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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:02:49 GMT -5
Wall Street's Black Monday - October 19, 1987
Wall Street suffered its worst day in history, October 19, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted a record 508 points. 22.6% one-day decline was the largest since World War I, and was far greater than the 12.82% drop on October 28, 1929, that along with the following day's 11.7% decline preceded the Great Depression.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:03:16 GMT -5
Texaco Files for Bankruptcy - April 1987 Texaco Inc., unable to resolve its costly legal dispute with Pennzoil Co., became of April 12, the largest U.S. company ever to file for bankruptcy. Texaco had been ordered by a Texas court to pay Pennzoil $8.53B for having wrongfully interfered with a merger agreement between Pennzoil and Getty Oil Co. Additionally, Texaco had been required to post a $12B bond while it appealed the original judgment. By filing under Chapter 11 of the U.S. bankruptcy code, Texaco could avoid posting the bond. Negotiations between Texaco and Pennzoil on a settlement continued.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:03:28 GMT -5
Unemployment Falls Again - July 1987 The Labor Department said, July 2, that the steady decline in unemployment continued in June, to 6% from 6.2% in May. The figure was its lowest since December 1979. The department reported, July 10, that the prices by producers for finished goods rose 0.2% in June. The Commerce Department said, July 15, that the U.S. deficit on merchandise trade grew to $14.4B in May. The department reported, July 24, that the gross national product at an annual rate of 2.6% in the second quarter. It said, July 30, that the index of leading economic indicators rose 0.8% in June. The bull market continued on Wall Street, with the Dow Jones industrial average closing at an all-time high of 2572.07 on July 31.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:04:02 GMT -5
Recordings The Recording Industry Association of America, Inc. (RIAA) confers Gold Record Awards on single records that sell one million units, Platinum Awards to those selling two million, Gold Awards to albums and their tape equivalents that sell 500,000 units, Platinum Awards to those selling one million, and Multi-Platinum to those selling two million or more. There were no Platinum Awards for single records in 1986. Multi-Platinum Awards for albums, Platinum Awards for albums, and Gold Awards for singles conferred in 1986 on records released in 1985 or 1986 follow.
Singles, Gold That's What Friends Are For - Dionne Warwick & Friends The Show (12") - Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew On My Own - Patti LaBelle & Michael McDonald Crying in the Chapel - Elvis Presley Kiss - Prince & the Revolution Say You, Say Me (Movie soundtrack from White Knights) - Lionel Richie Super Bowl Shuffle - The Chicago Bears Shufflin' Crew
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:04:17 GMT -5
Clean Water Bill Passed Over Veto - February 1987 A $20B bill aimed at cleaning up the nation's water supply became law over President Reagan's veto. Most of the money would spent for sewer construction. Polluted estuaries and runoff from polluted rainwater would be targeted, as would water poisoned by toxic dumps. Reagan had kill the bill by pocket veto in November, and had vetoed an identical bill, January 30, calling it a "budget-buster." Congress easily overrode the veto, the House by 401-26 on February 3, and the Senate by 86-14 on February 4.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:04:34 GMT -5
Reagan Back AIDS Education - April 1987 Pres. Ronald Reagan, speaking to the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, April 1, declared the acquired immune deficiency syndrome was "public health enemy No. 1" and said that the federal government would spend $766M and $1B to fight in fiscal years 1987 and 1988. He endorsed education about AIDS in the schools, and said that emphasis should be on the importance of sexual abstinence in young people and fidelity in marriage. Surgeon Gen. C. Everett Koop favored great emphasis on explicit instruction in schools on how to use condoms to reduce the risk of transmitting the AIDS virus. Responding to a question, Reagan said, "I don't quarrel with that," but he added that not enough attention had been given to the teaching of what was right and wrong in sexual matters.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:06:18 GMT -5
Bakker's Return to TV Ministry Barred - April 1987 The Rev. Jerry Falwell, the new chairman of the PTL board of directors, said that the board formally ended the ministry of the Rev. Jim Bakker. Bakker had stepped down from the ministry in March after admitting a liaison with a young woman in 1980. During April, more charges of sexual misconduct were made against Bakker, who denied them. It was also reported that Bakker and his wife Tammy Faye had received remunerations from PTL totaling $4.8M since 1984. Falwell, whom Bakker asked to take over PTL said, April 27, that Bakker had implied to him that "ther'll be a holy war" if he were not permitted to resume his ministry. Falwell said, April 28, that the PTL board had cut off all income to the Bakkers; obtained the resignation of the Rev. Richard Dortch, PTL's president and longtime associate of Bakkers; and stopped payments of a $265,000 fund established for Jessica Hahn, the church secretary with whom Bakker had had sex with in 1980. Falwell said that PTL was $50M in debt. The Assemblies of God, May 6, dismissed Bakker and Dortch as ministers. Bakker was cited for his "sexual encounter" with Hahn and for "his alleged misconduct involving bisexual activity." Dortch was dismissed for concealing "the immoral conduct of a fellow minister" and for his apparent role in a "coverup," a reference to the fact that he had negotiated a financial settlement with Hahn.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:19:54 GMT -5
Giants Defeat Broncos in Super Bowl - January 25, 1987 The New York Giants won their first Super Bowl championship by defeating the Devner Broncos 39-20 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. It was the Giants' first NFL championship since they defeated the Chicago Bears for the 1956 title. The Giants quarterback Phil Simms was chosen the game's most valuable player.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:20:05 GMT -5
Commerce Secretary Killed at Rodeo - July 1987 Sec. of Commerce Malcolm Baldrige was killed, July 25, when the horse he was riding reared and fell on top of him. Baldrige was practicing for an event at the fairgrounds in Walnut Creek, California. A veteran horseman, the 64-year-old Baldrige had participated in many rodeos. He had served in Pres. Ronald Reagan's cabinet since 1981, supporting free trade while urging Reagan to act against unfair international trade practices. Reagan, August 10, nominated C. William Verity, Jr., A retired chairman of Armco Inc., a steelmaking company, and a supporter of increased trade with the Soviet Union, to succeed Baldrige.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:20:17 GMT -5
96 die in San Juan Hotel Fire - December 1986 A fire of suspicious origin, engulfed the Dupont Plaza Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico on December 31, and claimed 96 lives, making it one of the worst hotel fires in U.S. history. More than 140 persons injured. The fire began in mid-afternoon in the ballroom and continued for 6 hours. The 22-story, 432-room hotel was packed with holiday visitors, many of whom were gambling in the hotel casino when the fire broke out. Many persons were rescued by helicopters from the rooftop and balconies. An investigation into the cause of the fire began immediately.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:21:22 GMT -5
Candidates Backed by Aquino Win - May 1987 Filipino voters elected a national legislature, May 13, and candidates supported by Pres. Corazon Aquino swept to victory. The voting, following the approval of a new constitution in February, consolidated Aquino's position as the democratic leader of the nation. The nation, as a whole, voted for the members of the Senate, with the top vote-getters being chosen for that chamber. The 200 members of the House of Representatives were chosen in individual districts. Aquino did not actually form a political party, but her endorsed candidates were generally referred to as the Laban, the name of the party founded by her late husband Begnino in 1978. Candidates endorsed by Aquino included both conservatives and reformers.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:21:36 GMT -5
Powell Retires From Supreme Court - June 1987 Justice Lewis F. Powell, Jr. announced, June 26, his retirement from the U.S. Supreme Court. Powell, who was 79, said he was leaving because of his age and concern "that I could handicap the court in the event of reoccurances of serious health problems." Pres. Richard Nixon had named Powell to the Court in 1971. In a court that was sharply divided on many issues, Powell usually took a moderate stance and often cast the deciding vote in 5-4 decisions.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:21:57 GMT -5
Thatcher Wins 3rd Term in Britain - June 1987 For the first time since the 1820s, a British prime minister was elected to a third consecutive term. Margaret Thatcher and her Conservative Party, which had first come to power in 1979, swept to victory, June 11, in parliamentary elections. The Tories ran on a record of having reducing taxes, inflation, and labor strife. Thatcher's party won 375 seats in Parliament, a slight decline from 392 in the old Parliament. Labour won 229 seats and the centrist Alliance of the Liberal and Social Democratic parties won 33 seats. In the popular vote, the results were closer: Tories 42 percent, Labour 33 percent, and the Alliance 23 percent.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:22:08 GMT -5
Stock Market Prices Plunge - October 1987 The Dow Jones industrial average, the most widely followed barometer of stock market activity, suffered its three biggest one-day point losses ever during the first half of October. A decline of 91.55 in the average on October 6, was attributed to concern over rising interest rates. On October 7, major banks raised their prime lending rates from 8.75 percent to 9.25 percent, the fifth increase of the year. The Commerce Department reported, October 14, that the U.S. trade deficit had shrunk to $15.7B in August, but it had been widely expected that the deficit would be much smaller. As a result, stock prices fell again, with the Dow Jones average declining by 95.46 points. On October 16, the Dow tumbled 108.36 points, the first time the Dow had lost 100 points in a single session. In terms of percentages, the declines of October 1987 were still substantially smaller than the disastrous declines of October 1929. By October 16, the Dow Jones average had slipped some 450 points below its all-time August highs.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:22:32 GMT -5
Falwell Quits PTL Ministry - October 1987 The Rev. Jerry Falwell resigned as chairman of the PTL television ministry. A Federal bankruptcy court, October 7, rejected a reorganization plan submitted by Falwell and ordered creditors of PTL to submit their own plan. The ministry was more than $50M in debt. Falwell and the entire board then resigned, October 8.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:22:44 GMT -5
Quake Hits Southern California - October 1987 A moderately severe earthquake, measuring 6.1 on the Richter Scale, struck southern California, October 1, causing 6 deaths, more than 100 injuries, and $59M in damages. At least 15 aftershocks were felt within a few hours, and more occured in subsequent days. Many residents chose to live outdoors. The city of Whittier was the hardest hit. The quake leveled buildings and started fires. It was the worst to hit the area since 1971. A truly immense quake was being forecast for California within the next 50 years.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:23:07 GMT -5
Pro Football Strike - October 1987 A strike by pro football players ended in October without achieveing its objectives. The National Football League Players Association ended its 24-day strike, October 15. Negotiation committees had reached agreement on 8 minor issues but not on free agency, the players' biggest demand, which would permit them to move from one clob to another when contracts expired. During the strike, the club owners brought in nonunion players who performed erratically before small crowds and reduced television audiences. The striked was weakened when players defected and began to return to their teams. The union filed an antitrust lawsuit against the league.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:23:32 GMT -5
Biggest Wheat Sale Announced - April 1987 The United states announced, April 30, that the Soviet Union had agreed to buy 4M metric tons of subsidized wheat--the largest sale ever of subsidized wheat to one country. The deal fell within the framework of a 5-year commitment by the Soviet Union for the purchase of wheat. Commodities analysis estimated the value of the sale at about $375M.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:24:05 GMT -5
10,000 March in Georgia Town - January 1987 In a scene reminiscent of the demonstrations of the 1960s, civil rights supporters took to the streets of a Georgia town in January. The target of the protest march was Cumming, in Forsyth County. The county had been all-white since 1912. Cummings population was about 2,000, the county's 38,000. A small march by black and whites, January 17--to show that "it would be OK for black people to come visit"--was disrupted by members of the Ku Klux Klan and their supporters. On January 24, some 10,000 persons came to Cumming, about 25 miles northeast of Atlanta. Mrs. Coretta Scott King, Mayor Andrew Young of Atlanta, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, and Sen. Sam Nunn (D. Ga) were among the leaders. Again, the marchers encountered protesters, but they were protected by 1,700 Georgia National Guardsmen and 500 Georgia state troopers.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:24:28 GMT -5
U.S. Bars Waldheim - April 1987 In the first such action every taken against the head of a friendly country, the U.S. Justice Department barred Austrian Pres. Kurt Waldheim from entering the United States. The department announced its decision, April 27, after a year's investigation. It found a "prima facie case" that during World War II Waldheim had taken part in Nazi war crimes, including the execution of civilians and the mass deportation of civilians to concentration camps and death camps. Waldheim's wartime activities while serving in the German army had become public knowledge in 1986 during his successful campaign for the Austrian presidency. He had formerly served as secretary-general of the United Nations.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:24:52 GMT -5
Child Survives Crash Fatal to 155 - August 1987 At least 155 persons died as the result of a crash August 16, of a Northwest Airlines jet that had just taken off from Detroit Metropolitan Airport in Romulus, Mich. Miraculously, a 4-year-old girl, Cecelia Cichan, of Tempe, Ariz., survived. Her father, mother, and brother all died. The death toll was the second-highest ever for a U.S. plane crash. The number of persons aboard the plane was uncertain. Two persons were killed on the ground. The cause of the disaster was not immediately determined.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:25:05 GMT -5
U.S. Observes Constitution Bicentennial - September 1987 The 200th anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution was observed, September 17. At the principal celebration, in Philadelphia, Pres. Ronald Reagan stood near Independence Hall and asserted, "In a very real sense, it was then--in 1787--that the revolution truly began." He said it was a revolution "to free man from tyranny of every sort and secure his freedom the only way possible in this world; through the checks and balances and institutions of limited, democratic government." Former Chief Justice Warren Burger, chairman of the Bicentennial Commission, struck a replica of the Liberty Bell. Floats and marching bands containing citizens from all 50 states paraded past Independence Hall.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:25:20 GMT -5
U.S. Shuts Down Nuclear Reactor - December 1986 The U.S. Department of Energy announced, December 12, that a nuclear reactor that was an important source of plutonium for nuclear weapons would be shut down for 6 months while safety improvements were made. The reactor, a part of the department's Hanford nuclear complex near Richland, Wash., resembled in design the Soviet Union's reactors in Chernobyl, one of which released a lethal cloud of radiation in 1986 after its core melted down. Like the Chernobyl reactors, the N reactor at Hanford lacked a containment dome that would keep radioactive steam from escaping into the atmosphere if an accident occured. The N reactor, which had opened in 1963 with a projected lifespan of 20 years, had been in the news because of frequent reports of safety violations. The Energy Department said renovations would cost $50M.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:26:07 GMT -5
Reagan's Helicopter Nearly Hit - August 1987 In a year which near misses among aircraft had become a growing concern, Pres. Ronald Reagan had a brush with tragedy, August 13. As his helicopter approached his ranch in Santa Barbara, Calif., where he was to begin a vacation, a small private plane flew within 200 feet of it. The helicopter took evasive action, and security guards in a second copter pursued the plane, which landed at Orange County Airport. The pilot, Army Pvt. Ralph Myers, was questioned and then held when it was learned that he was absent without leave from a base in Washington state.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:26:27 GMT -5
Trade Deficit Continues to Rise - March 1987 The index of leading economic indicators fell 1 percent in January, the Commerce Department announced, March 3. The Labor Department said, March 6, that the nation's unemployment rate had held steady at 6.6 percent in February for the 3rd straight month. The Commerce Department said, March 18, that corporate profits had risen 6.1 percent in the 4th quarter of 1986. The Labor Department reported, March 13, that prices charged by producers for finished goods had risen 0.1 percent in February. The U.S. balance of payments on current account---the broadest measure of trade with other nations---showed a deficit of $36.84B in the 4th quarter of 1986 and $140.57B for the entire year, both records. The surge on Wall Street continued, with the Dow Jones industrial average posting another all-time high of 2372.59 on March 26. Consumer prices rose 0.4 percent in February, the Labor Department said, March 27. The Commerce Department said, March 31, by raising their prime leading rate, their base rate for corporate loans, from 7.5 percent to 7.75 percent---the first increases by major banks since 1984.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:26:38 GMT -5
140 Soviet Dissidents Freed - February 1987 In another apparent move to improve its human-rights image, the Soviet Union, February 10, pardoned and freed 140 dissidents who had been held in prisons and labor camps. They had been convicted of "anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda." The announcement by the foreign ministry appeared to cover the largest number of dissidents freed at one time in more than 3 decades. White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said, February 10, the United States welcomed the announcement and hoped that more prisoners would be released soon.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:27:01 GMT -5
Superpowers Close to Missile Treaty - September 1987 The United States and the Soviet Union reached tentative agreement on a worldwide ban on medium-range nuclear missiles. Earlier, on September 5, 3 members of the U.S. House visites a Soviet radar facility and later challenged the Reagan Administration's claim that it was a part of a system to guard against nuclear attacks. The 1972 antiballistic missile treaty had banned most such defenses. The Congressmen were allowed to take photographs and videotapes. Progress on the superpower arms talks emerged from meetings, September 15-17, in Washington, D.C., between U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz and Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze and their staffs. They signed an agreement, September 15, to create "risk reduction centers" to help avoid an accidental nuclear war. In the move toward the treaty on intermediate nuclear forces (INF), the U.S. agreed, September 15, that it would begin removing its missiles from Europe as soon as the treay became effective. The Soviet Union agreed, September 17, that West Germany's 72 Pershing missiles would not be included in the treaty, and, in return, Shultz reportedly said that the nuclear warheads for the missiles, which the United States controlled, would be dismantled. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev said, September 17, an INF treaty could be concluded by the end of the year and would pave the way for a treaty on long-range weapons in 1988. Pres. Ronald Reagan announced, September 18, that the 2 sides had reached a tentative agreement for worldwide elimination of INF weapons. He said the 2 countries would next seek to reduce strategic (long-range) weapons by 50 percent. Reagan said arrangements would soon be made for a summit meeting with Gorbachev in the United States.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:27:13 GMT -5
Ex-Aide to Reagan Indicted - July 1987 More indictments were handed down in the Wedtech scandal, a former longtime adviser to Pres. Ronald Reagan, Lyn Nofziger, was included. Earlier, on July 6, Attorney Gen. Edwin Meese III released detailed information on his partnership with W. Franklyn Chinn, a former Wedtech official, whom he had given $60,000 to invest. The money had not been invested in Wedtech stock, but Chinn made about $35,000 in profits on 1-day stock trades. The indictment of Nofziger, unsealed July 17, evolved from an investigation by independent counsel James McKay. Nofziger was indicted on 6 counts of violating the federal ethics law prohibiting high public officials from lobbying their former agencies for a year after leaving the government. The indictments cited Meese as one of the officials he had lobbied. A single charge was filed against Mark Bragg, Nofziger's business partner. Nofziger, July 17, denied "any deliberate violation" of the law.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:27:23 GMT -5
Ethiopians OK Communist Constitution - February 1987 Ethiopian voters, February 1, gave their overwhelming approval to a new constitution that established a civilian Communist government. The country's leader, Lt. Col. Mengistu Haile Mariam, said, February 22, that 96 percent of the eligible voters had turned out, and that 81 percent of those voting had favored the constitution. The country would now be called the People's Republic of Ethiopia. The Worker's Party, of which there were about 50,000 members, would be the "vanguard" in the one-party state. Later in 1987, party-approved candidates would seek election to the parliament, which in turn would choose a president.
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Post by colinouchou on Apr 30, 2024 13:27:47 GMT -5
Mayor of Chicago Reelected - April 1987 Mayor Harold Washington of Chicago, a Democrat, was reelected to a second 4-year term on April 7. He received 54 percent pf the vote to 42 percent for his principal challenger, Edward Vrdolyak, a Democrat who ran as the Solidarity Party candidate. The Republican candidate, Donald Haider, received 4 percent. Washington received 97 percent of the black vote and 15 percent of the white vote. Jane Byrne, whom Washington had defeated in the Democratic primary in February, had endorsed him. Washington supporters won a majority on the city council. During Washington's first term, Vrdolyak supporters had held a majority and had defeated the mayor on many important issues.
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