November 1, 1981 (Sunday)

• The nation of Antigua and Barbuda
  Antigua and Barbuda
  Antigua and Barbuda is a twin-island nation lying between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It consists of two major inhabited islands, Antigua and Barbuda, and a number of smaller islands...
  
   gained independence
  Independence
  Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state in which its residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory....
  
   from the United Kingdom
  United Kingdom
  The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
  
  . At midnight in St. John's, Antigua, the British flag was hauled down and the Antiguan flag raised in its place at the city's cricket park. Princess Margaret, appearing on behalf of her sister, Queen Elizabeth II, presented the instruments of state to Prime Minister Vere Cornwall Bird.
• Paid maternity leave was introduced in the Soviet Union as part of the 11th Party Congress reforms.
• Born: LaTavia Roberson
  LaTavia Roberson
  LaTavia Marie Roberson is a two-time Grammy Award–winning American contralto singer-songwriter, as well as an original member of Girl's Tyme which later became Destiny's Child. She was eventually replaced by Farrah Franklin in 2000. She was an original founder of the group with Beyoncé as they...
  
  , American singer (Destiny's Child
  Destiny's Child
  Destiny's Child was an American R&B girl group whose final line-up comprised lead singer Beyoncé Knowles alongside Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. Formed in 1997 in Houston, Texas, Destiny's Child members began their musical endeavors in their pre-teens under the name Girl's Tyme...
  
  ), in Houston

November 2, 1981 (Monday)

• At the U.S. Polaris nuclear submarine base at the Holy Loch
  Holy Loch
  The Holy Loch is a sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland.Robertson's Yard at Sandbank, a village on the loch, was a major wooden boat building company in the late 19th and early 20th centuries....
  
   in Scotland, a Poseidon missile slipped from a crane that was transferring the weapon from the floating drydock USS Los Alamos to the submarine tender USS Holland
  USS Holland (AS-32)
  USS Holland was a submarine tender launched by the Ingalls Shipbuilding Company in Pascagoula, Mississippi on 19 January 1963. The first ever built specifically to service Fleet Ballistic Missile submarines , she was sponsored by Mrs. John C. Stennis, wife of US Senator John C. Stennis and...
  
  . The missile fell 17 feet without incident, although the magazine New Statesman
  New Statesman
  New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
  
   reported in its November 27 issue that the missile had ten nuclear warheads, that there had been the risk of an explosion that could have released a large radioactive cloud, and that the crews had been evacuated. Although the story has sometimes been retold as an incident where "we almost nuked Scotland" and that the fully armed Poseidon missile "did not detonate, but it could have", the magazine itself emphasized that "The risk was not thermonuclear explosion but detonation in the fierce, sensitive chemical explosives of the warhead trigger-system" that would have released a radioactive cloud.
• Born: Tatiana Totmianina
  Tatiana Totmianina
  Tatiana Ivanovna Totmianina is a Russian pair skater. With partner Maxim Marinin, she is the 2006 Olympic Champion, two-time World Champion, and five-time European Champion...
  
  , Russian pair figure skater, two-time world champion and Olympic gold medalis; in Perm
  Perm
  Perm is a city and the administrative center of Perm Krai, Russia, located on the banks of the Kama River, in the European part of Russia near the Ural Mountains. From 1940 to 1957 it was named Molotov ....
  
  ; and Katharine Isabelle
  Katharine Isabelle
  Katherine Isobel Murray , better known by her screen name Katharine Isabelle, is a Canadian actress, best known for her portrayal of Ginger in Ginger Snaps, and as Gibb in Freddy vs. Jason.-Biography:...
  
  , Canadian actress, in Vancouver
  Vancouver
  Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
  
  
• Died: Kenneth Oakley
  Kenneth Oakley
  Kenneth Page Oakley was an English physical anthropologist, palaeontologist and geologist.Oakley, known for his work in the relative dating of fossils by fluorine content, was instrumental in the exposure in the 1950s of the Piltdown Man hoax.Oakley was born and died in Amersham,...
  
  , 70, English anthropologist whose testing exposed the Piltdown man
  Piltdown Man
  The Piltdown Man was a hoax in which bone fragments were presented as the fossilised remains of a previously unknown early human. These fragments consisted of parts of a skull and jawbone, said to have been collected in 1912 from a gravel pit at Piltdown, East Sussex, England...
  
   as a fraud.

November 3, 1981 (Tuesday)

• High school junior Anthony Jacques Broussard raped and strangled his 14 year old girlfriend, Marcy Conrad, in Milpitas, California
  Milpitas, California
  Milpitas is a city in Santa Clara County, California. It is a suburb of the major city of San Jose, California. It is located with San Jose to its south and Fremont to its north, at the eastern end of State Route 237 and generally between Interstates 680 and 880 which run roughly north/south...
  
  . "The unusual, and perhaps more disturbing, aspect of the crime was what ensued in the two days between the murder and the notification of police", an author would write later. Broussard not only bragged about the murder, he took at least 13 of his classmates to see the body before one of them finally told the police.
• Demonstrators marched in Codrington, on the island of Barbuda, the smaller (population 1,200) of the islands of Antigua and Barbuda, in support of secession from the newly independent nation. T. Hilbourne Frank, president of Codrington's village council, declared that at least 75% of the people wanted to separate from the more populous (76,000 people) island of Antigua.

November 4, 1981 (Wednesday)

• Dr. George C. Nichopoulos
  George C. Nichopoulos
  George Constantine Nichopoulos also known as "Dr. Nick" is a former American doctor, of Greek descent. He is best known as Elvis Presley's personal physician, and controversial due to the singer's longstanding and ultimately fatal abuse of prescription drugs.- Career :Born in Pittsburgh,...
  
  , who had been indicted for overprescribing addictive drugs to Elvis Presley
  Elvis Presley
  Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
  
   (and indirectly causing Presley's death) was acquitted of all charges.
• Eagerly anticipated as mankind's first trip into space on a reused vehicle, the second launch of the space shuttle Columbia
  STS-2
  STS-2 was a Space Shuttle mission conducted by NASA, using the Space Shuttle Columbia. The mission launched on 12 November 1981. It was the second shuttle mission overall, and was also the second mission for Columbia...
  
   was called off, literally at the last minute. Countdown halted at 00:00:31 when a computer detected an increase of oil pressure two of the three auxiliary power units.
• Hungary
  Hungary
  Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
  
   applied to the World Bank
  World Bank
  The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
  
  . It was only the second Communist nation to join.
• The Vietnamese Buddhist Songha
  Buddhism in Vietnam
  Buddhism in Vietnam as practiced by the ethnic Vietnamese is mainly of the Mahāyāna tradition. Buddhism came to Vietnam as early as the 2nd century CE through the North from Central Asia and via Southern routes from India...
  
   was created in Hanoi
  Hanoi
  Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
  
   at the behest of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, as the only legal religious organization in that nation, accountable to its government. P
• After a successful off-Broadway run, Crimes of the Heart
  Crimes of the Heart
  Crimes of the Heart is a play by Beth Henley.-Synopsis:At the core of the tragic comedy are the three Magrath sisters, Meg, Babe, and Lenny, who reunite at Old Granddaddy's home in Hazlehurst, Mississippi after Babe shoots her abusive husband. The trio was raised in a dysfunctional family with a...
  
   began a run at the John Golden Theatre. Playwright Beth Henley
  Beth Henley
  Elizabeth Becker "Beth" Henley is an American dramatist and actress. She writes primarily about women's issues and family in the Southern United States. She is also a screenwriter who has written many film adaptations of her plays...
  
  , who had been encouraged by friends four years earlier to put her script into production, would later win a Pulitzer Prize for the play, the first of several successful efforts.
• The first transfer of land was made under the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act 1981, as South Australia
  South Australia
  South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
  
  n premier David Tonkin
  David Tonkin
  Dr David Oliver Tonkin AO was the 38th Premier of South Australia, serving from 18 September 1979 to 10 November 1982. He was elected to the House of Assembly seat of Bragg at the 1970 election, serving until 1983. He became the leader of the South Australian division of the Liberal Party of...
  
   transferred 102,630 km² (39,625 ²) back to the control of the Australian Aborigines
  Australian Aborigines
  Australian Aborigines , also called Aboriginal Australians, from the latin ab originem , are people who are indigenous to most of the Australian continentthat is, to mainland Australia and the island of Tasmania...
  
   the aboriginal landholder.
• Poland
  Poland
  Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
  
  's Communist Party leader, General Wojciech Jaruzelski
  Wojciech Jaruzelski
  Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski is a retired Polish military officer and Communist politician. He was the last Communist leader of Poland from 1981 to 1989, Prime Minister from 1981 to 1985 and the country's head of state from 1985 to 1990. He was also the last commander-in-chief of the Polish People's...
  
   conferred with Solidarnosc leader Lech Wałęsa
  Lech Wałęsa
  Lech Wałęsa is a Polish politician, trade-union organizer, and human-rights activist. A charismatic leader, he co-founded Solidarity , the Soviet bloc's first independent trade union, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, and served as President of Poland between 1990 and 95.Wałęsa was an electrician...
  
   in a meeting arranged by Cardinal Józef Glemp to last-ditch effort to resolve the labor crisis in that nation. Wałęsa declined to put the independent union under government control, and a crackdown would follow a month later.
• Born: Vince Wilfork
  Vince Wilfork
  -2004–06 seasons:The Patriots drafted Wilfork with the 21st overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. In his rookie 2004 season with the Patriots, he compiled two sacks, 42 tackles, and three deflected passes...
  
  , American NFL player, in Boynton Beach, Florida
  Boynton Beach, Florida
  Boynton Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 60,389 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the city had a population of 66,714 according to the University of Florida, Bureau of Economic and Business Research...
  
  

November 5, 1981 (Thursday)

• Following an all-night meeting in Ottawa
  Ottawa
  Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
  
   of nine of the premiers
  Premier (Canada)
  In Canada, a premier is the head of government of a province or territory. There are currently ten provincial premiers and three territorial premiers in Canada....
  
   of the ten provinces of Canada
  Canada
  Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
  
  , an agreement was reached on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
  Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
  The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada. It forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982...
  
  . Excluded was Rene Levesque
  René Lévesque
  René Lévesque was a reporter, a minister of the government of Quebec, , the founder of the Parti Québécois political party and the 23rd Premier of Quebec...
  
   of Quebec
  Quebec
  Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
  
  , who was told of the results at breakfast later that morning. The agreement of the leaders of the English-speaking provinces was that the power to opt out of application of an amendment to the future Constitution of Canada
  Constitution of Canada
  The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada; the country's constitution is an amalgamation of codified acts and uncodified traditions and conventions. It outlines Canada's system of government, as well as the civil rights of all Canadian citizens and those in Canada...
  
   would be limited to matters of education or culture.
• It was announced from Buckingham Palace
  Buckingham Palace
  Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
  
   that Princess Diana was pregnant and that her due date would be in June. Prince William would be born on June 21, 1982.
• The Glucometer, the first portable meter to measure blood sugar levels of patients with diabetes, was introduced.
• Died: Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, 16th Karmapa Lama, 57, spiritual leader of the Karma Kagyu
  Karma Kagyu
  Karma Kagyu , or Kamtsang Kagyu, is probably the largest and certainly the most widely practiced lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage has long-standing monasteries in Tibet, China, Russia, Mongolia, India, Nepal, and Bhutan, and current...
  
   system of Tibetan Buddhism, at a hospital in Zion, Illinois
  Zion, Illinois
  Zion is a city in Lake County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,866 at the 2000 census, and estimated at 24,303 as of 2005. The city was founded in July 1901 by John Alexander Dowie. He also started the Zion Tabernacle of the Christian Catholic Apostolic Church, which was the only...
  
  . There is a dispute
  Karmapa controversy
  The recognition of the Seventeenth Karmapa, the head of the Karma Kagyu sect of Tibetan Buddhism, has been the subject of controversy. Since the death of the sixteenth Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, in 1981, two candidates have been put forward:...
  
   within the Karma Kagyu as to whether he was reincarnated as Ogyen Trinley Dorje (b. 1985) or Trinley Thaye Dorje (b. 1983)

November 6, 1981 (Friday)

• What was intended as a "tune-up" bout for WBC heavyweight boxing champion Larry Holmes
  Larry Holmes
  Larry Holmes is a former professional boxer. He grew up in Easton, Pennsylvania, which gave birth to his boxing nickname, The Easton Assassin....
  
   nearly became an upset when unheralded challenger Renaldo Snipes
  Renaldo Snipes
  Renaldo Snipes, born Reenaold Snipes on August 15, 1956 in Houston, Texas, is an accomplished American boxer, best known for his title championship bout with Larry Holmes.-Amateur career:...
  
   nearly knocked out Holmes in the 7th round in their fight at Pittsburgh. A powerful overhand right by Snipes sent Holmes to the canvas, and the champ staggered into the post in his corner. Holmes came back into the fight as the count reached 8 and continued. In the 11th round, referee Rudy Ortega stopped the fight as Holmes was hitting Snipes with a barrage of punches, and declared Holmes the winner.
• The government of Sweden
  Sweden
  Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
  
   permitted Soviet submarine U-137 to leave its territorial waters, nine days after the sub had run aground while approaching the Karlskrona naval base
  Karlskrona naval base
  Karlskrona naval base is the largest naval base of the Swedish Navy located in Blekinge in southern Sweden. The naval base has intimate ties with the city of Karlskrona. It has an exceptionally well sheltered location: arcs of islands provide a strong defense not only from the sea but also from...
  
  .
• Born: Cassie Bernall
  Cassie Bernall
  Cassie René Bernall was a student killed in the Columbine High School massacre, at age 17.Initial reports suggested that one of the assailants, either Eric Harris or Dylan Klebold, asked Bernall if she believed in God moments before fatally shooting her. She was reported to have answered "Yes, I...
  
  , American victim of the Columbine High School massacre
  Columbine High School massacre
  The Columbine High School massacre occurred on Tuesday, April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School in Columbine, an unincorporated area of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States, near Denver and Littleton. Two senior students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, embarked on a massacre, killing 12...
  
   and subject of the book She Said Yes; in Wheat Ridge, Colorado
  Wheat Ridge, Colorado
  The City of Wheat Ridge is a Home Rule Municipality located in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. Wheat Ridge is a western suburb of Denver. The Wheat Ridge Municipal Center is approximately west-northwest of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver...
  
   (killed 1999)

November 7, 1981 (Saturday)

• The skeleton of Saint Lucy
  Saint Lucy
  Saint Lucy , also known as Saint Lucia, was a wealthy young Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint by Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Orthodox Christians. Her feast day in the West is 13 December; with a name derived from lux, lucis "light", she is the patron saint of those who are...
  
  , who was martyred in the year 304
  304
  Year 304 was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valerius and Valerius...
  
   and was designated at the patron saint
  Patron saint
  A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
  
   of eyesight, was taken by two masked youths from the Church of San Geremia in Venice
  Venice
  Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
  
  , near the Santa Lucia railway station. Saint Lucy and her relics were recovered on December 13, 1981, which coincided with her feast day. Gianfranco Tiozzo was arrested at a hunting lodge in nearby Marcon
  Marcon
  Marcon is a comune in the province of Venice, the region of Veneto, Italy.It contains the hamlets of Gaggio and San Liberale. It is bordered by Mogliano Veneto, Quarto d'Altino, and Venice.-External links:...
  
  , where Lucy's remains had been kept by him.;
• Colonel Ryszard Kukliński
  Ryszard Kuklinski
  Ryszard Jerzy Kukliński was a Polish colonel, Cold War spy and whistleblower. He passed top secret Warsaw Pact documents to the CIA between 1971 and 1981...
  
  , the Chief of Strategic Defense Planning for the People's Army of Poland, escaped to West Germany along with his wife and children, then flew to the United States four days later. Only after his departure was it revealed that the adviser to General Jaruzelski had been spying for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency
  Central Intelligence Agency
  The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
  
   since 1970.
• Died: Will Durant
  Will Durant
  William James Durant was a prolific American writer, historian, and philosopher. He is best known for The Story of Civilization, 11 volumes written in collaboration with his wife Ariel Durant and published between 1935 and 1975...
  
  , 96, American historian and co-author, with his wife Ariel Durant
  Ariel Durant
  Ariel Durant was the co-author of The Story of Civilization.-Biography:Durant was born in Proskurov as Chaya Kaufman to Ethel Appel Kaufman and Joseph Kaufman. The family emigrated to the United States in 1901. She met her future husband, Will Durant, while a student at Ferrer Modern School in...
  
  , of The Story of Civilization

November 8, 1981 (Sunday)

• Belgian general election, 1981
  Belgian general election, 1981
  General elections were held in Belgium on 8 November 1981. The Christian People's Party emerged as the largest party, with 43 of the 212 seats in the Chamber of Representatives. Voter turnout was 94.5% in the Chamber election and 94.6% in the Senate election....
  
  : Mark Eyskens
  Mark Eyskens
  Marc Maria Frans, Viscount Eyskens , known as Mark Eyskens , is a Belgian economist and politician in the Christian People's Party , now called Christian Democratic and Flemish, and briefly served as Prime Minister of Belgium in 1981.-Background:He was born in Leuven, the son of Gaston Eyskens, and...
  
   was forced out of office as Prime Minister of Belgium after only eight months. The French and Flemish Christian Democratic Party candidates lost 21 seats overall, while the two Belgian Socialist parties gained 3 seats, giving the two groups each 61 seats. Wilfried Martens
  Wilfried Martens
  Wilfried Martens is a Belgian politician. He was born in Sleidinge . Martens was the 44th Prime Minister of Belgium from 3 April 1979 to 6 April 1981 and 17 December 1981 to 7 March 1992....
  
  , whose government had collapsed in April, formed a coalition that lasted until 1992
• Born: Joe Cole
  Joe Cole
  Joseph John "Joe" Cole is an English footballer who plays for Lille, on loan from Liverpool, and the England national football team as midfielder. He started his career with where he played more than 100 games during five years, until he left for Chelsea in 2003...
  
  , English footballer, in Islington
  Islington
  Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
  
  

November 9, 1981 (Monday)

• Edict No. 81-234 legally abolished slavery in Mauritania
  Slavery in Mauritania
  Slavery in Mauritania is an entrenched phenomenon the national government has repeatedly tried to abolish, banning the practice in 1905, 1981, and August 2007...
  
  . Edward H. Lawson and Mary Lou Bertucci, Encyclopedia of Human Rights (Taylor & Francis, 1996) p990. Despite bans made by the French colonial administration in 1905 and by the Mauritanian government in 1960 and 1980, the practice persisted, and a report to the U.N. Human Rights Commission  by the London-based Anti-Slavery Society
  Anti-Slavery Society
  The Anti-Slavery Society or A.S.S. was the everyday name of two different British organizations.The first was founded in 1823 and was committed to the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. Its official name was the Society for the Mitigation and Gradual Abolition of Slavery Throughout the...
  
   estimated that the nation of 1.5 million people had 100,000 slaves.

November 10, 1981 (Tuesday)

• David Stockman
  David Stockman
  David Alan Stockman is a former U.S. politician and businessman, serving as a Republican U.S. Representative from the state of Michigan and as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget ....
  
  , the budget director for President Reagan, was celebrating his 35th birthday when the December issue of The Atlantic magazine reached newsstands with the article "The Education of David Stockman". In the article, based on Stockman's interviews by William Greider
  William Greider
  William Greider is an American journalist and author who writes primarily about economics.His most recent book is . Before that he published The Soul of Capitalism: Opening Paths to a Moral Economy, which explores the basis and history of the corporation and how people can influence further...
  
  , the President's chief economic strategist criticized supply-side economics
  Supply-side economics
  Supply-side economics is a school of macroeconomic thought that argues that economic growth can be most effectively created by lowering barriers for people to produce goods and services, such as lowering income tax and capital gains tax rates, and by allowing greater flexibility by reducing...
  
  . Democrats in Congress were quick to cite the article as proof that the President's program would not work. Stockman protested that his comments had been made off the record with understanding that they would not be published. Stockman remained as OMB Director, but with less influence than he had had as an adviser.
• Born: Jason Dunham
  Jason Dunham
  Jason Lee Dunham was a Corporal in the United States Marine Corps who earned the Medal of Honor while serving with 3rd Battalion 7th Marines during the Iraq War. While on a patrol in Husaybah, his unit was attacked and he deliberately covered an enemy grenade to save nearby Marines...
  
  , American Medal of Honor recipient (killed 2004), in Scio, New York
  Scio, New York
  Scio is a town in Allegany County, New York, United States. The population was 1,914 at the 2000 census. The town is in the southern half of the county and north of the Village of Wellsville.- History :...
  
  ; and Tony Blanco
  Tony Blanco
  Tony Hemiphere Blanco is a professional baseball player , He last played in Major League Baseball for the Washington Nationals...
  
  , Dominican-born Japanese baseball star, in San Juan de la Maguana
  San Juan de la Maguana
  San Juan de la Maguana is the capital city and the largest city in the province of San Juan and is the 10th largest city in the Dominican Republic.-References:...
  
  
• Died: Abel Gance
  Abel Gance
  Abel Gance was a French film director and producer, writer and actor. He is best known for three major silent films: J'accuse , La Roue , and the monumental Napoléon .-Early life:...
  
  , 92, French film director

November 11, 1981 (Wednesday)

• The USS Ohio was commissioned at Groton, Connecticut
  Groton, Connecticut
  Groton is a town located on the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 39,907 at the 2000 census....
  
  . At the time, it was the largest submarine to begin service, and was the first Ohio class submarine
  Ohio class submarine
  The Ohio class is a class of nuclear-powered submarines used by the United States Navy. The United States has 18 Ohio-class submarines:...
  
  , designed to carry 24 Trident II missiles, each missile in turn capable of carrying 17 nuclear warheads. On December 12, 1981, an even larger class of subs, the Soviet Typhoon class submarine
  Typhoon class submarine
  The Project 941 or Akula, Russian "Акула" class submarine is a type of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine deployed by the Soviet Navy in the 1980s...
  
  , was first commissioned with the launch of the TK-208. U.S. Vice-President, and future President George H.W. Bush declared, "If she is successful in her life's mission, she will never fire a shot. Her purpose is to deter enemies of the United States, potential enemies of the free world. Her mission is to preserve peace."
• Fernando Valenzuela
  Fernando Valenzuela
  Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea is a Mexican former left-handed pitcher, most notably with the Los Angeles Dodgers.In 1981, the 20-year-old Valenzuela took Los Angeles by storm, winning his first 8 decisions and leading the Dodgers to the World Championship...
  
   became first rookie to win the Cy Young Award
  Cy Young Award
  The Cy Young Award is an honor given annually in baseball to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball , one each for the American League and National League . The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young, who died in 1955...
  
  , given to the best pitcher in Major League Baseball
  Major League Baseball
  Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
  
   as voted by the Baseball Writers Association of America
  Baseball Writers Association of America
  The Baseball Writers' Association of America is a professional association for baseball journalists writing for daily newspapers, magazines and qualifying Web sites. The BBWAA was founded on October 14, 1908, to improve working conditions for sportswriters in the early part of the 20th century...
  
  . Valenzuela received 70 points overall based on 5 for first place, 3 for second and 1 for third, finishing ahead of Tom Seaver
  Tom Seaver
  George Thomas "Tom" Seaver , nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "The Franchise", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched from 1967-1986 for four different teams in his career, but is noted primarily for his time with the New York Mets...
  
   by the margin of a single second-place vote.
• Born: Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg
  Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg
  Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg has been heir apparent to the crown of Luxembourg since his father's accession in 2000.-Early life and education:...
  
  , heir apparent to the throne since 2000; Natalie Glebova
  Natalie Glebova
  Natalie Glebova is a Russian Canadian beauty queen, the 2005 Miss Universe title holder.-Personal life:Glebova was born in Tuapse, Russia. She studied classical piano and graduated from a professional musical school at age of 12. She also has won various regional rhythmic gymnastics championships...
  
  , Russian-born Canadian beauty queen, Miss Universe
  Miss Universe
  Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
  
   in 2005, in Tuapse
  Tuapse
  Tuapse is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the northeast shore of the Black Sea, south of Gelendzhik and north of Sochi. It serves as the administrative center of Tuapsinsky District, although administratively it is separate from it...
  
  , USSR; and Jyothika Saravanan
  Jyothika Saravanan
  Jyothika Sadanah-Saravanan is a former Indian film actress who predominantly appeared in Tamil films. She also acted in a few Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu and Hindi films. She gained critical acclaim for her performances in Kushi, Perazhagan, Chandramukhi and Mozhi, winning one Filmfare and three...
  
  , Indian Tamil film actress, in Mumbai
  Mumbai
  Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
  
  

November 12, 1981 (Thursday)

• The space shuttle Columbia
  STS-2
  STS-2 was a Space Shuttle mission conducted by NASA, using the Space Shuttle Columbia. The mission launched on 12 November 1981. It was the second shuttle mission overall, and was also the second mission for Columbia...
  
   became the first space vehicle to be reused, launching at 10:09 am from Cape Canaveral with astronauts Joe Engle and Richard Truly. It was only the second shuttle mission overall. A failure of some of the fuel cells forced the early end of the mission, and Engle and Truly landed two days later.
• November 12, 1981, had also been the date, planned back in 1969, for the launch of a manned mission to Mars, based on the expected planning time and the proximity of Earth to Mars and Venus. Cuts to NASA budget in 1970 stopped the project, but the plan had been for a nine month trip to Mars, with arrival on August 9, 1982; ten weeks of exploration ending with departure on October 28, 1982; a flyby of Venus February 28, 1983; and a return to Earth on August 14, 1983.
• Double Eagle V
  Double Eagle V
  Double Eagle V, piloted by Ben Abruzzo, Larry Newman, Ron Clark and Rocky Aoki, was the first balloon to cross the Pacific Ocean. It launched from Nagashima, Japan on November 10, 1981, and landed in Mendocino National Forest in California 84 hours and 31 minutes later, travelling a record 5,768...
  
   became the first balloon to cross the Pacific Ocean. After launching on November 10 from Nagashima
  Nagashima
  ' was a series of fortresses and fortifications controlled by the Ikkō-ikki, a sect of warrior monks in Japan's Sengoku period who opposed samurai rule. It was attacked and destroyed by Oda Nobunaga in the 1570s...
  
  , Japan
  Japan
  Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
  
   with four men (Rocky Aoki, Ron Clark, Larry Newman and Ben Abruzzo
  Ben Abruzzo
  Benjamin L. Abruzzo was an American hot air balloonist and businessman. He helped increase the reputation of Albuquerque as a center of lighter-than-air and hot-air ballooning.-Biography:...
  
  ) and crossing the International Date Line
  International Date Line
  The International Date Line is a generally north-south imaginary line on the surface of the Earth, passing through the middle of the Pacific Ocean, that designates the place where each calendar day begins...
  
  , the Double Eagle traveled 5,768 miles and landed 84 hours and 31 minutes later in the U.S., near Covelo, California
  Covelo, California
  Covelo is a census-designated place in Mendocino County, California, United States. Covelo is located east-northeast of Laytonville, at an elevation of 1398 feet...
  
  .

November 13, 1981 (Friday)

• The Canadarm, officially the Remote Manipulator System, was used for the first time on the second day of the Columbia mission. Astronaut Richard Truly began the successful test of the robotic arm at 1400 UTC "Flight History of Canadarm", Canadian Space Agency. With a reach of 15 meters, the robotic arm was used in space shuttle missions to bring satellites out of orbit and into the cargo bay for repair, and then redeployment. Designed with a grant from the National Research Council of Canada, and built in Toronto
  Toronto
  Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
  
   at the Spar Aerospace
  Spar Aerospace
  SPAR Aerospace was a Canadian aerospace company. It produced equipment for the Canadian Space Agency to be used in cooperation with NASA's Space Shuttle program, most notably the Canadarm remote manipulator system....
  
   factory, the device was famous as "Canada's contribution to the US space shuttle program".
• The Tokyo daily newspaper Mainichi Shimbun
  Mainichi Shimbun
  The is one of the major newspapers in Japan, published by .-History:The history of the Mainichi Shimbun begins with founding of two papers during the Meiji period. The Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun was founded first, in 1872. The Mainichi claims that it is the oldest existing Japanese daily newspaper...
  
   reported that U.S. National Security Adviser Richard Allen
  Richard Allen
  - Arts :*Dick Allen , American poet, literary critic and academic*Richard Allen , British painter*Richard Allen , British novelist*Richard J...
  
   had accepted a $1,000 payment from the Japanese women's magazine Shufunotomo, in return for arranging an interview with Nancy Reagan, on January 21
  January 1981
  January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in January 1981.-January 1, 1981 :...
  
   . Allen confirmed the story, but said that he had forgotten that the cash was in his office safe. Though Allen was cleared of wrongdoing, he was asked by President Reagan to resign on January 4, 1982.

November 14, 1981 (Saturday)

• Rev. Robert Bradford
  Robert Bradford (NI politician)
  Robert Jonathan Bradford MP was a Vanguard Unionist and Ulster Unionist Member of Parliament for the Belfast South constituency in Northern Ireland until he was killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army on 14 November 1981....
  
  , 40, member of the United Kingdom House of Commons for South Belfast, Northern Ireland, was assassinated by three Irish Republican Army members. Bradford had been at the community center in Finaghy
  Finaghy
  Finaghy is an electoral ward in the Balmoral district of Belfast City Council, Northern Ireland. It is based on the townland of Ballyfinaghy...
  
  , along with 60 teenagers who were attending a dance. A caretaker for the center was shot and killed as the gunmen fled, and Bradford, an outspoken critic of the IRA, died after being shot six times.

November 15, 1981 (Sunday)

• Abdus Sattar was confirmed as President of Bangladesh
  President of Bangladesh
  Since 1991, the President of Bangladesh is the head of state, a largely ceremonial post elected by the parliament. Since 1996, the President's role becomes more important after the term of the government has finished, when his executive authority is enhanced as laid down in the constitution of the...
  
   in an election suspected of being rigged. Running on the Nationalist Party ticket as one of 23 candidates, Sattar, who had been the acting President since the May 30
  May 1981
  January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in May 1981.-May 1, 1981 :...
  
   assassination of Ziaur Rahman
  Ziaur Rahman
  President Ziaur Rahman, Bir Uttam, was a Bangladeshi politician and general, who read the declaration of Independence of Bangladesh on March 26, 1971 on behalf of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He later became the seventh President of Bangladesh from 1977 until 1981...
  
  , officially received 14,217,601 votes, nearly two-thirds of those cast, while runner up Kamal Hossain of the Awami League got 5,694,884.
• A force of 100 paratroopers from Zaire, arrived in Chad
  Chad
  Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...
  
   as the first part of a peacekeeping
  Peacekeeping
  Peacekeeping is an activity that aims to create the conditions for lasting peace. It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking....
  
   mission by member nations of the Organisation of African Unity, to maintain order while occupying soldiers from Libya
  Libya
  Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
  
   departed. The contingent was followed by troops from Senegal
  Senegal
  Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
  
   and Nigeria
  Nigeria
  Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
  
  .
• Born: Lorena Ochoa
  Lorena Ochoa
  Lorena Ochoa Reyes is a Mexican professional golfer who played on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour from 2003 to 2010, and was the top-ranked female golfer in the world for over three years, from April 2007 to her retirement in May 2010...
  
  , Mexican-born golfer, in Guadalajara
• Died: Enid Markey
  Enid Markey
  Enid Markey was an American actress of stage, film and television. She originated the role of Jane in films, playing the character twice - in 1918 .Her first film role was in The Fortunes of War...
  
  , 87, American film actress who originated the role of "Jane"
  Jane Porter (Tarzan)
  Jane Porter is a major character in Edgar Rice Burroughs's series of Tarzan novels, and in adaptations of the saga to other media, particularly film.- In the novels :...
  
   in the 1918 silent Tarzan of the Apes; and Khawar Rizvi
  Khawar Rizvi
  Khawar Rizvi was a prominent poet of Urdu and Persian. He was respected as an enlightened intellectual and scholar as well. Mainly his fame is due to his poetry. His real name was Syed Sibte Hassan Rizvi. He adopted” Khawar” as his pen-name for writing poetry and essays. Khawar means in Persian...
  
  , 43, Pakistani poet

November 16, 1981 (Monday)

• The wedding of Luke and Laura was watched by 14 million households, setting a record, still standing, for an episode on a "daytime television
  Daytime television
  Daytime television is the general term for television shows produced that are intended to air during the daytime hours on weekdays. This article is about American daytime television, for information about international daytime television see Daytime television....
  
  " show. Luke Spencer (Tony Geary) and Laura Webber (Genie Francis
  Genie Francis
  Eugenie "Genie" Francis Frakes is an American actress known for her portrayal of Laura Spencer on the ABC daytime drama General Hospital. She is currently playing Genevieve Atkinson on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless...
  
  ) married on the American soap opera
  Soap opera
  A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
  
   General Hospital
  General Hospital
  General Hospital is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running American soap opera currently in production and the third longest running drama in television in American history after Guiding Light and As the World Turns....
  
  . It was estimated that 30,000,000 television viewers witnessed the fictitious ceremony.
• C. Everett Koop
  C. Everett Koop
  Charles Everett Koop, MD is an American pediatric surgeon and public health administrator. He was a vice admiral in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and served as thirteenth Surgeon General of the United States under President Ronald Reagan from 1982 to 1989.-Early years:Koop was born...
  
   was confirmed as the Surgeon General of the United States
  Surgeon General of the United States
  The Surgeon General of the United States is the operational head of the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and thus the leading spokesperson on matters of public health in the federal government...
  
   by a 68-24 in the United States Senate. The outspoken Koop would go on to become perhaps the most memorable holder of the office.
• Stephen Sondheim
  Stephen Sondheim
  Stephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
  
  's Merrily We Roll Along
  Merrily We Roll Along (musical)
  Merrily We Roll Along is a musical with a book by George Furth and lyrics and music by Stephen Sondheim. It is based on the 1934 play of the same name by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart....
  
   debuted at the Alvin Theatre and proved to be a rare flop for the otherwise successful composer and lyricist. The musical
  Musical theatre
  Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
  
   ran for only 16 performances.
• Died: William Holden, 63, American film actor died at his home, apparently after drinking heavily, tripping on a throw rug, and striking his head on the edge of a nightstand. Holden, who had won the 1953 Academy Award for Best Actor (for the film Stalag 17) had been the best man at the March 4, 1952 wedding of Ronald Reagan
  Ronald Reagan
  Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
  
   and Nancy Reagan
  Nancy Reagan
  Nancy Davis Reagan is the widow of former United States President Ronald Reagan and was First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989....
  
  . Film director Billy Wilder
  Billy Wilder
  Billy Wilder was an Austro-Hungarian born American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, artist, and journalist, whose career spanned more than 50 years and 60 films. He is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Hollywood's golden age...
  
   would later comment to the New York Times, "To be killed by a bottle of vodka and a night table! What a lousy fadeout for a great guy!"
• Died: Frank Malina
  Frank Malina
  Frank Joseph Malina was an American aeronautical engineer and painter, especially known for becoming both a pioneer in the art world and the realm of scientific engineering.-Early life:...
  
  , 69, American aeronautical engineer

November 17, 1981 (Tuesday)

• In a meeting of the National Security Council
  National Security Council
  A National Security Council is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security...
  
   at the White House
  White House
  The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
  
  , President Reagan made the decision to support the Contras
  Contras
  The contras is a label given to the various rebel groups opposing Nicaragua's FSLN Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction government following the July 1979 overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle's dictatorship...
  
  , a 500 man force that would fight the leftist government of Nicaragua
  Nicaragua
  Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
  
   and protect the right-wing government of El Salvador
  El Salvador
  El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
  
   against rebels.
• The occultation
  Occultation
  An occultation is an event that occurs when one object is hidden by another object that passes between it and the observer. The word is used in astronomy . It can also refer to any situation wherein an object in the foreground blocks from view an object in the background...
  
   of the star Sigma Sagittarii
  Sigma Sagittarii
  Sigma Sagittarii is the second brightest star system in the constellation Sagittarius.Its modern name Nunki is an Assyrian or Babylonian name recovered by archaeologists and made public by R.H.Allen....
  
   by the planet Venus
  Venus
  Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
  
   permitted astronomers to gather information about the second planet's atmosphere by measuring the decrease of light from the star. The last occultation by Venus of a star had been July 7, 1959, when Venus was directly between the Earth and Regulus
  Regulus
  Regulus is the brightest star in the constellation Leo and one of the brightest stars in the night sky, lying approximately 77.5 light years from Earth. Regulus is a multiple star system composed of four stars which are organized into two pairs...
  
  .
• Born: Sarah Harding
  Sarah Harding
  Sarah Nicole Harding is an English singer-songwriter, actress and model best known for being a member of the pop group Girls Aloud, formed through ITV's reality television programme Popstars: The Rivals...
  
  , British singer (Girls Aloud
  Girls Aloud
  Girls Aloud are a British and Irish pop girl group based in London. They were created through the ITV1 talent show Popstars The Rivals in 2002. The group consists of Cheryl Cole , Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. They are signed to Fascination Records, a Polydor...
  
  ), in Ascot, Berkshire
  Ascot, Berkshire
  Ascot is a village within the civil parish of Sunninghill and Ascot, in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Berkshire, England. It is most notable as the location of Ascot Racecourse, home of the prestigious Royal Ascot meeting...
  
  ; her bandmate, Kimberley Walsh
  Kimberley Walsh
  Kimberley Jane Walsh is an English singer-songwriter, dancer, model, television presenter and actress. She is best known for being a member of girl group Girls Aloud, formed through ITV's reality television programme Popstars: The Rivals...
  
  , was born three days later in Bradford
  Bradford
  Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
  
  

November 18, 1981 (Wednesday)

• In a speech to the National Press Club
  National Press Club
  The National Press Club is a professional organization and private social club for journalists. It is located in Washington, D.C. Its membership consists of journalists, former journalists, government information officers, and those considered to be regular news sources. It is well-known for its...
  
   in Washington D.C., President Reagan unveiled what he called the zero option
  Zero Option
  The "Zero Option" was the name given to an American proposal for the withdrawal of all Soviet and United States intermediate-range nuclear missiles from Europe. This term was subsequently expanded to describe the vision of eliminating all nuclear weapons everywhere.U.S. President Ronald Reagan...
  
   proposal, the first attempt to reduce the number of nuclear missiles. Reagan, also announced the term "START
  START I
  START was a bilateral treaty between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. The treaty was signed on 31 July 1991 and entered into force on 5 December 1994...
  
  " for upcoming negotiations in Vienna, with the goal being a Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, going beyond SALT (Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty) negotiations. The proposal was for the U.S. to cancel deployment of Pershing II missiles and cruise missiles if the U.S.S.R. made similar reductions of its arsenal of SS-20, SS-4 and SS-5 missiles.

November 19, 1981 (Thursday)

• In Durban
  Durban
  Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
  
  , South Africa
  South Africa
  The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
  
  , African National Congress
  African National Congress
  The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
  
   member and lawyer Griffiths Mxenge
  Griffiths Mxenge
  Griffiths Mxenge, was a South African anti-apartheid activist. Trained as a lawyer, he was assassinated by the apartheid secret police in 1981. He was a member of the African National Congress . He was sent to Robben Island in 1966 because of his political activities...
  
   was assassinated by four agents of the Vlakplaas
  Vlakplaas
  Vlakplaas is a farm 20km west of Pretoria that served as the headquarters of the South African Police counterinsurgency unit C10 working for the apartheid government in South Africa...
  
  , a secret paramilitary unit of the South African Police
  South African Police
  The South African Police was the country's police force until 1994. The SAP traced its origin to the Dutch Watch, a paramilitary organization formed by settlers in the Cape in 1655, initially to protect civilians against attack and later to maintain law and order...
  
  , directed by Colonel Eugene de Kock
  Eugene de Kock
  Eugene de Kock is a former colonel of the South African Police force during Apartheid in South Africa. Dubbed "Prime Evil" by the media, he was the commander of C1 unit of the South African Police counter-insurgency group, well known for kidnapping, torturing and murdering hundreds of...
  
   and Commander Dirk Coetzee
  Dirk Coetzee
  Dirk Coetzee was co-founder and commander of the covert South African Police unit based at Vlakplaas. He and his colleagues were involved in a number of atrocities including the murders of Sizwe Khondile and Griffiths Mxenge...
  
  . Mxenge, who was repeatedly stabbed and beaten by four men, was the first of many ANC activists who were killed by the police unit during the last decade of apartheid, including his wife Victoria Mxenge
  Victoria Mxenge
  Victoria Mxenge, was a South African anti-apartheid activist. Trained as a nurse and midwife, she began practising law....
  
  , who was murdered on August 1, 1985.

November 20, 1981 (Friday)

• World Chess Championship 1981
  World Chess Championship 1981
  The 1981 World Chess Championship was played between Anatoly Karpov and Viktor Korchnoi in Meran, Italy from October 1 to November 19, 1981. Karpov won.-Interzonals:Two Interzonal tournaments were held, one in Riga and the other in Rio de Janeiro...
  
  : Reigning champion Anatoly Karpov
  Anatoly Karpov
  Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov is a Russian chess grandmaster and former World Champion. He was the official world champion from 1975 to 1985 when he was defeated by Garry Kasparov. He played three matches against Kasparov for the title from 1986 to 1990, before becoming FIDE World Champion once...
  
   retained his title when challenger Viktor Korchnoi
  Viktor Korchnoi
  Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi ; pronounced in the original Russian as "karch NOY"; Ви́ктор Льво́вич Корчно́й, born March 23, 1931 is a professional chess player, author and currently the oldest active grandmaster on the tournament circuit...
  
   conceded the 18th game of the series, giving Karpov the sixth win in the match, that had started on October 1 at the Kurzentrum playing hall in Merano, Italy
  Italy
  Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
  
  . The game had been adjourned the day before. With the game set to resume at 5:00 pm, Korchnoi submitted his resignation of the game to chief referee Paul Klein at 3:15.
• The Canada-U.S. Boundary Settlement Treaty for the Gulf of Maine
  Gulf of Maine
  The Gulf of Maine is a large gulf of the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of North America.It is delineated by Cape Cod at the eastern tip of Massachusetts in the southwest and Cape Sable at the southern tip of Nova Scotia in the northeast. It includes the entire coastlines of the U.S...
  
   went into effect, after having been ratified by the U.S. Senate on June 3 and by the Canadian Senate on November 17.

November 21, 1981 (Saturday)

• In the largest anti-nuclear protest to that time, a crowd of 350,000 marched in Amsterdam
  Amsterdam
  Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
  
   against the deployment of American missiles in Europe.
• The Gibraltar-registered supertanker Globe Asimi ran aground in the Lithuanian S.S.R.
  Lithuania
  Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
  
   port of Klaipėda
  Klaipeda
  Klaipėda is a city in Lithuania situated at the mouth of the Nemunas River where it flows into the Baltic Sea. It is the third largest city in Lithuania and the capital of Klaipėda County....
  
   during a storm, and spilled 16,000 tons of fuel oil in the Baltic Sea
  Baltic Sea
  The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
  
  , much of which then washed on to the beaches of what was then a Soviet Union port. The Soviet solution for cleaning the coastline was to remove 600,000 tons of oil soaked sand and then to dump it into landfills, where it seeped into the groundwater.

November 22, 1981 (Sunday)

• The apostolic exhortation
  Apostolic exhortation
  An apostolic exhortation is a type of communication from the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church. It encourages a community of people to undertake a particular activity, but does not define Church doctrine...
  
   Familiaris Consortio
  Familiaris Consortio
  Familiaris Consortio is a postsynodal Apostolic Exhortation written by Pope John Paul II and promulgated on November 22, 1981.It describes the official position of the Roman Catholic Church concerning the meaning and role of marriage and the family,...
  
  , referred to in English as "On the Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World, was issued by Pope John Paul II
  Pope John Paul II
  Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
  
  .
• Sri Sathya Sai University, located in Anantapur
  Anantapur
  Anantapur is a city and a municipal corporation in Anantapur district in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is located south of state capital, Hyderabad and is the headquarters of the Anantapur District. Anantapur was headquarters of "Datta Mandalam" in 1799 and Sir Thomas Manro was the...
  
  , Andhra Pradesh
  Andhra Pradesh
  Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
  
   State in India
  India
  India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
  
  , was founded.
• Charles R. Schwab
  Charles R. Schwab
  Charles R. "Chuck" Schwab is the founder and chairman of the Charles Schwab Corporation.-Early life:Schwab was born in Sacramento, California. Despite having the same name, he is not related to Charles M. Schwab, the American steel magnate of the first half of the Twentieth Century...
  
   sold his brokerage to the Bank of America
  Bank of America
  Bank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
  
   for $53,000,000 as the company became publicly traded. Six years later, Schwab would pay $190,000,000 to regain full control.
• Died: Hans Adolf Krebs
  Hans Adolf Krebs
  Sir Hans Adolf Krebs was a German-born British physician and biochemist. Krebs is best known for his identification of two important metabolic cycles: the urea cycle and the citric acid cycle...
  
  , 81, German physician and biochemist, 1953 Nobel Prize laureate for whom the Krebs cycle is named

November 23, 1981 (Monday)

• England was swept by 105 tornadoes over the space of five hours. Normally, the United Kingdom has 30 tornadoes in an entire year. The twisters formed at random along a cold front sweeping from Anglesey to East Anglia.
• Iran-Contra scandal: President Reagan signed the top-secret NSDD-17, a National Security Decision Directive, authorizing the CIA to recruit and support Contra
  Contra
  Contra is a Latin preposition meaning "against". It is very frequently abbreviated to con, which is a separate preposition. It may refer to:*Contras, Nicaraguan counter-revolutionaries opposed to the Sandinistas...
  
   rebels in Nicaragua
  Nicaragua
  Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
  
   and allotting $19,950,000 funding.
• After 45 years, the New Jersey State Police
  New Jersey State Police
  The New Jersey State Police is the state police force for the state of New Jersey. It is a general-powers police agency with state wide jurisdiction when requested by the Governor, designated by Troop Sectors.-History:...
  
   files on the Lindbergh kidnapping
  Lindbergh kidnapping
  The kidnapping of Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., was the abduction of the son of aviator Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. The toddler, 18 months old at the time, was abducted from his family home in East Amwell, New Jersey, near the town of Hopewell, New Jersey, on the evening of...
  
   were opened for public viewing. The release of the files had followed a lawsuit brought by Anna Hauptmann, the widow of Bruno Hauptmann
  Bruno Hauptmann
  Bruno Richard Hauptmann was a German ex-convict sentenced to death for the abduction and murder of the 20-month-old son of Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. The Lindbergh kidnapping became known as "The Crime of the Century".-Background:Hauptmann was born in Kamenz in the German Empire,...
  
  , who had been convicted of the 1930 kidnapping and murder of Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr., the 18-month old son of legendary aviator Charles Lindbergh
  Charles Lindbergh
  Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
  
   and Anne Morrow Lindbergh
  Anne Morrow Lindbergh
  Anne Morrow Lindbergh was an American author, aviator, and the spouse of fellow aviator Charles Lindbergh.She was an acclaimed author whose books and articles spanned the genres of poetry to non-fiction, touching upon topics as diverse as youth and age; love and marriage; peace, solitude and...
  
  . The materials are now housed at the state police Museum and Learning Center in West Trenton.
• Male nurse Robert Diaz was arrested at his home and charged with murdering 12 hospital patients by injecting them with overdoses of the heart medicine Lidocaine
  Lidocaine
  Lidocaine , Xylocaine, or lignocaine is a common local anesthetic and antiarrhythmic drug. Lidocaine is used topically to relieve itching, burning and pain from skin inflammations, injected as a dental anesthetic or as a local anesthetic for minor surgery.- History :Lidocaine, the first amino...
  
  . Eleven of the murders had taken place in April at the Community Hospital of the Valley, in Perris, California
  Perris, California
  Perris is a city in Riverside County, California, USA. At the 2010 census, the city population was 68,386, up from 36,189 at the 2000 census. The city is named in honor of Fred T. Perris, chief engineer of the California Southern Railroad...
  
  . Diaz was suspected in the deaths of as many as 60 other lidocaine related deaths. He was convicted on the 12 counts of murder on March 29, 1984, and sentenced to death, but died of natural causes on August 11, 2010 at the age of 72 .;
• U.S. Secretary of State Alexander Haig
  Alexander Haig
  Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr. was a United States Army general who served as the United States Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan and White House Chief of Staff under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford...
  
   and Cuba
  Cuba
  The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
  
  's Vice-President Carlos Rafael Rodríguez
  Carlos Rafael Rodríguez
  Carlos Rafael Rodríguez was a Cuban politician. Born in Cienfuegos, he became mayor of the city when he was only 20. Four years later, he joined the Communist Party and was appointed editor of the party newspaper, Hoy. He graduated from university in 1939...
  
   met secretly in Mexico City
  Mexico City
  Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
  
   at the home of Mexican Foreign Minister Jorge Castañeda Gutman, to discuss whether Cuba would cease funding of guerilla operations in Central America. The meeting was unsuccessful, and did not remain a secret for long, being reported by the Mexico City newspaper El Pais two weeks later.

November 24, 1981 (Tuesday)

• Typhoon Irma
  Typhoon Irma (1981)
  Super Typhoon Irma , was the 25th named storm, fourteenth typhoon, and second super typhoon of the 1981 Pacific typhoon season...
  
   struck the Philippines
  Philippines
  The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
  
  , killing 408 people and bringing a tidal wave that killed another 270 persons, as well as leaving 250,000 homeless. Hardest hit were the cities of Garchitorena and Caramoan.

November 25, 1981 (Wednesday)

• A group of mercenary
  Mercenary
  A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
  
   soldiers, led by "Mad Mike" Hoare
  Mike Hoare
  Thomas Michael Hoare is an Irish mercenary leader known for military activities in Africa and his failed attempt to conduct a coup d'état in the Seychelles.-Early life and military career:...
  
  , arrived at the airport in Mahé
  Mahé, Seychelles
  Mahé is the largest island of the Seychelles, lying in the north east of the nation. The population of Mahé is 80,000. It contains the capital city of Victoria and accommodates 90% of the country's total population...
  
   with plans to overthrow the government of the Seychelles
  Seychelles
  Seychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar....
  
  . Posing as players and fans of a visiting rugby club, most of the 45 mercenaries had passed through customs
  Customs
  Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, transports, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country...
  
  , when an inspector discovered that one of them had brought in a prohibited fruit, prompting a search of the other bags. When an assault rifle was discovered, the visitors grabbed their weapons and took control of the terminal, then escaped the country by hijacking Air India Flight 224 to Durban, South Africa, where they were arrested, then released the next day.
• The Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief adopted by the General Assembly as UN Resolution 36/55.
• Cardinal Josef Ratzinger, who would later become Pope Benedict XVI
  Pope Benedict XVI
  Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
  
  , was appointed Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith by Pope John Paul II
  Pope John Paul II
  Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
  
  .
• Born: Barbara Pierce Bush
  Barbara Pierce Bush
  Barbara Pierce Bush is the elder of the sororal twin daughters of the 43rd U.S. President George W. Bush and former First Lady Laura Bush, and the granddaughter of the 41st U.S. President George H. W. Bush, and his wife Barbara Bush, after whom she was named...
  
   and Jenna Bush
  Jenna Bush
  Jenna Welch Bush Hager , is the younger of the sororal twin daughters of the 43rd U.S. President George W. Bush and former First Lady Laura Bush, and a granddaughter of the 41st U.S. President George H. W. Bush. She and her sister, Barbara, were the first twin children of a U.S. President...
  
  , twin daughters of Laura Bush and U.S. President George W. Bush; in Houston; and Xabi Alonso
  Xabi Alonso
  Xabier "Xabi" Alonso Olano is a Spanish World Cup-winning footballer who plays for Real Madrid as a midfielder.Alonso began his career at Real Sociedad, the main team of his home region Gipuzkoa. After a brief loan period at Eibar he returned to Sociedad where then manager John Toshack appointed...
  
  , Spanish footballer, in Tolosa
  Tolosa, Spain
  Tolosa is a town and municipality to the south of Donostia-San Sebastián in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa, Spain. It is located in a valley of the river Oria and overlooked by Uzturre, a white cross-topped mountain.-Famous people from Tolosa:...
  
  .
• Died: Jack Albertson
  Jack Albertson
  Jack Albertson was an American character actor dating to vaudeville. A comedian, dancer, singer, and musician, Albertson is perhaps best known for his roles as Manny Rosen in The Poseidon Adventure , Grandpa Joe in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, Amos Slade in the 1981 animated film The Fox...
  
  , 74, American TV actor (Chico and the Man) stage and film actor (The Subject Was Roses); winner of an Oscar, an Emmy and a Tony award.

November 26, 1981 (Thursday)

• The Senate of Spain voted 106-60 for that nation to join NATO, after the Congress of Deputies had narrowly approved the measure 186-146. Spain would become the 16th member of the alliance on May 30, 1982.
• Born: Natasha Bedingfield
  Natasha Bedingfield
  Natasha Anne Bedingfield is a British pop singer and songwriter. Bedingfield debuted in the 1990s as a member of the Christian dance/electronic group The DNA Algorithm with her siblings Daniel Bedingfield and Nikola Rachelle...
  
  , British singer, in Sussex
  Sussex
  Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
  
  

November 27, 1981 (Friday)

• Bone relics, said to have been those of Sakyamuni Buddha
  Gautama Buddha
  Siddhārtha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian...
  
  , were discovered by explorers in a cave near the Yunju Temple
  Yunju Temple
  -History:The temple was first built in the early 7th century. In 616, the first Buddhist stone scripture tablet was made at the temple by a monk named Jingwan. Because there were debates going between Buddhists and Daoists, and Jingwan feared reprisals from Daoists, he decided to carve his...
  
   and 40 miles from Beijing
  Beijing
  Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
  
  . Venerated by Chinese Buddhists, the Yunju relics are now kept at the Capital Museum
  Capital Museum
  The Capital Museum located at 16 Fuxingmenwai Dajie, Xicheng District is an art museum in Beijing, China. It opened in 1981 while the present building was built in the late 1990s and it houses a variety of items from Imperial China as well as other Asian cultures...
  
   in Beijing.
• Died: Lotte Lenya
  Lotte Lenya
  Lotte Lenya was an Austrian singer, diseuse, and actress. In the German-speaking and classical music world she is best remembered for her performances of the songs of her husband, Kurt Weill. In English-language film she is remembered for her Academy Award-nominated role in The Roman Spring of Mrs...
  
  , 83, Austrian singer; and actress Aida Ward
  Blackbirds of 1928
  Blackbirds of 1928 was a hit Broadway revue with music by Jimmy McHugh and lyrics by Dorothy Fields. It contained the songs "Diga Diga Do", the duo's first hit, "I Can't Give You Anything But Love", and "I Must Have That Man" all sung by Adelaide Hall....
  
  , African-American singer

November 28, 1981 (Saturday)

• Bear Bryant became the winningest coach in college football history when Alabama beat Auburn, 28-17, for his 315th victory. Bryant would finish his career the next year with 323 wins, 85 losses and 17 ties. Four years later, Eddie Robinson of Grambling State would surpass Bryant, and would retire in 1997 with a 408-167-16 record.

November 29, 1981 (Sunday)

• Shortly after noon, a car bomb
  Car bomb
  A car bomb, or truck bomb also known as a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device , is an improvised explosive device placed in a car or other vehicle and then detonated. It is commonly used as a weapon of assassination, terrorism, or guerrilla warfare, to kill the occupants of the vehicle,...
  
   exploded outside of a school in the Azbakiyah section of Damascus killed more than 200 people, many of them children. The blast tore away the fronts of nearby buildings. The death toll, initially measured at 64, rose as additional bodies were unearthed from the rubble. The Syrian Muslim Brotherhood
  History of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria
  Muslim Brotherhood in Syria was founded in the late 1930s or mid 1940s. In the first decade or so of independence it was part of the legal opposition, and in the 1961 parliamentary elections it won ten seats. After the 1963 coup brought the secularist, pan-Arabist Baath Party to power, it was banned...
  
   claimed responsibility for the attack.
• In the Honduras
  Honduras
  Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
  
  , voting took place for the first time in 17 years for a civilian President, in the first election in a decade. Dr. Roberto Suazo Cordova
  Roberto Suazo Córdova
  Roberto Suazo Córdova is a former President of Honduras.-Biography:In 1949, he graduated as a doctor from the University of San Carlos of Guatemala. After his graduation, Suazo practiced his profession in the general hospital of Guatemala City...
  
   was the winner, defeating Ricardo Zuniga Agustinis.
• Born: Tom Hurndall
  Tom Hurndall
  Thomas "Tom" Hurndall was a British photography student, a volunteer for the International Solidarity Movement , and an activist against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. On 11 April 2003, he was shot in the head in the Gaza Strip by an Israel Defense Forces sniper, Taysir Hayb...
  
  , British photographer and murder victim, in London
  London
  London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
  
   (killed 2004)
• Died: American film actress Natalie Wood
  Natalie Wood
  Natalie Wood, born Natalia Nikolaevna Zacharenko was an American film and television actress. After first working in films as a child, Wood became a successful Hollywood star as a young adult, receiving three Academy Award nominations before she was 25 years old.Wood began acting in movies at the...
  
  , 43, drowned in the ocean near Santa Catalina Island
  Santa Catalina Island
  Santa Catalina Island, or Catalina Island, may refer to:*Santa Catalina Island, California*Catalina Island, Dominican Republic*Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina, one of the departments of Colombia, consisting of two island groups*Owariki or Owa Riki , an island in the...
  
   in California after slipping from a dinghy
  Dinghy
  A dinghy is a type of small boat, often carried or towed for use as a ship's boat by a larger vessel. It is a loanword from either Bengali or Urdu. The term can also refer to small racing yachts or recreational open sailing boats. Utility dinghies are usually rowboats or have an outboard motor,...
  
  .
• Died: T.H. Marshall, 88, British sociologist; and Dudley Glass, Australian composer, 82, after being hit by a bus in Lambeth, London.

November 30, 1981 (Monday)

• Cold War
  Cold War
  The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
  
  : In Geneva
  Geneva
  Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
  
  , negotiations began for the reduction of intermediate range nuclear missiles, with Paul Nitze
  Paul Nitze
  Paul Henry Nitze was a high-ranking United States government official who helped shape Cold War defense policy over the course of numerous presidential administrations.-Early life, education, and family:...
  
   and Yuli Kvitsinsky appearing for the United States
  United States
  The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
  
   and the Soviet Union
  Soviet Union
  The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
  
  , respectively. The START talks eventually led to the signing of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
  Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
  The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is a 1987 agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union. Signed in Washington, D.C. by U.S. President Ronald Reagan and General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev on December 8, 1987, it was ratified by the United States Senate on May 27, 1988 and...
  
   on December 8, 1987.
• The Memorandum of Understanding on Strategic Cooperation was signed by U.S. Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger
  Caspar Weinberger
  Caspar Willard "Cap" Weinberger , was an American politician, vice president and general counsel of Bechtel Corporation, and Secretary of Defense under President Ronald Reagan from January 21, 1981, until November 23, 1987, making him the third longest-serving defense secretary to date, after...
  
   and Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon
  Ariel Sharon
  Ariel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
  
  . The MOU lasted only 17 days, and was suspended after Israel announced its annexation of the Golan Heights.
• Died: Ken Horne, the original AIDS patient to be reported to the CDC.