At A Glance

20 July 1961 at a glance

Day of the week
20 July 1961 was a Thursday.
Australian No. 1 (Kent retrospective)
“Travelin' Man / Hello Mary Lou” by Ricky Nelson was No. 1 on David Kent's retrospective Australian chart. This chart was compiled later by David Kent from radio station charts.
Top Film of 1961
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1961 was One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
Star sign
The star sign for 20 July is Cancer.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 20 July 1961 fell in the Year of the Ox.
Birthstone
The birthstone for July is Ruby.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 20 July 1961 was First Quarter.

On this day: 20 July

  • 1954 Germany: Otto John, head of West Germany's secret service, defects to East Germany.
  • 1960 The Polaris missile is successfully launched from a submarine, the USS George Washington, for the first time.
  • 1961 French military forces break the Tunisian siege of Bizerte.
  • 1968 The first International Special Olympics Summer Games are held at Soldier Field in Chicago, with about 1,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities.
  • 1969 Apollo program: Apollo 11's crew successfully makes the first human landing on the Moon in the Sea of Tranquility. Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to walk on the Moon six and a half hours later.

Famous people born on 20 July

  • Haakon VIII (born 1973)
  • Chris Cornell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (1964–2017)
  • Julianne Hough, American singer-songwriter, actress, and dancer (born 1988)
  • Natalie Wood, American actress (1938–1981)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Choose your country: the charts, news and leaders change to match.

Events of 1961 in Australia

A selection from Wikipedia's '1961 in Australia'. Not a complete list.

  • 2 January – Oral contraceptives are first sold in Australia
  • 20 January – to early March – Disastrous bushfires affect Western Australia, completely destroying a number of towns.
  • 25 February – Last electric tram service runs in Sydney
More events of 1961 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in Australia in 1961

Prime Minister

Robert Menzies

Monarch

Queen Elizabeth II

Petrol (per litre)

$0.05

Loaf of Bread

$0.13

Average House

$6,300

Weekly Wage

$17.00

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Famous Faces Born in the 1960s

Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.

Nicole Kidman20 June 1967Actress & producerView their day →Hugh Jackman12 October 1968Actor & singerView their day →Simon Baker30 July 1969Actor & directorView their day →Steve Irwin22 February 1962Zookeeper & conservationistView their day →Kylie Minogue28 May 1968Singer & actressView their day →Cate Blanchett14 May 1969Actor & producerView their day →Guy Pearce5 October 1967ActorView their day →Eric Bana9 August 1968ActorView their day →

Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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