1956
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225192769
2008-07-12T11:20:29Z
CalendarWatcher
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[[WP:UNDO|Undid]] revision 225186940 by [[Special:Contributions/125.239.31.13|125.239.31.13]] ([[User talk:125.239.31.13|talk]])
[[Image:Chevrolet Bel Air 500px.jpg|right|thumb|300px|A car from 1956]]
{{year nav|1956}}
{{C20YearInTopicX}}
Year '''1956''' ('''[[Roman numerals|MCMLVI]]''') was a [[leap year starting on Sunday]] (link will display full calendar) of the [[Gregorian calendar]].
{{C20YearTOC|1956|Ship events}}
== Events of 1956 ==
{{Month3|1|6|1}}
===January===
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* [[January 1]]
**End of [[United Kingdom|Anglo]]-[[Egypt]]ian Condominium in [[Sudan]].
**124 die in a crash at a shrine in [[Niigata Prefecture|Niigata]], [[Japan]].
* [[January 8]] - [[Operation Auca]]: Five [[United States|U.S.]] [[missionary|missionaries]] are killed by the [[Huaorani]] of [[Ecuador]] shortly after making contact with them.
* [[January 16]] - [[Gamal Abdal Nasser]], leader of [[Egypt]], vows to reconquer [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]].
* [[January 25]]-[[January 26|26]] - [[Finland|Finnish]] troops re-occupy [[Porkkala]] after [[Soviet]] troops vacate its military base. Civilians can return [[February 4]].
* [[January 26]] - [[1956 Winter Olympics|1956 Winter Olympic Games]] open in [[Cortina d'Ampezzo]], [[Italy]].
{{Month3|0|2|1}}
===February===
* [[February 11]] - British spies [[Guy Burgess]] and [[Donald Duart Maclean|Donald Maclean]] resurfaced in the [[Soviet Union]] after being missing for five years.
*[[February 16]] - The film version of [[Rodgers and Hammerstein]]'s ''[[Carousel (film)|Carousel]]'', starring [[Gordon MacRae]] and [[Shirley Jones]], is released.
* [[February 22]] - [[Elvis Presley]] enters the [[United States]] music charts for the first time, with "[[Heartbreak Hotel]]."
* [[February 23]] - Norma Jean Mortenson changes her name to [[Marilyn Monroe]].
* [[February 25]] - [[Nikita Khrushchev]] attacks the veneration of [[Joseph Stalin]] as a "[[On the Personality Cult and its Consequences|cult of personality]]."
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===March===
{{Month3|3|3|1}}
* [[March 1]] - the [[International Air Transport Association]] finalizes a draft of the [[Radiotelephony spelling alphabet]] for the [[International Civil Aviation Organization]].
* [[March 2]] - [[Morocco]] declares its independence from [[France]].
* [[March 9]] - British deport Archbishop [[Makarios]] from [[Cyprus]] to [[Seychelles]].
* [[March 11]] - [[Laurence Olivier]]'s film, ''[[Richard III (film)|Richard III]]'', adapted from [[Shakespeare]]'s play, premieres in the U.S. in theatres and on [[NBC]] television on the same day, as an afternoon [[matinee]]. It is one of the first such experiments of its kind. Olivier is later nominated for an [[Academy Award|Oscar]] for his performance.
* [[March 12]]
**96 U.S. Congressmen sign the [[Southern Manifesto]], a protest against the 1954 [[U.S. Supreme Court]] ruling ([[Brown vs. Board of Education]]) desegregating public education.
**The [[Dow Jones Industrial Average]] closes above 500 for the [[Closing milestones of the Dow Jones Industrial Average|first time]] rising 2.40 points, or 0.48%, to 500.24.
* [[March 13]] - [[Elvis Presley]] releases his first [[Gold Album]] titled ''Elvis Presley''.
* [[March 15]] - The Broadway musical ''[[My Fair Lady]]'' opens in [[New York City]].
* [[March 19]] - At age 48, Dutch boxer [[Bep van Klaveren]] contests his last match in [[Rotterdam]].
* [[March 20]] - [[Tunisia]] gains [[independence]] from [[France]].
* [[March 21]] - [[28th Academy Awards]] ceremony
* [[March 23]] - [[Pakistan]] becomes the first [[Islamic republic]] and a [[Public holiday|national holiday]] is observed in the country including the former [[East Pakistan]] state.
{{Month3|4|6|1}}
===April===
* [[April 7]] - [[Spain]] relinquishes its [[protectorate]] in [[Morocco]].
* [[April 9]] - [[Habib Bourgiba]] is elected prime minister of [[Tunisia]]. {{noMention}}
* [[April 14]] - [[Videotape]] is first demonstrated at the 1956 NARTB (now [[National Association of Broadcasters|NAB]]) convention in [[Chicago]] by [[Ampex]]. It was the demonstration of the first practical and commercially successful videotape format known as [[2" Quadruplex]].
* [[April 17]] - [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II]] inaugurated [[Chew Valley Lake]].
* [[April 18]] - Maria Desylla-Kapodistria is elected mayor of [[Corfu (city)|Corfu]] and becomes the first female mayor in Greece.
* [[April 19]]
**British diver [[Lionel Crabb]] dives into the [[Portsmouth]] harbor to investigate visiting [[Soviet]] cruiser and vanishes.
**Actress [[Grace Kelly]] marries Prince [[Rainier III, Prince of Monaco|Rainier III of Monaco]].
* [[April 21]]
**First daughter [[Margaret Truman]] married [[Clifton Daniel]].
===May===
{{Month3|5|1|1}}
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* [[May 2]] - The [[United Methodist Church|Methodist Church]] in America decides at its General Conference to grant women full [[ordained]] [[clergy]] status. It also calls for an end to [[racial segregation|segregation]] in the denomination.
* [[May 8]]
**[[Austria]] and [[Israel]] form [[diplomatic relations]]. {{noMention}}
**Constitutional union between [[Indonesia]] and [[Netherlands]] is dissolved. [[John Osborne]]'s [[Look Back in Anger]] opened at the Royal Court Theatre, changing the scope of theatrical and other forms of drama in England.
* [[May 9]] - First ascent of [[Manaslu]], eighth highest mountain in the world.
* [[May 18]] - First ascent of [[Lhotse]] (main), fourth highest mountain.
* [[May 23]] - French minister [[Pierre Mendès-France]] resigns due to his government's policy on [[Algeria]].
* [[May 24]] - The first [[Eurovision Song Contest]] is broadcast from [[Lugano]], [[Switzerland]]. The winning song is ''Refrain'' by [[Lys Assia]] (music by Géo Voumard, text by Émile Gardaz).
===June===
{{Month3|6|4|1}}
* [[June 1]] - [[Vyacheslav Molotov]] resigns as a foreign minister of [[Soviet Union]]; he later becomes ambassador in [[Mongolia]].
* [[June 3]] - [[British Rail]] renamed 'Third Class' passenger facilities as 'Second Class' (Second Class facilities had been abolished in [[1875]], leaving just First Class and Third Class).
* [[June 6]] - In [[Singapore]], chief minister [[David Saul Marshall|David Marshall]] resigns after breakdown of talks about internal self government in London.
* [[June 8]] - [[General Electric]]/Telechron introduces model 7H241 "The Snooz Alarm", first snooze [[alarm clock]] ever. {{noMention}}<!--http:www.telechron.net/eod/7h241.htm--><!-- confirmed here -->
* [[June 10]] - [[1956 Summer Olympics]]: [[Equestrianism|Equestrian]] events open in [[Stockholm]], [[Sweden]]. (All other events held in November in Melbourne, Australia.)
* [[June 14]] - President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] authorizes the phrase "under God" should be added to the [[Pledge of Allegiance]]. <!-- confirmed here --> The [[Flag of the United States Army]] was formally dedicated.{{Fact|date=February 2008}}
* [[June 15]] - [[Eindhoven University of Technology]] is founded in [[Eindhoven]], The [[Netherlands]].
* [[June 18]] - Last foreign troops leave [[Egypt]].
* [[June 23]] - [[Gamal Abdel Nasser]] becomes the second president of [[Egypt]].
* [[June 28]] - MP [[Sydney Silverman]]'s bill for abolition of [[death penalty]] passes the [[British House of Commons]].
* [[June 28]]
**[[Poznań 1956 protests|Labour riots at Poznań]], [[Poland]], are crushed with heavy loss of life. [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] troops fire at crowd that protests high prices - 53 dead.
**The film version of [[Rodgers and Hammerstein]]'s ''[[The King and I]]'', starring [[Deborah Kerr]] and [[Yul Brynner]], is released only a few months after the film version of R&H's ''Carousel''.
* [[June 29]]
**Actress [[Marilyn Monroe]] marries playwright [[Arthur Miller]].
**President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the [[Federal-Aid Highway Act]], creating the [[Interstate Highway System]]
* [[June 30]] - A [[TWA]] [[Lockheed Constellation]] and [[United Airlines]] [[Douglas DC-7]] collide in mid-air over the [[Grand Canyon]] in [[Arizona]] and [[1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collision|crash]]. All 128 people aboard the two aircraft are killed in the disaster. The accident prompts tighter air traffic control to be implemented in the United States.
===July===
{{Month3|7|6|1}}
* [[July 2]] A lab experiment at Sylvania Electric Products results in an [[Sylvania Electric Products explosion|explosion]].
* [[July 8]] - First ascent of [[Gasherbrum II]].
* [[July 10]] - British [[House of Lords]] defeats the abolition of death penalty.
* [[July 24]] - At [[New York City]]'s Copacabana Club, [[Dean Martin]] and [[Jerry Lewis]] perform their last comedy show together which started on [[July 25]], [[1946]].
* [[July 25]] - 72 kilometers (45 miles) south of [[Nantucket Island]], the Italian ocean liner [[SS Andrea Doria|SS ''Andrea Doria'']] sinks after colliding with the Swedish ship [[SS Stockholm|SS ''Stockholm'']] in heavy [[fog]], killing 51.
* [[July 26]] - [[Egypt]]ian leader [[Gamal Nasser]] nationalizes the [[Suez Canal]] sparking international condemnation.
* [[July 30]] - A Joint Resolution of the [[Congress of the United States|U.S. Congress]] is signed by President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]], authorizing "[[In God We Trust]]" as the U.S. national [[motto]].
* [[July 31]] - Cricket: [[Jim Laker]] sets extraordinary record at [[Old Trafford (cricket)|Old Trafford]] in the fourth [[Test cricket|Test]] of taking nineteen wickets in a first class match (the previous best was seventeen).
===August===
{{Month3|8|2|1}}
* Exhibition ''[[This Is Tomorrow]]'' at [[Whitechapel Art Gallery]].
* [[August 6]] - After going bankrupt in 1955, the American broadcaster [[DuMont Television Network]] has its final broadcast, a boxing match from St. Nicholas Arena.
* [[August 8]] - 262 miners die in fire in a coal mine in [[Marcinelle]], [[Belgium]].
* [[August 11]] - [[Jackson Pollock]] dies after crashing his car, aged 44.
* [[August 17]] - [[West Germany]] bans [[Communist Party of Germany]].
===September===
{{Month3|9|5|1}}
* [[September 9]] - [[Elvis Presley]] appeared on [[The Ed Sullivan Show]] for the first time.
* [[September 13]] - The [[Hard Disk Drive]] is invented by an [[IBM]] team led by [[Reynold B. Johnson]].
* [[September 16]] - Television broadcasting [[Australian television broadcasting|commences in Australia]].
* [[September 21]] - Nicaraguan dictator [[Anastasio Somoza García]] is assassinated.
* [[September 25]] - Submarine [[Transatlantic telephone cable]] opened.
{{Month3|10|0|1}}
===October===
* [[October 8]] - Baseball pitcher [[Don Larsen]] of the [[New York Yankees]] throws the first, and only [[perfect game]] in [[World Series]] history in Game 5 of the [[1956 World Series]] against the [[Brooklyn Dodgers]]. [[Yogi Berra]] caught the game. [[Dale Mitchell]] was the final out. The [[New York Yankees]] won the series. [[Larsen]] was named series MVP.
* [[October 10]] - [[Finland]] joins [[UNESCO]].
* [[October 14]] - Dr. [[B. R. Ambedkar]], [[India]]n [[Dalit (outcaste)|Untouchable]] leader, converts to [[Buddhism]] along with 385,000 followers. See [[Neo-Buddhism]].
* [[October 15]]
**[[Royal Air Force|RAF]] retires its last [[Lancaster bomber]].
**[[Fidel Castro]] and [[Che Guevara]] depart from [[Tuxpan, Veracruz]], [[Mexico]], enroute to [[Santiago de Cuba]] aboard the yacht ''[[Granma (yacht)|Granma]]'' with 82 men. After the ship passes a storm, it lands at [[Belici]], [[Cuba]], on [[December 2]]
* [[October 17]] - The 13 years old [[Bobby Fischer]] beats GM Donald Byrne in the NY Rosenwald chess tournament (The Game of the Century).
* [[October 23]] - [[Hungarian Revolution, 1956|Hungarian revolution]] against the pro-Soviet government. [[Soviet Union]] intervenes. [[Hungary]] attempts to leave the [[Warsaw Pact]].
* [[October 26]] - [[Red Army]] troops invade [[Hungary]].
* [[October 29]]
**The ''[[Huntley-Brinkley Report]]'' debuts on [[NBC]]-TV.
**[[Suez Crisis]] begins: [[Israel]] invades the [[Sinai Peninsula]] and push [[Egypt]]ian forces back toward the [[Suez Canal]].
**[[Tangier Protocol]] signed: The [[international city]] [[Tangier]] is reintegrated into [[Morocco]].
**The first [[hard disk]] drive (5MB) is born at [[IBM]].
* [[October 31]] - [[Suez Crisis]]: The [[United Kingdom]] and [[France]] begin bombing [[Egypt]] to force the reopening of the [[Suez Canal]].
===November===
{{Month3|11|3|1}}
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* [[November 1]] - the [[States Reorganisation Act]] of [[India]] reformed the boundaries and names of Indian states.
* [[November 3]] - [[MGM]]'s screen classic, ''[[The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)|The Wizard of Oz]]'', is shown on television for the first time by [[CBS]], as the final installment of their ''[[Ford Star Jubilee]]''.
* [[November 4]] - [[1956 Hungarian Revolution]]: more [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] troops invade [[Hungary]] to crush a revolt that started on [[October 23]]. Thousands are killed, more are wounded and nearly a quarter million leave the country.
* [[November 6]] - [[U.S. presidential election, 1956]]: [[United States Republican Party|Republican]] incumbent [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] is reelected by defeating [[United States Democratic Party|Democrat]] challenger [[Adlai Stevenson|Adlai E. Stevenson]] in a rematch of their contest four years earlier.
* [[November 6]] - [[Enoch A. Holtwick]] defeated as presidential candidate of [[Prohibition Party]].
* [[November 7]] - [[Suez Crisis]]: The [[United Nations]] General Assembly adopts a resolution calling for the [[United Kingdom]], [[France]] and [[Israel]] to withdraw their troops from Arab lands immediately.
* [[November 14]] - Fighting ends in Hungary. {{noMention}}
* [[November 15]] - [[Middle East Technical University]] founded in [[Ankara]], [[Turkey]].
* [[November 16]] - Israel is denounced by UN {{noMention}}
* [[November 20]] - In [[Yugoslavia]], former prime minister [[Milovan Đilas|Milovan Djilas]] is arrested after he criticized [[Josip Broz Tito]].
* [[November 22]] - Beginning of the [[1956 Summer Olympics]] in [[Melbourne, Australia]].
* [[November 23]] - [[Suez Crisis]] causes petrol [[rationing]] in Britain.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/29/newsid_3247000/3247805.stm Motorists panic as petrol rations loom, BBC news]</ref>
===December===
{{Month3|12|5|1}}
* [[December 2]]
**[[Fidel Castro]] and his followers land on [[Cuba]] in the boat ''[[Granma (yacht)|Granma]]''.
**A [[pipe bomb]] explodes at a movie theater in [[Brooklyn]] (work of [[George Metesky]]), injuring six people.{{noMention}}
* [[December 5]] - [[Rose Heilbron]] becomes Britain's first female judge.
* [[December 9]] - [[Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 810]] crashes into a mountain in British Columbia. All 62 people on board die, making this one of the worst airline crashes in the world at that date.
* [[December 12]] - [[Japan]] becomes member of the [[United Nations]].
* [[December 18]] - ''[[To Tell The Truth]]'' debuts on [[CBS]]-TV.
* [[December 19]] - [[John Bodkin Adams]] arrested for the murder of two patients in [[Eastbourne]], [[Great Britain]].
* [[December 23]] - British and French troops leave [[Suez Canal]] region.
* [[December 31]] - [[Bob Barker]] makes his TV debut as host of the Game Show ''[[Truth or Consequences]]''.
==Undated==
* [[Minamata disease]] is discovered.
* Founding of the [[Alpine Club of Canada]], [[Toronto]] section
===Ongoing===
* [[Cold War]]
==Births==
{{Year in other calendars|japanese=[[Shōwa]] 31}}
===January-February===
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*[[January 1]] - [[Mark R. Hughes]], American entrepreneur (d. [[2000]])
*[[January 1]] - [[Kōji Yakusho]], Japanese actor
*[[January 3]] - [[Mel Gibson]], Australian actor and director
*[[January 4]] - [[Bernard Sumner]], British guitarist ([[Joy Division]] and [[New Order]])
*[[January 5]] - [[Chen Kenichi]], Japan-born Chinese chef
*[[January 7]] - [[David Caruso]], American actor
*[[January 9]] - [[Imelda Staunton]], British actress
*[[January 10]] - [[Shawn Colvin]], American singer
*[[January 14]] [[Ben Heppner]], Canadian tenor
**[[Martyn Davies]], ITV National Weather forecaster
*[[January 16]] - [[Martin Jol]], Dutch football manager
*[[January 17]] - [[Paul Young]], English musician
*[[January 20]] - [[Bill Maher]], American actor, comedian, and political analyst
*[[January 21]] - [[Geena Davis]], American actress
*[[January 25]] - [[Bronwyn Pike]], Australian politician
*[[January 27]] - [[Mimi Rogers]], American actress
*[[January 31]] - [[Johnny Rotten]], British singer ([[Sex Pistols]])
*[[February 1]] - [[Mike Kitchen]], Canadian ice hockey player and coach
* [[February 3]] - [[Nathan Lane]], American actor
* [[February 11]] - [[Didier Lockwood]], French jazz violinist
* [[February 11]] - [[Catherine Hickland]], American actress
* [[February 12]]
**[[Brian Robertson]], British guitarist ([[Thin Lizzy]], [[Wild Horses (British band)|Wild Horses]], and [[Motörhead]])
**[[Ultan Quigley]], Irish poet, playwright and polemecist.
* [[February 13]]
**[[Peter Hook]], British bassist ([[Joy Division]] and [[New Order]])
**[[Yiannis Kouros]], Greek-Australian ultramarathoner
* [[February 14]] - [[Tom Burlinson]], Australian actor
* [[February 15]] - [[Desmond Haynes]], West Indian cricketer
* [[February 18]] - [[Thomas Gradin]], Swedish hockey player
* [[February 19]] - [[Roderick MacKinnon]], American biologist, recipient of the [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry]]
* [[February 24]]
**[[Judith Butler]], Prominent American philosopher
**[[Paula Zahn]], American television journalist
* [[February 25]] - [[Davie Cooper]], Scottish footballer (d. [[1995]])
* [[February 26]] - [[Keisuke Kuwata]], Japanese musician
* [[February 28]] - [[Jimmy Nicholl]], Canadian-born footballer
* [[February 29]]
**[[Bob Speller]], Canadian politician
**[[Aileen Carol Wuornos]], American serial killer (d. [[2002]])
===March-April===
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* [[March 1]] - [[Tim Daly]], American actor
* [[March 11]] - [[Rob Paulsen]], American voice actor
* [[March 12]] - [[Steve Harris (musician)|Steve Harris]], British bass player, founding member of [[Iron Maiden]]
*[[March 19]] - [[Yegor Gaidar]], Russian economist and politician
* [[March 21]] - [[Ingrid Kristiansen]], Norwegian runner
* [[March 23]] - [[José Manuel Barroso]], Prime-minister of Portugal
* [[March 24]] - [[Steve Ballmer]], CEO of Microsoft
* [[April 3]]
**[[Ray Combs]], American game show host and comedian (d. [[1996]])
**[[Boris Miljkovic]], Serbian TV & theatre director and video artist
* [[April 4]]
**[[Kerry Chikarovski]], Australian politician
**[[David E. Kelley]], American writer and television producer
* [[April 6]] - [[Dilip Vengsarkar]], Indian cricketer
* [[April 12]] - [[Andy Garcia]], American actor
* [[April 12]] - [[Yasuo Tanaka]], Japanese politician, novelist
* [[April 13]] - [[Peter 'Possum' Bourne]], New Zealand rally car driver (d. [[2003]])
* [[April 14]] - [[Barbara Bonney]], American soprano
* [[April 16]]
**[[David M. Brown]], astronaut (d. [[2003]])
**[[Lise-Marie Morerod]], Swiss skier
* [[April 19]] - [[Sue Barker]], British tennis player and television presenter
* [[April 21]] - [[Phillip Longman]], American demographer
* [[April 23]] - [[Judy Davis]], Australian actress
* [[April 26]] - [[Koo Stark]], British actress
* [[April 28]] - [[Jimmy Barnes]], Australian musician
* [[April 28]] - [[Paul Phillips]], American conductor-composer
* [[April 30]] - [[Lars von Trier]], Danish film director
===May-June===
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*[[May 1]] - [[Alexander Ivanov]], chess Grandmaster
* [[May 4]]
**[[David Guterson]], American writer
**[[Ulrike Meyfarth]], German high jumper
* [[May 6]] - [[Vladimir Lisin]], Russian [[oligarch]]
* [[May 7]]
**[[Jan Peter Balkenende]], [[Prime Minister of the Netherlands]]
**[[Jean Lapierre]], Canadian politician and television host
* [[May 10]]
**[[Francis Kish]] (born Kiss Francisc), award-winning American Professional Visual Artist, Filmmaker, Director-3D Animator/CGI, Photographer, Poet
**[[Vladislav Listyev|Vladislav Nikolayevich Listyev]], [[Russia]]n [[journalist]] (d. [[1995]]).
* [[May 11]] - [[Andrew Hidalgo]], American entrepreneur
* [[May 13]]
**[[Sri Sri Ravi Shankar]], Indian guru
**[[Steve Blackwood]], American actor and musician
* [[May 15]]
**[[Dan Patrick]], American sportscaster
**[[Kjartan Poskitt]], English author
* [[May 16]] - [[Olga Korbut]], Russian gymnast
* [[May 17]]
**[[Sugar Ray Leonard]], American boxer
**[[Bob Saget]], American actor
* [[May 20]]
**[[Ingvar Ambjørnsen]], Norwegian author
**[[Dean Butler (actor)|Dean Butler]], American actor
* [[May 23]]
**[[Buck Showalter]], baseball player and manager
**[[Ursula Plassnik]], Austrian politician
* [[May 24]] - [[Michael Jackson (Anglican bishop)|Michael Jackson]], Irish Anglican bishop
* [[May 28]] - [[Jerry Douglas (musician)|Jerry Douglas]], American [[dobro]] player
* [[June 6]] - [[Björn Borg]], Swedish tennis player
* [[June 9]] - [[Patricia Cornwell]], American novelist
* [[June 10]] - [[Georg Borwin, Duke of Mecklenburg]], head of the [[House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz]]
* [[June 11]] - [[Joe Montana]], American football player
* [[June 20]] - [[Cho Chikun]], Korean professional Go player
* [[June 23]]
**[[Glenn Danzig]], American musician ([[Danzig (band)|Danzig]])
**[[Randy Jackson]], American musician
* [[June 25]] - [[Boris Trajkovski]], [[President of the Republic of Macedonia]] (d. [[2004]])
* [[June 26]] - [[Chris Isaak]], American musician
* [[June 27]] - [[Heiner Dopp]], German field hockey player
* [[June 28]] - [[Noel Mugavin]], [[Australian Rules Football]] player
* [[June 30]] - [[Ronald Winans]], American musician (d. [[2005]])
===July-August===
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* [[July 2]] - [[Jerry Hall]], American model and actress
* [[July 3]] - [[Rick Ducommun]], Canadian actor and comedian
* [[July 5]] - [[Sheila Walsh]], Scottish musician
* [[July 6]] - [[Casey Sander]], American actor
* [[July 9]] - [[Tom Hanks]], American actor
* [[July 11]] - [[Sela Ward]], American actress
* [[July 12]] - [[Sandi Patty]], American Christian musician
* [[July 14]]
**[[Vladimir Kulich]], Czech actor
**[[King Diamond]], Danish heavy metal musician
* [[July 15]]
**[[Ian Curtis]], British musician ([[Joy Division]]) (d. [[1980]])
**[[Barry Melrose]], Canadian hockey player, coach, and commentator
**[[Marky Ramone]] American drummer ([[The Ramones]])
* [[July 16]] - [[Tony Kushner]], American playwright
* [[July 18]] - [[The Aldridge Sisters|Sheila Aldridge]], American singer, ''The Aldridge Sisters''
* [[July 20]] - [[Thomas Nkono]], Cameroonian footballer
* [[July 24]] - [[Pat Finn]], American game show host and producer
* [[July 26]] - [[Andy Goldsworthy]], British sculptor and photographer
* [[July 31]] - [[Michael Biehn]], American actor
**[[Deval Patrick]], Governor of Massachusetts
<!--AUGUST-->
* [[August 1]]
**[[Martin Harris]], English Builder and Consultant
**[[Steve Green]], American musician
* [[August 5]] - [[Maureen McCormick]], American actress
* [[August 14]] - [[Rusty Wallace]], American race car driver
* [[August 20]] - [[Joan Allen]], American actress
* [[August 21]]
**[[Kim Cattrall]], Canadian actress
**[[Anselmo Feleppa]], clothes designer
* [[August 22]] - [[Paul Molitor]], baseball player
* [[August 23]] - [[Andreas Floer]], German mathematician (d. [[1991]])
* [[August 24]] - [[John Culberson]], American politician
* [[August 26]] - [[Mark Mangino]], American football coach
* [[August 29]] - [[Mark Morris]], American choreographer
* [[August 31]] - [[Masashi Tashiro]], Japanese television performer
===September-October===
* [[September 1]] - [[Bernie Wagenblast]], American editor and broadcaster
* [[September 2]] - [[Angelo Fusco]], Provisional Irish Republican Army member
* [[September 3]] - [[Pat McGeown]], Provisional Irish Republican Army member
* [[September 11]] - [[Phil Bissett]], American politician
* [[September 12]] - [[Leslie Cheung]], Hong Kong actor (d. [[2003]])
* [[September 12]] - [[Ricky Rudd]], American race car driver
* [[September 14]]
**[[Kostas Karamanlis]], Greek politician
**[[Ray Wilkins]], English footballer and coach
* [[September 16]]
**[[Mickey Rourke]], American actor
**[[David Copperfield (illusionist)|David Copperfield]], American illusionist
* [[September 17]] - [[Brian Andreas]], American writer, sculptor, painter and publisher.
* [[September 20]] - [[Gary Cole]], American actor
* [[September 21]] - [[Jack Givens]], American basketball player
* [[September 24]] - [[Peter Fox]], Australian, CEO/GM Venues (Aquatics, Major Events) Non-Profits, Community Recreation, Mgt Consultant
* [[September 24]] - [[Greg Panos|Gregory Peter Panos]], American futurist, writer, inventor, virtual reality expert, human simulation visionary
* [[September 25]] - [[Jamie Hyneman]], Mythbusters co-host
* [[September 26]] - [[Linda Hamilton]], American actress
* [[September 29]]
**[[Sebastian Coe]], British athlete, co-ordinator of [[London 2012]] [[Olympic Games]]
**[[Kenneth Newby]], Canadian Media Artist
<!--OCTOBER-->
* [[October 8]] - [[Stephanie Zimbalist]], American actress
* [[October 10]] - [[Amanda Burton]], Irish actress
* [[October 11]] - [[Nicanor Duarte Frutos]], [[President of Paraguay]]
* [[October 17]] - [[Mae Jemison]], astronaut
* [[October 18]] - [[Martina Navratilova]], Czech-born tennis player
* [[October 19]] - [[Carlo Urbani]], Italian physician (d. [[2003]])
* [[October 23]] - [[Dwight Yoakam]], country singer/musician and actor
* [[October 27]] - [[Jaq D. Hawkins]], British author, occultist and lecturer
* [[October 28]] - [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]], Iranian president
===November-December===
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* [[November 4]] - [[Jordan Rudess]], American musician ([[Dream Theater]])
* [[November 8]] - [[Steven Miller]], American record producer
* [[November 10]] - [[Mohsen Badawi]], [[Entrepreneur]], political activist and writer
* [[November 14]] - [[Avi Cohen]], Israeli football player
* [[November 18]]
**[[Noel Brotherston]], Irish footballer (d. [[1995]])
**[[Warren Moon]], American football player
* [[November 20]] - [[Bo Derek]], American actress
* [[November 21]] - [[Ed Kaz]], American journalist
* [[November 23]]
**[[Shane Gould]], Australian swimmer
**[[Nikolay Sidorov]], former Soviet athlete, winner of the gold medal in the 4x100 m relay at the 1980 Summer Olympics.
* [[November 26]] - [[Dale Jarrett]], American race car driver
* [[November 27]] - [[William Fichtner]], American actor
* [[November 28]] - [[Lucy Gutteridge]], British actress
* [[November 29]]
**[[Leo Laporte]], American author and television host
**[[Eric Laakso]], Retired [[Miami Dolphins]] [[National Football League|NFL]] [[Offensive tackle]]
* [[December 5]]
**[[Krystian Zimerman]], Polish pianist
**[[Brian Backer]], American actor
* [[December 6]]
**[[Peter Buck]], American guitarist ([[R.E.M. (band)|R.E.M.]])
**[[Randy Rhoads]], American guitarist ([[Quiet Riot]] and [[Ozzy Osbourne]]) (d. [[1982]])
* [[December 7]] - [[Larry Bird]], American basketball player
* [[December 8]] - [[Warren Cuccurullo]], American musician ([[Missing Persons]] and [[Duran Duran]])
* [[December 11]] - [[Lani Brockman]], Playwright
* [[December 12]]
**[[Johan Van der Velde]], Dutch cyclist
**[[Ana Alicia]], Mexican actress
* [[December 13]] - [[Majida El Roumi]], Lebanese singer
* [[December 17]] - [[Mike Mills]], American guitarist ([[R.E.M. (band)|R.E.M.]])
* [[December 18]] - [[Ron White]], American comedian
* [[December 23]]
**[[Michele Alboreto]], Italian race car driver (d. [[2001]])
**[[Dave Murray (musician)|Dave Murray]], British guitarist
* [[December 26]] - [[David Sedaris]], American essayist
* [[December 28]] - [[Nigel Kennedy]], English violinist
* [[December 29]] - [[Fred MacAulay]], Scottish comedian
* [[December 30]] - [[Sheryl Lee Ralph]], American actress
* [[December 31]] - [[Ahmed Salah]], Djiboutian Marathon Player
*''date unknown''
**[[Ronan Bennett]], Irish writer
**[[Shelagh Rogers]], Canadian radio host
**[[George Howard (jazz)|George Howard]], American jazz saxophone musician (d. [[1998]])
**[[Miladin Šobić]], [[Montenegro|Montenegrin]] singer
**[[Susan Solomon]], atmospheric chemist
==Deaths==
=== January - June===
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*[[January 3]]
**[[Alexander Grechaninov]], Russian composer (b. [[1864]])
**[[Joseph Wirth]], [[Chancellor of Germany]] (b. [[1876]])
* [[January 5]] - [[Mistinguett]], French singer (b. [[1875]])
* [[January 13]] - [[Lyonel Feininger|Lyonel Charles Feininger]], German painter (b. [[1871]])
* [[January 14]] - [[Sheila Kaye-Smith]], English writer (b. [[1887]])
* [[January 18]] - [[Konstantin Päts]], [[President of Estonia]] (b. [[1874]])
* [[January 21]] - [[Sam Langford]], Canadian boxer (b. [[1883]])
* [[January 24]] - Sir [[Alexander Korda]], Hungarian-born film director (b. [[1893]])
* [[January 27]] - [[Erich Kleiber]], German conductor (b. [[1890]])
* [[January 29]] - [[H. L. Mencken]], American writer (b. [[1880]])
* [[January 31]] - [[A. A. Milne]], English author (b. [[1882]])
* [[February 8]] - [[Connie Mack (baseball)|Connie Mack]], baseball executive and manager (b. [[1862]])
* [[February 18]] - [[Gustave Charpentier]], French composer (b. [[1860]])
* [[March 17]] - [[Irène Joliot-Curie]], French physicist, recipient of the [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry]] (b. [[1897]])
* [[March 18]] - [[Louis Bromfield]], American writer (b. [[1896]])
* [[March 20]]
**[[Fanny Durack]], Australian swimmer (b. [[1889]])
**[[Wilhelm Miklas]], Austrian politician and third President of Austria
* [[March 25]] - [[Robert Newton]], English film actor (b. [[1905]])
* [[March 30]] - [[Edmund Clerihew Bentley]], English inventor (b. [[1875]])
* [[March 31]] - [[Ralph DePalma]], Italian-born race car driver (b. [[1884]])
* [[April 19]] - [[Ernst Robert Curtius]], Alsatian philologist (b. [[1886]])
* [[April 30]] - [[Alben Barkley]], [[Vice-President of the United States]] (b. [[1877]])
* [[May 12]] - [[Louis Calhern]], American actor (b. [[1895]])
* [[May 17]] - [[Austin Osman Spare]], English magician (b. [[1886]])
* [[May 18]] - [[Maurice Tate]], English cricketer (b. [[1895]])
* [[May 20]] - [[Max Beerbohm]], English theater critic (b. [[1872]])
* [[May 26]] - [[Al Simmons]], baseball player (b. [[1902]])
* [[May 31]] - [[Diedrich Hermann Westermann]], German linguist (b. [[1875]])
* [[June 17]] - [[Paul Rostock]], German official, surgeon, and university professor (b. [[1892]])
* [[June 22]] - [[Walter de la Mare]], English poet, short story writer, and novelist (b. [[1873]])
* [[June 23]] - [[Reinhold Glière]], Russian composer (b. [[1875]])
* [[June 26]] - [[Clifford Brown]], American jazz trumpeter (auto accident) (b. [[1930]])
=== July - December===
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* [[July 7]] - [[Gottfried Benn]], German poet (b. [[1886]])
* [[July 8]] - [[Giovanni Papini]], Italian essayist, poet, novelist (b. [[1881]])
* [[July 10]] - [[Joe Giard]], American baseball player (b. [[1898]])
* [[July 20]] - [[James Alexander Calder]], Canadian politician (b. [[1856]])
* [[August 2]] - [[Albert Woolson]], last surviving Union veteran of the American Civil War (b. [[1847]])
* [[August 11]] - [[Jackson Pollock]], American painter (b. [[1912]])
* [[August 14]] - [[Bertolt Brecht]], German playwright (b. [[1898]])
* [[August 16]] - [[Bela Lugosi]], Hungarian-born film actor (b. [[1882]])
* [[August 23]] - [[Peaches Browning]], American actress (b. [[1910]])
* [[August 25]] - [[Alfred Kinsey]], American sex researcher (b. [[1894]])
* [[September 11]] - [[Billy Bishop]], Canadian pilot (b. [[1894]])
* [[September 20]] - [[Flora Eldershaw]], Australian novelist, critic, and historian (b. [[1897]])
* [[September 22]] - [[Frederick Soddy]], English chemist, [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry|Nobel Prize]] laureate (b. [[1877]])
* [[September 27]] - [[Babe Didrikson Zaharias]], American athlete and golfer (b. [[1911]])
* [[September 29]] - [[Anastasio Somoza García]], [[President of Nicaragua]] (b. [[1896]])
* [[October 12]] - [[Don Lorenzo Perosi]], Italian composer (b. [[1872]])
* [[October 17]] - [[Anne Crawford]], British actress (b. [[1920]])
* [[October 19]] - [[Isham Jones]], American musician (b. [[1894]])
* [[October 26]] - [[Walter Gieseking]], French conductor (b. [[1895]])
* [[November 5]] - [[Art Tatum]], American jazz pianist (b. [[1909]])
* [[November 10]] - [[Harry F. Sinclair]], American entrepreneur (b. [[1876]])
* [[November 24]] - [[Guido Cantelli]], Italian conductor (b. [[1920]])
* [[November 26]] - [[Tommy Dorsey]], American trombonist and bandleader (b. [[1905]])
* [[December 6]] - Dr. [[B. R. Ambedkar]], Indian [[dalit|untouchable]] leader (b. [[1891]])
* [[December 7]] - [[Huntley Gordon]], Canadian actor (b. [[1887]])
* [[December 16]] - [[Nina Hamnett]], Welsh artist (b. [[1890]])
*''date unknown''
**[[James Alexander Allan]], Australian poet (b. [[1889]])
**[[James Cousins]], Irish writer (b. [[1873]])
==Ship events==
* [[List of ship launches in 1956]]
* [[List of ship commissionings in 1956]]
* [[List of ship decommissionings in 1956]]
==Nobel prizes==
* [[Nobel Prize in Physics|Physics]] - [[William Bradford Shockley]], [[John Bardeen]], [[Walter Houser Brattain]]
* [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry|Chemistry]] - Sir [[Cyril Norman Hinshelwood]], [[Nikolay Nikolaevich Semenov]]
* [[Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine|Physiology or Medicine]] - [[André Frédéric Cournand]], [[Werner Forssmann]], [[Dickinson W. Richards]]
* [[Nobel Prize in Literature|Literature]] - [[Juan Ramón Jiménez]]
* [[Nobel Peace Prize|Peace]] - Not Awarded
==Notes==
{{reflist}}
{{commonscat}}
==External links==
*[http://www.coinpage.com/1956-pictures.html 1956 Coin Pictures]
__NOTOC__
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