MAY 18, 1961

THURSDAY
1961 Coca-Cola advertising artwork
$1,000 INVESTED IN COKE STOCK (KO) IN 1961
WOULD HAVE MADE YOU $1,184,600 IN THE 2025 DATASET
Min Wage Hourly$1.06
Median Home Price$13,070.00
Gas Price Avg$0.32
Bread Price Avg$0.22
Movie Ticket Avg$0.78
First Class Stamp$0.04
Milk Price Avg$1.02
Top Movies From 1961
Show screen release and event cards
1 West Side Story
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West Side Story
2 The Guns of Navarone
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The Guns of Navarone
3 El Cid
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El Cid
4 The Parent Trap
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The Parent Trap
5 The Absent-Minded Professor
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The Absent-Minded Professor
6 King of Kings
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King of Kings
7 Lover Come Back
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Lover Come Back
8 One Hundred and One Dalmatians
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One Hundred and One Dalmatians
9 La Dolce Vita
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La Dolce Vita
10 Come September
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Come September
The Misfits
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The Misfits
Underworld U.S.A.
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Underworld U.S.A.
The Secret Ways
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The Secret Ways
Master of the World
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Master of the World
Gorgo
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Gorgo
One-Eyed Jacks
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One-Eyed Jacks
Spartacus
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Spartacus
Exodus
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Exodus
Psycho
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Psycho
The Magnificent Seven
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The Magnificent Seven
The Sundowners
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The Sundowners
The Grass Is Greener
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The Grass Is Greener
The 3 Worlds of Gulliver
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The 3 Worlds of Gulliver
Swiss Family Robinson
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Swiss Family Robinson

May 18, 1961 Trivia

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Television from this era Β· May 18, 1961
Perry Mason
Bonanza
The Twilight Zone
The Flintstones
The Rifleman
Lassie
Tony Awards
Wagon Train
'Way Out

Exact-date daily brief

May 18, 1961

On May 18, 1961, a significant political event unfolded as Thomas E. Dewey's son was elected as the Child School Director in a local election, highlighting the ongoing influence of prominent political families in American governan...

Inventions & Breakthroughs of May 1961

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

1 First Human Spaceflight
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First Human Spaceflight
2 Industrial Robot (Unimate)
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Industrial Robot (Unimate)
3 Early Word Processor
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Early Word Processor
4 Integrated Circuit Computer
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Integrated Circuit Computer
5 Commercial Satellite Communications
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Commercial Satellite Communications
6 Space Food Systems
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Space Food Systems
7 Disposable Medical Gloves
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Disposable Medical Gloves
8 Electronic Fuel Injection
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Electronic Fuel Injection
9 Programmable Logic Controller Concept
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Programmable Logic Controller Concept
10 Ultrasound Fetal Monitoring
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Ultrasound Fetal Monitoring

The Sounds of

Popular recordings and roots/country selections associated with the year

Headlines From May 18, 1961

Full News Archive

  • Headline: New Leadership at Children's Village. Impact: Little did anyone know that electing Dewey's son would lead to a family dynasty of overly involved school directors, eventually resulting in a nationwide trend of nepotism in local governance. School bake sales became political arenas. Fact: Dewey's son was actually not as good at dodgeball as his father claimed. Shocking, I know.
  • Headline: Congress Takes Action Against Organized Crime. Impact: This push for crime legislation ironically led to a dramatic increase in the popularity of crime dramas on TV. Who knew that crime would become the new 'it' topic for dinner parties?. Fact: The Attorney General's endorsement of these bills eventually resulted in a mandatory 'Crime is Bad' sitcom, which flopped spectacularly.
  • Headline: Mrs. Kennedy's Warm Ottawa Welcome. Impact: Mrs. Kennedy's warm reception sparked a global trend of political spouses being treated like rock stars. This culminated in the eventual creation of the 'First Spouse Fan Club' – yes, that’s a real thing. Fact: The crowds cheering her on were actually just excited about the free snacks at the art gallery. Art, who needs it?.
  • Headline: 4 BILLION APPROVED FOR WELFARE AIMS. Impact: The approval of this welfare funding was the catalyst for countless debates on social safety nets, ultimately resulting in a new generation of welfare economists who had never seen the inside of a welfare office. Fact: 4 billion dollars is about the same amount the average politician spends on coffee during their term.
  • Headline: DOCTORS WANT DATA OF SCHOOLS SECRET. Impact: Doctors opposing transparency in schools led to the rise of conspiracy theories about what schools were hiding, paving the way for the infamous 'School Psychic' movement. Fact: Parents were less interested in their children's psychiatric reports and more concerned about what flavor of lunchbox was trending.
  • Headline: U.S. AND RUSSIANS CLASH AT GENEVA OVER A LAOS VETO; Rusk Fears Soviet Might Paralyze Control Body -- Gromyko Offers Plan U.S. and Soviet Clash at Geneva Over Veto on Laos Commission. Impact: The U.S. and Soviet clash at Geneva set the stage for decades of Cold War tension, which eventually gave us more action movies than we could ever need. Thanks, geopolitical strife!. Fact: The Laos veto was actually a code for 'Let's just argue about everything instead of solving real problems.'.
  • Headline: PRINTERS' LOCAL 6 VOTES ON OFFICERS. Impact: The vote by Printers' Local 6 had a surprisingly lasting impact on the font wars of the late 20th century, with Comic Sans being declared an enemy of the state in 2020. Fact: Local 6's election was so boring that even the printers fell asleep, resulting in a paper shortage the next day.
  • Headline: SOVIET 'WAR' ON U.N. CITED BY STEVENSON. Impact: Stevenson's claim of a Soviet 'war' against the UN inspired a wave of overdramatic political thrillers that still haunt us to this day. Thanks for the nightmares, Stevenson!. Fact: The USSR’s war on the UN was so intense that it sparked a new genre of literature: 'Cold War Fan Fiction.'.
  • Headline: NASSAU DEMOCRATS PICK 7 CANDIDATES. Impact: The Nassau Democrats' decision to pick candidates led to a dramatic increase in local political drama, which was later adapted into a reality show that nobody asked for. Fact: If you think local politics are boring now, just wait until you see the reality show version. It's like 'Survivor,' but with more paperwork.

Wall Street Time Machine

The Right Call: A historical $1,000 investment comparison using the stored long-range dataset.
Rank #1
PG
Procter & Gamble
Price in 1961
$0.25
Stored value
$586,657

Procter & Gamble - If you invested $1,000 in 1961, it would be worth $586,657 today (586.7x return)

Rank #3
MO
Philip Morris
Price in 1961
$0.00
Stored value
$23,651,354

Philip Morris - If you invested $1,000 in 1961, it would be worth $23,651,354 today (23651.4x return)

🦸 Top 5 Comics
Fantastic Four #1
Fantastic Four #1
$65,000
Journey into Mystery #69
Journey into Mystery #69
$3,000
Strange Adventures #124
Strange Adventures #124
$300
Action Comics #283
Action Comics #283
$250
Showcase #30
Showcase #30
$42,000
🧸 Top 5 Toys
Ken (Barbie's Boyfriend)
Ken (Barbie's Boyfriend)
$200.00
Chatty Cathy
Chatty Cathy
$425.00
Matchbox Cars
Matchbox Cars
$100.00
Nutty Mads
Nutty Mads
$200.00
Etch A Sketch
Etch A Sketch
$250.00
⚾ Top 5 Trading Cards
1961 Topps Mickey Mantle #300
1961 Topps Mickey Mantle #300
$12,000
1961 Fleer Wilt Chamberlain #8
1961 Fleer Wilt Chamberlain #8
$1,220,000
1961 Topps Roger Maris #2
1961 Topps Roger Maris #2
$250,000
1961 Nu-Cards Scoops Bobby Thompson #10
1961 Nu-Cards Scoops Bobby Thompson #10
$1,500
1961 Parkhurst Jean Beliveau #34
1961 Parkhurst Jean Beliveau #34
$1,500