This Year in History:
1980
Discover what happened in this year with HISTORY’s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.
In an article datelined January 1, 1980, under the headline “Sherry Lansing, Former Model, Named Head of Fox Productions,” The New York Times announces the first woman to head production…
On this day in 1980, in a strong reaction to the December 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, President Jimmy Carter asks the Senate to postpone action on the SALT II…
On January 2, 1980, in a strong reaction to the December 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, President Jimmy Carter asks the Senate to postpone action on the SALT II nuclear…
In a very strong reaction to the December 1979 Soviet military intervention into Afghanistan, President Jimmy Carter requests that the Senate postpone action on the SALT‑II nuclear weapons treaty and…
Hip hop’s roots as a musical phenomenon are subject to debate, but its roots as a commercial phenomenon are much clearer. They trace back directly to January 5, 1980, when…
In a crushing diplomatic rebuke to the Soviet Union, the U.N. General Assembly votes 104 to 18 to “deplore” the Russian intervention in Afghanistan. The resolution also requested the “immediate,…
After being released from government control, gold reaches a new record price on January 14, 1980, exceeding $800 an ounce. Gold is scattered sparsely throughout the earth’s crust and since…
On January 20, 1980, bleachers at a bullring in Sincelejo, Colombia, collapse, resulting in the deaths of 222 people. The collapse at Sincelejo, the deadliest tragedy at a sporting event…
On January 20, 1980, in a letter to the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and a television interview, U.S. President Jimmy Carter proposes that the 1980 Summer Olympics be moved…
In Moscow, Andrei Dmitriyevich Sakharov, the Soviet physicist who helped build the USSR’s first hydrogen bomb, is arrested after criticizing the Soviet military intervention in Afghanistan. He was subsequently stripped…
In an action obviously designed as another in a series of very strong reactions to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, U.S. officials announce that America is ready to sell military…
Paul McCartney’s arrival at Tokyo’s Narita International Airport on January 16, 1980, marks his first visit to Japan since the Beatles tour of 1966. The occasion was a planned 11‑city…
At the request of President Jimmy Carter, the U.S. Olympic Committee votes to ask the International Olympic Committee to cancel or move the upcoming Moscow Olympics. The action was in…
On February 2, 1980, details of ABSCAM, an FBI operation to uncover political corruption in the government, are released to the public. Thirty‑one public officials were targeted for investigation, including…
In one of the most caustic literary feuds of the 20th century, playwright Lillian Hellman sues novelist and critic Mary McCarthy for libel, demanding $2.25 million in damages. The case…
In one of the most dramatic upsets in Olympic history, on February 22, 1980, the underdog U.S. hockey team, made up of college players, defeats the four‑time defending gold‑medal winning…
On this day in 1980, the U.S. men’s hockey team pulls off one of the biggest upsets in sports history with a 4‑3 victory over the heavily favored Soviet Union…
On February 23, 1980, speed skater Eric Heiden wins the 10,000‑meter race at the Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, setting a world record with his time and winning…
On February 27, 1980, the long‑lost glasses of rocker Buddy Holly, who died in the deadly plane crash in 1959, were found—filed away in an envelope in a court clerk’s…
On February 27, 1980, the first—and final—Grammy for Best Disco Recording is awarded to Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.” After watching disco music utterly dominate the musical landscape of the…
