", More recently, 1984 has experienced a bit of a resurgence, popping to the top of Amazon sales charts twice in recent years: once in 2013, after news of an NSA surveillance scandal broke, and again in 2017, when the phrase "alternative facts" was first uttered on national television. (Currently, it's the seventh.).

To discover more amazing secrets about living your best life, click here to follow us on Instagram! Clearly, it took a bit longer for Orwell's predictions about the future to become reality (or close enough). TV at 3:00 a.m. would never be the same again. He died minutes later, just one day short of his 45th birthday. The first solo transatlantic balloon flight was completed. Today in History is a timetable of everything that happened on this date in the areas of politics, war, science, music, sport, art, entertainment, and more. Its real enemy is reality.

The Subway Vigilante sparked national debate.

Pick a day: September 21. If you would like to comment on this story or anything else you have seen on BBC Culture, head over to our Facebook page or message us on Twitter. But, in 1980, she rose back to popularity, and became prime minster again.

In 1984 it is a TV screen that watches you – today social media is an omniscient presence (Credit: Alamy). Britannica Explains In these videos, Britannica explains a variety of topics and answers frequently asked questions. Live smarter, look better,​ and live your life to the absolute fullest.

In the waning days of 1984, Thatcher and Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang signed the Sino-British Joint Declaration, agreeing to return Hong Kong (a British colony since 1842) to China, in 1997. April 22, 1984 is the 113 rd day of the year 1984 in the Gregorian calendar. Apple aired the "1984" Macintosh commercial.

Learn what happened today in history around the world including major events on crime, entertainment, and more.

No convictions were made, and all charges were eventually dropped—but only after a six-year trial and numerous other, similarly sensational allegations exposed the whole "Satanic Panic" as little more than collective hysteria with no basis in reality. The Soviet Union boycotted the Summer Olympics. He was never compliant, and forensically unearthed for our gaze the worst of himself.

He lifted off from Caribou, Maine (the northeastern-most point of the U.S.) aboard Rosie O'Grady's Balloon of Peace. But the Ivan Reitman-directed fantasy comedy became an instant smash, with its proton packs, ectoplasm-spewing spirits, and a skyscraper-tall Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.

This popular item will help you sleep through the night.