Major Events
- Jan 19 Indira Gandhi elected India's 4th Prime Minister
- Feb 3 First soft landing on the Moon, by the Soviet spacecraft Luna 9
- Mar 11 Military coup led by Indonesian General Suharto breaks out
- Mar 26 Large-scale anti-Vietnam War protests take place in the United States, including in New York, Washington, D.C. and Chicago
- Jun 29 Vietnam War: US planes bomb the North Vietnamese capital Hanoi and the port city of Haiphong for the first time
- Jul 13 A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada founds the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Hare Krishna movement) in New York City
- Oct 21 116 children and 28 adults die as a coal waste heap slides and engulfs a school in Aberfan, South Wales
- Nov 2 The Cuban Adjustment Act comes into force, allowing 123,000 Cubans opportunity to apply for permanent residence in the US
- Dec 8 US and USSR sign treaty to prohibit nuclear weapons in outer space
- More 1966 Events
1966 in Film & TV
- Jan 12 "Batman", starring Adam West as Batman, Burt Ward as Robin, and Cesar Romero as The Joker, debuts on ABC
- Apr 11 Frank Sinatra records "Strangers in the Night" single for his album of the same name. Later reaches #1 Billboard charts
- Jun 21 "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?", film directorial debut of Mike Nichols, based on Edward Albee's 1962 play of the same name, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, is released (Academy Awards Best Actress, 1967)
- Jul 23 Frank Sinatra's album "Strangers In The Night" hits #1 on the US charts, (Grammy for Record Of The Year and Best Male Vocal Performance)
- Nov 8 Movie actor Ronald Reagan elected Governor of California
- Dec 12 "A Man for All Seasons" based on the play by Robert Bolt, directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Paul Scofield premieres in New York (Best Picture 1967)
1966 in Music
- May 6 The Rolling Stones release the single "Paint It Black", featuring prominent sitar played by Brian Jones, in the US
- Aug 5 The Beatles release single "Yellow Submarine" with "Eleanor Rigby" in the UK
- Sep 16 Metropolitan Opera House opens in Lincoln Center, New York with Leontyne Price as Cleopatra in "Antony and Cleopatra" by Samuel Barber
- Oct 13 Jimi Hendrix Experience rock trio debuts with American guitarist Jimi Hendrix, British bassist Noel Redding and British drummer Mitch Mitchell in Évreux, Normandy, France
- Dec 26 Jimi Hendrix writes the song "Purple Haze" backstage at the Upper Cut Club, London
1966 in Sport
- Jun 14 Miami beats St Petersburg (Florida State League) 4-3 in 29 innings longest uninterrupted game in organized baseball
- Oct 23 Australian Jack Brabham is first to win F1 World Drivers Championship and International Cup for Constructors Championship in the same year; 2nd in season ending Mexican Grand Prix at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez
Did You Know?
"Star Trek" premieres on NBC-TV starring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy
More People Born in 1966
Fun Fact About 1966
400 die of respiratory failure & heart attacks in New York City smog, smoggiest day in city's history
More 1966 Deaths
Articles About 1966
Buried at Sea: The Casket That Carried JFK
John F. Kennedy's aides struggling to load the casket containing the slain President aboard Air Force One is an enduring image. But what happened to the casket?February 18The Tragedy of Aberfan
One hundred and sixteen young children died on this day when an avalanche of coal tip waste and debris thundered down a hillside and engulfed their school.October 21A Selfie in Space
Buzz Aldrin takes the first 'space selfie' during the Gemini 12 mission in 1966November 12
Famous Weddings in 1966
- Jan 21 Quiet Beatle George Harrison (22) weds British model Pattie Boyd (21) at the registry office in Epsom, Surrey, England, Paul serves as best man; divorce in 1977
- Feb 10 Reggae Musician Bob Marley (21) marries fellow musician Rita Anderson (19)
- Feb 14 American pin-up model Bettie Page (43) weds lineman Harry Lear; divorce in 1972
Famous Divorces in 1966
- Jul 20 American actress Jayne Mansfield and American film producer and director Matt Cimber file for divorce, after less than 2 years of marriage
More 1966 Weddings