January 1949

[January 1], 1949 (Saturday)

• A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire ended the Indo-Pakistani War in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir.
• In the Indonesian conflict, Dutch authorities proclaimed that fighting on Java was at an end with the exception of "rebellious elements."
• The International University Sports Federation was formed.
• In college bowl games across the United States, the Northwestern Wildcats defeated the California Golden Bears 20–14 in the Rose Bowl, the Texas Longhorns beat the Georgia Bulldogs 41–28 in the Orange Bowl, the West Virginia Mountaineers defeated the Texas Western Miners 21–12 in the Sun Bowl, the Oklahoma Sooners beat the North Carolina Tar Heels 14–6 in the Sugar Bowl and the SMU Mustangs beat the Oregon Webfoots 21–13 in the Cotton Bowl Classic.
• Evergreen Park, Illinois resident James T. Mangan established the Nation of Celestial Space, a micronation that claimed ownership of the entirety of outer space. Mangan would actively pursue claims of behalf of Celestia until his death in 1970.
• Born: Max Azria, fashion designer, in Sfax, Tunisia
• Died: William H. Lewis, 80, American football player, coach and first African-American United States Attorney

  [January 2], 1949 (Sunday)

• The Vatican announced rejection of an offer from the Hungarian government to enter negotiations on the status of the Catholic Church in Hungary. Vatican officials made it known that the offer could not be considered as long as Cardinal József Mindszenty remained in jail.
• The Battles of the Sinai in the Arab-Israeli War ended when Israeli forces withdrew from the Sinai Peninsula.
• At Boeing Field in Seattle, a Douglas DC-3 skidded down an ice-coated runway until it struck a hangar and burst into flames, killing all 3 crew and 11 of the 27 passengers aboard. The chartered plane was for Yale University students returning to school from Christmas vacation.
• Luis Muñoz Marín took office as the 1st Governor of Puerto Rico.
• Born: Christopher Durang, playwright, in Montclair, New Jersey
• Died: Harold Grimwade, 79, Australian businessman and general

  [January 3], 1949 (Monday)

• The final major combat operation of the Arab-Israeli War was launched when the Battle of Rafah began, as Israel attempted to encircle all Egyptian forces in Palestine and drive them back to Egypt.
• The 81st United States Congress convened.
• 37 people were reported killed by tornadoes in Warren, Arkansas.
• The U.S. Supreme Court decided Lincoln Union v. Northwestern Co., upholding the rights of states to bar the closed shop.
• Died: Alexander Drankov, 62, Russian photographer, cameraman and filmmaker

  [January 4], 1949 (Tuesday)

• A UN Security Council committee of six experts issued a plan for settlement of the Berlin currency control dispute. The plan called for creation of separate banking systems for East and West Berlin as well as a new bank of issue for the entire city under Big Four supervision.
• The RMS Caronia of the Cunard Line departed Southampton on her maiden voyage to New York.

  [January 5], 1949 (Wednesday)

• U.S. President Harry S. Truman gave the annual State of the Union address to Congress, putting forth an ambitious set of proposals known as the Fair Deal.
• Dutch paratroopers took the Sumatran city of Rengat and, according to eyewitness accounts, carried out a massacre of civilians there. Dutch authorities listed the event as an "incident" in which about 80 "non-combatants" died, but Indonesian estimates place the number killed in the thousands.
• Died: Lily Yeats, 82, Irish embroiderer

  [January 6], 1949 (Thursday)

• Nuri al-Said became Prime Minister of Iraq for the fifth time.
• Born: Carolyn D. Wright, poet, in Mountain Home, Arkansas
• Died: Victor Fleming, 59, American film director; Gennaro Righelli, 62, Italian actor and filmmaker

  [January 7], 1949 (Friday)

• A new ceasefire in the Arab-Israeli War went into effect.
• Five RAF reconnaissance planes were shot down by the Israelis near Rafah.
• George Marshall resigned as United States Secretary of State for health reasons. President Truman named Dean Acheson as Marshall's successor.
• Several clashes were reported to have broken out between Burmese and separatist Karen tribesmen over a series of Christmas Eve incidents in which Burmese military police allegedly massacred 200 Karen men and women who were attending religious services in the Mergui district of Burma. This was the beginning of the Karen conflict, one of the longest-running civil wars in the world.
• Born: Chavo Guerrero Sr., professional wrestler, in El Paso, Texas
• Died: Suehiko Shiono, 69, Japanese lawyer and politician

  [January 8], 1949 (Saturday)

• The Air Ministry stated that British aircraft "have now been instructed to regard as hostile any Jewish aircraft encountered over Egyptian territory."
• "All I Want for Christmas " by Spike Jones and His Orchestra topped the Billboard singles chart.
• Died: Yoshijirō Umezu, 67, Japanese general
• The low band FM-radio transmitters between 42 and 50 MHz permanently closed down in the United States after the transition ended following the introduction of the 88 to 108 MHz FM band in 1945.

  [January 9], 1949 (Sunday)

• Israel made an official protest to the United Nations concerning British forces recently landed at Aqaba, which Israel considered a hostile act.
• A freak four-day snowfall began in the Los Angeles area, depositing almost a foot of snow on the San Fernando Valley and wreaking havoc on citrus growers.
• Born: Mary Roos, singer and actress, in Bingen am Rhein, Germany
• Died: Tommy Handley, 56, British comedian; Martin Grabmann, 74, German catholic priest and scholar

  [January 10], 1949 (Monday)

• President Truman submitted the annual federal budget to Congress. The budget called for expenditure of a peacetime record $41.858 billion and projected a deficit of $873 million, which the president said should be transformed into a surplus by raising taxes.
• Alexander Papagos became Commander-in-Chief of Greek land forces in the ongoing Greek Civil War.
• The Huaihai Campaign ended in Communist victory.
• RCA Victor introduced the 45 RPM record to compete with Columbia's 33⅓.
• Born: George Foreman, boxer, in Marshall, Texas ; Linda Lovelace, adult film actress, as Linda Boreman in the Bronx, New York

  [January 11], 1949 (Tuesday)

• The U.S. State Department said it had "no immediate plans" to comply with a request from Communist Hungary to return the 950-year old crown of King Saint Stephen, which had been found by American troops hidden in an Austrian salt mine in 1945.
• The Battle of Jiulianshan ended in failure for the Nationalists.
• WDTV went on the air in Pittsburgh, providing the first "network" connecting Pittsburgh and 13 other cities from Boston to St. Louis.
• Born: Daryl Braithwaite, singer, in Melbourne, Australia
• Died: Nelson Doubleday, 59, American book publisher and president of Doubleday Company

  [January 12], 1949 (Wednesday)

• The Communists closed within artillery range of Beijing and began shelling the city.
• Prices and wages in France were frozen by government decree in an effort to check inflation.
• The drama film noir The Accused starring Loretta Young and Robert Cummings opened in New York City.
• Born: Ottmar Hitzfeld, footballer and manager, in Lörrach, Germany; Haruki Murakami, writer, in Kyoto, Japan; Wayne Wang, film director, in British Hong Kong

  [January 13], 1949 (Thursday)

• On the island of Rhodes, Israeli and Egyptian representatives began armistice negotiations with UN mediator Ralph Bunche.
• Durban Race riots began in South Africa over a rumor that an African boy had been killed by an Indian pushcart peddler.
• Born: Brandon Tartikoff, president of NBC, in Freeport, New York
• Died: Eduardo Barrón, 60, Spanish aeronautical engineer and military pilot
• Born: Stuart Bennett, Peel, Isle of Man. Panel beater and Paint Sprayer

  [January 14], 1949 (Friday)

• A statement from Mao Zedong was broadcast over Chinese radio announcing his conditions for peace in the Civil War. Mao's demands included abolition of the Kuomintang government, punishment of war criminals and the convocation of a political consultative conference to establish a new coalition government.
• Poland signed the largest deal made by an Eastern European country since the end of the war when it concluded a trade agreement with Britain providing for an exchange of goods over the next five years worth £260 million.
• Born: Lawrence Kasdan, screenwriter, director and producer, in Miami, Florida
• Died: Juan Bielovucic, 59, Peruvian aviator; Harry Stack Sullivan, 56, American psychiatrist; Joaquín Turina, 69, Spanish composer

  [January 15], 1949 (Saturday)

• In China, the Communists completed the conquest of the important industrial city of Tianjin.
• Three days of the worst race rioting in the history of South Africa ended with 105 dead.
• Poland and the Soviet Union signed a commercial agreement providing for a 35% increase in trade between the two countries.
• Born: Bobby Grich, baseball player, in Muskegon, Michigan

  [January 16], 1949 (Sunday)

• Şemsettin Günaltay became 8th Prime Minister of Turkey.
• Born: Caroline Munro, actress and model, in Windsor, Berkshire, England

  [January 17], 1949 (Monday)

• BSAA Star Ariel disappearance: An Avro Tudor of British South American Airways disappeared over the Atlantic Ocean on a flight from Bermuda to Kingston, Jamaica with 20 on board. The speculation resulting from the disappearance of the plane helped fuel the legend of the Bermuda Triangle.
• The Smith Act trial of 11 leading American Communists charged with plotting the overthrow of the U.S. government opened in New York City.
• The Volkswagen Beetle was introduced to the United States when Dutch businessman Ben Pon arrived on a ship with two Beetles, striving to establish a dealer network in America. Due to their small size and a stigma associated with German products in the years after the war, Pon found no takers and the Beetle would not catch on in America for several more years.
• A television version of the popular radio show The Goldbergs premiered on CBS. The program would become one of TV's first hit sitcoms, running through 1955.
• Born: Gyude Bryant, politician and businessman, in Monrovia, Liberia ; Andy Kaufman, entertainer, actor and performance artist, in New York City ; Mick Taylor, guitarist for John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Rolling Stones, in Welwyn Garden City, England