At A Glance
23 April 1961 at a glance
- Day of the week
- 23 April 1961 was a Sunday.
- 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 23 April is Taurus.
- Chinese zodiac
- In the Chinese zodiac, 23 April 1961 fell in the Year of the Ox.
- Birthstone
- The birthstone for April is Diamond.
- Moon phase
- The moon phase on 23 April 1961 was First Quarter.
On this day: 23 April
- 1949 Chinese Civil War: Establishment of the People's Liberation Army Navy.
- 1951 Cold War: American journalist William N. Oatis is arrested for espionage by the Communist government of Czechoslovakia.
- 1961 During the Algiers putsch by French generals, President Charles de Gaulle announces he has assumed emergency powers, and calls on troops and civilians to support him.
- 1967 Soviet space program: Soyuz 1 (Russian: Союз 1, Union 1), a crewed spaceflight carrying cosmonaut Colonel Vladimir Komarov, is launched into orbit.
- 1968 Vietnam War: Student protesters at Columbia University in New York City take over administration buildings and shut down the university.
Famous people born on April 23
- William Shakespeare, English playwright and poet (1564–1616)
- John Cena, American professional wrestler and actor (born 1977)
- Gigi Hadid, American fashion model and television personality (born 1995)
- Shirley Temple, American actress, singer, dancer, and diplomat (1928–2014)
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.
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.
Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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