2022
Bertrand Russell’s Message
Bertrand Arthur William Russell (1872 – 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual who had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, computer science and various areas of analytic philosophy, especially philosophy of mathematics, philosophy of language, epistemology, and metaphysics. "An individual human existence should be like a river: small at first, narrowly contained within its banks, and rushing passionately past rocks and over waterfalls. Gradually the river grows wider, the banks recede, the waters flow more quietly, and in the end, without any visible break, they become merged in the sea, and painlessly lose their individual being." —How to grow old
Eisenhower Visits India
https://youtu.be/vAcxBX225kw?t=6 In December 1959 President Dwight Eisenhower visited India and met with President Rajenda Prasad and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. In an address to the Indian Parliament, Eisenhower said: “ We who are free, and who prize our freedom above all other gifts of God and nature, must know each other better; trust each other more; support each other." "During the Cold War, India and the USSR had a strong strategic, military, economic and diplomatic relationship. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Russia inherited its close relationship with India which resulted in both nations sharing a special relationship." - Wikipedia
Ben-Hur
Ben-Hur was a 1959 film directed by William Wyler, that starred Charlton Heston as the title character. The film was a remake of a 1925 silent film with a similar title adapted from Lew Wallace's 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. The film had the largest budget ($15.175 million) and the largest sets built, of any film produced at the time. Source: Wikipedia
The Sound of Music
https://youtu.be/btrt9_e5F5w Based on the 1949 book The Story of the Trapp Family Singers written by Maria Augusta von Trapp, the Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway musical The Sound of Music opened on Broadway in 1959. The original Broadway production, starring Mary Martin and Theodore Bikel, won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical, out of nine nominations. In 1965 The Sound of Music movie, produced and directed by Robert Wise, starred Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. https://youtu.be/aMMgcAqOYbI?t=2
The Twilight Zone
https://youtu.be/vB1Ot9MEOOs The Twilight Zone debuted on CBS TV in October 1959. Created by Rod Serling, the show's episodes were a blend of fantasy, science fiction, horror, black comedy and psychological thrills that often ended with an unexpected twist and/or moral. The first series, shot entirely in black and white, ran from 1959 to 1964. https://youtu.be/fXHKDb0CNjA
Deadly Typhoon Vera Strikes Japan
https://youtu.be/6mrtXkCjX9w Typhoon Vera (Isewan Typhoon), was an unusually powerful tropical cyclone that struck Japan in September 1959. Vera was the strongest and deadliest typhoon on record to make landfall in Japan. The storm caused damage of unparalleled severity that proved a major setback to the Japanese economy,
Khrushchev & Eisenhower Meet at Camp David
In September 1959 Soviet Premier Nikita Khruschev made an extended visit to the USA. While visiting Los Angeles, Khrushchev was infuriated when barred from visiting Disneyland because of security concerns. Khruschev and President Eisenhower met at Camp David in Maryland for talks about the Cold War. After two days of meetings, a joint communique suggested that both agreed that the discussions had been useful in clarifying each other’s position on a number of subjects. They also agreed that general disarmament was the most important issue facing the world. Although no specific agreements were made, Eisenhower and Khrushchev agreed to hold another summit in the near future and Eisenhower announced he would visit the Soviet Union during the next year. Source: history.com
Russian Probe Luna 2 Strikes Moon Surface
In September 1959, Luna 2, the sixth Russian spacecraft launched to the moon, was the first spacecraft to reach the moon's surface and the first man-made object to make contact with another celestial body. Luna 2 impacted on the Moon's surface at a speed of ~7,400 mph.At that time the closest Americans had come to the Moon was ~23,000 mi) with Pioneer 4.
Bonanza
https://youtu.be/i2IvhKl_hKQ In September 1959 NBC launched "Bonanza," the first TV color western. Filmed at Incline Village, Nevada, the show ran until 1973 with Michael Landon as Little Joe, Lorne Greene as Ben Cartwright and Dan Blockeras Hoss. Source: Wikipedia https://youtu.be/KLXob5raumA
First Satellite Images of Earth
https://youtu.be/-O99IH9kbPw In August 1959 the United States launched the Explorer 6 satellite, popularly known as the "paddlewheel satellite. The satellite featured a photocell scanner that transmitted a crude picture of the earth's surface and cloud cover from a distance of 17,000 miles.
Superman George Reeves Dies
https://youtu.be/p0swAKS-5qA George Reeves (born George Keefer Brewer in 1914) died from a gunshot in June1959. He was best known for the television series Adventures of Superman (1952–1958). Reeves death at age 45 remains controversial. Although ruled a suicide, some believed he was murdered or the victim of an accidental shooting. Source: Wikipedia
Ho Chi Minh Trail
In May 1959 the Peoples’ Army of Vietnam’s Military Transportation Group 559 was established in North Vietnam. The group ultimately created and maintained the Ho Chi Minh Trail to facilitate the infiltratiion of troops and supplies from North Vietnam in support of the revolution in South Vietnam. Wikipedia
First Grammy Awards
https://youtu.be/t4IjJav7xbg I think that dream like that Will never return I painted my hands And face blue Then all of sudden I was Abducted by the wind And I started to fly In the infinite sky .... first verse (https://lyricstranslate.com) The First Grammy (Grammaphone) Awards presented by the Recording Academy were held in May 1959 to honor outstanding achievement in the music industry of the United States. Domenico Modugno's Nel blu dipinto di blu, also known as Volare, won the Grammy for 1958. Source: Wikipedia
Uprising in Tibet
https://youtu.be/cxSDhng2PQg Encyclopedia Britannica In March 1959 a revolt erupted in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, which had been under the effective control of the People's Republic of China since 1951. The uprising occurred amid general Tibetan fears that the Chinese government might arrest the 14th Dalai Lama. 14th Dalai Lama 1959 - Wikipedia Clashes quickly became violent and the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) used force to put them down.. In its last stages, the uprising included heavy fighting, with high civilian and military losses. Thousands were killed although the exact number is disputed. The 14th Dalai Lama escaped from Lhasa, while the city was fully retaken by Chinese security forces on 23 March 1959. Source; Wikipedia
The Day the Music Died
On a February 3, 1959 tour of the Midwest, rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and "The Big Bopper" J. P. Richardson were killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa, together with pilot Roger Peterson. https://youtu.be/9mDGcxbAusg https://youtu.be/hto-UMuYkwk https://youtu.be/4b-by5e4saI In 1971 "The Day the Music Died" by Don McLean referred to the tragic day.. https://youtu.be/y5ecvBaqHBk Source: Wikipedia
Rawhide
Rawhide was an American Western TV series starring Eric Fleming and Clint Eastwood that aired on the CBS network for 7 1/2 years. The series was produced by Charles Marquis Warren, who also produced early episodes of Gunsmoke. The show is fondly remembered by many for its theme. Source: Wikipedia
Alaska Becomes 49th State
In January 1959, President Eisenhower signed a special proclamation admitting the territory of Alaska into the Union as the 49th and largest state. Although indigenous peoples inhabited the region for centuries, Europeans first discovered Alaska in 1741. Russian hunters soon exposed the native Aleut population to devastating foreign diseases. The first permanent Russian colony in Alaska was established on Kodiak Island in 1784. By the early 19th century, Russian settlements spread down the west coast of North America as far as California. With Russian activity in the New World declining in the 1820s, British and Americans obtained trading rights. In 1867 the United States purchased Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million. Although ridiculed in Congress as "Seward's Folly," the Senate ratified purchase. Source: history.com