Historical Events
- May 1 1st American (James Whittaker) conquers Mount Everest
- May 1 First one-day cricket competition is played (Gillette Cup); Lancashire beats Leicestershire by 101 at Old Trafford
A Bunny's Tale
May 1 Gloria Steinem's exposé, "A Bunny's Tale", on the working conditions for waitresses (bunnies) at New York City’s famed Playboy Club, published in "Show" magazine
- May 1 Indonesia takes control of Irian Jaya (west New Guinea) from the Netherlands
Event of Interest
May 2 Children's crusade begins in Birmingham, Alabama. More than 600 African American school children arrested for marching against segregation, organised by James Bevel and the SCLC
- May 3 Birmingham officials turn high pressure hoses and dogs on children's crusade protest against segregation prompting widespread condemnation
- May 3 Leslie Narum is only Baltimore Oriole to homer on his 1st at bat
- May 4 89th Kentucky Derby: Braulio Baeza aboard Chateaugay wins in 2:01.8
- May 4 Pitcher Bob Shaw sets record of 5 balks in a game
- May 6 Pulitzer prize awarded to Barbara Tuchman (Guns of August)
- May 7 SETC Telstar 2 launched (apogee 6,700 miles (10,800 km))
Dr. No Premieres
May 8 1st James Bond film, "Dr. No", starring Sean Connery, premieres in US
JFK Assists Israel
May 8 U.S. President John F. Kennedy offers Israel assistance against aggression from its neighbors
- May 9 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
Music History
May 10 Decca Records sign The Rolling Stones on advice of Beatle George Harrison [1]
- May 11 "Puff (The Magic Dragon)" single by Peter, Paul & Mary hits #2; Peter Yarrow adapted a poem that college classmate Lenny Lipton had left behind after borrowing Yarrow's typewriter
Sports History
May 11 LA Dodgers pitcher Sandy Koufax throws his second career no-hitter; beats Juan Marichal and the SF Giants, 8-0
- May 11 Racial bomb attacks in Birmingham Alabama
Music History
May 12 Bob Dylan walks out of "The Ed Sullivan Show" over a dispute about his song choice
- May 12 Race riot in Birmingham, Alabama
- May 14 Kuwait is 111th member of the United Nations
5th Grammy Awards
May 15 5th Grammy Awards: "I Left My Heart In San Francisco"; Robert Goulet win
Music History
May 15 Folksinging trio Peter, Paul & Mary win their 1st Grammy for cover version of Pete Seeger's song "If I Had a Hammer"
- May 15 Last Project Mercury flight launched, Gordon Cooper in Faith 7
- May 15 Tottenham Hotspur of England win 3rd European Cup winner's Cup against Atlético Madrid of Spain 5-1 at Rotterdam
- May 16 "Beast in Me" opens at Plymouth Theater NYC for 4 performances
- May 16 Gordon Cooper completes 22 orbits in Faith 7, ends US Project Mercury
Pro Wrestling
May 17 Bruno Sammartino beats Buddy Rogers in NYC, to become WWWF champ
- May 17 Houston Colt .45's Don Notterbart no-hits Phillies, 4-1
- May 17 US performs nuclear Test at Nevada Test Site
- May 18 "Beast in Me" closes at Plymouth Theater NYC after 4 performances
- May 18 "If You Wanna Be Happy" by Jimmy Soul hits #1
88th Preakness
May 18 88th Preakness: Bill Shoemaker aboard Candy Spots wins in 1:56.2
- May 22 European Cup Final, Wembley Stadium, London: José Altafini scores twice as AC Milan edge Benfica, 2-1 for first title to an Italian club
- May 22 Greek parliament leader Lambrakis injured
Sports History
May 22 Mickey Mantle hits a ball off Yankee Stadium's facade
Cannes Film Festival
May 23 16th Cannes Film Festival: "The Leopard" directed by Luchino Visconti wins the Palme d'Or
- May 23 NBC purchases 1963 AFL championship game TV rights for $926,000
- May 24 1st Lockheed A-12 to crash, CIA pilot Ken Collins ejects safely
Meeting of Interest
May 24 Barbra Streisand performs "Happy Days Are Here Again" at White House Press Correspondents Dinner, and meets US President John F. Kennedy
- May 25 "Hot Spot" closes at Majestic Theater NYC after 43 performances
- May 25 Great Britain ends its amateur-professional classes in cricket
- May 25 Organization for African Unity formed by Chad, Mauritania and Zambia
Emmy Awards
May 26 15th Emmy Awards: "The Dick Van Dyke Show", E G Marshall & Shirley Booth win
French Open Men's Tennis
May 26 French Championships Men's Tennis: Australian Roy Emerson beats home favourite Pierre Darmon 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-4
- May 26 French Championships Women's Tennis: Australian Lesley Turner wins the first of 2 French titles; beats England's Ann Jones 2-6, 6-3, 7-5
- May 26 Organization of African Unity forms
Election of Interest
May 27 Jomo Kenyatta elected 1st Prime Minister of Kenya
Famous Birthdays
- May 1 Robert Seguso, American tennis player (4 x men's doubles major titles; Olympic gold men's doubles 1988), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
- May 2 Brian Tochi, American actor (Dr Alan Poe-St Elsewhere, Renegades), born in Los Angeles, California
- May 3 Jamie Reeves, British coal miner, strongman and professional wrestler (1989 World's Strongest Man), born in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England
- May 3 Jeff Hornacek, American basketball player and coach, born in Elmhurst, Illinois
- May 5 Heidi Kozak, Danish-American actress (Slumber Party Massacre 2), born in Copenhagen, Denmark
- May 5 James LaBrie, Canadian progressive rock singer (Dream Theater, 1991-present), born in Penetanguishene, Ontario
- May 5 Simon Rimmer, English chef and TV host (Something for the Weekend), born in Wallasey, Merseyside, England
- May 6 Alessandra Ferri, Italian ballerina (Royal Ballet, 1980-84; American Ballet Theater, 1985-2007, La Scala Ballet, 1985-2007), born in Milan, Italy
- May 7 Johnny Lee Middleton, American musician (Savatage; Trans-Siberian Orchestra), born in St. Petersburg, Florida
- May 8 Clemens Lothaller, Austrian physician cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-13 backup), born in Vienna, Austria
- May 8 Izabela Kloc, Polish politician, born in Mikołów, Poland
- May 8 Robin Jarvis, British young adult fiction, and fantasy writer (The Witching Legacy), born in Liverpool, England
- May 8 Terry Christian, British writer, radio and television presenter, born in Old Trafford, Lancashire, England
- May 9 Ron Miles, American jazz cornetist, composer, and bandleader, born in Indianapolis, Indiana (d. 2022)
- May 9 Sanja Doležal, Croatian pop singer (Novi fosili), and television personality, born in Zagreb, SFR Yugoslavia (now Croatia)
- May 10 Lisa Nowak, American engineer and astronaut (convicted for attempted kidnapping), born in Washington, D.C.
- May 10 Suzan-Lori Parks, American playwright and writer (Topdog/Underdog Pulitzer Prize 2002), born in Fort Knox, Kentucky
- May 11 Gunilla Carlsson, Swedish politician
- May 11 Mark Breland, American welterweight boxer (Olympic gold 1984), born in Brooklyn, New York
- May 11 Masatoshi Hamada, Japanese comedian
Natasha Richardson (1963-2009)
May 11 English actress (Gothic, Handmaid's Tale), born in London
- May 11 Nina Stemme [Thöldte], Swedish dramatic soprano opera singer, born in Stockholm, Sweden
- May 11 Roark Critchlow, actor
- May 12 Charles Pettigrew, American soul singer (Charles & Eddie - "Would I Lie To You?"), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2001)
- May 12 Stefano Modena, Italian racing driver, born in Modena, Italy
- May 12 Vanessa Williams, American actress (Soul Food, Murder One, Melrose Place - "Rhonda Blair";), born in Brooklyn, New York [not Miss America]
- May 13 Julian Brookhouse, British rock guitarist (Curiosity Killed Cat - Keep Your Distance), born in Putney, London, England
- May 13 Melissa Nobles, American political scientist (Chancellor of MIT 2021-), born in New York City
- May 13 Wally Masur, English-born Australian tennis player, born in Southampton, England
- May 14 Pat Borders, catcher (California Angels), born in Columbus, Ohio
- May 15 George Heidweiler, Suriname, Dutch painter
- May 15 Grant Herslov, actor (Wayne-Spencer, Under One Roof), born in Los Angeles, California
- May 16 Jon Coffelt, American visual artist, born in Dunlap, Tennessee
- May 16 Mercedes Echerer, Austrian actress and politician
- May 17 Jon Koncak, NBA center (Orlando Magic)
- May 17 Page McConnell, American songwriter and keyboardist (Phish), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- May 18 Marty McSorley, Canadian ice hockey defenseman (Stanley Cup 1987, 88 Edmonton Oilers; NHL Plus-Minus Award 1991 LA Kings), born in Hamilton, Ontario
- May 20 Brian Nash, actor (Joel-Please Don't Eat Daisies), born in Glendale, California
- May 20 David Wells, American baseball pitcher (perfect game 1998; World Series 1992, 98; MLB All Star 1995, 98, 2000), born in Torrance, California
- May 21 Dave Specter, American Chicago blues and jazz guitarist, born in Chicago, Illinois
- May 21 Elena Vodorezova, Russian figure skater (Olympic-1976) and coach, born in Moscow, USSR
- May 21 Greg Smith, American session and touring rock bassist (Rainbow; Alice Cooper; Wendy O. Williams, Ted Nugent), born in the USA
- May 21 Kevin Shields, American born Irish musician (My Bloody Valentine), born in Queens, New York
- May 21 Richard Appel, American writer and TV showrunner (Family Guy), born in New York City
- May 24 Gene Anthony Ray, American dancer and actor (Fame - "Leroy"), born in Harlem, New York (d. 2003)
- May 24 Ivan Capelli, Italian racing driver, born in Milan, Italy
- May 24 Joe Dumars, American Basketball Hall of Fame guard (Detroit Pistons; 6-time NBA All-Star), born in Shreveport, Louisiana
- May 24 Kathy Leander, Swiss singer, born in Alle, Switzerland
- May 24 Ken Flach, American professional tennis player (4 Grand Slam titles, 2 mixed doubles), born in St. Louis, Missouri (d. 2018)
- May 24 Michael Chabon, American novelist (The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay), born in Washington, D.C.
- May 24 Rich Rodriguez, American football coach, born in Grant Town, West Virginia
- May 24 Vivian Trimble, American alt-rock keyboardist (Luscious Jackson; Dusty Trails), born in New York City (d. 2023)
Mike Myers (60 years old)
May 25 Canadian actor and comedian (SNL, Wayne's World), born in Scarborough, Ontario
- May 26 Charles Van Eman, Pitts, actor (Charlie-All My Children, Dynasty II)
- May 26 Eddie Martin Jr, jockey
- May 27 Calliope Tsoupaki, Greek classical pianist and composer (Sappho's Tears), born in Piraeus, Greece
- May 27 Gonzalo Rubalcabo [González], Cuban jazz pianist, born in Havana, Cuba
- May 28 Eugene Robinson, NFL safety (Seattle Seahawk, GB Packers-Super Bowl 31)
- May 28 Gavin Harrison, British progressive rock drummer (Porcupine Tree; King Crimson; Pineapple Thief), born in Harrow, Middlesex, England
- May 28 Houman Younessi, Iranian-born scientist
- May 29 Blaze Bayley [Bayley Cooke], English singer (Wolfsbane; Iron Maiden), born in Birmingham, England
- May 29 Claude Loiselle, Canadian hockey center, executive (NHL 1994-2002), born in Ottawa, Ontario
- May 29 Lisa Whelchel, American actress (Blair-Facts of Life), born in Fort Worth, Texas
- May 29 Tracey E. Bregman, actress (Lauren-Bold & Beautiful, Days of Our Life), born in Munich. Germany
- May 29 Ukyo Katayama, Japanese auto racer, team manager (F1 95 starts), born in Tokyo, Japan
- May 30 Helen Patricia Sharman, Great Britain, cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-12)
- May 30 Nasrin Sotoudeh, Iranian human rights lawyer, born in Langarud, Iran
- May 30 Sally Dyvenor [Whittaker], English actress (Coronation Street), born in Middleton, Lancashire, England
Viktor Orbán (60 years old)
May 31 Hungarian politician and Prime Minister of Hungary (2010-), born in Székesfehérvár, Hungary
- May 31 Wendy Smith, British guitarist, keyboardist, and singer (Prefab Sprout - "The King of Rock 'n' Roll"; "When Love Breaks Down), and educator, born in Middlesborough, England
- May 31 Wesley Willis, American punk rock singer-songwriter, born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2003)
Famous Weddings
Saddam Hussein
May 5 Iraqi President Saddam Hussein (26) weds teacher Sajida Talfah (26)
John Turner
May 11 Prime Minister of Canada John Turner (33) weds Geills McCrae Kilgour (25)
Famous Deaths
- May 1 Lope K. Santos, Filipino writer and Father of the Philippine National Language and Grammar, dies at 83
- May 2 Jack Crawford, English cricket all-rounder (12 Tests; Surrey, South Australia, Otago), dies at 76
- May 2 Tomás Vačkář, Czech composer, dies at 17
- May 2 Van Wyck Brooks, American literary historian and writer (Ordeal of Mark Twain), dies at 77
- May 5 Heinrich Gebhard, German-born American composer, dies at 84
- May 5 Jacobus JP Old, architect/co-founder (Stijl), dies at 73
- May 6 Monty Wooley, American actor (The Bishop's Wife, The Man Who Came to Dinner), dies at 74
- May 6 Ted Weems [Wemyes], American jazz trombonist, violin player and big band bandleader (Somebody Stole My Girl; Heartache), dies of emphysema at 61
- May 6 Theodore von Kármán, Hungarian-born American physicist and aeronautic engineer (co-founder of NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory), dies at 81 [1]
- May 7 Max Miller [Thomas Henry Sargent], English comedian known as The Cheeky Chappie, dies at 68
Charles Vyner Brooke (1874-1963)
May 9 3rd and last White Rajah of Sarawak (1917-46), dies at 88
- May 10 Gene "Big Daddy" Lipscomb, American NFL football defensive lineman, 1953-62 (Baltimore Colts, and two other teams), and professional wrestler, dies of a heroin overdose at 31
- May 11 Herbert Spencer Gasser, American physiologist and Nobel laureate, dies at 74
- May 12 Robert Kerr, Canadian runner (1908 Olympics), dies at 80
- May 12 Stanisław Wiechowicz, Polish composer, dies at 69
- May 13 Alois Hudal, Austrian bishop who helped Nazi war criminals escape trial, dies at 77
- May 16 Oleg Penkovsky, Soviet military intelligence (GRU), dies at 44
- May 17 John Wilce, physician and former head football coach at the Ohio State University (b. 1888)
Ernie Davis (1939-1963)
May 18 American College Football Hall of Fame halfback (1st African-American to win Heisman Trophy 1961, Syracuse), dies of leukemia at 23
- May 24 Elmore James, American blues slide guitarist, dies of a heart attack at 45
- May 26 Sharon Lynn [D'Auvergne Sharon Lindsay], American silent and sound screen (Way Out West; The Big Broadcast), dies of multiple sclerosis at 62
- May 27 Lambrakis, Greek EDA-parliament leader, murdered
- May 28 Vissarion Yakovlevich Shebalin, Soviet composer, dies at 60
- May 31 Carel C. van Essen, Dutch archaeologist (Art of Ancient Rome), dies at 63
- May 31 Edith Hamilton, American classicist (Mythology), dies at 95
