1949
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| Years: 1946 1947 1948 - 1949 - 1950 1951 1952 | |
| Decades: 1910s 1920s 1930s - 1940s - 1950s 1960s 1970s | |
| Centuries: 19th century - 20th century - 21st century 1949 in topic: Arts Architecture - Art - Film - Literature - Music Science and technology Aviation - Rail transport - Science - Television Other topics Canada - Ireland - Sport Lists of leaders: State leaders - Religious leaders | |
Events
January-February
- January 4 - RMS Caronia of the Cunard Line departs Southampton for New York on her maiden voyage
- January 4 - February 22 - Series of winter storms in Nebraska, Wyoming, South Dakota, Utah, Colorado and Nevada - winds of up to 72 mph - tens of thousands of cattle and sheep perish
- January 5 - U.S. President Harry S. Truman unveils his Fair Deal program.
- January 11 - Los Angeles, California receives its first recorded snowfall.
- January 25 - The first Emmy Awards are presented at the Hollywood Athletic Club.
- January 25 - In the first Israeli election, David Ben-Gurion becomes Prime Minister.
- January 26 - Australian Citizenship comes into being.
- February 1 - Rationing of clothes ends in Britain
- February 8 - Cardinal Mindszenty of Hungary is sentenced to life imprisonment for treason against the Hungarian Communist government.
- February 12 - The Vatican announces the excommunication of all persons involved in the trial and conviction of Cardinal Mindszenty.
- February 14 - The Knesset (Israeli parliament) first convenes.
- February 14 - Antonio Carmona re-elected president of Portugal for lack of opposing candidate
- February 19 - Ezra Pound is awarded the first Bollingen Prize in poetry by the Bollingen Foundation and Yale University.
March-April
- March 1 - World heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis retires
- March 1 - Indonesia seizes Yogyakarta from the Dutch
- March 2 - The B-50 Superfortress Lucky Lady II under Captain James Gallagher lands in Fort Worth, Texas after completing the first non-stop around-the-world airplane flight. It was refueled in flight four times.
- March 3 - The Tucker automobile Corporation folds.
- March 12 - The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy;, Denver & Rio Grande Western; and Western Pacific railroads inaugurate the California Zephyr passenger train between Chicago and Los Angeles, CA as the first train to feature Vista Dome cars as regular equipment.
- March 28 - United States Secretary of Defense James Forrestal resigns suddenly.
- March 31 - Newfoundland joins Canada.
- April 1 - Southern Ireland leaves the Commonwealth and becomes the Republic of Ireland
- April 4 - NATO is formed.
- April 18 - Éire formally became the Republic of Ireland.
- April 23 - Chinese communist troops take Nanking
May-June
- May 5 - The Council of Europe is founded by the signing of the Treaty of London.
- May 9 - Rainier III of Monaco becomes Prince of Monaco.
- May 11 - Israel is admitted to the U.N as its 59th member.
- May 11 - Siam changes its name to Thailand.
- May 12 - Cold War: The Soviet Union lifts its Blockade of Berlin.
- May 20 - The AFSA (predecessor of the NSA) is established.
- May 22 - After two months in Bethesda Naval Hospital, James Forrestal commits suicide, under circumstances that seem suspicious to many.
- May 23 - The Federal Republic of Germany is established.
- EDSAC, the first stored-program computer, begins operation at Cambridge University.
- June 2 - Transjordan becomes kingdom of Jordan
- June 6 - With the passage of the Bodh Gaya Temple Act by the Indian government, Mahabodhi Temple is restored to partial Buddhist control.
- June 8 - Red Scare: Such celebrities as Helen Keller, Dorothy Parker, Danny Kaye, Fredric March, John Garfield, Paul Muni and Edward G. Robinson are named in an FBI report as Communist Party members.
- June 29 - Last US troops withdraw from South Korea
- June 29 - Dock strike in the UK
- June 29 - Beginning of Apartheid - The South African Citizenship Act suspends the granting of citizenship to British Commonwealth immigrants after five years and imposes a ban on mixed marriages
August
- August 5 - In Ecuador an earthquake destroys 50 towns and kills more than 8000
- August 8 - Bhutan becomes independent
- August 14 - Gang of Salvatore Giuliano explodes mines under police barracks outside Palermo, Sicily
- August 14 - Military coup in Syria ousts the president
- August 28 - Last surviving veterans of the United States Civil War meet in Indianapolis - all six
- August 29 - First meeting of the Council of Europe
- August 29 - Soviet Union tests its first atomic bomb.
September
- September 6 - Allied military authorities relinquish control of former Nazi Germany assets back to German control.
- September 7 - Federal Republic of Germany officially founded. Konrad Adenauer is the first federal chancellor
- September 9 - Dynamite bomb destroys Canadian Pacific Airlines Dakota near Quebec
- September 13 - Soviet Union vetoes United Nations membership of Ceylon, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Jordan and Portugal
- September 17 - Canadian steamship SS Noronic burns in Toronto Harbor with the loss of over 118 lives.
- September 24 - Laszlo Rajk, ex-foreign minister of Hungary, is sentenced to death.
- September 29 - First Plenary Session of the National People's Congress approves design for the Flag of the People's Republic of China.
- September 29 - Mrs. Iva Toguri D'Aquino is found guilty of broadcasting for Japan as "Tokyo Rose" during World War II.
October-December
- October 1 - Birth of the People's Republic of China.
- October 7 - Democratic Republic of Germany DDR established officially
- October 13 - Severe flooding in Guatemala
- October 16 - Civil war ends in Greece - communist troops surrender
- October 17 - Chinese communist troops take Canton,_China
- October 27 - An airliner flying from Paris to New York crashes near the Azores. Among the victims are violinist Ginette Neveu and boxer Marcel Cerdan.
- November 24 - Opening day at the ski resort Squaw Valley California.
- November 26 - The Indian Constituent Assembly adopts India's constitution. [1]
- December 8 - Nationalist Chinese finish their evacuation to Taiwan.
- December 10- Robert Gordon (Bob) Menzies elected.
- December 14 - Traicho Kostov, ex-vice prime minister of Bulgaria, is sentenced to death.
- December 15 - Typhoon strikes fishing fleet off Korea - several thousand reported dead.
- December 16 - Sukarno elected president of Republic of Indonesia.
- December 17 - Burma recognizes People's Republic of China.
- December 27 - Queen Juliana of the Netherlands grants Indonesia sovereignty.
- December 30 - India recognizes People's Republic of China.
An Unknown Date
- The Fourth Geneva Convention is signed.
Year in topic
- 1949 in film
- February 10 - Death of a Salesman opens (Morosco Theatre in New York City).
- All the King's Men
- Twelve O'Clock High
- Sands of Iwo Jima starring John Wayne
- Riso amaro by Giuseppe di Santis
- 1949 in literature
- 1949 in music
- 1949 in rail transport
- General Motors Electro-Motive Division introduces the EMD GP7.
- 1949 in sports
- March 1 - World heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis announces his retirement from boxing.
- A form of drag racing, using a hand-held stop watch for timing, begins on the Bonneville Salt Flats.
- Red Byron won the inaugural NASCAR Championship.
- 1949 in television
- January 3 - Colgate Theatre premieres on NBC.
- January 11 - A 2 hour special on all networks celebrates the linking of the eastern and midwestern networks via coaxial cable
- January 17 - The Goldbergs, the first sitcom on American television, airs.
- January 31 - The first Emmy Awards are presented and broadcasted on television from Los Angeles
- May - The first telethon, benefitting the Damon Runyon Cancer Fund, is hosted by Milton Berle and lasts for 24 hours
- August 25 - RCA announces the development of a compatible color TV system.
- December 29 - KC2XAK of Bridgeport, Connecticut becomes the first Ultra high frequency (UHF) television station to operate a daily schedule.
Births
January
- January 2 - Christopher Durang, American playwright
- January 8 - Wolfgang Puck, Austrian celebrity chef
- January 10
- George Foreman, American boxer
- James Lapine, American stage director and librettist
- Linda Lovelace, pornographic film actress (d. 2002)
- January 11 - Kalev Ots, Estonian statesman
- January 12 - Wayne Wang, director
- January 13 - Brandon Tartikoff, television executive (d. 1997)
- January 14 - Lawrence Kasdan, American director and screenwriter
- January 17 - Andy Kaufman, American comedian (d. 1984)
- January 18 - Philippe Starck, French designer
- January 19 - Robert Palmer, English musician (d. 2003)
- January 20 - Göran Persson, prime minister of Sweden
- January 24 - John Belushi, American actor (d. 1982)
- January 31 - Ken Wilber, American philosopher
February
- February 2 - Brent Spiner, American actor
- February 11 - Charlie Hargrett, rock guitarist
- February 15 - Ken Anderson, American football quarterback
- February 18 - Gary Ridgway, accused of being the Green River Killer
- February 19 - Dan Bunten, software developer (d. 1998)
- February 22 - Niki Lauda, Formula One driver
March
- March 2 - Gates McFadden, American actress
- March 2 - Eddie Money, singer
- March 2 - JPR Williams, Welsh rugby player
- March 3 - Jesse Jefferson, Major League Baseball pitcher
- March 6 - Shaukat Aziz, politician
- March 6 - Martin Buchan, Scottish football (soccer) player
- March 7 - Ghulam Nabi Azad, Indian politician
- March 10 - Larry Wall, programmer, linguist, author, creator of Perl
- March 13 - Julia Migenes, soprano
- March 16 - Erik Estrada, actor
- March 16 - Victor Garber, actor
- March 17 - Patrick Duffy, actor
- March 22 - Fanny Ardant, actress
- March 23 - Ric Ocasek, musician ("The Cars")
- March 24 - Nick Lowe, musician
- March 26 - Patrick Süskind, writer
- March 30 - Marcia Ball, blues musician
- March 30 - Lene Lovich, singer
- March 31 - Bethel Enproe Adam, second Angam Baby
April-June
- April 1 - Gil Scott-Heron, musician, composer
- April 3 - Richard Thompson, musician, songwriter
- April 7 - John Oates, musician (Hall and Oates)
- April 16 - Sandy Hawley, jockey
- April 18 - Geoff Bodine, NASCAR driver
- May 4 - John Force, NHRA drag racer
- May 9 - Billy Joel, American musician
- May 18 - Rick Wakeman, musician ("Yes"), composer
- May 18 - Bill Wallace, musician The Guess Who, Winnipeg
- May 19 - Archie Manning, American football quarterback
- May 24 - Tomaž Pisanski;, mathematician
- May 26 - Philip Michael Thomas, actor
- May 26 - Hank Williams Jr, singer
- May 31 - Tom Berenger, actor
- June 13 - Ann Druyan, science fiction writer
- June 14 - Jimmy Lea, Slade, violinist/bassplayer/pianist
- June 14 - Harry Turtledove, historian and novelist
- June 21 - Jane Urquhart, Canadian author
- June 26 - Lewis Koch, artist/photographer
July-September
- July 3 - Jan Smithers, actress (WKRP in Cincinnati)
- July 15 - Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden
- July 17 - Charlie Steiner, sports anchor
- July 22 - Alan Menken, composer
- July 26 - Roger Taylor, musician(Queen)
- August 7 - Walid Jumblatt, leader of the Lebanese Druze
- August 12 - Mark Knopfler, musician
- August 15 - Richard Deacon, sculptor
- August 23 - Shelley Long, actress
- August 25 - Martin Amis, novelist
- August 31 - Richard Gere, actor
- September 1 - P.A. Sangma, Indian politician
- September 7 - Lee McGeorge Durrell author, television presenter, zookeeper
- September 7 - Gloria Gaynor, singer
- September 14 - Eikichi Yazawa, Japanese rock singer
- September 15 - Joe Barton, American politician
- September 23 - Bruce Springsteen, singer, songwriter
- September 27 - Mike Schmidt, Baseball Hall of Famer
October-December
- October 1 - Isaac Bonewits, author, occultist
- October 2 - Lorraine Bracco, actress
- October 8 - Sigourney Weaver, actress
- October 20 - Valeri Borzov, Ukrainian athlete
- October 22 - Stiv Bators, American musician, punk rock singer with The Dead Boys (d. June 3, 1990)
- November 5 - Armin Shimerman, actor ()
- November 6 - Arturo Sandoval, Jazz performer
- November 7 - Aiswarya, Queen of Nepal (d. 2001)
- Judi Bari, activist
- November 24 - Nicholas Richard Ainger, British politician
- Linda Tripp, figure in Lewinsky scandal
- November 26 - Juanin Clay, American actress (d. 1995)
- November 29 - Alexander Godunov
- December 3 - John Akii-Bua Ugandan hurdler (d. 1997)
- December 4 - Jeff Bridges, American actor
- Pamela Stephenson, comedienne, actress, and singer
- December 7 - Tom Waits, singer, composer, actor
- December 12 - Bill Nighy, actor
- December 14 - Bill Buckner, baseball player
- December 15 - Don Johnson, American actor
- December 22 - Maurice Gibb, English musician (The Bee Gees) (d. 2003)
- Robin Gibb, English musician (The Bee Gees)
- December 24 - Randy Neugebauer, American politician
- December 25 - Joe Louis Walker, blues musician
Unknown Date
- William Hope, Canadian movie actor (Aliens)
Deaths
- January 6 - Victor Fleming, American director (b. 1883)
- January 11 - Nelson Doubleday, U.S. book publisher
- January 14 - Joaquín Turina, Spanish composer (b. 1882)
- January 28 - Jean-Pierre Wimille, race car driver
- February 12 - Imam Hassan al Banna, Egyptian Islamist and founder of the Muslim Brotherhood (b. 1906)
- March 30 - Friedrich Bergius, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1884)
- April 19 - Ulrich Salchow, Swedish figure skater (b. 1877)
- May 9 - Louis II of Monaco (b. 1870)
- May 22 - James Forrestal, US secretary of Navy, Defense
- May 22 - Klaus Mann, German writer (b. 1906)
- June 10 - Sigrid Undset, Norwegian author
- June 14 - Russell Doubleday, U.S. author and publisher
- July 9 - Fritz Bennicke Hart, English-born Australian composer (b. 1874)
- July 12 - Douglas Hyde, first President of Ireland
- July 18- Vitezslav Novák, Czech composer (b. 1870)
- August 18 - Paul Mares, jazz musician (b. 1900)
- September 8 - Richard Strauss, German composer (b. 1864)
- September 19 - Will Cuppy, humorist (b. 1884).
- October 27 - Marcel Cerdan, French world champion boxer )air crash) (b. 1916)
- October 27 - Ginette Neveu, French violinist (air crash) (b. 1919)
- December 6 - Leadbelly, blues musician
- December 11 - Bhattacharya, K C
- December 16 - Sidney Olcott, pioneer film director
- December 28 - Jack Lovelock, New Zealand athlete
- December 28 - Hervey Allen, U.S. author
Nobel Prizes
The Nobel Prize in 1949 was approx. $ 30,000- Physics - Yukawa Hideki
- Chemistry - William Francis Giauque
- Medicine - Walter Rudolf Hess, Antonio Caetano De Abreu Freire Egas Moniz
- Literature - William Faulkner
- Peace - John Boyd Orr
