December 31st in 80s History

Other Notable Birthdays

John Denver (Singer)
December 31, 1943 - October 12, 1997
Passed Away at Age 53 in a Plane Crash in Monterey Bay

One of the Best-Selling Artists From the 70s

Donna Summer (Singer)
December 31, 1948 - May 17, 2012
Passed Away at Age 63 from Lung Cancer

Known as the Queen of Disco

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Passed Away

(On This Day)

Roberto Clemente (Baseball)
Passed Away at Age 38 in a Plane Accident While On a Humanitarian Trip to Nicaragua

to Deliver Emergency Relief
15x All-Star
12x Gold Glove
3,000 Career Hits
1966 MVP
* Played All 18 Seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates
Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973, Making Him the First Latin American Player Elected

Raoul Walsh (Actor)
Passed Away on December 31, 1980 at Age 93 from a Heart Attack
Played John Wilkes Booth (Lincoln’s Assassin) in a Birth of a Nation (1915)

Ricky Nelson (Singer)
Passed away on December 31, 1985 at Age 45 in an Airplane Accident on His Way to a Concert in Dallas

Elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987

* Also Starred on the TV Series, Ozzie and Harriet From 1952 to 1966

George Allen (Football Coach)
Passed Away on December 31, 1990 at Age 72 from a Ventricular Fibrillation m (Abnormal Heart Rhythm)
Elected to the Football Hall of Fame in 2002

NFL Coach of the Year in 1967 (Los Angeles Rams) and 1971 (Washington Redskins)

James Avery (Actor)
Passed Away on December 31, 2013 at Age 68 Following Complications from Open Heart Surgery
Played Uncle Phil on Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

Natalie Cole (Singer)
Passed Away on December 31, 2015 at Age 65 from Congestive Heart Failure

In 1975, Became the First African American to Win a Grammy Award For Best New Artist

* Over 30 Million Records Sold Worldwide

Wayne Rogers (Actor)
Passed Away on December 31, 2015 at Age 82 from Pneumonia
Played “Trapper” on M*A*S*H

William Christopher
Passed Away on December 31, 2016 at Age 84 as the Result of Small-Cell Carcinoma
Played Father Mulcahy on M*A*S*H

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80s Movies

(Released On This Day)

1986 - Wisdom
Director: Emilio Estevez
Starring: Emilio Estevez, Demi Moore, Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright and Charlie Sheen
Budget: $6.5 Million

Box Office: $5.7 Million

Emilio Estevez Filmmaking and Directorial Debut

1986 - Witchboard
Director: Kevin Tenney
Starring: Tawny Kitaen, Stephen Nichols and Todd Allen
Budget: $2 Million

Box Office: $7.4 Million

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80s Television

(On This Day)

1982 - Final Episode of Texas (Soap Opera)
Seasons: 2

Episodes: 625
Network: NBC

Spinoff From Another World

1982 - Final Episode of The Doctors
Seasons: 20

Episodes: 5,155
Network: NBC

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80s Music

(Albums Released On This Day)

1980 - Arc of a Diver
Steve Winwood (2nd Solo Album)
Billboard Charts: #3

Singles Released

1985 - "Can't Fight This Feeling"

REO Speedwagon
* #1 Song in America from March 9 - 29

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80s Sports

(On This Day)

1983 - The San Francisco 49ers Beat the Detroit Lions 24 - 23 in the NFC Divisional Round of the Playoffs
Location: Candlestick Park in San Francisco
Spread

49ers -7.5

O/U 41.0

1983 - The Seattle Seahawks Beat the Miami Dolphins 27 - 20 in the AFC Divisional Round
Location: Orange Bowl in Miami

* Curt Warner (Seahawks) 113 Yards Rushing 3 TD’s
Spread

Dolphins -8

O/U 44.0

1988 - The Chicago Bears Beat the Philadelphia Eagles 20 - 12 in the NFC Divisional Round of the Playoffs
Location: Soldier Field in Chicago

* Dennis McKinnon (Bears) 4 Receptions 108 Yards 1 TD (64 Yards)
Spread

Bears -5.5

O/U 3 8.0

1988 - The Cincinnati Bengals Beat the Seattle Seahawks 21 - 13 in the AFC Divisional Round
Location: Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati

* Icky Woods (Bengals) 126 Yards Rushing 1 TD
Spread

Bengals 6.5

O/U 46.0

1989 - The Pittsburgh Steelers Beat the Houston Oilers 26 - 23 (OT) in the AFC Wild Card Game
Location: Houston Astrodome

* Merril Hoge (Steelers) 100 Yards Rushing 1 TD
Spread

Oilers -7

O/U 43.0

1989 - The Los Angeles Rams Beat the Philadelphia Eagles 21 - 7 in the NFC Wild Card Game
Location: Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia

* Greg Bell (Rams) 124 Yards Rushing 1 TD
Spread

Eagles -3

O/U 39.0

1989 - Jockey Kent Desormeaux Set a Thoroughbred Racing Record by Winning 598 Races in a Year

* Still Holds the Record

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<- December 30th January 1st ->

Back To The 80s Home Page

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1986 - Emilio Estevez Made His Filmmaking and Directorial Debut in the Film Wisdom

On December 31, 1989 David Hasselhoff Sang "Looking For Freedom" on the Berlin Wall

On December 31, 1989 Bonnie Raitt Played a Concert at the Oakland Coliseum

Other Notable Dates

(On December 31st)

1759 - Arthur Guinness Began Brewing Guinness Beer

1796 - The City of Baltimore Was Inaugurated

Population: 13,500
Now Over 560,000

1907 - The First New Year's Eve Celebration in Times Square Took Place
* Known as Longacre Square in Manhattan at the Time

1946 - President Harry S. Truman Officially Announced That World War II Ended With an Allies Victory

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Happy 80s Birthdays

1937 - Anthony Hopkins (Actor) The Elephant Man
1941 - Sarah Miles (Actress) Hope and Glory
1942 - Andy Summers (Guitarist) The Police
1943 - Ben Kingsley (Actor) Gandhi
1945 - Taylor Hackford (Director) Against All Odds
1945 - Vernon Wells (Actor) Weird Science
1947 - Tim Matheson (Actor) Fletch
1948 - Joe Dallesandro (Actor) The Cotton Club
1951 - Tom Hamilton (Bassist) Aerosmith
1953 - James Remar (Actor) 48 Hrs.
1953 - Jane Badler (Actress) Mission: Impossible (TV Series)
1958 - Bebe Neuwirth (Actress) Cheers (Lilith)
1959 - Val Kilmer (Actor) Top Gun, Top Secret, Real Genius
1959 - Paul Westerberg (Singer) The Replacements
1961 - Rick Aguilera (Baseball)
1963 - Scott Ian (Guitarist) Anthrax
1972 - Joey McIntyre (Singer) New Kids on the Block