• Five unsolved murders of young women are committed in San Mateo County
 • Apple Inc. (pictured, left) is founded in Cupertino by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne
 • Napa Valley wineries Stag's Leap Wine Cellars and Chateau Montelena (pictured, right) place best in the red and white wine categories respectively, against their traditionally first ranked French competitors, in a Paris wine tasting
 • China Camp State Park is established in San Rafael
 • Fairfield-based candy company Herman Goelitz sells their first Jelly Bellies
 • Cyra McFadden's The Serial's first installments are published in the Pacific Sun alternative newsweekly
 • Dennis Richmond becomes the lead anchor at KTVU news in Oakland, an early African American news anchor in a major US television market
 • KPIX television in San Francisco debuts a locally-produced magazine program called Evening: The MTWTF Show