What Happened in 1960

Sharpeville Massacre

The Sharpeville Massacre, also known as the Sharpeville shootings, occurred on 21 March 1960, when South African police began shooting on a crowd... Read more

32nd Academy Awards

The 32nd Academy Awards honored film achievements of 1959 on 4 April 1960. MGM's (producer Sam Zimbalist) and director William Wyler's three and... Read more

Arnold Palmer wins the 24th Masters Tournament

Arnold Palmer went wire-to-wire to win the 1960 Masters, finishing at 6-under par and one stroke in front of Ken Venturi. Palmer birdied the... Read more

Elvis Presley releases Elvis Is Back!

Elvis Is Back! is the tenth album by Elvis Presley, released on RCA Victor Records in mono and stereo, LPM/LSP 2231, in April 1960. Recording... Read more

Montreal Canadiens win Stanley Cup

The 1960 Stanley Cup Final was contested by the defending champion Montreal Canadiens, appearing in their tenth consecutive Final series and the... Read more

American U-2 Spy Plane is Shot Down Over the Soviet Union

On May 1, 1960, thirteen days before the scheduled opening of an East–West summit conference in Paris, a U.S. Lockheed U-2A spy plane, 56-6693,... Read more

Anne Frank House Opens on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam

The Anne Frank House on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, is a museum dedicated to Jewish wartime diarist Anne Frank, who hid from... Read more

The FDA announces it will approve Enovid 10mg the first contraceptive pill

Margaret Sanger, totally unaware that her lifelong dream had become reality, spent the day at her home outside Tucson, Ariz. Since 1914 she had... Read more

Bono (Paul David Hewson) born in Dublin, Ireland

Bono was born in Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland, and was raised there with his brother, Norman Hewson, by their mother Iris (née Rankin), a Church of... Read more

The Quarry Men become The Silver Beats

The well-known British impresario Larry Parnes is looking for musicians and backing acts for his "stars", including, for example, Billy Fury, and... Read more

Valdivia Earthquake of 1960

The 1960 Valdivia earthquake or Great Chilean Earthquake of 22 May, 1960 is the most powerful earthquake ever recorded, rating 9.5 on the moment... Read more

"The Apartment" Is Released

The Apartment is a 1960 American comedy-drama film produced and directed by Billy Wilder, and starring Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, and Fred... Read more

"Psycho" Is Released

Psycho is an American 1960 suspense/horror movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock, from the screenplay by Joseph Stefano. The film is based on the... Read more

"L'Avventura" Is Released

L'avventura (The Adventure) is a 1960 Italian film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and developed from his initial scenario. Monica Vitti and... Read more

Ernest Hemingway Moves to Ketchum, Idaho

When he left Spain, Hemingway travelled straight to Idaho; but was worried about money and his safety. His paranoia became acute and he believed... Read more

"Elmer Gantry" Is Released

Elmer Gantry is a 1960 drama film about a con man and a female evangelist selling religion to small town America. Adapted by director Richard... Read more

'To Kill A Mockingbird' is Published

Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird is the rare American novel that can be discovered with excitement in adolescence and reread into adulthood... Read more

"The Entertainer" Is Released

The Entertainer is a 1960 film adaptation of the stage play of the same name by John Osborne, which told the story of a failing third-rate music... Read more

Aretha Franklin Records Four Demos in NYC

August 1, 1960: Aretha Franklin records four demos in New York City, which lead to a contract with Columbia Records. Read more

Pete Best joins the Beatles

The group invited Pete Best to become their drummer on 12 August 1960. Four days after hiring Best, the group left for Hamburg. The Beatles began a... Read more

Launch of Sputnik 5

Korabl-Sputnik-2 (Spaceship Satellite-2), also known as Sputnik 5, was launched on August 19, 1960. On board were the dogs Belka ( Squirrel) and... Read more

Games of the XVII Olympiad Held in Rome, Italy

The 1960 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Rome, Italy, in 1960.... Read more

Life Magazine Publishes 'The Dangerous Summer'

The book charts the rise of Antonio Ordóñez (the son of Cayetano Ordóñez, whose exploits in the bull ring and fighting technique Hemingway had... Read more

"Rocco And His Brothers" Is Released

Rocco e i suoi fratelli (English: Rocco and His Brothers is a 1960 Italian and French film directed by Luchino Visconti. Set in Milan, it tells the... Read more

Amos Alonzo Stagg Announces His Retirement

On September 16, 1960, college football coach Amos Alonzo Stagg (1862-1965), then ninety-eight years old, announced his retirement after seventy... Read more