aldridge Sisters)
- July 19 – Yoshiaki Yatsu, Japanese professional wrestler
- July 24
- Charlie Crist, American politician
- Pat Finn, American game show host and producer
- July 26 – Andy Goldsworthy, British sculptor and photographer
- July 30 – Delta Burke, American actress
- July 31
- August 1 – Steve Green, American Christian musician
- August 5 – Maureen McCormick, American actress (The Brady Bunch)
- August 17 – Dave Jones, English football manager
- August 20 – Joan Allen, American actress
- August 21 – Kim Cattrall, Canadian actress
- August 22 – Paul Molitor, American baseball player
- August 23 – Andreas Floer, German mathematician (d. 1991)
- August 24 – John Culberson, American politician
- August 26 – Mark Mangino, American football coach
- August 29 – Mark Morris, American choreographer
- August 31 – Masashi Tashiro, Japanese television performer
September–October
- September 1 – Bernie Wagenblast, American editor and broadcaster
- September 2 – Angelo Fusco, Provisional Irish Republican Army member
- September 3 – Pat McGeown, Provisional Irish Republican Army member (d. 1996)
- September 10 – Johnny Fingers, Irish musician The Boomtown Rats
- September 11 – Phillip D. Bissett, American politician
- September 12
- Leslie Cheung, Hong Kong actor (d. 2003)
- Ricky Rudd, American race car driver
- Walter Woon, law professor and former Nominated Member of Parliament and Attorney-General of Singapore
- September 14
- September 15 – George Howard, American jazz saxophone musician (d. 1998)
- September 16
- September 17 – Brian Andreas, American writer, sculptor, painter, and publisher
- September 20 – Gary Cole, American actor
- September 21 – Jack Givens, American basketball player
- September 23 – Paolo Rossi, Italian soccer player
- September 24 – Gregory Peter Panos, American futurist, writer, inventor, virtual reality expert, human simulation visionary
- September 25 – Jamie Hyneman, American television co-host (MythBusters)
- September 26 – Linda Hamilton, American actress (The Terminator)
- September 29
- October 4 – Christoph Waltz, Austrian actor (Inglourious Basterds)
- October 8 – Stephanie Zimbalist, American actress
- October 10 – Amanda Burton, Irish actress
- October 11 – Nicanor Duarte, President of Paraguay
- October 17 – Mae Jemison, African American astronaut
- October 18 – Martina Navratilova, Czech-American tennis player
- October 19 – Carlo Urbani, Italian physician (d. 2003)
- October 20 – Danny Boyle, British film director
- October 21 – Carrie Fisher, American actress (Star Wars)
- October 23 – Dwight Yoakam, American country singer/musician and actor
- October 27 – Jaq D. Hawkins, British author, occultist and lecturer
- October 28 – Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, President of Iran
November–December
- November 8
- Steven Miller, American record producer
- Richard Curtis, British Film director, screenwriter and producer
- November 10 – Mohsen Badawi, Egyptian entrepreneur, political activist, and writer
- November 14 – Avi Cohen, Israeli football player
- November 18
- Noel Brotherston, Irish footballer (d. 1995)
- Warren Moon, American football player
- November 20 – Bo Derek, American actress
- November 23
- Shane Gould, Australian swimmer
- Nikolay Sidorov, Soviet athlete
- November 26 – Dale Jarrett, American race car driver
- November 27 – William Fichtner, American actor
- November 28 – Lucy Gutteridge, British actress
- November 29
- Leo Laporte, American author and television host
- Eric Laakso, American football player
- December 5
- Krystian Zimerman, Polish pianist
- Klaus Allofs, German football player
- December 6 – Randy Rhoads, American guitarist
- December 7 – Larry Bird, American basketball player
- December 11 – Lani Brockman, American playwright
- December 12
- Johan van der Velde, Dutch cyclist
- Ana Alicia, Mexican actress
- December 13 – Majida El Roumi, Lebanese singer
- December 14 – Béla Réthy, German sports journalist
- December 18 – Ron White, American comedian
- December 19 – Masami Akita, Japanese noise musician (also known as Merzbow)
- December 23 – Michele Alboreto, Italian race car driver (d. 2001)
- December 26 – David Sedaris, American essayist
- December 28
- Jimmy Nicholl, Canadian-born footballer
- Nigel Kennedy, English violinist
- December 29 – Fred MacAulay, Scottish comedian
- December 30 – Sheryl Lee Ralph, African American actress
- December 31 – Hussein Ahmed Salah, Djiboutian marathon player
Date unknown
- Ronan Bennett, Irish writer
- Shelagh Rogers, Canadian radio host
- Miladin Šobić, Montenegrin singer
- Susan Solomon, American atmospheric chemist
Deaths
January–June
- January 3
- January 5 – Mistinguett, French singer (b. 1875)
- January 9 – Marion Leonard, American actress (b. 1881)
- January 12 – Norman Kerry, American actor (b. 1894)
- January 13 – Lyonel Charles Feininger, German painter (b. 1871)
- January 14 – Sheila Kaye-Smith, English writer (b. 1887)
- January 18 – Konstantin Päts, President of Estonia (b. 1874)
- January 21 – Sam Langford, Canadian boxer (b. 1883)
- January 24 – Sir Alexander Korda, Hungarian-born film director (b. 1893)
- January 27 – Erich Kleiber, German conductor (b. 1890)
- January 29 – H. L. Mencken, American writer (b. 1880)
- January 31 – A. A. Milne, English author (Winnie The Pooh) (b. 1882)
- February 2
- Bob Burns, American comedian (b. 1890)
- Charles Grapewin, American actor (b. 1869)
- February 8 – Connie Mack, American baseball executive and manager (b. 1862)
- February 10 – Hugh Trenchard, 1st Viscount Trenchard, British marshal of the Royal Air Force (b. 1873)
- February 18 – Gustave Charpentier, French composer (b. 1860)
- February 20 – James Cousins, Irish writer (b. 1873)
- February 26 – Elsie Janis, American singer and actress (b. 1889)
- February 29 – Elpidio Quirino, President of the Philippines (b. 1890)
- March 14 – David Browning, American Olympic diver (b. 1931)
- March 17
- March 18 – Louis Bromfield, American writer (b. 1896)
- March 20
- Fanny Durack, Australian swimmer (b. 1889)
- Wilhelm Miklas, Austrian politician and 3rd President of Austria
- March 25 – Robert Newton, English film actor (b. 1905)
- March 30 – Edmund Clerihew Bentley, English inventor (b. 1875)
- March 31 – Ralph DePalma, Italian-born race car driver (b. 1884)
- April 6 – Pio Valenzuela, Filipino physician and one of the leaders of the Katipunan (b. 1869)
- April 15 – Kathleen Howard, Canadian born American opera singer & character actress (b. 1884)
- April 19 – Ernst Robert Curtius, Alsatian philologist (b. 1886)
- April 21
- Samuel Gottesman, American pulp-paper merchant (b. 1885)
- Charles MacArthur, American playwright and screenwriter (b. 1895)
- April 24 – Henry Stephenson, British character actor (b. 1871)
- April 26 – Edward Arnold, American actor (b. 1890)
- April 29 – Harold Bride, English-born junior radio officer on RMS Titanic (b. 1890)
- April 30 – Alben W. Barkley, Vice President of the United States (b. 1877)
- May 3 – Peter Watson, English art collector and benefactor (b. 1908)
- May 12 – Louis Calhern, American actor (b. 1895)
- May 17 – Austin Osman Spare, English magician (b. 1886)
- May 18 – Maurice Tate, English cricketer (b. 1895)
- May 20
- Max Beerbohm, English theater critic (b. 1872)
- Zoltan Halmay, Hungarian Olympic swimmer (b. 1881)
- May 23 – Gustav Suits, Estonian poet (b. 1883)
- May 24 – Guy Kibbee, American actor (b. 1882)
- May 26 – Al Simmons, American baseball player (b. 1902)
- May 29 – Frank Beaurepaire, Australian Olympic swimmer (b. 1891)
- May 31 – Diedrich Hermann Westermann, German linguist (b. 1875)
- June 2 – Jean Hersholt, Danish actor (b. 1886)
- June 4 – Katherine MacDonald, American silent film actress (b. 1891)
- June 6 – Margaret Wycherly, English stage & film actress (b. 1881)
- June 11 – Ralph Morgan, American actor (b. 1883)
- June 17 – Paul Rostock, German official, surgeon, and university professor (b. 1892)
- June 22 – Walter de la Mare, English poet, short story writer, and novelist (b. 1873)
- June 23 – Reinhold Glière, Russian composer (b. 1875)
- June 26 – Clifford Brown, American jazz trumpeter (b. 1930)
July–December
- July 7 – Gottfried Benn, German poet (b. 1886)
- July 8 – Giovanni Papini, Italian essayist, poet, novelist (b. 1881)
- July 10 – Joe Giard, American baseball player (b. 1898)
- July 20 – James Alexander Calder, Canadian politician (b. 1856)
- August 2 – Albert Woolson, last surviving Union veteran of the American Civil War (b. 1847)
- August 11 – Jackson Pollock, American painter (b. 1912)
- August 14
- August 16 – Béla Lugosi, Hungarian-born film actor (Dracula) (b. 1882)
- August 23 – Peaches Browning, American actress (b. 1910)
- August 25 – Alfred Kinsey, American sex researcher (b. 1894)
- September 11 – Billy Bishop, Canadian pilot (b. 1894)
- September 20 – Flora Eldershaw, Australian novelist, critic, and historian (b. 1897)
- September 22 – Frederick Soddy, English chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1877)
- September 27 – Babe Zaharias, American athlete and golfer (b. 1911)
- September 29 – Anastasio Somoza García, President of Nicaragua (b. 1896)
- October 1 – Albert Von Tilzer, American songwriter (b. 1878)
- October 2 – George Bancroft, American actor (b. 1882)
- October 9 – Marie Doro, American stage & silent film actress (b. 1882)
- October 12 – Don Lorenzo Perosi, Italian composer (b. 1872)
- October 17 – Anne Crawford, British actress (b. 1920)
- October 19 – Isham Jones, American musician (b. 1894)
- October 22 – Hannah Mitchell, English socialist and suffragette (b. 1872)
- October 25 – Risto Ryti, 5th President of Finland (b. 1889)
- October 26 – Walter Gieseking, French conductor (b. 1895)
- November 5 – Art Tatum, American jazz pianist (b. 1909)
- November 6 – Paul Kelly, stage & screen actor (b. 1899)
- November 10
- Harry F. Sinclair, American entrepreneur (b. 1876)
- Victor Young, American composer (b. 1900)
- November 19 – Francis L. Sullivan, English actor (b. 1903)
- November 22 – Theodore Kosloff, Russian-born ballet dancer, choreographer and actor (b. 1882)
- November 24 – Guido Cantelli, Italian conductor (b. 1920)
- November 26 – Tommy Dorsey, American trombonist and bandleader (b. 1905)
- November 27 – Hugo Ballin, American artist, film production designer, and director (b. 1879)
- December 2 – Dell Henderson, Canadian actor (b. 1883)
- December 6 – Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Indian dalit leader (b. 1891)
- December 7 – Huntley Gordon, Canadian actor (b. 1887)
- December 10 – David Shimoni, Israeli poet and writer (b. 1891)
- December 14 – Juho Kusti Paasikivi, 7th President of Finland (b. 1870)
- December 16 – Nina Hamnett, Welsh artist (b. 1890)
- December 17 – Eddie Acuff, American actor (b. 1903)
- December 26 – Holmes Herbert, English actor (b. 1882)
- December 30 – Ruth Draper, American actress (b. 1884)
Date unknown
- Lotte Herrlich, regarded as the most important female photographer of German naturism
Ship events
- List of ship launches in 1956
- List of ship commissionings in 1956
- List of ship decommissionings in 1956
Nobel Prizes
Notes
External links