October 1 - Nigeria becomes a republic; The 1st Republican Constitution is established. - In the U.S., the President's Commission on the Status of Women issues its final reports to President Kennedy.

October 2 - Los Angeles Dodgers left-handed pitcher Sandy Koufax sets a World Series record by striking out 15 New York Yankees in a 5-2 victory in Game 1 at Yankee Stadium. The Dodgers sweep the series in four straight, with Koufax defeating the Yankees 2-1 in Game 4 at Dodger Stadium.

October 3 - 1963 Honduran coup d'état: A violent coup in Honduras pre-empts the October 13 election, ends a period of reform under President Ramón Villeda Morales and begins two decades of military rule under General Oswaldo López Arellano.

October 4 - Hurricane Flora, one of the worst Atlantic storms in history, hits Hispaniola and Cuba killing nearly 7,000 people.

October 8 - Sam Cooke and his band are arrested after trying to register at a "whites only" motel in Louisiana. In the months following, he records the song "A Change Is Gonna Come".

October 9 - In northeast Italy, over 2,000 people are killed when a large landslide behind the Vajont Dam causes a giant wave of water to overtop it.

October 10 - The Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, signed on August 5, takes effect. - The second James Bond film, From Russia with Love, opens in the UK.

October 14 - A revolution starts in Radfan, South Yemen, against British colonial rule.

October 16 - The thousandth day of John F. Kennedy's presidency.

October 19 - Alec Douglas-Home succeeds Harold Macmillan as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

October 28 - Demolition of the 1910 Pennsylvania Station begins in New York City, continuing until 1966.

October 30 - Car manufacturing firm Lamborghini is founded in Italy.

October 31 - 74 die in a gas explosion during a Holiday on Ice show at the Indiana State Fair Coliseum in Indianapolis. (source: Wikipedia)