- Jan 1 29th Orange Bowl: #5 Alabama beats #8 Oklahoma, 17-0
- Jan 1 29th Sugar Bowl: #3 Mississippi beats #6 Arkansas, 17-13
- Jan 1 49th Rose Bowl: #1 Southern California beats #2 Wisconsin, 42-37
- Jan 1 G Woods succeeds Eugene Black as president of the World Bank
- Jan 1 WTEV (now WLNE) TV channel 6 in Providence RI begins broadcasting
- Jan 3 WOUB TV channel 20 in Athens, OH (PBS) begins broadcasting
- Jan 4 Soviet Luna (4) reaches Earth orbit but fails to reach Moon
- Jan 5 "Carnival!" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 719 performances
"Camelot"
Jan 5 Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's musical "Camelot", starring Richard Burton, Julie Andrews, and Robert Goulet, closes at Majestic Theater, NYC, after 873 performances and winning 4 Tony Awards
- Jan 6 "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom" with Marlin Perkins begins on NBC
Oliver!
Jan 6 Lionel Bart's musical "Oliver!", based on Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist", and featuring a young Davy Jones, opens at Imperial Theater, NYC; runs for 774 performances, winning 3 Tony Awards
- Jan 7 1st class postage raised from 4 cents to 5 cents
Model, Brown Rift Boils Over
Jan 7 The rift between Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell and head coach Paul Brown reaches a boiling point, and Brown is fired
- Jan 8 "Mona Lisa", on loan, unveiled in America's National Gallery of Art
"Katharina Ismailova"
Jan 8 Dmitri Shostakovich' opera "Katharina Ismailova" premieres in Riga
Reply to Comrade Kuo Mo-jo
Jan 9 Mao Zedong writes his poem "Reply to Comrade Kuo Mo-jo"
- Jan 11 Beatles release single "Please Please Me" / "Ask Me Why"; peaks at #2 in UK, and #3 in US
Chamberlain Scores 67
Jan 11 SF Warriors center Wilt Chamberlain scores 67 points in 134-129 defeat to LA Lakers at Cow Palace
- Jan 12 "Go Away Little Girl" by Steve Lawrence peaks at #1
- Jan 12 Spin bowler Bobby Simpson takes 5-57 for Australia v England
13th NFL Pro Bowl
Jan 13 13th NFL Pro Bowl, LA Memorial Coliseum: Eastern Conference beats Western Conference, 30-20; MVPs: Jim Brown, Cleveland Browns, RB; Eugene Lipscomb, Pittsburgh Steelers, DT
- Jan 13 2nd AFL All Star Game, Balboa Stadium, San Diego, California: Western Division beats Eastern Division, 21-14; MVPs: Curtis McClinton, Dallas Texans, RB; Earl Faison, LA Chargers, DE
"The Bell Jar"
Jan 14 "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath is published by Heinemann in the UK, the author commits suicide a month later
"Segregation Now"
Jan 14 George Wallace sworn in as Governor of Alabama, his address states "segregation now; segregation tomorrow; segregation forever!"
13th NBA All-Star Game
Jan 16 13th NBA All-Star Game, LA Memorial Sports Arena: East beats West, 115-108; MVP: Bill Russell, Boston Celtics, C
Khrushchev's Bomb Claim
Jan 16 Khrushchev claims to have a 100-megaton nuclear bomb
- Jan 16 Los Angeles night club and music venue The Whiskey A-Go-Go opens (inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2006)
"Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore"
Jan 16 Tennessee Williams' play "Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore" premieres in America on Broadway, NY
- Jan 17 Joe Walker takes X-15 to altitude of 82 km
- Jan 18 Reinier Paping wins Dutch 11-Cities Skating Race (10:59)
Emerson's 1st of Five Titles
Jan 19 Australian Championships Men's Tennis: Roy Emerson wins 1st of 5 straight Australian titles; beats countryman Ken Fletcher 6-3, 6-3, 6-1
- Jan 19 Australian Championships Women's Tennis: Margaret Court beats Jan Lehane O'Neill for 4th consecutive year 6-2, 6-2
Elysée Treaty of Cooperation
Jan 22 Elysée treaty of cooperation between France and Germany signed by Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer
- Jan 26 "Milk & Honey" closes at Martin Beck Theater NYC after 543 performances
- Jan 26 Major League Rules Committee votes to expand strike zone
- Jan 27 Sam Rice, Eppa Rixey, Elmer Flick, & John Clarkson elected to Baseball Hall of Fame
- Jan 27 Yevgeni Grishin skates world record 500m in 39.6 sec
- Jan 28 "Still" single released by Bill Anderson (Billboard No. 1 U.S. Hot Country Singles, 1963)
- Jan 28 -34°F (-37°C), Cynthiana, Kentucky (state record)
NFL Hall of Hall
Jan 29 Jim Thorpe, Red Grange & George Halas elected to football Hall of Fame
Sutherland's Sketchpad Program
Jan 30 Ivan Sutherland submits a thesis containing his Sketchpad program, a forerunner to modern-day graphic user interfaces and computer-aided design programs
"What'd I Say"
Jan 31 Tony Sheridan & Beat Brothers (later known as The Beatles) record "What'd I Say" & "Ruby Baby"
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