The Year 1964
MAJOR EVENTS:
  • After completing what would have been the final year of John F. Kennedy's first term, President Johnson re-elected in a landslide over Barry Goldwater
  • President Johnson declares "war on poverty," introduces a variety of federal welfare programs, including Medicare (initially proposed by Kennedy in 1960)
  • Three civil rights workers murdered in Mississippi during "Freedom Summer"
  • 24th Amendment to Constitution adopted, ensuring fair voting practices
  • Race riots break out in Harlem and other U.S. cities
  • Investigating the Kennedy assassination, the Warren Commission determines that "Oswald acted alone" in killing the president
  • U.S. military forces launch attacks on North Vietnam in response to an alleged attack on a U.S. destroyer off the Vietnamese coast; Congress passes Gulf of Tonkin resolution that gives the President greater freedom to authorize combat actions in Vietnam
  • Soviet leader Khrushchev falls from power, is ultimately replaced by Leonid Brezhnev
  • Anchorage, Alaska hit by massive earthquake
  • Turkey attacks Cyprus


    • BUSINESS & ECONOMY:
  • Teamsters leader Jimmy Hoffa convicted of fraud, conspiracy and jury tampering
  • The average hourly wage for blue collar workers has increased from between 50 and 75 percent since 1949


    • SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY:
  • Space probe Mariner IV flies by Mars, transmitting pictures of the planet's surface back to earth
  • The world's longest suspension bridge, the Verrazano Narrows Bridge in New York, opens
  • Concern in Britain over "brain drain," or the mass emigration of British scientists to the U.S.
  • World's Fair held in New York
  • First lung transplant


    • SPORTS:
  • World Series: St. Louis over New York Yankees, 4-3
  • Olympics held in Tokyo
  • Cassius Clay (the future Muhammad Ali) defeats Sonny Liston to win heavyweight boxing title


    • ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT:
  • Movies: Lord of the Flies, A Hard Day's Night, My Fair Lady, Goldfinger, Zorba the Greek, Mary Poppins
  • Songs: I Want to Hold Your Hand, Hello Dolly!, She Loves You, Can't Buy Me Love, Do Wah Diddy Diddy, Oh Pretty Woman, Baby Love, My Guy
  • TV Shows: The Munsters, The Virginian, Daniel Boone, Outer Limits, Gilligan's Island, Man From UNCLE, Flipper, Dr. Kildare, Voyage the the Bottom of the Sea
  • Books: A Moveable Feast, Ernest Hemmingway (posthumous publication); Herzog, Saul Bellow; In His Own Write, John Lennon
  • "Beatlemania" spreads as the Beatles become a global phenomenon
  • Musicals Hello Dolly, Fiddler on the Roof debut
  • Elizabeth Taylor marries Richard Burton after divorcing Eddie Fisher 10 days before
  • Cole Porter dies


    • FUN FACTS:
  • According to some reports, not a single juvenile crime is reported in New York City the night of the Beatles' first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964
    • <

    Do you remember... 1964?

    SPORTS
    • AFL: Buffalo Bills 20 - San Diego Chargers 7
    • NFL: Cleveland Browns 27 – Baltimore Colts 0
    • NFL MVP: Johnny Unitas, QB of the Baltimore Colts
    • NFL Rookie of The Year: Matt Snell, FB of the New York Jets
    • HEISMAN TROPHY: John Huarte, QB for the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame
      BOWL GAME RESULTS
          Cotton Bowl: Texas 28 – Navy 6
          Florida Citrus Bowl: East Carolina 14 – Massachusetts 13
          Gator Bowl: North Carolina 35 – Air Force 0
          Liberty Bowl: Utah 32 – West Virginia 6
          Orange Bowl: Nebraska 13 – Auburn 7
          Rose Bowl: Illinois 17 – Washington 7
          Sugar Bowl: Alabama 12 – Mississippi 7
          Sun Bowl: Georgia 7 – Texas Tech 0
    • NCAA BASKETBALL: U.C.L.A. with a perfect 30 – 0 season
    • NBA: Boston Celtics win 4 games to 1 over the then San Francisco Warriors (This is Boston’s 6th straight NBA Title)
    • NHL STANLEY CUP: Montreal Canadians over the Chicago Blackhawks 4 games to 3
    • WORLD SERIES: St. Louis Cardinals win 4 games to 3 over the New York Yankees
    • WIMBLEDON WOMEN'S CHAMPION: Maria Bueno
    • WIMBLEDON MEN'S CHAMPION: Roy Emerson
    • KENTUCKY DERBY: Northern Dancer with Jockey Bill Hartack in 2.00 on 2 May 1964 winning $114,300
    • BOXING: Muhammad Ali wins the Heavyweight Boxing Championship over Sonny Liston
    • THE XVIII SUMMER OLYMPICS: Tokyo, Japan -- US Wins 36 Gold, 26 Silver and 28 Bronze for a total of 90 medals the most of the games by 4 over the USSR
    • THE IX WINTER GAMES: Innsbruck, Austria -- US Wins 1 Gold, 2 Silver and 3 Bronze for a total of 6 medals and 7th place out of 15 countries to win any medals with the USSR leading the pack with a total of 24 medals
    HITS OF 1964
    1. "I Want To Hold Your Hand" ... The Beatles
    2. "She Loves You" ... The Beatles
    3. "Hello, Dolly!" ... Louis Armstrong
    4. "Oh, Pretty Woman" ... Roy Orbison
    5. "I Get Around" ... The Beach Boys
    6. "Everybody Loves Somebody" ... Dean Martin
    7. "We'll Sing In The Sunshine" ... Gale Garnett
    8. "Where Did Our Love Go" ... Supremes
    9. "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" ... Manfred Mann
    10. "Dancing In The Street" ... Martha & The Vandellas
    11. "Under The Boardwalk" ... Drifters
    12. "Chapel Of Love" ... The Dixie Cups
    13. "Dawn (Go Away") .. Four Seasons
    14. "Dead Man's Curve" ... Jan & Dean
    15. "Baby Love" ... The Supremes
    16. "The House Of The Rising Sun" ... The Animals
    17. "Memphis" ... Johnny Rivers
    18. "Little Old Lady" ... Jan & Dean
    19. "Can’t Buy Me Love" ... The Beatles
    20. "For You" ... Rick Nelson
    21. "It's Over" ... Roy Orbison
    22. "You Really Got Me" ... Kinks
    23. "Chug-a-lug" ... Roger Miller
    24. "Dang Me" ... Roger Miller
    25. "Hi-heel Sneakers" ... Tommy Tucker
    26. "Walk, Don't Run" ... The Ventures
    27. "I Saw Her Standing There" ... The Beatles
    28. "Today" ... New Christy Minstrels
    29. "There! I’ve Said It Again" ... Bobby Vinton
    30. "Louie Louie" ... The Kingsmen
    TOP MOVIES OF 1964
    1. "My Fair Lady"
    2. "Dr. Strangelove"
    3. "Becket"
    4. "Seven Days In May"
    5. "Fail-Safe"
    37th ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS
    • Best Picture: "My Fair Lady"
    • Best Director: George Cukor ... "My Fair Lady"
    • Best Actor:Rex Harrison ... "My Fair Lady"
    • Best Actress: Julie Andrews ... "Mary Poppins"
    MOST POPULAR BOOKS
    • FICTION: The Spy Who Came In From The Cold by John LeCarre
    • NONFICTION: I Need All The Friends I Can Get by Charles M. Schultz
    MOST POPULAR TELEVISION SHOWS
    1. Bonanza (NBC)
    2. Bewitched (ABC)
    3. Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (CBS)
    4. The Andy Griffith Show (CBS)
    5. The Fugative (ABC)
    OTHER NOTEABLES FROM 1964
    1. Go Go Girls began dancing on raised platforms in many bars and discos. A Bar in San Francisco introduces the very first Topless Go Go Girls
    2. New Dances this year are “The Dog”, “The Swim”, “The Frug”, “The Watusi” and “The Monkey”
    3. Elizabeth Taylor Marries Richard Burton 10 days after divorcing Eddie Fisher
    4. Hell’s Angels are at their popularity
    5. Harley Davidson Motorcycles are at their peak of popularity
    6. The Ford Mustang is introduced for the 1st time
    7. First year of the Zip Code used by the United Postal Service
    8. Pop Tarts and Lucky Charms come out for the first time
    9. Nehru Jackets
    10. The Topless Swimsuit – Very short lived as Women who wore these were quickly arrested and charged with Indecent Exposure