25 Years Ago

 It's December 1979. In Cincinnati, 11 people are trampled to death at a Who concert when fans fight to get into the concert.

 Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, 84, dies in New York City. Sheen served as Bishop of the Diocese of Rochester, New York, from 1966 to 1969, and was host of his Emmy-winning TV show, Life is Worth Living.

 
Bishop Sheen, pictured above at the dedication of St. Margaret Mary's Church in 1967 in Apalachin, died December 9, 1979.

 On the 45th day of the Iran Hostage Crisis, Carter urges Americans to fly the flag as a "National Day of Unity." 

 Iran threatens to try the hostages as spies. The Ayatollah Khomeini urges Americans to demand that the Shah is returned.

 As the holidays approach, more than one million cards and gifts are sent to the occupied American embassy in Iran. An Iranian spokesman says the items will be passed on to the hostages.

 At Christmas, three American clerygymen are allowed to visit the hostages in Iran. They meet with 43 hostages.

 Actress Joan Blondell, 73, dies in California. She starred in more than 100 movies and the TV show Here Come the Brides.

 Composer Richard Rodgers, 77, dies in New York. Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein wrote such hit musicals as Oklahoma, Carousel, and The Sound of Music.

 Director Alfred Hitchcock, 80, is knighted by Queen Elizabeth.
 Soviet troops invade Afghanistan.

 Time magazine names Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini as the 1979 Man of the Year.
 At the beginning of the month, three inches of snow fall at the Broome County airport.

 Actor George Takei, who stars as "Sulu" in Star Trek, speaks at Broome Community College. 

December 3, 1979 - George "Mr. Sulu" Takei signs autographs after giving a lecture BCC in Binghamton.

 An Elmira businessman hopes to sign a rental agreement with the owner of Tioga Park and open the track. 

 In Binghamton, the film Star Trek: The Motion Picture premieres at the independently owned Cameo Theatre, which  outbid the chain theaters for the right to show the much anticipated movie. Fans line up hours before the first show. Tickets cost $3.  

 Edward Franz resigns as Chief of the Owego Fire Department.

 Christmas in the Southern Tier is rainy, gray, and without snow. 

Knots Landing premieres.

 Movies playing in local theaters include Star Trek: The Motion Picture, The Fish that Saved Pittsburgh, Meatballs, Frisco Kid, Kramer vs. Kramer, The Black Hole, The Rose, 1941, Cuba starring Sean Connery, The Jerk with Steve Martin, Going in Style starring George Burns and Art Carney, and The Electric Horseman starring Robert Redford.

 Top tunes include Babe by Styx, No More Tears (Enough is Enough) by Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer, Still by the Commodores, Please Don't Go by K.C. & the Sunshine Band, Escape (the Piña Colada song) by Rupert Holmes, and Send One Your Love by Stevie Wonder.

 A six-foot, top-quality, live Christmas tree costs $21. A 28-ounce jar of None-Such Mince Meat costs $1.95 and a 12-ounce jar of Brer-Rabbit molasses costs 95 cents.

 Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! See you in 1980.