September 12, 1981

That fall of 1981, gas ran $1.31 a gallon and Reagan was in the White House — his administration was navigating arms negotiations with the Soviet Union and pushing a sweeping economic agenda through Congress. On the cultural side, Diana Ross and Lionel Richie had the country's attention with "Endless Love" at the top of the charts, while television audiences were tuning in week after week to "Hill Street Blues," which had just taken home the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series. The Los Angeles Dodgers capped the fall by beating the New York Yankees in six games to win the World Series, and out in space, the Soviet Union launched the Venera 13 probe toward Venus as part of an ongoing effort to study Earth's nearest planetary neighbor.