Centuries: 19th century - 20th century - 21st century
Decades: 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s - 1980s - 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s 2030s
Years: 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 - 1988 - 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993
Events
- January 26 - Australia celebrates its bicentennial day.
- February 11, Anthony M. Kennedy is appointed to the United States Supreme Court.
- Akira, anime film, released.
- Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea
- November 2, The Morris worm is unleashed on the Internet
- November, George Bush defeats Michael S. Dukakis in the U.S. presidential election
- December 21, Pan AM flight 103 is blown up by terrorists over Lockerbie, Scotland.
Art, Culture & Fashion
- 1988 in film
- Dangerous Liaisons
- Mississippi Burning
- Working Girl starring Harrison Ford
- Die Hard starring Bruce Willis
- Rain Man starring Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise
- 1988 in literature
- 1988 in music
- 1988 in sports
- January 31 - Super Bowl XXII Washington Redskins (42) defeat Denver Broncos (10)
- Summer: The Netherlands win the European Football Championships
- 1988 in television
- October 4 - Following in the footsteps of Cher, Actress Shirley MacLaine calls David Letterman an "A**hole", on the air during a taping of Late Night
Births
- November 15, Zena Grey, actress
Deaths
- January 5 - Pete Maravich, baseball star
- January 7 - Trevor Howard, actor
- Hillel Slovak, Red Hot Chili Peppers, guitarist -- June
- October 19, Son House, blues musician
- Robert Heinlein, science fiction author
- December 6, Roy Orbison, singer
- Physics - Leon M. Lederman, Melvin Schwartz, Jack Steinberger
- Chemistry - Johann Deisenhofer, Robert Huber, Hartmut Michel
- Medicine - Sir James W. Black, Gertrude B. Elion, George H. Hitchings
- Literature - Naguib Mahfouz
- Peace - The United Nations Peace-Keeping Forces, New York.
- Economics - Maurice Allais