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SNCC formed
The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was founded in April 1960 by young people dedicated to nonviolent, direct action tactics -
First televised Presidential debate
Nixon and Democratic Senator John F. Kennedy. The first-ever televised debate between presidential candidates was held on September 26, 1960. -
First Airing of "The Flintstones"
It was originally broadcast on ABC from September 30, 1960, to April 1, 1966, and was the first animated series with a prime-time slot on television. -
President Kennedy is elected
He defeated Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson on the first presidential ballot of the 1960 Democratic National Convention, and asked Johnson to serve as his running mate. Kennedy won 303 to 219 in the Electoral College, and he won the reported national popular vote by 112,827, a margin of 0.17 percent. -
Russians send the first man into space
Aboard the Vostok 1, Yuri Gagarin makes a single orbit around the Earth and becomes the first man to reach space. He remained in space for one hour and forty-eight minutes before landing in Saratov Oblast, west Russia. -
Berlin Wall is constructed
Was constructed by East Germany to stop its citizens from fleeing to West Berlin, symbolizing the division between communist East and democratic West during the Cold War. Initially made of barb wire and concrete, -
Roger Maris of the Yankees breaks Babe Ruth’s single season home run record
Ruth set the single-season home run record in 1919 when he hit 29 home runs, passing Ned Williamson of the Chicago White Stockings who held the record of 27 home runs for the previous 35 years. Ruth then broke his own record three times in 1920 (54 home runs), 1921 (59 home runs) and 1927 (60 home runs) -
SDS releases its Port Huron statement
It was written by SDS members, and completed on June 15, 1962, at a United Auto Workers retreat outside of Port Huron, Michigan, for the group's first national convention. -
Marilyn Monroe dies
Died at the age of 36 of an overdose of barbiturates at her LA home. It has been ruled a suicide -
James Meredith registers at Ole Miss
James Meredith officially became the first African American student at the University of Mississippi on October 2, 1962. He was guarded twenty-four hours a day by reserve U.S. deputy marshals and army troops, and he endured constant verbal harassment from students -
“Dr. No” the first James Bond movie premiers
Dr. No opened to the public at the London Pavilion cinema on Piccadilly Circus, with the first performance at 10.45am. The London Pavilion was operated by United Artists as their flagship venue to premiere films distributed by the company in the UK until its closure in 1981 -
Cuban Missil Crisis
An American U-2 Spy plane secretly photographed nuclear missile sites being built by the Soviet Union on Cuba -
The Beatles arrive in the US
The Beatles flew into the U.S. together for the first time -
King's "I have a Dream" Speech
"I Have a Dream" is a public speech that was delivered by American civil rights activist and Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. In the speech, King called for civil and economic rights and an end to racism in the United States. -
John F Kennedy is assassinated
On November 22, 1963, when he was hardly past his first thousand days in office, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was killed by an assassin's bullets as his motorcade wound through Dallas, Texas. Kennedy was the youngest man elected President; he was the youngest to die. -
The Beatles appear on Ed Sullivan
The Beatles performed on the Ed Sullivan show for the first time. For those who tuned in to watch – from fans to future rock and roll greats – it was a life changing experience. -
New York World’s Fair begins
The theme of the fair was “Peace through Understanding.” Popular exhibits included General Motors' “Futurama II” portraying the world of 2064, American Telephone and Telegraph's models of the Picturephone, the large dinosaur sculptures in Sinclair Oil's “Dinoland,” International Business Machines' presentation of basic -
Lyndon B Johnson defeats Barry Goldwater
Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 3, 1964, less than a year following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, who won the previous presidential election. Incumbent Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson defeated Republican Senator Barry Goldwater in a landslide victory -
Malcolm X assassinated
Malcolm X, an African American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a popular figure during the civil rights movement, was shot multiple times and died from his wounds in Manhattan, New York City -
Watts race riots
To end mistreatment by the police and to end discrimination in housing, employment, and schooling systems
Methods were widespread rioting, looting, assault, arson, protests, firefights, and property damage -
“Star Trek” TV show airs
Star Trek aired on NBC from September 8, 1966, to June 3, 1969. It was first broadcast on September 6, 1966, on Canada's CTV network. -
First NFL Super Bowl
The first NFL World Championship Game was an American football game at the Los Angeles memorial coliseum in Los Angeles California. Green Bay Packers defeated the Chiefs by 35-10 -
Boxer Muhammed Ali refuses military service
When Ali arrived to be inducted in the United States Armed Forces, however, he refused, citing his religion forbade him from serving. The cost for his refusal would prove to be drastic: the stripping of his heavyweight title, a suspension from boxing, a $10,000 fine, and a five year prison sentence -
Beatles release Sgt. Pepper's album
An album The Beetles created to create a distant between them and their fans. They used alter egos and it transformed the genre from being just another form of pop music to being an art form. -
San Francisco "Summer of Love" begins
The Summer of Love was a major social phenomenon that occurred in San Francisco in the summer of 1967. It was mostly full of young people, hippies, and 1960s counterculture figures. -
Thurgood Marshall is nominated to the Supreme Court
President Lyndon B Johnson nominated distinguished civil rights lawyer Thurgood Marshall to be the first African American justice to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States -
Possession of LSD was made illegal in the U.S.
Possession of LSD was made illegal in the U.S. in 1968. LSD began to experience a decline in popularity in both scientific and casual use during the 1970s. Scientific research ceased in the early 1980s. -
Tet Offensive
Consisted of attacks in South Vietnam by 85,000 troops directed by the North Vietnamese government. -
Martin Luther King Jr assassinated
At 6 pm on Thursday Martin Luther King was shot dead while standing on a balcony outside his second floor room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. -
Robert Kennedy assassinated
Robert was shot by Sirhan Sirhan because of his support for the U.S. support for Israel. -
Protests at the 1968 Democratic National Convention
The 1968 Democratic National Convention protests were a series of protests against the United States' involvement in the Vietnam War that took place prior to and during the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois -
Richard Nixon is elected
Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 5, 1968. Republican nominee, former vice president Richard Nixon, defeated both the Democratic nominee, incumbent vice president Hubert Humphrey, and the American Independent Party nominee, former Alabama governor George Wallace. -
Stonewall riots
Stonewall riots, series of violent confrontations that began in the early hours of June 28, 1969, between police and gay rights activists outside the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in the Greenwich Village section of New York City. As the riots progressed, an international gay rights movement was born. -
American austronauts land on the moon
Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle and Armstrong became the first person to step onto the Moon's surface six hours and 39 minutes later, on July 21 at 02:56 UTC. -
Woodstock concert
Woodstock was the most famous of the 1960s rock festivals. Its full name was The Woodstock Music and Art fair. It took place on a farm property in NY. -
The Rolling Stones host the Altamont music festival
The Altamont Speedway Free Festival was a counterculture rock concert in the United States, held on Saturday, December 6, 1969, at the Altamont Speedway outside of Tracy, California. Approximately 300,000 attended the concert, with some anticipating that it would be a "Woodstock West".