At A Glance

17 January 1978 at a glance

Day of the week
17 January 1978 was a Tuesday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “Baby Come Back” by Player.
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 17 January is Capricorn.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 17 January 1978 fell in the Year of the Snake.
Birthstone
The birthstone for January is Garnet.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 17 January 1978 was Waxing Gibbous.

On this day: 17 January

  • 1961 U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivers a televised farewell address to the nation three days before leaving office, in which he warns against the accumulation of power by the "military–industrial complex" as well as the dangers of massive spending, especially deficit spending.
  • 1981 President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos lifts martial law eight years and five months after declaring it.
  • 1992 During a visit to South Korea, Japanese Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa apologizes for forcing Korean women into sexual slavery during World War II.
  • 1996 The Czech Republic applies for membership in the European Union.
  • 1997 Cape Canaveral Air Force Station: A Delta II carrying the GPS IIR-1 satellite explodes 13 seconds after launch, dropping 250 tons of burning rocket remains around the launch pad.

Famous people born on January 17

  • Jim Carrey, Canadian-American actor, comedian, and producer (born 1962)
  • Enzo Fernández, Argentinian footballer (born 2001)
  • Muhammad Ali, American boxer and activist (1942–2016)
  • Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Jr., American environmental lawyer, writer, and conspiracy theorist (born 1954)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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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.

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

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1970s

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

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

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