At A Glance

15 May 1978 at a glance

Day of the week
15 May 1978 was a Monday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “If I Can't Have You” by Yvonne Elliman.
Top Film of 1978
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1978 was Grease.
Bestselling Novel of 1978
“Chesapeake” by James A. Michener was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1978.
Top-Rated TV Show
“Laverne & Shirley” (ABC) was No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1978–79 season.
Star sign
The star sign for 15 May is Taurus.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 15 May 1978 fell in the Year of the Horse.
Birthstone
The birthstone for May is Emerald.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 15 May 1978 was First Quarter.

On this day: 15 May

  • 1963 Project Mercury: The launch of the final Mercury mission, Mercury-Atlas 9 with astronaut Gordon Cooper on board. He becomes the first American to spend more than a day in space, and the last American to go into space alone.
  • 1970 President Richard Nixon appoints Anna Mae Hays and Elizabeth P. Hoisington as the first female United States Army generals.
  • 1972 The Ryukyu Islands, under U.S. military governance since their conquest in 1945, revert to Japanese control.
  • 1988 Soviet–Afghan War: After more than eight years of fighting, the Soviet Army begins to withdraw 115,000 troops from Afghanistan.
  • 1991 Édith Cresson becomes France's first female Prime Minister.

Famous people born on May 15

  • Don Nelson, American basketball player and coach (1940–2026)
  • Jamie-Lynn Sigler, American actress and singer (born 1981)
  • David Krumholtz, American actor (born 1978)
  • Ousmane Dembélé, French footballer (born 1997)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Choose your country: the charts, news and leaders change to match.

Events of 1978 in the United States

A selection from Wikipedia's '1978 in the United States'. Not a complete list.

  • February 6 – The first Home Depot opens in Marietta, Georgia.
  • April 2 – The CBS soap opera Dallas is launched. It is set to be aired later this year in several countries, including the United Kingdom by the BBC.
  • April 3 – The 50th Academy Awards ceremony, hosted by Bob Hope for the final time, is held at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. Woody Allen's Annie Hall wins Best Picture, with Allen winning Best Director.
More events of 1978 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in the US in 1978

President

Jimmy Carter

Gas (per gallon)

$0.63

Loaf of Bread

$0.39

Average House

$55,700

Weekly Wage

$234

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Famous Faces Born in the 1970s

Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.

Keri Russell23 March 1976ActressView their day →Tupac Shakur16 June 1971Rapper & actorView their day →Zoe Saldaña19 June 1978ActressView their day →Christopher Nolan30 July 1970FilmmakerView their day →Jon Bernthal20 September 1976ActorView their day →Jason Sudeikis18 September 1975Actor & comedianView their day →Milo Ventimiglia8 July 1977ActorView their day →Sarah Paulson17 December 1974ActressView their day →

Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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