istoryworld
All Events
In The Affluent Society US economist John Kenneth Galbraith criticizes wasteful modern consumerism
French Algerians seize government buildings in Algiers, in a campaign to ensure that Algerian remains French
Chicken Soup with Barley begins a trilogy by English playwright Arnold Wesker
The Fire Raisers, by Swiss dramatist Max Frisch, is performed in Zürich
Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita is published in Paris
The national assembly in Paris grants de Gaulle six months of unrestricted power as president – his condition for returning to government
On his second day in power, de Gaulle visits Algiers to confront the settlers with an unwelcome message
The new hard-line Hungarian government headed by János Kádár tries and executes Imre Nagy
Paul Newman stars in the film version of Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Yasser Arafat and others in Kuwait found Al-Fatah, a secret organization advocating armed resistance against Israel
The king of Iraq, Faisal II, is murdered in Baghdad in a coup led by Abdul Karim Qassim
John Cranko's version of Romeo and Juliet, to Prokofiev's score, is premiered by La Scala Ballet in Venice
Truman Capote publishes a short novel, Breakfast at Tiffany's, with a bewitching central character, Holly Golightly
Irish writer Brendan Behan's autobiographical Borstal Boy is published
Nigerian dramatist Wole Soyinka's play The Swamp Dwellers is produced in London
Polish film director Andrzej Wajda makes Ashes and Diamonds, starring the Polish actor Zbigniew Cybulski
The baseball teams Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants move to California
English author Alan Sillitoe publishes his first novel, Saturday Night and Sunday Morning
18-year-old British pop singer Cliff Richard has his first hit single with Move It
French citizens approve the new constitution proposed by de Gaulle, thus introducing the Fifth Republic
The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is launched in Britain with Bertrand Russell as president
Nationalist Kurds in the north of Iraq launch a guerrilla war against the new government in Baghdad
Harold Pinter's first play in London's West End, The Birthday Party, closes in less than a week
The colony of French Guinea opts for immediate independence as the republic of Guinea, breaking its links with France
Mao Zedong imposes on China a Great Leap Forward, an attempt at industrialization that results in economic chaos and widespread famine
