United States in 1980s

It was a new decade, and 1980 started off with a bang in the form of both natural and man-made disasters
– including the eruption of Mount St. Helens close to Washington and the assassination of John Lennon. Ronald Reagan is elected towards the end of the year. Music was getting a shake up as well with a move away from the disco, Appear the rap music. Millions of TV viewers want the answer to one question – Who Shot JR? This was the beginning of a new era – the 80s.

1980

HISTORY & POLITICS

U.S. President Jimmy Carter authorizes legislation giving $1.5 billion in loans to
bail out the Chrysler Corporation.

Mount St. Helens erupts in Washington, killing 57 and causing US$3 billion in damage.

A series of deadly tornadoes strikes Grand Island, Nebraska, causing over $300m
in damage, killing 5 people and injuring over 250.

U.S. President Jimmy Carter signs a bill requiring 19- and 20-year-old males to register for a peacetime military draft, in response to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

The command council of Iraq orders its army to "deliver its fatal blow on Iranian military targets," initiating the Iran-Iraq War.

Voyager program: The NASA space probe Voyager I makes its closest approach to Saturn, when it flies within 77,000 miles of the planet's cloud-tops and sends the first high resolution images of the world back to scientists on Earth.

Former Beatle John Lennon dies in the hospital after being shot outside his New York City apartment by Mark David Chapman.


MUSIC

Call Me - Blondie
Another Brick In The Wall - Pink Floyd
Magic - Olivia Newton-John
Rock With You - Michael Jackson
Do That To Me One More Time - Captain & Tennille
Fame - Irene Cara
Working My Way Back to You/Forgive Me, Girl - The Spinners
Funkytown - Lipps, Inc., Lipps, Inc.
Little Jeannie - Elton John
Upside Down - Diana Ross
He's So Shy - The Pointer Sisters
Please Don't Go - KC & the Sunshine Band
Turning Japanese - The Vapors
Rapper's Delight - Sugar Hill Gang
Whip It - Devo
Escape (The Piña Colada Song) - Rupert Holmes
Crazy Little Thing Called Love - Queen
It's Still Rock n' Roll To Me - Billy Joel
Sailing - Christopher Cross
Another One Bites the Dust - Queen

TELEVISION

Dallas: Millions of viewers tune into the U.S. TV soap opera Dallas to learn who shot lead character J.R. Ewing. The "Who shot J.R.?" event is a national obsession.
 
Magnum, P.I: Starring: Tom Selleck & John Hillerman
The adventures of a Hawaii based private investigator.
 
MOVIES

The Empire Strikes Back: Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams
While Luke takes advanced Jedi training from Yoda, his friends are relentlessly pursued by Darth Vader as part of his plan to capture Luke.
 
Stir Crazy: Starring: Richard Pryor & Gene Wilder
Skip and Harry are framed for a bank robbery and end up in a western prison. The two eastern boys are having difficulty adjusting to the new life until the warden finds that Skip has a natural talent for riding broncos with the inter-prison rodeo coming up.

Urban Cowboy: Starring: John Travolta
Bud is a young man from the country who learns about life and love in a Houston bar.
    
Friday the 13th: Many years after two summer camp councilors are killed at Camp Crystal Lake, the owner decides to reopen, which sparks a series of grisly murders.
 
American Gigolo: Starring: Richard Gere, Lauren Hutton, Hector Elizondo
Julian is the highest paid lover in Beverly Hills. He leaves women feeling more alive than they've ever felt before. Except one.
Back to Top  .  Back to 80s Capsules

SPORTS

The United States Olympic Hockey Team defeats the Soviet Union in the semifinals of the Winter Olympics, in the Miracle on Ice.

United States boycotts the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.

New York Islanders win the Stanley Cup.

Dale Earnhardt #2 won the NEXTEL Cup (formerly Winston Cup).

PEOPLE WHO DIED

John Mauchly (b. 1097) - American physicist and inventor of ENIAC (1st general purpose electronic digital computer) & UNIVAC I (1st commercial computer made in the USA).
Jimmy Durante (b. 1893) - American actor, singer & comedian.
Jesse Owens (b. 1913) - American track and field athlete who won 4 gold medals in the 1936 Summer Olympics.
Jean-Paul Sartre (b. 1905) - French existentialist philosopher and writer who declined his win of the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Luis Muñoz Marín (b. 1898) - Poet, journalist, politician (1st democratically elected Governor of Puerto Rico and considered one of the most important 20th century political figures in the Americas) & was called the "Father of the Modern Puerto Rico."
Ian Curtis (b. 1956) - Lead singer of the British band Joy Division.
Peter Sellers (b. 1925) - English comedian and actor best known for his Inspector Clouseau roles in Pink Panther films.
Tex Avery (b. 1908) - American cartoonist and creator of Looney Toons.
John Lennon (b. 1940) - British singer, songwriter, guitarist, one of the founders of The Beatles, painter, author and political activist.

PEOPLE WHO WERE BORN

Alicia Keys - Musician (singer and pianist) & Actress (Smokin' Aces)
Nick Carter - Singer & member of Backstreet Boys
Chelsea Clinton - Daughter of former U.S. president Bill Clinton & U.S. senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
Venus Williams - American tennis player
Jessica Simpson - Singer / Actress - as Daisy Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard, Amy in Employee of the Month, & herself on MTV's reality show Newlyweds: Nick & Jessica

1981


HISTORY & POLITICS

The first De Lorean DMC-12 automobile  a stainless steel sports car with gull-wing doors, rolls off the production line in Dunmurry, Northern Ireland.

A fire at the Las Vegas Hilton hotel-casino kills 8 and injures 198.

U.S. President Ronald Reagan is shot in the chest outside a Washington, D.C. hotel by John Hinckley, Jr.. Two police officers and Press Secretary James Brady are also wounded.

The first combined heart-lung transplant in the world is performed at Stanford's Medical Center.

Pope John Paul II is shot and nearly killed by Mehmet Ali Ağca, a Turkish gunman, as he enters St. Peter's Square in Rome to address a general audience (2 days after Christmas in 1983, Pope John Paul goes to the prison to meet and forgive his would-be assassin).

Lady Diana Spencer marries Charles, Prince of Wales.

MTV (Music Television) is launched.

The original Model 5150 IBM PC with a 4.77 MHz Intel 8088 processor was released in the United States at a base price of $1,565.

A jury of architects and sculptors unanimously selects Maya Lin's design for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial from 1,421 other entries.

France abolishes capital punishment.

MUSIC

Betty Davis Eyes - Kim Carnes
Endless Love - Diana Ross / Lionel Richie
Lady - Kenny Rogers
(Just Like) Starting Over - John Lennon
Jessie's Girl - Rick Springfield
One That You Love - Air Supply
Tide Is High - Blondie
9 to 5 - Dolly Parton
Queen of Hearts - Juice Newton
Kiss on My List - Hall & Oates
Being With You - Smokey Robinson
Celebration - Kool & the Gang
Tainted Love - Soft Cell

TELEVISION

The Fall Guy: Starring: Lee Majors, Douglas Barr, & Heather Thomas
Colt Seavers is a stuntman, who when he is in a financial crunch, works as a bounty hunter. He is aided by his cousin Howie, who has gone to practically every college and studied every course for a semester, and his protégé Jody.
 
Hill Street Blues: Story of an overworked, under-staffed police precinct in an anonymous inner city patterned after Chicago. We follow the lives of many characters, from the lowly beat and traffic cops to the captain of the precinct himself.
   
Falcon Crest: Starring: Jane Wyman, Margaret Ladd, Susan Sullivan, Robert Foxworth, William R. Moses, Lorenzo Lamas, Abby Dalton, & Chao Li Chi
Set in the vineyards of California, this prime-time soap opera featured the conflict between two families: the Channings, headed by ruthless family matriarch Angela Channing, and the Giobertis, led by Chase and Maggie Gioberti.
   
General Hospital: Luke and Laura get married; the soap-opera is the highest-rated hour in daytime television history.

MOVIES

Raiders of the Lost Ark: Starring: Harrison Ford & Karen Allen
Renowned archeologist and expert in the occult, Dr. Indiana Jones, is hired by the U.S. Government to find the Ark of the Covenant, which is believed to still hold the ten commandments. Unfortunately, agents of Hitler are also after the Ark. Indy, and his ex-flame Marion, escape from various close scrapes in a quest that takes them from Nepal to Cairo.

Superman II: Starring: Christopher Reeve
Superman agrees to sacrifice his powers to marry Lois, unaware that three Kryptonian criminals he inadvertently released are conquering Earth.
 
Clash of the Titans: Starring: Laurence Olivier, Harry Hamlin
A film adaptation of the myth of Perseus and his quest to battle both Medusa and the Kraken monster to save the Princess Andromeda.
 
Reds: Starring: Warren Beatty & Diane Keaton
A radical American journalist becomes involved with the Communist revolution in Russia and hopes to bring its spirit and idealism to the United States. A Love Story told inside period politics at the height of the Russian Revolution.
 
Taps: Starring: Timothy Hutton, Sean Penn & Tom Cruise
Military cadets take extreme measures to insure the future of their academy when its existence is threatened by local condo developers.
 
SPORTS

Major League Baseball goes on strike, forcing the cancellation of 38 percent of
the schedule, but play resumes with the All-Star Game in Cleveland's Municipal
Stadium.

New York Islanders win the Stanley Cup.

Bernard Hinault (France) wins the Tour de France.

Darrell Waltrip #11 won the NEXTEL Cup (formerly Winston Cup).

PEOPLE WHO DIED

Bill Haley (b. 1925) - One of the 1st American rock & roll musicians - His group Bill Haley
& His Comets had the hit song "Rock Around the Clock."
Bob Marley (b. 1945) - Jamaican singer / musician - "I Shot the Sheriff," "No Woman, No Cry," "Jammin," & "Redemption Song"
Natalie Wood (b. 1938) - Actress - as Susan Walker in Miracle on 34th Street, Anna Muir
as a child in The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, Judy in Rebel Without  a Cause, Maria in West Side
Story, Gypsy Rose Lee in Gypsy, & Maggie DuBois in The Great Race
Hans Adolf Krebs (b. 1900) - German physician/biochemst who won a Nobel Prize for identifying 2 metabolic cycles: the urea cycle & the citric acid cycle aka the Krebs cycle.

PEOPLE WHO WERE BORN

Justin Timberlake - Singer / Actor - Solo artist, member of boy band 'N Sync, as himself on The New Mickey Mouse Club, Frankie Ballenbacher in Alpha Dog, & voice of King Arthur in Shrek the Third
Paris Hilton - Heiress / Socialite / Singer
Julia Stiles - Actress - as Kat Stratford in 10 Things I Hate About You, Sara Johnson in Save the Last Dance, Desi Brable in O, Becky Jackon in A Guy Thing, Paige Morgan in The Prince and Me, & Nicky in the series of Bourne (Identity) movies
Jessica Alba - Actress - as Max on Dark Angel, Sue Storm in Fantastic Four, Nancy Callahan in Sin City, & Sam in Into the Blue
Jamie-Lynn Sigler - Actress - as Meadow Soprano on The Sopranos
Natalie Portman - Actress - as Mathilda in The Professional, Padme/Queen Amadalia in Star Wars: Episodes I-III, Samantha in Garden State, & Evey Hammon in V for Vendetta
Beyonce Knowles - Singer / Actress - Solo artist, member of Destiny's Child, Foxxy Cleopatra in Austin Powers in Goldmember, & Deena Jones in Dreamgirls
Serena Williams - American Tennis player
Akon - Hip Hop / R&B / Reggae singer
Britney Spears - Singer ("…Baby One More Time," "Oops!...I Did It Again," & "Toxic") & member of The New Mickey Mouse Club.

1982

HISTORY & POLITICS

Cold Sunday was a meteorological event which took place on January 17 when unprecedentedly cold air swept down from Canada and plunged temperatures across much of the United States far below existing all-time record lows.

On March 10 all 9 planets align on the same side of the Sun.

Israel completes withdrawing from the Sinai peninsula per the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty.

The Weather Channel (United States) airs on cable television for the first time.

Longest Luna Eclipse of the 20th century took place on July 6, lasting 106 min.

The first International Day of Peace on Sept 21.

The Epcot theme park at Walt Disney World opens to the public for the first time.

Sony launches the first consumer compact disc player (model CDP-101).

On Nov 13, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C., after a march to its site by thousands of Vietnam War veterans.

Thriller album by Michael Jackson is released, becoming the biggest selling album of all time in entertainment history.

Prince William is born on June 21 at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, West London.

MUSIC

Physical - Olivia Newton-John
Eye Of The Tiger - Survivor
I Love Rock N' Roll - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
Ebony And Ivory - Paul McCartney / Stevie Wonder
Centerfold - J. Geils Band
Harden My Heart - Quarterflash
Stray Cat Strut - Stray Cats
Rosanna - Toto
Eye in the Sky - The Alan Parsons Project
Mickey - Toni Basil
Gloria - Laura Branigan
Come on Eileen - Dexy's Midnight Runners
Who Can It Be Now? - Men at Work
Open Arms - Journey
Don't Talk to Strangers - Rick Springfield
Maneater - Hall & Oates
Up Where We Belong - Joe Cocker, Jennifer Warnes
I Want Candy - Bow Wow Wow
Key Largo - Bertie Higgins
I Melt With You - Modern English

TELEVISION

Cheers: Starring: Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman, George Wendt, John Ratzenberger, & Shelley Long
The regulars of the Boston bar Cheers share their experiences and lives with each other while drinking or working at the bar where everybody knows your name.
   
Family Ties: Starring: Meredith Baxter, Michael Gross, Michael J. Fox, Justine Bateman, & Tina Yothers
A couple who were ardently leftwing political activists in the sixties face the problems of raising a family with children who have strongly conservative views.
   
Cagney & Lacey: Starring: Tyne Daly & Sharon Gless
Two female police detectives cooperate with each other both in their professions and in their personal lives.

MOVIES
 
An Officer and a Gentleman: Starring: Richard Gere, Debra Winger, David Keith
A young man must complete his work at a Navy Flight school to become an aviator, with the help of a tough gunnery sergeant and his new girlfriend.
      
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan: Starring: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Walter Koenig, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, & Ricardo Montalban
Admiral James T. Kirk is still in charge of a space fleet, but from behind a desk. Dr. McCoy and Mr. Spock convince him to take on a mission which sounds simple, but with the appearance of the mysterious Khan, things get a little tricky.
 
48 HRS: Starring: Nick Nolte & Eddie Murphy
A hard-nosed cop reluctantly teams up with a wise-cracking criminal temporarily paroled to him, in order to track down a killer.
 
Poltergeist: Starring: Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams, Heather O'Rourke
A young family are visited by ghosts in their home. At first the ghosts appear friendly, moving objects around the house to the amusement of everyone, then they turn nasty and start to terrorize the family before they "kidnap" the youngest daughter.
 
Gandhi: Starring: Ben Kingsley
Biography of Mahatma Gandhi, the lawyer who became the famed leader of the Indian revolts against the British through his philosophy of non-violent protest.
 
First Blood: Starring: Sylvester Stallone as John Rambo
A mentally unstable Vietnam war vet, when abused with a small town's police force, begins a one man war with it.
 
Conan the Barbarian: Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Earl Jones, Max von Sydow, Sandahl Bergman, Gerry Lopez, Cassandra Gava, Mako, & Valerie Quennessen
The epic tale of child sold into slavery who grows into a man who seeks revenge against the warlord who massacred his tribe.

SPORTS

Cal Ripken starts the first game of what will eventually become his record-breaking consecutive games played streak of 2,632.

University of California, Berkeley executes "The Play" in a college football game against Stanford. Completing a wacky 57-yard kickoff return that includes five laterals, Kevin Moen runs through Stanford band members who had prematurely come onto the field. His touchdown stands and California wins 25-20.

Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 49ers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals, 26–21.

New York Islanders win the Stanley Cup.

Bernard Hinault (France) wins the Tour de France.

Italy beats West Germany 3-1 to win the FIFA World Cup.

PEOPLE WHO DIED

Lee Strasberg (b. 1901) - Director, actor, producer, & acting teacher (taught Marylin Monroe)
John Belushi (b. 1949) - Actor / Comedian / Singer - Known for his work on Saturday Night Live, National Lampoon's Animal House, & The Blues Brothers.
Randy Rhoads (b. 1956) - Guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne
Satchel Paige (b. 1906) - Professional baseball player - Considered one of the greatest pitchers of all time.
Jack Sigert (b. 1931) - NASA astronaunt who was one of the 3 astronauts on the Apollo 13 moon mission.
Bess Truman (b. 1885) - First Lady of the United States

PEOPLE WHO WERE BORN

Kelly Clarkson - Singer & winner of the 1st season of American Idol
Kirsten Dunst - Actress - Claudia in Interview with the Vampire, Torrence Shipman in Bring It On, Mary Jane Watson in the Spiderman film series
Prince William of Wales - son of Princess Dianna & Prince Charles
Sophia Bush - Actress - Brooke Davis on One Tree Hill
Anna Paquin - Actress - Flora McGrath in The Piano (won Oscar), Amy Alden in Fly Away Home, & Rogue in X-Men movie series
Allison Mack - Actress - Chloe Sullivan on Smallville
Lacey Chabert - Claudia Salinger on Party of Five
Ian James Thorpe - Australian swimmer known as the "Thorpedo" who has 9 Olympic medal from the 2000 & 2004 Summer Olympics (5 of which are Gold)

1983

HISTORY & POLITICS

High ranking Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie is arrested in Bolivia & officially charged with war crimes.

Wah Mee massacre: 13 people are killed in an attempted robbery in Seattle, Washington.

Strategic Defense Initiative: U.S. President Ronald Reagan makes his initial proposal to develop technology to intercept enemy missiles. The media dub this plan "Star Wars."

The U.S. Embassy is bombed in Beirut, killing 63 people.

Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space, on the Space Shuttle Challenger.

Hurricane Alicia hits the Texas coast, killing 22 and causing over US$3.8 billion (2005 dollars) in damage.

Vanessa Williams becomes the first African-American to be crowned Miss America, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Microsoft Word is first released.

Martin Luther King Day: At the White House Rose Garden, U.S. President Ronald Reagan signs a bill creating a federal holiday on the third Monday of every January to honor American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

McDonald's introduces the McNugget.

Harold Washington is elected the first African American mayor of Chicago.

MUSIC

Every Breath You Take - Police
Billie Jean - Michael Jackson
Flashdance . . . What A Feeling - Irene Cara
Down Under - Men At Work
Beat It - Michael Jackson
Africa - Toto
Talking in Your Sleep - The Romantics
Maniac - Michael Sembello
Electric Avenue - Eddy Grant
True - Spandau Ballet
Total Eclipse of the Heart - Bonnie Tyler
Jeopardy - Greg Kihn Band
Do You Really Want to Hurt Me - Culture Club
Relax - Frankie Goes to Hollywood
Making Love Out of Nothing at All - Air Supply
She Blinded Me With Science - Thomas Dolby
China - Red Rockers
Too Shy - Kajagoogoo
In a Big Country - Big Country

TELEVISION

 The A-Team: Starring: George Peppard, Dwight Schultz, Mr. T, & Dirk Benedict
Four Vietnam vets, framed for a crime they didn't commit, help the innocent while on the run from the military.

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe [cartoon]: The most powerful man in the universe, He-Man, goes against the evil forces of Skeletor to save the planet Eternia and to protect the secrets of Castle Grayskull with the help of his friends, Man-At-Arms, Teela, Orko, and Battlecat.
   
Fraggle Rock [muppets]: Doc and his dog Sprocket have a hole in their wall, behind which live little furry creatures known as Fraggles in a place called Fraggle Rock. The Rock is also home to the Doozers (who are knee-high to a Fraggle) and the Gorgs (who are giants that think they rule the Rock). One gang of Fraggles (Gobo, Mokey, Wembley, Boober, and Red), under the guidance of the all-knowing Trash Heap (Marjorie), learn about each other and their neighbors and eventually befriend the Doozers, the Gorgs--and even Doc and Sprocket. Meanwhile, Gobo's Uncle Matt explores Outer Space (our world) and sends postcards to his nephew about the Silly Creatures (that's us).
   
Alvin & the Chipmunks [cartoon]: Three chipmunk brothers, Alvin, Simon, and Theodore, have been adopted by and are living with Dave (a human). Each show finds the boys getting into trouble and new and unusual situations.
Back to Top  .  Back to 80s Capsules

MOVIES

Flashdance: Starring: Jennifer Beals
A Pittsburgh woman with two jobs as a welder and an exotic dancer wants to get into ballet school.

WarGames: Starring: Matthew Broderick
A young computer whizz kid accidentally connects into a top secret super-computer which has complete control over the U.S. nuclear arsenal. It challenges him to a game between America and Russia, and he innocently starts the countdown to World War 3. Can he convince the computer he wanted to play a game and not the real thing?
 
Octopussy: Starring: Robert Moore, Maud Adams
A Faberge Egg found with a murdered British agent puts Bond on the trail that leads to a plot to kill thousands to weaken NATO defenses in Europe.
 
Sudden Impact: Starring: Clint Eastwood
A rape victim is exacting revenge on her aggressors in a small town outside San Francisco. Dirty Harry, on suspension for angering his superiors (again), is assigned to the case.
 
The Big Chill: Starring: Tom Berenger, Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, Kevin Kline
A group of seven former college friends gather for a weekend reunion at a posh South Carolina winter house after the funeral of one of their friends.
 
Never Say Never Again: Starring: Sean Connery
A SPECTRE agent has stolen two American nuclear warheads, and James Bond must find their targets before they are detonated.
 
Scarface: Starring: Al Pacino as Tony Montana
In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug empire while succumbing to greed.
 
SPORTS

Björn Borg retires from tennis after winning 5 consecutive Wimbledon championships.

Indianapolis 500: Tom Sneva wins his first race after three previous runner-up finishes.

George Brett (former 3rd baseman for the Kansas City Royals) is expelled from a baseball game in Yankee Stadium, New York, after charging an umpire who called him out for having more pine tar on his bat than technically allowed.

New York Islanders win the Stanley Cup.

Sunny's Halo wins the Kentucky Derby with a time of 2:02.20.

Laurent Fignon (France) wins the Tour de France.

PEOPLE WHO DIED


George Cukor (b. 1899) - Film Director - My Fair Lady, Dinner at Eight, Little Women, David Copperfield, Romeo and Juliet, Camille, Holiday, The Philadelphia Story
Karen Carpenter (b. 1950) - Singer and 1/2 of the duo The Carpenters
Tennessee Williams (b. 1911) - Playwright who wrote The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat On a Hot Tin Roof
Jack Dempsey (b. 1895) - World heavyweight boxer
Norma Shearer (b. 1902) - Actress - The Divorcee, Romeo & Juliet, Marie Antoinette
David Niven (b. 1910) - Actor - Around the World in Eighty Days, Pink Panther, Casino Royale, Separate Tables
Joan Hackett (b. 1934) - Actress - as Catherine Allen in the western Will Penny & won a Golden Globe best supporting actress in Only When I Laugh (1982)
Slim Pickens (b. 1919) - Actor - best know as the B-52 pilot Major T.J. "King" Kong in Dr. Strangelove who rode the H-bomb.

PEOPLE WHO WERE BORN

Kate Bosworth - Actress - as Anne Marie Chadwick in Blue Crush, Rosalee Futch in Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!, & Sandra Dee in Beyond the Sea
Amber Tamblyn - Actress - as Joan Girardi on Joan of Arcadia, Emily Quartermain on General Hospital, Tabitha "Tibby" Tomko-Rollins in The Siterhood of the Traveling Pants, Aubrey Davis in The Grudge 2
Michelle Branch - Singer as a pop soloist "Everywhere," "All You Wanted," & "Breathe" and as part of the duo of the country group The Wreckers
Gregory Smith - Actor - as Ephram Brown on Everwood, Alan Abernathy in Small Soldiers, Thomas Martin in The Patriot

1984
HISTORY & POLITICS

Bell System divestiture breaks AT&T into 24 independent units.

Astronauts Bruce McCandless II and Robert L. Stewart make the first untethered space walk.

Pop star Michael Jackson's scalp is seriously burned by pyrotechnics during filming of a Pepsi television commercial.

A deadly F5 tornado nearly destroys the town of Barneveld, Wisconsin, killing 9 people, injuring nearly 200, and causing over $25,000,000 in damage.

In San Ysidro, California, 41-year-old James Oliver Huberty sprays a McDonald's restaurant with gunfire, killing 21 people before being shot and killed.

Vanessa Lynn Williams becomes the first Miss America to resign when she surrenders her crown, after nude photos of her appear in "Penthouse" magazine.

The first MTV Video Music Awards are held in Radio City Music Hall, New York City on Sept. 14th.

U.S. presidential election, on Nov. 6th: Ronald Reagan defeats Walter F. Mondale with 59% of the popular vote, the highest since Richard Nixon's 61% victory in 1972.

Four African-American youths (Barry Allen, Troy Canty, James Ramseur, and Darrell Cabey) board an express train in The Bronx borough of New York City. They attempt to rob Bernhard Goetz, who shoots them. The event starts a national debate about urban crime, which is a plague in 1980s America.

Crack, a smokeable form of cocaine, is first introduced into the Los Angeles area and soon spreads across the United States in what came to be known as the Crack Epidemic.

MUSIC

When Doves Cry - Prince & The Revolution
What's Love Got To Do With It - Tina Turner
Say Say Say - Paul McCartney / Michael Jackson
Footloose - Kenny Loggins
Against All Odds (Take A Look At Me Now) - Phil Collins
Owner of a Lonely Heart - Yes
Ghostbusters - Ray Parker, Jr.
Jump (For My Love) - The Pointer Sisters
Caribbean Queen (No More Love on the Run) - Billy Ocean Listen
Wake Me up Before You Go-Go - Wham!
Let's Hear It for the Boy - Deniece Williams
Karma Chameleon - Culture Club
Hold Me Now - Thompson Twins
Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer - Elmo & Patsy
99 Luftballons - Nena
Pass The Dutchie - Musical Youth
We're Not Gonna Take It - Twisted Sister
All I Need - Jack Wagner

TELEVISION

Transformers [cartoon]: The Autobots and Decepticons, during the great Cybertronian War, crash landed on earth. Millions of years later, geological activity revives the warring factions - the Decepticons want to strip the earth of its vast energy resources, and the Autobots seek to protect the inhabitants of earth from that fate. And so an endless battle begins.
 
Miami Vice: Starring: Don Johnson, Philip Michael Thomas, Olivia Brown, Saundra Santiago, & Edward James Olmos
Detective James "Sonny" Crockett and detective Ricardo "Rico" Tubbs, of the Miami-Dade police department's organized crime bureau vice unit, work deep undercover as seedy criminals to infiltrate and bring down the various criminal enterprises of southern Florida.
   
Kids Incorporated: The show portrayed kids in a rock band, performing at a teen-dance club, & dealing with problems such as a being too shy to ask someone on a date or having a friend that likes Shakespeare while you only want to listen to rock and roll.
 
Who's the Boss?: Starring: Tony Danza, Judith Light, Alyssa Milano, Danny Pintauro, & Katherine Helmond
Former major-leaguer Tony Micelli and his daughter Samantha arrive at the Connecticut household of executive Angela Bower, where Tony has taken a job as live-in housekeeper. The Bowers are an interesting family, to say the least. Angela is uptight and obsessed with her work. Her son Jonathan is shy and lacks self-esteem, and her mother, Mona, is a man-hungry vixen. Tony soon wins them over with his laid back style, and the Bowers begin to loosen up.
 
Hunter: Starring: Fred Dryer & Stepfanie Kramer
L.A.P.D. Sgt. Rick Hunter is a tough-minded, Dirty Harry-type policeman who can't stand the creeps, thieves, rapists, and especially murderers who prowl the streets of Los Angeles. Unfortunately his method of doing things doesn't sit well with his precinct captains, which lead to their efforts to get rid of him. Because of his heavy-handed approach, he is unable to keep partners for any significant time frame, and is assigned to Sgt. Dee Dee 'The Brass Cupcake' McCall. The two find themselves up against the slimiest criminals Los Angeles has to offer.

MOVIES

Beverly Hills Cop:  Starring: Eddie Murphy & Judge Reinhold
A freewheeling Detroit cop pursuing a murder investigation finds himself dealing with the very different culture of Beverly Hills.
   
Ghostbusters: Starring: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Sigourney Weaver, & Rick Moranis
Three unemployed parapsychology professors set up shop as a unique ghost removal service.
   
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: Starring: Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw, & Jonathan Ke Quan
After arriving in India, Indiana Jones is asked by a desperate village to find a mystical stone. He agrees, and stumbles upon a secret cult plotting a terrible plan in the catacombs of an ancient palace. 
 
The Karate Kid: Starring:  Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Elisabeth Shue, & Martin Kove
A handyman/martial arts master agrees to teach a bullied boy karate and shows him that there is more to the martial art than fighting.
 
Police Academy: Starring: Steve Guttenberg & Kim Cattrall
A group of good-hearted but incompetent misfits enter the police academy, but the instructors there are not going to put up with their pranks.
 
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock: Starring: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Walter Koenig, & Nichelle Nichols
Admiral Kirk and his bridge crew risk their careers stealing the decommissioned Enterprise to return to the restricted Genesis planet to recover Spock's body.
 
Amadeus: Starring: Tom Hulce & F. Murray Abraham
The incredible story of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, told in flashback mode by Antonio Salieri - now confined to an insane asylum.
 
The Natural: Starring: Robert Redford, Glenn Close, Kim Basinger, Wilford Brimley, & Barbara Hershey
An overage baseball player comes out of seemingly nowhere to become a legendary player with almost divine talent.

The Terminator: Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, & Michael Biehn
A cyborg assassin called "The Terminator" is sent back through time to 1984 to kill the seemingly innocent Sarah Connor-a woman whose unborn son will lead the human race to victory in a bitter future war with a race of machines. If the Terminator succeeds, mankind is doomed. Sarah's only hope is a soldier from that post-apocalyptic war, who has chased the Terminator back through time. The future of the human race depends on which one finds her first.

A Nightmare on Elm Street: In the dreams of his victims, a spectral child murderer stalks the children of the members of the lynch mob that killed him.
 
Oh, God! You Devil!: Starring: George Burns
George Burns is back as God, but oops, here he is as Satan, too. A young rock star is ready to sell his soul to Satan, and Satan is all too happy to oblige. Oops! Seems the fellow was watched over by God as a baby, so now the almighty and his nemesis have to duke it out over the soul.


SPORTS

The 1984 Winter Olympics were held in Sarajevo.

At the 1984 Winter Olympics the British ice dancers, Torvill and Dean, became the highest scoring figure skaters of all time (for a single program) receiving 12 perfect 6.0s, including artistic impression scores of 6.0 from every judge.

The longest game in Major League Baseball history begins at 7:30 PM between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Chicago White Sox. The game will be played over the course of 2 days, lasting 25 innings, with a total time of 8 hours and 6 minutes.

Richard Petty wins his 200th career NASCAR victory at the Firecracker 400 in Daytona, Florida.

The 1984 Summer Olympics are held in Los Angeles, California. The Soviet Union boycotts it.

Swale wins the Kentucky Derby with a time of 2:02.40.

Laurent Fignon (France) wins the Tour de France.

PEOPLE WHO DIED

Johnny Weissmuller (b. 1904) - Swimmer/Actor - one of the world's best swimmers in the 1920s winning 5 Olympic gold medals & 1 bronze medal. He went on to portray the most well-known Tarzan in 12 Tarzan films.
Ethel Merman (b. 1908) - Singer/Actress - often hailed as "The Queen of the Broadway stage." Her stage performances included: Anything Goes, Annie Get Your Gun, Gypsy, & Hello, Dolly!
William Powell (b. 1892) - Actor - as Nick Charles in the Thin Man films, as Godfrey in My Man Godfrey, & Clarence Day Sr. in Life with Father
Count Basie (b. 1904) - Jazz musician (pianist), bandleader, & composer - Regarded as one of the most important jazz bandleadres of his time. - He was known for the songs "One O'Clock Jump," "Jumpin' at the Woodside," & "April in Paris."
Richard Burton (b. 1925) - Actor - The Robe, Becket, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Anne of the Thousand Days, Equus, & My Cousin Rachel. Also married Elizabeth Taylor twice.
Jon-Erik Hexum (b. 1957) - Actor/model - best known as Phineas Bogg on the sci-fi series Voyagers!
Waite Hoyt (b. 1899) - Professional baseball player - one of the dominant pitchers of the 1920s & the winningest pitcher of the New York Yankees during that decade.

PEOPLE WHO WERE BORN

Olivia Wilde - Actress - as Alex Kelly the bisexual bartender on The O.C., Jenny Reilly on The Black Donnellys
Julia Mancuso - American alpine skier - Won Gold in the Giant Slalom at the 2006 Winter Olympics
Mandy Moore - Singer with hits "Candy" & "I Wanna Be With You" and Actress as Jamie Sullivan in A Walk to Remember, Hilary Faye in Saved!, & Sally Kendoo in American Dreamz
Prince Harry of Wales - 2nd son of Princess Dianna & Prince Charles
Ashlee Simpson - Singer/actres and younger sister of Jessica Simpson - songs include "Pieces of Me," "Shadow," & "La La"
Sasha Cohen - American figure skater - Won silver in Ladie's singles at the 2006 Winter Olympics
Kelly Osbourne - Singer and daughter of Ozzy Osbourne
LeBron James - Basketball player for the Miami Heat and formerly for the Cleveland Cavaliers

1985
HISTORY & POLITICS

In Hollywood, California, the charity single "We Are the World" is recorded by USA for Africa.

William J. Schroeder becomes the first artificial heart patient to leave the hospital.

Coca-Cola changes its formula and releases New Coke. (The response is overwhelmingly negative, and the original formula is back on the market in less than 3 months.)

In Hiroshima, tens of thousands mark the 40th anniversary of the atomic bombing of the city.

An 8.1 Richter scale earthquake strikes Mexico City. More than 9,000 people are killed, 30,000 injured, and 95,000 left homeless.

The Nintendo Entertainment System is released on US shores. It was first released in Japan in 1983.

A joint American-French expedition locates the wreck of the RMS Titanic.

Nevado del Ruiz volcano (in Columbia) erupts, killing an estimated 23,000 people.

Microsoft Corporation releases the first version of Windows, Windows 1.0.

MUSIC

Rock Me Amadeus - Falco
Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Tears for Fears
Life in a Northern Town - Dream Academy
One Night in Bangkok - Murray Head
Lay Your Hands on Me - The Thompson Twins
Take on Me - A-Ha
Careless Whisper - Wham!
Like A Virgin - Madonna
I Want To Know What Love Is - Foreigner
I Feel For You - Chaka Khan
Loverboy - Billy Ocean
Shout - Tears for Fears
Heat Is On - Glenn Frey
Broken Wings - Mr. Mister
Miami Vice Theme - Jan Hammer
Oh Sheila - Ready for the World
We Built This City - Starship
Power of Love - Huey Lewis & the News
Can't Fight This Feeling - REO Speedwagon
St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion) - John Parr
Never Ending Story - Limahl
Axl F (Theme to Beverly Hills Cop) - Harold Faltermeyer

TELEVISION

MacGyver:  Starring: Richard Dean Anderson
Macgyver is a secret agent with a difference. He is quiet, mild mannered, deeply principled and refuses to carry a gun on his missions. Fortunately, the last detail is unimportant when compared to his astounding mind. Drawing on a vast practical knowledge of science, Macgyver is able to make use of any mundane materials around him to create unorthodox solutions to any problem he faces. The enemies of world peace and justice continually learn that underestimating this man is a fatal mistake for their plans.
 
Moonlighting: Starring: Bruce Willis & Cybil Shephard
An ex model and a wiseguy detective, who co-run a private detective agency, take on quirky cases.
 
The Golden Girls: Starring: Beatrice Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan, & Estelle Getty
Four previously married women live together in Miami, sharing their various experiences together and enjoying themselves despite hard times.
   
Kate & Allie: Starring: Susan Saint James, Jane Curtin
When Allie Lowell divorces her husband and gets custody of their two children, she moves to New York City and moves in with her best friend, Kate McArdle, also divorced and raising a daughter.
   
Twilight Zone: An updated version of the famous 1960's TV series created by Rod Serling. Each week presents a stand-alone episode about some unusual situation that turns out to be even more unusual than initially suspected. Whether the tone of the story is horror, suspense or humor, there is always a surprise twist at the end.
   
MOVIES

Back to the Future: Starring: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, & Crispin Glover
Marty McFly helps out his friend Doc Brown, and ends up being taken back in time by Doc's time-machine. Marty, a boy of the 80's, has to come to grips with being in the 50's and get his parents to fall in love to set straight the damage his presence has done to the events of the past.
   
Rambo: First Blood Part II: Starring: Sylvester Stallone & Richard Crenna
Former Green Beret John Rambo is serving time in a federal prison. When the US military hears of American soldiers missing in action from the Vietnam war possibly still being alive and held captive, Colonel Trautman is authorized to send Rambo in to rescue them. For Rambo, this is what he would do best. If only the pencil-pushers would stop getting in his way.
   
Rocky IV: Starring: Sylvester Stallone & Dolph Lundgren
When Rocky's old friend Apollo Creed is killed during a fight with a super fit Russian boxer, Ivan Drago, Rocky blames himself for the death when he could have thrown in the towel before the crucial moment. Fuelled by the Russian's arrogance, Rocky arranges a fight with the new champion, only this time in Russia.

A View to a Kill: Starring: Roger Moore, Christopher Walken, Tanya Roberts, & Grace Jones
An investigation of a horse-racing scam leads 007 to a mad industrialist who plans to create a worldwide microchip monopoly by destroying California's Silicon Valley.

Commando: Starring: Arnold Schawrzenegger, Alyssa Milano, Rae Dawn Chong, Dan Hedaya, & Vernon Wells
A retired elite commando has only a few hours to find and rescue his daughter from an exiled dictator.
   
Prizzi's Honor: Starring: Jack Nicholson, Kathleen Turner, & Robert Loggia
A professional hit man and hit woman fall in love, only to discover that they have each been hired to kill the other.
   
The Last Dragon: A young man searches for the "master" to obtain the final level of martial arts mastery known as the glow. Along the way he must fight an evil martial arts expert and an rescue a beautiful singer from an obsessed music promoter.
   
Weird Science: Starring: Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, & Kelly LeBrock
Two nerdish boys attempt to create the perfect woman, but she turns out to be more than that.

SPORTS

San Francisco 49ers defeated the Miami Dolphins, 38–16 in the Super Bowl XIX.

WrestleMania debuts at Madison Square Garden.

Spend A Buck wins the Kentucky Derby with a time of 2:00.20.

Bernard Hinault (France) wins the Tour de France.

Ivan Lendl defeats John McEnroe to win Men's Singles & Hana Mandlíková defeats Martina Navrátilová to win Women's Singles at the US Open.

PEOPLE WHO DIED

Marc Chagall (b. 1887) - Cubism & Fauvism Painter - famous work: I and the Village
Margaret Hamilton (b. 1902) - Actress - as the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz
Andy Stanfield (b. 1927) - American sprinter who won 2 gold medals at the 1952 Summer Olympics & a silver medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Rock Hudson (b. 1925) - Actor - Magnificent Obsession, A Farewell to Arms, Pillow Talk, Strange Bedfellows, Giant, McMillan & Wife (TV), & a recurring role on Dynasty
Ricky Nelson (b. 1940) - Singer/Actor - starred in The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet, Rio Bravo, The Wackiest Ship in the Army, & Love and Kisses. Some of his hit songs were "Hello Mary Lou," "It's Late," "Be-Bop Baby," "Travelin' Man," "Poor Little Fool," "Young World," "Lonesome Town," & "Teenage Idol."
Johnny Olson (b. 1910) - TV announcer - To Tell The Truth, What's My Line?, The Match Game, The Jackie Gleason Show & The Price is Right … "Come on down!"

PEOPLE WHO WERE BORN

Keira Knightley - Actress - as Elizabeth Swann in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, Elizabeth Bennet in Pride & Prejudice, Juliette "Jules" Paxton in Bend It Like Beckham
Sarah Hughes - American Figure Skater - Won Gold in Ladies' Singles at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Ashley Tisdale - Actress/Singer - as Sharpay Evans in Disney's High School Musical & Maddie Fitzpatrick on The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
Jack Osbourne - TV personality & son of Ozzy Osbourne
Michael Phelps - American swimmer - Won 6 Gold & 2 Bronze metals in the 2004 Summer Olympics