At A Glance

26 May 1959 at a glance

Day of the week
26 May 1959 was a Tuesday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “Kansas City” by Wilbert Harrison.
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 26 May is Gemini.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 26 May 1959 fell in the Year of the Pig.
Birthstone
The birthstone for May is Emerald.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 26 May 1959 was Waning Gibbous.

On this day: 26 May

  • 1966 British Guiana gains independence, becoming Guyana.
  • 1967 The Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is released.
  • 1968 H-dagurinn in Iceland: Traffic changes from driving on the left to driving on the right overnight.
  • 1969 Apollo program: Apollo 10 returns to Earth after a successful eight-day test of all the components needed for the forthcoming first crewed Moon landing.
  • 1970 The Soviet Tupolev Tu-144 becomes the first commercial transport to exceed Mach 2.

Famous people born on May 26

  • Stevie Nicks, American singer-songwriter (born 1948)
  • Helena Bonham Carter, English actress (born 1966)
  • John Wayne, American actor, director, and producer (1907–1979)
  • Lenny Kravitz, American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and actor (born 1964)

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.

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

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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