Writer of Pop Culture

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This Day in Pop Culture

This Day in Pop Culture for June 3

When the first American man walked in space and when rock and roll was banned.

June 3, 2020

1–2 minutes

1965: An American Walks in Space

On this day in 1965, Major Edward H. White II stepped out of the Gemini 4 capsule to become the first American astronaut to walk in space. Of course, he was attached to the capsule via a 23-foot tether. He walked for 20 minutes. Bet he didn’t even break a sweat. White however was not the first man to walk in space. That distinction went to Soviet cosmonaut Alesksei A. Lenonov who did so on March 18 of that same year. (Image: Wikimedia)

1956: Rock and Roll is Banned

The generation gap couldn’t have been wider in 1956 when older generations couldn’t wrap their heads around the fact that younger generations were turning to radically different music tastes. But things came to a head in Santa Cruz, California when about 200 teenagers showed up to the city’s Civic Auditorium to dance to the music of Chuck Higgins and his orchestra.

When the police showed up to the event to check on it, Lieutenant Richard Overton reported that the crowd was engaging in “suggestive, stimulating and tantalizing motions induced by the provocative rhythms of an all-negro band.”

It was on this day that city authorities of Santa Cruz announced a total ban on rock and roll at public gatherings stating that it was “detrimental to both the health and morals of our youth and community.” Two weeks later, similar bans were created in Asbury Park, New Jersey and San Antonio, Texas.