DECEMBER 31, 1940

TUESDAY
$1,000 INVESTED IN COKE STOCK (KO) IN 1940
WOULD HAVE MADE YOU $8,324,276 IN THE 2025 DATASET
Min_Wage_Hourly: $0.30
Median_Home_Price: $4,000.00
Gas_Price_Avg: $0.18
Bread_Price_Avg: $0.09
Movie_Ticket_Avg: $0.30
First_Class_Stamp: $0.03
Milk_Price_Avg: $0.55
Top Movies From 1940
1 Boom Town
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Boom Town
2 The Great Dictator
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The Great Dictator
3 Rebecca
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Rebecca
4 North West Mounted Police
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North West Mounted Police
5 Strike Up the Band
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Strike Up the Band
6 Northwest Passage
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Northwest Passage
7 Andy Hardy Meets Debutante
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Andy Hardy Meets Debutante
8 The Fighting 69th
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The Fighting 69th
9 Santa Fe Trail
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Santa Fe Trail
10 Kitty Foyle
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Kitty Foyle
The Grapes of Wrath
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The Grapes of Wrath
The Shop Around the Corner
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The Shop Around the Corner
His Girl Friday
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His Girl Friday
Pinocchio
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Pinocchio
Foreign Correspondent
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Foreign Correspondent
The Philadelphia Story
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The Philadelphia Story
Waterloo Bridge
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Waterloo Bridge
Virginia City
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Virginia City
My Favorite Wife
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My Favorite Wife
My Little Chickadee
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My Little Chickadee
Pride and Prejudice
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Pride and Prejudice
Our Town
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Our Town
Boys of the City
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Boys of the City
The Ghost Breakers
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The Ghost Breakers
The Letter
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The Letter
The Sea Hawk
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The Sea Hawk
They Drive by Night
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They Drive by Night
The Bank Dick
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The Bank Dick
Dr. Cyclops
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Dr. Cyclops
Fantasia
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Fantasia
One Night in the Tropics
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One Night in the Tropics
The Thief of Bagdad
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The Thief of Bagdad
The Long Voyage Home
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The Long Voyage Home
You'll Find Out
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You'll Find Out
The Westerner
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The Westerner
Go West
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Go West
Christmas in July
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Christmas in July
The Mortal Storm
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The Mortal Storm
The Return of Frank James
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The Return of Frank James
Dance, Girl, Dance
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Dance, Girl, Dance
Too Many Husbands
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Too Many Husbands
Knute Rockne All American
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Knute Rockne All American
I Love You Again
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I Love You Again
The Great McGinty
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The Great McGinty
The Blue Bird
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The Blue Bird
The Invisible Man Returns
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The Invisible Man Returns
The Mark of Zorro
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The Mark of Zorro
City for Conquest
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City for Conquest
The Ape
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The Ape
All This, and Heaven Too
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All This, and Heaven Too
Beyond Tomorrow
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Beyond Tomorrow
Road to Singapore
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Road to Singapore
Black Friday
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Black Friday
Gone with the Wind
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Gone with the Wind
Ninotchka
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Ninotchka
Of Mice and Men
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Of Mice and Men
Allegheny Uprising
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Allegheny Uprising
Remember?
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Remember?
A Christmas Carol
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A Christmas Carol
December 31, 1940 Trivia
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The Story of December 31, 1940

On December 31, 1940, a significant sporting event unfolded as Raymond Ponzio triumphed over his competitor, Caras, twice, achieving a remarkable high run of 99 in the Title Pocket Billiard Tournament.

Inventions & Breakthroughs of December 1940

Gadgets, lab surprises, odd bets, and future-shocks from this slice of the calendar.

1 Photocopier (Xerography)
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Photocopier (Xerography)
2 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Concept
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Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Concept
3 Jet Engine Flight Demonstration
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Jet Engine Flight Demonstration
4 Synthetic Detergent
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Synthetic Detergent
5 Mass-Produced Nylon Stockings
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Mass-Produced Nylon Stockings
6 Proximity Fuse
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Proximity Fuse
7 Electronic Fire Control System
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Electronic Fire Control System
8 Polyurethane Foam
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Polyurethane Foam
9 Early Speech Recognition Machine
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Early Speech Recognition Machine
10 Automatic Anti-Lock Brakes Concept
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Automatic Anti-Lock Brakes Concept

The Sounds of

Popular recordings and roots/country selections associated with the year

HEADLINES ON December 31, 1940

Full News Archive

  • Headline: PONZI BEATS CARAS TWICE; Has a High Run of 99 in Title Pocket Billiard Tourney. Impact: Ponzi's billiards victories sparked a trend where financial schemes were rebranded as 'competitive gaming'. Today, we call those the stock market and reality TV.. Fact: Remember, 'Ponzi' isn’t just a financial term; it’s also a great way to describe how you feel after losing at pool to someone named 'Champ'..
  • Headline: FRENCH MODERNS AMONG ART SHOWS; 'Landmarks' Are Put on Display in an Exhibition Given at the Pierre Matisse Gallery PARIS WATER-COLORS SEEN Genin Works at Peter Carson's --American Sculpture Shown at Buchholz's. Impact: The French modern art show ignited debates that led to the infamous 'Art vs. What Even Is That' movement, resulting in numerous art students questioning their life choices.. Fact: Art shows: where you can stare at a blank canvas and leave feeling more cultured than you did after reading War and Peace..
  • Headline: HUNGARY CALLS UP MEN TO HELP NAZIS; General Mobilization Expected --Fear of Russia Hinted --Oil Fields Guarded. Impact: Hungary's mobilization impacted global politics by sending shockwaves through the coffee shops of Paris, where baristas began serving 'protest lattes', igniting a caffeine-fueled revolution.. Fact: Turns out, calling up men for war is a surefire way to disrupt everyone's weekend plans. Who needs brunch when you could be dodging bullets?.
  • Headline: C. HAROLD WILLS, MODEL T DESIGNER; The Former Chief Engineer and Plant superintendent for Henry Ford Dies at 62 BEGAN CAREER WHEN 17 After Acquiring Fortune Made Cars in His Own Factory-- Noted as Metallurgist. Impact: C. Harold Wills' death marked the end of an era, but it also led to the infamous 'Ford vs. Wills' debates in trivia nights, where car enthusiasts still argue over who built the better vehicle.. Fact: The Model T revolutionized transportation, but little did they know it would also revolutionize how many times you can hear your dad say, 'They don't make 'em like they used to.'.
  • Headline: POLICEMAN CAUGHT IN TRAP FOR THIEF; His Arrest Is Said to Solve Long Series of Burglaries in Pleasantville. Impact: The arrest of a policeman for catching a thief created a nationwide trend in policing, where officers began to consider their day jobs as actual detective work. Crime rates skyrocketed in comedy clubs afterward.. Fact: A policeman solving a long series of burglaries is just another way of saying, 'I finally got a promotion after years of watching people steal my lunch.'.

Wall Street Time Machine

The Right Call: If you'd invested $1,000 in any one of these companies in 1940, here's what the stored 2025 dataset estimates.
Rank #1
JNJ
Johnson & Johnson
Price in 1940
$0.06
2025 dataset value
$3,433,941

Johnson & Johnson - If you invested $1,000 in 1940, it would be worth $3,433,941 today (3433.9x return)

Rank #2
PG
Procter & Gamble
Price in 1940
$0.25
2025 dataset value
$586,657

Procter & Gamble - If you invested $1,000 in 1940, it would be worth $586,657 today (586.7x return)

Rank #3
KMB
Kimberly-Clark
Price in 1940
$0.69
2025 dataset value
$147,887

Kimberly-Clark - If you invested $1,000 in 1940, it would be worth $147,887 today (147.9x return)

🦸 Top 5 Comics
Batman #1
Batman #1
$2,220,000
Flash Comics #1
Flash Comics #1
$1,500
Green Lantern #1
Green Lantern #1
$150,000
Detective Comics #38
Detective Comics #38
$42,000
All Star Comics #3
All Star Comics #3
$2,500
🧸 Top 5 Toys
Lone Ranger Frontier Town
Lone Ranger Frontier Town
$150.00
Red Ryder BB Gun
Red Ryder BB Gun
$250.00
Sorry!
Sorry!
$30.00
Paper Dolls
Paper Dolls
$35.00
Microscope Kit
Microscope Kit
$200.00
⚾ Top 5 Trading Cards
Walt Disney Comics and Stories #1 Card
Walt Disney Comics and Stories #1 Card
$800
Superman Gum Cards
Superman Gum Cards
$800
G-Men and Heroes of the Law
G-Men and Heroes of the Law
$11.00
1940 War Gum Cards
1940 War Gum Cards
$1,500
1940 Play Ball Baseball Cards
1940 Play Ball Baseball Cards
$3,000