DECEMBER 20, 1958

Full News Archive

• Headline: Geneva Nuclear Talks Adjourn with Disputes. Impact: The unresolved snags in the Geneva Nuclear Talks led to the creation of countless conspiracy theories, including one that claimed a secret society of nuclear physicists was plotting to create a doomsday device. Spoiler: they were just really bad at negotiation. Fact: Did you know that nuclear talks often end with the same enthusiasm as your average family dinner? Everyone's got a lot to say, but nobody's actually getting along.
• Headline: Goldfine Convicted for Tax Data Contempt. Impact: Goldfine's conviction for contempt sparked a series of tax avoidance schemes that would later inspire countless reality shows about wealthy individuals trying to hide their money from the IRS. Thanks, Goldfine!. Fact: Did you know that defying a court order is a great way to make sure your tax records become the most interesting part of your biography? Just ask Goldfine!.
• Headline: ATLAS SHOT POSES LEGAL QUESTIONS; Sovereignty Problems Arise Because of National Status of New U. S. Satellite. Impact: The legal questions surrounding the Atlas satellite led to a whole new field of space lawyers – a group that, ironically, never leaves Earth. They spent the next decades arguing over who owns the moon. Spoiler: still no one. Fact: Did you know that the only thing more complicated than international space law is trying to explain it to your cat?.
• Headline: Court Jails Owner of Building Where Elevator Killed Boy, 14. Impact: The tragic incident of the elevator accident sparked a wave of building safety regulations that led to a boom in the elevator inspection industry, making it the most exciting job no one ever wanted. Fact: Did you know that elevators have been responsible for more awkward moments than family reunions? They just never seem to be big enough for all the tension.
• Headline: DELIVERERS SEEK OTHER UNIONS' AID; Labor Leaders at Papers to Hear Strikers' Appeal for Support on Monday. Impact: The solidarity among labor unions was the catalyst for countless sitcom plots where strikers end up forming a rock band. Because nothing says 'we demand better pay' like a catchy tune. Fact: Did you know that labor disputes have inspired more dramatic monologues than Shakespeare? It's all about the delivery!.
• Headline: Soviet Leaders Hail Khrushchev Policy On Farms as Model. Impact: Khrushchev’s agricultural policies were so successful they led to a brief period where cabbage became a highly sought-after commodity, resulting in underground cabbage trading. Who knew veggies could be so exciting?. Fact: Did you know that in the USSR, if you didn’t like cabbage, you might as well have been a traitor? Vegetables were serious business.
• Headline: VOICE FROM SPACE; Broadcast Picked Up as Rocket Travels Over Florida. Impact: The transmission of Eisenhower’s Christmas message from space not only demonstrated U.S. technological prowess but also inadvertently led to the creation of the first interstellar spam emails. Extra-terrestrials just can’t escape marketing. Fact: Did you know that if aliens are out there, they probably rolled their eyes at our holiday messages? They’ve got their own intergalactic traditions.
• Headline: MIKOYAN MISSION LINKED TO CHANGE IN SOVIET POLICY; Poles Expect His Trip to U.S. to Figure in Key Events Involving Tie to China. Impact: Mikoyan’s mission to the U.S. and the promise of a pipeline to Poland helped to solidify the Soviet-Polish relationship, and led to a series of ‘pipeline parties’ that only ended when the vodka ran out. Fact: Did you know that pipelines have been a source of tension and celebration in equal measure? They’re basically the world’s longest party invitations.