Timeline May 1977

Events in May 1977 14

• 1921 – 1977 James Jones (1921-1977) Died 9 May 1977, aged 55 James Jones was an American novelist best known for From Here to Eternity, drawn from his own military service before Pearl Harbor. The book won the National Book Award and was adapted into an Academy Award-winning film.
• 1977 Austrian motorcycle Grand Prix abandoned A fatal crash at the Salzburgring stops the 350cc race The 350cc race at the Salzburgring was abandoned after eight laps following a crash that killed Hans Stadelmann and seriously injured Johnny Cecotto, Patrick Fernandez, Dieter Braun and Franco Uncini. The accident fed the growing rider protests over circuit safety that reshaped Grand Prix motorcycle racing in the late 1970s.
• 1977 Bloody May Day -- the Taksim Square massacre Gunfire into a May Day crowd in Istanbul Shots were fired into a crowd of several hundred thousand leftist demonstrators gathered in Taksim Square, Istanbul, on International Workers' Day. Between 31 and 36 people were killed and well over a hundred injured, many in the panic that followed. No perpetrator was ever convicted, though suspicion fell on the Counter-Guerrilla and allied right-wing groups. The massacre became a defining episode in the political violence that gripped Turkey until the 1980 coup.
• 1977 Bukovsky-Corvalan prisoner swap Cold War spy exchange Soviet dissident Vladimir Bukovsky was exchanged for Chilean Communist leader Luis Corvalán in a prisoner swap in Zurich on December 18, 1976, one of the first high-profile Cold War prisoner exchanges.
• 1977 Grateful Dead play Barton Hall, Cornell Famous concert Often called their greatest show — added to the Library of Congress registry.
• 1977 The Mahapakh -- Likud wins the Israeli election Twenty-nine years of Labour rule end in one night Elections to the ninth Knesset gave Likud, led by Menachem Begin, 43 seats against the Alignment's 32, ending almost three decades of uninterrupted rule by Labour and its predecessor Mapai. Anchor Haim Yavin announced the result live with the word "Mahapakh" -- upheaval -- and the name stuck. Turnout was 79%. Begin formed a government the following month.
• 1977 T-10 prototype first flight The first Su-27 Test pilot Vladimir Ilyushin flies the T-10. Its performance disappoints, and Sukhoi redesigns almost the entire aircraft before production.
• 1977 The last Orient Express to Istanbul Ninety-four years of Paris to the Bosphorus end The Direct Orient Express made its final run on the Paris-Istanbul route, ending a service that began in 1883 and had become shorthand for glamour, intrigue and the golden age of rail. Ridership had declined for decades in the face of air travel. The name was revived commercially in 1982, but the original through service to Istanbul never returned.
• 1977 South Moluccan hostage crisis in the Netherlands Train and school siege by South Moluccan separatists South Moluccan militants seized a train and an elementary school in the Netherlands, demanding an independent Moluccan republic. Dutch marines stormed both sites after three weeks, ending the siege with several hostage and hijacker deaths.
• 1977 Synthetic insulin created Genetic engineering breakthrough Scientists announced on May 23, 1977 that they had created synthetic human insulin by splicing genes into bacteria — a landmark moment for genetic engineering and the treatment of diabetes.
• 1977 Star Wars released Blockbuster era begins George Lucas's Star Wars opened in US cinemas on May 25, 1977. It immediately broke box office records, sparked a global cultural phenomenon, and became the highest-grossing film of all time until E.T. in 1982.
• 1977 The O'Jays' William Powell dies Founding member The founding member dies after leaving the group through illness.
• 1977 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire 165 killed in Kentucky nightclub blaze A fire swept through the Beverly Hills Supper Club in Southgate, Kentucky on May 28, 1977, killing 165 people. It was one of the worst nightclub fires in US history.
• 1977 The BBC bans "God Save the Queen" The Sex Pistols single blacklisted in Jubilee week The BBC imposed a total ban on airplay of the Sex Pistols' single, released to coincide with the Queen's Silver Jubilee. The Independent Broadcasting Authority followed, and several chains refused to stock it. The record reached number two on the official chart in Jubilee week -- and was widely believed to have been kept off the top spot deliberately.