Reply #191: I vaguely recollect the downfall of Ferdinand Marcos [View All]

[RFKHumphreyObama]

And, since the Philippines was in relatively close proximity to Singapore, it was a major event in the news telecasts and the newspapers there. I was born in 1981 and was five at the time. I can also vividly recollect Gorbachev in Washington (under Bush I), the release of Nelson Mandela, the reunification of Germany, the election of Lech Walesa as the President of Poland and other momentous events that occurred during the 1989-1990 period.

But I guess the first major international events I can recollect that genuinely interrupted television broadcasts and kept us glued to our TV screens was the Gulf War in 1991. That was the first time that Singapore commenced showing CNN several hours today and our family was glued to the TV and BBC radio for updates as the date for war approached and then as the war unfolded. It got to the point where some of the kids even commenced bringing radios to school to get the latest news.