In 1958, "Volare (Nel blu dipinto di blu)" topped the charts, South Pacific packed theaters, a stamp cost 4¢, the average home went for about $11,000.
🎵 Top songs of 1958
"Volare (Nel blu dipinto di blu)" — Domenico Modugno
"All I Have to Do Is Dream" — The Everly Brothers
"Don't" — Elvis Presley
🎬 In theaters
South Pacific
Gigi
Vertigo
What things cost in 1958
$0.30
Gallon of gas
4¢
Postage stamp
$0.68
Movie ticket
$1.01
Gallon of milk
$11,000
Average home
$2,150
New car
$5,087
Household income
A $0.68 movie ticket in 1958 has the buying power of roughly $7.40 in 2024 dollars, and the new 4-cent stamp equals about 45 cents today.
The biggest moments of 1958
NASA was founded in 1958, and America launched its first satellite, Explorer 1.
The hula hoop craze swept the nation, with Wham-O selling tens of millions in just months.
Elvis Presley was inducted into the U.S. Army, and fans mourned his famous haircut.
Texas pianist Van Cliburn won Moscow's first Tchaikovsky Competition and came home to a ticker-tape parade in New York.
Pan Am's Boeing 707 service in October 1958 opened the jet age for American travelers.
The quiz show scandals broke, as it emerged that hit programs like Twenty-One had been feeding contestants the answers.
Toys, TV & trends of 1958
Everyone from kids to grandparents was spinning a hula hoop in the backyard.
The modern LEGO brick was patented in January 1958.
"The Chipmunk Song" by Alvin and the Chipmunks became the surprise Christmas hit of the year.
Teenagers copied Kookie, the comb-toting parking-lot attendant on the new detective series 77 Sunset Strip.
The Donna Reed Show premiered in September 1958, adding another warm family sitcom to the evening lineup.
Two brothers in Wichita, Kansas, borrowed $600 from their mother and opened the very first Pizza Hut in 1958.
The music scene
Billboard unveiled its brand-new Hot 100 chart on August 4, 1958, and Ricky Nelson's "Poor Little Fool" holds the honor of being its very first number one. Stereo LPs went on sale that year, promising concert-hall sound from two speakers. And at the first-ever Grammy Awards, honoring the music of 1958, "Volare" swept both Record of the Year and Song of the Year — a feat no other foreign-language song would match for decades.
At the movies
Gigi charmed its way to nine Academy Awards, a record haul at the time. Vertigo, remarkably, drew lukewarm reviews and modest ticket sales in 1958 — decades later, critics would rank it among the greatest films ever made. And the drive-in reached its all-time peak that year, with more than 4,000 outdoor screens glowing across America.
Cartoons kids loved
The Huckleberry Hound Show
Yogi Bear (debuting on Huckleberry Hound)
Ruff and Reddy
With The Huckleberry Hound Show, Hanna-Barbera proved that brand-new cartoons made just for television could be a coast-to-coast smash, with Kellogg's proudly sponsoring. Its relaxed, dialogue-driven humor charmed grown-ups as much as kids, and the show went on to become the first animated series ever to win an Emmy Award.
The world in 1958
World population: about 2.9 billion
U.S. President: Dwight D. Eisenhower
NASA was established and the U.S. launched its first satellite, Explorer 1, in 1958.
Brussels hosted Expo 58, the first world's fair since the war, crowned by the gleaming Atomium.
A 17-year-old named Pelé dazzled in Sweden as Brazil won its first World Cup.
Charles de Gaulle returned to power in France, founding the Fifth Republic.
1958 birthday questions
How old is someone born in 1958?
Someone born in 1958 turns 68 in 2026 (67 if their birthday has not come round yet).
What was the number one song in 1958?
"Volare (Nel blu dipinto di blu)" by Domenico Modugno was among the biggest hits of 1958.
What movie came out in 1958?
South Pacific was one of the films packing theaters in 1958.
How much did gas cost in 1958?
A gallon of gas ran about $0.30 in 1958, and a postage stamp cost 4¢.
How much did a house cost in 1958?
The average home went for roughly $11,000 in 1958, against a typical household income of about $5,087.