1979

News Highlights of 1979

• The Shah isforced to leave Iranafter 37 years on the Peacock Throne. The Ayatollah Khomeini, a Muslimfundamentalist, returns after 15 years of exile to establish a socialistIslamic republic.

• Egypt's President Sadat and Israel's PrimeMinister Begin sign a peace agreement at the White House.

• The Three MileIsland nuclear plant in Pennsylvania begins emitting radiation when problems with the cooling system expose part of the core.

• Actor Lee Marvin is sued for "palimony" by a former female companion.

• In Vienna, President Carter and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev sign the SALT II agreement limiting strategic weapons. The U.S. Congress would ultimately fail to ratify the treaty, but both sides abide by its terms anyway.

• General Samoza resigns as president of Nicaragua, and the Sandinistas succeed to power.

• ChryslerCorporation asks the federal government for a loan of $1 billion afterreporting the largest quarterly loss in its history.

• Pope John PaulII travels to the United States, the first time a pope has set foot on American soil.

• The UnitedStates Embassy in Tehranis seized, and 54 American citizens are taken hostage; two are soon released,but the rest are held captive for 444 days.

• Former Governor Ronald Reagan, Senator Edward Kennedy, and President Carter are the leading names for their parties' presidential nominations.

• Mother Teresa, the empress of charity, accepts the Nobel Peace Prize.

• In December, Soviet forces invade Afghanistan.