Here is a list of important events from 1984.
1. Brunei Gains Independence
Brunei which was a British protectorate since 1988 became independent on January 1, 1984. Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah read the Proclamation of Independence. He assumed the title “His Majesty”, rather than the previous “His Royal Highness”. On 22 September 1984, Brunei became the 159th nation to be admitted to United Nations.
2. Apple Launches The Macintosh Personal Computer
Macintosh 128K
Apple introduces the Macintosh 128K to the American market with a television commercial entitled “1984” shown during Super Bowl XVIII on January 22, 1984. It was sold for $2,495. By the month of May of that year it had sold 70,000 units.
3. 1984 Summer & Winter Olympics Are Held
Carl Lewis at 1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Winter Olympics were held in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, from February 8 to 19. The 1984 Summer Olympics were held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, United States. The 1984 Games were boycotted by a total of fourteen Eastern Bloc countries, including the Soviet Union and East Germany, in response to America’s boycott of previous 1980 Moscow Summer Olympics, which was in protest of Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Carl Lewis was the star of the games winning 4 gold medals in track & field, equaling Jesse Owens’ 1936 Berlin Olympics performance.
4. Marvin Gaye Is Shot To Death By His Own Father
Marvin Gaye’s murder reported in the newspaper
The Motown legend was shot and killed by his father, Marvin Gay Sr., after an argument in their Los Angeles apartment on April 1st 1984, a day before his 45th birthday. People initially did not believe the news as it was April Fool’s Day and they thought it was a prank. Marvin Gay Sr. pleaded no contest to a charge of voluntary manslaughter and was given a six-year suspended sentence and five years of probation.
5. Prince's Album Purple Rain Is Released
Album cover of Prince’s Purple Rain
Prince released his sixth album, Purple Rain, on June 25, 1984. It became his first album to reach number one on the Billboard 200 and was on that spot for 24 weeks. A movie of the same name to support the album was released on July 27, 1984. It has sold a total of 25 million copies worldwide and is ranked 8th on Rolling Stone’s Greatest Albums of All Time.
6. France Wins The EURO Cup
Michael Platini lifting the 1984 Euro Cup
The 7th UEFA European Football Championship was held in France from 12 to 27 June, 1984. France led by Michel Platini beats Spain 2–0 to win Euro 84. Michel Platini who scored nine goals in five matches was the tournament highest goal scorer. It was France’s first major international title.
7. Vanessa Williams Relinquishes Her Miss America Title
Miss America 1984 Vanessa Williams
Vanessa Williams became the first African American winner of the Miss America title on in September 1983. But several weeks before the end of her reign, a scandal arose when Penthouse magazine bought and published unauthorized nude photographs of her. She was pressured to relinquish her title and on July 23, 1984, Vanessa became the first and only person to be stripped from the Miss America title.
8. Diego Maradona Is Sold To Napoli For A World Record Fee
Diego Maradona’s presentation at Napoli in 1984
Argentinian footballer Diego Maradona was transferred from Spain’s FC Barcelona to Italy’s S.S.C. Napoli, for a then world record fee of $10.48M. He was presented to the world on 5 July, 1984 at the Stadio San Paolo in front of 75,000 fans.
9. Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi Is Assassinated
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi
On 31 October, 1984, Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India was assassinated by her bodyguards at her residence in Safdarjung Road, New Delhi. It was in response to Operation Blue Star, where in she sent the Indian Army inside the Golden Temple, which is one of the holiest sites in Sikhism and hurt its sanctity.
10. Bhopal gas tragedy Occurs
Union Carbide India Limited pesticide plant in Bhopal
On December 3, 1984, the highly toxic gas methyl isocyanate leak from the Union Carbide India Limited pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India, kills more than 8,000 people. An additional 8,000 people have since died from the gas-related diseases. This is one of the worst industrial disasters of all time.
