1980

Who Shot JR? is talked about heavily from the TV show Dallas. On November 21, the conclusion draws more viewers than any other show in TV history up to that point.

Post-It Notes are introduced by 3-M

Brook Shields whispers, "You know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing." the ad was banned.

About 125,000 Cubans leave Cuba for America, most are criminals hand picked by Castro's men, only a few are relatives of those in America.

Mt. Saint Helens erupts, killing 60 people.

Japan passes the US as the largest automaker

Bill Gates licenses MS-DOS to IBM, makes next to nothing on the deal. The pair buys the rights to a simple operating system manufactured by Seattle Computer Products and use it as a template. The money is made later from licensing it to third party clone makers.

RU-486, the abortion pill is released in France.

U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.

U.S. President Jimmy Carter authorizes legislation giving $1.5 billion in loans to bail out the Chrysler Corporation.

Nigel Short, 14, is the youngest chess player to be awarded the degree of International Master.

The Pittsburgh Steelers become the first NFL franchise to win 4 Super Bowls, defeating the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl XIV 31-19 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.

The London Gold Fixing hits its highest price ever (adjusted for inflation), at US$850 a troy ounce

The XIII Winter Olympics open in Lake Placid, New York.

AC/DC singer Bon Scott dies of Acute Alcohol Poisoning in London, England.

The Voyager 1 probe confirms the existence of Janus, a moon of Saturn.

U.S. President Jimmy Carter announces that the United States will boycott the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.

The United States severs diplomatic relations with Iran and imposes economic sanctions, following the taking of American hostages on November 4, 1979.

Pennsylvania Lottery Scheme: the state lottery is rigged by 6 men including the host of the live TV drawing, Nick Perry.

A Miami, Florida court acquits 4 White police officers of killing Arthur McDuffie, a Black insurance executive, provoking 3 days of race riots.

Indianapolis 500: Johnny Rutherford wins for a third time in car owner Jim Hall's revolutionary ground effect Chaparral car; the victory is Hall's second as an owner.

In Los Angeles, comedian Richard Pryor is badly burned trying to freebase cocaine.

A Unabomber bomb injures United Airlines president Percy Wood in Lake Forest, Illinois.

U.S. President Jimmy Carter signs a bill requiring 19- and 20-year-old males to register for a peacetime military draft, in response to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

Former California Governor and actor Ronald Reagan is nominated for U.S. President, at the Republican National Convention in Detroit, Michigan. Influenced by the Religious Right, the convention also drops its long standing support for the Equal Rights Amendment, dismaying moderate Republicans.

The Summer Olympic Games are held in Moscow, Soviet Union.

Bob Marley plays his final live performance at the Stanley Theater in Pittsburgh, PA.

The Philadelphia Phillies win their first World Series beating the Kansas City Royals 4-1 in game six. This remains the Phillies only World Series championship in their 124 year existence.

U.S. presidential election, 1980: Republican challenger and former Governor Ronald Reagan of California defeats incumbent Democratic President Jimmy Carter in a landslide victory, exactly 1 year after the beginning of the Iran hostage crisis.

A fire at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada kills 85 people.

Former Beatle John Lennon dies in the hospital after being shot outside his New York City apartment by Mark David Chapman, a deranged fan who had received his signature earlier in the day.

World population: 4,434,682,000

Deaths:
Jimmy Durante, American actor, singer, and comedian (b. 1893)
Bon Scott, Scottish-born singer (AC/DC) (b. 1946)
Jesse Owens, American athlete (b. 1913)
Henry Miller, American writer (b. 1891)
Peter Sellers, English actor (b. 1925)
John Bonham, British drummer (Led Zeppelin) (b. 1948)
Steve McQueen, American actor (b. 1930)
Mae West, American actress (b. 1893)
John Lennon, British singer, songwriter, and guitarist (The Beatles) (b. 1940)
Harland Sanders, American fast food entrepreneur (KFC) (b. 1890)