At A Glance

21 January 1980 at a glance

Day of the week
21 January 1980 was a Monday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “Rock with You” by Michael Jackson.
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 21 January is Aquarius.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 21 January 1980 fell in the Year of the Goat.
Birthstone
The birthstone for January is Garnet.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 21 January 1980 was Waxing Crescent.

On this day: 21 January

  • 1968 Vietnam War, Battle of Khe Sanh: One of the most publicized and controversial battles of the war begins.
  • 1971 The current Emley Moor transmitting station, the tallest free-standing structure in the United Kingdom, begins transmitting UHF broadcasts.
  • 1976 Commercial service of Concorde begins with the London-Bahrain and Paris-Rio routes.
  • 1981 Production of the DeLorean sports car begins in Dunmurry, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom.
  • 1986 Conservative protestors attack a mock shanty town that had been erected on the Green at Dartmouth College as part of anti-apartheid protests.

Famous people born on January 21

  • Ingrid Alexandra, Crown Princess of Norway (born 2004)
  • Geena Davis, American actress and producer (born 1956)
  • Grigori Rasputin, Russian mystic (1869–1916)
  • IShowSpeed, American YouTuber and online streamer (born 2005)

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 →