On this day

October 18, 1978

Revisit the music, news, notable people, and historical moments connected to this date.

Music on My Birthday

Billboard 200

The Top 50 albums for the chart week of October 18, 1978, covering October 18, 1978.

  1. 1
    Album cover for Grease by Soundtrack

    Grease

    Soundtrack

    Last week
    1
    Peak
    1
    Weeks
    23
  2. 2
    Album cover for Who Are You by The Who

    Who Are You

    The Who

    Last week
    4
    Peak
    2
    Weeks
    7
  3. 3
    Album cover for Don't Look Back by Boston

    Don't Look Back

    Boston

    Last week
    2
    Peak
    1
    Weeks
    8
  4. 4
    Album cover for Living In The U.S.A. by Linda Ronstadt

    Living In The U.S.A.

    Linda Ronstadt

    Last week
    10
    Peak
    4
    Weeks
    3
  5. 5
    Album cover for Double Vision by Foreigner

    Double Vision

    Foreigner

    Last week
    3
    Peak
    3
    Weeks
    16

Notable Births

Mike Tindall

1978Mike Tindall, English rugby player[†]

Michael James Tindall, is an English former rugby union player and a member of the British royal family. Tindall played outside centre for Bath and Gloucester, and won 75 caps for England between 2000 and 2011. He was a member of the England squad which won the 2003 World Cup.

Kenji Wu

1978Kenji Wu, Taiwanese singer-songwriter and actor[†]

Kenji Wu is a Taiwanese singer, songwriter, actor and director.

Notable Deaths

Ramón Mercader

1978Ramón Mercader, Spanish journalist, assassin of Leon Trotsky (born 1914)[†]

Jaime Ramón Mercader del Río was a Spanish communist and NKVD secret agent who assassinated the revolutionary Leon Trotsky in Mexico City in August 1940. Mercader was imprisoned for 19 years and 8 months in Mexico for murdering Trotsky with an ice axe.

Historical Events

Henrik Igityan National Centre for Aesthetics

1978Based on the world's first children's art museum, the Henrik Igityan National Centre for Aesthetics opened in Yerevan.[†]

Henrik Igityan National Centre for Aesthetics (NCA) is a gallery and museum in Yerevan, Armenia. It was based on, and as of 2024 includes, the Children's Art Museum, which was founded in 1970 by Henrik Igityan and Zhanna Aghamiryan.

Historical Context for October 18, 1978

In 1978, the world population was approximately 4,292,097,502 people[†]