At A Glance

24 December 1956 at a glance

Day of the week
24 December 1956 was a Monday.
Australian No. 1 (Kent retrospective)
“Just Walking in the Rain” by Johnnie Ray 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 1956
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1956 was The Ten Commandments.
Star sign
The star sign for 24 December is Capricorn.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 24 December 1956 fell in the Year of the Monkey.
Birthstone
The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 24 December 1956 was Last Quarter.

On this day: 24 December

  • 1943 World War II: U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower is named Supreme Allied Commander for Operation Overlord.
  • 1944 World War II: The Belgian Troopship Leopoldville was torpedoed and sank with the loss of 763 soldiers and 56 crew.
  • 1951 Libya becomes independent. Idris I is proclaimed King of Libya.
  • 1968 Apollo program: The crew of Apollo 8 enters into orbit around the Moon, becoming the first humans to do so. They performed ten lunar orbits, took the Earthrise photograph, broadcast live TV pictures, and read the first ten verses of Genesis.
  • 1969 Nigerian troops capture Umuahia, the Biafran capital.

Famous people born on 24 December

  • Howard Hughes, American businessman, engineer, and pilot (1905–1976)
  • Ed Miliband, British politician, Foreign Secretary (born 1969)
  • Empress Elisabeth of Austria (1837–1898)
  • Davante Adams, American football player (born 1992)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Events of 1956 in Australia

A selection from Wikipedia's '1956 in Australia'. Not a complete list.

  • 16 September – Australia's first TV station TCN-9 begins regular transmission in Sydney
  • 4 November – HSV-7 begins as Melbourne's first TV Station.
  • 5 November – The first TV station of the Australian Broadcasting Commission is launched; ABN-2 Sydney.

Life in Australia in 1956

Prime Minister

Robert Menzies

Monarch

Queen Elizabeth II

Petrol (per litre)

$0.04

Loaf of Bread

$0.11

Average House

$4,500

Weekly Wage

$11.50

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1950s

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

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

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