Didn't That Happen in the '80s? Quiz

Answer:

The 1980 Summer Olympics was the first time the Games had been held in a communist country. The Games were notable for being boycotted by 66 countries, resulting in only 80 countries attending. The boycott was due to the Soviet-Afghan War that was taking place at the time. Along with 15 Eastern Bloc countries, the Soviet Union went on to boycott the next games, the 1984 Summer Olympics which were held in Los Angeles, USA. Four other countries not aligned with a major power bloc also boycotted the 1984 Games. These 20 countries participated in the 1984 Friendship Games along with another 30 countries. It was denied that this was an alternative Olympics.

Also in 1980, the volcano Mount St. Helens in Washington State, US, blew its top resulting in the summit reducing in height from 9,677 to 8,363 ft (2,950 to 2,549 m). Fifty-seven people died from the eruption. The volcano had been dormant for 123 years until March 1980 when a modest earthquake was recorded. A swarm of earthquakes followed, building in numbers and of increasing intensity, forming some new craters and eventually a large bulge. The cataclysmic explosion took place on 18 May 1980.

The installation of Ronald Reagan as President of the US (POTUS) took place in January 1981. Having been Governor of California from 1967 to 1975, he lost out to the incumbent president Gerald Ford in the 1976 primaries. Ford lost to Carter at the 1976 election with Reagan winning a landslide victory in 1980 in a three-way race with the then incumbent president Jimmy Carter and congressman John B Anderson. He saw off Walter Mondale in the 1984 presidential election in another landslide victory. Reagan was succeeded by his vice president in 1988.

1981 was also the year of the attempted assassination by Mehmet Ali Aðca of Pope John Paul II. The Turkish assassin gave multiple conflicting reasons for his actions. One theory was that the Soviet Union was behind the attempt due to the Pope's support for Solidarity, the Polish trade union formed at Gdansk and the first in an Eastern Bloc country. Other reasons suggested included a contract hit by the Grey Wolves (a far-right Turkish organisation of which Aðca was a member), that there was a Bulgarian connection, and that it was a hit ordered by Iran. The Pope was seriously wounded but survived, dying in 2005.

"The Color Purple", written in the form of a series of letters, was published in 1982. It is a brutal coming-of-age story of a young African-American girl. American author Alice Walker won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for this novel, becoming the first African-American author to do so. The novel has been the target of censors many times. The 1985 Steven Spielberg film adaptation received 11 Oscar nominations, but no win. In addition, it held the record for the most nominations without one for Best Director.

By way of contrast, the 1982 biographical film "Gandhi" won ten Oscars. Starring Ben Kingsley in the role of Mahatma Gandhi, there were some 300,000 extras involved in the making of the film. The film tells the story of Mahatma Gandhi who was an Indian leader pursuing independence for his country from the British Empire. Ben Kingsley portrayed the titular role in this Richard Attenborough-directed film.

The invasion of the former British colony of Grenada by the United States occurred in 1983 following a period of political instability. It took place over 8 days and resulted in the toppling of the government and the expulsion of Cuban and Soviet nationals. The date of the invasion, October 25, is now marked by a national holiday called Thanksgiving Day. This Thanksgiving holiday is not a harvest festival.

After the success of her first singles "Everybody", "Burning Up" and "Physical Attraction" (the latter two being released as a double-sided single), Madonna put together her self-titled debut album. This was in 1983 with those three singles being included. Others subsequently released as singles or double-singles were "Lucky Star", "Borderline" and "Holiday". The following two albums went multi-platinum, namely "Like a Virgin" (1984) and "True Blue" (1986).

In India, the Bhopal industrial accident of 1984 resulted in the leak of the highly-toxic gas methyl isocyanate. It ranks amongst the worst industrial accidents in the world. Death estimates range upwards from 3,787 with over half-a-million people injured. Much legal action followed against the owners of the pesticide factory. The owners were the Union Carbide Corporation of the US and various Indian government-owned banks, as well as the Indian public. Various books and films document the disaster. Some forty years later, site contamination was still an issue.

In 1986 Argentina won the Soccer World Cup for the second time, beating West Germany. It was during the quarter-final match against England that Argentine footballer Diego Maradona scored his infamous 'the Hand of God' goal in which he used his hand to score. The goal was allowed. The name comes from Maradona's initial comment regarding whether the goal was scored illegally. Argentina first won the championship in 1978 against the Netherlands and also topped the field in 2022 when Argentina beat France in the final.

The wrong answers are the Watergate scandal (1972-74), Munich Olympics (1972), "The Sting" Oscar (1973), Tony Blair as PM (1997-2007), Dolly the sheep (1996-2003), and the Gulf War (1990-91).