General Consumer Electronics (GCE) introduces a self-contained vector graphics video game unit, Vectrex. Using its own monitor instead of connecting to a television, Vectrex is an attractive proposition for parents, but the high price tag makes it a luxury item. Toy maker Milton Bradley eventually buys out GCE and takes over manufacture and marketing of Vectrex, and plans add-ons such as a light pen and 3-D glasses. 
ABC airs the 32nd episode of Stephen J. Cannell’s superhero comedy series The Greatest American Hero, starring William Katt, Connie Sellecca, and Robert Culp.
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The seventh episode of the science fiction series The Powers Of Matthew Star airs on NBC, starring Peter Barton and Louis Gossett Jr. Barry Van Dyke (Battlestar Galactica, Diagnosis Murder) guest stars.
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Atari releases the arcade video game Liberator, based on corporate sibling DC Comics’ Atari Force comics.
NBC airs the fifth episode of James D. Parriott’s time travel series Voyagers!, starring Jon-Erik Hexum and Meeno Peluce. Judson Scott (The Phoenix, Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan) guest stars as Lawrence of Arabia.
After over six years of continuous operation and data gathering on the planet Mars, the Viking 1 lander – having outlived the power supply aboard its orbiter and now transmitting its observations directly to Earth – is inadvertently silenced during what is intended to be a remote upgrade of its on-board software. Ground controllers are never able to establish contact with Viking 1 again. Its record of continuous operation on another planet is not broken until 2010, when Viking 1 is outlasted by NASA’s Opportunity rover.
Konami introduces the arcade game Time Pilot in the United States, where it becomes one of the company’s more prominent sleeper hits. Time Pilot is also licensed to Atari in some regions.
On the first fully-operational flight of NASA’s Space Transportation System, Space Shuttle Columbia delivers two commercial satellites to orbit, the Canadian Anik C-3 satellite and an American satellite, SitS-C. Aboard Columbia for this flight is the first four-astronaut crew in NASA’s history, consisting of Commander Vance Brand, Pilot Robert Overmyer, and mission specialists Joseph Allen and William Lenoir. The flight lasts five days before a landing at Edwards Air Force Base.
ABC airs the 33rd episode of Stephen J. Cannell’s superhero comedy series The Greatest American Hero, starring William Katt, Connie Sellecca, and Robert Culp.
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The eighth episode of the science fiction series The Powers Of Matthew Star airs on NBC, starring Peter Barton and Louis Gossett Jr. Barry Van Dyke (Battlestar Galactica, Diagnosis Murder) and Spencer Milligan (Land Of The Lost) guest star.
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NBC airs the sixth episode of James D. Parriott’s time travel series Voyagers!, starring Jon-Erik Hexum and Meeno Peluce. William Lucking (Sons Of Anarchy, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) guest stars as Babe Ruth, and Andrea Marcovicci (Berrenger’s, Hill Street Blues) guest stars as Cleopatra.
Telesys releases the video game cartridge Cosmic Creeps for the Atari 2600 home video game system, just in time for the Christmas buying season. A glut of new releases for the 2600 by the end of the year, many from third-party companies like Telesys, causes some consumer confusion which has unexpected consequences for the entire industry.
Still trying to stem the tide of bootleg copies of Pac-Man in American arcades, Midway releases the coin-op conversion kit Pac-Man Plus, offering arcade operators an inexpensive (and legal) way to “freshen” old Pac-Man machines on-site rather than turning to bootleg enhancement kits, a problem that has been stealing Midway’s market share since Pac-Man became a hit.
ABC airs the 34th episode of Stephen J. Cannell’s superhero comedy series The Greatest American Hero, starring William Katt, Connie Sellecca, and Robert Culp. Andrew Robinson (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) guest stars.
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The ninth episode of the science fiction series The Powers Of Matthew Star airs on NBC, starring Peter Barton and Louis Gossett Jr. Jeff Corey (Star Trek, Babylon 5) and Julie Newmar (Batman) guest star.
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With exclusive rights to sell a home version of the cult arcade hit Phoenix under its belt, Atari sues third-party software house Imagic over its space shooter game Demon Attack, which is somewhat similar to Phoenix – too similar for Atari’s tastes. The two companies settle out of court the following January, with Imagic agreeing to omit the “mothership” level from the version of Demon Attack sold for the Atari 2600; the mothership appears in nearly every other edition of the game for other consoles and computers.
NBC airs the seventh episode of James D. Parriott’s time travel series Voyagers!, starring Jon-Erik Hexum and Meeno Peluce. John Anderson guest stars as Abraham Lincoln, and Alex Hyde-White (The Fantastic Four) guest stars as Charles Dickens.
The tenth episode of the science fiction series The Powers Of Matthew Star airs on NBC, starring Peter Barton and Louis Gossett Jr. Tricia O’Neil (Star Trek: The Next Generation) and Don Stroid (The New Mike Hammer) guest star in an episode written by former Star Trek cast member Walter Koenig.
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NBC airs the eighth episode of James D. Parriott’s time travel series Voyagers!, starring Jon-Erik Hexum and Meeno Peluce. Lance LeGault guest stars as Andrew Jackson.
Japanese video game maker Namco releases Pole Position in the United States by way of American licensee Atari. Quickly gaining popularity in arcades, Pole Position marks one of the first “meta” moments in video games, featuring briefly-glimpsed billboards advertising other games by the same manufacturer.
Sega releases the arcade game Buck Rogers: Planet Of Zoom in American arcades. Completely unrelated to the recent television series, the graphically impressive game is designed to be the first in a series, but no further games in the projected series ever materialize. 