1961
Class of 1970 is in 4th grade, most classmates are 9 years old
John Swainson becomes Governor of Michigan, two year term
Newly elected President Kennedy establishes Peace Corps
Cuban Bay of Pigs Invasion begins on April 17
Soviet Union puts first man into space-Vostok 1 after sending a dog in 1957 with Sputnik 2
Mercury program: Alan Shepard is first American in orbit on May 5 on Freedom 7, Gus Grissom is 2nd American in orbit on July 21, capsule sinks in ocean, program ends, Apollo program begins with goal to put a man on the moon
Bobby Fischer wins 4th U.S. Chess Championship at age 17
Roger Maris and Wilma Rudolph are athletes of the year
Roger Maris hits 61 home runs breaking Babe Ruth's record on October 1
Mickey Mantle is highest paid player earning $75,000 yearly
New York Yankees defeat Cincinnati Reds in the 1961 World Series
Detroit Tigers win 101 Games in 1961 Season, but lose to New York Yankees
Boston Celtics win 1961 NBA Championship
Cincinnati defeats Ohio State for 1961 NCAA Basketball Championship
South African Gary Player becomes first non-USA Golf player to win Masters
Carry Back wins Kentucky Derby and Preakness, but misses Triple Crown in Belmont
A.J. Foyt wins 1961 Indianapolis 500
Green Bay Packers win 1961 NFL Championship over New York Giants; Detroit Lions win Playoff Bowl
Ernie Davis of Syracuse wins Heisman Trophy; Alabama wins 1961 NCAA Football Championship
Chicago Black Hawks defeat Detroit Red Wings for 1961 Stanley Cup
Michigan wins 1961 NCAA Championship in Men's Swimming & Diving
The Apartment, Elmer Gantry, Butterfield 8 and Spartacus win big at 33rd Academy Awards (1961 Winners)
Motown's Marvelettes release Please Mr. Postman
The Beach Boys formed
American Bandstand hosted by Dick Clark began in 1957, but begins a 4-5 p.m. TV show on ABC
Colorized TV begins on the Wonderful World of Disney
Disney introduces 101 Dalmations, Absent-Minded Professor, Parent Trap and Babes in Toyland; The Wonderful World of Disney moves from ABC to NBC after 7 years, moves to color
Guns of Navarone, The Misfits, The Hustler, El Cid, Breakfast at Tiffany's are popular movies
Hanna-Barbera introduces Top Cat, Yogi Bear and Huckleberry Hound
IBM introduces selectric typewriter (ball)
Ray Kroc takes over MacDonald's
Eggs are about 30 cents a dozen
Freedom Riders begin to test integration in the South
1961 Michigan Football Team finishes 6-3, beating #11 Purdue 16-14, losing to #8 Michigan State 0-28 and #2 Ohio State 20-50 and #6 Minnesota 20-23 who goes on the win Rose Bowl over UCLA
The Berlin Wall is Built (The Berlin Wall 1961-1989)
Adolf Eichmann Trials Begins on April 11
Betty and Barney Hill Alien Abduction on September 19-20, 1961 in New Hampshire
Barbie is introduced
Top Movies are: 101 Dalmations, West Side Story, El Cid, The Parent Trap, King of Kings, La Dolce Vita, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Guns of Navaronne, Splendor in the Grass, Blue Hawaii, Lover Come Back and The Misfits. Other Top Movies are: The Absent-Minded Professor, The Commancheros, The Errand Boy, Judgment at Nuremberg, The Last Time I Saw Archie, One Eyed Jacks, The Outsider, The Pit and the Pendulum, A Raisin in the Sun, Return to Peyton Place
1961 in Television (1960-1961 TV Schedule)
New TV Shows include: Dr. Kildare, Ben Casey, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Defenders, Mister Ed and The Mike Douglas Show
TV Shows that end are: This is Your Life, Peter Gunn, Sea Hunt and One Step Beyond
President Kennedy's 1961 Inaugural Address
Newsreel 1961 Part I II III IV Universal International News
| 1-Jan-61 | Tiger Stadium | Briggs Stadium renamed Tiger Stadium |
| 1-Mar-61 | n/a | Michigan's Wrestling Team earns 3 Big Ten Champions |
| 1-Apr-61 | Seattle, WA | Gus Stager's Michigan's Swimming Team wins 4th NCAA Championship in past 5 seasons |
| 12-Apr-61 | Grammy's | Theme from a Summer Place (Percy Faith), Theme from Exodus (Ernest Gold), Ray Charles (Let the Good Times Roll) and Bob Newhart (The Button-Down Mind) are winners at the Grammy's |
| 12-Apr-61 | n/a | Russia launches Yuri Gargarin as first man into outer space escalating the space race |
| 17-Apr-61 | n/a | Unsuccessful Bay of Pigs invasion fails to rid Cuba of Fidel Castro |
| 17-Apr-61 | Oscar's | The Apartment wins over Elmer Gantry, Sons and Lovers, The Alamo, The Sundowners for Best Picture; Burt Lancaster, Peter Ustinov, Elizabeth Taylor and Shirley Jones are Oscar acting winners at the 33rd Academy Awards hosted by Bob Hope on ABC (Channel 7 in Detroit). Never on Sunday wins Best Song. John Wayne's lobbying for The Alamo precluded Psycho and Spartacus from voters for best picture. |
| 5-May-61 | n/a | Alan Shepard becomes first American launched into space |
| 1-Jul-61 | Ann Arbor | Arborland Mall opens |
| 1-Sep-61 | Yankee Stadium | Detroit Tigers showdown with New York Yankees, 1.5 games back, leave 4.5 games back |
| 1-Oct-61 | n/a | Roger Maris hits his 61st home run ecliplsing Babe Ruth's record |
| 1-Oct-61 | n/a | Detroit Tigers end the season with 101 wins, but finish 8 games behind New York Yankees |
| 1-Nov-61 | n/a | Jerome Cavanaugh elected Mayor of Detroit |