1990 Year

The names in the news in 1990 were a mixture of the victorious and the notorious. There were the winners and then there were those who, to put it delicately, did not fare so well. There were fewer big deals in 1990, but the year did produce the $6.59-billion purchase of MCA by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., which was also the largest takeover ever of a U.S. company by a Japanese firm.

When you total up your investment gains and losses for 1990, the surprise may be that you didn't fare nearly as bad as you expected. But a year from now, the opposite may be true: Many antsy investors who expect to make big money in stocks, bonds and other financial investments in 1991 may be sorely disappointed. The '90s are shaping up to be a decade for patient, conservative investors, and it's going to take more than one year's experience to drive that lesson home.

They are the shops where suits are dry-cleaned, frozen yogurt is scooped and bicycle wheels are greased--the proverbial little place down the street. They are Orange County's small retail businesses. In an age of big chain stores, small merchants are holding on by offering specialized service and products. But without powerful, well-financed organizations behind them, the smaller competitors can be vulnerable in an economic downturn.

The 1980s, described by many as the age of greed and excess, died a quick and violent death in 1990. The roaring '80s didn't last a decade--the stock market crash of '87 was the first blow. In the first weeks of 1990, it was over. All of a sudden, traditional values proved to be reality. Speculative real estate deals turned out indeed, to be speculative, and junk bonds turned out, indeed, to be junk. Bankers, builders, and investment bankers had to pay the price.

It was the year the Edmonton Oilers came back and Mario Lemieux couldn't. It was the year the Russians came, saw, but didn't conquer much. And for the Kings, it was a year with another long winter followed by a short spring. This was 1990 in the NHL, a year that produced the following top five stories with more to be written on each in 1991.: OILERS WIN THE STANLEY CUP 1990: Who would have thought it when last season began?

Lee Trevino is feeling like a million. It's to be expected of an overachiever. In his first crack at the Senior PGA Tour after preparing for two years, Trevino set his sights on winning six tournaments and becoming the first of the 50-and-over group to win $1 million in a year. He exceeded his goals, winning seven tournaments and earning $1,190,518. He wasn't just the top money-winner among the seniors, he also earned more than any golfer on any 1990 tour.

? Will economy turn around? Don't try to forecast the economic outlook for 1991 before Jan. 15. The United Nations' deadline for Iraq's withdrawal from Kuwait has also become a deadline of a sort for the United States. The question of war or peace is now the major variable facing economic forecasters as they attempt to put together their predictions for the next year. If America goes to war, oil prices and inflation will likely soar, at least until the Iraqis are forced out of Kuwait.

Any notion that Southern California was recession proof disappeared in 1990 in the wake of rising unemployment, falling real estate values and virtually flat economic growth. Although there is some disagreement as to whether the region fell into a recession last year, economists do agree that Southerj California will experience a relatively mild and brief recession during the first half of 1991.

Voice theft. Song theft. Voice fraud. The cops should have had a voice squad instead of a vice squad in 1990. Silly Story Of The Year award goes to the pop group Milli Vanilli, focus of an international scandal after it was revealed that "singers" Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan had not sung a note on their 7-million-selling debut album "Girl You Know It's True."