At A Glance

12 August 1959 at a glance

Day of the week
12 August 1959 was a Wednesday.
Top Film of 1959
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1959 was Ben-Hur.
Star sign
The star sign for 12 August is Leo.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 12 August 1959 fell in the Year of the Pig.
Birthstone
The birthstone for August is Peridot.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 12 August 1959 was First Quarter.

On this day: 12 August

  • 1944 World War II: Alençon is liberated by General Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque, becoming the first city in France to be liberated from the Nazis by French forces.
  • 1960 Echo 1A, NASA's first successful communications satellite, is launched.
  • 1964 South Africa is banned from the Olympic Games due to the country's racist policies.
  • 1977 The first free flight of the Space Shuttle Enterprise.
  • 1981 The IBM Personal Computer is released.

Famous people born on 12 August

  • Porter Wagoner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (1927–2007)
  • Peter Krause, American actor (born 1965)
  • George IV (1762–1830)
  • Casey Affleck, American actor (born 1975)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Events of 1959 in Ireland

A selection from Wikipedia's '1959 in Ireland'. Not a complete list.

  • 7 January – Dáil Éireann debated a motion that Éamon de Valera's position as controlling director of the Irish Press newspaper could be regarded as incompatible with his duties as Taoiseach.
  • 23 January – The government was considering the introduction of a pay-as-you-earn system of income tax.
  • 8 April – James Dillon of the Fine Gael party wanted to abolish compulsory Irish language studies at school as he felt they were counter-productive.

Life in Ireland in 1959

Taoiseach

Seán Lemass

Petrol (per litre)

2s 4d/gal

Loaf of Bread

7½d

Average House

£2,100

Weekly Wage

£5 5s

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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