July 1981 - July 27, 1981 (Monday)

July 27, 1981 (Monday)

• Adam Walsh, age 6, was kidnapped from a Sears store in Hollywood, Florida, and murdered. His father, hotel executive John Walsh, became an activist for missing children and for crime prevention, and would later become host for the television program America's Most Wanted. Serial killer Ottis Toole, who confessed to the crime in 1983 and then recanted, died in 1996. Investigators concluded in 2008 that Toole had been the perpetrator and closed the case.
• Rod Brock, owner of Seattle Computer Products and of the 86-DOS disk operating system designed by one of its former employees (Tim Paterson), sold all rights to the program to Microsoft for $50,000. Renamed MS-DOS, the system earned Microsoft billions of dollars.
• In a nationally televised speech, President Reagan explained, in simple terms, his proposal for the largest tax cut in U.S. history, and said, asked for the public to "contact your Senators and Congressmen. Tell them of your support for this bipartisan proposal.". Americans followed suit, and two days later, the bill passed the House 238-195, and the Senate 89-11.
• Born: Li Xiaopeng, Chinese gymnast, 4 time Olympic gold medalist, world championships in vault (1999, 2002, 2003) and parallel bars (1998, 2002, 2006), in Changsha
• Died: William Wyler, 79, American film director and winner of 3 Oscars (The Best Years of Our Lives, Mrs. Miniver (film) and Ben-Hur)
• Died: Paul Brunton, 81, British mystic