UK, 
US, 
Australia & 
IrelandAt A Glance
3 May 1981 at a glance
- Day of the week
- 3 May 1981 was a Sunday.
- Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
- The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “Morning Train (Nine to Five)” by Sheena Easton.
- Top Film of 1981
- The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1981 was Raiders of the Lost Ark.
- Bestselling Novel of 1981
- “Noble House” by James Clavell was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1981.
- Top-Rated TV Show
- “Dallas” (CBS) was No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1981–82 season.
- Star sign
- The star sign for 3 May is Taurus.
- Chinese zodiac
- In the Chinese zodiac, 3 May 1981 fell in the Year of the Rooster.
- Birthstone
- The birthstone for May is Emerald.
- Moon phase
- The moon phase on 3 May 1981 was New Moon.
On this day: 3 May
- 1963 The police force in Birmingham, Alabama switches tactics and responds with violent force to stop the "Birmingham campaign" protesters. Images of the violent suppression are transmitted worldwide, bringing new-found attention to the civil rights movement.
- 1971 Erich Honecker becomes First Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, remaining in power until 1989.
- 1978 The first unsolicited bulk commercial email (which would later become known as "spam") is sent by a Digital Equipment Corporation marketing representative to every ARPANET address on the west coast of the United States.
- 1979 The Conservative Party wins the United Kingdom general election. The following day, Margaret Thatcher becomes the first female British Prime Minister.
- 1999 Infiltration of Pakistani soldiers on Indian side results in the Kargil War.
Famous people born on May 3
- Ella Langley, American singer-songwriter (born 1999)
- Pom Klementieff, French actress (born 1986)
- Rachel Zegler, American actress and singer (born 2001)
- James Brown, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor (1933–2006)
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Events of 1981 in the United States
A selection from Wikipedia's '1981 in the United States'. Not a complete list.
- March 31 – The 53rd Academy Awards, hosted by Johnny Carson, are held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. Robert Redford's directorial debut, Ordinary People, wins four awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.
- April 12 – The Space Shuttle program: Space Shuttle Columbia (John Young, Robert Crippen) launches on the STS-1 mission, returning to Earth on April 14.
- June 12 – Raiders of the Lost Ark, directed by Steven Spielberg is released as the first film of the Indiana Jones film series.
Life in the US in 1981
President
Ronald Reagan
Gas (per gallon)
$1.31
Loaf of Bread
$0.54
Average House
$68,900
Weekly Wage
$285
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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)
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