1950 - What happened in 1950 ?

January 1950

Friday 06:

The United Kingdom recognizes the People's Republic of China. The Republic of China severs diplomatic relations with Britain in response.

Saturday 07:

A fire at the Mercy Hospital in Davenport, Iowa kills 41 people.

Saturday 21:

Alger Hiss is convicted of perjury.

Thursday 26:

India promulgates its constitution forming a republic and Rajendra Prasad is sworn in as its first president.

Tuesday 31:

President Harry S. Truman announces a program to develop the hydrogen bomb.

February 1950

Thursday 09:

Red scare: Senator Joseph McCarthy accuses the United States State Department of being filled with Communists.

Wednesday 15:

The Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China sign a mutual defense treaty.

March 1950

Wednesday 01:

Cold War: Klaus Fuchs is convicted of spying for the Soviet Union by giving them top secret atomic bomb data.

Tuesday 07:

Cold War: The Soviet Union issues a statement denying that Klaus Fuchs served as a Soviet spy.

Wednesday 08:

The Soviet Union claims to have an atomic bomb.

Friday 17:

University of California, Berkeley researchers announce the creation of element 98, which they name "Californium".

April 1950

Wednesday 19:

Argentina becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.

Thursday 27:

Apartheid: In South Africa, the Group Areas Act is passed formally segregating races.

May 1950

Monday 01:

Guam is organized as a United States commonwealth.

Friday 05:

Bhumibol Adulyadej is crowned as King Rama IX of Thailand.

Tuesday 09:

Robert Schuman presents his proposal on the creation of an organized Europe, indispensable to the maintenance of peaceful relations. This proposal, known as the "Schuman declaration", is considered to be the beginning of the creation of what is now the European Union.

Monday 29:

St. Roch, first ship to circumnavigate North America, arrives in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

June 1950

Thursday 08:

Sir Thomas Blamey becomes the only Field Marshal in Australian history.

Monday 19:

The first commercial drag strip, the Santa Ana Drags, begins at Orange County Airport (now John Wayne Airport) at Santa Ana, in Southern California, United States. Admission wss 50 cents; or 75 cents if the ticket holder wanted to watch the mechanics work.

Thursday 22:

The longship replica Ormen Friske, en route from Birka to Rotterdam, broke apart in the North Sea because of improper construction. All 15 crew members drowned.

Sunday 25:

The beginning of the Korean War.

Tuesday 27:

The United States decides to send troops to fight in the Korean War.

July 1950

Sunday 02:

Henri Queuille becomes Prime Minister of France.

Tuesday 04:

First broadcast by Radio Free Europe.

Wednesday 05:

Zionism: The Knesset passes the Law of Return which grants all Jews the right to immigrate to Israel.

Wednesday 12:

René Pleven becomes Prime Minister of France.

Thursday 20:

In Belgium, Parliament authorizes king Léopold III to return from exile in Austria.

August 1950

Wednesday 02:

The New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures is released in a public event held in Yankee Stadium in New York City.

Friday 18:

Julien Lahaut, the chairman of the Communist Party of Belgium is assassinated by far-right elements.

Tuesday 22:

Althea Gibson becomes the first black competitor in international tennis

Thursday 24:

Edith Sampson becomess the first black U.S. delegate to the UN.

Friday 25:

President Harry Truman orders the US Army to seize control of the nation's railroads to avert a strike.

September 1950

Monday 04:

The "Beetle Bailey" comic strip begins.

Thursday 07:

The gameshow Truth or Consequences debuts on television.

Friday 15:

Korean War: United States forces land at Incheon, Korea.

Thursday 21:

George Marshall sworn in as the 3rd Secretary of Defense of United States.

Tuesday 26:

United Nations troops recapture Seoul from the North Koreans.

October 1950

Monday 02:

The comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz is first published in seven US newspapers.

Saturday 07:

United States forces invade North Korea by crossing the 38th parallel.

Wednesday 11:

The Federal Communications Commission issues the first license to broadcast television in color, to CBS (RCA will successfully dispute and block the license from taking effect, however).

Wednesday 25:

The People's Republic of China joins the Korean War, sending thousands of "volunteers" across the Yalu river border to attack United Nations forces

Saturday 28:

The Jack Benny Show, starring Jack Benny, premiers (it ran for 15 years).

November 1950

Wednesday 01:

Pope Pius XII claims Papal Infallibility when he formally defines the dogma of the Assumption of Mary.

Wednesday 08:

Korean War: United States Air Force Lt. Russell J. Brown shoots down two North Korean MiG-15s in the first jet aircraft-to-jet aircraft dog fight in history.

Monday 13:

General Carlos Delgado Chalbaud is assasinated in Caracas.

Sunday 26:

Korean War: Troops from the People's Republic of China move into North Korea and launch a massive counterattack against South Korean and American forces (Battle of Chosin Reservoir), ending any thought of a quick end to the conflict.

Wednesday 29:

Korean War: North Korean and Chinese troops force a desperate retreat of United Nations forces from North Korea.

December 1950

Saturday 09:

Harry Gold is sentenced to thirty years in jail for stealing United States nuclear weapon secrets for the Soviet Union

Tuesday 12:

Paula Ackerman, the first woman appointed to perform rabbinical functions in the United States, leads the congregation in her first services.

Thursday 28:

The Peak District becomes the United Kingdom's first National Park.