Chronology year 1980

January 1980

• Announcement of the embargo on US grain exports to the Soviet Union, in response to the invasion of Afghanistan.
• Death of American actor and comedian Jimmy Durante, aged 86, in Santa Monica, California.
• Start of the British television network ITV's subsidiaries of the program _News at Ten_, marking a milestone in news coverage.
• Chess player Garry Kasparov, at age 16, wins the international chess tournament in Banja Luka, Yugoslavia.
• United States boycott of the Moscow Summer Olympics is announced by President Jimmy Carter.
• Israel and Egypt establish diplomatic relations, a landmark of the Camp David Treaty.
• Six American diplomats escape Iran with help from Canada, an event portrayed in the film _Argo_ (released years later).

Photos of protests in Tehran or the American embassy captured the drama of the crisis.

• Release of the single _Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)_ by Pink Floyd, which reaches the top of the charts in the United Kingdom.
• Queen Juliana of the Netherlands abdicates in favor of her daughter, Beatrix.
• Guillermo Vilas' victory in the Maryland Classic tennis tournament, in the USA.

February 1980

• Opening of the Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid, New York.

Setting from the 1980 Winter Olympics.

• American team's victory over the Soviet Union in the "Miracle on Ice" at the Winter Olympics.
• The USA won the gold medal in the men's championship at the Winter Olympics, defeating Finland.
• Debut of Queen's single _Crazy Little Thing Called Love_, which reaches the top of the charts in the USA.
• The cruise ship _Prinsendam_ suffers a fire in Alaska, leading to the evacuation of 520 passengers and crew.
• Release of the single _Call Me_ by the band Blondie, which becomes a global hit.
• Start of strike by British Steel workers in the United Kingdom, marking labor defeat.
• Publication of the Brandt report, proposing solutions to global economic inequalities.
• Military coup in Suriname led by Dési Bouterse, known as the "Sergeants' Coup".
• Andalusia, in Spain, approves its autonomy status in a referendum.

March 1980

• Robert Mugabe is elected Prime Minister of Zimbabwe after the country's independence.
• Death of philosopher and psychologist Erich Fromm, in Muralto, Switzerland.
• Collapse of the _Alexander L. Kielland_ oil platform in the North Sea, killing 123 workers.
• NASA's Voyager 1 confirms the existence of rings on Jupiter.
• Air crash of LOT Polish Airlines Flight 007, killing 87 people, including the US boxing team.
• US President Jimmy Carter announces additional sanctions against Iran over the hostage crisis.
• Assassination of Archbishop Óscar Romero in El Salvador, a milestone in the fight for human rights.
• Release of the single _Atomic_ by the band Blondie in the United Kingdom.
• General elections in Japan, consolidating the power of the Liberal Democratic Party.
• Bus drivers strike in London, affecting public transport.

April 1980

• Death of filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock, in Los Angeles, at the age of 80.
• The US breaks diplomatic relations with Iran due to the hostage crisis.
• Samuel Doe leads a military coup in Liberia, assassinating President William Tolbert.
• Zimbabwe officially celebrates its independence from the United Kingdom, with Robert Mugabe as leader.
• Start of Operation Eagle Claw, a failed US attempt to rescue hostages in Iran.
• Air crash of Dan-Air Flight 1008 in the United Kingdom, killing 146 people.
• Premiere of the musical _Evita_ in Los Angeles, after success in the West End.
• Beatrix is ​​crowned queen of the Netherlands after the abdication of her mother, Juliana.
• Release of the single _Coming Up_ by Paul McCartney, which reaches the top of the charts.
• Jean-Paul Sartre, French philosopher, dies in Paris.

May 1980

• Eruption of rain on Mount St. Helens in the USA, killing 57 people and causing destruction.
• Premiere of the film _Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back_ in the USA.
• Premiere of the film _The Shining_, by Stanley Kubrick, in the USA.
• Launch of the arcade game _Pac-Man_ in Japan, by Namco.
• Death of Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito, in Ljubljana.
• World Health Organization declares smallpox officially eradicated.
• The single _Funky Town_ by Lipps Inc. premieres, a hit from the disco era.
• Beginning of the Gwangju uprising, in South Korea, against the military regime.
• General strike in Peru won by unions against the military government.
• Release of the film _Cruising_, with Al Pacino, in the USA.

June 1980

• Release of the album _The Game_ by the band Queen, containing hits such as _Another One Bites the Dust_.
• Launch of the CNN news network, the first 24-hour news cable TV.
• Björn Borg wins Roland Garros for the fifth time, defeating Vitas Gerulaitis.
• Nelson Mandela writes a letter from prison, published clandestinely, reinforcing the fight against apartheid.
• The film _The Blues Brothers_ premieres in the USA, with John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd.
• Release of Bob Dylan's album _Saved_, part of his Christian phase.
• Premiere of the film _Avião!_ in the USA, a comedy landmark.
• Air crash of Itavia flight 870 in Italy, killing 81 people (cause never fully clarified).
• Release of the single _Xanadu_ by Olivia Newton-John and ELO, soundtrack for the film of the same name.
• Strike of port workers in Gdańsk, Poland, precursor of the Solidarność movement.

July 1980

• Opening of the Summer Olympic Games in Moscow, boycotted by 66 countries, including the USA.
• Release of the film _Avião!_ on a wide circuit in the USA.
• Björn Borg wins Wimbledon for the fifth consecutive time, defeating John McEnroe.
• Bernard Hinault wins the Tour de France for the third time.
• Release of AC/DC's album _Back in Black_, one of the best-selling in history.
• Fire at Alexandra Palace, in London, destroying part of the historic site.
• Release of the film _Caddyshack_, a classic comedy with Chevy Chase.
• Premiere of the single _Magic_ by Olivia Newton-John, from the film _Xanadu_.
• Death of the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, in exile in Egypt.
• Release of David Bowie's single _Ashes to Ashes_, from the album _Scary Monsters_.

August 1980

• Founding of the Solidarność trade union in Poland, led by Lech Wałęsa.
• Signing of the Gdańsk Agreements, registering Solidarność as an independent union.
• Release of the film _Xanadu_, with Olivia Newton-John, in the USA.
• Hurricane Allen hits the Caribbean and Texas, causing 269 deaths.
• Australian baby Azaria Chamberlain disappears at Uluru, a case that generated great controversy.
• Premiere of the film _Smokey and the Bandit II_ in the USA.
• The single _Upside Down_ by Diana Ross debuts, a disco hit.
• Release of the film _Herbie Goes Bananas_, the last in Disney's _Herbie_ series.
• Shipyard strike in Gdańsk, Poland, gains national support.
• Release of Queen's single _Another One Bites the Dust_, which becomes a global hit.

September 1980

• Beginning of the Iran-Iraq War, following the Iraqi invasion of southwestern Iran.
• Premiere of the series _Cosmos: A Personal Voyage_, presented by Carl Sagan, on PBS.
• John McEnroe wins the men's US Open, defeating Björn Borg.
• Release of David Bowie's album _Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)_.
• General elections in West Germany, with victory for Helmut Schmidt's Social Democratic Party.
• Launch of Soyuz 38, taking the first Cuban cosmonaut, Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez, into space.
• Premiere of the film _Ordinary People_, directed by Robert Redford, in the USA.
• Release of Joy Division's single _Love Will Tear Us Apart_, following the death of Ian Curtis.
• General strike in Bolivia against the military regime of Luis García Meza.
• Launch of Ethernet as a commercial standard by Xerox.

October 1980

• Premiere of the film _The Shining_ in the United Kingdom.
• Premiere of the film _The Elephant Man_, _by_ David Lynch, in the USA.
• Release of the album _Remain in Light_ by the band Talking Heads.
• Earthquake in El Asnam, Algeria, kills around 2,500 people.
• Release of the album _Zenyatta Mondatta_ by The Police, with hits such as _Don't Stand So Close to Me.
• Greece announces its entry into the European Economic Community (currently the EU), effective in 1981.
• Release of the single _Woman in Love_ by Barbra Streisand, which reaches the top of the charts.
• Bomb attack at the train station in Bologna, Italy, with 85 deaths (occurred on August 2, but investigations advanced in October).
• General elections in Canada, with victory for Pierre Trudeau's Liberal Party.
• Release of the film _Private Benjamin_, with Goldie Hawn, in the USA.

November 1980

• Election of Ronald Reagan as 40th president of the United States.
• Release of the album _Autoamerican_ by the band Blondie, with hits such as _The Tide Is High_.
• Episode of _Dallas_ ( _Who Done It?_ ) reveals who shot JR, attracting millions of viewers.
• Earthquake in Irpinia, Italy, kills around 2,900 people.
• Release of the album _Double Fantasy_ by John Lennon and Yoko Ono.
• Premiere of the film _Raging Bull_ (_Raging Bull_), by Martin Scorsese, in the USA.
• Release of the single _Super Trouper_ by the band ABBA, from the album of the same name.
• Failed military coup in Spain, known as _23-F_ (preparations reported in November).
• Premiere of the film _Popeye_, with Robin Williams, in the USA.
• Release of the single _Just Like Starting Over_ by John Lennon, which becomes a posthumous hit.

December 1980

• Assassination of John Lennon in New York by Mark David Chapman.
• Premiere of the series _Magnum, PI_ in the USA, with Tom Selleck.
• Release of the album _Sandin trafiken_ by the Swedish band Dag Vag, a local success.
• Premiere of the film _Nine to Five_, with Jane Fonda and Dolly Parton, in the USA.
• Release of the single _Happy Xmas (War Is Over)_ by John Lennon, re-released after his death.
• Release of the film _Any Which Way You Can_, with Clint Eastwood, in the USA.
• Premiere of the film _Altered States_ in the USA, directed by Ken Russell.
• Railway workers strike in Poland, part of the Solidarność movement.
• Release of the single _The Winner Takes It All_ by ABBA, a global success.
• End of the year with the Solidarity Movement gaining strength in Poland, marking Cold War tensions.