On This Day

What Happened in 1969

Important Events in 1969

  • Feb 4 The Palestine National Congress appoints Yasser Arafat chairman of the PLO
  • Feb 5 United States population reaches 200 million
  • Apr 7 The Internet's symbolic birth date: publication of RFC 1
  • Jul 20 Apollo 11 lunar module carrying Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin lands on the surface of the Moon; Aldrin and Armstrong walk on the moon seven hours later; Michael Collins remains in orbit in the lunar module
  • Jul 21 Apollo 11: Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to step on the Moon at 2:56:15 AM (GMT)
  • Aug 14 British Army deploys on the streets of Northern Ireland, marking the beginning of Operation Banner
  • Sep 1 Colonel Muammar Gaddafi deposes King Idris in the Libyan revolution
  • Oct 15 Vietnam Moratorium Day; millions nationwide protest the war
  • Nov 15 An estimated 2 million people take part in the Vietnam War Moratorium Demonstration across the United States
  • Nov 19 Apollo 12's Charles Conrad and Alan Bean become the 3rd and 4th humans on the Moon
  • Nov 22 Isolation of a single gene announced by scientists at Harvard University
  • Dec 5 Four-node ARPANET network is established

More Historical Events

1969 in Film & TV

  • Feb 24 "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" film based on novel by Muriel Spark directed by Ronald Neame, starring Maggie Smith (Academy Award Best Actress) premieres in London
  • Mar 28 Greek poet and Nobel Prize laureate Giorgos Seferis makes a famous statement on the BBC World Service opposing the junta in Greece
  • May 11 British comedy troupe Monty Python forms, made up of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin
  • Jun 18 "The Wild Bunch", directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring William Holden and Ernest Borgnine, is released

1969 in Music

  • Jan 12 Debut album of Led Zeppelin released first in the US
  • Jun 20 200,000 attend Newport '69', then largest-ever pop concert in Northridge, California. Jimi Hendrix gets $120,000 to appear.
  • Jul 11 David Bowie releases the single "Space Oddity" 9 days before Apollo 11 lands on the moon
  • Aug 15 Woodstock Music & Art Fair opens in New York State on Max Yasgur's Dairy Farm

1969 in Sport

  • Mar 1 New York Yankees legend Mickey Mantle announces his retirement due to persistent knee injuries; finishes 18-season career with 536 home runs and .298 batting average
  • May 5 Milwaukee Bucks sign #1 NBA Draft pick, star UCLA center Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar)
  • Jun 8 MLB legend Mickey Mantle gives his farewell retirement speech during "Mickey Mantle Day" at Yankee Stadium, 60,096 see #7 retired

Do you know this fact about today?Did You Know?

The first automatic teller machine in the United States is installed in Rockville Center, New York.

On September 2, 1969

Famous People Born in 1969

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Famous People in 1969

World Leaders in 1969

Would you believe this fact about today?Would You Believe?

Brazilian soccer icon Pele scores his 1,000th goal

On November 20, 1969

Famous Weddings in 1969

  • Jan 18 Actress Audrey Hepburn marries 2nd husband Italian psychiatrist Andrea Dotti
  • Feb 16 American country singer Tammy Wynette (26) weds American country singer-songwriter George Jones (37), divorced 1975
  • Mar 8 12 year old Marcella Rosciglione becomes Italy's youngest bride in Palermo after Catholic Church gives special permission after she eloped

Famous Divorces in 1969

  • Sep 18 Actor Rod Taylor (39) divorces model Mary Hilem after 5 years of marriage

More Weddings & Divorces

Famous People Who Died in 1969

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1969 in Articles and Photos

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