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Jimmy Carter Elected President
Carter, a Democrat from Georgia, took office following his small victory over Republican President Gerald Ford in the 1976 presidential election. His presidency ended after his landslide defeat in the 1980 presidential election to Republican Ronald Reagan, after one term in office. -
Star Wars Movie Premier
The first Star Wars movie, titled simply Star Wars and later known as Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, premiered at a few theaters in the US, and
was a huge success still to this day. -
Three Mile Island Meltdown
At the Unit 2 reactor of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station in Pennsylvania. While a cooling malfunction caused part of the core to melt, the accident released small amounts of radioactive gases and radioactive iodine. Despite the partial meltdown, no long-term health effects on the public or plant workers were detected, and the incident led to increased safety measures and training in the nuclear industry. -
Mount. St. Helens Eruption
The eruption of Mt. St. Helens was triggered by a magnitude 5.1 earthquake. It was a devastating event that caused widespread destruction and loss of life that beginning with a massive landslide, the largest in recorded history, then a hot gas, steam, and debris. This was followed by a 9-hour period of intense eruptive activity, including a massive ash plume that reached 15 miles into the sky and spread ash across a vast area of the western United States. -
Iran Hostages Released
The Iranian hostages were released following a 444-day captivity that began with the takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran. The release occurred minutes after Ronald Reagan's inauguration as president, ending the crisis that had plagued President Jimmy Carter's administration. -
Assassination Attempt on President Reagan
Ronald Reagan was shot and wounded by John Hinckley Jr. in Washington, D.C., as Reagan was returning to his limousine after a speaking engagement at the Washington Hilton hotel. Hinckley believed the attack would impress the actress Jodie Foster, with whom he had developed an obsession after viewing her in a movie
Reagan was seriously wounded by a revolver bullet. He underwent emergency exploratory surgery at George Washington University Hospital and was released on April 11. -
Iran/ Contra Affair
The Iran-Contra affair was a political scandal in the United States caused by the Reagan administration secretly selling arms to Iran in exchange for the release of American hostages held in Lebanon. They then used the profits from those arms sales to secretly fund the Contras, a rebel group fighting against the Sandinista government in Nicaragua. This involved a violation of the Boland Amendment, which prohibited direct U.S. aid to the Contras. -
Challenger Shuttle Explosion
The Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff. It killed all seven crew members by a failure of the O-rings in one of the solid rocket boosters. This event led to a three-year suspension of shuttle missions and a significant review of NASA's safety procedures. -
Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster
The Chernobyl nuclear accident, located near Pripyat, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union, the No. 4 reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, exploded. It was a severe nuclear accident that resulted from a flawed reactor design and operator errors during a safety test. Immediate deaths were reported, and many more were affected by acute radiation sickness. -
George H.W. Bush Elected President
Republican George Bush from Texas, serving as the vice president for two terms under President Ronald Reagan, took office following his landslide victory over Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
The fall of the Berlin Wall was a pivotal moment in history, signaling the end of the Cold War and paving the way for German reunification. It was the first mark of reunification between East and West Germany. -
Start of the Persian Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War began with Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, which was motivated by a complex mix of factors, including disputes over oil production, debt issues, and Saddam Hussein's desire to expand Iraqi influence in the region. -
Bill Clinton Elected President
Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican incumbent President George H. W. Bush and independent businessman Ross Perot in the 1992 presidential election. Four years later, he won re-election in the 1996 presidential election. -
Rodney King Decision & L.A. Riots
Rodney King was brutally beaten by LAPD officers during a traffic stop after a high-speed chase. The incident was caught on video, which fueled public outrage and protest after a jury acquitted four LAPD officers of charges related to the beating of Rodney King. -
Original U.S.A. Olympic Basketball Dream Team
The "Dream Team," the original U.S.A. Olympic basketball team, won gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics with a perfect 8-0 record. This team featured a collection of NBA superstars, many of whom were later inducted into the NBA's 50 Greatest Players list. The team included Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Karl Malone, Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, John Stockton, Christian Laettner, and Clyde Drexler -
Launch of Google
Google was launched by Larry Page and Sergey Brin as a search engine. The company's name is derived from the word "googol," representing the number one followed by one hundred zeros, reflecting their goal to organize the world's information. The company initially operated out of a garage. -
Bill Clinton Impeached by the House of Representatives
Bill Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives on two articles of impeachment: perjury and obstruction of justice. The charges started with Clinton's denial of an affair with Monica Lewinsky, which he later admitted to. The perjury charge was for lying under oath about the affair, and the obstruction of justice charge was for trying to cover it up. -
World Trade Center/Pentagon/Shanksville, PA Attacks
Terrorists affiliated with al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial airplanes and crashed them into targets in the United States, resulting in nearly 3,000 deaths. Two planes were flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, causing both towers to collapse. A third plane hit the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The fourth plane crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers and crew resisted the hijackers, preventing it from reaching its intended target.