Forth Road Bridge

On September 4 in the UK, the Forth Road Bridge opened over the Firth of Forth, linking Fife and Edinburgh. The final bill for construction amounted to £19.5 million. The bridge was opened by Her Majesty Queen Ekizabeth II. At the time, it was the first bridge of its kind in the UK, the longest outside the USA, and the fourth longest in the world.

Oh Pretty Woman, Roy Orbison

"Oh, Pretty Woman" or simply "Pretty Woman" is a song recorded by Roy Orbison, written by Orbison and Bill Dees, released as a single in August 1964 on Monument Records. It spent three weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 from September 26, the second and final single by Orbison to top the US charts and the third single to top the UK Singles Chart (for a total of three weeks).

The single version (in mono) and the LP version (in stereo on the Orbisongs LP) have slightly differing lyrics. The LP version with the intended lyric: "come with me baby" was changed for the single to "come to me baby" as the former was considered too risque. The record ultimately sold 7 million copies and marked the high point in Orbison's career. Within months of its release, the single was certified gold by the RIAA. At the year's end, Billboard ranked it the number four song of 1964.

The title was inspired by Orbison's wife, Claudette, interrupting a conversation to announce she was going out. When Orbison asked if she had enough cash, his co-writer Bill Dees interjected, "A pretty woman never needs any money."

Orbison's recording of the song was produced by Fred Foster on August 1, 1964. There were four guitar players at the session: Roy Orbison, Billy Sanford, Jerry Kennedy, and Wayne Moss. Sanford, who later played on sessions for Elvis Presley, Don Williams, etc, played the intro guitar. Other musicians on the record included Floyd Cramer (piano), Henry Strzelecki (upright bass), Boots Randolph and Charlie McCoy (saxophones), Buddy Harman (drums) Paul Garrison (percussion). Co-writer Dees sung high harmony, as he did on many Orbison songs. Bill Porter served as recording engineer. Billboard described the song as having a "great dance beat coupled with fine arrangement." Cash Box described it as "a catchy, quick-beat salute with a number of ear-catching rockin' ingredients."

A music video was filmed on October 19, 1964, in the rooftop garden of London's Kensington-based Derry and Toms department store, to air on Top of the Pops on October 22 as a visual accompaniment to Orbison's song as he was unable to attend the live taping. It subsequently aired on October 29, November 12, and November 19. It was directed by Stanley Dorfman.

Death of Alan Ladd

Alan Ladd the American actor and producer was born in 1913 and died on January 29, 1964. He found success in film in the 1940s and early 1950s, particularly in films noir and Westerns. He was often paired with Veronica Lake in films noir such as This Gun for Hire (1942), The Glass Key (1942) and The Blue Dahlia (1946). Whispering Smith (1948) was his first Western and colour film and Shane (1953) was noted for its contributions to the genre. He also appeared in ten films with William Bendix. Other notable credits include Two Years Before the Mast (1946) and The Great Gatsby (1949). His popularity diminished in the mid-1950s, though he continued to appear in numerous films, including his first supporting role since This Gun for Hire in the smash hit The Carpetbaggers released in 1964. He died of an accidental combination of alcohol, a barbiturate and two tranquilisers.

Death of Mabel Lucie Attwell

Mabel Lucie Attwell (1879-1964) was a British illustrator and comics artist known for her cute, nostalgic drawings of children. Her drawings are featured on many postcards, advertisements, posters, books and figurines.

She was born in Mile End, London, in 1879, the sixth child of butcher Augustus and his wife Emily Ann. She was educated privately, at the Coopers' Company School and at the Regent Street school. She studied at Heatherley's and St Martin's School of Art but left to develop her own interest in imaginary subjects, disliking the emphasis on still-life drawing and classical subjects.

After she sold work to the Tatler and Bystander, she was taken on by the agents Francis and Mills, leading to a long and consistently successful career. In 1908, she married painter and illustrator Harold Cecil Earnshaw (d 1937) with whom she had a daughter, Marjorie, and two sons. She died at her home in Fowey, Cornwall, on 5 November 1964, after which her business was carried on by her daughter, Marjorie.

Civil Rights Act signed into law

July 2 – President Lyndon B Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act into law, abolishing racial segregation in the United States of America. It was the most sweeping civil rights legislation since Reconstruction.

The Animals - House of the Rising Sun

Malta

Malta was a Crown Colony of the United Kingdom from 1814 until 1964, when, on Spetember 21, it was granted independence and joined the British Commonwealth.

Mariner 4 Spacecraft

The Mariner 4 spacecraft was launched by he Americans on November 28 with the mission of photographing and studying the atmosphere of Mars. It reached Mars in July 1965 and was the first successful mission to reach the red planet as well as the first to provide images of another planet from deep space. There were a total of 21 black and white photos relayed back to Earth. The spacecraft stopped communicating with NASA in October 1965 when its antenna was no longer pointing in the correct position. The space probe resumed communications in 1967 but was deactivated at the end of that year.

Peter Sellers marries Britt Ekland

On February 18 the British comedian and actor Peter Sellers married the Swedish actress Britt Ekland in Guildford, Surrey.

Southampton becomes a city

Southampton on the coast of the south of England became a city on February 24, 1964. A Royal Charter was granted saying that henceforth it would be known as the City and County of the City of Southampton. This was the culmination of a long process that had begun 30 years earlier. It was the first place to be made a city by the then Queen Elizabeth II.