Historical Events in December 1960

  • Dec 1 Patrice Lumumba caught in the Congo

Event of interestEvent of Interest

Dec 1 Paul McCartney and Pete Best arrested then deported from Hamburg, Germany for accusation of attempted arson.

Musician and Beatle Paul McCartney
Musician and Beatle
Paul McCartney

InventionScientific Discovery

Dec 2 Paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey discovers 1.4 million year old Homo erectus (Olduvai Hominid 9) in Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania

Archaeologist and paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey
Archaeologist and paleoanthropologist
Louis Leakey
  • Dec 3 "Camelot" opens at Majestic Theater NYC for 873 performances
  • Dec 3 Frederick Loewe nd Alan Jay Lerner's "Camelot" premieres in NYC
  • Dec 5 Ghana drops diplomatic relations with Belgium
  • Dec 6 AL grants American businessman Gene Autry a franchise, LA Angels
  • Dec 7 Ivory Coast claims independence from France
  • Dec 8 Expansion LA Angels sign a 4 year lease to use Dodger Stadium
  • Dec 9 1st broadcast of "Coronation Street" on British ITV

Nobel prizeNobel Prize

Dec 10 Willard Libby wins the Nobel prize in Chemistry for his work developing carbon-14 dating (radiocarbon dating).

Chemist Willard Libby
Chemist
Willard Libby
  • Dec 11 Black Sunday - Riot in Algiers, 114 die

Music releaseMusic Premiere

Dec 11 Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh's musical "Wildcat" with Lucille Ball premieres in New York City

Actress and Comedian Lucille Ball
Actress and Comedian
Lucille Ball
  • Dec 11 Cleveland's Bernie Parrish sets club record for longest interception return with a 92 yard run
  • Dec 13 Italy beats US in Davis cup (1st time in 24 years US not in finals)
  • Dec 13 Laos General Fumi Nosavang occupies Vientiane

  • Dec 13 Ballon d'Or: Barcelona midfielder Luis Suárez is named best football player in Europe ahead of Real Madrid's Hungarian forward Ferenc Puskás and Hamburg striker Uwe Seeler
  • Dec 14 Australia v West Indies 1st Test Cricket at the Gabba ends in a tie
  • Dec 14 Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) forms
  • Dec 14 Washington Senators joins American League
  • Dec 16 "Wildcat" opens at Alvin Theater NYC for 172 performances
  • Dec 16 TWA 266 & United 826 collide over Staten Island, kills 134
  • Dec 17 "La Plume de Ma Tante" closes at Royale Theater NYC after 835 performances
  • Dec 17 "Take Me Along" closes at Shubert Theater NYC after 448 performances
  • Dec 17 Pablo Casals' oratorio "El Pesebrio" premieres
  • Dec 18 General Meeting of UN condemns apartheid
  • Dec 19 Fire aboard USS Constellation, under construction at Brooklyn (50 die)

Music releaseMusic Recording

Dec 19 Frank Sinatra's 1st session with Reprise Records (Ring-A-Ding-Ding)

Singer and Actor Frank Sinatra
Singer and Actor
Frank Sinatra
  • Dec 19 Mercury-Redstone 1A reaches 210 km in test flight
  • Dec 20 Auschwitz commandant Richard Bar arrested in German FR
  • Dec 20 The National Liberation Front, better known as the Viet Cong, is officially formed in South Vietnam

Music releaseMusic Recording

Dec 21 Ornette Coleman records his influential album "Free Jazz: A Collective Improvisation", establishes the name for the Free Jazz sound

Jazz Composer Ornette Coleman
Jazz Composer
Ornette Coleman
  • Dec 23 De Quay's Dutch government falls
  • Dec 23 King Saud of Saudi Arabia takes power
  • Dec 24 Dutch bishops question papacy values
  • Dec 26 Musical "Do re mi" with Phil Silvers premieres St James Theater in NYC
  • Dec 26 Philadelphia Eagles beat Green Bay Packers 17-13 in NFL championship game
  • Dec 27 France performs nuclear test
  • Dec 27 1961 NFL Draft: Tommy Mason from University of Tulane first pick by Minnesota Vikings
  • Dec 28 49th Davis Cup: Australia beats Italy in Sydney (4-1)