August 1st in 80s History
Happy 80s Birthdays
1939 - Terry Kiser (Actor) Weekend at Bernie’s
Birthplace: Omaha, Nebraska
1948 - Cliff Branch (Football)
Birthplace: Houston, Texas
1953 - Robert Cray (Blues Guitarist)
Birthplace: Columbus, Georgia
1958 - Michael Penn (Singer)
Birthplace: New York City
1959 - Joe Elliott (English Singer) Def Leppard
Birthplace: Sheffield, England
1960 - Chuck D (Rapper) Public Enemy
Birthplace: Hempstead, New York
1973 - Tempestt Bledsoe (Actress) The Cosby Show (Vanessa)
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois
Fun Fact!
Tempestt Bledsoe Earned a Bachelor's Degree in Finance From New York University
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Other Notable Birthdays
Dom DeLuise (Actor)
August 1, 1933 - May 4, 2009
Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York
Passed Away at Age 75 From Kidney Failure
* Had Cancer, High Blood Pressure and Diabetes
Best Known as Captain Chaos in the 1981 Film The Cannonball Run
Jerry Garcia (Singer)
August 1, 1942 - August 9, 1995
Birthplace: San Francisco, California
Passed Away at Age of 53 From a Heart Attack
* Caused by Diabetes and Poor Eating Habits
The Lead Singer For The Grateful Dead
Trevor Berbick (Boxing)
August 1, 1954 - October 28, 2006
Birthplace: Norwich, Port Antonio, Colony of Jamaica, British Empire
Murdered at Age 52 on October 28, 2006 in Jamaica by His Nephew and Friend
Wins: 49
KO: 33
Losses: 11
Defeated Pinklon Thomas For the WBC Heavyweight Championship in 1986
* Lost the Belt to Mike Tyson in His First Title Defense
Coolio (Rapper)
August 1, 1963 - September 28, 2022
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California
Passed Away at Age 59 From an Accidental Overdose of Fentanyl, Heroin, and Methamphetamine
* Best Known For the Hit Songs "Fantastic Voyage" and "1,2,3,4"
Won a Grammy Award in 1995 For His Hit Song "Gangster's Paradise"
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Passed Away
(On This Day)
Wilford Brimley (Actor)
September 27, 1934 - August 1, 2020
Birthplace: Salt Lake City, UT
Passed Away at Age 85 From Kidney Problems
* Played Ben Luckett in the 1985 FIlm Cocoon
Became the Face of Quaker Oats in 1987
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80s Movies
(Released On This Day)
1980 - The Final Countdown
Director: Don Taylor
Starring: Kirk Douglas, Martin Sheen, Katharine Ross, James Farentino and Ron O'Neal
Charles Durning
Budget: $12 Million
Box Office: $6 Million
1980 - The Hunter
Director: Buzz Kulik
Starring: Steve McQueen, Eli Wallach, Kathryn Harrold, LeVar Burton and Ben Johnson
Budget: N/A
Box Office: $16.2 Million
1980 - Loose Shoes
Director: Ira Miller
Starring: Royce D. Applegate, Bill Murray, Lewis Arquette and Howard Hesseman
Budget: N/A
Box Office: N/A
1980 - Raise the Titanic
Director: Jerry Jameson
Starring: Jason Robards, Richard Jordan, David Selby, Anne Archer and Sir Alec Guinness
Budget: $40 Million
Box Office: $7 Million
One of the Biggest Movie Flops From the 80s
1980 - I Go Pogo
Director: Marc Paul Chinoy
Starring: Jonathan Winters, Vincent Price and Ruth Buzzi
Budget: N/A
Box Office: N/A
1986 - Howard the Duck
Director: Willard Huyck
Starring: Lea Thompson, Jeffrey Jones and Tim Robbins
Budget: $37 Million
Box Office: $38 Million
1986 - Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives
Director: Tom McLoughlin
Starring: Thom Mathews, Jennifer Cooke and David Kagen, C. J. Graham & Dan Bradley as Jason Voorhees
Budget: $3 Million
Box Office: $19.4 Million
1986 - Flight of the Navigator
Director: Randal Kleiser
Starring: Joey Cramer, Matt Adler, Sarah Jessica Parker and the voice of Pee-wee Herman
Budget: $9 Million
Box Office: $18.5 Million
1986 - Good to Go
Director: Blaine Novak
Starring: Art Garfunkel, Robert DoQui, Harris Yulin and Reginald Daughtry
Budget: N/A
Box Office: $1.5 Million
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80s Television
(On This Day)
1980 - Cinemax Made its Debut
1981 - MTV Made its Debut
Fun Fact!
The First Music Video Played was “Video Killed the Radio Star” by The Buggles
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80s Music
(Albums Released On This Day)
1980 - The Affectionate Punch
Associates (Debut Album)
1980 - Kaleidoscope
Siouxsie & the Banshees (3rd Album)
* Reached #5 in the UK
1982 - Everybody's Rockin'
Neil Young and the Shocking Pinks (15th Album)
Billboard Charts: #46
1983 - No Frills
Bette Midler (6th Album)
Billboard Charts: #60
* Hit #1 in Sweden
1985 - Innocence Is No Excuse
Saxon (7th Album)
Billboard Charts: #130
1986 - Crowded House
Crowded House (Debut Album)
Billboard Charts: #12
* Hit #1 in Australia
1988 - Chimes of Freedom (Live Album)
Bruce Springsteen
1988 - Red Rose for Gregory
Gregory Isaacs (24th Album)
Singles Released
1981 - "Endless Love"
Diana Ross and Lionel Richie
#1 Song in America from August 15 - October 16
* Also Hit #1 in Canada, Australia and South Africa
In Other 80s Music News
1987 - Dave Stewart (Eurythmics) and Siobhan Fahey (Bananarama) got Married in France
1987 - MTV Europe Made Its Debut
* The First Music Video was "Money for Nothing" by Dire Straits
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80s Sports
(On This Day)
1981 - Hulk Hogan Made His AWA Debut in Wisconsin
1982 - Darryl Waltrip Became the First Driver to Win the Talladega 500 Twice
1985 - St. Louis Cardinals Rookie, Vince Coleman Set a National League Rookie Record With His 74th Stolen Base
* Finished the Season with 110 Stolen Bases
1986 - Minnesota Twins Pitcher, Bert Blyleven Struck Out Oakland A’s Hitter, Mike Davis to Record his 3,000th Career Strikeout
* The Twins Beat the A’s 10 - 1 at The Metrodome on a Friday Night
Attendance: 14,855
Kirby Puckett (Twins) 4 - 5 (Home Run)
1987 - Chicago Cubs Outfielder, Andre Dawson Hit 3 Home Runs Against the Philadelphia Phillies
* The Cubs Beat the Phillies 5 - 3 at Wrigley Field on a Saturday Afternoon
Attendance: 33,002
1987 - Mike Tyson Beat Tony Tucker by Unanimous Decision to Retain the Heavyweight Championship Belts
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Other Notable Dates
(On August 1st)
1876 - Colorado Became the 38th US State
1893 - Henry Perky Patented the Cereal, Shredded Wheat
1936 - The Summer Olympics Opened in Berlin
* Supervised by Adolf Hitler
1965 - The Science Fiction Novel, Dune Was Published
* Written by Frank Herbert
The World's Best-Selling Science Fiction Book
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Fun Fact!
Johnny Mize, Sammy Sosa and Mookie Betts Hold the Major League Record with 6 Games with 3 or More Home Runs
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MTV Was Launched
1987 - “Shakedown” by Bob Seger Became the #1 Song in America
#1 Song in America from August 1 - 7
Canada: #1
The Soundtrack For Beverly Hills Cop II
1981 - “Jessie's Girl” by Rick Springfield Became the #1 Song in America
#1 Song in America from August 1 - 14
Australia: #1
The Song is About the Girlfriend of Rick Springfield’s Friend Gary
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1987 - Andre Dawson (Chicago Cubs) Hit 3 Home Runs Against the Philadelphia Phillies
* Andre Dawson Played 21 Seasons in Major League Baseball
All-Star: 8
NL Rookie of the Year: 1977
NL MVP: 1987
Elected to the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame (9th Ballot)
#1 Songs in America
(August 1st)
1980 - "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me"
Billy Joel
7/19 - 8/1
1981 - "Jessie's Girl"
Rick Springfield
8/1 - 8/14
1982 - "Eye of the Tiger"
Survivor
7/24 - 9/3
1983 - "Every Breath You Take"
The Police
7/9 - 9/2
1984 - "When Doves Cry"
Prince
7/7 - 8/10
1985 - "Everytime You Go Away"
Paul Young
7/27 - 8/2
1986 - "Sledgehammer"
Peter Gabriel
7/26 - 8/1
1987 - "Shakedown"
Bob Seger
8/1 - 8/7
1988 - "Roll With It"
Steve Winwood
7/30 - 8/26
1989 - "Toy Soldiers"
Maltika
7/22 - 8/4
Click Here For More Music Fun Facts and Awards
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Headlines
(August 1st)
1981 - MTV Made its Debut
Original VJ's: Mark Goodman, Martha Quinn, Alan Hunter, J.J. Jackson and Nina Blackwood
Fun Fact!
“Video Killed the Radio Star” by The Buggles Was the First Music Video Played
#2 "You Better Run" (Pat Benatar)
#3 "She Won't Dance with Me" (Rod Stewart)
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