Centuries: 19th century - 20th century - 21st century
Decades: 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s - 1940s - 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s
Years: 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 - 1949 - 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954
Events
- January 11 - First recorded case of snowfall in Los Angeles, California.
- January 25 - At the Hollywood Athletic Club the first Emmy Awards are presented
- January 25 - The first Israeli election -- David Ben-Gurion becomes Prime Minister
- January 26 - Australian Citizenship comes into being.
- February 8 - Cardinal Mindszenty of Hungary sentenced for treason
- February 14 - The Knesset (Israeli parliament) first convenes.
- February 19 - Ezra Pound is awarded the first Bollingen Prize in poetry by the Bollingen Foundation and Yale University.
- April 1 - Newfoundland joins Canada
- April 4 - NATO is formed.
- September 29 - - First Plenary Session of the National People's Congress of China approves design for the Flag of China
- October 1 - Birth of the Peoples Republic of China
- December 27 - Queen Juliana of the Netherlands grants Indonesia sovereignty.
- Fourth Geneva Convention
Art, Culture & Fashion
- 1949 in film
- February 10 - Death of a Salesman opens (Morosco Theatre in New York City).
- All the King's Men
- Twelve O'Clock High
- Sands of Iwo Jima starring John Wayne
- 1949 in literature
- Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell
- Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
- King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry
- The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles
- 1949 in music
- 1949 in sports
- 1949 in television
- January 3 - Colgate Theatre premieres on NBC.
- January 11 - A 2 hour special on all networks celebrates the linking of the eastern and midwestern networks via coaxial cable
- January 17 - The Goldbergs, the first sitcom on American television, airs.
- January 31 - The first Emmy Awards are presented and broadcasted on television from Los Angeles
- May - The first telethon, benefitting the Damon Runyon Cancer Fund, is hosted by Milton Berle and lasts for 24 hours
- August 25 - RCA announces the development of a compatible color TV system.
- December 29 - KC2XAK of Bridgeport, Connecticut becomes the first ultrahigh frequency (UHF) television station to operate a daily schedule.
Births
- January 8 - Wolfgang Puck, celebrity chef
- January 10 - George Foreman, boxer
- January 10 - James Lapine, stage director
- January 10 - Linda Lovelace, pornographic film actress (+ 2002)
- January 12 - Wayne Wang, director
- January 13 - Brandon Tartikoff, television executive (+ 1997)
- January 14 - Lawrence Kasdan, director, screenwriter
- January 17 - Andy Kaufman, comedian (+ 1984)
- January 18 - Philippe Starck, French designer
- January 19 - Robert Palmer, singer, guitarist
- January 20 - Göran Persson, prime minister of Sweden.
- January 24 - John Belushi, actor (+ 1982)
- February 11 - Charlie Hargrett, rock guitarist.
- February 22 - Niki Lauda, Formula One driver
- March 22 - Fanny Ardant, actress
- May 31 - Tom Berenger, actor.
- July 15 - Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden.
- August 15 - Richard Deacon, sculptor
- September 23 - Bruce Springsteen, singer, songwriter
- October 1 - Isaac Bonewits, author, occultist.
- November 6 - Arturo Sandoval, Jazz preformer
- December 3 - John Akii-Bua Ugandan hurdler
- December 7 - Tom Waits, singer, composer, actor
- December 22 - Maurice Gibb, musician (The Bee Gees) (+ 2003)
- December 22 - Robin Gibb, musician (The Bee Gees)
Deaths
- January 6 - Victor Fleming, director
- May 9 - Louis II of Monaco
- October 27 - Marcel Cerdan, World Champion Boxer
- Bhattacharya, Dr K C
- Sigrid Undset, Norwegian author
- Physics - Hideki Yukawa
- Chemistry - William Francis Giauque
- Medicine - Walter Rudolf Hess, Antonio Caetano De Abreu Freire Egas Moniz
- Literature - William Faulkner
- Peace - Lord John Boyd Orr of Brechin
Books