May 1958 in History

Events in History

May 8 US President Eisenhower orders National Guard out of Central High School, Little Rock, Arkansas

May 8 US VP Richard Nixon is shoved, stoned, booed and spat upon by protesters in Peru

May 11 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Bikini Island
May 11 US performs its second atmospheric nuclear test of the day, this one at Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands
May 12 US & Canada form North American Air Defense Command (NORAD)
May 12 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands
May 13 French settlers riot against French army in Algeria
May 13 Jordan & Iraq form Arab Federation
May 13 Pierre Pflimlin forms French government

May 13 The motorcade carrying US Vice President Richard Nixon is attacked in Caracas, Venezuela; several of Nixon's staff are injured

May 13 The trade mark Velcro is registered
May 15 USSR launches Sputnik III
May 16 Eli Beeding experiences 83 g deceleration on a rocket sled, New Mexico
May 16 Major Irwin, USAF, flies a Lockheed Starfight F-104 A to a record 1,404.18 MPH
May 17 Emergency crisis proclaimed in Algeria

May 19 Premiere of Harold Pinter's play "Birthday Party" in London

May 20 US performs nuclear test at Enwetak (atmospheric tests)
May 21 Indonesian paratroopers reconquer Morotai Island
May 21 US performs nuclear test at Bikini Island (atmospheric tests)
May 22 Influential modernist skyscraper the Seagram Building designed by Mies van der Rohe officially opens in Manhattan, New York
May 23 Explorer 1 ceases transmission.

May 23 Mao Zedong starts the "Great Leap Forward" movement in China

May 24 Cuban President Fulgencio Batista opens military offensive against Fidel Castro's armed rebellion

May 24 United Press Association and International News Service merge to form United Press International
May 26 Ceylon emergency crisis proclaimed
May 26 Union Square, San Francisco becomes state historical landmark
May 26 US performs nuclear test at Enwetak (atmospheric tests)
May 27 Ernest Green becomes the 1st African-American to graduate from Little Rock's Central High School
May 27 Maiden flight of the F-4 Phantom II
May 27 Vanguard SLV-1 launched for Earth orbit (failed)

May 28 French government of Prime Minister Pierre Pflimlin resigns; 200,000 demonstrate against Charles de Gaulle

May 4 American graffiti artist (Vanity Fair, Paris Review) and social activist, born in Reading, Pennsylvania

May 5 Ron Arad, Israeli Air Force weapon systems officer (WSO) who is officially classified as missing in action since October 1986, born in Hod HaSharon, Israel
May 10 Ellen Ochoa, PhD/Astronaut (STS 56, 66), born in Los Angeles, California
May 10 Rick Santorum, American politician (Rep-R-Penn 1995-2007), born in Winchester, Virginia
May 10 Yu Suzuki, Japanese creator of Virtua Fighter series
May 12 Andreas Petroulakis, Greek political caricaturist
May 12 Christian Brando, son of Marlon who killed his sisters boyfriend, born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2008)
May 23 Mitch Albom, American writer
May 23 Thomas Reiter, German cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-22)
May 25 Dorothy Straight, American 4 year old author (How the World Began), born in Washington, D.C.
May 29 Willem Holleeder, Dutch criminal and murderer, born in Amsterdam, Netherlands
May 30 Michael E Lopez-Alegria, Lt Cmdr/astro (STS 73, sk 92), born in Madrid, Spain
May 30 Steve Israel, American politician, member of the United States House of Representatives (D-New York)
May 31 Mkhuseli Jack, South African UDF-leader (consumer boycots)

May 2 Alfred Weber, German economist and sociologist, dies at 89
May 5 James Branch Cabell, American novelist and essayist (Restless Heads), dies at 79
May 7 Nyogen Senzaki, 1st Zen teacher to reside in USA, dies at 81
May 8 Nasni Matni, Lebanese journalist, assassinated at 48 or 49
May 8 Norman Bel Geddes, American theatrical designer (Rivals, Dead End), dies at 65
May 15 Michael G the Boer, historian (Harbor of Amsterdam), dies at 91
May 16 Jeroom Verten [Jozef Frans Vermetten], Flemish playwright, dies at 49
May 22 Julien de Valckenaere, Belgian poet, dies at 60
May 27 Samuel Stritch, US cardinal/archbishop (Chicago), dies
May 29 Juan Ramon Jiménez, Spanish poet (Nobel 1956), dies at 76
May 30 Jozef van Mierlo, Belgian Jesuit and literary (Hadewych), dies at 79