What Happened in 1970

Major Events

  • Jan 13 Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu flees Biafra into exile, leaving his deputy Philip Effiong to surrender to the Nigerian army, unofficially ending the Nigerian Civil War
  • May 31 7.75 Ancash earthquake off coast of Peru kills 66-70,000 and sets off world's deadliest avalanche
  • Jul 6 California passes 1st "no fault" divorce law
  • Jul 21 Aswan High Dam opens in Egypt, enables human control of the flooding of the Nile
  • Sep 8 Black September hijackings begin, three airliners hijacked and blown up by Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
  • Nov 3 US President Richard Nixon promises gradual troop removal of Vietnam
  • Nov 12 Cyclone Bhola makes landfall in East Pakistan (Bangladesh) killing up to 500,000, making it the deadliest tropical cyclone ever recorded
  • Nov 17 Douglas Engelbart receives the patent for the first computer mouse
  • Nov 21 General Hafez al-Assad becomes Prime Minister of Syria following a military coup
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1970 in Film & TV

1970 in Music

  • Mar 30 Columbia Records releases jazz artist Miles Davis's influential double album "Bitches Brew"; it becomes his highest charting title, wins a Grammy, and earns him his 1st gold record
  • Apr 10 Paul McCartney officially announces the split of The Beatles
  • Apr 17 Paul McCartney releases his 1st solo album "McCartney"

1970 in Sport

  • Mar 10 South Africa cricket team complete 4-0 series drubbing of Australia in South Africa, in the country's last official international cricket test for 22 years
  • May 10 Stanley Cup Final, Boston Garden, Boston, MA: Bobby Orr scores famous OT winner as Boston beats St. Louis Blues, 4-3 for 4-0 series sweep; Bruins its first title since 1941
  • Jun 21 FIFA World Cup Final, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City: Brazil and Pelé become first team and player to win World Cup 3 times, beating Italy, 4-1 in front of 107,412

Did You Know?

The Chinese Community in South Africa is granted 'White' status

August 19, 1970


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Fun Fact About 1970

In Basse-Terre, Guadeloupe, 1.5 inches (38.1mm) of rain falls in a single minute, the heaviest recorded rainfall in history

November 26, 1970


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Famous Weddings in 1970

  • Mar 12 Actor Phil Hartman (21) weds first wife Gretchen Lewis
  • Mar 20 British snger David Bowie (23) weds British model Angie Barnett, (20) at Bromley Register Office in Beckenham Lane, London; divorce in 1980
  • May 11 American entertainer Sammy Davis Jr. (44) weds American entertainer Altovise Gore (26) in a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania courthouse, officiated by the Rev. Jesse Jackson:, his third marriage lasts until his death in 1990

Famous Divorces in 1970

  • Nov 8 American "The Mamas & the Papas" singer Michelle Phillips (26) divorces American "Easy Rider" director and actor Dennis Hopper (34) after only 8 days of marriage

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World Leaders in 1970