1967 had been a fascinating 12 months with many things that it could be commemorated for. 1967 started off on January 1 with Canada opening a year-long party of the 100th anniversary of their Confederation. On January 23 the court case starts for Wilhelm Harster who had been charged with the murder of 82,856 Jews (including the author Anne Frank) as he headed German security forces through the German occupation of the Netherlands. He ended up being in the end sentenced to fifteen years imprisonment. The Apollo 1 astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee are killed on January 27th after fire starts in the Apollo spacecraft during the launch pad trial. In the southern area of Tasmania, in Australia, major bush fires on February 7 claim 62 lives, and also destroys 2,642.7 sq kms (653,025.4 acres) of land. The United states labor union head Jimmy Hoffa commences his 8-year sentence on March 7 for attempting to bribe a jury. On March 14th, 9 executives of the German pharmaceutical corporation Grunenthal are charged for violating German drug laws because of thalidomide. The actual court case was eventually dropped. On April 14 and 15, there were substantial demonstrations taking place against the Vietnam War in New York along with San Francisco. The coup by a gang of army officers in Greece on April 21st creates a army government that’s led by Georgios Papadopoulos. The dictatorship would not finish right up until 1974. On April 27 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Expo 67, the World’s Fair which coincides along with the Canadian Confederation celebration is formally opened. The Expo closes on October 29th following being attended by over 50 million visitors in the six months it was opened. The boxer Muhammad Ali declines army service on April 28 and is removed of his boxing titles as well as banned from professional fighting for the next 3 years.
On May 1st the singer, Elvis Presley married Priscilla Beaulieu in Las Vegas, Nevada. On May 26, The Beatles put out the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and also on November 27, the band launch the Magical Mystery Tour full album in the United States. On December 26 their film on the Magical Mystery Tour gets its world launch on BBC Television in the United Kingdom. On June 5th the Six-Day War will begin when Israel launches Operation Focus attacking Egyptian Air Force airfields and also the armies of Egypt, Syria, Iraq, and Jordan invade Israel. On June 10th that 6-Day War concludes when both Israel as well as Syria agree to a UN negotiated cease-fire. On July 4th the British Parliament decriminalizes homosexuality and on August 30th, Thurgood Marshall will be affirmed as a Justice of the US Supreme Court. He was the first Black to hold the position. On September 29, the timeless science fiction TV series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons starts on ITV in Great Britan. On October 17, the musical show Hair starts off-Broadway and the subsequent year the show moves to Broadway to begin its long haul. Future United States senator as well as presidential hopeful John McCain will be shot down over North Vietnam and taken captive on October 26. McCain will be released five years later. On December 11, 1967, Supersonic passenger plane Concorde is launched in Toulouse, in France.