Week of February; 21, 1989
Twelve member states of the European Community
decide to simultaneously recall their envoys from
Iran until the Ayatollah Khomeini withdraws his
“death sentence” against British novelist Salman
Rusdie, the author of “The Satanic Verses.” British
Foreign Secretary Geoffrey Howe termed
Khomeini’s call for the author to die “an affront on
international standards that will not be tolerated.”
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan says
that inflationary pressures are unacceptable and
that the central bank would continue fighting higher
prices by driving up revenues. For the last two
years, consumer prices have increased 4.4%
annually; a rate of increase that Greenspan said that is worrisome.
The prime rate rises to 11.5% at two banks - Chase Manhattan and Republic
National Bank - both in New York just after the central bank raises rates .5%
The Senate Armed Services Committee votes to reject
former Sen. John Tower as secretary of defense.
President Bush and embittered Senate Republicans vows
to fight for the troubled nomination on the Senate floor, but
with Democrats holding a 55-45 majority, it appears
unlikely Tower will win the job... Tower responds in a
television interview, pledging to forgo all consumption of
alcohol during his tenure at the Pentagon if the Senate
confirms him. He also defended himself against
allegations of womanizing saying, “I’m a single man. I do
date women.”
A gaping hole rips open on the right side
of a United Airlines jumbo jet carrying
354 people, sucking out 8 to 11 people
20,000 feet above the Pacific Ocean.
Despite the outage of 2 engines, the
plane was brought down at Honolulu
airport for a safe landing. The plane,
which originated from San Francisco,
had left Honolulu Airport, en route for
Auckland, New Zealand and Sydney,
Australia. It returned 40 minutes later.
Week of February; 21, 1989
Singer Cat Stevens - now known as Moslem Yosuf Islam - backs the Ayatollah
Khomeini’s death threat against author Salman Rushdie - “The Koran makes it
clear: If someone defames the prophet, then he must die.”
Computer news - Apple Records sues Apple Computer. The
suit filed in London on behalf of the interests of the Beatles,
claims that the music-making capabilities of Apple Computer’s
machines violate a 1981 agreement between the two Apples
outlining when each of the companies could use the Apple
name and trademark. The problem is, the latest top-of-the-line
Apple PC’s now come equipped with circuitry that allows
them to play and synthesize music (using MIDI files).
Says Wayne Cooper - an attorney for the recording
company - “If the computer company wants to sell
machines that make music, they will have to become
banana or peach, or something.” The suit seeks a court
order requiring the computer company to withdraw all
products violating the 1981 agreement and pay past-due
royalties - plus 15% - on all sales of music-making
computers.
At the 31st annual Grammy Awards (hosted by
Billy Crystal):
Best album - “Faith” - George Michael
Best Record “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” - Bobby
McFerrin
Best New Artist - Tracy Chapman
Female Pop Vocal - “Fast Car” - Tracy
Chapman
Male Pop Vocal - “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” -
Bobby McFerrin
Group Pop Vocal - “Brazil” - Manhattan
Transfer
Male Rock Vocal - “Simply Irresistible” - Robert
Palmer
Female Rock Vocal - “Tina Live In Europe” - Tina Turner
Group Rock Vocal - “Desire” - U2
Hard Rock/Metal - “Crest of a Knave” - Jethro Tull
Rap Performance - “Parents Just Don’t Understand” - D.J. Jazzy Jeff & The
Fresh Prince
Female R&B Vocal - “Giving You The Best That I Got” - Anita Baker
Week of February; 21, 1989
Male R&B Vocal - “Introducing the Hardline According To Terence Trent D’Arby”
- Terence Trend D’Arby
Group R&B Vocal - “Love Overboard” - Gladys Knight & The Pips
Female Country Vocal - “Hold Me” - K.T. Olslin
Male Country Vocal - “Old 8 X 10” - Randy
Travis
Group Country Vocal - “Give A Little Love” -
The Judds
Latin Pop - “Roberto Carlos” - Roberto Carlos
Male Jazz Vocal - “Brothers” - Bobby McFerrin
Female Jazz Vocal - “Look What I Got” - Betty
Carter
Group Jazz Vocal - Spreadlove - Take 6
Musical Cast Show - “Into the Woods” -
Stephen Sonheim/Jay David Saks
Best Classical Album - Verdi Requiem &
Operatic Choruses - Robert Show Conducting
the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus
Best Classical Orchestral Recording - Rorem “String Symphony, Sunday
Morning” and “Eagles” - Robert Shaw and Louis Lane conducting the Atlanta
Symphony Orchestra
Best Performance Video - “Where the Streets Have No Name” - U2
Best Concept Video - “I’m Fat”- Weird Al Yankovic
Radio News - “FM FMX” - a new way to transmit
FM music and other programming with less noise
is underway ... so far, about 50 FM stations are
equipped to transmit the new signal and another
50 are on the way. But there are critics.
Engineering and computer science professor Amar
B. Bose (yes that one), tells the New York Times
this week that the technique, intended to improve
reception, actually worsens it and is warning radio
stations and consumers. Emil Torick - one of
FMX’s developers, says that Bose’s findings are
“flawed and misleading” because the receiver and transmission equipment used
did not employ state of the art electronics. “FMX” also requires specific circuitry
on the listener’s side: you need a different kind of FM radio to receive the
benefits.
Week of February; 21, 1989
In sports - Florence Griffith Joyner - who sprinted
to three Olympic gold medals and one silver medal
in 1988 and broke world records in the women’s
100-meter and 200-meter dashes, receives the 1989
Jess Owens International Trophy Award. The award
is presented annually to the athlete who best
personifies excellence in athletic performance and
promotes sincere cooperation and understanding
among people throughout the world... Later in the
week she announces she is retiring from track
competition. He manager said she wants to concentrate on he writing, her
designing and her efforts to become an actress.
Tom Landry is fired - The Dallas Cowboys is sold for
an estimated $140 million by Hr. R. (Bum) Bright to
Jerry Jones. He immediately named Jimmy Johnson
from the University of Miami the new coach - and out
is Tom Landry - ending 29 years as the only head
coach the Cowboys ever had. Three weeks ago,
Landry (64), said he was willing to coach into the 90’s
if the new owners would allow him to. Landry took
over the role as head coach, when the Cowboys were
a new expansion team in 1960. He led the team to the
Super Bowl five times, winning two. The team
sputtered to a disastrous 3-13 record in 1988. He later announces that he will
never coach again.
NBC announces that Tom Seaver will be its top color
commentator this year, joining play-by-play man Vin Scully
in baseball’s game of the week. Seaver has been out of
baseball since 1986 when he became a free agent - but he
had no takers. He tried a comeback with the Mets in 1987,
but his throwing arm wasn’t what it use to be.
In Las Vegas - Mike Tyson defeats British challenger Frank
Bruno. He was still on his feet when the referee stopped the
fight at 2.55 of the fifth round.
Vinyl Records beginning to disappear from record stores - Store by store, record
albums are being pulled from stores and being replaced by CD’s. And the trend
is happening faster then anyone predicted. In some stores, LP’s are less than
Week of February; 21, 1989
10% of music sales. Some are predicting that 12” record albums will be gone
from most stores in two years.
Files for divorce - Actress Meredith
Baxter Birney - Michael J. Fox’s mom
on “Family Ties” and her husband of 15
years David Birney. “These are tough
days. We intend to continue caring for
the children even though the marriage
will not continue.”
Bestsellers -
The Stanic Verses - Salman Rushdie
Star - Danielle Steel
Cat’s eye - Margaret Atwood
Midnight - Dean R. Koontz
The Edge - Dick Francis
The Cardinal of the Kremlin - Tom Clancy
The Sands of Time - Sidney Sheldon
All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten - Robert Fulghum
The Blooding - Joseph Wambough
Blind Faith - Joe McGinniss
The 8-Week Cholesterol Cure - Robert E. Kowalski
Gracie: A Love Story - George Burns
The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy - E.D. Hirsch Jr/Joseph F. Kett/James Trefil
Top Video Rentals:
Die Hard
Bull Durham
The Dead Pool
The Presidio
Young Guns
The Good Mother - Dian Keaton
TV Ratings -
The Cosby Show - 26.2
A Different World - 24.1
60 Minutes - 23.1
The Golden Girls - 22.8
Cheers - 22.8
Murder, She Wrote - 22.5
Roseanne - 21.9
Week of February; 21, 1989
L.A. Law - 20.4
Empty Nest - 20.1
Hunter - 19.9
Who’s The Boss? - 19.5
Unsolved Mysteries - 19.5
B.L. Stryker - 18.8 (Burt Reynolds)
Matlock - 18.7
In the Heat of the Night - 18.4
Dear John - 18.4
Growing Pains - 18.0
ALF - 17.8
Amen - 17.5
Movie - Swimsuit - 17.3
Night Court - 17.3
Head of the Class - 17.0
Knots Landing - 16.7
Movie - Fulfillment of Mary Gray - 16.5
Full House - 16.4
227 - 16.0
Hogan Family - 15.7
Dallas - 15.5
Perfect Strangers - 15.3
Designing Women - 15.1
Sunday Night Television -
CBS - 60 Minutes, Murder, She Wrote, Movie
NBC - The Magical World of Disney, Family Ties, Day by Day, Movie
ABC - Great Circuses of the World, The 75th
Anniversary of Beverly Hills, Movie
Fox - 21 Jump Street, America’s Most Wanted,
Married With Children, It’s Garry Shandling’s
Show, Tracey Ullman Show, Duet
PBS - Nature, Masterpiece Theatre, Soldiers
Debut - Great Circuses - Mary Hart hosts and
presents acts from around the world
Beverly Hills 75th Anniversary - All star salute
includes Frank Sinatra, Shelley Long, Richard
Mulligan, John Forsythe and Whoopi Goldberg
Married With Children - Peggy is the hit of Kelly’s career day.
Week of February; 21, 1989
Pop music this week in 1989 -
Straight Up - Paula Abdul
Lost In Your Eyes - Debbie Gibson
The Living Years - Mike & The Mechanics
Wild Thing - Tone Loc
The Lover In Me - Sheena Easton
You Got It (The Right Stuff) - New Kids On The
Block
Roni - Bobby Brown
Paradise City - Guns N’ Roses
Surrender To Me - Ann Wilson/Robin Sander
What I Am - Edie Brickell & The New Bohemians
Walking Away - Information Society
Don’t Tell Me Lies - Breathe
Dial My Heart - The Boys
All She Wants Is - Duran Duran
All This Time - Tiffany
She Wants To Dance With Me - Rick Astley
I Wanna Have Some Fun - Samantha Fox
Angel Of Harlem - U2
Top Country single -
Big Wheels in the Moonlight - Dan Seals
I Sang Dixie - Dwight Yoakam
Top Albums -
Don’t Be Cruel - Bobby Brown
Electric Youth - Debbie Gibson
Appetite For Destruction - Guns N’ Roses
Volume One - Traveling Wilburys
Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars - Edie
Brickell
Forever Your Girl - Paul Abdul
New Jersey - Bon Jovi
Hysteria - Def Leppard
GN’ R Lies - Guns N’ Roses
Giving You The Best That I Got - Anita Baker
Week of February; 21, 1989
Other Albums -
Hold An Old Friend’s Hand - Tiffany
Karyn White - Karyn White
Don’t Look Back - The Fine Young Cannibals
Out of Order - Rod Stewart
Southern Star - Alabama
Reel Life - Boy Meets Girl
200 More Miles - Cowboy Junkies
Chameleon Days - Yanni
Dirty Blvd - Lou Reed
The Comedians - Roy Orbison
Funky Cold Medina - Tone Loc
Ghetto - de La Soul
At the movies -
The Burbs - Tom Hanks, Bruce Dern, Carrie
Fisher
Rainman - Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise
Bill & Ted’s Adventure - Keanu Reeves
Three Fugitives - Nick Nolte, Martin Sort
The Fly II - Eric Stoltz, Daphne Zuniga
Lawrence of Arabia -
Beaches - Bette Midler, Barbara Hershey
Her Alibi - Tom Selleck, Paulina Porizkova
Mississippi Burning - Gene Hackman, William
Dafoe
True Believer - James Woods, Robert Downey
Jr., Patrick Crowley
Cousins - Ted Danson, Isabella Rosselini
American Ninja 3 - Blood Hunt - Majorie
Gortner