What Happened in 1961

Construction Begins on the Berlin Wall

The Berlin Wall (German: Berliner Mauer) was a physical barrier completely encircling West Berlin, separating it from the German Democratic... Read more

Alliance for Progress is Signed at an Inter-American Conference in Uruguay

...we propose to complete the revolution of the Americas, to build a hemisphere where all men can hope for a suitable standard of living and all... Read more

TWA Flight 529 Crashes, Killing 78

At 2:04 a.m., four minutes out of Chicago's Midway Airport, something—Civil Aeronautics Board investigators are trying to discover what it was—went... Read more

Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 706 Crashes on Take-Off

Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 706, registration N137US, was a Lockheed L-188 Electra aircraft which crashed on take-off from Chicago's O'Hare... Read more

Betty and Barney Hill Alien Abduction

A faint pair of stars, 220 trillion miles away, has been tentatively identified as the “home base” of intelligent extraterrestrials who allegedly... Read more

"The Hustler" Is Released

The Hustler is a 1961 American drama film. It tells the story of small-time pool hustler "Fast Eddie" Felson and his desire to prove himself the... Read more

Lynne Brown Is Born

Lynne Brown is a former Premier of the Western Cape province in South Africa. She was born in Cape Town on 26 September, 1961 and grew up in... Read more

Roger Maris Hits His Sixty-First Home Run

On October 1, 1961, Roger Maris slammed home run number sixty-one into the stands. In the last game of the regular season, Maris broke the... Read more

1961 World Series

The 1961 World Series matched the New York Yankees (109–53) against the Cincinnati Reds (93–61), with the Yankees winning in five games to earn... Read more

Breakfast At Tiffany's Is Released

Breakfast at Tiffany's is a 1961 American film starring Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard, and featuring Patricia Neal, Buddy Ebsen, Martin Balsam,... Read more

"Splendor In The Grass" Is Released

Splendor in the Grass, an American movie from 1961, tells a story of sexual repression, love, and heartbreak. Written by William Inge, who appears... Read more

Wynton Marsalis is born

Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter and composer. He is among the most prominent jazz musicians of the modern... Read more

West Side Story (film) released

West Side Story is a 1961 American film directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins. It is an adaptation of the Broadway musical of the same name,... Read more

Larry Mullen Jr. born

Mullen, the middle child and only son of Larry and Maureen Mullen, was born 31 October 1961, and raised in Artane, on the north side of Dublin,... Read more

Agatha Christie publishes The Pale Horse

The Pale Horse is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on November 6 1961 and in... Read more

Imperial Airlines Flight 201/8 Crashes

Imperial Airlines Flight 201/8 was a Lockheed Constellation L-049 four-engine propliner, registration N2737A, chartered by the United States Army... Read more

'Catch-22' is Published

Like all superlative works of comedy - and I am ready to argue that this is one of the most bitterly funny works in the language - Catch-22 is... Read more

Aerolineas Argentinas Flight 322 Crashes

Aerolineas Argentinas Flight 322 was the flight number of a scheduled international passenger flight from Buenos Aires to Trinidad and New York... Read more

President Kennedy Authorizes Operation Mongoose

The Cuban Project (also known as Operation Mongoose or the Special Group or the Special Group Augmented) was a program of CIA covert operations... Read more

Martin Luther King, Jr. Becomes Involved in the Albany Movement

The Albany Movement was a desegregation coalition formed in Albany, Georgia, on November 17, 1961. Local activists, the Student Nonviolent... Read more

Ernie Davis Wins Heisman Trophy

Ernie Davis of Syracuse, a big, rugged 6'2", 212-pounder, played left halfback and was his team's leading ground-gainer for three seasons. He... Read more

Albert Lutuli is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

If the nonwhite people of South Africa ever lift themselves from their humiliation without resorting to violence and terror, then it will be above... Read more

Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld was a Swedish diplomat and author and was the second Secretary-General of the United Nations. He served from... Read more

"One, Two, Three" Is Released

One, Two, Three is a 1961 American comedy film directed by Billy Wilder and written by I.A.L. Diamond, based on a one-act play Egy, kettö, három by... Read more

Gran Circo Norteamericano Fire

Fire roared through a nylon circus tent here Sunday afternoon as 2,500 persons watched a performance. Police estimated 250 were killed. It was... Read more