1954

The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting.

Lt. Col. Gamal Abdel Nasser becomes premier of Egypt.

Puerto Rico's first television station, WKAQ-TV, commences broadcasting.

Bill Haley & His Comets record "Rock Around the Clock" in their first session for American Decca in New York City; it is released on May 20 as a B-side, but only in 1955 becomes a #1 hit, helping to initiate the rock and roll craze.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is formed in Manila, Philippines.

1954 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' Liberal/Country Coalition Government is re-elected with a decreased majority, defeating the Labor Party led by H.V. Evatt. The election has come shortly after the Petrov Affair, arguably helping the Government survive what was initially predicted to be a defeat.

Guatemalan President Jacobo Árbenz steps down in a CIA-sponsored military coup, triggering a bloody civil war that continues for more than 35 years.

The construction of Yad Vashem started in Jerusalem. It is an official memorial center to commemorate the victims of the persecution of the Jews by the Nazis and their accomplices in Europe.

The Soviet Union carries out the Totskoye nuclear exercise.

Hurricane Hazel makes U.S. landfall; it is the only recorded Category 4 hurricane to strike as far north as North Carolina

U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower dedicates the USMC War Memorial (Iwo Jima Memorial), at the Arlington National Cemetery.

Väinö Linna's war novel The Unknown Soldier (Tuntematon sotilas) is published.