Galileo Galilei was born in Pisa, Italy. He would become the father of modern physics and astronomy, championing heliocentrism and improving the telescope to observe celestial bodies.

Michael King Jr., who would become the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He would go on to lead the American civil rights movement until his assassination in 1968.

The first AFL–NFL World Championship Game, later known as Super Bowl I, was played in Los Angeles. The Green Bay Packers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 35–10.

Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger launched Wikipedia, the free online encyclopaedia that would become one of the most visited websites in the world, with content written collaboratively by volunteers.