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#1 Songs in America
(August 20th)
1980 - "Magic"
Olivia Newton-John
8/2 - 8/29
1981 - "Endless Love"
Diana Ross and Lionel Richie
8/15 - 10/16
1982 - "Eye of the Tiger"
Survivor
7/24 - 9/3
1983 - "Every Breath You Take"
The Police
7/9 - 9/2
1984 "Ghostbusters"
Ray Parker, Jr.
8/11 - 8/31
1985 - "Shout"
Tears for Fears
8/3 - 8/23
1986 - "Papa Don't Preach"
Madonna
8/16 - 8/29
1987 - "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"
U2
8/8 - 8/21
1988 - "Roll With It"
Steve Winwood
7/30 - 8/26
1989 - "Right Here Waiting"
Richard Marx
8/12 - 9/1
Click Here For More Music Fun Facts and Awards
Saved by the Bell Premiered on NBC
Happy 80s Birthdays
1931 - Don King (Promoter)
1943 - Sylvester McCoy (Actor) Doctor Who
1944 - Craig Nettles (Baseball)
1946 - Connie Chung (Journalist)
1947 - Ray Wise (Actor) RoboCop
1948 - Robert Plant (Singer) Led Zeppelin
1952 - John Hiatt (Singer)
1954 - Al Roker (Weather Anchor)
1956 - Joan Allen (Actress) Peggy Sue Got Married
1960 - Mark Langston (Baseball)
1963 - Kal Daniels (Baseball)
1965 - KRS-One (Rapper)
1971 - Ke Huy Quan (Actor) The Goonies (Short Round)
Fun Fact!
Mark Langston Attended San Jose State University
* Led the Major Leagues in Strikeouts (1984, 1986, 1987) as a Member of the Seattle Mariners
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Other Notable Birthdays
Benjamin Harrison (Former U.S. President)
August 20, 1833 - March 13, 1901
Passed Away at Age 67 From Pneumonia
23rd President of the United States
* The Grandson of the 9th U.S. President William Henry Harrison
Isaac Hayes (Singer)
August 20, 1942 - August 10, 2008
Passed Away at Age 65 From a Stroke
Sang the Theme Song For the 1971 Film, Shaft
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Passed Away
(On this Day)
Phyllis Diller (Comedian)
July 17, 1917 - August 20, 2012
Passed Away at Age 95 From Various Ailments
Considered a Gay Icon with a Large Following
Jerry Lewis (Actor and Comedian)
March 16, 1926 - August 20, 2017
Passed Away at Age 91 From Cardiac Disease
Hosted the Jerry Lewis Telethon For the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA)
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80s Movies
(Released On This Day)
1982 - The Beastmaster
Director: Don Coscarelli
Starring: Marc Singer, Tanya Roberts, Rip Torn and John Amos
Budget: $9 Million
Box Office: $14.1 Million
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80s Television
(On This Day)
1985 - NBC's Today Show Was Interrupted by David Letterman, Who Leaned Out of His and Yelled "My Name is Larry Grossman (President of NBC News) and I'm Not Wearing Any Pants!"
1989 - Saved By The Bell
Seasons: 4
Episodes: 86
Click Here For More TV Fun Facts and Awards
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80s Music
(Albums On This Day)
1980 - 24 Carrots
Al Stewart (9th Album)
Billboard Charts: #37
1982 - Upstairs at Eric's
Yazoo (Debut Album)
Billboard Charts: #92
* #2 in the UK
1983 - Passionworks
Heart (7th Album)
Billboard Charts: #39
* #7 in Canada
1985 - Astra
Asia (3rd Album)
Billboard Charts: #67
1986 - Fore!
Huey Lewis and the News (4th Album)
Hit #1 on the US Billboard 200 Charts
* Also Hit #1 in Canada, New Zealand and Japan
Over 3 Million Copies Sold in the US
In Other 80s Music News
1983 - The Rolling Stones Signed a $28 Million Dollar Recording Contract with CBS
* Largest Recording Contract Ever Signed at the Time
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80s Sports
(On This Day)
1980 - For the Second Straight Day, Bob Watson (New York Yankees) Hit a Home Run That Hit the Speaker in the Seattle Kingdome
* The Yankees Beat the Mariners 6 - 4 on a Wednesday Night
Attendance: 14,143
1982 - Don Lever Was Announced as the First Captain of the New Jersey Devils
1985 - Dwight Gooden Became the First National League Pitcher to Strikeout 200 Batters in His First 2 Seasons
1989 - Howard Johnson Joined the 30-30 Club (30 Home Runs and 30 Stolen Bases)
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In Other 80s News
(On This Day)
1988 - The Biggest Fire in Yellowstone National Park History Began
* Known as Black Saturday
1988 - Iran and Iraq Called a Truce After 8 Years of War
1988 - 8 British Soldiers Were Killed and 28 Wounded When Their Bus Was Hit by an IRA (Irish Republican Army) Roadside Bomb in the Village of Ballygawley, County Tyrone in Ireland
1989 - 51 People Were Killed When 2 Vessels Collided on the River Thames in London
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Other Notable Dates
(August 20th)
1866 - US President, Andrew Johnson Officially Announced the Civil War Was Over
1938 - Lou Gehrig (New York Yankees) Hit His Major League Record 23rd Career Grand Slam
* Alex Rodriguez Broke the Record in 2013
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1986 - In Edmonton, Oklahoma 44-Year Old Postal Worker Patrick Sherrill Gunned Down 14 of His Co-Workers and Injuring 6 Before Turning the Gun on Himself
* Currently the Deadliest Workplace Shooting in U.S. History
1985 - New York Mets Pitcher, Dwight Gooden Became the First National League Player to Strikeout 200 Hitters in His First 2 Seasons
* Won the Cy Young Award in 1985
Did You Know?
Dwight Gooden Could Have Been One of the Greatest Pitchers of All-Time, But His Career Was Damaged by a Cocaine Addiction
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Headlines
(August 20th)
1980 - For the Second Straight Day New York Yankees Slugger Bob Watson Hit a Home Run That Hit the Speaker in the Seattle Kingdome
Did You Know?
In 1975 Bob Watson Scored the One Millionth Run in Major League Baseball
August 20th in 80s History
1989 - Saved by the Bell Premiered on NBC
* Ran 4 Seasons with 86 Episodes
Did You Know?
Saved by the Bell Originally Premiered in 1988 as Good Morning Miss Bliss Before Getting Rebranded as Saved by the Bell in 1989
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