East High School - Quill Yearbook (Des Moines, IA)

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Smoke pours from the casino area of the MGM Grand Hotel in Ash, smoke and millions of tons of Mount St. Helens are hurled skyward as th Las Vegas, Nevada, as fire races through the hotel ' s lower levels. volcano erupts with atomic-bomb force. The volcano, in northern Washington state The blaze proved to be one of the year ' s outstanding fatalities. exploded numerous times throughout the year. The nation overall . . . Year of hope, freedom, death, destruction Many new hopes were established in 1981. These hopes were built through the election of a new Presi- dent and with the freedom found by refugees and former hostages. Unfortunately, these hopes weresha- dowed by such devastations as kid- nappings, disasters and death. One of the biggest freedoms estab- lished during the year came through the release of 52 American hostages held 444 days in Iran. The hostages were welcomed home in January, but memories lingered of the eight ser- vicemen killed in an aborted attempt to rescue the hostages in April, 1980. An overwhelming destruction hit the MGM Grand as fire raged through the Las Vegas hotel and casino. Although the blaze never reached above the second floor, smoke killed 83 persons and injured 334. Former Beatle John Lennon was shot to death outside his New York City apartment in early December, 1980. Lennon ' s assassin pleaded innocent to the crime on grounds of insanity. Lennon is shown here at a 1972 peace rally. 4 OPENING

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The charred helmet of a U.S. serviceman lies in an Iranian desert at the spot where an attempt to rescue 52 American hostages came to an end. A burned out helicopter used in the mission is in the background. Many Americans were surprised at the results of the elec- tion for this country ' s fortieth President. Although some pre- dicted that the election would be too close to call ' former California governor Ronald Reagan defeated incumbent Jimmy Carter. The election was later called a landslide. The volcano, Mount St. Helens, blew its top, producing a blast as powerful as the largest atomic bomb ever test ed. The blast resulted in 34 deaths. Although 1981 proved to be a year of despair for many, there were those who hoped that devastations such as these could only bring our nation closer together rather than draw- ing it farther apart. Photographs and photo captions courtesy of Wide World Photos, New York City, New York. An ocean-going tug heads into a Key West, Florida, pier carrying 700 to 900 persons. This was one of the largest groups of Cuban refugees to reach the United States. TOP: President-elect Ronald Reagan responds to cheering supporters. BOT- TOM: President Jimmy Carter concedes defeat with his wife, Rosalyn, at his side. OPENING 5