- January 9
- At the Winter Consumer Electronics Show, Apple Computer chairman John Sculley coins the term Personal Digital Assistant, referring to handheld computers that typically operate via a stylus on a LCD display. Sculley announces that Apple will enter the consumer-electronics market by the end of the year. [4]
- January 13
- US serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer pleads guilty but insane to the murders of 15 young men and boys. [1] [33]
- January 26
- Americans with Disabilities Act goes into effect. [1]
- Boris Yeltsin announces that Russia will stop targeting United States cities with nuclear weapons. [33]
- January 27
- 19th American Music Awards: C and C Music Factory, Michael Bolton win. [1]
- January 31
- IBM reports a year-end loss, for the first time, of US$564 million, on revenues of US$64.8 billion. [4]
- February 1
- Chief Judicial Magistrate of Bhopal Court declares Warren Anderson, ex-CEO of Union Carbide, a fugitive under Indian law for failing to appear in the Bhopal Disaster case, and orders the Indian government to press for an extradition from the United States. [33]
- February 2
- Disney's Dixie Landings Resort hotel opens in Walt Disney World. [6]
- February 5
- The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announces the nomination of Beauty and the Beast for a Best Picture award. This is the first time in the history of the Motion Picture Academy that an animated feature has been nominated in this category. [6]
- February 7
- Shannon Rhea Marketic, 22, (California), crowned 41st Miss USA. [1]
- February 15
- Jeffrey Dahmer found by court to be sane and guilty of killing 15 boys. [1]
- The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation opens the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard, Connecticut, with financing from Malaysian billionaire Lim Goh Tong. [187.437] [208.40]
- February 16
- Former silver Goodyear blimps are now painted yellow and blue. [1]
- February 17
- A court in Milwaukee, Wisconsin sentences serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer to life in prison. [33]
- February 18
- In New Hampshire, U.S. President George H.W. Bush defeats Pat Buchanan in the Republican primary; Paul Tsongas leads the Democratic candidates. [33]
- February 22
- Barry Diller resigns as CEO of Fox. [1]
- February 25
- 34th Grammy Awards: "Unforgettable", Marc Cohn win. [1]
- Digital Equipment unveils the 64-bit Alpha processor architecture, with speed estimates of 150 million instructions per second. [4]
- March 3
- President George H.W. Bush apologizes for raising taxes after pledging not to. [1]
- March 6
- The computer virus Michelangelo is activated on personal computers. [4] [5]
- March 10
- 6th Soul Train Music Awards: Natalie Cole and Color Me Badd win. [1]
- On 'Super Tuesday', U.S. President George H.W. Bush and Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton win most of the primaries held. [33]
- March 11
- Manuel De Dios Unanue, US anti-drug journalist, murdered at age 48. [1]
- March 13
- US Federal Communications Commission rules companies can own 30 AM and 30 FM stations (formerly 12). [1]
- March 14
- Steven Brian Pennell is first execution in Delaware in 45 years, at age 34. [1]
- March 17
- 18th People's Choice Awards: Garth Brooks and Reba McEntire. [1]
- March 18
- Donna Summer gets a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame. [1]
- Leona Helmsley sentenced to four years for tax evasion. [1]
- On CNN's Larry King Live, Texas billionaire H. Ross Perot announces that he will run for U.S. President as an independent, if volunteers put him on the ballot in all 50 states. [33] (February 20 [1])
- March 22
- US Air New York to Cleveland crashes on take off at La Guardia, 27 die. [1]
- March 24
- First Belgian in the space, Dirk Frimout on Atlantis Space Shuttle STS-45 (Atlantis 11) launches into space. [1]
- March 28
- 6th American Comedy Awards: Cathy Ladman, Judy Watkins, Billy Crystal. [1]
- March 29
- 12th Golden Raspberry Awards: Hudson Hawk wins. [1]
- March 30
- 64th Academy Awards (Silence of the Lambs sweeps with Best Picture, Anthony Hopkins as Best Actor and Jodie Foster as Best Actress). [1]
- April 1
- Battleship USS Missouri (on which Japan surrendered) decommissioned. [1]
- April 2
- In New York, Mafia boss John Gotti is convicted of the murder of mob boss Paul Castellano and racketeering, and is later sentenced to life in prison. [1] [33]
- April 6
- At the Comdex / Windows World conference, Microsoft unveils Windows 3.1, including scalable TrueType fonts. The software comprises over 3 million lines of code. (One million copies of the new and upgrade versions are sold through retail channels within the first 50 days.) [1] [4]
- April 9
- A Miami, Florida jury convicts former Panamanian ruler Manuel Noriega on 8 of 10 drug and racketeering charges. [1] [33]
- William O Studeman becomes deputy director of US Central Intelligence Agency. [1]
- April 12
- Lynn Gunther of California threatens to blow herself up in front of United Nations. [1]
- Trump Shuttle becomes US Air Shuttle. [1]
- April 13
- American Airlines reduces its first-class fares 20-50 percent. [1]
- Crystal Pepsi begins test marketing in the USA in Providence, Denver, and Dallas. [1]
- Great Chicago Flood - Chicago's underground tunnels flood. [1]
- April 14
- Court throws out Apple Computer's lawsuit against Microsoft. [1]
- United Auto Workers ends five month strike against Caterpillar Inc. [1]
- April 15
- Billionaire Leona Helmsley is sent to jail for tax evasion. [1]
- Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx loses its accreditation. [1]
- William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley inducted into National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame. [1]
- April 20
- Madonna signs $60-million deal with Time Warner. [1]
- April 21
- Robert Harris, murderer, executed in California's gas chamber at age 39. [1]
- April 22
- 6.0 earthquake in California. [1]
- Billy Wayne White, murderer, executed in Texas at age 34. [1]
- Plane crash at Perris Valley Airport, California, kills 16 parachutists. [1]
- April 23
- Marion Berry (former mayor of Washington DC) is released from prison. [1]
- April 25
- In Cape Mendocino, California, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurs. [53]
- April 26
- Offshore Cape Mendocino, California, magnitude 6.5 and 6.7 earthquakes occur, 3.5 hours apart. Felt throughout much of northern California and southern Oregon. [53]
- April 29
- 27th Academy of Country Music Awards: Garth Brooks wins. [1]
- In Simi Valley, California, the Los Angeles police officers accused of excessive force in their severe beating of Rodney King, are found "not guilty". The verdict results in several days of riots in Los Angeles and smaller riots around the country, leading to 53 deaths and US$1 billion in damage. (Two officers are later re-tried, and found guilty.) [1] [33] [384.23]
- April 30
- 208th and final episode of The Cosby Show on NBC-TV. [1]
- May 1
- Eric Houston kills four in a California high school where he failed history four years prior. [1]
- May 5
- Alabama ratifies a 202-year-old proposed amendment to the United States Constitution making the 27th Amendment law. This amendment bars the U.S. Congress from giving itself a midterm or retroactive pay raise. [1] [5] [33]
- May 7
- Five New York City cops arrested in Hauppauge Long Island for selling cocaine. [1]
- US space shuttle STS-49 launched (maiden voyage of Endeavour). [1]
- May 15
- New York department store chain Alexanders announces closing of all 11 stores. [1]
- Part of Cruger Avenue in Bronx renamed Regis Philbin Avenue. [1]
- May 16
- US polls show presidential candidates Ross Perot, George Bush, and Bill Clinton could be in a deadlock. [1]
- US space shuttle STS-49 lands (maiden voyage of Endeavour). [1] [5] [33]
- May 18
- US Supreme Court rules states could not force mentally unstable criminal defendants to take anti-psychotic drugs. [1]
- May 19
- US Vice President Dan Quayle cites Murphy Brown (ficticious TV show) as a poor example of family values. [1] [33]
- May 21
- New Jersey senate overrides Governor Florio's veto and lowers sales tax to 6 percent. [1]
- May 22
- Johnny Carson's final appearance as host of The Tonight Show. [1]
- May 23
- President Bush orders Coast Guard to intercept boats with Haitian refugees. [1]
- May 25
- Jay Leno becomes the new host of NBC's The Tonight Show, following the retirement of Johnny Carson. [1] [33]
- May 26
- Charles Geschke, President of Adobe Systems, is kidnapped from his company parking lot. Kidnappers demand a ransom of $650,000 - they are later apprehended. [33]
- May 28
- 65th National Spelling Bee: Amanda Goad wins spelling "lyceum". [1]
- May 30
- New York Lotto pays US$30 million to one winner (numbers are 12-15-30-33-40-48). [1]
- May 31
- 46th Tony Awards: Dancing at Lughnasa and Crazy For You win. [1]
- June 15
- During a spelling bee at a Trenton, New Jersey elementary school, U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle erroneously corrects a student's spelling of the word potato, by indicating it should have an 'e' at the end. [33]
- June 17
- A 'Joint Understanding' agreement on arms reduction is signed by U.S. President George H.W. Bush and Russian President Boris Yeltsin (this is later codified in START II). [33]
- June 22
- US President George Bush presents Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates with the National Medal of Technology. [4]
- June 23
- Mafia boss John Gotti is sentenced to life in prison, after being found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and racketeering on April 2. [33]
- June 28
- In Landers, California, a magnitude 7.3 earthquake occurs, followed in three hours by a 6.5 earthquake in Big Bear. [33] [53]
- (month unknown)
- Louisiana becomes the third US state to legalize land-based casino gambling. [39]
- Nineteen University of Maine football and baseball players are suspended for participating in a US$10,000 per week gambling operation. [328.38]
- July 2
- The one millionth Corvette car is built. It is an Arctic White LT1 convertible, with red interior and black top. Chevrolet donates the car to the National Corvette Museum. [8]
- July 10
- In Miami, Florida, former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega is sentenced to 40 years in prison for drug and racketeering violations. [33] [129]
- July 16
- Independent U.S. presidential candidate H. Ross Perot drops out of the race, saying that the Democratic Party has 'revitalized itself'. [33]
- Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton is nominated for U.S. President and Tennessee Senator Al Gore for Vice President, at the Democratic National Convention in New York City. [33]
- July 17
- The Splash Mountain attraction opens in Frontierland in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World. [6]
- August 5
- Walt Disney World welcomes its 400-millionth guest. [6]
- August 7
- Ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2, en route from Martha's Vineyard to New York, hits an unchartered reef off Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Damage is not serious, but the ship is out of service for months. [254.14]
- August 9
- Midway Amusement Games releases the Mortal Kombat video game to arcades in the US. [9]
- August 18
- Wang Laboratories files for bankruptcy. [33]
- August 20
- The Republican National Convention in Houston, Texas renominates U.S. President George H.W. Bush and Vice President Dan Quayle. Pat Buchanan, one of Bush's opponents in the primaries, delivers a controversial convention speech, in which he refers to a "religious war" in the country. [33]
- August 21
- (to August 22) Events at Ruby Ridge, Idaho are sparked by a Federal Marshal surveillance team, resulting in the death of Marshal Sam Weaver and his dog and the next day the wounding of Randy Weaver, the death of his wife Vicki and the wounding of Kevin Harris. [33]
- August 24
- (to August 28) Hurricane Andrew hits South Florida and dissipates over the Tennessee valley when it merges with a storm system; 23 are killed. [33]
- September 11
- Hurricane Iniki hits the Hawaiian Islands, Kauai and Oahu. [33]
- September 12
- NASA launches Space Shuttle Endeavour on STS-47, the 50th shuttle mission. Dr. Mae Jemison becomes the first African-American woman to travel into space. [5] [33]
- September 18
- Undaunted by his earlier withdrawal, supporters of U.S. presidential candidate H. Ross Perot succeed in getting his name on the ballot in all 50 states. [33]
- October 1
- H. Ross Perot re-enters the 1992 U.S. presidential campaign. [33]
- Pittsburgh International Airport's new facility is opened in Findlay Township, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The new terminal is built as an expansion for USAir and an upgrade from the older Pittsburgh International Airport facility. [33]
- October 5
- IBM Personal Computer company introduces the IBM ThinkPad line of laptop computers. [4]
- October 9
- A 13-kilogram (29-pound) meteorite lands in the driveway of the Knapp residence in Peekskill, New York, destroying the family's 1980 Chevrolet Malibu (pierces trunk and floor). [5] [33] [521]
- October 14
- IBM and Motorola announce the production of PowerPC 601 microprocessors, in 50 MHz and 66 MHz versions. PowerPC stands for "Power Performance Chip", and incorporates an integer unit, a floating-point unit, and 32 MB cache. [4]
- October 17
- Yoshihiro Hattori, a 16-year-old Japanese exchange student, mistakes the address of a party and is shot dead after knocking on the wrong door in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The shooter, Rodney Peairs, is later acquitted, sparking outrage in Japan. [33]
- October 18
- In Northern Colombia, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurs. [53]
- October 29
- The Food and Drug Administration approves Depo Provera for use as a contraceptive in the United States. [33]
- October 30
- Disney releases the film Beauty and the Beast on videocassette. One million copies sell on the first day. (In total, 22 million sell worldwide.) [6]
- November 3
- U.S. presidential election: Bill Clinton defeats incumbent U.S. President George H.W. Bush and businessman H. Ross Perot. [1] [33]
- November 16
- Microsoft ships Microsoft Access 1.0 database program for Windows. Price is US$99. [4]
- November 25
- Disney generally releases the film Aladdin to theaters in the USA. (World theater gross receipts: US$502 million.) [6]
- December 1
- Two C-141B Starlifters collide in Montana and crash, 13 die. [1]
- December 4
- U.S. military forces land in Somalia. [1] [33]
- December 5
- Kent Conrad of North Dakota resigns his seat in the United States Senate and is sworn into the other seat from North Dakota, becoming the only U.S. Senator ever to have held two seats on the same day. [33]
- December 9
- 1800 U.S. Marines storm Mogadishu, Somalia, first units of a multinational force to restore order and provide starvation relief. [129]
- December 11
- Nor'easter storm hits New York, doing $650 million+ worth of damage. [1]
- December 24
- US President Bush pardons Caspar Weinberger of role in Iran-contra affair. [1]
- December 29
- Governor Cuomo grants Jean Harris ("Scarsdale Diet" Murderess) clemency. [1]
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