Historical Events
- Jan 7 US President Harry Truman announces American development of the hydrogen bomb
- Feb 28 Francis Crick and James Watson discover the chemical structure of DNA-molecule (double-helix polymer) using studies of x-ray diffraction developed by Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins
- Mar 26 Dr. Jonas Salk announces that he has successfully tested a vaccine to prevent Polio, clinical trials began the next year
- Apr 25 Francis Crick and James Watson's discovery of the double helix structure of DNA is published in "Nature" magazine
- May 29 Edmund Hillary (NZ) and Tenzing Norgay (Nepal) are first to reach the summit of Mount Everest as part of a British Expedition
- Jun 2 Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Abbey, London, England
- Jul 26 Fidel Castro leads a failed attack on the Moncada Barracks, intended to spark a revolution in Cuba
- More Historical Events
1953 in Film & TV
- Jan 1 The first TV detector van, used to track down users of unlicensed television sets, begins operation in the UK
- Mar 26 "Ugetsu", Japanese film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi, starring Masayuki Mori, Machiko Kyō and Kinuyo Tanaka, is released
- Apr 3 American magazine "TV Guide" publishes 1st issue; cover features photo of Lucille Ball's new born baby boy, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV (later professionally known as Desi Arnaz, Jr.)
- Apr 10 "House of Wax" 1st color 3-D movie, premieres in New York
- Nov 3 "Tokyo Story", Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu, starring Chishū Ryū, Chieko Higashiyama and Setsuko Hara, is released
- Dec 1 Hugh Hefner publishes 1st edition of Playboy magazine, featuring Marilyn Monroe as the magazine's 1st centerfold
- Dec 30 The first ever NTSC color television sets go on sale for about USD at $1,175 each from RCA.
1953 in Sport
Did You Know?
Did You Know?Dwight D. Eisenhower gives his "Atoms for Peace" speech at the United Nations in New York
On December 8, 1953
Jeb Bush
Pierce Brosnan
Tim Allen
Xi Jinping
Benazir Bhutto
Hulk HoganFamous People in 1953
Audrey Hepburn
Konrad Adenauer
William HoldenWorld Leaders in 1953
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Mao Zedong
Nikita Khrushchev
Would You Believe?
The first U.S. experimental 3D-TV broadcast showed an episode of Space Patrol on Los Angeles ABC affiliate KECA-TV
On April 29, 1953
Famous Weddings
- Jan 15 Cricketer Richie Benaud (22) weds Marcia Lavender at the Wesley Church in Sydney, Australia
- Feb 14 Actress Agnes Moorehead (52) weds actor & film director Robert Gist (35)
- Apr 6 MLB baseball player Ernie Banks (22) weds Mollye Louise
Famous Divorces
- Jul 7 Actor José Ferrer divorces dancer and actress Phyllis Hill after 5 years of marriage
- Aug 28 American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald (36) divorces American jazz bassist Ray Brown (27) after 6 years of marriage
More Weddings & Divorces
Hank Williams
Joseph Stalin
Django Reinhardt
Ethel Rosenberg
Edwin Hubble
Ibn Saud1953 in Pictures
Mass Murderer Stalin Goes to His Grave
Countless millions of Russians were killed by the hand of Joseph Stalin, one of the most feared and brutal dictators of all time. He himself died on this day.March 5TV Guide's First Issue
TV Guide's first edition with Desi Arnaz Jr. on the coverApril 3Tenzing Norgay on the Summit of Mount Everest
Tenzing Norgay brandishes his ice axe on the summit of Mount EverestMay 29The King is Dead; Long Live the Queen
Princess Elizabeth was in Africa when her father died and she became Queen. Her coronation, on this day in history, could be described as a magnificent washout.June 2Korean War Ends
Signing of the armistice which ended the active fighting phase of the Korean WarJuly 27Bare Bones of the Great Ape-Man Hoax
On this day the Piltdown Man skull, which had been hailed as the missing link proving an evolutionary relationship between man and apes, was revealed as a hoax.November 21
