1948
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'''1948''' '''(MCMXLVIII)''' is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar).
Events
January-February
January 1 - Nationalisation of United Kingdom|UK railways to form British Railways. Arab militants lay siege to the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. First day of the Italian republican constitution.
January 4 - Burma gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
January 5 - Warner Brothers shows the first color newsreel (Tournament of Roses Parade and the Rose Bowl (game)|Rose Bowl).
January 17 - Truce between nationalist Indonesian and Dutch troops in Java (island)|Java
January 26 - Teigin poison case - Man masquerading as a doctor poisons 12 out of 15 bank employees of the Tokyo branch of Imperial Bank and takes the money; artist Sadamichi Hirasawa is later sentenced for the crime.
January 30 - Indian pacifist and leader Mahatma Gandhi is murdered by a Hindu extremist.
January 30 - 1948 Winter Olympics open in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
February 1 - Soviet Union begins to jam Voice of America broadcasts.
February 4 - Ceylon (later renamed Sri Lanka) becomes independent within the British Commonwealth. King George VI of the United Kingdom|George VI becomes King of Ceylon.
February 18 - Eamon de Valera, head of government since 1932, loses power to an opposition coalition. John A. Costello is appointed Taoiseach of Éire (formerly called the Irish Free State) by President Sean T. O'Kelly|O'Kelly.
February 24 - The Communist Party seizes control of Czechoslovakia.
March-April
March 8 - The United States Supreme Court rules that religious instruction in public schools violated the United States Constitution|Constitution.
March 10 - Czechoslovakia|Czech foreign minister Jan Masaryk killed in fall from a window of his apartment in Prague. Later communist government rules it "suicide".
March 17 - Hell's Angels founded in California
March 20 - First elections in Singapore
April 1 - Faroe Islands receive autonomy from Denmark
April 3 - President of the United States|President Harry Truman signs the Marshall Plan which authorizes $5 billion in aid for 16 countries.
April 7 - The World Health Organization is established by the United Nations.
April 7 - Buddhism|Buddhist monastery burns in Shanghai - 20 monks dead
April 9 - Jorge Eliécer Gaitán's assassination provokes a violent riot in Bogotá (the ''Bogotazo''), and a further ten years of violence in all of Colombia (''La violencia'').
April 9 - The Deir Yassin massacre takes place in Palestine (region)|Palestine.
May
May 1 - 213 communists executed in Greece.
May 2 - ''Hour of Charm's'' last broadcast.
May 11 - Luigi Einaudi becomes List of Presidents of the Italian Republic|President of the Italian Republic.
May 14 - Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel|Israel is declared as an independent state.
May 14 - The murder of a three-year-old girl in Blackburn, England leads to the fingerprinting of more than 40,000 men in the city in an attempt to find the murderer.
May 15 - 1948 Arab-Israeli War: Egypt, Transjordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia attack Israel.
May 16 - Chaim Weizmann is elected as the first President of Israel.
May 18 - The First Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China officially convenes in Nanking.
May 26 - The Congress of the United States|U.S. Congress passes Public Law 557 which permanently establishes the Civil Air Patrol as the auxiliary of the United States Air Force.
May 30 - A dike along the Columbia River breaks, obliterating Vanport, Oregon within minutes. 15 people die and tens of thousands are left homeless.
June-July
June 3 - Palomar Observatory telescope finished in California.
June 16 - Communist guerillas kill three rubber planters in Malay states|Malaya.
June 16 - Three armed men hijack Cathay Pacific passenger plane ''Miss Macao'' and shoot the pilot. The plane crashes - one of 27 survives
June 17 - A Douglas DC-6 carrying United Air Lines Flight 624 crashes near Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, killing all 43 people on board.
June 18 - State of Emergency declared in Malaysia for communist insurgency - Malayan Emergency begins.
June 21 - The Deutsche Mark becomes official currency of the Federal Republic of Germany.
June 24 - Cold War: The Berlin Blockade begins.
June 28 - Cominform Resolution marks the beginning of the Informbiro period in Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia and Soviet/Yugoslav split.
July 5 - British National Health Service Act enacted.
July 13 - The Coptic Christianity|Coptic and Ethiopian Churches reach an agreement leading to the promotion of the Ethiopian church to the rank of an autocephalous Patriarchate. Five bishops are immediately consecrated by the Patriarch of Alexandria, and the successor to Abuna Qerellos IV is granted the power to consecrate new bishops, who are empowered to elect a new Patriarch for their church.
July 15 - Attempted assassination of Palmiro Togliatti, general secretary of the Italian Communist Party, incites number of strikes all over the country.
July 15 - First London, England chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous
July 20 - Cold War: President Harry S. Truman issues the second peacetime military draft in the United States amid increasing tensions with the Soviet Union (the first peacetime draft occurred in 1940 under President Roosevelt).
July 24 - Great oil fire in the harbor of Naantali, Finland
July 26 - U.S. President signs Executive Order 9981, ending racial segregation in the United States Armed Forces.
July 29 - 1948 Summer Olympics begin in London.
July 31 - At Idlewild Field in New York, New York International Airport (later renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport) is dedicated.
August-December
August 1 - The U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations is founded.
August 12 - USA recognizes the government of South Korea.
August 19 - Soviet troops fire at German demonstrators that protest against the Berlin Blockade.
August 23 - World Council of Churches established.
September 4 - Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands abdicates for health reasons.
September 5 - Robert Schuman becomes Prime Minister of France.
September 6 - Juliana of the Netherlands|Juliana becomes Queen of the Netherlands.
September 17 - Stern Gang assassinates count Folke Bernadotte.
October 11 - Cleveland Indians defeat the Boston Braves to win the World Series, four games to two.
November 2 - U.S. presidential election, 1948: Harry S. Truman defeats Thomas E. Dewey for the President of the United States|US presidency.
November 12 - In Tokyo, an international war crimes tribunal sentences seven Japanese military and government officials to death, including General Hideki Tojo, for their roles in World War II.
November 15 - Louis Stephen St. Laurent becomes Canada's twelfth Prime Minister of Canada|prime minister.
November 16 - Operation Magic Carpet to transport Jews from Yemen to Israel begins.
November 17 - Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi divorces his second wife, the former Princess Fawzia of Egypt.
November 24 - In Venezuela, president Rómulo Betancourt is outsed by a military coup. A military junta takes over the government.
December 7 - Gary Morris, singer and actor
December 7 - Mads Vinding, Danish bassist
December 10 - United Nations General Assembly adopts Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
December 26 - Last Soviet troops withdraw from North Korea.
December 28 - Member of Muslim Brotherhood assassinates Egyptian Prime Minister Mahmoud an-Nukrashi Pasha|Mahmud Fahmi Nokrashi.
December 30 - The play ''Kiss Me, Kate'' opens for the first of 1,077 performances.
December 31 - 1948 Arab-Israeli War: Israeli troops drive Egyptians from Negev.
Undated
Empire Windrush immigrant ship arrives in Britain
Civil war in Costa Rica
Civil war in Colombia
Rope (film) released
Unknown date
Porsche is founded.
Miranda (moon)|Miranda, the innermost natural satellite|moon of Uranus (planet)|Uranus, is discovered by Gerard Kuiper.
Casimir effect discovered by Dutch physicist Hendrik Casimir.
Tunnel of Vielha is opened in Val d'Aran, Spanish Pyrenees.
Fresh Kills Landfill|Fresh Kills, world's largest landfill, opens in Staten Island, New York.
The law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP|Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom is founded.
Brandeis University is founded.
Oakridge Transit Centre opened in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Births
January-February
January 2 - Mary Archer, Baroness Archer of Weston-super-Mare|Mary Archer, British scientist
January 2 - Deborah Watling, British actress
January 7 - Kenny Loggins, American singer
January 10 - Donald Fagen, American keyboardist
January 10 - Mischa Maisky, Latvian cellist
January 14 - Carl Weathers, American football player and actor
January 14 - T-Bone Burnett, American record producer and musician
January 15 - Ronnie Van Zant, American musician (d. 1977)
January 16 - John Carpenter, American film director and composer
January 17 - Davíð Oddsson, Prime Minister of Iceland
January 19 - Frank McKenna, Premier of New Brunswick and Canadian Ambassador
January 27 - Mikhail Baryshnikov, Russian-born dancer
January 28 - Charles Taylor, Liberian president
January 29 - Marc Singer, Canadian actor
January 31 - Muneo Suzuki, Japanese politician
February 1 - Elisabeth Sladen, British actress
February 3 - Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo, East Timorean Catholic bishop, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
February 4 - Alice Cooper, American musician
February 5 - Christopher Guest, American actor, writer, director, and composer
February 5 - V. Alexander Stefan, American physicist, educator, and writer
February 14 - Penn and Teller|Teller, American magician
February 24 - J. Jayalalithaa, Indian politician
February 25 - Danny Denzongpa, Indian actor
February 28 - Steven Chu, American physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics|Nobel Prize laureate
February 28 - Mike Figgis, American director, writer, and composer
February 28 - Bernadette Peters, American actress and singer
February 28 - Mercedes Ruehl, American actress
March-April
March 1 - Burning Spear, Jamaican singer and musician
March 2 - Jeff Kennett, Australian politician
March 2 - R. T. Crowley, pioneer of electronic commerce
March 9 - Jeffrey Osborne, American singer
March 12 - James Taylor, American musician
March 15 - Sérgio Vieira de Mello, Brazilian diplomat (d. 2003)
March 17 - William Gibson (novelist)|William Gibson, Canadian writer
March 20 - John de Lancie, American actor
March 20 - Bobby Orr, Canadian hockey player
March 22 - Andrew Lloyd Webber, English composer
March 22 - Wolf Blitzer, American television journalist
March 26 - Steven Tyler, American singer (Aerosmith)
March 28 - Dianne Wiest, American actress
March 31 - Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States
March 31 - Rhea Perlman, American actress
April 1 - Jimmy Cliff, Jamaican musician
April 15 - Michael Kamen, American composer (d. 2003)
(April 23)-
April 29 - Michael Karoli, German musician (d. 2001)
May-July
May 8 - Felicity Lott, English soprano
May 11 - Shigeru Izumiya, Japanese musician
May 12 - Steve Winwood, English singer
May 14 - Bob Woolmer, British cricket coach
May 15 - Brian Eno, English musician and record producer
May 19 - Grace Jones, Jamaican singer and actress
May 21 - Leo Sayer, English musician
May 26 - Stevie Nicks, American singer and songwriter (Fleetwood Mac)
May 29 - Michael Berkeley, British composer
May 31 - John Bonham, British drummer (Led Zeppelin) (d. 1980)
June 2 - Todd Rundgren, American singer and record producer
June 13 - Garnet Bailey, Canadian hockey player and scout
June 17 - Dave Concepcion, Venezuelan baseball player
June 19 - Phylicia Rashad, American actress
June 20 - Ludwig Scotty, President of Nauru
June 21 - Lionel Rose, Australian boxer
June 21 - Andrzej Sapkowski, Polish writer
July 8 - Raffi|Raffi Cavoukian, Egyptian-born singer
July 16 - Pinchas Zukerman, Israeli violinist
July 18 - Hartmut Michel, German chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry|Nobel Prize laureate
July 21 - Ed Hinton, American sportswriter
July 21 - Cat Stevens, English musician
July 21 - Garry Trudeau, American cartoonist
July 25 - Peggy Fleming, American figure skater
July 28 - Sally Struthers, American actress
July 30 - Jean Reno, French actor
August-December
August 2 - Dennis Prager, American radio talk show host and author
August 3 - Jean-Pierre Raffarin, Prime Minister of France
August 13 - Kathleen Battle, American soprano
August 15 - Uschi Digard, American erotic actress and figure model
August 20 - Robert Plant, English singer (Led Zeppelin)
August 30 - Lewis Black, American comedian
September 4 - Samuel Hui, Hong Kong singer
September 5 - Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Austrian diplomat and politician
September 10 - Bob Lanier (basketball player)|Bob Lanier, American basketball player
September 10 - Margaret Trudeau, First Lady of Canada
September 13 - Nell Carter, American singer and actress (d. 2003)
September 17 - John Ritter, American actor (d. 2003)
September 22 - Denis Burke, Australian politician
September 24 - Heinz Chur, German composer
September 27 - Michele Dotrice, English actor
September 29 - Bryant Gumbel, American television broadcaster
October 1 - Sir Peter Blake (yachtsman)|Sir Peter Blake New Zealand yachtsman (d. 2001)
October 2 - Avery Brooks, American television actor
October 2 - Chris LeDoux, American singer and rodeo star (d. 2005)
October 8 - Johnny Ramone, American guitarist (The Ramones) (d. 2004)
October 9 - Jackson Browne, American musician
October 13 - Ted Poe, American politician
October 17 - George Wendt, American television actor
November 1 - Jim Steinman, American songwriter and producer
November 5 - William Daniel Phillips, American physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics|Nobel Prize laureate
November 10 - Vincent Schiavelli, American actor
November 14 - Charles, Prince of Wales
November 16 - Mutt Lange, Rhodesian-born record producer
November 17 - Howard Dean, American politician
November 20 - John R. Bolton, U.S. Ambassador to the UN
November 20 - Barbara Hendricks, American-born soprano
December 3 - Ozzy Osbourne, British singer
December 6 - JoBeth Williams, American actress
December 10 - Abu Abbas, founder of the Palestine Liberation Front (d. 2004)
December 21 - Willi Resetarits, Austrian musician and cabaret artist
December 27 - Gérard Depardieu, French actor
Unknown date
Maurizio Gucci Italian business man and murder victim (d. 1995)
Edward Rutherfurd, British novelist
Deaths
January 21 - Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Italian composer (b. 1876)
January 30 - Mohandas Gandhi, Indian independence movement leader (assassinated) (b. 1869)
January 30 - Orville Wright, American co-inventor of the airplane (b. 1871)
February 2 - Bevil Rudd, South African athlete (b. 1894)
February 11 - Sergy Eisenstein, Russian film director (b. 1898)
February 23 - John Robert Gregg, Irish-born inventor of shorthand (b. 1866)
March 6 - Ross Lockridge, Jr., American novelist (suicide) (b. 1914)
March 10 - Jan Masaryk, Foreign Minister of Czechoslovakia (b. 1886)
March 31 - Egon Erwin Kisch, Austrian journalist and author (b. 1885)
April 9 - Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, Colombian politician (b. 1903)
April 17 - Suzuki Kantaro, Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1867)
May 15 - Father Edward J. Flanagan, Irish-born priest and founder of Boys Town (b. 1886)
May 28 - Unity Mitford, British friend of Hitler (b. 1914)
June 25 - William C. Lee, American general (b. 1895)
July 5 - Georges Bernanos, French writer (b. 1888)
July 15 - John J. Pershing, American general (b. 1860)
July 23 - David Wark Griffith, American film director (b. 1875)
August 12 - Harry Brearley, English inventor of stainless steel (b. 1871)
August 16 - Babe Ruth, baseball player (b. 1895)
September 2 - Sylvanus Morley|Sylvanus G. Morley, American scholar and World War I spy (b. 1883)
September 11 - Muhammed Ali Jinnah, first Governor-General of Pakistan (b. 1876)
October 24 - Franz Lehár, Hungarian composer (b. 1870)
November 28 - D.D. Sheehan, Irish politician (b. 1873)
December 23 - Japanese war leaders (hanged):
Kenji Doihara, spy (b. 1883)
Koki Hirota, Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1878)
Iwane Matsui, general (b. 1878)
Itagaki Seishiro, military officer (b. 1885)
Hideki Tojo, general (b. 1884)
December 31 - Malcolm Campbell|Sir Malcolm Campbell, English land and water racer (b. 1885)
Nobel Prizes
Nobel Prize in Physics|Physics - Patrick Maynard Stuart Blackett
Nobel Prize in Chemistry|Chemistry - Arne Wilhelm Kaurin Tiselius
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine|Medicine - Paul Hermann Muller|Paul Hermann Müller
Nobel Prize in Literature|Literature - T. S. Eliot
Nobel Peace Prize|Peace - not awarded
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