Top 20 Craziest Live TV Events of the 80s

#20: Hurricane Hugo

Let’s begin at the end. The 1980s concluded with what, at the time, was the costliest hurricane in American history. It was Hurricane Hugo, and it killed 107 people while inflicting $11 billion worth of damage. Throughout September of 1989, Hugo devastated South Carolina and huge swaths of the Caribbean, dealing unbelievable damage to areas like St. Croix and Montserrat. Hugo was also shown extensively on TV, with major networks broadcasting on location and reporting on the horrendous winds and local flooding. Local TV stations like WCIV also aired deep into the night, giving last-minute evacuation warnings and updating viewers on the worsening conditions. And that’s not including the morning-after devastation, with aerial footage broadcasting the nightmarish aftermath for all to see.

#19: The Iran Hostage Crisis

Beginning on November 4, 1979, the Iran hostage crisis saw 52 Americans taken hostage at the U.S. embassy in Tehran and quickly became a nightly fixture on U.S. television. In fact, ABC News launched a dedicated late-night program to the tragedy called “America Held Hostage”, which later evolved into the now-famous “Nightline.” The network provided daily updates, expert analysis, and interviews, keeping the American public closely informed for the entire 444-day ordeal. While there was no live footage from inside the embassy, major news outlets used photos, press briefings, and video from outside the compound to inform American viewers of the unfolding crisis, which finally concluded on January 20, 1981 with the signing of the Algiers Accords.

#18: Live Aid

“Crazy” can mean multiple things, and sometimes it has good connotations. Like Live Aid, a massive dual-venue benefit concert that was simultaneously held in both London and Philadelphia on July 13, 1985. The concert was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief, and it quickly became one of the most iconic music events in history. It was truly unprecedented in scale for a live television event, featuring over seventy major acts, split across two continents, and lasting for more than sixteen hours. Pulling off Live Aid was a monumental effort of technological coordination, and it remains one of the most ambitious TV broadcasts ever attempted.

#17: Joe Theismann’s Broken Leg

Football fans witnessed one of the worst injuries in sports history on November 18, 1985. Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor tackled quarterback Joe Theismann, his knee interacting with Theismann’s leg in a way that essentially snapped it in half. The quarterback’s tibia and fibula were both fractured in the tackle, and his leg bent at a horrific angle - a grisly sight that was not only shown live, but broadcast again and again in slow motion. Meanwhile, the commentators repeatedly expressed disgust, and the repeated visual was simply too graphic for many to stomach. Luckily, Theismann would walk again, but his broken leg was left shorter due to insufficient bone recovery, and his football career was over.

#16: The Royal Wedding of Charles & Diana

The Royal family held far more cultural sway in the ‘80s than they do today. As such, the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana was an unforgettable day that many continue to cherish. A global audience of 750 million people watched as the couple married on July 29, 1981. Dozens of live TV cameras captured the procession from Buckingham Palace to St. Paul’s Cathedral, the ceremony inside St. Paul’s, the return route to Buckingham, and the famous balcony kiss. The wedding was a true spectacle, and the broadcast was the technological marvel befitting its scope and bombast.

#15: Air Florida Flight 90

A horrible plane crash occurred on January 13, 1982, when Air Florida Flight 90 crashed into the 14th Street Bridge over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. While the initial crash was not aired on TV, local news crews quickly arrived at the scene, and the rescue operation was broadcast live across the country as national networks picked up the story. Dramatic footage showed survivors desperately clinging to life in the icy waters and the heroic rescue efforts from both trained professionals and everyday citizens hoping to help. The rawness of the broadcast was shocking, with viewers seeing courage, helplessness, and tragedy occur in real-time. In the end, just five of the aircraft’s occupants survived, and four motorists were also killed in the collision.

#14: Clint Malarchuk

Arguably the most grisly sports injury of all time occurred on March 22, 1989 during a hockey game between the Buffalo Sabres and the St. Louis Blues. In the first period, Steve Tuttle collided with Sabres goaltender Clint Malarchuk, his skate flying up and slicing Malarchuk’s exposed throat. Luckily, the live TV feeds were quick to cut away, but not before viewers had already seen way more than they would have liked. The commentators were audibly distraught and begged viewers not to look, and there were many reports of people having a visceral reaction to the sight, like fainting and vomiting. Miraculously, Malarchuk skated off the ice and survived, although his near-death experience resulted in a continuing battle with PTSD.

#13: The Rescue of Jessica McClure

Everyone loves a good rescue and survival story. That’s why the country was left utterly captivated in October of 1987, when officials rescued Jessica McClure from a well. The child fell into a well in her aunt’s backyard, dropping 22 feet underground. For the next 58 hours, authorities desperately worked on a rescue, while national TV crews swarmed the farm and provided minute-by-minute updates. Live coverage was intense and continuous, with networks often switching from regular programming to live updates, the cameras capturing every second of the thrilling rescue effort. And many were brought to tears on the evening of October 16, when Jessica finally emerged. The event quickly became a cultural phenomenon, a defining moment of the 1980s.

#12: The Fall of the Berlin Wall

The world was hit with a sudden and dramatic turning point on November 9, 1989, when the Berlin Wall came down and symbolized the collapse of communist control in Eastern Europe. The event was extensively covered in the media, with visuals showing crowds gathering at border crossings, people climbing the wall, and scenes of intense celebration and jubilation. Both CNN and the BBC played major roles in bringing the live scenes to English-speaking audiences, and major networks stopped regular programming to show live satellite feeds from Berlin. The media coverage turned the fall of the Wall into an unforgettable cultural event, a moment that many had waited decades to occur and which eventually paved the way for the end of the Cold War.

#11: Pope John Paul II Assassination Attempt

It’s perhaps difficult for some younger viewers, in this age of instantaneous information, to understand how some news stories used to impact their shared viewership in real time. The news of an assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II by Turkey’s Mehmet Ali Ağca unfolded on the nightly news, a shocking development that not only affected Catholics, but individuals around the world. The images of assassin’s bullets hitting the Pontiff were troubling, as was the history of Ali Ağca, a hitman who had already murdered a journalist, Abdi İpekçi, in 1979. Pope John Paul II, in the meantime, forgave Ali Ağca for his crimes, with the latter serving a combined twenty-nine years before being released in 2010.

#10: 1987 Whittier Narrows Earthquake

Local and national news reporters have a lot on their collective plates when it comes to distributing all of the information they can about natural disasters like the 1987 Whittier Narrows Earthquake. This Los Angeles-area quake received extensive coverage via local NBC affiliates in the area, documenting all of the damage and injuries, while also reporting rescue and recovery efforts. The 1987 Whittier Narrows Earthquake ended up causing between 213–358 million dollars in damage and two-hundred reported injuries, including three deaths. An intense quake that rocked Los Angeles area businesses, homes and infrastructure.

#9: Murdock Train Explosion

It was a perfect storm of sorts, with the most imperfect resulting outcome. A railroad train that derailed in the small, unincorporated town of Murdock, Illinois. Live video was captured of this incident, when the train from Baltimore and Ohio caught fire after the afternoon derailment. This fire became exacerbated by petroleum gas that was filling up within the train’s tanks. This resulted in a massive expanding vapor explosion of boiling liquid; blasts so powerful that train cars were actually expelled from the ground into the nearby wooded areas. Local and international news outlets alike shared video from this disaster to audiences around the country.

#8: The Death of Tommy Cooper

Known for his massive frame and red fez, Tommy Cooper was a brilliant entertainer who fused magic with comedy, creating an act that was famous on British TV. Unfortunately, he was also a very unhealthy man, being a heavy smoker and drinker. On April 15, 1984, Cooper performed in front of twelve million viewers on a variety show called “Live from Her Majesty’s.” Partway through his act, Cooper became unresponsive and collapsed. As he was known for his kooky brand of humor, the audience thought this was all part of the act and laughed, not knowing that he had suffered a fatal heart attack. Cooper was rushed to the hospital but was announced dead on arrival.

#7: Bhopal Disaster .

Documentaries and news stories alike have documented the tragic Bhopal Disaster of 1984. It’s still known today as the largest industrial disaster to ever afflict the world, having resulted in the deaths of over three thousand people. The numbers are actually even more complicated than that, since some sources claim that the actual number of claimed fatalities to number more than sixteen thousand. Furthermore, over a half million injuries were also attributed to the methyl isocyanate gas leak that emerged from a Union Carbide India Limited pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India.

#6: Ronald Reagan Assassination Attempt

It was one of those moments where the world stopped, and every American was acutely aware of where they were when they saw the images of former President Ronald Reagan being shot by John Hinckley, Jr. Traumatic, collective American memories of John F. Kennedy likely came flooding back to those of a certain age, while home audiences held their breath and waited for news. Reagan did ultimately survive the attack, although Hinckley Jr.’s actions were not without consequence. White House Press Secretary James Brady suffered traumatic brain injuries as a result of the gunshots. He eventually passed away in 2014 after successfully lobbying for stricter gun control.

#5: The Loma Prieta Earthquake

The eyes of many American sports fans were transfixed upon Game 3 of the 1989 World Series matchup between the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics. It was during T.V. coverage of this game where news of that year’s Lorna Prieta earthquake began interrupting World Series coverage. The damage associated with the Loma Prieta earthquake has been estimated at between 14.2–15.2 billion dollars, when adjusted for inflation. Tsunamis and various landslides also occurred in the aftermath of this 6.9 magnitude quake, while the Nimitz Freeway in Oakland, California collapsed as a result of the impact. Finally, sixty-three deaths and over three-thousand injuries were also attributed to this record-setting natural disaster.

#4: R. Budd Dwyer’s Demise

On January 20, 1981, R. Budd Dwyer became the 70th Treasurer of Pennsylvania, and he would remain as such for the next six years. Unfortunately, Dwyer was embroiled in a scandal when it was found that he accepted a bribe from Computer Technology Associates to award them a contract regarding a state tax issue. He was found guilty, and his sentencing was scheduled for January 23, 1987. He could have faced around fifty years in prison. But the day before his sentence was to be handed down, Dwyer held a news conference and subsequently shot himself with a revolver. He died instantly, with one news camera capturing the event and broadcasting it on live television.

#3: Mount St. Helen Erupts

The major eruption of an active volcano is something that all of us hope we never have to experience in our lifetimes. Yet, the 1980s eruption of Mount St. Helens was a televised natural disaster that unfolded in real time in living rooms around the world. Over three-and-a-half billion dollars in damage was attributed to the blast, when adjusted for inflation. An additional fifty-seven deaths were also reported, while ash deposits from the Mount St. Helens blast were expelled into eleven U.S. states, as well as five provinces in Canada. Meanwhile, footage of the actual eruption remains a grim reminder of Mother Nature’s fierce and unpredictable legacy.

#2: Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

There may not have been any direct human deaths attributed to the 1989 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, but that doesn’t make the environmental impact from this disaster any less tragic. What’s even more troubling is how time couldn’t even stop such a tragic oil spill from occurring again, since the over ten million gallons of crude oil expelled into Alaskan waters were trumped by the Deepwater Horizon spill from 2010. Yet, what both of these senseless spills have in common is the fact that both received international television coverage, as they happened, in real time.

#1: The Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster

Every ‘80s kid surely remembers the Challenger disaster. There was a ton of hype behind this launch, led mainly by the Teacher in Space Project, which allowed New Hampshire school teacher Christa McAuliffe to fly with six other astronauts. The project was enormously popular, generating widespread interest in the Challenger launch and kickstarting a cultural fascination with space exploration. As a result, schools around the country tuned in and allowed their students to watch the Challenger launch live on TV. But on January 28, 1986, they all watched the space shuttle explode in real time, killing everyone onboard. It was a national disaster of epic proportions and one that will never be forgotten.

Did you happen to see any of these live? Let us know in the comments below.