Beatles, Arrested and Deported
Dec 1 British rocker Paul McCartney and drummer Pete Best arrested and then deported from Hamburg, Germany accused of attempted arson
Camelot
Dec 3 Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's musical "Camelot", starring Richard Burton and Julie Andrews, and introducing Robert Goulet, opens at Majestic Theater, NYC; runs for 873 performances, wins 4 Tony Awards
Peter Pan
Dec 8 Musical "Peter Pan", starring Mary Martin broadcast, for a 3rd time, on NBC as a special event, videotaped in color for future rebroadcasts
Wildcat
Dec 11 Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh's musical "Wildcat" with Lucille Ball premieres in New York City
- Dec 16 "Wildcat" opens at Alvin Theater NYC for 172 performances
- Dec 17 "La Plume de Ma Tante" closes at Royale Theater, NYC after 835 performances
- Dec 17 Bob Merrill's musical "Take Me Along", starring Jackie Gleason and Walter Pidgeon, closes at Shubert Theater, NYC, after 448 performances. and a Tony Award for Gleason
- Dec 17 Pablo Casals' oratorio "El Pesebrio" premieres
"Ring-A-Ding-Ding"
Dec 19 Frank Sinatra's 1st session with Reprise Records ("Ring-A-Ding-Ding")
Free Jazz: A Collective Improvisation
Dec 21 Ornette Coleman records his influential album "Free Jazz: A Collective Improvisation", establishes the name for the Free Jazz sound
"Do Re Mi"
Dec 26 Jule Styne, Betty Comden and Adolph Green's musical "Do Re Mi" starring Phil Silvers and Nancy Walker, opens at the St James Theater, later transferring to the 54th Street, NYC; runs for 400 performances
Country Singers
Jazz Singers
Opera Singers
Pop Singers
Rappers
Rock Singers