Helloooooooo! And welcome to the Hump Day Daily Joe!!! It's Day 8 of my 100 Day Blog Challenge and I'm running a little behind today. But here I am. Not going to miss a day.
Do today is a special blog. On Wednesdays until at least the end of this challenge, I'm going to be tackling history. And today, I choose the decade of the 1960s. Buckling in as we travel back and look at some highlights.
The 1960s - Part 1
February 1960 -
The Greensboro, NC sit-in
This was the start of the civil rights protests in the 1960s, when African American students staged a sit-in the Woolworth’s lunch counter, which was segregated at the time. This in movement spread to colleges throughout the southern states.
September 1960 - Presidential Debates
The 1960s started with a presidential election. It included the first televised debates between the two candidates: John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. The first of four debates took place on Sept. 26, 1960.
September 1960 - Alfred Hitchcock’s iconic movie Psycho hit theaters. (a Brynn aside: how is it possible that it came out that long ago?????)
Other events of 1960:
April - Brazil moved its capital from Rio De Janeiro to Brasilia
May - 1st commercial birth control pill Enovid was approved by FDA in May 1960
May - 1st working laser was built
May - An estimated 9.4-9.6 earthquake devastated Chile
March 1, 1961 -
Kennedy Founded the Peace Corp.
This is a federal agency giving Americans the chance to serve their country and the world with volunteer service.
Between April 11 and August 14, Adolf Eichmann was on trial for his role in the Holocaust. He was found guilty on 15 counts on December 12 and he was executed the following June. He was one of the main organizers of the Holocaust.
April 12, 1961 - Yuri Gargarin
Yuri was a Soviet astronaut who became the first human in space. In the Vostok 1 capsule, he completed a single orbit of Earth but it put the Soviets ahead in the space race. Ironically, he would die in a plane crash just seven years later.
April 17-19, 1961 - Bay of Pigs Invasion
This took place in Cuba. 1400 Cuban exiles tried and failed to wrest control from Fidel Castro. President John F. Kennedy learned of the invasion plan and authorized the CIA-planned invasion of Cuba to proceed. Epic fail.
Other events of 1961:
May - 1st Freedom Ride to place, challenging the southern states' ignoring of the Supreme Court’s ruling on bus segregation.
May - Kennedy gave his Man on the Moon speech.
August - The Berlin Wall was completed.
Marilyn Monroe
May 1962 - in an event that probably would have seen Kennedy have an impeachment trial if it had taken place in the 1990s (or would have at least raised a lot of questions), Marilyn Monroe sang her iconic Happy Birthday, Mr. President to JFK.
August 1962 - Marilyn Monroe was found dead in her home at age 36 allegedly due to a barbiturate overdose.
To this date, much about her death is brought into question and conspiracy theories abound.
May 1962 - Bond, James Bond
The 1st James Bond movie, Dr. No, hit the theaters. It starred Sean Connery as the original Bond and Ursula Andress as the original Bond girl.
July 1962 - Wal-Mart
The 1st Wal-Mart opened by Sam Walton in Rogers AK. Prior to this, he had operated a five and dime called Walton's that started in the 50s.
This new Wal-Mart was the start of the stores we know today.
October 1962 - Cuban Missile Crisis
This US confrontation with the Soviet Union lasted 13 days and escalated into an international crisis. In a response to the Bay of Pigs, and obviously seeing an opening with Fidel Castro the soviets placed nuclear missiles on Cuba to deter future invasions.
This is considered the closest the Cold War got to a full nuclear war.
August 28, 1963 - March on Washington and I have a Dream
The I Have a Dream speech was written and delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King jr. (below is just a small excerpt of the speech). On August 28, 1963, more than 250,000 people gathered in Washington DC in front of the Lincoln Memorial. The event was organized to draw attention to continuing inequalities and challenges faced by black Americans even after emancipation.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification – one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today.
June 1963 - First Woman in Space
Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman launched into space. She is also known to be the youngest woman in space. She was 26. She also remains the only woman to have flown a solo mission in space. During this flight, she orbited the earth 48 times.
November 22, 1963 -
Everyone Knows Where They Were
Perhaps the biggest event of 1963 was the assassination of President John F Kennedy while riding in his motorcade on November 22 in Dallas, TX.
As with Marilyn Monroe, his death has brought many questions and conspiracy theories.
February 1964 - Beatles
February these guys (The Beatles) arrived in New York City and took the U.S. by storm, beginning the British Invasion and changing music forever.
It was their 1st visit to the United States and followed their hit, I Want to Hold You Hand, hitting # 1 on the U.S. charts just days before their arrival.
February 1964 - Champion!
Cassius Clay, later known as Mahammad Ali, became heavyweight champion of the world after defeating Sonny Liston on a technical knockout. (He would defeat him again in the 1965 rematch)
July 1964 - Civil Right Bill
The Civil Rights Bill became law ending segregation in public places and banning employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin.
It also prohibited unequal treatment for voter registration, prohibited segregation in schools and public places. It is considered to be one of the most significant legislations in U.S. history.
March 1965 - Vietnam
Two battalions of Marines landed in Vietnam, beginning the rapid increase of military forces in Vietnam and beginning the US ground war in the country from March 1965 to April 1975 At that time, before the U.S. joined, the war had already been going on for 10 years.
June 1965 - Satisfaction
The Rolling Stones' mega-hit (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction hit the radio airwaves and yet another British band took the country by storm, satisfying many listeners.
The song lyrics refer to sexual frustration and commercialism. Originally the song was only played by pirate stations because it was considered too sexually suggestive.
As of 2021, it is listed as #31 on Rolling Stone Magazines 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
September 1965 - Fashion Revolution
In September of '65, mini-skirts started showing up thanks to 1960s British fashion revolutionary, Mary Quant, who pioneered the style. In her words, “A miniskirt was a way of rebelling.” She defined a mini as: the bottom edge should hit halfway up the thigh and fall no more than 4" below the butt.
She actually named the skirt after her favorite car, the Mini.
November 9, 1965 - Blackout!
The Great Blackout of November 9, 1965 left about 30 million people in the Northeast U.S. and parts of Ontario in Canada in the dark for 13 hours in the biggest power failure in history (up to that point).
And that is where we will leave our WAYBACK for the week. Next week, I will close out the 60s with a look at 1966-1969.
I hope you enjoyed this trip through history!
Love you more than coffee,
~~Brynn
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