1957, The Year in review

[CobraJoe]

While helping my buddy with his '57 Chevy(gasp),  I came across this on a Chevy website and thought it was interesting:

Events in 1957

January
January 1 : Saarland joins West Germany. IRA attack on Brookeborough police barracks leads to the deaths of Se?n South and Fergal O'Hanlon
January 2 : San Francisco and Los Angeles stock exchanges merge to form Pacific Coast Stock Exchange.
January 3 : Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch
January 4 : After 69 years the last issue of Collier's Weekly magazine is published
January 5 : Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be dismissed handled the ball in test match cricket.
January 10 : Anthony Eden resigns - Harold Macmillan becomes the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
January 11 - The African Convention is founded in Dakar.
January 13 - Wham-O Company produces the first Frisbee
January 16 - The Cavern Club opens in Liverpool
January 20 - Dwight D. Eisenhower inaugurated for second term as President of the United States
January 22 - Israel withdraws from the Sinai Peninsula (they captured it from Egypt in a battle on October 29, 1956)
January 22 - The New York City "Mad Bomber," George P. Metesky, is arrested in Waterbury, Connecticut and is charged with planting more than 30 bombs.

January 23 - Ku Klux Klan members force truck driver Willie Edwards to jump off a bridge into the Alabama River - he drowns as a result.

February
February 4 - France prohibits UN involvement in Algeria
February 15 - Andrei Gromyko becomes foreign minister of Soviet Union

March

Flag of Ghana, the first country in colonial Africa to gain independenceMarch 1 - U Nu becomes Prime Minister of Burma
March 1 - Arturo Lezama becomes President of the National Council of Government of Uruguay
March 1 - Sud Aviation forms from a merger between SNCASE (Soci?t? Nationale de Constructions A?ronautiques du Sud Est) and SNCASO (Soci?t? Nationale de Constructions A?ronautiques du Sud Ouest)
March 6 - United Kingdom colonies Gold Coast and British Togoland become the independent Republic of Ghana.
March 7 : Congress approves the Eisenhower doctrine.
March 8 - Egypt re-opens the Suez Canal
March 10 - Floodgates of The Dalles Dam are closed inundating Celilo Falls and ancient Indian fisheries along the Columbia River in Oregon.
March 11 - Rollo Webb was born.
March 13 - The FBI arrests Jimmy Hoffa and charges him with bribery
March 14 - President Sukarno declares martial law in Indonesia
March 20 - French newspaper L'Express reveals that the French army tortures Algerian prisoners
March 25 - Treaty of Rome (patto di Roma) establishes the European Economic Community (EEC); see EU

April
April 1 - The first new conscripts join the Bundeswehr
April 5 - First elected government of Kerala. CPI won the elections and E. M. S. Namboodiripad became the first chief minister of united Kerala
April 9 - Egypt reopens Suez Canal for all shipping
April 12 - United Kingdom announces that Singapore will gain self rule January 1, 1958
April 12 - Allen Ginsberg's poem Howl, printed in England, is seized by U.S. customs officials on the grounds of obscenity
April 17 : Brecon Beacons is designated a national park.

May
May 2 : Vincent Gigante fails to assassinate mafioso Frank Costello. Senator Joseph McCarthy dies.
May 3 : Walter O'Malley, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, agrees to move the team from Brooklyn, New York, to Los Angeles, California.
May 15 - Stanley Matthews plays his final international game, ending an English record international career of almost 23 years
May 16 - Paul-Henri Spaak becomes the new Secretary General of NATO.

June
June 9 - First ascent of Broad Peak
June 15 - Eindhoven University of Technology is founded.
June 21 - John Diefenbaker becomes Canada's thirteenth prime minister.
June 25 - United Church of Christ formed in Cleveland, Ohio by merger of Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Church.
June 27 - Hurricane Audrey demolishes Cameron, Louisiana, killing 400 people.

July
July - International Geophysical Year begins.
July 16 - United States Marine Major John Glenn flies an F8U supersonic jet from California to New York in 3 hours, 23 minutes and 8 seconds setting a new transcontinental speed record.
July 25 - Tunisia becomes a republic.
July 29 - The International Atomic Energy Agency is established.

August
August 4 - Juan Manuel Fangio, driving for Maserati, wins the Formula One German Grand Prix, clinching (with 4 wins that season) his record fifth world drivers championship, including his fourth consecutive championship (also a record); these two records would endure for nearly half a century.
August 21 : Eisenhower announces a 2-year suspension of nuclear testing.
August 31 : The Federation of Malaya, which does not include Singapore, gains independence from the United Kingdom. Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni Almarhum Tuanku Muhammad, Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan becomes the first Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.

September
September 4 - American Civil Rights Movement: Little Rock Crisis - Orville Faubus, governor of Arkansas, calls out the US National Guard to prevent black students from enrolling in Central High School in Little Rock.
September 4 - The Ford Motor Company introduces the Edsel on what the company proclaims as "E Day."
September 21 - Olav V becomes King of Norway on the death of Haakon VII.

October
October 4 - Sputnik program: The Soviet Union launches Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth.
October 9 - Neil H. McElroy was sworn in as the 6th Secretary of Defense of United States.
October 10 - US President Dwight D. Eisenhower apologizes to the finance minister of Ghana, Komla Agbeli Gbdemah, after he was refused service in a Dover, Delaware restaurant.
October 11 - Radio telescope of Jodrell Bank, Cheshire, UK, opened.
October 23 - Morocco begins its invasion of Ifni.
October 25 - Assassination of a Mafia boss Albert Anastasia in a barber shop in Park Sheraton Hotel.
October 27 - Celal Bayar re-elected president of Turkey

November
November 1 - Michigan's Mackinac Bridge opened.
November 3 - Sputnik program: The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 2. On board is the first animal to enter space - a dog named Laika.
November 6 - Jailhouse Rock opens nationally and Elvis Presley continues to gain more notoriety.
November 7 - Cold War: In the United States, the Gaither Report calls for more American missiles and fallout shelters.
November 13 - Flooding in the Po River valley of Italy leads to the flooding also in Venice
November 14 - Apalachin Meeting - The leaders of the American ***** meet at a convention in Apalachin, New York at the house of Joseph Barbara. It is broken up by a curious patrolman.
November 15 - Plane crash in the Isle of Wight leaves 43 dead.
November 16 - Serial killer Edward Gein murders his last victim, Bernice Worden of Plainfield, Wisconsin.
November 25 : President Eisenhower has a stroke.
November 30 - Grenade attack against Indonesian president Sukarno in Cikini School in Jakarta. Six children are killed, Sukarno survives unscathed.

December
December 1 - In Indonesia, Sukarno announces nationalization of 246 Dutch businesses
December 4 - Lewisham train disaster in UK leaves 92 dead
December 5 - All 326,000 Dutch nationals are expelled from Indonesia.
December 6 - First U.S. attempt to launch a satellite fails, the satellite blowing up on the launch pad.
Undated
Consumers' Association founded (UK)
Project Orion begins, a U.S. program to build a spacecraft powered by nuclear explosions.
Civil Rights Commission established under the Civil Rights Act of 1957
IBM makes FORTRAN scientific programming language available to customers. It becomes the most widely used computer language for technical work.
Citro?n stops production of its Traction Avant motor car (production started in 1934).
The Pi?a Colada was invented by Ramon Marrero, a bartender at Puerto Rico's Caribe Hilton. [1]

Environmental change
The Africanized bee is accidentally released in Brazil
The Asian Flu pandemic begins in China

Births

January
January 6 - Nancy Lopez, American golfer
January 7 - Nicholson Baker, American novelist
January 7 - Katie Couric, American television host
January 7 - Julian Solis, Puerto Rican boxer
January 11 - Robert Earl Keen, American musician and singer
January 12 - John Lasseter, American director, writer, and animator and Founder of Pixar
January 15 - Mario Van Peebles, Afro-American-German actor and director January 15 - Patrick Dixon, British author and business guru
January 19 - Katey Sagal, American actress, singer, and writer
January 22 - Mike Bossy, Canadian hockey player
January 23 - Princess Caroline of Monaco
January 24 - Adrian Edmondson, British comedian
January 29 - Grazyna Miller, Polish poetess
January 30 - Payne Stewart, American golfer (d. 1999)

February
February 2 - Michael Massarik, American motion picture producer
February 4 - Don Davis, American composer
February 4 - Harry G.Pellegrin, American musician and novelist
February 6 - Kathy Najimy, American actress and comedian
February 6 - Robert Townsend, American comedian, actor, director, and producer
February 8 - Cindy Wilson, American singer (The B-52's)
February 9 - John Axon GC, British railwayman
February 16 - LeVar Burton, American actor
February 16 - James Ingram, American singer
February 18 - Vanna White, American game show presenter
February 19 - Falco, Austrian musician (d. 1998)
February 27 - Viktor Markin, Russian athlete
February 28 - Ian Smith, New Zealand cricketer

March
March 5 - Ray Suarez, American journalist
March 10 - Osama bin Laden, Saudi-born Islamic extremist
March 12 - Steve Harris, British bassist (Iron Maiden)
March 17 - Mal Donaghy, Northern Irish footballer
March 20 - Spike Lee, American film director and actor
March 29 - Christophe Lambert, American-born actor
March 30 - Paul Reiser, American actor
March 31 - Marc McClure, American actor

April
April 4 - Aki Kaurism?ki, Finnish film director
April 4 - Nobuyoshi Kuwano, Japanese television performer and musician (Rats & Star)
April 5 - Ivan Corea, Sri Lankan autism campaigner
April 8 - Henry Cluney, Irish musician
April 9 - Seve Ballesteros, Spanish golfer
April 29 - Daniel Day-Lewis, Anglo-Irish actor

May
May 3 - William Clay Ford, Jr., American automobile executive
May 10 - Sid Vicious, English bassist (Sex Pistols) (d. 1979)
May 21 - Judge Reinhold, American actor
May 22 - Gary Sweet, Australian actor
May 26 - Margaret Colin, American actress
May 27 - Siouxsie Sioux, British singer (Siouxsie and the Banshees)
May 28 - Kirk Gibson, baseball player
May 29 - Jeb Hensarling, American politician

June
June 2 - King Lizzard, American entertainer
June 3 - Horst-Ulrich H?nel, German field hockey player
June 8 - Scott Adams, American cartoonist
June 10 - Hidetsugu Aneha, Japanese one class authorized architect and builder
June 11 - Jamaaladeen Tacuma, American musician
June 12 - Javed Miandad, Pakistani cricketer
June 19 - Anna Lindh, Swedish politician (d. 2003)
June 23 - Frances McDormand, American actress

July
July 2 - Bret Hart, Canadian wrestler of the WWE and WCW
July 13 - Cameron Crowe, American writer and film director
July 17 - Fern Britton, British television presenter
July 23 - Theo van Gogh, Dutch film director (d. 2004)
July 26 - Nana Visitor, American actress
July 27 - Bill Engvall, American comedian
July 29 - Nellie Kim, Russian gymnast

August
August 6 - Jim McGreevey, Governor of New Jersey
August 7 - Mark Bagley, American comic book artist
August 7 - Alexander Dityatin, Soviet gymnast
August 9 - Melanie Griffith, American actress
August 11 - Richie Ramone, American drummer (The Ramones)
August 18 - Carole Bouquet, French actress
August 18 - Denis Leary, American comedian and actor
August 24 - Stephen Fry, British comedian, author, and actor
August 27 - Bernhard Langer, German golfer
August 28 - Daniel Stern, American actor

September
September 1 - Gloria Estefan, Cuban-born singer
September 12 - Rachel Ward, British actress
September 16 - David McCreery, Northern Irish footballer

October
October 4 - Alexander Tkachev, Soviet gymnast
October 11 - Dawn French, British comedian
October 14 - Kenny Neal, American guitarist
October 21 - Wolfgang Ketterle, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
October 26 - Bob Golic, American football player
October 27 - Jeff East, American actor
October 31 - Robert Pollard, American musician

November
November 6 - Klaus Kleinfeld, German business executive
November 7 - Christopher Knight, American actor
November 15 - Kevin Eubanks, American jazz guitarist
November 24 - Denise Crosby, American actress
November 27 - Kenny Acheson, Northern Irish racecar driver
November 30 - Colin Mochrie, Scottish-born comedian

December
December 6 - Thomas Brinkman, American politician
December 8 - Phil Collen, British singer and guitarist (Def Leppard)
December 9 - Donny Osmond, American singer
December 10 - Michael Clarke Duncan, American actor
December 13 - Steve Buscemi, American actor
December 13 - Morris Day, American musician (The Time (Band))
December 13 - Jean-Marie Messier, French businessman
December 20 - Billy Bragg, British singer
December 20 - Joyce Hyser, American actress
December 20 - Anna Vissi, Greek singer
December 21 - Tom Henke, baseball player
December 21 - Ray Romano, American actor and comedian
December 24 - Hamid Karzai, Afghan president
December 30 - Matt Lauer, American newscaster

Unknown date
Walter Moers, German comic artist and writer
Eugene Spafford, American computer scientist

Deaths

January
January 10 - Gabriela Mistral, Chilean writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1889) January 14 - Humphrey Bogart, American actor (b. 1899)
January 16 - Arturo Toscanini, Italian conductor (b. 1867)

February
February 8 - Walther Bothe, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1891)
February 8 - John von Neumann, Hungarian-born mathematician (b. 1903)
February 9 - Mikl?s Horthy, Hungarian admiral and regent (b. 1868)
February 9 - John Axon, British railwayman and hero
February 10 - Laura Ingalls Wilder, American author (b. 1867)
February 16 - J?zef Hofmann, Polish-American pianist and composer (b. 1876)
February 18 - Henry Norris Russell, American astronomer (b. 1877)
February 25 - George "Bugs" Moran, American gangster (b. 1893)

March
March 11 - Admiral Richard E. Byrd, American explorer (b. 1888)
March 16 - Constantin Brancusi, Romanian sculptor (b. 1876)
March 17 - Ramon Magsaysay, President of the Philippines (b. 1907)
March 25 - Max Oph?ls, German film director and writer (b. 1902)
March 29 - Joyce Cary, Northern Irish author (b. 1888)

April-May
May 2 - Joseph McCarthy, U.S. Senator (b. 1908)
May 9 - Ezio Pinza, Italian bass (b. 1892)
May 14 - Marie Vassilieff, Russian artist (b. 1884)
May 16 - Eliot Ness, American Federal Bureau of Investigation agent (b. 1903)
May 31 - Leopold Staff, Polish poet (b. 1878)

June
June 17 - Dorothy Richardson, English feminist writer (b. 1873)
June 21 - Johannes Stark, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1874)
June 26 - Alfred D?blin, German writer (b. 1878)
June 27 - Malcolm Lowry, English novelist (b. 1909)

July
July 4 - Judy Tyler, American actress (b. 1933)
July 24 - Sacha Guitry, Russian-born French playwright, actor, and director (b. 1885)
July 28 - Edith Abbott, American social worker, educator, and author (b. 1876)

August
August 5 - Heinrich Otto Wieland, German chemist, Nobel Prize larueate (b. 1877)
August 7 - Oliver Hardy, American actor (b. 1892)
August 16 - Irving Langmuir, American chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1881)
August 19 - David Bomberg, English painter (b. 1890)

September
September 1 - Dennis Brain, English French horn player (b. 1921)
September 20 - Jean Sibelius, Finnish composer (b. 1865)
September 21 - Haakon VII of Norway (b. 1872)
September 22 - Toyoda Soemu, Japanese admiral (b. 1885)

October
October 25 - Albert Anastasia, American gangster (b. 1902)
October 25 - Edward Plunkett, Baron Dunsany, Irish author (b. 1878)
October 26 - Gerty Cori, Austrian-born biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1896)
October 29 - Louis B. Mayer, American film producer (b. 1885)
October 29 (presumably) - Rosemarie Nitribitt, German call girl (b. 1933)

November
November 4 - Shoghi Effendi, Bah?'? leader (b. 1897)
November 24 - Diego Rivera, Mexican painter (b. 1886)
November 29 - Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Austrian composer (b. 1897)
November 30 - Beniamino Gigli, Italian tenor (b. 1890)

December
December 21 - Eric Coates, English composer (b. 1886)

Nobel prizes
Physics - Chen Ning Yang, Tsung-Dao Lee
Chemistry- Lord Alexander R. Todd
Physiology or Medicine - Daniel Bovet
Literature - Albert Camus
Peace - Lester Bowles Pearson

[lalessi1]

I find that incredibly interesting. I actually remember "where I was for Sputnik" like it was yesterday. We went and saw Jailhouse Rock at the drive in that year too! My car was "born" on May 7th, apparently nothing happened on that day!

[rmk57]

My car was born on February 20th in San Jose and I was born December 15th 1957 in North Vancouver.

[RICH MUISE]

Now I feel ignorant..................didn't recognize about 1/2 of the events mentioned.

[Jeff Norwell]

So very interesting...I live in a very small town(400 people) and I live 1 block from Prime Minister John Diefenbakers birth Home....

[57AGIN]

My 57 was born September 27, 1957, the last day of 1957 production at the Ford Terminal Island plant in Long Beach, California.  My 57's VIN indicates it was #247 from the end of the 1957 production run at that plant.  I believe it is a far better car now than when it was born.  Of course I may be just a little bit prejudiced.

Bob
57 AGIN

[terry_208]

Does anyone know the date the switch was made from "early" to the "late" 57's?

[fdlrc]

Terry, could you explain the early 57's vs. the late, what does that refer to?

[terry_208]

When I was 50 years younger, I had several 57's. While buying parts the parts man sold me a part that wouldn't fit my car. When I returned it, he said that was for an "early" ford. He got me what he called a part for the late '57 and said that ford had changed parts mid-year. IIRC the data plate was different than my current 57's. 

[fdlrc]

Thanks, I never knew that.