1958 bought Americans recession with a vengeance and large increases in unemployment over 7.0% ( 5.2 million ) , inflation dipped below 2% in 1958 so those in work earning the average wages of $3,851 per year were quite well off , cars continued to get bigger and heavier with larger engines, but imports continued to grow now with the added Datsun and more Toyotas from Japan. Americas first satellite was launched from Cape Canaveral. This is also the year that the Microchip first developed which is the very early stages of PC's we all now use at work and at home. This was also the year of the Munich air disaster on 6th February in which 7 Manchester United Players died.

Cost Of Living, - News, Facts and Events, - Movies, TV and Music, - Technology, - Born This Year, World Leaders,
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Cost of Living 1958

How Much things cost in 1958
Yearly Inflation Rate USA 2.73%
Yearly Inflation Rate UK 2.7%
Average Cost of new house $12,750.00
Average Monthly Rent $92.00
Average Yearly Wages $4.600.00
Cost of a gallon of Gas 25 cents
Below are some Prices for UK guides in Pounds Sterling

Average House Price 2,390


What Events Happened in 1958

U.S.
  • NASA North American Space Agency is formed
U.S.
  • 14 year old Bobby Fischer wins the United States Chess Championship.
Germany
  • Munich air disaster on February 6th 1958 - 21 dead, including 7 Manchester United Players
U.S.
  • Toyota and Datsun Cars go on sale in The US
Russia
  • Nikita Khrushchev becomes Premier of the Soviet Union
U.S.
  • Nelson Rockefeller Elected Governor of New York <
U.S.
  • US Unemployment reaches 5.2 million
U.S.
  • US passenger jet flights start with a National Airlines Boeing 707
U.S.
  • President Eisenhower signs the Rivers and Harbors Flood Control Bill into law.
UK
  • The first Trans Atlantic passenger jetliner service begins with flights between London and New York on the new British Comet Jet
Iraq
  • Iraq becomes a Republic after Military Coup
U.S.
  • Packard Cars end production as the company closes August 19th
U.S.
  • Edsel Automobiles begin selling the Citation and Corsair, Pacer and Ranger cars ( closes down end of 1959 )
U.S.
  • Pope John XXIII is crowned 262nd pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church
World
  • Sir Edmund Hillary reaches the South Pole
China
  • The Great Chinese Famine begins in 1958 and ending in 1961 causing the death of nearly 30 million through a combination of natural disasters and poor planning.
U.S.
  • Elvis Presley is inducted into the Army.
France
  • General Charles de Gaulle becomes Prime Minister of France.
Brazil
  • Brazil wins the 1958 World Cup in Sweden








Technology

U.S.
  • The Microchip co-invented by Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments and Robert Noyce of Fairchild Semiconductors later developed and marketed in US by Intel
UK
  • London Gatwick Airport opens after two years of extensive reconstruction
U.S.
  • US Nuclear Submarine " Nautilus " passes under Ice Cap at North Pole
U.S.
  • The US Military says it will be possible with satellites orbiting the earth to make detailed maps from space



Inventions Invented by Inventors and Country ( or attributed to First Use )
Microchip USA by Jack Kilby
Computer Modem USA
Remote Control USA Zennith Corporation




Popular Culture 1958

  • The Wham-O company introduces the Hula Hoop; over 100 million are sold.
  • The Broadway musical "My Fair Lady" opens in London, with Rex Harrison as Professor Higgins, and Julie Andrews playing Eliza Doolittle

    • Popular Films

    • The Bridge on the River Kwai
    • South Pacific
    • Gigi
    • King Creole
    • Vertigo

    Popular Singers

    • Elvis Presley
    • Billie Holiday
    • Ricky Nelson
    • Frank Sinatra
    • The Everly Brothers
    • Ella Fitzgerald
    • Jerry Lee Lewis

    Popular TV Programmes

    • Candid Camera
    • The Ed Sullivan Show
    • Come Dancing
    • The Jack Benny Show
    • Panorama
    • Alfred Hitchcock Presents

    Check out our Television Programmes From The 50s whenever possible we have included a trailer to jog your memory. Series trailers and more information are found on the decade they started.









    Major World Political Leaders

    Australia Prime Minister Sir Robert Menzies

    Brazil President Juscelino Kubitschek

    Canada Prime Minister John Diefenbaker

    China Chairman of the People's Republic of China Mao Zedong

    France President René Coty

    Germany Chancellor Konrad Adenauer

    India Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru

    Italy Prime Minister Adone Zoli Till 1 July
    Italy Prime Minister Amintore Fanfani From 1 July

    Japan Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi

    Mexico President Adolfo Ruiz Cortines Till 30 November
    Mexico President Adolfo López Mateos From 30 November

    Russia / Soviet Union
    First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Nikita Khrushchev

    South Africa Prime Minister Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom Till 24 August
    South Africa Prime Minister Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd From 24 August

    United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower

    United Kingdom Prime Minister Harold Macmillan


    Political Elections


    Canadian Federal Election 1958 John Diefenbaker ( Progressive Conservatives ) defeats Lester B. Pearson ( Liberal )


    The Information above is taken from our new page that gives world leaders from 1920 to current.
    WorldLeaders