What Happened in September 1977

Historical Events

Sports History

Sep 1 Tracy Austin at age 14 years, 8 months, 20 days, becomes the youngest female to play in the US Open, beating German Heidi Eisterlehner 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 in a 1st round match

  • Sep 1 USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR

Sports History

Sep 2 One of the great anti-climaxes in sport; 43-year-old transsexual Rene Richards, who fought for over a year for right to play in a major event, is beaten 6-1, 6-4 by Wimbledon champion Virginia Wade at the US Open

  • Sep 3 Japanese baseball superstar Sadaharu Oh hits his 756th career home run to surpass Hank Aaron as all-time career leader in professional baseball
  • Sep 4 Stephen Schwartz' musical "Godspell" closes at Broadhurst Theater, NYC. after 527 performances
  • Sep 5 Cleveland Indians stage 1st "I hate the Yankee Hanky Night", inspired by local radio personality Pete Franklin; home team sweeps a doubleheader over New York at Cleveland Municipal Stadium

Telethon

Sep 5 Jerry Lewis' 12th Muscular Dystrophy telethon

  • Sep 5 NASA launches Voyager 1 on a mission to initially just fly-by Jupiter and Saturn, later Uranus and Neptune also (2012 becomes the first human-made object to leave the solar system)
  • Sep 5 Red Army Faction kidnaps and subsequently murders West German business executive Hanns Martin Schleyer

Sports History

Sep 6 Angels acquire Dave Kingman from Padres for cash, 9 days later Yankees buy Kingman (started with Mets) who plays in all 4 divisions in 1977

  • Sep 7 Ethiopia drops diplomatic relations with Somalia

Event of Interest

Sep 7 US President Jimmy Carter and Panama's General Omar Torrijos sign the Panama Canal treaties, guaranteeing Panama control of the Panama Canal after 1999

  • Sep 7 Watergate conspirator G. Gordon Liddy is released from prison after serving 4 years and 4 1/2 months
  • Sep 8 Interpol sends a resolution concerning video piracy
  • Sep 8 Jimmy McCulloch quits Wings
  • Sep 9 Tiger rookies Lou Whitaker & Allan Trammell debut together & will play together for 19 years
  • Sep 10 Blue Jays beat Yankees 19-3 with 20 hits
  • Sep 10 Christa Vahlensieck runs female world record marathon (2:34:47.5)
  • Sep 10 Hamida Djandoubi, convicted of torture and murder, is the last person to be executed by Guillotine in France
  • Sep 10 Susan Perkins (Ohio), crowned 50th Miss America 1978

US Open Women's Tennis

Sep 10 US Open Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Chris Evert wins her 3rd straight US singles title; beats Wendy Turnbull of Australia 7-6, 6-2; final time event played at West Side Tennis Club

Emmy Awards

Sep 11 29th Emmy Awards: "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", Carroll O'Connor & Bea Arthur win; "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" accumulates a then record 29 awards over its 7 season run

Music History

Sep 11 American crooner Bing Crosby and British singer David Bowie record duet "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" at ATV Elstree Studios near London for television special "Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas"

The Atari 2600

Sep 11 The Atari 2600, originally known as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) is released in North America, revolutionizing the video game industry

US Men's Tennis Open

Sep 11 US Open Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Guillermo Vilas becomes the only Argentine to win US title; beats Jimmy Connors 2-6, 6-3, 7-6, 6-0; final time event played at West Side Tennis Club

  • Sep 12 Anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko dies in police custody from his injuries after being beaten and tortured by police
  • Sep 13 1st TV viewer discretion warning-Soap
  • Sep 13 2nd Test flight of Space Shuttle Enterprise
  • Sep 13 General Motors introduces 1st US diesel auto (Oldsmobile 88)
  • Sep 14 Christmas Tinto sentenced to 7 years in Robben Island, South Africa

Sports History

Sep 15 Orioles forfeit to Blue Jays when mgr Earl Weaver pulls team off field in 5th citing hazardous condition (small tarpaulin on bullpen mound)

  • Sep 15 revival of musical "Man of La Mancha" opens at Palace Theater, NYC; runs for 124 performances
  • Sep 15 TV LA drama "CHiPs" debuts on NBC in US
  • Sep 15 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
  • Sep 15 US President Jimmy Carter meets with 15 record company executives
  • Sep 16 90 minute pilot of "Logan's Run" premieres on TV

Drowning in Sea of Love

Sep 16 Ringo Starr releases single "Drowning in Sea of Love" in the UK

  • Sep 16 Seattle beats Royals, 4-1, to end KC's winning streak at 16 games

#1 in the Charts

Sep 17 British-American band Fleetwood Mac's "Rumors" album is #1 for 19th straight week

  • Sep 17 China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor, PRC
  • Sep 17 Dave Kingman hits his 1st Yankee homer, Reggie hits 2 more
  • Sep 17 Ryder Cup Golf, Royal Lytham & St Annes: US wins 12½-7½; last time a Great Britain and Ireland team competes for Ryder Cup
  • Sep 18 2nd Toronto International Film Festival opens
  • Sep 18 Ted Turner's Courageous (US) sweeps Alan Bond's Australia 4-0 in the 24th America's Cup
  • Sep 18 US Voyager I takes 1st space photograph of Earth & Moon together
  • Sep 20 Russell Means addresses the UNHCR in Geneva: criticizes the United States, describing Native Americans as "people who live in the belly of the monster"
  • Sep 20 Russian musical review "Estrada" opens a limited run at Majestic Theater, NYC, for 7 performances
  • Sep 20 Vietnam & Djibouti ask for membership in UN
  • Sep 22 Minnesota Twin Bert Blyleven no-hits California Angels, 9-0
  • Sep 22 West German Red Army Faction terrorist kills policeman in Utrecht
  • Sep 23 "I Just Fall in Love Again" single released by The Carpenters
  • Sep 23 3rd test of Space Shuttle Enterprise
  • Sep 23 Cheryl Ladd replaces Farrah Fawcett on TV show "Charlie's Angels"
  • Sep 24 1st broadcast of "Love Boat" on ABC-TV
  • Sep 24 Ken Hinton of CFL British Columbia Lions returns a punt 130 yards
  • Sep 24 Russian musical review "Estrada" closes a limited run at Majestic Theater, NYC, after 7 performances
  • Sep 26 British airline entrepreneur Sir Freddie Laker begins cut-rate "Skytrain" service, London to New York
  • Sep 26 Cleveland Browns play their 1st overtime game, beat Patriots 30-27
  • Sep 27 Phillies clinch 2nd straight NL East Division title
  • Sep 29 "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band" by Meco hits #1

The Stranger

Sep 29 Columbia Records releases "The Stranger", singer-songwriter Billy Joel's fifth studio album; it becomes the label's all-time best selling non-compilation record

  • Sep 29 Eva Shain is 1st woman to referee a heavyweight championship

Music History

Sep 29 James Brown's band walks out claiming they were underpaid and overworked

Boxing Title Fight

Sep 29 Muhammad Ali beats Earnie Shavers by unanimous decision over 15 rounds in NYC for WBA, WBC and The Ring heavyweight boxing titles

  • Sep 29 Peter Schats circus opera "Houdini" premieres in Amsterdam
  • Sep 29 Soviet space station Salyut 6 launched into Earth orbit
  • Sep 30 Due to US budget cuts, the Apollo program's ALSEP experiment packages left on the Moon are shut down.
  • Sep 30 Dutch Antillean government of Juancho Evertsz resigns
  • Sep 30 Ian Dury releases the album 'New Boots and Panties!!' which achieves platinum status
  • Sep 30 Philippine political prisoners, Eugenio Lopez, Jr. and Sergio Osmeña III successfully escaped from Fort Bonifacio Maximum Security Prison in the Philippines
  • Sep 30 Ringo Starr releases album "Ringo the 4th"
  • Sep 30 USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR
1977 History

Famous Birthdays

  • Sep 1 Aamir Ali, Indian television actor
  • Sep 1 Aaron Schobel, American football defensive end (Pro Bowl 2006, 07; Buffalo Bills), born in Harris County, Texas
  • Sep 1 David Albelda, Spanish soccer midfielder (51 caps; Valencia CF 351 games), born in La Pobla Llarga, Spain
  • Sep 1 Kathleen de León (Jones), Filipina-Australian actress, dancer, and singer (Hi-5, 1998-2006), born in Manila, Philippines
  • Sep 1 Shoshana Bean, American stage actress
  • Sep 2 Frédéric Kanouté, Malian footballer
  • Sep 2 Ramiro Muñoz, Colombian musician, born in Bogotá, Colombia
  • Sep 2 Sam Rivers, American rock bassist (Limp Bizkit), born in Jacksonville, Florida
  • Sep 3 Nate Robertson, American baseball player, born in Wichita, Kansas
  • Sep 3 Olof Mellberg, Swedish footballer (Astob Villa), born in Gullspång, Sweden
  • Sep 3 Rui Marques, Angolan soccer defender (21 caps; FC Baden, SSV Ulm, VfB Stuttgart, Leeds United), born in Luanda, Angola
  • Sep 3 Stephen Laybutt, Australian soccer defender (15 caps; Brisbane Strikers, Excelsior Mouscron, KAA Gent), born in Lithgow, Australia (d. 2024)
  • Sep 3 Tami Tyler, American dance skater (with partner Jonathan Nichols), born in Santa Clara, California
  • Sep 4 Lucie Silvas [Silverman], British singer-songwriter, born in Kingston upon Thames, England
  • Sep 5 Alexey Harkov, Russian bassist (Kipelov, Sergey Mavrin), born in Khimki, Moscow
  • Sep 5 Joseba Etxeberria, Spanish football winger, born in Elgoibar, Spain
  • Sep 5 Minoru Fujita, Japanese professional wrestler, born in Onoda, Yamaguchi
  • Sep 5 Nazr Mohammed, American basketball player, born in Chicago, Illinois
  • Sep 5 Rosevelt Colvin, American football linebacker (Super Bowl 2003, 04; NE Patriots) and analyst (Big Ten Network), born in Indianapolis, Indiana
  • Sep 6 Kiyoshi Hikawa, Japanese enka singer, born in Fukuoka, Japan
  • Sep 7 Jon Macken, British footballer (Preston North End), born in Blackley, England
  • Sep 7 Molly Holly [Nora Kristina Benshoof], American professional wrestler, born in Forest Lake, Minnesota
  • Sep 8 Maria Helena Selin, Finnish ice hockey right wing (Finland, Olympics 1998), born in Helsinki, Finland
  • Sep 9 Chae Jung-an, South Korean actress and singer, born in Busan, South Korea
  • Sep 9 Soulja Slim [James Adarryl Tapp Jr.], American rapper ("Slow Motion"), born in Magnolia Projects, New Orleans (d. 2003)
  • Sep 9 Stuart Price, British electronic music artist, DJ, songwriter, and record producer (Madonna; The Killers; Seal; Kylie Minogue), born in Paris, France
  • Sep 10 Changpeng Zhao "CZ", Chinese-Canadian entrepreneur (Binance, Blockchain.info), born in Jiangsu province, China
  • Sep 11 Jon Buckland, British guitarist (Coldplay - "Clocks"; "Viva La Vida"), born in London, England
  • Sep 11 Ludacris [Christopher Bridges], American rapper ("Stand Up"; "Act A Fool"), and actor (The Ride; Fast and Furious franchise), born in Champaign, Illinois
  • Sep 11 Matthew Stevens, Welsh snooker player, born in Carmarthen, Wales
  • Sep 12 2 Chainz [Tauheed Epps], American rapper, born in College Park, Georgia
  • Sep 12 David Thompson, English footballer, born in Birkenhead, England
  • Sep 12 Grant Denyer, Australian television personality and TV Host, born in Coffs Harbour, Australia
  • Sep 12 Idan Raichel, Israeli singer-songwriter, born in Kfar Saba, Israel
  • Sep 12 James McCartney, British musician son of Paul & Linda McCartney, born in London, England
  • Sep 12 Jeff Irwin, American rock and jazz bassist, born in Creve Coeur, Missouri
  • Sep 12 Nathan Bracken, Australian cricket fast bowler (5 Tests, 12 wickets; 116 ODIs, 174 wickets; NSW), born in Penrith, Australia
  • Sep 13 Daisuke Tsuda, Japanese singer (Maximum the Hormone), born in Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan
  • Sep 13 Fiona Apple [McAfee-Morgan], American singer and songwriter (Criminal), born in New York City
  • Sep 13 Ivan De Battista, Maltese actor, singer and composer, born in Gzira, Malta
  • Sep 15 Angela Aki, Japanese singer-songwriter, born in Itano, Tokushima, Japan

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (46 years old)

Sep 15 Nigerian writer (Half of a Yellow Sun), born in Enugu, Enugu State

  • Sep 15 Jason Terry, American basketball player and coach, born in Seattle, Washington
  • Sep 15 Marisa Ramirez, American actress (Blue Bloods), born in Los Angeles, California
  • Sep 15 Sophie Dahl, English model and author, born in London, England
  • Sep 15 Tom Hardy, British actor (The Revenant, Mad Max: Fury Road), born in London, England
  • Sep 16 Greg Ball, American politician (Member of the New York Senate 2011-14), born in Pawling, New York
  • Sep 17 Latoya Warning, Suriname 4th Miss Teenager (1993)
  • Sep 17 Simone Perrotta, Italian football player (Roma), born in Ashton-under-Lyne, England
  • Sep 17 Tony Goskowicz, American short track skater (Olympics 1994), born in Wauwautosa, Wisconsin
  • Sep 18 Barrett Foa, American actor (NCIS LA), and singer, born in Manhattan, New York
  • Sep 18 Kieran West, British oarsman (Olympic Gold 2000), born in Kingston upon Thames, England
  • Sep 18 Li Tie, Chinese footballer and coach (Everton), born in Shenyang, China
  • Sep 19 Aakash Chopra, Indian cricketer, born in Agra, India
  • Sep 19 Ryan Dusick, American drummer (Maroon 5, 2001-06 - "This Love"), born in Los Angeles, California
  • Sep 20 Namie Amuro, Japanese pop and R&B singer (Super Monkey's), born in Naha, Okinawa, Japan
  • Sep 21 Brian Tallet, American MLB baseball pitcher, 2002-11 (Toronto Blue Jays, and 2 other teams), born in Midwest City, Oklahoma
  • Sep 22 Paul Sculthorpe, English rugby league footballer (St Helens, 2x Man of Steel Award), born in Burnley, England
  • Sep 22 Quiara Alegría Hudes, American playwright, lyricist and producer (In the Heights, Water by the Spoonful), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania [1]
  • Sep 23 Matthieu Descoteaux, Canadian ice hockey player
  • Sep 23 Rachael Yamagata, American singer-songwriter and piano player, born in Arlington, Virginia
  • Sep 23 Susan Tamim, Lebanese singer and actress (Studio El Fan), born in Beirut, Lebanon (d. 2008)
  • Sep 24 Frank Fahrenhorst, German footballer, born in Kamen, West Germany
  • Sep 25 Clea DuVall, American actress, born in Los Angeles, California
  • Sep 25 Mike Krahulik, American illustrator (Penny Arcade)
  • Sep 25 Wil Nieves, Puerto Rican baseball player, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico
  • Sep 27 Andrus Värnik, Estonian javelin thrower

Jeezy (46 years old)

Sep 28 American rapper and songwriter (Trap Or Die 3), born in Columbia, South Carolina

  • Sep 28 Se-ri Pak, South Korean golfer (5 LPGA major titles; US Open 1998, British Open 2001), born in Daejeon, South Korea
  • Sep 29 Jake Westbrook, American baseball pitcher (World Series 2011 St. Louis Cardinals; MLB All Star 2004 Cleveland Indians), born in Athens, Georgia
  • Sep 29 Wade Brookbank, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Lanigan, Saskatchewan
  • Sep 29 Won Bin, South Korean actor (Autumn in My Heart), born in Jeongseon County, South Morea
  • Sep 30 Maia Brewton, American actress (Margaret-Lime Street), born in Los Angeles, California
  • Sep 30 Roy Carroll, Irish soccer goalkeeper who played 45 internationals NI; Wigan, Manchester United, West Ham, born in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland
  • Sep 30 Sun Jihai, Chinese footballer (Manchester City, born in Zhuanghe, China
Born in 1977

Famous Weddings

Barbara Eden

Sep 3 "I Dream of Jeannie" actress Barbara Eden (43) weds Charles Donald Fegert

Rush Limbaugh

Sep 24 Radio personality Rush Limbaugh (26) weds Roxy McNeely, a radio advertising salesperson, at Centenary United Methodist Church in Cape Girardeau, Missouri; divorced 1980

  • Sep 30 American'Rabbit' novelist John Updike (45) weds American social worker Martha Bernhard (39), at Clifton Lutheran Church in Marblehead, Massachusetts; second marriage for both, until his death in 2009

Famous Divorces

  • Sep 11 TV's Rhoda gets divorced

Famous Deaths

  • Sep 1 Ethel Waters, American actress (Beulah), singer ("Stormy Weather"), dies at 80
  • Sep 2 Stephen "Steve" Dunne, American actor (Professional Father, Shock), dies at 59
  • Sep 4 E. F. Schumacher, German economist and statistician (b. 1911)
  • Sep 4 Gabriel Mekler, Israeli-American songwriter and record producer (Steppenwolf, Three Dog Night, Janis Joplin, Etta James), dies in a motorcycle crash at 32
  • Sep 4 Jean Rostand, French biologist and philosopher, dies at 82
  • Sep 4 Stelios Perpiniadis, Greek folk singer, songwriter and guitarist, dies at 78
  • Sep 5 George Barnes, American swing-jazz and session guitarist, and electric guitar pioneer, dies of a heart attack at 56
  • Sep 5 Marcel Thiry, Belgian writer and wallon militant, dies at 80
  • Sep 6 Guido Pannain, Italian composer and musicologist, dies at 85
  • Sep 6 Paul Burkhard, Swiss composer, dies at 65
  • Sep 7 Gustave Reese, American musicologist (Music in the Middle Ages; Music in the Renaissance), and teacher, dies at 77
  • Sep 8 Samuel Joel "Zero" Mostel, American comedian and actor (Fiddler on the Roof, The Producers), dies of an aortic aneurysm at 62
  • Sep 9 John Breeden, American actor (Salute, Madame Racketeer, Joy Street), dies at 73
  • Sep 10 Hamida Djandoubi, Tunisian convicted murderer who was the last person to be executed in Western Europe, is beheaded in Marseille by guillotine at 28
  • Sep 11 Don Blackman, actor (Old Man & Sea, Desert Legion), dies at 65
  • Sep 11 Leonard Carey, American actor (Rebecca, Laughter), dies at 90
  • Sep 12 Robert Lowell, American poet and pacifist (Lord Weary's Castle, Near the Ocean), dies at 60
  • Sep 12 Steven Biko, South African anti-apartheid activist, dies in police custody at 30
  • Sep 13 Arthur Fagg, English cricket batsman (5 Tests; dual double-centuries for Kent v Essex 1938) and umpire (18 Tests, 7 ODIs), dies at 62
  • Sep 13 Leopold Stokowski, British conductor (Philadelphia Orchestra, 1912-39; Disney's Fantasia), dies of a heart attack at 95
  • Sep 16 Marc Bolan, English rock vocalist and guitarist (T-Rex - "Bang a Gong (Get It On)"), dies in a car crash at 29

Maria Callas (1923-1977)

Sep 16 American soprano (Carmen), dies in Paris at 53

  • Sep 17 Lou Hooper, Canadian jazz pianist, and educator, dies at 83
  • Sep 18 Paul Bernays, Swiss mathematician (b. 1888)
  • Sep 25 Sidney James van den Bergh, Dutch businessman and politician, dies at 78
  • Sep 26 Ernie Lombardi, American Baseball HOF catcher (8 × MLB All-Star; World Series 1940; NL MVP 1938; Cincinnati Reds, Boston Braves, NY Giants), dies at 69

Jock Hutchison (1884-1977)

Sep 27 Scottish golfer (PGA C'ship 1920, British Open 1921), dies at 93

  • Sep 27 Willis Bouchey, American character actor (The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance), dies at 70
  • Sep 29 Alexander Tcherepnin, Russian pianist and composer, dies at 78
  • Sep 30 Mary Ford [Iris Colleen Summers], American vocalist (with Les Paul - "How High The Moon"), dies from complications of alcohol abuse at 53