- February 5
- Vanguard TV-3 back-up launches into Earth orbit; reaches 6 km. [1]
- A hydrogen bomb known as the Tybee Bomb is lost by the US Air Force off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, never to be recovered. [5]
- February 17
- Comic strip BC first appears. [1]
- February 22
- Michael Todd, film magnate, killed in a New Mexico air crash. [1]
- March 5
- Explorer 2 fails to reach Earth orbit. [1]
- March 8
- William Faulkner says US schools degenerated to become babysitters. [1]
- March 14
- RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) is created and certifies first gold record (Perry Como's "Catch A Falling Star"). [1]
- March 17
- Navy launches Vanguard 1 into orbit (second US satellite), measures Earth shape. [1]
- March 21
- First presentation of West Point's Sylvanus Thayer Award. [1]
- March 24
- Rock-n-roll artist Elvis Presley is sworn in as an Army private in Memphis, Tennessee. [1] [129]
- March 26
- 30th Academy Awards - Bridge on the River Kwai, Alec Guinness, and Joanne Woodward win. [1]
- US Army launches America's third successful satellite, Explorer III. [1]
- March 31
- The Grand Canyon Diorama attraction opens in Disneyland, part of the Santa Fe and Disneyland Railroad. At 306 feet long, it is the world's longest seamless hand-woven canvas. [6]
- US Navy forms atomic submarine division. [1]
- USSR suspends nuclear weapons tests, and urges US and Britain to do same. [1]
- April 2
- American National Advisory Council on Aeronautics renamed NASA. [1]
- April 13
- 12th Tony Awards: Sunrise at Campobello and Music Man win. [1]
- April 15
- In Hollywood, California, the 10th Annual Emmy Awards are presented, hosted by Danny Thomas.
- Best Comedy Series: The Phil Silvers Show
- Best Comedy Writing: The Phil Silvers Show
- Best Continuing Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic or Comedy Series: Robert Young for Father Knows Best
- Best Continuing Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic or Comedy Series: Jane Wyatt for Father Knows Best
- Best Continuing Supporting Performance by an Actor in a Dramatic or Comedy Series: Carl Reiner for Caesar's Hour
- Best Continuing Supporting Performance by an Actress in a Dramatic or Comedy Series: Ann B. Davis for The Bob Cummings Show
- Best Dramatic Series with Continuing Characters: Gunsmoke
- Best Musical, Variety, Audience Participation or Quiz Series: The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
- Best New Program Series of the Year: The Seven Lively Arts
- Best Public Service Program or Series: Omnibus
- Best Single Performance By An Actor Lead or Supporting: Peter Ustinov for Omnibus
- Best Single Performance By An Actress Lead or Supporting: Polly Bergen for Playhouse 90.
[1] [173]
- April 28
- Vanguard TV-5 launched for Earth orbit (failed). [1]
- US Vice President Richard Nixon begins goodwill tour of Latin America. [1]
- May 3
- WINS suspends Alan Freed for causing a riot in Boston; he quits. [1]
- May 5
- US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Enwetak. [1]
- May 7
- Major Howard Johnson, US Air Force, sets aircraft altitude record in F-104 (Lockheed Starfighter), 27,810 metres. [1]
- May 8
- US Vice President Richard Nixon is shoved, stoned, booed and spat upon by protesters in Peru. [1]
- May 11
- US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Bikini Island. [1]
- US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Enwetak. [1]
- May 12
- US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Enwetak. [1]
- May 13
- Rioters attack US Vice President Richard Nixon in Venezuala. [1]
- May 19
- US and Canada form North American Air Defense Command (NORAD). [1]
- May 20
- US performs nuclear test at Enwetak (atmospheric tests). [1]
- May 21
- US performs nuclear test at Bikini Island (atmospheric tests). [1]
- May 23
- Explorer 1 ceases transmission. [5]
- May 26
- US performs nuclear test at Enwetak (atmospheric tests). [1]
- Union Square, San Francisco becomes state historical landmark. [1]
- May 27
- The F-4 Phantom II first flies. [5]
- Vanguard SLV-1 launched for Earth orbit (failed). [1]
- May 30
- US performs nuclear test at Enwetak (atmospheric tests). [1]
- Unidentified American soldiers killed in WWII and Korean War buried in Arlington, Virginia, USA. [1]
- May 31
- US performs nuclear test at Bikini Island (atmospheric tests). [1]
- June 26
- Vanguard SLV-2 launched for Earth orbit (failed). [1]
- July 10
- The highest tsunami wave ever recorded is at Lituya Bay, Alaska, at 524m high. [5]
- July 15
- US President Dwight Eisenhower sends US troops to Lebanon; they stay three months. [1]
- July 26
- Army launches fourth US successful satellite, Explorer IV. [1]
- July 29
- President Dwight Eisenhower signs the National Aeronautics and Space Act creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). [1] [229.91] [452.94]
- August 1
- US first class postage up to 4 cents (had been 3 cents for 26 years). [1]
- August 3
- American nuclear submarine USS Nautilus begins first crossing of Arctic Ocean under icecap. [1] [5]
- August 17
- World's first Moon probe, USA's Thor-Able, explodes 77 seconds after launch. [1] [245.4]
- August 18
- American TV game show scandal investigation starts. [1]
- August 19
- NAACP Youth Council begin sit-ins at Oklahoma City Lunch counters. [1]
- September 1
- As of this date, all cars produced in the United States must have a manufacturer's label attached to a window displaying options and prices, transport and freight charges, and manufacturer's suggested retail price. [8]
- September 5
- First color video recording on magnetic tape presented, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA. [1]
- September 12
- At Texas Instruments in the USA, Jack Kilby demonstrates the world's first integrated circuit, containing five components on a piece of germanium half an inch long and thinner than a toothpick. [4]
- The ABC TV network premieres the Walt Disney Presents TV show. [6]
- September 15
- Commuter train crashes through drawbridge, killing 48 (Newark, New Jersey). [1]
- September 21
- First airplane flight exceeding 1200 hours, lands in Dallas, Texas, USA. [1]
- September 24
- First welded aluminum girder highway bridge completed, Urbandale, Iowa, USA. [1]
- October 1
- US National Aeronautics and Space Administration begins operations, taking over duties of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. [1] [249.41] [452.94]
- Vanguard Project transferred from military to NASA. [1]
- October 7
- Potter Stewart appointed to US Supreme Court. [1]
- US manned space-flight project renamed Project Mercury. [1]
- October 11
- Second US Moon probe, Pioneer 1, reaches 113,810 km, falls back. [1]
- October 26
- Pan American Airways makes the first commercial flight of the Boeing 707, from New York to Paris. [1] [5]
- November 30
- First guided missile destroyer launched, the USS Dewey, in Bath, Maine, USA. [1]
- December 1
- In Chicago, Illinois, Our Lady of Angels School burns, killing 92 students and three nuns. [1]
- December 6
- US lunar probe Pioneer 3 reaches 107,269 km, falls back. [1]
- December 9
- Robert H W Welch Jr and 11 other men meet in Indianapolis, Indiana to form the anti-Communist John Birch Society. [1]
- December 10
- First domestic (New York-Miami) passenger jet flight-National 707 flies 111 passengers. [1]
- December 18
- First test project of Signal Communications by Orbiting Relay Equipment. [1]
- December 19
- First radio broadcast from space (recorded Christmas message by President Eisenhower: "To all mankind, America's wish for Peace on Earth and Good Will to Men Everywhere"). [1]
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