Yuri Andropov was the sixth paramount leader of the Soviet Union and the fourth General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Following the 18-year rule of Leonid Brezhnev, Andropov served in the post from November 1982 until his death in February 1984. During his short tenure, Andropov sought to eliminate corruption and inefficiency within the Soviet system by investigating longtime officials for violations of party discipline and criminalizing truancy in the workplace. The Cold War intensified, and he was at a loss for how to handle the growing crisis in the Soviet economy. His major long-term impact was bringing to the fore a new generation of young reformers, as energetic as himself, including Yegor Ligachyov, Nikolai Ryzhkov, and, most important, Mikhail Gorbachev.
Intellivision is a home video game console by Mattel Electronics, its name being a portmanteau of "intelligent television." Intellivision was released nationwide in the US in 1980. From 1980 to 1983, over 3 million Intellivision units were sold.
When Elizabeth first meets Brad in the music shop, there is a poster on the wall for "Duke Scoppa and the Prop Tarts." Duke Scoppa is the property master for this episode.
The KGB's agent in charge of Science and Technology espionage refers to the US Navy's new radar cross sectional reduction designs as a type of stealth technology. As of 1982 the US Navy was designing a new class of warship, specifically a new guided missile destroyer, which would wind up being called the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer. One of the major advancements this class of ship has is a design to reduce the ship's profile on radar, the ship's conning tower and tripod masts were designed with angled surfaces, instead of flat squared surfaces like the Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided missile frigate and Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruisers have. By using angled surfaces the Arleigh Burke-class has a much smaller amount of surface area that reflects radar beams, giving the ship a big advantage in stealth.
When Elizabeth meets Brad in the restaurant, he says he's from Wyoming but isn't a cowboy. Years later, Jefferson White appears as Jimmy Hurdstram, a Montana cowboy, in "Yellowstone."