1952 Fun Facts, Trivia and History

Quick Facts from 1952:

• World Changing Event: The first patent for bar code was issued to inventors Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver.
• The Beggir World-Changing Event: The United States successfully carried out its first-ever hydrogen bomb explosion test, code-named Ivy Mike,  on November 1, 1952, on Enewetak Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.
• Influential Songs include: Your Cheatin’ Heart by Hank Williams and Heart and Soul by The Four Aces and High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me) by Frankie Laine
• The Movies to Watch include The Greatest Show in Earth, Hans Christian Andersen, The Quiet Man, High Noon, Moulin Rouge, The Big Sky and Singin’ in the Rain
• The Most Famous Person in America was probably Gary Cooper
• Notable books include: Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White, The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway, and The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
• Price of Jaguar XK 120 hardtop in 1952: $5,065.00
• US Life Expectancy: Males: 65.8 years, Females: 71.6 years
• The Funny Comedy Duo were: Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
  The Funniest TV Duo: Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca
  The Funny Guy was: Milton Berle
  The Funny TV Lady: Lucille Ball
• The Logo: Adidas purchased its famous 3-stripe logo from Karhu Sports in 1952 for two bottles of whiskey and less than $2,000.

“They’re gr-r-r-eat! ”
Tony The Tiger, voiced by Thurl Ravenscroft

Finger-lickin’ good!
– Kentucky Fried Chicken

French writer, Alfred Sauvy, invented the term “Third World” to describe the vast stretches of Africa, Asia, and Latin America whose citizens lived in dire poverty.

The “London Fog” was yellow smog so thick you couldn’t see the ground. These “pea-soupers” often carried toxic chemicals and killed 4,000 people in five days. Due to the Clean Air Act, the last London Fog was in 1962.

Wernher von Braun wrote a book called Project Mars, which imagined that human colonists on Mars would be led by a person called “Elon.”

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 allows the President to “suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens” who “would be detrimental to the interests of the United States.”

Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver received the first patents for optical bar codes on October 7.

The British Hypnotism Act of 1952 prevents the broadcasting of hypnosis procedures due to the risk that people watching the broadcast are hypnotized and cannot be brought back.

‘Invasion of Washington’ was a 1952 Washington, DC, mass UFO incident that several institutions and many people witnessed. It was dismissed by the Air Force as a combination of weather phenomena and the night sky, a claim which was disputed by all many people.

Les Paul started selling his classic electric guitar.

The 20th Century Fox media empire, now owned by Disney, is the namesake of William Fox ((born as Vilmos Fried, January 1, 1879 – May 8, 1952)) who was born as Vilmos Fried, lost control of the company in 1930, went bankrupt after the stock market crash went to jail for perjury, and died more or less unnoticed.

Season Two of  I Love Lucy included the most popular and remembered skit from the show – Lucy selling (and drinking) Vitameatavegamin. It had the ingredients you might expect – vitamins, meat, veggies, and minerals. It also had a high (23%) alcohol content.

The saying “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” was first said by philosopher, essayist, poet, and novelist George Santayana (December 16, 1863 – September 26, 1952). He was mentioned in Billy Joel’s song We Didn’t Start the Fire, which referred to Santayana’s death.

Albert Einstein was offered the Presidency of the State of Israel. He declined, saying that as a scientist trained to deal with objective facts, he lacked the aptitude and experience to deal with people.

The B-52 bomber, prototyped in 1952, is planned to remain in service until at least 2040.

The first rock and roll concert, the Moondog Coronation Ball of 1952 at the Cleveland Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, was also the first rock and roll concert to be shut down by the local authorities.

A volcano emerged in a cornfield in 1943 named Paricutín, in Michoacán, Mexico. By the time it went dormant in 1952, three people had lost their lives and hundreds relocated, while two towns were buried by lava and three others were heavily affected. The volcano is still quiet today and is now a tourist attraction.

George Stephen designed and sold the first Weber Grill in 1952.

Albert Gunton was a London city double-decker bus driver who found himself driving his route crossing Tower Bridge when the bridge began to rise to allow a ship to pass. He accelerated, jumped the gap, and was awarded £10 for his bravery. Sadly, no smartphones existed at the time to record the event.

American Bandstand, originally called Bandstand, premiered on a Philadelphia TV Station on October 7, 1952, with DJ Bob Horn serving as host.

A man wrote to The Philadelphia Inquirer to tell them that they had spelled his name wrong in a recent column; it was “Wolfeschlegelsteinhausenbergerdorff,” not “Wolfeschlegelsteinhasenbergerdorff.”

On May 2, the first commercial passenger jet flew from London to Johannesburg, inaugurating the age of jet travel. The trip carried 32 passengers and stopped 5 times en route.

Kent sold cigarettes with an asbestos filter claiming it was healthier than regular smoking. #itwasnt

Over 200 passengers were trapped for days on a train at Donner Pass above Lake Tahoe in a massive blizzard in the California Sierra when their train hit a snowbank. Two rescuers died trying to reach them. All passengers survived.

The United Kingdom successfully conducted a nuclear test to become the world’s third nuclear power on October 3, 1952.

The US Supreme Court handed down a decision in 1915 establishing that free speech did not extend to motion pictures because they were not a form of art but a business. It was overturned in 1952

March 15 – May 16:
Wheel of Fortune – Kay Starr

May 17 – June 20:
Blue Tango – Leroy Anderson

June 21 – July 4:
Here in My Heart – Al Martino

July 5 – July 11:
Delicado – Percy Faith & his Orchestra

July 12 – September 12:
Auf Wiedersehen Sweetheart – Vera Lynn

September 13 – October 17:
You Belong to Me – Jo Stafford

October 18 – November 21:
I Went To Your Wedding – Patti Page

November 22 – November 28:
It’s In The Book – Johnny Standley

November 29 – December 26:
Why Don’t You Believe Me – Joni James

December 27, 1952 – January 9, 1953:
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus – Jimmy Boyd