What Happened in April 1956

Historical Events

Romanoff & Juliet

Apr 2 Peter Ustinovs' play "Romanoff & Juliet" premieres in Manchester

Apr 2 Soap operas "As the World Turns" & "Edge of Night" premiere on TV
Apr 3 Bulgarian vice premier Traitsjo Kostov rehabilitated (executed 1949)
Apr 3 German war criminals Hinrichsen, Ruhl, Siebens and Viebahn freed
Apr 3 Hudsonville-Standale Tornado: The western half of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan is struck by a deadly F5 tornado
Apr 4 Enid Bagnold's "Chalk Garden" premieres in London
Apr 5 Ceylon's Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (MEP), led by S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike wins the general elections in a landslide
Apr 6 Polish communist Gomulka freed from prison
Apr 7 10th NBA Championship: Despite 30 points from Pistons forward George Yardley, Philadelphia Warriors beat Fort Wayne, 99-88; Warriors wrap up series, 4-1
Apr 7 France officially relinquished its protectorate in Morocco., Spain follows suit for regions of her protectorate in northern Morocco
Apr 8 20th US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Jack Burke Jr. wins his first major title, 1 stroke ahead of amateur Ken Venturi; final Masters played without a 36-hole cut
Apr 8 6 US Marine Corps recruits drown during a night "marsh march" in Ribbon Creek at Parris Island, South Carolina; drill instructor Staff Sergeant Matthew McKeon is court-martialed
Apr 10 Philips broadcasts 1st Dutch color TV programs

Stanley Cup

Apr 10 Stanley Cup Final, Montreal Forum, Montreal, Quebec: Jean Béliveau has a goal and 2 assists as Montreal Canadiens beat Detroit Red Wings, 3-2 for a 4-1 series win

Apr 11 French government decides to send 200,000 reservists to Algeria
Apr 11 Singer Nat Cole attacked on stage of Birmingham theater in racial incident
Apr 12 S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike's government takes office in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka)
Apr 13 KETA TV channel 13 in Oklahoma City, OK (PBS) begins broadcasting
Apr 14 Ampex Corp demonstrates 1st commercial videotape recorder

Silk Stockings

Apr 14 Cole Porter's final Broadway musical "Silk Stockings", loosely based on the Melchior Lengyel's "Ninotchka", closes at the Imperial Theatre, NYC, after 478 performances

Apr 16 1st solar powered radios go on sale
Apr 16 60th Boston Marathon won by Antti Viskari of Finland in race record 2:14:14
Apr 17 Bulgaria premier Valko Chervenkov resigns
Apr 17 Premium Savings Bonds introduced in Great Britain
Apr 17 USSR's Cominform (Parliament) dissolves
Apr 17 Willie Mosconi sinks 150 consecutive balls in a billiard tournament
Apr 18 Egypt & Israel agree to a cease fire
Apr 19 1st MLB baseball game in New Jersey - Brooklyn Dodgers beat Philadelphia Phillies, 5-4, at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City

Heartbreak Hotel

Apr 21 Elvis Presley's 1st hit record, "Heartbreak Hotel", becomes #1

Apr 21 William Inge's stage drama "Bus Stop", closes at the Music Box Theater, NYC, after 478 performances
Apr 24 AL umpire Frank Umont is 1st to wear glasses in a regular season game

South Sea Bubble

Apr 25 Noël Coward's musical "South Sea Bubble" premieres in London

Playwright, Director and Singer Noël Coward

Apr 26 First modern container ship, the Ideal X, leaves Port Newark, New Jersey for Houston, Texas

Election of Interest

Apr 27 Burma Premier U Nu's Volksliga voor Vrijheid loses election

Rocky Marciano Retires

Apr 27 Undefeated world heavyweight boxing champion Rocky Marciano, retires from the ring

Baseball Record

Apr 28 Cincinnati Reds outfielder Frank Robinson hits his 1st of 586 HRs

Baseball Outfielder and Manager Frank Robinson

Apr 28 Last French troops leave Vietnam
Apr 29 WLUC TV channel 6 in Marquette, MI (CBS/NBC/ABC) begins broadcasting
Apr 29 WSPA TV channel 7 in G'ville-Spartanburg, SC (CBS) begins broadcasting
Apr 29 WWBT TV channel 12 in Richmond, VA (NBC) begins broadcasting

Events in 1956

Famous Birthdays

Apr 3 Boris Miljković, Serbian TV and theatre director, writer and lecturer, born in Zagreb, PR Croatia, FPR Yugoslavia
Apr 3 Miguel Bose, Panamanian-born Spanish singer and actor (El Avaro, Queen Margot), born in Panama City
Apr 3 Ray Combs, American comedian and TV host (Family Feud, 1988-94), born in Hamilton, Ohio (d. 1996)
Apr 4 Allan Harris, American jazz singer and guitarist (Cross That River; Kate's Soulfood), born in Harlem, New York City
Apr 4 David E. Kelley, American writer and TV producer (L.A. Law; Picket Fences; Chicago Hope; Boston Legal), born in Waterville, Maine
Apr 4 Evelyn Hart, Canadian prima ballerina (Royal Winnipeg Ballet), born in Toronto, Ontario
Apr 4 Tom Herr, American baseball player, born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Apr 4 William Joseph Burns, American diplomat and government official (Director of the CIA, 2021-), born in Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Apr 5 Diamond Dallas Page, American professional wrestler, born in Point Pleasant, New Jersey
Apr 6 Dilip Vengsarkar, cricketer (prolific Indian batsman 1976-92)
Apr 6 Hal Willner, American music producer (Lost In The Stars: The Music of Kurt Weill; Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films; The Carl Stalling Project), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2020)
Apr 6 Mudassar Nazar, Pakistan cricket all-rounder (76 Tests, 10 x 100s, HS 231, 66 wickets; Lahore CA, UBL), born in Lahore, Pakistan
Apr 7 Annika Billström, Swedish politician
Apr 7 Christopher Darden, American O.J. Simpson prosecutor
Apr 8 Christine Boisson, French actress, born in Salon-de-Provence, France
Apr 8 Jim Piddock, English actor, writer and producer (Best in Show), born in Rochester, England

Apr 8 Justin Sullivan, British rock singer-songwriter (New Model Army), born in Jordans, Buckinghamshire, England
Apr 9 Miguel Ángel Russo, Argentine footballer, born in Lanús Partido, Argentina
Apr 12 Alex Briley, American actor (Can't Stop the Music), born in New York City
Apr 12 Andy Garcia, Cuban-American actor (Stand & Deliver, 8 Million Ways to Die), born in Havana, Cuba
Apr 12 Doris Baaten, Dutch actress (Sesame Street, Fien), born in Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands
Apr 12 Herbert Grönemeyer, German singer (Mensch; Spruenge), born in Göttingen, Germany
Apr 12 Walter Salles, Brazilian filmmaker (The Motorcycle Diaries), born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Apr 13 Matthew Peaceman, American oboist, conductor, composer (Abyss/Scorched Earth), and teacher, born in New York City (d. 2008)
Apr 13 Michael Nikolay, German gymnast (Olympics silver 1980), born in Berlin, Germany
Apr 13 Peter "Possum" Bourne, New Zealand race car driver, born in New Zealand (d. 2003)
Apr 15 Gregory J. Harbaugh, American astronaut (STS 39, 54, 71, 82), born in Cleveland, Ohio
Apr 15 Michael Cooper, American NBA star (LA Lakers), born in Los Angeles, California
Apr 16 David M. Brown, U.S. Navy Captain and NASA astronaut, born in Arlington, Virginia (d. 2003)
Apr 16 Lise-Marie Morerod, Swiss skier, born in Les Diablerets, Vaud, Switzerland
Apr 17 Elizabeth Lindsey, American explorer, filmmaker (Then There Were None), and actress (China Beach; The Byrds of Paradise), born in Oahu, Territory of Hawaii

Apr 17 Kaye Young, American WBL forward (NY Stars, NJ Stars), born in Bunn, North Carolina
Apr 17 Pillow [Theresa Jean Bell], American bodybuilder (Gold Classic 1983)
Apr 18 Anna Kathryn Holbrook, American actress (Another World), born in Fairbanks, Alaska
Apr 18 David Edwards, American golfer (US Masters 1984 3rd; 4 PGA Tour titles), born in Neosho, Missouri
Apr 18 Eric Roberts, American actor (Pope of Greenwich Village, King of Gypsies), born in Biloxi, Mississippi

John James (68 years old)

Apr 18 American actor (Jeff Colby-Dynasty), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota

Apr 18 Melody Thomas Scott, American actress (Nikki-Young & Restless), born in Los Angeles, California
Apr 18 Poonam Dhillon, Indian actress (Noorie), born in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
Apr 19 Gary Langan, British sound engineer, record producer, and musician (The Art of Noise, 1983-86), born in Surrey, England
Apr 19 Sue Barker, British tennis player (French Open 1976), born in Paignton, England
Apr 20 Beatrice Ask, Swedish politician (Moderate Party), born in Sveg, Sweden
Apr 21 Phillip Longman, American demographer
Apr 21 Rick DeMont, American 400m swimmer, drug disqualification (1972 Olympics)
Apr 22 Catherine Mary Stewart, Edmonton, actress (Passion & Paradise)
Apr 22 Kenny Lyon, American rock guitarist, bassist, music producer, born in Coral Gables, Florida
Apr 25 Jaroslava Schallerová, Hungarian actress (Valerie and Her Week of Wonders), born in Prague, Czechoslovakia
Apr 26 Koo Stark [Kathleen Dee-Anne], American photographer and actress (Emily), born in New York City
Apr 27 Bryan Harvey, American musician (House of Freaks), born in Richmond, Virginia (d. 2006)
Apr 28 Jeremy John Beadle, British critic, writer and broadcaster, born in York, England (d. 1995)
Apr 28 Jimmy Barnes [Swan], Scottish-Australian rock and blues singer-songwriter ("For the Working Class Man"), born in Glasgow, Scotland
Apr 28 Paul S. Lockhart, American Major USAF and astronaut, born in Amarillo, Texas
Apr 29 Ketil Stokkan, Norwegian singer (Zoo), born in Harstad, Norway
Apr 29 Ron Verlin, American power-pop bassist (Shooting Star), born in Kansas City, Missouri
Apr 30 Jorge Chaminé, Portuguese operatic baritone, born in Porto, Portugal
Apr 30 Lars von Trier, Danish film director (Dancer in the Dark), born in Kongens Lyngby

Born in 1956

Famous Weddings

Vera Miles

Apr 14 American actress Vera Miles (25) weds American "Tarzan" actor Gordon Scott (29), the second time for both; divorce in 1960

Grace Kelly & Rainier III

Apr 18 American film actress Grace Kelly (26) weds Prince Rainier III of Monaco (33) in a civil ceremony at the Prince's Palace in Monaco-Ville, Monaco

Apr 19 American film actress Grace Kelly (26) weds Monaco's Prince Rainier III (33) in a religious ceremony at Saint Nicholas Cathedral in Monaco-Ville, Monaco

C. S. Lewis

Apr 23 Novelist C. S. Lewis (57) weds poet Joy Davidman (41) at the register office in Oxford, England

Famous Deaths

Apr 2 Albert Marie Leon Adolphe de Bassompierre, Belgium ambassador to Tokyo (1921-39), dies at 82
Apr 2 Chester Clute, American actor ("Arsenic and Old Lace"; "Too Many Girls"; "Niagara Falls"), dies of a heart attack at 65
Apr 2 Philippo de Pisis, Italian painter and poet, dies at 59
Apr 10 Bozidar Sirola, composer, dies at 66
Apr 10 Clarence Beaumont, 1st batter in 1st World Series, dies at 75
Apr 10 Jozef Szulc, Polish composer, dies at 81
Apr 15 Emile Nolde [Hansen], German painter (Grablegung Christi), dies at 88
Apr 18 Floyd Smith, American aviator and inventor of the modern parachute, dies at 71 [1]
Apr 19 Ernst Robert Curtius, German literature historian, dies at 70
Apr 19 Leon Junschlaeger, Dutch sailor, soldier, and head of military intelligence in Dutch Indonesia, dies after a series of strokes while on trial fighting charges of subversion at 52
Apr 19 Lionel Crabb "Buster", British Royal Navy diver (WWII), disappears presumed dead on a job for M16 at 47
Apr 20 Jaap Vranken, Dutch organist and composer (Stabat mater), dies at 59
Apr 20 Lieven Duvosel, Flemish composer (De Leiecyclus - The Lys-cycle), dies at 78
Apr 21 Charles MacArthur, American playwright and screenwriter (The Scoundrel), dies at 60
Apr 24 Albrecht Alt, German theologist (Small Schriften), dies at 72
Apr 24 Henry Stephenson, British actor (Conquest, Little Old NY, Mr Lucky), dies at 85
Apr 26 Edward Arnold, American actor (Mr Smith Goes to Washington), dies at 66
Apr 29 Nemesio Otaño, Spanish organist, choral director, educator, and composer (Basque Suite), dies at 75
Apr 30 Alben W. Barkley, American politician (US Representative, Senator and 35th VP-D-1949-53), dies at 78

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