We are not currently accepting donations · Countdown to 55th Anniversary:

1980s

In 1980, the Phillies won their first World Series, and the U.S. Olympic hockey team beat the Soviet Union and went on to win the gold medal. In 1983 the 76ers won the NBA Championship. And in June of 1989, the Book Sale had a new location: 103 W. State Street.

Books that spent time atop The New York Times Best Sellers list

YearFictionNonfiction
1980The Bourne Identity by Robert LudlumThy Neighbor’s Wife by Gay Talese
1981The Covenant by James MichenerNever-Say-Diet Book by Richard Simmons
1982Space by James MichenerJane Fonda’s Workout Book by Jane Fonda
1983The Little Drummer Girl by John le CarréIn Search of Excellence by Thomas J. Peters and Robert H. Waterman, Jr.
1984The Aquitaine Progression by Robert LudlumMotherhood: The Second Oldest Profession by Erma Bombeck
1985Skeleton Crew by Stephen KingIacocca: An Autobiography by Lee Iacocca with William Novak
1986It by Stephen KingFatherhood by Bill Cosby
1987Fine Things by Danielle SteelA Season on the Brink by John Feinstein
1988The Bonfires of the Vanities by Tom WolfeA Brief History of Time by Stephen W. Hawking
1989Clear and Present Danger by Tom ClancyAll I Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten by Robert Fulghum

Interesting items (items of local interest)

1980

  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Czesław Miłosz
  • The Pulitzer Prize for Biography went to Edmund Morris for The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt
  • The Philadelphia Inquirer won The Pulitzer Prize for Local General or Spot News Reporting for their coverage of the nuclear accident at Three Mile Island
  • John Lennon was shot and killed outside his home at the age of 40
  • Dallas cliffhanger “Who Shot J.R.?” aired on March 21st

1981

  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Elias Canetti
  • John Kennedy Toole won Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for A Confederacy of Dunces
  • Outstanding Comedy Emmy went to Taxi. For drama, it was Hill Street Blues
  • Indiana Jones was first introduced in Raiders of the Lost Ark
  • Ground beef was $1.39/lb., a loaf of bread was $0.59

1982

  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Gabriel García Márquez
  • The Broadway musical Cats opened in New York City on October 7
  • Schindler’s Ark was published; Steven Spielberg’s film adaptation won seven Oscars 11 years later
  • Joe Montana led the San Francisco 49ers to victory in Super Bowl XVI
  • Eggs were 93¢/dozen, a gallon of milk $2 and the average house cost $69,300

1983

  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to William Golding
  • Alice Walker received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for The Color Purple
  • Microsoft Word was released under the name Multi-Tool Word on October 25th
  • Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was declared a federal holiday on November 2nd
  • Gas was $1.25/gallon, postage was 20¢, a 25” TV cost $500

1984

  • Czech poet Jaroslav Seifert won The Nobel Prize in Literature
  • The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction went to Ironweed by William Kennedy
  • Michael Jordan made his NBA debut in October and was Rookie of the Year
  • Apple released the Macintosh as the first personal computer with a mouse and graphical user interface
  • TurboTax was first available for income tax preparation

1985

  • The “We Are the World” concert took place July 13th in Philadelphia
  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to French novelist Claude Simon
  • The Philadelphia Daily News’ Richard Aregood won the Pulitzer Prize for Editorials
  • People magazine’s first “Sexiest Man Alive” recipient was Mel Gibson
  • Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp organized Farm Aid, held in Champaign, Illinois on September 22nd

1986

  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Wole Soyinka
  • The Pulitzer Prize in Fiction was awarded to Larry McMurtry for Lonesome Dove
  • The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Arthur Howe won the Pulitzer Prize in National Reporting on massive deficiencies in IRS processing of tax returns
  • The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg won the Caldecott Medal
  • The cost of ½ gallon of chocolate ice cream hovered around $2.40

1987

  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Russian-born poet Joseph Brodsky
  • Tom Wolfe was paid $5 million for film rights for The Bonfire of the Vanities
  • Michael Douglas as Gordon Gekko in Wall Street said: “The point is, ladies and gentlemen, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good.”
  • Black Monday hit the Stock Market October 19th
  • A loaf of bread cost 55¢, toilet paper was 6 rolls for $1.50, a pack of gum was a quarter, and the median home price was around $127,200

1988

  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz
  • The Wonder Years won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series
  • Owl Moon by Jane Yolen won the Caldecott Medal
  • Steffi Graf and Mats Wilander won the singles titles at the U.S. Open
  • Die Hard opened at theaters on July 15th, tickets cost $4

1989

  • The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Camilo José Cela
  • The Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting was awarded to The Philadelphia Inquirer
  • The Exxon Valdez oil spill in March was a major environmental disaster in Alaska
  • Sean Connery was named People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” at age of 59
  • The Berlin Wall fell on November 9th