From top to bottom, left to right: The
Civil Rights Act of 1964 is signed into law in the United States, outlawing segregation and discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; the
Gulf of Tonkin incident escalates U.S. involvement in the
Vietnam War following reported attacks on American naval vessels;
Beatlemania sweeps the United States as
The Beatles appear on
The Ed Sullivan Show, launching the
British Invasion; the
1964 Summer Olympics are held in Tokyo, marking Japan’s postwar return to the global stage; the
1964 Alaska earthquake, the most powerful in U.S. history, strikes near Anchorage and triggers devastating tsunamis, causing widespread destruction across coastal regions; the
Project 596 nuclear test is conducted by China, making it the world’s fifth nuclear power and reshaping Cold War geopolitics;
Hurricane Dora makes landfall in Florida as a rare Atlantic hurricane to strike from the east, causing widespread damage and becoming one of the costliest storms of the decade; the
Zanzibar Revolution topples the Sultanate, leading to the establishment of a republic and the eventual formation of modern-day
Tanzania; the stop-motion television special
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer premieres on
NBC, becoming a beloved holiday classic and the longest-running Christmas special on television.