Born in 1974

What things cost in 1974

1974 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.

Who was in charge in 1974

United States

Richard Nixon, then Gerald Ford (President)

United Kingdom

Elizabeth II (Queen); Edward Heath, then Harold Wilson (Prime minister)

Soviet Union

Leonid Brezhnev (General Secretary); Nikolai Podgorny (Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet); Alexei Kosygin (Chairman of the Council of Ministers)

People's Republic of China

Mao Zedong (Chairman; Paramount Leader); Zhou Enlai (Premier)

France

Georges Pompidou, then Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (President); Alain Poher (Acting President); Pierre Messmer, then Jacques Chirac (Prime minister)

East Germany

Willi Stoph (Chairmen of the State Council); Horst Sindermann (Chairman)

West Germany

Gustav Heinemann, then Walter Scheel (President); Willy Brandt, then Helmut Schmidt (Chancellor)

Japan

Hirohito (Emperor); Takeo Miki (Prime minister)

Republic of India

V. V. Giri, then Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (President); Indira Gandhi (Prime minister)

From Wikipedia’s List of state leaders in the 20th century (1951–2000) (revision 1371751893), each name checked against Wikidata. Every country in 1974 →

No. 1 songs of 1974

1. “Time in a Bottle” — Jim Croce (1 week)
2. “The Joker” — Steve Miller Band (1 week)
3. “Show and Tell” — Al Wilson (1 week)
4. “You're Sixteen” — Ringo Starr (1 week)
5. “The Way We Were” — Barbra Streisand (3 weeks)
6. “Love's Theme” — Love Unlimited Orchestra (1 week)
7. “Seasons in the Sun” — Terry Jacks (3 weeks)
8. “Dark Lady” — Cher (1 week)
9. “Sunshine on My Shoulders” — John Denver (1 week)
10. “Hooked on a Feeling” — Blue Swede (1 week)
11. “Bennie and the Jets” — Elton John (1 week)
12. “TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)” — MFSB and The Three Degrees (2 weeks)
13. “The Loco-Motion” — Grand Funk (2 weeks)
14. “The Streak” — Ray Stevens (3 weeks)
15. “Band on the Run” — Paul McCartney and Wings (1 week)
16. “Billy Don't Be a Hero” — Bo Donaldson and The Heywoods (2 weeks)
17. “Sundown” — Gordon Lightfoot (1 week)
18. “Rock the Boat” — The Hues Corporation (1 week)
19. “Rock Your Baby” — George McCrae (2 weeks)
20. “Annie's Song” — John Denver (2 weeks)
21. “Feel Like Makin' Love” — Roberta Flack (1 week)
22. “The Night Chicago Died” — Paper Lace (1 week)
23. “(You're) Having My Baby” — Paul Anka and Odia Coates (3 weeks)
24. “I Shot the Sheriff” — Eric Clapton (1 week)
25. “Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe” — Barry White (1 week)
26. “Rock Me Gently” — Andy Kim (1 week)
27. “I Honestly Love You” — Olivia Newton-John (2 weeks)
28. “Nothing from Nothing” — Billy Preston (1 week)
29. “Then Came You” — Dionne Warwick and The Spinners (1 week)
30. “You Haven't Done Nothin'” — Stevie Wonder (1 week)
31. “You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet” — Bachman–Turner Overdrive (1 week)
32. “Whatever Gets You thru the Night” — John Lennon (1 week)
33. “I Can Help” — Billy Swan (2 weeks)
34. “Kung Fu Fighting” — Carl Douglas (2 weeks)
35. “Cat's in the Cradle” — Harry Chapin (1 week)
36. “Angie Baby” — Helen Reddy (1 week)

Weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with issue dates in 1974, from List of Billboard Hot 100 number ones of 1974 (Wikipedia revision 1376734384).

Famous people born in 1974

• May 27 – Marjorie Taylor Greene, American politician source
• October 10 – Dale Earnhardt Jr., American race car driver source
• February 11 – Alex Jones, radio show host and conspiracy theorist source
• June 26 – Derek Jeter, American baseball player source
• 19 December – Ricky Ponting, cricketer source
• September 23 – Matt Hardy, wrestler source
• 21 December – Sanjiv Chaturvedi, Indian Forest Service officer. source
• 26 February – Sébastien Loeb, rally driver and three time World Champion. source
• January 12 – Melanie C, English pop singer (Spice Girls) source
• October 28 – Joaquin Phoenix, American actor born in Puerto Rico source
• July 11 – Lil' Kim, rapper and television personality source
• July 10 – Brian Thompson, businessman (died 2024) source
• December 29 – Mekhi Phifer, American actor source
• 31 January – Ian Huntley, English murderer source
• 13 February – Robbie Williams, English singer source

What happened in 1974

• January 25 – Bülent Ecevit of CHP forms the new government of Turkey (37th government, partner MSP). source
• January 31 – The People's Republic of China released Gerald Emil Kosh, a U.S. civilian captured during the Battle of the Paracel Islands. source
• February 8 – After a record 84 days in orbit, the crew of Skylab 4 returns to Earth. source
• 1 January – The first piling works for the KOMTAR building in Penang were undertaken. source
• 4 February – The Federal Minister for Labour, Mr Cameron, meets officials of the Australian Bank Officials Association in Melbourne in an effort to break the deadlock in the bank dispute. The association decides to lift is week-old ban on handling commercial cheques. source
• 23 January – Fire at boarding school in Heusden kills 23 teenagers. source
• March 26 – A group of peasant women in Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, India, use their bodies to surround trees to prevent loggers from felling them, giving rise to the Chipko movement. source
• 2 January – Federal Education Minister Kim Beazley resumes work after a two-month convalescence after he collapsed in Parliament House on 6 November 1973. source