Events of 1983 include movies, music, home video, sports (NFL, NHL, NBA, MLB), Television, TV Show debuts, and big events of 1983.
Note: Not all events of the categories above are noted.
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*** 1983 ***
Movies:
Top grossing film- ($252,583,617- domestic)
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of The Jedi
Picture Of The Year-
Ghandi (the movie)
Notes:
1983 was a landmark year in film. More films have gotten an R-rating than any other year thus far.
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Home Video News:
1983 was a time when home video players were becoming affordable for use in homes having dropped by half in a few years to around US$500. Pre-recorded tapes remained expensive creating the video rental industry with rentals sometimes including the player.
It was also a time known as the "format wars" with two major standards Sony's Betamax and JVC's VHS competing for dominance. Consumer camcorders were also gaining popularity with prices dropping below $1000.
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Music:
(Recognized artists from 1983 at the 26th annual Grammy awards, Feb 28th 1984)
(Recognized artists from 1983 at the 26th annual Grammy awards, Feb 28th 1984)
Song Of The Year: “Every Breath You Take” by The Police
Record Of The Year- “Beat It” by Michael Jackson
Album Of The Year- “Thriller” by Michael Jackson
Best New Artist: Culture Club
Note: The 26th Grammy awards had the highest ratings in its history with 43.8 mil. viewers - a record unmatched as of 2013.
February 26- Michael Jackson's Thriller album hits #1 on the US charts, the first of thirty-seven (non-consecutive) weeks it would spend there on its way to becoming the biggest-selling album of all time.
February 28 – U2 releases their 3rd album War which debuts at #1 in the UK and produces the band's first international hit single.
March 2 – Compact discs go on sale in the United States. They had first been released in Japan the previous October.
May 16- The Motown 25 Special airs on NBC, celebrating a quarter century of Motown Records. The most talked-about performance is by Michael Jackson, who unveils his famous moonwalk dance move during an electrifying performance of "Billie Jean".
August 20 – The Rolling Stones sign a new $28 million contract with CBS Records, the largest recording contract in history up to this time.
September 18 – The members of Kiss show their faces without their makeup for the first time on MTV, simultaneous with the release of their album Lick It Up.
September 24 – U.S. rock group the Red Hot Chili Peppers launch their first self-titled album.
December 2- Michael Jackson's extravagant 14-minute music video for Thriller is premièred on MTV.
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Sports:
College Basketball-
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship:
North Carolina State wins 54-52 over Houston
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship:
North Carolina State wins 54-52 over Houston
NBA-
NBA Finals:
Philadelphia 76ers won 4 games to 0 over the Los Angeles Lakers (115-108)
Philadelphia 76ers won 4 games to 0 over the Los Angeles Lakers (115-108)
NFL-
Superbowl XVII: Rose Bowl Stadium, Pasadena, CA
The Washington Redskins win over the Miami Dolphins 27-17.
The Washington Redskins win over the Miami Dolphins 27-17.
NHL-
Stanley Cup Finals:
Stanley Cup – New York Islanders win 4-0 over the Edmonton Oilers
(Score: 4-2)
Stanley Cup Finals:
Stanley Cup – New York Islanders win 4-0 over the Edmonton Oilers
(Score: 4-2)
MLB-
World Series:
Baltimore Orioles win World Series 4 games to 1 over the Philadelphia Phillies
(Score: 5-0)
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Big Events Of 1983: (not all are posted)
January 10 – Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States launch Fraggle Rock, a worldwide program advocating peace.
January 31 – Seatbelt use for drivers and front seat passengers becomes mandatory in the United Kingdom.
February 28 – The final episode of M*A*S*H is aired and the record of most watched episode is broken.
March 23 – Strategic Defense Initiative: U.S. President Ronald Reagan makes his initial proposal to develop technology to intercept enemy missiles. The media dub this plan "Star Wars".
March 25 – Motown celebrates its 25th anniversary with the television special Motown 25, during which Michael Jackson performs "Billie Jean" and introduces the moonwalk.
April 4 – First flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger.
April 13 – California's largest retailer Target Corporation expands into California, opening 11 stores.
April 18 – The 1983 United States embassy bombing in Beirut kills 63 people.
April 18 – Channel broadcasting is founded by Disney (the Disney Channel).
May 17 – Lebanon, Israel, and the United States sign an agreement on Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.
May 25 – Return of the Jedi opens in theatres.
May 31 – The Philadelphia 76ers defeat the LA Lakers for the NBA championship.
June 13 – Pioneer 10 passes the orbit of Neptune, becoming the first man-made object to leave the vicinity of the major planets of the Solar System.
June 18- Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space aboard Space Shuttle Challenger on the STS-7 mission.
August 24 – The Old Philadelphia Arena is destroyed by arson.
August 30 – Guion Bluford becomes the first African-American in space aboard Space Shuttle Challenger on the STS-8 mission.
September 17 – Vanessa L. Williams becomes the first African American to be crowned Miss America, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
September 18 – U.S. heavy metal band Kiss officially appears in public without makeup for the first time on MTV.
September 19- Wheel of Fortune begins its syndicated version, which still churns out new episodes to this very day.
September 26- 1983 Soviet nuclear false alarm incident: Soviet military officer Stanislav Petrov averts a worldwide nuclear war by correctly identifying a warning of attack by U.S. missiles as a false alarm.
October 23 – Beirut barracks bombing: Simultaneous suicide truck-bombings destroy both the French Army and United States Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, killing 241 U.S. servicemen, 58 French paratroopers and 6 Lebanese civilians.
November 2- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: At the White House Rose Garden, U.S. President Ronald Reagan signs a bill creating a federal holiday on the third Monday of every January to honor American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
November 2- Able Archer 83: Many Soviet officials misinterpret this NATO exercise as a nuclear first strike, causing the last nuclear scare of the Cold War.
November 2- Chrysler introduces the Dodge Caravan, the first "minivan".
November 3 – The Reverend Jesse Jackson announces his candidacy for the 1984 Democratic Party presidential nomination.
November 14- The immunosuppressant Cyclosporine is approved by the FDA, leading to a revolution in the field of transplantation.
November 20 – The Day After debuts on ABC.
December 29 – The Reverend Jesse Jackson travels to Syria to secure the release of U.S. Navy Lieutenant Robert Goodman, who has been in Syrian captivity since being shot down over Lebanon during a bombing mission.
World Series:
Baltimore Orioles win World Series 4 games to 1 over the Philadelphia Phillies
(Score: 5-0)
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Big Events Of 1983: (not all are posted)
January 10 – Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States launch Fraggle Rock, a worldwide program advocating peace.
January 31 – Seatbelt use for drivers and front seat passengers becomes mandatory in the United Kingdom.
February 28 – The final episode of M*A*S*H is aired and the record of most watched episode is broken.
March 23 – Strategic Defense Initiative: U.S. President Ronald Reagan makes his initial proposal to develop technology to intercept enemy missiles. The media dub this plan "Star Wars".
March 25 – Motown celebrates its 25th anniversary with the television special Motown 25, during which Michael Jackson performs "Billie Jean" and introduces the moonwalk.
April 4 – First flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger.
April 13 – California's largest retailer Target Corporation expands into California, opening 11 stores.
April 18 – The 1983 United States embassy bombing in Beirut kills 63 people.
April 18 – Channel broadcasting is founded by Disney (the Disney Channel).
May 17 – Lebanon, Israel, and the United States sign an agreement on Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.
May 25 – Return of the Jedi opens in theatres.
May 31 – The Philadelphia 76ers defeat the LA Lakers for the NBA championship.
June 13 – Pioneer 10 passes the orbit of Neptune, becoming the first man-made object to leave the vicinity of the major planets of the Solar System.
June 18- Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space aboard Space Shuttle Challenger on the STS-7 mission.
August 24 – The Old Philadelphia Arena is destroyed by arson.
August 30 – Guion Bluford becomes the first African-American in space aboard Space Shuttle Challenger on the STS-8 mission.
September 17 – Vanessa L. Williams becomes the first African American to be crowned Miss America, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
September 18 – U.S. heavy metal band Kiss officially appears in public without makeup for the first time on MTV.
September 19- Wheel of Fortune begins its syndicated version, which still churns out new episodes to this very day.
September 26- 1983 Soviet nuclear false alarm incident: Soviet military officer Stanislav Petrov averts a worldwide nuclear war by correctly identifying a warning of attack by U.S. missiles as a false alarm.
October 23 – Beirut barracks bombing: Simultaneous suicide truck-bombings destroy both the French Army and United States Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, killing 241 U.S. servicemen, 58 French paratroopers and 6 Lebanese civilians.
November 2- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: At the White House Rose Garden, U.S. President Ronald Reagan signs a bill creating a federal holiday on the third Monday of every January to honor American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
November 2- Able Archer 83: Many Soviet officials misinterpret this NATO exercise as a nuclear first strike, causing the last nuclear scare of the Cold War.
November 2- Chrysler introduces the Dodge Caravan, the first "minivan".
November 3 – The Reverend Jesse Jackson announces his candidacy for the 1984 Democratic Party presidential nomination.
November 14- The immunosuppressant Cyclosporine is approved by the FDA, leading to a revolution in the field of transplantation.
November 20 – The Day After debuts on ABC.
December 29 – The Reverend Jesse Jackson travels to Syria to secure the release of U.S. Navy Lieutenant Robert Goodman, who has been in Syrian captivity since being shot down over Lebanon during a bombing mission.
