The Sixties
1960 Richard Nixon is the supposed heir apparent to President Eisenhower. John Kennedy defeats Nixon in the election to become the 35th President of the United States 3500 troops sent to Vietnam Psycho and To Kill a Mockingbird debut Soviets shoot down a US spy plane over Russia
1961 USSR’s Yuri Gagarin becomes the first man in space in April Alan Shepard is the first American in space in May Peace Corps established Bay of Pigs Invasion fails to oust Fidel Castro from Cuba
1962 World stands on the brink of nuclear war during the Cuban Missile Crisis James Meredith becomes first African-American to enroll at Ole Miss Marvel Comics first published Spider-Man Marilyn Monroe found dead of apparent drug overdose Beatles release their first song “Love Me Do”
1963 John Kennedy assassinated in Dallas Beatlemania sweeps the US Valentina Tereshkova of the USSR becomes the first woman in space Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty signed
1964 Gulf of Tonkin Resolution passed Boston Strangler captured Warren Commission concludes Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone Civil Rights Act of 1964 Martin Luther King Jr. wins Nobel Peace Prize
1965 Race riots in Watts, California leave 34 dead Selma to Montgomery March St. Louis Gateway Arch completed Voting Rights Act of 1965 Days of Our Lives debuts University of California Berkeley hosts the largest anti-Vietnam teach-in during May.
1966 Miranda Warning becomes law Vietnam War protest intensify Department of Transportation created Miniskirt invented Debut of Star Trek and Batman TV shows
1967 Six Day War between Israel and the Arab state Jordan, Syria, and Egypt PBS created First successful heart transplant Loving v Virginia Thurgood Marshall appointed to the Supreme Court Beatles release Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band Rolling Stone first published
1968 Martin Luther King Jr., and Robert Kennedy assassinated Intel Corporation formed Tet Offensive in Vietnam My Lai Massacre President Johnson announces on TV he will not seek reelection
1969 Apollo 11 lands on the Moon Woodstock Music Festival Project Blue Book concludes with no evidence of alien life Richard Nixon elected president Sesame Street known for its Muppet characters, makes it's debut on PBS