At A Glance

2 January 1987 at a glance

Day of the week
2 January 1987 was a Friday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “Walk Like an Egyptian” by The Bangles.
Top Film of 1987
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1987 was Fatal Attraction.
Bestselling Novel of 1987
“The Tommyknockers” by Stephen King was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1987.
Top-Rated TV Show
“The Cosby Show” (NBC) was No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1987–88 season.
Star sign
The star sign for 2 January is Capricorn.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 2 January 1987 fell in the Year of the Tiger.
Birthstone
The birthstone for January is Garnet.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 2 January 1987 was Waxing Crescent.

On this day: 2 January

  • 1959 Luna 1, the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon and to orbit the Sun, is launched by the Soviet Union.
  • 1963 Vietnam War: The Viet Cong wins its first major victory, at the Battle of Ap Bac.
  • 1967 Ronald Reagan, past movie actor and future President of the United States, is sworn in as Governor of California.
  • 1991 Sharon Pratt Dixon becomes the first African American woman mayor of a major city and first woman Mayor of the District of Columbia.
  • 2004 Stardust successfully flies past Comet Wild 2, collecting samples that are returned to Earth.

Famous people born on January 2

  • Jim Bakker, American televangelist (1940–2026)
  • Kemi Badenoch, English politician (born 1980)
  • Dax Shepard, American actor (born 1975)
  • Kate Bosworth, American actress (born 1983)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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

Events of 1987 in the United States

A selection from Wikipedia's '1987 in the United States'. Not a complete list.

  • March 3 – Ruthless Records was founded by Eazy-E & Jerry Heller.
  • March 30 – The 59th Academy Awards, hosted by Chevy Chase, Goldie Hawn and Paul Hogan, are held at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. Oliver Stone's Platoon wins four awards out of eight nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director.
  • April 19 – The Simpsons cartoon first appears as a series of shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show.
More events of 1987 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in the US in 1987

President

Ronald Reagan

Gas (per gallon)

$0.90

Loaf of Bread

$0.68

Average House

$92,000

Weekly Wage

$358

Or

Browse by Year

The 1940s
1940194119421943194419451946194719481949
The 1950s
1950195119521953195419551956195719581959
The 1960s
1960196119621963196419651966196719681969
The 1970s
1970197119721973197419751976197719781979
The 1980s
1980198119821983198419851986198719881989
The 1990s
1990199119921993199419951996199719981999
The 2000s
2000200120022003200420052006200720082009
The 2010s
2010201120122013201420152016201720182019
The 2020s
20202021202220232024

Famous Faces Born in the 1980s

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

Hayden Panettiere21 August 1989Actress & singerView their day →Alan Ritchson28 November 1982ActorView their day →Anne Hathaway12 November 1982ActressView their day →Dakota Johnson4 October 1989Actress & modelView their day →Macklemore19 June 1983RapperView their day →Andrew Garfield20 August 1983ActorView their day →Julia Stiles28 March 1981ActressView their day →Taylor Swift13 December 1989Singer-songwriterView their day →

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 →