HAPPENINGS IN 1955
Don’t
Walk signs are introduced to the streets of New York City.
Polio shots are given in public schools.
US starts sending $216 million in aid to Vietnam.
The U.S. imports 57,115 passenger cars. That number will
climb to 668,070 by 1959, which will be a stellar year for imports.
Ann Landers starts her famous column in the Chicago
Sun-Times.
Richard J. Daley is elected mayor of Chicago and begins
a 21-year reign of patronage politics.
Defying
Alabama law, Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat on a bus to a white
man.
Home microwave ovens go on sale.
On the air, you'll find 2,635 AM radio, 553 FM
radio and 411 TV Stations.
West Germany is admitted into NATO on May 9. The Soviets
counter NATO with creation of the Warsaw Pact, signed by eight countries
on May 14.
Bella Lugosi (Dracula) goes into a hospital for
treatment of a 20 year drug addition.
New drugs Thorazine and Reserpine are found to be very
useful in the treatment of mental patients.
Instant Oatmeal is invented by the Quaker Oats Company.
It's finger lickin' good! Kentucky Fried Chicken
is introduced nationally.
Crest, the first toothpaste with fluoride clinically
proven to fight cavities, is launched.
NY psychologist Joyce Brothers won The $64,000
Question. Her topic was boxing.
The National Review appears, edited and published
by William F. Buckley, Jr.
The Village Voice begins publication.
Founded by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher and Norman Mailer, the weekly
publication introduces free-form, high-spirited and passionate
journalism .
Argentina's President Juan Peron is overthrown by a
military coup; he flees to Spain. Pope Pius XII excommunicates
him.
The first automobile seat belt legislation is enacted in
Illinois.
Barbra Striesand records "You'll Never Know"
at age 13.
In
early 1954 Ray Kroc drives to San Bernardino, CA to see what is going on
with a hamburger stand owned by Dick and Maurice (Mac) McDonald.
Kroc, who sold Multimixers, wanted to know why the brothers ordered so
many of them. Kroc discovered a huge lunch line of ordinary people
wanting a 15¢ burger (4¢ extra for cheese), a 5¢ coffee, or a 20¢
milkshake! He opened his own first hamburger stand in
suburban Chicago in 1955. By 1956 there were 12, by 1960,
228. In 2000, McDonald's has grown to 25,000 restaurants in about
120 countries.
The corticosteroid prednisone is developed.
Congress authorizes all US currency and coins to say In
God We Trust.
Marian Anderson becomes the first black singer to
perform at the Metropolitan Opera House.
Disneyland opens and has over 1 million visitors in
only 7 weeks.
No-iron Dacron is introduced.
After appearing in East of Eden and Rebel
Without a Cause, James Dean is killed in an automobile accident.
Top-of-the-line mink coats are on sale for $895.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ends the year at
488.4
The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, (Sloan Wilson),
Andersonville, (MacKinlay Kantor), and Gift from the Sea
(Anne Morrow Lindbergh) top the best seller lists.
Russian-born Vladimir Nabokov's best-known novel, Lolita,
shocked many people but its humor and literary style are praised by
critics.
The
1955 Thunderbird comes to Ford showrooms. It sells for just under
$3000, plus options.
The American Federation of Labor and the Congress of
Industrial Organizations merge, making the new AFL-CIO an organization
with 15 million members. George Meany becomes president.
President Eisenhower conducts the first televised press
conference.
Johnson & Johnson markets the first baby
shampoo.
There are 38,426 motor vehicle related deaths. There
are nine aviation accidents resulting in 158 fatalities.
Unemployment is 4.4%
US average annual income: $4,137.
Albert
Einstein dies at age 76.
The Brooklyn Dodgers record their only World Series
victory, beating the Yankees in game 7.
The Cleveland Browns beat the LA Rams 38-14 in the NFL
championship game.
Syracuse beats Fort Wayne, 4 games to 3, for NBA
championship.
Tony Trabert wins at Wimbledon.
Bill Shoemaker, aboard Swaps, beats Eddie Arcaro on Nashua in Kentucky
Derby.
Eddie Arcaro ties the record of 6 Belmont Stakes wins.
Sugar Ray Robinson wins the world boxing championship by defeating Carl
"Bobo" Olson.
Jack Fleck wins the US Open golf tournament. Cary Middlecoff's 279
wins the Masters.
Howard Cassady, Ohio State, wins the Heisman Trophy. Earl Morrall,
later the hero of the Dolphins 1972 perfect season, comes in 4th in the
voting.
A Le Mans race car accident kills 83 spectators.
William Cox buys Yankee Stadium.
Bob Sweikert wins the Indianapolis 500.
Oscars
Best Picture:
Marty
Best Actor:
Ernest Borgnine
Marty
Best Actress:
Anna Magnani
The Rose Tattoo
Best Song:
Sammy Fain,
Paul Francis Webster
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing
Ford car: $1606-$2944
Milk, gal: $.92
Gas, gal.: $.23
Bread, 1-lb. loaf: $.18
Postage stamp: $.03
Sirloin chops, lb: $.69
Pot Roast, lb: $.43 lb.
Eggs, doz.: $.61
Coffee, lb.: $.93
Potatoes, 10 lb. bag: $.53
Starkist tuna, 6 ½ oz. can: $.25
Oreo cookies, 11¾ .oz pkg: $.39
Potato salad, pint: $.29
Cracker Jack, 24 pack: $1.49
Apple cider, ½ gal.: $.49
Gum drops, 1½ lb. pkg: $.29
Ivory soap, 2 bars: $.29
Mickey Mouse lunchbox: $.88
Slinky: $.88
Nylons, pair: $1.00
Home permanent: $1.50
Baseball glove: $9.95
