Ayatollah Khomeini issues a fatwa against author Salman Rushdie
Book on the rise of HIV?AIDS, And the Band Played On is first published
Clarence Thomas is confirmed to the Supreme Court
CNN, the first 24-hour news network launches
Colin Powell becomes first African American Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Dalai Lama wins Nobel Peace Prize
David Dinkins is elected to be the first African American mayor of New York City
EPCOT Center opens in Disney World in Orlando, Florida
Exxon Valdez oil spill
George H.W. Bush is sworn in as 41st US President
Hubble space telescope is placed into orbit
Iraq invades Kuwait
J.R. Ewing is shot on Dallas
Jogger in Central Park 5 case is assaulted, leading to the wrongful arrest and conviction of 5 New York teens
Lotte World opens in Seoul, South Korea
Madonna releases Like a Prayer
Menendez brothers, Erik and Lyle, murder their parents
Michael Jackson releases Bad
Muppets creator Jim Henson dies
Nintendo releases Game Boy to US markets
Oliver North is convicted for his role in the Iran-Contra Affair
Pan Am Flight 103 is blown up over Lockerbie, Scotland by a Libyan bomb
Rain Man wins Academy Awards Best Picture
Romania overthrows its communist dictatorship
Space Shuttle Challenger blows up during take-off
Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing premiers
The Fall of the Berlin Wall
The first World AIDS Day is observed
the Tiananmen Square Massacre
USSR announces all of its forces have left Afghanistan