At A Glance

12 August 1959 at a glance

Day of the week
12 August 1959 was a Wednesday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “A Big Hunk o' Love” by Elvis Presley.
Top Film of 1959
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1959 was Ben-Hur.
Bestselling Novel of 1959
“Exodus” by Leon Uris was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1959.
Top-Rated TV Show
“Gunsmoke” (CBS) was No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1959–60 season.
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 August 12

  • 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 the United States

A selection from Wikipedia's '1959 in the United States'. Not a complete list.

  • January 3 – Alaska is admitted as the 49th U.S. state (see History of Alaska).
  • January 12 – The Motown record label is founded as Tamla by Berry Gordy in Detroit.
  • May 8 – The first Little Caesars pizza restaurant is opened by Mike Ilitch and his wife Marian in Garden City, Michigan.
More events of 1959 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in the US in 1959

President

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Gas (per gallon)

$0.31

Loaf of Bread

$0.20

Average House

$11,500

Weekly Wage

$83

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Famous Faces Born in the 1950s

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

Michael Jackson29 August 1958Singer & songwriterView their day →Anthony Bourdain25 June 1956Chef & television personalityView their day →Bruce Willis19 March 1955ActorView their day →Madonna16 August 1958SingerView their day →Annette Bening29 May 1958ActressView their day →Robin Williams21 July 1951Actor & comedianView their day →Steve Jobs24 February 1955Entrepreneur & co-founder of Apple Inc.View their day →Prince7 June 1958MusicianView their day →

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

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