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Table of Contents 1984 Trivia, History and Fun Facts |
Quick Facts from 1984:
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Top Ten Baby Names of 1984:Jennifer, Jessica, Ashley, Amanda, Sarah, Michael, Chris, Topher, Matthew, Joshua, David |
Fashion Icons and Sex Symbols:Loni Anderson, Catherine Bach, Kim Basinger, Jacqueline Bisset, Linda Blair, Christie Brinkley, Phoebe Cates, Joan Collins, Lydia Cornell, Sybil Danning, Bo Derek, Farrah Fawcett, Melanie Griffith, Daryl Hannah, Kathy Ireland, Grace Jones, Nastassja Kinski, Jessica Lange, Heather Langenkamp, Kelly LeBrock, Heather Locklear, Madonna, Kelli Maroney, Dolly Parton, Paulina Porizkova, Victoria Principal, Helen Slater, Suzanne Somers, Brinke Stevens, Catherine Mary Stewart, Heather Thomas, Mary Woronov |
Leading Men and Hollywood Heartthrobs:Mel Gibson, Michael Hutchence, Christopher Reeve, Patrick Swayze, Robert Redford |
“The Quotes”“Where’s the Beef?” “I’ll be back.” At the height of the Cold War in 1984, President Reagan was about to appear on a radio interview and, as a soundcheck, said, “My fellow Americans, I’m pleased to tell you today that I’ve signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes.” |
Time Magazine’s Man of the Year:Peter Ueberroth |
Miss America:Vanessa Williams (9/17/83-7/23/84) (Millwood, NJ) |
Miss USA:Mai Shanley (New Mexico) |
The Scandals:On December 3rd, a Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, began leaking 27 tons of the deadly gas methyl isocyanate. The poisonous gas leak was found at 11:45 pm, immediately before the Bhopal disaster that killed thousands; a decision was made to do something about it after the 12:15 am tea break. 20,000 people were killed, and an additional 120,000 suffered ailments from this disaster later. Fantasy Records sued John Fogarty for copyright infringement because his 1984 hit The Old Man Down The Road sounded too much like CCR’s 1970 hit Run Through The Jungle, a song that Fogarty wrote and produced. Vanessa Williams, the first black Miss America, lost her crown because some ‘artsy’ nude photos taken several years earlier were published in Penthouse magazine… It was also the first time a male (George Burns) appeared on the cover. Since an underage Traci Lords was the centerfold, no one is allowed to own this particular issue either. Vanessa went on to become one of the most successful Miss Americas ever. Singer Marvin Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was shot and killed by his father on the day before his 45th birthday. |
Pop Culture Facts & History:In Minnesota, Ronald Reagan was 3,761 votes shy of winning every state in the 1984 Presidential Election. He won 49 states and 525 electoral votes in the 1984 presidential election, the most in history. In July 1984, President Ronald Reagan called ice cream “a nutritious and wholesome food” and established National Ice Cream Month. In 1984, a young boy named Andy Smith wrote a letter to Ronald Reagan asking for federal funds to clean his bedroom after his mother called it a “disaster area.” The New Zealand Prime Minister, Robert Muldoon, of the National Party, got drunk and decided to call a general election, which he lost spontaneously. The US Federal law enacted in July 1984, which established the national minimum drinking age as 21 years old, allowed the government to withhold Federal aid to highways from States that did not quickly adapt. The United States severed direct diplomatic relations with the Vatican in 1867 in the wake of rumors of Catholic implications in the Lincoln assassination. Direct relations were reestablished in 1984. Bruce McCandless floated in space utterly unattached to anything, 320 feet away from the space shuttle with only a nitrogen jetpack back in 1984. Apple’s infamous “1984” ad for the Macintosh computer was secretly aired once on local television in Twin Falls, Idaho, in December 1983, a month before its national premier during Super Bowl XVIII. This allowed it to qualify for the 1984 Clio Advertising Awards. The famous “Keyboard Cat” video was originally filmed in 1984, and its star, Fatso, died in 1987, twenty years before it was posted on YouTube. SEGA was founded as an American company in 1953 as Service Games, and it wasn’t until 1984 that it became a Japanese company through a corporate buyout. It took 12 years before Alexy Pajitnov, creator of Tetris in 1984, received any royalties because the rights to the game were the property of his Soviet government. English grandmother Jane Snowball ordered groceries with her TV remote, sending them to her local store through her phone line. She was the first person ever to shop online. Michael Dell started selling Dell Computers, targeting small businesses and households instead of high-end consumers like his competitors (IBM, Apple, Compaq). Molecular biologist Alec Jeffreys developed DNA testing. John Wayne Gacy’s former attorney, Sam Amirante, who heard Gacy’s original confession to over 30 murders, later went on to author the Missing Child Recovery Act of 1984, which removed the 72-hour waiting period to begin the search for a missing child. The Boston Beer Company, makers of Samuel Adams Beer, was founded. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream was invented by ‘Ben and Jerry’s’ in 1984 after a fan anonymously listed it as an idea on their ‘flavor board.’ The ‘EGOT’ – an acronym used to designate people who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony – was coined in 1984 by newly-famous Miami Vice actor Philip Michael Thomas, who stated a desire to achieve EGOT status within five years. He has never been nominated for any of the EGOT awards. In 1984, the U.S. Army gave Donald Duck an honorable discharge in honor of his military service for appearances in Disney WWII cartoons and WWII mascots embodied in combat units of various U.S. military branches. Bill Murray coined the modern use of the phrase “you’re toast” by ad-libbing a line in Ghostbusters. When Dune (1984) was originally released in theaters, some locations gave out “cheat sheets” for people confused with the terminology of the Dune universe. “Madison” was nearly unheard of as a girl’s name until 1984. In the film Splash, Daryl Hannah’s character names herself Madison after reading a street sign. Tom Hanks’ character tells her that Madison isn’t a real name. The first movie rated PG-13 was 1984’s Red Dawn, starring Patrick Swayze. Marvel Comics G.I. Joe #21 (1984) was a completely silent issue. Writer/Artist Larry Hama told a complete story: beginning, middle, end, conflict, characterization, action, and solid resolution, without word balloons, captions, or sound effects. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles first appeared in comic books. In 1987, the first TMNT cartoons appeared. Only eight actors voiced all 66 characters with speaking roles in the 1984 cartoon series ThunderCats. Ringo Starr was the narrator for Thomas the Tank Engine from 1984 to 1990. British comedian Tommy Cooper had a heart attack and died on live television. The audience assumed it was part of his act and laughed/applauded during his final moments. Weird Al Yankovic’s single “Eat It” reached number 1 in Australia. It outranked the song that it was making a parody of, Michael Jackson’s “Beat It,” which only reached number 3. Freddie Mercury took a nasty fall and severely hurt his leg midway through a show. He and the band decided it wouldn’t be fair to fans to end it, so he performed Bohemian Rhapsody, We Will Rock You & We Are the Champions, seated at his piano. In 1984, the band Yes created 18 different versions of the music video for their song Leave It, which was played in a marathon on MTV. American Kim Coberly Hula-Hooped for 72 hours in October 2004. The 1984 World Chess Championship was abandoned with no winner after 48 games over five months, with 40 of the games ending in draws. Gary Player played the lowest PGA score of 63. Uday Hussein, son of Saddam Hussein, was named Chairman of the Iraqi Olympic Committee in 1984. Athletes who disappointed him were subject to torture and imprisonment. Mcdonald’s introduced the McDLT, which sold in a specially designed two-sided container that kept the hamburger “hot” while keeping the lettuce, tomato, cheese, pickles, and sauces “cool.” It was discontinued in the early 90s as McDonald’s removed polystyrene packaging. During the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Mcdonalds ran a nationwide promotion offering free products every time a US athlete won a medal. It turned into their most costly promotion ever when the Soviet Union, the powerhouse team of the time, boycotted the event, letting the USA win many more medals than expected. Javelin thrower Uwe Hohn threw a distance of 104.8m and became the first and only athlete in history to break the 100m barrier. Shortly afterwards some changes in the design of javelins were implemented and the records had to be restarted, turning his mark into an “eternal world record”. Cost of a Super Bowl ad in 1984: $368,000 |
Doomsday Clock:3 minutes to midnight, according to the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists. |
The Habit:Playing Trivial Pursuit, listening to a sex therapist and expert Dr. Ruth Westheimer (born June 4, 1928), and watching Robin Leach’s Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. |
1st Appearances & 1984’s Most Popular Christmas Gifts, Toys and Presents:Cabbage Patch Kids (again), Trivial Pursuit (specialty editions), Transformers |
Do They Know It’s Christmas was released.Written by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, it was produced by Trevor Horn to help people in Ethiopia. The band was named “Band-Aid” and recorded the song and raw video footage within a day. The band included: Adam Clayton (U2) **Wham! donated all the royalties from “Last Christmas”—released December 1984—to Ethiopia famine aid.** |
Popular and Best-selling Books From 1984:“…And Ladies of the Club” by Helen Hooven Santmyer |
Best Film Oscar Winner:Terms of Endearment (presented in 1984) |
The Big Movies: (according to boxofficemojo)1. Beverly Hills Cop |
1984 Most Popular TV Shows:1. Dynasty (ABC) |
1984 Billboard Number One SongsDecember 10, 1983 – January 20, 1984: January 21 – February 3: February 4 – February 24: February 25 – March 20: March 31 – April 20: April 21 – May 11: May 12 – May 25: May 26 – June 8: June 9 – June 22: June 23 – July 6: July 7 – August 10: August 11 – August 31: September 1 – September 21: September 22 – September 28: September 29 – October 12: October 13 – November 2: November 3 – November 16: November 17 – December 7: December 8 – December 21: December 22, 1984 – February 1, 1985: |
Sports:World Series Champions: Detroit Tigers |
More 1984 Facts and History Resources:Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com) |
