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20th Reunion 1988

The South High 20th Reunion was held at the Red Lion Inn in Bakersfield on July 30, 1988.  This was the most well attended reunion with 140 classmates and many more guests participating in the event.  Of the 140, only 10 came from out of state, so it was still primarily a local and regional affair, though not as much as the first two reunions.  Of the 130 from California, 35 came from places other than Bakersfield: the class was starting to fan out.  Finishing with the math, 95 were still living in Bakersfield and 45 were living somewhere else.
 
There were many photos taken at this event.  The first album, 20th Reunion 1988, is a grab bag of mostly black & white candid (unposed) shots of various quality.  Once in awhile the focus is ok and the subject matter is cooperative.  Often the contrast is too high due to the flash and white table cloths.  We are just glad that we have these photos from 30 years ago, which capture the moment well.  Thanks, unknown photographer!  (Linda Brownlee Valenti has since told us that they set out Kodak Instamatic cameras at each table -- now we know why the quality is iffy at best).
 
The next album, Pre Reunion Booklet, consists of personal accounts sent in by participants along with photos from the previous reunions.  It was mimeographed so is not great quality, but the stories are nice. 
 
B&W Pro Photos is an album that was sent out after the 20th year event.  The professional photos were actually done in color at the reunion, but it was more practical to send them out in booklet form in black and white.  The nice thing about this album is that all the photos identify who is in the picture.  You may need to refer back to this album when you view the color photos in the next album.
 
The last album, Pro Color Photos, consists of all the professionally done color photos taken on July 30, 1988.  There are no captions.  Refer to the previous album to help you figure out who these young-looking people are!
 
Lastly, here's a good tip: if you want to stop the photos from auto-scrolling, just hit the center button in the upper left.  Then you can control the scrolling manually.
 
As you head down to the bottom of this page to view the pictures, you may be interested in some of the things that were going on in the world in 1988.

How Much things cost in 1988
Yearly Inflation Rate USA 4.08%
Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 2168
Interest Rates Year End Federal Reserve 10.50%
Average Cost of new house $91,600.00
Average Income per year $24,450.00
Average Monthly Rent $420.00
Average Price for new car $10,400.00
1 gallon of gas 91 cents
Movie Ticket $3.50
US Postage Stamp 24 cents
Dozen Eggs 65 cents
 
What Events Happened in 1988
First Iraq war ends
Iraq carries out Poison Gas Attack On Kurds
Earthquake in Armenia Kills 60,000
Suspected Libyan terrorist bomb explodes on Pan Am jet over Lockerbie in Scotland killing all 259 on board and 11 on the ground
Australia celebrates its bicentennial.
A new drug Crack appears ( A derivative of Cocaine ) and is increasingly found in US Cities
UK SAS kill suspected IRA bombers in Gibraltar
The English Pound Note ceases to be legal Tender
Salmonella is found in Eggs in Britain causing problems for British Farmers
34 people die in the Clapham Rail Crash
Widespread strikes in Poland by Solidarity Supporters
Archaeologists uncover the original Globe Theater in London
Soviet Red Army withdraws from Afghanistan.
A Soviet Union School Bus is Hijacked
Panama leader General Manual Antonio Noriega, is charged with drug smuggling and money laundering
Yasser Arafat is invited to address the U.N. General Assembly
Piper Alpha drilling platform in the North Sea is destroyed by explosions and fires killing 165 oil workers and 2 rescue mariners.
The Summer Olympics are held in Seoul, South Korea
The USS Vincennes shoots down Iranian passenger jet Flight 655
The Winter Olympic Games are held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Hurricane Gilbert devastated Jamaica, it turns towards Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula two days later
 
Popular Culture 1988
Prozac makes its debut in the United States
Televangelist Jim Bakker Scandal
The Simpson's seen on TV for the first time
 
Popular Films
Rain Man
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Big
Twins
Crocodile Dundee II
Die Hard
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!
Beetlejuice
Dangerous Liaisons
A Fish Called Wanda
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood
 
Popular Musicians
Enya
Robert Palmer
Erasure
Kylie Minogue
U2
The Beach Boys
Bros
Michael Jackson with " Dirty Diana "
Gloria Estefan
Chicago with " Look Away "
George Michael with " Father Figure "
Guns N' Roses
George Harrison
 
Technology 1988
First transatlantic fiber optic cable laid able to carry 40,000 telephone calls simultaneously
Stephen Hawking Publishes " A Brief History Of Time "
The first major computer virus infects computers connected to the Internet.
The Hubble Space Telescope is put into operation
The US Stealth Bomber is unveiled
Using Carbon Dating it is established that the Turin Shroud Can Not Be the Burial Cloth of Christ
The Antidepressant Prozac introduced which quickly became the market leader for treating depression


     
   
 
20th Reunion 1988
 
82 Photos  5/22/18
     
   
 
Pre Reunion Booklet
 
31 Photos  5/22/18
     
   
 
B&W Pro Photos
 
21 Photos  5/22/18
     
   
 
Pro Color Photos
 
121 Photos  5/22/18