What Happened in January 1955

Historical Events

Patterson vs. Troy

Jan 7 20 year-old future world heavyweight boxing champion Floyd Patterson scores a 5th-round TKO of Willie Troy in a non-title super middleweight bout at New York’s Madison Square Garden

First African American with Met Opera

Jan 7 Marian Anderson becomes the 1st African American to perform with the New York Metropolitan Opera, singing the role of Ulrica in Giuseppe Verdi's "Un ballo in maschera"

Jan 7 WCIQ TV channel 7 in Mt Cheaha, AL (PBS) begins broadcasting
Jan 8 Furman sets NCAA basketball single-game scoring record with 154 pt
Jan 8 Georgia Tech ends Kentucky's 130-game home basketball win streak
Jan 8 WUNC TV channel 4 in Chapel Hill, NC (PBS) begins broadcasting
Jan 10 "Ordet", directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer, starring Henrik Malberg, Emil Hass Christensen, is released
Jan 14 Heitor Villa-Lobos' 8th Symphony premieres by the Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by the composer, in Carnegie Hall, New York City
Jan 15 1st official act of Princess Beatrice, launches tanker Vasum

"From Jewish Folk Poetry"

Jan 15 Dmitri Shostakovich's "From Jewish Folk Poetry" premieres in Leningrad

Jan 15 USSR ends state of war with German Federal Republic
Jan 16 5th NFL Pro Bowl, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: Western Conference beats Eastern Conference, 26-19; MVP: Billy Wilson, SF 49ers, WR
Jan 17 US Submarine Nautilus begins 1st nuclear-powered test voyage

5th NBA All-Star Game

Jan 18 5th NBA All-Star Game, Madison Square Garden NYC: East beats West, 100-91; MVP: Bill Sharman, Boston Celtics, G

Jan 18 Battle of Yijiangshan Islands between Chinese National Revolutionary Army and the People's Liberation Army
Jan 19 "Scrabble" debuts on board game market
Jan 19 "The Millionaire" TV program premieres on CBS

1st Presidential TV News Conference

Jan 19 1st presidential news conference filmed for TV (Eisenhower)

34th US President and WWII General Dwight D. Eisenhower

Jan 22 Norwegian government of Einar Gerhardsen forms
Jan 23 Express train travelling from York to Bristol derails, killing 14 and injuring many other passengers
Jan 23 KORK (now KVBC) TV channel 3 in Las Vegas, Nevada (NBC) 1st broadcast
Jan 24 Photography exhibition "The Family of Man" curated by Edward Steichen opens at MOMA, New York, "greatest photographic enterprise ever undertaken"
Jan 25 Columbia University scientists develop an atomic clock accurate to within one second in 300 years
Jan 25 Jill Kinmont hits a tree & breaks her back in Snow Cup Ski Race
Jan 25 Russia ends state of war with Germany
Jan 25 US & Panama sign canal treaty
Jan 27 1955 NFL Draft: George Shaw from University of Oregon first pick by Baltimore Colts
Jan 27 Albert Hague and Arnold Horwitt's musical "Plain and Fancy", about an Amish wedding, opens at Mark Hellinger Theater, NYC; runs for 476 performances
Jan 29 John Williams Cox buys Yankee Stadium, sells grounds to Knights of Columbus, later leaves structure to Rice University (1962)

Rosewall Wins Australian Final

Jan 31 Australian Championships Men's Tennis: In an all-Australian final Ken Rosewall wins his 2nd Australian title; beats Lew Hoad 9-7, 6-4, 6-4

Tennis Player and Eight-Time Major Champion Ken Rosewall

Tennis Player and Four-Time Major Champion Lew Hoad

Jan 31 Australian Championships Women's Tennis: Beryl Penrose wins her only Australian singles title; beats Thelma Coyne Long 6-4, 6-3
Jan 31 RCA demonstrates 1st music synthesizer

Events in 1955

Famous Birthdays

Jan 1 Angela Winbush, American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, musician and record producer (René & Angela - "Your Smile"), born in St. Louis, Missouri
Jan 1 LaMarr Hoyt, American baseball pitcher (AL Cy Young Award 1983; AL wins leader 1982-83; Chicago White Sox), born in Columbia, South Carolina (d. 2021)
Jan 1 Mary Beard, English classical scholar (University of Cambridge), born in Much Wenlock, England
Jan 2 Tex Brashear, American voice actor
Jan 4 Kathy Forester, American country singer (Forester Sisters - "Mama's Never Seen Those Eyes"), born in Lookout Mountain, Georgia
Jan 4 Mark Hollis, British synth-pop musician (Talk Talk), born in London, England (d. 2019)
Jan 5 Mamata Banerjee, Indian politician (Chief Minister of West Bengal 2011-), born in Calcutta, India
Jan 6 Chantal Langlacé, French runner (women's marathon & 100k world records), born in Amiens, France

Rowan Atkinson (69 years old)

Jan 6 English comedian and actor (Mr Bean; Blackadder), born in Consett, County Durham, England

Jan 6 Sandra Bernhard, American actress (Follow That Bird, King of Comedy), born in Flint, Michigan
Jan 7 Bruce Kaphan, American recording engineer, composer, session (American Music Club) and new age music (Hybrid) pedal steel guitar player, born in San Francisco, California
Jan 8 Mike Reno [Ryanoski], Canadian rock vocalist (Loverboy - "Working For The Weekend"), born in New Westminster, British Columbia
Jan 8 Spiros Livathinos, Greek footballer, born in Patras, Greece
Jan 9 J. K. Simmons, American actor (Whiplash), born in Grosse Pointe, Michigan
Jan 9 Michiko Kakutani, American literary critic, born in New Haven, Connecticut
Jan 10 Jimmy Vivino, American guitarist (Reckless Sleepers; Max Weinberg 7; Fab Faux), and music director (Conan O'Brien's Basic Cable Band), born in Paterson, New Jersey
Jan 10 Luci Martin, American vocalist (Chic - "Le Freak"), born in the Bronx, New York
Jan 10 Michael Schenker, German heavy metal guitarist (MSG; UFO; Scorpions), born in Sarstedt, Germany
Jan 12 Rockne S. O'Bannon, American screenwriter, born in Los Angeles, California
Jan 13 Fred White, American drummer (Earth Wind & Fire, 1974-84 - "Shining Star"; "September"), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2023)
Jan 13 Jay McInerney, American novelist (Bright Lights, Big City), born in Hartford, Connecticut
Jan 13 Paul Kelly, Australian singer-songwriter (The Messengers), born in Adelaide, South Australia
Jan 13 Titus M Mafolo, South African journalist/ANC-leader
Jan 13 Trevor Rabin, South African-American rock guitarist (Yes, 1983-94 - "Owner Of A Lonely Heart"), and film score composer (National Treasure), born in Johannesburg, South Africa
Jan 15 Enrico Mentana, Italian newscaster (RAI), born in Milan, Italy
Jan 16 Jerry M. Linenger, American astronaut (STS 81/84), born in Eastpointe, Michigan [1]
Jan 17 Katalin Kariko, Hungarian-American biochemist (2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for mRNA vaccine technology), born in Szolnok, Hungary [1]
Jan 17 Kazumasa Akiyama, Japanese jazz-fusion guitarist (Dig My Style), born in Tokyo, Japan
Jan 17 Steve Earle, American roots-rock singer-songwriter (Guitar Town), born in San Antonio, Texas
Jan 18 Frankie Knuckles [Francis Warren Nicholls, Jr.], American DJ and record producer who popularized house music in Chicago during the 1980s, born in The Bronx, New York (d. 2014)
Jan 18 Hans van Tongeren, Dutch actor (Spetters), born in Breda, Netherlands (d. 1982)

Kevin Costner (69 years old)

Jan 18 American actor (Fandango, Silverado, Bull Durham), born in Los Angeles, California

Jan 18 Mable Fergerson, American 4x400m runner (Olympic silver 1972), born in Los Angeles, California
Jan 19 Paul Rodriguez, Mexican-born actor and comedian, born in Los Angeles, California
Jan 19 Simon Rattle, English orchestra conductor (Birmingham Symphony Orchestra), born in Liverpool, England
Jan 20 Hiromi Ōta, Japanese pop singer (Momen no handkerchief), born in Kasukabe, Saitama Prefecture, Japan
Jan 20 Joe Doherty, Irish IRA activist (jailed in US), born in Belfast, Ireland
Jan 20 Wyatt Knight, American actor (d. 2011)
Jan 21 Jeff Koons, American artist (balloon animals), born in York, Pennsylvania
Jan 21 Peter Fleming, American tennis player (US Open Doubles 1979, 81, 83; Wimbledon doubles 1979, 81, 83, 84; 7 x Tour Finals doubles [John McEnroe]), born in Chatham Borough, New Jersey
Jan 22 John Wesley Shipp, American actor (Dawson's Creek, One Life to Live), born in Norfolk, Virginia
Jan 22 Thomas David Jones, United States astronaut (STS 59, 68, 80, sk: 98), born in Baltimore, Maryland
Jan 22 Timothy R. Ferguson, American politician, born in Baltimore, Maryland
Jan 23 Reginald Calloway, American trumpet player (Midnight Star - "No Parking On The Dance Floor"; "Operator"), born in Cincinnati, Ohio
Jan 23 Ruth Haring, American chess player and president of the US Chess Federation, born on Cape Cod, Massachusetts (d. 2018)
Jan 24 James Montgomery, American swimmer (1976 Olympics 3 golds), born in Madison, Wisconsin
Jan 25 Toru Iwatani, Japanese video game designer (Pac-Man), born in Meguro, Tokyo

Eddie Van Halen (1955-2020)

Jan 26 Dutch-American rock guitarist (Van Halen - "You Really Got Me"; "Jump"), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands

Jan 26 Lucia Mendez, Mexican actress and singer (Lucia es Luna Moreno), born in León, Guanajuato, Mexico
Jan 27 Alexander Stuart, British author
Jan 27 Brian Engblom, Canadian NHL hockey player, 1975-87 (Montreal Canadiens, and 4 other teams), and TV broadcaster, born in Winnipeg, Manitoba
Jan 27 John G Roberts, 17th Chief Justice of the United States, born in Buffalo, New York
Jan 27 Koji Ushikubo, Japanese racing driver
Jan 27 Richard Young, American country singer (Kentucky Headhunters - "Davy Crockett"), born in Glasgow, Kentucky
Jan 28 Dan Higgins, American session saxophone and woodwind player, born in Boston, Massachusetts

Nicolas Sarkozy (69 years old)

Jan 28 23rd President of France (2007-12), born in Paris, France

Jan 29 John Tate, American boxer (WBA heavyweight championship 1979-80), born in Marion, Arkansas (d. 1998)

Curtis Strange (69 years old)

Jan 30 American golfer (US Open 1988-89), born in Norfolk, Virginia

Jan 30 Judith Tarr, American sci-fi author (Isle of Glass, Ars Magica), born in Augusta, Maine

Virginia Ruzici (69 years old)

Jan 31 Romanian tennis star (1978 French Open champion), born in Campia Turzii, Romania

Born in 1955

Famous Weddings

Stanley Kubrick

Jan 15 Film director Stanley Kubrick (26) weds theatrical designer Ruth Sobotka (29)

Charles Manson

Jan 17 American murderer Charles Manson (20) weds American waitress Rosalie Jean Willis (17); divorce in 1958

Famous Deaths

Jan 2 Jose Antonio Remon, President of Panama (1952-55), assassinated at 46
Jan 4 Dominicus Johner, German composer, dies at 80
Jan 4 Francois Rasse, Belgian composer, dies at 81
Jan 4 G. G. van der Hoeven, Dutch editor-in-chief (NRC newspaper), dies at 82
Jan 4 Jan Derk Domela Nieuwenhuis Nyegaard, Dutch vicar (Young Flanders), dies at 84
Jan 7 Arthur Keith, Scottish anthropologist (human evolution), dies at 88
Jan 7 Gerald Hartigan, South African cricketer (batsman in 5 Tests 1911-14), dies at 70
Jan 10 Charles Rist, French economist who opposed the Keynesian Revolution, dies at 79
Jan 11 Rodolfo Graziani, Italian Marshal, fascist and Viceroy of Italian East Africa, dies at 72
Jan 15 Yves Tanguy, French-American sailor/surrealistic painter, dies
Jan 20 Robert P.T. Coffin, American poet ("Strange Holiness", Pulitzer Prize, 1936), writer, and editor (Yankee Magazine), dies of a heart attack at 62
Jan 21 Archie Hahn, American athlete (Olympic gold 60m, 100m, 200m 1904), dies at 74
Jan 21 Maarten Pleun Vrij, Dutch lawyer, criminology professor (University of Groningen, 1928-47), and jurist (Supreme Court Justice, 1947-55), dies at 59
Jan 24 Ira Hayes, American World War II hero (b. 1923)
Jan 27 Ernst Penzoldt, German writer and artist, dies at 62
Jan 29 Hans Hedtoft, 14th Prime Minister of Denmark (1947-50, 53-55), dies at 51
Jan 31 John Mott, American theologist and founder (YMCA, Nobel 1946), dies at 89

On This Day