Born in 1933
Turns 93 in 2026
Gifts for someone born in 1933
1933 Front PageTheir name. The news from their year.Unframed from $51.50Add their name
Their birth chartThe sky as astrology reads it, cast for one birth.Unframed from $51.50
The Years We Were BornThe whole family, together in years.Unframed from $51.50
Our Story timelineTheir life, told in your words.Unframed from $51.50
Front Page: New Zealand edition. The year is filled in; add their name in the editor. “Your name” is a placeholder. Light news is selected. A new keepsake, not an original newspaper.
BACK TO 1933 · New Zealand
A little history to go with their gift.
Edwin Armstrong developed wide-band FM at Columbia University, England’s Ashes victory brought controversy over Bodyline bowling, and Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf? escaped from a Disney film. Radio, sport and popular music all found new audiences.
What happened in 1933?
Elizabeth McCombs becomes New Zealand's first woman MP
Labour candidate Elizabeth McCombs won the Lyttelton by-election on 13 September 1933, becoming New Zealand's first woman Member of Parliament.
Koroki succeeds Te Rata as Māori King
After Te Rata died in 1933, visiting chiefs agreed at his tangihanga that Koroki should succeed him and continue the Kīngitanga.
Radio Luxembourg sends a signal across Europe
Radio Luxembourg put a powerful long-wave signal on air on March 15, 1933, carrying broadcasts beyond the Grand Duchy's borders.
Bodyline Turns Cricket Into A Diplomatic Row
England won the 1932–33 Ashes series 4–1 as its fast leg-theory bowling, known as Bodyline, provoked Australian protest.
Firsts and new ideas
Armstrong advances wide-band FM radio
At Columbia University in New York, Edwin Armstrong developed wide-band FM in 1933 to reduce static.
Columbia University Department of Electrical Engineering · IEEE Communications Society
Zworykin introduces the Iconoscope
Vladimir Zworykin introduced RCA's Iconoscope at an engineering meeting in Chicago in 1933.
Number ones and music in 1933
Chart positions belong to the country and chart named in each record.
Tango brings Argentine music into sound film
Tango!, released in Buenos Aires in 1933, brought Argentine talk and song into a feature film.
Nina Simone is born
Nina Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina, on February 21, 1933. She later became a singer, pianist and songwriter.
North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources · Congressional Record, U.S. Congress
Prices and everyday money in 1933
New Zealand figures in the money of the time. Units and sources matter: these are not today's prices.
| Item or measure | Then | Unit and source |
|---|---|---|
| Standard domestic inland letter postage, first ounce or fraction thereof | 1d per first ounce or fraction; 1d per additional ounce or fraction | one letter, first ounce or fraction thereof New Zealand Post and Telegraph Department |
| Award/agreement wage rate, bakers (North Canterbury) | £4 7s. 6d. per week | per week New Zealand Department of Labour, report to Parliament (digitised by National Library of New Zealand, Papers Past) |
Planning the birthday
Someone born in 1933 turns 93 in 2026. Before their birthday they are one year younger. Choose the birth year for the print; add the full date in the editor if you know it.
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