- January 12
- Space Shuttle STS 81 (Atlantis 18), launches into space. [1]
- January 16
- Ennis Cosby, the 29-year-old only son of actor Bill Cosby, is killed by a gunman while changing a flat tire in Los Angeles, California. [1] [18]
- Microsoft ships Microsoft Office 97 application suite for Windows. It includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and Outlook. Standard version price is US$499; upgrade price is US$209. Professional version price is US$599; upgrade price is US$309. [4]
- January 17
- A Delta II rocket carrying a military GPS payload explodes, shortly after liftoff from Cape Canaveral. [18]
- January 19
- In Beverly Hills, California, the 54th annual Golden Globe Awards ceremony is held.
- Best Film, Musical or Comedy: Evita;
- Best Actress, Musical or Comedy: Madonna in Evita;
- Best Original Song: "You Must Love Me" in Evita;
- other winners: The English Patient, Brenda Blethyn and Geoffrey Rush.
[1] [6]
- January 20
- Bill Clinton starts his second term as President of the United States. [18]
- January 21
- Newt Gingrich becomes the first Speaker of the United States House of Representatives to be internally disciplined for ethical misconduct. [18]
- January 22
- Madeleine Albright becomes the first female Secretary of State after confirmation by the United States Senate. [18]
- January 23
- Mir Aimal Kasi receives the death sentence for a 1993 assault rifle attack outside US Central Intelligence Agency headquarters that killed two and wounded three others. [18]
- January 27
- 24th American Music Awards: Toni Braxton and Alanis Morissette win. [1]
- January 29
- Eric Schneider, murderer of two teachers, executed in Missouri at age 35. [1]
- February 3
- Carl Sagan Public Memorial at Ithaca, New York. [1]
- February 4
- O.J. Simpson is found liable in civil court for the death of Ron Goldman and for the battery of Nicole Brown Simpson. Simpson is ordered to pay $35 million in damages to the families of the two victims. [1] [18]
- February 5
- Brook Lee of Hawaii crowned 46th Miss USA. [1]
- Morgan Stanley and Dean Witter investment banks announce a US$10 billion merger. [18]
- February 9
- 11th American Comedy Awards: Debbie Reynolds. [1]
- Fox cartoon series The Simpsons airs 167th episode in the USA, making it the longest-running animated series in cartoon history. [1]
- February 10
- Lemrick Nelson found guilty in the fatal stabbing on Hasidic Jew Yankel Rosenbaum in Crown Heights Brooklyn in 1991. [1]
- O J Simpson jury reaches decision on $25 million in punitive damages. [1]
- February 12
- Fred Goldman says he will settle for a signed murder confession from O J Simpson in lieu of his $20.5 million judgement. [1]
- February 13
- The Washington Post reports that U.S. Justice Department investigators found evidence the Chinese Embassy in Washington, DC may have coordinated financial contributions to the Democratic party in violation of U.S. law. [18]
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above 7,000 for the first time, gaining 60.81 to 7,022.44. [18]
- February 19
- US Federal Communications Commission makes available 311 for non-emergency calls and 711 for hearing or speech-impaired emergency calls. [1]
- February 23
- NBC TV airs the film Schindler's List in the USA, completely uncensored, 65 million watch. [1]
- February 26
- 39th Grammy Awards: Change the World Babyface, Beck and LeAnn Rimes win. [1]
- February 28
- FBI agent Earl Pitts pleads guilty to selling secrets to Russia. [1]
- Smokers must prove they are over 18 to purchase cigarettes in US. [1]
- The North Hollywood shootout takes place between two heavily armed bank robbers and officers of the Los Angeles Police Department. [18]
- WFAA-TV becomes the first TV station in the USA to start broadcasting their newscasts in HDTV on a VHF channel. [18]
- March 2
- Saudi Arab billionaire Prince al-Waleed bin Talal aquires 5 percent of Apple computer company. [1]
- March 12
- Mikail Markhasev is arrested in Los Angeles, California and charged with shooting Bill Cosby's 27-year-old son, Ennis Cosby. [18]
- March 14
- President Bill Clinton trips and tears up his knee requiring surgery. [1]
- March 17
- CNN begins Spanish broadcasts. [1]
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average removes Westinghouse Electric, Texaco Incorporated, Bethlehem Steel, and Woolworth from its index, replacing them with Travelers Group, Hewlett-Packard Company, Johnson & Johnson, and Wal-Mart Stores Incorporated. [227] [228]
- March 24
- 69th Academy Awards: The English Patient, Tom Cruise and Frances McDormand win. [1]
- March 26
- In San Diego, California, 39 Heaven's Gate cultists commit mass suicide at their compound. [18] (March 27 [1])
- March 27
- Martin Luther King's son meets with James Earl Ray. [1]
- April 8
- Microsoft Corp releases Internet Explorer 4.0. [1]
- The Stickney-Eliasberg pedigree US 1804 Draped Bust silver dollar sells for US$1.815 million, a record for a single coin at auction. A US 1885 Trade dollar, Proof, finest of 5 known, sells for $907,500 to Jay Parrino. [352.24] [486.64] [525.79]
- April 18
- The Red River of the North breaks through dikes and floods Grand Forks, North Dakota and East Grand Forks, Minnesota, causing US$2 billion in damage. [18]
- April 20
- 27th Easter Seal Telethon raises $47,392,682. [1]
- April 23
- 32nd Academy of Country Music Awards: LeAnn Rines, Brooks and Dunn win. [1]
- May 2
- Republic of Texas security chief Robert Scheidt surrenders. [1]
- May 6
- Michael Jackson and Bee Gees inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. [1]
- May 9
- First US ambassador since Saigon fell arrives in Vietnam. [1]
- May 12
- Tornado narrowly misses downtown Miami, Florida. [1]
- May 14
- The Star Alliance is formed between Air Canada, Lufthansa, SAS, Thai Airways International and United Airlines. [18]
- May 15
- ABC News and Starwave Corp launch ABCNEWS.com. [1]
- STS 84 (Atlantis 19), launches, 6th Shuttle-Mir Mission. [1]
- May 16
- Brook Mehealani Lee, 26, of US crowned 46th Miss Universe. [1]
- Brandi Sherwood, (Idaho) replaces Brook Lee (Miss Universe) as Miss USA. [1]
- U.S. President Bill Clinton issues a formal apology to the surviving victims of the Tuskegee Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male and their families, 25 years after the 40-year "study" was exposed by reporter Jean Heller. [18]
- May 25
- Strom Thurmond becomes the longest serving member in the history of the United States Senate (41 years and 10 months). [18]
- May 27
- The second-deadliest tornado of the 1990s hits in Jarrell, Texas, killing 27 people. [18] (May 28 [1])
- May 28
- Wallace Berg, 42, is fourth American to scale Mount Everest for third time. [1]
- May 29
- 70th National Spelling Bee: Rebecca Sealfon wins spelling "euonym". [1]
- May 30
- Betty Shabazz, widow of Malcolm X, set afire by 12-year-old grandson. [1]
- June 2
- In Denver, Colorado, Timothy McVeigh is convicted on 15 counts of murder and conspiracy for his role in the 1995 terrorist bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. [18]
- June 8
- A United States Coast Guard helicopter crashes near Humboldt Bay, California. All four crewmembers perish. [18]
- June 12
- The United States Department of the Treasury unveils a new $50 bill, meant to be more counterfeit-resistant. [18]
- June 13
- A jury sentences Timothy McVeigh to the death penalty for his part in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. [18]
- June 21
- At over 500 McDonald's locations in the United Kingdom and 30 in North America, picketers and protesters pass out leaflets about the controversies of McDonald's food and practices. [287.391]
- July 2
- Tom Walters Sr. of Meridian, Mississippi wins powerball of US$11 million. [18]
- July 8
- Mayo Clinic researchers warn that the dieting drug "fen-phen" can cause severe heart and lung damage. [18]
- July 16
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average gains 63.17 to close at 8,038.88. It is the Dow's first close above 8,000. The Dow has doubled its value in 30 months. [18]
- July 21
- The fully restored USS Constitution sailing ship (aka "Old Ironsides") celebrates her 200th birthday by setting sail for the first time in 116 years. [18]
- July 23
- Digital Equipment Corporation files antitrust charges against chipmaker Intel. [18]
- July 26
- Apple Computer releases Mac OS 8.0 for US$99. Code-name during development was Tempo. (1.2 million copies ship in the first two weeks, making it the most successful Apple software product ever.) [4]
- August 1
- Boeing and McDonnell Douglas complete their merger. [18]
- August 4
- 185,000 UPS drivers (Teamsters Union) walk off the job. [18]
- August 6
- At the Macworld Expo, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates announce a five-year alliance of Apple Computer with Microsoft. Terms include: cross-licensing of existing patents plus new patents over the next five years, Microsoft will release Office for Macintosh over next five years, Apple will make Internet Explorer the default browser on all shipping Macintosh systems, Apple and Microsoft will collaborate on Java compatibility, Microsoft will invest US$150 million in Apple stock and hold it for at least three years. [4]
- September 3
- Arizona Governor Fife Symington is convicted for various crimes tied to his real estate business, effectively forcing him out of office. [18]
- September 4
- In Lorain, Ohio, the last Ford Thunderbird for three years rolls off the assembly line. [18]
- September 7
- First test flight of the F-22 Raptor. [5] [18]
- September
- In Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, a Series 1862 $500 Legal Tender note, one of five known, graded gem, sells for $233,750; this is a record for US federal paper money. [689.50]
- October 1
- Luke Woodham walks into Pearl High School in Pearl, Mississippi and opens fire, killing two girls, after killing his mother earlier that morning. [18]
- October 4
- One million men gather for Promise Keepers' "Stand in the Gap" event in Washington, DC. [18]
- The second largest cash robbery in U.S. history ($17.3 million, mostly in small bills) occurs at the Charlotte, North Carolina office of Loomis, Fargo and Company. An FBI investigation eventually results in 24 convictions and the recovery of approximately 95 percent of the stolen cash. [18]
- October 15
- Andy Green sets the first supersonic land speed record for the ThrustSSC team, led by Richard Noble of the United Kingdom. ThrustSSC goes through the flying mile course at Black Rock Desert, Nevada at an average speed of 1,227.985 km/h (763.035 mph). [18]
- NASA launches the Cassini-Huygens probe to Saturn. [18]
- October 20
- The U.S. Justice Department asks a federal court to hold Microsoft in contempt of court because it may be forcing PC makers to distribute Internet Explorer as a condition of selling Windows 95. Microsoft is formally charged with violating the terms of the 1995 Final Judgement. The federal court is asked to impose on Microsoft a US$1 million per day fine until the company stops tying the browser with Windows. [4]
- October 27
- Stock markets around the world crash because of a global economic crisis scare. The Dow Jones Industrial Average follows suit and plummets 554.26, or 7.18 percent, to 7,161.15. The points loss exceeds the loss from Black Monday. Officials at the New York Stock Exchange for the first time invoke the "circuit breaker" rule to stop trading. [18]
- October 28
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average gains a record 337.17 to 7,498.32. One billion shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange for the first time ever. [18]
- October 30
- In Newton, Massachusetts, British au pair Louise Woodward is found guilty of the baby-shaking death of 8-month-old Matthew Eappen. [18]
- November 10
- Telecom companies WorldCom and MCI Communications announce a US$37 billion merger to form MCI WorldCom (the largest merger in US history). [18]
- A Fairfax, Virginia jury finds Mir Aimal Kasi guilty of murdering two US Central Intelligence Agency employees in 1993. [18]
- November 12
- Ramzi Yousef is found guilty of masterminding the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. [18]
- November 13
- Disney's The Lion King musical play opens at the New Amsterdam theater in New York. [6]
- November 19
- In Des Moines, Iowa, Bobbi McCaughey, a resident of the nearby town of Carlisle, gives birth to septuplets in the second known case where all seven babies are born alive. (They go on to be the first set of septuplets to all survive infancy.) [18]
- Bell Laboratories in New Jersey announces that it has developed a 60-nanometre MOS transistor that is five times faster and one quarter the size of current transistors. It also uses 60 to 160 times less power. [4]
- December 1
- Michael Carneal fires at his classmates at Heath High School in West Paducah, Kentucky, leaving three dead and five wounded. [18]
- Westinghouse formally changes its name to CBS. [1]
- President Bill Clinton signs the bill approving a 50-State circulating quarter dollar program, a circulating dollar coin, and non-circulating First Flight Centennial commemorative coins into law as Public Law 105-124. [400.141] [466.92] [525.18]
- December 3
- In Ottawa, Canada, representatives from 121 countries sign a treaty prohibiting the manufacture and deployment of anti-personnel land mines. The United States, the People's Republic of China, and Russia do not sign the treaty. [18]
- December 11
- Federal judge orders Microsoft not to bundle Internet Explorer 4 in Windows 98. [1]
- December 12
- Federal judge sentences Autumn Jackson, who claims to be Bill Cosby's daughter, to 26 months for trying to extort US$40 million from him. [1]
- SWAT team shoots John E Armstrong in Florida, freeing two young hostages. [1]
- December 19
- The film Titanic is released to movie theaters. (The film goes on to become the most financially successful movie in U.S. history, grossing approximately US$1.8 billion worldwide.) [5]
- December 22
- Merck baldness pill for men approved by US Food and Drug Administration. [1]
- December 23
- Terry Nichols found guilty of manslaughter in Oklahoma City bombing. [1]
- US Agriculture Department estimates it costs $149,820 to raise a child to 18. [1]
- December 25
- For first time US movie box office receipts pass US$6 billion. [1]
- December 27
- 54-car pileup on the Sunshine Skyway Bridge in Tampa Bay, Florida, USA, due to dense fog. One death, 30 injuries. [290.17]
- December 31
- After 26 years in operation, the Opryland USA theme park in Nashville, Tennessee closes permanently. [18]
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