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1978 (''' MCMLXXVIII ''') was a Common Year Starting On Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar).


EVENTS


January

• January 1 - The Copyright Act of 1976 takes effect, making sweeping changes to United States Copyright Law .


• January 1 - Air India 's Boeing 747 explodes near Bombay - 213 dead.


• January 4 - Referendum in Chile supports policies of Augusto Pinochet .


• January 6 - The Hungarian Holy Crown (also known as Stephen Of Hungary Crown) returned to Hungary from the United States where it was held after World War II .


• January 7 - Emilio Palma is born in Antarctica , making his birth the southernmost in history.


• January 10 - Assassination of Pedro Joaquín Chamorro , who had criticized the Nicaragua n government. Riots erupt against Somoza 's government.


• January 18 - The European Court Of Human Rights finds the United Kingdom government guilty of mistreating prisoners in Northern Ireland , but not guilty of Torture .


• January 19 - Federal Appeals Court Judge William H. Webster appointed as Director of the FBI .


• January 22 - Ethiopia announces the ambassador of West Germany as Persona Non Grata .


• January 23 - Sweden becomes the first nation to ban Aerosol Spray s that are thought to damage earth's protective Ozone Layer .


• January 24 - Soviet satellite Cosmos 954 burns in Earth atmosphere and its debris is scattered over Canada's Northwest Territories


• January 28 - Richard Chase , the "Vampire of Sacramento", is arrested


• January 30 - Blizzard s in the USA kill 90.

February

• February 1 - Film director Roman Polanski skips Bail and flees to France after pleading guilty to charges of engaging in Sex with a 13-year-old girl.


• February 8 - Proceedings of the United States Senate are broadcasted on Radio for the first time.


• Febraury 11 - Pacific Western Airlines Flight 314, a Boeing 737 -200, crashes in Cranbrook , British Columbia . 44 of the 50 people onboard are killed.


• February 11 - 16 Unification Church couples wed in New York City .


• February 11 - Military Mobilization in Somalia due to an apparent Ethiopia n attack.


• February 11 - The People's Republic Of China lifts a ban on works by Aristotle , William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens .


• in Sydney , Australia , killing two garbagemen, a policeman and several others. Many believe that ASIO was responsible.


• February 15 - Rhodesia 's prime minister Ian Smith and three black leaders agree on the transfer to black majority rule.


• February 15 - Serial killer Ted Bundy is captured in Florida .


• February 16 - The first Computer Bulletin Board System is created ( CBBS in Chicago, Illinois ).


• February 21 - Electrical workers in Mexico City find an Aztec Monolith in the middle of the city.

March

• March 1 - Charlie Chaplin 's remains are stolen from Cosier-sur-Vevey , Switzerland but are recovered 11 weeks later near Lake Geneva .


• March 1 - Broadway play '' Timbuktu! '' opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre .


• March 3 - Ethiopia admits that its troops are fighting with the aid of Cuba n soldiers against Somalia n troops in Ogaden .


• March 3 - Rhodesia attacks Zambia .


• March 3 - '' New York Post '' publishes an article about David Rorvik 's book ''The Cloning of Man'' about a supposed Cloning Of A Human Being


• March 6 - US Porn publisher Larry Flynt is shot and paralysed


• March 11 - Coastal Road Massacre by Palestinian Terrorists kill 34 Israel is.


• March 14 - Israel i forces invade Lebanon in Operation Litani .


• March 15 - The United States Senate approves the Panama Canal neutrality treaty; votes to turn the canal over to Panama by the year 2000 on April 18 .


• March 16 - Former Italian premier Aldo Moro is kidnapped by Red Brigades , who kill five bodyguards; he is found dead on May 9 .


• March 17 - The oil tanker Amoco Cadiz runs aground on the coast of Brittany .


• March 18 - Prime Minister Of Pakistan , Zulfikar Ali Bhutto is sentenced to death by hanging for ordering the assassination of a political opponent.


• March 22 - Karl Wallenda of the Flying Wallendas dies after falling off a tight-rope between two hotels in San Juan, Puerto Rico .


• March 24 - The tanker Amoco Cadiz splits in two off Brittany spilling 50,000 metric tons of crude oil.


• March 28 - The US Supreme Court hands down 5-3 decision in '' Stump V. Sparkman '', 435 U.S. 349, a controversial case involving involuntary Sterilization and judicial Immunity .

April

• April 1 - Dick Smith of ''Dick Smith Foods'' tows a fake Iceberg to Sydney Harbour .


• April 8 - Regular broadcasts of proceedings in British Parliament start.


• April 16 - In Cologne , 15,000 former members of the resistance movement demonstrate against National Socialism .


• April 18 - The US Senate votes 68-32 to turn the Panama Canal over to Panama nian control on December 31 1999 .


• April 27 - President of Afghanistan , Daud Khan is killed during a military coup - Mohammed Takain succeeds him.


• April 30 - The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan is proclaimed, under pro-communist leader Nur Mohammed Taraki .

May

• May 4 - – Communist activist Henri Curiel is murdered in Paris .


• May 5 - Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds gets his 3000th major league hit.


• May 8 - Norway opens a Natural Gas field in the Polar Sea .


• May 9 - In Rome , the body of Aldo Moro , the Italian president of the Christian-Democrats, is found in a parked car.


• May 12 - May 13 - Group of Mercenaries lead by Bob Denard oust Ali Soilih in the Comoros - 10 local soldiers killed. Denard forms a new government


• May 12 - In Zaire , rebels occupy the city of Kolwezi , the mining centre of the province of Shaba . The government of Zaire asks the U.S., France and Belgium to restore order.


• May 15 - Students of the University Of Teheran riot in Tabriz - an army stops the riot.


• May 17 - Charles Chaplin 's coffin is found ten miles from the cemetery it was stolen from, near Lake Geneva.


• May 18 - Soviet dissident Yuri Orlov is sentenced for seven years hard labor for distributing counterrevolutionary material.


• May 18 - May 19 - Belgian and French paratroopers fly to Zaire to aid the fight against the rebels.


• May 20 - Mavis Hutchinson , 53, becomes the first woman to run across the USA - trek took 69 days.


• May 22 - Exiled leaders Ahmed Abdallah and Mohammed Ahmed return to the Comoros


• May 25 - A bomb explodes in the security section of Northwestern University - security guard is wounded. The first bomb of the Unabomber case.


• May 26 - In Atlantic City, New Jersey , Resorts International , the first legal Casino in the eastern United States , opens.


• wins his third race, and the first for car owner Jim Hall .


• May 29 - Ali Soilih is found dead, allegedly shot when trying to escape

June

• June 6 - California ns in referendum approve Proposition 13 for a nearly 60% slash in property tax revenues.


• June 9 - The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-day Saints extends the priesthood and temple blessings to "all worthy males," ending a general policy of excluding blacks from priesthood and temples since 1849 (see Blacks And The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-day Saints ).


• June 12 - Serial killer David Berkowitz , the "Son of Sam," is sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.


• June 15 - King Hussein Of Jordan marries 26-year-old Lisa Halaby .


• June 19 - Cricketer Ian Botham becomes the first man in the history of the game to score a century and take eight wickets in one innings of a Test match.


• June 19 - Comic Strip '' Garfield '' debuts in newspapers.


• June 20 - A powerful magnitude 6.5 Earthquake hits Thessaloniki , Greece 's second largest city, resulting in the total collapse of an apartment building at the central Ippodromio district and the subsequent death of more than 40 people.


• June 21 - An outbreak of shooting between Provisional IRA members and the British Army leaves one civilian and three IRA men dead.


• June 22 - Discovery of Charon , a satellite of Pluto , announced.


• June 23 - Josip Broz Tito is named for Yugoslav President For Life .


• June 24 - President of Yemen Arab Republic Ahmad Al-Ghashmi is killed.


• June 25 - Argentina defeats Netherlands 3-1 after extra time to win the 1978 World Cup .


• June 26 - The bombing of Breton nationalists causes destruction in Versailles .


• June 26 - The Supreme Court Of The United States , in the Bakke case, bars Quota System s in college admissions but affirms constitutionality of programs giving advantage to minorities.


• June 30 - Ethiopia begins a massive offensive in Eritrea .

July

• July 7 - The Solomon Islands become independent from the United Kingdom .


• July 25 - First human Birth , girl Louise Brown , from In Vitro Fertilization (the test tube baby).

August

• August 6 - Pope Paul VI dies at age of 80.


• August 7 - United States President Jimmy Carter declares a federal emergency at Love Canal .


• is signed between Japan and the People's Republic Of China .


• August 15 - Foundation of Mirapuri - The City of Peace and Future Man in Europe, Italy.


• August 17 - '' Double Eagle II '' becomes first Balloon to cross the Atlantic Ocean when it lands in Miserey near Paris , 137 hours after leaving Preque Isle, Maine


• August 19 - Fire in Rex Cinema in Tehran - 477 dead.


• August 20 - Gunmen open fire on an Israeli El Al airline bus in London .


• August 20 - In Abadan , Iran , nearly 400 are killed when Muslim Extremist arsonists set fire to a crowded theater.


• August 25 - The Shroud Of Turin goes on public display for the first time in 45 years.


• August 25 - US Army sergeant Walter Robinson "walks" across the English Channel in 11 hours 30 minutes using homemade water shoes


• August 26 - Albino Cardinal Luciani succeeds Pope Paul VI as Pope John Paul I .

September

, Jimmy Carter , and Menachem Begin meet on the Aspen Lodge patio on September 6, 1978.]]

• September 1 - Dublin Institute Of Technology is established.


• and Anwar Sadat begin peace process at Camp David, Maryland.


• September 8 - Riots in Teheran - Iranian army troops open fire - 122 dead, 4000 wounded.


• September 11 - The tip of an umbrella poisons Bulgaria n defector Georgi Markov , probably on orders of Bulgarian intelligence. He dies four days later.


• September 17 - Camp David peace agreement between Israel and Egypt


• September 19 - British Police launch a massive Murder hunt when newspaper boy Carl Bridgewater is shot dead after disturbing a Burglary .


• September 25 - PSA Flight 182 , a Boeing 727, collides with a small private airplane and crashes in San Diego , California resulting in the death of 144.


• September 28 - Pope John Paul I dies after only 33 days of papacy.

October

• October 1 - Vietnam attacks Cambodia .


• October 7 - ''Wranslide'' in NSW ; the Wran government is re-elected with an increased majority.


• October 8 - Australia 's Ken Warby sets the current world Water Speed Record of 317.60 Mph at Blowering Dam, Australia.


• October 10 - US President Jimmy Carter signs a bill into law that authorizes the minting of the Susan B. Anthony Dollar .


• October 14 - Daniel Arap Moi becomes president of Kenya .


• October 16 - Cardinal Karol Wojtyła becomes Pope John Paul II .


• October 27 - Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin were named winners of the Nobel Peace Prize for their progress toward achieving a Middle East accord.

November

• November 3 - Dominica gains its independence from the United Kingdom .


• November 5 - Riots and demonstrations in Tehran - the British embassy is sacked.


• November 7 - Indira Gandhi re-elected to Indian parliament.


• November 17 - '' The Star Wars Holiday Special '' airs on CBS.


• , Guyana , Jim Jones leads his Peoples Temple in a mass murder-suicide; 913 die, including 276 children.


• November 19 - The first US Take Back The Night march occurs in San Francisco .


• November 20 - Military Coup in Spain fails.


• November 27 - In San Francisco, California , city mayor George Moscone and city supervisor Harvey Milk are Assassinated by former supervisor Dan White .


• November 30 - Publication of '' The Times '' suspended - industrial relations problems until November 13 1979 .

December

• December 4 - Following the murder of Mayor George Moscone , Dianne Feinstein becomes San Francisco, California 's first woman mayor (she served until Friday, January 8 , 1988 ).


• December 11 - Lufthansa Heist - Six men rob a Lufthansa cargo facility in New York City 's Kennedy Airport .


• December 11 - Massive anti-Shah demonstration in Iran - 2 million demonstrators.


• December 13 - First Susan B. Anthony Dollar enters circulation.


• December 15 - Cleveland, Ohio becomes the first major American city to go into default since the Great Depression , under the mayoral administration of Dennis Kucinich .


• December 25 - Vietnam launches a major offensive against the Khmer Rouge of Cambodia .


• December 27 - The Spanish Constitution is approved in referendum officially ending 40 years of military Dictatorship .

Unknown dates

• The Hillside Strangler , a stealthy serial killer, is on the prowl in Los Angeles .


• The Usu volcano erupts in Japan.


• Eagles ' '' Hotel California '' was nominated for a Grammy award.


• Fleetwood Mac 's '' Rumours '' was nominated for a Grammy award.


• Artificial Insulin is invented.


• David Rorvik claims he has participated in a creation of a Human Clone in his book ''In His Image''.


• '' Abortion '' legalized in '' Italy '' for first time.


• Acorn Computers Ltd is founded.


• Remove Intoxicated Drivers established.


• Marin Institute For The Prevention Of Alcohol And Other Drug Problems established to promote Temperance .

BIRTHS


January

• January 1 - Phillip Mulryne , Northern Irish footballer


• January 3 - Alex Leigh , British model


• January 4 - Dwight Freeney , American football player


• January 9 - Chad Johnson , American football


• January 9 - AJ McLean , member of the Backstreet Boys


• January 12 - Kris Roe , American guitarist and singer ( The Ataris )


• January 14 - Shawn Crawford , American runner


• January 17 - Warren Feeney , Northern Irish footballer


• January 28 - Gianluigi Buffon , Italian footballer

February

• February 7 - Christopher Ashton Kutcher , American actor


• February 14 - Richard Hamilton , American basketball player


• February 15 - Tuan Le , American poker player


• February 18 - Ben Adams , American entrepreneur


• February 20 - Jakki Degg , British model


• February 20 - Julia Jentsch , German actress


• February 23 - Dan Snyder , Canadian hockey player (d. 2003 )


• February 24 - Janine Machin , English radio presenter


• February 28 - Benjamin Raich , Austrian Olympic skier

March

• March 1 - Jensen Ackles , American actor


• March 12 - Claudio Sanchez , Lead Singer and guitarist (Coheed and Cambria)


• March 14 - Pieter Van Den Hoogenband , Dutch swimmer


• March 21 - Kevin Federline , American dancer


• March 22 - Josh Heupel , American football player


• March 23 - Nicholle Tom , American actress

April

• April 5 - Franziska Van Almsick , German swimmer


• April 9 - Jorge Andrade , Portuguese footballer


• April 9 - Rachel Stevens , English singer


• April 16 - Lara Dutta , Indian actress


• April 21 - Branden Steineckert , American Drummer (The Used)


• April 23 - Princess Tamara Czartoryski-Borbon , Spanish athlete


• April 26 - Ivana Milicevic , American actress

May

• May 7 - Brian Clevinger , American author


• May 9 - Marwan Al-Shehhi , United Arab Emirates hijacker (d. 2001 )


• May 12 - Jason Biggs , American actor


• May 13 - Mike Bibby , American basketball player


• May 13 - Barry Zito , baseball player


• May 18 - Ciarán Toland , Northern Irish activist


• May 21 - Briana Banks , German actress


• May 22 - Jordan , English model

June

• June 1 - Danielle Harris , American voice actress


• June 6 - Carl Barat , English singer and guitarist ( The Libertines )


• June 8 - Maria Menounos , American actress, journalist, and televison presenter


• June 9 - Matthew Bellamy , Lead singer of the British band Muse


• June 10 - Shane West , American actor


• June 13 - Christian Stepien , Canadian artist


• June 19 - Dirk Nowitzki , German basketball player


• June 20 - Mark Powell , Australian Politician


• June 21 - Erica Durance , Canadian actress


• June 22 - Champ Bailey , American football player


• June 22 - Dan Wheldon , English race car driver


• June 25 - Marcus Stroud , American football player


• June 29 - Nicole Scherzinger , lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls

July

• July 9 - Linda Park , Korean-born actress


• July 18 - Ben Sheets , baseball player


• July 20 - Elliott Yamin , American singer


• July 21 - Francine Dee , import car Model


• July 23 - Stuart Elliott , Northern Irish footballer


• July 23 - Stefanie Sun , Singapore singer


• July 25 - Gerard Warren , American football player

August

• August 1 - Edgerrin James , American football player


• August 6 - Marisa Miller , American model


• August 9 - Audrey Tautou , French actress


• August 19 - Callum Blue , English actor


• August 21 - Reuben Droughns , American football player


• August 23 - Kobe Bryant , American basketball player


• August 23 - Julian Casablancas , Musician, lead singer of American Rock band The Strokes


• August 24 - Rafael Furcal , Dominican Major League Baseball player


• August 27 - Mase , American rapper

September

• September 7 - Nora Greenwald , American professional wrestler


• September 11 - Ed Reed , American football player


• September 12 - Ruben Studdard , American singer


• September 20 - Jason Bay , Canadian Major League Baseball player


• September 22 - Harry Kewell , Australian footballer


• September 24 - Wietse Van Alten , Dutch archer


• September 25 - Jodie Kidd , English model


• September 29 - Kurt Nilsen , Norwegian singer


• September 30 - Candice Michelle , American professional wrestler and model

October

• October 2 - Ayumi Hamasaki , Japanese singer


• October 13 - Jermaine O'Neal , American basketball player


• October 14 - Usher Raymond , American musician


• October 20 - Virender Sehwag , Indian cricketer


• October 21 - Joey Harrington , American football player


• October 25 - Russell Anderson , Scottish footballer


• October 26 - Antonio Pierce , American football player


• October 27 - Vanessa-Mae , Singaporean musician


• October 28 - Justin Guarini , American singer


• October 29 - Travis Henry , American football player

November

• November 1 - Manju Warriar , Indian actress


• November 6 - Taryn Manning , American actress


• November 9 - Sisqó , American actor and singer ( Dru Hill )


• November 10 - Eve , American rapper


• November 17 - Reggie Wayne , American football player


• November 18 - Damien Johnson , Northern Irish footballer


• November 24 - Katherine Heigl , American actress


• November 25 - Shina Ringo , Japanese singer and musician


• November 29 - Ludwika Paleta , Polish Mexican actress


• November 30 - Clay Aiken , American singer

December

• December 1 - Brad Delson , American guitarist ( Linkin Park )


• December 2 - Nelly Furtado , Canadian-born singer and songwriter


• December 8 - Ian Somerhalder , American actor


• December 8 - Vernon Wells , baseball player


• December 9 - Jesse Metcalfe , American actor


• December 12 - Monica Barladeanu , Romanian actress


• December 18 - Katie Holmes , American actress


• December 22 - Edo Maajka , Bosnian Rapper


• December 23 - Andra Davis , American football player


• December 23 - Víctor Martínez , Venezuelan Major League Baseball player


• December 23 - Estella Warren , Canadian swimmer, model, and actress


• December 29 - Alexis Amore , Peruvian actress, dancer, and model


• December 29 - LaToya London , American singer

DEATHS


January

• January 13 - Hubert H. Humphrey , U.S Vice President and Senator (b. 1911 )


• January 13 - Joe McCarthy , baseball manager (b. 1887 )


• January 14 - Harold Abrahams , English athlete (b. 1899 )


• January 14 - Kurt Gödel , Austrian-born mathematician (b. 1906 )


• January 22 - Herbert Sutcliffe , English cricketer (b. 1894 )


• January 23 - Terry Kath , American musician ( Chicago ) (b. 1946 )


• January 23 - Jack Oakie , American actor (b. 1903 )

February

• February 11 - James B Conant , American chemist and headmaster of Harvard University (b. 1893 )


• February 11 - Harry Martinson , Swedish writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1904 )


• February 27 - Vadim Salmanov , Russian composer (b. 1912 )

March

• March 18 - Leigh Brackett , American author (b. 1915 )


• March 19 - Gaston Julia , French mathematician (b. 1893 )


• March 21 - Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh , fifth President Of Ireland (b. 1911 )


• March 31 - Charles Best , American-born medical scientist (b. 1899 )

April

• April 21 - Sandy Denny , English singer (b. 1947 )

May

• May 1 - Aram Khachaturian , Armenian composer (b. 1903 )


• May 9 - Aldo Moro , former Prime Minister Of Italy (b. 1916 )


• May 14 - Robert Menzies , twelfth Prime Minister Of Australia (b. 1894 )


• May 20 - Bjarne Brustad , Norwegian violinist, composer and teacher (b. 1895 )


• May 22 - Joe Colombo , American gangster (b. 1914 )

June

• June 7 - Ronald George Wreyford Norrish , British chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1897 )

July

• July 30 - Umberto Nobile , Italian aviator (b. 1885 )

August

• August 2 - Carlos Chávez , Mexican composer (b. 1899 )


• August 6 - Pope Paul VI (heart attack) (b. 1897 )


• August 21 - Charles Eames , American architect and designer (b. 1907 )


• August 22 - Jomo Kenyatta , Kenyan statesman


• August 26 - Charles Boyer , French actor (b. 1899 )

September

• September 7 - Keith Moon , English drummer ( The Who ) (drug overdose) (b. 1947 )


• September 9 - Jack Warner , Canadian film studio founder (b. 1892 )


• September 10 - Ronnie Peterson , Swedish race car driver (racing accident) (b. 1944 )


• September 11 - Georgi Markov , Bulgarian dissident (assassinated) (b. 1929 )


• September 15 - Willy Messerschmitt , German aircraft engineer (b. 1898 )


• September 23 - Lyman Bostock , baseball player (murdered) (b. 1950 )


• September 26 - Manne Siegbahn , Swedish physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1886 )


• September 28 - Pope John Paul I (b. 1912 )

October

• October 6 - Johnny O'Keefe , Australian singer (b. 1935 )


• October 9 - Jacques Brel (49),belgium singer (b. 1929 )


• October 10 - Ralph Metcalfe , American athlete (b. 1910 )


• October 23 - Maybelle Carter , American singer (b. 1909 )

November

• November 6 - Harry Bertoia , Italian artist and designer (b. 1915 )


• November 8 - Norman Rockwell , American artist and illustrator (b. 1894 )


• November 15 - Margaret Mead , American anthropologist (b. 1901 )

December

• December 8 - Golda Meir , Prime Minister Of Israel (b. 1898 )


• December 10 - Ed Wood , American filmmaker (b. 1924 )


• December 11 - Vincent Du Vigneaud , American chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1901 )


• December 27 - Houari Boumédiènne , President Of Algeria (b. 1932 )

Unknown dates

• Walter C. Alvarez , American physician (b. 1884 )


• Pankaj Mullick , Bengali composer and singer (b. 1904 )


• Mark A. Shaw , American Temperance Movement leader and Prohibition Party candidate for vice-president in 1964 (b. ?)

NOBEL PRIZES

• Physics - Pyotr Leonidovich Kapitsa , Arno Allan Penzias , Robert Woodrow Wilson


• Chemistry - Peter D. Mitchell


• Medicine - Werner Arber , Daniel Nathans , Hamilton O. Smith


• Literature - Isaac Bashevis Singer


• Peace - Mohamed Anwar Al-Sadat and Menachem Begin


• Economics - Herbert Simon

FIELDS MEDALISTS

• Pierre Deligne , Charles Fefferman , Grigory Margulis , Daniel Quillen

TEMPLETON PRIZE

• Professor Thomas F. Torrance