Historical Events
- Jan 1 'New age music' radio program "Hearts of Space" makes its national syndication debut on U.S. National Public Radio
- Jan 1 12th Fiesta Bowl: #11 Arizona State beats #12 Oklahoma, 32-21
- Jan 1 49th Orange Bowl: #3 Nebraska beats #13 LSU, 21-20
- Jan 1 49th Sugar Bowl: #2 Penn State beats #1 Georgia, 27-23
- Jan 1 69th Rose Bowl: #5 UCLA beats #19 Michigan, 24-14
- Jan 1 PGA inaugurates all-exempt tour
- Jan 1 TCP/IP protocols become the only approved protocol on the ARPANET, replacing the earlier NCP protocol
- Jan 1 World Communications Year begins
- Jan 2 "Annie" closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 2,377 performances
Sophisticated Ladies
Jan 2 Duke Ellington's musical "Sophisticated Ladies" closes at Lunt-Fontanne, NYC after 767 performances
- Jan 2 Gary Trudeau takes a 20-month break from writing "Doonesbury"
- Jan 2 In a 35-27 win over the Houston Oilers, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson completes 20 consecutive passes and finishes the season winning his second consecutive passing title with an NFL record 70.55% completion percentage
- Jan 2 Several African National Congress (ANC) members detained in Swaziland decide to leave the country voluntarily for Mozambique.
- Jan 3 Dallas running back Tony Dorsett sets NFL record with 99-yard rush in the Cowboys' 31-27 defeat at Minnesota Vikings
"Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)"
Jan 4 Eurythmics release their breakthrough second studio album "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)"
- Jan 4 US Football League holds its 1st player draft
- Jan 7 Australia regain the Ashes with a 2-1 series win v England
Guatemala Arms Embargo Ends
Jan 7 President Reagan ends US arms embargo against Guatemala
Thatcher Visits Falklands
Jan 9 British PM Margaret Thatcher visits Falkland Islands
- Jan 10 NY Supreme Court issues a preliminary injunction barring NY Yankees from playing season-opening series against Tigers in Denver
Martin Yankee Manager
Jan 11 Billy Martin named NY Yankee manager for 3rd time
- Jan 11 Edmonton’s Pat Hughes sets NHL record for the fastest 2 shorthanded goals by one player at just 25 seconds apart in a 7-5 win at St. Louis; first player to break a Wayne Gretzky record
Dione Scores Hat-trick
Jan 11 LA Kings' center Marcel Dionne picks up his 24th NHL career hat-trick and adds 3 assists for 6 points in a 9-7 win at Washington; Kings' first road win after 8 straight losses
Baseball Hall of Fame
Jan 12 Brooks Robinson and Juan Marichal elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame
- Jan 12 NCAA creates football Kickoff Classic to begin in August
- Jan 12 Quebec Nordiques play 230th NHL game without being shut out
AMA Urges Boxing Ban
Jan 13 AMA urges ban on boxing, cites Muhammad Ali's deteriorating condition
- Jan 15 Dutch political party DS'70 disbands
- Jan 15 Javed Miandad & Mudassar Nazar make 451 stand v India
- Jan 15 Thom Syles keeps a life saver intact in his mouth for over 7 hours
10th American Music Awards
Jan 17 10th American Music Awards: John Cougar, Rick Springfield, and Olivia Newton-John win
Wallace's Record Fourth Term
Jan 17 Alabama Governor George Wallace, becomes governor for a record 4th time
- Jan 17 Nigeria expels 2 million illegal aliens, mostly Ghanaians
- Jan 18 Dick Motta becomes the 5th NBA coach to record 600 wins as his Dallas Mavericks defeat the Golden State Warriors, 112-102 in Oakland, California
Thorpe's Olympic Medals Restored
Jan 18 IOC restores Jim Thorpe's Olympic medals (Pentathlon & Decathlon victories) 70 years after they were taken from him for being paid $25 in semi-pro baseball
- Jan 21 Bollingen Prize for poetry awarded to Anthony E Hecht
- Jan 21 First supertitles for a live opera performance: "Elektra" at Canadian Opera Company, English titles by Sonya Friedman
- Jan 21 President Reagan certifies El Salvador human-rights abuses have decreased making country eligible for US military aid
- Jan 22 2nd flight readiness firing of Challenger's main engines; 22 seconds
- Jan 22 Houston is 1st NBA team to be held scoreless in an overtime Portland Trail Blazers out score them 17-0 & win 113-96
- Jan 22 NFC Championship, RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.: Washington Redskins beat Dallas Cowboys, 31-17
- Jan 23 "Mud Bowl", Miami Dolphins beat the New York Jets 14-0 in the AFC Championship Game on a wet, muddy field, which negated the Jets significant speed and skill advantage
- Jan 23 AFC Championship, Miami Orange Bowl: Miami Dolphins beat New York Jets, 14-0
- Jan 23 Cerebral Palsy telethon raises $14.7 million
Lendl Wins Back-to Back Titles
Jan 23 Ivan Lendl scores a 6–4, 6-4, 6–2 win over American John McEnroe to claim back-to-back ATP Masters Grand Prix tennis titles at Madison Square Garden, NYC
- Jan 23 Portland Trail Blazers score all 17 points in overtime to beat the Houston Rockets 113-96
- Jan 23 Russian radioactive satellite falls into Indian Ocean
- Jan 23 Schone skates ladies world record 5 km (7:40.97)
Björn Borg Retires
Jan 23 Tennis great Björn Borg announces retirement at 26 (5 x Wimbledon, 6 x French Open)
The A-Team
Jan 23 TV series "The A-Team" with George Peppard and Mr T premieres on NBC
Klaus Barbie Arrested
Jan 26 Nazi Gestapo war criminal Klaus Barbie arrested in Bolivia
40th Golden Globes
Jan 29 40th Golden Globes: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Ben Kingsley & Meryl Streep win
- Jan 30 Hilbert van Thumb becomes European skating champ
- Jan 30 Super Bowl XVII, Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA: Washington Redskins beat Miami Dolphins, 27-17; MVP: John Riggins, Washington, RB
- Jan 31 In an effort to reduce driving deaths, a new law in UK requires drivers and front-seat passengers to wear seatbelts
Famous Birthdays
- Jan 1 Ali Bastian, English actress and model
- Jan 1 Emi Kobayashi, Japanese model
- Jan 1 Park Sung-hyun, South Korean archer (Olympics gold individual/team 2004, team 2008; women's WR in a FITA Round 1,405 points), born in Gunsan, South Korea
- Jan 1 Shou Zi Chew, Singaporean businessman (CEO of TikTok), born in Singapore
- Jan 2 Anthony Carrigan, American actor (Barry), born in Boston, Massachusetts
- Jan 2 Kate Bosworth, American actress (Superman Returns), born in Los Angeles, California
- Jan 5 Sean Dockery, American basketball player, born in Chicago, Illinois
- Jan 7 Brett Dalton, American actor (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), born in San Jose, California
- Jan 7 Liesbeth Mouha, Belgian beach volleyball player, born in Tongeren, Belgium
- Jan 7 Natalie Gulbis, American golfer (ANA Inspiration 2006 3rd), born in Sacramento, California
- Jan 8 Chris Mordetzky, American wrestler, born in Santa Monica, California
- Jan 8 Felipe Colombo, Argentine-Mexican pop-rock singer (Erreway), and actor, born in Mexico City
Kim Jong-un (41 years old)
Jan 8 North Korean politician and Supreme Leader of North Korea (2011-), born in Pyongyang, North Korea [note some sources give year as 1982, and some as 1984]
- Jan 9 Kerry Condon, Irish actress (The Banshees of Inisherin), born in Thurles, Ireland
- Jan 10 Danilo Dirani, Brazilian racing driver, born in São Paulo, Brazil
- Jan 10 Li Nina, Chinese aerial freestyle skier, born in Benxi, China
- Jan 11 Adrian Sutil, German racing driver, born in Starnberg, Germany
- Jan 11 Matthew Palleschi, Canadian soccer player, born in Richmond Hill, Canada
- Jan 13 Julian Morris, English actor
- Jan 13 William Hung, American Idol contestant
- Jan 14 James Vincent McMorrow, Irish singer-songwriter, born in Dublin, Ireland
- Jan 14 Maxime Monfort, Belgian cyclist, born in Bastogne, Belgium
- Jan 14 Vincent Jackson, American NFL wide receiver (Pro Bowl 2009, 11, 12; SD Chargers, TB Buccaneers), born in Colorado Springs, Colorado (d. 2021)
- Jan 15 Hugo Viana, Portuguese footballer, born in Barcelos, Portugal
- Jan 16 Emanuel Pogatetz, Austrian footballer, born in Graz, Austria
- Jan 17 Alvaro Arbeloa, Spanish footballer, born in Salamanca, Spain
- Jan 17 Andrea Lowell, American model, born in Long Beach, California
- Jan 17 Johannes Herber, German basketball player, born in Darmstadt, Germany
- Jan 17 Rick Kelly, Australian racing driver, born in Mildura, Australia
- Jan 17 Yelle [Julie Budet], French electro-pop singer and rapper (Yelle), born in Saint-Brieuc, France
- Jan 18 Ghostpoet [Obaro Ejimiwe], British alt-rock singer-songwriter, musician (Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam), and visual artist, born in London, England
- Jan 18 Katie White, British pop musician (The Ting Tings - "That's Not My Name"), born in Lowton, England
- Jan 18 Samantha Mumba, Irish pop and R&B singer ("Gotta Tell You") and actress (The Time Machine), born in Dublin, Ireland
- Jan 19 Hikaru Utada, American-Japanese singer-songwriter, born in New York City
- Jan 19 Justyna Kowalczyk, Polish cross-country skier (Olympic gold 30k classical 2010, 10k classical 2014), born in Limanowa, Poland
- Jan 20 Geovany Soto, Puerto Rican baseball player, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Jan 20 Mari Yaguchi, Japanese singer (Morning Musume), born in Yokohama, Japan
- Jan 20 Paula Taylor, Thai actress and model, born in Bangkok, Thailand
- Jan 21 Maryse Ouellet, French Canadian model and professional wrestler
- Jan 21 Moritz Volz, German footballer
- Jan 21 Peter Philipakos, Greek-American soccer player
- Jan 22 Barbara Kaszuba, Polish violinist, composer (Cheeky Trio), and educator, born in Poznań, Poland
- Jan 22 Robert Steinhäuser, German perpetrator of the Erfurt massacre (d. 2002)
- Jan 22 Shaun Cody, American football player, born in Whittier, California
- Jan 23 Adam Mosseri, American head of Instagram, born in New York
- Jan 24 Scott Speed, American race car driver, born in Manteca, California
- Jan 24 Shaun Maloney, Scottish soccer midfielder (47 caps; Celtic), born in Miri, Malaysia
- Jan 25 Andrée Watters, Canadian pop-country-rock singer, born in Quebec City, Quebec
- Jan 25 Brian Armstrong, American businessman (CEO and co-founder of Coinbase), born in San Jose, California
- Jan 27 Carlo Colaiacovo, Canadian ice hockey player
- Jan 27 Gavin Floyd, American baseball player
- Jan 27 Mike Zagurski, American baseball player
- Jan 28 David Williams, Wakka Wakka Australian didgeridoo player and visual artist, born in Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia
- Jan 31 James Sutton, British television actor, born in Sutton Coldfield, United Kingdom
- Jan 31 Tom Vangeneugden, Belgian swimmer, born in Overpelt, Belgium
Famous Deaths
- Jan 2 Bernard George Stevens, British composer, dies at 66
- Jan 2 Harriet Parsons, American film producer (Susan Slept Here), dies at 76 of cancer
- Jan 2 Richard "Dick" Emery, British comedian and actor (Yellow Submarine, Loot, Baby Love), dies from cardio-respiratory failure at 65
- Jan 8 Gale Page [Sally Rutter], American actress (Four Daughters, Knute Rockne, All-American), and countess-by-marriage, dies of lung cancer at 72
- Jan 8 Ron Frazer, Australian character actor and screenwriter (The Mavis Bramston Show), dies at 54
- Jan 8 Tom McCall, American journalist and politician (Governor of Oregon (R), 1967-75), dies of prostate cancer at 69
- Jan 9 Stan Spence, American baseball center fielder (MLB All-Star 1942, 44, 46, 47; Boston Red Sox, Washington Senators, St. Louis Browns), dies from emphysema at 67
- Jan 10 Ewan Roberts, Scottish actor (The Day of the Triffids, Five to One), dies at 68
Roy DeMeo (1942-1983)
Jan 10 American gangster (Gambino crime family), murdered at 40
- Jan 11 Gerhard Barkhorn, German Luftwaffe fighter pilot and officer, dies from injuries sustained in a car crash at 63
- Jan 11 Ghanshyam Das Birla, Indian industrialist and educator, dies at 88
- Jan 11 Nikolaj V Podgorny, president USSR, dies at 79
- Jan 12 (Anthony) "Rebop" Kwaku Baah, Nigerian percussionist (traffic, 1971-74), dies of cerebral hemorrhage during a performance in Stockholm, Sweden at 38
- Jan 13 Arthur Space, actor (Doc Weaver-Lassie), dies of cancer at 74
- Jan 13 Barry Galbraith, American jazz and studio guitarist (Claude Thornhill, Coleman Hawkins, Gil Evans), and educator, dies of cancer at 63
- Jan 13 D Mack Reynolds, American writer (Amazon Planet, Once Departed), dies
- Jan 13 John McHugh, actor (Unspeakable), dies of a heart attack at 69
Meyer Lansky (1902-1983)
Jan 15 Polish-born American mobster known as the "Mob's Accountant", dies of lung cancer at 80
- Jan 15 Shepperd Strudwick, actor (Psychomania), dies of cancer at 75
- Jan 17 Bill Bonthron, American athlete (world 1,500m record 3:48.8 1934), dies at 70
- Jan 17 Doodles Weaver [Winstead Sheffield Weaver], American comedian (Spike Jones & City Slickers, The Zodiac Killer), commits suicide by shooting himself at 70
- Jan 18 Cedric Thorpe Davie, British composer of film scores (The Green Man; St. Andrews University), and pedagogue, dies at 69
- Jan 19 Don Costa, American composer (Hello, Dolly!), arranger, and record producer (Sinatra and Strings; My Way), dies at 57
- Jan 20 Garrincha, Brazilian footballer, dies at 49
- Jan 21 Lamar Williams, American musician (The Allman Brothers Band), dies of cancer at 34
- Jan 23 Fred Bakewell, English cricket batsman (6 Tests, top score 107; Northamptonshire), dies at 74
George Cukor (1899-1983)
Jan 24 American film director (My Fair Lady, Philadelphia Story, The Wizard of Oz), dies of a stroke and a heart attack at 83
Paul "Bear" Bryant (1913-1983)
Jan 26 American college football coach (Alabama), dies at 69
- Jan 27 Louis De Funes, French actor and writer (The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacobs), dies at 68
- Jan 27 Robert Christian, actor (Bustin' Loose), dies of cancer at 42
- Jan 28 "Sweet" Emma Barrett, American Dixieland jazz pianist and singer, dies at 85
- Jan 28 Billy Fury [Ronald Wycherley], British rock singer ("When Will You Say I Love You"; "Halfway To Paradise") and actor (That'll Be The Day), dies of heart failure at 42
- Jan 28 Frank Forde, 15th Prime Minister of Australia (the shortest-serving prime minister in Australia's history-8 days), dies at 92
- Jan 30 Alan Cunningham, British general and last High Commissioner of Palestine (1945-48), dies at 95
- Jan 30 Joan Valerie, American actress (Pier 13), dies of pneumonia at 71
- Jan 30 Mack Reynolds, American sci-fi author (Earth War), dies at 65
- Jan 31 Lorraine Ellison, American soul singer ("Stay with Me"; "Try (Just a Little Bit Harder)"), and songwriter, dies of ovarian cancer at 51
