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More than a million people bought Pet Rocks as Christmas gifts in 1975. Gary Dahl, of Los Gatos, California, had the idea while joking with friends about his easy-to-care-for pet, a rock. This pet ate nothing and didn't bark or chew the furniture. Pet Rocks were sold with a funny manual that included tips on how to handle an excited rock and how to teach it tricks. By 1976, Gary Dahl was a millionaire and Pet Rocks were the nation's favorite pet.
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Federal Rules of Evidence are approved by the U.S Congress
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The Weather Underground bombs the U.S State Department main office in Washington D.C. The Weather Underground, was an American radical left-wing organization founded on the Ann Arbor campus of the University of Michigan. Originally called Weatherman, the group became known colloquially as the Weathermen.
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Fire breaks out in the World Trade Center.
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Former United States Attorney General John N. Mitchell, and former White House aides H.R Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, are sentenced to between 30 months and 8 years in prison.
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James Urban Ruppert, is an American murderer, who was responsible for the deadliest shooting inside a private residence on Easter Sunday.
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The first military Operation Babylift flight, C5A 80218, crashes 27 minutes after takeoff, killing 138 on board; 176 survive the crash.
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Bill Gates found Microsoft in Albuquerque, New Mexico
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The Fall of Sagion: The Vietnam War ends as communist forces takes Sagion, resulting in mass evaculations of Americans and South Vietnamese. As the capital is taken, South Vietnam surrenders unconditionally.
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The unemployment rate peaks at 9.0% ending the post-war boom.
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An American Apollo and Soviet Soyuz space craft dock in orbit, making the first link-up between spacecraft from the two nations. It is also the last Apollo mission and the last manned U.S space mission until STS-1.
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Muhammad Ali defeats Joe Frazier in a boxing match in Manila,Philippines.
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NBC airs the first episode of Saturday Night Live.
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U.S Congress passes the Metric Conversion Act which encourages, but does not mandate, metrication in the United Status and establishes the Metric Board
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President Gerald Ford signs the Federal Election Campaign Act. Federal Election Campaign Act: a United States federal law which increased disclosure of contributions for federal campaigns. It was amended in 1974 years to place legal limits on the campaign contributions.
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The Supreme Court of the United States rules that the death penalty is not inherently cruel or unusual and is a constitutionally acceptable form of punishment.
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In New York City, the "Son of Sam" pulls a gun from a paper bag, killing 1 and seriously wounding another, in the first of a series of attacks that terrorize the city for the next year.
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He won his party's nomination on the first ballot at the 1976 Democratic National Convention and was elected president on Nov. 2, 1976. Jimmy Carter served as president from Jan. 20, 1977 to Jan. 20, 1981.
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An Act for the general revision of the Copyright Law, title 17 of the United States Code, and for other purposes
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The Holy Crown of Hungary (also known as Stephen of Hungary Crown) is returned to Hungary from the United States, where it was held since World War II.
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a United States Presidential Executive Order signed on January 24, 1978, by President Jimmy Carter that imposed restrictions on and reformed the U.S. Intelligence Community along with further banning indirect U.S. involvement in assassinations. The EO was designed to strengthen and expand Executive Order 11905, which was originally signed by Gerald R. Ford in 1976.
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Warner Bros Studios released the original "Superman" which was number 2 on the highest gross list in 1978. Superman domestic gross was $134,218,018
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The Second Round of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, commonly known as SALT II, began almost immediately after the first round ended in 1972. The negotiations led to a treaty on nuclear arms control that the United States and the Soviet Union signed in 1979. Although it was never ratified by the U.S. Senate, both countries adhered to the terms of the agreement.
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Marine Arthur McDuffie was riding his motorcycle and got pulled over by the police and had prior tickets. The police did not accept McDuffie’s surrender. According to witnessed he was surrounded by a dozen Miami police officers and beaten. Some held him down while others struck him with batons and flashlights. His skull was cracked clean in half and after 8 minutes of severe violence he was taken to a nearby hospital where he slipped into a coma and died 4 days later.
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Pac-Man, the best-selling arcade game of all time, is released.
