January 4, 1960 — Albert Camus dies
By Loki 222 Content, Culture, Rock n Roll History of the World, The Rock'n'Roll History of the World
Albert Camus was not an existentialist. He'd have been the first one to tell you that. He was mates with quite a few members of that tribe, but he never considered himself one of their number. Nevertheless, his works – especially "The Stranger","The Plague" and "The Myth of Sisyphus" – are often considered to parts of the existentialist canon (insofar as such a thing can be considered to exist).
Camus was only 46 when he died, in an unfortunate car accident that also claimed the life of his publisher, Michel Gallimard, who was driving the car at the time. His death was a great loss to the development of philosophy in the twentieth century.
By Photograph by United Press International – This image is available from the United States Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs division
under the digital ID cph.3c08028.
This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information., Public Domain, Link
Done Too Soon — Neil Diamond
Tagged 1960, Albert Camus, Done Too Soon, existentialism, Jan 4, Neil Diamond
January 25, 1960 — The NAB announces fines for DJs found accepting payola
By Loki 222 Content, Crime, Culture, Economics, Rock n Roll History of the World, The Rock'n'Roll History of the World
While there had been rumours about payola in the music industry for years, the practice became more prevalent in the 1950s as radio overtook jukeboxes as the primary way music was listened to. In 1959, the US Senate began to investigate these claims, dragging the whole sordid practice of pay for play into the light. DJs testified to taking payments of as much as $22,000 to play songs, and careers were ruined and reputations tarnished.
In an effort to combat the public reaction to the scandal, the National Association of Broadcasters announced heavy fines for DJs caught accepting such bribes. Later, they restructured the industry to make programme directors at each station instead responsible for deciding what to play – a decision that actually made payola easier for the record labels. It is widely believed that the practice of payola continues to this day with little change other than that the DJs no longer see a dime from it.
By Kiwiev – Own work, CC0, Link
Payola Blues — Neil Young
Pull My Strings — Dead Kennedys
We Didn't Start The Fire — Billy Joel
Tagged 1960, Billy Joel, Dead Kennedys, Jan 25, Neil Young, Payola Blues, Payola scandal, Pull My Strings, We Didn't Start The Fire
May 16, 1960 – Khrushchev demands that Eisenhower apologise for U-2 spy flights
By Loki 222 Content, Crime, Politics, Rock n Roll History of the World, The Rock'n'Roll History of the World
On May 1, American pilot Gary Powers was shot down while flying a Lockheed U-2 over the USSR on a covert surveillance mission, photographing military and other targets. Four days later, the American government released disinformation stating that Powers had gone missing and was presumed dead while flying over Northern Turkey. On May 7, Khrushchev released information demonstrating that the Americans had lied, causing a massive loss of face to the Eisenhower administration, and heightening Cold War tensions. Not only was Powers still alive, but his plain had been captured mostly intact. Indeed, the Soviets were even able to develop some of the photos Powers had taken.
This was unfortunate timing, to say the least, as the Four Powers summit in Paris was due to begin on May 14. Krushchev demanded an apology from the UNited States, and when Eisenhower proved recalcitrant, he walked out of the summit. Soviet-American relations deteriorated notably as a result of these incidents.
Powers was tried for espionage, pleaded guilty and was convicted on August 19, Although his sentence called for 3 years' imprisonment and 7 years of hard labor, he served only one and three-quarter years of the sentence before returning to the West in a hostage swap deal.
By CIA – https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/kent-csi/images/v42i5a02p4.gif, Public Domain, Link
Tagged 1960, Billy Joel, Eisenhower, Gary Powers, May 16, Nikita Khrushchev, U-2, U2, We Didn't Start The Fire