File:1980s replacement montage02.PNG, 335px, From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable launch system, reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. ...
, '' Columbia'', lifts off in 1981; US president Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
and Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
leader
Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations.
"Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...
ease tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War
End, END, Ending, or ENDS may refer to:
End Mathematics
*End (category theory)
* End (topology)
* End (graph theory)
* End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous)
* End (endomorphism) Sports and games
*End (gridiron football)
*End, a division ...
; The fall of the Berlin Wall
The fall of the Berlin Wall (, ) on 9 November in German history, 9 November 1989, during the Peaceful Revolution, marked the beginning of the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the figurative Iron Curtain, as East Berlin transit restrictions we ...
in 1989 is considered to be one of the most momentous events of the 1980s; In 1981, the IBM Personal Computer
The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible ''de facto'' standard. Released on August 12, 1981, it was created by a ...
is released; In 1985, the Live Aid
Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...
concert is held in order to fund relief efforts for the famine in Ethiopia during the time Mengistu Haile Mariam
Mengistu Haile Mariam (, pronunciation: ; born 21 May 1937) is an Ethiopian former politician, revolutionary, and military officer who served as the head of state of Ethiopia from 1977 to 1991. He was General Secretary of the Workers' Party o ...
ruled the country; Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause harm. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the component ...
and ecological problems persisted when the Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
and much of the world is filled with radioactive debris from the 1986 Chernobyl disaster
On 26 April 1986, the no. 4 reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, located near Pripyat, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now Ukraine), exploded. With dozens of direct casualties, it is one of only ...
, and in 1984, when thousands of people perished in Bhopal
Bhopal (; ISO 15919, ISO: Bhōpāl, ) is the capital (political), capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes,'' due to ...
during a gas leak from a pesticide plant; The Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...
leads to over one million dead and $1 trillion spent, while another war between the Soviets and Afghans leaves over 2 million dead.
rect 2 3 199 169 Space Shuttle Columbia
Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' (OV-102) was a Space Shuttle orbiter manufactured by Rockwell International and operated by NASA. Named after the Columbia Rediviva, first American ship to circumnavigate the globe, and the Columbia (personification) ...
rect 201 1 497 171 End of the Cold War
End, END, Ending, or ENDS may refer to:
End Mathematics
*End (category theory)
* End (topology)
* End (graph theory)
* End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous)
* End (endomorphism) Sports and games
*End (gridiron football)
*End, a division ...
rect 1 172 118 336 Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...
rect 120 172 241 336 Soviet War in Afghanistan
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
rect 246 173 506 336 Fall of the Berlin Wall
The fall of the Berlin Wall (, ) on 9 November in German history, 9 November 1989, during the Peaceful Revolution, marked the beginning of the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the figurative Iron Curtain, as East Berlin transit restrictions we ...
rect 123 337 223 525 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia
A widespread Famines in Ethiopia, famine affected Ethiopia from 1983 to 1985. The worst famine to hit the country in a century, it affected 7.75 million people (out of Ethiopia's 38–40 million) or 1/5 of the population and left approximately ...
rect 123 337 323 525 Live Aid
Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...
rect 326 338 510 536 IBM Personal Computer
The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible ''de facto'' standard. Released on August 12, 1981, it was created by a ...
rect 0 339 121 515 Chernobyl disaster
On 26 April 1986, the no. 4 reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, located near Pripyat, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now Ukraine), exploded. With dozens of direct casualties, it is one of only ...
The 1980s (pronounced "nineteen-eighties", shortened to "the '80s" or "the Eighties") was the decade that began on January 1, 1980, and ended on December 31, 1989.
The decade saw a dominance of
conservatism
Conservatism is a Philosophy of culture, cultural, Social philosophy, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, Convention (norm), customs, and Value (ethics and social science ...
and
free market
In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...
economics, and a socioeconomic change due to advances in technology and a worldwide move away from
planned economies
A planned economy is a type of economic system where investment, production and the allocation of capital goods takes place according to economy-wide economic plans and production plans. A planned economy may use centralized, decentralized, ...
and towards
laissez-faire capitalism
''Laissez-faire'' ( , from , ) is a type of economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies or regulations). As a system of thought, ''laissez-faire' ...
compared to the 1970s. As economic deconstruction increased in the developed world, multiple
multinational corporations
A multinational corporation (MNC; also called a multinational enterprise (MNE), transnational enterprise (TNE), transnational corporation (TNC), international corporation, or stateless corporation, is a corporate organization that owns and cont ...
associated with the manufacturing industry relocated into
Thailand
Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
, Mexico,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
,
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
, and China. Japan and
West Germany
West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...
saw large economic growth during this decade. The
AIDS epidemic
The global pandemic of HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) began in 1981, and is an ongoing worldwide public health issue. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), by 2023, HIV/AIDS ...
became recognized in the 1980s and has since killed an estimated 40.4 million people ().
Global warming
Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes ...
theory began to spread within the scientific and political community in the 1980s.
The United Kingdom and the United States moved closer to
supply-side economic policies, beginning a trend towards global instability of international trade that would pick up more steam in the
following decade as the fall of the USSR made
right-wing
Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...
economic policy more powerful.
The
final decade of the Cold War opened with the US-Soviet confrontation continuing largely without any interruption. Superpower tensions escalated rapidly as President Reagan scrapped the policy of détente and adopted a new, much more aggressive stance on the Soviet Union. The world came perilously close to nuclear war for the first time since the
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis () in Cuba, or the Caribbean Crisis (), was a 13-day confrontation between the governments of the United States and the Soviet Union, when American deployments of Nuclear weapons d ...
in 1962, but
the second half of the decade saw a dramatic easing of superpower tensions and ultimately the total collapse of Soviet communism.
Developing countries across the world faced economic and social difficulties as they suffered from multiple debt crises in the 1980s, requiring many of these countries to apply for financial assistance from the
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...
(IMF) and the
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...
.
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
witnessed
widespread famine in the mid-1980s during the corrupt rule of
Mengistu Haile Mariam
Mengistu Haile Mariam (, pronunciation: ; born 21 May 1937) is an Ethiopian former politician, revolutionary, and military officer who served as the head of state of Ethiopia from 1977 to 1991. He was General Secretary of the Workers' Party o ...
, resulting in the country having to depend on foreign aid to provide food to its population and worldwide efforts to address and raise money to help Ethiopians, such as the
Live Aid
Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...
concert in 1985.
Major civil discontent and violence occurred, including the
Angolan Civil War
The Angolan Civil War () was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. It was a power struggle between two for ...
, the
Ethiopian Civil War
The Ethiopian Civil War was a civil war in Ethiopia and present-day Eritrea, fought between the Ethiopian military junta known as the Derg and Ethiopian-Eritrean anti-government rebels from 12 September 1974 to 28 May 1991.
The Derg overthre ...
, the
Moro conflict
The Moro conflictFernandez, Maria. (2017). Implementing Peace and Development in the Bangsamoro: Potentials and Constraints of Socio-Economic Programs for Conflict-Affected Areas in Southern Philippines (1913-2015). 10.13140/RG.2.2.14829.3376 ...
, the
Salvadoran Civil War
The Salvadoran Civil War () was a twelve-year civil war in El Salvador that was fought between the government of El Salvador, backed by the United States, and the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), a coalition of left-wing guer ...
, the
Ugandan Bush War
The Ugandan Bush War was a civil war fought in Uganda by the official Ugandan government and its armed wing, the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA), against a number of rebel groups, most importantly the National Resistance Army (NRA), from 19 ...
, the
insurgency in Laos
The insurgency in Laos was a low-intensity conflict between the Laotian government on one side and former members of the Secret Army, Laotian royalists, and rebels from the Hmong and lowland Lao ethnic minorities on the other. These group ...
, the
Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...
, the
Soviet–Afghan War
The Soviet–Afghan War took place in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan from December 1979 to February 1989. Marking the beginning of the 46-year-long Afghan conflict, it saw the Soviet Union and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic o ...
, the
1982 Lebanon War
The 1982 Lebanon War, also called the Second Israeli invasion of Lebanon, began on 6 June 1982, when Israel invaded southern Lebanon. The invasion followed a series of attacks and counter-attacks between the Palestine Liberation Organization ...
, the
Falklands War
The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...
, the
Second Sudanese Civil War
The Second Sudanese Civil War was a conflict from 1983 to 2005 between the central Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement, Sudan People's Liberation Army. It was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil Wa ...
, the
Lord's Resistance Army insurgency
The Lord's Resistance Army insurgency is an ongoing conflict between the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a Ugandan militant religious extremist group, against the government of Uganda. Following the War in Uganda (1986–1994), Ugandan Civil War, ...
, and the
First Nagorno-Karabakh War
The First Nagorno-Karabakh War was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nag ...
.
Islamism
Islamism is a range of religious and political ideological movements that believe that Islam should influence political systems. Its proponents believe Islam is innately political, and that Islam as a political system is superior to communism ...
became a powerful political force in the 1980s and many
jihadist
Jihadism is a neologism for modern, armed militant Political aspects of Islam, Islamic movements that seek to Islamic state, establish states based on Islamic principles. In a narrower sense, it refers to the belief that armed confrontation ...
organizations, including
Al Qaeda
, image = Flag of Jihad.svg
, caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions
, founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden
, leaders = {{Plainlist,
* Osama bin Lad ...
, were set up.
By 1986, nationalism was making a comeback in the Eastern Bloc, and the desire for democracy in
socialist state
A socialist state, socialist republic, or socialist country is a sovereign state constitutionally dedicated to the establishment of socialism. This article is about states that refer to themselves as socialist states, and not specifically ...
s, combined with economic recession, resulted in
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...
's
glasnost
''Glasnost'' ( ; , ) is a concept relating to openness and transparency. It has several general and specific meanings, including a policy of maximum openness in the activities of state institutions and freedom of information and the inadmissi ...
and
perestroika
''Perestroika'' ( ; rus, перестройка, r=perestrojka, p=pʲɪrʲɪˈstrojkə, a=ru-perestroika.ogg, links=no) was a political reform movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during the late 1980s, widely associ ...
, which reduced Communist Party power, legalized dissent and sanctioned limited forms of capitalism such as
joint venture
A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...
s with companies from
capitalist
Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...
countries. After tension for most of the decade, by 1988 relations between the communist and capitalist blocs had improved significantly and the Soviet Union was increasingly unwilling to defend its governments in satellite states.
1989 brought the
overthrow and attempted overthrow of a number of governments led by communist parties, such as in
Hungary
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
, the
Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
The Tiananmen Square protests, known within China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, lasting from 15 April to 4 June 1989. After weeks of unsuccessful attempts between t ...
in China, the
Czechoslovak "Velvet Revolution",
Erich Honecker
Erich Ernst Paul Honecker (; 25 August 1912 – 29 May 1994) was a German communist politician who led the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1971 until shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. He held the post ...
's East German regime, Poland's Soviet-backed government, and
the violent overthrow of the
Nicolae Ceaușescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu ( ; ; – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian politician who was the second and last Communism, communist leader of Socialist Romania, Romania, serving as the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 u ...
regime in
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
. Destruction of the 155-km
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall (, ) was a guarded concrete Separation barrier, barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germany). Construction of the B ...
, at the end of the decade, signaled a seismic geopolitical shift. The
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
ended in the early 1990s with the successful
Reunification of Germany
German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the German Democratic Republic and the integration of i ...
and the
USSR's demise after the
August Coup
The 1991 Soviet coup attempt, also known as the August Coup, was a failed attempt by hardliners of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) to Coup d'état, forcibly seize control of the country from Mikhail Gorbachev, who was President ...
of 1991.
The 1980s was an era of tremendous population growth around the world, surpassing the 1970s and 1990s, and arguably being the largest in human history. During the 1980s, the world population grew from 4.4 to 5.3 billion people. There were approximately 1.33 billion births and 480 million deaths. Population growth was particularly rapid in a number of African, Middle Eastern, and South Asian countries during this decade, with rates of natural increase close to or exceeding 4% annually. The 1980s saw the advent of the ongoing practice of
sex-selective abortion in China and India as
ultrasound
Ultrasound is sound with frequency, frequencies greater than 20 Hertz, kilohertz. This frequency is the approximate upper audible hearing range, limit of human hearing in healthy young adults. The physical principles of acoustic waves apply ...
technology permitted parents to selectively abort baby girls.
The 1980s saw great advances in genetic and digital technology. After years of animal experimentation since 1985, the first genetic modification of 10 adult human beings took place in May 1989, a
gene tagging experiment which led to the first true gene therapy implementation in September 1990. The first "
designer babies", a pair of female twins, were created in a laboratory in late 1989 and born in July 1990 after being sex-selected via the controversial
assisted reproductive technology
Assisted reproductive technology (ART) includes medical procedures used primarily to address infertility. This subject involves procedures such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), and cryopreservation of ga ...
procedure
preimplantation genetic diagnosis
Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD or PIGD) is the genetic profiling of embryos prior to implantation (as a form of embryo profiling), and sometimes even of oocytes prior to fertilization. PGD is considered in a similar fashion to prenatal ...
.
Gestational surrogacy
Surrogacy is an arrangement whereby a woman gets pregnant and gives birth on behalf of another person or couple who will become the child's legal parents after birth. People pursue surrogacy for a variety of reasons such as infertility, danger ...
was first performed in 1985 with the first birth in 1986, making it possible for a woman to become a biological mother without experiencing pregnancy for the first time in history.
The global
internet
The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...
took shape in academia by the second half of the 1980s, as well as many other
computer network
A computer network is a collection of communicating computers and other devices, such as printers and smart phones. In order to communicate, the computers and devices must be connected by wired media like copper cables, optical fibers, or b ...
s of both academic and commercial use such as
USENET
Usenet (), a portmanteau of User's Network, is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose UUCP, Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Elli ...
,
Fidonet
__
/ \
/, oo \
(_, /_)
_`@/_ \ _
, , \ \\
, (*) , \ ))
______ , __U__, / \//
/ FI ...
, and the
bulletin board system
A bulletin board system (BBS), also called a computer bulletin board service (CBBS), is a computer server running list of BBS software, software that allows users to connect to the system using a terminal program. Once logged in, the user perfor ...
. By 1989, the Internet and the networks linked to it were a global system with extensive transoceanic satellite links and nodes in most
developed countries
A developed country, or advanced country, is a sovereign state that has a high quality of life, developed economy, and advanced technological infrastructure relative to other less industrialized nations. Most commonly, the criteria for eval ...
. Based on earlier work, from 1980 onwards
Tim Berners-Lee
Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee (born 8 June 1955), also known as TimBL, is an English computer scientist best known as the inventor of the World Wide Web, the HTML markup language, the URL system, and HTTP. He is a professorial research fellow a ...
formalized the concept of the
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW or simply the Web) is an information system that enables Content (media), content sharing over the Internet through user-friendly ways meant to appeal to users beyond Information technology, IT specialists and hobbyis ...
by 1989.
Television
Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
viewing became commonplace in the
Third World
The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO or the Warsaw Pact. The United States, Canada, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, the Southern Cone, NATO, Western European countries and oth ...
, with the number of TV sets in China and India increasing by 15 and 10 times respectively.
The
Atari Video Computer System
The Atari 2600 is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS), it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridg ...
console became widespread in the first part of the decade, often simply called "Atari". The 1980 Atari VCS port of ''
Space Invaders
is a 1978 shoot 'em up video game developed and published by Taito for Arcade video game, arcades. It was released in Japan in April 1978, with the game being released by Midway Manufacturing overseas. ''Space Invaders'' was the first fixed s ...
'' was its first
killer app
A killer application (often shortened to killer app) is any software that is so necessary or desirable that it proves the core value of some larger technology, such as its host computer hardware, video game console, software platform, or operati ...
. The
video game crash of 1983
The video game crash of 1983 (known in Japan as the Atari shock) was a large-scale recession in the video game industry that occurred from 1983 to 1985 in the United States. The crash was attributed to several factors, including market saturatio ...
ended the system's popularity and decimated the industry until the
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the and was later released as the redesigned NES in several test markets in the ...
re-established the console market in North America. The hand-held
Game Boy
The is a handheld game console developed by Nintendo, launched in the Japanese home market on April 21, 1989, followed by North America later that year and other territories from 1990 onwards. Following the success of the Game & Watch single-ga ...
launched in 1989. ''
Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 Platformer, platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). It is the successor to the 1983 arcade game ''Mario Bros.'' and the first game in the ''Super Mario'' series. It was origi ...
'' and ''
Tetris
''Tetris'' () is a puzzle video game created in 1985 by Alexey Pajitnov, a Soviet software engineer. In ''Tetris'', falling tetromino shapes must be neatly sorted into a pile; once a horizontal line of the game board is filled in, it disa ...
'' were the decade's best selling games. ''
Pac-Man
''Pac-Man,'' originally called in Japan, is a 1980 maze video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. The pla ...
'' was the highest grossing arcade game.
Home computers
Home computers were a class of microcomputers that entered the market in 1977 and became common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a s ...
became commonplace. The 1981
IBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the List of IBM Personal Computer models, IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible ''de facto'' standard. Released on ...
led to a large market for
IBM PC compatible
An IBM PC compatible is any personal computer that is hardware- and software-compatible with the IBM Personal Computer (IBM PC) and its subsequent models. Like the original IBM PC, an IBM PC–compatible computer uses an x86-based central p ...
s. The 1984 release of the
Macintosh
Mac is a brand of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple since 1984. The name is short for Macintosh (its official name until 1999), a reference to the McIntosh (apple), McIntosh apple. The current product lineup inclu ...
popularized the
WIMP
WiMP is a music streaming service available on mobile devices, tablets, network players and computers. WiMP, standing for "Wireless Music Player," was a music streaming service that emphasized high-quality audio. WiMP offered music and podcast ...
style of interaction.
Politics and wars
Wars
The most prominent
armed conflict
War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...
s of the decade include:
International wars

The most notable wars of the decade include:
* The
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
(1947–1991)
**
Soviet–Afghan War
The Soviet–Afghan War took place in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan from December 1979 to February 1989. Marking the beginning of the 46-year-long Afghan conflict, it saw the Soviet Union and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic o ...
(1979–1989) – a war fought between the Soviet Union and the Islamist Mujahideen Resistance in Afghanistan. The Mujahideen found other support from a variety of sources including the
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
of the United States (see
Operation Cyclone
Operation Cyclone was the code name for the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) program to arm and finance the Afghan mujahideen in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1992, prior to and during the military intervention by the USSR in support ...
), as well as
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
, Pakistan and other Muslim nations through the context of the Cold War and the regional India–Pakistan conflict.
**
Invasion of Grenada
The United States and a Caribbean Peace Force, coalition of Caribbean countries invaded the small island nation of Grenada, north of Venezuela, at dawn on 25 October 1983. Codenamed Operation Urgent Fury by the U.S. military, it resulted in m ...
(1983) – a 1983 US led invasion of
Grenada
Grenada is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The southernmost of the Windward Islands, Grenada is directly south of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and about north of Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad and the So ...
, triggered by a
military coup
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
which ousted a brief
revolution
In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...
ary government. The successful invasion led to a change of government but was controversial due to charges of
American imperialism
U.S. imperialism or American imperialism is the expansion of political, economic, cultural, media, and military influence beyond the boundaries of the United States. Depending on the commentator, it may include imperialism through outright mi ...
,
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
politics, the involvement of
Cuba
Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
, the unstable state of the Grenadian government, and Grenada's status as a
Commonwealth realm
A Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state in the Commonwealth of Nations that has the same constitutional monarch and head of state as the other realms. The current monarch is King Charles III. Except for the United Kingdom, in each of the re ...
.
**
Salvadoran Civil War
The Salvadoran Civil War () was a twelve-year civil war in El Salvador that was fought between the government of El Salvador, backed by the United States, and the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), a coalition of left-wing guer ...
(1980–1992) – part of the cold war conflicts, reached its peak in the 1980s, 70,000 Salvadorans died.
**
Cambodian–Vietnamese War
The Cambodian–Vietnamese War was an armed conflict between Democratic Kampuchea, controlled by Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge, and the Vietnam, Socialist Republic of Vietnam. It began in December 1978, with a Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia which to ...
(1978–1991)
* Argentina
invaded the
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands (; ), commonly referred to as The Falklands, is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and from Cape Dub ...
, sparking the
Falklands War
The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...
. It occurred from 2 April to 14 July 1982, between the United Kingdom and
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
as British forces fought to recover the islands. Britain emerged victorious and its stance in international affairs and its long-decaying reputation as a
colonial power
Colonialism is the control of another territory, natural resources and people by a foreign group. Colonizers control the political and tribal power of the colonised territory. While frequently an imperialist project, colonialism can also take ...
received an unexpected boost. The
military junta
A military junta () is a system of government led by a committee of military leaders. The term ''Junta (governing body), junta'' means "meeting" or "committee" and originated in the Junta (Peninsular War), national and local junta organized by t ...
of Argentina, on the other hand, was left humiliated by the defeat; and its leader
Leopoldo Galtieri
Leopoldo Fortunato Galtieri Castelli (15 July 1926 12 January 2003) was an Argentine military officer who served as the ''de facto'' President of Argentina from December 1981 to June 1982. Galtieri ruled as a military dictator, military ruler d ...
was deposed three days after the end of the war. A military investigation known as the Rattenbach Report even recommended his execution.
*
Arab–Israeli conflict
The Arab–Israeli conflict is a geopolitical phenomenon involving military conflicts and a variety of disputes between Israel and many Arab world, Arab countries. It is largely rooted in the historically supportive stance of the Arab League ...
(early 20th century – present)
**
1982 Lebanon War
The 1982 Lebanon War, also called the Second Israeli invasion of Lebanon, began on 6 June 1982, when Israel invaded southern Lebanon. The invasion followed a series of attacks and counter-attacks between the Palestine Liberation Organization ...
– the
Government of Israel
The Cabinet of Israel (; ) is the cabinet which exercises Executive (government), executive authority in the State of Israel. It consists of Minister (government), ministers who are chosen and led by the Prime Minister of Israel, prime ministe ...
ordered the invasion as a response to the assassination attempt against Israel's ambassador to the United Kingdom,
Shlomo Argov, by the
Abu Nidal Organization
The Abu Nidal Organization (ANO; ), officially Fatah – Revolutionary Council ( ), was a Palestinian militant group founded by Abu Nidal in 1974. It broke away from Fatah, a faction within the Palestine Liberation Organization, following t ...
and due to the constant terror attacks on northern Israel made by the terrorist organizations which resided in Lebanon. After attacking the
PLO
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinian people in both the occupied Palestinian territories and the diaspora. ...
, as well as
Syria
Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
n, leftist and
Muslim
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
Lebanese forces, Israel occupied southern Lebanon and eventually surrounded the
PLO
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinian people in both the occupied Palestinian territories and the diaspora. ...
in west
Beirut
Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
and subjected to heavy bombardment, they negotiated passage from Lebanon.
** In October 1985 eight Israeli
F-15 Eagles carried out
Operation Wooden Leg intending to bomb the
PLO
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinian people in both the occupied Palestinian territories and the diaspora. ...
's new headquarters in
Tunis
Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...
,
Tunisia
Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...
, more than 2,000 km from Israel. The attack was later condemned by the
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
. The United States is thought to have assisted or known of the attack.
* The
Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...
took place from 1980 to 1988.
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
was accused of using illegal
chemical weapons
A chemical weapon (CW) is a specialized munition that uses chemicals formulated to inflict death or harm on humans. According to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), this can be any chemical compound intended as ...
to kill
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
ian forces and against its own dissident
Kurdish
Kurdish may refer to:
*Kurds or Kurdish people
*Kurdish language
** Northern Kurdish (Kurmanji)
**Central Kurdish (Sorani)
**Southern Kurdish
** Laki Kurdish
*Kurdish alphabets
*Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:
**Southern ...
populations. Both sides suffered enormous casualties, but the poorly equipped Iranian armies suffered worse for it, being forced to use soldiers as young as 15 in human-wave attacks. Iran finally agreed to an armistice in 1988.
* The United States launched an
aerial bombardment of Libya in 1986 in retaliation for Libyan support of terrorism and attacks on US personnel in Germany and Turkey.
* The
South African Border War
The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...
between South Africa and the alliance of
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...
,
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...
and
Zambia
Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...
ended in 1989, ending over thirty years of conflict.
* The United States engaged in significant direct and indirect conflict in the decade via alliances with various groups in a number of Central and South American countries claiming that the US was acting to oppose the spread of
communism
Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...
and end illicit drug trade.
** The US government supported the government of
Colombia's attempts to destroy its large illicit
cocaine
Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...
-trafficking industry and provided support for right-wing military government in the
Salvadoran civil war
The Salvadoran Civil War () was a twelve-year civil war in El Salvador that was fought between the government of El Salvador, backed by the United States, and the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), a coalition of left-wing guer ...
which became controversial after the
El Mozote massacre on 11 December 1981, in which US trained Salvadoran paramilitaries killed 1000 Salvadoran civilians.
** The United States, along with members of the
Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS; French: ''Organisation des États de la Caraïbe orientale'', OECO) is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to economic harmonisation and integration, protection of human and legal ...
,
invaded Grenada
Grenada is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The southernmost of the Windward Islands, Grenada is directly south of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and about north of Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad and the So ...
in 1983.
** The
Iran–Contra affair
The Iran–Contra affair (; ), also referred to as the Iran–Contra scandal, the Iran Initiative, or simply Iran–Contra, was a political scandal in the United States that centered on arms trafficking to Iran between 1981 and 1986, facilitat ...
erupted which involved US interventionism supporting the
Contras
In the history of Nicaragua, the Contras (Spanish: ''La contrarrevolución'', the counter-revolution) were the right-wing militias who waged anti-communist guerilla warfare (1979–1990) against the Marxist governments of the Sandinista Na ...
in
Nicaragua
Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...
, resulting in members of the US government being indicted in 1986.
** US
military action
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
began against
Panama
Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...
in December 1989 to overthrow its dictator,
Manuel Noriega
Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno ( , ; February 11, 1934 – May 29, 2017) was a Panamanian dictator and military officer who was the ''de facto'' List of heads of state of Panama, ruler of Panama from 1983 to 1989. He never officially serv ...
resulting in 3,500 civilian casualties and the restoration of democratic rule.
*
Battle of Cuito Cuanavale
The Battle of Cuito Cuanavale was fought intermittently between 14 August 1987 and 23 March 1988, south and east of Cuito Cuanavale, Angola, by the People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) and Cuba against South Africa an ...
took place as part of the
Angolan Civil War
The Angolan Civil War () was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. It was a power struggle between two for ...
and
South African Border War
The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...
from 1987 to 1988. The battle involved the largest fighting in Africa since World War II between military forces from
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...
,
Cuba
Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
(expeditionary forces) and
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...
versus military forces from South Africa and the dissident Angolan
UNITA
The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (, abbr. UNITA) is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought alongside the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and the National Liberat ...
organization.
* The
First Nagorno-Karabakh War
The First Nagorno-Karabakh War was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nag ...
between
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
and the
Armenia
Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...
started in 1988 and ended in 1994.
* The
United States invasion of Panama
The United States invaded Panama in mid-December 1989 during the presidency of George H. W. Bush. The purpose of the invasion was to depose the '' de facto'' ruler of Panama, General Manuel Noriega, who was wanted by U.S. authorities for rack ...
in December 1989 led to the deposition of
Manuel Noriega
Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno ( , ; February 11, 1934 – May 29, 2017) was a Panamanian dictator and military officer who was the ''de facto'' List of heads of state of Panama, ruler of Panama from 1983 to 1989. He never officially serv ...
.
Civil wars and guerrilla wars
The most notable internal conflicts of the decade include:
* The
Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
The Tiananmen Square protests, known within China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, lasting from 15 April to 4 June 1989. After weeks of unsuccessful attempts between t ...
occurred in the People's Republic of China in 1989, in which pro-democracy protesters demanded political reform. The protests were crushed by the People's Liberation Army.
* The
First Intifada
The First Intifada (), also known as the First Palestinian Intifada, was a sustained series of Nonviolent resistance, non-violent protests, acts of civil disobedience, Riot, riots, and Terrorism, terrorist attacks carried out by Palestinians ...
(First Uprising) in the
Gaza Strip
The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...
and
West Bank
The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
began in 1987 when Palestinian Arabs mounted large-scale protests against the Israeli military presence in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, largely inhabited by Palestinians. The First Intifada would continue until peace negotiations began between the
Palestinian Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinian people in both the occupied Palestinian territories and the diaspora. ...
(PLO) and the Israeli government in 1993.
*
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon.
The religious diversity of the ...
(1975–1990) – Throughout the decade, Lebanon was engulfed in civil war between Islamic and Christian factions.
* The
Kanak Socialist National Liberation Front began a violent campaign for independence in
New Caledonia
New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...
.
*
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by a group of Environmental movement, environmental activists. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth to nurture life in all its biod ...
's attempts to monitor
French nuclear testing
''Gerboise Bleue'' (; ) was the codename of the first French nuclear test. It was conducted by the Nuclear Experiments Operational Group (GOEN), a unit of the Joint Special Weapons Command on 13 February 1960, at the Saharan Military Experiment ...
on
Mururoa
Moruroa (Mururoa, Mururura), also historically known as Aopuni, is an atoll which forms part of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is located about southeast of Tahiti. Administratively Moruroa Atoll i ...
were halted by the
sinking of the ''
Rainbow Warrior''.
* The
Second Sudanese Civil War
The Second Sudanese Civil War was a conflict from 1983 to 2005 between the central Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement, Sudan People's Liberation Army. It was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil Wa ...
erupts in 1983 between the
Muslim
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
government of
Sudan
Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
in the north and non-Muslim rebel secessionists in
Southern Sudan. The conflict continues through the present day
Darfur genocide
The Darfur genocide was the systematic killing of ethnic Darfuri people during the War in Darfur. The genocide, which was carried out against the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups, led the International Criminal Court (ICC) to indict sev ...
.
*
1986 Egyptian conscripts riot: On 25 February 1986 around 25,000 conscripts of the
Central Security Forces (CSF), an Egyptian paramilitary force, staged violent protests in and around Cairo, due to the rumour that their three-year mandatory service would be prolonged by one additional year without any additional benefits or rank promotion. It was suppressed by the
army
An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
.
*
Internal conflict in Peru
The internal conflict in Peru is an armed conflict between the Government of Peru and the Maoist guerrilla group Shining Path. The conflict's main phase began on 17 May 1980 and ended in December 2000. From 1982 to 1997 the Túpac Amaru Rev ...
: The communist
Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement starts its fight against the Peruvian state in 1980, that would continue until the end of the 1990s.
*
Haiti
Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...
an
dictator
A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute Power (social and political), power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a polity. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to r ...
Jean-Claude Duvalier
Jean-Claude Duvalier (; 3 July 19514 October 2014), nicknamed "Baby Doc" (, ), was a Haitian dictator who held the presidency of Haiti from 1971 until he was overthrown by a popular uprising in February 1986. He succeeded his father François ...
was overthrown by a popular
uprising
Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...
on 6 February 1986.
*
The Troubles
The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...
in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
continued.
*
Ethiopian Civil War
The Ethiopian Civil War was a civil war in Ethiopia and present-day Eritrea, fought between the Ethiopian military junta known as the Derg and Ethiopian-Eritrean anti-government rebels from 12 September 1974 to 28 May 1991.
The Derg overthre ...
(1974–1991)
*
Angolan Civil War
The Angolan Civil War () was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. It was a power struggle between two for ...
(1975–2002)
*
Ugandan Bush War
The Ugandan Bush War was a civil war fought in Uganda by the official Ugandan government and its armed wing, the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA), against a number of rebel groups, most importantly the National Resistance Army (NRA), from 19 ...
(1980–1986)
*
Sri Lankan Civil War (1983–2009)
Terrorist attacks

The most notable terrorist attacks of the decade include:
*
Bologna massacre
The Bologna massacre () was a Terrorism in Italy, terrorist bombing of the Bologna Centrale railway station in Bologna, Italy, on the morning of 2 August 1980, which killed 85 people and wounded over 200. Several members of the neo-fascist ter ...
in Italy on 2 August 1980, three members of the
neo-fascist
Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology which includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, ultraconservatism, racial supremacy, right-wing populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xe ...
group
Nuclei Armati Rivoluzionari
The Nuclei Armati Rivoluzionari (), abbreviated NAR, was an Italian neofascist, neo-fascist armed militant organization active during the Years of Lead (Italy), Years of Lead from 1977 to November 1981. It committed over 100 murders in four year ...
detonate a time bomb at
Bologna Central Station, killing 85 people.
*
El Mozote massacre in
El Salvador
El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...
on 11 December 1981, against civilians, committed by government forces supported by the United States during their anti-guerrilla campaign against Marxist–Leninist rebels.
* The
1983 Beirut barracks bombing
On October 23, 1983, two truck bombs were detonated at buildings in Beirut, Lebanon, housing American and French service members of the Multinational Force in Lebanon (MNF), a military peacekeeping operation during the Lebanese Civil War. The ...
– during the
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon.
The religious diversity of the ...
two
truck bombs struck separate buildings housing United States and French military forces killing 299 American and French servicemen. The organization
Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the bombing.
* The
Rome and Vienna airport attacks took place on 27 December 1985, against the Israeli
El Al
EL AL Israel Airlines Ltd. (), trading as EL AL (, "Upwards", "To the Skies", or "Skywards", stylized as ELAL; ) is the flag carrier of Israel. Since its inaugural flight from Geneva to Tel Aviv in September 1948, the airline has grown to serve ...
airline. The attack was done by militants loyal to
Abu Nidal
Sabri Khalil al-Banna (; May 1937 – 16 August 2002), known by his ''Pseudonym, nom de guerre'' Abu Nidal ("father of struggle"),; translates it as "father of the struggle". was a Palestinian fedayeen, Palestinian militant. He was the founde ...
, backed by the government of
Libya
Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
.
*
Air India Flight 182
Air India Flight 182 was a passenger flight operating on the Montréal–Mirabel International Airport, Montreal–Heathrow Airport, London–Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi–Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumb ...
was destroyed on 23 June 1985, by Sikh-Canadian militants. It was the biggest mass murder involving Canadians in Canada's history.
* On 21 December 1988,
Pan Am Flight 103
Pan Am Flight 103 (PA103/PAA103) was a regularly scheduled Pan Am transatlantic flight from Frankfurt to Detroit via a stopover in London and another in New York City. Shortly after 19:00 on 21 December 1988, the Boeing 747 "Clipper Maid of th ...
was blown up over the village of Lockerbie, Scotland, while en route from London's Heathrow Airport to New York's JFK. The bombing killed all 259 people on board, plus 11 people on the ground. The bombing was and remains the worst terrorist attack on UK soil.
Coups
The most prominent
coups d'état of the decade include:
* A
military coup
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
is launched in
Suriname
Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...
on 25 February 1980; the country's politics are dominated by the military until 1991.
*
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
suffered military coups in
1983
1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
and
1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
.
*
Sitiveni Rabuka
Sitiveni Ligamamada Rabuka (; born 13 September 1948) is a Fijian politician, sportsman, and former soldier who has been serving as Prime Minister of Fiji since 24 December 2022. He was the instigator of two military coups in 1987. He was de ...
staged two
military coups in Fiji in 1987, and declared the country a
republic
A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...
the same year.
* The "
Anti-Bureaucratic Revolution" – a series of interconnected coups d'états – take place in
Yugoslavia
, common_name = Yugoslavia
, life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation
, p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia
, flag_p ...
from 1988 to 1989 through mass protests organized and committed by supporters of Serbian politician
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Милошевић, ; 20 August 1941 – 11 March 2006) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who was the President of Serbia between 1989 and 1997 and President of the Federal Republic of Yugos ...
overthrow the governments of Serbia's autonomous provinces of
Kosovo
Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...
and
Vojvodina
Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...
, and the government of
Montenegro
, image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg
, coa_size = 80
, national_motto =
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map = Europe-Mont ...
, and finally the main government of
Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
with Milošević becoming
President of Serbia
The president of Serbia (), officially styled as President of the Republic (), is the head of state of Serbia. The current officeholder is Aleksandar Vučić, who was elected in 2017 and has held the role since 31 May 2017.
According to the C ...
.
Nuclear threats

*
Operation Opera
Operation Opera (), also known as Operation Babylon, was a surprise airstrike conducted by the Israeli Air Force on 7 June 1981, which destroyed an unfinished Iraqi nuclear reactor located southeast of Baghdad, Iraq. The Israeli operation ca ...
– a 1981 surprise
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
i
air strike
An airstrike, air strike, or air raid is an offensive operation carried out by aircraft. Air strikes are delivered from aircraft such as blimps, balloons, fighter aircraft, attack aircraft, bombers, attack helicopters, and Unmanned combat aerial ...
that destroyed the
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
i
nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device used to initiate and control a Nuclear fission, fission nuclear chain reaction. They are used for Nuclear power, commercial electricity, nuclear marine propulsion, marine propulsion, Weapons-grade plutonium, weapons ...
being constructed near
Baghdad
Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...
. Israeli
military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...
assumed this was for the purpose of
plutonium
Plutonium is a chemical element; it has symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is a silvery-gray actinide metal that tarnishes when exposed to air, and forms a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four ...
production to further an Iraqi
nuclear weapons
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either nuclear fission, fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and nuclear fusion, fusion reactions (thermonuclear weap ...
program. Israeli intelligence also believed that the summer of 1981 would be the last chance to destroy the reactor before it would be loaded with
nuclear fuel
Nuclear fuel refers to any substance, typically fissile material, which is used by nuclear power stations or other atomic nucleus, nuclear devices to generate energy.
Oxide fuel
For fission reactors, the fuel (typically based on uranium) is ...
.
* US President Reagan's decision to station intermediate-range nuclear missiles in Western Europe provoked mass protests involving more than one million people.
Decolonization and independence
* Following the decolonization and independence of the
Commonwealth realms
A Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state in the Commonwealth of Nations that has the same constitutional monarch and head of state as the other realms. The current monarch is King Charles III. Except for the United Kingdom, in each of the ...
.
** In 1982, Canada gained official independence from the United Kingdom with the
Canada Act 1982
The Canada Act 1982 (1982 c. 11) () is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and one of the enactments which make up the Constitution of Canada. It was enacted at the request of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada to patriate ...
, authorized by the signature by
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
. This Act severed all political dependencies of the United Kingdom in Canada (although the Queen remained the head of state).
** In 1986, Australia gained full independence from the United Kingdom with the
Australia Act 1986
The ''Australia Act 1986'' is the short title of each of a pair of separate but related pieces of legislation: one an act of the Parliament of Australia, the other an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. In Australia they are refe ...
, which severed the last remaining powers of the British government over the Australian government, including the removal of the privy council as the highest court of appeal. Australia retained the Queen as head of state.
** In 1986, New Zealand and the United Kingdom fully separated New Zealand's governments from the influence of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, resulting in New Zealand's full independence with the
Constitution Act 1986 which also reorganized the
New Zealand government
The New Zealand Government () is the central government through which political authority is exercised in New Zealand. As in most other parliamentary democracies, the term "Government" refers chiefly to the executive branch, and more specifica ...
.
** Independence was granted to
Vanuatu
Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (; ), is an island country in Melanesia located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, east o ...
from the British/French condominium (1980),
Kiribati
Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. The st ...
from joint US-British government (1981) and
Palau
Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...
from the United States (1986).
**
Zimbabwe
file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map
Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...
becomes independent from official colonial rule of the United Kingdom in 1980.
** Independence was given to
Antigua and Barbuda
Antigua and Barbuda is a Sovereign state, sovereign archipelagic country composed of Antigua, Barbuda, and List of islands of Antigua and Barbuda, numerous other small islands. Antigua and Barbuda has a total area of 440 km2 (170 sq mi), ...
,
Belize
Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...
(both 1981), and
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Kitts and Nevis, officially the Federation of Saint Christopher (St Kitts) and Nevis, is an island country consisting of the two islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis, both located in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands chain of the Less ...
(1983) in the Caribbean;
Brunei
Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...
(1984) and
Thailand
Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
formed a US-British government (1981) in Southeast Asia.
Politics
Americas

*
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
was elected US president in 1980. In international affairs, Reagan pursued a hardline policy towards preventing the spread of communism, initiating a considerable buildup of US military power to challenge the Soviet Union. He further directly challenged the
Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was the political and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were countries connected to the So ...
by demanding that the Soviet Union dismantle the
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall (, ) was a guarded concrete Separation barrier, barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germany). Construction of the B ...
.
* The
Reagan Administration
Ronald Reagan's tenure as the 40th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1981, and ended on January 20, 1989. Reagan, a Republican from California, took office following his landslide victory over ...
accelerated the
War on Drugs, publicized through anti-drug campaigns including the
Just Say No
"Just Say No" was an advertising campaign prevalent during the 1980s and early 1990s as a part of the U.S.-led war on drugs, aiming to discourage children from engaging in illegal recreational drug use by offering various ways of saying ''no''. ...
campaign of First Lady
Nancy Reagan
Nancy Davis Reagan (; born Anne Frances Robbins; July 6, 1921 – March 6, 2016) was an American film actress who was the first lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989, as the second wife of President Ronald Reagan.
Reagan was born in ...
. Drugs gained attention in the US as a serious problem in the '80s. Cocaine was relatively popular among celebrities and affluent youth, while crack, a cheaper offshoot of the drug, was linked to high crime rates in inner cities during the
American crack epidemic.
* The
Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (1968)
The Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) was a United States trade union of air traffic controllers that operated from 1968 until its decertification in 1981 following an illegal strike broken by the Reagan administra ...
(PATCO) declared a strike on 3 August 1981, seeking better working conditions, better pay, and a 32-hour workweek. The strike caused considerable disruption of the US air transportation system. Resolution came when
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
fired over 11,000 striking air traffic controllers who had ignored his order to return to work, banning them from federal service for life. After seeking appeals, many of the controllers were re-hired while the FAA attempted to replace much of their air traffic control staffing. The remainder continued to be banned until President Clinton lifted the final aspects in 1993.
* Political unrest in the province of
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
, which, due to the many differences between the dominant francophone population and the anglophone minority, and also to francophone rights in the predominantly
English-speaking Canada, came to a head in 1980 when the provincial government called a public
referendum
A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...
on partial separation from the rest of Canada. The referendum ended with the "no" side winning majority (59.56% no, 40.44% yes).
*
Military dictatorship
A military dictatorship, or a military regime, is a type of dictatorship in which Power (social and political), power is held by one or more military officers. Military dictatorships are led by either a single military dictator, known as a Polit ...
s give way to democracy in
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
(1983),
Uruguay
Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...
(1984–85),
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
(1985–1988) and
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
(1988–89). This marked the end of the
Operation Condor
Operation Condor (; ) was a campaign of political repression by the right-wing dictatorships of the Southern Cone of South America, involving intelligence operations, coups, and assassinations of left-wing sympathizers in South America which fo ...
for 30 years.
Europe

* The
European Community
The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisbo ...
's
enlargement continued with the accession of Greece in 1981 and Spain and Portugal in 1986.
* In 1983,
Bettino Craxi
Benedetto "Bettino" Craxi ( ; ; ; 24 February 1934 – 19 January 2000) was an Italian politician and statesman, leader of the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) from 1976 to 1993, and the 45th Prime Minister of Italy, prime minister of Italy from 1 ...
became the first
socialist
Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
to hold the office of
Prime Minister of Italy
The prime minister of Italy, officially the president of the Council of Ministers (), is the head of government of the Italy, Italian Republic. The office of president of the Council of Ministers is established by articles 92–96 of the Co ...
; he remained in power until 1987, becoming one of the longest-serving Prime Ministers in the history of Italian Republic. At the end of his presidency the
Mani pulite
(; ) was a nationwide judicial investigation into political corruption in Italy held in the early 1990s, resulting in the demise of the First Italian Republic and the disappearance of many political parties. Some politicians and industry leade ...
corruption scandal broke up, causing the collapse of the political system.
* Significant political reforms occurred in a number of communist countries in eastern Europe as the populations of these countries grew increasingly hostile and politically active in opposing communist governments. These reforms included attempts to increase individual liberties and market liberalization, and promises of democratic renewal. The collapse of communism in eastern Europe was generally peaceful, the exception being
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
, whose leader
Nicolae Ceaușescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu ( ; ; – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian politician who was the second and last Communism, communist leader of Socialist Romania, Romania, serving as the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 u ...
tried to keep the people isolated from the events happening outside the country. While making a speech in Bucharest in December 1989, he was booed and shouted down by the crowd, and then tried to flee the city with his wife
Elena. Two days later, they were captured, charged with genocide, and
shot on Christmas Day.
* In
Yugoslavia
, common_name = Yugoslavia
, life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation
, p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia
, flag_p ...
, following the death of communist leader
Josip Broz Tito
Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...
in May 1980, the trend of political reform of the communist system occurred along with a trend towards
ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism, also known as ethnonationalism, is a form of nationalism wherein the nation and nationality are defined in terms of ethnicity, with emphasis on an ethnocentric (and in some cases an ethnostate/ethnocratic) approach to variou ...
and inter-ethnic hostility, especially in Serbia, beginning with the 1986
Memorandum of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts
The Memorandum of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, known simply as the SANU Memorandum ( sr-Cyrl, Меморандум САНУ), was a draft document produced by a 16-member committee of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SANU) f ...
followed by the agenda of Serbian communist leader
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Милошевић, ; 20 August 1941 – 11 March 2006) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who was the President of Serbia between 1989 and 1997 and President of the Federal Republic of Yugos ...
who aggressively pushed for increased political influence of Serbs in the late 1980s, condemning non-Serb Yugoslav politicians who challenged his agenda as being enemies of Serbs.
* There was
continuing civil strife in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
, including the adoption of hunger strikes by
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various Resistance movement, resistance organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dominantly Catholic and dedicated to anti-imperiali ...
prisoners seeking the reintroduction of political status.
*
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...
became leader of the Soviet Union in 1985, and initiated major reforms to the Soviet Union's government through increasing the rights of expressing political dissent and opening elections to opposition candidates (while maintaining legal dominance of the Communist Party). Gorbachev pursued negotiation with the United States to decrease tensions and eventually end the
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
.
* During the
Revolutions of 1989
The revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, were a revolutionary wave of liberal democracy movements that resulted in the collapse of most Communist state, Marxist–Leninist governments in the Eastern Bloc and other parts ...
, most of the communist governments in Eastern Europe collapsed. The
fall of the Berlin Wall
The fall of the Berlin Wall (, ) on 9 November in German history, 9 November 1989, during the Peaceful Revolution, marked the beginning of the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the figurative Iron Curtain, as East Berlin transit restrictions we ...
in 1989 would be followed in 1990 by the
German reunification
German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic and the int ...
.
* The United Kingdom was governed by the
Conservative Party under Prime Minister
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...
, the first female leader of a Western country. Under her
Premiership, the party introduced widespread economic reforms including the
privatisation
Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...
of industries and the de-regulation of
stock market
A stock market, equity market, or share market is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of stocks (also called shares), which represent ownership claims on businesses; these may include ''securities'' listed on a public stock exchange a ...
s echoing similar reforms of
US President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed For ...
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
. She was also a staunch opponent of communism, earning her the nickname ''The Iron Lady''.
* Poor industrial relations marked the beginning of the decade; the
UK miners' strike (1984–85) UK miners' strike may refer to:
* 1893 United Kingdom miners' strike
* South Wales miners' strike (1910)
* 1912 United Kingdom national coal strike
* UK miners' strike (1921)
* UK miners' strike (1953)
* 1969 United Kingdom miners' strike, a widesp ...
was a major
industrial action
Industrial action (British English) or job action (American English) is a temporary show of dissatisfaction by employees—especially a strike or slowdown or working to rule—to protest against bad working conditions or low pay and to increas ...
affecting the
UK coal industry. The strike by the
National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) was led by
Arthur Scargill
Arthur Scargill (born 11 January 1938) is a British trade unionist who was President of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) from 1982 to 2002. He is best known for leading the 1984–1985 UK miners' strike, a major event in the history o ...
, although some NUM members considered it to be unconstitutional and did not observe it. The
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
has referred to the strike as "the most bitter industrial dispute in British history." At its height, the strike involved 142,000 mineworkers, making it the biggest since the
1926 General Strike
The 1926 general strike in the United Kingdom was a general strike that lasted nine days, from 4 to 12 May 1926. It was called by the General Council of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in an unsuccessful attempt to force the British government ...
.
* In November 1982,
Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev (19 December 190610 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1964 until Death and state funeral of Leonid Brezhnev, his death in 1982 as w ...
, who had led the Soviet Union since 1964, died. He was followed in quick succession by
Yuri Andropov
Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov ( – 9 February 1984) was a Soviet politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from late 1982 until his death in 1984. He previously served as the List of Chairmen of t ...
, the former KGB chief, and
Konstantin Chernenko
Konstantin Ustinovich Chernenko ( – 10 March 1985) was a Soviet politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1984 until his death a year later.
Born to a poor family in Siberia, Chernenko jo ...
, both of whom were in poor health during their short tenures in office.
*Presidents of France were
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
Valéry René Marie Georges Giscard d'Estaing (, ; ; 2 February 19262 December 2020), also known as simply Giscard or VGE, was a French politician who served as President of France from 1974 to 1981.
After serving as Ministry of the Economy ...
and
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...
. The Chancellors of West Germany were
Helmut Schmidt
Helmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt (; 23 December 1918 – 10 November 2015) was a German politician and member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), who served as the chancellor of West Germany from 1974 to 1982. He was the longest ...
and
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl (; 3 April 1930 – 16 June 2017) was a German politician who served as chancellor of Germany and governed the ''Federal Republic'' from 1982 to 1998. He was leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) from 1973 to ...
.
Asia
* The Prime Ministers of Japan were
Masayoshi Ōhira
was a Japanese politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1978 until his death in 1980.
Born in Kagawa Prefecture, Ōhira worked in the Ministry of Finance from 1936, and served as the private secretary to Hayato Ikeda, finance mi ...
,
Zenkō Suzuki,
Yasuhiro Nakasone
was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, prime minister of Japan from 1982 to 1987. His political term was best known for pushing through the privatization of state-owned companies and pursuing a hawkish and pro-U.S. fo ...
,
Noboru Takeshita
was a Japanese politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1987 to 1989.
Born in Shimane Prefecture, Takeshita attended Waseda University and was drafted into the army during the Pacific War. He was first elected to the National Diet ...
,
Sōsuke Uno
was a Japanese politician and former Prime Minister of Japan.
Born in Shiga Prefecture, Uno enrolled in the Kobe College of Commerce before he was conscripted into the army during World War II. In 1960, he entered politics and was elected to th ...
and
Toshiki Kaifu.
* Following the
assassination of Park Chung-hee
On October 26, 1979, Park Chung Hee, the third president of South Korea, was Assassination, assassinated during a dinner at the National Intelligence Service (South Korea), Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) safe house near the Blue Hous ...
, South Korean president
Chun Doo Hwan came to power at the end of 1979 and ruled as a dictator until his presidential term expired in 1987. He was responsible for the
Gwangju Uprising in May 1980 when police and soldiers battled armed protesters. Relations with North Korea showed little sign of improvement during the 1980s. In 1983, when Chun was in Burma,
a bomb apparently planted by North Korean agents killed a number of South Korean government officials. The
June Democratic Struggle in 1987, a nationwide pro-democracy movement in South Korea, leads to democratic reforms, an end to authoritarian rule and
democratic elections. After leaving office, Chun was succeeded by
Roh Tae Woo, the first democratic ruler of the country, which saw its international prestige greatly rise with hosting the Olympics in
1988. Roh pursued a policy of normalizing relations with China and the Soviet Union, but had to face militant left-wing student groups who demanded
reunification with North Korea and the withdrawal of US troops.
* In the Philippines, after almost 20 years of dictatorship, Philippine president
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...
left the presidency and was replaced by
Corazon Aquino
María Corazón "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipino politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines and the first woman president in the country, from Presidency of Corazon ...
through the "
People Power Revolution
The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, were a series of popular Demonstration (people), demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a ...
" from 22 to 25 February 1986. This has been considered by some a peaceful revolution despite the fact that the Armed Forces of the Philippines issued an order to disperse the crowds on
EDSA
Epifanio de los Santos Avenue, commonly referred to by its acronym EDSA (), is a major Ring road, circumferential road around Manila, the capital city of the Philippines. It passes through 6 of Metro Manila's 17 local government units or citi ...
(the main thoroughfare in Metro Manila).
* Democratization in South Korea and Taiwan, having lasted 42 and 27 years under the authoritarian regime since the end of World War II and the
Korean War
The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
(including the lifting of
martial law in Taiwan
Martial law in Taiwan () refers to the periods in the history of Taiwan after World War II, during control by the Republic of China Armed Forces of the Kuomintang-led regime. The term is specifically used to refer to the over 38-year-long c ...
and the
first direct presidential elections in South Korea).
* The
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...
were held in South Korea, the first time the country hosted them.
Africa
* A widespread
famine hit Ethiopia from 1983 to 1985, affecting 7.75 million people, killing around 300,000 to 1.2 million. 400,000 refugees left the country. Blame for the famine has been attributed to drought,
Ethiopia's civil war, and policies taken by the
Derg
The Derg or Dergue (, ), officially the Provisional Military Administrative Council (PMAC), was the military junta that ruled Ethiopia, including present-day Eritrea, from 1974 to 1987, when they formally "Civil government, civilianized" the ...
military regime.
Assassinations and attempts

Prominent assassinations, targeted killings, and assassination attempts include:
Disasters
Natural disasters

*
Mount St. Helens erupted in
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
, US on 18 May 1980, killing 57 people.
*
HIV/AIDS
The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
, a global pandemic that has killed over 40 million people, was
identified in the 1980s, with the first reported cases in 1981.
* On 17 October 1989, the
Loma Prieta earthquake
On October 17, 1989, at 5:04 p.m. PST, the Loma Prieta earthquake occurred at the Central Coast of California. The shock was centered in The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park in Santa Cruz County, approximately 10 mi (16 km) ...
struck the San Francisco Bay Area during Game 3 of the
1989 World Series
The 1989 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1989 season. The 86th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Oakland Athletics and the ...
, gaining worldwide attention. Sixty-five people were killed and thousands injured, with major structural damage on freeways and buildings and broken gas-line fires in San Francisco, California. The cost of the damage totaled US$13 billion (1989 US$).
* The
1988–89 North American drought decimated the US with many parts of the country affected. This was the worst drought to hit the United States in many years. The drought caused $60 billion in damage (between $80 billion and $120 billion for 2008 US$). The concurrent
heat wave
A heat wave or heatwave, sometimes described as extreme heat, is a period of abnormally hot weather generally considered to be at least ''five consecutive days''. A heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the area and ...
s killed 5,800 to 17,000 people in the United States.
*
Hurricane Allen
Hurricane Allen was the strongest Atlantic hurricane by wind speed on record. An extremely powerful tropical cyclone, Allen affected the Caribbean, eastern and northern Mexico, and South Texas in August 1980. The second tropical depression, fi ...
(1980),
Hurricane Alicia
Hurricane Alicia was a small but powerful tropical cyclone that caused significant destruction in the Greater Houston area of Southeast Texas in August 1983. Although Alicia was a relatively small hurricane, its track over the rapidly grow ...
(1983),
Hurricane Gilbert (1988),
Hurricane Joan (1988), and
Hurricane Hugo
Hurricane Hugo was a powerful tropical cyclone that inflicted widespread destruction across the northeastern Caribbean and the Southeastern United States in September 1989. The eleventh tropical cyclone, eighth Tropical cyclone naming, named st ...
(1989) were some notably destructive Atlantic hurricanes of the 1980s.
* Other natural disasters of the 1980s include the 1982–1983
El Niño
EL, El or el may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Fictional entities
* El, a character from the manga series ''Shugo Chara!'' by Peach-Pit
* Eleven (''Stranger Things'') (El), a fictional character in the TV series ''Stranger Things''
* El, fami ...
which brought destructive weather to most of the world; the
1985 Mexico City earthquake
The 1985 Mexico City earthquake struck in the early morning of 19 September at 07:17:50 (CST) with a Moment magnitude scale, moment magnitude of 8.0 and a maximal Modified Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of IX (''Violent''). The ev ...
, which registered 8.0 on the
moment magnitude scale
The moment magnitude scale (MMS; denoted explicitly with or Mwg, and generally implied with use of a single M for magnitude) is a measure of an earthquake's magnitude ("size" or strength) based on its seismic moment. was defined in a 1979 paper ...
and devastated Mexico City and other areas throughout central Mexico; the 1985
Nevado del Ruiz
Nevado del Ruiz (), also known as La Mesa de Herveo () is a volcano on the border of the departments of Caldas and Tolima in Colombia, being the highest point of both. It is located about west of the capital city Bogotá. It is a stratovolca ...
lahar
A lahar (, from ) is a violent type of mudflow or debris flow composed of a slurry of Pyroclastic rock, pyroclastic material, rocky debris and water. The material flows down from a volcano, typically along a valley, river valley.
Lahars are o ...
in
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
; the 1986
Lake Nyos
Lake Nyos ( ) is a crater lake in the Northwest Region of Cameroon, located about northwest of Yaoundé, the capital. Nyos is a deep lake high on the flank of an inactive volcano in the Oku volcanic plain along the Cameroon line of volcan ...
limnic eruption
A limnic eruption, also known as a lake overturn, is a very rare type of natural hazard in which dissolved carbon dioxide () suddenly erupts from deep lake waters, forming a gas cloud capable of asphyxiating wildlife, livestock, and humans. Scien ...
in
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...
; and the
1988 Armenian earthquake
The 1988 Armenian earthquake, also known as the Spitak earthquake (), occurred on December 7 at with a surface-wave magnitude of 6.8 and a maximum MSK intensity of X (''Devastating''). The shock occurred in the northern region of Armenia (then ...
, which rocked the
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...
region of the
USSR
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
.
Non-natural disasters

* In 1980,
Dan-Air Flight 1008, a
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is an American Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
After the heavier Boeing 707, 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter ...
, crashed on approach to
Tenerife
Tenerife ( ; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. With a land area of and a population of 965,575 inhabitants as of A ...
in the
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
, killing 146 people on board.
* In 1980,
Saudia Flight 163, a
Lockhead L-1011 TriStar, caught fire moments after takeoff from the
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
n capital of
Riyadh
Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...
. The flight immediately returned to the airport, but evacuation of the plane was delayed and all 301 people aboard died.
* In 1982,
Pan Am Flight 759, a Boeing 727, was forced down by
microburst while on approach to
New Orleans International Airport, killing 153 people.
* In 1983,
Korean Air Lines Flight 007
Korean Air Lines Flight 007 (KE007/KAL007)In aviation, two types of Airline codes, airline designators are used. The flight number KAL 007, with the ICAO code for Korean Air Lines, was used by air traffic control. In ticketing, however, IAT ...
, a
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a long-range wide-body aircraft, wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2023.
After the introduction of the Boeing 707, 707 in October 1958, Pan Am ...
carrying 269 people between New York City and Seoul via Anchorage, Alaska, Anchorage, was shot down by Soviet fighter jets after accidentally straying into Soviet prohibited airspace, killing everyone on board.
* In 1984, the Bhopal disaster resulted from a toxic methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas leak at the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, killing 3,000 immediately and ultimately claiming 15,000–20,000 lives.
* In 1985, the Heysel Stadium disaster occurred before the 1985 European Cup final, European Cup final in Brussels, Belgium, when a Crowd collapses and crushes, crowd crush led to 39 deaths and 600 injuries.
* In 1985,
Air India Flight 182
Air India Flight 182 was a passenger flight operating on the Montréal–Mirabel International Airport, Montreal–Heathrow Airport, London–Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi–Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumb ...
, a Boeing 747 flying from Montreal to Mumbai, Bombay via London and Delhi, is blown up over Irish waters by a bomb planted by Khalistan movement, Sikh separatists, killing all 320 passengers and crew on board. This was the deadliest act of aviation terrorism until the September 11 attacks of 2001.
* In 1985, Delta Air Lines Flight 191, a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar, crashed on approach to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in Texas due to a microburst. 137 people were killed while 27 survived.
* Japan Air Lines Flight 123, a Boeing 747 carrying 524 people, crashed in 1985, while on a flight from Tokyo to Osaka, killing 520 of the people on board, leaving four survivors. This was the deadliest single-aircraft crash to date.
* In 1985, Arrow Air Flight 1285R, a Douglas DC-8, stall (aerodynamics), stalled and crashed seconds after taking off from Gander, Newfoundland. All 256 people on board, many of them US servicemen returning home from duty overseas, perished.
* In 1986, the NASA Space Shuttle Challenger, Space Shuttle ''Challenger'' Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, disintegrated 73 seconds after launch, killing all of the crew on board. This was the first disaster involving the destruction of a NASA Space Shuttle. A faulty O-ring was the cause of the accident.
* On 26 April 1986, the
Chernobyl disaster
On 26 April 1986, the no. 4 reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, located near Pripyat, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now Ukraine), exploded. With dozens of direct casualties, it is one of only ...
, a large-scale nuclear meltdown in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union, spread a large amount of radioactive material across Europe, killing 47 people, dooming countless others to future radiation-related cancer, and causing the displacement of 300,000 people.
* In 1986, Aeroméxico Flight 498, a Douglas DC-9, crashed after colliding with a private Piper Cherokee over Cerritos, California, killing 64 on both aircraft and 15 others on the ground. On the same day, the Soviet passenger ship ''SS Admiral Nakhimov, Admiral Nakhimov'' sank after colliding with the bulk carrier ''Pyotr Vasev'' in the Black Sea, killing 423 people.
* In 1987, LOT Flight 5055, an Ilyushin Il-62M caught fire due to an uncontained engine failure and subsequently crashed, killing all 183 passengers and crew.
* In 1987, Northwest Airlines Flight 255, a McDonnell Douglas MD-82, crashed almost immediately after takeoff Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Detroit Wayne Airport in Michigan due to pilot error, killing 156 on board.
* In 1987, a fire broke out on South African Airways Flight 295, a Boeing 747, eventually causing the aircraft to crash into the Indian Ocean. All 159 aboard were killed.
* On 20 December 1987, the Philippines, Philippine passenger ferry MV Doña Paz, MV ''Doña Paz'' burned and sank after colliding with the oil tanker MT Vector, MT ''Vector'' off the island of Marinduque. With an estimated death toll of over 4,000, this was and remains the world's deadliest peacetime maritime disaster.
* In 1988, Iran Air Flight 655, an Airbus A300 en route from Tehran to Dubai via Bandar Abbas, was shot down by the US missile cruiser over the Strait of Hormuz, killing all 290 people on the plane. The event is one of the most controversial aviation occurrences of all time, with the true cause disputed between the Americans and the Iranians.
* In 1988,
Pan Am Flight 103
Pan Am Flight 103 (PA103/PAA103) was a regularly scheduled Pan Am transatlantic flight from Frankfurt to Detroit via a stopover in London and another in New York City. Shortly after 19:00 on 21 December 1988, the Boeing 747 "Clipper Maid of th ...
, a Boeing 747 en route from Frankfurt to Detroit (via London and New York), was destroyed by a bomb while it was flying over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing the 259 passengers and crew members on board and 11 people on the ground. This was the worst terrorist attack to have occurred on British soil.
* On 24 March 1989, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground on Bligh Reef in Alaska's Prince William Sound Exxon Valdez oil spill, spilling an estimated equivalent of 260,000 to 750,000 barrels of crude oil. Although not among the largest oil spills in history, its remote and sensitive location made it one of the most devastating ecological disasters, with after-effects continuing to be felt present-day.
* In 1989, the Hillsborough disaster occurs during a FA Cup semi-final in Sheffield, England, fatally crushing 96 football fans and injuring nearly 1,000 more.
* In 1989, United Airlines Flight 232, a McDonnell Douglas DC-10 carrying 296 people, suffered an in-flight engine failure and was forced to crash-land at Sioux City, Iowa. 185 survived, while 111 were killed when the plane burst into flames upon touchdown.
Science and technology
Medicine and biology
The 1980s had many fundamental advances in medicine and biology. The first surrogate pregnancy of an unrelated child took place on 13 April 1986, in Michigan.
The first genetic engineering, genetically modified crops, Nicotiana, tobacco (''Nicotiana'') plants were grown in China in 1988.
Gene therapy techniques became established by the end of the 1980s, allowing
gene tagging and gene therapy to become a possibility, both of which were first performed in human beings in May 1989 and September 1990, respectively.
Electronics and computers
Arcade game, Arcade and video games had been growing in popularity since the late 1970s, and by 1982 were a major industry. But a variety of factors, including a glut of low-quality games and the rise of home computers, caused a North American video game crash of 1983, tremendous crash in late 1983. For the next three years, the video game market practically ceased to exist in the US. But in the second half of the decade, it would be revived by Nintendo, whose Famicom console and mascot Mario had been enjoying considerable success in Japan since 1983. Renamed the
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the and was later released as the redesigned NES in several test markets in the ...
(NES), it would claim 90% of the American video game market by 1989. The 1980s are considered to be the decade when video games achieved massive popularity. In 1980, Pac-Man was introduced to the arcades, and became one of the most popular video games of all time. Also in 1980, Game & Watch was created; it was not one of the best known game systems, but it facilitated mini-games and was concurrent with the NES. ''Donkey Kong (arcade game), Donkey Kong'', released in 1981, was a smash arcade hit and market breakthrough for Nintendo. ''
Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 Platformer, platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). It is the successor to the 1983 arcade game ''Mario Bros.'' and the first game in the ''Super Mario'' series. It was origi ...
'', ''Super Mario Bros. 2'', ''Super Mario Bros. 3'', ''The Legend of Zelda'', and the ''Mega Man'' series would become major hits for the console.
File:ColecoVision-Console-FL.jpg, The ColecoVision video game System.
File:NES-Console-Set.jpg, The Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the and was later released as the redesigned NES in several test markets in the ...
's Control Deck.
File:Atari-7800-wControl-Pad-L.jpg, Atari 7800 System (PAL system with Joypad controller).
File:Sega-Mega-Drive-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg, Sega Genesis, Mega Drive, known as the Genesis in North America, succeeded the Master System.
The personal computer experienced explosive growth in the 1980s, transitioning from a hobbyist's toy to a full-fledged consumer product. The IBM PC, launched in 1981, became the dominant computer for professional users. Commodore International, Commodore created the most popular home computers of both 8-bit and 16-bit generations. MSX standard was the dominant computer platform in Japan and in most parts of Asia. Apple Computer superseded its Apple II and Apple Lisa, Lisa models by introducing the first
Macintosh
Mac is a brand of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple since 1984. The name is short for Macintosh (its official name until 1999), a reference to the McIntosh (apple), McIntosh apple. The current product lineup inclu ...
computer in 1984. It was the first commercially successful personal computer to use a graphical user interface (GUI) and Mouse (computing), mouse, which started to become general features in computers after the middle of the decade. Electronics and computers were also at the forefront of the advertising industry, with many commercials like "1984" from Apple achieving acclaim and pop-culture relevance.
File:IBM PC 5150.jpg, IBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the List of IBM Personal Computer models, IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible ''de facto'' standard. Released on ...
(model 5150), the first DOS-compatible PC was released in 1981. The IBM PCs and compatible models from other vendors would become the most widely used computer systems in the world.
File:Commodore-64-Computer.png, Commodore 64, with sales estimated at more than 17 million units between 1982 and 1994 became the best-selling computer model of all time.
File:Disk smith vz200 front.jpg, VTech Laser 200, 8-bit home computer from 1983
File:Macintosh 128k transparency.png, The Macintosh 128K, the first commercially successful personal computer to use a graphical user interface, was introduced to the public in 1984.
File:Ibm-convertible.jpg, The IBM PC Convertible (model 5140; 1986), the first DOS-compatible PC to be a laptop and to use the standard -inch floppy disk drives.
File:Amiga500 system.jpg, The Amiga 500, the first "low-end" 16 and 32 bit multimedia home/personal computer, was introduced in October 1987.
File:US Robotics Courier 2400 telephone modem (mid to end of 1980s) for dial-up internet access, powered on (edited).jpg, US Robotics Courier 2400 telephone modem
Walkman and boomboxes, invented during the late 1970s, became very popular as they were introduced to various countries in the early 1980s, and had a profound impact on the music industry and youth culture. Consumer Videocassette recorder, VCRs and video rental stores became commonplace as VHS won out over the competing Betamax standard. In addition, in the early 1980s various companies began selling compact, modestly priced synthesizers to the public. This, along with the development of MIDI, Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI), made it easier to integrate and synchronize synthesizers and other electronic instruments, like drum machines, for use in musical composition.
High definition television (HDTV) of both the analog and digital variety were first developed in the 1980s though their use did not become widespread until the mid-2000s.
In 1981, Hayes Microcomputer Products started selling the Smartmodem. The Smartmodem paved the way for the modern modems that exist today, mainly because it was the first modem to transform what had previously required a two-stage process into a process involving only one stage. The Smartmodem contributed to the rise in popularity of Bulletin board system, BBS systems in the 1980s and early 1990s, which were the main way to connect to remote computers and perform various social and entertainment activities before the Internet and the
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW or simply the Web) is an information system that enables Content (media), content sharing over the Internet through user-friendly ways meant to appeal to users beyond Information technology, IT specialists and hobbyis ...
finally became popular in the mid-1990s.
The 1980s witnessed a rapid expansion in the communications industry. Almost a decade after Martin Cooper (inventor), Martin Cooper, then an employee of Motorola, made the first mobile phone call in 1973, Millicom, Millicom Inc., a telecommunications agency, and E.F. Johnson Company, E.F. Johnson & Co., introduced the first portable cellular phone commercially available for use on a cellular network, the "Lunch Box" in 1981.
[Dunnewijk, Theo; Hultén, Staffan (2007-08-01)]
"A brief history of mobile communication in Europe".
''Telematics and Informatics''. Mobile Communications: From Cellular to Ad-hoc and Beyond. 24(3): 164–179. Doi (identifier), doi:doi:10.1016/j.tele.2007.01.013, 10.1016/j.tele.2007.01.013. ISSN (identifier), ISSN]
0736-5853.
/ref> Two years later, Motorola launched the Motorola DynaTAC, DynaTAC 8000X or the "Brick," the first commercially available handheld mobile phone weighing 3 pounds (1.4 kg). While revolutionary, these early products were bulky and challenging to handle. This led to fierce competition in the market, with companies vying to produce a lighter, more portable phone, setting the stage for the future of mobile technology.
The race for a slimmer version of the portable cell phone was underway, and technology entrepreneur Jan Stenbeck was determined to lead the charge. Stenbeck founded the tech start-up Technophone with a singular goal in mind: to create a lightweight, pocket-sized mobile phone. In 1986, under the guidance of Excel mobile phones, Technophones chief executive officer, Nils Martensson, the company unveiled the first pocket-sized mobile phone, the Excell PCT105.
File:Motorola DynaTAC.jpg, In 1983, the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X becomes the first commercially available mobile phone model
File:Trimline December 1986.jpg, Trimline telephone
File:PIC_0011_Samsung_SF100.jpg, During the decade the standardization of Group 3 facsimile terminals by the International Telecommunication Union contributed to the significant spread of the fax machine.
File:VHS vs Betamax size.jpg, VHS won out over the competing Betamax standard, becoming the leading standard in home video systems
File:Hayes 300 Baud Smartmodem 02.jpg, Hayes Microcomputer Products, Hayes's Smartmodem
Information technology
* During the decade Microsoft released the operating systems MS-DOS (1981), Windows 1.0 (1985), and Windows 2.0 (1987).
* Mathematical Software MathLab, introduced in 1988, by Stephen Wolfram.
* The CD – the most basic CD ("Digital Audio Compact Disc") was released in October 1982 for distribution and listening to digital audio, and at the time contained up to 74 minutes of music.
* TCP/IP: ARPANET officially changed its main protocol from NCP to TCP/IP on 1 January 1983, when the new protocols were activated. The TCP/IP protocol will become the dominant communications protocol from then onwards, and would be used as the foundation on which the Internet would be based.
* The GNU Project (1983). The Free Software Foundation (1985).
* FidoNet – In 1984, FidoNet was launched, enabling Bulletin board system, BBS users to send private messages (e-mails) and public messages (in the forum) between all BBS systems that were connected to the FidoNet network, in addition to sending files to each other. The rise in popularity and availability of the Internet around the world around the mid-1990s eventually contributed to the irrelevance of FidoNet.
* World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW or simply the Web) is an information system that enables Content (media), content sharing over the Internet through user-friendly ways meant to appeal to users beyond Information technology, IT specialists and hobbyis ...
– In 1989, the British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee
Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee (born 8 June 1955), also known as TimBL, is an English computer scientist best known as the inventor of the World Wide Web, the HTML markup language, the URL system, and HTTP. He is a professorial research fellow a ...
first proposed a project to his employer CERN, based on the concept of hypertext, to facilitate sharing and updating information among researchers. In mid-November 1989 he would develop the first successful communication between a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) client and server via the internet
The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...
. In the coming years Berners-Lee developed the system which would later become the foundation of the World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW or simply the Web) is an information system that enables Content (media), content sharing over the Internet through user-friendly ways meant to appeal to users beyond Information technology, IT specialists and hobbyis ...
.
File:MS-Dos screenshot.png, In 1981, Microsoft introduced the MS-DOS operating system, which would become the world's most widely used operating system in the 1980s and first half of the 1990s.
File:CD autolev crop new.jpg, The most basic CD was first introduced in October 1982 for the purpose of distribution and listening to digital audio
File:Tim Berners-Lee.jpg, In 1989, the British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee
Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee (born 8 June 1955), also known as TimBL, is an English computer scientist best known as the inventor of the World Wide Web, the HTML markup language, the URL system, and HTTP. He is a professorial research fellow a ...
first proposed the World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW or simply the Web) is an information system that enables Content (media), content sharing over the Internet through user-friendly ways meant to appeal to users beyond Information technology, IT specialists and hobbyis ...
, which he would develop in the coming years
Space exploration
American interplanetary probes continued in the 1980s, the Voyager duo being the most known. After making a flyby of Jupiter in 1979, they went near Saturn in 1980–1981. ''Voyager 2'' reached Uranus in 1986 (just a few days before the ''Challenger'' disaster), and Neptune in 1989 before the probes exited the Solar System.
No American probes were launched to Mars in the 1980s, and the Viking program, Viking probes, launched there in 1975, completed their operations by 1982. The Soviets launched two Mars probes in 1988, but they failed.
The arrival of Halley's Comet in 1986 was met by a series of Soviet, Japanese and European Space Agency (ESA) probes, namely Halley Armada.
After a six-year hiatus, American space flights with astronauts resumed with the launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia, Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' in April 1981. The shuttle program progressed smoothly from there, with three more orbiters entering service in 1983–1985. But that all came to an end with the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, tragic loss of the Space Shuttle Challenger, ''Challenger'' (STS-51-L) on 28 January 1986, taking with it seven astronauts, including Christa McAuliffe, who was to have been the first teacher in space. In full view of the world, a faulty O-ring on the right solid rocket booster allowed hot gases to burn through the external fuel tank and cause it to explode, destroying the shuttle in the process. Extensive efforts were made to improve NASA's increasingly careless management practices, and to make the shuttle safer. Flights resumed with the launch of Space Shuttle Discovery, ''Discovery'' in September 1988.
The Soviet program with cosmonauts went well during the decade, experiencing only minor setbacks. The Salyut 6 space station, launched in 1977, was replaced by Salyut 7 in 1982. Then came ''Mir'' in 1986, which ended up operating for more than a decade, and was destined to be the last in the line of Soviet space stations that had begun in 1971. One of the Soviet Union's last "superprojects" was the Buran (spacecraft), ''Buran'' space shuttle; it was only used once, in 1988.
Automobiles
The American auto industry began in the 1980s in a thoroughly grim situation, faced with poor quality control, rising import competition, and a severe economic downturn. Chrysler and American Motors (AMC) were near bankruptcy, and Ford was little better off. Only General Motors (GM) continued with business as usual. But the auto makers recovered with the economy by 1983, and in 1985 auto sales in the United States hit a new record. However, the Japanese were now a major presence, and would begin manufacturing cars in the US to get around tariffs. In 1986, Hyundai Motor Company, Hyundai became the first Korean auto maker to enter the American market. In the same year, the Yugoslavian-built Zastava Koral, Yugo was brought to the US, but the car was so small and cheap, that it became the subject of jokes. It was sold up to 1991, when economic sanctions against Yugoslavia forced its withdrawal from the American market.
As the decade progressed, cars became smaller and more efficient in design. In 1983, Ford Motor Company, Ford design teams began to incorporate aerodynamic styling to decrease drag while in motion. The Ford Thunderbird, Thunderbird was one of the first cars to receive these design changes. In 1985, Ford released the Ford Taurus, Taurus with a design that was revolutionary among domestic mass market automobiles.
GM began suffering significant losses in the late 1980s, partially the result of chairman Roger Smith (executive), Roger Smith's restructuring attempts, and partially because of increasingly dated cars. An example were customers who increasingly purchased European luxury cars rather than Cadillacs. In 1985, GM started Saturn Corporation, Saturn (the first new American make since the Edsel), with the goal of producing high-quality import fighters. Production would not begin until 1990.
Chrysler introduced its new compact, front-wheel drive Chrysler K platform, K-cars in 1981. Under the leadership of Lee Iacocca, the company turned a profit again the following year, and by 1983 paid off its government loans. A succession of models using this automobile platform followed. The most significant were the minivans in 1984. These proved a to be popular and they would dominate the van market for more than a decade. In 1987, Chrysler purchased the Italian makes of Lamborghini and Maserati. In the same year, Chrysler bought American Motors Corporation, AMC from Renault laying to rest the last significant independent US automaker, but acquiring the hugely profitable Jeep line and continuing the Eagle (automobile), Eagle brand until the late 1990s.
The DMC DeLorean was the brainchild of John DeLorean, a flamboyant former GM executive. Production of the gull-winged sports car began in Northern Ireland in 1981. John DeLorean was arrested in October 1982 in a sting operation where he was attempting to sell cocaine to save his struggling company. He was acquitted of all charges in 1984, but too late for the DeLorean Motor Company, which closed down in 1983. The DeLorean gained renewed fame afterward as the time machine in the Back to the Future (series), ''Back to the Future'' film trilogy.
The imposition of corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) fuel-mileage standards in 1979 spelled the end of big-block engines, but performance cars and convertibles reemerged in the 1980s. Turbochargers were widely used to boost the performance of small cars, and technology from fuel injection began to take over from the widely used application of carburetors by the late 1980s. Front-wheel drive also became dominant.
The 1980s marked the decline of European brands in North America by the end of the decade. Renault, Citroën, and Peugeot ceased importation by the end of the decade. Alfa Romeo would continue until 1993. Fiat Automobiles, Fiat also ceased imports to North America in the 1980s.
Economics
* The early 1980s was marked by a severe global Early 1980s recession, economic recession that affected much of the developed world.
* Inflation peaked in the US in April 1980 at 14.76% and subsequently fell to a low of 1.10% in December 1986 but then rebounded to 4.65% at the end of the decade.
* Finland's economy grew by almost the fastest pace in the world, which eventually culminated in the Early 1990s depression in Finland, recession of the 1990s Finnish economy. In Finland, the 1980s were called the "Nousukausi", or "economic upswing".
* In the late 1980s, Japan experienced an Japanese asset price bubble, economic bubble, which would culminate in a stock market crash in 1991 that would begin a Lost Decades, period of economic stagnation.
* Developing countries reliant on loans from the International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...
would experience debt crises throughout the 1980s.
* Laissez-faire economics, Laissez faire and Neoliberalism, neoliberal economics have a resurgence in the developed world, led by the UK and US which emphasised reduced government intervention, lower taxes and deregulation of the stock markets, measures that became associated with an economic revival in the mid- to late-1980s.
* Brazil and Mexico suffers from a Latin American debt crisis, debt crisis in Latin America starting in 1982 under President João Figueiredo and Miguel de la Madrid. Economic problems worsened between 1979 and 1985 by firing and resignation of most officials of the Brazilian and Mexican government after the movement in 1984, and a failed response of emergency aid in the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, Mexico City earthquake just after the 175th anniversary of independence holiday in 1985. Tancredo Neves (later succeeded by José Sarney three months later) and Carlos Salinas de Gortari won a 1985 Brazilian presidential election, direct presidential election in 1985 marked the end of a Brazilian military dictatorship, 21-year military dictatorship, and a 1988 Mexican general election, controversial presidential election in 1988 amid charges of voter fraud, bribery, corruption and other abuses of power.
* Enactment of the Canada–United States Free Trade Agreement in 1989 to further establish a strong economic bond between the two prosperous neighbor countries of North America.
* In the Soviet Union, the Eleventh Five-Year Plan (Soviet Union), eleventh Five-Year Plan was initiated in 1981 during a Era of Stagnation, period of economic stagnation that began in the late 1970s. The Plan was a near failure, as most of the targets were not met. With the ascent of Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...
as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Communist Party, the twelfth Five-Year Plan sought to Uskoreniye, accelerate and Perestroika, restructure the Soviet economy through reforms to decentralize production and distribution systems.
* Under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping, China embarked on Chinese economic reform, extensive reforms in the 1980s, opening the country's economy to the West and allowing capitalist enterprises to operate in a Socialism with Chinese characteristics, market socialist system. The corruption of Communist Party of China, Communist Party leadership was met by dissent from students and workers in the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
The Tiananmen Square protests, known within China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, lasting from 15 April to 4 June 1989. After weeks of unsuccessful attempts between t ...
which were suppressed by the People's Liberation Army.
* The Solidarity (Polish trade union), Solidarity movement began in Poland in 1980, involving workers demanding political liberalization and democracy in Poland. Attempts by the Communist government to prevent the rise of the Solidarity movement failed and negotiations between the movement and the government took place. Solidarity would be instrumental in encouraging people in other communist states to demand political reform.
* The financial world and the stock market were glamorized in a way they had not been since the 1920s, and figures like Donald Trump and Michael Milken were widely seen as symbols of the decade. Widespread fear of Japanese economic strength would grip the United States in the 1980s.
* The "Black Monday" Black Monday (1987), stock market crash on 19 October 1987, decreased the value of the Dow Jones Industrial Average by more than 22%, causing widespread secondary drops in world markets.
* During the 1980s, for the first time in world history, transpacific trade (with East Asia, such as China, and Latin America, primarily with Mexico) equaled that of transatlantic trade (with Western Europe or with neighboring Canada), solidifying American economic power.
* Savings and loan crisis, The Savings and Loan crisis and Keating Five, Keating five scandal.
* The phrase Big Bang (financial markets), Big Bang, used in reference to the sudden deregulation of financial markets, was coined to describe measures, including abolition of fixed commission charges and of the distinction between stockjobbers and stockbrokers on the London Stock Exchange and change from open-outcry to electronic, screen-based trading, effected by Margaret Thatcher in 1986.
Popular culture
File:NES-Console-Set.jpg, The third generation of video game consoles like ''SG-1000'', ''Master System'', ''Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the and was later released as the redesigned NES in several test markets in the ...
'' (pictured), and ''Atari 7800'' were released in the 1980s.
File:Full House 1987 TV series logo.png, ''Full House'', ''The Golden Girls'', ''Family Ties'', ''Cheers'', ''Dynasty (1981 TV series), Dynasty'' and ''Dallas (TV series), Dallas'' were popular TV shows in the 1980s.
File:Michael Jackson Thriller Jacket.jpg, Michael Jackson's ''Thriller (album), Thriller'' became the best-selling album of all time, followed by the critically acclaimed album ''Bad (album), Bad'' five years later, and a musical film adaptation titled ''Moonwalker''.
File:MTV Logo.svg, MTV began in 1981, and greatly influenced the way music is marketed and the rise of many rock stars during the 1980s. Early CGI also caught on within music videos, including the popular video for "Money for Nothing (song)#Music video, Money for Nothing".
File:Commodore 64 (4841984952).jpg, Technological advancements like early personal computers, the IBM Personal Computer
The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible ''de facto'' standard. Released on August 12, 1981, it was created by a ...
, Commodore 64 (pictured), and Macintosh 128K were popular in the 1980s.
File:Polaroid Sun 600 LMS instant camera.jpg, Polaroid Corporation, Polaroid-branded cameras were popular and at their height in the 1980s.
File:He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.jpg, ''He-Man and the Masters of the Universe'', ''The Smurfs (1981 TV series), The Smurfs'', ''The Transformers (TV series), The Transformers'', ''Inspector Gadget (1983 TV series), Inspector Gadget'', ''DuckTales (1987 TV series), DuckTales'', ''ThunderCats (1985 TV series), ThunderCats'', and ''Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983 TV series), Alvin and the Chipmunks'' were popular cartoons in the 1980s.
File:Side A, TDK D-C60 20041220.jpg, Cassette tapes used for music listening and operating the Sony Walkman were popular in the decade.
File:ArcadeGames.jpg, Arcade games like ''Pac-Man
''Pac-Man,'' originally called in Japan, is a 1980 maze video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. The pla ...
'', ''Donkey Kong (arcade game), Donkey Kong'', ''Frogger'', Defender (1981 video game), ''Defender'', ''Galaga, Centipede (video game), Centipede, a''nd Joust (video game), ''Joust'', were popular during the golden age of arcade video games.
File:Olympic Torch Tower of the Los Angeles Coliseum.jpg, Six Olympic Games were held in the 1980s, 1980 Winter Olympics, Lake Placid and 1980 Summer Olympics, Moscow in 1980, 1984 Winter Olympics, Sarajevo and 1984 Summer Olympics, Los Angeles in 1984, 1988 Winter Olympics, Calgary and 1988 Summer Olympics, Seoul in 1988.
File:Back-to-the-future-logo.svg, Teen-oriented films like ''Fast Times at Ridgemont High'', ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'', ''Back to the Future'', ''The Breakfast Club'' and ''The Outsiders (film), The Outsiders'' were popular in the 1980s.
File:Who Framed Roger Rabbit logo.png, After a turbulent decline in the 1960s and 1970s, animation began to thrive again due to the success and popularity of films such as ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'', ''Oliver & Company'', ''The Land Before Time (film), The Land Before Time'', and ''The Little Mermaid (1989 film), The Little Mermaid.''
File:Graffiti in Bayreuth4.jpg, Along with early hip hop culture like 1989's ''Straight Outta Compton'', graffiti became more mainstream in the 1980s.
File:Data Processing Technician 2nd Class Trice uses a computer terminal to track a user's request in the Navy Regional Data Automatic Center - DPLA - 3eec547d2abaf44072a2a672ef159283.jpg, Before the more mainstream use of the internet in the 1990s, many computer systems had searchable databases during the decade. These databases could be used to search a students' grades, computerized library and video rental systems to track books and video rentals.
File:Ronald Reagan on CRT TV (photo illustration).jpg, Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
was president of the United States for a majority of the 1980s (1981–1989), during what was called the Reagan era. Ronald Reagan's vice president George H.W. Bush became president in 1989.
Music
In the United States, MTV was launched and music videos began to have a larger effect on the record industry. Pop artists/bands such as Duran Duran, Michael Jackson, George Michael, Whitney Houston, Prince (musician), Prince, Cyndi Lauper and Madonna mastered the format and helped turn this new product into a profitable business. At the beginning of the decade New wave music, new wave fell from favor with the rise of the New Romantic, new pop and synthpop genres developed by many British and American artists, popular phenomena throughout the decade especially in the early and mid-1980s. Music grew fragmented and combined into subgenres such as house, goth, and rap metal. Famous music videos include those of Peter Gabriel.
The advent of numerous new technologies had a significant impact on 1980s music, and led to a distinct production aesthetic that included synthesizer sounds, drum machines and drum reverb.
Duran Duran, the biggest band of the 1980s, were leaders in the Second British Invasion, with a level of fame similar to Beatlemania by 1984. Their debut single was "Planet Earth (Duran Duran song), Planet Earth" (1981). Their breakthrough album was ''Rio (Duran Duran album), Rio'' (1982). The single "Hungry Like the Wolf" was number 1 in Canada. UK number 1 singles include "Is There Something I Should Know?" and "The Reflex", which was the band's most successful single and was also number 1 in the US and on the Eurochart Hot 100. "A View to a Kill (song), A View to a Kill", theme song of the James Bond film, was number 1 in the US. "Notorious (Duran Duran song), Notorious" was number 1 in Italy, Spain and Canada. "The Wild Boys (song), The Wild Boys" was number 1 in West Germany and South Africa. The band went on to sell over 100 million records and win Brit, Grammy and MTV awards.
Michael Jackson was one of the icons of the 1980s and his leather jacket, white glove, and Moonwalk dance were often imitated. Jackson's 1982 album ''Thriller (Michael Jackson album), Thriller'' became—and currently remains—the List of best-selling albums, best-selling album of all time, with sales estimated by various sources as somewhere between 65 and 110 million copies worldwide. His 1987 album ''Bad (album), Bad'' sold over 45 million copies and became the first album to have five number-one singles chart on the Billboard Hot 100. Jackson had the most number-one singles throughout the decade (9), and spent the most weeks at number one (27 weeks). His 1987 Bad World Tour grossed over $125 million worldwide, making it the highest grossing world tour by a solo artist during the decade. Jackson earned numerous awards and titles during the 1980s, the most notable of which were a record eight Grammy Awards and eight American Music Awards in 1984, and the honor of "Artist of the Decade" by US President George H. W. Bush. Jackson was arguably the biggest star during this time, and would eventually sell more than one billion records around the world.
Prince (musician), Prince was a popular star of the 1980s and the most successful chart act of the decade. His breakthrough album 1999 (Prince album), ''1999'', released in 1982, produced three top-ten hits and the album itself charted at number nine on the Billboard 200. His sixth studio album Purple Rain (album), ''Purple Rain'' was an international success, boosting Prince to superstardom and selling over 25 million copies worldwide. The album produced the US number-one singles, "When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy" and sold 13 million copies in the US as of 1996. Prince released an album every year for the rest of the decade, all charting within the top ten, with the exception of ''Lovesexy''. He went on to sell over 120 million records worldwide and win seven Grammy Awards.
Madonna and Whitney Houston were groundbreaking female artists of the decade. The keyboard synthesizer and drum machine were among the most popular instruments in music during the 1980s. After the 1980s, electronic instruments continued to be the main component of mainstream pop.
Synth pop and new pop musicians included the Eurythmics, Pet Shop Boys, Spandau Ballet, A Flock of Seagulls, INXS, Ultravox, Men Without Hats, Icehouse (band), Icehouse, Toni Basil, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, OMD, Visage (band), Visage, Alphaville (band), Alphaville, A-ha, Martha and the Muffins, Talk Talk and Depeche Mode. Pop rock bands included Tears for Fears and Transvision Vamp. Ska bands included Madness (band), Madness and The Specials.
Stock Aitken Waterman songs were sung by Bananarama, Dead or Alive (band), Dead or Alive, Rick Astley, Kylie Minogue and Donna Summer.
Hard rock, Heavy metal music, heavy metal, and glam metal became some of the most dominant music genres of the decade, peaking with the arrival of such bands as Mötley Crüe, Guns N' Roses, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, Poison (American band), Poison, Europe (band), Europe, Megadeth, Slayer, Sepultura, Anthrax (American band), Anthrax, and virtuoso guitarists such as Joe Satriani and Yngwie Malmsteen. The scene also helped 1970s hard rock artists and bands such as AC/DC, Heart (band), Heart, Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Blue Öyster Cult, Deep Purple, Queen (band), Queen, Van Halen, Kiss (band), KISS, Ronnie James Dio, Rush (band), Rush and Judas Priest reach a new generation of fans.
The 1980s were also known for song parodies becoming more mainstream, a trend led by parodic musician "Weird Al" Yankovic. He was best known for his Michael Jackson parodies "Eat It" and "Fat (song), Fat" as well as other parodies like "Another One Rides The Bus" (parody of "Another One Bites The Dust" by Queen (Band), Queen).
By 1989, the Hip hop music, hip hop scene had evolved, gaining recognition and exhibiting a stronger influence on the music industry. This time period is also considered part of the golden age hip hop, golden age of hip hop. The Beastie Boys, Public Enemy (group), Public Enemy, Run–D.M.C., Run-D.M.C., Grandmaster Flash, the Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Furious Five, N.W.A, LL Cool J, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Ice-T, DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Tone Lōc, Biz Markie, The Sugar Hill Gang and others experienced success in this genre.
Country music advanced into a new realm of popularity with youth appeal and record-breaking marks. Groundbreaking artists such as Alabama (American band), Alabama, Hank Williams Jr., Reba McEntire, George Strait, Ricky Skaggs, Janie Fricke, The Judds, and Randy Travis achieved multiple platinum and award status, foreshadowing the genre's popularity explosion in the 1990s. Country legends from past decades, such as George Jones, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Conway Twitty, the Oak Ridge Boys, Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton, Merle Haggard, Don Williams, Crystal Gayle, Ronnie Milsap, Barbara Mandrell, and the Statler Brothers, remained popular and continued to score hits throughout the decade.
The techno style of electronic dance music emerged in Detroit, Michigan, during the mid to late 1980s. The house music style, another form of electronic dance music, emerged in Chicago, Illinois, in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino and gay communities, first in Chicago, then in New York City and Detroit. It eventually reached Europe before becoming infused in mainstream pop and dance music worldwide.
Leading punk rock bands included Black Flag (band), Black Flag, Minor Threat, Suicidal Tendencies and Minutemen (band), Minutemen. Punk rock gave birth to many subgenres like Hardcore punk, hardcore, which in turn gave birth to a few counterculture movements, most notably the Straight Edge movement which began in the early 1980s. College rock caught on in the underground scene of the 1980s in a nationwide movement with a distinct DIY ethic, D.I.Y approach. Bands like the Pixies (band), Pixies, R.E.M., The Replacements (band), The Replacements, Sonic Youth, XTC, The Smiths, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Stone Roses, The Jesus and Mary Chain etc. experienced success in this genre. The 1980s also saw the birth of the grunge genre, with the arrival of such bands as Soundgarden and Nirvana (band), Nirvana.
Siouxsie and the Banshees and Pigbag were post punk bands. New Order (band), New Order and U2 had post punk origins.
Former The Beatles, Beatle John Lennon and Yoko Ono released their joint number 1 album ''Double Fantasy'' in November 1980. This was Lennon's final album before his Death of John Lennon, murder in December 1980. Led Zeppelin disbanded after drummer John Bonham's 1980 death. Brian Johnson became lead singer of AC/DC after predecessor Bon Scott died in 1980. Reggae musician Bob Marley died from a lentiginous skin melanoma in 1981. Motown singer Marvin Gaye was Death of Marvin Gaye, shot dead by his Marvin Gay Sr., father in 1984. Airplane crashes killed Ozzy Osbourne's guitarist Randy Rhoads in 1982, and Kyu Sakamoto in 1985. Karen Carpenter died from complications of anorexia nervosa in 1983. Her death resulted in widespread attention and research into eating disorders and body dysmorphia. Other deaths include Tim Hardin in 1980, Harry Chapin in 1981, Metallica bassist Cliff Burton in 1986, Andy Gibb in 1988 and Hibari Misora in 1989.
In 1984, the British supergroup Band Aid (band), Band Aid was formed to raise aid and awareness of the economic plight of Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
. In 1985's Live Aid
Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...
concert, featuring many artists, promoted attention and action to send food aid to Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
whose people were suffering from a major 1984–1985 famine in Ethiopia, famine.
During the 1980s, Japan had the second largest music market in the world. J-pop#1980s: Fusion with "kayōkyoku", Popular music included Kayōkyoku#1970s–1980s: Idol kayō era, kayōkyoku, Japanese idol#1980–1990: Golden Age of Idols, idols, New music (Japanese genre), new music, Japanese rock#1980s to 1990s, rock and techno-pop. Artists and bands included Seiko Matsuda, Akina Nakamori, Hiroko Yakushimaru, Tomoyo Harada, Yōko Oginome, Yoko Minamino, Chisato Moritaka, Wink (duo), Wink, Saki Kubota, Rebecca (band), Rebecca, Kome Kome Club, the Southern All Stars, Eiichi Ohtaki and Yellow Magic Orchestra. The song "Hana" by Shoukichi Kina, was a hit overseas, and sold 30 million copies.
Argentine rock reached its highest popularity and commercial success. Argentine bands such as Soda Stereo became widely acclaimed throughout Latin America. The underground culture in Buenos Aires created many bands that would become household names, like reggae rock band Sumo (band), Sumo and post-punk Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota, Los Redondos. Charly García left his Supergroup (music), supergroup Serú Girán, Seru Giran and started a successful solo career with the Argentine rock album Clics modernos, Clics Modernos. Luis Alberto Spinetta also thrived as a solo musician, while Andrés Calamaro, along with Miguel Abuelo, leaded Los Abuelos de la Nada, which would go on to compose Mil horas, Mil Horas, a rock anthem in all the Spanish-speaking world.
Artists singing in Italian included Al Bano and Romina Power and Matia Bazar. Rondò Veneziano were a baroque pop outfit.
Artists who topped the List of Billboard Year-End number-one singles and albums, US annual album chart included Pink Floyd, REO Speedwagon, Asia (band), Asia, Bruce Springsteen, George Michael and Bobby Brown. Artists who topped the US annual singles chart included Blondie (band), Blondie, Kim Carnes, Olivia Newton-John, The Police, Wham!, Dionne & Friends (which consisted of Dionne Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder) and The Bangles.
The List of best-selling albums of the 1980s in the United Kingdom, UK best selling album of the 1980s was by Dire Straits. The List of best-selling singles of the 1980s in the United Kingdom, best selling single was by Band Aid. Artists who topped the 1981 in British music#Year-end charts, UK annual singles chart included The Human League, Dexys Midnight Runners, Culture Club, Jennifer Rush, The Communards, Cliff Richard and Black Box (band), Black Box. Artists who topped the UK annual albums chart included ABBA, Adam and the Ants, Barbra Streisand and Jason Donovan.
Other famous and popular female singers included Belinda Carlisle, Bette Midler, Bonnie Tyler, Celine Dion, Debbie Gibson, Deniece Williams, Diana Ross, Gloria Estefan, Janet Jackson, Joan Jett, Kate Bush, Kim Wilde, Laura Branigan, Martika, Nena, Pat Benatar, Paula Abdul, Samantha Fox, Sheena Easton, Tiffany Darwish and Tina Turner. Other famous and popular male singers included Billy Joel, Billy Ocean, Bob Dylan, Bryan Adams, David Bowie, Don Henley, Frank Sinatra, Freddie Mercury, George Harrison, Nik Kershaw, Paul McCartney, Paul Young, Phil Collins, Rick Springfield, Robert Palmer (singer), Robert Palmer, Sting (musician), Sting and Terence Trent D'Arby. Other famous and popular bands included Bee Gees, Boston (band), Boston, Cheap Trick, The Cure, Fleetwood Mac, Foreigner (band), Foreigner, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Genesis (band), Genesis, Hall & Oates, Imagination (band), Imagination, The Jackson 5, KC and the Sunshine Band, Kool & the Gang, Lipps Inc., Miami Sound Machine, Mike and the Mechanics, Men at Work, Motörhead, New Kids on the Block, The Pointer Sisters, The Rolling Stones, The Stranglers, Tight Fit, Toto (band), Toto, UB40, Whitesnake, Yes (band), Yes and ZZ Top.
Other artists with List of Billboard Hot 100 number ones of 1980, US number 1 singles included John Mellencamp, John Cougar, Captain & Tennille, Rupert Holmes, Eddie Rabbitt, Stars on 45, Air Supply, The J. Geils Band, Steve Miller Band, Patti Austin, James Ingram, John Waite, Huey Lewis and the News, Ready for the World, Jan Hammer, Mr. Mister, Marilyn Martin, Falco (musician), Falco, Simply Red, Peter Cetera, Amy Grant, Steve Winwood, Patti LaBelle, Michael McDonald (musician), Michael McDonald, Bruce Hornsby, Gregory Abbott, Billy Vera, Club Nouveau, Aretha Franklin, Cutting Crew, Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam, Atlantic Starr, Los Lobos, Bob Seger, Siedah Garrett, Billy Idol, Exposé (group), Exposé, Bobby McFerrin, Richard Marx, The Beach Boys, The Escape Club, Will to Power (band), Will to Power, Sheriff (band), Sheriff, Roxette, Fine Young Cannibals, Michael Damian, Milli Vanilli and Bad English.
In theatre, the decade paved the way for what are now known as the megamusical, with examples such as ''Cats (musical), Cats'', ''Starlight Express'', ''Les Misérables (musical), Les Misérables'', ''The Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical), The Phantom of the Opera'', and ''Miss Saigon''.
In music 1980 in radio, radio, Casey Kasem hosted American Top 40 and Casey's Top 40.
Other artists with List of Billboard 200 number-one albums of 1981, US number 1 albums include Journey (band), Journey and Stevie Nicks.
French musicians included Florent Pagny, F.R. David, France Gall, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Johnny Hallyday, Julie Pietri, Michel Berger, Patrick Bruel and Renaud. Austrian, Dutch and German musicians included C. C. Catch, Dschinghis Khan, Joy (Austrian band), Joy, Modern Talking and Sandra (singer), Sandra Cretu. Other popular musicians included Bad Boys Blue, Baltimora, Demis Roussos and Ryan Paris.
* Oscar winners for Best Song: "Fame (Irene Cara song), Fame" (Irene Cara), "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" (Christopher Cross), "Up Where We Belong" (Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes), "Flashdance... What a Feeling", "I Just Called to Say I Love You" (Stevie Wonder), "Say You, Say Me" (Lionel Richie), "Take My Breath Away" (Berlin (band), Berlin), "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" (Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes), "Let the River Run" (Carly Simon) and "Under the Sea".
Other artists contributing music to cinema films included Vangelis, Limahl, Ray Parker Jr., Survivor (band), Survivor, Starship (band), Starship, Simple Minds, Kenny Loggins, Azumi Inoue, Michael Sembello, Lindsey Buckingham and John Parr.
Other musicians included Earth Wind & Fire, Frank Zappa, Gloria Gaynor, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Luther Vandross, Paul Anka, Queensrÿche, Simon & Garfunkel, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Talking Heads, Twisted Sister and the Village People.
Film
Critically acclaimed films and thespians
* Oscar winners for Best Picture: ''Ordinary People'', ''Chariots of Fire'', ''Gandhi (film), Gandhi'', ''Terms of Endearment'', ''Amadeus (film), Amadeus'', ''Out of Africa (film), Out of Africa'', ''Platoon (film), Platoon'', ''The Last Emperor'', ''Rain Man'' and ''Driving Miss Daisy''.
* The highest-grossing films of the decade are (in order from highest to lowest ''domestic'' grossing): ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'', ''Return of the Jedi'', ''The Empire Strikes Back'', ''Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'', ''Batman (1989 film), Batman'', ''Rain Man'', ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'', ''Ghostbusters'', ''Back to the Future'', ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'', ''Top Gun'', ''Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom'', ''Back to the Future Part II'', ''Crocodile Dundee'', ''Fatal Attraction'' and ''Beverly Hills Cop''.
* Oscar winners for Best Foreign Language Film: ''Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears'', ''Mephisto (1981 film), Mephisto'', ''Begin the Beguine (film), Begin the Beguine'', ''Fanny and Alexander'', ''Dangerous Moves'', ''The Official Story'', ''The Assault (1986 film), The Assault'', ''Babette's Feast'', ''Pelle the Conqueror'' and ''Cinema Paradiso''.
* Oscar winners for Best Actor: Robert De Niro, Henry Fonda, Ben Kingsley, Robert Duvall, F. Murray Abraham, William Hurt, Paul Newman, Michael Douglas, Dustin Hoffman and Daniel Day-Lewis.
* Oscar winners for Best Actress: Sissy Spacek, Katharine Hepburn, Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine, Sally Field, Geraldine Page, Marlee Matlin, Cher, Jodie Foster and Jessica Tandy.
The film industry
The 1980s saw the return of studio-driven films, coming from the filmmaker-driven New Hollywood era of the 1970s. The period was when 'high concept' films gained popularity, where movies were to be easily marketable and understandable, and, therefore, they had short cinematic Plot (narrative), plots that could be summarized in one or two sentences. The modern Hollywood Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbuster is the most popular film format from the 1980s. Producer Don Simpson is usually credited with the creation of the high-concept picture of the modern Hollywood blockbuster. In the mid-1980s, a wave of British directors, including Ridley Scott, Alan Parker, Adrian Lyne and Tony Scott (with the latter directing a number of Don Simpson films) ushered in a new era of blockbusters using the crowd-pleasing skills they had honed in UK television commercials.
A significant development in the home media business is the establishment of The Criterion Collection in 1984, an American company "dedicated to gathering the greatest films from around the world and publishing them in editions that offer the highest technical quality". Through their releases, they were able to introduce what is now a standard to home video: Letterboxing (filming), letterboxing to retain the original aspect ratio, Audio commentary, film commentaries and supplements/special features.
Live-action films
The 1980s saw the golden age of teen films. ''Class (film), Class'', ''Fast Times at Ridgemont High'', ''Risky Business'', ''Mannequin (1987 film), Mannequin'', ''Porky's'', ''Valley Girl (1983 film), Valley Girl'', and John Hughes (filmmaker), John Hughes directed or written ''Sixteen Candles'', ''The Breakfast Club'', ''Weird Science (film), Weird Science'', ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'', ''Pretty in Pink'' and ''Some Kind of Wonderful (film), Some Kind of Wonderful'', were popular teen comedies, and their stars include Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Andrew McCarthy, Rob Lowe, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, Ally Sheedy, Matthew Broderick, Tom Cruise, Rebecca De Mornay, Sean Penn and Nicolas Cage. Other youth dramas include ''Stand by Me (film), Stand by Me'' and Francis Ford Coppola directed ''The Outsiders (film), The Outsiders'' and ''Rumble Fish''. Their stars include River Phoenix and Mickey Rourke. The Brat Pack (actors), Brat Pack films are said to include ''The Breakfast Club'' and ''St. Elmo's Fire (film), St. Elmo's Fire''. Musical dance films include ''Footloose (1984 film), Footloose'', ''Dirty Dancing'' and ''Flashdance'', and their stars include Kevin Bacon and Patrick Swayze. Other musicals include ''Annie (1982 film), Annie''.
Horror films were a popular genre during the decade. Among the most popular horror franchises of the 1980s were the ''Friday the 13th (franchise), Friday the 13th'', ''A Nightmare on Elm Street (franchise), A Nightmare on Elm Street'', ''Halloween (franchise), Halloween'', ''Child's Play (film series), Child's Play'', ''Hellraiser (franchise), Hellraiser'', and ''Poltergeist (film series), Poltergeist'' franchises. Their casts include Jamie Lee Curtis, Robert Englund, Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon and Brad Dourif. ''The Shining (film), The Shining'' was initially met with mixed reviews from critics, and even from the Stephen King, author of the The Shining (novel), book, and was moderately financially successful, but later became very popular and critically acclaimed. The concept of the B movie, B horror film gave rise to many horror films that went on to earn cult status, such as ''The Evil Dead'', which was directed by Sam Raimi. Comedy horror films included ''Beetlejuice'', ''Gremlins'', ''Little Shop of Horrors (1986 film), Little Shop of Horrors'' and ''The Lost Boys''. Their stars include Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Winona Ryder, Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Corey Feldman, Corey Haim and Kiefer Sutherland.
Comedies included ''The Blues Brothers (film), The Blues Brothers'', ''Caddyshack'', ''Stir Crazy (film), Stir Crazy'', ''Private Benjamin (1980 film), Private Benjamin'', ''9 to 5 (film), 9 to 5'', ''Trading Places'', ''Splash (film), Splash'', ''Jumpin' Jack Flash (film), Jumpin' Jack Flash'', ''Three Men and a Baby'', ''Harry and the Hendersons'', ''Throw Momma from the Train'', ''Planes, Trains and Automobiles'', ''Twins (1988 film), Twins'', ''The 'Burbs'' and two Ghostbusters (franchise), Ghostbusters films, and their stars included Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase, Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor, Goldie Hawn, Jane Fonda, Tom Hanks, Whoopi Goldberg, Ted Danson, Steve Guttenberg, Tom Selleck, John Lithgow, Danny DeVito, Billy Crystal, Ernie Hudson, Rick Moranis, Steve Martin and John Candy. Romcoms include ''Look Who's Talking'', starring John Travolta. ''Good Morning, Vietnam'' is a war comedy starring Robin Williams and Forest Whitaker. Action comedies include ''48 Hrs.'', ''Romancing the Stone'' and ''The Jewel of the Nile''. Their stars include Nick Nolte and Kathleen Turner.
The most popular action film franchises introduced during the 1980s were the ''Indiana Jones'', ''Die Hard (franchise), Die Hard'', ''Lethal Weapon (film series), Lethal Weapon'', and ''Rambo (film series), Rambo'' franchises. Other popular action films from the decade include ''The Terminator'', ''Aliens (film), Aliens'', ''Mad Max 2'', ''Escape from New York'', ''Red Dawn'', ''Predator (film), Predator'', ''RoboCop'', the Dirty Harry film ''Sudden Impact'' and ''Cobra (1986 film), Cobra''. Stars of these films included Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Sigourney Weaver, Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci, Charlie Sheen, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn, Lance Henriksen, Gary Busey, Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Peter Weller, Nancy Allen (actress), Nancy Allen, Kurt Russell, Clint Eastwood, Sylvester Stallone, Brigitte Nielsen, Vernon Wells (actor), Vernon Wells and Brian Dennehy. Hong Kong action cinema and martial arts films were revolutionized by a new wave of inventive filmmakers that included Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Tsui Hark, and John Woo. American martial arts films had actors such as Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Steven Seagal, and included ''The Karate Kid''. Sports drama included The Natural (film), The Natural and the two ''Rocky (franchise), Rocky'' films, whose stars included Carl Weathers and Dolph Lundgren.
Five more James bond films, James Bond films were released, with Roger Moore continuing in the role in ''For Your Eyes Only (film), For Your Eyes Only'', ''Octopussy (film), Octopussy'', and ''A View to a Kill (film), A View To A Kill'', before handing over the role to Timothy Dalton who starred in ''The Living Daylights (film), The Living Daylights'' and ''Licence to Kill (film), Licence To Kill''.
The post-2000 popularity of blockbuster superhero films is attributed in part to the start such blockbuster films gained in the 1980s, starting with Superman in film#Salkind/Cannon film series (1978–1987), Salkind's ''Superman'' film series 1978–1987 and bookended at the end of the decade with Tim Burton's 1989 ''Batman (1989 film), Batman''. Their stars include Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Michael Keaton, Kim Basinger and Jack Nicholson.
The popularity of List of science fiction films of the 1980s, science fiction films in the 1980s is attributable to the popularity of the Star Wars original trilogy (1977–1983). Science fiction films include ''Blade Runner'', ''Outland (film), Outland'', ''The Return of Godzilla'', ''The Dead Zone (film), The Dead Zone'', ''The Fly (1986 film), The Fly'', ''The Abyss'', ''The Running Man (1987 film), The Running Man'', ''Flash Gordon (film), Flash Gordon'', ''Innerspace'', ''Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure'' and ''Back to the Future''. Their stars include Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Alec Guinness, James Earl Jones, Rutger Hauer, Daryl Hannah, Jeff Goldblum, Max von Sydow, Dennis Quaid, Meg Ryan, Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson and Keanu Reeves. Sword and sorcery films include ''Excalibur (film), Excalibur'' and ''Conan the Barbarian (1982 film), Conan the Barbarian''. Other fantasy films include ''Time Bandits'', ''The Dark Crystal'', ''The NeverEnding Story (film), The NeverEnding Story'' and ''The Witches of Eastwick (film), The Witches of Eastwick'', starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Susan Sarandon.
Westerns include ''Urban Cowboy'', ''The Man from Snowy River (1982 film), The Man from Snowy River'' and ''Mother Lode''. Period dramas include ''The Bostonians (film), The Bostonians''. Historical epics include ''The Right Stuff (film), The Right Stuff'', ''Kagemusha'' and ''Ran (film), Ran''. War films include ''Platoon'', ''Full Metal Jacket'' and ''Das Boot''. Their stars include Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Matthew Modine and Jürgen Prochnow. Romances include ''An Officer and a Gentleman'', starring Richard Gere, Debra Winger and Louis Gossett Jr.
Neo-noir films include ''Blow Out'' and ''Blue Velvet (film), Blue Velvet''. Mob films include ''Once Upon a Time in America'', ''Scarface (1983 film), Scarface'' and ''The Untouchables (film), The Untouchables''. Their stars include Al Pacino and Kevin Costner.
''Sailor Suit and Machine Gun (film), Sailor Suit and Machine Gun'' is a satirical yakuza film. Other w:ja:1981年の映画#各国ランキング, popular Japanese films included ''Imperial Navy (film), Imperial Navy'', ''Antarctica (1983 film), Antarctica'', ''Legend of the Eight Samurai'', ''The Burmese Harp (1985 film), The Burmese Harp'', ''The Adventures of Milo and Otis'', ''Hachikō Monogatari'' and ''The Silk Road (film), The Silk Road''.
Gérard Depardieu starred in the French films ''La Chèvre'', ''The Last Metro'', ''Danton (1983 film), Danton'', ''Police (1985 film), Police'' and ''Jean de Florette''. Luc Besson directed ''The Big Blue''. Jean-Jacques Annaud directed ''Quest for Fire (film), Quest for Fire'' and ''The Bear (1988 film), The Bear''.
Animated films
After leaving Disney in 1979, Don Bluth formed Don Bluth Productions, his own studio and went on direct ''The Secret of NIMH'', ''An American Tail'', ''The Land Before Time (film), The Land Before Time'' and ''All Dogs Go To Heaven''. Walt Disney Animation Studios, The Disney studio was almost bankrupted after ''The Black Cauldron (film), The Black Cauldron'' bombed at the box office. They began to recover with the modest success of Ron Clements and John Musker directed ''The Great Mouse Detective''. The live-action animated hybrid Robert Zemeckis directed ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' co-produced with Steven Spielberg was successful, and the Disney Renaissance began with ''The Little Mermaid (1989 film), The Little Mermaid'', starring Jodi Benson.
Animated films based on popular works include ''Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!)'', ''Heavy Metal (film), Heavy Metal'', ''The Adventures of Mark Twain (1985 film), The Adventures of Mark Twain'', ''The Care Bears Movie'', ''The Transformers: The Movie'' and ''The Chipmunk Adventure''; while original films include ''The Last Unicorn (film), The Last Unicorn'', ''The Plague Dogs (film), The Plague Dogs'', ''Rock & Rule'', ''Fire and Ice (1983 film), Fire and Ice'', ''Abra Cadabra (film), Abra Cadabra'', ''The Brave Little Toaster'', ''The BFG (1989 film), The BFG'', and the first Wallace & Gromit film, ''A Grand Day Out''.
The 1980s also saw a surge of Anime, Japanese anime films: Hayao Miyazaki's ''The Castle of Cagliostro'' and ''Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (film), Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind'' were successful and led to the foundation of Studio Ghibli, which produced the successful ''Castle in the Sky'', ''My Neighbor Totoro'', ''Grave of the Fireflies'' and ''Kiki's Delivery Service'' in the 1980s. Other well-known anime films of that decade include ''Golgo 13: The Professional'', ''Macross: Do You Remember Love?'', ''Lensman (1984 film), Lensman'', ''Vampire Hunter D (1985 film), Vampire Hunter D'', ''Akira (1988 film), Akira'', ''Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland'' and the ''Urusei Yatsura (film series), Urusei Yatsura film series''. The first theatrical animated franchise, List of Doraemon films, the Doraemon film series began in 1980 with the release of ''Doraemon: Nobita's Dinosaur''.
Television
Music video channel MTV was launched in the United States in 1981 and had a profound impact on the music industry and popular culture, especially in the 1980s and early 1990s.
The 1980s was a decade of transformation in television. Cable television became more accessible and therefore, more popular. By the middle of the decade, almost 70% of the US population had cable television and over 85% were paying for cable services such as HBO or Showtime (TV network), Showtime. People who lived in rural areas where cable TV service was not available could still access cable channels through a large (and expensive) satellite dish, which, by the mid-1990s, was phased out in favor of the small rooftop dishes that offer DirecTV and Dish Network services.
CNN and Bravo (American TV network), Bravo began in 1980; Channel 4, Rete 4 and Italia 1 in 1982; RTL (German TV channel), RTL and Canal+ (French TV channel), Canal+ in 1984; Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox in 1986; M6 (TV channel), M6 in 1987; Turner Network Television in 1988; CNBC and ProSieben in 1989.
New prime-time television, prime-time soap operas included ''Dallas (TV series), Dallas'', its spin-off ''Knots Landing'', ''Dynasty (1981 TV series), Dynasty'', ''Falcon Crest'', ''EastEnders'' and ''Neighbours''. Their stars included Larry Hagman, Linda Gray, Patrick Duffy, Victoria Principal, John Forsythe, Joan Collins, Linda Evans and Heather Locklear.
During the 1980s, sitcoms were popular, including ''Bosom Buddies'', ''Family Ties'', ''Newhart'', ''Too Close for Comfort'', ''The Cosby Show'', ''Night Court'', ''Full House'', ''The Wonder Years'' and ''Married... with Children''. Sitcom ''Cheers'' starred Kirstie Alley, Woody Harrelson, Shelley Long, Rhea Perlman, John Ratzenberger, George Wendt. ''Taxi (TV series), Taxi'' starred Marilu Henner, Judd Hirsch, Tony Danza and Andy Kaufman. ''Who's the Boss?'' starred Judith Light and Alyssa Milano. ''The Golden Girls'', was the first comedy ever to feature four older women in title TV roles. ''Designing Women'' starred Dixie Carter, Annie Potts and Delta Burke. Marla Gibbs starred in ''The Jeffersons'' and ''227 (TV series), 227'', which also starred Jackée Harry. Other sitcoms included Growing Pains and the British ''Blackadder'', '''Allo 'Allo!'', ''The Young Ones (TV series), The Young Ones'' and ''Only Fools and Horses''.
Sketch comedy and variety show ''Saturday Night Live'' experienced turbulence for much of the 1980s. Its cast members included Jim Belushi, Bill Murray, Eddie Murphy, Martin Short, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Other comedy sketch shows included ''Not the Nine O'Clock News'', ''The Kenny Everett Television Show'' and the influential and popular ' (sometimes called "We Are Wild and Crazy Guys").
Legal dramas included ''Matlock (1986 TV series), Matlock'', which starred Andy Griffith as Matlock, and also starred Nancy Stafford and Clarence Gilyard Jr.. Cop shows included ''Dempsey and Makepeace'', ''Miami Vice'', ''Cagney & Lacey'', ''21 Jump Street'', ''Hill Street Blues'' and ''The Bill''. Other crime shows included ''Murder, She Wrote''. Their stars included Don Johnson, Philip Michael Thomas, Tyne Daly, Sharon Gless, Johnny Depp and Angela Lansbury.
Science fiction included ''Blake's 7'', ''V (franchise), V'', ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (TV series), Buck Rogers'', ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'' (starring Patrick Stewart), ''Red Dwarf'', ALF (TV series), ''ALF'', ''Airwolf'', ''Knight Rider (1982 TV series), Knight Rider'' and ''Quantum Leap (1989 TV series), Quantum Leap''. Adventure series included ''The A-Team'', ''Robin of Sherwood'', ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' and ''Remington Steele''.
Musicals included ''Fame (1982 TV series), Fame''. Television magicians included David Copperfield (illusionist), David Copperfield and Paul Daniels. Stand-up comedians included Steven Wright, Andrew Dice Clay and Sam Kinison. Dancers included Gregory Hines.
TV talk shows expanded in popularity; ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' remained popular into its third decade, and some of the most viewed newer shows were hosted by Geraldo Rivera, Arsenio Hall and David Letterman.
TV documentary shows of the 1980s that were popular included ''Frontline (American TV program), Frontline'', ''Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days'', ''Unsolved Mysteries'' with Robert Stack, and ''Rescue 911'' with William Shatner.
The Wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer was watched by an estimated global television audience of 750 million people in 1981.
Scandal rocked TV evangelism when in 1987 evangelist Jim Bakker, founder of The PTL Club, PTL and Heritage USA, was defrocked for having an affair years earlier and later sent to prison for fraud. One year later, evangelist Jimmy Swaggart was defrocked for allegedly having sexual relations with a prostitute.
The 1980s was prominent for spawning popular animated shows such as ''The Smurfs (1981 TV series), The Smurfs'', ''ThunderCats (1985 TV series), ThunderCats'', ''The Transformers (TV series), The Transformers'', ''The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!'', ''Henry's Cat'', ''Danger Mouse (1981 TV series), Danger Mouse'', ''Count Duckula'', ''Alias the Jester'', ''Yakari (1983 TV series), Yakari'', ''Lucky Luke (1984 TV series), Lucky Luke'', ''Heathcliff (1984 TV series), Heathcliff'' (Mel Blanc's final series), ''Masters of the Universe'', ''Inspector Gadget (1983 TV series), Inspector Gadget'', ''Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983 TV series), Alvin and the Chipmunks'', ''Bananaman (TV series), Bananaman'', ''Thomas & Friends'', ''Muppet Babies (1984 TV series), Muppet Babies'', ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987 series), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'', ''Babar (TV series), Babar'', ''The Raccoons'', ''DuckTales (1987 TV series), DuckTales'', ''Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (TV series), Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers'', ''Dennis the Menace (1986 TV series), Dennis the Menace'', ''M.A.S.K. (TV series), M.A.S.K.'', ''Care Bears (TV series), Care Bears'', ''Rainbow Brite (1984 TV series), Rainbow Brite'', ''Garfield and Friends'', ''Pingu'', ''Postman Pat'' and ''Fireman Sam''.
The earliest ''The Simpsons shorts'' aired on ''The Tracey Ullman Show'', and the earliest series of ''The Simpsons'' appeared. In 1980, ''Astro Boy (1980 TV series), Astro Boy'' was remade in color. Other anime series from the 1980s include ''Wowser (TV series), Wowser'', ''Ulysses 31'', ''The Mysterious Cities of Gold'', ''Dominion (manga), Dominion'', ''Voltron (1984 TV series), Voltron'', ''Super Dimension Fortress Macross'', ''Fist of the North Star'', ''Gundam'' and ''Star Blazers''.
Sports
* The 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow were 1980 Summer Olympics boycott, boycotted by 65 countries led by the United States in protest of the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
* A young United States team famously defeated the heavily favored Soviet team in the Miracle on Ice game, and went on to win the gold medal for ice hockey, at the 1980 Winter Olympics.
* The New York Islanders won the Stanley Cup for 4 straight years in 1980 Stanley Cup Finals, 1980, 1981 Stanley Cup Finals, 1981, 1982 Stanley Cup Finals, 1982, and 1983 Stanley Cup Finals, 1983. The Islanders also became the second National Hockey League, NHL expansion team after the Philadelphia Flyers to win the Cup. Since their last Cup win in 1983, they were the third NHL team to win 4 consecutive championships and hold the NHL record for most consecutive playoff series' wins at 19 (stretching from the 1980 Stanley Cup playoffs, 1980 Playoffs to the 1984 Stanley Cup Finals, 1984 Playoffs).
* The Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League won the first three Grey Cup championships of the decade (having won the last two of the previous decade), adding one more in 1987.
* India won the 1983 Cricket World Cup. Australia won 1987 Cricket World Cup.
* The 1984 Winter Olympics were held in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia (now Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina). Yugoslavia became the second communist country to host the Olympic Games, but unlike the Soviet Union in 1980, there were no boycotts of the Games by Western countries.
* The 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles were boycotted by the Soviet Union and most of the Communist world (China, Romania, and Yugoslavia participated in the games) in retaliation for the boycott of the 1980 Games in Moscow.
* The Jamaica national bobsled team received major media attention and stunned the world at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada for its unexpected good performance. The events surrounding the Jamaica bobsled team in 1988 would lead to the creation of the Disney movie ''Cool Runnings'' five years later.
* The 1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...
were held in Seoul, South Korea. Attempts to include North Korea in the games were unsuccessful and it boycotted along with six other countries, but with 160 nations participating, it had the highest attendance of any Olympics to date.
* Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA banned Group B rallying after a series of deaths and injuries took place in the 1986 season.
* Canadian hockey player Wayne Gretzky's rise to fame in the NHL coincided with the Edmonton Oilers' first four Stanley Cup championships (1984 Stanley Cup Finals, 1984, 1985 Stanley Cup Finals, 1985, 1987 Stanley Cup Finals, 1987, and 1988 Stanley Cup Finals, 1988) and becoming the second NHL dynasty (sports), dynasty team of the 1980s.
* On 9 August 1988, in what became the biggest trade in NHL history (also known as "The Trade Of The Century"), Wayne Gretzky was traded along with teammates Marty McSorley and Mike Krushelnyski from Edmonton to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Martin Gélinas, Jimmy Carson, three first round draft (sports), draft picks, and US$15 million cash (approximately $18 million Canadian dollar, CAD in 1988).
* American basketball player Michael Jordan joined the National Basketball Association, NBA during the mid-1980s, raising the sport's popularity. He started his professional sports, professional career alongside the likes of Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley, Alvin Robertson, and John Stockton in what is considered one of the greatest drafts in the league's history, the 1984 NBA draft.
* On 26 November 1986, Mike Tyson became the youngest boxing Heavyweight Champion in history at age 20.
* The 1980s professional wrestling boom was in full effect.
* In 1985, the WWE, WWF presented the WrestleMania I at Madison Square Garden in New York City with an attendance of 19,121.
* In 1987, WrestleMania III had a record attendance of 93,173, the largest recorded attendance for a live indoor sporting event in North America until 2010. This also remained the WrestleMania attendance record until WrestleMania 32 in 2016
* In 1988, the live broadcast of WWF's ''The Main Event I'' drew a 15.2 Nielsen rating and 33 million viewers, both records for American televised wrestling.
* West Germany won the UEFA Euro 1980, 1980 UEFA championship.
* Italy won the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain.
* France hosted and won the UEFA Euro 1984, 1984 UEFA championship.
*
Argentina won the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. Diego Maradona produces the Goal of the Century and the hand of God goal.
* The Netherlands won the UEFA Euro 1988, 1988 UEFA championship.
* Hawthorn Football Club dominated Australian football, reaching seven successive VFL Grand Finals and winning the premiership in 1983, 1986, 1988, and 1989
* Liverpool F.C. were the most successful club side of the era, becoming English champions on six occasions (1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, and 1988) and winning two European Cups (1981, 1984). They also won the FA Cup in 1986, completing the first double in their history, and four consecutive League Cup titles from 1981 to 1984.
* Other highly successful club sides of the 1980s include Juventus (7 major honours won), Real Madrid (ten major honours won), Bayern Munich (nine titles won) PSV Eindhoven (four times Dutch champions and European Cup winners in 1988), and Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, Flamengo (four times Brazilian champions, South American and International Cup winners in 1981).
* In the National Football League, NFL, the San Francisco 49ers became the dynasty of the decade, winning four Super Bowls under the leadership of Joe Montana; the Chicago Bears won Super Bowl XX in January 1986, in which the team has been widely remembered for their 1985 Chicago Bears season, defense; and the Washington Redskins also enjoyed success throughout the decade, winning two of their three Super Bowls under the leadership of head coach Joe Gibbs.
* Magic Johnson and Larry Bird became the two most popular NBA players during the decade while even facing against each other in three NBA Finals (1984 NBA Finals, 1984, 1985 NBA Finals, 1985, and 1987 NBA Finals, 1987) continuing the storied Celtics-Lakers rivalry.
* Major League Baseball experienced parity and tense championship moments during the decade. The Philadelphia Phillies won their first World Series championship in 1980 World Series, 1980, the Kansas City Royals won their first World Series championship in a dramatic manner in 1985 World Series, 1985, the New York Mets won their second World Series championship in 1986 World Series, 1986 in a dramatic manner, and the Minnesota Twins won their first World Series in 1987 World Series, 1987. The 1988 World Series, 1988 and 1989 World Series
The 1989 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1989 season. The 86th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Oakland Athletics and the ...
are remembered for Kirk Gibson's 1988 World Series home run, Kirk Gibson's home run and the Loma Prieta Earthquake, respectively.
* Ultimate (sport), Disc ultimate league play is introduced to Canada in 1980 by Ken Westerfield starting the first Ultimate Canada#History, disc ultimate league (TUC), in Toronto.
Sportspeople
* Athletes: Sergey Bubka, Florence Griffith Joyner, Stefka Kostadinova, Carl Lewis
* Association footballers: Diego Maradona, Michel Platini, Paolo Rossi, Hugo Sánchez, Marco van Basten, Zico (footballer), Zico
* Baseballers: Wade Boggs, George Brett, Rickey Henderson, Don Mattingly, Kirby Puckett, Cal Ripken Jr., Pete Rose, Nolan Ryan, Mike Schmidt, Ozzie Smith, Darryl Strawberry, Fernando Valenzuela
* Basketballers: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Cooper, Julius Erving, Nick Galis, A.C. Green, Moses Malone, Kevin McHale (basketball), Kevin McHale, Dražen Petrović, Oscar Schmidt, Byron Scott, Isiah Thomas, Dominique Wilkins, James Worthy
* Bowlers: Bong Coo, Paeng Nepomuceno
* Boxers: Roberto Durán, Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Thomas Hearns, Larry Holmes, Sugar Ray Leonard, Aaron Pryor, Michael Spinks
* Chess players: Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov
* Cricketers: Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis
* Cyclists: Greg LeMond
* Gymnasts: Vladimir Artemov, Dmitry Bilozerchev, Svetlana Boginskaya, Alexander Dityatin, Yuri Korolyov, Li Ning, Yelena Shushunova, Daniela Silivaş
* Ice hockey players: Mario Lemieux, Mark Messier
* NFL players: Eric Dickerson, John Elway, Dan Marino, Walter Payton, Jerry Rice, Mike Singletary, Lawrence Taylor
* Racing drivers: Derek Bell (racing driver), Derek Bell, Stefan Bellof, Gerhard Berger, Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty, Juha Kankkunen Niki Lauda, Nigel Mansell, Didier Pironi, Riccardo Patrese, Nelson Piquet, Alain Prost, Carlos Reutemann, Walter Röhrl, Ayrton Senna, Ari Vatanen, Gilles Villeneuve, Darrell Waltrip,
* Motorcyclists: Eddie Lawson, Freddie Spencer
* Skaters: Katarina Witt, Torvill and Dean.
* Swimmers and divers: Matt Biondi, Greg Louganis, Kristin Otto
* Tennis players: Boris Becker, Jimmy Connors, Stefan Edberg, Chris Evert, Steffi Graf, Ivan Lendl, John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, Yannick Noah, Mats Wilander
* Volleyballers: Hugo Conte, Renan Dal Zotto, Karch Kiraly, Lang Ping, Sinjin Smith, Randy Stoklos, Steve Timmons
* Wrestlers: Hulk Hogan
Video gaming
Popular video games include ''Pac-Man
''Pac-Man,'' originally called in Japan, is a 1980 maze video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. The pla ...
'', ''Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 Platformer, platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). It is the successor to the 1983 arcade game ''Mario Bros.'' and the first game in the ''Super Mario'' series. It was origi ...
'', ''The Legend of Zelda'', ''Final Fantasy (video game), Final Fantasy'', Castlevania (1986 video game), ''Castlevania'', ''Metroid (video game), Metroid'', Mega Man (1987 video game), ''Mega Man'', ''Donkey Kong (arcade game), Donkey Kong'', ''Frogger'', and ''Tetris
''Tetris'' () is a puzzle video game created in 1985 by Alexey Pajitnov, a Soviet software engineer. In ''Tetris'', falling tetromino shapes must be neatly sorted into a pile; once a horizontal line of the game board is filled in, it disa ...
''.
''Pac-Man'' was the first game to achieve widespread popularity in mainstream culture and the first game character to be popular in his own right.
Handheld History of video games#Handheld LCD games, electronic LCD games was introduced into the youth market segment. The primary gaming computers of the 1980s emerged in 1982: the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum.
Nintendo finally decided in 1985 to release its Famicom (released in 1983 in Japan) in the United States under the name Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the and was later released as the redesigned NES in several test markets in the ...
(NES). It was bundled with ''Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 Platformer, platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). It is the successor to the 1983 arcade game ''Mario Bros.'' and the first game in the ''Super Mario'' series. It was origi ...
'' and it suddenly became a success. The NES dominated the American and Japanese market until the rise of the next generation of consoles in the early 1990s, causing some to call this time the ''Nintendo era''. Sega released its 16-bit console, Mega Drive, Mega Drive/Genesis, in 1988 in Japan and in North America in 1989.
In 1989, Nintendo released the Game Boy
The is a handheld game console developed by Nintendo, launched in the Japanese home market on April 21, 1989, followed by North America later that year and other territories from 1990 onwards. Following the success of the Game & Watch single-ga ...
, a monochrome handheld console.
File:PacmanUserbox.gif, The game ''Pac-Man
''Pac-Man,'' originally called in Japan, is a 1980 maze video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. The pla ...
'' (1980) became immensely popular and an icon of 1980s popular culture
File:Game & Watch WS- Snoopy Tennis.jpg, Game & Watch was the popular mobile game during the decade until it was replaced in the early 1990s with more advanced Game Boy
The is a handheld game console developed by Nintendo, launched in the Japanese home market on April 21, 1989, followed by North America later that year and other territories from 1990 onwards. Following the success of the Game & Watch single-ga ...
.
File:Kingman - micro computer game by Tomy.jpg, Micro computer game by Tomy
Fashion
The beginning of the decade saw the continuation of the clothing styles of the 1970s in fashion, late 1970s and evolved into heavy metal fashion by the end. However, fashion became more extravagant during the 1980s. The 1980s included teased and colourfully dyed hair, ripped jeans, neon clothing and many colours and different designs which at first were not accepted.
Significant hairstyle trends of the 1980s include the Perm (hairstyle), perm, the Mullet (haircut), mullet, the Jheri curl, the hi-top fade, big hair and the Seiko-chan cut.
Significant clothing trends of the 1980s include Shoulder pads (fashion)#1980s, shoulder pads, Denim, jean jackets, leather pants, leather aviator jackets, jumpsuits, Members Only (fashion brand), Members Only jackets, Slim-fit pants#The 1980s, skin-tight acid-washed jeans, Izod Lacoste and "preppy" polo shirts, leggings and leg warmers (popularized in the film ''Flashdance''), off-the-shoulder shirts, and cut sweatshirts (popularized in the same film).
Miniskirts returned to mainstream fashion in the mid-1980s after a ten-year absence, mostly made of denim material. From that point on, miniskirts and minidresses have remained in mainstream fashion to this day.
Makeup on the 1980s was aggressive, shining and colourful. Women emphasised their lips, eyebrows and cheeks with makeup. They used much Rouge (cosmetics), blush and Eye liner, eyeliner.
Additional trends of the 1980s include athletic headbands, Ray-Ban Aviator sunglasses (popularized in the film ''Top Gun''), Ray-Ban Wayfarer, Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses (popularized in the films ''Risky Business'' and ''The Blues Brothers (film), The Blues Brothers'' and the TV series ''Miami Vice'') and Swatch#A fashion statement, Swatch watches. Girls and women also wore jelly shoes, large crucifix necklaces, and brassieres all inspired by Madonna's "Like a Virgin (song), Like a Virgin" music video.
The New Romantic movement was a British style in fashion and music influenced by futurist disco.
File:Thompson-twins-tom2.jpg, Tom Bailey (musician, born 1956), Tom Bailey of the Thompson Twins in 1986 with the trendy Big hair style achieved with liberal applications of Hair mousse, mousse and hairspray
File:RayBanAviator.jpg, Ray-Ban sunglasses
File:1980s fashion - acid-washed jeans.jpeg, Trendy 1980s pleated acid-washed jeans
File:Cher live 1981.jpg, Globally popular musician and actress Cher was a prominent fashion icon of the era
File:Journalist Lucy Morgan with video camera and phone (7026619371).jpg, Journalist Lucy Morgan holding one of the first brick mobile phones, as well as a 1980s video camera
File:Vintage Care Bears Character Watch By Bradley Time, Manual Wind, Copyright 1983 By American Greetings (16846118291).jpg, In the 1980s, Care Bears were popular for children and seen on greeting cards, clothing items, accessories and other merchandise.
File:Mournblade, London Hammersmith odeon 1988.jpg, Heavy metal fashion, like this worn Mournblade (band), Mournblade, emerged in the 1980s, inspired by bands like Metallica.
Toys
The Rubik's Cube became a popular fad throughout the decade. Toys include G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero.
File:Rubik-Wuerfel.jpg, Rubik's Cube was a popular toy during the decade
Cultural start and end of the decade
Some sources claim the existence of a "long 1980s". Dates given include, for example, mid 1970s to early 1990s, 1976 to 1993 or 1994, and 1979 to 1990 or 1991 or after 2000.
The Chicago Sun-Times declared the 1977 ''Star Wars (film), Star Wars'' as the first movie of the eighties. A shift in television happened in the late 1970s as well: of the top shows considered to be "shows of the 1980s", more began 19781979 than began 19801981. 1977 also saw the introduction of ROM cartridge-based video game consoles, with the Atari Video Computer System, the Fairchild Channel F, and the Bally Astrocade, as well as seeing the introduction of the first Mass production, mass-produced home computers, with the Apple II, the TRS-80, and the Commodore PET.
Some consider the 1980s to have ended with the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989, or with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Reagan's last day in office 20 January 1989, marked the "end of an era". Music saw a change, with the premier of ''Yo! MTV Raps'' on 6 August 1988. On the religious front, 1988 also saw the "unraveling of the decade's conservative dominance" with the release of ''The Last Temptation of Christ (film), The Last Temptation of Christ'' and the three Televangelism, televangelist scandals of Jim Bakker#PTL, Jim Bakker, Jimmy Swaggart#1988 prostitution scandal, Jimmy Swaggart, and Oral Roberts#Ministry and university, Oral Roberts. The years 1988–1993 were a cultural bridge between the politically conservative 1980s and the History of the World Wide Web, Internet boom of the 1990s, which was kicked off by the release of Mosaic (web browser), Mosaic in 1993.
Legacy
There is 1980s nostalgia in Germany, Shōwa nostalgia, Japan, the UK, the US and elsewhere.
See also
* List of decades, centuries, and millennia, List of decades
* 1980s in fashion
* 1980s in music
* 1980s in television
* 1980s in video gaming
* 1980s literature, 1980s in literature
* Hairstyles in the 1980s
* Generation Jones (the younger members of the later Boomers had entered adulthood in the early years of the decade).
* Generation X (when older members of that demographic had matured).
Timeline
The following articles contain timelines for each year of the decade:
1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989
References
Further reading
* Batchelor, Bob, and Scott F. Stoddart. ''The 1980s'' (American Popular Culture Through History) (2006)
* Berman, Milton and Tracy Irons-Georges, eds. ''The Eighties in America'' (2008), an encyclopedia
* Ehrman, John. ''The eighties: America in the age of Reagan'' (Yale University Press, 2005).
* Grant, James. ''Money of the Mind: How the 1980s Got That Way'' (1994)
* Grimes, William. ed. ''The New York Times The Times of the Eighties The Culture, Politics, and Personalities that Shaped the Decade'' (2013)
* New York Times. ''New York Times Film Reviews: Best Picture Picks from the 1980s by The New York Times'' (2013)
* Sirota, David. ''Back to Our Future: How the 1980s Explain the World We Live in Now—Our Culture, Our Politics, Our Everything'' (2011
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* Stanfill, Sonnet. ''80s Fashion: From Club to Catwalk'' (2013), 160pp
* Stewart, Graham. ''Bang! A History of Britain in the 1980s'' (2013)
* Turner, Alwyn. ''Rejoice, Rejoice!: Britain in the 1980s'' (2010)
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