It Happened in 1958
In the News
  • The United States launches its first satellite
  • Pizza Hut opens in Kansas City, MO
  • Elvis Presley is inducted into the Army
  • Bobby Fischer wins U.S. Chess Championship at age 14, the youngest player ever to win that title
  • Governor Faubus shuts down Little Rock schools
  • The National Advisory Council on Aeronautics is renamed NASA
  • The Air Force Academy opens
Cost of Living
  • New House - $11,975
  • Average Income - $4,650 per year
  • New Car - $2155
  • Movie Ticket - $1 each
  • Gasoline – 24 cents a gallon
Movie Favorites
  • "Gigi"
  • "Vertigo"
  • "Plan 9 from Outer Space"
  • "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof"
Music Favorites
  • "The Witch Doctor," David Seville
  • "Yakety Yak," The Coasters
  • "The Purple People Eater," Sheb Wooley
  • "Tequila," The Champs
Television Favorites
  • "Wagon Train"
  • "The Rifleman"
  • "Maverick"
Sports
  • World Series Champion – New York Yankees
  • Pro Football Champion – Baltimore Colts
  • NCAA Basketball Champion – Kentucky
  • College Football Champions – LSU & Iowa
  • Heisman Trophy Winner – Pete Dawkins from Army
Arts and Entertainment
  • The Grammy Awards are introduced
  • Billboard debuts its Hot 100 chart
  • Ricky Nelson’s "Poor Little Fool" boasts the first No. 1 record
  • Alvin Ailey establishes the American Dance Theatre
University of Florida
  • Student population reaches 11,000
  • Dormitory rental rates average $16.93 per space per month
  • A new regulation allows coeds to wear Bermudas anywhere on campus ... though professors still have the authority to bar them from their classes
  • The football team and many other students catch the Asian Flu, forcing the cancellation of the football game against UCLA; and when the infirmary reaches maximum capacity, the overflow is housed in the gym.
  • The Alligator celebrates 50 years of publication
  • George Starke Jr. becomes the first African American to be admitted to the UF College of Law