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About This Quiz
From 1981 to 1989, the world, the economy and social norms changed dramatically. Sexuality was making its way to television shows. Tough topics were brought up in news interviews. This was the Reagan Era. The Reagan Era gave us some pretty great moments in entertainment, synergy and music, but it also gave us some pretty shocking events that we won't soon forget. People around the world watched on live television as moments from a presidential assassination attempt to the tearing down of the Berlin wall unraveled before their eyes. If you were one of them, you probably still remember where you were standing when Ronald Reagan delivered his speech that demanded: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"Â
There were so many impactful events in the 1980s that stunned the world, and if you can remember even half of them, you might just have a fighting chance at passing this quiz.
Whether you're a history buff or you grew up in the 1980s, you most likely remember quite a few moments that changed the world and even some smaller moments that impacted countries large and small. Do you think you can name them all? Scroll down to see just how ingrained the events of the Reagan Era are in your mind.
The Vice Presidency
The U.S. Supreme Court
The first woman to be a judge on the U.S. supreme court was Sandra Day O'Connor of Arizona. Though she was a conservative, she worked diligently to uphold the constitutional rights of women to have safe and legal abortions.
The Nobel Prize
The English Ambassadorship
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Prostate cancer
Pneumonia
Laryngitis
AIDS
The AIDS epidemic was a very real thing. Doctors first started recording questionable diseases that might be linked together as early as 1981, but finding it in children in 1983 helped doctors understand the disease that much better: it was passed through the bloodstream.
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Not guilty, by reason of insanity
Although many people believe that John Hinkley Jr. deserved a much more severe punishment, his obsession with Jodie Foster was so intense that he honestly didn't understand that he was doing anything wrong by shooting the president and three other people.
Not guilty
First-degree attempted murder
Second-degree murder
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Someone shot him.
President Ronald Reagan was shot by John Hinkley Jr. in March of 1981. Hinkley shot the president and three others in order to get actress Jodie Foster's attention. Reagan's wounds were severe, but he was released from the hospital three weeks after the shooting.
He had a heart attack.
He admitted he was depressed.
He was impeached.
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Artificial lung
Artificial heart
First imagined by Paul Winchell and designed by Willem Johan Kolff and Robert Jarvik, the Jarvik-7 was the first artificial heart to be implanted into a human being. Though not common, newer technologies allow for artificial hearts to be implanted temporarily while patients wait for transplantation.
Microchip
False teeth
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He lost both of his legs.
He was arrested and spent the rest of his life in prison.
He died of an overdose.
The "live fast, die young" mentality that Belushi projected was more of a self-fulfilling prophecy. The young comedian died at the age of 33, alone in a hotel room. Though friends weren't necessarily shocked by what happened, they were heartbroken.
Nothing
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Colombia
Spain
Vietnam
Grenada
Operation Urgent Fury lasted from October 25, 1983, to December 15, 1983. The invasion of the island nation was meant to protect United States citizens living on the island who had been threatened by the standing regime.
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"M*A*S*H*"
One of the most interesting fun facts in modern history is that over a million toilets in New York City flushed within five minutes of the finale's conclusion. This was, of course, before DVR technology, so it was important to hold it if you wanted to really see the end of a show.
"Dynasty"
"Miller House"
"Diff'rent Strokes"
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Create cable internet
Test cellular phone service
The first cellular phone service tests by Motorola were conducted in Chicago in 1983. This was the first step to the world that you see today. Though the phones were heavier than most laptops these days, they worked.
Tap into the Internet
Tap into telephones
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Ireland
Australia
Russia
In 1980, the United States boycotted the Summer Olympics in Moscow, because of the 1979 Afghanistan invasion. In retaliation, Russia boycotted the 1984 Summer Olympics, because of security concerns and strong anti-Soviet feelings pulsing through the U.S.
France
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Farm Aid
Comic Relief
Hands Across America
Live Aid
In efforts to alleviate Ethiopian famine, Bob Geldof and Midge Ure brought bands together from around the world to create the ultimate charity concert. The world's top stars performed in front of live audiences as well as live television cameras.
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New Coke
All great companies like to rebrand, renew and simply change their ways every once in a while. No company regretted this more than Coca-Cola in 1985. New Coke was the furthest thing from a hit, and the soda company had to return to its previous recipe, rebranding it Coca-Cola Classic.
Youth Coke
Jolt Cola
Up Cola
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3 Mile Island
Chernobyl
Even if you don't know how to spell Chernobyl, you could probably tell people what it was. If you watched the hit series on HBO, you probably know more about than anyone who was living in 1986. Unfortunately, the fires from this disaster are still burning.
Waker Meltdown
Nevada Meltdown
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ABC
NBC
FOX
When FOX first released content, they did so on a limited schedule, lasting only 10 hours per day. However, with hit shows that pushed the envelop, more and more viewers came to see the shocking comedies and gritty dramas.
WGN
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"Encyclopedia Britannica"
"National Geographic"
"Merriam-Webster Dictionary"
"The Academic American Encyclopedia"
While the home-tech craze was in its early years, it wasn't common to see books and reference works digitized. Putting "The Academic American Encyclopedia" on CD-ROM meant that larger schools and universities were able to add to their reference sections at lower costs, with less shelf space.
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Nintendo
These days, we measure the quality of video game graphics by how many frames per second (fps) they deliver. However, in 1986, graphics were a little simpler, using pixels. The Nintendo Entertainment System was released in the U.S. in 1986, delivering better graphics than Atari and showing Americans what 8-bit felt like.
Turbo Graphic 16
Sega
Atari
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HIV
Hepatitis B
Though there was already a vaccination for hepatitis B, in 1986, genetic engineering of vaccines was much less common. Having the first FDA approved genetically-engineered vaccine paved the way for medical scientists and researchers to work on other diseases.
Autism
Polio
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The Commodore explosion
The first man to walk on the moon
The return of Halley's Comet
Every 75 years or so, a gorgeous celestial object is shown in our skies. It's known as Halley's Comet. What makes it so unique is the fact that it is one of the rare comets that come close enough to our planet to be seen by the naked eye.
The first ever meteor shower
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Wilhelm Muller
Ralph Schmidt
Clyde Abbendoth
Klaus Barbie
It might be a little jarring to believe that the American government was protecting a man whose nickname was "The Butcher of Lyon," but we did apologize. After his trial, Klaus was sentenced to life in prison and died in 1991.
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USS Stark
President Sadam Hussein of Iraq did send his apologies for the deaths of 47 sailors. However, the United States didn't take this lightly and worked toward retaliation immediately.
USS Eisenhower
USS Kennedy
USS Gaines
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Red Tuesday
Black Monday
1986 and '87 were amazing years for the stock market. They showed promise to an American economy that set up the entire decade of the 1990s. However, what goes up must come down, but no one expected it to crash as hard as it did. On October 19th, 1987, the Dow plummeted 22.6%. It is still considered the largest one-day loss in history.
Blue Wednesday
Pink Friday
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The first transatlantic phone line
Satellite telephones
The first transatlantic optical-fiber cable system
There was already a transatlantic phone line and telegraph line. However, creating a fiber optic cable system allowed for 40,000 overseas phone calls to happen simultaneously, opening communication with other countries.
Optical image enhancement
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The U.S. flood of 1988
The Kansas tornado series of 1988
The July freeze of 1988
The U.S. drought of 1988
A frightening drought swept the United States in 1988, causing chaos in our fields. The drought lasted three years in total and resulted in farmers losing more than just their land. It is still considered one of the worst droughts the U.S. ever faced.
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Singing Revolution
On September 11, 1988, some 300,000 protesters gathered and began singing. The Singing Revolution lasted until 1991 and resulted in several demonstrations of spontaneous singing across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Stringing Revolution
Communist Revolution
Estonian Revolution
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The Smartphone
The World Wide Web
Unfortunately, Al Gore is still not the inventor of the Internet. The original idea came from Tim Berners-Lee in 1988, and in 1989, Berners-Lee worked brought that idea to life with the World Wide Web.
The home computer
The climate change solution
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The moon crash
The Colombia explosion
Challenger explosion
The majority of people who were around in 1986 can tell you exactly where they were when the Challenger tragedy occurred. It was a televised event, and everyone was interested because it was a mission that sent civilians into space.
There was no NASA tragedy.
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Ric Flair hired him to take the fall.
Bam Bam Bigelow hit him with a chair.
The Million Dollar Man paid him to take the fall.
Hulk Hogan body slammed him.
In 1987, wrestling history was made. Not only did we get to see the two most popular wrestlers go head to head, we got so see the unbeatable Andre the Giant get body slammed by Hulk Hogan.
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The first successful in-vitro fertilization
In-vitro fertilization (IVF) was long considered an impossible science. However, in December of 1981, the first "test-tube baby" was born in Norfolk, Virginia. Since then, IVF has been one of the leading procedures to fight infertility.
The first successful tube-tie reversal
The first male birth control was created.
The first baby developed outside of the womb
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LISA 82
Commodore 64
The personal or home computer was one of the most important consumer items to come out of the 1980s, and the Commodore 64 was the most popular of these. It was easy to use and build-out, and anyone could use it.
Macintosh
Wellburn Acromantia
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World War II Veterans Memorial
Women in Combat Memorial
Vietnam Veterans Memorial
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is one of the most important memorials of our generation. What makes it so important is the fact that Vietnam was never considered a war, it was only a conflict. However, the amount that America lost in those years proved that our nation's men and women deserved more, and they received that with the Veterans Memorial.
Presidential Memorial
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Malcolm X Day
Jesse Jackson Day
Robert Miller Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Ronald Reagan signed the bill to create the federal holiday in 1983. It was first observed nationally and on calendars in 1986. The holiday is always to fall on the third Monday of every January in honor of the civil rights leader.
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DARE
The Drug Abuse Resistance Education program was designed to teach children about the dangers of drugs and how they affect users and families alike. The success rate of the program is often debated, but the program itself defines the anti-drug movement of the '80s.
SCARE
FAIR
MARE
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A drug overdose
His father shot him.
In a tragic event in 1984, Marvin Gaye's father shot him dead the day before he turned 45 years old. The events leading up to the night of April 1, 1984, show trouble between Marvin Gay Sr and Marvin Gaye (the "e" was added for his stage name) Jr.
A plane crash
A car accident
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"Live Aid"
"For Christmas"
"We Are The World"
"We Are The World" brought the world's biggest celebrities and musical talents together to create the ultimate song. The song was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and sold over 20 million copies.
"This Christmas"
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You Got:
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