On This Day

Billboard Hot 100 is published for the first time with "Poor Little Fool" by Ricky Nelson at #1

The Billboard Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by Billboard magazine.

The Billboard Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), online streaming, and radio airplay in the U.S.

A new chart is compiled and released online to the public by Billboard's website on Tuesdays but post-dated to the following Saturday, when the printed magazine first reaches newsstands. Since July 2015, the weekly tracking period for sales has been Friday–Thursday. It was initially Monday–Sunday when Nielsen started tracking sales in 1991. This tracking period also applies to the compilation of online streaming data.

Historical Significance

The Billboard Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by Billboard magazine.

Key People

Ricky Nelson

musician and actor

American musician and actor

Events Before

  1. Sputnik 1 Launch

    The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 1, the world's first artificial satellite, igniting the Space Age and the US-Soviet Space Race.

  2. An Irish Republican Army (IRA) unit attacks Brookeborough Royal Ulster Constabulary barracks in one of the most famous i

    An Irish Republican Army (IRA) unit attacks Brookeborough Royal Ulster Constabulary barracks in one of the most famous incidents of the IRA's Operation Harvest

  3. Aviator Howard Hughes marries 2nd wife actress Jean Peters

    Aviator Howard Hughes marries 2nd wife actress Jean Peters

  4. South African golfer Gary Player (21) weds childhood sweetheart Vivienne Verwey, until her death in 2021

    South African golfer Gary Player (21) weds childhood sweetheart Vivienne Verwey, until her death in 2021

  5. English-American actress Elizabeth Taylor's 2nd divorce from English actor Michael Wilding, after almost 5 years of marr

    English-American actress Elizabeth Taylor's 2nd divorce from English actor Michael Wilding, after almost 5 years of marriage

Events After

  1. Johnny Cash performs the first of many free concerts behind bars at San Quentin State Prison in California

    Johnny Cash performs the first of many free concerts behind bars at San Quentin State Prison in California

  2. Chad becomes an autonomous republic in the French Community

    The French Community (French: Communauté française) was the constitutional organization set up in October 1958 between France and its remaining African colonies, then in the process of…

  3. USSR's Luna 1 becomes the first spacecraft to escape Earth's gravity

    A gravity assist, gravity assist maneuver, swing-by, or generally a gravitational slingshot in orbital mechanics, is a type of spaceflight flyby which makes use of the relative movement (e.g.

  4. TV western "Rawhide," starring Clint Eastwood, premieres on CBS

    TV western "Rawhide," starring Clint Eastwood, premieres on CBS

  5. Plane crash known as "The Day the Music Died" kills musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J. P. Richardson (aka The Big

    Plane crash known as "The Day the Music Died" kills musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J. P. Richardson (aka The Big Bopper), and the pilot near Clear Lake, Iowa

More from the 1950s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on August 4, 1958?
The Billboard Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), online streaming, and radio airplay in the U.S. A new chart is compiled and released online to the public by Billboard's website on Tuesdays but post-dated to the following Saturday, when the printed magazine first reaches newsstands.
Why is Billboard Hot 100 is published for the first time with "Poor Little Fool" by ... significant?
The Billboard Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by Billboard magazine.
Who was involved in Billboard Hot 100 is published for the first time with "Poor Little Fool" by ...?
Key figures include Ricky Nelson (musician and actor).

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