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Events of 1962
January
The United States Navy Seals were first established
The British spy Kim Philby defected to the USSR.
Pope John XXIII excommunicated Fidel Castro.
The Volcano Huascaran erupted in Peru where thousands of people were killed.
Ranger 3 was launched to study the Moon it missed by 22,000 miles.
February
Eight of the nine planets aligned within 16 degrees. The Sun, The Moon, Mercury,Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter.
President Kennedy banned all Cuban imports and exports and began the Cuban blockade.
John Glenn was the first American to orbit the Earth in the Mercury-Atlas 6 spacecraft called the Friendship 7.
March
K-Mart opened.
Benny Paret was knocked out in a welterweight fight and died 10 days later.
April
The first Panda crossing opened outside Waterloo station, London.
Georges Pompidou became the president of France.
Ranger 4 was the first satellite to to reach the Moon it crash landed on the far side of the Moon.
Ariel 1 was launched the first U.K. Satellite.
May
France did their first underground nuclear experiments.
Antonio Segni was elected president of Italy.
Scott Carpenter orbited the Earth three times in the Mercury-Atlas space capsule called the Aurora 7.
June
The first flight of the Vickers long range airliner VC-10.
Adolf Eichman was hanged in Israel for war crimes committed in the second world war.
Brazil beat Czechoslovakia 3-1 in the FIFA world cup.
The Oscar 2 satellite was launched.
July
Telstar was launched and relayed the first live transatlantic television pictures.
The first Wal-Mart opened.
Mariner 1 was ordered to be destroyed after launch.
August
The South African police arrested Nelson Mandela for incitement.
Thirty six year old film star Marilyn Monroe was found dead of a drug overdose.
Vostok 3 was launched manned by Andrian Nikolayev
Vostok 4 was launched manned by Pavel Popovich this was the first time two spacecrafts were in orbit at the same time. They also made radio contact with each other.
Mariner 2 was launched, it went on a three and half month trip to flyby Venus.
September
An earthquake in Iran, thousands were killed.
In Spain flash floods killed more than 400.
Rod Laver won the grand slam at tennis.
October
The first James Bond film Dr.No opened in cinemas in the U.K.
Nikita Khrushchev ordered the removal of Russian missiles in Cuba.
Wally Schirra in a spacecraft named Sigma 7 completed six Earth orbits.
Ranger 5 was launched to transmit pictures before impacting on the Moon. It missed and went into orbit.
November
Great Britain and France agreed to jointly build Concorde
The U.S. stopped the blockade of Cuba.
Nelson Mandela was sentenced and jailed on Robin Island.
The USSR launched Mars 1 their first probe.
December
Mariner 2 after launching in August completed the mission to flyby Venus.
The Newspaper workers went out on strike in New York.
Tanganyika became a republic.
Movies of 1962
THE 300 SPARTANS Starred Richard Egan.
THE BIRDMAN OF ALCATRAZ Featured Burt Lancaster.
The adaptation of the John Wyndham novel THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS.
Dr. NO The first James Bond film.
HELL IS FOR HEROES Starred Steve McQueen.
The epic western film HOW THE WEST WAS WON.
Elvis Presley musical KID GALAHAD.
A KIND OF LOVING Directed by John Schlesinger.
LAWRENCE OF ARABIA directed by David Lean.
The Stanley Kubrick film LOLITA.
THE LONELINESS OF LONG DISTANCE RUNNER Based on the book which was written by Alan Sillitoe..
Kirk Douglas in LONELY ARE THE BRAVE.
Richard Burton & Sean Connery featured in THE LONGEST DAY.
TARAS BULBA starred Yul Brynner and Tony Curtis.
Robert Aldrich directed WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE.
Sixties Events 1962
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