What else happened in 1957?

In the news…

*Jan. 13 – The Wham-O Company produces the first Frisbee.
*Jan. 14 – Humphrey Bogart dies of throat cancer at age 58.
*Jan. 16 – The Cavern Club opens in Liverpool.
*Jan. 20 – Dwight Eisenhower is inaugurated for a second term as President of the US.
*Mar. 19 – Elvis Presley buys Graceland.
*Jul. 6 – John Lennon and Paul McCartney first meet.
*Jul. 29 – Jack Paar takes over as Tonight Show host from Steve Allen.
*Sep. 4 – Orville Faubus, the governor of Arkansas, calls out the National Guard to prevent black students from enrolling in Central High School in Little Rock.
*Sep. 4 – The Ford Motor Company introduces the Edsel.
*Sep. 5 – Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road” is published.
*Sep. 24 – Eisenhower sends federal troops to Little Rock, Arkansas to protect nine African-American students from a mob protesting their enrollment in Central High School.
*Oct. 4 – The USSR launches Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite to orbit the Earth.
*Nov. 3 – The USSR launches Sputnik II carrying the first animal to enter space, the dog, Laika.
*Nov. 16 – Serial killer Ed Gein murders his last victim.
*Nov. 25 – Pres. Dwight Eisenhower has a stroke.
*Dec. 20 – Elvis Presley receives his draft board notice.

Famous Births…

*Jan. 24 – Adrian Edmondson, British sitcom star. He was the punk Vyvyan on The Young Ones.
*Jan. 27 – Frank Miller, great comic book creator. Check out The Dark Knight Returns and Sin City.
*Feb. 16 – LeVar Burton, cool actor. He was Geordi La Forge on Next Gen.
*Feb. 28 – Cindy Wilson, singer with The B-52s.
*Mar. 20 – Spike Lee, great director. Check out Do the Right Thing and Malcolm X.
*Mar. 23 – Amanda Plummer, very cool actress.
*Apr. 29 – Daniel Day-Lewis, great actor. Check out Gangs of New York. He created one of the great villains in film history in that one.
*May 10 – Sid Vicious, punk rock icon, bassist for The Sex Pistols.
*May 11 – Peter North, porn icon.
*May 27 – Siouxsie Sioux, singer for Siouxsie and the Banshees.
*Jun. 8 – Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert.
*Jun. 21 – Berke Breathed, creator of Bloom County.
*Jun. 23 – Frances McDormand, very cool actress. Check out Fargo and Almost Famous.
*July 2 – Bret “The Hitman” Hart, famous wrestler.
*Jul. 11 – Peter Murphy, singer for Bauhaus.
*Jul. 13 – Cameron Crowe, great director. Check out Singles and Almost Famous.
*Jul. 26 – Nana Visitor, cool actress. She was Major Kira Nerys on Deep Space Nine. I had a huge crush on her.
*Aug. 2 – Mojo Nixon, incredibly cool alt-rock icon. Mojo Nixon is the man!
*Aug. 9 – Melanie Griffith, cool actress. Check out Something Wild.
*Sep. 22 – Nick Cave, awesome Aussie rock star.
*Sep. 22 – Johnette Napolitano, singer of Concrete Blonde.
*Oct. 25 – Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart Simpson, Nelson Muntz, and Ralph Wiggum.
*Oct. 29 – Dan Castellaneta, the voice of Homer Simpson.
*Dec. 13 – Steve Buscemi, extremely cool actor. Check out… Well, hell. Buscemi has been awesome in more movies than I can list here.
*Dec. 13 – Morris Day, Prince protégé and singer for The Time.
*Dec. 25 – Shane McGowan, singer for The Pogues.

Famous Deaths…

*Jan. 14 – Humphrey Bogart, legendary movie star, great actor, cultural icon, and the coolest individual who ever walked the face of the Earth.
*Feb. 10 – Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of Little House on the Prairie.
*Mar. 11 – Richard E. Byrd, Antarctic explorer.
*Mar. 25 – Max Ophuls, great German filmmaker.
*May 2 – Joseph McCarthy, US Senator, red-baiter, and destroyer of countless American lives.
*May 12 – Erich von Stroheim, great German filmmaker.
*May 16 – Eliot Ness, famous G-Man.
*Aug. 7 – Oliver Hardy, great silent film comedian. One half of the Laurel and Hardy comedy team.
*Oct. 24 – Christian Dior, great fashion designer.
*Oct. 26 – Nikos Kazantzakis, Greek author. He wrote Zorba the Greek and The Last Temptation.
*Oct. 29 – Louis B. Mayer, famous film producer and studio head.
*Nov. 24 – Diego Rivera, great Mexican artist.

In the world of movies…

The Top Grossing Films of 1957

5. Pal Joey
4. Oklahoma!
3. Giant
2. Around the World in Eighty Days
1. The Ten Commandments

Oscar Winners of 1957

Best Picture – The Bridge on the River Kwai
Best Actor – Alec Guinness (The Bridge on the River Kwai)
Best Actress – Joanne Woodward (The Three Faces of Eve)
Best Supp. Actor – Red Buttons (Sayonara)
Best Supp. Actress – Miyoshi Umeki (Sayonara)
Best Director – David Lean (The Bridge on the River Kwai)

Other Films released in 1957

12 Angry Men
An Affair to Remember
Aparajito (good one from Satyajit Ray)
A Face in the Crowd (I highly recommend this film. It predicts the future of American popular and political culture in much the same way that Paddy Chayefsky’s Network did nearly twenty years later. Andy Griffith was brilliant playing against type. Seriously, check this movie out.)
Funny Face
Jailhouse Rock
Nights of Cabiria (good Fellini)
Old Yeller
Paths of Glory (I highly recommend this magnificent anti-war film from the master, Stanley Kubrick. This story of military injustice during the First World War features a tremendous performance from Kirk Douglas. You should not miss this one.)
Peyton Place
The Seventh Seal
Wild Strawberries

In the world of television…

Shows premiering in 1957

Blondie
The Gumby Show
Leave It to Beaver
Maverick
Perry Mason
Wagon Train

Shows ending in 1957

I Love Lucy
Kukla, Fran and Ollie

Most Watched Shows of 1957

10. You Bet Your Life
9. December Bride
8. The Restless Gun
7. General Electric Theatre
6. The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp
5. I’ve Got A Secret
4. Have Gun Will Travel
3. Tales of Wells Fargo
2. The Danny Thomas Show
1. Gunsmoke

Emmy Winners of 1957

Best Dramatic Series with Continuing Characters – Gunsmoke (CBS)
Best Dramatic Anthology Series – Playhouse 90 (CBS)
Best Comedy Series – The Phil Silvers Show (CBS)
Best Actor in a Series – Robert Young (Father Knows Best)
Best Actress in a Series – Jane Wyatt (Father Knows Best)

In the world of books…

Great Books published in 1957

From Russia with Love – Ian Fleming
On the Road – Jack Kerouac (My second favorite book of all time)
Doctor Zhivago – Boris Pasternak
Atlas Shrugged – Ayn Rand
How the Grinch Stole Christmas – Dr. Seuss
The Cat in the Hat – Dr. Seuss

In the world of comics…

DC Comics publishes Showcase #8 in June, featuring the first appearance of Captain Cold, one the first super-villains in the Flash’s Rogues Gallery.

In the world of sports…

*World Series – The Milwaukee Braves win 4 games to 3 over the New York Yankees.
*NBA Finals – The Boston Celtics win 4 games to 3 over the St. Louis Hawks.
*NFL Championship – The Detroit Lions win 59-14 over the Cleveland Browns.
*College Football champions – The Auburn Tigers and The Ohio State Buckeyes (shared)
*Stanley Cup – The Montreal Canadiens win 4 games to 1 over the Boston Bruins.