FALL / WINTER 1963In the summer of 1963, Harvey Ball designs the iconic "smiley face" for State Mutual Life Assurance (now Hanover Insurance) as a staff morale-booster following a difficult merger.
September 7, 1963
Pro Football Hall of Fame opens in Canton, Ohio. September 15, 1963
Date of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, an event that marked a turning point in the U.S. civil rights movement. November 2 & 6, 1963
The arrest and assassination of President Ngo Dình Diem of South Vietnam represents the final stage of a successful CIA-backed coup d'état led by General Duong Van Minh. November 22, 1963
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th President of the United States, is assassinated in Dallas, Texas. November 29, 1963
With a 7-7 tie, the Grant Generals share the field with North Salem High as 1963 Oregon State Co-Champions. November 29, 1963
The Warren Commission is established by President Lyndon Johnson to investigate President Kennedy's assassination. December 12, 1963
The United Kingdom grants Kenya independence. December 31, 1963
Throughout 1963, Beatlemania reaches a feverish pitch in the U.K., ultimately sweeping the globe by the end of the year. |
WINTER / SPRING 1964January 1964
Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman form Blue Ribbon Sports with an initial $1,000 investment, ordering their first batch of 300 shoes. Seven years later, they adopt the Nike brand with its universally recognized "swoosh" logo. January 8, 1964
In his State of the Union address to the U.S. Congress, President Lyndon Johnson declares an "unconditional war on poverty" that would culminate in the passage of the Economic Opportunity Act in August 1964. January 11, 1964
“Smoking may be hazardous to your health.” The Surgeon General's report on smoking is released (Smoking and Health: Report of the Advisory Committee to the Surgeon General of the United States). January 23 1964
South Dakota is the 38th state to ratify the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guaranteeing the right to vote, thereby ensuring adoption of the amendment. January 29, 1964
The 1964 Winter Olympic Games opens in Innsbruck, Austria. February 10, 1964
The Republic of China (Taiwan) recalls its envoy from France after France severs ties and switches diplomatic recognition to Beijing. February 25, 1964
Cassius Clay, age 22, stuns the boxing world by defeating heavyweight champion Sonny Liston in Miami Beach, Florida. March 4, 1964
Teamsters President Jimmy Hoffa is sentenced to eight years in prison for tampering with a federal jury in 1962. March 9, 1964
The first Ford Mustang rolls off the production line at the Ford Motor Company plant in Dearborn, Michigan. March 27, 1964
The Great Alaskan Good Friday Earthquake strikes south-central Alaska with a magnitude of 9.2—the stongest earthquake in North American history. The quake and resultant tsunamis killed approximately 139 people and caused $2.28 billion in property damage (current U.S. dollars). April 7, 1964
IBM announces the release of its "System 360" mainframe computers that would ultimately generate more than $100 billion in revenue for the company. April 13, 1964
Sidney Poitier becomes the first African-American to win an Academy Award for Best Actor. April 20, 1964
Nelson Mandela makes his three-hour “I Am Prepared to Die” speech, an historic moment in the evolution of South African democracy. On June 12th, Mandela and seven others are sentenced to life imprisonment. May 4, 1964
Bourbon Whiskey is listed as a “Distinctive Product of the USA.” June 5, 1964
Graduation day for the Grant Class of 1964 at the Portland Civic Auditorium. As was customary back in the day, The Sunday Oregonian published the names of all of Portland's graduating seniors, with Grant's Class 0f '64 prominently featured. First "Baby Boomers" begin to graduate. June 21, 1964
Three civil rights workers are murdered by the Mississippi White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan and a deputy sheriff. |