On April 12, 1981, the New York Giants draft University of North Carolina linebacker Lawrence Taylor as their first-round pick and the second selection overall in the NFL Draft. Taylor went on to revolutionize the linebacker position and revitalize the Giants football franchise. Taylor, a Virginia native, didn’t start playing organized football until his junior […]
First Launching Of The Space Shuttle
The space shuttle Columbia is launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, becoming the first reusable manned spacecraft to travel into space. Piloted by astronauts Robert L. Crippen and John W. Young, the Columbia undertook a 54-hour space flight of 36 orbits before successfully touching down at California’s Edwards Air Force Base on April 14. On September […]
Omar Bradley Dies
General Omar Bradley, commander of the 12th Army Group who ensured Allied victory over Germany, dies on this day in 1981. Born on February 12, 1893, Bradley was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (Dwight Eisenhower was a classmate). During the opening days of World War II, he commanded the Infantry […]
Mao’s Widow Sentenced To Death
Jiang Qing, the widow of Chinese leader Mao Zedong, is sentenced to death for her “counter-revolutionary crimes” during the Cultural Revolution. Originally an actress in Communist theater and film, her marriage to Mao in 1939 was widely criticized, as his second wife, Ho Zizhen, was a celebrated veteran of the Long March who Mao had […]
Mike Bossy Scores 50th Goal In 50 NHL Games
On January 24, 1981, Mike Bossy of the New York Islanders scores his 50th goal in the first 50 games of the season, becoming only the second player in National Hockey League (NHL) history to achieve this mark. Born in Montreal, Quebec, Bossy made his NHL debut with the Islanders in 1977, scoring a record […]
Final Portrait Of John And Yoko Is On The Cover Of Rolling Stone
After the shocking assassination of John Lennon, thousands of mourners gathered spontaneously outside his and Yoko Ono’s Central Park West apartment building, the Dakota. Tens of thousands more gathered six days later in New York, Liverpool and other world cities to honor Yoko’s request for a silent, 10-minute vigil in John’s memory. Radio airwaves were […]
Ronald Reagan Becomes President
Ronald Reagan, former Western movie actor and host of television’s popular “Death Valley Days” is sworn in as the 40th president of the United States. More than any president since the Texas-born Lyndon Johnson, Ronald Reagan’s public image was closely tied to the American West, although he was raised in the solidly Midwestern state of […]
Iran Hostage Crisis Ends
Minutes after Ronald Reagan’s inauguration as the 40th president of the United States, the 52 U.S. captives held at the U.S. embassy in Teheran, Iran, are released, ending the 444-day Iran Hostage Crisis. On November 4, 1979, the crisis began when militant Iranian students, outraged that the U.S. government had allowed the ousted shah of […]