The 60s Official Site

Time Capsule High School Class of 1963

Key Facts of 1963:

• President: John F. Kennedy 
• Vice President: Lyndon B. Johnson 
• Cost of a gallon gas: 30 cents 
• Cost of a gallon of milk: 49 cents 
• Cost of a dozen of eggs: 55 cents
  Cost of a new home: $19,300 
• Cost of a first class postage stamp: 5 cents 
• Unemployment: 5.5 

Notable Inventions of 1963:

• The first videodisc invented 

Time Capsule for 1963:

• President Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas; Vice President Johnson is sworn in as President.
• The U.S. and Soviet Union achieve a nuclear test ban treaty.
• Vietnamese President Diem is overthrown after months of Buddhist protests; by year end more than 100 Americans have died in Vietnam.
• More than 200,000 people take part in the civil rights march on Washington D.C., climaxed by Martin Luther King's I Have A Dream speech.
• Violent police tactics and a church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama strengthen national sentiments for civil rights.
• Gordon Cooper makes America's longest spaceflight yet, 22 orbits of the earth.
  For the first time, a majority of college -age Americans are enrolled in college or universities.
• Sandy Koufax leads the Los Angeles Dodgers to a World series championship over the New York Yankees.
• Movies:  The most expensive film ever made, Cleopatra, (starring Elizabeth Taylor,) is the year's top boxoffice hit but still ends up losing millions of dollars.  Other winners at the boxoffice were Tom Jones, Sydney Poitier in Lillies of the Field, Sean Connerly brings James Bond to the screen with Ian Fleming's Dr. No.  Other hits were It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World and Irma La Douche.
• Television:  CBS and NBC expand their nightly news telecasts to 30 minutes.  The fall's most popular series are The Beverly Hillbillies, Bonanza, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Petticoat Junction, and The Andy Griffith Show.

The Top Musical Artists of 1963 Were:

The Beach Boys, Dion, Rick Nelson, The 4 Seasons, Bobby Vinton, Brenda Lee, Peter, Paul & Mary, Chubby Checker, Steve Lawrence, Ray Charles, Roy Orbison, Paul & Paula, The Chiffons, Elvis Presley, Connie Francis, Lesley Gore, Brook Benton, Sam Cooke, Bobby Vee, Little Peggy March

The Top Musical Artist Debuts of 1963:

Lou Christie, Martha & The Vandellas, Wayne Newton, Wilson Pickett, The Righteous Brothers, Lesley Gore, Otis Redding, Stevie Wonder, Major Lance, Tammi Terrell, The O'Jays, Patti LaBelle, Johnnie Taylor

Other Musical Tidbits:

• The Top Song of 1963 was Sugar Shack by Jimmy Gilmer & The Fireballs which was number 1 for 5 weeks.
• The Top Recording Artist of 1963 was The Beach Boys.