- Jan 1 G Woods succeeds Eugene Black as president of the World Bank
- Jan 1 WTEV (now WLNE) TV channel 6 in Providence RI begins broadcasting
- Jan 1 49th Rose Bowl: #1 Southern California beats #2 Wisconsin, 42-37
- Jan 1 29th Sugar Bowl: #3 Mississippi beats #6 Arkansas, 17-13
- Jan 1 29th Orange Bowl: #5 Alabama beats #8 Oklahoma, 17-0
- Jan 3 WOUB TV channel 20 in Athens, OH (PBS) begins broadcasting
- Jan 4 Soviet Luna (4) reaches Earth orbit but fails to reach Moon
- Jan 5 "Camelot" closes at Majestic Theater NYC after 873 performances
- Jan 5 "Carnival!" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 719 performances
- Jan 6 "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom" with Marlin Perkins begins on NBC
- Jan 6 "Oliver!" opens at Imperial Theater NYC for 774 performances
- Jan 7 1st class postage raised from 4 cents to 5 cents
Event of Interest
Jan 7 The rift between Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell and head coach Paul Brown reaches a boiling point, and Brown is fired
Paul Brown
- Jan 8 "Mona Lisa", on loan, unveiled in America's National Gallery of Art
Event of Interest
Jan 8 Dmitri Shostakovich' Katharina Ismailova premieres in Riga
Dmitri Shostakovich
Event of Interest
Jan 9 Mao Zedong writes his poem "Reply to Comrade Kuo Mo-jo"
Mao Zedong
- Jan 11 Beatles release "Please Please Me" & "Ask Me Why"
- Jan 12 "Go Away Little Girl" by Steve Lawrence peaks at #1
- Jan 12 Spin bowler Bobby Simpson takes 5-57 for Australia v England
- Jan 13 2nd AFL All Star Game, Balboa Stadium, SD: Western Division beats Eastern Division, 21-14; MVPs: Curtis McClinton, Dallas Texans, RB; Earl Faison, LA Chargers, DE
NFL Pro Bowl
Jan 13 13th NFL Pro Bowl, LA Memorial Coliseum: Eastern Conference beats Western Conference, 30-20; MVPs: Jim Brown, Cleveland Browns, RB; Eugene Lipscomb, Pittsburgh Steelers, DT
Jim Brown
Event of Interest
Jan 14 George Wallace sworn in as Governor of Alabama, his address states "segregation now; segregation tomorrow; segregation forever!"
George Wallace
- Jan 14 "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Path is published by Heinemann in the UK, the author commits suicide a month later
Event of Interest
Jan 16 Khrushchev claims to have a 100-megaton nuclear bomb
Nikita Khrushchev
Event of Interest
Jan 16 Tennessee Williams' "Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore" premieres
Tennessee Williams
NBA All-Star Game
Jan 16 13th NBA All-Star Game, LA Memorial Sports Arena: East beats West, 115-108; MVP: Bill Russell, Boston Celtics, C
Bill Russell
Event of Interest
Jan 17 Wilt Chamberlain of NBA SF Warriors scores 67 points vs LA
Wilt Chamberlain
- Jan 18 Reinier Paping wins Dutch 11-Cities Skating Race (10:59)
- Jan 19 Australian Championships Women's Tennis: Margaret Court beats Jan Lehane O'Neill for 4th consecutive year 6-2, 6-2
Australian Men's Tennis Open
Jan 19 Australian Championships Men's Tennis: Roy Emerson wins 1st of 5 straight Australian titles; beats countryman Ken Fletcher 6-3, 6-3, 6-1
Roy Emerson
Treaty of Interest
Jan 22 Elysée treaty of cooperation between France and Germany signed by Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer
Charles de Gaulle
- Jan 26 "Milk & Honey" closes at Martin Beck Theater NYC after 543 performances
- Jan 26 Major League Rules Committee votes to expand strike zone
- Jan 27 Yevgeni Grishin skates world record 500m in 39.6 sec
- Jan 27 Sam Rice, Eppa Rixey, Elmer Flick, & John Clarkson elected to Baseball Hall of Fame
- Jan 28 -34°F (-37°C), Cynthiana, Kentucky (state record)
- Jan 28 "Still" single released by Bill Anderson (Billboard no. 1 U.S. Hot Country Singles, 1963)
Hall of Fame
Jan 29 Jim Thorpe, Red Grange & George Halas elected to football Hall of Fame
Event of Interest
Jan 30 Ivan Sutherland submits a thesis containing his Sketchpad program, a forerunner to modern-day graphic user interfaces and computer-aided design programs
Ivan Sutherland
Music Recording
Jan 31 Tony Sheridan & Beat Brothers record "What'd I Say" & "Ruby Baby"
Tony Sheridan