Portal:1970s

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The 1970s Portal

P:1970s

The 1970s (pronounced "nineteen-seventies"; commonly shortened to the "Seventies" or the "'70s") was a decade that began on January 1, 1970, and ended on December 31, 1979.

In the 21st century, historians have increasingly portrayed the 1970s as a "pivot of change" in world history, focusing especially on the economic upheavals^[1] that followed the end of the postwar economic boom.^[2] On a global scale, it was characterized by frequent coups, domestic conflicts and civil wars, and various political upheavals and armed conflicts which arose from or were related to decolonization, and the global struggle between NATO, the Warsaw Pact, and the Non-Aligned Movement. Many regions had periods of high-intensity conflict, notably Southeast Asia, the Mideast, and Africa.

In the Western world, social progressive values that began in the 1960s, such as increasing political awareness and economic liberty of women, continued to grow. In the United Kingdom, the 1979 election resulted in the victory of its Conservative leader Margaret Thatcher, the first female British Prime Minister. Industrialized countries experienced an economic recession due to an oil crisis caused by oil embargoes by the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries. The crisis saw the first instance of stagflation which began a political and economic trend of the replacement of Keynesian economic theory with neoliberal economic theory, with the first neoliberal government coming to power with the 1973 Chilean coup d'état. The 1970s was also an era of great technological and scientific advances; since the appearance of the first commercial microprocessor, the Intel 4004 in 1971, the decade was characterised by a profound transformation of computing units – by then rudimentary, spacious machines – into the realm of portability and home accessibility.

On the other hand, there were also great advances in fields such as physics, which saw the consolidation of quantum field theory at the end of the decade, mainly thanks to the confirmation of the existence of quarks and the detection of the first gauge bosons in addition to the photon, the Z boson and the gluon, part of what was christened in 1975 as the Standard Model.

In Asia, the People's Republic of China's international relations changed significantly following its recognition by the United Nations, the death of Mao Zedong and the beginning of market liberalization by Mao's successors. Despite facing an oil crisis due to the OPEC embargo, the economy of Japan witnessed a large boom in this period, overtaking the economy of West Germany to become the second-largest in the world.^[3] The United States withdrew its military forces from the Vietnam War. In 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, which led to the Soviet–Afghan War.

The 1970s saw an initial increase in violence in the Middle East as Egypt and Syria declared war on Israel, but in the late 1970s, the situation in the Middle East was fundamentally altered when Egypt signed the Egyptian–Israeli Peace Treaty. Political tensions in Iran exploded with the Iranian Revolution in 1979, which overthrew the Pahlavi dynasty and established an Islamic republic under the leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini.

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Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were an American hip hop group formed in the South Bronx of New York City in 1978. The group's members were Grandmaster Flash, Kidd Creole (not to be confused with Kid Creole), Keef Cowboy, Melle Mel, Scorpio, and Rahiem. The group's use of turntablism, breakbeat DJing, and conscious lyricism were significant in the early development of hip hop music.

In the late 1970s, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five built their reputation and achieved local success by performing at parties and live shows. By 1980, the group had signed with Sugar Hill Records. Under Sugar Hill Records, the group rose to prominence in the early 1980s with their first hit "Freedom". It was not until the release of the song "The Message" in 1982 and the album The Message that they achieved mainstream success. The song provided a political and social commentary and went on to become a driving force behind conscious hip-hop. (Full article...)

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... that a Nebraska public radio station operated from a 1916-built Carnegie library in the 1970s and 1980s?
... that more than 30,000 cars were being towed annually by the 1970s to accommodate snow removal efforts in Montreal?
... that an English country house was the location for the 1970s horror sexploitation films Virgin Witch, Satan's Slave and Terror?
... that in the 1970s, Coors Brewing Company owned Television News Inc., which provided newsfilm to North American TV stations?
... that Zzzzzz had the busiest residential telephone number in the United States in the 1970s?
... that Comtal Corporation's products were used by NASA to process digital images of the surface of Mars and flybys of Jupiter in the 1970s?

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Joel in 2009

William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man" after his signature 1973 song of the same name, Joel has had a successful music career as a solo artist since the 1970s. From 1971 to 1993, he released twelve studio albums that spanned the genres of pop and rock music, and in 2001 released a one-off studio album of classical music compositions. Joel is one of the world's best-selling music artists and the fourth-best-selling solo artist in the United States, with over 160 million records sold worldwide. His 1985 compilation album, Greatest Hits – Volume I & Volume II, is one of the best-selling albums in the United States.

Joel was born in the Bronx in New York City and grew up on Long Island, where he began taking piano lessons at his mother's insistence. After dropping out of high school to pursue a music career, Joel took part in two short-lived bands, The Hassles and Attila, before signing a record deal with Family Productions and starting off a solo career in 1971 with his first release Cold Spring Harbor. In 1972, Joel caught the attention of Columbia Records after a live radio performance of the song "Captain Jack" became popular in Philadelphia, prompting him to sign a new record deal with the company and release his second album, Piano Man, in 1973. After Streetlife Serenade and Turnstiles in 1974 and 1976, respectively, Joel released his critical and commercial breakthrough album, The Stranger, in 1977, which became Columbia's best-selling release, selling over 10 million copies and spawning the hit singles, "Just the Way You Are", "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)", "Only the Good Die Young", and "She's Always a Woman"; the album also includes the popular album track "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant", Joel's favorite of his own songs, which has become a firm staple of his live shows, and "Vienna", also one of Joel's personal favorites and as of 2022 one of his most streamed songs on the internet. (Full article...)

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The following are images from various 1970s-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1John Denver, 1975 (from 1970s in music)
Image 2Linda Ronstadt in 1976 (from 1970s in music)
Image 3Clockwise from top left: U.S. President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office following the Watergate scandal in 1974; The United States was still involved in the Vietnam War in the early decade. The New York Times leaked information regarding the nation's involvement in the war. Political pressure led to America's withdrawal from the war in 1973, and the Fall of Saigon in 1975 leading to evacuations of South Vietnamese that same year; the 1973 oil crisis causes a financial crisis throughout the developed world; both the leaders of Israel and Egypt shake hands after the signing of the Camp David Accords in 1978; in 1971, the Pakistan Armed Forces commits the 1971 Bangladesh genocide to curb independence movements in East Pakistan, killing 300,000 to 3,000,000 people; this consequently leads to the Bangladesh Liberation War; the 1970 Bhola cyclone kills an estimated 500,000 people in the densely populated Ganges Delta region of East Pakistan in November 1970, and became the deadliest natural disaster in 40 years; the Iranian Revolution of 1979 ousts Mohammad Reza Pahlavi who is later replaced by an Islamic theocracy led by Ayatollah Khomeini; the popularity of the disco music genre and subculture peaks during the mid-to-late 1970s.
(from 1970s)
Image 4American First Lady Pat Nixon wears a shirt with the wide collar that was popular until the final years of the decade. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 5Girl in 1973 with a "flicked" hairstyle. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 6Elton John was one of the most commercially successful solo pop acts of the 1970s (from 1970s in music)
Image 7Galaxian (1979) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 8The Swedish band ABBA was one of the most commercially successful European bands of the 1970s (from 1970s in music)
Image 9Salah Zulfikar and Zubaida Tharwat in The Other Man (1973) (from 1970s)
Image 10Line at a gas station in Maryland, June 15, 1979. (from 1970s)
Image 11Paul Anka in 1961 (from 1970s in music)
Image 12Fashion models in Leipzig, GDR, 1972. One of the girls is modelling a "maxi" dress. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 13Typical mid to late 1970s Ted gear, as worn by Shakin' Stevens. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 14King Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (from 1970s)
Image 15Alan Bennett in 1973, wearing a wide necktie (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 16America's first space station Skylab in orbit February 8, 1974 (from 1970s)
Image 17Actress Camille Keaton in 1972. Throughout most of the decade, women preferred light, natural-looking make-up for the daytime. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 18The world map of military alliances in 1970s: Western allies (blue), Non-aligned countries (green) and Soviet allies (red) (from 1970s)
Image 19Park Chung Hee (from 1970s)
Image 20English girl in the mid-1970s wearing a wide-sleeved shirt, belted at the waist. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 21Nixon and Zhou toast, 1972 (from 1970s)
Image 22Ramones's lead guitarist Johnny Ramone performing in Toronto, 1977 (from 1970s in music)
Image 23The British band The Bee Gees were one of the biggest musical acts of the 1970s leading the disco phenomenon (from 1970s in music)
Image 241976 flyer advertising the racing game Fonz. (from 1970s in video games)
Image 25Iranian prince Reza Pahlavi wearing Peacock Revolution-inspired velvet Nehru jacket and geometric print scarf, 1973. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 26A wrap dress Diane von Fürstenberg designed in the 1970s (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 27Debbie Harry of Blondie in 1977. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 28The early 1970s' fashions were a continuation of the hippie look from the late 1960s. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 29An artist impression of an American Apollo spacecraft and Soviet Soyuz spacecraft docking, a propaganda portrait for the Apollo–Soyuz Test Project mission (from 1970s)
Image 30Mid-70s Western-inspired outifts worn by country music group Asleep at the Wheel. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 31British singer Rod Stewart, 1976. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 32Concorde landing at Farnborough in September 1974 (from 1970s)
Image 33By the early 1970s, miniskirts had reached an all-time popularity. This young English woman is wearing a fringed suede miniskirt, 1971. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 34Woman in miniskirt, 1970 (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 35Aldo Moro (from 1970s)
Image 36Susana Giménez wearing hotpants, 1977 (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 37American casual attire, 1974. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 38Honda Civic sold well throughout the decade. (from 1970s)
Image 39Viking 1, the first of two spacecraft sent to Mars, takes this picture of the landing site in Chryse Planitia (1978) (from 1970s)
Image 40Frisbee player Ken Westerfield wearing draw string bell bottoms in the 1970s (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 41Home Pong console (museum recreation) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 42Three Los Angeles Chicanos in 1974. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 43Swedish model Efva Attling in a "midi" dress, with Lars Jacob, Kings Road, London, 1971. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 44Isabel Perón becomes the first woman President of Argentina in 1974 and the first woman non-monarch head of state in the Western hemisphere. (from 1970s)
Image 45Microvision (1979) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 46Singer Billy Preston in 1974 wearing an Afro hairstyle. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 47Willie Nelson became one of the most popular country music artists during the 1970s. (from 1970s in music)
Image 48Bob Marley, 1980 (from 1970s in music)
Image 49Steve McQueen with sideburns, 1972. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 50Queen, 1977 (from 1970s in music)
Image 51 Fairchild Channel F (1976) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 52Debby Boone song "You Light Up My Life" had the most weeks at number one (from 1970s in music)
Image 53El Tri Band founder Alex Lora, on stage with the band in 2006 (from 1970s in music)
Image 54Idi Amin (from 1970s)
Image 55Punk pioneer Lene Lovich in 1979, with her trademark long plaited hair. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 56British rock band Killing Floor, 1971. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 57Nixon displays the V-for-victory sign as he departs the White House after resigning (from 1970s)
Image 58Singer Barry Manilow wears his hair longish in the soft, layered style favoured by men in the 1970s. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 59Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson from Sanford and Son (from 1970s)
Image 601973 Volvo P1800 sportwagon. (from 1970s)
Image 61British rock band Queen (pictured here in 1977) was considered to be one of the most influential bands of the '70s (as well as the '80s), along with American rock band Eagles and others (from 1970s)
Image 62Margaret Thatcher shortly before becoming the United Kingdom's first woman Prime Minister in 1979. Thatcher's political and economic agenda began the first government committed to neoliberalism. (from 1970s)
Image 631979 Iranian Revolution (from 1970s)
Image 64Henry Mancini (from 1970s in music)
Image 65Rigo Tovar (from 1970s in music)
Image 66Pink Floyd performing The Dark Side of the Moon in 1973, the highest-selling album of the decade and one of the highest-selling of all time. (from 1970s)
Image 67Death Race (1976) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 68Swedish model Ulla Jones dressed in a lurex halter top and matching flared trousers (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 69Example of glam rock costume worn by Roy Wood and Wizzard, early 1970s. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 70In 1971 hotpants and bell-bottomed trousers were popular fashion trends (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 71Led Zeppelin, 1977 (from 1970s in music)
Image 72In the 1970s, women's hair was usually worn long with a centre parting (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 73Kansas (from 1970s in music)
Image 74Charlie Rich (from 1970s in music)
Image 75Apple II (1977) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 76Two punks from the late 1970s (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 77Aerosmith had seven studio albums chart on the Billboard 200 in the 1970s. Their success in the decade, particularly of their albums Toys in the Attic (1975) and Rocks (1976), helped inspire future rock artists such as Slash and Kurt Cobain (from 1970s in music)
Image 78Los Angeles high school students, 1973. The tousled, blond surfer hair was popular for young men in southern California. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 79The 1970 Bhola cyclone, considered the 20th century's worst cyclone disaster, kills an estimated 500,000 people in the densely populated Ganges Delta region of East Pakistan during November 1970. (from 1970s)
Image 80AC/DC, August 1979 (from 1970s in music)
Image 81A West German school girl with Schultüte in 1970, with a 'hippyish' outfit on. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 82Two women in 1979 wear the trendy tube tops, while the woman on the far left is wearing a rayon strapless dress (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 83Flared jeans and trousers were popular with both sexes as can be seen at this East German disco party in 1977. In the socialist part of Germany (until 1990), the government regarded western influences on cultural life of their population very critical, but factually tolerated them in many fields. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 84The Vietnam War (1955–1975) (from 1970s)
Image 85Voyager 1 passing by Jupiter's Great Red Spot February 25, 1979 (from 1970s)
Image 86Hank Williams (from 1970s in music)
Image 87The Eagles (from 1970s in music)
Image 88Egyptian military vehicles crossing the Suez Canal on October 7, 1973, during the Yom Kippur War. (from 1970s)
Image 89Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat shake hands, Camp David, 1978 (from 1970s)
Image 90A young woman wearing a wrap dress. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 91Singer Rod Stewart performing in 1976. He was one of the major British soft rock artists of the 1970s (from 1970s in music)
Image 92TRS-80 (1977) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 93Microvision (1979) is the first handheld game console that used interchangeable cartridges. (from 1970s)
Image 94Asteroids (1979) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 95Pink Floyd, 1973 (from 1970s in music)
Image 96Silk scarves were popular fashion accessories for women in the 1970s. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 97Pong (1972) (from 1970s)
Image 98Haile Selassie was overthrown from power in Ethiopia, ending one of the longest-lasting monarchies in world history. (from 1970s)
Image 99Anti-war protest against the Vietnam War in Washington, D.C., on April 24, 1971. (from 1970s)
Image 100Commodore PET (1977) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 101Apollo 17 Astronaut Gene Cernan becomes the last man on the Moon, December 13, 1972 (from 1970s)
Image 1021970 Dodge Challenger Trans Am, an example of a muscle car in the earlier part of the decade. (from 1970s)
Image 103Jose Jose (from 1970s in music)
Image 104Couple prom in late 1970s men wear Powder Tuxedo women wear Sleeve dress. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 105British girls in 1975 in flared jeans (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 106The Bee Gees, in 1968 (from 1970s in music)
Image 107British rock band Led Zeppelin was one of the most popular and influential bands of the 1970s. The band's heavy, guitar-driven sound has led them to be cited as one of the progenitors of heavy metal. (from 1970s)
Image 108David Bowie in the early 1970s. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 109Color TV-Game (1977) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 110United States President Jimmy Carter and Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev sign the SALT II treaty, June 18, 1979, in Vienna, Austria (from 1970s)
Image 111Footballer George Best wore long hair in 1976. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 112VT100 (1978) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 113Pong arcade machine (1972) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 114A Women's Liberation march in Washington, D.C., 1970 (from 1970s)
Image 115Siouxsie Sioux of the English punk group Siouxsie and the Banshees. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 116Magnavox Odyssey (1972) (from 1970s in video games)
Image 117Polistil VG2 Pong clone (1978), made in Italy (from 1970s in video games)
Image 118Mao Zedong wearing gray Zhongshan suit, 1972. (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 119The CN Tower was completed in 1976, becoming the world's tallest free-standing structure. (from 1970s)
Image 120Bruce Lee fostered the popularity of martial arts cinema (from 1970s)
Image 121Loretta Lynn (from 1970s in music)
Image 122African American couple, Michigan Avenue, Chicago, July 1975 (from 1970s in fashion)
Image 123Pakistan Army Genarel A. A. K. Niazi signing surrender agreement before Sh. Jagjit Singh Aurora of Indian Army after getting defeated in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War against East Pakistan, which eventually liberated as Bangladesh later. (from 1970s)
Image 124Intellivision (1979) (from 1970s in video games)

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