1981, early into the decade
and things were moving fast. OK, Eunice, travel plans. I need to be in New York
on Monday, LA on Tuesday, New York on Wednesday, LA on
Thursday, New York on Friday. Got it? Got it. Got it. Well, maybe not that fast. Just a year into the
budding '80s, 1981 would see a slew of new heroes. So I'm sure to get most
the vitamins I need. Iconic catch phrases-- Pardon me, would you
have any Grey Poupon? And some of our most important
cultural discoveries. What did you say
this was, again? Today, we're chronicling 1981,
from January to December, and talking about the
news, culture, sports, and entertainment, and all
that was weird in the year. This is TIMELINE. ['80s MUSIC PLAYING] Today, it's all 1981. But before we get going, be
sure to subscribe to the Weird History channel and let
us know in the comments below your favorite '80s memory. Now, are you ready
to get on to 81? It's fattening. This is 1981. On January 12,
Dynasty premiered. And America was introduced
to the Carrington's. A filthy-rich family
from Denver, Colorado. Good evening, Mrs. Carrington. And how has your day been? Dynasty was created to
counter another show about filthy-rich people with
a wildly successful Dallas on CBS. Flash forward to December 4,
CBS would counter ABC's counter with Lorenzo Lamas and
the show Falcon Crest. A show about filthy-rich
people, but this time there in Napa Valley. Chase is of the opinion that
vineyard is his to keep. You know you gotta
let me handle this. On January 16, while
claiming he was walking out of a Detroit bar,
ex-heavyweight champion, Leon Spinks was jumped and
cold cocked by robbers. Police say Spinks reported
his assailants left him naked. When Leon regained
his senses, he found out the
muggers had stolen, not only $45,000 of jewelry,
but also his gold teeth. We're not sure if they
got the fillings as well. Sticking with boxing, three
days later on January 19, the Greatest of All
Time might apply to Muhammad Ali's non-boxing
life, when on January 19, the ex-heavyweight
champ, literally, talked a man off the ledge. It was in Los Angeles
when a despondent man threatened to jump off
a high-rise building. Ali drove down to the building
and talked to the man. Telling him, you're my brother. I love you. And I couldn't lie to you. Soon after, Ali put
his arm around the man and guided him back inside. We'll see Ali again by
the end of the year. On January 20, Iran
released 52 Americans, who had been held
hostage for 444 days. Just minutes after
the presidency had been passed from Jimmy
Carter to Ronald Reagan the hostages were placed
on a plane in Tehran, as Reagan delivered
his inaugural address. Some of the hostages are
physically and mentally tired. Two of them are said to be
having difficulty walking. With gold-wing doors and
a stainless steel body the DeLorean was probably
the most '80s car ever. The DeLorean gold-wing
doors rise effortlessly beckoning you inside. The car would be forever etched
in our pop-culture hearts when Dr. Emmett Brown
transformed the DeLorean into a time machine. When Back to The Future
premiered on July 3, 1985. 88 miles per hour! [MUSIC PLAYING] February proved that
life is indeed a stage, as the Canadian power
rock trio, Rush, released Moving Pictures on the 12th. After this, air drumming
would never be the same. As the SNL cast took the main
stage for their goodnight on February 21, Charlene
Tilton asked Charlie Rocket how he felt being shot. It was a callback to an earlier
Dallas skit during the show, where Rocket played the
recently assassinated JR Ewing. I'll get that Charlie Rocket if
it's the last thing I ever do. Rocket told Tilton-- No, man it's the first time
I've ever been shot in my life. I bet you don't [BLEEP] mean it. [LAUGHING] Uh, whoops. Rocket was fired before
the season finale. [SLOW ROCK MUSIC] [YELLING] On March 30, in an attempt to
impress actress Jodie foster, John F. Hinckley attempted
to assassinate Ronald Reagan. [GUN SHOTS] Reagan was shot in the left
lung with a bullet just missing his heart. In the melee, Hinckley also shot
a Secret Service agent, as well as Press Secretary, James
Brady, who was hit in the head and critically wounded. James Brady's injury would
eventually turn into law. 12 years ago, my life
was changed forever by a disturbed young
man with a gun. On November 30 of 1993,
President Bill Clinton, signed the Brady Bill into law. Don't tell me this bill
will not make a difference. That is not true. On April 13, The Washington
Post's Janet Cooke was awarded the Pulitzer Prize
for a feature she wrote titled, Jimmy's World. It was the harrowing
profile of the life of little Jimmy, an
eight-year-old heroin addict. She described the needle marks
freckling the baby smooth skin of his thin brown arms. Shocking, yes. It would have been,
if it was true. Two days after the
prize had been awarded, the Post admitted
they were duped. Cooke resigned and
returned her Pulitzer. AAA baseball teams,
the Pawtucket Red Sox and the Rochester Red Wings,
played the longest game in professional
baseball history. The pitching duel
went 33 innings and lasted 8 hours
and 25 minutes. Over 32 innings were played. By 4:00 AM, the players were
delirious from exhaustion. With 19 fans left in the
bleachers at 4:07 AM, the game was stopped. The 33rd and final ending was
played several months later. Pawtucket won the game 3
to 2, on June 23, 1981. On April 24, the Center
for Disease Control records that Ken Horne,
resident of San Francisco, had Kaposi's sarcoma. Later in 1981, the
CDC would go back and correct Horne's medical
records, retroactively identifying him as the
first patient of the AIDS epidemic in the US. On May 1, Billie Jean
King didn't so much come out of the closet
as she was kicked out by the woman she had a
10-year romantic relationship with while she was
married to a man. King-- already a
world-class tennis champion with five Wimbledon titles
under her belt-- when on May 2, Marilyn Barnett
filed a palimony lawsuit for lifetime support. But I would never out somebody. Oh my god, that's just horrible. On May 1, American
Airlines was the first-- (SINGING) We're American
Airlines, doing what we do best. When they launched American
Airlines Advantage. The first frequent
flyer loyalty program. [MUSIC BEGINS] "Money can't buy life," were Bob
Marley's last words to his son Ziggy. Marley passed from skin cancer. The melanoma had spread from
under his toe, a symptom of already existing cancer, not
by an injury during a football match as the incorrect
reports first stated. Marley was only 36 years
old when he passed. Flash forward to three
years later on May 8 of 1984, when Bob Marley's
Legend would be released, which would end up in just
about every college students music collection ever. On May 13 in St. Peter's
Square in Vatican City, Mehmet Ali Agca attempted to
assassinate Pope John Paul II. The pope was struck four times,
suffering severe blood loss. Agca was immediately
apprehended. Willing to turn the
other cheek, the pope visited Agca in the
prison cell he was to spend the rest of his life. They spoke privately
for some time and the pope said
they became friends. The pope later requested
Agca's pardon in 2000, which Italian officials granted. He said this week that he'd
applied for Polish citizenship, but had been turned down. Originally written
in 1974 for Rod Stewart, "Bette Davis
Eyes" by Kim Carnes, would hit number one on May
16 and stay in the charts for the next nine weeks. (SINGING) You'll find
McRib in the middle is swimming in sauce. It's McRib. Very few fast-food
culinary creations have quite the lore
around them as the McRib. A creation of both
an animal scientist and a fine-dining
chef, the McRib is the fast-food white whale,
appearing seemingly at random and disappearing
just as quickly. McRib would go on to be
on-and-off McDonald's menu for years. First vanishing in 1985-- And only here for
a limited time. [ZOOM SOUND EFFECT] But returning in 1994. This May, its McDonald's
McRib sandwich. [ZOOM SOUND EFFECT] Then doing farewell
tours in 2005. It's McRib time. [ZOOM SOUND EFFECT] 2006-- McRib is back. [ZOOM SOUND EFFECT] And 2007-- It's back! The McRib-- it's hard to be
sad about something that's gone when it's never really left. A daredevil by the
name of Daniel Goodwin climbed the Sears
Tower in Chicago, all while wearing a
spiderman costume on May 25. Goodwin was able to climb
the 1,400 and 54 foot, 110-story building,
not from being bitten by a radioactive spider
but by using suction cups and hooks. After he triumphantly
reached the summit of Sears, Goodwin was greeted
with handcuffs. Spiderman was charged with
misconduct, criminal trespass, and criminal damage to property. Dan Goodwin has captured the
imagination of the public, as well as Sears. The month of June featured a
mix of famous media moments. Goodnight, everybody. Sometimes I feel
I'm scared to live. Snakes. Why'd it have to be snakes? You cannot be serious! That ball was on the line! The shot blew up! The Solar Challenger
succeeded in completing the 165-mile flight across
the English Channel on July 7. It was the world's first
solar-powered airplane to do so. Oh, how sweet it is. Because on the same day,
artificial sweetener, or aspartame, was
approved by the FDA. Two Days later on July 9,
the barrel-throwing gorilla, Donkey Kong, made his
debut appearance in arcades across America. Creator, Shigeru
Miyamoto, was tasked with redesigning a game
called Radar Scope, based on the love triangle between
Popeye, Olive Oil, and Bluto. Nintendo couldn't get the
rights to the character, so that game was repositioned
as a gorilla, a carpenter, and his girlfriend. Flash forward to 1982, when
Donkey Kong Junior debuted. The carpenter would be
changed to a plumber. And his name was switched
to Mr. Video, then Jump Man, and, finally, Mario. Extra fun fact, Mario was
named after Mario Segale-- the landlord of the Nintendo
warehouse in the Seattle area. [DRAMATIC MUSIC] Kurt Russell stars as
Snake Plissken in John Carpenter's science
fiction action-classic -- Escape From New York. On July 17, 1981, two walkways
collapsed at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri--
one directly above the other. They crashed onto an event with
approximately 1,000 guests, which was being held
in the hotel's lobby, killing 114 people and
injuring 216 others. [WEDDING MARCH BEGINS] The OG Royal wedding on July 29,
was between Lady Diana Spencer and Prince Charles,
which was watched by a global TV
audience estimated around 750 million people. This storybook franchise
would last until-- [ZOOM SOUND EFFECT] --August 28, when Di and
Charles's divorce settlement was finalized. Tragedy would strike
almost a year to the day later, when Di perished in an
automobile accident in Paris in late August of 1997. The Mercedes 600,
carrying the princess her Egyptian-companion,
Dodi Al Fayed, emerged from the tunnel a
complete crumpled wreck. If any network defined
the '80s, it was MTV. This is it. Welcome to MTV,
Music Television. On August 1, they
began their run. Back when they actually
featured music videos, the network debuted the
appropriately titled video, "Video Killed the Radio Star." [INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] Brooke Shields, Martin
Hewitt, Endless Love. [MUSIC PICKS UP] On August 3, 1981, the air
traffic controllers union declared a strike. Reagan declared their strike
a peril to national safety and ordered them back to work. And if they do not report
for work within 48 hours, they have forfeited their
jobs and will be terminated. Only 1,300 of the nearly
13,000 controllers returned. How did Reagan respond? Two days later, on
August 5, Reagan fired the 11,345 striking
air traffic controllers who had ignored the
order and banned them from federal service for life. The great communicator indeed. Staying with Reagan, one
day later on August 4, 1981, Oliver North was assigned to the
White House's National Security Council where he
served as a lobbyist focusing his efforts
on Central America. We may hear back from
Oliver in the coming years. (SINGING) Foreshadowing-- [TECHNO MUSIC] The IBM personal computer--
commonly known as the IBM PC-- was introduced on
August 12, 1981. IBM made its personal
computer to help a person be more productive. If your family owned
one in the '80s, you were considered a
neighborhood legend. Now, who knows? It may be the world's
biggest backyard fence to talk over before too long. The first woman to the highest
court in the United States-- Sandra Day O'Connor was
nominated to the Supreme Court by President Reagan
on August 19. The only significant
opposition has come from abortion opponents. The subject of abortion
is a valid one in my view for legislative action,
subject to any constitutional restraints or limitations. Hanna-Barbera, who shaped
America's animated lives with Yogi Bear, the Jetsons,
and Hong Kong Phooey, struck blue gold
with the introduction of Papa Smurf, Brainy, and
Smurfette on September 12, 1981. [SINGING "SMURFS" THEME] La,
la, la la-la-la la, la-la-la la. Now, try to get that
out of your head. I'll get you. I'll get all of you, if it's
the last thing I ever do! [EVIL LAUGH] Oops! Switching channels, two days
later, on September 14-- What you are witnessing is real. The People's Court. The honorable Judge
Joseph Wapner. If you had the dog on a leash. Rusty, his faithful bailiff. I have seen a lot
of bull in court. And mild-mannered
announcer, Doug Llewelyn-- Don't resort to taking the
law into your own hands. --were the debut lineup for the
long-running People's Court. Los Angeles Dodgers
pitcher and rookie-phenom, Fernando Valenzuela, threw his
eighth shutout of the season, tying a 68-year-old record
set in 1913 by Reb Russell of the Chicago White Sox. Recorded by Olivia Newton-John
and released as a single on September 28, "Physical,"
not only flew to number one on the US Billboard Hot 100,
it stayed there for 10 weeks-- an '80s record. Sticking with music,
a relatively unknown multi-instrumentalist
by the name of Prince was the opener for
the Rolling Stones at the Coliseum in Los Angeles. The sun-baked Stones
audience was rowdy, booing Prince off the stage,
pelting him with bottles, fruit, coins, and food. [ZOOM SOUND EFFECT] Flash forward to June 25, 1984,
when Purple Rain would debut. The album would go on to
sell over 17 million copies throughout the '80s. On October 20, the Weather
Underground Organization-- commonly known as, The
Weather Underground-- had three of its members arrested
after the robbery of a Brinks armored car at the Nanuet
Mall in Nanuet, New York. The trio stole 1.6
million in cash, killed a Brinks guard,
two police officers, and wounded several bystanders. [ROCK MUSIC] Although Lars Ulrich met James
Hetfield five months earlier, when he answered an ad the
drummer placed in The Recycler looking for other metal
musicians to jam with, Metallica became a band
on October 28, 1981. The band would
play its first gig on March 14, 1982, at Radio
City in Anaheim, California. A couple months
later, after they recruited Dave Mustaine
as the lead guitarist. On November 16, 1981, soap
opera, General Hospital, presented the marriage
of Luke and Laura, which was watched by
30 million viewers and remains the highest rated
hour in American daytime soap opera history. [RECESSIONAL WEDDING SONG] We go to a yacht, off the
coast of Catalina Island, where on November 29
actress, Natalie Wood, was on a yacht with her
husband, actor Robert Wagner, her friend,
actor, Christopher Walken, and the yacht's
captain, when she mysteriously disappeared in the
middle of the night. Wood's body was found a
mile away the next morning. And her death was ruled
an accidental drowning, despite a litany
of suspicious facts and contradictory accounts
from her three companions. Now, we've said
from the beginning, that we don't think she
was knocked unconscious when she went in the water. The LA County coroner ruled,
Natalie Wood's death-- That it was an
accidental drowning. [ZOOM SOUND EFFECT] However, when the case
was reopened in 2011, the new report could not
conclude whether or not Wood's injuries were accidental. Wagner and Walken
have always maintained they don't know what happened. Her cause of death was changed
from accidental drowning to undetermined. More true crime-- after spending
nearly five months on the run, adult film star, John Holmes,
was arrested in Florida, on December 4, 1981, for his
involvement in the June 29, home invasion, armed
robbery, and murder, of a small gang of big
time drug dealers-- which would become known,
as the Wonderland Murders. It was on December 11,
Muhammad Ali's days as a boxer ended with a loss
to Trevor Berbick. It was estimated
that the Champ-- who was already showing signs
of Parkinson's in 1981-- had absorbed 200,000
hits during his career. Unanimous decision
for Trevor Berbick! As far as Trevor
Berbick goes, we'll see his part in the
boxing record books later. But, that's for another year. We're going to 1982 next. Where a future of sports
icon would get his first shot on the biggest stage, a
weather man from Indiana would change late-night
TV, and America would start dancing to zombies. Until then, this has been,
Weird History's TIMELINE. Got a deal. Good. I'm putting you down
to deal with Dick. Dick, what's the
deal with the deal? Are we dealing? We're dealing. Dave it's a deal
with Don, Dr. Dick. So what do you think? What was your favorite
memory of 1981? Let us know in the
comments below. And while you're
at it, check out some of these other, Only
About the 1980s videos from our Weird History.
Excellent program! Think 🤔 they r up 2 ‘85 on YouTube. Weird History