Notable Events in 1971

Jan 242010

1971 was an interesting year. I was only born 6 years later though so I have no recollection whatsoever of this year. I will be featuring a year from the 20th Century every now and then on Running Wolf’s Rant. History is one of my favorite subjects (right behind nostalgia, South Africa and rock music). Hopefully all of you reading this will appreciate this post and the information it contains. This post features notable events that happened in 1971. The photo on this post is a cover of a 1971 Rolling Stone magazine featuring the late musician Michael Jackson (who passed away in 2009). Read my RIP Michael Jackson post for more information about this. I’m not a deity or all-knowing type so feel free to comment on this post if I’ve missed other significant events that happened in 1971.

Here is the list of Notable Events that happened in 1971:

Queen and the Eagles were formed in 1971.
Simon and Garfunkel won 2 Grammy Awards for the title track off their 1970 Bridge Over Troubled Water album. (for Record of the Year and Song of the Year).
The 43rd Annual Academy Awards was held in 1971 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles in the United States. Patton (a film about an American World War 2 general) won the Oscar for Best Picture. George C. Scott won the Oscar for Best Actor for Patton but became the first actor in history to refuse the award. British Actress Glenda Jackson won the Oscar for Best Actress for Women in Love.
The list of top songs released in 1971 include Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin (the British Rock group), Imagine by John Lennon (former member of The Beatles), American Pie by Don Mclean, Theme from Shaft by Isaac Hayes (later the voice of Chef on television’s South Park), Riders on the storm by The Doors, Ain’t No Sunshine by Bill Withers, Baba O’Reily by The Who (now used in modified form as the theme song to the television series CSI New York), Tiny Dancer by Elton John and Take me home, Country Roads by John Denver (the late well-known country musician).
Richard Nixon was in 3rd year of his US presidency in 1971.
In 1971 Edward Heath was in the 2nd year of his term as the British Prime Minister.
In South Africa Jim Fouche was the State President of South Africa and BJ Vorster was the Prime Minister of South Africa.
The 269m (882 feet) Hillbrow Tower in Johannesburg, South Africa was completed in 1971. It was then named the J.G. Strijdom tower. In 2005 it was renamed to the Telkom tower.
The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) lifted its ban on The Beatles in 1971
Winnie Mandela (former wife of Nelson Mandela) was sentenced to 1 year in jail in 1971
Arthur Ashe (the famous tennis player) was denied a visa to visit South Africa.
A ban on radio and television adverts for cigarettes went into effect on the 1st of January 1971 in the United States.
The first ever One Day International Cricket match between Australia and England was played in 1971.
The Aswan Dam was officially opened in Egypt in 1971.
In Uganda, Idi Amin deposed Milton Obote in a coup and became the country’s president.
In the United Kingdom, the vehicle manufacturer Rolls Royce went bankrupt and was nationalized
Apollo 14 landed on the moon in 1971.
The Nasdaq index made its debut in 1971 on Wall Street in the United States
The US, UK, USSR and others sign the Seabed Treaty, outlawing nuclear weapons on the ocean floor in 1971.
The United Kingdom and Ireland both switched to decimal currency in February 1971.
The daredevil, Evel Knievel set a world record by jumping over 19 cars in 1971.
Boxer Joe Frazier defeated Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden in 1971.
The infamous Ed Sullivan show aired it last episode in the United States in 1971.
In 1971 murderer Charles Manson was sentenced to death.
Sierra Leone (in Africa) became a republic in 1971. Siaka Stevens was elected as the first president in the same year.
In April 1971 500,000 people in Washington DC and 125,000 people in San Fransisco marched to protest against the Vietnam War. In the same year The Harris Poll claimed that 60% of Americans were against the war.
Christie’s auctioned a diamond known as “Deepdene”. It is later found to be artificially colored.
Bangladesh declared independence from Pakistan in 1971
The United States ended it trade embargo with China in 1971.
The New York Times began publishing the Pentagon Papers (a top-secret United States Department of Defense history of US political / military involvement in Vietnam between 1945 & 1967) in 1971.
Jim Morrison, lead singer of The Doors was found dead in his bathtub in Paris, France in 1971.
US President Nixon lowered the voting age to 18 (from 21) in 1971.
Spanish dictator and head of state Francisco Franco made Prince Juan Carlos his successor in 1971.
The South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City in the United States was topped out at 415 metres (1,362 feet), making it the 2nd tallest building in the world.
In 1971 Bahrain (in the Middle East) declared independence from the United Kingdom.
Qatar gained independence from the United Kingdom as well in 1971.
In October 1971 Walt Disney World opened in Orlando, Florida in the United States.
The 2,500 Year Celebration of Iran began, celebrating the birth of Persia in 1971.
In 1971 the United Nations General Assembly admitted the People’s Republic of China and expelled the Republic of China (Taiwan).
The Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa was renamed to Zaire in 1971.
The UNIX Programmer’s manual was published in 1971.
Mariner 9 became the first spacecraft to enter Mars orbit successfully in 1971.
The Intel 4004 (the world’s first microprocessor) was launched by Intel in 1971.
D.B. Cooper parachuted from the Northwest Orient Airlines plane he hijacked, with $200,000 in ransom money and is never seen again. It remains as the only unsolved skyjacking in history.
Texas Instruments released the first pocket calculator in 1971.
Nisseki Maru (the world’s largest tanker) was launched in 1971.
The first soft contact lens became available commercially in the United States in 1971.
The Montreux Casino in Switzerland burned down during a Frank Zappa concert. The event is later referred to in the song Smoke on the Water by Deep Purple.
The United Kingdom gave up its bases in Malta in 1971.
A Clockwork Orange (a movie directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Malcolm Mcdowell), Dirty Harry (starring Clint Eastwood), The French Connection (starring Gene Hackman), Diamonds are Forever (the last James Bond film featuring Sean Connery), Shaft (starring Richard Rowntree), Klute (starring Jane Fonda and Donald Sutherland), Escape from the Planet of the Apes and Fists of Fury (starring Bruce Lee) was released in cinemas in 1971.
Corey Feldman (famous for his roles in movies in 1980s), Luke Wilson (Actor), Rachel Weisz (British Actress), Antonio Banderas (Actor), Mark Wahlberg (Actor), Monica Potter (Actress), Johnny Knoxville (of Jackass fame), Kid Rock (Musician), Lance Armstrong (Cyclist), Mariah Carey (Musician), Sean Astin (Actor), Shannen Doherty (Actress), Snoop Dogg (Rapper), Tupac Shakur (Rapper), Winona Ryder (Actress), Minnie Driver (Actress), Ricky Martin (Musician), Mary J Blige (Musician), Bridget Moynahan (Actress), Gena Lee Nolin (Actress), Adriana Sklenarikova (Model) and Caprice Bourret (Model) were all born in 1971.