April 15, 1961
Gas cost $0.31 a gallon in the spring of 1961, and the Dow Jones stood at 731 — a young Navy test pilot named Alan Shepard had just become the first American in space, riding a Freedom 7 capsule on a 15-minute suborbital flight that May and returning to a hero's welcome in Washington. On the cultural front, "Blue Moon" by The Marcels was climbing the charts with its distinctive doo-wop sound, while "The Apartment" had just taken home the Oscar for Best Picture. In sports, the Boston Celtics claimed the NBA championship over the St. Louis Hawks, and on the golf course that April, South African Gary Player became the first non-American to win the Masters Tournament.
On the cover
Magazine Covers — April 15, 1961
NY Times Headlines — Week of April 15, 1961
Anti Castro Units Land In Cuba; Report Fighting At Beachhead; Rusk Says U.S. Won'T Intervene; Premier Defiant Says His Troops Battle Heroically To Repel Attacking Force Anti-Castro Military Units Land In Southern Cuba And Battle Government Forces Premier Directs Island Defenses Escapes Injury In Bombing Raid -- Aircraft Support Rebels At Beachhead
World Events — April 1961
Time Person of the Year — 1961
On the radio
Billboard Charts — April 15, 1961
Grammy Awards
On the bookshelf
On the television
Nielsen Top 10 — 1960–61 Season
Emmy Winners — 1961
At the movies
Box Office & Oscar Winners — April 15, 1961
On the field
Sports Champions — April 15, 1961
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