Historical Events
- Apr 4 France beats Wales, 11-3 at Stade Colombes to win the Five Nations Rugby Championship outright for the first time
- Apr 4 Mali Federation founded, consisting of Senegal & French Sudan (dissolved 1960)
US Masters Golf
Apr 5 23rd US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Art Wall Jr wins by 1 stroke from Cary Middlecoff for his only PGA Tour major victory
Academy Awards
Apr 6 31st Academy Awards: "Gigi", Susan Hayward & David Niven win
- Apr 7 Oklahoma ends prohibition, after 51 years
- Apr 7 Radar 1st bounced off Sun, Stanford Calif
- Apr 9 13th NBA Championship: Boston Celtics sweep Minnesota Lakers in 4 games, first of Boston Celtics record 8 straight titles
- Apr 9 Baltimore Orioles pull their 2nd triple play (3-6-3 vs Washington Senators)
NBA Record
Apr 9 Bill Sharman hits a NBA record 56 consecutive foul shot
- Apr 9 NASA names 1st 7 astronauts for Project Mercury
- Apr 10 Chicago White Sox second baseman Nellie Fox gets a MLB Opening Day record tying 5 hits in 7 at-bats in a 14-inning, 9–7 win in Detroit
Drysdale's 2nd Opening Day HR
Apr 11 Dodger pitcher Don Drysdale hits his 2nd Opening Day HR
- Apr 11 Dutch Prince Bernhard visits Lockheed factory
- Apr 11 Yip Harburg, Fred Saidy, and Harold Arlen's musical "Jamaica", starring Lena Horne, closes at Imperial Theater, NYC, after 558 performances
- Apr 12 13th Tony Awards: "J.B." (play) & "Redhead" (musical) win
- Apr 12 France Observator reports torture practice by French army in Algeria
- Apr 13 USAF launches Discoverer II into polar orbit
- Apr 13 Vanguard SLV-5 launched for Earth orbit (failed)
- Apr 13 Vatican edict forbids Roman Catholics from voting for communists
- Apr 14 (Robert) Taft Memorial Bell Tower dedicated in Washington, D.C.
- Apr 14 KDIN TV channel 11 in Des Moines, Iowa (PBS) begins broadcasting
Event of Interest
Apr 15 Fidel Castro begins US goodwill tour
Event of Interest
Apr 15 US Secretary of State John Foster Dulles resigns
- Apr 16 Datu Abdul Rozak inaugurated as premier of Malaysia federation
- Apr 16 MLB Philadelphia Phillies' Dave Philley gets a major league record 9th straight pinch hit, having ended the previous season with a streak of 8
Music History
Apr 16 Musical revue "A Party with Betty Comden and Adolph Green" return engagement opens at John Golden Theatre, NYC; runs for 44 performances
- Apr 18 Stanley Cup Final, Montreal Forum, Montreal, Quebec: Montreal Canadiens' 4th straight title; beat Toronto Maple Leafs, 5-3 for a 4-1 series win
- Apr 19 Uprising in La Paz Bolivia, fails
- Apr 20 63rd Boston Marathon won by Eino Oksanen of Finland in 2:22:42
- Apr 21 Alf Dean using a rod & reel hooks a 2,664lb, 16' 10" great white shark off the coast of Ceduna, Australia
- Apr 22 Chicago White Sox beat KC Athletics 20-6, in 1 inning Sox score 11 runs on 1 hit, 10 walks, & 3 errors
Baseball Record
Apr 22 Yankee Whitey Ford strikes out 15, beating Senators, 1-0 in 14 innings
- Apr 23 "Destry Rides Again" opens at Imperial Theater NYC for 472 performances
- Apr 23 1st heliport in Britain opens in London
- Apr 24 Netherland Dance Theater opens (Rudi of Dantzig & Cut Flier)
- Apr 24 WICD TV channel 15 in Champaign, IL (NBC/ABC) begins broadcasting
- Apr 25 St Lawrence Seaway linking Atlantic and the Great Lakes opens to shipping
- Apr 27 "Today" show goes abroard 1st time (Paris France)
Mao Resigns
Apr 27 Mao Zedong resigns as Chairman of the PRC after the disastrous failure of the Great Leap Forward
- Apr 27 The last Canadian missionary leaves the People's Republic of China.
- Apr 28 6th National Film Awards (India): "Sagar Sangamey" wins the Golden Lotus
- Apr 28 KLOE TV channel 10 in Goodland, KS (CBS) begins broadcasting
- Apr 28 KPLR TV channel 11 in Saint Louis, MO (IND) begins broadcasting
Famous Birthdays
- Apr 2 Brian Goodell, American swimmer who won Olympic gold 400m WR 3:51.93, 1500m WR 15:02.40 1976, born in Stockton, California
- Apr 2 Dean Townson, American country music bassist (Pirates of Mississippi - "Feed Jake"), born in St. Petersburg, Florida
- Apr 2 Ezzaki Badou, Moroccan soccer goalkeeper (76 caps; Mallorca) and manager (Morocco), born in Sidi Kacem, Morocco
- Apr 2 Gelindo Bordin, Italian athlete (Olympic gold marathon 1988), born in Vicenza, Italy
- Apr 2 Juha Kankkunen, Finnish rally driver (World rally champion 1986, 87, 91, 93; Dakar Rally [cars] 1988; Race of Champions 1988, 91), born in Laukaa, Finland
- Apr 2 Ken Macleay, Australian cricket fast bowler (16 ODIs, 15 wickets; Western Australia), born in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire, England
- Apr 2 Yves Lavandier, French film writer and director, born in France
- Apr 3 David Hyde Pierce, American actor (Niles Crane-Fraiser), born in Saratoga Springs, New York
- Apr 6 Dianne Brill, Tampa, fashion designer/party girl (Queen of the Night)
- Apr 8 Franklyn Stephenson, Barbados born cricketer (great all-rounder), born in Saint James, Barbados
- Apr 9 Dave Innis, American country singer (Restless Heart - "Wheels"), born in Bartlesville, Oklahoma
- Apr 10 Babyface [Kenneth Edmonds], American Grammy Award-winning R&B singer, songwriter ("Every Time I Close My Eyes") and record producer (Boyz II Men; Whitney Houston; Ariana Grande; Eric Clapton), born in Indianapolis, Indiana
- Apr 10 Brian Setzer, American rock guitarist and vocalist (Stray Cats - "Rock This Town"), born in Massapequa Park, New York
- Apr 10 Yvan Loubier, Canadian politician and one of founders of the Bloc Québécois, born in Montreal, Quebec
- Apr 12 Elissa Leeds, American actress (Cissy-Dorothy), born in New York City
- Apr 12 Liu Xiao Ling Tong [Zhang Jinlai], Chinese actor (Journey to the West - "Monkey King"), born in Shanghai, China
Emma Thompson (65 years old)
Apr 15 British actress (Henry V, Howards End, Oscar 1992), born in London, England
- Apr 15 Fruit Chan, Hong Kong film director, born in Guangdong, China
- Apr 15 Kevin Lowe, Canadian NHL defenceman, coach and executive (Edmonton Oilers; Stanley Cup x 6), born in Lachute, Quebec
- Apr 15 Thomas F. Wilson, American actor, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Apr 16 Anne Kursinski, American equestrian show jumper (Olympic silver 1996), born in Pasadena, California
- Apr 16 Carlos Moreno, French-Colombian urbanist (15-Minute City), born in Tunja, Colombia
- Apr 16 Scott McKinsey, American television director, born in California
- Apr 17 (Shaun) "Sean" Bean, English actor (The Lord of the Rings Trilogy; Game of Thrones), born in Handsworth, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
- Apr 17 Peter Doig, Scottish painter (White Canoe), born in Edinburgh, Scotland
- Apr 17 Stephen Singleton, English rocker (ABC), born in Sheffield, England
- Apr 17 Teri Austin, Canadian actress (Terminal Choice; Knots Landing), born in Toronto, Ontario
- Apr 18 Jim Eisenreich, American MLB outfielder (Tourette syndrome, Florida Marlins WS 1997), born in St. Cloud, Minnesota
- Apr 20 Clint Howard, American actor (Gentle Ben), born in Burbank, California
- Apr 21 Jerry Only [Gerald Caiafa Jr], American musician (Misfits), born in Lodi, New Jersey
- Apr 21 Michael Timmins, Canadian musician (Cowboy Junkies), born in Montreal
Robert Smith (64 years old)
Apr 21 British rock singer, songwriter and guitarist (The Cure - "Friday I'm In Love"), born in Blackpool, England
- Apr 21 Tim Jacobus, American artist (Goosebumps)
- Apr 22 Ranjan Madugalle, Sri Lankan cricket batsman and captain (21 Tests, 1 x 100, 7 x 50; 63 ODIs) and ICC match referee (77 Tests, 169 ODIs), born in Kandy, Sri Lanka
- Apr 22 Ryan Stiles, American actor (Lewis-Drew Carey Show), born in Seattle, Washington
- Apr 23 George Kalovelonis, Greek tennis player, born in Athens, Greece
- Apr 24 Malcolm Oastler, Australian engineer (Jaguar Racing), born in Sydney, Australia
- Apr 24 Yvonne Cagle, American astronaut and physician, born in West Point, New York
- Apr 25 Billy Rankin, Scottish rock guitarist, born in Lennoxtown, Stirlingshire, Scotland
- Apr 25 Dominique Blanc, French actress (Those Who Love Me Can Take the Train), born in Lyon, France
- Apr 26 John Corabi, American hard rock guitarist and singer (Mötley Crüe, 1992-96), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Apr 26 Pedro Pierluisi, Puerto Rico politician, Governor of Puerto Rico (2019-), born in San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Apr 27 Louis Lortie, French-Canadian Juno Award-winning concert pianist, born in Montreal, Quebec
- Apr 27 Marco Pirroni, British rock guitarist (Adam & The Ants - "Ant Music"; "Goody Two Shoes"), born in London, England
- Apr 27 Sheena Easton [Orr], Scottish singer ("9 to 5 (Morning Train)"; "For Your Eyes Only"), born in Glasgow, Scotland
- Apr 29 Roger Eno, British multi-instrumentalist, and ambient and film music composer, born in Woodbridge, Suffolk, England
Paul Gross (64 years old)
Apr 30 Canadian actor (Constable Benton Fraser - Due South), director, and writer (Passchendaele), born in Calgary, Alberta
Stephen Harper (64 years old)
Apr 30 22nd Prime Minister of Canada (2006-15), born in Toronto, Ontario
- Apr 30 W. Thomas Smith, Jr, American author and columnist
Famous Weddings
- Apr 1 American sci-fi writer "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" Philip K Dick marries 3rd wife Anne Williams Rubinstein
Famous Divorces
Marlon Brando
Apr 22 Actor Marlon Brando and actress Anna Kashfi divorce
Famous Deaths
Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959)
Apr 9 American architect (Guggenheim) recognized as "the greatest American architect of all time", dies at 89
- Apr 12 Ernest Willem Mulder, Dutch conductor, composer, and teacher, dies at 60
- Apr 12 James Gleason, American writer and actor (Bishop's Wife, Flying Fool), dies at 76
- Apr 13 Eduard van Beinum, Dutch musician and conductor, dies at 58
- Apr 13 Rigardus "Rijn" Rijnhout, Giant of Rotterdam (2.375m), dies at 38
- Apr 16 Charles Halton, British stage actor (Dr Cyclops, Tugboat Annie Sails Again), dies at 83
- Apr 18 Irving Cummings, American silent screen actor and director (In Old Ariz), dies at 70
- Apr 24 Jef van Hoof, Flemish composer, dies at 72
- Apr 27 Gordon Armstrong, American inventor of the baby incubator, dies at 69
- Apr 29 Kenneth Anderson, British general (Operation Torch - North Africa), dies at 67
- Apr 30 Armand Marsick, Belgian composer, dies at 81
