1980 facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

1980 was an important year in the 20th century, marking the start of the 1980s. Many interesting things happened around the world, from big sporting events to new discoveries in space, and the birth of many famous people we know today.

Major Events of 1980

January 20 – The Pittsburgh Steelers football team won their fourth Super Bowl championship by defeating the Los Angeles Rams. They held the record for most wins by a team until 1995.
April 12 – Terry Fox started his amazing Marathon of Hope in Canada. He ran across the country to raise money for cancer research.
April 30 – Beatrix of the Netherlands was crowned as the new Queen.
May 18 – The Mount St. Helens volcano in the United States erupted in a huge explosion.
August 1 – Vigdís Finnbogadóttir became the fourth President of Iceland. She was the first woman ever elected as a head of state in a democratic election.
August – The Solidarity trade union began to grow in Poland. This group played a big part in the fall of communism in Eastern Europe.
September 1 – Terry Fox had to stop his Marathon of Hope because his cancer returned.
September 22 – A war began between Iran and Iraq.
November 4 – Ronald Reagan won the presidential elections, defeating Jimmy Carter.
December 8 – John Lennon of The Beatles was sadly killed outside his apartment in New York City.
Pictures taken by the Voyager 1 probe helped scientists discover Saturn's moon, Atlas.

Famous People Born in 1980

Many well-known people were born in 1980. Here are some of them:

January Births

January 4 – Greg Cipes, an American actor.
January 14 – Carlos Alvarado Quesada, who later became the President of Costa Rica.
January 16 – Lin-Manuel Miranda, a Puerto Rican-American actor, composer, and writer, famous for creating Hamilton.
January 17 – Zooey Deschanel, an American actress and singer.
January 18 – Jason Segel, an American actor and comedian.
January 25 – Xavi, a famous Spanish footballer.
January 28 – Nick Carter, an American pop singer from the Backstreet Boys.

February Births

February 11 – Matthew Lawrence, an American actor.
February 12 – Christina Ricci, an American actress.
February 17 – Jason Ritter, an American actor.
February 21 – Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, the King of Bhutan.
February 27 – Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of former U.S. President Bill Clinton.

March Births

March 7 – Laura Prepon, an American actress.
March 21 – Ronaldinho, a famous Brazilian footballer.
March 31 – Kate Micucci, an American actress and voice artist.

April Births

April 1 – Randy Orton, an American professional wrestler.
April 10 – Charlie Hunnam, an English actor.
April 20 – Waylon, a Dutch singer.
April 26 – Channing Tatum, an American actor and model.

May Births

May 2 – Ellie Kemper, an American actress and comedian.
May 21 – Gotye, a Belgian-Australian musician and singer-songwriter.
May 30 – Steven Gerrard, a famous English footballer.

June Births

June 5 – Mike Fisher, a Canadian hockey player.
June 17 – Venus Williams, a famous American tennis player.
June 23 – Melissa Rauch, an American actress.
June 26 – Michael Vick, an American football player.

July Births

July 3 – Olivia Munn, an American actress and model.
July 5 – Eva Green, a French actress and model.
July 7 – Michelle Kwan, an American figure skater.
July 10 – Jessica Simpson, an American singer.
July 18 – Kristen Bell, an American actress.
July 20 – Gisele Bündchen, a Brazilian supermodel.
July 26 – Jacinda Ardern, who became the Prime Minister of New Zealand.

August Births

August 26 – Macaulay Culkin and Chris Pine, both American actors.
August 29 – William Levy, a Cuban-American actor.

September Births

September 9 – Michelle Williams, an American actress.
September 12 – Yao Ming, a famous Chinese basketball player.
September 29 – Zachary Levi, an American actor and singer.
September 30 – Martina Hingis, a Swiss tennis player.

October Births

October 8 – Nick Cannon, an American actor, comedian, and rapper.
October 21 – Kim Kardashian, an American socialite and television personality.
October 24 – Monica, an African-American singer.

November Births

November 5 – Luke Hemsworth, an Australian actor.
November 12 – Ryan Gosling, a Canadian actor and musician.
November 17 – Isaac Hanson, an American musician.

December Births

December 9 – Simon Helberg, an American actor and comedian.
December 18 – Christina Aguilera, an American singer.
December 19 – Jake Gyllenhaal, an American actor.
December 30 – Eliza Dushku, an American actress.

Notable People Who Passed Away in 1980

The year 1980 also saw the passing of several influential figures:

January Deaths

January 19 – William O. Douglas, a Justice on the American Supreme Court.
January 29 – Jimmy Durante, a beloved American actor, singer, and comedian.

February Deaths

February 19 – Bon Scott, the Scottish-born Australian rock singer for the band AC/DC.
February 20 – Alice Roosevelt Longworth, the daughter of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt.
February 22 – Oskar Kokoschka, an Austrian painter and poet.

March Deaths

March 14 – Mohammad Hatta, Indonesia's first vice president.
March 24 – Óscar Romero, a Salvadorian archbishop who spoke out for human rights.
March 31 – Jesse Owens, an American Olympic athlete famous for his track and field achievements.

April Deaths

April 12 – William R. Tolbert Jr., the 20th President of Liberia.
April 15 – Jean-Paul Sartre, a French philosopher and writer who won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
April 29 – Alfred Hitchcock, a famous British director known for his suspense films.

May Deaths

May 4 – Josip Broz Tito, the leader of Yugoslavia for many years.
May 18 – David A. Johnston, an American volcanologist, and Harry R. Truman, who lived near Mount St. Helens, both died during the volcano's eruption.

June Deaths

June 12 – Masayoshi Ōhira, the 43rd Prime Minister of Japan.
June 23 – V. V. Giri, the fourth President of India.

July Deaths

July 24 – Peter Sellers, a British comedian and actor.
July 27 – Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran.

August Deaths

August 10 – Yahya Khan, the third President of Pakistan.
August 14 – Dorothy Stratten, a Canadian actress and model.
August 26 – Tex Avery, an American cartoonist who created many classic animated characters.

September Deaths

September 16 – Jean Piaget, a Swiss psychologist known for his work on child development.
September 25 – John Bonham, the British rock drummer for the band Led Zeppelin.

October Deaths

October 21 – Hans Asperger, an Austrian pediatrician who studied Asperger syndrome.

November Deaths

November 7 – Steve McQueen, a popular American actor.
November 22 – Mae West, a famous American actress.

December Deaths

December 8 – John Lennon, the British singer-songwriter and guitarist from The Beatles.
December 16 – Colonel Sanders, the American entrepreneur who founded KFC.
December 18 – Alexei Kosygin, a Soviet politician who served as Premier of the Soviet Union.
December 24 – Karl Dönitz, a German admiral who briefly served as President of Germany.

Popular Movies of 1980

Some of the movies released in 1980 that you might still hear about today include:

Airplane!
The Blue Lagoon
The Blues Brothers
The Gods Must Be Crazy
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
9 to 5

TV Series in 1980

Gumby Adventures – The first new episodes of Gumby in the 1980s aired on November 1, 1980. These included "The Music Ball", "Shrink-a-Dink", and "Hatching Out".