Transportation and communications:(Aug. 4) The
FCC rescinds the Fairness Doctrine, which re-
quired radio and television stations to “fairly”
present controversial issues. (Aug. 16) Northwest
Airlines Flight 255 crashes as it takes off from De-
troit Metropolitan Airport, killing all but 1 of its
156 passengers.
Science and technology:(Feb. 23) Supernova 1987A
is observed—the first supernova visible to the na-
ked eye since 1604. (Sept. 7-21) The world’s first
conference on artificial life is held at Los Alamos
National Laboratory in New Mexico.
Environment and health:(May 11) The first heart-
lung transplant is performed in Baltimore. (Aug.
4) The World Commission on Environment and
Development, also known as the Brundtland Com-
mission, publishes a report,Our Common Future,
which seeks to discuss the environment and de-
velopment as a single issue. (Dec. 29) Prozac, an
antidepressant, becomes available in the United
States.
Arts and literature:Beloved, a novel by Toni Morri-
son, is nominated for both the National Book
Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award;
it does not win either award but receives the 1988
Pulitzer Prize for fiction.The Bonfire of the Vanities,
Tom Wolfe’s novel about New York City in the
1980’s, is published in book form after being seri-
alized inRolling Stone.(Mar. 12)Les Misérables
opens on Broadway; it later wins eight 1987 Tony
Awards, including Best Musical.
Popular culture:(Jan. 3) Aretha Franklin becomes
the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame. (Apr. 19) The Simpsons, an ani-
mated dysfunctional family, make their first ap-
pearance onThe Tracy Ullman Show. (Jul. 1) The
first Edgefest, an annual rock festival that primar-
ily promotes Canadian music, is staged at Molson
Park in Barrie, Ontario.
Sports:(Jan. 25) The New York Giants defeat the
Denver Broncos, 39-20, in Super Bowl XXI, win-
ning the NFL championship for the first time
since 1956. (Mar. 29) WrestleMania III is held at
the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan, set-
ting the North American indoor attendance rec-
ord at 93,173. (Apr. 30) NASCAR driver Bill
Elliott sets the record for fastest lap at Talladega
Motor Speedway at 211 miles, or 340 kilometers,
per hour. (Oct. 25) Winning only eight-five games
in the regular season, the Minnesota Twins sur-
prise baseball fans by defeating the St. Louis Car-
dinals to win the World Series.
Crime:(Jan. 13) Fat Tony and Carmine Peruccia,
two members of the New York City Mafia, are sen-
tenced to one hundred years in prison for racke-
teering. (Jul. 4) A court in Lyon, France, sen-
tences former Gestapo boss Klaus Barbie to life
imprisonment for crimes against humanity.1988
International events:(Jan. 1) Soviet premier Mikhail
Gorbachev initiates perestroika, a program of
economic restructuring. (May 15) The Soviet
Union withdraws from Afghanistan after more
than eight years of war. (Aug. 20) The Iran-Iraq
war ends; an estimated one million people were
killed in the eight-year conflict. (Nov. 15) An in-
dependent state of Palestine is proclaimed at the
Palestinian National Council meeting in Algiers.
(Dec. 2) Benazir Bhutto is sworn in as prime min-
ister of Pakistan, the first woman to head the gov-
ernment of an Islamic country.
Government and politics:(Feb. 3) The House of
Representatives denies President Reagan’s request
for $36.25 million to support the Nicaraguan
Contras. (Feb. 12) Anthony Kennedy is appointed
to the Supreme Court. (Jul. 20) The Democratic
National Convention in Atlanta nominates Mi-
chael Dukakis for president and Senator Lloyd
Bentsen for vice president. (Aug. 18) The Repub-
lican National Convention in New Orleans nomi-
nates Vice President George H. W. Bush for presi-
dent and Senator Dan Quayle for vice president.
(Oct. 5) During a vice presidential debate, Quayle
maintains that he has as much government expe-
rience as John F. Kennedy did when he ran for
president in 1960; Bentsen, his Democratic oppo-
nent, elicits a positive audience response when he
replies, “Senator, I knew Jack Kennedy. I served
with Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of
mine. Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy.” (Nov. 8)
Bush is elected president of the United States.
(Nov. 21) Brian Mulroney and the Progressive
Conservative Party of Canada win a second major-
ity government.
Military and war:(Mar. 8) Two U.S. Army helicop-
ters collide in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, killing
seventeen servicemen. (Jul. 3) Iran Air Flight
655 is shot down by missiles launched from the
USSVincennes. (Nov. 22) The initial prototype ofThe Eighties in America Time Line 1153