1972

Events in 1972 66

• 1884 – 1972 Harry S. Truman 33rd President — ended WWII, Marshall Plan, NATO Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884 – Dec 26, 1972) was the 33rd President 1945-1953. He ended World War II with the atomic bombs, launched the Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe, created NATO, and fought the Korean War.
• 1886 – 1972 Leo G. Carroll (1886-1972) English actor in six Hitchcock films, later Mr. Waverly in The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
• 1887 – 1972 Marianne Moore (1887-1972) Died 5 February 1972, aged 84 Moore was an American modernist poet known for her precise, witty verse and won the Pulitzer Prize for her "Collected Poems" in 1952. She was also a well-known cultural figure in New York literary circles late in life. She died in New York City.
• 1888 – 1972 Maurice Chevalier (1888-1972) Died 1 January 1972, aged 83 Chevalier was a French singer and actor known internationally for his charming stage persona and roles in films such as "Gigi." His career spanned music hall, Hollywood cinema, and recordings across six decades. He died in Paris shortly after being hospitalized for a suicide attempt tied to depression over his declining health.
• 1889 – 1972 Igor Sikorsky (1889-1972) Died 26 October 1972, aged 83 Sikorsky was a Russian-American aviation pioneer who built some of the earliest successful multi-engine aircraft and later developed the first mass-produced helicopter, the VS-300. His helicopter designs became the basis for much of modern rotorcraft. He died at his home in Connecticut.
• 1894 – 1972 Edward, Duke of Windsor (1894-1972) Died 28 May 1972, aged 77 As King Edward VIII, he abdicated the British throne in 1936 to marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson, one of the most famous royal scandals of the twentieth century. He lived most of the rest of his life in France with the title Duke of Windsor. He died of throat cancer in Paris.
• 1895 – 1972 J. Edgar Hoover (1895-1972) Died 2 May 1972, aged 77 Hoover served as director of the FBI and its predecessor agency for 48 years, shaping American federal law enforcement and amassing enormous personal power. He died in office of heart disease. His long tenure and use of surveillance against political figures remain controversial.
• 1895 – 1972 William Boyd (1895-1972) American actor who became Hopalong Cassidy in films and on early television.
• 1897 – 1972 Walter Winchell (1897-1972) Died 20 February 1972, aged 74 Winchell was an American newspaper and radio commentator who pioneered the modern gossip column and reached tens of millions of readers and listeners at his peak. His breathless, slang-filled style influenced celebrity journalism for decades. He died largely forgotten in Los Angeles.
• 1899 – 1972 Yasunari Kawabata (1899-1972) Died 16 April 1972, aged 72 Kawabata was a Japanese novelist known for spare, lyrical works such as "Snow Country" and "Thousand Cranes," and became the first Japanese writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, in 1968. He died by suicide in his seaside studio. He is regarded as one of the most important Japanese writers of the twentieth century.
• 1901 – 1972 Brian Donlevy (1901-1972) American actor of tough-guy roles, from Beau Geste to The Great McGinty.
• 1902 – 1972 Miriam Hopkins (1902-1972) American actress, a sharp star of pre-Code comedies and the first Technicolor feature, Becky Sharp.
• 1906 – 1972 George Sanders (1906-1972) British actor known for suave villains and cads, winner of an Oscar for All About Eve.
• 1906 – 1972 Oscar Levant (1906-1972) American pianist, composer and wit, known from Information Please and An American in Paris.
• 1909 – 1972 Kwame Nkrumah (1909-1972) Died 27 April 1972, aged 62 Nkrumah led Ghana to independence in 1957, becoming its first prime minister and later president, and was a leading voice for Pan-Africanism. He was overthrown in a 1966 coup and died in exile in Romania. He remains one of the most influential figures of African decolonization.
• 1911 – 1972 Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972) Died 27 January 1972, aged 60 Jackson was widely regarded as the greatest gospel singer of her era, known for her powerful voice and performances at civil rights events including the 1963 March on Washington. She recorded extensively and helped bring gospel music to mainstream audiences. She died of heart failure in Chicago.
• 1919 – 1972 Jackie Robinson (1919-1972) Died 24 October 1972, aged 53 Robinson broke Major League Baseball's color barrier in 1947 when he debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers, becoming the first Black player in the modern major leagues. He went on to a Hall of Fame career and later became a prominent civil rights advocate. He died of complications from diabetes and heart disease.
• 1928 – 1972 Jigme Dorji Wangchuck (1928-1972) Died 21 July 1972, aged 44 Wangchuck ruled as the third King of Bhutan and began modernizing the isolated Himalayan kingdom, opening it to foreign relations and development aid for the first time. He established Bhutan's first National Assembly and legal reforms. He died of heart failure while traveling in Kenya.
• 1962 – 1972 Occasional vocal recordings Beyond pure instrumentals Although best known as an instrumental group, The Shadows occasionally recorded with vocals — both under their own name and through Hank Marvin and Bruce Welch's side projects — broadening their range beyond the guitar-instrumental sound that made them famous.
• 1967 – 1972 Creedence Clearwater Revival American rock band John Fogerty, Tom Fogerty, Stu Cook and Doug Clifford — between 1969 and 1971 the biggest singles band in America, with Proud Mary, Bad Moon Rising and Fortunate Son.
• 1972 CT scanner First clinical use The first clinical CT scanner was used in 1972, revolutionising medical diagnosis by producing detailed cross-sectional images of the human body.
• 1972 Earl Monroe joins the Knicks "The Pearl" arrives via trade from Baltimore, pairing with Frazier in one of basketball's great backcourts.
• 1972 – 2026 Eric Dane (1972-2026) Died 19 February 2026, aged 53 American actor known for Grey's Anatomy and Euphoria. He died some ten months after being diagnosed with ALS.
• 1972 – present McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle Air superiority, undefeated The air superiority fighter with more than 100 air-to-air victories and no losses in air-to-air combat.
• 1972 – 2022 Taylor Hawkins (1972-2022) Died 25 March 2022, aged 50 American drummer of the Foo Fighters for twenty-five years.
• 1972 1972 World Snooker Championship Alex Higgins First Title The rise of "The Hurricane." Winner: Alex Higgins; Runner-up: John Spencer. Score: 37–32.
• 1972 UK signs Treaty of Accession to the EEC Britain, Ireland and Denmark agree to join the European Community The United Kingdom signed the Treaty of Accession in Brussels alongside Ireland, Denmark and Norway, paving the way for membership of the European Economic Community. Norway later withdrew after a referendum rejected membership. The UK, Ireland and Denmark formally joined on 1 January 1973.
• 1972 Bloody Sunday 14 killed in Northern Ireland On January 30, 1972, British soldiers shot 28 unarmed civil rights protesters in Derry, killing 14. A defining moment of The Troubles.
• 1972 Neil Young releases Harvest Heart of Gold The best-selling album of 1972 in the US — Heart of Gold is his only number one single.
• 1972 1972 Winter Olympics XI Winter Games - Sapporo The first Winter Games held outside Europe or North America. Winner: Soviet Union.
• 1972 Nixon visits China Historic diplomacy President Nixon's 1972 visit to China broke 23 years of diplomatic isolation, opening relations between the US and the People's Republic.
• 1972 – present Shaquille O’Neal Shaq Most physically dominant center of the modern era; 4-time NBA champion.
• 1972 The Godfather is released Coppola's crime saga becomes a landmark of American cinema Francis Ford Coppola's adaptation of Mario Puzo's novel opened in theaters starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino. It became a critical and commercial sensation and is widely regarded as one of the greatest films ever made. It won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
• 1972 Direct rule imposed on Northern Ireland London suspends Stormont and takes direct control In the wake of escalating violence including Bloody Sunday, the British government prorogued the Northern Ireland Parliament at Stormont and imposed direct rule from Westminster. The move ended fifty years of devolved government in the province. Direct rule would continue, on and off, for decades.
• 1972 Intel releases the 8008 microprocessor Early 8-bit chip expands the commercial microprocessor market Intel introduced the 8008, an 8-bit microprocessor that succeeded its pioneering 4004 chip. It found use in early terminals and hobbyist computers and helped demonstrate the commercial viability of general-purpose microprocessors. It was a direct precursor to the 8080 chip that powered early personal computers.
• 1972 Genocide of Hutus in Burundi Government crackdown kills an estimated 100,000-200,000 people Following a Hutu uprising against the Tutsi-dominated government, Burundian security forces carried out a mass killing campaign targeting educated and elite Hutus across the country. Estimates of the dead range from 100,000 to over 200,000. The massacre drove hundreds of thousands of refugees into neighboring countries.
• 1972 Eagles release Take It Easy First single Co-written by Jackson Browne and Glenn Frey.
• 1972 George Wallace shot at campaign rally Assassination attempt leaves Alabama governor paralyzed Alabama Governor and presidential candidate George Wallace was shot five times by Arthur Bremer at a campaign stop in Laurel, Maryland. Wallace survived but was left paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life. The shooting effectively ended his 1972 presidential bid.
• 1972 – 1997 Notorious B.I.G. (1972-1997) Died 9 March 1997, aged 24 Christopher Wallace, known as the Notorious B.I.G., was a rapper whose album Ready to Die established him as one of hip hop's most influential artists. He was shot and killed in Los Angeles amid the East Coast-West Coast rap rivalry, six months after the murder of Tupac Shakur. His case remains officially unsolved.
• 1972 Ceylon becomes the Republic of Sri Lanka New constitution ends dominion status and renames the country A new constitution came into force transforming Ceylon into the independent Republic of Sri Lanka, severing its remaining constitutional links to the British monarchy. The change reflected a broader wave of post-colonial nation-building in South Asia. William Gopallawa became the country's first president.
• 1972 – present Rubens Barrichello Rubinho Record-breaking career in terms of starts; a loyal teammate at Ferrari and a multi-race winner.
• 1972 Exile on Main St. Tenth album — May 26, 1972 Exile on Main St. was released on May 26, 1972, recorded in the basement of Keith Richards' villa in the south of France while the band were tax exiles. Initially received mixed reviews, it is now widely regarded as their masterpiece and one of the greatest rock albums ever made.
• 1972 SALT I and Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty signed Nixon and Brezhnev cap the US-Soviet arms race President Richard Nixon and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in Moscow. The agreements froze the number of strategic ballistic missile launchers each side could deploy. It marked a high point of Cold War detente.
• 1972 David Bowie releases Ziggy Stardust The Spiders from Mars His alien rock star persona.
• 1972 Watergate break-in Burglars caught wiretapping Democratic Party offices Five men were arrested breaking into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C. The break-in and subsequent cover-up unraveled over the following two years, eventually forcing President Nixon's resignation. The word "Watergate" became a global shorthand for political scandal.
• 1972 Title IX enacted US law bars sex discrimination in federally funded education President Nixon signed the Education Amendments of 1972 into law, whose Title IX provision prohibited sex-based discrimination in any school or program receiving federal funding. It dramatically expanded girls' and women's participation in school and college athletics. Its effects reshaped American education over the following decades.
• 1972 – present Zinedine Zidane World Cup winner, Ballon d'Or legend, and three-time Champions League-winning coach Zinedine Yazid Zidane, nicknamed "Zizou," is one of the greatest footballers in history, celebrated for his balance, vision, and effortless close control. Born to Algerian immigrant parents in Marseille, he rose from the working-class La Castellane housing estate to captain France to the 1998 World Cup title and lead Real Madrid to a record 14th European Cup as a player. After retiring in 2006, he reinvented himself as a coach, becoming the only manager to win three consecutive UEFA Champions League titles, with Real Madrid from 2016 to 2018.
• 1972 Curtis Mayfield releases Super Fly Soundtrack A soundtrack that outsells the film — Freddie's Dead and Pusherman.
• 1972 Match of the Century — Fischer vs Spassky Cold War on the chessboard Bobby Fischer defeated Boris Spassky 12½-8½ in Reykjavik in the most watched chess match in history. The Cold War backdrop made it a global media event, bringing chess to millions of new fans worldwide.
• 1972 Bloody Friday bombings IRA detonates twenty bombs across Belfast in under an hour The Provisional IRA set off around twenty bombs in Belfast, killing nine people and injuring more than a hundred. The attack was one of the deadliest single days of the Troubles and drew widespread condemnation. It hardened public opinion on both sides of the conflict.
• 1972 F-15 Eagle first flight Edwards Air Force Base McDonnell Douglas test pilot Irving Burrows flies the first F-15, an air superiority fighter built on the lessons of Vietnam.
• 1972 The O'Jays release Back Stabbers Breakthrough Their breakthrough album and single.
• 1972 Idi Amin expels Ugandan Asians Dictator orders 90-day expulsion of tens of thousands Ugandan President Idi Amin announced the expulsion of the country's Asian minority, giving them ninety days to leave. Around 60,000 people, many of Indian and Pakistani descent, lost their businesses and property and fled, most resettling in Britain. The expulsion devastated Uganda's economy.
• 1972 1972 Summer Olympics XX Olympiad - Munich Mark Spitz won 7 gold medals. Winner: Soviet Union.
• 1972 Second Cod War begins Iceland and Britain clash over fishing rights Iceland extended its exclusive fishing zone to 50 nautical miles, prompting a confrontation with British trawlers and the Royal Navy. Icelandic coast guard vessels cut the nets of foreign trawlers fishing within the zone. The dispute was resolved by a 1973 agreement, though a further Cod War followed later in the decade.
• 1972 Munich massacre 11 Israeli athletes killed Palestinian terrorists took 11 Israeli Olympic team members hostage at the Munich Olympics. All hostages were killed during a failed rescue attempt.
• 1972 US Clean Water Act becomes law Congress overrides Nixon veto to pass landmark environmental law The Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments, known as the Clean Water Act, became law after Congress overrode President Nixon's veto. It established the basic structure for regulating pollutant discharges into US waterways. The law became a cornerstone of American environmental regulation.
• 1972 Stevie Wonder releases Talking Book Superstition With Superstition and You Are the Sunshine of My Life.
• 1972 Nixon re-elected in landslide Incumbent wins 49 of 50 states over McGovern Richard Nixon defeated Democratic challenger George McGovern in one of the largest landslides in U.S. presidential history, winning the electoral college 520 to 17. The victory came just months after the Watergate break-in, whose implications were not yet widely understood by voters.
• 1972 HBO launches as first pay-TV network Time Inc. debuts subscription cable television service Home Box Office began broadcasting to a small number of cable subscribers in Pennsylvania, becoming the first successful pay-television network in the United States. It initially showed feature films and live sports events not available on broadcast television. HBO later grew into a major producer of original programming.
• 1972 Atari releases Pong Coin-operated arcade game launches the video game industry Atari installed its first Pong arcade cabinet, a simple tennis-style video game created by Allan Alcorn under Nolan Bushnell's direction. Its runaway popularity in bars and arcades helped establish video games as a mass-market industry. Atari followed with a home console version in 1975.
• 1972 The Temptations top the charts with Papa Was a Rollin' Stone Three Grammys A 12-minute album version — three Grammys.
• 1972 Apollo 17 makes final crewed Moon landing Last humans to walk on the lunar surface Apollo 17 launched on the sixth and final crewed Moon landing mission, with astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt spending over three days on the lunar surface. Cernan remains the last person to have walked on the Moon. The mission also produced the famous "Blue Marble" photograph of Earth.
• 1972 Bangladesh constitution takes effect New nation formally adopts its founding charter The constitution of Bangladesh, adopted by the Constituent Assembly the previous month, came into force establishing the country as a parliamentary republic. It followed the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman led the new government under the document.
• 1972 East and West Germany sign Basic Treaty Two German states formally recognize each other The Basic Treaty between the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic normalized relations between the two Cold War German states, though they stopped short of full diplomatic recognition. Both states subsequently joined the United Nations in 1973. The treaty was a centerpiece of West Germany's Ostpolitik.
• 1972 – present Patrick Rafter Pat Back-to-back US Open champion known for his serve-and-volley and sportsmanship.