1956 Newspaper Headlines
Explore our 1956 newspaper articles and discover what events people were reading about in this year in history. Understand how people perceived significant events that took place during this year through first hand accounts from the time. Key 1956 headlines include the release of Elvis Presley’s hit “Heartbreak Hotel”, beginning his career as a rock and roll legend. It was the year the first Eurovision song contest was broadcast from Switzerland, Marilyn Monroe married playwright Arthur Miller, and the Suez Crisis began.
It was an exciting year in sporting news, with the Summer Olympics taking place in Melbourne, and the Winter Olympics in Italy. A 1956 newspaper is a wonderful way to commemorate this wonderful year in history, with first hand accounts from people who lived at the time.
January 22, 1956Â
The Redondo Junction train wreck kills 30 people in Los Angeles.
January 26, 1956
The 1956 Winter Olympics open in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
February 14, 1956Â
President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s doctors say he is healthy enough to seek another term at the White House.
February 22, 1956
Elvis Presley enters the U.S. music charts for the first time, with “Heartbreak Hotel“.
February 23, 1956
Norma Jean Mortenson legally changes her name to Marilyn Monroe.
March 15, 1956Â
The Broadway musical My Fair Lady opens in New York City.
April 19. 1956
American actress Grace Kelly marries Rainier III, Prince of Monaco.
May 2, 1956Â
The United Methodist Church decides, at its General Conference, to grant women full ordained clergy status. It also calls for an end to racial segregation in the denomination.
June 5, 1956Â
Elvis Presley performs “Hound Dog” on The Milton Berle Show, scandalizing the audience with his hip movements.
June 10, 1956
Equestrian events open in Stockholm at the 1956 Summer Olympics. All other events are held in November in Melbourne, Australia.
June 14, 1956Â
The Flag of the United States Army is formally dedicated.
June 14, 1956Â
President Dwight D. Eisenhower authorizes the phrase “under God” to be added to the Pledge of Allegiance.
June 29, 1956
Actress Marilyn Monroe marries playwright Arthur Miller.
June 29, 1956
President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the Federal Aid Highway Act, creating the Interstate Highway System.
September 13, 1956
The Hard Disk Drive is invented by an IBM team led by Reynold B. Johnson.
November 6, 1956Â
The 1956 presidential election takes place, with Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower defeating Democrat challenger Adlai E. Stevenson in a rematch of their contest four years earlier.
November 13, 1956Â
The Supreme Court decision in Browder v. Gayle declares Alabama and Montgomery, Alabama laws requiring segregated buses illegal, ending the Montgomery bus boycott.
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