The Year in Gay History: 1984

 

Jan 11, 1984 - The Wall St. Journal permits its writers to use the word "gay" rather than "homosexual".

Jan 14, 1984 - Madonna performs Holiday on American Bandstand.

Jan 22, 1984 - Barry Manilow sings the National Anthem at the Super Bowl.

 

 

April 23, 1984 - Secretary of Health Margaret Heckler announces that U.S. scientists have discovered the virus that causes AIDS, known as HIV.

June 24, 1984 - French philosopher Michel Foucault becomes the first public figure in France to die of AIDS.  He was 57 years old.

 

 

June 29, 1984 - Rupert Everett stars in the movie Another Country, his first gay role.

June 29, 1984 - Grace Jones was a guest and Joan Rivers the guest host on the Tonight Show. 

Aug 25, 1984 - Writer Truman Capote dies one month shy of his 60th birthday.

Sept 14, 1984 - Madonna becomes a star after her performance at the MTV Music Video Awards where she rolls around on the stage in a wedding dress while singing Like a Virgin.

Sept 30, 1984 - San Francisco's BDSM and leather communities organize the first Folsom Street Fair.

 

 

Sept 30, 1984 - 21-year-old George Michael begins his ascent to stardom in the US as his group Wham!'s single Wake Me Up Before You Go Go enters the top 40 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. 

Nov 3, 1984 - Jack Haber, former editor-in-chief at GQ from 1969-1983, dies from AIDS complications at the age of 45.  He brought a gay sensibility to the publication which later publishers sought to downplay and reverse in order to attract advertising from Detroit automakers.

Nov 10, 1984 - Frankie Goes to Hollywood, fronted by openly gay lead vocalist Holly Johnson, perform their controversial hit Relax on Saturday Night Live.

Nov 29, 1984 - West Hollywood is incorporated as an independent, gay-friendly city.

Dec 18, 1984 - Like a Virgin is Madonna's first #1 song.

 

 

To read about LGBT pop culture milestones from other years, click here.