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One site reader described the awesomeness of
1983 as follows.
1983, hands down. Michael Jackson and The
Police dominate the Billboard charts, while "Murmur" is released
and the Smiths put out their first single. Hair bands have not
yet screwed up MTV for the rest of us. "National Lampoon's
Vacation" and "Valley Girl" are in the theaters, but George
Lucas has hinted at the suck in our movie futures by giving us...
Ewoks. Reagan and other Western political leaders are still
wearing brown suits half the time. Everyone is legitimately
worried about nuclear war. Good times. The only hole in the
argument that 1983 is the height of the 80s would be that we're
still a year short of the debut of "Miami Vice."
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History & Politics .
Music .
Television .
Movies .
Sports
People Who Died .
People Who Were Born .
Back
to 80s Time Capsules
HISTORY & POLITICS
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A riot breaks out at Sing
Sing prison, New York.
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Lotus 1-2-3 (spreadsheet
program) is released for IBM-PC compatible computers.
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The musical Annie is
performed for the last time after 2,377 shows at the Uris
Theatre on Broadway, New York City.
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Red rain falls in the UK,
caused by sand from the Sahara Desert in the droplets.
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High ranking Nazi war
criminal Klaus Barbie is arrested in Bolivia & officially
charged with war crimes.
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Wah Mee massacre: 13 people
are killed in an attempted robbery in Seattle, Washington.
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M*A*S*H (TV series) ends
after 11 years and 251 episodes on CBS. The series finale,
Goodbye, Farewell and Amen, becomes the highest rated
episode in TV history.
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Swatch introduces their
first watches.
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Strategic Defense
Initiative: U.S. President
Ronald Reagan makes his initial proposal to develop
technology to intercept enemy missiles. The media dub this
plan "Star Wars."
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The U.S. Embassy is bombed
in Beirut, killing 63 people.
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Sally Ride becomes the first
American woman in space, on the Space Shuttle Challenger.
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Diana Ross stages a free
concert in Central Park in front of 800,000 people, enduring
the severe weather but vows to return the next day...and she
does.
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Hurricane Alicia hits the
Texas coast, killing 22 and causing over US$3.8 billion
(2005 dollars) in damage.
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Tom Brokaw becomes lead
anchor for NBC Nightly News.
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Vanessa Williams becomes the
first African-American to be crowned Miss America, in
Atlantic City, New Jersey.
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Microsoft Word is first
released.
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Martin Luther King Day: At
the White House Rose Garden, U.S. President Ronald Reagan
signs a bill creating a federal holiday on the third Monday
of every January to honor American civil rights leader
Martin Luther King Jr.
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Drug Abuse Resistance
Education (DARE) program launched in U.S.
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McDonald's introduces the
McNugget.
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Giovanni Vigliotto goes on
trial for multiple counts of bigamy involving 105 women.
He'd marry them, take their belongings, abandon them, and
sell their stuff at flea markets.
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Harold Washington is elected
the first African American mayor of Chicago.
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United States troops invade
Grenada at the behest of Eugenia Charles of Dominica, a
member of the Organization of American States.
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MUSIC
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TELEVISION
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The
A-Team
Starring: George Peppard, Dwight Schultz, Mr. T, & Dirk
Benedict
Four Vietnam vets, framed for a crime they didn't commit, help
the innocent while on the run from the military. |
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Mama's
Family
Starring: Vicki Lawrence, Ken Berry, Dorothy
Lyman, Eric Brown, & Rue McClanahan
Thelma Harper and her spinster sister Fran open their
home to Thelma's recently divorced son Vinton and his teenage
son and daughter. It's quite an adjustment for everyone,
especially the cranky, argumentative Thelma. |
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He-Man
and the Masters of the Universe
[cartoon]
The most powerful man in
the universe, He-Man, goes against the evil forces of Skeletor
to save the planet Eternia and to protect the secrets of Castle
Grayskull with the help of his friends, Man-At-Arms, Teela, Orko,
and Battlecat. |
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Fraggle
Rock [muppets]
Doc and his dog Sprocket have a
hole in their wall, behind which live little furry creatures
known as Fraggles in a place called Fraggle Rock. The Rock is
also home to the Doozers (who are knee-high to a Fraggle) and
the Gorgs (who are giants that think they rule the Rock). One
gang of Fraggles (Gobo, Mokey, Wembley, Boober, and Red), under
the guidance of the all-knowing Trash Heap (Marjorie), learn
about each other and their neighbors and eventually befriend the
Doozers, the Gorgs--and even Doc and Sprocket. Meanwhile, Gobo's
Uncle Matt explores Outer Space (our world) and sends postcards
to his nephew about the Silly Creatures (that's us).
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Alvin
& the Chipmunks [cartoon]
Three chipmunk brothers, Alvin,
Simon, and Theodore, have been adopted by and are living with
Dave (a human). Each show finds the boys getting into trouble
and new and unusual situations. |
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MOVIES
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Return
of the Jedi
Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, &
Billy Dee Williams
Darth Vader and the Empire are building a new,
indestructible Death Star. Meanwhile, Han Solo has been
imprisoned, and Luke Skywalker has sent R2D2 and C3PO to try and
free him. Princess Leia - disguised as a bounty hunter - and
Chewbacca go along as well. The final battle takes place on the
moon of Endor, with its natural inhabitants, the Ewoks, lending
a hand to the rebels. Will Darth Vader and the dark side
overcome the rebels and take over the universe? |
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Terms
of Endearment
Starring: Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, Jack Nicholson
Aurora and Emma are mother and daughter who march to
different drummers. Beginning with Emma's marriage, Aurora shows
how difficult and loving she can be. The movie covers several
years of their lives as each finds different reasons to go on
living and find joy. Aurora's interludes with Garrett Breedlove,
retired astronaut and next door neighbor are quite striking. In
the end, different people show their love in very different
ways. |
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Flashdance
Starring: Jennifer Beals
A Pittsburgh woman with two jobs as a welder and an exotic
dancer wants to get into ballet school. |
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Trading Places
Starring: Dan Aykroyd & Eddie Murphy
A snobbish investor and a wily street con artist find their
positions reversed as part of a bet by two callous millionaires. |
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WarGames
Starring: Matthew Broderick
A young computer whizz kid accidentally connects into a top
secret super-computer which has complete control over the U.S.
nuclear arsenal. It challenges him to a game between America and
Russia, and he innocently starts the countdown to World War 3.
Can he convince the computer he wanted to play a game and not
the real thing? |
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Octopussy
Starring: Robert Moore, Maud Adams
A Faberge Egg found with a murdered British agent puts Bond
on the trail that leads to a plot to kill thousands to weaken
NATO defenses in Europe. |
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Sudden Impact
Starring: Clint Eastwood
A rape victim is exacting revenge on her aggressors in a
small town outside San Francisco. Dirty Harry, on suspension for
angering his superiors (again), is assigned to the case.
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Mr.
Mom
Starring: Michael Keaton, Teri Garr
Jack and Caroline are a couple making a decent living When
Jack suddenly loses his job. They agree that he should stay at
home and look after the house while Caroline works. It's just
that he's never done it before, and really doesn't have a clue. |
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Risky
Business
Starring: Tom Cruise & Rebecca De Mornay
A Chicago teenager is looking for fun at home while his
parents are away, but the situation quickly gets out of hand.
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National
Lampoon's Vacation
Starring: Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Randy Quaid,
Anthony Michael Hall
The Griswold family's cross-country drive to the Walley
World theme park proves to be much more arduous than they ever
anticipated. |
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Superman III
Starring: Christopher Reeve
Synthetic kryptonite laced with tobacco tar splits Superman
in two: good Clark Kent and bad Man of Steel. |
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The
Big Chill
Starring: Tom Berenger, Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, Kevin
Kline
A group of seven former college friends gather for a weekend
reunion at a posh South Carolina winter house after the funeral
of one of their friends. |
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Never Say Never Again
Starring: Sean Connery
A SPECTRE agent has stolen two American nuclear warheads,
and James Bond must find their targets before they are
detonated. |
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Scarface
Starring: Al Pacino as Tony Montana
In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a
drug empire while succumbing to greed. |
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The
Outsiders
Starring: Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, Patrick Swayze, Rob
Lowe, Emilo Estevez, Tom Cruise, C. Thomas Howell
The tension between two groups: The Greasers and The Socials
"Socs" puts Ponyboy Curtis (Howell) and his best friend Johnny
Cade (Macchio) in a bad spot. One night at the movies, Ponyboy
and Johnny fall in love with Sherri "Cherry" Valance (Lane) and
Marcia (Meyrink) once they get Dally Winston (Dillon), the
toughest and meanest of the Greasers to stop attempting to
"score" Cherry and Marcia. What Johnny and Ponyboy don't know is
that Cherry and Marcia are girls for the snobbish, popular, and
rich group, the Socs. Once Johnny kills Bob Sheldon (Garrett),
the toughest and meanest member of the Socs, this begins as the
Socs demand a rumble against the Greasers. |
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Cujo
A friendly St. Bernard named "Cujo" contracts rabies and
conducts a reign of terror on a small American town.
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Valley
Girl
Starring: Deborah Foreman,
Nicolas Cage
Julie, a girl from the valley, meets Randy, a punk from the
city. They are from different worlds and find love. Somehow they
need to stay together in spite of her trendy, shallow friends.
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All the Right Moves
Starring: Tom Cruise, Craig T. Nelson, Lea Thompson
A high school footballer desperate for a scholarship and his
headstrong coach clash in a dying Pennsylvania steel town. |
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Back to 80s Capsules
SPORTS
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Björn Borg retires from
tennis after winning 5 consecutive Wimbledon championships.
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The Washington Redskins
defeat the Miami Dolphins 27-17 in Super Bowl XVII.
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Indianapolis 500: Tom Sneva
wins his first race after three previous runner-up finishes.
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George Brett (former 3rd
baseman for the Kansas City Royals) is expelled from a
baseball game in Yankee Stadium, New York, after charging an
umpire who called him out for having more pine tar on his
bat than technically allowed.
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The Denver Nuggets and the
visiting Detroit Pistons combine for an NBA record 370
points, with Detroit winning in triple overtime, 186-184.
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The Balitmore Orioles took
the World Series, winning 4 games to 1 over the Philadelphia
Phillies.
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New York Islanders win the
Stanley Cup.
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Sunny's Halo wins the
Kentucky Derby with a time of 2:02.20.
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John McEnroe defeats Chris
Lewis to win Men's Singles & Martina Navratilova defeats
Andrea Jaeger to win Lady's Singles at Wimbledon.
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Laurent Fignon (France) wins
the Tour de France.
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Jimmy Connors defeats Ivan
Lendl to win Men's Singles & Martina Navrátilová defeats
Chris Evert to win Women's Singles at the US Open.
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Bobby Allison #22 won the
NEXTEL Cup (formerly Winston Cup).
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PEOPLE WHO
DIED
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George Cukor (b.
1899) - Film Director - My Fair Lady, Dinner at Eight,
Little Women, David Copperfield, Romeo and Juliet, Camille,
Holiday, The Philadelphia Story
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Karen Carpenter (b.
1950) - Singer and 1/2 of the duo The Carpenters
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Tennessee Williams
(b. 1911) - Playwright who wrote The Glass Menagerie, A
Streetcar Named Desire, Cat On a Hot Tin Roof
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Gloria Swanson (b.
1897) - Actress - in numerous silent films & as Norma
Desmond in Sunset Boulevard
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McKinley "Muddy Waters"
Morganfield (b. 1915) - Blues musician considered to be
the father of Chicago blues
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Roger J. Traynor (b.
1900) - 23rd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of
California & is considered to be one of the greatest judges
in the history of the U.S.
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Jack Dempsey (b.
1895) - World heavyweight boxer
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Norma Shearer (b.
1902) - Actress - The Divorcee, Romeo & Juliet, Marie
Antoinette
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Buckminster Fuller
(b. 1895) - Architect known for the geodesic dome
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Chris Wood (b. 1944)
- Rock musician and member of the group Traffic
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Frank Reynolds (b.
1923) - TV journalist - Anchored ABC Evening News,
co-anchored World News Tonight, and pioneered the 30 min
late night news program "America Held Hostage" which was
renamed to "Nightline"
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David Niven (b. 1910)
- Actor - Around the World in Eighty Days, Pink Panther,
Casino Royale, Separate Tables
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Carolyn Jones (b.
1930) - Actress - best known as Morticia Addams in the TV
series The Addams Family
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Ira Gershwin (b.
1896) - Lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother &
composer George Gershwin to create some of the most
memorable songs of the 20th century - "I Got Rhythm,"
"Embraceable You," "Someone to Watch Over Me"
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Joan Hackett (b.
1934) - Actress - as Catherine Allen in the western Will
Penny & won a Golden Globe best supporting actress in Only
When I Laugh (1982)
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Slim Pickens (b.
1919) - Actor - best know as the B-52 pilot Major T.J.
"King" Kong in Dr. Strangelove who rode the H-bomb.
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Dennis Wilson (b.
1944) - Musician - founding member & drummer of The Beach
Boys
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Otto Messmer (b.
1892) - Animator - Creator of Felix the Cat
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Karen Carpenter
Tennessee Williams
Jack Dempsey
Buckminster Fuller
Carolyn Jones
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PEOPLE WHO WERE
BORN
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Kate Bosworth -
Actress - as Anne Marie Chadwick in Blue Crush, Rosalee
Futch in Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!, & Sandra Dee in
Beyond the Sea
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Carrie Underwood -
Country music singer & winner of the 4th season of American
Idol
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Taylor Hanson -
Musician and member (middle brother) of the group Hanson
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Amber Tamblyn -
Actress - as Joan Girardi on Joan of Arcadia, Emily
Quartermain on General Hospital, Tabitha "Tibby" Tomko-Rollins
in The Siterhood of the Traveling Pants, Aubrey Davis in The
Grudge 2
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Leelee Sobieski -
Actress - Deep Impact, Joan of Arc (TV), Eyes Wides Shut,
The Glass House, Uprising (TV), The Wicker Man
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Michelle Branch -
Singer as a pop soloist "Everywhere," "All You Wanted," &
"Breathe" and as part of the duo of the country group The
Wreckers
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Gregory Smith - Actor
- as Ephram Brown on Everwood, Alan Abernathy in Small
Soldiers, Thomas Martin in The Patriot
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Mila Kunis - Actress
- as Jackie Burkhart on That '70s Show & the voice of Meg
Griffin on Family Guy
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Patrick Flueger -
Actor - as Logan/Cal West on Scoundrels and Shawn Farrell on The 4400
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William Hung - Won
our hearts and brought us laughs as an American Idol reject
with his off-key rendition of Ricky Martin's "She Bangs."
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Michelle Branch
Carrie Underwood
Patrick Flueger
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