1992

Events in 1992 73

• 1897 – 1992 Judith Anderson (1897-1992) Australian-born actress of stage and film, famous as Mrs. Danvers in Rebecca and as Medea on Broadway.
• 1898 – 1992 Shirley Booth (1898-1992) Died 16 October 1992, aged 94 Shirley Booth was an American actress who won both an Academy Award and a Tony Award for her role in "Come Back, Little Sheba." She later became widely known to television audiences as the title character in the sitcom "Hazel." Her career spanned stage, film, radio, and television.
• 1899 – 1992 Friedrich Hayek (1899-1992) Died 23 March 1992, aged 92 Friedrich Hayek was an Austrian-British economist and philosopher whose defense of free markets and critique of central planning, notably in "The Road to Serfdom," shaped conservative and libertarian thought. He shared the 1974 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. His ideas influenced policymakers including Margaret Thatcher.
• 1901 – 1992 Stella Adler (1901-1992) Died 21 December 1992, aged 91 Stella Adler was an American actress and influential acting teacher whose students included Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro. She developed a technique emphasizing imagination over personal memory, distinguishing her approach from Method acting. Her studio in New York trained generations of American actors.
• 1901 – 1992 Marlene Dietrich (1901-1992) Died 6 May 1992, aged 90 Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer who rose to fame in "The Blue Angel" and became a Hollywood icon of the 1930s and 1940s. She was noted for her androgynous style and for entertaining Allied troops during the Second World War. She died in Paris, having lived as a recluse in her final years.
• 1902 – 1992 Barbara McClintock (1902-1992) Died 2 September 1992, aged 90 Barbara McClintock was an American geneticist who discovered transposable genetic elements, or "jumping genes," through her work on maize. She won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1983, the only woman to win that prize unshared. Her research reshaped understanding of genome structure and regulation.
• 1908 – 1992 Paul Henreid (1908-1992) Austrian-American actor, Victor Laszlo in Casablanca, and later a television director.
• 1908 – 1992 Robert Morley (1908-1992) Died 3 June 1992, aged 84 Robert Morley was an English actor known for character roles in films such as "The African Queen" and for his frequent appearances in British television advertisements. He was noted for his large, jovial screen presence and sharp wit. He worked in film and theater for over five decades.
• 1908 – 1992 Olivier Messiaen French mystic composer French composer and organist whose music was inspired by Catholic mysticism and birdsong. His Quartet for the End of Time was premiered in a Nazi prison camp.
• 1909 – 1992 Dana Andrews (1909-1992) American actor, a leading man of 1940s film noir and war films, from Laura to The Best Years of Our Lives.
• 1909 – 1992 Francis Bacon Expressionism · Ireland Francis Bacon (October 28, 1909 – April 28, 1992) was an Irish-born British painter whose raw, visceral depictions of the human figure are among the most disturbing and powerful in 20th-century art.
• 1912 – 1992 Jose Ferrer (1912-1992) Died 26 January 1992, aged 80 Jose Ferrer was a Puerto Rican-American actor and director who won an Academy Award for his role in "Cyrano de Bergerac," becoming the first Hispanic actor to win an Oscar. He had a long career on Broadway and in Hollywood spanning five decades. He also directed several stage and film productions.
• 1912 – 1992 John Cage (1912-1992) Died 12 August 1992, aged 79 John Cage was an American composer and music theorist known for pioneering chance-based composition and unconventional instrumentation, notably the silent piece 4 minutes 33 seconds. His work challenged fundamental assumptions about music and influenced generations of avant-garde artists. He also wrote extensively on aesthetics and Zen Buddhism.
• 1913 – 1992 Menachem Begin (1913-1992) Died 9 March 1992, aged 78 Menachem Begin served as Prime Minister of Israel from 1977 to 1983 and signed the 1979 peace treaty with Egypt, for which he shared the Nobel Peace Prize with Anwar Sadat. He had earlier led the Irgun militant group during the British Mandate period. He withdrew from public life after leaving office.
• 1913 – 1992 Willy Brandt (1913-1992) Died 8 October 1992, aged 78 Willy Brandt served as Chancellor of West Germany from 1969 to 1974 and pursued a policy of reconciliation with Eastern Europe known as Ostpolitik. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1971 for these efforts. He resigned as chancellor after an aide was exposed as an East German spy.
• 1920 – 1992 Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) Died 6 April 1992, aged 72 Isaac Asimov was a prolific author and biochemist best known for science fiction works including the Foundation series and the Three Laws of Robotics. He wrote or edited nearly 500 books across fiction and popular science. He died in New York from complications of HIV contracted through a blood transfusion.
• 1921 – 1992 Satyajit Ray (1921-1992) Died 23 April 1992, aged 70 Satyajit Ray was an Indian filmmaker whose "Apu Trilogy" brought Bengali cinema to international acclaim. He received an honorary Academy Award for lifetime achievement weeks before his death. His work influenced directors worldwide and remains central to the canon of world cinema.
• 1921 – 1992 Alex Haley (1921-1992) Died 10 February 1992, aged 70 Alex Haley was an American author best known for "Roots: The Saga of an American Family," which traced his ancestry back to Africa and was adapted into a landmark television miniseries. The book won a Pulitzer Prize special citation and prompted widespread interest in genealogy. He also co-wrote "The Autobiography of Malcolm X."
• 1922 – 1992 Denholm Elliott (1922-1992) Died 6 October 1992, aged 70 Denholm Elliott was an English character actor known for roles in "Chariots of Fire," "A Room with a View," and the Indiana Jones films. He won two consecutive BAFTA Awards for Best Supporting Actor in the mid-1980s. He died of AIDS-related tuberculosis at his home in Ibiza.
• 1924 – 1992 Freddie Bartholomew (1924-1992) English-American child star of the 1930s, famous as David Copperfield and Little Lord Fauntleroy.
• 1932 – 1992 Anthony Perkins (1932-1992) Died 12 September 1992, aged 60 Anthony Perkins was an American actor best remembered for his role as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" and its sequels. His unsettling performance became one of the most iconic in horror cinema. He died of AIDS-related pneumonia, having kept his diagnosis private for years.
• 1932 – 1992 Robert Reed (1932-1992) Died 12 May 1992, aged 59 Robert Reed was an American actor best known for playing Mike Brady on the television sitcom "The Brady Bunch." He was a classically trained actor who often expressed frustration with the show's lighthearted material. He died of complications related to colon cancer and HIV, which was not publicly disclosed until years later.
• 1936 – 1992 Denny Hulme The Bear 1967 World Champion known for his no-nonsense attitude and consistent driving.
• 1939 – 1992 Giovanni Falcone Anti-Mafia Judge A magistrate who spent his life fighting the Sicilian Mafia until his assassination in the Capaci bombing.
• 1953 – 1992 Sam Kinison (1953-1992) Died 10 April 1992, aged 38 Sam Kinison was an American stand-up comedian known for his abrasive, high-volume routines and his roots as a former Pentecostal preacher. He rose to fame in the 1980s alongside comedians like Jay Leno and Rodney Dangerfield. He died in a car accident near Needles, California, days after his wedding.
• 1992 Knicks push Bulls to seven games New York takes the eventual champion Chicago Bulls to seven games in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
• 1992 Maastricht Treaty European Union founded The Maastricht Treaty established the European Union, created European citizenship, and paved the way for the single currency.
• 1992 Maastricht Treaty signed Maastricht Treaty signed The Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February 1992, converting the European Community into the European Union and setting out the path to a single currency, along with common foreign and justice policies. Denmark rejected it in a referendum and only ratified after securing opt-outs. Britain opted out of the euro and the social chapter.
• 1992 Rigoberta Menchú wins the Nobel Peace Prize Guatemala A K'iche' woman who had lost most of her family in the violence was awarded the prize in the five hundredth year after Columbus, putting indigenous rights on the world's front pages.
• 1992 First planets beyond the solar system confirmed Pulsar planets found orbiting PSR B1257+12 Astronomers Aleksander Wolszczan and Dale Frail announced the discovery of planets orbiting a pulsar, the first confirmed exoplanets. The bodies orbit the neutron star PSR B1257+12 roughly 2,300 light-years from Earth. The finding showed planets could form in environments very different from our own solar system.
• 1992 Algerian Civil War begins Military cancels elections, sparking insurgency Algeria's military-backed government canceled parliamentary elections that the Islamic Salvation Front was poised to win, triggering a long and brutal civil war. The conflict between government forces and Islamist insurgents killed an estimated 150,000 to 200,000 people over the following decade. It became one of the deadliest conflicts in modern North African history.
• 1992 Nirvana's Nevermind reaches number one Replaces Michael Jackson Knocks Dangerous off the top, the same day they play Saturday Night Live.
• 1992 – 2018 Mac Miller (1992-2018) Died 7 September 2018, aged 26 American rapper and producer known for albums including Swimming, released weeks before his death. He built a large following through mixtapes and major-label albums over a decade-long career. His death was attributed to an accidental drug overdose.
• 1992 Reservoir Dogs premieres Quentin Tarantino's directorial debut Quentin Tarantino's heist thriller Reservoir Dogs premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, marking his debut as a feature director. Its nonlinear structure, stylized dialogue, and graphic violence influenced a generation of independent filmmakers. The film built a cult following ahead of Tarantino's breakthrough with Pulp Fiction.
• 1992 – present Neymar Jr The Star Brazil's all-time leading goalscorer; known for his immense skill and creativity.
• 1992 Mike Tyson convicted of rape Former heavyweight champion sentenced to prison A jury in Indianapolis convicted former world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson of raping beauty pageant contestant Desiree Washington. He was sentenced to six years in prison and served three before release on parole. The case ended his reign atop the sport for years.
• 1992 – 1994 Mani Pulite Clean Hands Investigation A nationwide judicial investigation into political corruption that led to the collapse of the "First Republic."
• 1992 k.d. lang releases Ingenue Constant Craving Her pop breakthrough — Constant Craving wins a Grammy.
• 1992 – present Kyrie Irving Uncle Drew Widely considered to have the greatest ball-handling skills in history.
• 1992 Fujimori dissolves Peru's Congress "Autogolpe" suspends the constitution President Alberto Fujimori suspended Peru's constitution, dissolved Congress, and assumed emergency powers in what became known as the "autogolpe" or self-coup. He justified the move as necessary to fight the Shining Path insurgency and corruption. Fujimori retained power after a new constitution was adopted the following year.
• 1992 Bosnian War begins Siege of Sarajevo starts after independence declared Bosnian Serb forces began shelling Sarajevo within days of Bosnia and Herzegovina's independence from Yugoslavia being internationally recognized. The siege of the capital became the longest of a city in modern warfare, lasting nearly four years. The wider war brought ethnic cleansing and mass civilian casualties to the Balkans.
• 1992 Euro Disney opens near Paris Disney's first European theme park The Walt Disney Company opened Euro Disney Resort in Marne-la-Vallee, France, its first theme park in Europe. The park struggled financially in its early years amid criticism of American cultural imposition and high operating costs. It was later renamed Disneyland Paris.
• 1992 1992 World Snooker Championship Hendry Title 2 Hendry won 10 frames in a row to win. Winner: Stephen Hendry; Runner-up: Jimmy White. Score: 18–14.
• 1992 Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert Wembley Stadium concert for AIDS awareness Queen and a lineup of guest musicians performed at Wembley Stadium in memory of frontman Freddie Mercury, who had died of AIDS-related illness in 1991. The concert raised funds and awareness for AIDS research, drawing a global television audience. It was one of the largest benefit concerts of its era.
• 1992 COBE satellite maps cosmic microwave background First detection of primordial temperature ripples NASA's Cosmic Background Explorer satellite detected tiny temperature variations in the cosmic microwave background radiation left over from the Big Bang. The ripples matched predictions for the seeds of galaxy formation and were called by lead scientist George Smoot "the discovery of the century." The results strongly supported the Big Bang model of the universe.
• 1992 Betty Boothroyd elected Commons Speaker First woman to hold the post Betty Boothroyd was elected Speaker of the British House of Commons, becoming the first woman to hold the position in its more than 700-year history. She was known for restoring order with the phrase "Order! Order!" delivered in her distinctive style. She served as Speaker until 2000.
• 1992 Los Angeles riots Violence erupts after Rodney King verdict Rioting, looting, and arson swept Los Angeles after a jury acquitted four police officers filmed beating motorist Rodney King. Over six days more than 60 people died and thousands of buildings burned before National Guard troops restored order. The unrest exposed deep racial and economic tensions in the city.
• 1992 Wolfenstein 3D released id Software game popularizes the first-person shooter id Software released Wolfenstein 3D, a fast-paced first-person shooter that popularized the genre and helped establish the shareware distribution model for PC games. Players fought their way through a Nazi stronghold using an early 3D game engine. It set the template followed by later hits like Doom.
• 1992 Rio Earth Summit UN Conference on Environment and Development Representatives from over 170 countries met in Rio de Janeiro for the UN Conference on Environment and Development. The summit produced the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Convention on Biological Diversity. It marked the first major global effort to link environmental protection with economic development.
• 1992 Batman Returns #2 film of 1992 — $267m worldwide Directed by Tim Burton, starring Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito and Michelle Pfeiffer. Batman faces the Penguin and Catwoman.
• 1992 Manuel Noriega sentenced for drug trafficking Former Panamanian dictator jailed in US A US federal court sentenced former Panamanian military ruler Manuel Noriega to 40 years in prison on drug trafficking and racketeering charges. He had been captured after the 1989 American invasion of Panama and stood trial in Miami. Noriega's conviction marked one of the first times a foreign head of state was tried under US criminal law.
• 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics 1992 Games held in Spain Barcelona hosted the Games of the XXV Olympiad, widely regarded as a transformative event for the city's infrastructure and international profile. A unified German team and a group of former Soviet republics competing as the Unified Team took part. The event drew enormous global television audiences.
• 1992 – 2016 Jose Fernandez (1992-2016) Died 25 September 2016, aged 24 Fernandez was a Cuban-American Major League Baseball pitcher for the Miami Marlins, known for his dominant fastball and infectious enthusiasm for the game. He defected from Cuba as a teenager before starting his MLB career. He died in a boating accident off the coast of Miami.
• 1992 Barcelona 1992 -- no height registered At the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Bubka fails to register any height in the pole vault final -- missing three attempts at his opening height and being eliminated without a vault. He is the clear world favourite and the defending Olympic champion. The failure is the most dramatic single upset in the history of the event. The cause is disputed: injury, an unusually wet grip, the pressure of expectation, or some combination. It is the defining failure of his career and, paradoxically, part of what makes him a more complete sporting figure -- a reminder that dominance and vulnerability coexist in every athlete.
• 1992 US "Dream Team" wins Olympic basketball gold First US team with active NBA stars The United States men's basketball team, featuring active NBA stars such as Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird for the first time, won gold at the Barcelona Olympics. Nicknamed the "Dream Team," it dominated opponents by an average margin of over 40 points. The team is widely credited with boosting basketball's global popularity.
• 1992 Mall of America opens Minnesota mall becomes largest in the United States The Mall of America opened in Bloomington, Minnesota, becoming the largest shopping mall in the United States, with an indoor amusement park at its center. It quickly became a major tourist destination in its own right. The mall remained the country's largest by leasable space for decades.
• 1992 Hurricane Andrew strikes Florida Category 5 storm devastates south Florida Hurricane Andrew made landfall south of Miami as a Category 5 hurricane, flattening entire neighborhoods and leaving over 250,000 people homeless. It was, at the time, the costliest natural disaster in US history. The storm also caused significant damage in the Bahamas and Louisiana.
• 1992 Los Lobos release Kiko Experimental An experimental album often called their best.
• 1992 Mae Jemison becomes first Black woman in space Endeavour mission STS-47 launches Mae Jemison flew aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour on mission STS-47, becoming the first Black woman to travel to space. She served as a mission specialist conducting life science experiments in orbit. Her flight was widely covered as a milestone in NASA's astronaut corps.
• 1992 Black Wednesday currency crisis UK forced out of European exchange rate mechanism Speculative pressure, led by investor George Soros, forced the British government to withdraw the pound sterling from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism. The Bank of England spent billions of pounds and raised interest rates sharply in a failed attempt to defend the currency. The episode badly damaged the credibility of John Major's government.
• 1992 Star Trek: The Next Generation — Season 6 Introduces the Cardassians and contains "Chain of Command," in which Picard is tortured — "There are FOUR lights!" — and the romantic breakthrough episode "Lessons." One of TNG's strongest seasons.
• 1992 El Al Flight 1862 crashes in Amsterdam Cargo plane hits apartment complex after takeoff An El Al Boeing 747 cargo plane lost two engines shortly after takeoff from Amsterdam and crashed into an apartment building in the Bijlmermeer district. The crash and resulting fire killed all four people aboard and dozens of residents on the ground. It remains one of the deadliest aviation disasters in Dutch history.
• 1992 Mortal Kombat arcade game released Fighting game sparks controversy over violence Midway released the arcade fighting game Mortal Kombat, known for its graphic "fatality" finishing moves and digitized actor graphics. Public concern over its violence contributed to US congressional hearings on video game content. Those hearings led to the creation of the Entertainment Software Rating Board.
• 1992 The Bodyguard #3 film of 1992 — $411m worldwide Directed by Mick Jackson, starring Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston. Features the best-selling soundtrack of all time.
• 1992 Bill Clinton elected President Arkansas governor defeats incumbent George H. W. Bush Bill Clinton won the US presidential election with Al Gore as his running mate, defeating incumbent George H. W. Bush and independent candidate Ross Perot. The Democratic victory ended twelve years of Republican control of the White House. Clinton campaigned chiefly on the economy amid a recent recession.
• 1992 Bram Stoker's Dracula released Francis Ford Coppola adapts the vampire novel Francis Ford Coppola's lavish film adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula, starring Gary Oldman and Winona Ryder, opened in American theaters. It won three Academy Awards for its costumes, makeup, and sound editing. The film revived mainstream interest in gothic horror.
• 1992 Aladdin #1 film of 1992 — $504m worldwide Disney animated film directed by Ron Clements and John Musker, featuring Robin Williams as the Genie. One of the defining animated films of the decade.
• 1992 Windsor Castle fire Blaze destroys parts of the royal residence A fire broke out in the private chapel of Windsor Castle and spread through the state apartments, burning for 15 hours before being contained. More than 100 rooms were damaged and restoration took five years to complete. The disaster came during a difficult year for the British royal family.
• 1992 Elizabeth II delivers annus horribilis speech Queen reflects on a difficult year for the monarchy Speaking at the Guildhall in London, Queen Elizabeth II described 1992 as an "annus horribilis" following the Windsor Castle fire and the separations of three of her children's marriages. The phrase became widely used to describe any particularly bad year. The speech came days after the fire and amid public debate over royal finances.
• 1992 Czechoslovakia agrees to split in two Federal Assembly approves dissolution law Czechoslovakia's Federal Assembly passed a law dissolving the country into separate Czech and Slovak states, to take effect on 1 January 1993. The peaceful division followed negotiations between Czech leader Vaclav Klaus and Slovak leader Vladimir Meciar after their parties won 1992 elections. It became known as the Velvet Divorce.
• 1992 Crystal Pepsi launched Clear cola flops — December 1992 Crystal Pepsi, a clear caffeine-free cola, was launched nationally in December 1992 riding the "purity" and "New Age" trend. Initial sales were strong but consumers found the clear appearance confusing for a cola. It was discontinued in 1994 — one of the most famous product failures in beverage history.
• 1992 Prince Charles and Princess Diana separate Prime Minister announces royal separation to Parliament British Prime Minister John Major announced to the House of Commons that the Prince and Princess of Wales had agreed to separate. The announcement followed years of press speculation about the state of their marriage. The couple divorced in 1996.
• 1992 US-led intervention in Somalia begins Operation Restore Hope launched amid famine US Marines landed near Mogadishu to spearhead a UN-sanctioned multinational force aimed at securing humanitarian aid deliveries during Somalia's civil war and famine. Operation Restore Hope was intended to stabilize the country enough for relief efforts to reach starving civilians. The mission later escalated into direct conflict with Somali militias.