By Mark Aumann, NASCAR.COM
February 1, 2005
08:54 AM EST (13:54 GMT)
Geoff Bodine won the fuel gamble in 1986 but couldn't pull it off two years in a row. When Bodine ran out of fuel with less than three laps to go, Bill Elliott -- who had dominated the entire day -- won the 29th Daytona 500 on Feb. 15, 1987. A 1987 Ford Thunderbird LX two-door coupe listed for $15,357. With his first-place check for $204,150, Elliott could have purchased 13 new T-Birds. The Fabulous Thunderbirds released Tuff Enuff one year earlier. In October, the United States Air Force Thunderbirds performed over the People's Republic of China for the first time.  |  | NASCAR ACCELERATION | |
| ALSO IN 1987 ... |
| • | Terry Waite, the special envoy of the Archbishop of Canterbury in Lebanon, is kidnapped in Beirut (Jan. 20) |
| • | The USS Stark, while patrolling the Persian Gulf, is struck by two missiles from an Iraqi F-1 Mirage fighter killing 37 sailors and injuring 21 other crew members (May 17) |
| • | In the United Kingdom, Michael Ryan kills 16 with an assault rifle and then commits suicide (Aug. 19) |
| • | By a vote of 58-42, the U.S. Senate rejects President Ronald Reagan's nomination of Robert Bork to the U.S. Supreme Court (Oct. 23) |
| • | The drug Prozac makes its debut in the U.S. (Dec. 29) |
Courtesy: Wikipedia
|
|
On July 17, the Dow Jones Industrial Average reached 2,500 for the first time. Three months later, it would lose 508 points, the worst one-day drop in stock market history up to that point. If Elliott had invested his winner's check in the Dow the Tuesday after the Daytona 500, he would have lost $45,506.27. However, that same $204,150 investment would be worth about $950,000 today. On Feb. 23, the first supernova to be seen with the naked eye since 1604 was observed. A 1987 Chevrolet Nova four-door hatchback listed for $8,510. On Jan. 3, Aretha Franklin became the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Benjamin Franklin: Writings was released as a one-volume collection in 1987. On April 5, Married ... with Children premiered on FOX. In 1987, Johnny Carson married Alexis Maas, Geena Davis married Jeff Goldblum and Tom Cruise married Mimi Rogers, but none produced children. On Aug. 28, Michael Jackson released his album Bad, which included hits The Way You Make Me Feel, Man In The Mirror and Smooth Criminal. In his 1987 article entitled "How Not to Rob a Bank," Tim Clark claimed 76 percent of bank robbers use no disguise, 86 percent never study the bank before robbing it and 95 percent make no long-range plans for concealing the loot. West German teen-ager Mathias Rust evaded the Soviet Union's air defense and landed a Cessna in Moscow's Red Square on May 28. He would not be released until August of 1988 after serving 18 months in a Soviet prison. Michael Jackson released Stranger in Moscow in 1997. Allegations about an extramartital affair with model Donna Rice -- including photos aboard the yacht the Monkey Business in the National Enquirer -- forced candidate Gary Hart to drop out of the running for the Presidency on May 8. The first heart-lung transplant took place in Baltimore on May 11. San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice was co-MVP with Denver quarterback John Elway. Toddler Jessica McClure fell down a well in Midland, Texas on Oct. 14 and was rescued with only minor injuries after her two-day ordeal. Former church secretary Jessica Hahn achieved fame after a brief affair with religious broadcaster Jim Bakker was exposed in 1987. On Sept. 28, Star Trek: The Next Generation premiered on syndicated television with the double-length episode, "Encounter at Farpoint." On Dec. 1, NASA chose the four companies that would help build the International Space Station. Starship's Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now was a top-10 hit in 1987. On May 11, Former Nazi SS officer Klaus Barbie's war crimes trial began in Lyon, France. Three months later, former Nazi deputy Fuhrer Rudolf Hess was found hanged in his Spandau prison cell. → Click here for more Daytona Countdown. | 
