News
Margaret Thatcher is elected Prime Minister in the UK, the first woman to hold this office.
1979 Context: News, Entertainment, Lifestyle
News
A meltdown occurs in one of the reactors at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant causing radiation to be released into the atmosphere. The accident galvanized anti-nuclear safety concerns and contributed to the decline in construction of additional nuclear power plants.
News
A group of militant Iranian college students take over the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and hold 52 Americans hostage, following the Iranian revolution and the ouster of the Shah of Iran. The hostages are held for the next 444 days and released in January 1981.
Television
The action comedy series The Dukes of Hazzard debuts on CBS. The popular show is about a pair of suspected bootleggers, Bo and Luke Duke and their cousin Daisy, and the corrupt law enforcement officers in Georgia. The show would run for seven seasons.
News
President Jimmy Carter of the US and USSR leader Leonid Brezhnev reach agreement in the SALT ll (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks) to limit expansion of nuclear missiles.
Advertising
Detail from a 1979 advertisement for Verbatim computer floppy disks.
Advertising
Detail from a Sasson advertisement for women's jeans.
Fashion
Detail from a 1979 Sears Catalog.
Fashion
Advertisement for Doll Rags women's clothing.
Fashion
1979 advertisement for Adidas sportswear.
Fashion
Detail from a 1979 advertisement for Osaga sportswear.
Advertising
Sanyo boombox advertisement.
Television
The TV sitcom Facts Of Life debuts in 1979 on NBC. The show, about a fictional girls boarding school, would run until 1988.
Television
The cable television channel ESPN (Entertainment & Sports Network) launches in 1979 with studio facilities in Bristol, CT.
Movies
The Warriors is an action thriller film about a fictional gang from New York City's Coney Island neighborhood.
Movies
The romantic comedy film 10 starring Bo Derek, Dudley Moore and Julie Andrews is a box office hit in 1979. Written and directed by Blake Edwards, the film makes Bo Derek a star.
Movies
The science fiction/horror film Alien, directed by Ridley Scott, is a commercial success and goes on to win an Academy Award for Best Special Effects. It is Sigourney Weavers first lead acting role. The film spawns multiple sequels, along with novels, comic books, games and toys.
Movies
The Vietnam War film Apocalypse Now directed by Francis Ford Coppola is released in 1979. In addition to being a box office hit, the film is nominated for eight Academy Awards.
Movies
The film Kramer vs. Kramer starring Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep is a legal drama about divorce and it's effect on the couples young son. The film is nominated for nine Academy Awards (winning five) and is the highest grossing film of the year.
Lifestyle
Disco dancing at New York City's Copacabana night club.
Lifestyle
Middle school girls posing for a photograph.
Lifestyle
Long Beach High School yearbook photo 1979.
Lifestyle
Rock fans at the 1979 Reading (UK) Festival.
Lifestyle
Future President Barack Obama and friends in a 1979 high school prom photo.