Midway releases the arcade video game Mappy, licensed from Namco, the Japanese developers behind Pac-Man. 
Earl Green is the creator, curator, and head writer of theLogBook.com.
Midway releases the arcade video game Mappy, licensed from Namco, the Japanese developers behind Pac-Man.
The 596th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Valentine Dyall appears as the Black Guardian with Cyril Luckham reprising the role of the White Guardian. This concludes the 20th season’s “Guardian/redemption of Turlough” trilogy.
The Soviet Union launches an unmanned module, Kosmos 1443, on a trajectory that will bring it to the Salyut 7 space station for an automated docking. Once connected to Salyut 7, Kosmos 1443 provides extra habitable space for experiments and storage. A hardware holdover from the abandoned Almaz military space station program of the early 1970s, Kosmos remains docked to Salyut 7 through August 1983, at which time it is undocked and jettisoned, falling out of orbit and burning up in Earth’s atmosphere in September.
For the first time, Compact Disc players and pre-recorded CDs appear in the English-speaking world (having been available in Japan since late 1982. The first label to embrace the new digital format is CBS Records, which publishes 16 existing titles on CD ranging from classical to rock. The technology has been developed jointly by Philips and Sony since the 1970s.
The 597th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Valentine Dyall appears as the Black Guardian with Cyril Luckham reprising the role of the White Guardian. This concludes the 20th season’s “Guardian/redemption of Turlough” trilogy.
This timeline entry leads to an entry covering this entire Doctor Who serial; there are plans to write new episodic entries in the future. You can support this effort!
Order Earl Green’s book VWORP!1 from theLogBook.com Store
The 18th episode of the science fiction series The Powers Of Matthew Star airs on NBC, starring Peter Barton and Louis Gossett Jr. John Vernon (Animal House) guest stars.
More about The Powers Of Matthew Star in theLogBook.com Store
CBS airs the second episode of the fantasy/comedy series Wizards and Warriors, starring Jeff Conaway (Grease, Babylon 5), Walter Olkewicz, Duncan Regehr, and Julia Duffy (Newhart). Tim Dunigan (Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future) guest stars.
The fourth episode of Brian Daley’s radio drama adaptation of the Star Wars sequel The Empire Strikes Back airs on National Public Radio stations in the U.S. Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels reprise their movie roles.
NBC airs the 16th episode of James D. Parriott’s time travel series Voyagers!, starring Jon-Erik Hexum and Meeno Peluce. David Olivier guest stars as Werner Von Braun, and Robert O’Reilly guest stars as Klaus.
More about Voyagers! in theLogBook.com Store
Voyagers! now streaming on Amazon Prime
Mythicon releases Fire Fly for the Atari 2600 home video game, one of the company’s quickly-developed line of discount game cartridges for that system.
Upstart video game manufacturer Mythicon releases Sorcerer for the Atari 2600. One of only three games issued by Mythicon before it goes out of business, and considered one of the worst games ever made for the 2600, Sorcerer is designed to be sold at a low price point at drug stores and other retail venues not normally associated with video games.
The 598th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Valentine Dyall appears as the Black Guardian with Cyril Luckham reprising the role of the White Guardian. This concludes the 20th season’s “Guardian/redemption of Turlough” trilogy.
This timeline entry leads to an entry covering this entire Doctor Who serial; there are plans to write new episodic entries in the future. You can support this effort!
Order Earl Green’s book VWORP!1 from theLogBook.com Store
The 599th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Valentine Dyall appears as the Black Guardian with Cyril Luckham reprising the role of the White Guardian, the last Doctor Who appearance with either actor before their deaths. This concludes the 20th season’s “Guardian/redemption of Turlough” trilogy.
This timeline entry leads to an entry covering this entire Doctor Who serial; there are plans to write new episodic entries in the future. You can support this effort!
Order Earl Green’s book VWORP!1 from theLogBook.com Store
Midway releases the arcade game Discs Of Tron in American arcades. The second coin-op game based on the movie Tron, this game was originally devised as an additional “stage” of the original Tron coin-op until designers split it off into its own game. The “environmental” cabinet, allowing players to stand inside the brightly black-lit game, becomes a legend of arcade architecture. 
The 19th episode of the science fiction series The Powers Of Matthew Star airs on NBC, starring Peter Barton and Louis Gossett Jr. Scott Marlowe (Valley Of The Dolls) guest stars.
More about The Powers Of Matthew Star in theLogBook.com Store
CBS airs the first episode of the fantasy/comedy series Wizards and Warriors, starring Jeff Conaway (Grease, Babylon 5), Walter Olkewicz, Duncan Regehr, and Julia Duffy (Newhart).
The fifth episode of Brian Daley’s radio drama adaptation of the Star Wars sequel The Empire Strikes Back airs on National Public Radio stations in the U.S. Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels reprise their movie roles.
NBC airs the 17th episode of James D. Parriott’s time travel series Voyagers!, starring Jon-Erik Hexum and Meeno Peluce. Nicholas Pryor guest stars as Franklin Roosevelt, and Ellen Geer guest stars as Eleanor Roosevelt.
The 600th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Anthony Ainley guest stars as the Master, though his role in part one is credited to a pseudonym, “James Stoker” – an anagram of “Master’s Joke”.
Segaa releases the arcade game Astron Belt in American arcades. The first game to go into development specifically as a laser videodisc game, Astron Belt is a minor hit but it overshadowed by the Disney-esque visuals of another laserdisc coin-op, Dragon’s Lair.
The 601st episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Anthony Ainley guest stars as the Master, and the episode introduces a robotic companion intended to be portrayed by a real robot, Kamelion. Kamelion’s designer dies prior to production, however, leaving minimal documentation for the robot’s operation; Kamelion’s further appearances are written out of the show and the robot only makes one further appearance. This brings Doctor Who’s 20th season to a close; the 20th anniversary special, The Five Doctors, airs later in the year as a stand-alone with a budget and production schedule separate from the rest of the season’s episodes.
Electric Light Orchestra bassist and vocalist Kelly Groucutt goes solo, releasing an album of distinctly ELO-esque tunes on the Polygram label. Virtually all of Groucutt’s bandmates appear on his first album, with the notable exception of ELO frontman Jeff Lynne.
CBS airs the fourth episode of the fantasy/comedy series Wizards and Warriors, starring Jeff Conaway (Grease, Babylon 5), Walter Olkewicz, Duncan Regehr, and Julia Duffy (Newhart).
The sixth episode of Brian Daley’s radio drama adaptation of the Star Wars sequel The Empire Strikes Back airs on National Public Radio stations in the U.S. Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels reprise their movie roles.
NBC premieres the two-hour TV movie Special Bulletin, presented in the style of a live breaking news report, and conceived, written, and directed by Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz (later creators of the late ’80s series Thirtysomething). As is often the case with fictional presentations produced in the style of a news broadcast, some audience members are genuinely alarmed by the movie, despite frequent on-screen disclaimers advising those watching that it is just a movie.
Segaa releases the arcade game Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator in American arcades. The vector graphics coin-op, simulating the “tactical views” seen on the Enterprise in the first two Star Trek movies, is the first officially licensed Star Trek video game. It also reflects some corporate synergy: Sega was, at the time, also owned by Paramount Pictures parent company Gulf + Western.
Activision releases Dracula for the Intellivision home video game system, one of numerous Imagic titles exclusive to that system.
Imagic releases the No Escape! cartridge for the Atari 2600 home video game system.
The 20th episode of the science fiction series The Powers Of Matthew Star airs on NBC, starring Peter Barton and Louis Gossett Jr. Jon Gries (Martin, The Pretender) guest stars.
More about The Powers Of Matthew Star in theLogBook.com Store
The seventh episode of Brian Daley’s radio drama adaptation of the Star Wars sequel The Empire Strikes Back airs on National Public Radio stations in the U.S. Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels reprise their movie roles; Billy Dee Williams provides the voice of Lando Calrissian.