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November 15, 1983

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

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Headlines from November 15, 1983

CORRECTION

By Unknown Author

An article yesterday in SportsMonday misstated the result of a Catholic High Schools Football League semifinal game. St. Anthony's defeated Cardinal Spellman, 29-23.

Metropolitan Desk23 words

UNITED SATELLITE TO START HOME TV DISH SERVICE

By Sandra Salmans

Awaited for years, the first commercial satellite-to-home television service is scheduled to begin this evening in a 33-county area surrounding Indianapolis. The new service, which involves direct-broadcast transmissions from a Canadian satellite to small rooftop dishes, is to be provided by United Satellite Communications Inc. Its shareholders are the Prudential Insurance Company, the General Instrument Corporation and a group of private investors. Other companies are expected to enter the direct-broadcast business, which could eventually reach between 5 million and 10 million households, according to industry experts. That would make it a supplement to over-the-air broadcasting and to cable transmission, the foundations of the television industry.

Financial Desk727 words

FIRST U.S. MISSILES ARRIVE BY PLANE AT A BRITISH BASE

By Jon Nordheimer

Text of Briton's statement, page A14. LONDON, Nov. 14 - American- made cruise missiles arrived today at an air base in England, the British Government announced. They are the first of NATO's new generation of medium- range missiles to be deployed in Western Europe. Britain's Defense Secretary, Michael Heseltine, told a deeply divided House of Commons that the shipment, delivered to Greenham Common air base by a United States plane, meant that an unspecified number of cruise missiles would be operational on schedule by the end of the year. Shouting to make himself heard over howls of protest from opposition legislators, he said, ''I have to inform the House that earlier today the first cruise missiles were delivered by air.''

Foreign Desk1613 words

THE 'HOTEL KIDS': A GROWING SCHOOL PROBLEM

By Joyce Purnick

Angel Rivera, 10 years old and slight of voice, was trying to explain. He was standing in what was once a ballroom at the Hotel Martinique in midtown Manhattan, a cavernous room with broken mirrors and gaping holes where chandeliers used to be, saying he really did want to go to school. But he had already been to two schools since his mother's Bronx apartment burned out last summer and was upset by the thought of starting over in yet another school. ''I don't like going to new schools,'' he told Cecilio Diaz, a school official who was trying to help. ''I get shy in the class.''

Metropolitan Desk1484 words

U.S. OFFERS PROPOSAL ON NUCLEAR MISSILES TO SOVIET AT GENEVA

By Bernard Gwertzman, Special To the New York Times

The United States offered today to refine its previous proposal on limiting medium- range missiles to the Soviet Union. The offer came amid predictions here that the Russians would reject the plan and announce that there was no longer any reason to continue negotiations. (In Moscow, the Government press agency Tass called the offer ''patently unacceptable.'' Page A15.)

Foreign Desk940 words

Music on My Birthday

Billboard 200

The Top 50 albums for the chart week of November 9, 1983, covering November 15, 1983.

  1. 1
    Album cover for Synchronicity by The Police

    Synchronicity

    The Police

    Last week
    1
    Peak
    1
    Weeks
    20
  2. 2
    Album cover for Metal Health by Quiet Riot

    Metal Health

    Quiet Riot

    Last week
    3
    Peak
    2
    Weeks
    30
  3. 3
    Album cover for Thriller by Michael Jackson

    Thriller

    Michael Jackson

    Last week
    2
    Peak
    1
    Weeks
    47
  4. 4
    Album cover for An Innocent Man by Billy Joel

    An Innocent Man

    Billy Joel

    Last week
    5
    Peak
    4
    Weeks
    13
  5. 5
    Album cover for Faster Than The Speed Of Night by Bonnie Tyler

    Faster Than The Speed Of Night

    Bonnie Tyler

    Last week
    4
    Peak
    4
    Weeks
    15

Notable Births

Dominic Carroll

1983Dominic Carroll, Gibraltarian runner[†]

Dominic Carroll is a retired Gibraltarian track athlete.

Sophia Di Martino

1983Sophia Di Martino, English actress[†]

Sophia Di Martino is an English actress known for portraying Sylvie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television series Loki (2021–2023), which earned her two MTV Movie & TV Awards and a nomination for a Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. She has also had starring roles in the television shows Flowers (2016–2018) and Casualty (2009–2011).

Aleksandar Pavlović (basketball)

1983Aleksandar Pavlović, Serbian basketball player[†]

Aleksandar "Saša" Pavlović is a Serbian-Montenegrin basketball executive and former professional basketball player who spent ten seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), playing for the Utah Jazz, Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Dallas Mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans, Boston Celtics and the Portland Trail Blazers. He also represented the national basketball team of Serbia and Montenegro internationally. Standing at 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m), he played the small forward and shooting guard positions.

Fernando Verdasco

1983Fernando Verdasco, Spanish tennis player[†]

Fernando Verdasco Carmona is a Spanish tennis coach and a former professional player. He was ranked world No. 7 in men's singles by the ATP, achieved in April 2009, and world No. 8 in men's doubles, achieved in November 2013. Verdasco won seven singles titles on the ATP Tour, and reached a major singles semifinal at the 2009 Australian Open. He also won eight doubles titles, including the 2013 ATP World Tour Finals partnering David Marrero.

John Heitinga

1983John Heitinga, Dutch footballer and coach[†]

John Gijsbert Alan "Johnny" Heitinga is a Dutch football coach and former player who is currently the assistant manager at Premier League club Liverpool. He will become the manager of Eredivisie club Ajax on 1 July 2025.

Notable Deaths

1983John Grimaldi, English keyboard player and songwriter (born 1955)[†]

John Grimaldi was a British musician, songwriter, and visual artist. He was born in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England. Grimaldi was educated at St Albans School, where he developed his songwriting, electric jazz, and visual art. His career was focused on jazz, although he played in other genres. Grimaldi formed several bands and wrote and performed until his death from multiple sclerosis in 1983.

Charlie Grimm

1983Charlie Grimm, American baseball player and manager (born 1898)[†]

Charles John Grimm, nicknamed "Jolly Cholly", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman, most notably for the Chicago Cubs; he was also a sometime radio sports commentator, and a popular goodwill ambassador for baseball. He played for the Pittsburgh Pirates early in his career, but was traded to the Cubs in 1925 and worked mostly for the Cubs for the rest of his career. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, to parents of German extraction, Grimm was known for being outgoing and chatty, even singing old-fashioned songs while accompanying himself on a left-handed banjo. Grimm is one of a select few to have played and managed in 2,000 games each.

John Le Mesurier

1983John Le Mesurier, English actor (born 1912)[†]

John Le Mesurier was an English actor. He is probably best remembered for his comedic role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the BBC television situation comedy Dad's Army (1968–1977). A self-confessed "jobbing actor", Le Mesurier appeared in more than 120 films across a range of genres, normally in smaller supporting parts.

Historical Events

Northern Cyprus

1983Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus declares independence; it is only recognized by Turkey.[†]

Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a de facto state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus. It is recognised only by Turkey, and its territory is considered by all other states to be part of the Republic of Cyprus. Northern Cyprus extends from the tip of the Karpass Peninsula in the northeast to Morphou Bay, Cape Kormakitis and its westernmost point, the Kokkina exclave in the west. Its southernmost point is the village of Louroujina. A buffer zone under the control of the United Nations stretches between Northern Cyprus and the rest of the island and divides Nicosia, the island's largest city and capital of both sides.

Historical Context for November 15, 1983

In 1983, the world population was approximately 4,697,327,573 people[†]