Licorice Pizza! Michael Jackson’s “Thriller!” Men at Work! Kenny Loggins! Stray Cats! J. Geils Band! Foreigner!

Dec. 19, 1982:  In the lead story, Times reporter Tyler Marshall says:

“Despite three years of increasingly intense military operations and deepening political involvement, the Soviet Union appears to have accomplished virtually none of its major goals in Afghanistan.

“Moscow has failed to win acceptance of its Marxist regime in Kabul, failed to rebuilt the Afghan army and failed to dent a resistance movement that shows increased confidence.

“Perhaps even more significantly, there is almost no evidence that in the short term the Soviets can make any real headway in any of these areas.”

William J. Eaton reports that President Reagan and Congress are looking to Fed Chairman Paul A. Volcker to rescue the country from an 18-month-old recession. “Almost the entire world is watching to see if U.S. interest rates will fall and prevent a devastating breakdown in the international financial system,” Eaton says. Eaton says the nation is suffering “the most depressed U.S. economy in four decades.”

And the Senate deals a setback to President Reagan, voting 50 to 46 to include a $1.2-billion job creation program in a $425.8-billion spending measure to keep the government operating past midnight. House Speaker Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill (D-Mass.) said President Reagan would veto the spending measure if it included the jobs package.

Now Playing: “Sophie’s Choice,” “Kiss Me Goodbye,” “The Verdict” and “Honkytonk Man.”

At Disneyland: Les Brown and his Band of Renown, Freddy Martin and His Orchestra and Shari Lewis.