25 Years Ago
by Beverly Brown  

  It's December 1978. Golda Meir, 80, former prime minister of Israel dies in Jerusalem.

 IBM proposes a 4-for-1 split for its stock which is trading at $270 1/2 a share. 

 Character actor Chill Wills, 75, dies.

 Hugh Hefner returns to Chicago to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Playboy magazine.

 In Illinois, police continue to find bodies buried at the home of John Wayne Gacy, Jr.

 A House committee concludes that President Kennedy was assassinated as a result of a conspiracy.

 The OFA Drama Club performs "The Mouse That Roared" at the Owego Junior High School auditorium. Admission is free.

 More than 7,000 people attend the Neil Diamond concert at the  Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena.  The IBM Homestead on Watson Boulevard will no longer be used to house students because the company is phasing out its Endicott school for salesmen and engineers.

 The Town of Owego picks a new logo from among 14 submitted to the board. The winning logo was submitted by Eda Brent, who wins $200. The design features a tree symbolizing the Iroquois League, and the word "Ahwaga" spelled out in firewood under the tree.

 The Owego Apalachin School District is concerned about declining enrollment. St. Patrick's School in Owego decides to develop a full-time Kindergarten program.

 A Christmas Eve snow storm dumps more than a foot of snow in the Southern Tier. Portions of central New York get more than two feet of snow.

 Sunday night TV shows include "The Wonderful World of Disney," "60 Minutes," "The Hardy Boys," "All in the Family," "Battlestar Galactica," "Alice," "Centennial," "Kaz," "Dallas," and "The Duchess of Duke Street" on "Masterpiece Theatre."
 Movies playing in local theaters include "California Suite," Every Which Way But Loose," "The Wiz," "Oliver's Story," "Moment by Moment," and "Superman" – You'll Believe a Man Can Fly!

 Top tunes include "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" by Neil Diamond, "I Just Wanna Stop" by Gino Vannelli, and "Le Freak" by Chic.

 Best sellers include "War and Remembrance" by Herman Wouk, "Chesapeake" by James A. Michener, "Fools Die" by Mario Puzo, and "Illusions" by Richard Bach.

 Are you wondering what to get everyone for Christmas? Electronics is the answer! Video cassette recorders are coming down in price - you can get one for as little as $799! The Apple II computer costs $970 and uses a standard TV for readout 
display.

 Electronic games are big this year - including the "programmable" TV games. Atari Video Computer System costs $159, with game cartridges such as "Black Jack" (see picture below) going for $19.99. Star Wars Electronic Battle games by Kenner costs about $40, Electronic Battleship Game costs $34.99.

 And Monopoly costs $5.99, Stretch Armstrong costs $14.99, and  the Fuzzy Pumper Beauty Shop costs $6.97. 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.