1924 in the United States

Federal government

• President: Calvin Coolidge (R-Massachusetts)
• Vice President: vacant
• Chief Justice: William Howard Taft (Ohio)
• Speaker of the House of Representatives: Frederick H. Gillett (R-Massachusetts)
• Senate Majority Leader:

Henry Cabot Lodge (R-Massachusetts) (until November 9)

vacant (November 9–28)

Charles Curtis (R-Kansas) (starting November 28)

• Congress: 68th

January–March

• January 10 – American media company Cohn-Brandt-Cohn (CBC) Film Sales Corporation (founded 1918) officially reorganizes as Columbia Pictures Corporation.
• February 8 – Capital punishment: Gee Jon suffers the first state execution using a gas chamber in the United States, at Nevada State Prison.
• February 9 – Canada's National Hockey League expands to the United States for the first time with the inclusion of the Boston Bruins.^[1]
• February 12 – Rhapsody in Blue, by George Gershwin, is first performed in New York City, at Aeolian Hall.^[2]
• February 14 – International Business Machines (IBM) is founded in New York State.
• February 16–26 – Dock strikes break out in various U.S. harbors.
• February 22 – Calvin Coolidge becomes the first president of the United States to deliver a radio broadcast from the White House.
• March 8 – The Castle Gate mine disaster kills 172 coal miners in Utah.

April–June

• April 16 – American media company Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) is founded in Los Angeles, California, through the merger of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures, and Louis B. Mayer Pictures.^[3]
• May 3 – The Aleph Zadik Aleph, the oldest Jewish youth fraternity, is founded in Omaha, Nebraska.
• May 10 – J. Edgar Hoover is appointed head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
• May 21 – University of Chicago students Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold, Jr. murder 14-year-old Bobby Franks, in a thrill killing. The event will inspire the 1929 play Rope.^[4]
• May 26 – The Asian Exclusion Act is enacted, banning all Asian immigration to the United States. It was a slap in the face to Japan after their participation as a principal ally in WWI, and is seen as the spark that spurred Japan's alliance with Germany and down the path to World War II.
• June 2 – U.S. President Calvin Coolidge signs the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 into law, granting citizenship to all Native Americans born within the territorial limits of the United States.
• June 12 – Rondout Heist: Six men of the Egan's Rats gang rob a mail train in Rondout, Illinois; the robbery is later found to have been an inside job.
• June 23 – American airman Russell L. Maughan flies from New York to San Francisco in 21 hours and 48 minutes on a dawn-to-dusk flight in a Curtiss pursuit.
• June 24–July 9 – The 1924 Democratic National Convention takes a record 103 ballots to nominate John W. Davis of West Virginia as Democratic Party candidate to oppose Calvin Coolidge in the presidential election.

July–September

• September 9 – The Hanapepe massacre occurs on Kauai, Hawaii.

October–December

• October 9 – Soldier Field, the home of the Chicago Bears opens.
• October 10
  • The Alpha Delta Gamma fraternity is founded at the Lake Shore Campus of Loyola University, Chicago.
  • The Washington Senators defeat the New York Giants (baseball), 4 games to 3.
• November – The last known sighting of a California grizzly bear is recorded, by Colonel John R. White at Sequoia National Park.^[5]
• November 4
  • U.S. presidential election, 1924: Republican Calvin Coolidge defeats Democrat John W. Davis and Progressive Wisconsin Senator Robert M. La Follette
  • Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming is elected as the first woman governor in the United States.
• November 15 – In Los Angeles, silent film director Thomas Ince ("The Father of the Western") meets publishing tycoon William Randolph Hearst to work out a deal. When Ince dies a few days later, reportedly of a heart attack, rumors soon surface that he was murdered by Hearst.^[6]
• November 27 – In New York City, the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (formerly known as the Macy's Christmas Parade) is held.
• December 1 – George Gershwin's Lady Be, Good, including the song "Fascinating Rhythm", (book by Guy Bolton and Fred Thompson, lyrics by Ira Gershwin) premieres in New York City.

Undated

• Alice Vanderbilt Morris, a wealthy heiress, founds the International Auxiliary Language Association in New York City.^[7]
• U.S. bootleggers begin to use Thompson submachine guns.^{[citation needed]}
• The earth inductor compass is developed by Morris Titterington at the Pioneer Instrument Company in Brooklyn, New York.

Ongoing

• Lochner era (c. 1897–c. 1937)
• U.S. occupation of Haiti (1915–1934)^[8]
• Prohibition (1920–1933)^[9]
• Roaring Twenties (1920–1929)

January

• January 1 – Charlie Munger, businessman and philanthropist (d. 2023)
• January 4
  • Walter Ris, freestyle swimmer (d. 1989)
  • Charles Thone, politician (d. 2018)
• January 5 – Glenn Boyer, historian and author (d. 2013)
• January 6 – Earl Scruggs, musician (d. 2012)
• January 7 – Gene L. Coon, screenwriter and producer (d. 1973)
• January 8 – James Clinkscales Hill, jurist (d. 2017)
• January 9 – Mary Kaye, guitarist and singer (d. 2007)
• January 10
  • Earl Bakken, engineer and businessman, inventor of the modern Artificial pacemaker (d. 2018)
  • Max Roach, African-American percussionist, drummer and composer (d. 2007)
• January 11
  • Don Cherry, pop singer (d. 2018)^[10]
  • Sam B. Hall Jr., politician (d. 1994)
  • Slim Harpo, musician (d. 1970)
• January 12 – Chris Chase (also known as Irene Kane), model, film actress, writer and journalist (d. 2013)
• January 13 – Lillian B. Rubin, writer, professor, psychotherapist and sociologist (d. 2014)
• January 14
  • Carole Cook, actress and singer (d. 2023)
  • Guy Williams, actor (d. 1989)
• January 19 – Nicholas Colasanto, actor and television director (d. 1985)^[11]
• January 23 – Frank Lautenberg, politician (d. 2013)
• January 25
  • Lou Groza, American football player and coach (d. 2000)
  • Rollie Seltz, basketball player (d. 2022)^[12]
  • Speedy West, musician (d. 2003)
• January 26 – Annette Strauss, philanthropist and politician (d. 1998)
• January 28 – Betty Tucker, baseball player (d. 2012)
• January 30
  • Lloyd Alexander, writer (d. 2007)
  • Dorothy Malone, actress (d. 2018)

February

• February 1 – Richard Hooker, writer and surgeon (d. 1997)
• February 4 – Dorothy Harrell, professional baseball player (d. 2011)
• February 7 – Catherine Small Long, politician (d. 2019)
• February 8 – Joe Black, African-American baseball player (d. 2002)
• February 10 – Randy Van Horne, singer and musician (d. 2007)
• February 11 – Budge Patty, tennis player (d. 2021)
• February 14 – Gabe Pressman, journalist (d. 2017)
• February 15 – Toni Arden, singer (d. 2012)
• February 16 – Frank Saul, basketball player (d. 2019)
• February 17 – Margaret Truman, novelist and only child of U.S. President Harry S. Truman and Bess Truman (d. 2008)
• February 19 – Lee Marvin, actor (d. 1987)
• February 20
  • Donald M. Fraser, politician (d. 2019)
  • Gerson Goldhaber, German-American physicist and astrophysicist (d. 2010)
  • Gloria Vanderbilt, socialite, artist and fashion designer (d. 2019)
• February 21 – William Hathaway, politician and lawyer (d. 2013)
• February 28
  • Bettye Ackerman, actress (d. 2006)
  • Christopher C. Kraft Jr., aerospace engineer (d. 2019)
• February 29 – Al Rosen, baseball player (d. 2015)

March

• March 1 – Deke Slayton, American astronaut (d. 1993)
• March 3 – Isadore Singer, American mathematician (d. 2021)
• March 4 – Kenneth O'Donnell, American political consultant, aide to U.S. President John F. Kennedy (d. 1977)
• March 6
  • Ed Mierkowicz, American baseball player (d. 2017)
  • William H. Webster, American lawyer and jurist (d. 2025)
• March 9
  • Herbert Gold, American novelist (d. 2023)
  • George Haines, American swimmer and coach (d. 2006)
  • William Hamilton, American theologian (d. 2012)
  • Ben Schadler, American basketball player (d. 2015)
• March 17 – Edith Savage-Jennings, African-American civil rights leader (d. 2017)
• March 20 – Philip Abbott, American actor (d. 1998)
• March 22
  • Al Neuharth, American businessman and journalist (d. 2013)
  • Bill Wendell, American TV announcer (d. 1999)
  • Lionel Wilson, American voice actor (d. 2003)
• March 23 – Bette Nesmith Graham, American typist, commercial artist, and inventor (d. 1980)
• March 24
  • Lois Andrews, American actress (d. 1968)
  • Norman Fell, American actor (d. 1998)
• March 25
  • Roberts Blossom, American actor and poet (d. 2011)^[13]
  • Julia Perry, African-American composer (d. 1979)
• March 27 – Sarah Vaughan, African-American jazz singer (d. 1990)
• March 28 – Byrd Baylor, American novelist, essayist and author (d. 2021)
• March 29 – Jimmy Work, American singer-songwriter (d. 2018)
• March 31 – Kathleen O'Malley, American actress (d. 2019)

April

• April 1 – Brendan Byrne, American politician, statesman, and prosecutor (d. 2018)
• April 2 – Delwin Jones, American politician (d. 2018)
• April 3 – Marlon Brando, American actor (d. 2004)
• April 4
  • Gil Hodges, American baseball player (d. 1972)
  • Joye Hummel, American comic book author (d. 2021)
  • Noreen Nash, American actress (d. 2023)
• April 5 – John Fraser Hart, American geographer (d. 2024)
• April 6 – Jimmy Roberts, American singer (d. 1999)
• April 8 – Bob Mann, American football player (d. 2006)
• April 9 – Milburn G. Apt, American test pilot (d. 1956)
• April 13
  • Jack Chick, American fundamentalist Christian illustrator and publisher (d. 2016)
  • Stanley Donen, American film director and choreographer (d. 2019)
• April 14 – Shorty Rogers, American jazz trumpeter (d. 1994)
• April 16
  • Henry Mancini, American composer and arranger (d. 1994)
  • Rudy Pompilli, American musician (d. 1976)
• April 18
  • Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, American blues musician (d. 2005)
  • Henry Hyde, American politician (d. 2007)
  • Jim Zapp, American baseball player (d. 2016)
• April 23
  • Chuck Harmon, American baseball player and scout (d. 2019)
  • Bobby Rosengarden, American jazz drummer (d. 2007)
• April 25 – Art Schallock, American baseball player (d. 2025)
• April 28
  • Blossom Dearie, American jazz singer and pianist. (d. 2009)
  • Emily W. Sunstein, American campaigner, political activist and biographer (d. 2007)
• April 30 – Sheldon Harnick, American lyricist (d. 2023)

May

• May 1
  • Art Fleming, American actor and game show host (d. 1995)
  • Evelyn Boyd Granville, American mathematician, computer scientist and academic (d. 2023)
  • Big Maybelle, American R&B singer (d. 1972)
• May 2 – Ladislava Bakanic, American gymnast (d. 2021)
• May 3 – Isadore Singer, American mathematician (d. 2021)
• May 6 – Patricia Kennedy Lawford, American socialite (d. 2006)
• May 11 – Ninfa Laurenzo, American businessman, founder of Ninfa's (d. 2001)
• May 16 – Frank Mankiewicz, American journalist, presidential campaign press secretary (d. 2014)
• May 18
  • Jack Barlow, American country music singer (d. 2011)
  • Priscilla Pointer, American actress
  • Jack Whitaker, American sportscaster (d. 2019)
• May 21 – Peggy Cass, American actress and comedian (d. 1999)^[14]
• May 24 – Philip Pearlstein, American soldier, painter (d. 2022)
• May 29 – Pepper Paire, American female baseball player (d. 2013)
• May 31 – Patricia Roberts Harris, American administrator (d. 1985)

June

• June 1 – William Sloane Coffin, American clergyman (d. 2006)
• June 3
  • Bernard Glasser, American film producer, director (d. 2014)
  • Herk Harvey, American film director (d. 1996)
  • Jimmy Rogers, American musician (d. 1997)
• June 4 – Dennis Weaver, American actor (d. 2006)
• June 5
  • Lou Brissie, baseball player and scout (d. 2013)
  • Art Donovan, American football player and radio host (d. 2013)
• June 6
  • Robert Abernathy, American science fiction author (d. 1990)
  • W. Marvin Watson, American presidential advisor, Postmaster General (d. 2017)
• June 7 – Edward Field, poet and author
• June 8
  • Sheldon Allman, American-Canadian actor and singer-songwriter (d. 2002)
  • Lyn Nofziger, American journalist and author (d. 2006)
  • David Pines, American physicist (d. 2018)
• June 12 – George H. W. Bush, American politician, 41st president of the United States from 1989 to 1993 & 43rd vice president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 (d. 2018)^[15]
• June 20 – Chet Atkins, American guitarist, record producer (d. 2001)
• June 22 – John C. Whitcomb, American theologian (d. 2020)
• June 23
  • Frank Bolle, American comic strip artist, comic book artist and illustrator (d. 2020)
  • June Brooks, American businesswoman (d. 2010)
• June 24
  • Leonard Everett Fisher, American artist known best for children's books (d. 2024)
  • Yoshito Takamine, American politician (d. 2015)
• June 25
  • Martin J. Klein, American historian and physicist (d. 2009)
  • Sidney Lumet, American film director (d. 2011)
• June 27
  • Charles Norman Shay, American Penobscot tribal elder, writer and decorated veteran of both World War II and the Korean War (d. 2025)
  • Paul Conrad, American cartoonist (d. 2010)
• June 26
  • Richard Bull, American actor (d. 2014)
  • James W. McCord Jr., American CIA officer (d. 2017)
• June 29
  • Philip H. Hoff, American politician (d. 2018)
  • Ezra Laderman, American composer (d. 2015)

July

• July 1
  • Ralph Parr, American double-flying ace (d. 2012)
  • Curtis W. Harris, American minister, civil rights activist and Virginia politician (d. 2017)
  • Richard Longaker, American political scientist (d. 2018)
• July 2 – Charley Winner, American football player (d. 2023)
• July 4
  • Eva Marie Saint, American actress
  • Harry Stewart Jr., American fighter pilot (d. 2025)
• July 6
  • Ernest Graves Jr., United States Army officer (d. 2019)
  • Robert Michael White, American military aircraft test pilot, fighter pilot, electrical engineer and major general (d. 2010)
• July 7 – Sam Cathcart, American football halfback, defensive back (d. 2015)
• July 8 – Charles C. Droz, American politician (d. 2025)
• July 10 – Gloria Stroock, American actress (d. 2024)
• July 11
  • F. James Rutherford, American science professor (d. 2021)
  • Oscar Wyatt, American businessman, self-made millionaire (d. 2025)
  • Al Federoff, American professional baseball infielder, manager (d. 2011)
• July 12 – Shirley Neil Pettis, American politician (d. 2016)
• July 14
  • Val Avery, American character actor (d. 2009)
  • Warren Giese, American football player, coach and politician (d. 2013)
• July 15 – Jeremiah Denton, American politician (d. 2014)
• July 16
  • James L. Greenfield, American administrator (d. 2024)
  • Bess Myerson, American politician, model and television actress (d. 2014)
• July 18 – Will D. Campbell, American minister, author and activist (d. 2013)
• July 19
  • Pat Hingle, American actor (d. 2009)
  • Frank Ivancie, American businessman and politician (d. 2019)
  • Arthur Rankin Jr., American film director, producer and co-founder of Rankin/Bass Productions (d. 2014)
• July 20 – Lola Albright, American singer, actress (d. 2017)
• July 21 – Don Knotts, American comedic actor (d. 2006)
• July 22 – Margaret Whiting, American singer (d. 2011)
• July 23 – Avern Cohn, American judge (d. 2022)
• July 24 – Paul Meier, American statistician (d. 2011)
• July 25 – Frank Church, American politician (d. 1984)
• July 28
  • Anne Braden, American civil rights activist (d. 2006)
  • C. T. Vivian, American civil rights activist, minister and author (d. 2020)
• July 29
  • Lillian Faralla, American female professional baseball player (d. 2019)
  • Robert Horton, American actor, singer (d. 2016)
• July 30 – William H. Gass, American novelist (d. 2017)

August

• August 1
  • Marcia Mae Jones, American actress (d. 2007)
  • Frank Havens, American canoeist (d. 2018)
  • Michael Stewart, American playwright, stage librettist (d. 1987)
• August 2
  • James Baldwin, African-American author and civil rights activist (d. 1987)
  • Joe Harnell, American pianist and composer (d. 2005)
  • Carroll O'Connor, American actor, producer and director (d. 2001)
• August 3 – Leon Uris, American writer (d. 2003)
• August 6 – Ella Jenkins, American folk singer of children's music (d. 2024)
• August 8 – Gene Deitch, American illustrator, animator and film director (d. 2020)
• August 9 – Marta Becket, American dancer (d. 2017)
• August 10 – Martha Hyer, American actress (d. 2014)
• August 15 – Phyllis Schlafly, American activist (d. 2016)
• August 16
  • Fess Parker, American actor and businessman (d. 2010)^[16]
  • Inez Voyce, American female baseball player (d. 2022)
  • Benny Bartlett, American child actor and musician (d. 1999)
• August 17
  • Evan S. Connell, Jr., American fiction writer and poet (d. 2013)
  • Charles Simmons, American author (d. 2017)
• August 18 – Frank Logue, 25th mayor of New Haven, Connecticut (d. 2010)
• August 20 – Frank Joseph Guarini, American politician
• August 23
  • Elaine Sturtevant, American artist (d. 2014)
  • Robert Solow, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2023)
• August 24 – Louis Teicher, American pianist (Ferrante & Teicher) (d. 2008)
• August 26 – Barbara Staff, American political activist (d. 2019)
• August 28 – Peggy Ryan, American dancer (d. 2004)^[17]
• August 29
  • Clyde Scott, American athlete (d. 2018)
  • Dinah Washington, African-American singer, pianist (d. 1963)
• August 31
  • Buddy Hackett, American actor, comedian (d. 2003)
  • Thomas J. Hudner Jr., American naval aviator (d. 2017)

September

• September 2 – Sidney Phillips, American physician, WW2 Marine documentary consultant (d. 2015)
• September 3 – Mary Grace Canfield, American actress (d. 2014)
• September 5
  • Paul Dietzel, American college football coach (d. 2013)
  • Roy Andrew Miller, American linguist (d. 2014)
• September 6
  • John Melcher, American politician (d. 2018)
  • Dale E. Wolf, American businessman and politician (d. 2021)
• September 7 – Daniel Inouye, American politician (d. 2012)
• September 8 – Wendell H. Ford, American politician (d. 2015)
• September 9
  • Jane Greer, actress (d. 2001)
  • Sylvia Miles, actress (d. 2019)
  • Russell M. Nelson, heart surgeon and religious leader (d. 2025)
• September 11
  • Daniel Akaka, soldier, engineer and politician (d. 2018)
  • Tom Landry, football player and coach (d. 2000)
• September 12 – Howard C. Nielson, politician (d. 2021)
• September 13 – Scott Brady, actor (d. 1985)
• September 14 – Jerry Coleman, baseball player, manager, broadcaster, and Marine aviator (d. 2014)
• September 15 – Bobby Short, entertainer (d. 2005)
• September 16 – Lauren Bacall, actress (d. 2014)
• September 20
  • Gogi Grant, singer (d. 2016)
  • Helen Grayco, singer, actress (d. 2022)
• September 22
  • J. William Middendorf, soldier and politician (d. 2025)
  • Gerald Schoenfeld, chairman (d. 2008)
• September 27
  • Wendell Bell, futurist (d. 2019)
  • Fred Singer, Austrian-American physicist and academic (d. 2020)^[18]
• September 28 – Merwin Coad, politician (d. 2025)
• September 30
  • Truman Capote, author (d. 1984)
  • Georgiana Young, actress (d. 2007)

October

• October 1
  • Jimmy Carter, 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981 (d. 2024)
  • William Rehnquist, 16th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (d. 2005)
  • Roger Williams, American pianist (d. 2011)
• October 2 – Ruby Stephens, American female baseball player (d. 1996)
• October 3 – Harvey Kurtzman, American editor, cartoonist and creator of Mad (d. 1993)
• October 5 – Bill Dana, American comedian, actor, screenwriter (d. 2017)
• October 7 – Joyce Reynolds, American actress (d. 2019)
• October 9 – Arnie Risen, American basketball player (d. 2012)
• October 10
  • David Shepherd, American producer, director and actor (d. 2018)
  • Ed Wood, American filmmaker, actor, writer, producer and director (d. 1978)
• October 11 – Mal Whitfield, American Olympic athlete (d. 2015)
• October 13 – Terry Gibbs, American vibraphone player and bandleader
• October 14 – Robert Webber, American actor (d. 1989)
• October 15
  • Warren Miller, American ski and snowboarding filmmaker (d. 2018)
  • Lee Iacocca, American automobile executive (d. 2019)
  • Mark Lenard, American actor (d. 1996)
• October 17 – Fredd Wayne, American actor (d. 2018)
• October 18
  • Arthur J. Jackson, American military officer (d. 2017)
  • Buddy MacMaster, American artist (d. 2014)
• October 21 – Joyce Randolph, American actress (d. 2024)
• October 25
  • Billy Barty, American actor (d. 2000)
  • Bobby Brown, baseball player (b. 2021)
  • Earl Palmer, American R&B drummer (d. 2008)
  • Weston E. Vivian, American politician (d. 2020)
• October 27 – Bonnie Lou, American singer (d. 2015)

November

• November 6
  • Harlon Block, U.S. Marine flag raiser on Iwo Jima (d. 1945)
• November 10 – Russell Johnson, American actor (d. 2014)
• November 11 – Leonard D. Wexler, American judge (d. 2018)
• November 13 – Edward F. Welch, Jr., American admiral (d. 2008)
• November 16 – Sam Farber, American businessman, co-founder of OXO (d. 2013)
• November 19 – J. D. Sumner, American gospel singer (d. 1998)
• November 20 – Mark Miller, American actor (d. 2022)
• November 21 – Joseph Campanella, American actor (d. 2018)
• November 22
  • Geraldine Page, American actress (d. 1987)
  • Robert M. Young, American film director and producer (d. 2024)
• November 24
  • James M. Burns, American attorney and judge (d. 2001)
  • Joanne Winter, American female professional baseball pitcher, LPGA player (d. 1996)
• November 25 – Paul Desmond, American jazz alto saxophonist and composer (d. 1977)
• November 26 – Ruth Bradley Holmes, linguist (d. 2021)^[19]
• November 28 – Calvin J. Spann, African-American Tuskegee Airman, fighter pilot (d. 2015)
• November 29 – Irv Noren, American baseball and basketball player (d. 2019)
• November 30
  • Shirley Chisholm, American politician (d. 2005)
  • Allan Sherman, American comedy writer, television producer and song parodist (d. 1973)

December

• December 2 – Alexander Haig, American politician, U.S. Secretary of State (d. 2010)
• December 4 – John C. Portman Jr., American architect (d. 2017)
• December 6 – Wally Cox, American actor (d. 1973)
• December 9 – Frank Sturgis, one of the five Watergate burglars whose capture led to the end of the American Presidency of Richard Nixon (d. 1993)
• December 12 – Ed Koch, American politician (d. 2013)
• December 13
  • Robert Coogan, American actor (d. 1978)
  • Maria Riva, American actress (d. 2025)
• December 17 – Margaret Wigiser, American female professional baseball player (d. 2019)
• December 19 – Cicely Tyson, American actress (d. 2021)
• December 23 – Bob Kurland, American basketball player (d. 2013)
• December 25 – Rod Serling, American television screenwriter (The Twilight Zone) (d. 1975)
• December 26 – Frank Broyles, American college football coach, athletic director (d. 2017)
• December 27
  • James A. McClure, American politician (d. 2011)
  • Frank North, American football coach (d. 2017)
• December 29 – Dub Jones, American football player (d. 2024)
• December 31
  • Frank J. Kelley, 50th Michigan Attorney General (d. 2021)
  • Taylor Mead, American actor (d. 2013)
  • J. Donald Monan, American academic administrator (d. 2017)
  • Lawrence W. Pierce, American judge (d. 2020)
  • Robert Ravenstahl, American politician (d. 2015)