Timeline April 1972

Events in April 1972 11

• 1899 – 1972 Yasunari Kawabata (1899-1972) Died 16 April 1972, aged 72 Kawabata was a Japanese novelist known for spare, lyrical works such as "Snow Country" and "Thousand Cranes," and became the first Japanese writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, in 1968. He died by suicide in his seaside studio. He is regarded as one of the most important Japanese writers of the twentieth century.
• 1901 – 1972 Brian Donlevy (1901-1972) American actor of tough-guy roles, from Beau Geste to The Great McGinty.
• 1906 – 1972 George Sanders (1906-1972) British actor known for suave villains and cads, winner of an Oscar for All About Eve.
• 1909 – 1972 Kwame Nkrumah (1909-1972) Died 27 April 1972, aged 62 Nkrumah led Ghana to independence in 1957, becoming its first prime minister and later president, and was a leading voice for Pan-Africanism. He was overthrown in a 1966 coup and died in exile in Romania. He remains one of the most influential figures of African decolonization.
• 1972 Intel 8008 — first 8-bit microprocessor Intel introduces the 8008 in April 1972 — the world's first 8-bit microprocessor, capable of addressing 16 kilobytes of memory. The 8008 is designed for a computer terminal (the Datapoint 2200) but becomes the basis for the first hobbyist personal computers. The 8008 contains 3,500 transistors and runs at 500kHz–800kHz. Its successor, the 8080 (1974), is the chip that the Altair 8800 — the first personal computer kit — is based on. Every personal computer of the 1970s and 1980s traces its lineage to Intel's 8-bit processors.
• 1972 Intel releases the 8008 microprocessor Early 8-bit chip expands the commercial microprocessor market Intel introduced the 8008, an 8-bit microprocessor that succeeded its pioneering 4004 chip. It found use in early terminals and hobbyist computers and helped demonstrate the commercial viability of general-purpose microprocessors. It was a direct precursor to the 8080 chip that powered early personal computers.
• 1972 Brian Donlevy dies in Woodland Hills Brian Donlevy dies aged 71.
• 1972 Grateful Dead's Europe '72 tour Live triple album A celebrated tour released as a triple live album.
• 1972 Creedence Clearwater Revival release Mardi Gras Last album Cook and Clifford get equal songwriting — critics pan it.
• 1972 George Sanders dies in Castelldefels George Sanders dies aged 65.
• 1972 Genocide of Hutus in Burundi Government crackdown kills an estimated 100,000-200,000 people Following a Hutu uprising against the Tutsi-dominated government, Burundian security forces carried out a mass killing campaign targeting educated and elite Hutus across the country. Estimates of the dead range from 100,000 to over 200,000. The massacre drove hundreds of thousands of refugees into neighboring countries.