1982

No year epitomized the 80’s more than 1982, and yes, you did dress like that. Fast, plugged in, and embarrassing, this is a year you can’t forget; no matter how hard you try. As the third episode of the series, I Love The 80’s 1982 will saturate the audience with vivid flashbacks of colorful people, defining moments, and mortifying fads that make people fondly remember their youth, and sometimes even blush.

Using a panel of sarcastic comedians, journalists, and celebrities, they will dissect the one place in time that could possibly make the Flock Of Seagulls popular. With such iconic staples as MTV, Fast Times At Ridgemont High, the Rubik’s Cube, Mr. T., the mullet, The Dukes Of Hazzard, Trivial Pursuit, and Pac Man, 1982’s vitality and lack of sophistication remain alone and make it, “like wow, a totally cool year.”

Its clear the foundation of 1982 was built around MTV. Just months after its conception, it completely made outdoor activities nonexistent, created the frantic demands, “I want my MTV,” and made everyone a sex symbol out of the girl next door, Martha Quinn. The music that came out of the television now was visual, fast, and miserably catchy. Whatever your opinions of the music, chances are you remember the video to “Centerfold,” done a cheer with Toni Basil’s, “Mickey,” and pranked the number 867- 5309.

There was other television shows besides MTV. The Dukes Of Hazzard was always a popular choice for Friday nights. Who could forget Bo and Luke, Daisy, Uncle Jesse, and Coy and Vance? That’s right, 1982 was the year the good ol’ boys were replaced for their cousins, Coy and Vance because of contractual agreements. If you thought the plots were bad with Bo and Luke, wait until we refresh your memory with what their unpopular relatives brought to the small screen. Speaking of bad shows, remember the hugely unsuccessful Joanie Loves Chachi? The most boring characters from Happy Days come alive for one season before being cancelled. Rumors exist that the show was popular only in Korea, where the word Chachi is translated to mean penis. The name Joanie Loves Penis does have a certain ring to it.

In 1982, a number of movies got audiences into the theaters, at least until the price of the VCR went under $1000. Fast Times At Ridgemont High premiered in 1982, the quintessential teen movie that taught us the rules of dating, how to cut class like Jeff Spicolli, and to lust after Phoebe Cates. E.T. phoned home in 1982, and its all right to admit you cried. That same year we also saw the third installment of the Rocky franchise. While any of the Rocky movies will always be a staple of any football player’s movie collection, Rocky III was the movie that introduced the world to the incomparable Mr. T. Part man, part gold chain, Mr. T and his artful one liners became a foundation for the 80’s, and was the only person to make Rocky quake in his boxing shorts.

While Mr. T had wild hair, no trend made more people hide their old photographs more than the mullet. Described as “business in the front and party in the back,” this awkward style reached all the way from the Flock Of Seagulls to Bono. We’d like to say that is the only embarrassing trend, but strangely everyone thought it was cool to wear skinny ties, and you couldn’t go anywhere without your designer jeans. A new style in jackets began with Member’s Only, which is a membership that everyone has since cancelled. Let us also remind you about the fitness craze. Maybe our celebrity panel can explain why Americans trusted Jane Fonda to tell them how to get in shape. Olivia Newton- John also made it fashionable to get physical, complete with leotards and leg warmers to apparently burn more calories, or at least look good trying.

For whatever reason, 1982 was also a big year for games. The brain teasing and utterly frustrating Rubik’s Cube was fun, for about three minutes. Maybe our panel conquered The Cube. Maybe they took the class at Yale offering strategy to beat the cube. Maybe they gave up like everyone else, and decided to play Trivial Pursuit. Every home was equipped with the trivia