1962
Centuries: 19th century - 20th century - 21st century
Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s - 1960s - 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
Years: 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 - 1962 - 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967
Events:
- Sino-Indian War border dispute involving two of the world's largest nations.
- January 1 - Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand
- January 3 - Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro.
- January 4 - New York City introduces a train that operates without a crew on-board.
- January 8 - Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa is exhibited in the United States for the first time (National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC).
- January 11 - Eruption of the volcano Huascaran in Peru; 4000 deaths.
- July 1 - Independence of Rwanda and Burundi
- July 23 - Telstar transmits the first trans-Atlantic television signal.
- October - Cuban missile crisis
- October 11: Opening of Second Vatican Council
- December 8: Closing of first period of Second Vatican Council
- Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring released, giving rise to the modern environmentalist movement.
- Completion of Coventry cathedral.
Art, Culture & Fashion
- 1962 in film
- Lawrence of Arabia
- The Longest Day
- To Kill a Mockingbird, starring Gregory Peck
- The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance starring Jimmy Stewart and John Wayne
- How the West Was Won, starring Jimmy Stewart, Gregory Peck, John Wayne, George Peppard, Debbie Reynolds
- Hatari! starring John Wayne
- 1962 in literature
- 1962 in music
- Release of first Beatles recording: the single "Love Me Do"/"P.S. I Love You" on October 5 (in the United Kingdom only)
- 1962 in sports
- 1962 in television
- March 16 - Walter Cronkite succeeds Douglas Edwards as anchorman of the CBS Evening News.
- Les Crane and Regis Philbin host The Tonight Show for a short time, until Johnny Carson took over later in the year.
Births:
- February 7 - Eddie Izzard, British comedian
- January 17 - Jim Carrey, actor, comedian
- February 11 -
- Sheryl Crow, American singer
- Scott Kolden, actor
- April 15 - Nawal El Moutawakel, Moroccan hurdler
- July 8 - Rob Burnett, former head writer for David Letterman
- September 26 - Melissa Sue Anderson, actress
- October 1 - Esai Morales, actor
- November 19 - Jodie Foster, actress and director
Deaths:
- January 13 - Ernie Kovacs, comedian
- January 20 - Robinson Jeffers, poet
- February 17 - Bruno Walter, conductor
- May 31 - Adolf Eichmann, aged 56, Nazi official responsible for the execution of the holocaust (executed)
- July 6 - William Faulkner, American novelist
- August 9 - Hermann Hesse, author
- November 18 - Niels Bohr, Danish physicist