The HIV/AIDS Epidemic Begins

The HIV/AIDS Epidemic

The HIV/AIDS epidemic emerged in the early 1980s, as scientists and doctors identified and began to understand a new and deadly virus that caused a rare and aggressive immune system disorder, affecting people across the globe.

In 1981, doctors in the United States observed a cluster of rare diseases, such as Kaposi’s sarcoma and Pneumocystis pneumonia, in young, otherwise healthy gay men. These unusual cases led the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to publish a report on June 5, 1981, marking the official beginning of the recognition of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In 1982, the CDC coined the term “Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome” (AIDS) to describe the condition.

By 1983, researchers from the Pasteur Institute in France, led by Dr. Luc Montagnier, and the National Cancer Institute in the United States, led by Dr. Robert Gallo, independently discovered the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as the cause of AIDS. The French team published their findings in the journal Science in May 1983, and the American team followed suit in 1984. Eventually, it was agreed that the French team had made the initial discovery, and the virus was named HIV.

During 1983, the number of reported AIDS cases increased dramatically, with the disease affecting not only gay men but also intravenous drug users, hemophiliacs, and heterosexual individuals. The realization that HIV could be transmitted through blood transfusions led to the implementation of screening processes in blood banks to protect the blood supply.

As the epidemic spread, fear and stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS grew, fueled by misconceptions about the disease and how it was transmitted. In response to the mounting crisis, public health campaigns were launched to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS, promote safe sex practices, and educate people on how to prevent the spread of the virus.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, scientists and researchers worked tirelessly to develop treatments for HIV/AIDS. The first antiretroviral drug, AZT, was approved for use in 1987, and by the mid-1990s, the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) led to a significant decline in AIDS-related deaths in countries where these treatments were accessible.

The HIV/AIDS epidemic profoundly impacted global public health, prompting the establishment of organizations like the World Health Organization’s Global Programme on AIDS and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) to combat the disease. Although significant progress has been made in HIV/AIDS research and treatment, the epidemic continues to be a major public health challenge, particularly in low- and middle-income countries with limited access to lifesaving antiretroviral therapies.

June 5, 1981

1981 Oscars 53rd Academy Awards

Winners Announced: March 31, 1981
Held at: Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, California
Host: Johnny Carson
Eligibility Year: 1980

Oscar Trivia for the Film Buffs

Host with the Most: Johnny Carson, famed for his long-running The Tonight Show, returned to host the Oscars, showcasing his quick wit and effortless charm.
First-Timer’s Luck: Ordinary People, a film about the disintegration of an upper-middle-class family in Illinois, marked Robert Redford’s directorial debut and won Best Picture.
Two Legends, Two Films: Both Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci won Oscars but for different films. De Niro took home Best Actor for his role as Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull, while Pesci secured Best Supporting Actor for Goodfellas.
Country Roads to Stardom: Sissy Spacek won the Best Actress award for her role as country music legend Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner’s Daughter. Her performance involved singing Lynn’s hits herself.
Musical Genius: John Williams, a name synonymous with film scores, won Best Original Score for his work on The Empire Strikes Back, adding another trophy to his extensive collection.
A Soviet Story: Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears, a Soviet film about the lives of three women in Russia, won Best Foreign Language Film. It was a nod to international cinema during the Cold War.
Political Stance: The 1981 ceremony was the last time the Academy advised winners to avoid making political statements during their acceptance speeches, a guideline that has since changed.
The ceremony was originally scheduled for the previous day but were postponed due to the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan.
The lack of recognition for Christopher Tucker’s make-up work on The Elephant Man prompted the creation of the Academy Award for Best Makeup the following year.

1981 Oscar Nominees and Winners

Best Picture:
Ordinary People – Ronald L. Schwary, producer (WINNER)
Coal Miner’s Daughter – Bernard Schwartz, producer
The Elephant Man – Jonathan Sanger, producer
Raging Bull – Robert Chartoff and Irwin Winkler, producers
Tess – Claude Berri, producer; Timothy Burrill, co-producer

Best Director:
Robert Redford – Ordinary People (WINNER)
David Lynch – The Elephant Man
Martin Scorsese – Raging Bull
Richard Rush – The Stunt Man
Roman Polanski – Tess

Best Actor:
Robert De Niro – Raging Bull as Jake LaMotta (WINNER)
Robert Duvall – The Great Santini as Lt. Col. Wilbur “Bull” Meechum
John Hurt – The Elephant Man as Joseph Merrick
Jack Lemmon – Tribute as Scottie Templeton
Peter O’Toole – The Stunt Man as Eli Cross

Best Actress:
Sissy Spacek – Coal Miner’s Daughter as Loretta Lynn (WINNER)
Ellen Burstyn – Resurrection as Edna Mae McCauley
Goldie Hawn – Private Benjamin as Judy Benjamin
Mary Tyler Moore – Ordinary People as Beth Jarrett
Gena Rowlands – Gloria as Gloria Swenson

Best Supporting Actor:
Timothy Hutton – Ordinary People as Conrad Jarrett (WINNER)
Judd Hirsch – Ordinary People as Dr. Tyrone C. Berger
Michael O’Keefe – The Great Santini as Ben
Joe Pesci – Raging Bull as Joey LaMotta
Jason Robards – Melvin and Howard as Howard Hughes

Best Supporting Actress:
Mary Steenburgen – Melvin and Howard as Lynda West Dummar (WINNER)
Eileen Brennan – Private Benjamin as Doreen Lewis
Eva Le Gallienne – Resurrection as Pearl
Cathy Moriarty – Raging Bull as Vikki Thailer Lamotta
Diana Scarwid – Inside Moves as Louise

Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:
Melvin and Howard – Bo Goldman (WINNER)
Brubaker – Screenplay by W. D. Richter; Story by W. D. Richter and Arthur Ross
Fame – Christopher Gore
Mon Oncle D’Amerique – Jean Gruault
Private Benjamin – Nancy Meyers, Charles Shyer and Harvey Miller

Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium:
Ordinary People – Alvin Sargent based on the novel by Judith Guest (WINNER)
Breaker Morant – Jonathan Hardy, David Stevens and Bruce Beresford based on the play by Kenneth G. Ross
Coal Miner’s Daughter – Thomas Rickman based on the autobiography by Loretta Lynn with George Vecsey
The Elephant Man – Christopher De Vore, Eric Bergren and David Lynch based on the books The Elephant Man and Other Reminiscences by Sir Frederick Treves and The Elephant Man: A Study in Human Dignity by Ashley Montagu
The Stunt Man – Screenplay by Lawrence B. Marcus; Adaptation by Richard Rush based on the novel by Paul Brodeur

Best Foreign Language Film:
Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) (WINNER)
Confidence (Hungary)
Kagemusha (Japan)
The Last Metro (France)
The Nest (Spain)

Best Documentary Feature:
From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China – Murray Lerner (WINNER)
Agee – Ross Spears
The Day After Trinity – Jon H. Else
Front Line – David Bradbury
The Yellow Star: The Persecution of the Jews in Europe 1933-45 – Bengt von zur Muehlen and Arthur Cohn

Best Documentary Short Subject:
Karl Hess: Toward Liberty – Roland Hallé and Peter Ladue (WINNER)
Don’t Mess with Bill – John Watson and Pen Densham
The Eruption of Mount St. Helens! – George Casey
It’s the Same World – Dick Young
Luther Metke at 94 – Richard Hawkins and Jorge Preloran

Best Live Action Short Film:
The Dollar Bottom – Lloyd Phillips (WINNER)
Fall Line – Bob Carmichael and Greg Lowe
A Jury of Her Peers – Sally Heckel

Best Animated Short Film:
The Fly – Ferenc Rofusz (WINNER)
All Nothing – Frédéric Back
History of the World in Three Minutes Flat – Michael Mills

Best Original Score:
Fame – Michael Gore (WINNER)
Altered States – John Corigliano
The Elephant Man – John Morris
The Empire Strikes Back – John Williams
Tess – Philippe Sarde

Best Original Song:
“Fame” from Fame – Music by Michael Gore; Lyrics by Dean Pitchford (WINNER)
“9 to 5” from 9 to 5 – Music and Lyrics by Dolly Parton
“On the Road Again” from Honeysuckle Rose – Music and Lyrics by Willie Nelson
“Out Here on My Own” from Fame – Music by Michael Gore; Lyrics by Lesley Gore
“People Alone” from The Competition – Music by Lalo Schifrin; Lyrics by Will Jennings

Best Sound:
The Empire Strikes Back – Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker and Peter Sutton (WINNER)
Altered States – Arthur Piantadosi, Les Fresholtz, Michael Minkler and Willie D. Burton
Coal Miner’s Daughter – Richard Portman, Roger Heman and Jim Alexander
Fame – Michael J. Kohut, Aaron Rochin, Jay M. Harding and Chris Newman
Raging Bull – Donald O. Mitchell, Bill Nicholson, David J. Kimball and Les Lazarowitz

Best Costume Design:
Tess – Anthony Powell (WINNER)
The Elephant Man – Patricia Norris
My Brilliant Career – Anna Senior
Somewhere in Time – Jean-Pierre Dorleac
When Time Ran Out – Paul Zastupnevich

Best Art Direction:
Tess – Art Direction and Set Decoration: Pierre Guffroy and Jack Stephens (WINNER)
Coal Miner’s Daughter – Art Direction: John W. Corso; Set Decoration: John M. Dwyer
The Elephant Man – Art Direction: Stuart Craig and Robert Cartwright; Set Decoration: Hugh Scaife
The Empire Strikes Back – Art Direction: Norman Reynolds, Leslie Dilley, Harry Lange and Alan Tomkins; Set Decoration: Michael Ford
Kagemusha – Art Direction and Set Decoration: Yoshiro Muraki

Best Cinematography:
Tess – Geoffrey Unsworth (posthumous award) and Ghislain Cloquet (WINNER)
The Blue Lagoon – Néstor Almendros
Coal Miner’s Daughter – Ralf D. Bode
The Formula – James Crabe
Raging Bull – Michael Chapman

Best Film Editing:
Raging Bull – Thelma Schoonmaker (WINNER)
Coal Miner’s Daughter – Arthur Schmidt
The Competition – David Blewitt
The Elephant Man – Anne V. Coates
Fame – Gerry Hambling

Academy Honorary Award:
Henry Fonda

Special Achievement Award:
The Empire Strikes Back (Brian Johnson, Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren and Bruce Nicholson) for Visual Effects

Oscar® and Academy Awards® and Oscar® design mark are the trademarks and service marks and the Oscar© statuette the copyrighted property, of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Pop Culture Madness is neither endorsed by nor affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

March 31, 1981

1981 Grammy Award Winners

Winners Announced: February 25, 1981
Held at: Radio City Music Hall, New York
Host: Paul Simon
Eligibility Year: October 1, 1979 – September 30, 1980

Notable Trivia

‘Sailing’ Smooth: Christopher Cross made history this year. He swept all four major categories: Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist. His hit Sailing was a big reason for his success.
Iconic Host: Hosting duties were taken up by Paul Simon, no stranger to Grammy gold himself. He had already won multiple awards, both as a solo artist and as half of Simon & Garfunkel.
Operatic Heights: Luciano Pavarotti, the operatic tenor, won his first Grammy this year. He was awarded Best Classical Vocal Soloist Performance, broadening the awards’ musical diversity.
Rap Debut: Kurtis Blow’s The Breaks was nominated in the Best R&B Vocal Performance, marking the first time rap was recognized in Grammy history.
Country Classic: George Jones sang his way into hearts with He Stopped Loving Her Today. The song earned him the Grammy for Best Male Country Vocal Performance and is often cited as one of the greatest country songs.
Genre Expansion: The B-52’s got a nod for Rock Lobster in the Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group category. This nomination indicated the Grammys’ willingness to embrace alternative and new wave music.
Jazzed Up: Pat Metheny, the jazz guitarist, won his first Grammy for Best Jazz Fusion Performance. His album Offramp got him this prestigious accolade, proving that jazz was far from forgotten in the awards circuit.

1981 Grammy Winners

Record of the Year:
Sailing – Christopher Cross

Album of the Year:
Christopher Cross, Christopher Cross (Warner Bros.)

Song of the Year:
Sailing – Christopher Cross, songwriter

Best New Artist:
Christopher Cross

Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male:
This Is It – Kenny Loggins

Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female:
The Rose – Bette Midler

Best Pop Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal:
Guilty – Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb

Best Pop Instrumental Performance:
One on One, Bob James and Earl Klugh

Best Rock Vocal Performance, Male:
Glass Houses, Billy Joel

Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female:
Crimes of Passion, Pat Benatar

Best Rock Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal:
Against the Wind, Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band

Best Rock Instrumental Performance:
Reggatta de Blanc – Police

Best Rhythm and Blues Song:
Never Knew Love Like This Before – Reggie Lucas and James Mtume, songwriters

Best Rhythm and Blues Performance, Male:
Give Me the Night, George Benson

Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance, Female:
Never Knew Love Like This Before – Stephanie Mills

Best Rhythm and Blues Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal:
Shining Star – Manhattans

Best Rhythm and Blues Instrumental Performance:
Off Broadway – George Benson

Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Male:
Moody’s Mood – George Benson

Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female:
A Perfect Match/Ella and Basie, Ella Fitzgerald

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist:
I Will Say Goodbye, Bill Evans

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group:
We Will Meet Again, Bill Evans

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band:
On the Road, Count Basie and Orchestra

Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental:
Birdland – Manhattan Transfer

Best Country Song:
On the Road Again – Willie Nelson, songwriter

Best Country Vocal Performance, Male:
He Stopped Loving Her Today – George Jones

Best Country Vocal Performance, Female:
Could I Have This Dance – Anne Murray

Best Country Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal:
That Lovin’ You Feelin’ Again – Roy Orbison and Emmylou Harris

Best Country Instrumental Performance:
Orange Blossom Special/Hoedown – Gilley’s Urban Cowboy Band

Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational:
The Lord’s Prayer, Reba Rambo, Dony McGuire, B.J. Thomas, Andrae Crouch, the Archers, Walter and Tramiane Hawkins and Cynthia Clawson

Best Gospel Performance, Traditional:
We Come to Worship, Blackwood Brothers

Best Soul Gospel Performance, Contemporary:
Rejoice, Shirley Caesar

Best Soul Gospel Performance, Traditional:
Lord, Let Me Be an Instrument, James Cleveland and the Charles Fold Singers

Best Latin Recording:
La Onda Va Bien, Cal Tjader (Concord Jazz)

Best Inspirational Performance:
With My Song I Will Praise Him, Debby Boone

Best Ethnic or Traditional Recording:
Rare Blues, Dr. Isaiah Ross, Maxwell Street Jimmy, Big Joe Williams, Son House, Rev. Robin Wilkins, Little Brother Montgomery and Sunnyland Slim (Takoma)

Best Instrumental Arrangement:
Dinorah, Dinorah – Quincy Jones and Jerry Hey, arrangers

Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s):
Sailing – Michael Omatian and Christopher Cross, arrangers

Best Arrangement for Voices:
Birdland – Janis Siegel, arranger

Best Instrumental Composition:
The Empire Strikes Back, John Williams, composer

Best Cast Show Album:
Evita?Premier American Recording, Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer; Tim Rice, Iyricist (MCA)

Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special:
The Empire Strikes Back, John Williams, composer (RSO)

Best Classical Album:
Berg, Lulu (Complete Version), Pierre Boulez conducting Orchestre de l’Opera de Paris; solos: Stratas, Minton, Mazura and Blankenheim (Deutsche Grammophon)

Best Classical Orchestral Recording:
Bruckner, Symphony No. 6 in A Major, Sir Georg Solti conducting Chicago Symphony Orchestra (London)

Best Chamber Music Performance:
Music for Two Violins (Moszkowski, Suite for Two Violins; Shostakovich, Duets; Prokofiev, Sonata for Two Violins), Itzhak Perlman and Pinchas Zukerman

Best Classical Performance, Instrumental Soloist(s) (With Orchestra) (tie):
Berg, Concerto for Violin and Orchestra; Stravinsky, Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra, Itzhak Perlman; Seiji Ozawa conducting Boston Symphony Orchestra
Brahms, Concerto in A Minor for Violin and Cello (Double Concerto), Itzhak Perlman and Mstislav Rostropovich; Bernard Haitink conducting Concertgebouw Orchestra

Best Classical Performance Instrumental Soloist(s) (Without Orchestra):
The Spanish Album, Itzhak Perlman

Best Opera Recording:
Berg, Lulu (Complete Version), Pierre Boulez conducting Orchestre de l’Opera de Paris; solos: Stratas, Minton, Mazura and Blankenheim

Best Choral Performance, Classical (Other Than Opera):
Mozart, Requiem, Carlo Maria Giulini, conductor and Norbert Balatsch, chorus master, Philharmonia Chorus and Orchestra (Deutsche Grammophon)

Best Classical Vocal Soloist Performance:
Prima Donna, Volume 5 Great Soprano Arias From Handel to Britten, Leontyne Price; Henry Lewis conducting Philharmonia Orchestra

Best Comedy Recording:
No Respect, Rodney Dangerfield (Casablanca)

Best Spoken Word, Documentary or Drama Recording:
Gertrude Stein, Gertrude Stein, Gertrude Stein, Pat Carroll (Caedmon)

Best Recording for Children:
In Harmony/A Sesame Street Record, Doobie Brothers, James Taylor, Carly Simon, Bette Midler, Muppets, Al Jarreau, Linda Ronstadt, Wendy Waldman, Libby Titus and Dr. John, Livingston Taylor, George Benson and Pauline Wilson, Lucy Simon, Kate Taylor and the Simon/Taylor Family (Sesame Street/Warner Bros.)

Best Album Package:
Against the Wind, Roy Kohara, art director (Capitol)

Best Album Notes:
Trilogy: Past, Present and Future, David McClintick, annotator (Reprise/Warner Bros.)

Best Historical Reissue Album:
Segovia?The EMI Recordings 1927 – 39 (Angel)

Producer of the Year (Non-Classical):
Phil Ramone

Classical Producer of the Year:
Robert Woods

February 25, 1981

1980 Number One Hits

1980 Billboard Number One Hits:

December 22, 1979 – January 4, 1980:
Escape (The Pina Colada Song) – Rupert Holmes
January 5 – January 18:
Please Don’t Go – KC and the Sunshine Band
January 19 – February 15:
Rock With You – Michael Jackson
February 16 – February 22:
Do That To Me One More Time – Captain & Tennille
February 23 – March 21:
Crazy Little Thing Called Love – Queen
March 22 – April 18:
Another Brick in the Wall (Part II) – Pink Floyd
April 19 – May 30:
Call Me – Blondie
May 31 – June 27:
Funkytown – Lipps Inc.
June 28 – July 18:
Coming Up (Live At Glasgow) – Paul McCartney & Wings
July 19 – August 1:
It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me – Billy Joel
August 2 – August 29:
Magic – Olivia Newton-John
August 30 – September 5:
Sailing – Christopher Cross
September 6 – October 3:
Upside Down – Diana Ross
October 4 – October 24:
Another One Bites the Dust – Queen
October 25 – November 14:
Woman in Love – Barbra Streisand
November 15 – December 26:
Lady – Kenny Rogers
December 27, 1980 – January 30, 1981:
(Just Like) Starting Over – John Lennon

(Data is compiled from various charts including Billboard’s “Pop,” “Rock,” “Airplay,” “R&B/Dance” and “Singles” Charts. The “Hot 100” is the primary chart used for this list.)

December 31, 1980

1980 History, Fun Facts and Trivia

1980 Fun Facts, Trivia and History

Quick Facts from 1980:

The Miracle On Ice: At the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, the US men’s hockey team amazed the world (and themselves) by beating the Soviet Union.
The Top Song was Lady by Kenny Rogers
The Movies to Watch include Airplane!, Coal Miner’s Daughter, Flash Gordon, The Elephant Man, The Blues Brothers, The Shining and The Empire Strikes Back
The Most Famous Person in America was probably John Lennon
Notable books include Cosmos by Carl Sagan and The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
Price of a loaf of bread in 1980: 50 cents
Price of a gallon of gas in 1980: $1.22
Etch-A-Sketch: $4.97
Rubick’s Cube: $9.99
The Comeback Funny Guy was: Redd Foxx
The Funny Late Night Host: Johnny Carson
The Funny Duo was: Cheech and Chong
The Conversation: Who Shot J.R on CBS-TV’s Dallas?

1980 History Rundown:

January 4 – U.S. Imposed Grain Embargo on USSR: President Jimmy Carter announced a grain embargo against the Soviet Union in response to its invasion of Afghanistan.
January 6 – Global Positioning System (GPS) Time Epoch Began: The GPS time system was initiated, providing a new standard for precise timekeeping.
February 13 – Opening of the 1980 Winter Olympics: The Winter Olympics commenced in Lake Placid, New York, featuring the “Miracle on Ice” hockey game.
March 21 – U.S. Announced Boycott of Moscow Olympics: The United States declared it would boycott the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
April 17 – Zimbabwe Gained Independence: Zimbabwe became an independent nation, with Robert Mugabe as its first Prime Minister.
May 4 – Death of Yugoslav Leader Josip Broz Tito: President Josip Broz Tito of Yugoslavia passed away at the age of 87, leading to a state funeral attended by numerous world leaders.
May 8 – WHO Declared Eradication of Smallpox: The World Health Organization announced the global eradication of smallpox, marking a significant victory in public health.
May 18 – Eruption of Mount St. Helens: Mount St. Helens in Washington state erupted, causing significant destruction and loss of life.
July 19 – Opening of the 1980 Summer Olympics: The Summer Olympics began in Moscow, marked by a significant boycott led by the United States.
August 31 – Gdańsk Agreement Signed in Poland: The Polish government signed the Gdańsk Agreement with striking workers, creating the Solidarity movement.
September 22 – Outbreak of Iran-Iraq War: Iraq invaded Iran, initiating a protracted and devastating conflict between the two nations.
October 10 – Earthquake in Algeria: A powerful earthquake struck Algeria, resulting in significant casualties and damage.
November 4 – Ronald Reagan Elected U.S. President: Ronald Reagan won the U.S. presidential election, defeating incumbent Jimmy Carter.
December 8 – Assassination of John Lennon: Former Beatle John Lennon was shot and killed outside his New York City apartment by Mark David Chapman.
December 12 – Daegu Subway Fire in South Korea: A tragic fire occurred in the Daegu subway, resulting in numerous fatalities and injuries.
December 24 – Release of the First Personal Computer: The first personal computer, the IBM PC, was released, revolutionizing the computing industry.
December 31 – Adoption of the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act: The U.S. Congress passed the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act, imposing sanctions on South Africa to protest its apartheid policies.
Continuation of the Cold War: The Cold War persisted, with tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union influencing global politics.
Advancements in Space Exploration: Significant progress was made in space exploration, including missions by NASA and the Soviet space program.
Rise of the Personal Computer Industry: The personal computer industry experienced significant growth, with companies like Apple and IBM introducing new models.

Top Ten Baby Names of 1980:

Jennifer, Amanda, Jessica, Melissa, Sarah, Heather, Nicole, Amy, Elizabeth, Michelle
Michael, Christopher, Jason, David, James, Matthew, Joshua, John, Robert, Joseph

The Hotties, Sex Symbols, and Fashion Icons:

Loni Anderson, Susan Anton, Barbara Bach, Catherine Bach, Kim Basinger, Valerie Bertinelli, Jacqueline Bisset, Christie Brinkley, Lynda Carter, Charo, Lydia Cornell, Sybil Danning, Bo Derek, Morgan Fairchild, Farrah Fawcett, Jane Fonda, Erin Gray, Shelly Hack, Debbie Harry, Goldie Hawn, Marilu Henner, Lauren Hutton, Cheryl Ladd, Olivia Newton-John, Stevie Nicks, Dolly Parton, Bernadette Peters, Victoria Principal, Tanya Roberts, Diana Ross, Jane Seymour, Brooke Shields, Jacquelyn Smith, Suzanne Somers, Donna Summer, Cheryl Tiegs, Charlene Tilton, Mary Woronov

Hollywood Hunks and Leading Men:

Richard Gere, Christopher Reeve, Burt Reynolds, John Travolta

“The Quotes”

“Pardon me, do you have any Grey Poupon? “
-Grey Poupon

“Who Shot JR?”
– Fans of CBS’s Dallas television series

“Here’s Johnny!”
– Jack Nicholson, in The Shining

“You dipstick”
– Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane on The Dukes of Hazzard

Striker: “Surely you can’t be serious?!”
Rumack: “I am serious… and don’t call me Shirley.”
– Robert Hays and Leslie Nielsen, in Airplane!

“No, I am your father” (NOT Luke, I am your father)
-Darth Vader, to a surprised Luke Skywalker

“Do you believe in miracles? YES!”
– Sportscaster Al Michaels, after The Miracle On Ice

“Cinderella story. Outta nowhere. A former greenskeeper, now, about to become the Masters champion. It looks like a miracle…It’s in the hole! It’s in the hole! It’s in the hole!”
– Bill Murray, in ‘Caddyshack’

Time Magazine’s Man of the Year:

Ronald Reagan

Miss America:

Cheryl Prewitt (Ackerman, MS)

Miss USA:

Shawn Weatherly (South Carolina) /Jineane Ford (Arizona)

1980 Deaths:

On May 18, Mount St. Helens erupted in Washington, killing 57 people.

Mark David Chapman shot and killed former Beatles member John Lennon outside Lennon’s residence at the Dakota, in NYC.

Ian Curtis, singer-songwriter of acclaimed English post-punk band Joy Division, hanged himself in his kitchen. His bandmates later formed the band New Order.

AC/DC frontman Bon Scott died after a night of heavy drinking in London.

Dorothy Stratten, the 1980 Playboy Playmate of the Year, was murdered by estranged husband Paul Leslie Snider, who then committed suicide.

The Pennsylvania Lottery was rigged by six men, including the live TV drawing host, Nick Perry.

The Killer Clown (John Wayne Gacy Jr.) was sentenced to death for the murder of 33 boys and young men between 1972 and 1978.

Philadelphia Crime Boss Angelo Bruno was shot and killed while in his car in front of his home at the intersection of 10th Street and Snyder Avenue in South Philadelphia.

The Washington Post published Janet Cooke’s story of Jimmy, an 8-year-old heroin addict, later proven to be fabricated. She won a Pulitzer Prize for the story.

World News

The Iran-Iraq war began in September when Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein ordered his forces to invade Western Iran. Over 1,000,000 people were killed by the time a cease-fire was agreed in 1988.

Robert Mugabe was elected Prime Minister of Zimbabwe.

On January 6, The Global Positioning System time epoch began at 00:00 UTC. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provides geolocation and time information to a GPS receiver anywhere on or near the Earth.

On May 8, the global eradication of smallpox was certified by the World Health Organization.

Miracle On Ice: The United States Olympic ice hockey team amazed the world at the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics on February 22nd, when they beat the Soviet national team. In 1999, Sports Illustrated named the “Miracle on Ice” the top sports moment of the 20th century.

President Jimmy Carter signed Proclamation 4771, which required 18- to 25-year-old American males to register for a peacetime military draft.

A severe summer heatwave in the Southern US Caused over 1,100 deaths.

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) superfund law was passed by the US Congress.

30% of United States car sales were imported.

Tim Berners-Lee began his work on ENQUIRE, the system that would eventually lead to his creation of the World Wide Web in 1990.

Abscam: FBI personnel target members of the Congress of the United States in a sting operation. 7 members of the US House of Representatives and 4 Philadelphia area politicians were convicted of bribery.

Pop Culture Facts & History

A computer modem was invented.

The album Back in Black, one of the Top 10 best-selling albums of all time, was released by the Australian band AC/DC.

Video Games became popular with Pac-Man, Battlezone, Missile Command, Space Panic, Zork I, and Olympic Decathlon. Electronic Games hosted the first Arcade Awards and video game awards ceremony, with Space Invaders winning the Game of the Year Award.

Erno Rubik patented his “Magic Cube” in Hungary in 1975. Debuting at The British Toy and Hobby Fair in January, by May 1980, it became a worldwide sensation.

There has been some debate about 3M’s Post-it notes. The product was used in a test marketing campaign in 1978 as ‘Post N Peel’, and sold nationally in 1980 as ‘Post-it Notes.’ New products are in ‘test mode’ all the time. Created in 1975 by Spencer Silver and Art Fry, we say they went on sale in 1980.

Whole Foods was founded in Austin, Texas.

CNN began broadcasting from Atlanta, Georgia.

Launched in 1977, The Voyager 1 probe confirmed the existence of Janus, a moon of Saturn.

The United States led a boycott of the Moscow Summer Olympics to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. 82 countries boycotted the Games, and athletes from 16 of them participated under a neutral flag.

The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Kansas City Royals, 4–1, in Game Six of the World Series to win the World Series Championship.

According to the 1980 United States Census, 226,545,805 United States residents are there.

Cost of a Super Bowl ad in 1980: $222,000

Doomsday Clock:

7 minutes to midnight, according to the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists.
1980: Thirty-five years after the start of the nuclear age and after some promising disarmament gains, the United States and the Soviet Union still view nuclear weapons as an integral component of their national security. This stalled progress discourages the Bulletin: “[The Soviet Union and United States have] been behaving like what may best be described as ‘nucleoholics’–drunks who continue to insist that the drink being consumed is positively ‘the last one,’ but who can always find a good excuse for ‘just one more round.’”

The Habits:

Playing Rubik’s Cube, Pac-Man, Centipede (arcade), Reading The Official Preppy Handbook
Guessing ‘Who shot J.R.?’ (it was Kristin Shepard, played by Mary Crosby)

1st Appearances & 1980’s Most Popular Christmas Gifts, Toys and Presents:

Rubik’s Cube, Magna doodle

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1980

A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
Cosmos by Carl Sagan
The Covenant by James A. Michener
The Devil’s Alternative by Frederick Forsyth
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
The Fifth Horseman by Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre
Firestarter by Stephen King
God Emperor of Dune by Frank Herbert
Jailbird – Kuty Vonnegut
The Key to Rebecca by Ken Follett
Midnight’s Children by Salmon Rushdie
Princess Daisy by Judith Krantz
Rage of Angels by Sidney Sheldon
Random Winds by Belva Plain
Smiley’s People by John le Carre
The Spike by Arnaud de Borchgrave and Robert Moss

Broadway Shows:

42nd Street (Musical) Opened on August 25, 1980, and closed on January 8, 1989
Amadeus (Play) Opened on December 17, 1980, and closed on October 16, 1983

Best Film Oscar Winner:

Kramer vs. Kramer (presented in 1980)

The Bomb (Movie):

Heaven’s Gate starring Kris Kristofferson, Christopher Walken, Jeff Bridges, John Hurt, Sam Waterston, Joseph Cotten, Mickey Rourke, and Willem Dafoe

The Big Movies: (according to boxofficemojo

1. The Empire Strikes Back
2. 9 to 5
3. Stir Crazy
4. Airplane!
5. Any Which Way You Can
6. Private Benjamin
7. Coal Miner’s Daughter
8. Smokey and the Bandit II
9. The Blue Lagoon
10. The Blues Brothers

1980 Most Popular TV Shows:

1. Dallas (CBS)
2. The Dukes of Hazzard (CBS)
3. 60 Minutes (CBS)
4. M*A*S*H (CBS)
5. The Love Boat (ABC)
6. The Jeffersons (CBS)
7. Alice (CBS)
8. House Calls (CBS)
9. Three’s Company (ABC)
10. Little House on the Prairie (NBC)

1980 Billboard Number One Songs

December 22, 1979 – January 4, 1980:
Escape (The Pina Colada Song) – Rupert Holmes

January 5 – January 18:
Please Don’t Go – KC and the Sunshine Band

January 19 – February 15:
Rock With You – Michael Jackson

February 16 – February 22:
Do That To Me One More Time – Captain & Tennille

February 23 – March 21:
Crazy Little Thing Called Love – Queen

March 22 – April 18:
Another Brick in the Wall (Part II) – Pink Floyd

April 19 – May 30:
Call Me – Blondie

May 31 – June 27:
Funkytown – Lipps Inc.

June 28 – July 18:
Coming Up (Live At Glasgow) – Paul McCartney & Wings

July 19 – August 1:
It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me – Billy Joel

August 2 – August 29:
Magic – Olivia Newton-John

August 30 – September 5:
Sailing – Christopher Cross

September 6 – October 3:
Upside Down – Diana Ross

October 4 – October 24:
Another One Bites the Dust – Queen

October 25 – November 14:
Woman in Love – Barbra Streisand

November 15 – December 26:
Lady – Kenny Rogers

December 27, 1980 – January 30, 1981:
(Just Like) Starting Over – John Lennon

1980 United States Census:

Total US Population: 226,542,199
1. New York, New York – 7,071,639
2. Chicago, Illinois – 3,005,072
3. Los Angeles, California – 2,966,850
4. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – 1,688,210
5. Houston, Texas – 1,595,138
6. Detroit, Michigan – 1,203,339
7. Dallas, Texas – 904,078
8. San Diego, California – 875,538
9. Phoenix, Arizona – 789,704
10. Baltimore, Maryland – 786,775

Sports:

World Series Champions: Philadelphia Phillies
Super Bowl XIV Champions: Pittsburgh Steelers
NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers
Stanley Cup Champs: New York Islanders
U.S. Open Golf Jack Nicklaus
U.S. Tennis: (Men/Ladies) John McEnroe/Chris Evert Lloyd
Wimbledon (Men/Women): Bjorn Borg/Evonne Cawley
NCAA Football Champions: Georgia
NCAA Basketball Champions: Louiseville
Kentucky Derby: Genuine Risk

More 1980 Facts and History Resources:

Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us)
Broadway Shows that Opened in 1980X
1980 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com
Everything 80s Podcast 1980
Fact Monster
1980s, Infoplease.com World History
Mount St. Helens Eruption
1980 in Movies (according to IMDB)
1980 Top Movies (according to BoxOfficeMojo)
Retrowaste Vintage Culture
80s Facts About the 80s(Mental Floss)
1980s Slang
1980s Timeline (Security and Exchange Commission)
1980 US Census Fast Facts
Wikipedia 1980

December 30, 1980

1980 Music – The 100 Most Popular Songs

1980 Music Hits Chart

1. You Shook Me All Night Long – AC/DC

3. Another One Bites The Dust – Queen

4. Another Brick In The Wall (part 2) – Pink Floyd

5. Funkytown – Lipps Incorporated

6. Rapper’s Delight – Sugarhill Gang

7. What I Like About You – Romantics

8. Master Blaster (Jammin) – Stevie Wonder

9. On The Road Again – Willie Nelson

10. Fame – Irene Cara

11. Ladies Night – Kool and the Gang

12. Take Your Time (Do It Right) – S.O.S. Band

13. He’s So Shy – Pointer Sisters

14. Feels Like I’m In Love – Kelly Marie

15. One In A Million You – Larry Graham

16. Any Way You Want It – Journey

17. The Rose – Bette Midler

18. Could I Have This Dance – Anne Murray

19. Off The Wall – Michael Jackson

20. Rock With You – Michael Jackson

21. I Wanna Be Your Lover – Prince

22. Upside Down – Diana Ross

23. On The Radio – Donna Summer

24. Volcano – Jimmy Buffet

25. Lady – Kenny Rogers

26. Whip It – Devo

27. Love Stinks – J. Geils Band

28. Cheap Sunglasses – ZZ Top

29. You Better Run – Pat Benatar

30. Look What You’ve Done To Me – Boz Scaggs

31. Hit Me With Your Best Shot – Pat Benatar

32. Misunderstanding – Genesis

33. Heartbreaker – Pat Benatar

34. This Is It – Kenny Loggins

35. Cocaine – Eric Clapton

36. You May Be Right – Billy Joel

37. The Long Run – Eagles

38. My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys – Willie Nelson

39. I’m Alright – Kenny Loggins

40. Rock Lobster – B-52s

41. Do That To Me One More Time – The Captain and Tenille

42. Call Me – Blondie

43. Love X Love – George Benson

44. Against The Wind – Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band

45. I Don’t Like Mondays – Boomtown Rats

46. I’m Coming Out – Diana Ross

47. Don’t Push It Don’t Force It – Leon Haywood

48. Remember (Walking In The Sand) – Aerosmith

49. (Just Like) Starting Over – John Lennon

50. Crazy Little Thing Called Love – Queen

51. Dreamer – Supertramp

52. Hungry Heart – Bruce Springsteen

53. Could I Have This Dance – Anne Murray

54. Turn It On Again – Genesis

55. Special Lady – Ray Goodman and Brown

56. Games Without Frontiers – Peter Gabriel

57. Give Me The Night – George Benson

58. Brass In Pocket – Pretenders

59. It’s Still Rock and Roll To Me – Billy Joel

60. Train In Vain (Stand By Me) – The Clash

61. Working My Way Back To You (Forgive Me Girl) – The Spinners

62. Angeline – Allman Brothers Band

63. Alabama Getaway – Grateful Dead

64. All Out Of Love – Air Supply

65. The Breaks – Kurtis Blow

66. 99 – Toto

67. Into The Night – Benny Mardones

68. I Got You – Split Enz

69. Don’t Misunderstand Me – Rossington Collins Band

70. Dirty Water – The Inmates

71. Cars – Gary Numan

72. Back Of My Hand (I’ve Got Your Number) – The Jags

73. Say Goodbye To Little Jo – Steve Forbert

74. Tired of Toein’ The Line – Rocky Burnett

75. Private Idaho – B-52s

76. Wango Tango – Ted Nugent

77. Steal Away – Robbie Dupree

78. Clones (We’re All) – Alice Cooper

79. Money – The Flying Lizards

80. Turning Japanese – The Vapors

81. Lola (Live) – The Kinks

82. Sequel – Harry Chapin

83. Breakfast In America – Supertramp

84. Emotional Rescue – Rolling Stones

85. Cruisin’ – Smokey Robinson

86. Sequel – HarryChapin

87. Cupid/I’ve Loved You For A Long Time – Spinners

88. The Spirit Of Radio – Rush

89. Think About Me – Fleetwood Mac

90. Stomp! – The Brothers Johnson

91. Longer – Dan Fogelberg

92. She’s So Cold – Rolling Stones

93. Don’t Do Me Like That – Tom Pettry and the Heartbreakers

94. Sometimes A Fantasy – Billy Joel

95. Jo-Jo – Boz Scaggs

96. And The Cradle Will Rock – Van Halen

97. Rotation – Herb Alpert

98. Stop Your Sobbing – The Pretenders

99. Run Like Hell – Pink Floyd

100. Trickle Trickle – The Manhattan Transfer

December 26, 1980

1980 Oscars 52nd Academy Awards

Winners Announced: April 14, 1980
Held at: Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, California
Host: Johnny Carson
Eligibility Year: 1979

Red Carpet Trivia

Battle of the Spouses: Kramer vs. Kramer, a film about a custody battle, was the big winner of the night, taking home Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for Dustin Hoffman.
Host with the Most: Johnny Carson was no stranger to hosting, being a familiar face on late-night TV. This year, he added his characteristic wit to the Oscars ceremony.
Revolving Roles: Meryl Streep won her first Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Kramer vs. Kramer this year. Interestingly, the role was initially given to Kate Jackson, who had to turn it down due to scheduling conflicts.
A Comic Icon: Peter Sellers was posthumously nominated for his role in Being There. Sadly, he passed away just a few months after the ceremony.
War and Pieces: Apocalypse Now, Francis Ford Coppola’s epic about the Vietnam War, was nominated for eight awards but only won two: Best Cinematography and Best Sound.
From 007 to Oscar: The James Bond film Moonraker was nominated for Best Visual Effects, a nod to the franchise’s ever-evolving technological prowess.
Young Talent: Justin Henry, the young actor from Kramer vs. Kramer, became one of the youngest actors ever to be nominated for an Academy Award.
All That Jazz and Kramer vs. Kramer each earned 9 nominations. Kramer vs Kramer won 5 Oscars. All That Jazz won 4.

1980 Oscar Nominees and Winners

Best Picture:
Kramer vs. Kramer – Stanley R. Jaffe, producer (WINNER)
All That Jazz – Robert Alan Aurthur, producer (posthumous nomination)
Apocalypse Now – Francis Coppola, producer; Fred Roos, Gray Frederickson and Tom Sternberg, co-producers
Breaking Away – Peter Yates, producer
Norma Rae – Tamara Asseyev and Alex Rose, producers

Best Director:
Robert Benton – Kramer vs. Kramer (WINNER)
Bob Fosse – All That Jazz
Francis Ford Coppola – Apocalypse Now
Peter Yates – Breaking Away
Édouard Molinaro – La Cage aux Folles

Best Actor:
Dustin Hoffman – Kramer vs. Kramer as Ted Kramer (WINNER)
Jack Lemmon – The China Syndrome as Jack Godell
Al Pacino – …And Justice for All. as Arthur Kirkland
Roy Scheider – All That Jazz as Joseph “Joe” Gideon
Peter Sellers – Being There as Chance

Best Actress:
Sally Field – Norma Rae as Norma Rae Webster (WINNER)
Jill Clayburgh – Starting Over as Marilyn Holmberg
Jane Fonda – The China Syndrome as Kimberly Wells
Marsha Mason – Chapter Two as Jennie MacLaine
Bette Midler – The Rose as Mary Rose Foster

Best Supporting Actor:
Melvyn Douglas – Being There as Ben Rand (WINNER)
Robert Duvall – Apocalypse Now as Lieutenant Colonel William “Bill” Kilgore
Frederic Forrest – The Rose as Huston Dyer
Justin Henry – Kramer vs. Kramer as Billy Kramer
Mickey Rooney – The Black Stallion as Henry Dailey

Best Supporting Actress:
Meryl Streep – Kramer vs. Kramer as Joanna Kramer (WINNER)
Jane Alexander – Kramer vs. Kramer as Margaret Phelps
Barbara Barrie – Breaking Away as Evelyn Stoller
Candice Bergen – Starting Over as Jessica Potter
Mariel Hemingway – Manhattan as Tracy

Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:
Breaking Away – Steve Tesich (WINNER)
All That Jazz – Robert Alan Aurthur (posthumous nomination) and Bob Fosse
…And Justice for All – Valerie Curtin and Barry Levinson
The China Syndrome – Mike Gray, T. S. Cook, and James Bridges
Manhattan – Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman

Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium:
Kramer vs. Kramer – Robert Benton based on the novel by Avery Corman (WINNER)
Apocalypse Now – Francis Coppola and John Milius based on the novel Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
La Cage aux Folles – Francis Veber, Édouard Molinaro, Marcello Danon and Jean Poiret based on the play by Jean Poiret
A Little Romance – Allan Burns based on the novel E=MC2 mon amour by Patrick Cauvin
Norma Rae – Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr. based on the book Crystal Lee, a Woman of Inheritance by Hank Leiferman

Best Foreign Language Film:
The Tin Drum (Federal Republic of Germany – West) (WINNER)
The Maids of Wilko (Poland)
Mama Turns 100 (Spain)
A Simple Story (France)
To Forget Venice (Italy)

Best Documentary Feature:
Best Boy – Ira Wohl (WINNER)
Generation on the Wind – David A. Vassar
Going the Distance – Paul Cowan and Jacques Bobet
The Killing Ground – Steve Singer and Tom Priestley
The War at Home – Glenn Silber and Barry Alexander Brown

Best Documentary Short Subject:
Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist – Saul J. Turell (WINNER)
Dae – Risto Teofilovski
Koryo Celadon – Donald A. Connolly and James R. Messenger
Nails – Phillip Borsos
Remember Me – Dick Young

Best Live Action Short Film:
Board and Care – Sarah Pillsbury and Ron Ellis (WINNER)
Bravery in the Field – Roman Kroitor and Stefan Wodoslawsky
Oh Brother, My Brother – Carol Lowell and Ross Lowell
The Solar Film – Saul Bass and Michael Britton
Solly’s Diner – Harry Mathias, Jay Zukerman and Larry Hankin

Best Animated Short Film:
Every Child – Derek Lamb (WINNER)
Dream Doll – Bob Godfrey
Its So Nice to Have a Wolf Around the House – Paul Fierlinger

Best Original Score:
A Little Romance – Georges Delerue (WINNER)
10 – Henry Mancini
The Amityville Horror – Lalo Schifrin
The Champ – Dave Grusin
Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Jerry Goldsmith

Best Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Adaptation Score:
All That Jazz – Ralph Burns (WINNER)
Breaking Away – Patrick Williams
The Muppet Movie – Songs by Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher; Adaptation by Paul Williams

Best Original Song:
“It Goes Like It Goes” from Norma Rae – Music by David Shire; Lyrics by Norman Gimbel (WINNER)
“I’ll Never Say Goodbye” from The Promise – Music by David Shire; Lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman
“It’s Easy to Say” from 10 – Music by Henry Mancini; Lyrics by Robert Wells
“Rainbow Connection” from The Muppet Movie – Music and Lyrics by Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher
“Through the Eyes of Love” from Ice Castles – Music by Marvin Hamlisch; Lyrics by Carole Bayer Sager

Best Sound:
Apocalypse Now – Walter Murch, Mark Berger, Richard Beggs and Nat Boxer (WINNER)
1941 – Robert Knudson, Robert Glass, Don MacDougall and Gene Cantamessa
The Electric Horseman – Arthur Piantadosi, Les Fresholtz, Michael Minkler and Al Overton Jr.
Meteor – William McCaughey, Aaron Rochin, Michael J. Kohut and Jack Solomon
The Rose – Theodore Soderberg, Douglas Williams, Paul Wells and Jim Webb

Best Costume Design:
All That Jazz – Albert Wolsky (WINNER)
Agatha – Shirley Russell
Butch and Sundance: The Early Days – William Ware Theiss
The Europeans – Judy Moorcroft
La Cage aux Folles – Piero Tosi and Ambra Danon

Best Art Direction:
All That Jazz – Art Direction: Philip Rosenberg and Tony Walton; Set Decoration: Edward Stewart and Gary J. Brink (WINNER)
Alien – Art Direction: Michael Seymour, Leslie Dilley and Roger Christian; Set Decoration: Ian Whittaker
Apocalypse Now – Art Direction: Dean Tavoularis and Angelo P. Graham; Set Decoration: George R. Nelson
The China Syndrome – Art Direction: George Jenkins; Set Decoration: Arthur Jeph Parker
Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Art Direction: Harold Michelson, Joe Jennings, Leon Harris and John Vallone; Set Decoration: Linda DeScenna

Best Cinematography:
Apocalypse Now – Vittorio Storaro (WINNER)
1941 – William A. Fraker
All That Jazz – Giuseppe Rotunno
The Black Hole – Frank Phillips
Kramer vs. Kramer – Néstor Almendros

Best Film Editing:
All That Jazz – Alan Heim (WINNER)
Apocalypse Now – Richard Marks, Walter Murch, Gerald B. Greenberg and Lisa Fruchtman
The Black Stallion – Robert Dalva
Kramer vs. Kramer – Jerry Greenberg
The Rose – Robert L. Wolfe and C. Timothy O’Meara

Best Visual Effects:
Alien – H. R. Giger, Carlo Rambaldi, Brian Johnson, Nick Allder and Dennis Ayling (WINNER)
1941 – Gregory Jein, William A. Fraker and A. D. Flowers
The Black Hole – Peter Ellenshaw, Art Cruickshank, Eustace Lycett, Danny Lee, Harrison Ellenshaw and Joe Hale
Moonraker – Derek Meddings, Paul Wilson and John Evans
Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Douglas Trumbull, John Dykstra, Richard Yuricich, Robert Swarthe, Dave Stewart and Grant McCune

Special Achievement Award:
Alan Splet for sound effects editing in The Black Stallion

Academy Honorary Awards:
Hal Elias
Alec Guinness

Medal of Commendation:
John O. Aalberg
Charles G. Clarke
John G. Frayne

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award:
Robert Benjamin

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award:
Ray Stark

Oscar® and Academy Awards® and Oscar® design mark are the trademarks and service marks and the Oscar© statuette the copyrighted property, of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Pop Culture Madness is neither endorsed by nor affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

April 14, 1980

1980 Grammy Award Winners

1980 Grammy Awards Winners

Winners Announced: February 27, 1980
Held at: Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Host: Kenny Rogers
Eligibility Year: October 1, 1978 – September 30, 1979

Tune Into the Trivia

Kenny’s Kingdom: Host Kenny Rogers was already a huge name in country music by this time, and his hosting role elevated the genre’s profile at the Grammys.
Disco Inferno: The year 1980 was a crucial year for disco. The Bee Gees were still riding the wave of their late-’70s success and snagged multiple nominations.
Sibling Harmony: The Doobie Brothers won Record of the Year for “What a Fool Believes,” which Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins co-written.
Thrills and ‘Trills’: Billy Joel’s 52nd Street won Album of the Year, making him one of the notable artists to leap from pop to a more rock-oriented sound.
The Diva’s Start: This year marked one of the earliest Grammy wins for Donna Summer, setting the stage for her reign as the “Queen of Disco.”
From Films to Grammys: “Afternoon Delight” by the Starland Vocal Band, famously featured in the movie Anchorman, won Best Arrangement for Voices.
Wings Take Flight: Paul McCartney’s band, Wings, was honored for their rock performance, showcasing that The Beatles’ members could find success even after the iconic group disbanded.

1980 Grammy Winners

Record of the Year:
What a Fool Believes – Doobie Brothers

Album of the Year:
52nd Street, Billy Joel (Columbia)

Song of the Year:
What a Fool Believes – Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald, songwriters

Best New Artist:
Rickie Lee Jones

Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male:
52nd Street, Billy Joel

Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female:
I’ll Never Love This Way Again – Dionne Warwick

Best Pop Vocal Performance By a Duo, Group or Chorus:
Minute by Minute, Doobie Brothers

Best Pop Instrumental Performance:
Rise – Herb Alpert

Best Rock Vocal Performance, Male:
Gotta Serve Somebody – Bob Dylan

Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female:
Hot Stuff – Donna Summer

Best Rock Vocal Performance By a Duo or Group:
Heartache Tonight – Eagles

Best Rock Instrumental Performance:
Rockestra Theme – Wings

Best Rhythm and Blues Song:
After the Love Has Gone – David Foster, Jay Graydon and Bill Champlin, songwriters

Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance, Male:
Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough – Michael Jackson

Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance, Female:
Deja Vu – Dionne Warwick

Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance By a Duo, Group or Chorus:
After the Love Has Gone – Earth, Wind and Fire

Best Rhythm and Blues Instrumental Performance:
Boogie Wonderland – Earth, Wind and Fire

Best Disco Recording:
I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor (Polydor)

Best Jazz Vocal Performance:
Fine and Mellow, Ella Fitzgerald

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist:
Jousts, Oscar Peterson

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group:
Duet, Gary Burton and Chick Corea

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band:
At Fargo, 1940 Live, Duke Ellington

Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental:
8:30, Weather Report

Best Country Song:
You Decorated My Life – Debbie Hupp and Bob Morrison, songwriters

Best Country Vocal Performance, Male:
The Gambler – Kenny Rogers

Best Country Vocal Performance, Female:
Blue Kentucky Girl, Emmylou Harris

Best Country Vocal Performance By a Duo or Group:
The Devil Went Down to Georgia – Charlie Daniels Band

Best Country Instrumental Performance:
Big Sandy/Leather Britches – Doc and Merle Watson

Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational:
Heed the Call, Imperials

Best Gospel Performance, Traditional:
Lift Up the Name of Jesus, Blackwood Brothers

Best Soul Gospel Performance, Contemporary:
I’ll Be Thinking of You, Andrae Crouch

Best Soul Gospel Performance, Traditional:
Changing Times, Mighty Clouds of Joy

Best Latin Recording:
Irakere, Irakere (Columbia)

Best Inspirational Performance:
You Gave Me Love (When Nobody Gave Me a Prayer), B.J. Thomas

Best Ethnic or Traditional Recording:
Muddy Mississippi Waters Live, Muddy Waters (Sky/CBS)

Best Instrumental Arrangement:
Soulful Strut – Claus Ogerman, arranger

Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s):
What a Fool Believes – Michael McDonald, arranger

Best Instrumental Composition:
Main Title Theme From Superman – John Williams, composer

Best Cast Show Album:
Sweeney Todd, Stephen Sondheim, composer and Iyricist (RCA)

Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special:
Superman, John Williams, composer (Warner Bros.)

Best Classical Album:
Brahms, Symphonies Complete, Sir Georg Solti conducting Chicago Symphony Orchestra (London)

Best Classical Orchestral Recording:
Brahms, Symphonies Complete, Sir Georg Solti conducting Chicago Symphony Orchestra (London)

Best Chamber Music Performance:
Copland, Appalachian Spring, Dennis Russell Davies conducting St. Paul Chamber Orchestra

Best Classical Performance, Instrumental:
Soloist(s) (With Orchestra) Bartók, Concertos for Piano nos. 1 and 2, Maurizio Pollini; Abbado conducting Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Best Classical Performance, Instrumental Soloist(s) (Without Orchestra):
The Horowitz Concerts 1978/79, Vladimir Horowitz

Best Opera Recording:
Britten, Peter Grimes, Colin Davis conducting Orchestra and Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; solos: Vickers, Harper and Summers (Philips)

Best Choral Performance, Classical (Other Than Opera):
Brahms, A German Requiem, Sir Georg Solti, conductor and Margaret Hillis, choral director, Chicago Symphony Chorus and Orchestra

Best Classical Vocal Soloist Performance:
O Sole Mio, Luciano Pavarotti

Best Comedy Recording:
Reality… What a Concept, Robin Williams (Casablanca)

Best Spoken Word, Documentary or Drama Recording:
Ages of Man (Readings From Shakespeare), Sir John Gielgud (Caedmon)

Best Recording for Children:
The Muppet Movie, Jim Henson, creator (Atlantic)

Best Album Package:
Breakfast in America, Mike Doud and Mick Haggerty, art directors (A&M)

Best Album Notes:
Charlie Parker: The Complete Savoy Sessions, Bob Porter and James Patrick, annotators (Savoy)

Best Historical Reissue:
Billie Holiday (Giants of Jazz) (Time Life)

Producer of the Year (Non-Classical):
Larry Butler

Classical Producer of the Year:
James Mallinson

February 27, 1980

1979 Number One Hits

1979 Billboard Number One Hits:

December 9, 1978 – January 5, 1979:
Le Freak – Chic
January 6 – January 19:
Too Much Heaven – Bee Gees
January 20 – February 9:
Le Freak – Chic
February 10 – March 9:
Do Ya Think I’m Sexy? – Rod Stewart
March 10 – March 23:
I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor
March 24 – April 6:
Tragedy – Bee Gees
April 7 – April 13:
I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor
April 14 – April 20:
What A Fool Believes – The Doobie Brothers
April 21 – April 27:
Knock on Wood – Amii Stewart
April 28 – May 4:
Heart of Glass – Blondie
May 5 – June 30:
Reunited – Peaches & Herb
June 2 – June 8:
Hot Stuff – Donna Summer
June 9 – June 15:
Love You Inside Out – Bee Gees
June 16 – July 29:
Hot Stuff – Donna Summer
June 30 – July 13:
Ring My Bell – Anita Ward
July 14 – August 17:
Bad Girls – Donna Summer
August 18 – August 24:
Good Times – Chic
August 25 – October 5:
My Sharona – The Knack
October 6 – October 12:
Sad Eyes – Robert John
October 13 – October 19:
Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough – Michael Jackson
October 20 – November 2:
Rise – Herb Alpert
November 3 – November 9:
Pop Muzik – M
November 10 – November 16:
Heartache Tonight – The Eagles
November 17 – November 23:
Still – The Commodores
November 24 – December 7:
No More Tears (Enough Is Enough) – Barbra Streisand & Donna Summer
December 8 – December 21:
Babe – Styx
December 22, 1979 – January 4, 1980:
Escape (The Pina Colada Song) – Rupert Holmes

(Data is compiled from various charts including Billboard’s “Pop,” “Rock,” “Airplay,” “R&B/Dance” and “Singles” Charts. “Hot 100” is the primary chart used starting October, 1958)

December 31, 1979

1979 History, Facts and Trivia

Quick Facts from 1979

World-Changing Event: Khomeini’s Iranian Revolution over Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi.
The Other World-Changing Event: The Introduction of the Sony Walkman.
The Top Song was My Sharona by The Knack.
The Movies to Watch include Alien, Rocky 2, The Muppet Movie, Apocalypse Now and Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and The Life of Brian.
The Most Famous Person in America was probably Pope John Paul II.
Notable books include Flowers in the Attic by V. C. Andrews and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.
US Life Expectancy: Males: 70.0 years, Females: 77.8 years
Minimum Wage in 1979: $2.90 per hour
Composition book, 100 pages: 69 cents
The Funny Late Night Host: Johnny Carson
Girl Power: Fully independent in 1979, Saint Lucia is the only country in the world named after a woman

Top Ten Baby Names of 1979

Jennifer, Melissa, Amanda, Jessica, Amy, Michael, Chris, Topher, Jason, David, James

Fashion Icons and Sex Symbols

Loni Anderson, Susan Anton, Barbara Bach, Catherine Bach, Kim Basinger, Valerie Bertinelli, Jacqueline Bisset, Christie Brinkley, Lynda Carter, Bo Derek, Farrah Fawcett, Erin Gray, Shelly Hack, Debbie Harry, Marilu Henner, Lauren Hutton, Kate Jackson, Cheryl Ladd, Olivia Newton-John, Stevie Nicks, Dolly Parton, Bernadette Peters, Victoria Principal, Diana Ross, Jane Seymour, Brooke Shields, Jacquelyn Smith, Suzanne Somers, Donna Summer, Cheryl Tiegs, Charlene Tilton, Mary Woronov

Leading Men and Hollywood Heartthrobs

Gregg Allman, David Cassidy, Patrick Duffy, Sam Elliott, Harrison Ford, Andy Gibb, Mark Hamill, Julio Iglesias, Kris Kristofferson, Lee Majors, Jack Nicholson, Ryan O’Neal, Burt Reynolds, Richard Roundtree, Davide Lee Roth, Sylvester Stallone, Rod Stewart, John Travolta

“The Quotes”

“I love the smell of napalm in the morning.”
– Robert Duvall in ‘Apocalypse Now’

“Have a Coke and smile.”
-Coca-Cola

“Quality is job one.”
– Ford

“Nothing comes between me and my Calvins.”
– Brooke Shields, for Calvin Klein

“Reach out and touch someone.”
– AT&T

Time Magazine’s Man of the Year:
Ayatollah Khomeini

Miss America

Kylene Barker (Roanoke, VA)

Miss USA

Mary Therese Friel (New York)

The Bad News

Ford’s Pinto automobile design allowed its fuel tank to be easily damaged during a rear-end collision, sometimes resulting in deadly fires and explosions. Ford first noticed it in 1971 tests.

The Three Mile Island Unit 2 reactor, near Middletown, Pa., partially melted down on March 28, 1979. This was the most serious accident in U.S. commercial nuclear power plant operating history, although its minor radioactive releases had no detectable health effects on plant workers or the public. Its aftermath brought about sweeping changes involving emergency response planning, reactor operator training, human factors engineering, radiation protection, and many other areas of nuclear power plant operations. A combination of equipment malfunctions, design-related problems, and worker errors led to TMI-2’s partial meltdown and very small off-site releases of radioactivity.

52 Americans are taken hostage in Tehran, Iran, for 444 days. Four days later, ABC’s Nightline premiered, centering on the crisis.

NASA’s Skylab fell to Earth, landing mainly in the Indian Ocean.

Rock and Roll Death: Sid Vicious (heroin overdose)

Eleven people were crushed to death outside of Cincinnati Riverfront Coliseum before a concert by The Who.

Cleveland School Shooting

The Cleveland School Shooting in San Diego, CA, is remembered as one of the deadliest school shootings in United States history. On January 29, 1979, 16-year-old Brenda Spencer opened fire on the Cleveland Elementary School from her house across the street with a rifle, killing two people and injuring eight others. She said she did it because “I don’t like Mondays.”

In response to this shooting, schools have looked for ways to protect their students better; one such measure has been to install metal detectors at school entrances, though this can be costly and time-consuming. Schools have also turned to other measures, such as improved surveillance tracking systems to protect their students from potential threats better.

1979 Pop Culture Facts & History

A song called ‘Ready ‘n’ Steady’ by ‘D.A’ appeared on several charts peaking at #102, but it is very, very hard to find.

Eight “Sea Shepherd” activists were arrested in 1979 for violating the Seal Protection Act, for spraying a thousand seal pups with permanent red dye, which made their pelts useless for hunters.

Scrappy-Doo was first added to the cast of Scooby-Doo in 1979.

Hurricanes were traditionally named only after women. After feminist groups protested over the implied slur that women alone were tempestuous and unpredictable, men’s names were also used for such weather phenomena beginning in 1979.

Australia Fined NASA $400 for littering after debris from the spacecraft “Skylab” landed in the Shire of Esperance, Western Australia. NASA never paid. Thirty years later, California DJ Scott Barley raised funds from his listeners and paid NASA’s bill. Scott got a key to the city for his efforts.

The Guardian Angels were formed in New York City as an unarmed organization of young crime fighters.

The eradication of the smallpox virus was certified.

Black and Decker released the now-famous cordless mini-vacuum, The Dustbuster.

1979 -The film The China Syndrome, a movie about a nuclear meltdown caused by a faulty sensor reading and a stuck-open pressure release valve, was released only 12 days before the 3 Mile Island Meltdown on March 28, 1979, caused by a faulty sensor reading and a stuck open pressure release valve.

Rhodesia became Zimbabwe

The highest Nielsen rating (24.1) for any basketball game in the US, college or pro, is still the 1979 NCAA Championship between Michigan State, with Magic Johnson, and Indiana State, with Larry Bird. The highest-rated and most-watched NBA Final game was Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals which averaged a 22.3 rating.

Chrysler received a $1.5 Billion government loan guarantee from the United States government.

Chip Shearin had to play bass, and Bryan Horton had to play the drums for 15 minutes straight on the 1979 song “Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang because it was the days before samplers and drum machines.

Tens of thousands of rock fans gathered at Disco Demolition Night was an ill-fated baseball promotion on July 12, 1979, at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois. On The Day That Disco Died, the field was ruined, and The Chicago White Sox had to forfeit the second game (of the doubleheader) to the Detroit Tigers.

Pope John Paul II visited the United States.

Elvita Adams jumped from the 86th floor of the Empire State Building in an attempted suicide, only to be blown back onto the 85th floor by a gust of wind. Her only injury was a broken hip.

A (still) unknown group of people paid for the erection of the Georgia Guidestones, six granite slabs that instruct the survivors of an apocalyptic scenario on rebuilding a better world. The builder was told that it was planned for 20 years; it was completed in 1980.

The Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa, is the venue where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper gave their final performances on February 2, 1959. Each February, since 1979, the venue hosts a Winter Dance Party (the name of Holly’s last tour) in honor of the three stars.

Pushing the Envelope is a reference to a World War 2 flight envelope. WWII pilots used it to describe upper and lower conditions where the pilot could fly. To push those conditions, increased capabilities and technology. The phrase was brought into the mainstream in 1979 by Tom Wolfe’s book, The Right Stuff.

Cost of a Super Bowl ad in 1979: $185,000

RIP

In January 1979, 16-year-old Brenda Ann Spencer was arrested after killing a principal and a custodian at an elementary school in California. When asked why she did it, she replied, “I just don’t like Mondays.” She also injured eight children and a police officer.

On January 25, 1979, Robert Williams became the first known human being killed by a robot. He was an American factory worker at the Ford Motor Company Flat Rock Casting Plant in Michigan. He was struck from behind and crushed by a one-ton cart moved by a robot arm, killing him instantly.

The Who Concert Disaster: Eleven fans were crushed to death during a crowd surge for unreserved seats before The Who rock concert at the Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati, Ohio.

When Australia abolished its inheritance tax in 1979, an unusually high number of parents died in the week immediately after the abolition went into effect, suggesting that many of their heirs were doing everything to keep them alive just long enough for the inheritance tax to expire.

The Mount Erebus Disaster: A plane crash in Antarctica (Air New Zealand Flight 901) in which 237 tourists and 20 crew were killed on a sightseeing flight due to an error in flight planning and a phenomenon known as “sector whiteout” in which there is no contrast between the sky and the ground.

Cold War

In the late 1980s, FBI agent Robert Hanssen was tasked by his superiors to find a mole within the agency after the FBI’s moles in the KGB were caught. In reality, he was the mole, working with the KGB since 1979.

NORAD experienced a computer glitch that alerted technicians of a widespread Russian nuclear attack on North America. The U.S. air defense program ordered the president’s “doomsday plane” to take off and warned launch control to prepare for a retaliatory attack.

Nobel Prize Winners

Physics – Sheldon Lee Glashow, Abdus Salam, Steven Weinberg
Chemistry – Herbert C. Brown, Georg Wittig
Medicine – Allan M. Cormack, Godfrey N. Hounsfield
Literature – Odysseas Elytis
Peace – Mother Teresa
Economics – Theodore Schultz, Arthur Lewis

The Habit

Jogging while listening to tapes on your Sony Walkman and wearing a Lacoste preppy shirt with the famous alligator on the left side and designer jeans.

1st Appearances & 1979’s Most Popular Christmas Gifts, Toys and Presents

Walkman cassette/radio

More Firsts

Modern Sudoku was created by an American architect named Howard Garns in 1979, using the name “Number Place”. It became more popular in 1986 by the Japanese puzzle company Nikoli, under “Sudoku,” meaning “single number.”

ESPN (Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) began broadcasting on September 7.

April 1st – Nickelodeon TV cable network began.

Victoria’s Secret stores opened in 1979. It went national in 1982 after being acquired by Limited Brands.

The McDonald’s Happy Meal first went on sale in 1979.

Debuting on PBS as a one-time, 13-part series, This Old House was one of the earliest home improvement shows and is arguably the most well-known.

The first use of the phrase “May the Fourth Be With You” was by a Danish political party that placed a congratulatory advertisement in The London Evening News when Margaret Thatcher took office as Prime Minister on May 4th, 1979, “May the Fourth Be with You, Maggie. Congratulations.”

Etan Patz was the 1st missing child to have their picture on a milk carton in 1979, and the murderer wasn’t caught till 2012.

Best Film Oscar Winner

The Deer Hunter (presented in 1979)

Broadway Shows

They’re Playing Our Song (Musical) Opened on February 11, 1979, and closed on September 6, 1981
Evita (Musical) Opened on September 25, 1979, and closed on June 26, 1983
Sugar Babies (Review) Opened on October 8, 1979, and closed on August 28, 1982

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1979

1985 by John Hackett
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter
Chesapeake by James Michener
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
The Establishment by Howard Fast
The Executioner’s Song by Norman Mailer
Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
Good as Gold by Joseph Heller
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Jailbird by Kurt Vonnegut
Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer
Kindred by Octavia Butler
The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart
The Matarese Circle by Robert Ludlum
Memories of Another Day by Harold Robbins
Oh Say Can You Say? by Dr. Seuss
Overload by Arthur Hailey
Smiley’s People by John le Carré
Sophie’s Choice by William Styron
Triple by Ken Follett
War and Remembrance by Herman Wouk
The White Album by Joan Didion

1979 Most Popular TV Shows

1. 60 Minutes (CBS)
2. Three’s Company (ABC)
3. That’s Incredible! (ABC)
4. Alice (CBS)
5. M*A*S*H (CBS)
6. Dallas (CBS)
7. Flo (CBS)
8. The Jeffersons (CBS)
9. The Dukes of Hazzard (CBS)
10. One Day at a Time (CBS)

1979 Billboard Number One Songs

January 6 – January 19:
Too Much Heaven – Bee Gees

January 20 – February 9:
Le Freak – Chic

February 10 – March 9:
Do Ya Think I’m Sexy? – Rod Stewart

March 10 – March 23:
I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor

March 24 – April 6:
Tragedy – Bee Gees

April 7 – April 13:
I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor

April 14 – April 20:
What A Fool Believes – The Doobie Brothers

April 21 – April 27:
Knock on Wood – Amii Stewart

April 28 – May 4:
Heart of Glass – Blondie

May 5 – June 30:
Reunited – Peaches & Herb

June 2 – June 8:
Hot Stuff – Donna Summer

June 9 – June 15:
Love You Inside Out – Bee Gees

June 16 – July 29:
Hot Stuff – Donna Summer

June 30 – July 13:
Ring My Bell – Anita Ward

July 14 – August 17:
Bad Girls – Donna Summer

August 18 – August 24:
Good Times – Chic

August 25 – October 5:
My Sharona – The Knack

October 6 – October 12:
Sad Eyes – Robert John

October 13 – October 19:
Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough – Michael Jackson

October 20 – November 2:
Rise – Herb Alpert

November 3 – November 9:
Pop Muzik – M

November 10 – November 16:
Heartache Tonight – The Eagles

November 17 – November 23:
Still – The Commodores

November 24 – December 7:
No More Tears (Enough Is Enough) – Barbra Streisand & Donna Summer

December 8 – December 21:
Babe – Styx

December 22, 1979 – January 4, 1980:
Escape (The Pina Colada Song) – Rupert Holmes

Sports

World Series Champions: Pittsburgh Pirates
Super Bowl XIII Champions: Pittsburgh Steelers
NBA Champions: Seattle SuperSonics
Stanley Cup Champs: Montreal Canadiens
U.S. Open Golf Hale Irwin
U.S. Tennis: (Men/Ladies) John McEnroe/Tracy Austin
Wimbledon (Men/Women): Bjorn Borg/Martina Navratilova
NCAA Football Champions: Alabama
NCAA Basketball Champions: Michigan State
Kentucky Derby: Spectacular Bid

More 1979 Facts & History Resources:

Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us)
Broadway Shows that Opened in 1979X
1979 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com
Cambodia | Holocaust and Genocide Studies
Fact Monster
Fun Facts You Didn’t Know About 1979
1970s, Infoplease.com World History
Iranian Hostage Crisis
Iranian Revolution
1979 in Movies (according to IMDB)
Retrowaste Vintage Culture
1970s Slang
Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan
Wikipedia 1979

December 30, 1979

Popular and Best-selling Books From The 1970s

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1970:

Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
Bless the Beasts and Children by Glensin Swarthout
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown
The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart
Deliverance by James Dickey
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask) by David Reuben
The French Lieutenant’s Woman by John Fowles
The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight by Jimmy Breslin
The Godfather by Mario Puzo
Great Lion of God by Taylor Caldwell
The Greening of America by Charles A. Reich
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
Islands in the Stream by Ernest Hemingway
The Late, Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey
Love Story by Erich Segal
Play As It Lays by Joan Didion
QB VII by Leon Uris
Rich Man, Poor Man by Irwin Shaw
The Secret Woman by Victoria Holt
The Selling of the President 1968 by Joe McGinniss
The Sensuous Woman by J (Joan Garrity)
Travels with My Aunt by Graham Greene
Up the Organization by Robert Townsend
What Color is Your Parachute? by Richard Nelson Bolles
Take our 1970 Quiz!

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1971:

A Theory of Justice by John Rawls
The Betsy by Harold Robbins
Blackmark by Archie Goodwin and Gil Kane
The Complete Stories by Flannery O’Connor
The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth
The Drifters by James A. Michener
The Exorcist by William P. Blatty
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson
Go Ask Alice by Beatrice Sparks?
In the Shadow of Man by Jane Goodall
Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell
Message from Malaga by Helen MacInnes
Love Story by Erich Segal
The New Left: The Anti-Industrial Revolution by Ayn Rand
The Other by Tom Tryon
Our Bodies, Ourselves by Boston Women’s Health Book Collective
The Pagan Rabbi by Cynthia Ozick
The Passions of the Mind by Irving Stone
QB VII by Leon Uris
Rabbit Redux by John Updike
Wheels by Arthur Hailey
The Winds of War by Herman Wouk

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1972:

August 1914 by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Captains and the Kings by Taylor Caldwell
The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth
Deathwatch by Robb White
Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino
Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
The Joy of Sex by Alex Comfort
My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok
The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth
Semi-Tough by Dan Jenkins
Shane by Jack Schaeffer
Two from Galilee by Marjorie Holmes
Watership Down by Richard Adams
Wheels by Arthur Hailey
The Winds of War by Herman Wouk
The Word by Irving Wallace

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1973:

The Billion Dollar Sure Thing by Paul E. Erdman
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
Burr by Gore Vidal
Evening in Byzantium by Irwin Shaw
Fear of Flying by Erica Jong
The Friends by Rosa Guy
Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon
The Hollow Hills by Mary Stewart
The Honorary Consul by Graham Greene
Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
The Matlock Paper by Robert Ludlum
The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth
Once Is Not Enough by Jacqueline Susann
The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Sula by Toni Morrison
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1974:

All the President’s Men by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward
The Bermuda Triangle by Charles Berlitz
Burr by Gore Vidal
Carrie by Stephen King
Centennial by James A. Michener
The Dispossessed by Urslua K. Le Guin
The Dogs of War by Frederick Forsyth
The Fan Club by Irving Wallace
Jaws by Peter Benchley
I Heard the Owl Call My Name by Margaret Craven
The Pirate by Harold Robbins
The Seven-Per-Cent Solution by Nicholas Meyer
Something Happened by Joseph Heller
There’s a Wocket in My Pocket! by Dr. Seuss
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré
Watership Down by Richard Adams
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1975:

Centennial by James Michner
The Choirboys by Joseph Wambaugh
Curtain by Agatha Christie
Dhalgren by Samuel R. Delany
The Eagle Has Landed by Jack Higgins
The Great Railway Bazaar by Paul Theroux
The Great Train Robbery by Michael Crichton
The Greek Treasure by Irving Stone
Humboldt’s Gift by Saul Bellow
I Am Not Spock by Leonard Nimoy
J R by William Gassis
Looking for Mr. Goodbar by Judith Rossner
The Moneychangers by Arthur Hailey
Oh, The Thinks You Can Think! by Dr. Seuss
Ragtime by E. L. Doctorow
Salem’s Lot by Stephen King
Shogun by James Clavell
Something Happened by Joseph Heller
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1976:

1876 by Gore Vidal
A River Runs Through It by Norman Maclean
A Stranger in the Mirror by Sidney Sheldon
Bloodstar by Robert E. Howard and Richard Corbin
Chandler: Red Tide by Jim Steranko
Children of Dune by Frank Herbert
Curtain by Agatha Christie
The Deep by Peter Benchley
Dolores by Jacqueline Susann
The Hite Report by Shere Hite
Interview With The Vampire by Anne Rice
The Lonely Lady by Harold Robbins
The Missing Piece by Shel Silverstein
Roots – Alex Haley
Slapstick or Lonesome No More! by Kurt Vonnegut
Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie
Speedboat by Renata Adler
Storm Warning by Jack Higgins
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
Touch Not the Cat by Mary Stewart
Trinity by Leon Uris
Will You Please Be Quiet, Please? by Raymond Carver

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1977:

A Book of Common Prayer by Joan Didion
A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick
Beggarman, Thief by Irwin Shaw
Daniel Martin by John Fowles
Delta of Venus by Anaïs Nin
Dreams Die First by Harold Robbins
Falconer by John Cheever
The Honourable Schoolboy by John le Carre
How to Save Your Own Life by Erica Jong
Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach
Oliver’s Story by Erich Segal
The Shining by Stephen King
The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien and Christopher Tolkien
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough
Trinity by Leon Uris

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1978:

A Contract With God and Other Tenement Stories by Will Eisner
A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L’Engle
Bloodline by Sidney Sheldon
Chesapeake by James A. Michener
Evergreen by Belva Plain
Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett
Fools Die by Mario Puzo
The Holcroft Covenant by Robert Ludlum
I Can Read with My Eyes Shut by Dr. Seuss
Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach
Requiem for a Dream by Hubert Selby Jr
Sea, Sea, Sea by Iris Murdoch
Scruples by Judith Krantz
Second Generation by Howard Fast
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Stand by Stephen King
War and Remembrance by Herman Wouk
The World According to Garp by John Irving

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1979:

1985 by John Hackett
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter
Chesapeake by James Michener
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
The Establishment by Howard Fast
The Executioner’s Song by Norman Mailer
Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
Good as Gold by Joseph Heller
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Jailbird by Kurt Vonnegut
Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer
Kindred by Octavia Butler
The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart
The Matarese Circle by Robert Ludlum
Memories of Another Day by Harold Robbins
Oh Say Can You Say? by Dr. Seuss
Overload by Arthur Hailey
Smiley’s People by John le Carré
Sophie’s Choice by William Styron
Triple by Ken Follott
War and Remembrance by Herman Woulk
The White Album by Joan Didion

December 29, 1979

1979 Music – The 100 Most Popular Songs

1979’s Top 100 Pop Music Hits

1. Y.M.C.A. – Village People

2. I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor

3. Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough – Michael Jackson

4. We Are Family – Sister Sledge

5. Old Time Rock and Roll – Bob Seger

6. Hot Stuff/Bad Girls – Donna Summer

7. Good Times – Chic

8. Escape (The Pina Colada Song) – Rupert Holmes

9. Ain’t No Stoppin Us Now – McFadden & Whitehead

10. September – Earth, Wind and Fire

11. Born To Be Alive – Patrick Hernadez

12. My Sharona – The Knack

13. The Devil Went Down To Georgia – Charlie Daniels Band

14. Heart Of Glass – Blondie

15. After The Love Has Gone – Earth, Wind and Fire

16. Shake Your Body Down To The Ground – Jacksons

17. The Rainbow Connection – Kermit (the Frog)

18. Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’ – Journey

19. Knock On Wood – Amii Stewart

20. One Way or Another – Blondie

21. Ooh Baby Baby – Linda Ronstadt

22. Do Ya Think I’m Sexy? – Rod Stewart

23. Boogie Wonderland – Earth, Wind and Fire

24. Love Ballad – George Benson

25. Rise – Herb Alpert

26. In The Navy – Village People

27. Ring My Bell – Anita Ward

28. Got To Be Real – Cheryl Lynn

29. Shake Your Groove Thing – Peaches and Herb

30. Take The Long Way Home – Supertramp

31. We’ve Got Tonight – Bob Seger

32. Babe – Styx

33. Fins – Jimmy Buffett

34. You Decorated My Life – Kenny Rogers

35. Sultans Of Swing – Dire Straits

36. Disco Nights (Rock Freak) – G.Q.

37. Heartache Tonight – Eagles

38. She Believes In Me – Kenny Rogers

39. Video Killed The Radio Star – The Buggles

40. Pop Muzic – M

41. Hold The Line – Toto

42. H.A.P.P.Y. Radio – Edwin Starr

43. Crazy Love – Allman Brothers Band

44. Highway To Hell – AC/DC

45. Street Life – Crusaders

46. Don’t Bring Me Down – ELO

47. My Life – Billy Joel

48. You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth – Meatloaf

49. Roxanne – Police

50. Good Girls Don’t – The Knack

51. Honesty – Billy Joel

52. Take Me To The River – Talking Heads

53. At Midnight – T-Connection

54. Good Times Roll – The Cars

55. I Go To Rio – Pablo Cruise

56. Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights) – Pat Travers Band

57. Livin It Up (Friday Night) – Bell & James

58. Contact – Edwin Starr

59. Rubber Biscuit – Blues Brothers

60. Message In A Bottle – The Police

61. There But For The Grace Of God Go I – Machine

62. Heaven Must Have Sent You – Bonnie Pointer

63. Life During Wartime – Talking Heads

64. Soul Man – Blues Brothers

65. Voulez-Vous – Abba

66. I Want You To Want Me – Cheap Trick

67. The Logical Song – Supertramp

68. Rust Never Sleeps (Into The Black) – Neil Young

69. Lay It On The Line – Triumph

70. Cruel To Be Kind – Nick Lowe

71. Don’t Stop Me Now – Queen

72. The Gambler – Kenny Rogers

73. Hey, St. Peter – Flash and The Pan

74. What A Fool Believes – Doobie Brothers

75. Makin It – David Naughton

76. Crazy Love – Poco

77. Chase – Giorgia Moroder

78. Instant Replay – Dan Hartman

79. Minute By Minute – The Doobie Brothers

80. You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real) – Sylvester

81. Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy – Bad Company

82. I Need A Lover – John Cougar

83. Dirty White Boy – Foreigner

84. Goodbye Stranger – Supertramp

85. Dance The Night Away – Van Halen

86. Morning Dance – Spyro Gyra

87. Beautiful Girls – Van Halen

88. Long Live Rock – The Who

89. Let’s Go – The Cars

90. Is She Really Going Out With Him? – Joe Jackson

91. Just The Same Way – Journey

92. 5:15 – The Who

93. Girls Talk – Dave Edmunds

94. Shattered – Rolling Stones

95. New YorkGoove – Ace Frehley

96. I Do The Rock – Tim Curry

97. The Man With The Child In His Eyes – Kate Bush

98. Since You Been Gone _ Rainbow

99. Just Another Night – Ian Hunter

100. Frederick – Patti Smith Group

December 26, 1979

25 Biggest Songs of the 1970s

Top 25 Songs of 1970-1979

1. You Light Up My Life- Debby Boone

2. Night Fever – Bee Gees

3. Tonight’s The Night (Gonna Be Alright) – Rod Stewart

4. Shadow Dancing – Andy Gibb

5. Le Freak – Chic

6. My Sharona – The Knack

7. The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face – Roberta Flack

8. Alone Again (Naturally) – Gilbert O’ Sullivan

9. Joy To The World – Three Dog Night

10. Bridge Over Troubled Water – Simon & Garfunkel

11. Best Of My Love – Emotions

12. I’ll Be There – The Jackson 5

13. Silly Love Songs – Paul McCartney & Wings

14. Maggie May – Rod Stewart

15. Bad Girls – Donna Summer

16. It’s Too Late – Donna Summer

17. Killing Me Softly With His Song – Roberta Flack

18. One Bad Apple – The Osmonds

19. I Just Want To Be Your Everything- Andy Gibb

20. Stayin ‘ Alive – Bee Gees

21. Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head – B.J. Thomas

22. Da Ya Think I’m Sexy Rod Stewart

23. Kiss You All Over – Exile

24. Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree – Tony Orlando & Dawn

25. American Pie (Parts I & II) – Don McLean

November 20, 1979

Jimmy Carter’s “Malaise Speech”

Jimmy Carter – Crisis of Confidence Malaise Speech

Good evening.

This is a special night for me. Exactly 3 years ago, on July 15, 1976, I accepted the nomination of my party to run for President of the United States. I promised you a President who is not isolated from the people, who feels your pain, and who shares your dreams and who draws his strength and his wisdom from you.

During the past 3 years I’ve spoken to you on many occasions about national concerns, the energy crisis, reorganizing the Government, our Nation’s economy, and issues of war and especially peace. But over those years the subjects of the speeches, the talks, and the press conferences have become increasingly narrow, focused more and more on what the isolated world of Washington thinks is important. Gradually, you’ve heard more and more about what the Government thinks or what the Government should be doing and less and less about our Nation’s hopes, our dreams, and our vision of the future.

Ten days ago I had planned to speak to you again about a very important subject—energy. For the fifth time I would have described the urgency of the problem and laid out a series of legislative recommendations to the Congress. But as I was preparing to speak, I began to ask myself the same question that I now know has been troubling many of you. Why have we not been able to get together as a nation to resolve our serious energy problem?

It’s clear that the true problems of our Nation are much deeper—deeper than gasoline lines or energy shortages, deeper even than inflation or recession. And I realize more than ever that as President I need your help. So, I decided to reach out and listen to the voices of America.

I invited to Camp David people from almost every segment of our society—business and labor, teachers and preachers, Governors, mayors, and private citizens. And then I left Camp David to listen to other Americans, men and women like you. It has been an extraordinary 10 days, and I want to share with you what I’ve heard.

First of all, I got a lot of personal advice. Let me quote a few of the typical comments that I wrote down.

This from a southern Governor: “Mr. President, you are not leading this Nation— you’re just managing the Government.”
“You don’t see the people enough any more.”
“Some of your Cabinet members don’t seem loyal. There is not enough discipline among your disciples.”
“Don’t talk to us about politics or the mechanics of government, but about an understanding of our common good.”
“Mr. President, we’re in trouble. Talk to us about blood and sweat and tears.”
“If you lead, Mr. President, we will follow.”

Many people talked about themselves and about the condition of our Nation. This from a young woman in Pennsylvania: “I feel so far from government. I feel like ordinary people are excluded from political power.”

And this from a young Chicano: “Some of us have suffered from recession all our lives.”
“Some people have wasted energy, but others haven’t had anything to waste.”

And this from a religious leader: “No material shortage can touch the important things like God’s love for us or our love for one another.”

And I like this one particularly from a black woman who happens to be the mayor of a small Mississippi town: “The big-shots are not the only ones who are important. Remember, you can’t sell anything on Wall Street unless someone digs it up somewhere else first.”

This kind of summarized a lot of other statements: “Mr. President, we are confronted with a moral and a spiritual crisis.”

Several of our discussions were on energy, and I have a notebook full of comments and advice. I’ll read just a few.
“We can’t go on consuming 40 percent more energy than we produce. When we import oil we are also importing inflation plus unemployment.”
“We’ve got to use what we have. The Middle East has only 5 percent of the world’s energy, but the United States has 24 percent.”

And this is one of the most vivid statements:
“Our neck is stretched over the fence and OPEC has a knife.””There will be other cartels and other shortages. American wisdom and courage right now can set a path to follow in the future.”

This was a good one: “Be bold, Mr. President. We may make mistakes, but we are ready to experiment.”

And this one from a labor leader got to the heart of it: “The real issue is freedom. We must deal with the energy problem on a war footing.”

And the last that I’ll read: “When we enter the moral equivalent of war, Mr. President, don’t issue us BB guns.”

These 10 days confirmed my belief in the decency and the strength and the wisdom of the American people, but it also bore out some of my longstanding concerns about our Nation’s underlying problems.

I know, of course, being President, that government actions and legislation can be very important. That’s why I’ve worked hard to put my campaign promises into law—and I have to admit, with just mixed success. But after listening to the American people I have been reminded again that all the legislation in the world can’t fix what’s wrong with America. So, I want to speak to you first tonight about a subject even more serious than energy or inflation. I want to talk to you right now about a fundamental threat to American democracy.

I do not mean our political and civil liberties. They will endure. And I do not refer to the outward strength of America, a nation that is at peace tonight everywhere in the world, with unmatched economic power and military might.

The threat is nearly invisible in ordinary ways. It is a crisis of confidence. It is a crisis that strikes at the very heart and soul and spirit of our national will. We can see this crisis in the growing doubt about the meaning of our own lives and in the loss of a unity of purpose for our Nation.

The erosion of our confidence in the future is threatening to destroy the social and the political fabric of America.

The confidence that we have always had as a people is not simply some romantic dream or a proverb in a dusty book that we read just on the Fourth of July. It is the idea which founded our Nation and has guided our development as a people. Confidence in the future has supported everything else—public institutions and private enterprise, our own families, and the very Constitution of the United States. Confidence has defined our course and has served as a link between generations. We’ve always believed in something called progress. We’ve always had a faith that the days of our children would be better than our own.

Our people are losing that faith, not only in government itself but in the ability as citizens to serve as the ultimate rulers and shapers of our democracy. As a people we know our past and we are proud of it. Our progress has been part of the living history of America, even the world. We always believed that we were part of a great movement of humanity itself called democracy, involved in the search for freedom, and that belief has always strengthened us in our purpose. But just as we are losing our confidence in the future, we are also beginning to close the door on our past.

In a nation that was proud of hard work, strong families, close-knit communities, and our faith in God, too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption. Human identity is no longer defined by what one does, but by what one owns. But we’ve discovered that owning things and consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning. We’ve learned that piling up material goods cannot fill the emptiness of lives which have no confidence or purpose.

The symptoms of this crisis of the American spirit are all around us. For the first time in the history of our country a majority of our people believe that the next 5 years will be worse than the past 5 years. Two-thirds of our people do not even vote. The productivity of American workers is actually dropping, and the willingness of Americans to save for the future has fallen below that of all other people in the Western world.

As you know, there is a growing disrespect for government and for churches and for schools, the news media, and other institutions. This is not a message of happiness or reassurance, but it is the truth and it is a warning.

These changes did not happen overnight. They’ve come upon us gradually over the last generation, years that were filled with shocks and tragedy.

We were sure that ours was a nation of the ballot, not the bullet, until the murders of John Kennedy and Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. We were taught that our armies were always invincible and our causes were always just, only to suffer the agony of Vietnam. We respected the Presidency as a place of honor until the shock of Watergate.

We remember when the phrase “sound as a dollar” was an expression of absolute dependability, until 10 years of inflation began to shrink our dollar and our savings. We believed that our Nation’s resources were limitless until 1973, when we had to face a growing dependence on foreign oil.

These wounds are still very deep. They have never been healed.

Looking for a way out of this crisis, our people have turned to the Federal Government and found it isolated from the mainstream of our Nation’s life. Washington, D.C., has become an island. The gap between our citizens and our Government has never been so wide. The people are looking for honest answers, not easy answers; clear leadership, not false claims and evasiveness and politics as usual.

What you see too often in Washington and elsewhere around the country is a system of government that seems incapable of action. You see a Congress twisted and pulled in every direction by hundreds of well-financed and powerful special interests. You see every extreme position defended to the last vote, almost to the last breath by one unyielding group or another. You often see a balanced and a fair approach that demands sacrifice, a little sacrifice from everyone, abandoned like an orphan without support and without friends.

Often you see paralysis and stagnation and drift. You don’t like it, and neither do I. What can we do?

First of all, we must face the truth, and then we can change our course. We simply must have faith in each other, faith in our ability to govern ourselves, and faith in the future of this Nation. Restoring that faith and that confidence to America is now the most important task we face. It is a true challenge of this generation of Americans.

One of the visitors to Camp David last week put it this way: “We’ve got to stop crying and start sweating, stop talking and start walking, stop cursing and start praying. The strength we need will not come from the White House, but from every house in America.”

We know the strength of America. We are strong. We can regain our unity. We can regain our confidence. We are the heirs of generations who survived threats much more powerful and awesome than those that challenge us now. Our fathers and mothers were strong men and women who shaped a new society during the Great Depression, who fought world wars, and who carved out a new charter of peace for the world.
We ourselves are the same Americans who just 10 years ago put a man on the Moon. We are the generation that dedicated our society to the pursuit of human rights and equality. And we are the generation that will win the war on the energy problem and in that process rebuild the unity and confidence of America.

We are at a turning point in our history. There are two paths to choose. One is a path I’ve warned about tonight, the path that leads to fragmentation and self-interest. Down that road lies a mistaken idea of freedom, the right to grasp for ourselves some advantage over others. That path would be one of constant conflict between narrow interests ending in chaos and immobility. It is a certain route to failure.

All the traditions of our past, all the lessons of our heritage, all the promises of our future point to another path, the path of common purpose and the restoration of American values. That path leads to true freedom for our Nation and ourselves. We can take the first steps down that path as we begin to solve our energy problem.

Energy will be the immediate test of our ability to unite this Nation, and it can also be the standard around which we rally. On the battlefield of energy we can win for our Nation a new confidence, and we can seize control again of our common destiny.

In little more than two decades we’ve gone from a position of energy independence to one in which almost half the oil we use comes from foreign countries, at prices that are going through the roof. Our excessive dependence on OPEC has already taken a tremendous toll on our economy and our people. This is the direct cause of the long lines which have made millions of you spend aggravating hours waiting for gasoline. It’s a cause of the increased inflation and unemployment that we now face. This intolerable dependence on foreign oil threatens our economic independence and the very security of our Nation.

The energy crisis is real. It is worldwide. It is a clear and present danger to our Nation. These are facts and we simply must face them:

What I have to say to you now about energy is simple and vitally important.

Point one: I am tonight setting a clear goal for the energy policy of the United States. Beginning this moment, this Nation will never use more foreign oil than we did in 1977—never. From now on, every new addition to our demand for energy will be met from our own production and our own conservation. The generation-long growth in our dependence on foreign oil will be stopped dead in its tracks right now and then reversed as we move through the 1980’s, for I am tonight setting the further goal of cutting our dependence on foreign oil by one-half by the end of the next decade—a saving of over 4 1/2 million barrels of imported oil per day.

Point two: To ensure that we meet these targets, I will use my Presidential authority to set import quotas. I’m announcing tonight that for 1979 and 1980, I will forbid the entry into this country of one drop of foreign oil more than these goals allow. These quotas will ensure a reduction in imports even below the ambitious levels we set at the recent Tokyo summit.

Point three: To give us energy security, I am asking for the most massive peacetime commitment of funds and resources in our Nation’s history to develop America’s own alternative sources of fuel—from coal, from oil shale, from plant products for gasohol, from unconventional gas, from the Sun.

I propose the creation of an energy security corporation to lead this effort to replace 2 1/2 million barrels of imported oil per day by 1990. The corporation will issue up to $5 billion in energy bonds, and I especially want them to be in small denominations so that average Americans can invest directly in America’s energy security.

Just as a similar synthetic rubber corporation helped us win World War II, so will we mobilize American determination and ability to win the energy war. Moreover, I will soon submit legislation to Congress calling for the creation of this Nation’s first solar bank, which will help us achieve the crucial goal of 20 percent of our energy coming from solar power by the year 2000.

These efforts will cost money, a lot of money, and that is why Congress must enact the windfall profits tax without delay. It will be money well spent. Unlike the billions of dollars that we ship to foreign countries to pay for foreign oil, these funds will be paid by Americans to Americans. These funds will go to fight, not to increase, inflation and unemployment.

Point four: I’m asking Congress to mandate, to require as a matter of law, that our Nation’s utility companies cut their massive use of oil by 50 percent within the next decade and switch to other fuels, especially coal, our most abundant energy source.

Point five: To make absolutely certain that nothing stands in the way of achieving these goals, I will urge Congress to create an energy mobilization board which, like the War Production Board in World War II, will have the responsibility and authority to cut through the redtape, the delays, and the endless roadblocks to completing key energy projects.

We will protect our environment. But when this Nation critically needs a refinery or a pipeline, we will build it.

Point six: I’m proposing a bold conservation program to involve every State, county, and city and every average American in our energy battle. This effort will permit you to build conservation into your homes and your lives at a cost you can afford.

I ask Congress to give me authority for mandatory conservation and for standby gasoline rationing. To further conserve energy, I’m proposing tonight an extra $10 billion over the next decade to strengthen our public transportation systems. And I’m asking you for your good and for your Nation’s security to take no unnecessary trips, to use carpools or public transportation whenever you can, to park your car one extra day per week, to obey the speed limit, and to set your thermostats to save fuel. Every act of energy conservation like this is more than just common sense—I tell you it is an act of patriotism.

Our Nation must be fair to the poorest among us, so we will increase aid to needy Americans to cope with rising energy prices. We often think of conservation only in terms of sacrifice. In fact, it is the most painless and immediate way of rebuilding our Nation’s strength. Every gallon of oil each one of us saves is a new form of production. It gives us more freedom, more confidence, that much more control over our own lives.

So, the solution of our energy crisis can also help us to conquer the crisis of the spirit in our country. It can rekindle our sense of unity, our confidence in the future, and give our Nation and all of us individually a new sense of purpose.

You know we can do it. We have the natural resources. We have more oil in our shale alone than several Saudi Arabias. We have more coal than any nation on Earth. We have the world’s highest level of technology. We have the most skilled work force, with innovative genius, and I firmly believe that we have the national will to win this war.

I do not promise you that this struggle for freedom will be easy. I do not promise a quick way out of our Nation’s problems, when the truth is that the only way out is an all-out effort. What I do promise you is that I will lead our fight, and I will enforce fairness in our struggle, and I will ensure honesty. And above all, I will act.

We can manage the short-term shortages more effectively and we will, but there are no short-term solutions to our long-range problems. There is simply no way to avoid sacrifice.

Twelve hours from now I will speak again in Kansas City, to expand and to explain further our energy program. Just as the search for solutions to our energy shortages has now led us to a new awareness of our Nation’s deeper problems, so our willingness to work for those solutions in energy can strengthen us to attack those deeper problems.

I will continue to travel this country, to hear the people of America. You can help me to develop a national agenda for the 1980s. I will listen and

I will act. We will act together. These were the promises I made 3 years ago, and I intend to keep them.

Little by little we can and we must rebuild our confidence. We can spend until we empty our treasuries, and we may summon all the wonders of science. But we can succeed only if we tap our greatest resources—America’s people, America’s values, and America’s confidence.

I have seen the strength of America in the inexhaustible resources of our people. In the days to come, let us renew that strength in the struggle for an energy secure nation.

In closing, let me say this: I will do my best, but I will not do it alone. Let your voice be heard. Whenever you have a chance, say something good about our country. With God’s help and for the sake of our Nation, it is time for us to join hands in America. Let us commit ourselves together to a rebirth of the American spirit. Working together with our common faith we cannot fail.

Thank you and good night.

Save

July 15, 1979

1979 Oscars 51st Academy Awards

Winners Announced: April 9, 1979
Held at: Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, California
Host: Johnny Carson (introduced as “John Carson”)
Eligibility Year: 1978

Intriguing Trivia and Highlights

Introduction Curveball: Johnny Carson, a seasoned late-night host, was formally introduced as “John Carson,” which was a bit unusual for TV audiences.
Dear Hunter, the Winner: The Deer Hunter swept the major awards, including Best Picture, Best Director for Michael Cimino, and Best Supporting Actor for Christopher Walken.
Streisand & Diamond: Barbra Streisand and Neil Diamond performed the song You Don’t Bring Me Flowers, a chart-topping hit that was unrelated to any film that year.
“A Little Priest”: The film adaptation of The Wiz was among the nominees for Best Art Direction, giving the beloved musical some much-needed limelight.
Mork on Stage: Robin Williams, then primarily known for his TV role as Mork, presented an award, providing a touch of comedy to the ceremonies.
Musical Variety: John Williams won for his original score for Superman, further cementing his status as one of Hollywood’s leading composers.
Foreign Excellence: Get Out Your Handkerchiefs (Préparez vos mouchoirs) from France won Best Foreign Language Film, marking a strong presence for international cinema.
This was the final public appearance of actor John Wayne.
The nominees for the 51st Academy Awards were announced on February 20, 1979

1979 Oscar Nominees and Winners

Best Picture:
The Deer Hunter – Barry Spikings, Michael Deeley, Michael Cimino and John Peverall, producers (WINNER)
Coming Home – Jerome Hellman, producer
Heaven Can Wait – Warren Beatty, producer
Midnight Express – Alan Marshall and David Puttnam, producers
An Unmarried Woman – Paul Mazursky and Anthony Ray, producers

Best Director:
Michael Cimino – The Deer Hunter (WINNER)
Hal Ashby – Coming Home
Warren Beatty and Buck Henry – Heaven Can Wait
Woody Allen – Interiors
Alan Parker – Midnight Express

Best Actor:
Jon Voight – Coming Home as Luke Martin (WINNER)
Warren Beatty – Heaven Can Wait as Joe Pendleton/Leo Farnsworth/Tom Jarrett
Gary Busey – The Buddy Holly Story as Buddy Holly
Robert De Niro – The Deer Hunter as Sergeant Michael “Mike” Vronsky
Laurence Olivier – The Boys from Brazil as Ezra Lieberman

Best Actress:
Jane Fonda – Coming Home as Sally Hyde (WINNER)
Ingrid Bergman – Autumn Sonata as Charlotte Andergast
Ellen Burstyn – Same Time, Next Year as Doris
Jill Clayburgh – An Unmarried Woman as Erica Benton
Geraldine Page – Interiors as Eve

Best Supporting Actor:
Christopher Walken – The Deer Hunter as Corporal Nikanor “Nick” Chevotarevich (WINNER)
Bruce Dern – Coming Home as Captain Bob Hyde
Richard Farnsworth – Comes a Horseman as Dodger
John Hurt – Midnight Express as Max
Jack Warden – Heaven Can Wait as Max Corkle

Best Supporting Actress:
Maggie Smith – California Suite as Diana Barrie (WINNER)
Dyan Cannon – Heaven Can Wait as Julia Farnsworth
Penelope Milford – Coming Home as Vi Munson
Maureen Stapleton – Interiors as Pearl
Meryl Streep – The Deer Hunter as Linda

Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:
Coming Home – Story by Nancy Dowd; Screenplay by Waldo Salt and Robert C. Jones (WINNER)
Autumn Sonata – Ingmar Bergman
The Deer Hunter – Story by Michael Cimino, Deric Washburn, Louis Garfinkle and Quinn Redeker; Screenplay by Deric Washburn
Interiors – Woody Allen
An Unmarried Woman – Paul Mazursky

Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium:
Midnight Express – Oliver Stone based on the book by Billy Hayes and William Hoffer (WINNER)
Bloodbrothers – Walter Newman based on the novel by Richard Price
California Suite – Neil Simon based on his play
Heaven Can Wait – Elaine May and Warren Beatty based on the play by Harry Segall
Same Time, Next Year – Bernard Slade based on his play

Best Foreign Language Film:
Get Out Your Handkerchiefs (France) (WINNER)
The Glass Cell (West Germany)
Hungarians (Hungary)
Viva Italia! (Italy)
White Bim Black Ear (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics)

Best Documentary Feature:
Scared Straight! – Arnold Shapiro (WINNER)
The Lovers’ Wind (Le vent des amoureux) – Albert Lamorisse (posthumous nomination)
Mysterious Castles of Clay – Joan Root and Alan Root
Raoni – Jean-Pierre Dutilleux and Luiz Carlos Saldanha
With Babies and Banners: Story of the Women’s Emergency Brigade – Lorraine Gray

Best Documentary Short Subject:
The Flight of the Gossamer Condor – Jacqueline Phillips Shedd and Ben Shedd (WINNER)
The Divided Trail: A Native American Odyssey
An Encounter with Faces – Vidhu Vinod Chopra and K. K. Kapil
Goodnight Miss Ann
Squires of San Quentin

Best Live Action Short Film:
Teenage Father – Taylor Hackford (WINNER)
A Different Approach – Jim Belcher and Fern Field
Mandy’s Grandmother – Andrew Sugerman
Strange Fruit – Seth Pinsker

Best Animated Short Film:
Special Delivery – Eunice Macauley and John Weldon (WINNER)
Oh My Darling – Nico Crama
Rip Van Winkle – Will Vinton

Best Original Score:
Midnight Express – Giorgio Moroder (WINNER)
The Boys from Brazil – Jerry Goldsmith
Days of Heaven – Ennio Morricone
Heaven Can Wait – Dave Grusin
Superman – John Williams

Best Adaptation Score:
The Buddy Holly Story – Joe Renzetti (WINNER)
Pretty Baby – Jerry Wexler
The Wiz – Quincy Jones

Best Original Song:
“Last Dance” from Thank God It’s Friday – Music and Lyrics by Paul Jabara (WINNER)
“Hopelessly Devoted to You” from Grease – Music and Lyrics by John Farrar
“The Last Time I Felt Like This” from Same Time, Next Year – Music by Marvin Hamlisch; Lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman
“Ready to Take a Chance Again” from Foul Play – Music by Charles Fox; Lyrics by Norman Gimbel
“When You’re Loved” from The Magic of Lassie – Music and Lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman

Best Sound:
The Deer Hunter – Richard Portman, William McCaughey, Aaron Rochin and Darin Knight (WINNER)
The Buddy Holly Story – Tex Rudloff, Joel Fein, Curly Thirlwell and Willie D. Burton
Days of Heaven – John Wilkinson, Robert W. Glass Jr., John T. Reitz and Barry Thomas
Hooper – Robert Knudson, Robert Glass, Don MacDougall and Jack Solomon
Superman – Gordon McCallum, Graham V. Hartstone, Nicolas Le Messurier and Roy Charman

Best Costume Design:
Death on the Nile – Anthony Powell (WINNER)
Caravans – Renié
Days of Heaven – Patricia Norris
The Swarm – Paul Zastupnevich
The Wiz – Tony Walton

Best Art Direction:
Heaven Can Wait – Art Direction: Paul Sylbert and Edwin O’Donovan; Set Decoration: George Gaines (WINNER)
The Brink’s Job – Art Direction: Dean Tavoularis and Angelo P. Graham; Set Decoration: George R. Nelson and Bruce Kay
California Suite – Art Direction: Albert Brenner; Set Decoration: Marvin March
Interiors – Art Direction: Mel Bourne; Set Decoration: Daniel Robert
The Wiz – Art Direction: Tony Walton and Philip Rosenberg; Set Decoration: Edward Stewart and Robert Drumheller

Best Cinematography:
Days of Heaven – Néstor Almendros (WINNER)
The Deer Hunter – Vilmos Zsigmond
Heaven Can Wait – William A. Fraker
Same Time, Next Year – Robert Surtees
The Wiz – Oswald Morris

Best Film Editing:
The Deer Hunter – Peter Zinner (WINNER)
The Boys from Brazil – Robert E. Swink
Coming Home – Don Zimmerman
Midnight Express – Gerry Hambling
Superman – Stuart Baird

Academy Honorary Awards:
Laurence Olivier
Walter Lantz
King Vidor
Museum of Modern Art Department of Film

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award:
Leo Jaffe

Special Achievement Award:
Les Bowie, Colin Chilvers, Denys Coop, Roy Field, Derek Meddings and Zoran Perisic for the visual effects of Superman.

Oscar® and Academy Awards® and Oscar® design mark are the trademarks and service marks and the Oscar© statuette the copyrighted property, of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Pop Culture Madness is neither endorsed by nor affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

April 9, 1979

1979 Grammy Award Winners

Winners Announced: February 15, 1979
Held at: Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Host: John Denver
Eligibility Year: October 1, 1977 – September 30, 1978

Intriguing Trivia and Nuggets of Knowledge

End of the Disco Era: This year’s Grammy Awards coincided with the tail end of the disco craze, and the Bee Gees were the darlings of the night.
Denver’s Final Act: This was the last time John Denver would host the Grammys, ending his five-year stint.
Rising Talent: This was the year Billy Joel won both Song of the Year and Record of the Year for “Just the Way You Are,” signifying his ascent as a major artist.
Saturday Night Live: The Bee Gees’ album Saturday Night Fever was a significant winner, echoing the cultural impact of disco.
Epic Collaborations: “Stayin’ Alive,” a song by the Bee Gees, also featured on Saturday Night Fever, which is one of the best-selling soundtracks of all time.
First Country Rap: While it didn’t win, “Convoy” by C.W. McCall was nominated, which many consider to be a predecessor to the modern country rap genre

1979 Grammy Winners

Record of the Year:
Just the Way You Are – Billy Joel

Album of the Year:
Saturday Night Fever, Bee Gees, David Shire, Yvonne Elliman, Tevares, Kool and the Gang, K.C. and the Sunshine Band, MFSB, Trammps, Walter Murphy and Ralph MacDonald (RSO)

Song of the Year:
Just the Way You Are – Billy Joel, songwriter

Best New Artist of the Year:
A Taste of Honey

Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male:
Copacabana (At the Copa), Barry Manilow

Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female:
You Needed Me – Anne Murray

Best Pop Vocal Performance By a Duo, Group or Chorus:
Saturday Night Fever, Bee Gees

Best Pop Instrumental Performance:
Children of Sanchez, Chuck Mangione Group

Best Rhythm and Blues Song:
Last Dance – Paul Jabara, songwriter

Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance, Male:
On Broadway – George Benson

Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance, Female:
Last Dance – Donna Summer

Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance By a Duo, Group or Chorus:
All’n All, Earth, Wind and Fire

Best Rhythm and Blues Instrumental Performance:
Runnin’ – Earth, Wind and Fire

Best Jazz Vocal Performance:
All Fly Home, Al Jarreau

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist:
Montreux ’77 Oscar Peterson Jam, Oscar Peterson

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group:
Friends, Chick Corea

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band:
Live in Munich, Thad Jones and Mel Lewis

Best Country Song:
The Gambler – Don Schlitz, songwriter

Best Country Vocal Performance, Male:
Georgia on My Mind – Willie Nelson

Best Country Vocal Performance, Female:
Here You Come Again, Dolly Parton

Best Country Vocal Performance By a Duo or Group:
Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys – Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson

Best Country Instrumental Performance:
One O’Clock Jump – Asleep at the Wheel

Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational:
What a Friend – Larry Hart

Best Gospel Performance, Traditional:
Refreshing, Happy Goodman Family

Best Soul Gospel Performance, Contemporary:
Live in London, Andrae Crouch and the Disciples

Best Soul Gospel Performance, Traditional:
Live and Direct, Mighty Clouds of Joy

Best Latin Recording:
Homenaje a Beny Moré, Tito Puente (Tico)

Best Inspirational Performance:
Happy Man, B.J. Thomas

Best Ethnic or Traditional Recording:
I’m Ready, Muddy Waters (Blue Sky)

Best Instrumental Arrangement:
Main Title (Overture Part One, The Wiz Original Soundtrack), Quincy Jones and Robert Freedman, arrangers

Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s):
Got to Get You Into My Life – Maurice White, arranger

Best Arrangement for Voices:
Stayin’ Alive – Bee Gees, arrangers

Best Instrumental Composition:
Theme From Close Encounters of the Third Kind – John Williams, composer

Best Cast Show Album:
Ain’t Misbehavin’, Thomas Fats Waller and others, composers (RCA Red Seal)

Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special:
Close Encounters of the Third Kind, John Williams, composer (Arista)

Album of the Year, Classical:
Brahms, Concerto for Violin in D Major, Itzhak Perlman; Carlo Maria Giulini conducting Chicago Symphony (Angel)

Best Classical Orchestral Performance:
Beethoven, Symphonies (Complete), Herbert von Karajan conducting Berlin Philharmonic

Best Chamber Music Performance:
Beethoven, Sonatas for Violin and Piano (Complete), Itzhak Perlman and Vladimir Ashkenazy

Best Classical Performance, Instrumental Soloist(s) (With Orchestra):
Rachmaninoff, Concerto No. 3 in D Minor for Piano (Horowitz Golden Jubilee), Vladimir Horowitz; Eugene Ormandy conducting Philadelphia Orchestra

Best Classical Performance, Instrumental Soloist(s) (Without Orchestra):
The Horowitz Concerts 1977/78, Vladimir Horowitz

Best Opera Recording:
Lehar, The Merry Widow, Julius Rudel conducting New York City Opera Orchestra and Chorus; solos: Sills and Titus (Angel)

Best Choral Performance, Classical (Other Than Opera):
Beethoven, Missa Solemnis, Sir Georg Solti, conductor and Margaret Hillis, choral director, Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus

Best Classical Vocal Soloist Performance:
Luciano Pavarotti – Hits From Lincoln Center, Luciano Pavarotti

Best Comedy Recording:
A Wild and Crazy Guy, Steve Martin (Warner Bros.)

Best Spoken Word Recording:
Citizen Kane (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), Orson Welles (Mark 56)

Best Recording for Children:
The Muppet Show, Jim Henson (Arista)

Best Album Package:
Boys in the Trees, Johnny Lee and Tony Lane, art directors (Elektra)

Best Album Notes:
A Bing Crosby Collection, vols. I and II, Michael Brooks, annotator (Columbia)

Best Historical Repackage Album:
Lester Young Story Vol. 3 (Columbia)

Best Producers of the Year:
Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson

February 15, 1979

1978 Number One Hits

1978 Billboard Number One Hits:

December 24, 1977 – January 13, 1978:
How Deep Is Your Love – Bee Gees
January 14 – February 3:
Baby Come Back – Player
February 4 – March 3:
Stayin’ Alive – Bee Gees
March 4 – March 17:
(Love Is) Thicker Than Water – Andy Gibb
March 18 – May 12:
Night Fever – Bee Gees
May 13 – May 19:
If I Can’t Have You – Yvonne Elliman
May 20 – June 2:
With A Little Luck – Wings
June 3 – June 9:
Too Much, Too Little, Too Late – Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams
June 10 – June 16:
You’re The One That I Want – John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John
June 17 – August 4:
Shadow Dancing – Andy Gibb
August 5 – August 11:
Miss You – The Rolling Stones
August 12 – August 25:
Three Times A Lady – Commodores
August 26 – September 8:
Grease – Frankie Valli
September 9 – October 27:
Boogie Oogie Oogie – A Taste of Honey
October 28 – November 3:
Hot Child In The City – Nick Gilder
November 4 – November 10:
You Needed Me – Anne Murray
November 11 – December 1:
MacArthur Park – Donna Summer
December 2 – December 8:
You Don’t Bring Me Flowers – Barbra Streisand and Neil Diamond
December 9, 1978 – January 5, 1979:
Le Freak – Chic

(Data is compiled from various charts including Billboard’s “Pop,” “Adult Contemporary,” “Airplay,” “R&B/Dance” and “Singles” Charts. “Hot 100” is the primary chart used starting October, 1958)

December 31, 1978

1978 Trivia, History and Fun Facts

Quick Facts from 1978

World Changing Event: Louise Brown, the first “test-tube baby,” was born healthy in Oldham General Hospital, UK.
The Top Song was Night Fever by The Bee Gees.
The Movies to Watch include Grease, Every Which Way But Loose, Superman, and Heaven Can Wait.
The Most Famous Person in America was probably Muhammad Ali.
Notable books include Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett and The World According to Garp by John Irving.
1200 Watt hairdryer: $9.99
Price of a postage stamp in 1978: 15 cents
US Life Expectancy: Males: 69.6 years, Females: 77.3 years
The Funny Late Night Host: Johnny Carson
The Big Pay Day: Marlon Brando was paid a record $3.7 million and 11.75% of the gross profits for 13 days’ work on Superman.

Top Ten Baby Names of 1978

Jennifer, Melissa, Jessica, Amy, Heather, Michael, Jason, Chris, Topher, David, James

The Sex Symbols, Hotties, and Fashion Icons

Loni Anderson, Barbara Bach, Adrienne Barbeau, Kim Basinger, Valerie Bertinelli, Dyan Cannon, Lynda Carter, Farrah Fawcett, Carrie Fisher, Debbie Harry, Kate Jackson, Marilu Henner, Lauren Hutton, Maria João, Cheryl Ladd, Olivia Newton-John, Stevie Nicks, Dolly Parton, Bernadette Peters, Victoria Principal, Diana Ross, Jane Seymour, Brooke Shields, Jacquelyn Smith, Suzanne Somers, Donna Summer, Cheryl Tiegs, Lindsay Wagner, Mary Woronov

Leading Men and Hollywood Heartthrobs

Christopher Reeve, John Travolta, Warren Beatty

“The Quotes”

“My advice to you is to start drinking heavily.”
– John Belushi in National Lampoon’s Animal House

“Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, son.”
– John Vernon in National Lampoon’s Animal House

“Za Plane! Za Plane Boss!”
-Tattoo (Hervé Villechaize), Fantasy Island

“Nanoo Nanoo!”
Robin Williams as Mork (from Ork)

“Toga! Toga!”
“Food Fight”
– John Belushi as John “Bluto” Blutarsky in National Lampoon’s Animal House

“We’re from France.”
-The Coneheads, on Saturday Night Live

“Here’s to good friends.”
– Lowenbrau beer

Time Magazine’s Man of the Year

Deng Xiaoping

Miss America

Susan Perkins (Columbus, OH)

Miss USA

Judi Anderson (Hawaii)

The Scandals

The FBI set up “Abdul Enterprises, Ltd.” and posed as Middle Eastern businessmen. They videotaped talks with government officials, where they offered money in return for political favors to a fictional Middle Eastern businessman. 11 U.S. government officials were out of a job after this bribery and conspiracy scandal.

There has been some debate about 3M’s Post-it notes. The product was used in a marketing campaign in 1978 as ‘Post N Peel’ and sold nationally in 1980 as ‘Post-it Notes.’ New products are in ‘test mode’ all the time. We say 1980.

12-year-old Brooke Shields starred in Pretty Baby, a film about a whorehouse.

The Twinkie Defense appeared. Dan White killed Harvey Milk and George Moscone. The jury agreed that he had diminished mental capacity from eating too many Twinkies.

Jim Jones got 909 followers to commit suicide (including many children) by drinking poisoned Flavor-Aid in his Jonestown commune. A misunderstanding led to why “Drink The Kool Aud” emerged.

The Unabomber sent his first bomb to Professor Buckley Crist at Northwestern University—the result was a slight injury to Officer Terry Markman.

A computer “testing malfunction” caused the United State’s Defense System to go from an “at ease” DEFCON 1 to a “fire up the missiles” DEFCON 5.

Star Wars Holiday Special

The 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special featured the main actors from Episode IV. It is generally considered pretty bad. It also introduced Boba Fett.

Rock Star Deaths

Keith Moon (accidental overdose of prescription medication)

Both Mama Cass and Keith Moon died in Harry Nilsson’s London apartment 4 years apart – in 1974 and 1978.

Ouch!

2,300 students in Harrisburg, PA, tried to set a WR for the largest tug-of-war game. Instead, disaster ensued. The 2,000ft long braided nylon rope snapped, recoiling several thousand pounds of stored energy. Nearly 200 students lay wounded, 5 with severed fingertips, and hundreds more faced 2nd-degree burns.

UFO Connection

Pilot Fredrick Valentich and his plane disappeared during a UFO encounter. His last communication was, “Melbourne, that strange aircraft is hovering on top of me again… (two seconds open microphone)… it is hovering, and it’s not an aircraft…”. He described “4 points of light of an elongated UFO”. Recent astronomical simulations show a perfect diamond formed by Mercury, Venus, Mars, and nearby star Antares was in the sky then.

1978 Pop Culture Facts & History

Ben and Jerry opened their first ice cream parlor in Burlington, Vermont.

There is a “WELCOME TO CLEVELAND” sign on a rooftop in the flight path of a Milwaukee airport. It has been confusing passengers since 1978. Mark Gubin, the creator, said: “Living in the world is not a dress rehearsal. You better have fun with it.”

Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler made it to the top of Mount Everest, the first to do so without supplementary oxygen.

The first Test Tube Baby, Louis Brown, was born.

Home Depot was founded in Atlanta, Georgia.

According to Charmin makers Procter & Gamble, a 1978 survey found that Mr. Whipple was the third best-known American, behind former President Richard Nixon and evangelist Billy Graham. (And ahead of then-president Jimmy Carter.)

Horst Rechelbacher invented Aveda shampoo.

Actor John Cazale only ever appeared in 5 movies over six years (1972-1978), and all five films were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. He died while filming his last movie, The Deer Hunter.

Star Wars broke the US Weekend Box Office record twice, first on the 11th weekend of its initial 1977 run and then again on the first weekend of its 1978 re-issue. Jaws 2 held the record for one month in between, so they both took the record AND lost it to the same film.

Actor Marlon Brando was paid $3.7 million and a percentage of the profits for twelve shooting days playing Jor-El, Superman’s father, in the superhero flick Superman. For ten minutes of screen time, Brando earned $14 million. Christopher Reeves, who played Superman, reportedly earned $250,000. Christopher Reeves also got third billing behind Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman.

The Pizza Planet truck from the Toy Story series is a 1978 Toyota Gyoza Mark VII Lite Hauler.

Over 98% of Cadillacs sold in 1978 were equipped with a vinyl roof.

On Prince’s debut album, For You, released in 1978, he wrote, arranged, composed, produced, and performed the album all by himself at twenty years old.

September by Earth, Wind & Fire was not released initially on a standard album but was first featured as a bonus track on their 1978 compilation: The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1.

At the 1978 Asian Games, North and South Korea’s national football (soccer) teams made it to the grand finals, only to end the match 0–0 in overtime, forcing the two teams to share Gold.

On June 8, 1978, Larry Bird signed a five-year, $3.25 million contract with the Boston Celtics, making him the highest-paid rookie in sports history.

During a 1978 Monday Night Football game, Howard Cosell commented on a delicious new snack he was eating; thus, stadium nachos went mainstream.

The “1st & Ten” graphics system for drawing lines on TVs to create an on-field marker to help TV viewers identify the NFL’s first down distances was conceived and patented in 1978 by David W. Crain. It also won two Emmys.

Cost of a Super Bowl ad in 1978: $162,000

The Habits

Playing Simon, Toga Parties, watching Grease, and singing along.

1st Appearances & 1978’s Most Popular Christmas Gifts, Toys and Presents

Hungry Hungry Hippos, Simon

Best Film Oscar Winner

Annie Hall (presented in 1978)

Broadway Shows

Deathtrap (Play) Opened on February 26, 1978, and closed on June 13, 1982
Dancin’ (Dance Musical) Opened on March 27, 1978, and closed on June 27, 1982
Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Review) Opened on May 9, 1978, and closed on February 21, 1982
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (Musical) Opened on June 19, 1978, and closed on March 27, 1982

East End Show

Evita (Musical) Opened on June 21, 1978, and closed on February 18, 1986

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1978

A Contract With God and Other Tenement Stories by Will Eisner
A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L’Engle
Bloodline by Sidney Sheldon
Chesapeake by James A. Michener
Evergreen by Belva Plain
Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett
Fools Die by Mario Puzo
The Holcroft Covenant by Robert Ludlum
I Can Read with My Eyes Shut by Dr. Seuss
Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach
Requiem for a Dream by Hubert Selby Jr
Sea, Sea, Sea by Iris Murdoch
Scruples by Judith Krantz
Second Generation by Howard Fast
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Stand by Stephen King
War and Remembrance by Herman Wouk
The World According to Garp by John Irving

1978 Most Popular TV Shows

1. Laverne & Shirley (ABC)
2. Happy Days (ABC)
3. Mork & Mindy (ABC)
4. Three’s Company (ABC)
5. Angie (ABC)
6. 60 Minutes (CBS)
7. M*A*S*H (CBS)
8. The Ropers (ABC)
9. All In The Family (CBS)
10. Taxi (ABC)

1979 Billboard Number One Songs

December 24, 1977 – January 13, 1978:
How Deep Is Your Love – Bee Gees

January 14 – February 3:
Baby Come Back – Player

February 4 – March 3:
Stayin’ Alive – Bee Gees

March 4 – March 17:
(Love Is) Thicker Than Water – Andy Gibb

March 18 – May 12:
Night Fever – Bee Gees

May 13 – May 19:
If I Can’t Have You – Yvonne Elliman

May 20 – June 2:
With A Little Luck – Wings

June 3 – June 9:
Too Much, Too Little, Too Late – Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams

June 10 – June 16:
You’re The One That I Want – John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John

June 17 – August 4:
Shadow Dancing – Andy Gibb

August 5 – August 11:
Miss You – The Rolling Stones

August 12 – August 25:
Three Times A Lady – Commodores

August 26 – September 8:
Grease – Frankie Valli

September 9 – October 27:
Boogie Oogie Oogie – A Taste of Honey

October 28 – November 3:
Hot Child In The City – Nick Gilder

November 4 – November 10:
You Needed Me – Anne Murray

November 11 – December 1:
MacArthur Park – Donna Summer

December 2 – December 8:
You Don’t Bring Me Flowers – Barbra Streisand and Neil Diamond

December 9 – January 5, 1979:
Le Freak – Chic

Sports

World Series Champions: New York Yankees
Super Bowl XII Champions: Dallas Cowboys
NBA Champions: Washington Bullets
Stanley Cup Champs: Montreal Canadians
U.S. Open Golf Andy North
U.S. Tennis: (Men/Ladies) Jimmy Connors/Christine Marie Evert
Wimbledon (Men/Women): Bjorn Borg/Martina Navratilova
NCAA Football Champions: Alabama & USC
NCAA Basketball Champions: Kentucky
Kentucky Derby: Affirmed (Triple Crown Winner: Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes)
World Cup (Soccer): Argentina

More 1978 Facts & History Resources:

Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
30 Big Things That Happened in 977
Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us)
Broadway Shows that Opened in 1978X
1978 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com
Fact Monster
1970s, Infoplease.com World History
Jonestown Massacre/ Murder-Suicide
1978 in Movies (according to IMDB)
Retrowaste Vintage Culture
1970s Slang
Unabomber (FBI.org)
Wikipedia 1978

December 30, 1978

1978 Music – The 100 Most Popular Songs

1978 Music Hits Chart

1. Last Dance – Donna Summer

2. Disco Inferno – Trammps

3. Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton

4. Paradise By The Dashboard Light – Meatloaf

6. Summer Nights – Olivia Newton-John & John Travolta

7. We Are The Champions – Queen

8. Stayin Alive – Bee Gees

9. We Will Rock You – Queen

10. Copacabana – Barry Manilow

11. Night Fever – Bee Gees

12. Only The Good Die Young – Billy Joel

13. Greased Lightnin’ – John Travolta

14. She’s Always A Woman – Billy Joel

15. You’re the One That I Want – Olivia Newton-John & John Travolta

16. Macho Man – Village People

17. You Needed Me – Anne Murray

18. Two Tickets To Paradise – Eddie Money

19. Dance (Disco Heat) – Sylvester

20. Always And Forever – Heatwave

21. Shaker Song – Spiro Gyra

22. My Best Friend’s Girl – The Cars

23. Who Are You – The Who

24. Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah) – Chic

25. Anytime – Journey

26. Le Freak – Chick

27. Deacon Blues – Steely Dan

28. You’re In My Heart (The Final Acclaim) – Rod Stewart

29. Follow You Follow Me – Genesis

30. Life’s Been Good – Joe Walsh

31. Josie – Steely Dan

32. What’s Your Name – Lynyrd Skynrd

33. Can’t Smile Without You – Barry Manilow

34. Boogie Shoes – K.C. and the Sunshine Band

35. You Really Got Me – Van Halen

36. Just What I Needed – The Cars

37. Lights – Journey

38. Fantasy – Earth Wind and Fire

39. Blame It On The Boogie – Jacksons

40. Shame – Evelyn Champagne King

41. Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys – Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson

42. Cheeseburger In Paradise – Jimmy Buffett

43. Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad – Meatloaf

44. Can We Still Be Friends – Todd Rundgren

45. Dust In The Wind – Kansas

46. Take A Chance On Me – Abba

47. Wheel In The Sky – Journey

48. Shadow Dancing – Andy Gibb

49. Miss You – Rolling Stones

50. Ca Plane Pour Moi – Plastic Bertrand

51. Movin Out – Billy Joel

52. Fooling Yourself (Angry Young Man) – Styx

53. Thank You For Being A Friend – Andrew Gold

54. More Than a Woman – Tavares

55. Lovely Day – Bill Withers

56. Let’s All Chant – Michael Zager Band

57. You Don’t Bring Me Flowers – Barbra Streisand & Neil Diamond

58. What A Difference You’ve Made In My Life – Ronnie Milsap

59. Werewolves Of London – Warren Zevon

60. Shout It Out Loud – Kiss

61. Boogie Oogie Oogie – A Taste Of Honey

62. Roll With The Changes – REO Speedwagon

63. Flash Light – Parliament

64. Portrait (He Knew) – Kansas

65. Three Times A Lady – Commodores

66. Hot Shot – Karen Young

67. In The Bush – Musique

68. You Got That Right – Lynyrd Skynyrd

69. Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood – Santa Esmeralda

70. # 1 Dee Jay – Goody Goody

71. Listen To Her Heart – Tom Petty

72. Psycho Killer – Talking Heads

73. The Groove Line – Heatwave

74. Soft and Wet – Prince

75. Surrender – Cheap Trick

76. Anytime – Journey

77. Serpentine Fire – Earth Wind and Fire

78. Just What I Needed – The Cars

79. I Love The Nightlife (Disco ’round) – Alicia Bridges

80. Trans-Europe Express – Kraftwerk

81. Here You Come Again – Dolly Parton

82. Get Off – Foxy

83. Feels So Good – Chuck Mangione

84. Come Sail Away – Styx

85. Come Together – Aerosmith

86. I Just Wanna Stop – Gino Vanelli

87. Hot Legs – Rod Stewart

88. I Was Only Joking – Rod Stewart

89. Don’t Look Back – Boston

90. Slip Slidin’ away – Paul Simon

91. Time For Me To Fly – REO Speedwagon

92. On Bradway – George Benson

93. Every Kinda People – Robert Palmer

94. Do You Wanna Dance – Ramones

95. Point of Know Return – Kansas

96. The House of the Rising Sun – Santa Esmeralda

97. Prove It All Night – Bruce Springsteen

98. I Need To Know – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

99. Don’t Let It Show – Alan Parsons Project

100. Hot Summer Nights – Walter Egan

December 26, 1978

Sid Vicious’ List of his girlfriend Nancy Spungen’s Best Attributes

Sid Vicious’ List of his girlfriend Nancy Spungen’s Best Attributes:
~1978

What Makes Nancy So Great By Sidney

1 Beautiful
2 Sexy
3 Beautiful figure
4 Great sense of humour
5 Makes extremely interesting conversation
6 Witty
7 Has beautiful eyes
8 Has fab taste in clothes
9 Has the most beautiful wet pussy in the world
10 Even has sexy feet
11 Is extremely smart
12 A great Hustler

July 12, 1978

The Colorful History of Mascots

The Colorful History of Mascots:

From Good Luck Charms to Cultural Icons

Mascots didn’t start with giant foam heads or T-shirt cannons. They began as simple good luck charms—quirky tokens carried into battlefields and ballparks alike. But over the decades, mascots evolved into something far more powerful: high-energy entertainers, brand ambassadors, cultural icons, and occasionally, courtroom defendants.

Today, they do more than dance on dugouts—they drive fan engagement, headline marketing campaigns, and sometimes outshine the teams they represent. From the goofy to the glorious, mascots have taken center stage in stadiums, on cereal boxes, and across social media feeds.

Here’s how a bunch of fuzzy weirdos went from superstition to superstardom.

Origins: Luck, Superstition, and Symbolism

The word “mascot” comes from the French mascotte, meaning lucky charm or talisman. The term first entered the English language around 1881, though the tradition of mascots dates back much further. Civil War units, for example, often adopted animals as symbols of luck or morale. In sports, the concept caught on as teams sought rallying figures to boost fan spirit and unity.

One of the first American sports mascots was Yale University’s Handsome Dan, a live bulldog who debuted in 1892. Other colleges followed suit, adopting live animals—some intimidating, some adorable—as living symbols of their athletic programs.

Enter the Costume Era

The 1960s and ’70s witnessed a significant shift with the introduction of costumed mascots, largely due to the rise of television, puppetry (a big danke to the Muppets), and visual media. These larger-than-life characters brought energy, personality, and a touch of absurdity to the field.

Among the earliest was Mr. Met, who debuted in 1963 for the New York Mets. With his oversized baseball head and unwavering grin, he quickly won over fans and helped set the stage for a new era of mascot marketing.

Then came a game-changer: the Phillie Phanatic. Created in 1978 by Bonnie Erickson, a former designer for Jim Henson’s Muppets, the Phanatic was a weird, wild, and wildly popular mascot. His slapstick humor and outrageous antics transformed what a mascot could be.

The San Diego Chicken Crashes the Party

No mascot history is complete without mentioning The Famous San Diego Chicken, widely considered the first breakout mascot personality. Hatched initially as a radio station promotion in 1974, the Chicken (played by Ted Giannoulas) became a sensation at San Diego Padres games.

Unlike team-created mascots, the Chicken was independent, free-roaming, and pioneering in nature. He performed elaborate gags, interacted with fans and players, and helped pave the way for modern mascot culture. His success proved that a mascot could be more than a sideline cheerleader—it could be a full-blown entertainer.

Expansion: NHL, NBA, and More

By the 1980s and 1990s, mascots had become a standard feature across professional leagues. The NBA’s Benny the Bull, who debuted in 1969, evolved into one of the league’s most dynamic performers. Forbes even named him the top mascot in sports in 2013.

The NHL followed with Harvey the Hound, the first official hockey mascot, introduced by the Calgary Flames in 1983. Known for his oversized tongue and ability to heckle opponents, Harvey was as much a character as any player.

Olympic Games also joined the mascot movement, starting in 1968 with Grenoble’s Schuss. Since then, each Games has featured a mascot that represents the host country’s culture—sometimes to universal praise, sometimes to confused head-tilts.

Mascots in the Marketplace

Outside sports, mascots have become vital parts of marketing strategies. Think: Mr. Peanut (Planters, 1916), Michelin Man (1894), and Ronald McDonald (1963). These characters blurred the line between branding and entertainment, becoming nearly as iconic as the products they represent.

The Mascot Hall of Fame and Cultural Recognition

In 2005, mascots got their temple of recognition: the online Mascot Hall of Fame. It honors professional and collegiate mascots who demonstrate excellence in performance, character, and community impact. Notable inductees include the Phillie Phanatic, the San Diego Chicken, Mr. Met, and many more.

Not Without Controversy

Mascots have also faced scrutiny. Teams using Native American imagery have been criticized for perpetuating harmful stereotypes, prompting name changes and mascot retirements. This ongoing conversation has forced sports organizations to reconsider how their symbols reflect broader societal values.

Why Mascots Matter

Today’s mascots are more than just costumed characters. They’re storytellers, comedians, hype machines, and community liaisons. They appear at schools, hospitals, parades, and even weddings. They tweet, go viral, and launch fan bases of their own.

From Yale’s bulldog to the Chicken’s dance floor, mascots reflect the communities and cultures they represent, with a lot more fur, feathers, and foam. In short: they’re here to stay, and they’re having the time of their lives.

Want to meet the legends in fur and feathers? Visit the Mascot Hall of Fame to learn more about sports mascots.

???? Top 25 Merchandise Mascots & Their Brands

Mascot	Brand / Represents	First Appearance
Tony the Tiger	Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes	1952
Mr. Peanut	Planters Peanuts	1916
Snap, Crackle & Pop	Kellogg’s Rice Krispies	1933
Mickey Mouse	The Walt Disney Company	1928
Charlie the Tuna	StarKist	1961
Duracell Bunny	Duracell Batteries	1973
Campbell’s Kids	Campbell Soup Company	1904
Michelin Man (Bibendum)	Michelin Tires	1894
Aflac Duck	Aflac Insurance	(Walk of Fame mention)
McGruff the Crime Dog	National Crime Prevention Council	(Walk of Fame)
Oscar Mayer Wienermobile	Oscar Mayer	(Walk of Fame)
Ronald McDonald	McDonald’s	1963
Hamburglar	McDonald’s	1971
The Burger King	Burger King	1955 (creepy redesign 2003)
Peppy the Polar Bear	Fox’s Glacier Mints	1922
Green Giant	Green Giant Vegetables	1925
Smash Martian	Smash Instant Mash	1973
Amik the Beaver	Montreal Olympics	1976
Sam the Eagle	1984 Los Angeles Olympics	1984
Coco the Monkey	Coco Pops (UK)	1963
Chef Boyardee	Chef Boyardee Pasta	Brand started 1928
Quaker Oats Man	Quaker Oats	Trademark registered in 1877
Rastus the Cook	Cream of Wheat	c. 1890
Crows Candy Mascot	Crows Candies	1910s
Dr. Jerry (Crazy Eddie)	Crazy Eddie electronics	1972

June 15, 1978

1978 Oscars 50th Academy Awards

Winners Announced: April 3, 1978
Held at: Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, California
Host: Bob Hope
Eligibility Year: 1977

Riveting Trivia and Tantalizing Tidbits

Milestone Event: This ceremony marked the 50th anniversary of the Oscars, making it an especially significant year.
Woody Allen’s No-Show: Woody Allen won for Best Director for Annie Hall but didn’t attend the ceremony, famously choosing to play clarinet at his regular gig instead.
Breakthrough for Star Wars: The epic space opera Star Wars won six technical Oscars, but lost Best Picture to Annie Hall.
Diane Keaton Triumphs: Diane Keaton won Best Actress for her role in Annie Hall, a character reportedly based on her own personality.
Youngest Supporting Actress: Tatum O’Neal still holds the record as the youngest actor ever to win a competitive Academy Award. She won Best Supporting Actress at age 10 for her role in Paper Moon (1973), but this year her record wasn’t broken.
Pioneering Animation: The Rescuers, a film by Walt Disney Productions, received a nomination for its song “Someone’s Waiting for You,” signaling recognition for animated films in categories other than just Best Animated Feature.
Hope’s Hosting Legacy: Bob Hope served as host for a record 19th and final time, a record that still stands to this day.

1978 Oscar Nominees and Winners

Best Picture:
Annie Hall – Charles H. Joffe, producer (WINNER)
The Goodbye Girl – Ray Stark, producer
Julia – Richard Roth, producer
Star Wars – Gary Kurtz, producer
The Turning Point – Herbert Ross and Arthur Laurents, producers

Best Director:
Woody Allen – Annie Hall (WINNER)
Steven Spielberg – Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Fred Zinnemann – Julia
George Lucas – Star Wars
Herbert Ross – The Turning Point

Best Actor:
Richard Dreyfuss – The Goodbye Girl as Elliot Garfield (WINNER)
Woody Allen – Annie Hall as Alvy “Max” Singer
Richard Burton – Equus as Doctor Martin Dysart
Marcello Mastroianni – A Special Day as Gabriele
John Travolta – Saturday Night Fever as Anthony “Tony” Manero

Best Actress:
Diane Keaton – Annie Hall as Annie Hall (WINNER)
Anne Bancroft – The Turning Point as Emma Jacklin
Jane Fonda – Julia as Lillian Hellman
Shirley MacLaine – The Turning Point as DeeDee Rodgers
Marsha Mason – The Goodbye Girl as Paula McFadden

Best Supporting Actor:
Jason Robards – Julia as Dashiell Hammett (WINNER)
Mikhail Baryshnikov – The Turning Point as Yuri Kopeikine
Peter Firth – Equus as Alan Strang
Alec Guinness – Star Wars as Obi Wan Kenobi
Maximilian Schell – Julia as Johann

Best Supporting Actress:
Vanessa Redgrave – Julia as Julia (WINNER)
Leslie Browne – The Turning Point as Emilia Rodgers
Quinn Cummings – The Goodbye Girl as Lucy McFadden
Melinda Dillon – Close Encounters of the Third Kind as Jillian Guiler
Tuesday Weld – Looking for Mr. Goodbar as Katherine Dunn

Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen Based on Factual Material or on Story Material Not Previously Published or Produced:
Annie Hall – Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman (WINNER)
The Goodbye Girl – Neil Simon
The Late Show – Robert Benton
Star Wars – George Lucas
The Turning Point – Arthur Laurents

Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium:
Julia – Alvin Sargent based on the novel Pentimento by Lillian Hellman (WINNER)
Equus – Peter Shaffer based on his play
I Never Promised You a Rose Garden – Gavin Lambert and Lewis John Carlino based on the novel by Hannah Greene
Oh, God! – Larry Gelbart based on the novel by Avery Corman
That Obscure Object of Desire – Luis Buñuel and Jean-Claude Carrière based on the novel La Femme et le pantin by Pierre Louÿs

Best Foreign Language Film:
Madame Rosa (France) (WINNER)
Iphigenia (Greece)
Operation Thunderbolt (Israel)
A Special Day (Italy)
That Obscure Object of Desire (Spain)

Best Documentary Feature:
Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? – John Korty (WINNER)
The Children of Theatre Street – Robert Dornhelm and Earle Mack
High Grass Circus – Tony Ianzelo and Torben Schioler
Homage to Chagall: The Colours of Love – Harry Rasky
Union Maids – Jim Klein, Miles Mogulescu and Julia Reichert

Best Documentary Short Subject:
Gravity Is My Enemy – John C. Joseph and Jan Stussy (WINNER)
Agueda Martinez: Our People, Our Country
First Edition
Of Time, Tombs and Treasures
The Shetland Experience

Best Live Action Short Film:
I’ll Find a Way – Beverly Shaffer and Yuki Yoshida (WINNER)
The Absent-Minded Waiter – William E. McEuen
Floating Free – Jerry Butts
Notes on the Popular Arts – Saul Bass
Spaceborne – Philip Dauber

Best Animated Short Film:
The Sand Castle – Co Hoedeman (WINNER)
Bead Game – Ishu Patel
The Doonesbury Special – John Hubley (posthumous nomination), Faith Hubley and Garry Trudeau
Jimmy the C – James Picker, Robert Grossman and Craig Whitaker

Best Original Score:
Star Wars – John Williams (WINNER)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind – John Williams
Julia – Georges Delerue
Mohammad, Messenger of God – Maurice Jarre
The Spy Who Loved Me – Marvin Hamlisch

Best Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Adaptation Score:
A Little Night Music – Adapted by Jonathan Tunick (WINNER)
Pete’s Dragon – Song Score by Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn; Adapted by Irwin Kostal
The Slipper and the Rose – Song Score by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman; Adapted by Angela Morley

Best Original Song:
“You Light Up My Life” from You Light Up My Life – Music and Lyrics by Joseph Brooks (WINNER)
“Candle on the Water” from Pete’s Dragon – Music and Lyrics by Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn
“Nobody Does It Better” from The Spy Who Loved Me – Music by Marvin Hamlisch; Lyrics by Carole Bayer Sager
“The Slipper and the Rose Waltz (He Danced with Me/She Danced with Me)” from The Slipper and the Rose – Music and Lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman
“Someone’s Waiting for You” from The Rescuers – Music by Sammy Fain; Lyrics by Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins

Best Sound:
Star Wars – Don MacDougall, Ray West, Bob Minkler and Derek Ball (WINNER)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind – Robert Knudson, Robert Glass, Don MacDougall and Gene Cantamessa
The Deep – Walter Goss, Dick Alexander, Tom Beckert and Robin Gregory
Sorcerer – Robert Knudson, Robert Glass, Richard Tyler and Jean-Louis Ducarme
The Turning Point – Theodore Soderberg, Paul Wells, Douglas Williams and Jerry Jost

Best Costume Design:
Star Wars – John Mollo (WINNER)
Airport ’77 – Edith Head and Burton Miller
Julia – Anthea Sylbert
A Little Night Music – Florence Klotz
The Other Side of Midnight – Irene Sharaff

Best Art Direction:
Star Wars – Art Direction: John Barry, Norman Reynolds and Leslie Dilley; Set Decoration: Roger Christian (WINNER)
Airport ’77 – Art Direction: George C. Webb; Set Decoration: Mickey S. Michaels
Close Encounters of the Third Kind – Art Direction: Joe Alves and Daniel A. Lomino; Set Decoration: Phil Abramson
The Spy Who Loved Me – Art Direction: Ken Adam and Peter Lamont; Set Decoration: Hugh Scaife
The Turning Point – Art Direction: Albert Brenner; Set Decoration: Marvin March

Best Cinematography:
Close Encounters of the Third Kind – Vilmos Zsigmond (WINNER)
Islands in the Stream – Fred J. Koenekamp
Julia – Douglas Slocombe
Looking for Mr. Goodbar – William A. Fraker
The Turning Point – Robert Surtees

Best Film Editing:
Star Wars – Paul Hirsch, Marcia Lucas and Richard Chew (WINNER)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind – Michael Kahn
Julia – Walter Murch
Smokey and the Bandit – Walter Hannemann and Angelo Ross
The Turning Point – William H. Reynolds

Best Visual Effects:
Star Wars – John Stears, John Dykstra, Richard Edlund, Grant McCune and Robert Blalack (WINNER)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind – Gregory Jein, Roy Arbogast, Douglas Trumbull, Matthew Yuricich and Richard Yuricich

Academy Honorary Awards:
Margaret Booth

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award:
Charlton Heston

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award:
Walter Mirisch

Special Achievement Awards:
Ben Burtt for the creation of the alien, creature, and robot voices in Star Wars
Frank Warner for sound effects editing in Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Oscar® and Academy Awards® and Oscar® design mark are the trademarks and service marks and the Oscar© statuette the copyrighted property, of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Pop Culture Madness is neither endorsed by nor affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

April 3, 1978

Author: Joe Hummel III

1982 Music Hits Chart

The Best Week Ever (for Movies): July 1982

???? The Rules:

#10. Firefox

#9. Annie

#8. Blade Runner

#7. The Thing

#6. The Road Warrior (Mad Max 2)

#5. Conan the Barbarian

#4. Poltergeist

#3. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

#2. Rocky III

#1. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

???? Honorable(?) Mention: Grease 2

???? Why This Week Still Matters

1982 Oscars 54th Academy Awards

1982 Oscars Trivia and Noteworthy Moments

1982 Oscar Nominees and Winners

1982 Grammy Award Winners

1982 Grammy Trivia and Noteworthy Moments

1982 Grammy Winners

1981 Billboard Number One Hits:

1981 History, Facts and Trivia

Quick Facts from 1981:

Top Ten Baby Names of 1981:

Fashion Icons and Sex Symbols:

Leading Men and Hollywood Heartthrobs:

“The Quotes”

Time Magazine’s Man of the Year:

Miss America:

Miss USA:

The Scandals:

Actress Drowning Death:

Actor Injury Death:

Pop Star Automobile Death:

US Politics:

Pop Culture Facts & History:

Doomsday Clock:

The Habits:

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1981:

Best Film Oscar Winner:

The Big Movies: (according to boxofficemojo)

1981 Most Popular TV Shows:

1981 Billboard Number One Songs:

Sports:

More 1981 Facts and History Resources:

1981 Popular Music Chart

A Deep Look At Tom’s Diner

The HIV/AIDS Epidemic

1981 Oscars 53rd Academy Awards

Oscar Trivia for the Film Buffs

1981 Oscar Nominees and Winners

1981 Grammy Award Winners

Notable Trivia

1981 Grammy Winners

1980 Billboard Number One Hits:

1980 Fun Facts, Trivia and History

Quick Facts from 1980:

1980 History Rundown:

Top Ten Baby Names of 1980:

The Hotties, Sex Symbols, and Fashion Icons:

Hollywood Hunks and Leading Men:

“The Quotes”

Time Magazine’s Man of the Year:

Miss America:

Miss USA:

1980 Deaths:

World News

Pop Culture Facts & History

Doomsday Clock:

The Habits:

1st Appearances & 1980’s Most Popular Christmas Gifts, Toys and Presents:

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1980

Broadway Shows:

Best Film Oscar Winner:

The Bomb (Movie):

The Big Movies: (according to boxofficemojo

1980 Most Popular TV Shows:

1980 Billboard Number One Songs