The Year 1947
MAJOR EVENTS:
President Truman formulates "Truman Doctrine" of providing aid to
countries whose governments are threatened with overthrow
U.S. Secretary of State George Marshall calls for a European recovery
effort, popularly called the "Marshall Plan."
India and Pakistan proclaimed independent nations
Britain nationalizes its coal industry
Britain's Princess Elizabeth marries Phillip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh
BUSINESS & ECONOMY:
Congress passes Taft-Hartley Act, restricting labor unions
Henry Ford dies, leaving behind a fortune of over $600 million
Americans are able to purchase the first new cars manufactured since the
beginning of World War II
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY:
First airplane to break the speed of sound
Thor Heyerdahl sails from Peru to Polynesia on a raft to prove theory of
human migration
Transistor invented at Bell Laboratories
Holography invented
"Broad spectrum" antibiotic introduced to fight typhus
SPORTS:
World Series:New York Yankees over Brooklyn, 4-3 (first
televised World Series)
Jackie Robinson becomes the first African-American player in a major league
baseball team (Brooklyn Dodgers)
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT:
Movies: Gentleman's Agreement
TV Shows: Kraft Television Theatre, Small Fry
Club (programming limited to approximately 18 hours per week)
Books:Doktur Faustus, Thomas Mann; The
Diary of Anne Frank; I, the Jury, Mickey Spillaine
House Un-American Activities Committee begins investigating alleged
Hollywood ties to communism
Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire wins Pulitzer
Prize
EVERYDAY LIFE:
The "New Look" of long, full skirts becomes the rage of female
fashion
Over 1 million veterans enroll in college through the G.I. Bill
First food processors
Inventor Earl Tupper invents Tupperware, and with it the "Tupperware
party," a unique way of marketing the products directly to homemakers
FUN FACTS:
North America and Europe both experience severe winters. New York is hit
with 28 inches of snow (Dec. 17), while Britain has its harshest winter in over
50 years
First documented sightings of "flying saucers"
Drive-in theatres become a booming industry