On This Day July 2nd in 80s History

Happy 80s Birthdays

1937 - Polly Holliday (Actress) Alice “Flo”
Birthplace: Jasper, Alabama
1937 - Richard Petty (Race Car Driver)
Birthplace: Level Cross, Randolph County, North Carolina
1947 - Larry David ( TV Producer) Seinfeld
Birthplace: New York City
1956 - Jerry Hall (Actress and Model)
Birthplace: Gonzales, Texas
1957 - Bret Hart (Wrestler)
Birthplace: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
1957 - Purvis Short (Basketball)
Birthplace: Hattiesburg, Mississippi
1960 - Julie Montgomery (Actress) Revenge of the Nerds (Betty)
Birthplace: Kansas City, Missouri
1961 - Clark Kellogg (Basketball)
Birthplace: Cleveland, Ohio
1964 - Jose Canseco (Baseball)
Birthplace: Havana, Cuba
1964 - Ozzie Canseco (Baseball)
Birthplace: Havana, Cuba

Fun Fact!
In 1988 Jose Canseco Became the First Player in Major League Baseball History to Hit 40 Home Runs and Steal 40 Bases in the Same Season

* Known as the 40 - 40 Club

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Other Notable Birthdays

Thurgood Marshall (American Lawyer)
July 2, 1908 - January 24, 1993
Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland
Passed Away at Age 84 From Heart Failure
College: Lincoln University
Law School: Howard
In 1967 Became the First African-American Supreme Court Justice in U.S. History

Brock Peters (Actor)
July 2, 1927 - August 23, 2005
Birthplace: Harlem, New York
Passed Away at Age 78 From Pancreatic Cancer
* Born George Fisher

Played Tom Robinson in the 1962 Film To Kill a Mockingbird

Dave Thomas (American Businessman)
July 2, 1932 - January 8, 2002
Birthplace: Atlantic City, New Jersey
Passed Away on January 8, 2002 at Age 69 From a Carcinoid Neuroendocrine Tumor
* The Tumor Was Diagnosed a Decade Before
Founded Wnedy’s On November 16, 1969 in Columbus, Ohio

Fun Fact!

Wendy's Was Named After His Fourth Child Melinda Lou “Wendy” Thomas

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Passed Away
(On This Day)

Fred Gwynne (Actor)
July 10, 1926 - July 2, 1993
Birthplace: New York City
Passed Away at Age 66 From Pancreatic Cancer
Height: 6’5
Played Herman Munster on the TV Show, The Munsters and Francis Muldoon on Car 54, Where Are You?

James Stewart (Actor)
May 20, 1908 - July 2, 1997
Birthplace: Indiana, Pennsylvania
Passed Away at Age 89 From a Heart Attack Caused by an Embolism
* Best Known For Playing George Bailey in the 1946 Film It's a Wonderful Life
Considered One of the Greatest Actors of All-Time

Mario Puzo (Author)
October 15, 1920 - July 2, 1999
Birthplace: New York City
Passed Away at Age 78 From Heart Failure
* Died in His West Bay Shore, New York Home
Wrote the 1969 Novel The Godfather

Lee Iacocca (American Automotive Executive)
October 15, 1924 - July 2, 2019
Birthplace: Alentown, Pennsylvania
Passed Away at Age 94 of Complications From Parkinson's Disease
* Developed the Mustang and Pinto While at Ford in the 1960's
The CEO of Chrysler From 1979 to 1992

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80s Movies
(Released On This Day)

1980 - Airplane!
Directors: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker
Starring: Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Lorna Patterson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Budget: $3.5 Million

Box Office: $158 Million ($83 Million Domestic)

1982 - The Secret of NIMH (Animation)
Director: Don Bluth
Starring: Elizabeth Hartman, Hermione Baddeley, John Carradine and Dom DeLuise
Budget: $7 Million

Box Office: $14.7 Million

1986 - Big Trouble in Little China
Director: John Carpenter
Starring: Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun and James Hong
Budget: $19 Million

Box Office: $11.1 Million

1986 - The Great Mouse Detective (Animation)
Directors: Ron Clements, Burny Mattinson, Dave Michener and John Musker
Starring: Vincent Price and Barrie Ingham
Budget: $14 Million

Box Office: $38.7 Million

1986 - Psycho III
Director: Anthony Perkins
Starring: Anthony Perkins, Diana Scarwid, Jeff Fahey and Roberta Maxwell
Budget: $8.4 Million

Box Office: $14.4 Million

1986 - Under the Cherry Moon
Director: Prince
Starring: Prince
Budget: N/A

Box Office: $10.1 Million

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80s Television

(On This Day)

1984 - Scrabble Premiered on NBC
Seasons: 7
Episodes: 1,230
* Returned in 1993

1985 - Final Episode of The Jeffersons
Seasons: 11
Episodes: 253
Network: CBS

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80s Music
(Albums Released On This Day)

1981 - 4
Foreigner (4th Album)
Hit #1 on the US Billboard 200 Charts
Over 6 Million Copies Sold in the US

* Featuring “Urgent” and “Waiting for a Girl Like You”

1982 - Imperial Bedroom
Elvis Costello and the Attractions (2nd Album)
Billboard Charts: #30

* #6 in the UK

1984 - The Last in Line
Dio (2nd Album)
Billboard Charts: #23

* #4 in the UK

1984 - Rewind (1971–1984) (Compilation Album)
The Rolling Stones

Billboard Charts: #86

1984 - Victory
The Jacksons (15th Album)
Billboard Charts: #4

* Hit #1 in Canada and Finland

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80s Sports
(On This Day)

1981 - Dave Winfield (San Diego Padres) Went 5 - 5 With a Home Run and 4 RBI’s Against the Los Angeles Dodgers
* The Dodgers Beat the Padres 10 - 7 at Dodger Stadium on a Wednesday Night
Attendance: 33,232

1983 - Martina Navrilatova Won Wimbledon
Runner Up: Andrea Jaeger
Match: 6-0, 6-3

1986 - Boston Red Sox Pitcher Roger Clemens Recorded His First Loss of the Season Against the Toronto Blue Jays After Starting the Season 14 - 0
* The Blue Jays Beat the Red Sox 4 - 2 at Fenway Park on a Wednesday Night
Attendance: 27,493

1986 - The Milwaukee Brewers Beat the Baltimore Orioles 1 - 0 in a Classic Pitchers Duel at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore on a Wednesday Night
* Pitchers Juan Nieves (Brewers) and Ken Dixon (Orioles) Both Pitched Complete Games
Attendance: 19,250

Click Here For More Baseball Fun Facts and Awards

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In Other News

(On July 2nd)

1962 - The First Walmart Opened For Business in Rogers, Arkansas

1976 - South Vietnam and the Former Communist North Vietnam Formed the Unified Socialist Republic of Vietnam

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"Dirty Diana' Became the #1 Song in America

Headlines

(July 2nd)

1980 - Airplane Premiered in TheatersDirectors: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker
Starring: Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Lorna Patterson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Fun Fact!

The Co-Pilot Roger Murdoch Was Supposed to be Played by Pete Rose Instead of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

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1985 - The Final Episode of The Jeffersons Aired

Seasons: 11

Episodes: 253

Fun Fact!

Isabel Sanford Won an Emmy Award in 1981 For Most Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series For Her Role as Louise Jefferson

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1988 - “Dirty Diana” by Michael Jackson Became the #1 Song in America
* #1 Song in America from July 2 - 8
Also Hit #1 in Belgium

Fun Fact!

Michael Jackson Became the First Artist With 5 Consecutive Singles From the Same Album (Bad) to Hit #1 on the U.S. Billboard Charts
"I Just Can't Stop Loving You"
"Bad"
"The Way You Make Me Feel"
"Man in the Mirror"
"Dirty Diana"