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Year 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar.
[edit] Events of 1948
[edit] January
[edit] February
- June 3 - The Palomar Observatory telescope is finished in California.
- June 16 - Communist guerrillas kill 3 rubber planters in Malaya.
- June 16 - Three armed men hijack the Cathay Pacific passenger plane Miss Macao and shoot the pilot; the plane crashes, killing 26 of 27 people on board.
- June 11 - The first monkey astronaut, Albert I, is launched into space from White Sands, New Mexico.
- June 17 - A Douglas DC-6 carrying United Air Lines Flight 624 crashes near Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, killing all 43 people on board.
- June 18 - Malayan Emergency: A state of emergency is declared in Malaysia due to a communist insurgency.
- June 18 - The first democratic general election with universal suffrage is held in Italy.
- June 20 - The U.S. Congress recesses for the remainder of 1948, after an overtime session closes at 7:00 a.m. D.C. time (to be shortly interrupted by Truman's recall from Congressional recess for July 20, 1948).
- June 21 - The Deutsche Mark becomes official currency of the future Federal Republic of Germany.
- June 22- The ship Empire Windrush brings the first group of several hundred black immigrants to Tilbury near London from the Caribbean countries (the start of multiculturalism in Britain).
- June 24 - Cold War: The Berlin Blockade begins.
- June 24 - The first World Health Assembly of the World Health Organization is held in Geneva.
- June 26 - William Shockley files the original patent for the grown junction transistor, the first bipolar junction transistor.
- June 28 - The Cominform Resolution marks the beginning of the Informbiro period in Yugoslavia and the Soviet/Yugoslav split.
- June 28 - David Lean's Oliver Twist, based on Charles Dickens's famous novel, premieres in the UK. It is banned for 3 years in the U.S. because of alleged anti-Semitism in depicting master criminal Fagin, played by Alec Guinness.
- June 28 - 1948 Fukui earthquake strikes Fukui, Japan. 3,769 dead, 22,203 injured.
- July 5 - The National Health Service Acts are enacted in United Kingdom.
- July 6 - The world's first Air Car-ferry service is flown by a Bristol Freighter of Silver City Airways from Lympne to Le Touquet.
- July 13 - The Coptic and Ethiopian Churches reach an agreement leading to the promotion of the Ethiopian church to the rank of an autocephalous Patriarchate. Five bishops are immediately consecrated by the Patriarch of Alexandria, and the successor to Abuna Qerellos IV is granted the power to consecrate new bishops, who are empowered to elect a new Patriarch for their church.
- July 15 - The attempted assassination of Palmiro Togliatti, general secretary of the Italian Communist Party, incites numerous strikes all over the country.
- July 15 - The first London chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous is founded.
- July 20 - Cold War: President Harry S. Truman issues the second peacetime military draft in the United States, amid increasing tensions with the Soviet Union (the first peacetime draft occurred in 1940 under President Roosevelt).
- July 24 - A great oil fire breaks out in the harbor of Naantali, Finland.
- July 26 - U.S. President Truman signs Executive Order 9981, ending racial segregation in the United States Armed Forces.
- July 28 - Around 200 die in explosion at a chemical plant in Ludwigshafen, Germany.
- July 29 - The 1948 Summer Olympics begin in London, the first since the 1936
- July 31 - At Idlewild Field in New York, New York International Airport (later renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport) is dedicated.
[edit] August
[edit] September
[edit] October
[edit] November
- November 2 - United States presidential election, 1948: Democratic incumbent Harry S. Truman defeats Republican Thomas E. Dewey and 'Dixiecrat' Strom Thurmond.
- November 12 - In Tokyo, an international war crimes tribunal sentences 7 Japanese military and government officials to death, including General Hideki Tojo, for their roles in World War II.
- November 15 - Louis Stephen St. Laurent becomes Canada's 12th prime minister.
- November 16 - Operation Magic Carpet to transport Jews from Yemen to Israel begins.
- November 17 - Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi divorces his second wife, the former Princess Fawzia of Egypt.
- November 20 - Geoffrey B. Orbell rediscovers the Takahē, last seen 50 years previously, near Lake Te Anau, New Zealand.
- November 24 - In Venezuela, president Rómulo Betancourt is ousted by a military junta.
- November 27 - The Calgary Stampeders defeat the Ottawa Rough Riders 12-7 before 20,013 fans at Toronto's Varsity Stadium to capture their first Grey Cup and complete the only perfect season to date in Canadian Football.
[edit] December
[edit] Undated
[edit] Ongoing
[edit] Births
[edit] January–February
- January 2 - Mary Archer, British scientist
- January 2 - Deborah Watling, British actress
- January 5 - Wally Foreman, Australian media icon (d. 2006)
- January 7 - Kenny Loggins, American rock singer (Footloose)
- January 10 - Donald Fagen, American rock keyboardist (Steely Dan)
- January 10 - Mischa Maisky, Latvian cellist
- January 12 - Kenny Allen, English footballer
- January 14 - T-Bone Burnett, American record producer and musician
- January 14 - Carl Weathers, African-American football player and actor (Rocky III)
- January 15 - Ronnie Van Zant, American rock musician (Lynyrd Skynyrd) (d. 1977)
- January 16 - John Carpenter, American film director and composer
- January 16 - Cliff Thorburn, Canadian snooker player
- January 17 - Davíð Oddsson, Prime Minister of Iceland
- January 19 - Frank McKenna, Premier of New Brunswick and Canadian Ambassador
- January 27 - Mikhail Baryshnikov, Russian-born dancer
- January 28 - Charles Taylor, Liberian president
- January 29 - Marc Singer, Canadian actor (V)
- January 30 - Paul Magee, Provisional Irish Republican Army member
- January 31 - Muneo Suzuki, Japanese politician
- February 1 - Elisabeth Sladen, British actress
- February 1 - Rick James, African-American musician (Super Freak) (d. 2004)
- February 2 - Ina Garten, American cooking author
- February 3 - Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo, East Timorean Catholic bishop, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
- February 3 - Henning Mankell, Swedish writer
- February 4 - Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier), American hard rock singer and musician
- February 4 - Roedy Green, Canadian programmer and LGBT activist
- February 5 - Sven-Göran Eriksson, Swedish football manager
- February 5 - Christopher Guest, American actor, writer, director, and composer
- February 6 - Jack Conway, American musician, composer, arranger, and guitarist
- February 7 - Tony Iommi, English rock guitarist (Black Sabbath)
- February 10 - John Magnier, Irish businessman and thoroughbred racehorse breeder
- February 12 - Raymond Kurzweil, American inventor and author
- February 14 - Teller, American magician
- February 14 - Jackie Martling, American comedian and radio personality
- February 17 - José José, Mexican singer and actor
- February 19 - Pim Fortuyn, Dutch politician and author (d. 2002)
- February 24 - J. Jayalalithaa, Indian politician
- February 24 - Walter Smith, Scottish football manager
- February 25 - Danny Denzongpa, Indian actor
- February 28 - Steven Chu, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- February 28 - Mike Figgis, American director, writer, and composer
- February 28 - Bernadette Peters, American actress and singer
- February 28 - Mercedes Ruehl, American actress
- February 28 - Alfred Sant, Leader of Malta Labour Party (1992-) and Prime Minister of Malta (1996-1998)
- February 29 - Ken Foree, American actor
[edit] March–April
- March 2 - R. T. Crowley, American pioneer of electronic commerce
- March 2 - Rory Gallagher, Irish musician
- March 2 - Jeff Kennett, Australian politician
- March 4 - Lindy Chamberlain, Australian author
- March 4 - James Ellroy, American writer
- March 4 - Tom Grieve, American baseball player
- March 4 - Leron Lee, American baseball player
- March 4 - Chris Squire, British bassist
- March 4 - Shakin' Stevens, Welsh singer
- March 5 - Richard Hickox, English classical conductor and musician
- March 5 - Elaine Paige, English singer and actress
- March 9 - Jeffrey Osborne, African-American singer (On The Wings Of Love)
- March 11 - Dominique Sanda, French actress
- March 12 - James Taylor, American rock musician (Fire And Rain)
- March 14 - Billy Crystal, American actor and comedian
- March 15 - Sérgio Vieira de Mello, Brazilian diplomat (d. 2003)
- March 17 - William Gibson, American writer
- March 19 - John Oldfield, British advertising & management consultant
- March 20 - John de Lancie, American actor
- March 20 - Bobby Orr, Canadian hockey player
- March 22 - Wolf Blitzer, American television journalist (CNN)
- March 22 - Andrew Lloyd Webber, English composer (Jesus Christ Superstar)
- March 26 - Steven Tyler, American rock singer (Aerosmith)
- March 28 - Dianne Wiest, American actress
- March 28 - Jayne Ann Krentz, née Castle (Amanda Quick), American novelist
- March 29 - Bud Cort, American actor (Harold and Maude)
- March 31 - Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States
- March 31 - Rhea Perlman, American actress (Cheers)
- April 1 - Jimmy Cliff, Jamaican musician
- April 4 - Squire Parsons, American Southern Gospel singer/songwriter
- April 4 - Derek Thompson, Northern Irish actor
- April 12 - Jeremy Beadle, English TV presenter (d. 2008)
- April 13 - Nam Hae-il, 25th Chief of Naval Operations of the Republic of Korea Navy
- April 15 - Michael Kamen, American composer (d. 2003)
- April 27 - Kate Pierson, American rock singer (The B-52's)
- April 27 - Amrit Kumar Bohara, Nepalese politician
- April 29 - Michael Karoli, German musician (d. 2001)
[edit] May–June
- May 1 - Constance, Lady Crabtree, British comedienne
- May 2 - Vladimir Matorin, Russian opera singer
- May 4 - Tanya Falan, American singer (The Lawrence Welk Show)
- May 6 - Richard Bryant, African-American pastor
- May 8 - Felicity Lott, English soprano
- May 8 - Stephen Stohn, Canadian television producer (Degrassi)
- May 9 - Calvin Murphy, American basketball player and analyst
- May 11 - Shigeru Izumiya, Japanese musician
- May 12 - Steve Winwood, English rock singer (Higher Love)
- May 12 - Bob Carolgees, British comedy entertainer
- May 14 - Bob Woolmer, British cricket coach (d. 2007)
- May 15 - Brian Eno, English musician and record producer
- May 15 - Yutaka Enatsu, Japanese professional baseball pitcher
- May 19 - Grace Jones, Jamaican singer and actress
- May 21 - Leo Sayer, English rock musician (You Make Me Feel Like Dancing)
- May 25 - Nand Huyghe, Flemish sculptor (P.Nand.R)
- May 26 - Stevie Nicks, American rock singer and songwriter (Fleetwood Mac)
- May 27 - Wubbo de Boer, Dutch civil servant
- May 29 - Michael Berkeley, British composer
- May 31 - John Bonham, British rock drummer (Led Zeppelin) (d. 1980)
- June 2 - Jerry Mathers, American actor (Leave It To Beaver)
- June 4 - Bob Champion, English jump jockey
- June 13 - Garnet Bailey, Canadian hockey player and scout (d. 2001)
- June 15 - Paul Michiels, Belgian singer-songwriter
- June 17 - Dave Concepción, Venezuelan baseball player
- June 19 - Lea Laven, Finnish singer
- June 19 - Phylicia Rashad, African-American actress (The Cosby Show)
- June 19 - Nick Drake, English musician (d. 1974)
- June 20 - Ludwig Scotty, President of Nauru
- June 21 - Lionel Rose, Australian boxer
- June 21 - Andrzej Sapkowski, Polish writer
- June 21 - Don Airey, English rock musician (Deep Purple)
- June 22 - Todd Rundgren, American rock singer and record producer (Hello It's Me)
- June 28 - Kathy Bates, American actress (Misery)
- June 29 - Ian Paice, English rock drummer (Deep Purple, Whitesnake)
- June 30 - Vladimir Yakunin, Russian official, head of state-run Russian Railways company
[edit] July–August
- July 3 - Tarmo Koivisto, Finnish comics artist
- July 6 - Wadih Saadeh, Lebanese-Australian poet and journalist
- July 8 - Raffi, Egyptian-born children's entertainer
- July 12 - Richard Simmons, American television personality and fitness expert
- July 15 - Richard Franklin, Australian film director (d. 2007)
- July 16 - Pinchas Zukerman, Israeli violinist
- July 18 - Hartmut Michel, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
- July 20 - Muse Watson, American actor
- July 21 - Ed Hinton, American sportswriter
- July 21 - Cat Stevens (Yusuf Islam), English musician (Peace Train)
- July 21 - Garry Trudeau, American cartoonist (Doonesbury)
- July 21 - Mikhail Zadornov, Russian stand-up comedian and writer
- July 22 - Neil Hardwick, British-born Finnish director and writer
- July 22 - Susan Eloise Hinton, American author
- July 23 - John Cushnahan, Northern Irish politician
- July 25 - Steve Goodman, Grammy Award-winning folk music singer and songwriter (d. 1984)
- July 27 - Peggy Fleming, American figure skater
- July 28 - Sally Struthers, American actress (All In The Family)
- July 30 - Jean Reno, French actor
- July 31 - Jonathan Dollimore, British author and professor
- August 2 - Dennis Prager, American radio talk show host and author
- August 2 - Bob Rae, Canadian politician
- August 3 - Jean-Pierre Raffarin, Prime Minister of France
- August 13 - Kathleen Battle, American soprano
- August 15 - Uschi Digard, American erotic actress and figure model
- August 15 - George Ryton, British engineer
- August 18 - Joseph Marcell, English actor
- August 20 - Robert Plant, English rock singer (Led Zeppelin)
- August 24 - Kim Sung-Il, Chief of Staff of the Republic of Korea Air Force
- August 27 - Sgt. Slaughter, American professional wrestler
- August 30 - Lewis Black, American comedian
[edit] September–October
- September 1 - James Rebhorn, American actor
- September 2 - Terry Bradshaw, American football player and sportscaster
- September 2 - Nate Archibald, American basketball player
- September 3 - Levy Mwanawasa, Zambian president ( d. 2008 )
- September 4 - Samuel Hui, Hong Kong singer
- September 5 - Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Austrian diplomat and politician
- September 8 - Great Kabuki, Japanese professional wrestler
- September 10 - Judy Geeson, British actress
- September 10 - Bob Lanier, American basketball player
- September 10 - Margaret Trudeau, ex-wife of the former Prime Minister of Canada
- September 13 - Nell Carter, American singer and actress (d. 2003)
- September 17 - John Ritter, American actor (Three's Company) (d. 2003)
- September 19 - Nadezhda Tkachenko, former Soviet pentathlete
- September 20 - George R.R. Martin, American speculative fiction author
- September 22 - Denis Burke, Australian politician
- September 24 - Heinz Chur, German composer
- September 24 - Phil Hartman, Canadian comedian (Saturday Night Live) (d. 1998)
- September 25 - Vladimir Yevtushenkov, Russian oligarch
- September 26 - Olivia Newton-John, Australian singer and actress (Physical)
- September 27 - Michele Dotrice, English actress (Mary Poppins)
- September 29 - Bryant Gumbel, African-American television broadcaster
- September 29 - Theo Jörgensmann, German jazz clarinetist
- October 1 - Sir Peter Blake, New Zealand yachtsman (d. 2001)
- October 2 - Avery Brooks, American television actor
- October 2 - Chris LeDoux, American singer and rodeo star (d. 2005)
- October 6 - Gerry Adams, Northern Irish politician
- October 7 - Diane Ackerman, American poet and essayist
- October 8 - Johnny Ramone, American rock guitarist (The Ramones) (d. 2004)
- October 9 - Jackson Browne, American rock musician (Runnin' On Empty)
- October 13 - Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Pakistani musician (d. 1997)
- October 13 - Ted Poe, American politician
- October 13 - John Ford Coley, American rock musician (I'd Really Love To See You Tonight)
- October 14 - Engin Arık, Turkish nuclear physicist (d. 2007)
- October 16 - Leo Mazzone, American baseball coach
- October 17 - George Wendt, American television actor (Cheers)
- October 17 - Robert Jordan, American novelist (d. 2007)
- October 18 - Hans Köchler, Austrian philosopher
[edit] November–December
- November 3 - Lulu, Scottish singer (To Sir With Love)
- November 5 - Bob Barr, American politician
- November 5 - William Daniel Phillips, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- November 10 - Vincent Schiavelli, American actor (d. 2005)
- November 13 - Lockwood Smith, New Zealand politician
- November 14 - Charles, Prince of Wales
- November 15 - James Kemsley, Australian cartoonist and actor (d. 2007)
- November 16 - Mutt Lange, Rhodesian-born record producer
- November 17 - Howard Dean, American politician
- November 20 - Richard Masur, American actor, director and former president of Screen Actor Guild
- November 20 - John R. Bolton, former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.
- November 20 - Barbara Hendricks, American-born soprano
- December 2 - T. Coraghessan Boyle, American writer
- December 3 - Rick Cua, American singer and evangelist
- December 3 - Ozzy Osbourne, English rock singer
- December 6 - Keke Rosberg, Finnish Formula One champion
- December 6 - JoBeth Williams, American actress
- December 7 - Gary Morris, singer and actor
- December 7 - Mads Vinding, Danish bassist
- December 10 - Abu Abbas, founder of the Palestine Liberation Front (d. 2004)
- December 13 - David O'List, British rock guitarist
- December 14 - Lester Bangs, American music journalist (d. 1982)
- December 14 - Kim Beazley, Australian politician
- December 18 - Bill Nelson, (born William Nelson), British guitarist, songwriter, painter and experimental musician
- December 19 - Ken Brown, Canadian ice hockey player
- December 21 - Samuel L. Jackson, African-American actor (A Time To Kill)
- December 21 - Willi Resetarits, Austrian musician and cabaret artist
- December 22 - Lynne Thigpen, African-American actress (Godspell) (d. 2003)
- December 22 - Noel Edmonds, British TV presenter
- December 27 - Gérard Depardieu, French actor
- December 28 - Dick Siegel, American songwriter
- December 31 - Joe Dallesandro, American model and actor
- date unknown
[edit] Deaths
[edit] January–March
- January 5 - Mary Dimmick Harrison, wife of President Benjamin Harrison (b. 1858)
- January 21 - Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Italian composer (b. 1876)
- January 30 - Mahatma Gandhi, Indian independence movement leader (assassinated) (b. 1869)
- January 30 - Orville Wright, American co-inventor of the airplane (b. 1871)
- February 1 - Jatindramohan Bagchi, Indian (Bengali) poet (b. 1878)
- February 2 - Bevil Rudd, South African athlete (b. 1894)
- February 11 - Sergy Eisenstein, Russian film director (b. 1898)
- February 23 - John Robert Gregg, Irish-born inventor of shorthand (b. 1866)
- March 4 - Antonin Artaud, French playwright, actor and director (b. 1896)
- March 6 - Ross Lockridge, Jr., American novelist (suicide) (b. 1914)
- March 10 - Jan Masaryk, Foreign Minister of Czechoslovakia (b. 1886)
- March 24 - Nikolai Berdyaev, Russian religious and political philosopher (b. 1874)
- March 31 - Egon Erwin Kisch, Austrian journalist and author (b. 1885)
[edit] April–June
[edit] July–September
- July 2 - Baba Sawan Singh, Indian saint known as "The Great Master," (b. 1858)
- July 5 - Georges Bernanos, French writer (b. 1888)
- July 15 - John J. Pershing, American general (b. 1860)
- July 18 - May Moss, Australian women's rights activist (b. 1869)
- July 21 - Arshile Gorky, Armenian-born painter (b. 1904)
- July 23 - David Wark Griffith, American film director (The Birth Of A Nation) (b. 1875)
- July 31 - Lucy Page Mercer Rutherfurd, Franklin Roosevelt's lover (b. 1891)
- August 10 - Kwan-Ichi Asakawa, Japanese historian (b. 1873)
- August 10 - Andrew Brown, Scottish soccer coach (b. 1870)
- August 12 - Harry Brearley, English inventor of stainless steel (b. 1871)
- August 16 - Babe Ruth, American baseball player (b. 1895)
- August 27 - Charles Evans Hughes, Chief Justice of the United States (b. 1862)
- September 2 - Sylvanus G. Morley, American scholar and World War I spy (b. 1883)
- September 5 - Richard C. Tolman, American mathematical physicist (b. 1881)
- September 11 - Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, founder and first Governor General of Pakistan (b. 1876)
- September 17 - Folke Bernadotte, Swedish diplomat (assassinated) (b. 1895)
- September 30 - Edith Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States (b. 1861)
[edit] October–December
[edit] Nobel Prizes