1986 History, Trivia and Fun Facts

• War: The longest war in recorded history lasted 335 years and brgan in 1951. It was between the Dutch and the Isles of Scilly, there were no casualties, and the Dutch actually forgot about the conflict until a Scilly historian contacted them about it in 1985. A treaty was signed between them in 1986.
• The Disaster: On January 28, 1986, Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrated 73 seconds into its flight leading to the death of all 7 members of the crew. Because teacher Christa McAuliffe was on the crew, millions of young students watched the accident happen.
• The Top Song was That's What Friends are For by
  Dinone Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder
• The Big Movies included Top Gun, Crocodile Dundee and Platoon
• Price of a gallon of gas in 1986: 93 cents
  Dodge D-50 pickup truck: $5,595.00
• The World Population was ~ 4,901,000,000
• US Life Expectancy: Males: 71.2 years, Females: 78.2 years
• Lazer Tag was introduced in 1986.
  American Girl Dolls entered the market.
  Labyrinth (board game) was unveiled in 1986.

Space Shuttle Challenger blew up 73 seconds after take-off, killing all 7 crew members. Tens of thousands of school-age children were watching the flight live, because teacher Christa McAuliffe was a member of the crew.

60 Minutes ran a scathing exposé on the Audi 5000, alleging it could wildly accelerate on its own. However, their on-air demonstration used a rigged car to show falsified results. Gov't tests later vindicated Audi but their sales had already plummeted. 60 Minutes never apologized.

The phrase "going postal" is derived from a series of incidents from 1986 onward in which USPS workers shot and killed managers, fellow workers, and members of the police or general public in acts of mass murder.

Iran-Contra: Several members of the Reagan Administration helped sell arms to Iran, a known enemy of the United States, and used the proceeds to fund the Contras, an anti-communist guerrilla organization in Nicaragua.

Neelim Kumar Khaire set a world record in 1986 by spending 72 hours in a cage with 72 of the most venomous snake species in India; to spread awareness and to prove that snakes don't bite unless provoked. He came out of the cage, unharmed without a single bite.

An 85 year old woman died shortly after someone "slain in the spirit" fell on her and fractured her hip during a Benny Hinn religious rally. Hinn awarded the family a large but undisclosed cash settlement a day before the trial was to begin.

The United Way released 1.5 million balloons in Cleveland as a publicity stunt. It clogged the land and waterways of NE Ohio, shut down an airport runway, and forced the Coast Guard to suspend a search and rescue of 2 men who ended up drowning.

The USSR's Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant reactor # 4 had a mishap, giving radiation poisoning to an estimated 500,000 to 6,000,000 people. The city of Pripyat, Ukraine built an amusement park scheduled to open May 1, 1986, but never really had a chance to open, being abandoned after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster a few miles away.

A Soviet sub sank under odd conditions and when they revisited the wreck the missile hatches were forced open, and 2 warheads were reported missing. Most experts guess the US Navy got them.

A huge cloud of CO2 gas descended onto villages in Cameroon, killing 1,746 people and 3,500 livestock. The cloud spilled over the northern lip of a lake before rushing down two valleys, displacing all the air and suffocating people and livestock.

When Geraldo Rivera opened Al Capone's Vault on live TV in 1986, and after much hype, it was empty. There were probably a bunch of old gangsters who knew it was empty watching together and laughed their butts off.

165,000 people paid Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker $1000 for a lifetime annual weekend pass at the new Heritage USA Christian resort. The park went bankrupt after IRS troubles, and the donors got back $6.54 each.

Tonight Show host Johnny Carson's good friend occasional guest Tonight Show host, Joan Rivers, started a late night talk show on FOX. He never spoke to her again.

There was an alleged war that lasted 335 years between the Dutch and a English Archipelago called Scilly. There were no casualties during this war, because the Dutch forgot they were even at war with them. The war ended in 1986 when historians uncovered the war and a peace treaty was signed.

Bobby Ewing came out of the shower, alive. The prior season of Dallas had been a dream.

(according to boxofficemojo)
1. Top Gun
2. Crocodile Dundee
3. Platoon
4. The Karate Kid Part II
5. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
6. Back To School
7. Aliens
8. The Golden Child
9. Ruthless People
10. Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Aliens, An American Tail, Back To School, Big Trouble in Little China, Blue Velvet, Cobra, The Color of Money, Crocodile Dundee, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, The Fly, The Golden Child, Heartbreak Ridge, Highlander, Howard the Duck, The Karate Kid Part II, Labyrinth, Legal Eagles, Little Shop of Horrors, The Money Pit, Peggy Sue Got Married, Platoon, Police Academy 3: Back in Training, Poltergeist II: The Other Side, Pretty in Pink, Real Genious, Ruthless People, Short Circuit, Space Camp, Stand By Me, Top Gun, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Short Circuit, The Three Amigos