May 24, 1956: The 1st Eurovision Song Contest

Lys Assia

May 24, 1956: The 1st Eurovision Song Contest is held at Teatro Kursaal in Lugano, Switzerland. It is primarily a radio program at this stage, as few Europeans can afford TV sets. Only 7 countries participated: In alphabetical order, Belgium, France, (West) Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.
 
The winner is the Swiss entry, "Refrain," with music by Géo Voumard, lyrics by Émile Gardaz, and sung by Rosa Mina Schärer, under the name Lys Assia. Gardaz died in 2007, Voumard in 2008, Schärer in 2018.

Most Eurovision winners turn out to be forgettable. Indeed, what may be the most famous winner came in 1967, England's entry, "Puppet On a String" by Sandie Shaw. And, presaging American Idol by decades, that wasn't even the most significant entry! A songwriting team from Luxembourg, writing in French, got Greek singer Vicky Leandros to sing their composition, "L'amour est Bleu." It finished 4th. Luxembourg and Leandros won in 1972, with "Après toi."

If you listen to American "oldies" stations, you know "L'amour est Bleu," although you may never have heard its words, in any language: In 1968, French conductor Paul Mauriat would record his orchestra playing it as an instrumental, and use its English title: "Love Is Blue." He hit Number 1 with it.

There was a 4-way tie vote in 1969: Britain, France, Spain and the Netherlands. Sweden won in 1974, with "Waterloo," launching the career of ABBA. Ireland and Sweden have won it the most, 7 times. Britain has won 4 times.

Here are the winners:

Ireland, 7: 1970, 1980, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994 and 1996.

Sweden, 6: 1974, 1984, 1991, 1999, 2012 and 2015. (UPDATE: They won again in 2023.)

Luxembourg, despite its small size, 5: 1961, 1965, 1972, 1973 and 1983.

France, 4: 1958, 1960, 1962 and 1977.

Britain, 4: 1967, 1976, 1981 and 1997.

Israel, even though it's in Asia, 4: 1978, 1979, 1998 and 2018.

Netherlands, 4: 1957, 1959, 1975 and 2019.

Denmark, 3: 1963, 2000 and 2013.

Norway, 3: 1985, 1995 and 2009.

Italy, 3: 1964, 1990 and 2021.

Ukraine, 3: 2004, 2016 and 2022.

Switzerland, 2: 1956 and 1988. (UPDATE: They won again in 2024.)

Germany, 2: 1982 (as West Germany) and 2010.

Austria, 2: 1966 and 2014. (UPDATE: They won again in 2025.)

Spain, 1: 1968.

Monaco, 1: 1971.

Belgium, 1: 1986.

Estonia, 1: 2001.

Latvia, 1: 2002.

Turkey, even though most of the country is in Asia, 1: 2003.

Greece, 1: 2005.

Finland, 1: 2006.

Serbia, 1: 2007.

Russia, 1: 2008.

Azerbaijan, even though it's in Asia, 1: 2011.

Portugal, 1: 2017.

(UPDATE: Bulgaria was a first-time winner in 2026.)

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May 24, 1956 was a Thursday. Larry Blackmon, the lead singer of the hip-hop group Cameo, was born.

There were only 2 scores on this day, both in baseball. The New York Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers, 11-4 at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. The ballpark was renamed Tiger Stadium in 1961. Tom Sturdivant was the winning pitcher. It was just another day at the office for Mickey Mantle, as he went 5-for-5, with a home run, a walk, and 3 RBIs. The Bronx Bombers also got home runs from Joe Collins, Eddie Robinson and Andy Carey. Al Kaline went 0-for-3 with a walk.

And the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Brooklyn Dodgers, 6-4 at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. Robin Roberts outpitched a rookie named Don Drysdale -- and a veteran named Sal Maglie. As the ace of the New York Giants, Maglie was the player Dodger fans had hated the most, but he would turn out to be integral to the Dodgers' National League Pennant win. Roberts got a hit in his own cause. Willie "Puddin' Head" Jones went 3-for-4 with 2 home runs and 4 RBIs. The Dodgers got home runs from Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider and Carl Furillo.

February 10, 1968: "Love Is Blue" Hits Number 1

It was the late 1960s. Some men wore ascots.

February 10, 1968: Paul Mauriat’s conduction of his orchestra in the instrumental "Love Is Blue" hits Number 1.

It was written, with the French title "L'amour est bleu," a melody by André Popp and French lyrics by Pierre Cour, as Luxembourg's contribution to the 1967 Eurovision song contest, sung by a singer identified only as "Vicky." She was 17-year-old Greek singer Vicky Leandros. It didn't win, but it became more famous than most of the songs that have won Eurovision.

Vicky Leandros

Leandros would later record the song in English, as would French singer Claudine Longet, her husband Andy Williams, Italian-American pop singer Al Martino, soul group The Dells, and rock guitarist Jeff Beck. Mauriat's instrumental remains the only recording by a native of France to hit Number 1 in America. (The Singing Nun sang in French, but was from Belgium.)

Born in Marseille in 1925, Mauriat became musical director for French singing icons Charles Azvanour and Maurice Chevalier in the 1950s, before writing and conducting his own compositions. In 1961, he wrote a song titled "Chariot." It was given English lyrics, and became "I Will Follow Him," taken to Number 1 in 1963 by 15-year-old Little Peggy March. That version has also become the basis for soccer fan songs around the world.

A fair comparison of Mauriat would be to "easy listening" composers and conductors of the 1950s and 1960s, like his contemporary Henry Mancini -- who would also hit Number 1 with an instrumental in the seemingly rock-heavy year of 1968, with "Love Theme from Romeo and Juliet," Franco Zeffirelli's filmed take on Shakespeare's tale of young love gone wrong -- and to the older Percy Faith and Annunzio Mantovani. Mauriat had a few more minor hits in the U.S., but he was already a throwback, and his moment, as far as American audiences were concerned, came and went quickly.

In 1972, Popp, Cour and Leandros would combine again, and finally win Eurovision with "Après toi" (French for "After You"). Cour died in 1995, Mauriat in 2006, Popp in 2014. As of February 10, 2022, Leandros is still alive and performing. (UPDATE: In 2024, at age 72, she announced her retirement and a farewell tour. It sold out around the world.)

In 1987, the New York Yankees released the team history videotape New York Yankees: The Movie. Some of the background music they used for the highlights was off by a few years. Mauriat's recording of "Love Is Blue" was used for the 1963 and 1964 World Series, both of which the Yankees lost. However, the instrumental, especially with the harpsichord at the end, did suggest a sense of the old dynasty coming to a sad ending, so it was somewhat appropriate.

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February 10, 1968 was a Saturday. Baseball and football were out of season. There were 4 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 115-97. It was the last game they played at the old Madison Square Garden. Chet Walker led all scorers with 25 points. Wilt Chamberlain scored 16. Walt Bellamy led the Knicks with 24. Four days later, the Knicks played their 1st game at the new Garden, and beat the San Diego Rockets.

* The Baltimore Bullets beat the Detroit Pistons, 114-109 at Cobo Hall (now Huntington Place) in Detroit. Earl Monroe scored 37.

* The St. Louis Hawks beat the Chicago Bulls, 108-107 at the Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis. The next season, the Hawks moved to Atlanta.

* And the Cincinnati Royals beat the San Diego Rockets, 101-99 at the San Diego Sports Arena (now the Pechanga Arena).

There were 3 games in the American Basketball Association, which was in its 1st season:

* The New Jersey Americans beat the Indiana Pacers, 124-112 at the Teaneck Armory. The next season, the Americans -- the closest thing that New Jersey had to a major league sports team since the 1915 Newark Peppers of the Federal League -- moved to Long Island, and became the New York Nets, until moving back to New Jersey from 1977 to 2012, before moving to Brooklyn.

* The New Orleans Buccaneers beat the Minnesota Muskies, 126-100 at the New Orleans Municipal Auditorium. Mel Daniels had 37 points for the Bucs.

* And the Pittsburgh Pipers beat the Anaheim Amigos, 120-112 at the Anaheim Convention Center. Charlie Williams of the Pipers led all scorers on the day with 41 points.

There were 5 games in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers and the Pittsburgh Penguins played to a tie, 2-2 at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh.

* The Montreal Canadiens beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 6-4 at the Montreal Forum.

* The Boston Bruins and the Detroit Red Wings played to a tie, 1-1 at the Olympia Stadium in Detroit.

* The Philadelphia Flyers beat the St. Louis Blues, 2-1 at the St. Louis Arena.

* The Minnesota North Stars beat the Oakland Seals, 5-2 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

* And the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Los Angeles Kings were not scheduled.

And in English soccer, Arsenal, the team I would one day begin following, welcomed North-East team Newcastle United to the Arsenal Stadium, a.k.a. Highbury for its North London neighborhood, and played them to a 0-0 draw.