Year (''' MCMLXXIX ''') was a Common Year Starting On Monday (link displays the 1979 Gregorian Calendar ).
- January 4 - Afif Mohammed Anwar Kagdi was born on this day.
- January 4 - The State of Ohio agrees to pay $675,000 to families of the dead and injured in the Kent State Shootings .
- January 7 - Vietnam and Vietnam-backed Cambodia n Insurgent s announce the fall of Phnom Penh , Cambodia , and the collapse of the Pol Pot regime. Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge retreat west to an area along the Thai border.
- January 8 - The French tanker '' Betelgeuse '' explodes at the Gulf Oil terminal at Bantry in Ireland ; 50 are killed.
- January 9 - The Music For UNICEF Concert is held at the United Nations General Assembly to raise money for UNICEF and promote the Year of the Child. It is broadcast the following day in the United States and around the world. Hosted by The Bee Gees , other performers include Donna Summer , ABBA , Rod Stewart and Earth, Wind & Fire . A soundtrack album was released.
- January 16 - The Shah Of Iran flees Iran with his family, relocating to Egypt after a year of turmoil.
- January 19 - Former U.S. Attorney General John N. Mitchell is released on Parole after 19 months at a federal prison in Alabama.
- January 21 - The Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Dallas Cowboys 35-31 in Super Bowl XIII played at the Orange Bowl in Miami , Florida .
- January 29 - Brenda Ann Spencer opens fire at a school in San Diego, California , killing 2 teachers and wounding 8 students.
- January 31 - The police under directions of Jyoti Basu , Chief Minister of CPM led govt of West Bengal , surrounds and opens fire on unarmed refugee settlement of Morichjhapi island in Sunderbans , West Bengal , India . Hundreds killed but govt officially accepted 36 deaths.
- February 1 - Convicted bank robber Patty Hearst is released from prison after her sentence is commuted by U.S. President Jimmy Carter .
- February 2 - Sid Vicious , the famous bass player of the Sex Pistols , dies of a Heroin Overdose .
- February 1 - Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returns to Tehran , Iran after nearly 15 years of Exile .
- February 3 - Khomeini creates the Council of the Islamic Revolution .
- February 7 - Supporters of Khomeini take over the Iranian law enforcement, courts and government administration; the final session of the Iranian National Consultative Assembly is held.
- February 7 - Pluto moves inside Neptune 's orbit for the first time since either was known to science.
- February 10 - February 11 - The Iranian army mutinies and joins the Islamic Revolution.
- February 11 - Khomeini seizes power in Iran.
- February 12 - Prime Minister Hissène Habré starts the Battle Of N'Djamena in an attempt to overthrow Chad 's President Félix Malloum .
- February 13 - The intense February 13, 1979 Windstorm strikes western Washington and sinks a 1/2-mile-long section of the Hood Canal Bridge .
- February 14 - In Kabul , Muslim extremists kidnap the American ambassador to Afghanistan , Adolph Dubs , who is later killed during a gunfight between his kidnappers and police.
- February 14 - Following her 1972 Sex Reassignment Surgery , musician Wendy Carlos legally changes her name from Walter. She later reveals this information in an interview in the May 1979 issue of '' Playboy '' Magazine. Incidently on this day her future partner Andrew Aitken was born a hermaphrodite. He also went on to have sex reassignment surgery and they married as husband and wife. {Link without Title}
- February 15 - A suspected gas explosion rocks a bank in Warsaw killing 49.
- February 17 - The People's Republic Of China invades northern Vietnam , launching the Sino-Vietnamese War .
- February 18 - The Sahara Desert experiences Snow for 30 minutes.
- February 22 - Saint Lucia becomes independent of the United Kingdom .
- February 26 - A total solar Eclipse arcs over northern Canada , and a partial solar Eclipse is visible over almost all of North America and Central America . {Link without Title}
- March 1 - Scotland votes narrowly for home rule, which is not implemented, and Wales votes against it.
- March 4 - The U.S. Voyager I spaceprobe photos reveal Jupiter's Rings .
- March 5 - Voyager I makes its closest approach to Jupiter at 172,000 miles.
- March 5 - Largest Magnetar , or Soft Gamma Repeater , event recorded.
- March 13 - Maurice Bishop leads a successful coup in Grenada .
- March 14 - In China , a Hawker Siddeley Trident crashes into a factory near Beijing , killing at least 200.
- March 17 - The Penmanshiel Tunnel in the UK collapses, killing two workers.
- March 25 - The first fully functional Space Shuttle orbiter, ''Columbia'' , is delivered to the John F. Kennedy Space Center , to be prepared for its first launch.
- March 26 - In a ceremony at the White House , President Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel sign a peace treaty.
- March 28 - A Nuclear Power Plant accident at Three Mile Island , Pennsylvania, releases radiation.
- March 28 - In Britain , Jim Callaghan 's government loses a Motion Of Confidence by 1 vote, forcing a general election.
- March 29 - Sultan Yahya Petra Ibni Almarhum Sultan Ibrahim Petra , the 6th Yang Di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia , dies in office. He is replaced by Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Al-Mustain Billah Ibni Almarhum Sultan Sir Abu Bakar Riayatuddin Al-Muadzam Shah , Sultan of Pahang .
- March 30 - Airey Neave , World War Two veteran and Conservative Northern Ireland spokesman, is killed by an Irish National Liberation Army bomb in the British House Of Commons car park.
- March 31 - The Royal Navy withdraws from Malta .
- March 31 - Malta declares its Freedom Day (Jum il-Helsien).
- March 31 - Gali Atari and Milk and Honey win the Eurovision Song Contest 1979 for Israel , with the song '' Hallelujah ''.
- April 1 - Iran 's government becomes an Islamic Republic by a 98% vote, overthrowing the Shah officially.
- April 1 - April 18 - Police lock Andreas Mihavecz in a holding cell in Bregenz , Austria , and forget him there without food or drink.
- April 1 - Nickelodeon Television Channel , a children's Cartoon channel, launches as The Pinwheel Network .
- Biowarfare laboratory at Sverdlovsk accidentally releases airborne Anthrax spores, killing 66 plus an unknown amount of Livestock .
- April 4 - President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto of Pakistan is executed.
- April 8 - Alexi Laiho from Children of Bodom is born.
- April 10 - A tornado hits Wichita Falls, Texas , killing 42 people (the most notable of 26 that hit that day).
- April 11 - Tanzania n troops take Kampala , the capital of Uganda ; Idi Amin flees.
- April 17 - Schoolchildren in the Central African Empire are arrested (and around 100 killed) for protesting against compulsory School Uniform s. An African judicial commission later determines that Emperor Jean-Bédel Bokassa "almost certainly" took part in the massacre.
- April 20 - President Jimmy Carter is Attacked By A Swamp Rabbit while Fishing in his hometown Plains, Georgia .
- April 23 - Fighting in London between the Anti-Nazi League and the Metropolitan Police 's Special Patrol Group results in the death of protestor Blair Peach .
- April 25 - Bart Simpson 's birthday (a fictional character made by Matt Groening ).
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- August 4 - Led Zeppelin play their first concert in two years at Knebworth Park in England , their first show there in four years. A second show would be played a week later which would prove to be their final UK concert.
- August 5 - The Polisario Front signs a peace treaty with Mauritania .
- August 9 - The first British Nudist Beach is established in Brighton .
- August 9 - Raymond Washington , known for founding the Crips , today one of the largest, most notorious gangs in the United States , was shot and killed five months following his arrest for quadruple murder. (His killers have not yet been identified.)
- August 10 - Michael Jackson releases his first breakthrough album '' Off The Wall ''. It sold 7 million copies in the United States alone, making it a 7x platinum album.
- August 14 - A freak storm during the Fastnet Race results in the death of 15 sailors.
- August 22 - Led Zeppelin releases their album '' In Through The Out Door ''.
- August 27 - Lord Mountbatten and 3 others are assassinated by the Provisional Irish Republican Army . He was a British admiral, statesman and an uncle of Prince Philip, Duke Of Edinburgh . On the same day, the Warrenpoint Ambush occurs, Provisional Irish Republican Army members attack a British Convoy at Narrow Water, County Down , killing 18 British soldiers.
- ian Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini urges his people to demonstrate on November 4 and to expand attacks on United States and Israeli interests.
- November 2 - French police shoot gangster Jacques Mesrine in Paris .
- November 3 - In Greensboro, North Carolina , 5 members of the Communist Workers Party are shot to death and 7 are wounded by a group of Klansmen and Neo-Nazis , during a "Death to the Klan" rally.
- ian radicals, mostly students, invade the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and take 90 hostages (53 of whom are American). They demand that the United States send the former Shah back to Iran to stand trial.
- November 5 - The radio news program '' Morning Edition '' premieres on National Public Radio .
- November 6 - At Montevideo , Uruguay , the International Olympic Committee adopts a resolution, whereby Taiwan Olympic and sports teams will participate with the name Chinese Taipei in future Olympics Games and international sports tournaments and championships.
- November 7 - U.S. Senator Edward Moore Kennedy announces that he will challenge President Jimmy Carter for the 1980 Democratic presidential nomination.
- , U.S. President Jimmy Carter orders a halt to all Oil imports into the United States from Iran .
- issues Executive Order 12170 , freezing all Iran ian assets in the United States and U.S. banks in response to the hostage crisis.
- November 16 - Bucharest Metro Line One is opened, in Bucharest , Romania (from Timpuri Noi to Semanatoarea stations, 8.63 km).
- ian leader Ruhollah Khomeini orders the release of 13 female and African American hostages being held at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran .
- November 20 - A group of Terrorists of around 200 militants Occupy Mecca 's Grand Mosque . They are driven out by French commandos (allowed into the city under these special circumstances despite their being non-Muslims) after bloody fighting that leaves 250 people dead and 600 wounded.
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- November 23 - In Dublin , Ireland , Irish Republican Army member Thomas McMahon is sentenced to life in prison for the assassination of Lord Mountbatten .
- DC-10 crashes into Mount Erebus on a sightseeing trip, killing all 257 people on board.
- January 1 - Brody Dalle , Australian punk rock singer
- January 1 - Koichi Domoto , Japanese entertainer ( Kinki Kids )
- January 2 - Morena Baccarin , Italo-Brazilian actress
- January 3 - Francesco Bellissimo , Italian mangaka
- January 6 - Bernice Liu , Hong Kong actress
- January 9 - Joshua Harto , American actor
- January 11 - Siti Nurhaliza , Malaysian singer
- January 12 - Marián Hossa , Slovak ice hockey player
- January 12 - Grzegorz Rasiak , Polish footballer
- January 16 - Aaliyah , American singer (d. 2001 )
- January 17 - Sharon Chan , Hong Kong actress
- January 18 - Jay Chou , Taiwanese singer and producer
- January 18 - Paulo Ferreira , Portuguese footballer
- January 20 - Rob Bourdon , American drummer ( Linkin Park )
- January 20 - Asaka Kubo , Japanese gravure idol of 20th Century
- January 21 - Brian O'Driscoll , Irish rugby union player
- January 23 - Larry Hughes , American basketball player
- January 24 - Tatyana Ali , American actress
- January 27 - Rosamund Pike , British actress
- February 1 - Julie Augustyniak , American soccer player
- February 7 - Cerina Vincent , American actress
- February 9 - Zhang Ziyi , Chinese actress and model
- February 9 - Mena Suvari , American actress
- February 9 - Irina Slutskaya , Russian figure skater
- February 11 - Brandy Norwood , American singer
- February 12 - Jesse Spencer , Australian actor
- February 15 - Gordon Shedden , Scottish race car driver
- February 16 - Valentino Rossi , Italian motorcycle racer
- February 19 - Mariana Ochoa , Mexican singer and actress
- February 21 - Jennifer Love Hewitt , American actress and singer
- February 21 - Carlito , Puerto Rican professional wrestler
- February 22 - Patrick Merrill , Canadian lacrosse player
- February 24 - Claire Cooper , British actress
- March 4 - Ben Fouhy , New Zealand flatwater canoeist
- March 4 - Geoff Huegill , Australian swimmer
- March 4 - John Lawler (John Fratelli), Scottish singer ( The Fratellis )
- March 5 - Flick Shagwell , British porn actress
- March 6 - Erik Bedard , Canadian pitcher
- March 8 - Tom Chaplin , British singer ( Keane )
- March 9 - Melina Perez , American professional wrestler
- March 11 - Benji Madden and Joel Madden , twins from Good Charlotte
- March 12 - Pete Doherty , British singer and guitarist ( The Libertines and Babyshambles )
- March 14 - Nicolas Anelka , French footballer
- March 17 - Samoa Joe , Pro wrestler
- March 30 - Norah Jones , American musician
- April 4 - Heath Ledger , Australian actor
- April 8 - Alexi Laiho , Finnish guitarist ( Children Of Bodom )
- April 10 - Rachel Corrie , American activist (d. 2003 )
- April 10 - Tsuyoshi Domoto , Japanese entertainer ( Kinki Kids )
- April 10 - Sophie Ellis-Bextor , British singer
- April 11 - Michel Riesen , Swiss ice hockey player
- April 12 - Claire Danes , American actress
- April 12 - Jennifer Morrison , American actress
- April 14 - Pierre Roland , Indonesian actor
- April 17 - Michael Treanor , American actor
- April 18 - Vahid Rahbani , Iranian director
- April 18 - Michael Bradley , American basketball player
- April 19 - Kate Hudson , American actress
- April 19 - Antoaneta Stefanova , Bulgarian chess player
- April 22 - Daniel Johns , Australian musician ( Silverchair )
- April 23 - Lauri Ylönen , Finnish singer ( The Rasmus )
- April 27 - Travis Meeks , American musician ( Days Of The New )
- April 27 - William Boyd , American musician
- May 1 - Mauro Bergamasco , Italian rugby player
- May 2 - Jason Chimera , Canadian ice hockey player
- May 2 - Roman Lyashenko , Russian ice hockey player (d. 2003 )
- May 4 - Wes Butters , British broadcaster
- May 5 - Bipasha Basu , Indian actress and model
- May 6 - Kerry Ellis , English actress
- May 9 - Rosario Dawson , American actress
- May 9 - Pierre Bouvier , Canadian musician
- May 12 - Adrian Serioux , Canadian footballer
- May 13 - Carl Philip , Prince of Sweden
- May 18 - Mariusz Lewandowski , Polish footballer
- May 21 - Briana Banks , German-American porn star
- May 22 - Maggie Q , American actress
- May 23 - Alex Hanner , American bitter waiter
- May 24 - Tracy McGrady , American basketball player
- May 25 - Jonny Wilkinson , British rugby union player
- May 26 - Ashley Massaro , American professional wrestler and model
- May 29 - Casey Sheehan , American soldier (Son of anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan ) (d. 2004 )
- May 30 - Mike Bishai , Canadian ice hockey player
- June 5 - Pete Wentz , American bassist and lyricist ( Fall Out Boy )
- June 6 - Shanda Sharer , murder victim (d. 1992 )
- June 8 - Pete Orr , Canadian baseball player
- June 12 - Wil Horneff , American actor
- June 13 - Nila Håkedal , Norwegian beach volleyball player
- June 16 - Ari Hest , American singer-songwriter
- June 18 - Yumiko Kobayashi , Japanese Seiyu (voice actress)
- June 19 - John Duddy , Irish boxer
- June 23 - LaDainian Tomlinson , American football player
- June 24 - Craig Shergold , British cancer patient
- June 28 - Randy McMichael , American football player
- June 29 - Barış Akarsu , Turkish rock musician (d. 2007 )
- June 29 - Marleen Veldhuis , Dutch swimmer
- June 30 - Rick Gonzalez , Hispanic-American actor
- July 3 - Ludivine Sagnier , French model and actress
- July 4 - J. R. VanHoose , American basketball player
- July 5 - Amélie Mauresmo , French tennis player
- July 5 - Shane Filan , Westlife
- July 9 - Ella Koon , Hong Kong actress
- July 15 - Travis Fimmel , Australian fashion model and actor
- July 18 - Rick Baxter , American politician
- July 18 - Jermaine Paul , American musician
- July 21 - David Carr , American football player
- July 24 - Stat Quo , American rapper
- July 26 - Johnson Beharry , British recipient of the Victoria Cross
- July 26 - Tamyra Gray , American singer
- July 26 - Peter Sarno , Canadian ice hockey player
- July 27 - Jorge Arce , Mexican boxer
- July 27 - Shannon Moore , American professional wrestler
- July 30 - Graeme McDowell , Northern Irish professional golfer
- July 30 - Ian Watkins , lead singer of the band Lostprophets
- August 3 - Evangeline Lilly , Canadian actress
- August 5 - David Healy , Northern Irish footballer
- August 8 - Azumi Kawashima , Japanese idol and AV idol
- August 10 - Joanna Garcia , American actress
- August 10 - Ted Geoghegan , American screenwriter
- August 11 - Bubba Crosby , American baseball player
- August 13 - Taizō Sugimura , Japanese politician
- August 16 - Sarah Balabagan , Filipina prisoner and singer
- August 18 - Selena Silver , pornographic actress
- August 19 - Oumar Kondé , Swiss footballer
- August 24 - Elva Hsiao , Taiwanese singer
- August 26 - Jamal Lewis , American football player
- August 28 - Robert Hoyzer , German football referee
- August 28 - Yuki Maeda , Japanese singer
- August 29 - Ali Eftekhari , Iranian scientist
- August 30 - Tavia Yeung , Hong Kong actress
- August 30 - Niki Chow , Hong Kong actress
- August 30 - Leon Lopez , British actor
- August 31 - Mickie James , American professional wrestler
- September 2 - Ron Ng , Hong Kong actor
- September 4 - Maxim Afinogenov , Russian ice hockey player
- September 6 - Ned Collette , Australian singer and musician
- September 8 - Pink , American singer
- September 13 - Ivan Miljković , Serbian volleyball player
- September 14 - Stuart Fielden , English rugby league player
- September 15 - Amy Davidson , American actress
- September 17 - Akin Ayodele , American football player
- September 18 - Alison Lohman , American actress
- September 19 - Noémie Lenoir , French supermodel
- September 20 - David Long , American author
- September 24 - Erin Chambers , American actress
- September 28 - Bam Margera , American skateboarder
- October 1 - Rudi Johnson , American football player
- October 1 - Marko Stanojevic , English-born Italian rugby player
- October 3 - John Hennigan , American professional wrestler
- October 3 - Daniel Hollie , American professional wrestler
- October 7 - Susan Eldridge , American supermodel
- October 9 - Brandon Routh , American actor
- October 10 - Mya , American singer and actress
- October 11 - Gabe Saporta , singer
- October 13 - Ryan Malcolm , Canadian singer
- October 14 - Stacy Keibler , American professional wrestler
- October 16 - Erin Brown , actress
- October 17 - Kimi Räikkönen , Finnish race car driver
- October 20 - John Krasinski , American actor
- October 20 - Paul O'Connell , Irish rugby player
- October 23 - Jorge Solis , Mexican professional boxer
- October 28 - Martin Skoula , Czech ice hockey player
- October 30 - Yukie Nakama , Japanese actress
- November 1 - Coco Crisp , American baseball player
- November 4 - Audrey Hollander , American pornographic actress
- November 6 - Lamar Odom , American basketball player
- November 6 - Myolie Wu , Hong Kong actress
- November 7 - Jon Peter Lewis , American singer and songwriter
- November 8 - Aaron Hughes , Northern Irish footballer
- November 12 - Cote De Pablo , Chilean actress
- November 13 - Ron Artest , American basketball player
- November 14 - Mavie Hörbiger , German actress
- November 17 - Matthew Spring , English footballer
- November 20 - Ericson Alexander Molano , Colombian gospel singer
- November 21 - Kim Dong Wan , South Korean singer and actor
- November 22 - Mohammad Tanzeel-ul-siddiqi Al-husaini , Pakistani author
- November 22 - Chris Doran , Irish singer
- November 23 - Kelly Brook , English actress/model
- November 27 - Ricky Carmichael , American Motocross Champion
- November 28 - Jamie Korab , Canadian curler
- November 28 - Hakeem Seriki , a.k.a. Chamillionaire , American rapper
- November 29 - Jayceon Taylor , a.k.a. The Game , American rapper
- December 3 - Rainbow Sun Francks , Canadian actor and singer
- December 3 - Daniel Bedingfield , English pop singer and songwriter
- December 5 - Evonne Hsu , Taiwanese singer
- December 7 - Ayako Fujitani , Japanese actress
- December 8 - Raymond Lam , Hong Kong actor
- December 14 - Michael Owen , English footballer
- December 15 - Adam Brody , American actor
- December 17 - William Green , American football player
- December 18 - Amy Grabow , American actress
- December 23 - Summer Altice , American model and actress
- December 26 - Chris Daughtry , American singer
- December 27 - Carson Palmer , American football player
- December 28 - James Blake , American tennis pro
- December 29 - Diego Luna , Mexican actor
- December 30 - Milana Terloeva , Chechen journalist and author
- December 31 - Elaine Cassidy , Irish actress
- December 31 - Bob Bryar , American drummer ( My Chemical Romance )
- March 1 - Mustafa Barzani , Iraqi Kurdish politician (b. 1903 )
- March 19 - Richard Beckinsale , British actor (b. 1947 )
- March 23 - Ted Anderson , English footballer (b. 1911 )
- March 28 - Emmett Kelly , American clown (b. 1898 )
- March 29 - Sultan Yahya Petra Ibni Almarhum Sultan Ibrahim Petra , King of Malaysia (b. 1917 )
- March 30 - Airey Neave , British politician (assassinated) (b. 1916 )
- June 1 - Werner Forssmann , German physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize In Physiology Or Medicine (b. 1904 )
- June 4 - Lazar Lagin , Soviet satirical and children's writer (b. 1903 )
- June 11 - John Wayne , American actor (b. 1907 )
- June 17 - Duffy Lewis , baseball player (b. 1888 )
- June 19 - Paul Popenoe , American eugenicist (b. 1888 )
- June 21 - Angus MacLise , American percussionist, composer, mystic, shaman, poet, occultist, calligrapher and original drummer for the Velvet Underground (b. 1938 )
- June 25 - Dave Fleischer , American animator (b. 1894 )
- June 29 - Lowell George , American musician ( Little Feat ) (b. 1945 )
- July 3 - Louis Durey , French composer (b. 1888 )
- July 8 - Sin-Itiro Tomonaga , Japanese physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1906 )
- July 8 - Robert B. Woodward , American chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1917 )
- July 10 - Arthur Fiedler , American conductor (b. 1894 )
- July 12 - Minnie Riperton , American singer (b. 1947 )
- July 16 - Alfred Deller , English countertenor (b. 1912 )
- July 22 - Sándor Kocsis , Hungarian footballer (b. 1929 )
- July 29 - Bill Todman , American game show producer (b. 1916 )
- August 2 - Victor Raúl Haya De La Torre , Peruvian politician, founder of APRA party (b. 1895 )
- August 2 - Thurman Munson , baseball player (b. 1947 )
- August 3 - Bertil Ohlin , Swedish economist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1899 )
- August 6 - Feodor Felix Konrad Lynen , German biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize In Physiology Or Medicine (b. 1911 )
- August 9 - Walter O'Malley , baseball executive (b. 1903 )
- August 12 - Ernst Boris Chain , German-born biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize For Physiology Or Medicine (b. 1906 )
- August 16 - John Diefenbaker , Canadian Prime Minister (b. 1895 )
- August 17 - Vivian Vance , American actress (b. 1909 )
- August 19 - Grand Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum , Satmarer Rebbe (b. 1887 )
- August 27 - Earl Mountbatten , last British Viceroy Of India (assassinated) (b. 1900 )
- August 31 - Sally Rand , American dancer (b. 1904 )
- Set primarily in 1979: '''' (announced 2006)
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