On June 27, 1988, heavyweight champion Mike Tyson knocks out challenger Michael Spinks 91 seconds into the first round. The decisive victory left the boxing world wondering if anyone could beat “Iron Mike” Tyson. Mike Tyson was born on June 30, 1966, in Brooklyn, New York. He had a troubled […]
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A Young Man Turns The Death Of His Parents Into A Game
Police responding to an emergency call in Washington, North Carolina, find Lieth and Bonnie Von Stein stabbed and beaten in their home. Lieth was dead, but Bonnie, barely clinging to life, somehow survived. Angela, Bonnie’s 18-year-old daughter, was found in the next room; she said that she had slept through […]
Continue ReadingTeenager Debbie Gibson Earns A #1 Hit With “Foolish Beat”
Contrary to what some critics of teen pop might imagine, pop sensation Debbie Gibson saw herself not as the next Madonna, but as the next Carole King. And when her single “Foolish Beat” reached the top of the Biilboard Hot 100 on this day in 1988, she achieved something very […]
Continue ReadingThree U.S. Presidents Close Chapters On The Cold War
On this day in history, three U.S. presidents in three different years take significant steps toward ending the Cold War. Beginning on May 28, 1988, President Ronald Reagan met Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev for a four-day summit in Russia. Upon his election in 1980, Reagan had abandoned Nixon, Ford […]
Continue ReadingReagan-Gorbachev Summit In Moscow Ends
President Ronald Reagan ends his first trip to Moscow, and his fourth summit meeting with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, on notes of both frustration and triumph. Although there were no breakthroughs or agreements on substantive issues, the “Great Communicator,” as Reagan was known in the United States, was a hit […]
Continue ReadingReagan Arrives In Moscow For Summit TalksReagan Arrives In Moscow For Summit Talks
President Ronald Reagan travels to Moscow to begin the fourth summit meeting held in the past three years with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Though the summit produced no major announcements or breakthroughs, it served to illuminate both the successes and the failures achieved by the two men in terms of […]
Continue ReadingGorbachev Consolidates Power
In an attempt to consolidate his own power and ease political and ethnic tensions in the Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev dismisses the Communist Party leaders in those two republics. Since coming to power in 1985, Gorbachev had faced numerous problems with his efforts to […]
Continue ReadingSoviets Begin Withdrawal From Afghanistan
More than eight years after they intervened in Afghanistan to support the procommunist government, Soviet troops begin their withdrawal. The event marked the beginning of the end to a long, bloody, and fruitless Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. In December 1979, Soviet troops first entered Afghanistan in an attempt to bolster […]
Continue ReadingKim Philby Dies
Kim Philby, a former British Secret Intelligence Service officer and double agent for the Soviet Union, dies in Moscow at the age of 76. Philby was perhaps the most famous of a group of British government officials who served as Russian spies from the 1930s to the 1950s. Philby came […]
Continue ReadingWoman Convicted For Tampering With Excedrin
Stella Nickell is convicted on two counts of murder by a Seattle, Washington, jury. She was the first person to be found guilty of violating the Federal Anti-Tampering Act after putting cyanide in Excedrin capsules in an effort to kill her husband. Stella and Bruce Nickell married in 1976, shortly […]
Continue ReadingCher Wins Best Actress Oscar For Moonstruck
On this day in 1988, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, the actress and singer Cher collects the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Moonstruck (1988). Cherilyn Sarkasian, who was born on May 20, 1946, first became famous as the taller, female half of the 1960s […]
Continue ReadingLemieux Wins NHL Scoring Title, Stops Gretzky Streak
Mario Lemieux wins the Art Ross Trophy as the National Hockey League’s top scorer on this day in 1988. Lemieux’s 168 points bested Wayne Gretzky, who had dominated the league as the top scorer for an amazing seven seasons. Lemieux (in French, “le mieux” means “the best”) was born October […]
Continue ReadingDoug Williams Leads Redskins To Super Bowl Victory
On January 31, 1988, in San Diego, California, Doug Williams of the Washington Redskins becomes the first African-American quarterback to play in a Super Bowl, scoring four of Washington’s five touchdowns in an upset 42-10 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXII. Denver was favored to win the […]
Continue ReadingGorbachev Accepts Ban On Intermediate-Range Nuclear Missiles
In a dramatic turnaround, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev indicates that he is willing to negotiate a ban on intermediate-range nuclear missiles without conditions. Gorbachev’s decision paved the way for the groundbreaking Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with the United States. Since coming to power in 1985, Gorbachev had made it […]
Continue ReadingTanker Accident Causes Deadly Fire
A gasoline tanker truck crashes into an ice cream parlor in Herborn, Germany, on this day in 1987. The resulting explosion and fire killed 50 people. The truck was carrying a full load of gasoline, nearly 7,000 gallons, when it exited the Frankfurt-Rhur autobahn, a major highway in Germany. It […]
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