Other Notable Birthdays
Dick Williams (Baseball)
May 7, 1929 - July 7, 2011
Birthplace: St. Louis, Missouri
Passed Away on July 7, 2011 at Age 82 From a Ruptured Aortic Aneurysm
* Managed the Oakland A’s to World Series Championships in 1972 and 1973
Elected to the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame in 2008 (Veterans Committee)
Johnny Unitas (Football)
May 7, 1933 - September 11, 2002
Birthplace: Pittsburgh, PA
Passed Away on September 11, 2002 at Age 69 From a Heart Attack
NFL Seasons: 18
Position: Quarterback
Pro Bowl: 10
NFL Champion: 3 (1958, 1959, 1968)
NFL MVP: 3 (1959, 1964, 1967)
Elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979
Owen Hart (Wrestler)
May 7, 1965 - May 23, 1999
Birthplace: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Passed Away at Age 34 From Internal Bleeding From Blunt Force Trauma
* Fell From the Rafters of Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri During His Entrance at WWF's Over the Edge Event
Fun Fact!
Owen Hart Was a 4x WWE Tag Team Champion
* Twice With Yokozuna, Once With the British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith and One With Jeff Jarrett
Also Won King of the Ring in 1994
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Passed Away
(On This Day)
Eddie Rabbit (Singer)
November 27, 1941 - May 7, 1998
Birthplace: New York City
Passed Away at Age 56 From Lung Cancer
* Known to be a Heavy Smoker
Best Known For the 1980 Hit Song “I Love a Rainy Night”
Steve Ballesteros (Golf)
April 9, 1957 - May 7, 2011
Birthplace: Pedreña, Cantabria, Spain
Passed Away at Age 54 From a Brain Tumor
* Diagnosed in 2008
Fun Fact!
Ballesteros Was a 5x Major Champion
The Masters (1980, 1983)
The Open Championship: (1979, 1984, 1988)
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80s Movies
(Released On This Day)
1982 - Diner
Director: Barry Levinson
Starring: Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon, Timothy Daly and Ellen Barkin
Budget: $5 Million
Box Office: $14.1 Million
1982 - Paradise
Director: Stuart Gillard
Starring: Phoebe Cates and Willie Aames
Budget: N/A
Box Office: $5.5 Million
1982 - Death Valley
Director: Dick Richards
Starring: Paul Le Mat, Catherine Hicks, Stephen McHattie, Wilford Brimley, Peter Billingsley and Edward Herrmann
Budget: N/A
Box Office: N/A
1982 - Forbidden World
Director: Allan Holzman
Starring: Jesse Vint and Dawn Dunlap
Budget: $1 Million
Box Office: $4 Million
1988 - Salsa
Director: Boaz Davidson
Starring: Robby Rosa and Rodney Harvey
Budget: $6 Million
Box Office: $8.8 Million
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80s Television
(On This Day)
1983 - Stevie Wonder Hosted Saturday Night Live
1986 - Final Episode of Blacke’s Magic
Seasons: 1
Episodes: 13
1988 - Final Episode of The Facts of Life
Seasons: 9
Episodes: 209
Network: NBC
Fun Fact!
Molly Ringwald was a Regular in Season 1 of The Facts of Life
1988 - Final Episode of Spencer: For Hire
Seasons: 3
Episodes: 66 + 4 TV Movies
Network: ABC
1988 - Final Episode of Ohara
Seasons: 2
Episodes: 30
Network: ABC
Starring Pat Morita
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80s Music
(Albums Released On This Day)
1982 - Wiped Out
Raven (2nd Album)
1986 - Tom Cochrane & Red Rider
Red Rider (5th Album)
Billboard Charts: #116
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80s Sports
(On This Day)
1980 - The Philadelphia 76ers Beat the Los Angeles Lakers 107 - 104 in Game 2 of the NBA Finals
Location: The Forum in Los Angeles
Series: Tied 1-1
1981 - The Houston Rockets Beat the Boston Celtics 92 - 90 in Game 2 of the NBA Finals
Location: Boston Garden
Series: Tied 1-1
1982 - Chicago Cubs Outfielder Keith Moreland Hit 2 Home Runs With 7 RBI’s in a 12 - 6 Victory over the Houston Astros at Wrigley Field in Chicago on a Friday Afternoon
Attendance: 6,404
1982 - Cincinnati Reds Pitcher Mario Soto Pitched a Complete Game Shutout to Beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 5 - 0 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati on a Friday Night
Attendance: 16,465
1983 - New York Islanders Beat the Boston Bruins 4 Games to 2 to Advance to Their 4th Straight Stanley Cup Finals
* Swept the Edmonton Oilers and Wayne Gretzky in the Finals 4 - 0
The Islander Won 4 Consecutive Stanley Cup Finals (1980, 1981,1982, 1983)
1983 - Eddie Delahoussaye Won the 109th Kentucky Derby Aboard Sunny’s Halo
Post Position: 10
Trainer: David C. Cross Jr.
Owner: D.J. Foster Racing Stable
Attendance: 134,444
1984 - Bernard King of the New York Knicks Was on the Cover of Sports Illustrated
Title: “His Royal Highness”
1988 - Gary Stevens Won the 114th Kentucky Derby Aboard Winning Colors
Post Position: 8
Trainer: D. Wayne Lukas
Owner: Eugene V. Klein
1989 - Ric Flair Beat Ricky Steamboat For the WCW Heavyweight Championship
Event: WrestleWar
Location: Nashville, Tennessee
May 7th in 80s History
In Other News
(On May 7th)
1915 - The RMS Lusitania Was Shot and Sunk by the German Submarine U-20
* Led to the United States Entering World War I
1976 - The First Honda Accord Was Released as a 3 Door Hatchback
1983 - Eddie Delahoussaye Won the 109th Kentucky Derby Aboard Sunny’s Halo
* Back to Back Kentucky Derby Wins For Eddie Delahoussaye
The 109th Kentucky Derby
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Headlines
(May 7th)
1987 - Shelley Long Made Her Final Appearance as a Regular on Cheers
* Played Diane Chambers For 5 Seasons
Left For Family and a Movie Career
Fun Fact!
Shelley Long Won an Emmy in 1983 For Most Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series
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The Final Episode of the Facts of Life Aired
Happy 80s Birthdays
1945 - Robin Strasser (Actress) One Life to Live (Dorian Lord)
Birthplace: New York City
1946 - Thelma Houston (Singer)
Birthplace: Leland, Mississippi
1946 - Bill Kreutzmann (Drummer) Grateful Dead
Birthplace: Palo Alto, California
1950 - Randall “Tex” Cobb (Actor) Uncommon Valor
Birthplace: Bridge City, Texas
1954 - Amy Heckerling (Director) Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Birthplace: New York City
1968 - Traci Lords (Pornstar)
Birthplace: Steubenville, Ohio
Fun Fact!
Randall “Tex” Cobb Was 42 - 7 (35 Knockouts) as a Professional Boxing Career
* Played “Sailor” in Uncommon Valor
#1 Songs in America
(May 7th)
1980 - "Call Me"
Blondie
4/19 - 5/30
1981 - "Morning Train
Sheena Easton
5/2 - 5/17
1982 - "I Love Rock 'n' Roll"
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
3/20 - 5/7
1983 - "Beat It"
Michael Jackson
4/30 - 5/20
1984 - "Against All Odds"
Phil Collins
4/21 - 5/11
1985 - "We Are the World"
USA for Africa
4/13 - 5/10
1986 - "Addicted to Love"
Robert Palmer
5/3 - 5/9
1987 - "(I Just) Died in Your Arms"
Cutting Crew
5/2 - 5/15
1988 - "Wishing Well"
Terrence Trent D'Arby
5/7 - 5/13
1989 - "Like a Prayer"
Madonna
4/22 - 5/12
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Fun Fact!
The First Kentucky Derby Was Won by African-American Jockey Oliver Lewis Aboard Aristides On May 17, 1875
Trainer: Ansel Williamson
Owner: H. Price McGrath
Winning Purse: $2,850
Second Place: $200
13 out of the 15 Jockeys Were African American
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1988 - "Wishing Well" by Terence Trent D'Arby Became the #1 Song in America
* #1 Song in America from May 7 - 13
Also Hit #1 in Canada and the Netherlands
Fun Fact!
D'Arby Won the Florida Golden Gloves Lightweight Championship in 1980
In Other 80s News
(On This Day)
1983 - The Hitler Diaries Were Revealed as a Hoax
* The Hitler Diaries Were a Series of Journals Written by Adolf Hitler
Forged by Konrad Kujau
1986 - Patrick Morrow (Canada) Became the First Person to Climb Each of the 7 Summits
* The Seven Summits are the Highest Mountains in Each of the 7 Continents
1988 - Gary Stevens Won the 114th Kentucky Derby Aboard Winning Colors
Post Position: 8
Odds: 3 - 1
Trainer: D. Wayne Lukas
Owner: Eugene V. Klein
Attendance: 137,694
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1988 - The Final Episode of The Facts of Life Aired
Seasons: 9
Episodes: 209
Network: NBC
Fun Fact!
The Facts of Life Was a Spinoff From Diff'rent Strokes
1995 - The Body of Former CIA Director William Colby Was Found Washed Up On a Riverbank in Southern Maryland
* Had Been Disappeared For 8 Days
1998 - Steve Jobs Unveiled the First iMac
Price: $1,299
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