What happened onJanuary 12, 1991Saturday Week 2

Today is September13, 2026 Sunday.

January 12 is a Saturday again in 2002.

About January 12

January 12 Events On this day through the years

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In loving memoryFamous DeathsJanuary 12

The World in 1991 the year the Soviet Union ended

Almost no one had an email address, and phone calls still tied you to a wall. The World Wide Web quietly went public this year, though hardly anyone noticed. Teens taped songs off the radio, and grunge flannel started pushing out 80s neon. When Queen's singer Freddie Mercury died in November, fans left flowers outside his London home. A mobile phone was a pricey brick that mostly lived in cars.

The year in 8 events

The Soviet Union covered about a sixth of the land on Earth. By the last week of December it was gone, replaced by 15 separate countries.

• 🪖Jan 17 The Gulf War begins as coalition planes strike Iraq. Millions watch it live on CNN.
• 📹Mar 3 A man in Los Angeles films police beating Rodney King. The tape is shown around the world.
• 🌋Jun 15 Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Philippines, the second biggest eruption of the century.
• 🗺️Jun 25 Slovenia and Croatia declare independence from Yugoslavia. Fighting starts within days.
• 🏛️Aug 19 Hardliners try to overthrow Gorbachev in Moscow. The coup collapses within days.
• 🎸Sep 24 The American band Nirvana releases Nevermind. Grunge is about to take over rock music.
• 🏀Nov 7 Magic Johnson says he has HIV and retires from basketball. The news changes how Americans talk about AIDS.
• 🗺️Dec 25 Gorbachev resigns and the Soviet flag comes down over the Kremlin. The USSR is gone.

Who Was in Charge?

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