* 1954 – Jon Krakauer, American author

* 1954 – Pat Travers, Canadian singer and musician

* 1954 – Thom Bray, American actor

* 1954 – Jane Campion, New Zealand director

* 1954 – Frank-Michael Marczewski, German footballer

* 1954 – John Lloyd, English tennis player

* 1954 – Derek Warwick, English race car driver

* 1954 – Paul Steigerwald, American sportscaster

* 1954 – Ray Jennings, South African cricketer and coach

* 1954 – Radio Pakistan broadcasts the " Qaumī Tarāna ", the national anthem of Pakistan for the first time.

* 1954 – Nico Assumpção, Brazilian bass player ( d. 2001 )

In 1954 – 55, Australia's batsmen had no answer to the pace of Frank Tyson and Statham.

* 1954 – James Charles Kopp, American murderer of Barnett Slepian

* 1954 – Sammy McIlroy, Irish footballer and manager

* 1993 – Alan Kulwicki, American race car driver ( b. 1954 )

After 1890 came philosopher Josiah Royce ( 1855 – 1916 ), botanist Liberty Hyde Bailey ( 1858 – 1954 ), the Southern Agrarians of the 1920s and 1930s, novelist John Steinbeck ( 1902 – 1968 ), historian A. Whitney Griswold ( 1906 – 1963 ), environmentalist Aldo Leopold ( 1887 – 1948 ), Ralph Borsodi ( 1886 – 1977 ), and present-day authors Wendell Berry ( b. 1934 ), Gene Logsdon ( b. 1932 ), Paul Thompson, and Allan C. Carlson ( b. 1949 ).

Alan Mathison Turing, OBE, FRS ( ; 23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954 ), was a British mathematician, logician, cryptanalyst, and computer scientist.

* 1954 – James Gleick, American author, journalist, and biographer

* 1954 – Benno Möhlmann, German footballer

* 1954 – Gary Peters, English footballer

Charles William " Bill " Mumy, Jr. (; born February 1, 1954 ) is an American actor, musician, pitchman, instrumentalist, voice-over artist and a figure in the science-fiction community.

* 1954 – Bill Doak, American baseball player ( b. 1891 )

In terms of its wide cultural impact across society in the US and elsewhere, Bill Haley's " Rock Around the Clock ", recorded in April 1954 but not a commercial success until the following year, is generally recognized as an important milestone, but it was preceded by many recordings from earlier decades in which elements of rock and roll can be clearly discerned.

Three months earlier, on April 12, 1954, Bill Haley & His Comets recorded " Rock Around the Clock ".

In addition to Bobby Thomson and Willie Mays, other memorable members of the Giants teams during the 1950s include: Hall of Fame manager Leo Durocher, coach Herman Franks, Hall of Fame outfielder Monte Irvin, outfielder and runnerup for the 1954 NL batting championship ( won by Willie Mays ) Don Mueller, Hall of Fame knuckleball relief pitcher Hoyt Wilhelm, starting pitchers Larry Jansen, Sal Maglie, Jim Hearn, Marv Grissom, Dave Koslo, Don Liddle, Max Lanier, Rubén Gómez, and Johnny Antonelli, catcher Wes Westrum, catchers Ray Katt and Sal Yvars, shortstop Alvin Dark, third baseman Hank Thompson, first baseman Whitey Lockman, second basemen Davey Williams and Eddie Stanky, outfielder, pitcher Clint Hartung, Hall of Fame second baseman Red Schoendienst and utility players: Bill Rigney, Daryl Spencer, Bobby Hofman, and Dusty Rhodes among others.

* Children ( 8 ): Gwendolyn Gail ( 1935 – 1976 ), Sue ( 1937 – 1978 ), Bill ( 1939 – 1962 ), Cathy Ann ( 1943 – 1947 ), Arlo Davy ( 1947 –), Joady Ben ( 1948 –), Nora ( 1950 –), Lorinna Lynn ( 1954 – 1973 )

The best-known and most successful rendition was recorded by Bill Haley and His Comets in 1954.

It was not the first rock and roll record, nor was it the first successful record of the genre ( Bill Haley had American chart success with " Crazy Man, Crazy " in 1953, and in 1954, " Shake, Rattle and Roll " reached No. 1 on the Billboard R & B chart ).

Although first recorded by Italian-American band Sonny Dae and His Knights on March 20, 1954, the more famous version by Bill Haley & His Comets is not, strictly speaking, a cover version.

This was later shortened to "( We're Gonna ) Rock Around the Clock ", though this form is generally only used on releases of the 1954 Bill Haley Decca Records recording ; most other recordings of this song by Haley and others ( including Sonny Dae ) shorten this title further to " Rock Around the Clock ".

After leaving Essex Records in the spring of 1954, Bill Haley signed with the then-important Decca Records label, and the band's first recording session was set for April 12, 1954 at the Pythian Temple studios in New York City.

Bill Haley and His Comets have also been inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and, in July 2005, the surviving members of the 1954 – 55 Comets ( see below ) represented Haley when Bill Haley and His Comets were inducted into Hollywood's Rockwalk, a ceremony also attended by Haley's second wife and youngest daughter.

In March and July 2005, the members of the 1954 – 55 group, now billed as simply The Comets after decades of controversy over the use of the name, made several high-profile concert appearances in New York City and Los Angeles organized by Martin Lewis as part of celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of rock and roll, the release of Blackboard Jungle, the 50th anniversary of " Rock Around the Clock " hitting Number 1, and the 80th birthday of Bill Haley.

Sykes also made his first screen appearance at this time in the army film comedy Orders Are Orders ( 1954 ), which also featured Sid James, Tony Hancock, Peter Sellers, Bill Fraser and Donald Pleasence.

* 1954 U. S. Amateur, Ohio Amateur, All-American Amateur, Atlantic Coast Conference Championship, Bill Waite Memorial

During July 1954, Perkins and his wife heard a new release of " Blue Moon of Kentucky " by Elvis Presley, Scotty Moore and Bill Black on the radio., and Valda told Carl that someone in Memphis understood what he was doing and he should go see him.

Writing was by Dragnet scripter Jack Robinson ( uncredited ) with art by Joe Sheiber ( June 23, 1952-Sept. 20, 1952 ), Bill Ziegler ( Sept. 22, 1952-January 9, 1954 ) and Mel Keefer ( Jan. 11, 1954-May 21, 1955 ).

In 1954, American Decca released " Rock Around the Clock " by Bill Haley & His Comets.

Other major funders include Bill Gates, Alexander W. Dreyfoos, Jr. ( MIT class of 1954 ), Charles Thomas " E. B " Pritchard Hintze ( a graduate and of JD Edwards, now Oracle ) and Morris Chang of TSMC.

* Fall – Bill Haley & His Comets end their groundbreaking association with Decca Records, for whom they had recorded since 1954.

In 1954 Bill Kenny officially disbanded The Ink Spots after an appearance at the " Bolero Bar " in Wildwood, New Jersey.

There are also a few antecedents to folk rock present in pre-British Invasion American rock ' n ' roll, including Elvis Presley's 1954 cover of the Bill Monroe bluegrass standard " Blue Moon of Kentucky "; Buddy Holly's self-penned material, which strongly influenced both Dylan and The Byrds ; Ritchie Valens ' recording of the Mexican folk song " La Bamba "; Lloyd Price's rock ' n ' roll adaptation of the African-American folk song " Stagger Lee " ( which had originally been recorded by Mississippi John Hurt in 1928 ); Jimmie Rodgers ' rock ' n ' roll flavored renditions of traditional folk songs ; and the folk and country-influenced recordings featured on The Everly Brothers ' 1959 album, Songs Our Daddy Taught Us.