Year 1970 Fun Facts, Trivia, and History

What Happened During the Year 1970?

What are some fun facts, trivia, and history events from the year 1970? What were the top news stories in the U.S. and around the world, and what major events took place in the business and financial sectors? How much did a gallon of gas cost, and what happened in science, technology, sports, and in the entertainment industry?

Back in 1970, what were the biggest food and fashion trends, and what were the most popular baby names and Christmas gifts? Likewise, who won the Nobel Peace Prize, and how much did a first-class stamp or a gallon of milk cost? What about famous birthdays and deaths that year, and what were the best-selling books?

From world leaders to pioneers to innovators, who were the most influential people in 1970? What was the median household income, the average life expectancy, and how much did a new house or car cost? Finally, what was 1970 best known for, and was it a good or bad year overall? Let's find out.

Here is a summary of the top news stories and history events that happened in 1970:

1. The Nixon Recession (December 1969-November 1970) was a relatively mild one. It resulted from efforts by the Federal Reserve to tame inflation through restrictive monetary policy, which had the expected effect of dampening economic growth.
2. President Nixon signed legislation that officially banned cigarette ads on television and radio.
3. The world’s first jumbo-jet—a Boeing 747—made its first commercial passenger trip from New York to London. The Pan-Am flight carried 332 passengers and 18 crew members.
4. Members of the Ohio National Guard fired into a crowd of students who were demonstrating at Kent State University, killing four and wounding nine.
5. In 1970, the first Earth Day was celebrated, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) began operations.
6. Japan became the world’s fourth space power, after the Soviet Union (1957), the United States (1958), and France (1965).
7. American engineer Douglas Engelbart received a patent for the first computer mouse.
8. Farmers made up 4.6% of the American labor force. There were about 2,780,000 farms in the U.S., averaging about 390 acres apiece.
9. In the year 1970, unemployment peaked at 5.9% in December, and the inflation rate was 5.72%. Median household income was $8,730, and Americans paid an average of $3,900 for a new car. Five pounds of sugar cost 39 cents, a gallon of milk averaged 62 cents, and a dozen eggs were 59 cents.
10. Here are some sports facts from 1970: The Kansas City Chiefs were the Super Bowl champs, the Baltimore Orioles won the World Series, and the Boston Bruins clinched the Stanley Cup.
11. Sporting News named MLB legend Willie Mays as their “Player of the Decade” for the 1960s, hammerin’ Hank Aaron became the ninth MLB player to get 3,000 hits, and MLB shortstop Ernie Banks hit his 500th home run.
12. In 1970, a copy of Sports Illustrated cost 15 cents.
13. Midnight Cowboy won three Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.
14. PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) began operations, taking over many of the functions of its predecessor, National Educational Television (NET).
15. Monday Night Football and the soap All My Children (1970-2011) both premiered on ABC.
16. Broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite hosted the last episode of the CBS documentary The 20th Century, and Casey Kasem's American Top 40 premiered on LA radio.
17. The Doonesbury comic strip debuted in 28 newspapers. EW.com explains that “The strip centered around Walden Commune and its inhabitants: self-absorbed, skirt-chasing Doonesbury; Joanie Caucus, a middle-aged feminist; ever-stoned Zonker Harris; and B.D., the jock, and his New Age girlfriend.”
18. Elvis Presley—the King of Rock 'n' Roll—visited President Richard Nixon in the White House Oval Office.
19. Hamburger Helper appeared on grocery store shelves for the first time, and Orville Redenbacher introduced his gourmet popping corn.
20. Libby Chldress of Mount Airy, North Carolina won the 43rd Scripps National Spelling Bee with the word “croissant.”

Here are the five most popular TV shows from 1970-71:

1. Marcus Welby, M.D. (ABC)
2. The Flip Wilson Show (NBC)
3. Here's Lucy (CBS)
4. Ironside (NBC)
5. Gunsmoke (CBS)

Here are ten cool food and beverage trends for the year:

1. Black Forest cake
2. Cheese logs
3. Deviled eggs
4. Hamburger Helper
5. Jell-O Pudding Pops
6. Layered gelatin salads
7. Mug-O-Lunch
8. Pasta primavera
9. Swanson TV dinners
10. Tab (a diet cola soft drink that was created and produced by the Coca-Cola Company)

This article teaches you fun facts, trivia, and history events from the year 1970. Find out about popular TV shows and movies, best-selling books, food and fashion trends, sports facts, pop music artists and songs, famous birthdays, economic and tech news, as well as unusual news events to get the right mix of questions and answers for your 1970s-themed trivia quiz.

Table of Contents

Here is a sneak preview of what this article is about:

1. Grocery Prices in the Year 1970
2. What Was the U.S. Economy Like in 1970?
3. History Facts and Events From the USA and World
4. Sports Facts and Trivia
5. Miscellaneous Fun Facts, Trivia, and Pop Culture Trends
6. Nobel Prize Winners
7. Best-Selling Fiction Books
8. Most Popular Television Shows From 1970-71
9. Highest-Grossing Films
10. Horror Movies From the Year 1970
11. Biggest Pop Music Artists
12. Top 40 Songs for the Year
13. Food and Beverage Trivia
14. Famous Weddings and Divorces
15. Famous People Who Were Born in 1970
16. Well-Known People Who Died
17. America’s Largest Corporations
18. Companies and Brands Launched in 1970

1. Grocery Prices in the Year 1970

These 1970 grocery prices have been made available courtesy of the Morris County Public Library in Whippany, NJ.

1. Apples (Cortland): 10 cents a pound
2. Applesauce (Mott’s): Five 15-ounce jars for $1.00
3. Aspirin (Bufferin): 89 cents for 100 tablets
4. Bacon (A&P): 95 cents for a one-pound package
5. Beans (kidney): Five 20-ounce cans for $1.00
6. Beef (corned): 69 cents a pound
7. Bread (Jane Parker, white): Three 22-ounce loaves for $1.00
8. Cake mix (Betty Crocker): Three boxes for $1.00
9. Cereal (Cap’n Crunch): 49 cents for a nine-ounce box
10. Cheese (Borden’s, American): 79 cents a pound
11. Coffee (8 O’Clock): $2.29 for a three-pound bag
12. Cornish hens: 39 cents a pound
13. Cotton swabs (Q-Tips): Three 54-count boxes for $1.00
14. Facial tissue (Kleenex): One 200-count box for 25 cents
15. Grapefruit (seedless): Ten cents apiece
16. Juice (orange): 39 cents for a half-gallon carton
17. Ham (smoked): 39 cents a pound
18. Hair spray (Aqua Net): Two 13-ounce cans for $1.00
19. Leg of lamb: 79 cents a pound
20. Macaroni (Ronzoni): Five one-pound boxes for $1.00
21. Margarine (Fleischmann’s): 39 cents for a one-pound package
22. Mayonnaise (Kraft): 39 cents for a one-quart jar
23. Milk (Carnation, instant): 99 cents for a box of 10 one-quart packs
24. Mouthwash (Listerine): $1.00 for a 20-ounce bottle
25. Oil (Wesson): 89 cents for a one-quart bottle
26. Pie (fresh, cherry): 59 cents for a 24-ounce pie
27. Pork chops: 79 cents a pound
28. Potatoes: 59 cents for a five-pound bag
29. Strawberries: 49 cents a pound
30. Yams: Two pounds for 25 cents

2. What Was the U.S. Economy Like in 1970?

1. The Nixon Recession (December 1969-November 1970) was a relatively mild one. It resulted from efforts by the Federal Reserve to tame inflation through restrictive monetary policy, which had the expected effect of dampening economic growth.
2. In 1970, unemployment averaged 5% for much of the year, until it peaked at 5.9% in December.
3. The inflation rate was 5.72%. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index, “today's prices in 2020 are 564.43% higher than average prices since 1970. The U.S. dollar experienced an average inflation rate of 3.86% per year during this period, causing the real value of a dollar to decrease. In other words, $1 in 1970 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $6.64 in 2020, a difference of $5.64 over 50 years.”
4. In 1970, median household income in the U.S. was $8,730. According to Census.gov, “This was about $340 or 4.1 percent higher than the 1969 figure of $8,390. However, consumer prices rose during the year, and in terms of constant dollars, median household income was about the same as in 1969.” Census.gov points out that 15.8% of the 64.4 million households in the U.S received incomes under $3,000. On the other hand, 11.6% of households received incomes between $3,000 and $5,000, and another 11.8% had incomes between $5,000 and $7,000. Finally, 18.5% of households had incomes between $7,000 and $10,000, and 42.3% of households had incomes above $10,000.
5. In 1970, a five-pound bag of potatoes cost 59 cents, three 22-ounce loaves of white bread were $1.00, and bacon was 95 cents for a one-pound package. Five pounds of sugar cost 39 cents, a gallon of milk was 62 cents, and a dozen eggs were 59 cents. Pot roast was 59 cents a pound, frozen TV dinners were 39 cents apiece, and tomato soup was 10 cents a can.
6. The average price for a gallon of gas was 36 cents.
7. Americans paid an average of $3,900 for a new car.
8. Annual tuition for a state-related university averaged $400-$1,200. At a private university, the average tuition was $1,792.
9. The median price of a home sold in the United States in January 1970 was $23,600.
10. The average monthly rent was $140.
11. On April 10, the price of a first-class stamp was six cents.
12. In 1970, a Barbie inflatable furniture set cost $2.00, and a Mattel hot wheels car was 69 cents.
13. Latex house paint cost $7.00 a gallon, a porcelain sink was $10, and bunk beds were $100.
14. A copy of Sports Illustrated magazine cost 15 cents.
15. Your hamburger cost 18 cents, and a Coke was five cents.
16. The federal minimum wage was $1.45.
17. On the last day of trading for the year, the Dow closed at 838.
18. The price of gold averaged $35.96 per ounce.
19. On September 21, the prime rate was 7.5%.
20. Adjusted for inflation, credit card debt has increased 24,500% since 1970.

3. History Facts and Events From the USA and World

1. In 1970, Richard Nixon was the 37th U.S. president, and Spiro Agnew was the vice president.
2. California adopted no-fault divorce with the Family Law Act of 1969, which became effective on January 1, 1970. What does a “no-fault” divorce state mean for divorce? Courts.ca.gov explains that “California is a ‘no fault’ divorce state, which means that the spouse or domestic partner that is asking for the divorce does not have to prove that the other spouse or domestic partner did something wrong. To get a no fault divorce, one spouse or domestic partner has to state that the couple cannot get along. Legally, this is called ‘irreconcilable differences.’”
3. On January 4, New York City’s transit fare increased from 20 cents to 30 cents, and the new “large Y” tokens were now being used.
4. On January 7, nearly five months after the festival “Woodstock,” farmer Max Yasgur was sued for $35,000 by some neighboring farmers for damages caused by the festival.
5. On January 17, Sporting News named MLB legend Willie Mays as their “Player of the Decade” for the 1960s.
6. On January 22, the world’s first jumbo-jet, a Boeing 747, made its first commercial passenger trip from New York to London. The Pan-Am flight carried 332 passengers and 18 crew members.
7. On January 27, "M" was changed to "PG" (Parental Guidance) “due to the confusing nature of the term ‘mature audiences.’”
8. In April, President Nixon ordered “a secret invasion” of Cambodia by U.S. and South Vietnamese troops.
9. On April 1, President Nixon signed legislation that officially banned cigarette ads on television and radio. History.com tells us that “Nixon, who was an avid pipe smoker, indulging in as many as eight bowls a day, supported the legislation at the increasing insistence of public health advocates.”
10. On April 12, the Yankees dedicated plaques to baseball legends Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio.
11. CNN.com tells us that “The Apollo 13 spacecraft was intended to be the third landing on the moon, but the NASA crew aborted its mission after an oxygen tank exploded on board. The astronauts landed in the South Pacific on April 17, 1970.”
12. On April 21, the Principality of Hutt River —previously Hutt River Province—seceded from Australia.
13. On April 22, the first Earth Day was celebrated. EPA.gov reports that “It may be hard to imagine that before 1970, a factory could spew black clouds of toxic smoke into the air or dump tons of toxic waste into a nearby stream, and that was perfectly legal. They could not be taken to court to stop it. How was that possible? Because there was no EPA, no Clean Air Act, no Clean Water Act. There were no legal or regulatory mechanisms to protect our environment. In spring 1970, Senator Gaylord Nelson created Earth Day as a way to force this issue onto the national agenda.”
14. On May 10, Bobby Orr became a hockey legend when he “scored an overtime goal in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals, giving the Boston Bruins their first championship since 1941. In 1971, Orr signed the first million-dollar contract in NHL history—$200,000 a year for five years—and in 1979 he became the youngest NHL Hall of Famer when he was inducted at the age of 31. Ray Lussie/Boston Herald American/AP.”
15. On May 12, MLB shortstop Ernie Banks hit his 500th home run.
16. On May 17, hammerin’ Hank Aaron became the ninth MLB player to get 3,000 hits.
17. On May 4, four Kent State University students were killed by the Ohio National Guard. Kent.edu tells us that “members of the Ohio National Guard fired into a crowd of Kent State University demonstrators, killing four and wounding nine Kent State students. The impact of the shootings was dramatic. The event triggered a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of colleges and universities to close.”
18. In July, the Aswan High Dam in Egypt was completed.
19. On September 13, IBM unveiled its new computer system—the IBM System/370. According to IBM.com, “System/370 Models 155 and 165 can provide computer users with dramatically higher performance and information storage capacity for their data processing dollars than ever before available from IBM in medium- and large-scale systems.”
20. On September 21, the New York Times started their Op. Ed. page.
21. On October 5, PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) began operations, taking over many of the functions of its predecessor, National Educational Television (NET). PBS.org tells us that “Every day, PBS and its more than 330 member stations fulfill our essential mission to the American public, providing trusted programming that is uniquely different from commercial broadcasting and treating audiences as citizens, not simply consumers.”
22. On November 17, American engineer Douglas Engelbart received a patent for the first computer mouse.
23. On November 18, chemist Linus Pauling declared that large doses of vitamin C might prevent or decrease the intensity of the common cold.
24. During 1970, Japan became the world’s fourth space power, after the Soviet Union (1957), the United States (1958), and France (1965).
25. During 1970, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) began operations, and William Ruckelhaus was the first director.

4. Sports Facts and Trivia

Generally suitable for all age groups, sports questions are a welcome addition to any trivia quiz.

1. Indianapolis 500: Al Unser
2. Kentucky Derby: Dust Commander
3. NBA Champions: New York Knicks
4. NCAA Basketball Champions: UCLA
5. NCAA Football Champs: Nebraska, Ohio State, and Texas
6. Orange Bowl: Penn State over Missouri
7. Rose Bowl: USC over Michigan
8. Stanley Cup Champs: Boston Bruins
9. Sugar Bowl: Ole Miss over Arkansas
10. Super Bowl IV Champions: Kansas City Chiefs
11. Tour de France: Édouard Louis Joseph, better known as Eddy Merckx
12. U.S. Open Golf: Tony Jacklin
13. U.S. Open Tennis (men/women): Ken Rosewall/Margaret Court
14. Wimbledon (men/women): John Newcombe/Margaret Court
15. World Series: Baltimore Orioles

5. Miscellaneous Fun Facts, Trivia, and Pop Culture Trends

PBS.org explains that pop culture is that loose blend of books, music, fashion and other daily ephemera that contributes to the identity of a society at a particular point in time. In the 1970s, radio, film, television, and books defined the essence of American pop culture.

1. In 1970, the U.S. population was 203,211,926.
2. According to the 1970 census, the most populated American cities were New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Detroit, Houston, Baltimore, Dallas, Washington, DC, and Cleveland.
3. Farmers made up 4.6% of the American labor force. There were about 2,780,000 farms in the U.S., averaging about 390 acres apiece.
4. In the United States, there were 7,359,200 property crimes, 16,000 murders, 349,860 robberies, 2,205,000 burglaries, and 928,400 vehicle thefts.
5. Courtesy of the Social Security Administration, popular baby names were Michael, Christopher, Jason, David, James, Jennifer, Amy, Melissa, Michelle, and Kimberly.
6. The average life expectancy at birth in the U.S. was 67.1 years.
7. The cost of a 30-second Super Bowl ad was $78,200.
8. Fashion trends for women in 1970 included tie dye shirts, ponchos, capes, military surplus clothing, bell-bottoms, gauchos, frayed jeans, midi skirts, and ankle-length maxi dresses. FashionHistory.fitnyc.edu adds that “As the Swinging Sixties turned into the 1970s, the influence of boutique stores and diffusion lines made ready-to-wear clothing increasingly accessible. New synthetic fabrics meant that fashionable styles could be bought at any price point.”
9. Heartthrobs and fashion icons for the year included Ann-Margret, Carol Burnett, Dyan Cannon, Diahann Carroll, Barbara Eden, Jane Fonda, Goldie Hawn, Sophia Loren, Ali McGraw, Mary Tyler Moore, Diana Ross, Tina Turner, Twiggy, and Raquel Welch.
10. Pamela Eldred (West Bloomfield, MI) won the Miss America crown.
11. Deborah Shelton (Virginia) became Miss USA.
12. Time magazine’s “Man of the Year” was Willy Brandt, a German politician and statesman.
13. At the 42nd Academy Awards, which honored the best films of 1969, Midnight Cowboy won an Oscar for Best Picture, John Schlesinger (Midnight Cowboy) won an Oscar for Best Director, John Wayne (True Grit) won an Oscar for Best Actor, and Maggie Smith (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie) won an Oscar for Best Actress.
14. At the 22nd Primetime Emmy Awards, My World and Welcome to It (NBC) won an Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series, and Marcus Welby, M.D. (ABC) won an Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series. Likewise, William Windom (My World and Welcome to It) won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, and Hope Lange (The Ghost & Mrs. Muir) won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.
15. National Lampoon magazine (1970-98) and the Smithsonian magazine both began publishing.
16. On January 4, broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite hosted the last episode of The 20th Century, “a documentary program using archival footage and personal testimony to recreate historical happenings. This format laid the foundation for similar cable shows in the future.”
17. On January 5, the soap All My Children premiered on ABC.
18. On February 7, the last episode of the variety show Hollywood Palace aired on ABC.
19. On March 1, Charles Manson’s album—Lie: The Love and Terror Cult—was released.
20. On April 10, Paul McCartney announced that the Beatles were breaking up. History.com explains that “the Beatles spent the better part of three years breaking up in the late 1960s, and even longer than that hashing out who did what and why. And by the spring of 1970, there was little more than a tangled set of business relationships keeping the group together. Each of the Beatles was pursuing his musical interests outside of the band, and there were no plans in place to record together as a group.” (On April 17, McCartney’s first solo album, McCartney, was released.)
21. On July 4, Casey Kasem's American Top 40 premiered on LA radio.
22. On September 15, Decca awarded Bing Crosby a second platinum disc for selling 300 million records.
23. On September 19, The Mary Tyler Moore Show premiered on CBS.
24. On September 21, Monday Night Football debuted on ABC.
25. On October 24, Nancy Walker created the Ida Morgenstein role on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
26. On October 26, the Doonesbury comic strip debuted in 28 newspapers. EW.com explains that “The strip centered around Walden Commune and its inhabitants: self-absorbed, skirt-chasing Doonesbury; Joanie Caucus, a middle-aged feminist; ever-stoned Zonker Harris; and B.D., the jock, and his New Age girlfriend.”
27. On December 21, “Pop culture and politics collided when the King of Rock 'n' Roll, Elvis Presley, visited President Richard Nixon in the White House Oval Office.”
28. On December 23, the 7,511th performance of Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap took place.
29. Hamburger Helper appeared on grocery store shelves for the first time.
30. Orville Redenbacher introduced his gourmet popping corn.

6. Nobel Prize Winners

Beth Rowen tells us that winning a Nobel Prize is a life-changing honor. Whether the laureate is an internationally known figure (such as Mother Teresa) or a scientist from obscurity (like Richard R. Ernst), the award brings worldwide recognition that highlights one's life work and provides the funds to continue the mission.

This Nobel Prize information from 1970 has been made available courtesy of NobelPrize.com.

• Chemistry: Luis Federico Leloir
• Economics: Paul Samuelson
• Literature: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
• Peace: Norman Borlaug
• Physics: Hannes Alfvén and Louis Néel
• Physiology or medicine: Bernard Katz, Ulf von Euler, and Julius Axelrod