The 80's

[Evil Alpaca]

Come on feel the noise!!!! (laughing)

Oh, I hated those parachute pants. I think my brother lived in those

That's Quiet Riot, another band I was very fond of. 80's hair metal was a category of music unto itself, and it was glorious!

 

[Virtual_Burlesque]

I could post a long list of stuff from the 80’s, but it wouldn’t be from my memory.
I was just getting started then, so what I can add comes mostly from here

 

[Vincent E]

In Defense of the 1980s

The 1980s have been getting a bad rap for years now.

For all the talk about the "Decade of Greed" let's remember that the 1990s made the 80s mergers and business deals look like chump change. Consider the AOl Time-Warner merger for instance. Sure, a few inside traders got in trouble and junk bonds were controversial, but compared to the avarice of the 1990s Enron, Worldcom, Tyco, et al scandals Michael Milken and his contemporaries look like pikers.

As for bad music, everyone blathers on and on about the new wave, punk rock, disposeable music that came out of the 80s, but let's also remember that U2, Metallica, Sting, Bruce Springsteen, and a lot of other long term success stories made their most important marks in the 80s - even if many of them eventually sold out in the 90s. The 1990s themselves gave us shit like the Spice Girls, Britney, Chrissy, pop-tarts, boy bands, and disposeable marketing music not fit to be listened to by human ears.

In the 1980s MTV was born. In the 1990s MTV died.

The Playboy Playmate sof the 1980s were the greatest ever. The 90s Playmates became all tatoo-you and body pierced. Sorry folks, I am not a fan of fucking "body art."

Big hair? Well that might be the case, but who can compare the well-coiffed heavy metal chicks who showed up at concerts well groomed and in their tightest black leather. H-O-T! he fucking 90s gave us grunge music and chicks in college who forgaot what soap and shampoo was for. Pee-You. I'll take an 80s big hair heavy metal chick any day of the week over those grunge skanks.

Indiana Jones was the greatest trilogy of the 80s, the special effects of Star Wars fame gave movies a better look even if Lucas lost control of all his techno-digi-effects in the 90s, A Christmas Story became the greatest Christmas movie of all time in the 1980s, and Batman came back to life in a stupendous version of the comic starring Mr. Mom. Movies did quite well as did film with successes like The Killing Fields and Full Metal Jacket.

Dirty Harry may have jumped the shark, but at least it introduced us to Guns and Roses, which by the way fizzled out in the 1990s.

Video games may have been in their toddler years if not infancy (that would be Pong in the 70s), and their was no World Wide Web - how did we ever survive without the web - but the 80s made the TV remote control standard equipment. Can you think of a better invention. The compact disk player improved music, and the Walkman let us take it portable and personal.

The National Basketball Association was still relevant in the 1980s with the greatest rivalries among Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Boston capturing the imaginations of millions of fans and showing us all how the game should be played. Michael Jordan burst on the scene and soon dominated the game. Wayne Gretsky accomplished unheard of feats in professional hockey. Walter Payton became the then all-time rushing leader in the NFL. The Chicago Bears had the greatest defense of all time (Dammit, I am a Patriots fan. 46-10 argh!) There was only one baseball strike, and it did not cancel the World Series, unlike the one - you guessed it - in the 90s (1994.)

I think the 80s ruled. By comparison, the 1990s sucked.

It all comes down to politics, I guess. Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton both presided over unparalleled growth during their administrations. If you sell a few weapons to secure the release of Americans held hostage in Lebannon, you are reviled by the lame-stream press for years to come. However, if you have some low-rent slut sucking on your cock in the Oval Office (or adjoining room) and then lie about it to a grand jury while under oath, you are a really great guy. If you order the invasion of Grenada to get Americans out of harms way, you are a gun-toting cowboy. However, if you allow US security to become so lax that Chinese spies are raiding our nuclear secrets as if they were withdrawing cash from an ATM with dad's debit card you are mentioned for a Nobel Prize.

Okay, maybe it was an unnecessary editorial comment, but my mind is wandering.

 

[Evil Alpaca]

Re: In Defense of the 1980s

I think the 80s ruled. By comparison, the 1990s sucked.

A simple response . . .

Amen

 

[impressive]

Re: In Defense of the 1980s

The compact disk player improved music ...

OMG! I remember our first CD player. We couldn't figure out how to open the damned disc cases!

 

[Evil Alpaca]

Re: Re: In Defense of the 1980s

OMG! I remember our first CD player. We couldn't figure out how to open the damned disc cases!

And PacMan! So simple, yet so likely to cause children to go insane and pound on the side of the machine because that last DAMN GHOST got between you and the dancing pineapple!

 

[Daisy May]

That's Quiet Riot, another band I was very fond of. 80's hair metal was a category of music unto itself, and it was glorious!

Oh shit, I forgot LOL!

Do you remember Cinderella?

 

[Daisy May]

I could kick anyone's ass at Pacman

 

[CharleyH]

Re: Re: In Defense of the 1980s

OMG! I remember our first CD player. We couldn't figure out how to open the damned disc cases!

Don't forget the mammoth DVD equivalents that went the wayside of Beta, don't recall what these movie disks were called, but they were kewl for a while.

 

[impressive]

Re: Re: Re: In Defense of the 1980s

Don't forget the mammoth DVD equivalents that went the wayside of Beta, don't recall what these movie disks were called, but they were kewl for a while.

Laser disks.

The bar where we hung out in college had a big screen laser disk player ... and all 3 of the movies released on laser disk.

 

[Evil Alpaca]

Oh shit, I forgot LOL!

Do you remember Cinderella?

"Don't know what you've got . . . til it's gooone!"

Nope. Never heard of 'em.

 

[CharleyH]

Re: Re: Re: Re: In Defense of the 1980s

Laser disks.

The bar where we hung out in college had a big screen laser disk player ... and all 3 of the movies released on laser disk.

LOL - I worked in a laser disk store . . . for a few months. Nike high tops were the best, Flashdance, American Gigalo had us reeling for a while full frontal male was uncommon. Go figure, it still is 20 years later, Valley Girls and Cocaine (the song), video arcades (the first generation to have somewhere to REALLY go when skipping class)

One good thing is that the 80's produced the love of my life, so it can't be ALL bad

 

[impressive]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: In Defense of the 1980s

... American Gigalo had us reeling for a while

Oh, I actually BOUGHT the gravity boots so I could do those upside down sit-ups. Then someone told me I could have an aneurism, and I was afraid to use 'em.

I sat on Santa's lap for the first time in the 80s. (Santa LIKED it!)

And ... unplugging the arcade games so that MY initials could be on top of the high score list (for a little while, anyway). Sooooooo many of my quarters (not tokens, then) are in a Centipede game (the rest are in Galaga).

*sigh*

 

[Evil Alpaca]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: In Defense of the 1980s

Oh, I actually BOUGHT the gravity boots so I could do those upside down sit-ups. Then someone told me I could have an aneurism, and I was afraid to use 'em.

I sat on Santa's lap for the first time in the 80s. (Santa LIKED it!)

And ... unplugging the arcade games so that MY initials could be on top of the high score list (for a little while, anyway). Sooooooo many of my quarters (not tokens, then) are in a Centipede game (the rest are in Galaga).

*sigh*

I actually looped Space invaders 4 times before I got bored!

 

[Virtual_Burlesque]

Don't forget the mammoth DVD equivalents that went the wayside of Beta, don't recall what these movie disks were called, but they were kewl for a while.

They were called Capacitance Electronic Discs a consumer video format on grooved vinyl discs, put out by RCA under the name SelectaVision

In their time they were pretty co . . . co . . . co . . . pretty co . . . co . . . were pretty cool!

Neighbour had one.

 

[CharleyH]

They were called Capacitance Electronic Discs a consumer video format on grooved vinyl discs, put out by RCA under the name SelectaVision

In their time they were pretty co . . . co . . . co . . . pretty co . . . co . . . were pretty cool!

Neighbour had one.

Almost couldn't get it out, huh

LOL included with sound bytes from 1984 video systems perfect.

 

[entitled]

In their time they were pretty co . . . co . . . co . . . pretty co . . . co . . . were pretty cool!

Ah, yes. The ever-popular Max Headroom.

Don't forget Kangaroos, huge cell phones, and sunglasses that covered half your face!

 

[CharleyH]

Ah, yes. The ever-popular Max Headroom.

Don't forget Kangaroos, huge cell phones, and sunglasses that covered half your face!

Missed that one and I'm usually perceptive I blame it on sex, drugs and Phil Collins.

 

[Daisy May]

MTV with no rap!!!! (no offense all)

I miss it

 

[SnoopDog]

MTV with no rap!!!! (no offense all)

I miss it

MTV without ringtone-ad's. (I don't know about american MTV but over here those ringtone-ad's just make you go insane, grab a shotgun and visit the next mall)

Snoopy

 

[Xelebes]

A good documentary on all bad things of the 80's: Degrassi Junior High.

 

[she_is_my_addiction]

A good documentary on all bad things of the 80's: Degrassi Junior High.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I LOVE DEGRASSI!!!! My dad works as a junior high social worker...he shows the kids Degrassi all the time...the originals too! The kids LOVE them.

Joey Jeremiah, Snake, Spike, Lucy, Caitlin....jesus who else???

 

[Daisy May]

Haha....Cindy Laupahhh is on.

I think "The Nanny's" voice is much worse though

 

[Evil Alpaca]

Joey Jeremiah, Snake, Spike, Lucy, Caitlin....jesus who else???

Jesus was on Degrassi?!?

 

[Belegon]

MTV without ringtone-ad's. (I don't know about american MTV but over here those ringtone-ad's just make you go insane, grab a shotgun and visit the next mall)

Snoopy

ummm, MTV with actual music...

I graduated high school in 1984, so my feelings should be obvious.

I owned parachute pants but they were never my big thing. Adam and the Ants, Stray Cats were my major "looks" in high school days. Later I went metal and sported as much hair spray and makeup as my girlfriends.

Did some drugs, wore silly clothes and makeup, good times.

Camped out overnight for concert tickets. They don't do that anymore. Best live show I ever saw was U2 on the Joshua Tree tour.