What Happened in April 1950

Historical Events

  • Apr 2 WTAR (now WTKR) TV channel 3 in Norfolk, VA (CBS) begins broadcasting
  • Apr 4 Dirk Stikker becomes chairman of OES
  • Apr 5 Prague espionage trial against bishops & priests begins

Special Advisor Dulles

Apr 6 John Foster Dulles becomes advisor to US Secretary of State Acheson with a focus on the Indo-Pacific region

  • Apr 8 "Miss Liberty" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 308 performances

14th US Masters

Apr 9 14th US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Jimmy Demaret becomes the first 3-time Masters champion by 2 strokes ahead of Australian Jim Ferrier

  • Apr 9 4th Tony Awards: "The Cocktail Party" (play) & "South Pacific" (musical) win

Prince Rainier III

Apr 11 Prince Rainier III becomes ruler of Monaco

  • Apr 11 US B-29 bomber shot down over Latvia
  • Apr 14 1st edition of British comic "Eagle"
  • Apr 14 Doorne's Auto factory opens in Netherlands
  • Apr 17 54th Boston Marathon won by Kee Yong Ham of South Korea in 2:32:39

Film & TV History

Apr 17 Priscilla Presley's surname legally changed from Wagner to Beaulieu

  • Apr 18 1st opening night-game, Cards beat Pirates, 4-2
  • Apr 18 Polish Catholic church & government sign accord over relations
  • Apr 18 Sam Jethroe is 1st African American to play for Boston Braves
  • Apr 18 Yankees win 15-10 after trailing Red Sox 9-0 in 6th
  • Apr 20 Baltimore, Maryland's Memorial Stadium opens - Orioles of International League
  • Apr 23 1st major league day game completed under lights (Phils 6, Braves 5)
  • Apr 23 Nationalist China evacuates Hainan Island
  • Apr 23 NBA Championship: Minneapolis Lakers beat Syracuse Nationals, 110-95 to take series, 4 games to 2
  • Apr 23 Stanley Cup Final, Olympia Stadium, Detroit, MI: Pete Babando scores Cup-winning goal in double overtime of Game 7 as Detroit Red Wings beat NY Rangers, 4-3 for a 4-3 series win
  • Apr 24 Independent republic of South Molukkas declared
  • Apr 24 Jordan formally annexes the West Bank

Peter Pan

Apr 24 Leonard Bernstein's musical "Peter Pan", starring Jean Arthur and Boris Karloff, opens at Imperial Theater, NYC; runs for 320 performances

  • Apr 24 US President Harry Truman denies there are communists in the US government
  • Apr 25 Chuck Cooper becomes the 1st African American to be drafted into the NBA (for Boston Celtics)
  • Apr 25 Republik Maluku Selatan (also known as the Republic of the South Moluccas) declared on Ambon
  • Apr 26 Last horse race at Havre de Grace Track in Md, is run
  • Apr 26 U of Miami ends William & Mary straight tennis match victories at 82
  • Apr 27 Musical revue "Tickets, Please" opens at Coronet Theater, later transferring to the Mark Hellinger Theatre , NYC; runs for 245 performances
  • Apr 27 South Africa passes Group Areas Act segregating races
1950 History

Famous Birthdays

  • Apr 1 Billy Currie, British rock keyboardist and violinist (Ultravox), born in Huddersfield, England
  • Apr 1 Ed[uardus] HTM Nijpels, Dutch minister of Environment (VVD)
  • Apr 1 Leonard van Spirit, Dutch-British food magnate
  • Apr 1 Samuel Alito, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (2006-), born in Trenton, New Jersey
  • Apr 3 Curtis Stone, American country music bassist and mandolin player (Highway 101 - "Cry, Cry, Cry"), born in Hollywood, California
  • Apr 3 Sally Thomsett, English actress (Straw Dogs, Man About the House), born in Sussex
  • Apr 4 Christine Lahti, American actress (Harvey Korman Show, Swing Shift), born in Detroit, Michigan

Agnetha Fältskog (73 years old)

Apr 5 Swedish singer (ABBA - "Dancing Queen"), born in Jönköping, Sweden

  • Apr 5 Franklin Chang-Diaz, Costa Rican-Chinese American NASA astronaut (STS 61C, 34,46,60,75, sk:91), born in San José, Costa Rica
  • Apr 5 Miki Manojlović, Serbian actor (The Heir Apparent: Largo Winch), born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia
  • Apr 5 Mildred Douglas, Surinames-Dutch pop singer (Mai Tai; Fruitcake), born in Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles
  • Apr 5 Paul Oscher, American blues musician (Muddy Waters Blues Band), born in Brooklyn, New York
  • Apr 6 Dennis E. Eckart, American politician (Rep-D-OH, 1981-93), born in Cleveland, Ohio
  • Apr 8 Carmen Twillie, American session singer (The Lion King - "Circle of Life"; Celene Dion; Pink Floyd), born in Playa del Rey, California
  • Apr 8 Grzegorz Lato, Polish footballer and manager, born in Malbork, Poland
  • Apr 9 Kenneth Cockrell, American astronaut (STS 56, 69, 80), born in Austin, Texas
  • Apr 9 Nathan Cook, American actor (Milton-White Shadow, Billy-Hotel), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1988)
  • Apr 9 Peter John Wood, British session and touring rock keyboardist, born in Middlesex, England (d. 1993)
  • Apr 9 Peter Wood, English session and touring rock keyboardist (Sutherland Bros and Quiver; Al Stewart; Joan Armatrading; Lou Reed), born in Middlesex, England (d. 1993)
  • Apr 9 Pierre Gagnaire, French chef, born in Apinac, France
  • Apr 10 Barry M. Riemer, American author (The Great American Con Machine)
  • Apr 10 Eddie Hazel, American pop guitarist (Funkadelic - "Uncle Jam Wants You"), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 1992)
  • Apr 10 Ken Griffey Sr., American baseball outfielder (3 x MLB All Star; Cincinnati Reds, NY Yankees), born in Donora, Pennsylvania
  • Apr 11 Bill Irwin, American actor (My Blue Heaven, Scenes From a Mall), born in Santa Monica, California
  • Apr 11 Ferenc Mészáros, Hungarian soccer goalkeeper (29 caps; Vasas SC 252 games), born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 2023)
  • Apr 12 David Cassidy, American singer ("I Think I Love You"), and actor (Partridge Family - "Keith"), born in New York City (d. 2017)
  • Apr 12 Flavio Briatore, Italian businessman and F1 team principal (Renault F1), born in Verzuolo, Italy
  • Apr 12 Joyce Banda, President of Malawi (2012-2014), born in Malemia, Nyasaland
  • Apr 12 Kari Palaste, Finnish architect, born in Kajaani, Finland
  • Apr 12 Tom Werner, American producer (Roseanne, Cosby Show), born in New York City
  • Apr 13 Beto Fuscão, Brazilian soccer defender (8 caps; Fluminense, Grêmio, Palmeiras), born in Florianópolis, Brazil (d. 2022)
  • Apr 13 Riff West, American rock bassist (Molly Hatchet), born in Corpus Christi, Texas (d. 2014)

Ron Perlman (73 years old)

Apr 13 American actor (Quest for Fire, Beauty & the Beast), born in The Bronx, New York

  • Apr 13 Terry Lester, American actor (Young & Restless, As World Turns), born in Indianapolis, Indiana
  • Apr 13 Tommy Raudonikis, Australian rugby league halfback (20 Tests; Rothmans Medal 1972; Wests, Newtown) and coach (Wests, NSW), born in Bathurst, Australia (d. 2021)
  • Apr 14 Ansje Beentjes, Dutch actress (Blindgangers), born in Alkmaar, Netherlands
  • Apr 14 Francis Collins, American scientist who led the Human Genome Project, born in Staunton, Virgibia
  • Apr 14 Randolph Powell, actor (Alan-Dallas, Logan's Run), born in Iowa City, Iowa
  • Apr 15 Amy Wright, American actress (Inside Moves, Accidental Tourist), born in Chicago, Illinois
  • Apr 16 David Graf, American actor (Police Academy- Sgt. Eugene Tackleberry), born in Zanesville, Ohio (d. 2001)
  • Apr 16 Vladimir Golubev, Russian soccer defender (3 caps USSR; Zenit Leningrad 335 games) and manager (Zenit Leningrad), born in Saint Petersburg, Russia (d. 2022)
  • Apr 17 Bruce McNall, American former NHL team owner, born in Arcadia, California
  • Apr 17 Kevin Porter, American basketball point guard (NBA assists leader 1975, 78-79, 81), born in Chicago, Illinois
  • Apr 17 L. Scott Caldwell, American actress (Rose-Lost), born in Chicago, Illinois
  • Apr 18 Bill Sudderth III, American R&B trumpet player (Atlantic Starr - Touch a Four Leaf Clover), born in White Plains, New York
  • Apr 18 Ed Caraeff, American photographer, illustrator, and album cover art director (Steely Dan, Bee Gees, Jimi Hendrix, Neil Diamond, Tom Waits, Hall & Oates), born in Santa Monica, California
  • Apr 18 Grigory Sokolov, Russian-Spanish concert pianist (Tchaikovsky Competition, 1966), born in Leningrad, USSR (now St. Petersburg, Russia)
  • Apr 18 Kenny Ortega, American film and TV producer (High School Musical trilogy), born in Palo Alto, California
  • Apr 19 Earl Gardner, American jazz trumpeter (Saturday Night Live), born in New York City
  • Apr 19 Jacques Herzog, Swiss architect (Herzog & de Meuron - Tate Modern), born in Basel, Switzerland
  • Apr 19 Jeff Hammond, Australian cricketer (Australian fast bowler on 1973 WI tour), born in North Adelaide, South Australia
  • Apr 19 Marc Demeyer, Belgian road racing cyclist (Paris-Brussel 1974), born in Avelgem, Belgium (d. 1982)
  • Apr 20 Itumeleng J. Mosala, South African president (Azanian People's Org)
  • Apr 20 Nara Chandrababu Naidu, Indian politician, born in Naravaripalli, India
  • Apr 20 Steve Erickson, American novelist (American Nomad), born in Santa Monica, California
  • Apr 22 (Jesse) "Pete" Carr, American guitarist and session musician (Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section; LeBlanc and Carr), born in Daytona Beach, Florida (d. 2020)
  • Apr 22 Forrest McDonald, American blues rock guitarist (Blues In A Bucket), born in Austin, Texas
  • Apr 22 Jancis Robinson, wine writer/broadcaster
  • Apr 22 Lewis Biggs, curator (Tate Gallery-North Liverpool)
  • Apr 22 Peter Frampton, British rock guitarist and vocalist (Humble Pie; Frampton Comes Alive - "Show Me The Way"), born in Kent, England
  • Apr 23 Steve McCurry, American photographer (Afghan Girl), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  • Apr 24 Rob Hyman, American rock singer-songwriter, keyboardist, melodica and accordion player (The Hooters - "All You Zombies"; "And We Danced"), born in Meriden, Connecticut
  • Apr 25 Steve Ferrone, British session and touring funk, rock, and R&B drummer (Average White Band, 1974-83; Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 1994 to 2017), born in Brighton, England
  • Apr 26 (Lakshminarayana) "L." Shankar, Indian rock, jazz and Indian classical violinist, singer and composer (Shakti; Frank Zappa; Peter Gabriel), born in Madras, Tamil Nadu
  • Apr 26 Peter Schaufuss, Danish dancer and director of ballet (Deutsche Opera Berlin), born in Copenhagen, Denmark

Jay Leno (73 years old)

Apr 28 American comedian and TV talk show host (Tonight Show), born in New Rochelle, New York

  • Apr 28 Robert Greenidge, Trinidadian steelpan drum player (Jimmy Buffett; John Lennon; Grover Washington, Jr.), born in Success Village, Trinidad
  • Apr 28 Willie Colón, American salsa music pioneer producer (Fania Records), singer, trombonist, actor (The Last Fight), and social activist, born in The Bronx, New York
  • Apr 29 Debbie Stabenow, American politician (Senator-D-Michigan 2001-), born in Gladwin, Michigan
  • Apr 29 Phillip Noyce, Australian film director (Rabbit-Proof Fence; The Bone Collector), born in Griffith, Australia
Born in 1950

Famous Weddings

Tommy Lasorda

Apr 14 American minor league pitcher and future Dodgers' manager Tommy Lasorda (22) weds Joan Miller in South Carolina

Bhumibol Adulyadej

Apr 28 King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand marries Mon Rajawongse Sirikit at Sra Pathum Palace after a quiet engagement in Lausanne, Switzerland July 19, 1949.

Sidney Poitier

Apr 29 American actor Sidney Poitier (23) weds model Juanita Hardy; divorce in 1965


Famous Deaths

Charles R. Drew (1904-1950)

Apr 1 American physician and surgeon who pioneered blood plasma research and developed the blood bank concept, dies in a car crash at 45

  • Apr 3 Adolf Wiklund, Swedish composer, dies at 70
  • Apr 3 Carter G. Woodson, American historian (African American studies), dies at 74
  • Apr 3 Kurt Weill, German-American composer and collaborator of Bertolt Brecht (Die Dreigroschenoper - The Threepenny Opera), dies after a heart attack at 50
  • Apr 7 Walter Huston, Canadian actor (Maltese Falcon, Treasure of Sierra Madre), dies from an aneurysm at 67
  • Apr 8 Albert Ehrenstein, Austrian writer and poet (Strum), dies at 63
  • Apr 8 Vaslav Nijinsky, Ukrainian legendary ballet dancer and choreographer, dies in London at 60
  • Apr 14 Sri Ramana Maharshi, Indian Hindu philosopher and yogi (Maharshi Research Institute), dies at 80
  • Apr 19 Lord Berners [Gerald Tyrwhitt], English composer (1st Childhood), dies at 66
  • Apr 22 Charles Hamilton Houston, American lawyer and architect of NAACP legal campaign, dies at 54
  • Apr 26 G. Murray Hulbert, American politician, dies at 68
  • Apr 27 Adam Tadeusz Wieniawski, Polish composer (Lalita), and pedagogue, dies at 70
  • Apr 27 Hobart Cavanaugh, American actor (Border Town, Black Angel), dies at 63
  • Apr 27 Karl Straube, German organist and conductor, dies at 77