1980   1981   1982   1983   1984   1985   1986   1987   1988   1989

Welcome to the year 1980, a year filled with political events and controversy, natural disasters, and sporting events. The population of the world is 4.45 billion. There is a hostage situation in Iran which the United States cannot solve. For the first time, Israel and Egypt exchange ambassadors. Mt. St. Helens erupts with the force of hundreds of Hiroshima bombs, the Winter Olympics are held in Lake Placid, New York and the Summer Olympics in Moscow are boycotted by 65 countries. In politics, the UN calls on the Soviets to leave Afghanistan and the U.S. fails in an attempt to free the hostages being held in Iran. 

• On January 29, six U.S. embassy aides escape Iran with the help of Canada, continuing the Iran hostage affair that started on November 4, 1979, when 66 U.S. diplomats and citizens were taken hostage.  
• The XIII Winter Olympic Games are held in Lake Placid, New York from February 13 to February 24. The real story of these winter games was in ice hockey. The United States ice hockey team, all college students, shocks the world by defeating the U.S.S.R. team. Overall, the U.S.S.R. won 10 gold medals, East Germany won 9, the U.S. won 6, and Austria and Sweden each won three.
• Israel and Egypt exchange ambassadors for the first time in history on February 26.
• Mount St. Helens, a volcano in Washington State, erupts on May 18. This devastating blast with the power of 500 Hiroshima bombs causes 57 deaths, fires, mudslides, and floods.
• On March 31, the famous athlete, Jesse Owens, dies in Phoenix, Arizona.
• On April 24 the US stages an attempt to rescue the hostages in Iran. The attempt fails and eight Americans rescuers are killed.
• On June 1, the CNN network goes on air. It is the first 24 hour network to focus on the news. 
• Over 1,000 people die during a severe summer heat wave in the southern states. 
• On July 19, the XXII Summer Olympic Games are held in Moscow, U.S.S.R. Because of the Russian invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, these Olympics are boycotted by 65 countries.
• Hurricane Allen hits southern Texas and several Caribbean islands on August 4-11, killing 235 people. 
• On November 4, Republican Presidential Candidate Ronald Reagan is elected President defeating sitting President Jimmy Carter with over nine tenths of the electoral votes.
• On November 21, the Dallas episode Who Shot J.R.? aired. 
• John Lennon, one of the most famous musicians of the last twenty years, is assassinated by gunman Mark Chapman on December 8 in front of his apartment in New York City. 
• General Motors in the United States announces an annual loss for the first time since 1921. GM and other automobile companies are declining as Japan takes over the market.
• A thin layer of iridium rich clay that is about 65 million years old is found, giving evidence that the extinction of the dinosaurs was caused by the impact of an asteroid or comet.
• Mathematicians worldwide finish the classification of all of the finite and simple groups, which has taken over 100 mathematicians 35 years and produced more than 14,000 pages of mathematical journals.
• The album "Rappers Delight" by Surgarhill Gang is the first rap act to be a huge international hit.  
• Paints containing lead are banned in the U.S. 
• Mary Decker is the first woman to run a mile in less than 4.5 minutes.
• The Titanic is found in the North Atlantic.

53rd Annual Academy Award
Best Actor: Robert DeNiro in Raging Bull
Best Actress: Sissy Spacek in Coal Miner's Daughter
Best Picture: Ordinary People

Emmy Awards
Outstanding Comedy: Taxi
Outstanding Drama: Hill Street Blues

23rd Annual Grammy Awards
Record of the Year: Sailing by Christopher Cross
Album of the Year: Christopher Cross by Christopher Cross
Song of the Year: Sailing by Christopher Cross
Best New Artist: Christopher Cross

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last updated 06/02/08