Today in Chicago History: Futuristic, Helmut Jahn-designed United Airlines terminal opens at O'Hare
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1984: Blond-haired Morton Grove native Bart Conner produced a flawless performance in the parallel bars to earn his first gold medal, which was quite a feat considering he had surgery the previous December to repair a torn bicep muscle. Then, he helped the U.S. men's team secure its first team all-around Olympic gymnastics gold medal in 80 years.
Conner married three-time gold-medal winner Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci — who dazzled the world at just 14 with perfect 10s at the 1976 Montreal Olympics — in 1996. Together they run a gymnastics academy in Norman, Oklahoma.
Conner and Comaneci were part of the Chicago delegation that traveled to Copenhagen in 2009, to make an appeal before the International Olympic Committee to be the host city for the 2016 Summer Games.
1987: The United Airlines terminal opened at O'Hare International Airport. The $540 million, Helmut Jahn-designed glass and aluminum complex included two buildings connected by an underground walkway featuring a 744-foot flashing neon sculpture, galactic synthesizer music and moving sidewalks.
O'Hare International Airport: From farm to global terminalThe 85-acre facility — which would include 42 gates upon completion in December 1988 — also featured a $38 million, computerized baggage-handling system that could process 480 bags a minute.
1993: White Sox third baseman Robin Ventura, then 26, sprinted at 46-year-old Texas Rangers pitcher Nolan Ryan, who had just plunked Ventura in the right elbow with a fastball in the third inning.
Ventura was incensed. He took Ryan's actions to be retaliation, plain and simple, for a series of incidents.
Yes, Robin Ventura remembers that one-sided fight with Nolan Ryan. And he can laugh about it.'If you know the game, it's no secret what he was doing,' said Ventura, his elbow encased in an elastic brace. 'If you don't think he did it on purpose, you don't know the game.'
Ryan put the 26-year-old Ventura in a headlock and started pummeling him.
Chicago's history with hosting Democratic and Republican conventions dates back to 18601994: Chicago beat out San Antonio to host the 1996 Democratic National Convention. Democratic Chairman David Wilhelm announced during a news conference at Navy Pier that the world would once again be watching Chicago.
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