1970...........1980

1972

• The tenure of President Richard M. Nixon (1913-1994) was marked by great achievements in foreign policy: he improved relations with two Communist powers, the Soviet Union and China, and ended the Vietnam War. He was also the only president in US history to resign from office, as he faced likely removal for his role in the Watergate scandal. His Watergate actions and subsequent cover-up attempts have been credited with causing Americans to become cynical about their government in Washington
• 
  It was the first year the modern state of Israel had sent athletes to the Olympics; but the cooperative spirit of the Games was shattered when eight Palestinian terrorists killed two members of the Israeli team and took nine athletes and coaches hostage. An Israeli commando unit moved in, killing five terrorists and capturing the other three, but it was too late to save the hostages from death.

• Spitz Scores 7 Golds
  U.S. Swimmer Mark Spitz wins seven gold medals at the Munich Olympic Games.
  

1973

• During the Arab-Israeli War in October 1973, Middle East members of OPEC issued an embargo against the sale of crude oil to Israel's Western allies. In the United States, gasoline became scarce and prices jumped 40 percent, crimping the American economy. The embargo, which ended on March 18, 1974, had another effect: America was reminded of its dependence on foreign oil.

• Israel Wins Yom Kippur War
  A surprise attack by Arab countries catches Israel with its guard down but it recovers and wins the war.

• U.S. Leaves Vietnam
  The last U.S. troops leave Vietnam after Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho sign treaty in Paris. 

1974

• Ali regained the heavyweight crown from Foreman with an eighth-round knockout. Ali had been stripped of the title in 1967 for refusing to join the US Army after being drafted, claiming conscientious-objector status. After losing the title to Leon Spinks in February 1978, the charismatic Ali took it back in a rematch, becoming the first three-time heavyweight champ.

• Masked and bare-bottomed, students from Cal Poly State University "streak" down a sidewalk and into a bar in San Luis Obispo, California, in March 1974. Streaking - running naked through a public place - became a nationwide fad in the spring of 1974. Streakers found their way into state dinners, sporting events, and even onto the stage at the Academy Awards.

• American diplomats stay in Saigon but South
  Vietnamese forces begin to crumble.

• Watergate Sinks Nixon
  President Richard Nixon, overcome by the Watergate scandal, resigns.

• Ali Rumbles in the Jungle
  In Kinshasa, Zaire, fast-talking, hard-hitting Muhammad Ali beats the favored George Foreman for the heavy-weight boxing championship title.
  

1975

• The South Vietnamese forces collapsed and the Vietnam War ended.
• Saigon Falls
  North Vietnamese tanks rumble into Saigon, causing panic. U.S. helicopters take out the remaining American personnel and selected
  Vietnamese families in a flurry of chaos.
  
• Pol Pot Sows Killing Fields
  Pol Pot, leader of the Khmer Rouge communist rebels, takes over Phnom Penh, Cambodia, evacuates the city and begins a policy of forced labor or execution of "class enemies."
  
• Billie Jean King (1943- ),  Wimbledon title in 1975, helped establish a women’s professional tennis tour, with prize money more equitable to that enjoyed by the men. She was number one in the world five times (1966-1968, 1972, and 1974), and in 1971 she became the first female athlete to break the $100,000 mark for a year’s earnings. She still holds the record for total Wimbledon titles with 20 - six in singles, 10 in doubles, and four in mixed doubles.
• 
  Elegant underdog Arthur Ashe (1943-1993) stunned enfant terrible Jimmy Connors (1952- ) at the 1975 Wimbledon final. The young, impetuous Connors was nearly unbeatable at the time, with a record of 99-4 the year before. The match was a battle of opposite styles - and litigants. Connors had sued the Association of Tennis Pros (headed by Ashe) for refusing to let him play in the French Open (Connors had refused to join the ATP). Connors eventually dropped the suit shortly after dropping this match.

1976

• 
  Speed is power. When the Concorde, a supersonic airplane developed jointly by Britain and France, began regular service in 1976, it revolutionized air travel - at least for the very rich. A jaunt between Paris and Washington, DC, took only 3 1/2 hours, just half the time of the same flight on a Boeing 747. The planes travel at 650 miles per hour and carry 80 to 100 passengers, all in first-class seating. Only 16 planes were built before the program ended in 1979, but flights are still available.

• Revolt Against Apartheid
  South African police shoot into a crowd in Soweto, sparking a general revolt against apartheid.

• Olympic Darling Gets Perfect Score
  In Montreal, Canada, gymnast Nadia Comaneci of Romania earns the first perfect "10" in
  Olympic history after her routine on the uneven bars.
  

1977

• 
  Droids C3P0 (left) and R2D2 ponder their plight in this desert scene from George Lucas' 1977 blockbuster film Star Wars. The futuristic film portrays a young hero's struggle against the forces of evil. The movie was a pioneer in computer-enhanced special effects, and though it cost $9.5 million to make, it was the largest-grossing movie of the 1970s, earning over $175 million. The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and The Return of the Jedi (1983) followed, and the force goes on with a 1999 "prequel."
• 
  In 1977, Jim Jones, head of the San Francisco-based People's Temple, moved some of his members to the jungles of Guyana after allegations of illegal activities. The new commune was called Jonestown. But amid rumors of civil-rights abuses, in 1978 California Rep. Leo Ryan led an unofficial group to investigate. They were ambushed by Jonestown security guards; Ryan and four others died. Within days, the cult - 914 people, including 276 children - committed mass suicide by consuming cyanide-laced punch.
• 
  Saturday Night Fever (1977), a film about the New York City disco scene starring John Travolta, can be credited for launching disco as a nationwide phenomenon. Even the soundtrack made history: for five years it was the top-selling album ever, and it changed the way films were marketed. And the indelible image of the white-suited Travolta in macho pose, one arm raised defiantly, popularized the wide lapels, polyester, and neck chains of disco fashion.

• Egyptian President Meets Israelis
  Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, pleading for peace, becomes the first Arab leader to meet with Israeli Knesset.
  

1978

• Pole Becomes Pope
  Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyla is named Pope John Paul II, the first non-Italian pontiff in 456 years.

• Test Tube Baby Born
  Louise Brown, the world's first "test-tube baby," is born in Great Britain
  

1979

• A chilling sign of the times announces the closure of the observation center for the Three Mile Island nuclear plant following an accident on March 28, 1979. A pump failed in the reactor cooling system, shutting down the plant and threatening a nuclear meltdown. When radioactive water evaporated into the atmosphere, pregnant women and young children who lived nearby were evacuated from the region. The accident caused little damage outside the plant, but it dealt the nuclear industry a humiliating blow.

• Radical Iranians Seize Hostages
  Students storm the U.S. embassy in Iran and take 100 Americans hostages. The Americans will be held for 444 days before being released.

• Nuclear Accident Spreads Fear
  An accident at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island nuclear power plant is quickly brought under control but increases fear of a nuclear meltdown.

• Walkman Bursts onto Scene
  Sony introduces the personal stereo, known as
  the Walkman.