Music History
Jan 1 American singer Barbra Streisand and hairdresser/film producer Jon Peters' romantic relationship ends
Music History
Jan 23 "Jerome Kern Goes to Hollywood" opens at Ritz Theater NYC for 13 performances
Hall of Fame
Jan 23 Inaugural class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees: Chuck Berry; James Brown; Ray Charles; Sam Cooke; Fats Domino; The Everly Brothers; Buddy Holly;. Jerry Lee Lewis; Elvis Presley; Little Richard; Robert Johnson; Jimmie Rodgers; Jimmy Yancey; Alan Freed; John Hammond; and Sam Phillips
Golden Globes
Jan 24 43rd Golden Globes: "Out of Africa", Jon Voight, & Whoopi Goldberg win
- Feb 2 "Jerome Kern Goes to Hollywood" closes at Ritz NYC after 13 performances
Film & TV History
Feb 3 Pixar Animation Studios (Toy Story; The Incredibles) headed by Edwin Catmull and Alvy Ray Smith, is spun off from Lucasfilm, Ltd as an independent film production company, with backing of Steve Jobs
Film & TV History
Feb 5 Corazon Aquino & Ferdinand Marcos appear on "Nightline"
Film Premiere
Feb 8 Crime film "A Better Tomorrow", starring Yun Fat Chow, premieres in Hong Kong
- Feb 14 36th Berlin International Film Festival: "Stammheim" wins the Golden Bear
Film & TV History
Feb 18 Anti-smoking ad airs for 1st time on TV, featuring Yul Brynner: he died of smoking-induced lung cancer on 10th October 1985
Grammy Awards
Feb 25 28th Grammy Awards: "We Are the World", Sade, Phil Collins win
- Feb 27 The United States Senate allows its debates to be televised on a trial basis
Film and TV Awards
Mar 13 12th People's Choice Awards: Sylvester Stallone & Meryl Streep win (Motion Picture) and Bill Cosby, Linda Evans win (TV)
Academy Awards
Mar 24 58th Academy Awards: "Out of Africa", William Hurt & Geraldine Page win
WrestleMania
Apr 7 WrestleMania II at 3 locations: Hulk Hogan beats King Kong Bundy; Mr. T beats Roddy Piper in a boxing match
Election of Interest
Apr 8 Clint Eastwood elected mayor of Carmel, California. Makes his day.
Film & TV History
Apr 9 TV show "Dallas" announces it will revive killed Bobby Ewing character
Film & TV History
Apr 21 Geraldo Rivera opens Al Capone's vault on live TV and finds nothing, except great ratings for his spectacle
- Apr 24 Film "Crocodile Dundee" starring Paul Hogan and Linda Kozlowski premieres in Australia (highest grossing film of the year in the US)
- Apr 27 Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields' musical "Sweet Charity" starring Gwen Verdon, opens at the Minskoff Theatre, NYC; runs for 368 performances, and wins a Tony Award for choreographer Bob Fosse
- Apr 27 Captain Midnight (John R MacDougall) hacks into and interrupts HBO
Pripyat: Nuclear Wasteland
Apr 28 Soviet TV news program Vremya announces a nuclear accident at Chernobyl nuclear power station, 2 days after the event
Film & TV History
May 16 "Top Gun", directed by Tony Scott and starring Tom Cruise premieres
Music History
May 22 American singer and actress Cher calls David Letterman an a**hole on his "Late Night" TV program (NBC)
- Jun 11 "Blacke's Magic" last airs on NBC-TV
Music Concert
Jun 15 Amnesty International "Conspiracy of Hope" tour concludes with megaconcert at Giants Stadium in Rutherford, New Jersey; participants include: U2; Sting; Bryan Adams; Peter Gabriel; Lou Reed; Neville Brothers; Joan Baez; Joan Armatrading; Joni Mitchell; The Police; Jackson Browne; Yoko Ono; Miles Davis; Peter, Paul & Mary; and The Hooters
Daytime Emmy Awards
Jul 17 Emmy 13th Daytime Award presentation - Susan Lucci loses for 7th time
Film Release
Aug 22 "Stand By Me" film based on the novella by Stephen King, directed by Rob Reiner and starring Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, and Jerry O'Connell is released
- Aug 28 Largest wrestling crowd in Canada (69,300) at Toronto Stadium
Music History
Aug 28 American rock singer Tina Turner's star unveiled at Hollywood's Walk of Fame; Hollywood, California
- Aug 30 43rd Venice Film Festival: "Le rayon vert" directed by Eric Rohmer wins Golden Lion
Telethon
Sep 1 Jerry Lewis' 21st Muscular Dystrophy telethon raises $34,096,733
- Sep 2 Cathy Evelyn Smith sentenced to 3 years for death of John Belushi
- Sep 3 Alan Ayckbourn's "Woman in Mind" premieres in London
- Sep 6 300 invitees pay $5,000 to hear Barbra Streisand's benefit concert
- Sep 7 NBC premiere of "The French Connection" film based TV sequel "Popeye Doyle"
- Sep 12 Limited U.S. premiere of film adaptation of Marsha Norman's play "'Night, Mother"
Film & TV History
Sep 12 "Blue Velvet" directed by David Lynch, Starring Isabella Rossellini, Kyle MacLachlan and Dennis Hopper debuts in Toronto
- Sep 13 Kellye Cash (Tenn), 21, crowned 60th Miss America 1987
- Sep 13 11th Toronto International Film Festival: "The Decline of the American Empire" directed by Denys Arcand wins the People's Choice Award
- Sep 14 CBS premiere of true life "The Last Days of Patton"
- Sep 15 1st broadcast of legal drama "L.A. Law" created by Steven Bochco, with ensemble cast including Corbin Bersen, Jill Eikenberry and Harry Hamlin on NBC
Film Premiere
Sep 19 3-D short film "Captain EO" with Michael Jackson premieres at Disney theme parks
Emmy Awards
Sep 21 38th Emmy Awards: "The Golden Girls", "Cagney & Lacey" and Michael J. Fox win
Television Premiere
Oct 9 "The Late Show with Joan Rivers" premieres on Fox, first woman to host a US late-night TV talk show
- Nov 13 Giselle Jeanne-Marie LaRonde of Trinidad, 23, crowned 36th Miss World
Film & TV History
Nov 15 2nd time "Saturday Night Live" uses a time delay (Sam Kinison hosts)
- Nov 27 Europa TV, a project of five European public service broadcasters ceases operations after exhausting its budget
Film & TV History
Dec 4 Neil Simon's "Broadway Bound" premieres in NYC
Film Release
Dec 19 "Platoon" directed by Oliver Stone, starring Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, and Willem Dafoe is released (Academy Awards Best Picture & Best Director)
- Dec 27 2nd Soap Opera Digest Awards - Days of Our Lives wins