Undated: 'Pogo Primer for Parents (TV Division)'

Written and illustrated by Walt Kelly, creator of the "Pogo" comic strip, this booklet was commissioned by the U.S. government (Children's Bureau, Social Security Administration, Department of Health, Education and Welfare). From the text: "Do not be afraid of your t.v. set. These things are probably here to stay. Do not be afraid of your child. He is not here to stay. He is a precious visitor. ... A machine is a bad sole companion. It needs help. You can help it. Love your child." It was available for 20 cents from the Government Printing Office in Washington.

* Book in its entirety (PDF may take a few minutes to load): @

* www.pogopossum.com (official "Pogo" website): @

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Thursday, March 9 / Saturday, March 25, 1961: Ivan Ivanovich

Ivan Ivanovich was the name given to a mannequin twice launched aboard Soviet capsules as the country presses ahead with its efforts to put a man into space. The name "Ivan Ivanovich" is the Soviet equivalent of "John Doe." Both times the mannequin was ejected from the craft during re-entry and parachuted to Earth. The sign beneath the visor says "Maket," or "dummy," so that anyone coming across the mannequin would not mistake it for a live (or dead) human being.

* More information: @ and @

-- March 9: Korabl-Sputnik 4 (known as Sputnik 9 in the West)

* Summary: @

-- March 25: Korabl-Sputnik 5 (Sputnik 10)

* Summary: @

* Capsule to be auctioned on April 12, 2011: @ and @

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March, 1961: Female jockeys

France lifts its ban on female jockeys, who compete in the first Prix des Amazons, held at the Cagnes-sur-Mer track, near Nice.

* Newsreel (dated March 9): @

* www.femalejockeys.com: @

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Wednesday, March 8, 1961: Identikit

In London, Edwin Bush is arrested and charged with the March 3 killing of Elsie May Batten. The case would mark England's first successful prosecution of a killer using the Identikit system, in which templates of facial features are arranged to produce a drawing resembling a suspect. (Bush would be hanged for the murder in July 1961.)

* Summary of case (from Metropolitan Police website): @

* "Wanted -- faces that fit the bill" (1985 article in New Scientist magazine): @

* "Facial Composites: Forensic Utility and Psychological Research" (scientific paper): @

* "Beating the Devil's Game: A History of Forensic Science and Criminal Investigation" (book by Katherine Ramsland; search for "Identikit" for more on system's origins): @

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Tuesday, March 7, 1961: Nuclear fallout plotting device

Patent No. 2,973,579, "for geographically determining fallout patterns of nuclear detonations," is issued to Edward A. Schuert on behalf of the U.S. government. Schuert worked at the Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory (NRDL), at the San Francisco Naval Shipyard. "It is highly desirable that the course of the particles, particularly as they near the earth, be determinable not only with accuracy but also with sufficient speed to enable evacuation of such areas as will be affected," the patent states. (Photo from 1958 nuclear testing at Eniwetok Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.)

* Read the patent: @

* "A Fallout Forecasting Technique With Results Obtained at the Eniwetok Proving Ground" (1957 paper by Schuert): @

* More about San Francisco Naval Shipyard: @ and @

* More about nuclear fallout (from atomicarchive.com): @

* "The Effects of Nuclear War" (1979 report from Office of Technology Assessment): @

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Monday, March 6, 1961: 'Affirmative action'

Signed by President Kennedy, Executive Order 10925 establishes the President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity (to be renamed the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 1964).

Included in its provisions is the first reference to "affirmative action" -- requiring that government contractors give full and fair consideration to previously under-represented groups (i.e., minorities, women) when hiring.

The passage reads: "The contractor will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, creed, color or national origin. The contractor will take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin."

* Text of Executive Order 10925 (from www.eeoc.gov): @

* Entry from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: @

* American Association for Affirmative Action: @

* Links to many other related sites: @

* "The Affirmative Action Debate" (book by George E. Curry, Cornel West): @

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March 1961: 'My Favorite Things'

Jazz saxophonist John Coltrane takes "The Sound of Music" show tune in a different and memorable direction. The song appeared on the album also called "My Favorite Things," recorded in just 3 days in October 1960 and released in March 1961. The original piece came in at nearly 14 minutes; a shorter version was released as both sides of a 45 record. Billboard magazine described it this way: "Strong wax for modern jazz cats."

* Listen to song: @

* Summary of the making of the album: @

* Listen to "My Favorite Things at 50" (radio documentary): @

* Thesis and musical analysis: @

* "John Coltrane: His Life and Music" (book): @

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Wednesday, March 1, 1961: The Peace Corps

By Executive Order 10924, President Kennedy establishes the Peace Corps "for the training and service abroad of men and women of the United States in new programs of assistance to nations and areas of the world." The volunteer program had been set in motion by Kennedy's speech at the University of Michigan on October 14, 1960. (Click here for entry.) On March 4, Kennedy appoints Sargent Shriver (left) as director. The trial program would be approved and funded by Congress on September 22.

* Summary (from the National Archives): @

* Summary (from The Presidential Timeline of the Twentieth Century): @

* Executive Order: @ and @

* Kennedy transcript and video: @

* March 13 newsreel: @

* Peace Corps website: @

* Peace Corps Digital Library: @

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March 1961: Mad magazine

1961 being the first year since 1881 and the last year until 6009 that reads the same upside down as it does rightside up (with the right typeface, of course).

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Undated: 'When I am an old woman ...'

"Warning" is a 1961 poem by British author Jenny Joseph about the delights of growing older. The first two lines:

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple

With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me.

The poem appeared in the 1974 poetry collection "Rose in the Afternoon." In the late 1990s the reference to a red hat inspired the creation of The Red Hat Society.

* Watch Joseph read "Warning": @

* Poem in full: @

* Short biographies of Joseph: @ and @

* Red Hat Society website: @

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Thursday, February 23, 1961: Duncan Carse

Polar explorer Duncan Carse sets up camp on the remote island of South Georgia, about 1,000 miles off the southeastern tip of South America. Carse, who had helped map the island in the 1950s, hoped to stay there -- all alone -- for 18 months and do scientific research. His plan went awry in May when much of his gear was swept away by high waves; he was rescued in September by a passing ship.

Carse also worked for the BBC before and after his expedition. The photo is from 1949, when Carse was the main character's voice on the radio drama "Dick Barton, Special Agent."

Watch "Survival in Limbo" (BBC documentary):

* Part 1: @

* Part 2: @

* Part 3: @

* Part 4: @

* Part 5: @

* Part 6: @

* "An experiment in loneliness" (New Scientist, September 22, 1950): @

* "The Forgotten Man of the Atlantic" (2007 article from The Guardian newspaper): @

* 2004 obituary from The Times newspaper: @

* Obituary from The Telegraph newspaper: @

* South Georgia map: @

* South Georgia government website: @

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Tuesday, February 21, 1961: Electrical resistor

Otis Boykin receives a patent on a versatile, durable, inexpensive electrical resistor, which would find use in such devices as radios, TVs, computers and guided missiles. It was but one of many contributions to electronics by Boykin, who also invented a regulating device for a heart pacemaker.

* Short biography of Boykin (from MIT): @

* Short biography (from the book "African Americans in Science, Math and Invention"): @

* Documents and drawings from United States Patent Office: @

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Thursday, February 16, 1961: DuSable Museum of African American History

What was then called the Ebony Museum of Negro History and Art opened its doors in the Chicago home of Charles and Margaret Burroughs (left). It was the first museum in the U.S. devoted to black history and culture. It was later renamed in 1968 to honor Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, a Haitian regarded as Chicago's first permanent settler.

* Summary (from Encylopedia of Chicago): @

* Museum website: @

* Watch documentary on museum: @

* Short biography of du Sable from DuSable Heritage Association: @

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Wednesday, February 15, 1961: U.S. figure skating team

The entire U.S. figure skating team -- 18 skaters -- dies when their plane crashes near Brussels, Belgium. The team (along with coaches, officials and family members) was en route to Prague, Czechoslovakia, for the world championships, which were cancelled in the wake of the accident.

* Accident description (from Aviation Safety Network): @

* Crash site footage: @

* U.S. Figure Skating Memorial Fund (established after crash): @

* "Remembering Flight 548" (2000 series from Boston Globe): @

* Footage of Laurence Owen at U.S. National Championships (January 29, 1961): @

* Sports Illustrated (February 13, 1961) -- Cover: @ Story: @

* "Never to Skate Again" (Life magazine, February 24, 1961): @

* "Rise" (2011 movie): @

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Sunday, February 12, 1961: Venera-1

The Soviet Union launches the first interplanetary exploration spacecraft. Venera-1's mission was to send back information as it flies past Venus. A week after launch, communications with the craft were lost; Venera-1 passed near Venus in May and entered into orbit around the sun.

* NASA summary: @

* "The Soviet Exploration of Venus" (from mentallandscape.com): @

* Summary of Venera program (from Case Western Reserve University): @

* Graphic: @

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