July 1977 - New York Blackout, The Deep, Orca

What is a Da Doo Ron Ron?  July 1977

A number one hit on the Cash Box Top 100 list in July 1977 was 'Da Doo Ron Ron' by Shaun Cassidy.

July 1 - Greased Lightning movie premieres.

July 8 - The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training movie premieres.

July 9 – Alice Paul, suffragist, dies. (b. 1885)

July 11 - President Carter posthumously awards the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  Coretta Scott King accepts the award at a White House ceremony.

July 13 – The New York City blackout of 1977 lasts for 25 hours.

July 13 - The Spy Who Loved Me and The Island of Dr. Moreau movies premiere.

July 15 - The Happy Hooker Goes to Washington movie premieres.

July 17 - The Deep movie premieres.  The shipwreck featured in the movie was actually the R.M.S. Rhone, which sank in 1867 off the coast of Salt and Peter Islands in the British Virgin Islands with 125 of 135 of her crew losing their lives. The R.M.S. Rhone broke into two pieces during the sinking. This movie was filmed at the bow section of the ship, located about seventy-five feet underwater.

July 18 - The Better Sex game show debuts on ABC.

July 19 and 20 – Flooding in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, caused by massive rainfall, kills over 75 people and causes billions in damage.

July 22 - Orca and The Hills Have Eyes movies premiere.

July 24 – Led Zeppelin plays their last U.S. concert in Oakland, California at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. A brawl erupts between Led Zeppelin's crew and promoter Bill Graham's staff, resulting in criminal assault charges for several of Led Zeppelin's entourage including drummer John Bonham.

July 28 – The first oil through the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System reaches Valdez, Alaska.

Black Lightning comic for July:

1977 Ford Bronco:

System7 toy gun (released 1977):

Playboy playmate of the month, Sondra Theodore, and Playgirl man for July, David Haskell:

Ebony magazine for July:

Ms. magazine for July:

People magazine for July 18th:

Nielsen ratings for the week ending July 3:  1 Terraces (TV Movie); 2 Charlie's Angels ABC; 3 Laverne and Shirley ABC; 4 Love Boat II (ABC's Tuesday movie); 5 Happy Days ABC; 6 Barnaby Jones CBS; 7 Maude CBS; 8 What's Happening ABC; 9 Shields and Yarnell; 10 (tie) Quincy NBC and Barney Miller ABC.

Albums released in July 1977 (album / artist):

Going for the One / Yes

The Grand Illusion / Styx

Village People / Village People

Leif Garrett / Leif Garrett

My Aim Is True / Elvis Costello

Terrapin Station / Grateful Dead

Peanuts comic strip from July 1977:

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

March 1976 - Patty Hearst, Kiss, Family

Dig it, Man, it's March 1976!

A number one hit on the Cash Box Top 100 list in March 1976 was 'Dream Weaver' by Gary Wright.

March 1 – Bradford Bishop allegedly murders five of his family members in Bethesda, Maryland. The crime goes undiscovered for 10 days and the suspect is never caught. In 2014, he is placed on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.

March 9 - Family tv show premieres on ABC.

March 9–11 – Two coal mine explosions claim 26 lives at the Blue Diamond Coal Co. Scotia Mine in Letcher County, Kentucky.

March 11 - Gable and Lombard, Robin and Marian movies are released.

March 12 - I Will, I Will... for Now movie released.

March 14 - Buzby Berkley (director/choreographer) dies.

March 16 - Harold Wilson announced his resignation as Prime Minister of Great Britain.  He had been Labour leader for 13 years and Prime Minister for nearly 8 years.

March 18 - The Man Who Fell to Earth movie released.  Filmed mostly in New Mexico, it starred David Bowie, who's stated he was using cocaine at the time.

March 20 – Patty Hearst is found guilty of armed robbery of a bank.

March 22 – Filming begins on George Lucas' Star Wars science fiction film. In one of the most lucrative business decisions in film history, Lucas declines his directing fee of $500,000 in exchange for complete ownership of merchandising and sequel rights.

March 26 - Ride a Wild Pony and Sky Riders movies released.

March 29 - At the 48th Academy Awards, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest wins best picture.  Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher win best actor and actress for their work in that movie.  George Burns wins best supporting actor for The Sunshine Boys.  Lee Grant wins best supporting actress for Shampoo.

March 31 – The New Jersey Supreme Court rules that persistent vegetative state patient in the Karen Ann Quinlan case can be disconnected from her ventilator. She remains comatose and dies in 1985.

March 31 - W.C. Fields and Me movie released.

Albums released in March (album / artist):
A Love Trilogy / Donna Summer
Nobody's Fools / Slade
Wings of Love / The Temptations
Destroyer / Kiss
I Want You / Marvin Gaye
Takin' It to the Streets / The Doobie Brothers
The Sun Sessions / Elvis Presley (recorded 1954–55)
Sad Wings of Destiny / Judas Priest
Wings at the Speed of Sound / Wings
Amigos / Santana
Jailbreak / Thin Lizzy
Moonmadness / Camel
Presence / Led Zeppelin

Nielsen top 10 for the week of March 14: 1 Rich Man, Poor Man 2 Welcome Back, Kotter 3 The Wizard of Oz 4 All In The Family 5 Happy Days 6 ABC Sunday Movie (High Plains Drifter) 7 (tie) M-A-S-H and Laverne and Shirley 9 (tie) Barney Miller and Police Woman

National Geographic for March:

McCall's for March:

People magazine for March 29th:

Playboy playmate of the month, Ann Pennington and Playgirl man for March, Marc Rodriguez:

1976 Volkswagen Beetle:

Incredible Hulk comic for March:

Sonny and Cher dolls (released in 1976):

Peanuts comic strip from March 1976:

For detailed news/info on what happened each day in March 1976, check out this really good site:  ultimate70s.com

July 1978 - Test Tube Baby, Animal House

Missing You in July 1978!

A number one hit on the Cash Box Top 100 list in July 1978 was 'Miss You' by the Rolling Stones.

July 3 - Tic Tac Dough game show premieres on CBS.

July 5 - Hot Lead and Cold Feet movie premieres.  Although promotional material for this Western prominently featured Don Knotts, he was only fourth-billed and in a supporting role.

July 8 - 1978 Wimbledon Championships end.  Martina Navratilova won her first grand slam singles title at this event.  She defeated Chris Evert in the final, 2–6, 6–4, 7–5.

July 10 - The ABC Evening News gets a revamp and becomes ABC World News Tonight, employing a unique three-anchor setup (Frank Reynolds serving as lead anchor from Washington, Max Robinson presenting national news from Chicago, and Peter Jennings with international news from London).

July 14 - Foul Play, Hooper and The Swarm movies premiere.

July 18 – Claude P. Dettloff, photographer, dies. (born 1899)

July 19 - Revenge of the Pink Panther and International Velvet movies premiere.

July 20 – Alan Hirschfield is fired as president and CEO of Columbia Pictures. He is replaced by Francis T. Vincent.

July 21 - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band movie premieres.

July 25 - The world's first test tube baby, Louise Brown, is born in the United Kingdom.

July 28 - Animal House movie premieres.

Superman's Action Comics for July:

1978 Mercury Cougar:

Incredible Hulk Pencil By Numbers set (released 1978):

Playboy playmate of the month, Karen Morton, and Playgirl man for July, Michael Montelbano:

Albums released in July (album / artist):
Under Wraps / Shaun Cassidy
Nightwatch / Kenny Loggins
Cheryl Lynn / Cheryl Lynn
Heartbreaker / Dolly Parton
Touchdown / Bob James
Can't Stand the Rezillos / The Rezillos
More Songs About Buildings and Food / Talking Heads

Nielsen top shows for the week ending July 16th:  1 Quincy NBC; 2 All‐Star Game ABC; 3 Alice CBS; 4 All in the Family CBS; 5 Happy Days ABC; 6 Switch CBS; 7 All‐Star Preview ABC; 8 Lou Grant CBS; 9 One Day at a Time CBS; 10 Charlie's Angels ABC; 11 The Love Boat ABC; 12 Death of Richie NBC; 13 (tie) Three's Company ABC and Barnaby Jones CBS; 15 Girl in Empty Grave NBC.

 People magazine for July 31st:

Rona Barrett's Hollywood for July:

Preview magazine for July:

'The Holcroft Covenant' by Robert Ludlam moves to the top of the New York Times Fiction Best Seller list.  Ludlum says the novel was inspired by a "what if" question. "What if Nazi children at the end of World War Two were being saved [secretly groomed] so that in the next generation they could revive the Third Reich?"

Peanuts comic strip from July 1978:

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

December 1979 - The Who, Lee Iacocca

No One Wants to Escape December 1979!

A number one hit on the Cash Box Top 100 list in December 1979 was 'Escape (The Pina Colada Song)' by Rupert Holmes.

December 1 - The Movie Channel, a premium cable channel, begins broadcasting movies 24/7.

December 3 - Eleven fans are killed during a stampede for seats before The Who concert at the Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati, Ohio.

December 6 – The world premiere for Star Trek: The Motion Picture is held at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.

blackgate.com

December 7 – Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin, British-born astronomer and astrophysicist, dies. (b. 1900)

December 9 – Fulton J. Sheen, Roman Catholic bishop and venerable, dies. (b. 1895)

December 10 – Ann Dvorak, actress, dies. (b. 1912)

December 14 - 1941, Chapter Two and The Jerk movies premiere.

quotesgram.com

December 15 – Ethel Lackie, Olympic swimmer, dies. (b. 1907)

December 17 - House Calls tv series premieres on CBS.

December 19 - Being There, Kramer vs. Kramer and Roller Boogie movies premiere.

December 20 - All That Jazz movie premieres.  Originally, Bob Fosse thought of playing the lead himself, then Richard Dreyfuss was cast as the lead, but ultimately Roy Scheider played the role of  the womanizing, drug-using choreographer/director.

December 21 - The Black Hole, C.H.O.M.P.S., The Electric Horseman and Scavenger Hunt movies premiere.

December 21 – Chrysler receives government loan guarantees upon the request of CEO Lee Iacocca.

thelede.blogs.nytimes.com

December 22 – Darryl F. Zanuck, film producer, dies. (b. 1902)

December 23 - Peggy Guggenheim, art collector , dies.(b. 1898)

December 25 - Joan Blondell, actress, dies. (b. 1906)

December 27 - Knots Landing tv series premieres on CBS.

December 30 – Richard Rodgers, composer, dies. (b. 1902)

1979 Chrysler Cordoba:

Batman comic for December:

Hulk Rub n' Play (released 1979):

Sears Wish Book catalog for 1979:

Honey Nut Cheerios was a new product introduced in 1979:

Playboy playmate of the month, Candice Collins, and Playgirl man for December, Grahame White:

Albums debuting in December (album / artist):
London Calling / The Clash
September Morn / Neil Diamond
Adventures in Utopia / Utopia
Score / Carol Lloyd

Nielsen top shows for the week ending December 23rd:  1 Three's Company ABC; 2 Dallas (Thursday) CBS; 3 Dallas (Friday) CBS; 4 Taxi ABC; 5 M*A*S*H CBS; 6 60 Minutes CBS; 7

Dukes of Hazzard CBS; 8 NFL Monday Night Football ABC; 9 Alice CBS; 10 House Calls CBS; 11 Jeffersons CBS; 12 Trapper John, M.D. CBS; 13 One Day at a Time CBS; 14 Little House on the Prairie NBC; 15 Different Strokes NBC.

'Triple' by Ken Follett is at the top of the New York Times Fiction Best Seller list.

People magazine for December 24th:

Rolling Stone magazine for December:

Soap Opera Digest for December:

Garfield comic strip from December 1979:

For detailed news/info on what happened each day in December 1979, check out this really good site:  ultimate70s.com