I was born in 1976.
Pakistan & Bangladesh started diplomatic relations, 5 years after the Bangladeshi liberation war which ended 5 years ago. An earthquake killed 22,000 people in Honduras & Guatemala in February of 76. Also Karen Ann Quinlan, who was in a vegetative state due to consumption of drugs & alcohol, was taken off medical ventilation after her parents requested the hospital to discontinue active care and allow her to die. The hospital refused, and the subsequent landmark legal battles made newspaper headlines and set significant precedents. The tribunal eventually ruled in her parents’ favor. She would continue to live in the vegetative state for almost 10 years; she died in 1985. An earthquake hits the Friuli area in Italy, killing more than 900 people and making another 100,000 homeless. Hundreds of Western tourists are moved from Beirut and taken to safety in Syria by the U.S. military, following the murder of the U.S. ambassador.
Palestinian extremists would hijack an Air France plane in Greece with 246 passengers and 12 crew. They would take it to Entebbe, Uganda. Israeli airborne commandos free 103 hostages being held by Palestinian hijackers of an Air France plane at Uganda’s Entebbe Airport; 1 Israeli soldier and several Ugandan soldiers are killed in the raid in June. I remember this incident due to watching the movie Raid On Entebe about 10 or 12 years ago. It starred Academy award winning actor Peter Finch, Charles Bronson & Yaphet Koto as Ugandan Dictator Edi Amin.
Seychelles gains independence from the United Kingdom. North Vietnam and South Vietnam unite to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. In New York City, the “Son of Sam” pulls a gun from a paper bag, killing 1 and seriously wounding another, in the first of a series of attacks that terrorize the city for the next year. The Great Clock of Westminster (or Big Ben) suffers internal damage and stops running for over nine months. Jacques Chirac resigns as Prime Minister of France; he is succeeded by Raymond Barre. The first known outbreak of Ebola virus occurs in Yambuku, Zaire. Chairman Mao Zedong, of the People’s Republic of China, dies. The Battle of Aishiya is fought in Lebanon – Oct 19. Jimmy Carter wins the Presidential race against Gerald Ford. Bob Marley and his manager Don Taylor are shot in an assassination attempt in Kingston, Jamaica.
In January of that year the first commercial Concorde flight took off. The first commercial supercomputer Cray-1 was released by Cray Reaseach. In March, the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team is created and boxer Rubin ‘Hurrican’ Carter is retired in New Jersey. Apple Computers is formed by the now deceased Steve Jobs & Steve Wozniak. One of the funniest British actors Sid James (famous for his roles in the Carry on series of films) died. The Ramones releases their debut album. Czechoslovakia beats West Germany 5–3 on penalties to win Euro 76, when the game had ended 2–2 after extra time. Toronto sees the completion of the CN Tower.
The Summer Olympics were held in Montreal, Canada where Nadia Com?neci earns the first of 7 perfect scores of 10. For Space enthusiasts the Viking 1 lander successfully lands on Mars. NASA released the legendary & famous Face on Mars photo, taken by Viking 1 a few weeks later. Viking 2 enters into orbit around Mars in August. The Viking 2 spacecraft lands at Utopia Planitia on Mars, taking the first close-up color photos of the planet’s surface. For music lovers a rock classic album, Hotel California by The Eagles is released. Some movies that came out that year (which I have seen) are Cannonball, Carrie, Logan’s Run, Rocky & The Omen.