1982

Events in 1982 68

• 1885 – 1982 Bess Truman (1885-1982) Died 18 October 1982, aged 97 Former First Lady of the United States as wife of President Harry Truman. She died in Independence, Missouri, having lived longer than any other First Lady to that time.
• 1887 – 1982 Arthur Rubinstein (1887-1982) Died 20 December 1982, aged 95 Polish-American pianist regarded as one of the greatest concert pianists of the 20th century. He died in Geneva after a career spanning more than eight decades.
• 1895 – 1982 Carl Orff (1895-1982) Died 29 March 1982, aged 86 German composer best known for the cantata Carmina Burana. He died in Munich, the city where he spent most of his career.
• 1905 – 1982 Henry Fonda (1905-1982) Died 12 August 1982, aged 77 American film actor known for The Grapes of Wrath and 12 Angry Men. He died of heart disease months after winning his only competitive Oscar for On Golden Pond.
• 1906 – 1982 Satchel Paige (1906-1982) Died 8 June 1982, aged 75 American baseball pitcher and Negro leagues legend who became the oldest rookie in Major League Baseball history. He died in Kansas City, Missouri.
• 1906 – 1982 Leonid Brezhnev The era of stagnation Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev (December 19, 1906 – November 10, 1982) led the Soviet Union from 1964 to 1982. His 18-year tenure brought stability but also stagnation. He ordered the invasions of Czechoslovakia (1968) and Afghanistan (1979).
• 1911 – 1982 King Khalid of Saudi Arabia (1911-1982) Died 13 June 1982, aged 69 King of Saudi Arabia from 1975 until his death. He died of a heart attack in Taif and was succeeded by his half-brother Fahd.
• 1912 – 1982 Eleanor Powell (1912-1982) American dancer and actress, considered the greatest female tap dancer of film.
• 1915 – 1982 Ingrid Bergman (1915-1982) Died 29 August 1982, aged 67 Swedish actress and three-time Academy Award winner known for Casablanca and Notorious. She died of breast cancer in London on her 67th birthday.
• 1917 – 1982 Thelonious Monk (1917-1982) Died 17 February 1982, aged 64 American jazz pianist and composer, a pioneer of bebop and modern jazz harmony. He died following a stroke after years of declining health and public silence.
• 1925 – 1982 Marty Robbins (1925-1982) Died 8 December 1982, aged 57 American country music singer known for the ballad "El Paso." He died in Nashville following complications from heart surgery.
• 1928 – 1982 Philip K. Dick (1928-1982) Died 2 March 1982, aged 53 American science fiction author whose novels inspired the film Blade Runner. He died of heart failure following a stroke, months before the film's release.
• 1929 – 1982 Grace Kelly (1929-1982) Died 14 September 1982, aged 52 American actress who became Princess of Monaco after retiring from film. She died from injuries sustained when her car went off a mountain road near Monte Carlo.
• 1938 – 1982 Romy Schneider (1938-1982) Died 29 May 1982, aged 43 Austrian-French actress best known for the Sissi film trilogy. She died in Paris a year after the death of her teenage son.
• 1945 – 1982 Rainer Werner Fassbinder (1945-1982) Died 10 June 1982, aged 37 German filmmaker and central figure of New German Cinema. He died of a drug overdose in Munich shortly after completing the film Querelle.
• 1946 – 1982 Paasikivi-Kekkonen Line Cold War Neutrality A foreign policy doctrine of neutrality and maintaining good relations with the Soviet Union to preserve independence.
• 1947 – 1982 Bashir Gemayel (1947-1982) Died 14 September 1982, aged 34 Lebanese president-elect and Maronite militia leader. He was assassinated in a bombing at his Phalange party headquarters in Beirut before taking office.
• 1949 – 1982 John Belushi (1949-1982) Died 5 March 1982, aged 33 American comedian and actor known for Saturday Night Live and The Blues Brothers. He died of a drug overdose in a Los Angeles hotel, shocking the entertainment world.
• 1950 – 1982 Gilles Villeneuve The High-Flyer Ferrari icon known for his spectacular, "win-or-bust" driving style; never won a title but remains a legend.
• 1964 – 1982 Mandela arrives on Robben Island Prisoner 466/64, in a cell seven feet square Hard labour in the lime quarry damaged his eyes permanently. He studied and taught for eighteen years.
• 1975 – 1982 Begins pole vault -- Vitaly Petrov and Donetsk At around 11, Bubka takes up pole vault in Luhansk, then moves to Donetsk to train under coach Vitaly Petrov -- a partnership that lasts his entire career and is one of the most productive athlete-coach relationships in the history of athletics. Petrov develops the technical framework that enables Bubka's explosive, rhythmically precise approach: a short, fast run-up, an unusually high grip on the pole, and a powerful leg drive at take-off. The system is eventually called the "Soviet school" of pole vaulting and influences every serious vaulter who follows.
• 1982 Compact Disc introduced Compact Disc introduced The compact disc reached shops in Japan in October 1982, developed jointly by Philips and Sony, with Billy Joel's 52nd Street among the first albums released. Its 74-minute capacity and 12cm diameter were settled during those negotiations. The CD overtook vinyl and cassette within a decade and carried the industry until downloads arrived.
• 1982 – present His legacy -- the full picture Ian Thorpe's legacy is twofold. In the pool: the most statistically dominant Australian swimmer in history, whose nine-year career produced records and titles that stood for a decade, and whose 2000 Sydney performance remains the benchmark for home-country Olympic achievement in Australia. Outside the pool: a story about the cost of elite sporting celebrity on mental health, the particular cruelty of being asked to define your sexuality in public as a teenager, and the difficulty -- and possibility -- of honesty after years of enforced concealment. Both stories matter. The Thorpedo's Olympic medals are secure in the record books; the other story is the one he seems to consider more important now.
• 1982 – present Ian Thorpe -- the Thorpedo Ian James Thorpe (born 13 October 1982, Milperra, Sydney) is Australia's most decorated Olympic swimmer: five Olympic gold medals, 13 World Championship gold medals, 10 Commonwealth Games gold medals and 22 world records across a career spanning 1997-2006 (with an unsuccessful comeback attempt in 2011-12). The most successful athlete at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and the first person ever to win six gold medals at a single World Championships (2001), he dominated the 200m and 400m freestyle for nearly a decade. Off the pool, his story is equally remarkable: a quiet, introspective man navigating the crushing scrutiny of Australian sporting celebrity, a long struggle with depression and alcohol, decades of denying his sexuality, and an eventual public coming-out in 2014 that he describes as one of the most important acts of his life. The Thorpedo's legacy is both statistical and human.
• 1982 – 2009 Neda Agha-Soltan (1982-2009) Died 20 June 2009, aged 26 Agha-Soltan was an Iranian woman shot and killed during protests in Tehran against the disputed 2009 presidential election. Video of her death, filmed by bystanders, spread worldwide online and made her a symbol of the Green Movement protests. Her death drew international condemnation of the Iranian government's crackdown.
• 1982 – present Dwyane Wade Flash 3-time champion with the Miami Heat; one of the greatest shooting guards ever.
• 1982 Hama massacre Syrian army crushes Muslim Brotherhood uprising The Syrian government under Hafez al-Assad besieged the city of Hama to crush an uprising by the Muslim Brotherhood, killing an estimated tens of thousands of people and largely destroying the old city. It remains one of the deadliest acts by an Arab government against its own citizens in modern history.
• 1982 – present Li Na The Pioneer of Asia First Asian player to win a Grand Slam singles title.
• 1982 – 2022 Dan Carter All Blacks fly-half and one of rugby union's greatest playmakers Daniel William Carter is a former New Zealand rugby union first five-eighth widely regarded as the greatest fly-half in the sport's history. Over a 13-year international career with the All Blacks he won two Rugby World Cups (2011, 2015), three World Rugby Player of the Year awards, and retired as the leading points scorer in Test rugby history. After leaving the All Blacks he continued at club level with Racing 92 in France and the Kobelco Steelers in Japan, capping a career defined by precision goal-kicking, vision, and composure under pressure.
• 1982 John Mellencamp releases American Fool Jack & Diane With Hurts So Good and Jack & Diane — the year's best-selling album.
• 1982 Argentina invades the Falkland Islands Argentine forces land on the British territory Argentine troops invaded and occupied the British overseas territory in the South Atlantic, which Argentina claimed as Las Malvinas. The invasion triggered the Falklands War with the United Kingdom, which recaptured the islands ten weeks later.
• 1982 The Falklands War South Atlantic Conflict Conflict between the UK and Argentina over the Falkland Islands.
• 1982 1982 World Snooker Championship The Hurricane Strikes Emotional victory for Alex Higgins. Winner: Alex Higgins; Runner-up: Ray Reardon. Score: 18–15.
• 1982 Canada patriates its constitution Queen Elizabeth II signs the Constitution Act Queen Elizabeth II signed the Constitution Act 1982 in Ottawa, ending the need for British parliamentary approval of Canadian constitutional amendments. The act also introduced the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
• 1982 – present Kaká The Pure One 2007 Ballon d'Or winner; the last player to win the award before the Messi-Ronaldo dominance.
• 1982 Israel completes withdrawal from Sinai Final phase of the Camp David peace treaty Israel returned the last portion of the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt, completing the withdrawal mandated by the 1979 Camp David peace treaty. The handover removed the last Israeli settlements and military bases from Egyptian territory.
• 1982 Sinking of ARA General Belgrano British submarine sinks Argentine cruiser The British submarine HMS Conqueror torpedoed the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano outside the declared exclusion zone, killing 323 sailors. It remains the deadliest single incident of the Falklands War and one of its most controversial episodes.
• 1982 – 2013 Cory Monteith (1982-2013) Died 13 July 2013, aged 31 Cory Monteith was a Canadian actor known for playing Finn Hudson on the musical television series Glee. He was found dead in a Vancouver hotel room from a combination of alcohol and heroin.
• 1982 The Clash release Combat Rock Rock the Casbah Their biggest seller, with Should I Stay or Should I Go.
• 1982 – present Justine Henin The Alchemist Seven-time major winner famous for having the best one-handed backhand in the women's game.
• 1982 Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan Widely considered the finest Star Trek film. Directed by Nicholas Meyer, it pits Kirk against his old nemesis Khan Noonien Singh and culminates in Spock's death to save the Enterprise. "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few." Revitalises the franchise after the cold reception to the first film. Budget: $12 million. Gross: $97 million.
• 1982 Israel invades Lebanon Operation Peace for Galilee begins Israeli forces invaded Lebanon to drive out the Palestine Liberation Organization, advancing as far as Beirut. The invasion led to a prolonged Israeli presence in southern Lebanon and reshaped the country's civil war.
• 1982 Bekaa Valley air battle Operation Mole Cricket 19 Israeli F-15s and F-16s, supported by early-warning aircraft, destroy Syrian air defences and shoot down dozens of Syrian fighters without loss in air combat — one of the most one-sided air battles in history.
• 1982 – present Princess Madeleine Duchess of Hälsingland The youngest child of the King, known for her work with the World Childhood Foundation.
• 1982 Argentine surrender ends the Falklands War British forces retake Stanley Argentine garrison commander Mario Menendez surrendered to British forces at Stanley, ending the 74-day Falklands War. The defeat contributed to the collapse of Argentina's military junta within days.
• 1982 Galtieri resigns as Argentine president Falklands defeat topples the junta leader General Leopoldo Galtieri resigned as president of Argentina days after the country's defeat in the Falklands War. His departure marked the beginning of the military junta's collapse and Argentina's transition back to democracy.
• 1982 Birth of Prince William Second in line to the British throne is born Prince William was born in London to Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales. He became second in line to the British throne after his father.
• 1982 – present Philippe Gilbert Phil One of the few to win four of the five Monuments; 2012 World Champion.
• 1982 Italy wins the 1982 FIFA World Cup Azzurri beat West Germany 3-1 in the final Italy defeated West Germany 3-1 in Madrid to win its third World Cup title. Paolo Rossi, the tournament's top scorer, capped a remarkable comeback from a match-fixing ban to lead the Italian squad.
• 1982 Commodore 64 released Best-selling home computer model debuts Commodore International released the Commodore 64 home computer, which went on to become the best-selling single computer model of all time. Its low price and capable graphics and sound made it a fixture of 1980s home computing.
• 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacre Christian militia kills refugees in Beirut camps Lebanese Christian Phalangist militiamen massacred hundreds of Palestinian and Lebanese Shia civilians in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps while the area was under Israeli military control. The killings drew international condemnation and an Israeli commission later found indirect responsibility.
• 1982 CDC first uses the term AIDS US health agency names the new epidemic The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began using the term Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, or AIDS, to describe the emerging disease previously called GRID. The naming marked a turning point in public health efforts to track and study the epidemic.
• 1982 Love Over Gold Fourth album — September 24, 1982 Love Over Gold was released on September 24, 1982, featuring the epic "Telegraph Road" and "Private Investigations". It reached number 1 in the UK — their first chart-topper — and number 19 in the US. The last album with drummer Pick Withers.
• 1982 Chicago Tylenol murders Cyanide-laced capsules kill seven Seven people in the Chicago area died after taking Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules that had been laced with potassium cyanide. The unsolved poisonings prompted the introduction of tamper-evident packaging across the pharmaceutical industry.
• 1982 Marvin Gaye releases Sexual Healing Comeback His first Grammy-winning hit, written in Ostend.
• 1982 EPCOT Center opens Disney's second Florida theme park debuts Walt Disney World opened EPCOT Center near Orlando, Florida, combining exhibits on technology and innovation with pavilions representing different nations. It was the second theme park built at the Walt Disney World resort.
• 1982 Helmut Kohl becomes Chancellor of West Germany Constructive vote of no confidence ousts Schmidt Helmut Kohl became Chancellor of West Germany after the Bundestag removed Helmut Schmidt through a constructive vote of no confidence. Kohl's Christian Democrats went on to dominate German politics for the following sixteen years.
• 1982 – present Annemiek van Vleuten The Comeback Queen Known for her legendary solo attacks; won the Tour de France Femmes in 2022.
• 1982 Poland outlaws Solidarity Independent trade union banned under martial law Poland's communist government formally dissolved the independent trade union Solidarity under the martial law imposed the previous year. The ban deepened the standoff between the state and the opposition movement led by Lech Walesa.
• 1982 Ian Thorpe born in Milperra, Sydney Ian James Thorpe is born in Milperra, a suburb in Sydney's south-west, the son of Ken and Margaret Thorpe. His father Ken is a former cricket player who, having been pushed into sport by his own father, resolves not to pressure his children. His older sister Christina takes up swimming on medical advice to strengthen a broken wrist, and the young Ian follows her to the pool -- where he promptly discovers a chlorine allergy. Only by wearing a nose-clip can he swim with his face in the water. He will outgrow the allergy, but the nose-clip is an early metaphor for the determination that defines his career: obstacles are obstacles to be managed, not reasons to stop.
• 1982 John DeLorean arrested in drug sting Car maker caught in FBI cocaine sting Automobile entrepreneur John DeLorean was arrested by the FBI in Los Angeles after being filmed in an undercover cocaine trafficking sting. The arrest came as his DeLorean Motor Company, maker of the DMC-12, was collapsing financially.
• 1982 Prince releases 1999 Breakthrough With 1999 and Little Red Corvette, his breakthrough.
• 1982 Space Shuttle Columbia completes first operational flight STS-5 deploys two commercial satellites Space Shuttle Columbia flew STS-5, the first operational mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program, deploying two commercial communications satellites. The flight marked the end of the shuttle's four-flight test phase.
• 1982 Yuri Andropov becomes Soviet leader Former KGB chief succeeds Brezhnev Yuri Andropov was elected General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union following the death of Leonid Brezhnev. The former KGB chairman launched a brief campaign against corruption and workplace absenteeism before his own death in 1984.
• 1982 Vietnam Veterans Memorial dedicated The Wall opens in Washington, D.C. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a black granite wall inscribed with the names of more than 58,000 American service members killed or missing in the war, was dedicated on the National Mall. Designed by Maya Lin, it became one of the most visited memorials in the United States.
• 1982 Lech Walesa released from internment Solidarity leader freed after 11 months Polish authorities released Solidarity leader Lech Walesa from internment, nearly a year after his detention under martial law. He returned to Gdansk under surveillance and remained a symbol of opposition to communist rule.
• 1982 Michael Jackson releases Thriller Album becomes the best-selling of all time Michael Jackson released his sixth studio album, Thriller, which went on to become the best-selling album in history. Its singles and accompanying music videos, including the title track, transformed the use of video in popular music.
• 1982 First permanent artificial heart transplant Barney Clark receives the Jarvik-7 Surgeons at the University of Utah implanted the Jarvik-7 artificial heart into retired dentist Barney Clark, the first permanent artificial heart transplant in a human. Clark survived 112 days on the device.