MAJOR EVENTS

1948

MAJOR EVENTS:

Mahatma Gandhi assassinated in India -
House Un-American Activities Committee accuses Alger Hiss of spying for the Soviet Union
Communists seize power in Czechoslovakia
U.S. Congress ratifies Marshall Plan, approving $17 billion in European aid
State of Israel created; admits over 200,000 European war refugees (Important to note that Jerusalem returned to Jewish control in 1967)
Soviet Union seals off land routes to Berlin; West responds with massive airlift of provisions
President Harry S Truman re-elected in upset over Thomas E. Dewey
President Truman integrates the U.S. Armed Forces
Prince Charles of Wales was born Charles Phillip Arthur George on November 14th to still present Queen of England
On December 23rd, Just 8 Days Prior to 1948, The invention of the transistor was announced - The Catalyst that has enabled technology to advance exponentially fast, as Daniel predicted it would

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

U.S. continues to cope with severe postwar inflation while rocked by labor unrest
United Auto Workers succeed in linking wage increases to cost-of-living index in contract with General Motors
Congress enacts federal rent controls

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY:

Alfred Kinsey's Sexual Behavior in the Human Male is the first large-scale study of individuals' sexual habits, with stunning revelations about infidelity, homosexuality and other issues
U.S. government conducts extensive missile tests in New Mexico desert
200-inch telescope at Mount Palomar begins operation
Cortisone introduced as an arthritis treatment
"Big bang" theory of the universe's origin postulated
Orville Wright dies

SPORTS:

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT:

Movies: Hamlet, Macbeth (Orson Welles), The Naked City, Oliver Twist, The Fallen Idol
Songs: Nature Boy, Buttons and Bows, All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth
TV Shows: Howdy Doody, Philco TV Playhouse, Toast of the Town, Kraft Television Theatre, Meet the Press
Books: The Big Fisherman, Lloyd C. Douglas; Crusade in Europe, Dwight D. Eisenhower; Cry, the Beloved Country, Alan Paton; The Ides of March, Thorton Wilder; Tales of the South Pacific, James Michener; The Naked and the Dead, Norman Mailer
Long-playing (33-1/3 RPM) record invented
Boxing and wrestling are TV's prime attractions

EVERYDAY LIFE:

Selective Service inaugurated, providing a continuous peacetime military draft until repealed in 1973
New York's Idlewild Airport opens (renamed JFK Airport in 1963)
Swiss outdoorsman George de Mestral invents Velcro
Noted food critic Duncan Hines founds a company to make prepackaged cake mixes

FUN FACTS: