Top Movies of 1986

Top News Events in 1986:

1.   Challenger Explosion on January 28, 1986 kills entire crew including school teacher Christie McAuliffe.
2.   Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster results in death of nearly 7,000, April 1986.
3.  The first Staples office supplies store opens May 1 at Brighton, Mass. Orange, N.J.-born founder Thomas G. (George) "Tom" Stemberg, 37, had his typewriter ribbon break July 4 of last year while he was working on a business plan for a new retail chain, the local stationer was closed, Stemberg roamed the aisles of a warehouse club in a vain search for a new ribbon, came up with the idea of an office-supplies superstore chain, and has started a company in partnership with Leo Kahn.
4.  The Windows program introduced by Microsoft Corp. in February employs icons on the computer screen instead of the arcane commands used in its disc operating system.
5.  Popular Books:    The Magic School Bus at the Waterworks by Newark, N.J.-born author Joanna Cole, 42, illustrations by Brooklyn, N.Y.-born author-illustrator Bruce Degen, 43 (first in a series of science adventures); The Baby-Sitters Club by Princeton, N.J.-born author-illustrator Ann M. (Matthews) Martin, 41; Love You Forever by Pittsburgh-born author Robert Munsch, illustrations by Sheila McGraw; The Other Side of Dark by Joan Lowery Nixon; The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett; The Christmas Day Kitten by James Herriot.
6.  

Sports:

Chicago beats New England 46 to 10 at New Orleans January 26 in Super Bowl XX.

Former Notre Dame left halfback Jim Crowley of 1924 "Four Horsemen" fame dies at Scranton, Pa., January 15 at age 83, having coached Fordham's 1937 "Seven Blocks of Granite" defensive line in 1937.

Susan Butcher wins the Iditarod Trail Dog Sled Race (now 1,157 miles; see 1985). She will win it again next year, in 1988, and in 1990.

The Boston Celtics beat the Chicago Bulls 135 to 131 at the Boston Garden April 20 despite a record 63 points scored by Bulls guard Michael Jordan in the NBA playoff game. Jordan broke his left foot in October of last year and missed 4½ months of the season. The Celtics select University of Maryland basketball star Leonard K. "Len" Bias, 22, June 17, but he dies of a cocaine overdose 2 days later.

Texas-born jockey Willie Shoemaker wins the Kentucky Derby at age 54 riding a 17-to-1 shot (Ferdinand) to crown a 37-year racing career. Retired jockey Sir Gordon Richards dies at Kintbury, Berkshire, November 10 at age 82.

Boris Becker wins in men's singles at Wimbledon, Martina Navratilova in women's singles; Ivan Lendl wins in U.S. men's singles, Navratilova in women's singles.

Argentina wins the 13th World Cup football (soccer) championship, defeating West Germany 3 to 2 at Mexico City.

Golfer Jack Nicklaus wins his sixth Masters Tournament. Now 46, Nicklaus has won 71 official PGA events, a record topped only by Sam Snead, now 74, who won 84 events, and he has finished among the top three in 45 of the 100 major championships in which he has competed.

Baseball all-star Hank Greenberg dies at Beverly Hills, Calif., September 4 at age 75.

The New York Mets win the World Series, beating the Boston Red Sox 4 games to 3 after a ball rolls through the legs of Boston's first baseman in Game 6.

New York-born boxer Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson, 20, wins the world heavyweight boxing title November 23, knocking out Trevor Berbic, 29, in the second round of a bout at Las Vegas.

Trends:

Nintendo video games debut in America and wow the youngsters with sophisticated graphics and entries like "The Legend of Zelda", in which the hero, Link, must rescue Zelda. Founded in 1898 to manufacture playing cards, Nintendo has U.S. sales of $300 million as kids demand the $100 players and $35 to $40 cartridges. Sales will hit $830 million next year and top $3.4 billion by 1990.

Levi Strauss introduces a line of khaki casual pants in the fall under the name Dockers.

Whirlpool bath inventor Candido Jacuzzi dies at Scottsdale, Ariz., October 7 at age 83.

Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn is introduced by General Mills in January; it comes in natural or butter flavor, requires no refrigeration, and can be popped in less than 5 minutes in a microwave oven. U.S. consumption of popcorn has reached nearly 11 billion quarts—46 per capita, and Pop Secret will soon be second only to Orville Redenbacher in the $240 million microwave popcorn market. Pop Secret Light in both flavors will be introduced in 1990 with 50 percent less fat than the original.

Campbell Soup Co. replaces the aluminum trays in its Swanson frozen dinners with plastic trays that permit the products to be microwaved.

McDonald's and Burger King stop frying most foods in beef fat and release ingredient information for the first time, partly in response to pressure from the 15-year-old Center for Science in the Public Interest. McDonald's introduces salads in its outlets and will reduce the fat content in its Big Mac sauce, adopt a policy of using only 100 percent vegetable oil in frying, serve 1 percent low-fat milk, make all its milkshakes and frozen yogurt desserts from 1 percent milk, and serve cholesterol-free blueberry and apple-bran muffins.