At A Glance

18 May 1980 at a glance

Day of the week
18 May 1980 was a Sunday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “Call Me” by Blondie.
Top Film of 1980
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1980 was The Empire Strikes Back.
Bestselling Novel of 1980
“The Covenant” by James A. Michener was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1980.
Top-Rated TV Show
“Dallas” (CBS) was No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1980–81 season.
Star sign
The star sign for 18 May is Taurus.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 18 May 1980 fell in the Year of the Monkey.
Birthstone
The birthstone for May is Emerald.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 18 May 1980 was Waxing Crescent.

On this day: 18 May

  • 1974 Nuclear weapons testing: Under project Smiling Buddha, India successfully detonates its first nuclear weapon becoming the sixth nation to do so.
  • 1977 Likud party wins the 1977 Israeli legislative election, with Menachem Begin, its founder, as the sixth Prime Minister of Israel.
  • 1980 Students in Gwangju, South Korea begin demonstrations calling for democratic reforms.
  • 1990 In France, a modified TGV train achieves a new rail world speed record of 515.3 km/h (320.2 mph).
  • 1991 Northern Somalia declares independence from the rest of Somalia as the Republic of Somaliland.

Famous people born on May 18

  • Emma Navarro, American tennis player (born 2001)
  • Vince Young, American football player (born 1983)
  • Nicholas II (1868–1918)
  • Tina Fey, American actress, producer, and screenwriter (born 1970)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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

Events of 1980 in the United States

A selection from Wikipedia's '1980 in the United States'. Not a complete list.

  • January 27 – Canadian Caper: Six United States diplomats, posing as Canadians, manage to escape from Tehran, Iran as they board a flight to Zurich, Switzerland.
  • March 22 – The Georgia Guidestones are erected in Elbert County, Georgia.
  • April 15 – A mass exodus of Cubans to the United States known as the Mariel boatlift begins. It ends on October 31 by agreement between the two countries.

Life in the US in 1980

President

Jimmy Carter

Gas (per gallon)

$1.19

Loaf of Bread

$0.50

Average House

$64,600

Weekly Wage

$267

Or

Browse by Year

Famous Faces Born in the 1980s

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

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

About The Day You Were Born

Ever wondered what was happening in the world when you took your first breath? Our birthday lookup tool reveals the fascinating history of your special day.

About The Birthday Chronicle and where our data comes from →