CMata 1980-2000

Lin-Manuel Miranda

Jan 16, 1980

Lin-Manuel was born in New York City, New York, United States. He is a composer, playwright, songwriter, and actor. He is the creator of "Hamilton" the musical.

John Lennon Assassination

Dec 8, 1980

Former member of the Beatles, forty-year old John Lennon was shot when entering his New York City apartment by Mark David Chapman. Lennon bled to death on his way to the hospital. Chapman was an obsessed fan who, "had received an autograph from Lennon earlier in the day, and voluntarily remained at the scene of the shooting until he was arrested by police" (History.com Editors).
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/john-lennon-shot

First AIDS cases in the United States

Period: 1981 to 2000

In mid-1980, the first AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) epidemic cases were reported in the United States and were all tied to homosexuals. Increase in cases were reported during 1980s and have shown a decline throughout the years, as stated in the article, "AIDS incidence increased rapidly through the 1980s, peaked in the early 1990s, and then declined" (CDC).
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pdf/wk/mm5021.pdf

Royal Wedding

Jul 29, 1981

In London, England, Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer marry at the St Paul's Cathedral. It was an internationally televised event.

Prince William born

Jun 21, 1982

Prince Charles and Princess Diana's first child, William, born at St. Mary's Hospital in London. His full name, William Arthur Philip Louis--Duke of Cambridge, was announced by Buckingham Palace on 28 June.

Dominican Republic President dies

Jul 4, 1982

Antonio Guzman Fernandez, President for the Dominican Republic, was found dead by gunshot wound before his inauguration.

Discovery of DNA Fingerprinting

Sep 10, 1984

In September 1984, while studying heredity diseases at the University of Leicester in Great Britain, Dr. Alec Jeffreys found there was genetic differences in humans. This discovery helps in crime cases to determine the suspect and victim as well as assist in the conviction of the guilty individual.

Les Miserables debut in London

Oct 8, 1985

Les Misérables musical opened at the Barbican Theatre in London.

Challenger explodes

Jan 28, 1986

NASA's shuttle Challenger exploded killing all seven crewmembers on board: Teacher-in-Space Christa McAuliffe, Mission Commander Dick Scobee, pilot Mike Smith, and astronauts Gregory Jarvis, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, and astronaut Ellison Onizuka.

Phantom of the Opera opened in Broadway

Jan 26, 1988

Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera opened on January 26, 1988 at the Majestic Theater in New York City. It has surpassed records, "THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA became the first stage production in history to reach worldwide grosses of $6 billion, which it did in 2014. Revenues far surpass the world’s highest-grossing film Avatar (at $2.8 billion), as well as such other blockbusters as Titanic, The Lord of the Rings, Jurassic Park and Star Wars" ("The Phantom...").

1st woman to Arizona Governor

Apr 5, 1988

Succeeding the Arizona's governor position due to the impeachment Gov. Evan Mecham, Rose Mofford became the first woman governor in the state of Arizona. After almost three years of being governor, she declined for another term in March 1991.

George H.W. Bush inauguration

Jan 20, 1989

George H.W. Bush was sworn in as the 41st president of the United States.

Fall of the Berlin Wall

Nov 9, 1989

Germans caused a revolution that lead to the fall of the Berlin Wall on the night of November 9, 1989.
https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/berlin-wall

Greta Garbo died

Apr 15, 1990

American-Swedish actress, Greta Garbo, died of pneumonia in New York. Some of her international hits were The Temptress (1926) and Flesh and the Devil (1926).
https://www.biography.com/actor/greta-garbo

Unforgettable wins Grammy

Feb 25, 1992

With the most wins, Natalie Cole's "Unforgettable" won Record of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year at the 34th Annual Grammy Awards held in New York's Radio City Music Hall.

1992 Olympics

Jul 25, 1992

The 1992 Olympics opening ceremony was held in Barcelona, Spain.

Canada's first woman prime minister

Jun 25, 1993

Kim Campbell became first and only woman appointed as Canada's prime minister.

India's deadly Earthquake

Sep 30, 1993

The 1993 Latur earthquake struck India with magnitude of 6.2 killing almost 10,000 people.

Nelson Mandela became President of South Africa

May 10, 1994

Winner of the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize, Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as South Africa’s first black president. The 1995 Rugby World Cup hosted by South Africa was a result of, "his mission for peace, nation-building and reconciliation, Mandela used the nation's enthusiasm for sports as an important point to promote reconciliation between whites and blacks, encouraging black South Africans to support the once-hated all white national rugby team" ("The Nelson Mandela...").

Hottest day in Arizona history

Jun 29, 1994

Lake Havasu City, Arizona hit 128 degrees which made it the hottest day recorded to date in the state. Four years earlier, Phoenix had hottest day recorded at 122 degrees on June 26, 1990.

Oklahoma city bombing

Apr 19, 1995

The Oklahoma city bombing reported 168 deaths at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, Oklahoma City, OK. Timothy J. McVeigh and Terry L. Nichols were convicted of the terrorist attack.

Assassination in Israel

Nov 4, 1995

Prime Minister of Israel, Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated at gunpoint by Jewish Israeli student, Yigal Amir.

1996 Nobel Prize Winners

Oct 7, 1996

Peter C. Doherty was named 1996 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology or Medicine for his brilliant work that "has provided an important basis for vaccines and medicines for infectious diseases, but also for inflammatory diseases and cancer" (Peter C Doherty - Facts).
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1996/doherty/facts/

First Harry Potter book

Jun 26, 1997

The first of several novels, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was published.

FIFA World Cup

Jul 12, 1998

France beats Brazilian soccer team with a score of 3-0 at the FIFA World Cup held in France.

Google was founded

Sep 4, 1998

While still attending Standford University, Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded Google.

7.6 Earthquake in Taiwan

Sep 21, 1999

A 7.6 magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan killing more than 2400 people.

Panama Canal

Dec 31, 1999

The United States handed over control of the Panama Canal to Panama.

Vicente Fox became Mexico's president

Dec 1, 2000

Businessman and politician, Vicente Fox Quesada became the 55th President of Mexico.