Born in 1949

What things cost in 1949

1949 figures are annual averages of the published monthly (or quarterly) values. “Today’s dollars” uses the Consumer Price Index for September 2026; “latest” is the most recent published price. Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Labor, via FRED. Average retail prices are only published from 1976 on; 1949 has the CPI alone.

Who was in charge in 1949

United States

Harry S. Truman (President)

United Kingdom

George VI (King); Clement Attlee (Prime minister)

Soviet Union

Joseph Stalin (General Secretary); Nikolay Shvernik (Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet); Joseph Stalin (Chairman of the Council of Ministers)

Republic of China (1916–1949)

Chiang Kai-shek (President); Sun Fo, then He Yingqin (Premier)

People's Republic of China

Mao Zedong (Chairman; paramount leader); Mao Zedong (Chairman); Zhou Enlai (Premier)

French Fourth Republic

Vincent Auriol (President); Henri Queuille, then Georges Bidault (Prime minister)

Allied-occupied Germany

Lucius D. Clay (Military governor); John J. McCloy, then Brian Robertson, then André François-Poncet (High Commissioner)

East Germany

Wilhelm Pieck (President); Otto Grotewohl (Chairman)

West Germany

Karl Arnold (Acting President); Theodor Heuss (President); Konrad Adenauer (Chancellor)

State of Japan

Hirohito (Emperor); Shigeru Yoshida (Prime minister)

From Wikipedia’s List of state leaders in the 20th century (1901–1950) (revision 1377869146), each name checked against Wikidata. Every country in 1949 →

Famous people born in 1949

• 25 October – Alain Escoffier, anti-communist activist, self-immolated (died 1977) source
• December 25 – Nawaz Sharif, Pakistani prime minister source
• February 25 – Ric Flair (Richard Fliehr), wrestler source
• September 23 – Bruce Springsteen, singer-songwriter source
• 1 January - Sue Jones-Davies, actress, singer and local politician source
• 22 October – Arsène Wenger, soccer manager source
• June 22 – Elizabeth Warren, American academic and politician, U.S. Senator (D-Mass.) since 2013 source
• 26 May – Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Labour Party (2015-2020) source
• October 28 – Caitlyn Jenner, decathlete and TV personality source
• June 22 – Meryl Streep, American actress source
• July 26 – Thaksin Shinawatra, Prime Minister of Thailand and businessman source
• 18 March – Alex Higgins, snooker player. source
• December 1 – Sebastián Piñera, Chilean businessman, politician and 36th and 38th president of Chile (died 2024) source
• February 8 – Florinda Meza, Mexican actress, television producer, and screenwriter (best known as Doña Florinda in El Chavo del Ocho) source
• May 9 – Billy Joel, American singer, songwriter and pianist source

What happened in 1949

• January 2 – Luis Muñoz Marín becomes the first democratically elected Governor of Puerto Rico. source
• January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2026 source
• January 11 – Los Angeles, California, receives its first recorded snowfall. source
• January 11 – The first "networked" television broadcasts take place, as KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, goes on the air, connecting east coast and mid-west programming in the United States. source
• 4 January – RMS Caronia of the Cunard Line departs Southampton for New York on her maiden voyage. source
• January 26 – A fire breaks out at Hōryū-ji temple in Ikaruga, Nara Prefecture, destroying several murals. source
• March 24 – The 21st Academy Awards Ceremony is held. The movie Hamlet wins the Academy Award for Best Picture. source
• January 5 – President Harry S. Truman unveils his Fair Deal program. source