It was 27 years ago today -- January 24, 1984 -- that Steve Jobs demonstrated the Apple Macintosh to a crowd of about 3,000 people. Just two days earlier, Apple had debuted the "1984" commercial during Super Bowl XVIII, which introduced the personal computer for the first time. The short clip, which referenced the George Orwell novel of the same name, has since been recognized as a masterpiece in advertising and is considered one of the most successful television commercials ever released in the United States.

From the YouTube caption: "Andy Hertzfeld captured the moment quite well in his retelling: 'Pandemonium reigns as the demo completes. Steve has the biggest smile I've ever seen on his face, obviously holding back tears as he is overwhelmed by the moment. The ovation continues for at least five minutes before he quiets the crowd down.'"