1983 News and Interesting History Tidbits

Check Out News Stories and Interesting Tidbits of History from 25 Years ago in 1983



Philippines Opposition Leader Assassinated
The Philippines opposition leader, Benigno Aquino, is assassinated after returning home from a self-imposed exile in the United States.





CND Peace Demonstrators
Tens of thousands of CND peace demonstrators form a human chain stretching 14 miles across Southern England from the American airbase at Greenham Common, via the Aldermaston nuclear research centre and ending at the ordnance factory in Burghfield.





Hurricane Alicia
Hurricane Alicia makes landfall near Galveston, Texas with winds in excess of 100 MPH, leaving 22 dead and causing more than two billion dollars in damages.







M*A*S*H Final Episode
The final episode of M*A*S*H, a series about the staff of an Army hospital during the Korean War entitled ( Goodbye, Farewell and Amen ) became the most-watched television episode in U.S. history, with viewer estimates at 106 million Americans.







At&T Broken Up
After nearly 10 years of legal wrangling in the courts AT&T is broken down into seven regional companies ( often called Baby Bells ) following the government's anti-trust suit against AT&T in 1974, the Baby Bells provide the local services.








Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)
President Ronald Reagan proposes that the United States starts a program to develop antimissile technology that would make the country nearly impervious to attack by nuclear missiles often called the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)..








Renewable Energy Predictions
A think tank in Washington predicted by the year 2000 50% of the worlds energy resources will be met from renewable energy sources . ( In 2004 Oil accounted for 37.6% , Natural Gas 25.6% and Coal for 23.1% so the total for Non Renewable Energy Sources = 85.2% ) so predictions were somewhat wrong .








How Much Things Cost 25 years Ago
Average Cost of new house $82,600.00

Gallon of Petrol $1.25

Interest Rates Federal Reserve 11.00%

Ground Beef $1.44 per pound

Apples 37 cents a pound

Oak HI/FI Entertainment Studio $319

New Single Family Homes Just building new choose color and appliances if you order now Annapolis Maryland from $64,900

1 Bed Condo Lake views Chicago Illinois $41,900

TRS 80 PC1 $149.95

Mens Leather Shoes $39.99

Pontiac Le mans 6000 $6,230

Magnavox 25 inch color $468









US Recession More Jobs Lost
With the recession continuing to effect manufacturing in the United States. U.S. Steel announces that it would reduce its steel making capacity by roughly 20 percent laying off a further 4,600 bringing the total lay-offs for the year to 15,400.








Samantha Smith Letter To Soviet Union
The Soviet Union publishes a letter that Russian leader Yuri Andropov wrote to Samantha Smith, an American fifth-grader from Manchester, Maine. Andropov's letter came in response to a letter Samantha Smith had sent him in December 1982, asking if the Soviets were planning to start a nuclear war.
Samantha Smith did accept Andropov's invitation and flew to the Soviet Union with her parents for a visit later in the year.







Harrods Department Store Bombed
A terrorist car bomb planted by the IRA is exploded outside the Harrods Department store in Knightsbridge, central London killing 9 and injuring 75 other Christmas shoppers during the busiest time of the year. After the explosion panic and chaos caused other minor injuries as people panicked scared that more bombs may explode.







Zimbabwe Civil War
13th March, 1983: Zimbabwe appears to be on brink of civil war and the leader of Zimbabwe's opposition party, Joshua Nkomo, flees the country and goes to London due to fears for his safety .








Shergar Stolen
Shergar is stolen from a stud farm owned by the Aga Khan in County Kildare, Ireland. The five-year-old thoroughbred stallion was worth $13.5 million and commanded stud fees of approximately $100,000. Shergar was never seen again and no ransom was paid and the case was never solved.








Hitler Diaries
After the West German news magazine Stern publish the first of the Hitler Diaries purportedly written by Adolf Hitler they are revealed by scientific testing to be forged.








Earthquake New York
A moderate earthquake 5.2 on the Richter Scale hit Central New York up as far as Canada , Earth Quakes in the region are not common so everybody who was woken by the movement at 6:19 in the morning noticed it, effects ranged from water in a water bed making waves to things falling off shelves, the last earthquake of any size was back in 1944 which measured 5.9 on the Richter Scale.







BBC Launches Breakfast TV
The BBC launches a Breakfast Television Program featuring Frank Bough, Nick Ross and former ITN news reader Selina Scott. The BBC has launched this prior to the new TV-AM franchise due to launch a breakfast television program in February. ( Newspaper Critics said there was no need for breakfast Television possibly because they were concerned re newspaper sales ) By 1984 TV-am's "Good Morning Britain" and the BBC's "Breakfast Time" were bringing in 1.5 million viewers per day .








Terrorist attack US Embassy Beirut
A Terrorist attack by a suicide bomber destroys the United States Embassy in Beirut, killing 63








Margaret Thatcher Comes To Power
Margaret Thatcher wins in a landslide victory in General Elections in the UK as the British voters went to the polls, she was standing on a platform to banish extreme left wing socialism forever and the British people seem to want that as well.








Vietnam / China Conflict
China and Vietnam continue fighting on the border over the killing of farmers and other Chinese civilians working near the border







Butcher of Lyon
Klaus Barbie, 69, Known as the ( Butcher of Lyon ) who was chief of the Gestapo in Lyon, France, during Nazi occupation, was flown to France where he was indicted for "crimes against humanity."








Soccer Hooliganism Luxembourg
Soccer hooliganism continues to feature in matches involving English clubs and the National Team with the latest trouble by English fans in Luxembourg who went through the city fighting and stealing after England was knocked out of the European Championship.








Jodrell Bank Sets Record
The British radio telescope at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire sets a new record when it makes contact with the American Pioneer V satellite at a distance of 407,000 miles.








Australia Fires 1983
February 16th 1983
A total of 24 fires had spread across South Australia starting on this date. These fires had killed at least 75 people and had injured another 800. The cause of this fire was the extremely hot and dry climate that occurred in the year prior to this.


Even though fires in this area are somewhat common, these fires were considered “different” because they had affected highly populated areas (small towns and/or cities). Otway, Gambeir, and Geelong were some smaller South Australian towns that were the hardest hit.








First Mobile Phones From Motorola
Although mobile phones have taken over our current society, they have been around for several decades in some form or another. Beginning in the late 1940s, the technology that would later be used in today’s cell phones was created and the idea of a mobile phone
The first mobile phones, referred to as First Generation or 1G, were introduced to the public market in 1983 by the Motorola Company.
History of Mobile Phones









New UK Seatbelt Law
The new seatbelt law comes into force meaning drivers and front seat passengers must wear seatbelts at all times, the law has been bought in to improve road safety hoping the compulsory wearing of front seatbelts will save 1,000 lives a year.








Brinks Mat Robbery
Six gunmen break into the Brinks Mat warehouse at the Heathrow Airport making off with three tons of gold bars valued at $37.5 million.











1982 Previous Year ---- ( Current Year Is 1983 ) ---- Following Year 1984



Find More History, Culture, Prices and Information On 1983

No comments:

Custom Search