80s Trivia & Puzzles
Today’s 80s Puzzle: Today’s 80s Trivia Question: Q: What lead singer of a chart topping 80s band was offered the lead singer spot with both Toto and Chicago but turned them down? A: Richard Page, lead singer of Mr. Mister. Read past 80s trivia questions below; they are organized by category – music, movies, culture, etc. We are always on the look out for interesting and little know 80s factoids. If you’ve got...
General Hospital: The Soap Opera of the 80s
Okay, so the 80s didn’t exactly bring us General Hospital since the soap actually launched in the 60s, but General Hospital did start setting trends in the 80s that many other soap operas followed. For instance, the idea of the infamous super-couple, like the ones that soaps like Days of Our Lives and As The World Turns currently feature, was started by General Hospital in the 80s. General Hospital also introduced fast-paced...
Then & Now: Soleil Moon Frye
Ever wonder what happened to the cute and spunky Soleil Moon Frye, star of the 80s feel good show Punky Brewster? Well, here’s the scoop (and pictures) that tell it all. Then: She began acting at age two after seeing both her father and brother in their TV roles. She went on to be the star of the 80s family show, Punky Brewster (1984-1988), Soleil Moon Frye captured hearts and taught valuable everyday lessons to viewers. Where...
Then & Now: Lee Horsley
Ever wonder what happened to the uber-hunky Lee Horsley, star of the 80s detective show, Matt Houston? Well, here’s the scoop (and pictures) that tell it all. Then: Star of the 80s detective show, Matt Houston, Lee Horsley hit his peak in fame in the mid 1980s. He starred in several other roles on big 80s shows like Dynasty and The Love Boat. Where is Lee now and what is he up to? Take a look below. Then… Now…...
The Karate Kid, 1984
Wax On, Wax Off In the 80s, The Karate Kid did for martial arts what Flashdance did for leg warmers. Girls loved the movie for heartthrob Ralph Maccio and guys loved it because – well because it was the ultimate kid meets bully, kid gets beat by bully, kid beats the you-know-what out of bully in the end. It all starts when Daniel LaRusso, the Karate Kid (played by Ralph Maccio) moves to California, where he quickly makes some...
1980s Academy Award Winning Movies
And the Oscar goes to . . . Best Picture 1980 – Ordinary People 1981 – Chariots of Fire 1982 – Gandhi 1983 – Terms of Endearment 1984 – Amadeus 1985 – Out of Africa 1986 – Platoon 1987 – The Last Emperor 1988 – Rain Man 1989 – Driving Miss Daisy Best Actor 1980 – Robert De Niro, Raging Bull 1981 – Henry Fonda, On Golden Pond 1982 – Ben Kingsley, Gandhi 1983...
Who You Gonna Call? Ghostbusters!
If you grew up in the 80s, you know exactly who you need to call in if you run into a spectral being or two. The kids of today call on the likes of Jason and Grant from the Ghost Hunters or that odd English team from Most Haunted. Forget that! We didn’t “hunt” or “talk” to ghosts. In the 80s we had pros who “busted” them. I’m talking about the Ghostbusters of course! If you don’t know who the Ghostbusters are, then you definitely...
Pretty in Pink, 1986
This movie had it all. It may, in fact, be the best example of the genre. A John Hughes film, starring Molly Ringwald, Andrew McCarthy, James Spader and Jon Cryer, 1986’s film Pretty in Pink is a must see for anyone interested in 80s movies or just interested in a good story, well done. Somewhat reminiscent of the classic Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet, the movie is a teen love story about two people who want to be together but...
Flashdance, 1983
Out of all of the movies released in 1983, Flashdance was probably the hottest. The movie’s plot revolves around Alexandra, a character played by Jennifer Beals. Alexandra leads somewhat of a double life. During the day, she works at a steel mill – at night she’s an exotic dancer. Of course exotic dancing isn’t what she wants to be doing with her life. Alex’s dream is to get a place at an elite dance school in Pittsburgh. It seems as...
The Empire Strikes Back, 1980
The Empire Strikes Back is one of the few movies ever filmed that needs no introduction. Even though The Empire Strikes Back was shown back in 1980, kids born in 2000 know exactly what the movie is and who the main characters are. There probably isn’t any other movie on Earth (or in space) that can lay claim to that fact. In 1980 it was referred to as The Empire Strikes Back; today it’s sometimes referred to as Star Wars Episode V...
The Enviable and Exciting Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I. was the traditional eighties detective television show. Magnum was a security professional working on the estate of a wealthy (and I mean WEALTHY) writer. In exchange for his services, Magnum was provided with a nice residence in Hawaii and got to drive a red-hot Ferrari. If only we could all be so lucky. With a ton of action and a young Tom Selleck starting as Magnum, it’s no wonder Magnum, P.I. was a hit with men and...
Dynasty
In the 80s the hottest hit show, Dallas, belonged to ABC’s competitor, CBS. With more than 300,000-million fans worldwide, it’s no wonder Dallas was a thorn in the side of ABC. Of course, the only thing ABC could do was find some way to compete. Their ace in the hole turned out to be CBS’s own hit show, Dynasty. If you were familiar with both of the shows, it didn’t take too long to figure out that CBS decided not to reinvent the...
Punky Brewster (1984 – 1986)
What memory do the following words inspire: mismatched sneakers, colorful bandanas, a rainbow colored bedroom, and pig tails? For a child of the 80s, they should instantly evoke images of Penelope “Punky” Brewster, the main character of the popular family sitcom Punky Brewster. Debuting on NBC in 1984, Punk Brewster was a funny light-hearted show about a sassy and spirited young girl played by Soleil Moon Frye who was abandoned by her...
ALF
It makes perfect sense, really. Combine a sarcastic furry alien who likes to eat cats, an average suburban family, and one destroyed planet and you end up with a television hit—in the 80s at least. That was certainly the case with the popular NBC family sitcom ALF which first aired on September 22, 1986 and ran until June 18, 1990. A spoof of the 1982 hit movie ET, the show ALF features Gordon Shumway, a 230 year old alien from the...
Fantasy Island
What show featured an exotic island located somewhere in the Pacific and a suave charismatic host who allowed his guests to live out their greatest fantasy? No, it wasn’t a popular reality show but rather ABC’s hit television show Fantasy Island which debuted in 1978 and continued to entertain viewers until 1984. Featuring Mr. Roarke, played by Ricardo Montalban, and his side-kick Tattoo the series was based on two made for television...
