At A Glance

20 April 1961 at a glance

Day of the week
20 April 1961 was a Thursday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “Blue Moon” by The Marcels.
Top Film of 1961
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1961 was One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
Bestselling Novel of 1961
“The Agony and the Ecstasy” by Irving Stone was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1961.
Top-Rated TV Show
“Wagon Train” (NBC) was No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1961–62 season.
Star sign
The star sign for 20 April is Taurus.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 20 April 1961 fell in the Year of the Ox.
Birthstone
The birthstone for April is Diamond.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 20 April 1961 was Waxing Crescent.

On this day: 20 April

  • 1946 The League of Nations officially dissolves, giving most of its power to the United Nations.
  • 1949 Amethyst incident: The People's Liberation Army attacks HMS Amethyst (F116) travelling to the British embassy in Nanjing during the Chinese Civil War.
  • 1961 Cold War: Failure of the Bay of Pigs Invasion of US-backed Cuban exiles against Cuba.
  • 1968 English politician Enoch Powell makes his controversial "Rivers of Blood" speech.
  • 1972 Apollo program: The Apollo 16 Lunar Module Orion, commanded by John Young and piloted by Charles Duke, lands on the Moon.

Famous people born on April 20

  • Alexander Zverev, German tennis player (born 1997)
  • Jessica Lange, American actress (born 1949)
  • Andy Serkis, English actor and director (born 1964)
  • Napoleon III, French politician, 1st President of France, Emperor of French Second Empire (1808–1873)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Events of 1961 in the United States

A selection from Wikipedia's '1961 in the United States'. Not a complete list.

  • January 25 – Disney's animated film, One Hundred and One Dalmatians, is released. Its financial success pulling the studio out of another financial slump from the initial underperformance of Sleeping Beauty.
  • February 14 – Discovery of the chemical elements: Element 103, Lawrencium, is first synthesized in Berkeley, California.
  • March 1 – President of the United States John F. Kennedy establishes the Peace Corps.
More events of 1961 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in the US in 1961

President

John F. Kennedy

Gas (per gallon)

$0.31

Loaf of Bread

$0.21

Average House

$12,500

Weekly Wage

$89

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Famous Faces Born in the 1960s

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

Jeff Bezos12 January 1964Business magnateView their day →Sandra Bullock26 July 1964Actress & film producerView their day →Matthew McConaughey4 November 1969ActorView their day →Cindy Crawford20 February 1966ModelView their day →Tom Cruise3 July 1962Actor & film producerView their day →Nicole Kidman20 June 1967Actress & producerView their day →Woody Harrelson23 July 1961ActorView their day →Kyle Chandler17 September 1965ActorView their day →

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

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