Historical Events
- Jan 1 15th Orange Bowl: Texas beats #8 Georgia, 41-28
- Jan 1 15th Sugar Bowl: #5 Oklahoma beats #3 North Carolina, 14-6
- Jan 1 35th Rose Bowl: #7 Northwestern beats #4 California, 20-14
Bradman Honored
Jan 1 Arguably cricket's greatest ever batsman, ex-Australian captain Don Bradman is knighted; first time a cricketer is bestowed with the honour solely for his contribution to the game
- Jan 1 KPRC TV channel 2 in Houston, TX (NBC) begins broadcasting
- Jan 1 KTTV TV channel 11 in Los Angeles, CA (MET) begins broadcasting
- Jan 1 Tokelau (Union) Islands formally becomes part of New Zealand
- Jan 2 KDKA TV channel 2 in Pittsburgh, PA (CBS) begins broadcasting
- Jan 2 Luis Muñoz Marín becomes the first democratically elected Governor of Puerto Rico
- Jan 3 "Colgate Theater" dramatic anthology series premieres on NBC TV
- Jan 3 The central bank of the Philippines, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, is founded
- Jan 3 US Representative William Dawson becomes 1st Black to head congressional committee - Committee on Expenditures in the Executive Departments (now known as Committee on Oversight and Reform)
Weekes Record Century
Jan 3 West Indian cricket batsman Everton Weekes scores 101 in 3rd Test against India in Calcutta; his world record fifth consecutive Test century
- Jan 5 General Spoor orders cease-fire on Sumatra
"Fair Deal"
Jan 5 US President Harry Truman labels his administration the "Fair Deal"
- Jan 7 1st photo of genes taken at University of Southern California by Pease & Baker
- Jan 8 "Make Mine Manhattan" closes at Broadhurst Theater NYC after 429 performances
- Jan 8 "My Romance" closes at Shubert Theater NYC after 95 performances
- Jan 8 "Small Wonder" closes at Coronet Theater NYC after 134 performances
- Jan 10 1st Jewish family show "Goldbergs" premieres on CBS
- Jan 10 Gene Roddenberry applies for a position with the Los Angeles Police Department
- Jan 10 RCA introduces 45 RPM record
Arthur Godfrey and His Friends
Jan 12 "Arthur Godfrey and his Friends" premieres on CBS TV
"The Rape of Lucretia"
Jan 16 Benjamin Britten's chamber opera "The Rape of Lucretia" closes at Ziegfeld Theater, NYC, after 23 performances
- Jan 16 KNBH (now KNBC) TV channel 4 in Los Angeles, CA (NBC) 1st broadcast
- Jan 16 WTOP (now WUSA) TV channel 9 in Washington, D.C. (CBS) 1st broadcast
- Jan 17 Radio series "The Goldbergs" by Gertrude Berg premieres on US TV on CBS
- Jan 18 "They Stand Accused" courtroom drama premieres on CBS (later DuMont)
- Jan 18 1st US Congressional standing committee headed by Negro (W Dawson)
- Jan 19 Cuba recognises Israel.
- Jan 20 1st inaugural parade televised, for Harry Truman, watched by 10 million people
Hoover's Shirley Temple Present
Jan 20 J. Edgar Hoover gives Shirley Temple a tear gas fountain pen
- Jan 20 US President Harry Truman announces his four point program
- Jan 22 "All for Love" opens at Mark Hellinger Theater NYC for 121 performances
- Jan 22 Chinatown telephone exchange in San Francisco is closed
- Jan 25 1st Emmy Awards: Shirley Dinsdale & Pantomime Quiz (KTLA) win
First Israeli Election
Jan 25 First Israeli election won by David Ben-Gurion's Mapai party
- Jan 26 200" (5.08-m) Hale telescope 1st used at Palomar observatory in Palomar Mountain, California [see also June 3, 1948]
- Jan 26 Australia's Nationality and Citizenship Act 1948 comes into force granting Australian citizenship and nationality to all people born or naturalised in Australia including First Nations people
- Jan 26 WHIO TV channel 7 in Dayton, OH (CBS) begins broadcasting
- Jan 27 Chinese liner "Taiping" collides with a collier off south China
- Jan 28 NY Giants sign their 1st black players, Monte Irvin & Ford Smith
- Jan 28 UN Security council convicts Dutch aggression in Indonesia
- Jan 29 Great Britain, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland recognize Israel
- Jan 31 1st US daytime soap on TV "These Are My Children" (NBC in Chicago)
Sedgman Defeats Bromwich
Jan 31 Australian Championships Men's Tennis: Frank Sedgman wins 1st of 2 straight Australian titles; beats fellow Australian John Bromwich 6-3, 6-2, 6-2
Hart's 1st of Six Victories
Jan 31 Australian Championships Women's Tennis: American Doris Hart beats Nancye Wynne Bolton 6-3, 6-4 for the first of her 6 Grand Slam singles titles
Famous Birthdays
- Jan 1 Daniel E Gawthrop, American composer, primarily of choral music, born in Fort Wayne, Indiana
- Jan 1 Nikolai Tikhonovich Moskalenko, Russian cosmonaut
- Jan 1 Peter Dormer, arts writer (d. 1996)
- Jan 2 Christopher Durang, playwright/actor (Sister Mary), born in Montclair, New Jersey
- Jan 2 Michael "Chick" Churchill, British blues-rock keyboardist (Ten Years After - "I'm Going Home"), born in Ilkeston, Derbyshire, England
- Jan 3 Gary Lavelle, American baseball pitcher (MLB All Star 1977, 83; SF Giants), born in Scranton, Pennsylvania
- Jan 3 Sylvia Likens, American torture victim (d. 1965)
- Jan 4 Mick Mills, British(?) soccer player
- Jan 5 George Brown, American R&B and funk drummer (Kool & the Gang - "Celebration"), born in Jersey City, New Jersey (d. 2023) [1]
- Jan 5 Wilhelmenia Wiggins Fernandez, American operatic soprano, and actress (Diva), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2024) [1]
- Jan 6 Chris Laurence, British classical, jazz and session double bassist, born in London
- Jan 6 Mike Boit, Kenyan 800m runner (Olympic bronze 1972), born in Eldoret, Kenya
- Jan 7 Anne Schedeen, American actress, born in Portland, Oregon
- Jan 7 Marshall Chapman, American country singer, born in Spartanburg, South Carolina
- Jan 8 John Podesta, American political strategist and presidential adviser (White House Chief of Staff 1998-2001, Presidential Climate Envoy 2023-), born in Chicago, Illinois
- Jan 8 Lawrence Rowe, West Indian cricketer (prolific WI batsman, 302 v Eng 1974), born in Kingston, Jamaica
- Jan 9 Tommy Talton, American session and touring Southern rock guitarist, dobro player, and songwriter (Cowboy), born in Orlando, Florida
George Foreman (75 years old)
Jan 10 American boxer (world heavyweight champion 1973-74, 95), born in Marshall, Texas
- Jan 10 James Lapine, American stage director, born in Mansfield, Ohio
- Jan 10 Teresa Graves, American actress (Laugh-in, Get Christie Love!), born in Houston, Texas
- Jan 10 Walter S. Browne, Australian-born American chess Grandmaster (1974-78, 1980-84), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2015)
- Jan 11 (Frederick) "Denny" Greene, American singer (Sha Na Na, 1968-84), born in New York (d. 2015)
- Jan 11 Chris Ford, American basketball guard (NBA C'ship 1971 Detroit Pistons; Boston Celtics) and coach (Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks, LA Clippers), born in Atlantic City, New Jersey (d. 2023)
- Jan 11 Daryl Braithwaite, Australian pop singer (Sherbert), born in Melbourne
Haruki Murakami (75 years old)
Jan 12 Japanese writer (Norwegian Wood), born in Kyoto, Japan
- Jan 12 James Dietz, American rower, born in The Bronx, New York
- Jan 12 Kentaro Haneda, Japanese composer, born in Tokyo, Japan (d. 2007)
- Jan 12 Michael W. Vannier, American radiologist, born in Hamilton City, California
- Jan 12 Ottmar Hitzfeld, German football manager, born in Lörrach, Germany
- Jan 12 Wayne Wang, American film director (Chan is Missing; Slam Dance), born in Hong Kong
- Jan 13 Brandon Tartikoff, American TV executive and president of NBC (1981-91), born in Freeport, New York (d. 1997)
- Jan 13 Rakesh Sharma, Indian cosmonaut (Soyuz T-11), first Indian in space, born in Patiala, India
- Jan 14 Christine Belford, American actress (Banacek, Empire, 90210), born in Amityville, New York
- Jan 14 Lamar Williams, American musician (The Allman Brothers Band), born in Gulfport, Mississippi (d. 1983)
- Jan 14 Lawrence Kasdan, American screenwriter and director (Accidental Tourist), born in Miami, Florida
- Jan 14 Mary Robison, American writer (Why Did I Ever), born in Washington, D.C.
- Jan 14 Maurice T. "Maury" Muehleisen, American musician and songwriter (Jim Croce), born in Trenton, New Jersey (d. 1973)
- Jan 14 Paul Chubb, Australian actor, born in Arncliffe, Australia (d. 2002)
- Jan 15 Howard Twitty, American golfer, course designer (3 PGA Tour titles), born in Phoenix, Arizona
- Jan 15 Luis Alvarado, Puerto Rican baseball player, born in Lajas, Puerto Rico (d. 2001)
- Jan 15 Panos Mihalopoulos, Greek actor, born in Kalamata, Greece
- Jan 16 Caroline Munro, British actress (Golden Voyage of Sinbad; Hammer Horror films), and singer ("Tar and Cement"; "Pump Me Up"), born in Windsor, England
- Jan 17 Andy Kaufman, American comedian and actor (Taxi - "Latka Gravas"), born in New York City (d. 1984)
- Jan 17 Billy T. James [William James Te Wehi Taitoko], New Zealand Maori comedian and singer (The Billy T. James Show), born in Cambridge, New Zealand (d. 1991)
- Jan 17 Debbie Watson, American actress (Karen, Tammy), born in La Mirada California,
- Jan 17 Heini Hemmi, Swiss giant slalom (Olympic gold 1976), born in Churwalden, Switzerland
- Jan 17 Sandra Mason, Barbadian politician (1st president of Barbados 2021-), born in Saint Philip, Barbados
- Jan 18 Bill Keller, American newspaper editor (The Marshall Project)
- Jan 18 Christian Blackshaw, British concert pianist, born in Cheshire, England
- Jan 18 Philippe Starck, French designer, born in Paris, France
- Jan 19 Dennis Taylor, British professional snooker player and snooker commentator (1985 World Championship), born in Coalisland, United Kingdom
- Jan 19 Robert Palmer, English singer-songwriter (Power Station), born in Batley, England (d. 2003)
- Jan 20 Martin von Haselberg, Argentine actor and performance artist, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Jan 22 James "J.P." Pennington, American country-pop singer and guitarist (Exile), born in Berea, Kentucky
- Jan 22 Mike Caldwell, American baseball player
- Jan 22 Steve Perry, American rock vocalist (Journey, 1977-87; 95-97 - "Don't Stop Believin'"; "Open Arms"), born in Hanford, California
- Jan 22 Vini "Mad Dog" Lopez, American drummer (E Street Band, 1972-74), born in Neptune, New Jersey
- Jan 23 Robert Cabana, American astronaut (STS 41, 53, 68, sk:88), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Jan 23 Thomas Forsyth, Scottish soccer defender (22 caps; Motherwell, Rangers), born in Glasgow, Scotland (d. 2020)
- Jan 24 Bart Gordon, American politician (Rep-D-TN, 1985-2011), born in Murfreesboro, Tennessee,
John Belushi (1949-1982)
Jan 24 American comedian (SNL, 1975-80), actor (Animal House), and singer (The Blues Brothers), born in Chicago, Illinois
- Jan 25 John Cooper Clarke, English performance poet, born in Lancashire, England
- Jan 25 Sheila Johnson, American businesswoman, 1st African American female billionaire (BET, Salamander Hotels and Resorts), born in McKeesport, Pennsylvania
- Jan 26 David Strathairn, American actor (LA Confidential, The Bourne Ultimatum), born in San Francisco, California
- Jan 26 Derek Holt, British rock guitarist (Curved Air; Climax Blues Band - "Couldn't Get It Right"), born in Stafford, England
- Jan 26 Jonathan Carroll, American author, born in New York
- Jan 26 Paul Nurse, English geneticist (Imperial Cancer Research Fund), born in Norwich, United Kingdom
- Jan 27 Ethan Mordden, American author
- Jan 27 Jaya Suprana [Phoa Kok Tjiang], Indonesian pianist, composer, conductor, writer, educator, and television presenter, born in Denpasar, Bali
- Jan 27 Per Røntved, Danish soccer defender (75 caps; Werder Bremen, Brønshøj BK, Randers SK Freja), born in Frederiksberg, Denmark (d. 2023)
- Jan 28 Eddie Bayers, American session drummer, based in Nashville, born in Patuxent, Maryland
- Jan 28 Gene McFadden, American singer, songwriter, and record producer (Philadelphia International Records; McFadden & Whitehead - "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now"), born in Olanta, South Carolina (d. 2006) [1]
- Jan 28 Gregg Popovich, American Basketball HOF coach and executive (NBA C'ship 1999, 2003, 05, 07, 14; NBA Coach of the Year 2003, 12, 14; San Antonio Spurs; Olympic gold 2020), born in East Chicago, Indiana
- Jan 28 Jerzy Szczakiel, Polish speedway rider (World Individual C'ship 1973; World Pairs C'ship 1971), born in Grudzicach, Poland (d. 2020)
- Jan 28 Thomas J. Downey, American politician (Rep-D-NY, 1975-93), born in Queens, New York
- Jan 29 Tommy Ramone [Tamás Erdélyi], Hungarian-American rock drummer and bassist (Ramones), born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 2014)
Peter Agre (75 years old)
Jan 30 American biologist and Nobel laureate, born in Northfield, Minnesota
- Jan 30 William King, American singer, trumpet player, songwriter, guitarist, percussionist, and choreographer (The Commodores - "Lady"), born in Birmingham, Alabama
- Jan 31 Carol Hawkins, English actress (Dialing for Dingbats), born in Chipping Barnet, United Kingdom
- Jan 31 Frank Ricotti, British jazz and session vibraphonist and percussionist, born in London, England
- Jan 31 Johan Derksen, Dutch footballer and sports journalist, born in Heteren, Netherlands
- Jan 31 Ken Wilber, American philosopher and writer, born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Famous Weddings
- Jan 18 South African priest and politician Reverend Andries Treurnicht (27) weds Engela Dreyer in South Africa, until his death in 1993
Tom Landry
Jan 28 NFL coach Tom Landry (24) weds Alicia Wiggs at St John the Divine Church in Houston, Texas
Famous Deaths
- Jan 1 William H. Lewis, American College football center and coach (first African-American selected as an All-American; Harvard), dies of heart failure at 80
Victor Fleming (1889-1949)
Jan 6 American film director (The Wizard of Oz; Gone With The Wind), dies at 65
- Jan 9 Amilcare Zanella, Italian composer and conductor, dies at 75
- Jan 9 Tom Longboat, Canadian athlete (Boston Marathon 1907 record time 2:24:24), dies at 61
- Jan 10 Erich von Drygalski, German geographer, geophysicist, and polar scientist, dies at 83
- Jan 11 Nelson Doubleday, American publisher (Doubleday), dies at 49
- Jan 14 Joaquín Turina, Spanish pianist and composer (Rima), dies at 66
- Jan 15 Pompeo Aloisi, Italian baron, diplomat and senator, dies at 63
- Jan 18 Charles Ponzi [Carlo], Italian con-man (Ponzi scheme in the US), dies at 66
- Jan 20 Joseph Cuypers, architect Dutch (Amsterdam Stock Exchange), dies at 87
- Jan 22 Henry Slocum, American tennis player (US Nationals 1888-89), dies at 86
- Jan 22 William Thomas Walsh, American author (Isabella of Spain), dies at 57
- Jan 25 Emil Axman, Czech composer and musicologist (Moravian folk songs), dies at 61
- Jan 25 Makino Nobuaki, Japanese statesman and court official, dies at 87
- Jan 27 Boris Asafiev, Russian composer and music critic, dies at 64
- Jan 28 Gustaf Lazarus Nordqvist, Swedish organist and composer, dies at 62
- Jan 28 Jean-Pierre Wimille, French auto racer (24 Hours of Le Mans 1937, 39 Bugatti T57), dies in practice accident for Buenos Aires GP at 40
- Jan 31 Henri de Vries [Hendricus Van Walterop], Dutch actor (Cleopatra, White Cargo), dies at 84
