What Happened in May 1960

Historical Events

Event of Interest

May 3 The Anne Frank House opens in Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Jewish Victim & Diarist of the Holocaust Anne Frank — Jewish Victim & Diarist of the Holocaust
Anne Frank

May 4 1st great Delta dam closes, North-South Beveland

Event of Interest

May 6 US President Eisenhower signs Civil Rights Act of 1960

34th US President & WWII General Dwight D. Eisenhower — 34th US President & WWII General
Dwight D. Eisenhower

May 6 Students attack Dutch embassy in Jakarta
May 6 Trotsky's murderer Jacques Mornard (Ramon Mercader) freed in Mexico
May 7 "Christine" closes at 46th St Theater NYC after 12 performances
May 7 "Flower Drum Song" closes at St James Theater NYC after 602 performances
May 7 "From A to Z" closes at Plymouth Theater NYC after 21 performances
May 7 86th Kentucky Derby: Bill Hartack on Venetian Way wins in 2:02.4
May 7 Dodgers Larry & Norm Sherry are baseball's 10th brother battery
May 7 LA Dodger Norm Sherry's 11th HR wins the game for brother Larry

Event of Interest

May 7 Leonid Brezhnev replaces Kliment Voroshilov as President of USSR

Soviet General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev — Soviet General Secretary
Leonid Brezhnev

May 7 Michael Tal beats Botvinnik 12½-8½ for world chess championship
May 7 USSR announces Francis Gary Powers confesses to being a CIA spy
May 8 USSR & Cuba resume diplomatic relations
May 9 Nigeria becomes a member of British Commonwealth
May 9 US becomes the first country to legalize the birth control pill

Event of Interest

May 10 John F. Kennedy wins primary in West Virginia

35th US President John F. Kennedy — 35th US President
John F. Kennedy

May 10 US atomic submarine USS Triton completes 1st submerged circumnavigation of the globe

May 11 French liner "France" launched

'The Banality of Evil'

May 11 Israeli soldiers capture Adolf Eichmann in Buenos Aires
More >>

Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann sits in the dock at his 1961 trial in Jerusalem

Event of Interest

May 12 Elvis Presley appears on a Frank Sinatra special

Singer & Cultural Icon Elvis Presley — Singer & Cultural Icon
Elvis Presley

May 13 1st launch of Delta satellite launching vehicle; it failed
May 13 Phillies lose 3rd consecutive 1-0 game
May 13 WOLE TV channel 12 in Aguadillo, PR
May 14 "At the Drop of a Hat" closes at John Golden NYC after 216 performances
May 14 USSR launch 1st (unmanned) space capsule
May 14 Virgil Thomson's "Missa Pro Defunctis" premieres in Potsdam, NY
May 15 Chic Cub Don Cardwell no-hits St Louis Cards, 4-0
May 15 Dmitri Shostakovitch's 7th String quartet premieres in Leningrad
May 15 KHVO TV channel 13 in Hilo, HI (ABC) begins broadcasting
May 15 Sputnik 4 launched into Earth orbit; later recovery failed
May 15 Taxes took 25% of earnings in US
May 15 "L'Avventura", Italian film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni, starring Gabriele Ferzetti, Monica Vitti. premieres at Cannes
May 16 Big 4 summit in Paris collapses as USSR levels spy charges against US
May 16 Theodore Maiman operates the first optical laser, at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California
May 17 1st atomic reactor system patented by J W Flora of Canoga Park, California
May 18 Eillen Fulton begins playing Lisa on As the World Turns (for almost 30 yrs)
May 18 Jean Genet's "Le Balcon" premieres in Paris
May 18 5th European Cup: Real Madrid beats Frankfurt 7-3 at Glasgow
May 19 Alan Freed & eight other DJs accused of taking radio payola
May 19 Belgian parliament requires rest day for self employed
May 19 Juan Marichal debuts as SF Giant pitcher, beats Phillies on 1 hitter
May 19 USAF Maj Robert M White takes X-15 to 33,222 m
May 20 Baseball game in Milwaukee postponed due to dense fog

Event of Interest

May 20 13th Cannes Film Festival: "The Sweet Life" directed by Federico Fellini wins the Palme d'Or

Film director, Scriptwriter Federico Fellini — Film director, Scriptwriter
Federico Fellini

May 21 85th Preakness: Bobby Ussery aboard Bally Ache wins in 1:57.6

Event of Interest

May 21 Leontyne Price becomes the first African American to sing the lead at Teatro alla Scala in Milan in "Aida"

Opera Soprano Leontyne Price — Opera Soprano
Leontyne Price

May 22 Tsunami strikes Hilo, Hawaii at 01:04 AM, severely damaging virtually all coastal towns between the 37th and 44th parallels
May 23 "Finian's Rainbow" opens at 46th St Theater NYC for 12 performances
May 23 "Got A Girl" by The Four Preps hits #24

Event of Interest

May 23 Israel announces capture of Nazi Adolf Eichmann in Argentina

SS officer Adolf Eichmann — SS officer
Adolf Eichmann

May 23 WGTV TV channel 8 in Athens-Atlanta, GA (PBS) begins broadcasting
May 23 WKBM TV (now WLII) channel 11 in Caguas/San Juan, PR 1st broadcast
May 23 WRCA radio changes call letters back to WNBC (NYC)
May 24 1 millionth Dutch telephone installed
May 25 George Crowe's record 11th pinch-hit HR
May 27 Baltimore manager Paul Richards devises oversized catcher's mitt, used by Baltimore Oriole Clint Courtney
May 27 Military coup overthrows democratic government of Turkey
May 28 "Greenwillow" closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 95 performances
May 28 59th Men's French Championships: Nicola Pietrangeli beats Luis Ayala (3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3)

Tennis Open

May 28 59th Women's French Championships: Darlene Hard beats Yola Ramirez (6-3, 6-4)

Tennis Player Darlene Hard — Tennis Player
Darlene Hard

May 29 Everly Brothers "Cathy's Clown" hits #1
May 30 Indianapolis 500: Jim Rathmann wins in 3:36:11.384 (223.324 km/h)

Famous Birthdays

May 2 Ravi Ratnayeke, Sri Lankan cricketer (Sri Lankan pace bowler & opening batsman), born in Colombo, Ceylon
May 3 Amy Steel, American actress (April Fool's Day), born in Pennsylvania
May 4 Martyn Moxon, English cricketer (England batsman in ten Tests 1986-89), born in Stairfoot, Barnsley, Yorkshire
May 4 Andrew Denton, Australian television presenter and comedian, born in Sydney, Australia
May 6 Bart de Boer, Dutch guitarist (Ivy Green)
May 6 Julianne Phillips, Lake Oswego Oregon, actress (Frankie Reed-Sisters)
May 6 Larry Steinbachek, rock synthesizer (Bronski Beat-Smalltown Boy)
May 6 John Flansburgh, American musician
May 6 Phyllis Treigle, American soprano
May 7 Arnon Ohad, co-pilot (El Al) plane that crashed on Bijlmer Amsterdam
May 7 Adam Bernstein, American music video and television director, born in Princeton, New Jersey
May 7 Almudena Grandes, Spanish novelist (Las edades de Lulú), born in Madrid, Spain
May 8 Eric Brittingham, American rock bassist (Cinderella-Heartbreak Station), born in Salisbury, Maryland
May 8 Franco Baresi, Italian footballer
May 9 Iain Butchart, cricket all-rounder (Zimbabwe, Test v Pak 1995)
May 9 Jim Reilly, rocker (Red Rockers)
May 9 Tony Gwynn, American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (8-time NL batting champion), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2014)

Bono

May 10 Bono [Paul Hewson], rocker (U2-Joshua Tree), born in Dublin, Ireland

May 10 Merlene Ottey, Jamaican/Italian running star (Olympics)
May 10 Tauseef Ahmed, cricketer (leading Pakistani off-spinner of 80's)
May 10 Victoria Rowell, actress (Drucilla-Young & Restless), born in Portland, Maine
May 11 Jorgen Schult, German FR, discus thrower (world record 1986)
May 12 Lisa Martin, Gawler, South Australia, Australian marathoner (Olympic-silver 1988)
May 13 Richard M "Dick" van de Toorn, actor (Pastorale)
May 13 Shannon Vessup-Millen, WPVA volleyballer (National-9th-1991), born in Los Angeles, California
May 14 Carlyle Best, cricketer (WI batsman late 80's)
May 14 Frank Nobilo, New Zealand golfer, born in Auckland
May 14 Anne Clark, English singer
May 14 Steve Williams, American wrestler
May 15 Rob Bowman, American film director
May 16 Anne Parillaud, actress (Subway, Nikita, Innocent Blood), born in Paris, France
May 17 Fiona Hutchison, actress (One Life to Live, Guiding Light), born in Miami, Florida
May 17 Lou DiBella, American boxing promoter

Jari Kurri

May 18 Jari Kurri, Finnish NHL right wing (Edmonton Oilers), born in Helsinki, Finland

May 18 Tom Jackson, Oakville Ont, Canadian Tour golfer (1991 CPGA Winter)

Yannick Noah

May 18 Yannick Noah, French tennis player (French Open 1983), born in Sedan, France

May 19 Yazz, [Yasmin Evans], singer (Fine Time), born in London, England
May 20 Susan Cowsill, rock vocalist (The Cowsills - We Can Fly), born in Newport, Rhode Island
May 20 Tony Goldwyn, actor (Ghost, Kuffs, Traces of Red), born in Los Angeles, California
May 20 John Billingsley, American actor
May 21 Mark Kevin Carnevale, PGA golfer (1992 Chattanooga), born in Annapolis, Maryland
May 21 Kent Hrbek, American baseball player
May 21 Mohanlal, Indian actor

Jeffrey Dahmer

May 21 Jeffrey Dahmer, American serial killer (Milwaukee Cannibal), born in West Allis, Wisconsin (d. 1994)

May 22 Hideaki Anno, Japanese director
May 24 Pete Metzelaars, NFL tight end (Carolina Panthers, GB Packers, Lions)
May 24 Kristin Scott Thomas, British actress (The English Patient, Mission: Impossible), born in Redruth, Cornwall, England
May 24 Guy Fletcher, British musician and keyboardist (Dire Straights), born in Maidstone, Kent
May 25 Amy Klobuchar, American politician, junior senator from Minnesota
May 26 Rob Murphy, American baseball player
May 27 Ray Armsetad, 4X400 runner (Olympic gold 1984), born in Kirksville, Missouri
May 27 Vinodhan John, cricket pace bowler (Sri Lankan in 6 Tests 1983-84)
May 28 Allan Green, cricketeer
May 29 Adrian Paul, actor (Dance to Win, Highlander), born in London, England
May 30 Stephen "Tea Tower" Duffy, rocker (Lilac Time-Paradise Song)
May 31 Chris Elliott, actor/comedian (Get a Life, David Letterman Show), born in NYC, New York
May 31 Norm Johnson, NFL place kicker (Seattle Seahawk, Pittsburgh Steelers)
May 31 Peter Winterbottom, British rugby player

Famous Weddings

May 6 English Princess Margaret marries Antony Armstrong-Jones (later Lord Snowdon) at Westminster Abbey

Famous Deaths

May 2 Caryl Chessman, rapist executed after 12 years of appeals at 39
May 5 Sulho Ranta, Finnish composer, dies at 58
May 6 Paul Abraham, Hungarian composer (Blume von Hawaii), dies at 67
May 8 Hugo Alfven, Swedish composer (Midsommarvaka), dies at 88
May 8 J. H. C. Whitehead, British mathematician (b. 1904)
May 10 Yuri Olesha, Russian writer, dies at 61

John D. Rockefeller Jr

May 11 John D. Rockefeller Jr, American financier and philanthropist, dies of pneumonia at 86

May 12 Cecil Armstrong Gibbs, English composer, dies at 70
May 12 Prince Aly Khan [Ali Salman Aga Khan], Pakistani socialite, jockey, political ambassador and husband to Rita Hayworth, dies from injuries sustained in a car accident at 48
May 17 Ioannis Georgiadis, Greek fencer (Olympic 1896 gold), dies at 84
May 23 Georges Claude, engineer/inventor, dies
May 27 Edward Brophy, American character actor (Champ, Dumbo, Great Guy, Cameraman, Doughboys), dies at 65
May 27 George Zucco, British actor (Fog Island, Black Raven, Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Captain Fury), dies at 74
May 27 James Montgomery Flagg, American illustrator, dies at 82

Boris Pasternak

May 30 Boris Pasternak, Russian poet and novelist (Doctor Zhivago) (Nobel Prize 1958), dies at 70

May 31 Willem Elsschot [Alfons Josephus de Ridder], Flemish writer (Kas), dies at 78
May 31 Walther Funk, German economist and Nazi politician, dies at 69

1959
On This Day
1961