August 1978 - Love Canal, Double Eagle II

Once, Twice, Three Times...August 1978!

A number one hit on the Cash Box Top 100 list in August 1978 was 'Three Times A Lady' by the Commodores.

August 2 – President Jimmy Carter declares an unprecedented state emergency and evacuation immediately following the revelation that Niagara Falls, New York neighborhood Love Canal was built on a toxic waste dump.

August 2 - Eyes of Laura Mars and Interiors movies premiere.

August 3 - Piranha movie premieres.  Steven Spielberg described this film as "the best of the Jaws rip-offs." 

August 4 - Corvette Summer movie premieres.  Both of this film's leads, Annie Potts and Mark Hamill, had experience with major car accidents before making this film. Potts got pins in her legs and Hamill got a fractured nose and cheekbone.

August 13 – A Santa Barbara earthquake affected the central coast of California, causing 65 injuries and $12 million in financial losses.

August 14 – Joe Venuti, jazz violinist, dies. (born 1903)

August 17 – Double Eagle II becomes the first balloon to successfully cross the Atlantic Ocean, flying from Presque Isle, Maine to Miserey, France.

August 26 – Charles Boyer, film actor, dies. (born 1899 in France)

August 28 – Bruce Catton, Civil War historian and Pulitzer Prize winner, dies. (born 1899)

August 30 - Avalanche movie premieres.

Filling Station playset (released 1978):

Marvel Super Heroes/Incredible Hulk comic for August:

Coors Light was a new product introduced in 1978.

1978 Volkswagen Scirocco:

Playboy playmate of the month, Vicki Witt, and Playgirl man for August, Jeremy Alves:

Albums released in August 1978 (album / artist):
Don't Look Back / Boston
Roberta Flack / Roberta Flack
C'est Chic / Chic
Who Are You / The Who
Along the Red Ledge / Hall and Oates
Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! / Devo

Nielsen top shows for week ending August 27th:  1 Three's Company; 2 Quincy; 3 (tie) Laverne and Shirley and Carter Country; 5 M-A-S-H; 6 Alice; 7 Rockford Files; 8 One Day at a Time; 9 (tie) Starsky and Hutch and All in the Family.

Cosmopolitan magazine for August:

National Lampoon magazine for August:

Rolling Stone magazine for August:

'Chesapeake' by James A. Michener is at the top of the New York Times Fiction Best Seller list.

Peanuts comic strip from August 1978:

For detailed news/info on what happened each day in August 1978, check out this really good site: ultimate70s.com

August 1977 - Son of Sam, Elvis Presley

Let August 1977 Be Your Everything!

A number one hit on the Cash Box Top 100 list in August 1977 was 'I Just Want to be Your Everything' by Andy Gibb.

August 1 – Francis Gary Powers, U-2 spy plane pilot, dies. (b. 1929)

August 3 – United States Senate hearings on MKULTRA (the CIA mind control program) are held.

August 3 - The Kallikaks tv series debuts on NBC.

August 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter signs legislation creating the United States Department of Energy.

August 5 – Waldo L. Schmitt, biologist, dies. (b. 1887)

August 10 – David Berkowitz is captured in Yonkers, New York, after over a year of murders in New York City as the Son of Sam.  Using a .44 caliber Bulldog revolver, he killed six people and wounded seven others.

August 10 - The Kentucky Fried Movie premieres.

August 12 – The NASA Space Shuttle, named Enterprise, makes its first test free-flight from the back of a Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA).

August 12 - Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger movie premieres.

August 14 - Suspiria movie premieres.

August 15 – The Big Ear, a radio telescope operated by Ohio State University as part of the SETI project, receives a radio signal from deep space; the event is named the "WOW!" signal for a notation made by a volunteer on the project.

August 16 – Elvis Presley, actor, musician and singer-songwriter, dies at his home, Graceland. (b. 1935)

August 19 – Groucho Marx, actor and comedian, dies. (b. 1890)

August 20 – Voyager program: The United States launches the Voyager 2 spacecraft.

August 22 – Sebastian Cabot, English actor, dies. He's best known as Mr. French on Family Affair.  (b. 1918)

August 29 – Jean Hagen, actress, dies. (b. 1923)

August 31 - You Light Up My Life movie premieres. Of course, it's best known for the hit song by Debby Boone, which on the soundtrack was sung by Kasey Cisyk.

Playboy playmate of the month, Julia Lyndon, and Playgirl man for August, Dan Delany:

Nielsen's top 10 shows for the week ending August 21st: 1 Buona Sera Mrs. Campbell (NBC Monday Movie); 2 Charlie's Angels ABC; 3 Laverne and Shirley ABC; 4 Happy Days ABC; 5 Barnaby Jones CBS; 6 The Super Cops (CBS Sunday Movie); 7 Szysznyk CBS; 8 M-A-S-H CBS; 9 Eight is Enough ABC; 10 The Carey Treatment (CBS Friday Movie).

Albums released in August (album / artist):
Tasty / The Shadows
Foghat Live / Foghat
Livin' on the Fault Line / The Doobie Brothers
Pacific Ocean Blue / Dennis Wilson
Lust for Life / Iggy Pop
Barry White Sings for Someone You Love / Barry White

1977 Jaguar XJ6:

Iron Fist comic for August:

Shazam card game (released 1977):

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine for August:

Tiger Beat magazine for August:

Us magazine for August:

Peanuts comic strip from August 1977:

For detailed news/info on what happened each day in August 1977, check out this really good site:  ultimate70s.com