The A-Team, 1983
Who can forget this famous television voice over? “In 1972 a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn’t commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire: THE A-TEAM.” NBC’s...
The Smurfs, 1981-1989
The little blue creatures known as the Smurfs first appeared in October of 1958, the creation of Belgian cartoonist Pierre Culliford (known as Peyo). However, it would take the 1980’s Saturday morning cartoon to launch them into stardom and cartoon history. The Hanna-Barbera cartoon ran on NBC Saturday morning cartoons from 1981 to 1989 and are a permanent part of 80s pop culture. I was a huge Smurfs fan much to the dismay of my...
The Breakfast Club, 1985
Do you remember The Breakfast Club? No, not a group of old men meeting at Hardees for breakfast. I’m talking about the 1985 movie, The Breakfast Club. For those of us who recognize the Brat Pack names Molly Ringwald, Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson, Emilio Estevez and Anthony Michael Hall, The Breakfast Club is a movie we’ll never forget. It begins with glass shattering to reveal the setting, Shermer High School, Saturday March 24th, 1984....
Back to the Future, 1985
Back to the Future – it was one of the most popular movies of the 80s, and rightfully so! Michael J. Fox was at his best (and at his hottest) and the movie’s plot held all of us captive. After all, what’s not exciting about riding in the coolest car ever and taking a trip back in time to when your parents were your age? Unless of course you manage to ruin your parents’ chances of meeting – thereby nullifying your very own existence....
Who Remembers the Matt Houston TV Show?
If you’re the heir of a multi-million-dollar oil fortune and you’re really into mystery and crime, what do you do? Fund your own private investigation career, of course! That’s exactly what the leading character, Matt Houston (played by Lee Horsley), did in this cheesy yet addictive 80s cult classic. Cheesy plots, bikini-clad actresses, hot (well, they used to be hot) guest stars and action and adventure effectively sum up the Matt...
Purple Rain or Purple Pain?
If you saw Purple Rain there’s on thing you have to agree with – the movie was written entirely around Prince. No, maybe it wasn’t an entirely accurate account of Prince’s life, but the movie was a bit of a self-portrait. Talented musician struggling with emotional issues . . . Gee, wonder who that could be about? Prince plays “The Kid” who is an up-and-coming musical talent with some severe emotional issues. While Prince’s character...
Famous People of the 1980s: Dreamy Teen Heartthrobs on 80s TV
In the early 80s, while John Ritter was Jack Trippering his way into the hall of sitcom fame, other small-screen stars like Alan Alda and Erik Estrada were slowly tumbling down the charts after a wild ride in the late 70s. And even though Henry Winkler literally jumped the shark in 1977, Happy Days continued to ride the top 10 for several seasons into the 80s, then spun off the infamous Joanie Loves Chachi, catapulting Scott Baio into...
Sixteen Candles, 1984
“Auto – mo – beeeel” – Gotta love the Donger. Teen flicks were as popular in the 80s as they are today, perhaps even more so. One such decade-defining film, Sixteen Candles set into motion the careers of Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, and John and Joan Cusack. These stars would later come to dominate the teen movie scene throughout the decade. Written and directed by John Hughes, this coming of age...
Who Shot J.R.?
The 80’s started with a bang – literally – and that bang was followed by a question that’s been immortalized in the history of television programming. “Who Shot J.R.?” If your Friday evening didn’t revolve around the infamous Dallas soap opera, you were either living in a cave or you didn’t own a television. After all, the show had more than 300-million fans. Everyone knew the oil-rich Ewings and most of us wanted to be them – no...
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, 1982
On June 11, 1982 the world was introduced to one of the most heartwarming movies of the decade. Directed by Steven Spielberg, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial was and still is the quintessential family film. Often tagged “The Movie that Touched the World”, the film is about a ten-year old boy named Elliot who discovers and befriends an alien botanist stranded on planet Earth. After sneaking E.T. into his house, Elliot, his older...
The Cosby Show
What may have been one of the most beloved shows of the 80s graced our television screens for the first time in 1984. The name of this funny and wholesome family show was The Cosby Show and we welcomed the Cosbys into our homes and hearts right from the start. If you didn’t watch The Cosby Show, you may think it was a show about the typical American family – and it was if the typical American family has an abundance of income, no...
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, 1986
“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it,” Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick) informed teens everywhere in the 1986 hit movie Ferris Buellers’s Day Off. Considered one of the 80’s funniest films, the movie follows the adventures of fictional high school senior Ferris Bueller when he decides to play hooky. In an award-worthy performance, Bueller convinces his parents that he so...
Just One of the Guys, 1985
It is a story that had been done before and one that has certainly been done since (see Amanda Bynes’s recent vehicle, She’s The Man). But, 1985’s Just One of the Guys stands out as among the best of the type, a great movie by any standards and a totally fab example of the 80s teen movie genre. It has a slightly low budget feel, but manages to pull off the story with good performances and some really funny lines (example: great...
The Love Boat, 1977-1986
Aaron Spelling was around long before Beverly Hills 90210 came to be. In fact, The Love Boat, one of the most popular shows of the 80s, was one of his other famous projects. The hour-long romance show was set on a cruise ship called the Pacific Princess and featured different sets of famous guest stars each and every week. Some of the guests were old favorites rarely seen on television and others were up-and-coming stars who went on...
