More Detailed Information on each Event and those not included can be found below
Cult leader Jim Jones tells 900 members of his church, "People's Temple", to commit suicide
1. The People's Temple religious cult was founded by Jim Jones in Indianapolis, Indiana during 1958.NASA unveils the first group of women astronauts during January. The group included Shannon Lucid, Margaret Rhea Seddon, Kathryn Sullivan, Judith Resnik, Anna Fisher, and Sally Ride. The women enrolled in astronaut training and completed it in August of 1979. There had previously been a group of 13 women selected to undergo NASA’s astronaut testing in the 1960s but none were chosen to complete their training until 1978. Sally Ride became the first American woman in space in 1983, Kathryn Sullivan became the first American woman to perform a spacewalk, and Shannon Lucid became the first American woman to visit the Mir space station.
The Double Eagle II balloon, piloted by Larry Newman, Ben Abruzzo, and Maxie Anderson, became the first balloon to complete a transatlantic flight during August. The helium-filled balloon traveled over 3,000 miles carrying the three men in a trip that lasted just over 137 hours. They began their journey in Presque Isle, Maine and landed in Miserey, France near Paris. The gondola that carried them measured just 15 x 7 x 4.5 feet.
How Much things cost in 1978
Yearly Inflation Rate USA7.62%
Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 805
Interest Rates Year End Federal Reserve 11.75%
Average Cost of new house $54,800.00
Average Income per year $17,000.00
Average Monthly Rent $260.00
Cost of a gallon of Gas 63 cents
A few More Examples
1LB of Bacon$1.20 Marion, Ohio
Ranch Home, 3 beds , den, 1 1/2 baths, double detached garage $24,500
Below are some Prices for UK guides in Pounds Sterling
Average House Price 13,650
1. Japanese explorer Naomi Uemura became the first person to reach the North Pole in a solo expedition during May.
2. He trekked alone through the Arctic with a team of malamutes to carry his supplies.
3. The Canadian Air Force also provided some assistance by replenishing his supplies via helicopter.
4. The 37-year-old explorer began his trip in early March and had encountered several hardships along the way including encountering a polar bear that ate some of his supplies and getting stuck on a cracking ice floe.
5. Uemura was also the first person to make a solo ascent of Mount Denali, which he did in 1970.
6. In 1984, he disappeared making another ascent of Mount Denali during winter.
The world’s first human conceived through in-vitro fertilization (IVF), Louise Brown, was born on July 25 in the United Kingdom. Called a “test-tube baby” by the press, Louise was conceived in a petri dish and then implanted as a two and a half day old embryo. The experimental procedure was completed by Robert Edwards, a medical researcher, and Patrick Steptoe, a gynecologist. The Browns had failed to conceive naturally for over 9 years prior to the successful IVF treatment and several years later they had child through IVF who was the fortieth baby to be successfully conceived through the process. Edwards shared in a Nobel Prize in Medicine for his contributions to the development of in-vitro fertilization in 2010.
More Information for Garfield.
1. The very first “Garfield” comic strip is published in 41 U.S. Newspapers during June of 1978.
2. Created by cartoonist Jim Davis, the comic strip focused on the life of a lazy and often sarcastic cat named “Garfield.”
3. The comic quickly grew in popularity and was featured in 100 newspapers only a year after its debut.
4. Featuring several other characters including Garfield’s owner John and the cat’s rival pet, a dog named Odie, the popular comic was soon turned into books, television specials, merchandise and even a movie, topping best seller lists and winning awards along the way.
5. In 2002, Jim Davis’ Garfield was awarded the Guinness Record for being the most widely syndicated comic strip, having been featured in over 2,500 newspapers worldwide.
The United States Senate ratifies the second of the Torrijos-Carter Treaties during April. The treaties guaranteed that the United States would hand over control of the Panama Canal back to Panama by the end of 1999. The United States had control over the canal since 1903 as a result of the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty. While it was considered a little controversial at the time, this was a political win for US President Jimmy Carter who had helped negotiate the terms of the treaties. The official names of the two treaties were “The Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal” and “The Panama Canal Treaty” and both barely passed in the Senate with just one vote more than a two-thirds majority.
The country of Spain restored its democracy and ended forty years of a dictatorship under Francisco Franco. After the death of Franco in 1975 the country created a new constitution and it was ratified by the Spanish people in a referendum in early December of 1978 and later signed by King Juan Carlos I near the end of the month. The new constitution transitioned the country into a functioning democracy with democratic institutions while keeping the King as the symbolic head of state.
Public Service strikes in UK
Public Service strikes in UK causes major disruption to all services
US Teachers strike
US Teachers strike extend summer holidays for thousands of students
Volkswagen Beetle
After nearly 30 years The Volkswagen Beetle stops production having manufactured 20 million cars
Worldwide Unemployment
Gold reaches $200.00 per ounce
US Dollar plunges
The US Dollar plunges to record low against many European currencies
Japanese car Imports
European Court of Human Rights
Aerosol sprays
Rhodesia / Zimbabwe
Oil tanker Amoco Cadiz runs aground
The oil tanker Amoco Cadiz runs aground March 16 News Events on the coast of Brittany. causing an ecological disaster with A slick 18 miles wide and 80 miles long covered about 200 miles (320 km) of Brittany coastline
"Son of Sam," is sentenced
Serial killer David Berkowitz, the "Son of Sam," is sentenced on June 12th to 25 years to life in prison
Neutron Bomb
The US stops production of the Neutron Bomb ( Kills People but leaves buildings and infrastructure standing )
Susan B. Anthony Dollar
The first Susan B. Anthony Dollar is minted on December 13th
Indira Ghandi
Indira Ghandi faces fraud charges in India
India monsoon season
India faces it's longest and worst monsoon season in modern times leaving 2 million homeless
Poisoned umbrella tip murder
Bulgarian defector Georgi Markov assasinated by Bulgarian Secret Police using poisoned umbrella tip
Iran Earthquake
Earthquake strikes Tabas, Iran and surrounding villages killing nearly 20,000
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski flees to France in February 1978, hours before he was to be formally sentenced for rape and other charges against a child
World -- Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin during October of 1978. They were awarded the prize for their work on the Camp David Accords which had been agreed upon during the previous month.
Lebanon
Israel attacks on southern Lebanon following bus hijacking in Tel Aviv
Greece Earthquake
A powerful magnitude 6.5 earthquake hits Thessaloniki, Greece
The Cold War
Due to poor Cold War Relations United States bans sale of latest computer technology to Soviet Union
1978 3 Popes
Motability scheme
Britain launches the Motability scheme to provide cars for disabled people
Worlds Population
Worlds Population Estimated at 4.4 billion
Karl Wallenda
Karl Wallenda, founder of the Flying Wallendas, dies after falling off a tight-rope
1978 World Cup
Argentina Wins 1978 World Cup in Argentina
Australia Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser
Brazil President Ernesto Geisel
Canada Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau
China Chairman of the People's Republic of China Post Abolished
France President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
Germany Chancellor Helmut Schmidt
India Prime Minister
Italy Prime Minister GMorarji Desaiiulio Andreotti
Japan Prime Minister Takeo Fukuda Till 7 December
Japan Prime Minister Masayoshi Ohira From 7 December
Mexico President José López Portillo
Russia / Soviet Union
First Secretary of the CPSU Leonid Brezhnev
South Africa Prime Minister Balthazar Johannes Vorster Till 29 September
South Africa Prime Minister Pieter Willem Botha From 29 September
United States President Jimmy Carter
United Kingdom Prime Minister James Callaghan