Time Line
Additional dates on legislation, U.S. Supreme Court cases, films, television shows, plays, literature, popular
music, and sports can be found in other appendixes.
1990
International events:(Jan. 3) After taking refuge at
the Vatican embassy in Panama, former Panama-
nian leader Manuel Noriega surrenders to Ameri-
can military forces. He will later be tried in the
United States for drug trafficking, racketeering,
and money laundering. (Feb. 11) Nelson Man-
dela is released from a prison near Cape Town,
South Africa, after being imprisoned for twenty-
seven years. (Jun. 1) President George H. W. Bush
and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev sign a treaty
agreeing to end the production of chemical
weapons and destroy their stocks of these arma-
ments. (Oct. 3) East Germany and West Germany
reunify into a single nation. (Dec. 16) After three
decades of military rule, Jean-Bertrand Aristide
becomes the first democratically elected presi-
dent of Haiti.
Government and politics: (Jan. 14) L. Douglas
Wilder, the first African American to be elected a
state governor, takes office in Virginia. (Jun. 26)
President Bush agrees that tax increases are
needed to reduce the federal budget deficit, thus
breaking his campaign promise of “no new
taxes.” (Jul. 26) President Bush signs the Ameri-
cans with Disabilities Act, which guarantees equal
opportunity for disabled individuals in public
accommodations, employment, transportation,
state and local government services, and telecom-
munications.
Military and war:(Aug. 2) Iraq invades Kuwait, the
first step in what will eventually become the Gulf
War. (Sept. 11) In a nationally televised speech,
President Bush threatens to use force to remove
Iraqi soldiers from Kuwait. (Nov. 29) The United
Nations Security Council passes a resolution au-
thorizing military intervention in Iraq if that na-
tion does not withdraw its forces from Kuwait and
free all foreign hostages by January 15, 1991.
Society:(Apr. 6) Robert Mapplethorpe’s exhibit of
nude and homosexual photographs opens at the
Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center despite
accusations of indecency by Citizens for Com-
munity Values and others. (Jul. 25) Comedian
Roseanne Barr stirs controversy when she sings
an off-key version of “The Star Spangled Banner”
at a baseball game.
Business and economics:(Jan. 10) Time Warner is
formed from the merger of Time Inc. and
Warner Communications Inc. (Jan. 31) In an-
other sign that the Cold War is ending, McDon-
ald’s opens its first restaurant in Moscow.
Transportation and communications:(Dec. 1) Brit-
ish and French crews constructing the Channel
Tunnel, an undersea railway tunnel linking En-
gland and France, meet in the middle of the tun-
nel as they break through the last rock obstruct-
ing construction.
Science and technology: (Apr. 24) The Hubble
Space Telescope is launched aboard space shuttle
Discover y. (Nov. 12) Tim Berners-Lee, a developer
at the European Organization for Nuclear Re-
search (better known as CERN), implements the
World Wide Web by successfully communicating
between a client and server via the Internet.
Environment and health:(Feb. 27) Exxon and its
shipping company are indicted on five criminal
counts in connection with theExxon Valdezoil
spill, which took place in Port William Sound,
Alaska, on March 24, 1989. In response to the
spill, the U.S. Congress enacts the Oil Pollution
Act of 1990. (May 17) The World Health Organi-
zation removes homosexuality from its list of dis-
eases. (Sept. 14) Gene therapy is used for the first
time by the National Institutes of Health in
the treatment of a four-year-old girl with adeno-
sine deaminase (ADA) deficiency, a genetic dis-
ease which left her unable to defend infections.
(Nov. 15) The U.S. Congress amends the Clean
Air Act, adding provisions to control acid rain and
prohibit the use of leaded gasoline in motor vehi-
cles by the end of 1995.
Arts and literature:The New Revised Standard Version
of the Bibleis published in the United States.The
Plains of Passageby Jean Auel is the year’s best-
selling fiction book, whileA Life on the Roadby
Charles Kuralt sells the most copies among non-
fiction titles. (Apr. 16)The Piano Lessonopens on
Broadway, where it will run for 320 performances.
The play earns its author, August Wilson, a 1990