On January 1, 1988 The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Was Created
* The Merging of 3 Lutheran Church Bodies Making it the Largest Lutheran Denomination in America
On January 1, 1983 The Bell Phone System Officially Split UP
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The Bell System
#1 Songs in America
(January 1st)
1980 - "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)"
Rupert Jones
12/22 - 1/4
1981 - "(Just Like) Starting Over"
John Lennon
12/27 - 1/30
1982 - "Physical"
Olivia Newton-John
11/21 - 1/29
1983 - "Maneater"
Daryl Hall and John Oates
12/18 - 1/14
1984 - "Say Say Say"
Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson
12/10 - 1/20
1985 - "Like a Virgin"
Madonna
12/22 - 2/1
1986 - "Say You Say Me"
Lionel Richie
12/21 - 1/17
1987 - "Walk Like an Egyptian"
The Bangles
12/20 - 1/16
1988 - "Faith"
George Michael
12/12 - 1/8
1989 - "Every Rose Has It's Thorn"
Poison
12/24 - 1/13
Click Here For More Music Fun Facts and Awards
"Brain On Drugs"
On January 1, 1985 Prime Time Wrestling Premiered on the USA Network
January 1st in 80s History
On January 1, 1987 the "Brain On Drugs" Campaign Was Launched in a Partnership For a Drug-Free America
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VH1Made Its Debut
First British Mobile Phone Call
1985 - VHS Was Launched, Intended to Play Music Videos For a Slightly Older Demographic Than MTV
* The First Video Played Was Marvin Gaye's Rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner"
Other Notable Birthdays
Paul Revere (Army Commander)
January 1, 1735 - May 10, 1818
Passed Away in His Home at Age 83
Said the Famous Words “The British Are Coming”
Betsy Ross (American Upholsterer)
January 1, 1752 - January 30, 1836
Passed Away at Age 84 (Unknown Cause)
Made the First American Flag
Hank Greenberg (Baseball)
January 1, 1911 - September 4, 1986
* AL MVP (1935, 1940)
Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1956
Fun Fact!
Hank Greenberg Was the First Jewish Superstar in American Sports
* Endured in Anti-Semitic Abuse in During His Career
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Passed Away
(On This Day)
Ray Walston (Actor)
Passed Away on January 1, 2001 at Age 86 from Lupus
Played Mr. Hand On Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Donna Douglas (Actress)
Passed Away on January 1, 2015 at Age 82 from Pancreatic Cancer
Played Elly May Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies
David Stern (NBA Commissioner)
Passed Away on January 1, 2020 at Age 77 from a Brain Hemorrhage
NBA Commissioner From 1984 to 2014
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80s Movies
(Released On This Day)
1982 - Madman
Director: Joe Giannone
Starring: Gaylen Ross and Paul Ehlers
Budget: $350,000
Box Office: $1.3 Million
1985 - Rockin' Road Trip
Director: William Olsen
Starring: Leon Rippy, Martin Tucker and Pat Miller
Budget: N/A
Box Office: N/A
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80s Television
(On This Day)
1982 - Headline News Was Launched, the First 24-Hour News Station
* Originally Called CNN2
1983 - Soul Train Went On Hiatus For Don Cornelius's Brain Surgery
1985 - VH1 (Video Hits One) Was Launched
* The First Video Played was Marvin Gaye's Rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner"
1985 - WWF Prime Time Wrestling Premiered on the USA Network
Seasons: 9
Episodes: 417
Jesse "The Body Ventura" and Jack Reynolds Were the Host For the First Season Before Getting Replaced by Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby "The Brain Heenan
1986 - Happy New Year, Charlie Brown Premiered on CBS
1987 - The “Brain On Drugs” Campaign Was Launched
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80s Music
(Albums Released On This Day)
1983 - Feline
The Stranglers (7th Album)
* Reached #4 on the UK Charts
Fun Fact!
The Stranglers Released Their Debut Album in 1977 (Rattus Norvegicus)
* Reached #4 in the UK and #82 in Australia
1986 - New Trails
Riders in the Sky (6th Album)
1986 - Atomizer
Big Black (Debut Album)
Fun Fact!
The Punk Band Big Black Was Formed in 1981 at Northwestern University
* Only Released 2 Full-Length Albums
1987 - Best of the West (Compilation Album)
Riders in the Sky
In Other 80s Music News
1980 - Cliff Richard Was Appointed an MBE by Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
1983 - ZTT Records Was Founded
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80s Sports
(On This Day)
1984 - The Los Angeles Raiders Beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 38 - 10 in the AFC Divisional Round
Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
* Marcus Allen 121 Yards Rushing 2 TD’s (49 Long)
Spread
Raiders -7
O/U 43.0
The Raiders Went on to Beat the Seattle Seahawks 38 - 10 in the AFC Championship Game and Beat the Washington Redskins 38 - 9 in Super Bowl XVIII
1984 - The Washington Redskins Beat the Los Angeles Rams 51 - 7 in the NFC Divisional Round
Location: RFK Stadium in Washington
* John Riggins 119 Yards Rushing 3 TD’s
Spread
Redskins -9.5
O/U 48.5
Beat the San Francisco 49ers 24 - 21 in the NFC Championship Game and Lost to the Los Angeles Raiders 38 - 9 in Super Bowl XVIII
1989 - The Buffalo Bills Beat the Houston Oilers 17 - 10 in the AFC Divisional Round
Location: Rich Stadium in Buffalo
Spread
Bills -3.5
O/U 37.0
The Bills Lost to the Cincinnati Bengals 21 - 10 in the AFC Championship Game
1989 - The San Francisco 49ers Beat the Minnesota Vikings 34 - 9 in the NFC Divisional Round
Location: Candlestick Park in San Francisco
* Roger Craig 135 yards rushing 2 TD’s (long 80)
Spread
49ers 3.5
O/U 44.0
The 49ers Went on to Beat the Chicago Bears 28 - 3 in the NFC Championship Game and Beat the Cincinnati Bengals 20 - 16 in Super Bowl XXIII
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<- December 31st January 2nd ->
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1983 - The Foundation of the Internet Was Invented
* ARPANET Officially Began Using TCP/IP (The Internet Protocol)
Did You Know?
The First Website Was www.info.cer.ch Launched on August 6, 1991
Happy 80s Birthdays
1936 - James Sinegal (Businessman) Costco
1938 - Frank Langella (Actor) Masters of the Universe
1943 - Jimmy Hart (Wrestling Manager) "Mouth of the South"
1943 - Don Novello (Actor) SNL
1952 - Stephanie Faracy (Actress) The Great Outdoors
1954 - Richard Edson (Actor) Ferris Buelller's Day Off (valet)
1955 - LaMarr Hoyt (Baseball)
1955 - Precious (Wrestler)
1956 - Martin Plaza (Musician) Mental as Anything
1958 - Grandmaster Flash (Hip Hop Artist)
1964 - Dedee Pfeiffer (Actress) Moving Violations
1970 - Gabriel Jarret (Actor) Real Genius
Fun Fact!
In 1965 Jimmy “Mouth of the South” Had the #4 Song in America “Keep On Dancing” as a Member The Gentrys
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Lutheran Church
1982 - Headline News Made Its Debut
* Called CNN 2 at the Time
The First 24-Hour News
Prime Time Wrestling
On January 1, 1985 The First Phone Call by a British Mobile Phone Was Made by Michael Harrison
* Called His Father Sir Ernest Harrison (Chairman of Vodafone)
Headlines
(January 1st)
1980 - The First Far Side Comic Was Published in the San Francisco Chronicle
* Created by Gary Larson
The Comic Ran For 15 Years and Carried by Over 1,900 Newspapers, While Translating Into 17 Different Languages
Other Notable Dates
(On January 1st)
1902 - The First College Bowl Game Was Played Between Michigan and Stanford in the Rose Bowl
* Michigan Won 49 - 0
Did You Know?
The Average Price For a Pack of Cigarette's in 1971 Was $0.27
1971 - Cigarette Advertisements Were Banned From American Television
* The Last Cigarette Commercial Was Paid For by Virginia Slims