Other Notable Birthdays
Vera Williams (Children's Writer)
January 28, 1927 - October 16, 2015
Birthplace: Hollywood, California
Passed Away at Age 88
* Unknown Cause of Death
A Regular Cast Member on Reading Rainbow
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Passed Away
(On This Day)
Billy Powell (Keyboardist)
June 3, 1952 - January 28, 2009
Birthplace: Corpus Chrisite, Texas
Passed Away at Age 56 From a Heart Attack
* The Keyboardist For Lynyrd Skynyrd
Paul Kantner (Guitarist)
March 17, 1941 - January 28, 2016
Birthplace: San Francisco, California
Passed Away at Age 56 From Organ Failure and Septic Shock
* Co-Founder of Jefferson Airplane
Signe Toly Anderson (Singer)
September 15, 1941 - January 28, 2016
Birthplace: Seattle, Washington
Passed Away at Age 74 From Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
* Co-Founder of Jefferson Airplane
Passed Away a Few Hours After Jefferson Airplane Co-Founder Paul Kantner
Geoff Nicholls (Keyboardist)
February 29, 1944 - January 28, 2017
Birthplace: Birmingham, England
Passed Away at Age 72 From Lung Cancer
* The Keyboardist For Black Sabbath
Cicely Tyson (Actress)
December 19, 1924 - January 28, 2021
Birthplace: New York City
Passed Away on January 28, 2021 at Age 96
* Unknown Cause of Death
Nominated For an Academy Award For Her Role as Rebecca Morgan in the 1972 Film Sounder
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80s Movies
(Released On This Day)
1983 - Sacred Ground
Director: Charles B. Pierce
Starring: Tim McIntire, L. Q. Jones and Jack Elam
Budget: N/A
Box Office: N/A
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80s Television
(On This Day)
1984 - Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Premiered on CBS
Seasons: 4
Episodes: 51
Starring Stacy Keach
1986 - Melba Premiered on CBS
Seasons: 1
Episodes: 6
1989 - Tony Danza Hosted Saturday Night Live
Musical Guest: John Hiatt
1989 - A Man Called Hawk Premiered on ABC
Seasons: 1
Episodes: 13
1989 - Long Ago and Far Away Premiered on PBS
Seasons: 4
Episodes: 35
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80s Music
(Albums Released On This Day)
1980 - Love Stinks
J. Geils Band (9th Album)
Billboard Charts: #18
1981 - Healing
Todd Rundgren (9th Album)
Billboard Charts: #48
1981 - Welcome to the Wrecking Ball album
Grace Slick (2nd Album)
Billboard Charts: #48
1983 - Never Surrender
Triumph (6th Album)
* Reached #29 in Canada
1985 - Crazy From the Heart (EP)
David Lee Roth (Debut Solo Recording)
Billboard Charts: #15
* Featuring “California Girls”
Singles Released
1984 - “Footloose”
Kenny Loggins
#1 Song in America from March 31 - April 20
* Also Hit #1 in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa
Fun Fact
Rob Lowe Was Set to Play the Lead in Footloose But Injured His Knee While Dancing
In Other 80s Music News
1985 - USA for Africa Recorded “We Are the World” to Help Raise Money for the Famine in Ethiopia
#1 Song in America from April 13 - March 10
Also Hit #1 in Canada, UK, France Italy, Spain, Belgium, Ireland, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Netherlands, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa
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80s Sports
(On This Day)
1987 - Jim the Anvil Neidhart Was Indicted For Assaulting a Flight Attendant
* 2 Days After Winning the WWF Tag Team Championship
1989 - Steffi Graf (Germany) Won the Australian Open
Runner Up: Helena Sukova (Czechoslovakia)
Match: 6-4, 6-4
In Other 80s News
1980 - The USCGC Blackthorn Capsized When it Collided With the Capricorn (Tanker)
* Killed 23 Coast Guard Crewmembers
1981 - President Ronald Reagan Helped Put an End to the 1979 Energy Crisis
* He Lifted the Domestic Petroleum Price and Allocation Controls in the United States
1988 - The Supreme Court of Canada Struck Down all Anti-Abortion Laws
* In the Case of R v Morgentaler
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<- January 27th January 29th ->
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January 28th in 80s History
On January 28, 1985 David Lee Roth Released His Debut Solo Recording "Crazy From the Heart" (EP) Featuring "California Girls"
Other Notable Dates
(On January 28th)
1851 - Northwestern University Was Founded in Evanston, Illinois
* First Charter University in Illinois
1878 - The Yale Daily News Was Formed
* The First Daily College Newspaper
1915 - The US Coast Guard Was Formed
1935 - Iceland Became the First Western Country to Legalize Abortion
1956 - Elvis Presley Made His First Television Appearance
* The Stage Show (TV Show)
1965 - The Flag of Canada Was Chosen by Parliament
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1984 - Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Premiered on CBS
* Starring Stacy Keach
Headlines
(January 28th)
1982 - U.S. Army General James L. Dozier Was Rescued by an Italian Anti-Terrorism Force After Being Held Captivity by the Red Brigades
* The Red Brigades Were a Marxist–Leninist Armed Group Operating as a Far-Left Terrorist Group Based in Italy
#1 Songs in America
(January 28th)
1980 - "Rock With You"
Michael Jackson
1/19 - 2/15
1981 - "(Just Like) Starting Over"
John Lennon
12/27 - 1/30
1982 - "Physical"
Olivia Newton-John
11/21 - 1/29
1983 - "Down Under"
Men at Work
1/15 - 2/4
1984 - "Owner of a Lonely Heart"
Yes
1/21 - 2/3
1985 - "Like a Virgin"
Madonna
12/22 - 2/1
1986 - "That's What Friends Are For"
Dionne & Friends
1/18 - 2/14
1987 - "At This Moment"
Bill Vera and the Beaters
1/24 - 2/6
1988 - "The Way You Make Me Feel"
Michael Jackson
1/23 - 1/29
1989 - "Two Hearts"
Phil Collins
1/21 - 2/3
Click Here For More Music Fun Facts and Awards
David Lee Roth
1986 - Space Shuttle Challenger Exploded After Takeoff Killing All 7 Astronauts
Crew
Gregory Jarvis
Christa McAuliffe (Teacher)
Ronald McNair
Ellison Onizuka
Judith Resnik
Dick Scobee
Michael J. Smith
1985 - “We Are the World” Was Recorded to Help Raise Money For the Famine in Ethiopia
* #1 Song in America from April 13 - March 10
Also Hit #1 in Canada, UK, France Italy, Spain, Belgium, Ireland, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Netherlands, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa
Raised Over $64 Million Dollars
The Space Challenger Disaster
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Happy 80s Birthdays
1936 - Alan Alda (Actor) M*A*S*H
Birthplace: New York City
1949 - Gregg Popovich (Basketball Coach)
Birthplace: East Chicago, Indiana
1950 - Barbi Benton (Model)
Birthplace: New York City
1956 - Peter Schilling (Singer) “Major Tom”
Birthplace: Stuttgart, West Germany
1959 - Frank Darabont (Director) The Blob
Birthplace: Montbeliard, France
1968 - Sarah McLachlan (Singer)
Birthplace: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
1968 - Rakim (Rapper)
Birthplace: Wyandanch, New York
Fun Fact!
Alan Alda Won 3 Primetime Emmy Awards (1972, 1973, 1982) For MostOutstanding Actor in a Comedy Series For His Role as Hawkeye on M*A*S*H