1962
| 1962 by topic |
| Subject: Archaeology – Architecture – Art – Aviation – Comics – Film – Literature (Poetry) – Meteorology – Music (Country) – Rail transport – Radio – Science – Sports – Television – Video gaming |
| Countries: Australia – Canada – People's Republic of China – Ecuador – France – Germany – Greece – India – Ireland – Israel – Italy – Japan – Luxembourg – 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 |
|
1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar.
Events of 1962
January
February
March
April
May
June
- June 1 – Adolf Eichmann is executed in Israel.
- June 3 – Air France charter flight Chateau de Sully, a Boeing 707, over-runs the runway at Orly Airport in Paris; 130 of 132 passengers are killed, 2 flight attendants survive. Most victims are cultural and civic leaders of Atlanta, Georgia.
- June 6 – President John F. Kennedy gives the commencement address at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York.
- June 11
- President John F. Kennedy gives the commencement address at Yale University.
- Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin become the only apparently successful escapees from the Alcatraz Island prison. There is no conclusive evidence that they survived the attempt.
- June 15 – Students for a Democratic Society complete the Port Huron Statement.
- June 17 – The OAS signs a truce with the FLN in Algeria, but a day later announces that it will continue the fight on behalf of French Algerians.
- June 17 – Brazil beats Czechoslovakia 3–1 to win the 1962 FIFA World Cup.
- June 22 – An Air France Boeing 707 jet crashes into terrain during bad weather in Guadeloupe, West Indies, killing all 113 on board. It is the airline's second fatal accident in just 3 weeks, and the third fatal 707 crash of the year.
- June 25
- Engel v. Vitale: The United States Supreme Court rules that mandatory prayers in public schools are unconstitutional.
- MANual Enterprises v. Day: The United States Supreme Court rules that photographs of nude men are not obscene, decriminalizing nude male pornographic magazines.
- İsmet İnönü of CHP forms the new government of Turkey (27th government, coalition partners; YTP and CKMP)
- June 26
- A 2-day steel strike begins in Italy, in support of increased wages and a 5-day working week.
- June 28 – The United Lutheran Church in America, Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, American Evangelical Lutheran Church, and Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church merge to form the Lutheran Church in America.
- June 30 – The last soldiers of the French Foreign Legion leave Algeria.
July
August
September
- September 1
- A referendum in Singapore supports the Malayan Federation.
- Typhoon Wanda strikes Hong Kong, killing at least 130 and wounding more than 600.
- September 2 – The Soviet Union agrees to send arms to Cuba.
- September 8 – Newly independent Algeria, by referendum, adopts a constitution.
- September 12 – President John F. Kennedy, at a speech at Rice University, reaffirms that the U.S. will put a man on the moon by the end of the decade.
- September 21
- A border conflict between China and India erupts into fighting.
- New Musical Express, a British music magazine, publishes a story about two 13-year-old schoolgirls, Sue and Mary, releasing a disc on Decca and adds "A Liverpool group, The Beatles, have recorded 'Love Me Do' for Parlophone Records, set for October 5 release."
- September 25 – Sonny Liston and Floyd Patterson fight for the boxing world title.
- September 26 – Civil war erupts in Yemen.
- September 27
- September 28 – Prime Minister Ahmed Ben Bella founds the first government in Algeria.
- September 29 – The Canadian Alouette 1, the first satellite built outside the United States and the Soviet Union, is launched from Vandenberg AFB in California.
- September 30 – CBS broadcasts the final episodes of Suspense and Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, marking the end of the Golden Age of Radio.
October
- October 1
- The first black student, James Meredith, registers at the University of Mississippi, escorted by Federal Marshals.
- Johnny Carson takes over as permanent host of NBC's Tonight Show, a post he would hold for 30 years.
- October 5
- October 5 – The Beatles release their first single for EMI, Love Me Do.
- October 8
- October 9 – Uganda becomes independent within the Commonwealth of Nations.
- October 10
- October 11 – Second Vatican Council: Pope John XXIII convenes the first ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church in 92 years.
- October 12 – The infamous Columbus Day Storm strikes the U.S. Pacific Northwest with wind gusts up to 170 mph (270 km/h); 46 are killed, 11 billion board feet (26 million m³) of timber is blown down, with $230 million U.S. in damages.
- October 12 – Jazz bassist/composer Charles Mingus presents a disastrous concert at Town Hall in New York City. It will gain a reputation as the worst moment of his career.
- October 13 – Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? opens on Broadway.
- October 14 – Cuban Missile Crisis begins: A U-2 flight over Cuba takes photos of Soviet nuclear weapons being installed. A stand-off then ensues the next day between the United States and the Soviet Union, threatening the world with nuclear war.
- October 22 – In a televised address, U.S. President John F. Kennedy announces to the nation the existence of Soviet missiles in Cuba.
- October 24 – Cuban Missile Crisis: First confrontation between US Navy and Soviet cargo vessel. The vessel changes course.
- October 26 – Spiegel scandal: German police occupy Der Spiegel offices in Hamburg.
- October 28
- Cuban Missile Crisis: Soviet Union leader Nikita Khrushchev announces that he has ordered the removal of Soviet missile bases in Cuba. In a secret deal between Kennedy and Khrushchev Kennedy agrees to the withdrawal of U.S. missiles from Turkey. The fact that this deal is not made public makes it look like the Soviets have backed down.
- A referendum in France favors the election of the president by universal suffrage.
- October 31 – The UN General Assembly asks the United Kingdom to suspend enforcement of the new constitution in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), but the constitution comes into effect on November 1.
November
- November 1
- The Soviets begin dismantling their missiles in Cuba.
- The first issue of Diabolik is published in Italy.
- November 3 – The term "personal computer" is first mentioned by the media.
- November 5
- Franz Josef Strauß, the West German defense minister, is relieved of his duties over the Spiegel scandal, due to his alleged involvement in police action against the magazine.
- Saudi Arabia breaks off diplomatic relations with Egypt, following a period of unrest partly caused by the defection of several Saudi princes to Egypt.
- A coal mining disaster in Ny-Ålesund kills 21 people. The Norwegian government is forced to resign in the aftermath of this accident in August, 1963.
- November 6 – Apartheid: The United Nations General Assembly passes a resolution condemning South Africa's racist apartheid policies, and calls for all UN member states to cease military and economic relations with the nation.
- November 7 – Richard M. Nixon loses the California governor's race. In his concession speech, he states that this is his "last press conference" and that "you won't have Dick Nixon to kick around any more".
- November 17 – In Washington, D.C., U.S. President John F. Kennedy dedicates Dulles International Airport.
- November 20 – The Cuban Missile Crisis ends: In response to the Soviet Union agreeing to remove its missiles from Cuba, U.S. President John F. Kennedy ends the quarantine of the Caribbean nation.
- November 23 – United Airlines Flight 297 crashes, killing all 17 on board.
- November 26
- Spiegel scandal: German police end their occupation of Der Spiegel's offices.
- Mies Bouwman starts presenting the first live TV-marathon fundraising show (Open Het Dorp), which lasts 23 hours non-stop.
- November 27 – French President Charles De Gaulle orders Georges Pompidou to form a government.
- November 28 – Former queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands dies, aged 82.
- November 29 – An agreement is signed between Britain and France to develop the Concorde supersonic airliner.
- November 30 – The United Nations General Assembly elects U Thant of Burma as the new UN Secretary-General.
December
- December 2 – Vietnam War: After a trip to Vietnam at the request of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield becomes the first American official to make a non-optimistic public comment on the war's progress.
- December 7 – Rainier III, Prince of Monaco revises the principality's constitution, devolving some of his formerly autocratic power to several advisory and legislative councils.
- December 8
- December 9 – Tanganyika (now Tanzania) becomes a republic within the Commonwealth, with Julius Nyerere as president.
- December 10 – David Lean's epic film Lawrence of Arabia, featuring Peter O' Toole, Omar Sharif, Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, and Anthony Quinn premieres in London.
- December 11
- In West Germany, a coalition government of Christian Democrats, Christian Socialists, and Free Democrats is formed.
- The last execution by hanging in Canada takes place.
- December 14 – U.S. spacecraft Mariner 2 flies by Venus, becoming the first probe to successfully transmit data from another planet.
- December 15 – Storm over North Sea. Belgian pirate radio Radio Uylenspiegel off anchor, never to operate again.
- December 19 – Britain acknowledges the right of Nyasaland (now Malawi) to secede from the Central African Federation.
- December 22 – "Big Freeze" in Britain: There are no frost-free nights until March 5, 1963.
- December 24 – Cuba releases the last 1,113 participants in the Bay of Pigs Invasion to the U.S., in exchange for food worth $53 million.
- December 30
- United Nations troops occupy the last rebel positions in Katanga; Moise Tshombe moves to South Rhodesia.
- An unexpected storm buries Maine under five feet of snow, forcing the Bangor Daily News to miss a publication date for the first and only time in history. The same day, also the Netherlands are covered with several feet of snow.
Undated
Ongoing
- Cold War
- Regional Cooperation for Development (RCD). (1962–1979)
Births
January–February
- January 3 – Guy Pratt, English musician and songwriter
- January 4 - Natalya Bochina, Russian athlete
- January 11 – Kim Coles, American actress and comedian
- January 13 – Kevin Mitchell, American baseball player
- January 14 – Michael McCaul, American politician
- January 17 – Jim Carrey, Canadian actor and comedian
- January 20 – IKKO, Japanese make-up artist
- January 21
- Tyler Cowen, American economist
- Marie Trintignant, French actress (d. 2003)
- January 22
- January 25 – Chris Chelios, American ice hockey player
- January 28 – Creflo Dollar, American evangelist
- January 30 – King Abdullah II of Jordan
- February 1 – Takashi Murakami, Japanese pop artist
- February 2 – Andy Fordham, English darts player
- February 3
- Michele Greene, American actress
- Marty Jannetty, American professional wrestler
- February 4 – Clint Black, American country musician
- February 5 – Jennifer Jason Leigh, American actress
- February 6 – Axl Rose, American rock singer
- February 7
- February 8 – Malorie Blackman, British-born author
- February 10
- February 11 – Sheryl Crow, American singer
- February 12
- Nana Ioseliani, Georgian chess player
- Jimmy Kirkwood, Irish-born field hockey player
- February 13 – Aníbal Acevedo Vilá, American politician
- February 17 – Lou Diamond Phillips, American actor
- February 18 – Julie Strain, American actress and model
- February 21
- February 22
- Steve Irwin, Australian herpetologist and television personality (d. 2006)
- Lenda Murray, American bodybuilder
- February 25 – Birgit Fischer, German kayaker
- February 27 – Adam Baldwin, American actor
- February 28 – Angela Bailey, Canadian athlete
March–April
- March 1 – Melanie Moore, American pornographic actress
- March 2
- Jon Bon Jovi, American singer, songwriter
- Raimo Summanen, Finnish ice hockey player and coach
- March 3
- Jackie Joyner-Kersee, American athlete
- Herschel Walker, American football player
- March 4
- Simon Bisley, British comic book artist
- Lolo Ferrari, French actress (d. 2000)
- March 6 – Erika Hess, Swiss alpine skier
- March 7 – Taylor Dayne, American singer
- March 8 – Cecilia Yip, Hong Kong actress
- March 10 – Seiko Matsuda, Japanese pop singer/songwriter
- March 11 – Barbara Alyn Woods, American actress
- March 12 – Darryl Strawberry, American baseball player
- March 16 – Branco Mello, Brazilian singer, actor and writer
- March 18
- Mike Rowe, American television host
- Thomas Ian Griffith, American actor
- March 19 – Iván Calderón, Puerto Rican Major League Baseball player (d. 2003)
- March 20 – Stephen Sommers, American film director
- March 21 – Matthew Broderick, American actor
- March 21 – Rosie O'Donnell, American comedian, actress, and talk-show host
- March 23 – Sir Steve Redgrave, English rower
- March 23 – Jenny Wright, American actress
- March 24 – Star Jones, American talk show host and publisher
- March 25 – Marcia Cross, American actress
- March 26 – John Stockton, American basketball player
- March 27
- Jann Arden, Canadian singer
- John O'Farrell, British author and broadcaster
- March 30
- Bil Dwyer, American actor
- MC Hammer, American rapper
- April 1
- Phillip Schofield, British TV presenter
- Samboy Lim, Filipino basketball player
- April 5 – Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, President of Kalmykia and FIDE
- April 7 – Hugh O'Connor, American actor (d. 1995)
- April 9 – Imran Sherwani, British field hockey player
- April 10 – Steve Tasker, American football player
- April 11 – Vincent Gallo, American actor
- April 12 – Nobuhiko Takada, Japanese mixed martial arts fighter and professional wrestler
- April 12 – Carlos Sainz, Spanish rally driver
- April 13 – Jennifer Rubin, American actress/model
- April 15
- Nawal El Moutawakel, Moroccan hurdler
- Nick Kamen, English singer, songwriter, musician and model
- April 19 – Al Unser, Jr., American race car driver
- April 20 – Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf (Henry Joseph Nasiff Jr.), American comedian (d. 2001)
- April 23 – John Hannah, Scottish actor
- April 24 – Steve Roach, Australian champion rugby league prop forward
- April 26 – Colin Anderson, English footballer
May–June
- May 2
- Elizabeth Berridge, American actress
- Jimmy White, British snooker player
- May 3 – Anders Graneheim, Swedish bodybuilder
- May 4 – Tracy Vaccaro, American model
- May 8 – Natalia Molchanova, Russian free-diver
- May 10 – David Fincher, American film director
- May 12 – Emilio Estevez, American actor
- May 13 – Eduardo Palomo, Mexican actor (d. 2003)
- May 13 – Paul McDermott, Australian comedian
- May 14 – Danny Huston, American actor and film director
- May 17
- Lise Lyng Falkenberg, Danish writer
- Craig Ferguson, Scottish actor and comedian
- Kim Mulkey, American basketball player/coach
- May 19 – Frances Ondiviela, Spanish/Mexican actress
- May 20 – Mike Jeffries, American soccer coach
- May 22 – Brian Pillman, American professional wrestler (d. 1997)
- May 24 – Gene Anthony Ray, American actor (d. 2003)
- May 26 – Bobcat Goldthwait, American actor and comedian
- May 27 – Ravi Shastri, Indian cricketer
- May 28
- James Michael Tyler, American actor
- Brandon Cruz, American child actor and punk rocker
- May 30 – Timo Soini, Finnish politician
- May 31
- Corey Hart, Canadian singer
- Sebastian Koch, German actor
- June 1 – Sherri Howard, American athlete
- June 4 – John P. Kee, American gospel singer
- June 5 – Jeff Garlin, American comedian
- June 7 – Thierry Hazard, French singer and songwriter
- June 8 – Suzy Gorman, American photographer
- June 10 – Gina Gershon, American actress and musician
- June 10 – Carolyn Hennesy, American actress
- June 11
- Olga Charvátová, Czech alpine skier
- Erika Salumäe, Estonian cyclist
- June 12
- Camilla Scott, Canadian actress
- Jodi Thelen, American actress
- June 13
- Ally Sheedy, American actress
- Hannah Storm, American television personality
- June 14 – Emilija Erčić, Yugoslav (Serbian) handball player
- June 15
- Thomas Mikal Ford, American actor
- Andrea Rost, Hungarian lyric soprano
- June 16 – Arnold Vosloo, South African actor
- June 17 – Lio, Belgian singer/actress
- June 18 – Lisa Randall, American theoretical physicist
- June 18 – Mitsuharu Misawa, Japanese professional wrestler (d. 2009)
- June 19 – Paula Abdul, American dancer, choreographer, and singer
- June 21
- Pipilotti Rist, Swiss video artist
- Victor Tsoi, Soviet underground singer and songwriter (d. 1990)
- June 22
- June 23 – Kari Takko, Finnish ice hockey player
- June 26 – Bussunda, Brazilian comedian (d. 2006)
- June 27
- June 28 – Don Chambers, American newspaper comic strip artist
- June 29
- Amanda Donohoe, English actress
- George Zamka, American astronaut
- June 30
- Tony Fernández, Dominican baseball player
- Deirdre Lovejoy, American actress
- Julianne Regan, British singer/songwriter (All About Eve)
July–August
- July 3 – Tom Cruise, American actor
- July 4
- Neil Morrissey, British actor
- Pam Shriver, American tennis player
- July 5 – Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, Indonesian terrorist
- July 13
- Tom Kenny, American voice actor and comedian
- Zlata Petrović, Serbian pop singer
- July 15 – Michelle Ford, Australian swimmer
- July 19
- Anthony Edwards, American actor
- Aya Kitō, Japanese writer (d. 1988)
- July 20
- Giovanna Amati, Italian race car driver
- Carlos Alazraqui, American actor & comedian
- July 21 – Rob Morrow, American actor
- July 22 – Steve Albini, American musician
- July 26
- July 28 – Ray Shero, American hockey manager
- July 29 – Scott Steiner, American professional wrestler
- July 30 – Alton Brown, American television host and chef
- July 31 – Wesley Snipes, American actor
- August 1 – Robert Clift, British field hockey player
- August 2 – Cynthia Stevenson, American actress
- August 4 – Roger Clemens, American baseball player
- August 5 – Patrick Ewing, Jamaican-born basketball player
- August 6 – Michelle Yeoh, Malaysian-born Hong Kong actress
- August 8 – Mike Zanier, Canadian ice hockey player
- August 14 – Kevin Harris, Canadian skateboarder
- August 15 – Tom Colicchio, American chef
- August 16 –
- Steve Carell, American actor and comedian
- Christian Cameron, Canadian/American writer
- August 18 – Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, President of Mexico
- August 19 – Valérie Kaprisky, French actress
- August 20
- Sophie Aldred, British actress and television presenter
- James Marsters, American actor
- August 21 – Gilberto Santa Rosa, Puerto Rican salsa singer
- August 24 – Craig Kilborn, American talk show host
- August 25 – Theresa Andrews, American swimmer
- August 26
- Princess Lalla Meryem of Morocco
- Bob Mionske, American cyclist and attorney
- August 27 – Vic Mignogna, American voice actor
- August 29
- Jutta Kleinschmidt, German rally driver
- Lycia Naff, American actress/journalist
- August 30 – Alexander Litvinenko, Russian ex-KGB colonel and ex-FSB lieutenant-colonel (d. 2006)
- August 31
- Dee Bradley Baker, American comedian, announcer and voice-over actor
- Mark L. Walberg, American comedian, announcer and game show host
September–October
- September 1 – Ruud Gullit, Dutch footballer
- September 7 – Kylie InGold, Australian fantasy artist
- September 8 – Thomas Kretschmann, German actor
- September 11
- Kristy McNichol, American actress
- Victoria Poleva, Ukrainian composer
- September 12 – Amy Yasbeck, American actress
- September 15
- François Bloemhof, South African author
- Scott McNeil, Canadian voice actor
- September 17 – Baz Luhrmann, Australian film director
- September 19 – Gottfried von Bismarck, controversial German aristocrat and socialite (d. 2007)
- September 24
- Jack Dee, British comedian
- Rosamund Kwan, Hong Kong actress
- Ally McCoist, Scottish footballer and TV pundit
- September 25 – Aida Turturro, American actress
- September 26
- Jacky Wu, Taiwanese talk show host, singer, and actor
- Al Pitrelli, American guitarist
- Melissa Sue Anderson, American actress
- Steve Moneghetti, Australian long-distance runner
- September 27 – Kimberly Carson, American pornographic actress
- September 28 – Grant Fuhr, Canadian hockey player
- September 30 – Frank Rijkaard, Dutch football player and manager
- October 1 – Esai Morales, American actor
- October 2 – James Hunter, English singer
- October 3 – Tommy Lee, American rock musician and drummer
- October 5 – Caron Keating, British TV presenter (d. 2004)
- October 6 – Rich Yett, American baseball player
- October 11
- Nicola Bryant, British actress
- Joan Cusack, American actress and comedian
- October 12 – Deborah Foreman, American actress
- October 13
- T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh, American actress and comedian
- Margareth Menezes, Brazilian singer
- Kelly Preston, American actress
- Jerry Rice, American football player
- October 16
- Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Russian baritone
- Tamara McKinney, American alpine skier
- Flea, Australian actor and rock bassist (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
- Manute Bol, Sudanese basketball player and activist (d. 2010)
- October 19
- October 23
- Doug Flutie, American football player
- Mike Tomczak, American football player
- October 24 – Jay Novacek, American football player
- October 25
- Nick Hancock, British actor and television presenter
- Darlene Vogel, American actress
- October 26 – Cary Elwes, British actor
- October 27
- Ang Peng Siong, Singapore sportsman
- Junichi Kanemaru, Japanese Seiyu
- October 28 – Daphne Zuniga, American actress
- October 30 – Courtney Walsh, West Indian cricketer
November–December
- November 1
- November 3
- Gabe Newell, American business executive
- Jacqui Smith, UK Home Secretary
- November 4 – Jeff Probst, American television personality
- November 6 – Aznil Nawawi, Malaysian TV host
- November 7 – Bettina Hoy, German equestrienne
- November 11
- Mic Michaeli, Swedish keyboardist
- Demi Moore, American actress
- James Morrison, Australian musician
- November 12 – Neal Shusterman, American author
- November 13 – Steve Altes, American humorist
- November 15 – Judy Gold, American comedian and actress
- November 18 – Kirk Hammett, American rock musician (Metallica)
- November 19 – Jodie Foster, American actress and director
- November 21 – Steven Curtis Chapman, American Christian musician
- November 22 – Sumi Jo, Korean operatic soprano
- November 24
- John Kovalic, American cartoonist
- Ggreg Snyder, American actor and pop culturist
- November 27 – Marumi Shiraishi, Japanese actress
- November 28 – Jon Stewart, American actor and comedian
- November 29 – Andrew McCarthy, American actor
- November 30
- Bo Jackson, American football and baseball player
- Daniel Keys Moran, American writer
- December 1
- Sylvie Daigle, Canadian speed skater
- Shōzō Hayashiya (9th), Japanese rakugoka, tarento and seiyū
- December 3 – Tammy Jackson, American basketball player
- December 4 – Anna Walker, British television presenter
- December 5 – José Cura, Argentine tenor
- December 6 – Janine Turner, American actress
- December 9 – Felicity Huffman, American actress
- December 10 – Scott Capurro, American comedian
- December 11
- Denise Biellmann, Swiss figure skater
- Ben Browder, American actor
- December 12
- Tracy Austin, American tennis player
- Arturo Barrios, Mexican long-distance runner
- December 14 – Yvonne Ryding, Swedish pageant winner (Miss Universe 1984)
- December 16 – Maruschka Detmers, Dutch actress
- December 17
- Paul Dobson, English footballer
- Richard Jewell, American security guard and media figure (d. 2007)
- Galina Malchugina, Russian athlete
- Rocco Mediate, American golfer
- December 19 – Jill Talley, American actress
- December 22 – Ralph Fiennes, English actor
- December 23 – Keiji Mutoh, Japanese professional wrestler
- December 27
- Barbara Crampton, American actress
- Mark Few, American basketball coach
- Bill Self, American basketball coach
- Sherri Steinhauer, American golfer
- December 28
- Michelle Cameron, Canadian synchronised swimmer
- Choi Soo Jong, South Korean actor
- December 30 – Alessandra Mussolini, Italian politician
Deaths
January–June
- January 4 – Hans Lammers, German Nazi minister (b. 1879)
- January 6 – Marziyya Davudova, Azerbaijani actress (b. 1901)
- January 13 – Ernie Kovacs, American TV comedian (b. 1919)
- January 19 – Snub Pollard, American actor (b. 1889)
- January 20 – Robinson Jeffers, American poet (b. 1887)
- January 26 – Lucky Luciano, American gangster (b. 1897)
- January 29 – Fritz Kreisler, Austrian violinist (b. 1875)
- February 1 – Carey Wilson, American screenwriter (b. 1889)
- February 2 – Shlomo Hestrin, Canadian-born Israeli biochemist (b. 1914)
- February 5 – Jacques Ibert, French composer (b. 1890)
- February 7 – Clara Nordström, German writer and translator (b. 1886)
- February 10 – Eduard von Steiger, President of Switzerland (b. 1881)
- February 17
- February 19
- James Barton, American actor (b. 1890)
- Georgios Papanikolaou, Greek inventor (b. 1883)
- February 20 – Halliwell Hobbes, English actor (b. 1877)
- February 24 – Hu Shi, Chinese liberal (b. 1891)
- February 27 – Willie Best, American actor (b. 1916)
- February 28 – Chic Johnson, American actor (b. 1891)
- March 1 – Roscoe Ates, American actor (b. 1895)
- March 15 – Arthur Compton, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
- March 20 – C. Wright Mills, American sociologist (b. 1916)
- March 24
- April 10
- April 13 – Culbert Olson, Governor of California (b. 1876)
- April 15
- Clara Blandick, American actress (b. 1880)
- Arsenio Lacson, Filipino politician and sportswriter (b. 1911)
- April 17 – Louise Fazenda, American actress (b. 1895)
- April 21 – Sir Frederick Handley Page, British aircraft manufacturer (b. 1885)
- April 22 – Vera Reynolds, American actress (b. 1899)
- April 24 – Milt Franklyn, American musician (b. 1897)
- May 5 – Ernest Tyldesley, English cricketer (b. 1889)
- May 13
- Henry Trendley Dean, American dental researcher (b. 1893)
- Franz Kline, American painter (b. 1910)
- May 27 – Egon Petri, German pianist (b. 1881)
- May 31
- Henry Fountain Ashurst, American politician (b. 1874)
- Adolf Eichmann, German Nazi official (executed) (b. 1906)
- June 2 – Vita Sackville-West, English writer and landscape gardener (b. 1892)
- June 4 – Charles William Beebe, American oceanic pioneer (b. 1877)
- June 6
- June 7 – Korneli Kekelidze, Georgian philologist (b. 1879)
- June 8 – Eugène Freyssinet, French civil engineer (b. 1879)
- June 12 – John Ireland, English composer (b. 1879)
- June 13 – Eugène Aynsley Goossens, English composer (b. 1893)
- June 15 – Alfred Cortot, Swiss pianist (b. 1877)
- June 19
- Frank Borzage, American film director (b. 1894)
- Will Wright, American character actor (b. 1891)
- June 24 – Lucile Watson, Canadian actress of stage & screen (b. 1879)
- June 27 – Paul Viiding, Estonian poet, author and literary critic (b. 1904)
- June 28 – Mickey Cochrane, American baseball player (b. 1903)
July–December
- July 4 – Rex Bell, American actor (b. 1903)
- July 6
- Paul Boffa, Maltese politician, Prime Minister of Malta (1947–1950) (b. 1890)
- William Faulkner, American writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1897)
- Archduke Joseph August of Austria, Austrian field marshal (b. 1872)
- July 8 – Georges Bataille, French writer (b. 1897)
- July 10 – Yehuda Leib Maimon, Bassarabian-born Israeli rabbi and government minister (b. 1875)
- July 12 – Roger Wolfe Kahn, American band leader (b. 1907)
- July 13 – Jerry Wald, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1911)
- July 21 – G.M. Trevelyan, English historian (b. 1876)
- July 23 – Victor Moore, American actor (b. 1876)
- July 27 – Richard Aldington, English poet (b. 1892)
- July 30 – Myron McCormick, American actor (b. 1908)
- August 5 – Marilyn Monroe, American actress (b. 1926)
- August 9 – Hermann Hesse, German-born writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1877)
- August 15 – Lei Feng, Chinese soldier (b. 1940)
- August 18 – Cleo Ridgely, American actress (b. 1893)
- August 23 – Hoot Gibson, American actor (b. 1892)
- August 24 – Mykolas Biržiška, Lithuanian politician (b. 1882)
- August 28 – John Collum, American actor (b. 1926)
- September 3 – E. E. Cummings, American poet (b. 1894)
- September 6 – Hanns Eisler, German-born composer (b. 1898)
- September 7
- Karen Blixen, Danish writer (b. 1885)
- Morris Louis, American painter (b. 1912)
- Graham Walker, British motorcycle racer (b. 1896)
- September 18 – Ahmad bin Yahya, King of Yemen (b. 1891)
- September 19 – Nikolai Pogodin, Soviet playwright (b. 1900)
- September 24 – Charles Reisner, American silent actor and film director (b. 1887)
- October 2 – Frank Lovejoy, American actor (b. 1912)
- October 6 – Tod Browning, American film director (b. 1882)
- October 9 – Milan Vidmar, Slovenian chess player (b. 1885)
- October 26 – Louise Beavers, American actress (b. 1902)
- October 27 – Enrico Mattei, Italian politician (plane crash) (b. 1906)
- November 7 – Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States (b. 1884)
- November 15 – Irene Lentz, American costume designer (b. 1900)
- November 18 – Niels Bohr, Danish physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1885)
- November 22 – René Coty, President of France (b. 1882)
- November 28 – Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (b. 1880)
- November 29 – Erik Scavenius, Prime Minister of Denmark (b. 1877)
- December 7 – Kirsten Flagstad, Norwegian soprano (b. 1895)
- December 15 – Charles Laughton, English actor and director (b. 1899)
- December 16 – Lew Landers, American TV and film director (b. 1901)
- December 17 – Thomas Mitchell, American actor (b. 1892)
- December 18 – Garrett Mattingly, American historian (b. 1900)
- December 20 – Emil Artin, Austrian mathematician (b. 1898)
- December 24 – Wilhelm Ackermann, German mathematician (b. 1896)
Nobel Prizes
Academy Awards
- Best Picture: West Side Story, Robert Wise
- Best Foreign Language Film: Såsom i en spegel, Sweden
- Best Documentary Feature: Le Ciel et la Boue (Sky Above and Mud Beneath), Ardennes Films
- Best Director: Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, West Side Story'
- Best Actor: Maximilian Schell, Judgment at Nuremberg
- Best Actress: Sophia Loren, Two Women
- Best Supporting Actor: George Chakiris, West Side Story
- Best Supporting Actress: Rita Moreno, West Side Story
- Best Original Screenplay: William Inge, Splendor in the Grass
- Best Adapted Screenplay: Abby Mann, Judgment at Nuremberg
In fiction
Notes
