1991

1991 was the 120th year after the founding of the City of Birmingham.

Events

• April 17: The Southern Baptist Convention Sunday School Board placed a stone marker at the site of O'Brien's Opera House, where the group had been organized in 1891.
• May 17: The UAB University Center was renamed for S. Richardson Hill.
• June 14-16: 1991 City Stages
• June 30: 1991 Guns N' Roses concert at the Birmingham Race Course
• Salute to the United Kingdom
• June 15: The National Register of Historic Places expanded the limits of the Anderson Place Historic District.
• July 10: L'Express Flight 508 plane crash.
• October 8: Anthrax, Public Enemy and Primus played at the UAB Arena.
• November: A large gathering of skinheads and Ku Klux Klan members was hosted by John Handley and Bill Riccio on Handley's property in Fultondale.
• December 11: A private jet carrying several Bruno's executives crashed at Lavender Mountain, Georgia, killing 9 passengers.
• Bethel-Ensley Action Task was founded by Ron Nored and Clarence Brown.
• The Civil Rights Activist Committee was founded by Tommy Wrenn.
• Pine Tree Country Club opened its membership to non-Jews.

Business

• Eddie Miller took over office furniture dealer Bodine after his father's retirement.
• Balch & Bingham opened a law office in Washington D.C.
• John Otey Hutchinson purchased Cacky's bar in Crestline Village and renamed it Otey's Tavern.

Establishments

• Dennis Washburn launched his Hotline weekly entertainment magazine.
• Allan Lowe founded the Lowe Insurance Agency in Columbiana.
• MedjetAssist was founded.
• PKA Architects was founded by Phil Kennedy as a successor to Architects South.
• Richard Joseph SalonSpa was founded by Richard Joseph Smith and Tim Brown.
• Alp Yeager opened Siam House restaurant in Tuscaloosa.
• WNPT-FM went on the air in Linden, Marengo County.

Disestablishments

• A & B Foundry closed and licensed its cast-iron patterns to other manufacturers.
• Sarris Steak and Seafood in Homewood closed.
• The British Steel Corporation acquired the Tuscaloosa Steel Corp.

Education

• Auburn University's "Center for Architecture and Urban Studies" was founded.

Religion

• August 17: St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church dedicated the first building at its current facility.

Sports

• 1991 Birmingham Barons
• 1991 Birmingham Fire
• 1991 UAB Blazers
• 1991 Iron Bowl

Individuals

• John Cantelow was ordained as a minister.
• Sophia Choi began working as a reporter at WVTM-TV.
• Ira De Ment was appointed to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama.
• Donald Green was named Athletics Director for the Jefferson State Pioneers.
• Angela Hérnandez retired from chairing the math department at the University of Montevallo.
• Bob Roller joined AdCraft Sports Marketing in Louisville, Kentucky as vice-president.
• Jack Shannon retired from Secor Bank.
• Houston Blount retired from Vulcan Materials.
• Mike Froning was named director of the Russell Math and Science Center at the Alabama School of Fine Arts.
• Jim Wall retired from O'Neal Steel.

Births

• May 20: Amber Jones, basketball player
• June 16: Ty Malugani, Sloss Furnaces education coordinator
• October 23: Eric Bledsoe, basketball player
• December 14: Husani, former Birmingham Zoo gorilla
• Dolly, Birmingham Zoo cheetah
• Gabrielle Bates, poet
• Dewey Green, convicted murderer
• Brian Nabors, composer and choir director
• Niesha White, product design lead for Ed Farm

Graduations

• Reid Adair, master's in athletic administration from UAB
• Walt Maddox, Tuscaloosa Central High School
• Stuart Rachels, bachelor of arts in philosophy from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia

Awards

• October 19: Stanleigh Malotte was given a star on the Alabama Walk of Fame.
• Alabama Sports Hall of Fame inductees: Joe Cribbs, Hootie Ingram, Vaughn Mancha, Jo Ann Prentice, Erk Russell, and Arnold Umbach
• Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame: Patrick Cather, Andre Ford, Ann Graham, Eric Essix, Alex Gulas, Wilbur Harden, Cliff Nation, DeWitt Shaw, Pinetop Smith, James Swyne, Cootie Williams
• Miss Shelby County: Amie Beth Dickinson Shaver
• Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing: Ron Casey, Harold Jackson, and Joey Kennedy of The Birmingham News for their series, "What They Won’t Tell You About Your Taxes."
• UAB President's Medal: Samuel Barker

Deaths

• January 14: Miles Copeland, jazz musician and CIA operative
• January 21: Nick Gulas, wrestling promoter
• February 1: Frank Rose, president of the University of Alabama
• February 23: Hugh Kaul, president of Kaul Lumber Company
• March: Jack Caddell, restaurateur
• March 24: Sam Fiorella, bookmaker
• May: Tom Woods, grocer and Birmingham City Council member
• June 5: Felix Gaines, artist
• June 6: William Badham, World War I Flying Ace
• August 23: Hobart Grooms, federal judge
• September 16: Mamie Foster, educator
• November 30: Clarence Allgood, Federal District Court Judge
• December 12: Aaron Aronov, real estate developer
• Sidney van Sheck, artist and engineer

See also List of Birmingham homicides in 1991.

Works

• "Centurion", a bronze memorial sculpture by Branko Medenica, was dedicated in front of the Mel Bailey Criminal Justice Center.
• "Nike (Winged Victory)", a bronze sculpture by Cordray Parker, was installed at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
• "Red Mountain", a granite sculpture by Dimitri Hazni, was installed outside the Hugo L. Black Federal Courthouse.
• Looking Down Yosemite Valley was made a permanent gift to the Birmingham Museum of Art

Buildings

• May 6: Clay-Chalkville Animal Clinic
• October 17: The UAB West Pavilion was dedicated
• Angelo Bruno residence in Abingdon
• Birmingham Parking Authority Deck 8
• Cahaba Brook Apartments in Cahaba Heights
• Children's Hospital's Ambulatory Care Center
• The Auburn Women's Club clubhouse was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage
• First Baptist Church of Birmingham sanctuary enlargement and education wing
• A new sanctuary for Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church in Hillman
• Waterford Landing Apartments in Riverchase.

Context

In 1991, the U.S.S.R. collapsed into fifteen sovereign republics, ending the Cold War. The Gulf War was fought between a U.N.-authorized coalition force from thirty-four nations against Iraq, which had invaded Kuwait in 1990. An amateur video captured the beating of motorist Rodney King by Los Angeles police officers. The UK's "Birmingham Six" were freed when a court determined that the police fabricated evidence of them bombing a pub 17 years earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 3,000 for the first time ever. The first "Sonic the Hedgehog" game was published by Sega. Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines released 17 megatons of sulfur dioxide into the upper atmosphere. Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer was arrested. Tim Berners-Lee announced the World Wide Web project and software. Clarence Thomas was confirmed to the Supreme Court. Magic Johnson announced that he had HIV.

Notable births in 1991 included actress Emma Roberts, actor Jason Dolley, and actor Kyle Massey. Notable deaths included football player Red Grange, actor Danny Thomas, Polaroid inventor Edwin H. Land, dance instructor Arthur Murray, bridge player Charles Goren, actress Natalie Schafer, saxophone player Stan Getz, actor Michael Landon, football coach Paul Brown, newscaster Harry Reasoner, director Frank Capra, children's author Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel, trumpeter Miles Davis, comedian Redd Foxx, singer Tennessee Ernie Ford, Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, actor Fred MacMurray, and musician Freddie Mercury.

The top films of 1991 included Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Beauty and the Beast, Hook, and The Silence of the Lambs, the last of which also won the Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director (Jonathan Demme), Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins), and Best Actress (Jodie Foster).

The biggest hit songs of 1991 included "(Everything I Do) I Do it For You" by Bryan Adams, "Black or White" by Michael Jackson, "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)" by C&C Music Factory, and "More Than Words" by Extreme. Top albums included Unforgettable, With Love by Natalie Cole, Metallica by Metallica, Nevermind by Nirvana, and Dangerous by Michael Jackson.

1990s

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