1962 (MCMLXII) was .

Events 
 March 16 – Walter Cronkite becomes lead anchor on the CBS Evening News.
 August 6 – Jamaica becomes separate from the United Kingdom.
 August 16 – The Beatles fire drummer Pete Best and replace him with Ringo Starr
 Johnny Carson becomes host of The Tonight Show.
 Punchy, the Hawaiian Punch mascot makes his debut.
 Cuban Missile Crisis

Births 
 January 7 – Abigail Johnson, American businesswoman
 January 17 – Jim Carrey, Canadian actor and comedian
 February 6 – Axl Rose, American singer (Guns N' Roses)
 February 7 – Eddie Izzard, British actor and comedian
 February 10 – Cliff Burton, American bassist and songwriter (d. 1986)
 February 11 – Sheryl Crow, American singer
 February 22 – Steve Irwin, Australian animal expert and television personality (The Crocodile Hunter) (d. 2006)
 February 27 – Adam Baldwin, American actor
 March 2 – Jon Bon Jovi, American singer, songwriter, and actor
 March 4 – Lolo Ferrari, French actress (d. 2000)
 March 7 – Taylor Dayne, American singer
 March 21 – Rosie O'Donnell, American comedian, actress and talk show host
 March 25 – Marcia Cross, American actress
 April 23 – Hillel Slovak, American musician (Red Hot Chili Peppers) (d. 1988)
 May 17 – Alan Johnston, British journalist
 May 18 – Nanne Grönvall, Swedish singer
 June 3 – Susannah Constantine, English television presenter
 June 10 – Maxi Priest, English singer
 June 11 – Jack Irons, American musician (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
 June 19 – Paula Abdul, dancer and singer; American Idol judge
 July 3 – Tom Cruise, American actor
 July 31 – Wesley Snipes, American actor
 August 20 – James Marsters, American actor
 August 30 – Alexander Litvinenko, British citizen and ex-KGB (d. 2006)
 September 17 – Baz Luhrmann, Australian movie director
 October 2 – Jeff Bennett, American actor
 October 16, Flea, American musician (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
 October 17- Mike Judge, American animator and producer
 October 19 – Evander Holyfield, American boxer
 November 1 – Anthony Kiedis, American singer (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
 November 11 – Demi Moore, American actress
 November 19 – Jodie Foster, American actress and director
 December 9 – Felicity Huffman, American actress
 December 22 
 Andres Cantor, Argentine/American sportscaster
 Ralph Fiennes, English actor

Deaths 
 April 10 – Stuart Sutcliffe, English musician (The Beatles) (b. 1940)
 July 11 – Polly Adler, Russian writer (b. 1900)
 August 5 – Marilyn Monroe, American actress (b. 1926)
 August 9 – Hermann Hesse, German writer (b. 1877)
 November 7- Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States, wife of Franklin D. Roosevelt (b. 1884)
 November 18 – Niels Bohr, Danish physicist (b. 1885)

Movies released 
 Girls! Girls! Girls!
 In Search of the Castaways
 To Kill a Mockingbird
 The Manchurian Candidate
 The Longest Day
 That Touch of Mink
 Lolita (1962 movie)
 Lawrence of Arabia

Hit songs
"Peppermint Twist" – Joey Dee & the Starlighters
"The Twist" – Chubby Checker
"Soldier Boy" – The Shirelles
"V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N" – Connie Francis
"Hey Baby" – Bruce Channel
"The Loco-Motion" – Little Eva
"Sherry" – Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
"Only Love Can Break a Heart"  – Gene Pitney
"The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance"  –  Gene Pitney
"Break It To Me Gently" –  Brenda Lee
"All Alone Am I"  –  Brenda Lee
"He's A Rebel" – The Crystals
"Breaking Up Is Hard To Do" – Neil Sedaka
"Any Day Now" – Chuck Jackson
"Leah" – Roy Orbison
"Dream Baby" – Roy Orbison
"Fortune Teller" – Bobby Curtola
"Duke Of Earl" – Gene Chandler
"Telstar" – The Tornadoes
"Johnny Angel" – Shelley Fabares
"Go Away Little Girl" – Steve Lawrence
"Don't Make Me Over" – Dionne Warwick
"Big Girls Don't Cry" – Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
"Love Me Do" – The Beatles
"Adios Amigo" – Jim Reeves
"I'm Gonna Change Everything" – Jim Reeves
"Wolverton Mountain" – Claude King
"The Burning Of Atlanta" – Claude King
"I Can't Stop Loving You" – Ray Charles
"Let's Twist Again" – Chubby Checker
"You Can't Judge A Book By The Cover" – Bo Diddley

New books 
 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey