Pop History

The names of famous and influential people are scattered throughout the FiftiesWeb This is merely a short list for those of you who have been asked the question, Name Some Famous People.

Politics and World - This Page

Politics and World
	John Fitzgerald Kennedy Born:1917 in Brookline, Massachusetts Died: 1963 (Assassinated)(age 46) 35th President of the United States 1961 - 1963 Married to Jacqueline Lee Bouvier He was the youngest elected President, also the first Catholic as well as the first Irish-American President. He was a war hero commanding aboard a torpedo boat, PT-109 and surviving the sinking of that vessel during a navel battle. Highlights of his Presidency include civil rights and standing up to the Soviets during the Cuban missile crises. Most Famous Speech: His Inaugural Address which included "ask not what you can do for your country ... (Click to read) He was assassinated on November 22, 1963 by Lee Harvey Oswald who was himself assassinated 2 days later by Jack Ruby before he could be put on trial.
	Robert F. (Bobby) Kennedy Born: 1925 in Brookline, Massachusetts Died: 1968 (Assassinated)(age 42) U.S. Attorney General 1961 - '64 (under his brother JFK). Married to Ethel Skakel (they had eleven children together) After his older brothers death Bobby was elected to the US Senate from New York. He served for one term then made a run for President. After a primary win and victory speech on June 5, 1968 he was shot to death by Sirhan Sirhan in a hotel hallway. Famous Quote: "There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why... I dream of things that never were and ask why not" He was 42 years old.
	Martin Luther King Jr. Born: 1929 in Atlanta, GA Died: April 4, 1968 (Assassinated)(age 39) Married to Coretta Scott (they had four children) A Baptist minister, King was the central figure in the civil rights movement of the 1960's. He was known for his non-violent protests in Washington DC and in the South in favor of equality for all peoples. He was assassinated April 4, 1968 by James Earl Ray an escaped prisoner. Won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. Famous Speech: I Have A Dream ...(click to read) presented in 1963 at the March on Washington. His birthday is an American national holiday.
	Richard Milhous Nixon Born: 1913 in Yorba Linda, CA Died: 1994 (Stroke) (age 81) 37th President of the United States 36th Vice President of the United States Nixon was the only President to resign the Presidency The only President to have been elected twice to both the Vice Presidency and the Presidency Major Achievements :Ending the Vietnam War (very slowly ending the war), Initiated a dialogue and relations with Communist China, Improved relations with the Soviet Union
	J Edgar Hoover Born: 1895 in Washington, D.C. Died: 1972 in Washington, D.C. (age 77) The first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) he served from 1935 until his death in 1972 He created the FBI and brought it to prominence by fighting organized crime in the 1930's and 40's. During WW II he hunted Nazi spies in the U.S. and afterward during the cold war he turned his attention to finding hidden communists. He was known for having secret and illegal files and wire taps on thousands of Americans including prominent political figures, civil rights activists and liberal entertainers.
	Mao Tse Tung (Mao Zedong ) Founder of The Peoples Republic of China, the Communist Party of China and President of China. Born: 1893 in Shaoshan, Hunan, China Died: 1976 (age 82) He unified China by destroying the Nationalist power base and starting a social revolution. He is responsible for keeping China in the dark ages for decades because of his anti-Western beliefs. His various revolutions (Cultural, Land Reform, Counter revolutionaries) killed over 2 million non believers.
	Nelson Mandela Born: 1918 in Transkei, South Africa He has been married three times the latest on his 80th birthday. Mandela was a political leader who struggled to end Apartheid and the white racist control of South Africa He was jailed in 1962 for his leadership of the African National Congress and served 27 years of a life sentence He was elected President of S. Africa 4 years after his release in the first democratic election in the country's history. He served from 1994 - 1999. He continues to be an advocate for a variety of social and human rights issues.
	Fidel Castro (Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz ) Born:1926 in Birán, Cuba Prime Minister of Cuba 1959 - 1976 President of Cuba 1976 - 2008 (resigned for health reasons) First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba 1965 - present Led a "peoples" revolution in Cuba which started in 1956 and lasted until 1959. Castro's reforms included nationalizing every business and seizing lands for the State. His programs forced over one million middle and upper class Cubans to flee the country and seek refugee status in the US. Castro closely aligned his nation with the USSR receiving aid and money from them. When asked to protect him from the US the Soviets attempted to provide him with nuclear capable missiles, a move which was not tolerated by President Kennedy bringing the world to the brink of a superpower confrontation.

Famous People Politics and World

Famous People
Politics and World