1962

**1962 in other calendars**
Gregorian calendar	1962; MCMLXII
Ab urbe condita	2714
Armenian calendar	1411; ԹՎ ՌՆԺԱ
Bahá'í calendar	118 – 119
Bengali calendar	1369
Berber calendar	2912
Buddhist calendar	2506
Burmese calendar	1324
Byzantine calendar	7470 – 7471
Chinese calendar	辛丑年十一月廿五日; (4598/4658-11-25) — to — 壬寅年十二月初五日; (4599/4659-12-5)
Coptic calendar	1678 – 1679
Ethiopian calendar	1954 – 1955
Hebrew calendar	5722 – 5723
Hindu calendars
- Bikram Samwat	2018 – 2019
- Shaka Samvat	1884 – 1885
- Kali Yuga	5063 – 5064
Holocene calendar	11962
Iranian calendar	1340 – 1341
Islamic calendar	1381 – 1382
Japanese calendar	Shōwa 37; (昭和37年)
Korean calendar	4295
Thai solar calendar	2505
	v • d • e

1962 by topic
	Subject: Archaeology – Architecture – Art – Aviation – Film – Literature (Poetry) – Meteorology – Music (Country) – Rail transport – Radio – Science – Spaceflight – Sports – Television – Video gaming
	Countries: Australia – Canada – Ecuador – France – Germany – India – Ireland – Israel – Italy – Japan – Luxembourg – Malaysia – New Zealand – Norway – Pakistan – Philippines – Singapore – South Africa– Soviet Union – UK – USA
	Leaders: Sovereign states – State leaders – Religious leaders – Law
	Categories: Births – Deaths – Works – Introductions – Establishments – Disestablishments – Awards
	v • d • e

Millennium:	2nd millennium
Centuries:	19th century – 20th century – 21st century
Decades:	1930s 1940s 1950s – 1960s – 1970s 1980s 1990s
Years:	1959 1960 1961 – 1962 – 1963 1964 1965

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar.

Events of 1962

January

January 1
- Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand.
- The United States Navy SEALs are activated. SEAL Team One is commissioned in the Pacific Fleet and SEAL Team Two in the Atlantic Fleet.
- The Beatles had their first and only audition for Decca Records.

January 2 – NAACP Executive Secretary Roy Wilkins praises U.S. President John F. Kennedy's "personal role" in advancing civil rights.
January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro.
January 4 – New York City introduces a subway train that operates without a crew on board.
January 5 – The Beatles' first record, "My Bonnie" with Tony Sheridan, is released by Polydor.
January 8
- Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa is exhibited in the United States for the first time, at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C..

Jan. 8: Mona Lisa in D.C.

- Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the worst Dutch rail disaster.
January 9 – Cuba and the Soviet Union sign a trade pact.
January 10 – An avalanche on Nevado Huascarán in Peru causes 4,000 deaths.
January 12 – The Indonesian Army confirms that it has begun operations in West Irian.
January 13 – Albania allies itself with the People's Republic of China.
January 15 – Portugal abandons the U.N. General Assembly due to the debate over Angola.
January 16 – A military coup occurs in the Dominican Republic.
January 19 – A counter-coup occurs in the Dominican Republic; the old government returns except for the new president Rafael Filiberto Bonnelly.
January 22 – The Organization of American States suspends Cuba's membership.
January 24
- The East German government readopts conscription.
- The Organisation armée secrète (OAS) bombs the French Foreign Ministry.
January 26 – Ranger 3 is launched to study the Moon; it later misses the Moon by 22,000 miles.
January 27 – The Soviet government changes all place names honoring Molotov, Kaganovich and Georgi Malenkov.
January 30 – Two of the high-wire "Flying Wallendas" are killed, when their famous 7-person pyramid collapses during a performance in Detroit, Michigan.

February

February 3 – The United States embargo against Cuba is announced.
February 4 – The Sunday Times becomes the first paper to print a colour supplement.
February 4–5 – During a new moon and solar eclipse, an extremely rare grand conjunction of the classical planets occurs (it includes all 5 of the naked-eye planets plus the Sun and Moon), all of them within 16° of one another on the ecliptic.
February 5 – French President Charles de Gaulle calls for Algeria to be granted independence.
February 6 – Negotiations between U.S. Steel and the United States Department of Commerce begin.

Feb . 23: Friendship 7 inspected by President Kennedy and Astronaut John Glenn.

February 7
- The United States Government bans all U.S.-related Cuban imports and exports.
- A coal mine explosion in Saarland, West Germany kills 299.
February 9 – The Taiwan Stock Exchange Corporation opens.
February 10 – Captured American spy pilot Francis Gary Powers is exchanged for captured Soviet spy Rudolf Abel in Berlin.
February 12 – Six members of the Committee of 100 of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament are found guilty of a breach of the Official Secrets Act.
February 14 – First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy takes television viewers on a tour of the White House.
February 15 – Urho Kekkonen is re-elected president of Finland.
February 16 – Heavy storms flood Germany's North Sea coast, mainly around Hamburg; more than 300 people die, thousands lose their homes.
February 20 – Project Mercury: While aboard Friendship 7, John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit the Earth, three times in 4 hours, 55 minutes.

March

March 1 – An American Airlines Boeing 707 crashes on takeoff at New York International Airport, after its rudder separates from the tail, with the loss of all life on board.
March 2
- A military coup in Burma brings General Ne Win to power.
- Wilt Chamberlain scores 100 points in a single NBA basketball game.
March 7 – Ash Wednesday Storm: A snow storm batters the Mid-Atlantic.
March 8–12 – In Geneva, France and the Algerian FLN begin negotiations.
March 15 – Katangan Prime Minister Moise Tshombe begins negotiations to rejoin the Congo.
March 18
- Évian Accords: France and Algeria sign an agreement in Évian-les-Bains ending the Algerian War.
- Un premier amour, sung by Isabelle Aubret (music by Claude-Henri Vic, text by Roland Stephane Valade), wins the Eurovision Song Contest 1962 for France.
March 19 – An armistice begins in Algeria; however, the OAS continues its terrorist attacks against Algerians.
March 23 – The Scandinavian States of the Nordic Council sign the Helsinki Convention on Nordic Co-operation.
March 24 – OAS leader Edmond Jouahud is arrested in Oran.
March 26
- France shortens the term for military service from 26 months to 18.
- Baker v. Carr: The U.S. Supreme Court rules that federal courts can order state legislatures to reapportion seats.

April

April 3 – Jawaharlal Nehru is elected de facto Prime Minister of India.
April 4 – James Hanratty is hanged in Bedford Gaol for the A6 murder; many believe he is innocent.
April 6
- Belgium reestablishes diplomatic relations with the Congo.
- Leonard Bernstein causes controversy with his remarks before a concert featuring Glenn Gould with the New York Philharmonic.
April 7 – Author Milovan Djilas is arrested in Yugoslavia.
April 8 – In France, the Évian Accords are adopted in a referendum with a majority of 90%.
April 9 – The 35th Academy Awards ceremony is held; Lawrence of Arabia wins Best Picture.
April 10 – In Los Angeles, California, the first MLB game is played at Dodger Stadium.
April 13 – OAS leader Edmond Jouhaud is sentenced to death in France.
April 14 – A Cuban military tribunal convicts 1,179 Bay of Pigs attackers.
April 18 – The Commonwealth Immigration Bill in the United Kingdom removes free immigration from the citizens of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations.
April 20 – OAS leader Raoul Salan is arrested in Algiers.
April 21 – The Century 21 Exposition World's Fair opens in Seattle, Washington.
April 26 – The Ranger 4 spacecraft crashes into the Moon.

May

May– The Hulk debuts with The Incredible Hulk #1 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.
May 1
- Norwich City wins the English League Cup, beating Rochdale in the final.
- Dayton Hudson Corporation opens the first of its Target discount stores in Roseville, Minnesota.
May 2 – An OAS bomb explodes in Algeria – this and other attacks kill 110 and injure 147.
May 3 – 160 die in a triple-train disaster near Tokyo.
May 5 – Twelve East Germans escape via a tunnel under the Berlin Wall.
May 6 – Antonio Segni is elected President of the Italian Republic.
May 14
- Juan Carlos of Spain marries the Greek Princess Sophia in Athens.
- Milovan Djilas, former vice-president of Yugoslavia, is given further sentence for publishing Conversations with Stalin.
May 22 – Continental Airlines Flight 11 crashes near Unionville, Missouri after the in-flight detonation of a bomb near the rear lavatory. All 45 passengers and crew aboard are killed.
May 23
- Drilling for the new Montreal subway commences.
- Raoul Salan, founder of the French terrorist Organisation armée secrète, is sentenced to life imprisonment in France.
May 24 – Project Mercury: Scott Carpenter orbits the Earth 3 times in the Aurora 7 space capsule.
May 25 – The new Coventry Cathedral is consecrated.
May 26 – Acker Bilk's Stranger On The Shore becomes the first British recording to reach number one in the US Billboard Hot 100.
May 29 – Negotiations between the OAS and the FLA lead to a real armistice in Algeria.
May 30 – The 1962 FIFA World Cup begins in Chile.

June

June 1 – Adolf Eichmann is executed in Israel.
June 3 – Air France charter flight Chateau de Sully, a Boeing 707, over-runs the runway at Orly Airport in Paris; 130 of 132 passengers are killed, 2 flight attendants survive. Most victims are cultural and civic leaders of Atlanta, Georgia.
June 6 – President John F. Kennedy gives the commencement address at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York.
June 11
- President John F. Kennedy gives the commencement address at Yale University.
- Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin become the only apparently successful escapees from the Alcatraz Island prison. There is no conclusive evidence that they survived the attempt.
June 15 – Students for a Democratic Society complete the Port Huron Statement.
June 17 – The OAS signs a truce with the FLN in Algeria, but a day later announces that it will continue the fight on behalf of French Algerians.
June 17 – Brazil beats Czechoslovakia 3–1 to win the 1962 FIFA World Cup.
June 22 – An Air France Boeing 707 jet crashes into terrain during bad weather in Guadeloupe, West Indies, killing all 113 on board. It is the airline's second fatal accident in just 3 weeks, and the third fatal 707 crash of the year.
June 25
- Engel v. Vitale: The United States Supreme Court rules that mandatory prayers in public schools are unconstitutional.
- MANual Enterprises v. Day: The United States Supreme Court rules that photographs of nude men are not obscene, decriminalizing nude male pornographic magazines.
- İsmet İnönü of CHP forms the new government of Turkey (27th government, coalition partners; YTP and CKMP)
June 26
- A 2-day steel strike begins in Italy, in support of increased wages and a 5-day working week.
June 28 – The United Lutheran Church in America, Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, American Evangelical Lutheran Church, and Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church merge to form the Lutheran Church in America.
June 30 – The last soldiers of the French Foreign Legion leave Algeria.

July

July 1
- Rwanda and Burundi gain independence.
- Supporters of Algerian independence win 99% majority in a referendum.
- A heavy smog develops over London.
- Treaty of Nordic Cooperation of Helsinki (23 Mar 1962 signed) in force.
July 2
- Charles de Gaulle accepts Algerian independence; France recognizes it the next day.
- The first Wal-Mart store opens for business in Rogers, Arkansas.
July 5 – Algeria becomes independent from France.
July 6 – Irish broadcaster Gay Byrne presents his first edition of The Late Late Show. Byrne goes on to present the talk show for 37 years, making it the longest running in the world.
July 9 – American artist Andy Warhol premieres his Campbell's Soup Cans exhibit in Los Angeles.
July 10 – AT&T's Telstar, the world's first commercial communications satellite, is launched into orbit, and activated the next day.
July 12 – The Rolling Stones make their debut at London's Marquee Club, Number 165 Oxford Street, opening for Long John Baldry.
July 13 – In what the press dubs "the Night of the Long Knives", United Kingdom Prime Minister Harold Macmillan dismisses 1/3 of his Cabinet.
July 17 – Nuclear testing: The "Small Boy" test shot Little Feller I becomes the last atmospheric test detonation at the Nevada Test Site.
July 19 – The First Annual Swiss & Wielder Hoop and Stick Tournament is held.
July 20 – France and Tunisia reestablish diplomatic relations.
July 22 – Mariner program: The Mariner 1 spacecraft flies erratically several minutes after launch and has to be destroyed.
July 23 – Telstar relays the first live trans-Atlantic television signal.
July 28 – A locust swarm threatens New Delhi.
July 31
- Algeria proclaims independence; Ahmed Ben Bella is the first President.
- A crowd assaults the rally of Sir Oswald Mosley's right-wing Union Movement in London.

August

August 4 – Marilyn Monroe accidentally overdoses on a mix of sedatives and Champagne a few hours before midnight.
August 5 – The South African government arrests Nelson Mandela in Howick, and charges him with incitement to rebellion.
August 6 – Jamaica becomes independent.
August 10 – Marvel Comics publishes Amazing Fantasy#15, which features the superhero character of Spider-Man, created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.
August 15 – The New York Agreement is signed trading the West New Guinea colony to Indonesia.
August 16
- Beatles drummer Pete Best is fired and replaced by Ringo Starr.
- Algeria joins the Arab League.
August 17 – East German border guards kill 18-year-old Peter Fechter, as he attempts to cross the Berlin Wall into West Berlin.
August 22 – A failed assassination attempt is made against French President Charles De Gaulle.
August 23 – John Lennon secretly marries Cynthia Powell.
August 24 – A group of armed Cuban exile terrorists fire at a hotel in Havana from a speedboat.
August 27 – NASA launches the Mariner 2 space probe.
August 31 – Trinidad and Tobago becomes independent.

September

September 1
- A referendum in Singapore supports the Malayan Federation.
- Typhoon Wanda strikes Hong Kong, killing at least 130 and wounding more than 600.
September 2 – The Soviet Union agrees to send arms to Cuba.
September 8 – Newly independent Algeria, by referendum, adopts a constitution.
September 12 – President John F. Kennedy, at a speech at Rice University, reaffirms that the U.S. will put a man on the moon by the end of the decade.
September 21
- A border conflict between China and India erupts into fighting.
- New Musical Express, a British music magazine, publishes a story about two 13-year-old schoolgirls, Sue and Mary, releasing a disc on Decca and adds "A Liverpool group, The Beatles, have recorded 'Love Me Do' for Parlophone Records, set for October 5 release."
September 25 – Sonny Liston and Floyd Patterson fight for the boxing world title.
September 26 – Civil war erupts in Yemen.
September 27
- A flash flood in Barcelona, Spain, kills more than 440 people.
- Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring is released, giving rise to the modern environmentalist movement.
September 28 – Prime Minister Ahmed Ben Bella founds the first government in Algeria.
September 29 – The Canadian Alouette 1, the first satellite built outside the United States and the Soviet Union, is launched from Vandenberg AFB in California.
September 30 – CBS broadcasts the final episodes of Suspense and Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, marking the end of the Golden Age of Radio.

October

October 14: Pictures of Soviet missile silos in Cuba, taken by US spy planes.

October 1
- The first black student, James Meredith, registers at the University of Mississippi, escorted by Federal Marshals.
- Johnny Carson takes over as permanent host of NBC's Tonight Show, a post he would hold for 30 years.
October 5
- The French National Assembly censures the proposed referendum to sanction presidential elections by popular mandate; Prime Minister Georges Pompidou resigns, but President de Gaulle asks him to stay in office.
- Dr. No, the first James Bond film, premieres in UK theaters.
October 5 – The Beatles release their first single for EMI, Love Me Do.
October 8
- The German magazine Der Spiegel publishes an article about the Bundeswehr's poor preparedness; the Spiegel scandal erupts.
- Algeria is accepted into the United Nations.
October 9 – Uganda becomes independent within the Commonwealth of Nations.
October 10
- The Sino-Indian War, a border dispute involving two of the world's largest nations (India and the People's Republic of China), begins.
- Der Spiegel publishes an article on a NATO exercise criticizing the weakness of the West German army.
October 11 – Second Vatican Council: Pope John XXIII convenes the first ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church in 92 years.
October 12 – The infamous Columbus Day Storm strikes the U.S. Pacific Northwest with wind gusts up to 170 mph (270 km/h); 46 are killed, 11 billion board feet (26 million m³) of timber is blown down, with $230 million U.S. in damages.
October 12 – Jazz bassist/composer Charles Mingus presents a disastrous concert at Town Hall in New York City. It will gain a reputation as the worst moment of his career.
October 13 – Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? opens on Broadway.
October 14 – Cuban Missile Crisis begins: A U-2 flight over Cuba takes photos of Soviet nuclear weapons being installed. A stand-off then ensues the next day between the United States and the Soviet Union, threatening the world with nuclear war.
October 22 – In a televised address, U.S. President John F. Kennedy announces to the nation the existence of Soviet missiles in Cuba.
October 24 – Cuban Missile Crisis: First confrontation between US Navy and Soviet cargo vessel. The vessel changes course.
October 26 – Spiegel scandal: German police occupy Der Spiegel offices in Hamburg.
October 28
- Cuban Missile Crisis: Soviet Union leader Nikita Khrushchev announces that he has ordered the removal of Soviet missile bases in Cuba. In a secret deal between Kennedy and Khrushchev Kennedy agrees to the withdrawal of U.S. missiles from Turkey. The fact that this deal is not made public makes it look like the Soviets have backed down.
- A referendum in France favors the election of the president by universal suffrage.
October 31 – The UN General Assembly asks the United Kingdom to suspend enforcement of the new constitution in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), but the constitution comes into effect on November 1.

November

November 1
- The Soviets begin dismantling their missiles in Cuba.
- The first issue of Diabolik is published in Italy.
November 3 – The term "personal computer" is first mentioned by the media.
November 5
- Franz Josef Strauß, the West German defense minister, is relieved of his duties over the Spiegel scandal, due to his alleged involvement in police action against the magazine.
- Saudi Arabia breaks off diplomatic relations with Egypt, following a period of unrest partly caused by the defection of several Saudi princes to Egypt.
- A coal mining disaster in Ny-Ålesund kills 21 people. The Norwegian government is forced to resign in the aftermath of this accident in August, 1963.
November 6 – Apartheid: The United Nations General Assembly passes a resolution condemning South Africa's racist apartheid policies, and calls for all UN member states to cease military and economic relations with the nation.
November 7 – Richard M. Nixon loses the California governor's race. In his concession speech, he states that this is his "last press conference" and that "you won't have Dick Nixon to kick around any more".
November 17 – In Washington, D.C., U.S. President John F. Kennedy dedicates Dulles International Airport.
November 20 – The Cuban Missile Crisis ends: In response to the Soviet Union agreeing to remove its missiles from Cuba, U.S. President John F. Kennedy ends the quarantine of the Caribbean nation.
November 23 – United Airlines Flight 297 crashes, killing all 17 on board.
November 26
- Spiegel scandal: German police end their occupation of Der Spiegel's offices.
- Mies Bouwman starts presenting the first live TV-marathon fundraising show (Open Het Dorp), which lasts 23 hours non-stop.
November 27 – French President Charles De Gaulle orders Georges Pompidou to form a government.
November 28 – Former queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands dies, aged 82.
November 29 – An agreement is signed between Britain and France to develop the Concorde supersonic airliner.
November 30 – The United Nations General Assembly elects U Thant of Burma as the new UN Secretary-General.

December

December 2 – Vietnam War: After a trip to Vietnam at the request of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield becomes the first American official to make a non-optimistic public comment on the war's progress.
December 7 – Rainier III, Prince of Monaco revises the principality's constitution, devolving some of his formerly autocratic power to several advisory and legislative councils.
December 8
- The first period of the Second Vatican Council closes.
- The North Kalimantan National Army revolts in Brunei, in the first stirrings of the Indonesian Confrontation.
- The 1962 New York City newspaper strike begins, affecting all of the city's major newspapers; It would last for 114 days.
- Former Dutch queen Wilhelmina buried at the New Church in Delft.
December 9 – Tanganyika (now Tanzania) becomes a republic within the Commonwealth, with Julius Nyerere as president.
December 10 – David Lean's epic film Lawrence of Arabia, featuring Peter O' Toole, Omar Sharif, Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, and Anthony Quinn premieres in London.
December 11
- In West Germany, a coalition government of Christian Democrats, Christian Socialists, and Free Democrats is formed.
- The last execution by hanging in Canada takes place.
December 14 – U.S. spacecraft Mariner 2 flies by Venus, becoming the first probe to successfully transmit data from another planet.
December 15 – Storm over North Sea. Belgian pirate radio Radio Uylenspiegel off anchor, never to operate again.
December 19 – Britain acknowledges the right of Nyasaland (now Malawi) to secede from the Central African Federation.
December 22 – "Big Freeze" in Britain: There are no frost-free nights until March 5, 1963.
December 24 – Cuba releases the last 1,113 participants in the Bay of Pigs Invasion to the U.S., in exchange for food worth $53 million.
December 30
- United Nations troops occupy the last rebel positions in Katanga; Moise Tshombe moves to South Rhodesia.
- An unexpected storm buries Maine under five feet of snow, forcing the Bangor Daily News to miss a publication date for the first and only time in history. The same day, also the Netherlands are covered with several feet of snow.

Undated

American advertising man Martin K. Speckter invents the interrobang, a new English-language punctuation mark.
A Clockwork Orange, written by Anthony Burgess, is published.
The band The Dubliners is formed at O'Donoghue's Pub in Dublin.

Ongoing

Cold War
Regional Cooperation for Development (RCD). (1962–1979)

Births

January–February

January 3 – Guy Pratt, English musician and songwriter
January 4 - Natalya Bochina, Russian athlete
January 11 – Kim Coles, American actress and comedian
January 13 – Kevin Mitchell, American baseball player
January 14 – Michael McCaul, American politician
January 17 – Jim Carrey, Canadian actor and comedian
January 20 – IKKO, Japanese make-up artist
January 21
- Tyler Cowen, American economist
- Marie Trintignant, French actress (d. 2003)
January 22
- Lyudmila Dzhigalova, Russian athlete
- Mizan Zainal Abidin, current Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia
January 25 – Chris Chelios, American ice hockey player
January 28 – Creflo Dollar, American evangelist
January 30 – King Abdullah II of Jordan
February 1 – Takashi Murakami, Japanese pop artist
February 2 – Andy Fordham, English darts player
February 3
- Michele Greene, American actress
- Marty Jannetty, American professional wrestler
February 4 – Clint Black, American country musician
February 5 – Jennifer Jason Leigh, American actress
February 6 – Axl Rose, American rock singer
February 7
- Garth Brooks, American country musician
- David Bryan, American keyboardist (Bon Jovi)
- Eddie Izzard, British actor and comedian
February 8 – Malorie Blackman, British-born author
February 10
- Bobby Czyz, American boxer
- Cliff Burton, American bassist (Metallica) (d. 1986)
February 11 – Sheryl Crow, American singer
February 12
- Nana Ioseliani, Georgian chess player
- Jimmy Kirkwood, Irish-born field hockey player
February 13 – Aníbal Acevedo Vilá, American politician
February 17 – Lou Diamond Phillips, American actor
February 18 – Julie Strain, American actress and model
February 21
- Vanessa Feltz, British television presenter
- Chuck Palahniuk, American author
- David Foster Wallace, American writer (d. 2008)
February 22
- Steve Irwin, Australian herpetologist and television personality (d. 2006)
- Lenda Murray, American bodybuilder
February 25 – Birgit Fischer, German kayaker
February 27 – Adam Baldwin, American actor
February 28 – Angela Bailey, Canadian athlete

March–April

March 1 – Melanie Moore, American pornographic actress
March 2
- Jon Bon Jovi, American singer, songwriter
- Raimo Summanen, Finnish ice hockey player and coach
March 3
- Jackie Joyner-Kersee, American athlete
- Herschel Walker, American football player
March 4
- Simon Bisley, British comic book artist
- Lolo Ferrari, French actress (d. 2000)
March 6 – Erika Hess, Swiss alpine skier
March 7 – Taylor Dayne, American singer
March 8 – Cecilia Yip, Hong Kong actress
March 10 – Seiko Matsuda, Japanese pop singer/songwriter
March 11 – Barbara Alyn Woods, American actress
March 12 – Darryl Strawberry, American baseball player
March 16 – Branco Mello, Brazilian singer, actor and writer
March 18
- Mike Rowe, American television host
- Thomas Ian Griffith, American actor
March 19 – Iván Calderón, Puerto Rican Major League Baseball player (d. 2003)
March 20 – Stephen Sommers, American film director
March 21 – Matthew Broderick, American actor
March 21 – Rosie O'Donnell, American comedian, actress, and talk-show host
March 23 – Sir Steve Redgrave, English rower
March 23 – Jenny Wright, American actress
March 24 – Star Jones, American talk show host and publisher
March 25 – Marcia Cross, American actress
March 26 – John Stockton, American basketball player
March 27
- Jann Arden, Canadian singer
- John O'Farrell, British author and broadcaster
March 30
- Bil Dwyer, American actor
- MC Hammer, American rapper
April 1
- Phillip Schofield, British TV presenter
- Samboy Lim, Filipino basketball player
April 5 – Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, President of Kalmykia and FIDE
April 7 – Hugh O'Connor, American actor (d. 1995)
April 9 – Imran Sherwani, British field hockey player
April 10 – Steve Tasker, American football player
April 11 – Vincent Gallo, American actor
April 12 – Nobuhiko Takada, Japanese mixed martial arts fighter and professional wrestler
April 12 – Carlos Sainz, Spanish rally driver
April 13 – Jennifer Rubin, American actress/model
April 15
- Nawal El Moutawakel, Moroccan hurdler
- Nick Kamen, English singer, songwriter, musician and model
April 19 – Al Unser, Jr., American race car driver
April 20 – Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf (Henry Joseph Nasiff Jr.), American comedian (d. 2001)
April 23 – John Hannah, Scottish actor
April 24 – Steve Roach, Australian champion rugby league prop forward
April 26 – Colin Anderson, English footballer

May–June

May 2
- Elizabeth Berridge, American actress
- Jimmy White, British snooker player
May 3 – Anders Graneheim, Swedish bodybuilder
May 4 – Tracy Vaccaro, American model
May 8 – Natalia Molchanova, Russian free-diver
May 10 – David Fincher, American film director
May 12 – Emilio Estevez, American actor
May 13 – Eduardo Palomo, Mexican actor (d. 2003)
May 13 – Paul McDermott, Australian comedian
May 14 – Danny Huston, American actor and film director
May 17
- Lise Lyng Falkenberg, Danish writer
- Craig Ferguson, Scottish actor and comedian
- Kim Mulkey, American basketball player/coach
May 19 – Frances Ondiviela, Spanish/Mexican actress
May 20 – Mike Jeffries, American soccer coach
May 22 – Brian Pillman, American professional wrestler (d. 1997)
May 24 – Gene Anthony Ray, American actor (d. 2003)
May 26 – Bobcat Goldthwait, American actor and comedian
May 27 – Ravi Shastri, Indian cricketer
May 28
- James Michael Tyler, American actor
- Brandon Cruz, American child actor and punk rocker
May 30 – Timo Soini, Finnish politician
May 31
- Corey Hart, Canadian singer
- Sebastian Koch, German actor
June 1 – Sherri Howard, American athlete
June 4 – John P. Kee, American gospel singer
June 5 – Jeff Garlin, American comedian
June 7 – Thierry Hazard, French singer and songwriter
June 8 – Suzy Gorman, American photographer
June 10 – Gina Gershon, American actress and musician
June 10 – Carolyn Hennesy, American actress
June 11
- Olga Charvátová, Czech alpine skier
- Erika Salumäe, Estonian cyclist
June 12
- Camilla Scott, Canadian actress
- Jodi Thelen, American actress
June 13
- Ally Sheedy, American actress
- Hannah Storm, American television personality
June 14 – Emilija Erčić, Yugoslav (Serbian) handball player
June 15
- Thomas Mikal Ford, American actor
- Andrea Rost, Hungarian lyric soprano
June 16 – Arnold Vosloo, South African actor
June 17 – Lio, Belgian singer/actress
June 18 – Lisa Randall, American theoretical physicist
June 18 – Mitsuharu Misawa, Japanese professional wrestler (d. 2009)
June 19 – Paula Abdul, American dancer, choreographer, and singer
June 21
- Pipilotti Rist, Swiss video artist
- Victor Tsoi, Soviet underground singer and songwriter (d. 1990)
June 22
- Stephen Chow, Hong Kong actor and director
- Clyde Drexler, American basketball player
June 23 – Kari Takko, Finnish ice hockey player
June 26 – Bussunda, Brazilian comedian (d. 2006)
June 27
- Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Hong Kong actor
- Michael Ball British stage actor and singer
June 28 – Don Chambers, American newspaper comic strip artist
June 29
- Amanda Donohoe, English actress
- George Zamka, American astronaut
June 30
- Tony Fernández, Dominican baseball player
- Deirdre Lovejoy, American actress
- Julianne Regan, British singer/songwriter (All About Eve)

July–August

July 3 – Tom Cruise, American actor
July 4
- Neil Morrissey, British actor
- Pam Shriver, American tennis player
July 5 – Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, Indonesian terrorist
July 13
- Tom Kenny, American voice actor and comedian
- Zlata Petrović, Serbian pop singer
July 15 – Michelle Ford, Australian swimmer
July 19
- Anthony Edwards, American actor
- Aya Kitō, Japanese writer (d. 1988)
July 20
- Giovanna Amati, Italian race car driver
- Carlos Alazraqui, American actor & comedian
July 21 – Rob Morrow, American actor
July 22 – Steve Albini, American musician
July 26
- Sergei Kiriyenko, former Prime Minister of Russia
- Galina Chistyakova, Ukrainian athlete
July 28 – Ray Shero, American hockey manager
July 29 – Scott Steiner, American professional wrestler
July 30 – Alton Brown, American television host and chef
July 31 – Wesley Snipes, American actor
August 1 – Robert Clift, British field hockey player
August 2 – Cynthia Stevenson, American actress
August 4 – Roger Clemens, American baseball player
August 5 – Patrick Ewing, Jamaican-born basketball player
August 6 – Michelle Yeoh, Malaysian-born Hong Kong actress
August 8 – Mike Zanier, Canadian ice hockey player
August 14 – Kevin Harris, Canadian skateboarder
August 15 – Tom Colicchio, American chef
August 16 –
- Steve Carell, American actor and comedian
- Christian Cameron, Canadian/American writer
August 18 – Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, President of Mexico
August 19 – Valérie Kaprisky, French actress
August 20
- Sophie Aldred, British actress and television presenter
- James Marsters, American actor
August 21 – Gilberto Santa Rosa, Puerto Rican salsa singer
August 24 – Craig Kilborn, American talk show host
August 25 – Theresa Andrews, American swimmer
August 26
- Princess Lalla Meryem of Morocco
- Bob Mionske, American cyclist and attorney
August 27 – Vic Mignogna, American voice actor
August 29
- Jutta Kleinschmidt, German rally driver
- Lycia Naff, American actress/journalist
August 30 – Alexander Litvinenko, Russian ex-KGB colonel and ex-FSB lieutenant-colonel (d. 2006)
August 31
- Dee Bradley Baker, American comedian, announcer and voice-over actor
- Mark L. Walberg, American comedian, announcer and game show host

September–October

September 1 – Ruud Gullit, Dutch footballer
September 7 – Kylie InGold, Australian fantasy artist
September 8 – Thomas Kretschmann, German actor
September 11
- Kristy McNichol, American actress
- Victoria Poleva, Ukrainian composer
September 12 – Amy Yasbeck, American actress
September 15
- François Bloemhof, South African author
- Scott McNeil, Canadian voice actor
September 17 – Baz Luhrmann, Australian film director
September 19 – Gottfried von Bismarck, controversial German aristocrat and socialite (d. 2007)
September 24
- Jack Dee, British comedian
- Rosamund Kwan, Hong Kong actress
- Ally McCoist, Scottish footballer and TV pundit
September 25 – Aida Turturro, American actress
September 26
- Jacky Wu, Taiwanese talk show host, singer, and actor
- Al Pitrelli, American guitarist
- Melissa Sue Anderson, American actress
- Steve Moneghetti, Australian long-distance runner
September 27 – Kimberly Carson, American pornographic actress
September 28 – Grant Fuhr, Canadian hockey player
September 30 – Frank Rijkaard, Dutch football player and manager
October 1 – Esai Morales, American actor
October 2 – James Hunter, English singer
October 3 – Tommy Lee, American rock musician and drummer
October 5 – Caron Keating, British TV presenter (d. 2004)
October 6 – Rich Yett, American baseball player
October 11
- Nicola Bryant, British actress
- Joan Cusack, American actress and comedian
October 12 – Deborah Foreman, American actress
October 13
- T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh, American actress and comedian
- Margareth Menezes, Brazilian singer
- Kelly Preston, American actress
- Jerry Rice, American football player
October 16
- Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Russian baritone
- Tamara McKinney, American alpine skier
- Flea, Australian actor and rock bassist (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
- Manute Bol, Sudanese basketball player and activist (d. 2010)
October 19
- Tracy Chevalier, American author
- Evander Holyfield, American boxer
October 23
- Doug Flutie, American football player
- Mike Tomczak, American football player
October 24 – Jay Novacek, American football player
October 25
- Nick Hancock, British actor and television presenter
- Darlene Vogel, American actress
October 26 – Cary Elwes, British actor
October 27
- Ang Peng Siong, Singapore sportsman
- Junichi Kanemaru, Japanese Seiyu
October 28 – Daphne Zuniga, American actress
October 30 – Courtney Walsh, West Indian cricketer

November–December

November 1
- Sharron Davies, British swimmer/television presenter
- Anthony Kiedis, American rock singer (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
- Helene Udy, Canadian-American actress
November 3
- Gabe Newell, American business executive
- Jacqui Smith, UK Home Secretary
November 4 – Jeff Probst, American television personality
November 6 – Aznil Nawawi, Malaysian TV host
November 7 – Bettina Hoy, German equestrienne
November 11
- Mic Michaeli, Swedish keyboardist
- Demi Moore, American actress
- James Morrison, Australian musician
November 12 – Neal Shusterman, American author
November 13 – Steve Altes, American humorist
November 15 – Judy Gold, American comedian and actress
November 18 – Kirk Hammett, American rock musician (Metallica)
November 19 – Jodie Foster, American actress and director
November 21 – Steven Curtis Chapman, American Christian musician
November 22 – Sumi Jo, Korean operatic soprano
November 24
- John Kovalic, American cartoonist
- Ggreg Snyder, American actor and pop culturist
November 27 – Marumi Shiraishi, Japanese actress
November 28 – Jon Stewart, American actor and comedian
November 29 – Andrew McCarthy, American actor
November 30
- Bo Jackson, American football and baseball player
- Daniel Keys Moran, American writer
December 1
- Sylvie Daigle, Canadian speed skater
- Shōzō Hayashiya (9th), Japanese rakugoka, tarento and seiyū
December 3 – Tammy Jackson, American basketball player
December 4 – Anna Walker, British television presenter
December 5 – José Cura, Argentine tenor
December 6 – Janine Turner, American actress
December 9 – Felicity Huffman, American actress
December 10 – Scott Capurro, American comedian
December 11
- Denise Biellmann, Swiss figure skater
- Ben Browder, American actor
December 12
- Tracy Austin, American tennis player
- Arturo Barrios, Mexican long-distance runner
December 14 – Yvonne Ryding, Swedish pageant winner (Miss Universe 1984)
December 16 – Maruschka Detmers, Dutch actress
December 17
- Paul Dobson, English footballer
- Richard Jewell, American security guard and media figure (d. 2007)
- Galina Malchugina, Russian athlete
- Rocco Mediate, American golfer
December 19 – Jill Talley, American actress
December 22 – Ralph Fiennes, English actor
December 23 – Keiji Mutoh, Japanese professional wrestler
December 27
- Barbara Crampton, American actress
- Mark Few, American basketball coach
- Bill Self, American basketball coach
- Sherri Steinhauer, American golfer
December 28
- Michelle Cameron, Canadian synchronised swimmer
- Choi Soo Jong, South Korean actor
December 30 – Alessandra Mussolini, Italian politician

Deaths

January–June

January 4 – Hans Lammers, German Nazi minister (b. 1879)
January 6 – Marziyya Davudova, Azerbaijani actress (b. 1901)
January 13 – Ernie Kovacs, American TV comedian (b. 1919)
January 19 – Snub Pollard, American actor (b. 1889)
January 20 – Robinson Jeffers, American poet (b. 1887)
January 26 – Lucky Luciano, American gangster (b. 1897)
January 29 – Fritz Kreisler, Austrian violinist (b. 1875)
February 1 – Carey Wilson, American screenwriter (b. 1889)
February 2 – Shlomo Hestrin, Canadian-born Israeli biochemist (b. 1914)
February 5 – Jacques Ibert, French composer (b. 1890)
February 7 – Clara Nordström, German writer and translator (b. 1886)
February 10 – Eduard von Steiger, President of Switzerland (b. 1881)
February 17
- Bruno Walter, German conductor (b. 1876)
- Joseph Kearns, American actor (b. 1907)
February 19
- James Barton, American actor (b. 1890)
- Georgios Papanikolaou, Greek inventor (b. 1883)
February 20 – Halliwell Hobbes, English actor (b. 1877)
February 24 – Hu Shi, Chinese liberal (b. 1891)
February 27 – Willie Best, American actor (b. 1916)
February 28 – Chic Johnson, American actor (b. 1891)
March 1 – Roscoe Ates, American actor (b. 1895)
March 15 – Arthur Compton, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
March 20 – C. Wright Mills, American sociologist (b. 1916)
March 24
- Jean Goldkette, Greek-born jazz musician (b. 1899)
- Auguste Piccard, Swiss physicist and explorer (b. 1884)
April 10
- Michael Curtiz, Austrian-born film director (b. 1886)
- Manton S. Eddy, U.S. general (b. 1892)
- Stuart Sutcliffe, English artist and rock musician (The Beatles) (b. 1940)
April 13 – Culbert Olson, Governor of California (b. 1876)
April 15
- Clara Blandick, American actress (b. 1880)
- Arsenio Lacson, Filipino politician and sportswriter (b. 1911)
April 17 – Louise Fazenda, American actress (b. 1895)
April 21 – Sir Frederick Handley Page, British aircraft manufacturer (b. 1885)
April 22 – Vera Reynolds, American actress (b. 1899)
April 24 – Milt Franklyn, American musician (b. 1897)
May 5 – Ernest Tyldesley, English cricketer (b. 1889)
May 13
- Henry Trendley Dean, American dental researcher (b. 1893)
- Franz Kline, American painter (b. 1910)
May 27 – Egon Petri, German pianist (b. 1881)
May 31
- Henry Fountain Ashurst, American politician (b. 1874)
- Adolf Eichmann, German Nazi official (executed) (b. 1906)
June 2 – Vita Sackville-West, English writer and landscape gardener (b. 1892)
June 4 – Charles William Beebe, American oceanic pioneer (b. 1877)
June 6
- Yves Klein, French painter (b. 1928)
- Guinn Williams, American actor (b. 1899)
June 7 – Korneli Kekelidze, Georgian philologist (b. 1879)
June 8 – Eugène Freyssinet, French civil engineer (b. 1879)
June 12 – John Ireland, English composer (b. 1879)
June 13 – Eugène Aynsley Goossens, English composer (b. 1893)
June 15 – Alfred Cortot, Swiss pianist (b. 1877)
June 19
- Frank Borzage, American film director (b. 1894)
- Will Wright, American character actor (b. 1891)
June 24 – Lucile Watson, Canadian actress of stage & screen (b. 1879)
June 27 – Paul Viiding, Estonian poet, author and literary critic (b. 1904)
June 28 – Mickey Cochrane, American baseball player (b. 1903)

July–December

July 4 – Rex Bell, American actor (b. 1903)
July 6
- Paul Boffa, Maltese politician, Prime Minister of Malta (1947–1950) (b. 1890)
- William Faulkner, American writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1897)
- Archduke Joseph August of Austria, Austrian field marshal (b. 1872)
July 8 – Georges Bataille, French writer (b. 1897)
July 10 – Yehuda Leib Maimon, Bassarabian-born Israeli rabbi and government minister (b. 1875)
July 12 – Roger Wolfe Kahn, American band leader (b. 1907)
July 13 – Jerry Wald, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1911)
July 21 – G.M. Trevelyan, English historian (b. 1876)
July 23 – Victor Moore, American actor (b. 1876)
July 27 – Richard Aldington, English poet (b. 1892)
July 30 – Myron McCormick, American actor (b. 1908)
August 5 – Marilyn Monroe, American actress (b. 1926)
August 9 – Hermann Hesse, German-born writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1877)
August 15 – Lei Feng, Chinese soldier (b. 1940)
August 18 – Cleo Ridgely, American actress (b. 1893)
August 23 – Hoot Gibson, American actor (b. 1892)
August 24 – Mykolas Biržiška, Lithuanian politician (b. 1882)
August 28 – John Collum, American actor (b. 1926)
September 3 – E. E. Cummings, American poet (b. 1894)
September 6 – Hanns Eisler, German-born composer (b. 1898)
September 7
- Karen Blixen, Danish writer (b. 1885)
- Morris Louis, American painter (b. 1912)
- Graham Walker, British motorcycle racer (b. 1896)
September 18 – Ahmad bin Yahya, King of Yemen (b. 1891)
September 19 – Nikolai Pogodin, Soviet playwright (b. 1900)
September 24 – Charles Reisner, American silent actor and film director (b. 1887)
October 2 – Frank Lovejoy, American actor (b. 1912)
October 6 – Tod Browning, American film director (b. 1882)
October 9 – Milan Vidmar, Slovenian chess player (b. 1885)
October 26 – Louise Beavers, American actress (b. 1902)
October 27 – Enrico Mattei, Italian politician (plane crash) (b. 1906)
November 7 – Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States (b. 1884)
November 15 – Irene Lentz, American costume designer (b. 1900)
November 18 – Niels Bohr, Danish physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1885)
November 22 – René Coty, President of France (b. 1882)
November 28 – Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (b. 1880)
November 29 – Erik Scavenius, Prime Minister of Denmark (b. 1877)
December 7 – Kirsten Flagstad, Norwegian soprano (b. 1895)
December 15 – Charles Laughton, English actor and director (b. 1899)
December 16 – Lew Landers, American TV and film director (b. 1901)
December 17 – Thomas Mitchell, American actor (b. 1892)
December 18 – Garrett Mattingly, American historian (b. 1900)
December 20 – Emil Artin, Austrian mathematician (b. 1898)
December 24 – Wilhelm Ackermann, German mathematician (b. 1896)

Nobel Prizes

Physics – Lev Davidovich Landau
Chemistry – Max Ferdinand Perutz, John Cowdery Kendrew
Physiology or Medicine – Francis Harry Compton Crick, James Dewey Watson, Maurice Hugh Frederick Wilkins
Literature – John Steinbeck
Peace – Linus Carl Pauling

Academy Awards

Best Picture: West Side Story, Robert Wise
Best Foreign Language Film: Såsom i en spegel, Sweden
Best Documentary Feature: Le Ciel et la Boue (Sky Above and Mud Beneath), Ardennes Films
Best Director: Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, West Side Story'
Best Actor: Maximilian Schell, Judgment at Nuremberg
Best Actress: Sophia Loren, Two Women
Best Supporting Actor: George Chakiris, West Side Story
Best Supporting Actress: Rita Moreno, West Side Story
Best Original Screenplay: William Inge, Splendor in the Grass
Best Adapted Screenplay: Abby Mann, Judgment at Nuremberg

In fiction

The second season of the TV series Mad Men is set 1962.
The film American Graffiti starring Ron Howard, Richard Dreyfuss, Paul LeMat and Charles Martin Smith is set in late August, 1962.

Notes

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: 1962

1962.html