1989 History

 

1989  - What do you remember? 

In Technology the 486 series of microprocessor is released by Intel opening the way for the next generation of much more powerful PC's and Microsoft releases it's Office Suite including Spreadsheet, Word Processor, Database and Presentation Software which today still dominates in office applications. Following Massive protests against the Berlin Wall bringing about the collapse of The Berlin Wall and the East German Government both are dismantled which leads after many years to the reunification of East and West Germany. In China Pro democracy protestors clash with Chinese Security Forces in Tiananmen Square and the pictures of a man taking on a tank are seen on TV news throughout the world.

 

Cost of Living 1989

How Much things cost in 1989
Yearly Inflation Rate U.S.A. 4.83%
Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 2753
Interest Rates Year End Federal Reserve 10.50%
Average Cost of new house $120,000.00
Average Income per year $27,450.00
Average Monthly Rent $420.00
Average Price for new car $15,3500.00
1 gallon of gas 97 cents
US Postage Stamp 25 cents

 

What Events Happened in 1989 

  • USSR pulls out of Afghanistan 
  • 200,000 protesters in Prague, Czechoslovakia call for the resignation of the country's communist government in the "Velvet Revolution".
  • Thousands of Students occupy Tiananmen Square in Beijing China protesting for democracy , Chinese Government Declares martial law and Hundreds of Demonstrators are killed 
  • Following the Tiananmen Square incident the US and other countries around the world place sanctions on China
  • George Bush Snr becomes president of the United States
  • The United States Supreme Court ruled that flag burning as a form of political protest is an act of protected speech under the First Amendment to the Constitution.
  • Toyota launches it's luxury brand the Lexus
  • The Mirage Hotel and Casino opens in Las Vegas as the first huge resort hotel
  • In Egypt, a 4,400-year-old mummy is found in the Great Pyramid of Giza
  • In Alaska's Prince William Sound the Exxon Valdez spills 240,000 barrels (11 million gallons) of oil after running aground
  • Leona Helmsley the billionaire hotel operator is convicted on Tax Fraud Charges
  • The Serial Killer Ted Bundy is executed in Florida
  • Prieta earthquake, measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale, strikes San Francisco Bay Area in California, killing 63
  • Hugo ( Category 5 ) strikes Puerto Rico, St. Croix, Guadeloupe, Montserrat, South Carolina and North Carolina, the hurricane claimed over 80 lives and in 1989 was the costliest hurricane in financial terms up the that date.  
  • Yugo Cars go bankrupt
  • Ford buys Jaguar 
  • After 30 years the Cold War between East and West ends following the Malta conference and the Berlin Wall comes down
  • The US Government provides a $150 billion bail out for hundreds of saving and loan associations

 

Technology

  • The first of 24 satellites of the Global Positioning System is placed into orbit
  • Nintendo begin selling the Game Boy in Japan
  • Voyager II passes the planet Neptune and its moon Triton and sends pictures back to earth.
  • The 486 series of microprocessor introduced by Intel.
  • Scientists pronounce 1989 as the warmest on record possibly a sign of the greenhouse effect
  • Florida and Virginia allow use of DNA genetic fingerprinting evidence as admissible
  • First release of Microsoft Office. which was a bundle of Microsoft's office applications, such as Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel , Dependent on the Version you purchased would depend on which applications were included

 

 

Popular Culture 1989

  • The first episodes of the Simpsons are shown

Popular Films

  • Batman
  • Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
  • Lethal Weapon 2
  • Twins
  • Back to the Future Part II
  • Ghostbusters II
  • The Little Mermaid
  • Driving Miss Daisy
  • Parenthood
  • Dead Poets Society
  • Licence to Kill
  • Honey, I Shrunk The Kids
  • My Left Foot
  • When Harry Met Sally.

Popular Musicians

  • Duran Duran
  • Paul McCartney
  • Phil Collins
  • Prince
  • Madonna
  • Erasure
  • The Bangles
  • Madonna
  • New Kids On The Block
  • Cher
  • R.E.M
  • Depeche Mode
  • Paula Abdul
  • Garth Brooks
  • Elvis Costello