America in the 60's

  • SNCC formed

    SNCC formed

    The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was founded in April 1960, by young people who had emerged as leaders of the sit-in protest movement initiated on February 1 of that year.
  • First televised Presidential debate

    First televised Presidential debate

    Nixon and Democratic Senator John F. Kennedy. The first-ever televised debate between presidential candidates was held on September 26, 1960.
  • First airing of “The Flintstones”

    First airing of “The Flintstones”

    At 8:30 p.m. Eastern time on September 30, 1960, The Flintstones made their debut and immediately gained popularity.
  • President Kennedy is elected

    President Kennedy is elected

    Kennedy won the Electoral College with 303 votes to 219, and he received a reported national popular vote of 112,827.
  • Russians send the first man into space

    Russians send the first man into space

    In 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first person in space when he traveled around the planet in the Vostok 1 spacecraft.
  • Marilyn Monroe dies

    Marilyn Monroe dies

    She overdosed on barbiturates at her Los Angeles residence and died at the age of 36. It was determined that she likely committed suicide.
  • Roger Maris of the Yankees breaks Babe Ruth’s single season home run record

    Roger Maris of the Yankees breaks Babe Ruth’s single season home run record

    Because Maris was after Babe Ruth's sixty single-season home runs, the most famous mark in baseball, he was derided, jeered, cursed, and generally mistreated by the media and baseball fans.
  • SDS releases its Port Huron statement

    SDS releases its Port Huron statement

    It was written by SDS members, and completed on June 15, 1962, at a United Auto Workers (UAW) retreat outside of Port Huron, Michigan (now part of Lakeport State Park), for the group's first national convention.
  • The Berlin Wall is constructed

    The Berlin Wall is constructed

    West Berlin was encircled by the 155-kilometer-long Berlin Wall, which sliced through the center of the city. The purpose of the Wall was to keep people from fleeing East Berlin to the West.
  • James Meredith registers at Ole Miss

    James Meredith registers at Ole Miss

    On October 2, 1962, James Meredith formally enrolled at the University of Mississippi as the school's first African American student.
  • “Dr. No” the first James Bond movie premiers

    “Dr. No” the first James Bond movie premiers

    Dr. No had its worldwide premiere at the London Pavilion, on 5 October 1962, expanding to the rest of the United Kingdom three days later. The North American premiere on 8 May 1963 was more low-profile, with 450 cinemas in Midwest and Southwest regions of the United States.
  • Dr. King’s “I Have A Dream” Speech

    Dr. King’s “I Have A Dream” Speech

    Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech, "I Have a Dream," was given on August 28, 1963, as part of the March on Washington. It was a plea for freedom and equality and went on to become one of the most famous addresses in American history as well as a pivotal point in the civil rights struggle.
  • The Cuban Missile Crisis

    The Cuban Missile Crisis

    During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union faced off directly and dangerously in the October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.
  • John F Kennedy is assassinated

    John F Kennedy is assassinated

    On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was shot in Dallas, Texas, while riding in a motorcade with his wife.
  • The Beatles arrive in the United States

    The Beatles arrive in the United States

    On February 7, 1964, the Beatles made their first appearance in the United States, and ever since, the music industry have changed significantly.
  • The Beatles appear on Ed Sullivan

    The Beatles appear on Ed Sullivan

    The Beatles — John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr — appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" on Feb. 9, 1964.
  • New York World’s Fair begins

    New York World’s Fair begins

    The theme of the fair was “Peace through Understanding.” Popular exhibits included General Motors' “Futurama II” portraying the world of 2064, American Telephone and Telegraph's models of the Picturephone
  • Lyndon B Johnson defeats Barry Goldwater

    Lyndon B Johnson defeats Barry Goldwater

    Less than a year following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, who won the previous presidential election. Incumbent Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson defeated Republican Senator Barry Goldwater in a landslide victory
  • Malcolm X assassinated

    Malcolm X assassinated

    A well-known figure during the civil rights movement, Malcolm X was an African American Muslim clergyman and human rights advocate. He was shot several times and died from his wounds in Manhattan, New York City, on February 21, 1965, at the age of 39.
  • Watts race riots

    Watts race riots

    Watts Riots of 1965, series of violent confrontations between Los Angeles police and residents of Watts and other predominantly African American neighbourhoods of South-Central Los Angeles
  • “Star Trek” TV show airs

    “Star Trek” TV show airs

    The first regular episode of Star Trek, "The Man Trap", aired on Thursday, September 8, 1966, from 8:30 to 9:30 as part of an NBC "sneak preview" block.
  • San Francisco “Summer of Love” begins

    San Francisco “Summer of Love” begins

    On January 14, 1967, the Human Be-In takes place in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, marking the beginning of the "Summer of Love." Over 20,000 individuals attend the event to experience psychedelics, music, peace, and love.
  • First NFL Football Super Bowl

    First NFL Football Super Bowl

    On January 15, 1967, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum hosted the inaugural "Super Bowl." It was primarily regarded as an exhibition game at the time and was known as the AFL-NFL Championship Game.
  • Boxer Muhammed Ali refuses military service

    Boxer Muhammed Ali refuses military service

    The world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali entered the hostile ring of politics and culture by declining to serve in the U.S. military during the height of the Vietnam War.
  • The Beatles release Sgt. Pepper’s album

    The Beatles release Sgt. Pepper’s album

    For many years, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," which the Beatles released on June 1, 1967, was regarded as the best rock 'n' roll album ever.
  • Thurgood Marshall nominated to the Supreme Court

    Thurgood Marshall nominated to the Supreme Court

    Thurgood Marshall, a renowned civil rights attorney, was nominated by President Lyndon B. Johnson on June 13, 1967, to be the first African American justice to serve on the US Supreme Court.
  • Tet Offensive

    Tet Offensive

    North Vietnamese and communist Viet Cong forces launched a coordinated attack on several South Vietnamese targets.
  • Martin Luther King Jr. assassinated

    Martin Luther King Jr. assassinated

    He was severely wounded on the lower right side of his face by a single shot from an assassin. Ralph Abernathy held King's head as SCLC staff hurried to him. Others on the balcony gestured toward the back of a boarding house on South Main Street, which appeared to be the source of the shot.
  • Robert Kennedy is assassinated

    Robert Kennedy is assassinated

    Sirhan Sirhan shot Robert F. Kennedy at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, California, and he was declared dead the next day.
  • Protests at the 1968 Democratic National Convention

    Protests at the 1968 Democratic National Convention

    The protests lasted approximately seven days, from August 23 to August 29, 1968, and drew an estimated 7,000 to 10,000 anti-war protesters in total.
  • LSD declared illegal by the U.S. government

    LSD declared illegal by the U.S. government

    In 1968, the US federal government outlawed the possession of LSD.
  • Richard Nixon is elected

    Richard Nixon is elected

    Richard Nixon, a former California Representative and Senator, was elected as the 37th President of the United States from 1969-1974.
  • Stonewall riots

    Stonewall riots

    Police attacked the Stonewall Inn, a gay nightclub in Greenwich Village, New York, on June 28, 1969. Customers and a growing throng, however, chose to fight back rather than comply with the NYPD's expected routine.
  • American astronauts land on the moon

    American astronauts land on the moon

    Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong's 1969 lunar landing and return to Earth were viewed as epochal events, attracting media attention and international celebration.
  • Woodstock concert

    Woodstock concert

    The Grateful Dead, Sly and the Family Stone, Jimi Hendrix, and the that were among the rock acts signed by the four inexperienced promoters that arranged Woodstock.
  • The Rolling Stones host the Altamont music festival

    The Rolling Stones host the Altamont music festival

    On Saturday, December 6, 1969, a counterculture rock event known as the Altamont Speedway Free Festival took place at the Altamont Speedway west of Tracy, California. People who were expecting a "Woodstock West" showed up for the concert, which drew about 300,000.