September 26, 2025 • 44 mins
In 1981, the world was restless. Style was bold, music was fierce, and scandal followed the stars like a shadow. Behind every hit song and fashion trend was drama, obsession, and the hunger for more. From the charts to the tabloids and the runway to the living room TV, this year left its mark… Loud, messy, and impossible to forget.
Sources:
Social Media:
Sources:
- https://history.state.gov/departmenthistory/short-history/hostageend
- https://bestsellingalbums.org/year-end/Billboard_Top_Albums_1981
- https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/reagan-inaugurated-40th-president
- https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/march-30/president-reagan-shot
- https://www.oyez.org/justices/sandra_day_oconnor
- https://www.nasa.gov/mission/sts-1
- https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/anwar-sadat-assassinated
- https://www.boxofficemojo.com/year/world/1981
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mistaken_Identity_(Kim_Carnes_album)
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_Year-End_Hot_100_singles_of_1981
- https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2015/today-in-media-history-iran-releases-american-hostages-in-1981
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-rated_television_programs_by_season
- https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/study-measuring-earths-vital-signs-warns-climate-tipping-points-180978320
- https://www.vogue.com/article/princess-diana-wedding-dress-photos-history
- https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/strange-history-he-man-and-masters-universe-180956874
- https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pac-man-released
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Billboard_200_number-one_albums_of_1981
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to the pop Culture Diary. This is your go
to spot for trends, gossip, and throwbacks. I'm your host page,
and each week we're flipping through the pages of pop
culture history. We'll talk about everything from neon soaked eighties
nights to the wild early days of the two thousands
(00:23):
and beyond. You can expect the fashions, the music, the movies,
the biggest news headlines, the scandals, and basically everything that
had us talking, laughing, and obsessing. So grab some snacks,
get cozy and luxury wine the pages of time. All right,
(00:49):
Diary friends, here we go again. Welcome to nineteen eighty one.
This was a year that proves the eighties were not
easing into anything. They We're diving headfirst. We've got a
brand new president moving into the White House, and before
he can even hang up his coat, someone tries to
take him out across the pond. The world tunes in
(01:13):
for a royal wedding that looked like a fairy tale,
if your fairy tales involve a dress with a train
so long it needed its own postal code. But nineteen
eighty one isn't just about the big headlines. It's the
year music finally got a face or a whole new
channel really thanks to MTV. All of a sudden, how
(01:37):
you looked was just as important as how you sounded.
And while all of that was happening, arcades were full
of people feeding quarters into a game about a little
yellow circle with an eating problem. On the toy shelves,
action heroes got muscles that made Arnold Schwarzenegger look underwhelming.
(02:00):
And of course, the celebrity gossip pages, let's just say
they were very busy this year. So grab your diary,
get comfy, and let's flip the page to nineteen eighty one.
It's messy, loud, and it's gonna be fun. Nineteen eighty
(02:22):
one was a year where the world decided new decade,
new chaos. Let's take a little trip through the news
cycle that kept everyone talking, worrying, or just scratching their heads.
Ronald Reagan becomes the fortieth president on January twentieth. The
(02:44):
Gipper took the oath, and immediately America's vibe was like
cowboy optimism meets Hollywood's star power. It was like electing
your grandfather if your grandfather starred in Bedtime for Bonzo.
Just minute after Reagan took office, the fifty two American
hostages held in Iran for four hundred and forty four
(03:07):
days were released. The timing was suspiciously cinematic, like Iran
was waiting for Reagan to say action before they let
the curtain drop. Still, after more than a year of
nightly news updates and yellow ribbons tied around trees, the
return of the hostages felt like a Super Bowl win.
(03:30):
Then came March. A man named John Hinckley Junior decided
the best way to impress Jody Foster was by attempting
to assassinate Reagan. Spoiler alert. It didn't work. Reagan survived,
and Hinckley became famous for all the wrong reasons. Three
other men were injured, including Press Secretary James Brady, who
(03:55):
was left permanently disabled. The incident also gave Reagan a
bout Czar approval Bomp. Turns out nothing says leadership like
surviving a gunshot and cracking jokes about it in the er.
In a much more positive milestone, Sandrady O'Connor was sworn
in as the first woman on the US Supreme Court. Finally,
(04:19):
the highest court in the land looked a little less
like the world's most exclusive men's club, a genuinely historic moment.
It was one of the few headlines of nineteen eighty
one that didn't end in assassination, attempt or crisis. Meanwhile,
NASA gave us a peek into the future with the
(04:41):
launch of Space Shuttle Columbia. It was the first reusable
spacecraft mission, proving you could blast something into orbit and
bring it back home in one piece, which honestly feels
more impressive than any moon landing. Columbia's success was like
the tech demo of the decade, the first step towards
(05:03):
space travel being less sci fi movie and more reality
show pilot episode. But nineteen eighty one wasn't just about rockets.
It was also the year that doctors began reporting rare
cancers in young gay men, early signs of what we
now know as the aide's crisis. At the time, it
(05:25):
was called quote the gay cancer, causing both medical confusion
and the deep stigma that would really be the foundation
for the epidemic four decades. This was the start of
one of the most heartbreaking health crises and modern history.
But in nineteen eighty one, most people had no idea
(05:48):
what was coming on the other side of the Atlantic.
The world stopped everything on July twenty ninth to watch
the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Dianas Spencer. Over
seven hundred and fifty million people tuned in, making it
the most watched TV event in history. Diana's dress had
(06:11):
a twenty five foot train, her face had a shy smile,
and by the end of the day she was a
global icon. Forget presidents and astronauts, nineteen eighty one belonged
to Lady die Back. In the US, air traffic controllers
went on strike in August, demanding better working conditions. Reagan
(06:35):
responded by firing over eleven thousand of them in one swoop.
He made it clear you don't mess with the president
unless you want to end up unemployed. Commercial flying was
never quite the same, but hey, at least Reagan proved
he knew how to swing the corporate acts. In October,
(06:56):
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was assassinated by extremists during a
military parade. Sadat had signed the Camp David Peace Accords
just a few years earlier, earning a Nobel prize. His
murder was a harsh reminder that world peace doesn't come
easy and that standing up for diplomacy often makes you
(07:20):
a target. So there you have it. Nineteen eighty one's
headlines had historic firsts, pop culture, pageantry, and more than
a little gunfire. From Reagan dodging bullets to Diana walking
down the aisle to Columbia touching the stars, the year
(07:41):
was nothing if not dramatic. If the headlines were dramatic,
the gossip columns were like theater. And let's be honest,
half of what we remember about the early eighties is
not politics or economics. It's who wore what, who kissed who,
(08:03):
and who made the tabloid's cry uncle. Let's start with
the obvious, Princess Diana. If celebrity gossip was a stock
market in nineteen eighty one, Diana's value shot through the
(08:23):
roof overnight. One minute, she's a shy, nineteen year old
kindergarten teacher, the next she's a princess with more photographers
in her face than actual wedding guests. The press couldn't
get enough, from what she wore, to how she smiled,
to the fact that her engagement ring wasn't even custom
(08:47):
a royal picking a catalog ring scandalous. The press called
her shy Die, which was ironic because she couldn't take
a step without a hundred flash of popping in her face.
Her every outfit became headline news. People wrote think pieces
(09:08):
about how she waved and behind the fairytale wedding where
she walked down the aisle in that huge, puffed up
wedding dress with a twenty five foot train, there was
already a fairytale crack. Charles was famously quoted before the
engagement about being quote in love whatever that means end
(09:31):
quote translation. The tabloids had a field day speculating about Camilla.
Spoiler alert, they were not wrong. On the Broadway front,
Patty Lapone was giving critics goosebumps as avida and giving
backstage crews migraines. Her reputation for being let's say direct,
(09:55):
was already taking shape. Gossip flew about her off stage intensity,
and while some called it diva behavior, others called it passion.
Either way, she was unforgettable, both on stage and in
the rumor mill. Broadway insiders whispered, don't cross Patty, and
(10:18):
the press loved every second of it. Over in Hollywood,
the early eighties were prime time for blockbuster filmmaking, but
Can's Film Festival leaned extra artsy this year with appearances
from Jack Nicholson, Jessica Lang, and Shaka Khan. Somewhere between
(10:39):
cocktails and standing ovations, actors and musicians were deciding who
would be the next serious artiste and who would just
end up on the gossip pages. Jack Nicholson was Hollywood's
unofficial mascot of Mayhem, Can's Film Festival in nineteen eighty
one was practice his personal playground. He showed up with
(11:03):
a grin that said I know something you don't and
sunglasses that said and I'm not telling. Add Jessica Lang
into the mix with her rising star power and whispered flings,
and you had gossip writers scribbling like mad just to
keep up. While Reagan was dodging bullets and astronauts were
(11:26):
floating in space, music was getting its own makeover. MTV
was born on August first, nineteen eighty one at twelve
oh one am. The network launched with Video Killed the
Radio Star by the Buggles. MTV was the real gossip machine.
For the first time, musicians were not just sounds, they
(11:50):
were visuals, fashion icons. Gossip fodder. David Bowie didn't need
the gossip columns his video. Those were gossip columns. Madonna
was just beginning her climb, and Debbie Harry of Blondie
was the poster girl of coool, with people dissecting her
(12:11):
every haircut and outfit. Suddenly rock stars could not hide
behind their records. Their cheekbones and fashion choices were now
part of the package. And yes, that meant gossip mags
had a whole new playground. Hair got bigger, pants got tighter,
(12:32):
and suddenly everyone had a smoke machine in their garage.
Oh and let's not forget the Hollywood meets politics crossover.
Ronald Reagan being both a president and a former movie
star meant gossip columns were not just asking about foreign policy.
They were asking who the Reagans invited to dinner, what
(12:55):
Nancy wore, and how the First Lady's astrology obsession was
running the calendar. Yes, Nancy really did rely on an astrologer,
and yes that was whispered about endlessly. In nineteen eighty one,
the gossip pages also had their somber notes. The assassination
(13:17):
of John Lennon in late nineteen eighty was still dominating conversations.
In nineteen eighty one, paparazzi hounded Yoko Ono, dissected Lennon's
last interviews and asked tasteless questions about his legacy. Not
even grief was safe from gossip. So nineteen eighty one,
(13:40):
as I mentioned, was like theater. It was about royalty
as soap opera, politics as Hollywood, and musicians as fashion models.
The gossip rags were chok full and they had no
intention of losing momentum. Next up, fashion trends. We all
(14:19):
know Lady Dye stole the Royal Fashion Show, But on
the other end of the spectrum, women in the workplace
were embracing the early stages of power dressing. Shoulder pads
were still quietly padding their way into boardrooms, giving everyone
that linebacker chic silhouette. The message was clear, Yes, I
(14:41):
can balance this spreadsheet and tackle you if I need to.
Designers like Giorgio Armani were pioneering chic, structured suits for women,
creating a look that screamed authority with just enough style
to keep it. Glam bands and hop stars started leaning
(15:01):
into visual, flare, punk and new wave looks like Neon colors,
asymmetrical cuts, wild hair, eyeliner for everyone started spilling off
stage and onto the streets. Fashion wasn't just clothes anymore.
It was costume, attitude and brand identity. Sunglasses got bigger,
(15:25):
belts got wider, jewelry got louder. This was the dawn
of the more is More era. If you had earrings
that could brush your shoulders, you were doing it right.
If your makeup did not look like it could be
seen from space, were you even trying? Shows like Dynasty,
(15:46):
which premiered in January of nineteen eighty one, pushed high
glam styles straight into American living rooms. Viewers tuned in
not just for the scandal, but to see Joan Collins
dripping in sequins, feathers, and enough diamonds to blind her
co stars under the studio lights. The drama wasn't just
(16:08):
in the dialogue. It was in the shoulder pads, the gowns,
and the hair that defied gravity. Nineteen eighty one wasn't
about playing it safe. It was about looking like the
main character wherever you went, whether you were getting married
on live television in front of seven hundred and fifty
million people, sitting behind a desk, or just heading to
(16:32):
the grocery store. The bigger, shinier, puffier, or boulder the better.
All right, let's talk about toys and games in nineteen
eighty one. This was the year kids begged their parents
for things that either glowed, beeped, or looked like they
(16:53):
could beat up Gi Joe. So let's start with the
he Man and the Masters of the Universe. This was
the toy launch of nineteen eighty one. Mattel introduced he
Man action figures, and suddenly every living room had a tiny, plastic,
(17:15):
muscle bound warrior shouting by the power of gray Skull.
He Man was not just a toy, he was basically
a steroid ad that you could play with. His supporting
cast included Skeletor, who somehow managed to be both terrifying
and fabulous with his purple hood and blue muscles. Kids
(17:39):
loved it, parents not so much once they realized they'd
be buying thirty different figures, a giant castle, and a
plastic battle cat that cost as much as a tank
of gas. If there's one thing that truly sums up
nineteen eighty one, it's pac Man, released in nineteen eighty
(17:59):
and Japan by nineteen eighty one, it had exploded in
the US. Arcades were stuffed full of people guiding that
little yellow pizza with a missing slice around mazes, chomping dots,
and dodging ghosts. The game was so popular it didn't
just stay in arcades. There were pac Man board games,
(18:23):
pac Man cereal, pac Man toys, and even pac Man cartoons. Basically,
pac Man was the Kardashian of nineteen eighty one, everywhere,
unavoidable and merchandised within an inch of its life. Cabbage
Patch kids were not huge just yet. Their big boom
(18:44):
would come in a couple of years, but eighty one
kids were still big on dolls, hot wheels, and good
old Lego sets. Rubik's Cube, launched globally in nineteen eighty,
was still melting brains everywhere, mostly because no one could
actually solve it without peeling off the stickers. If you
(19:05):
weren't playing pac Man in eighty one, you were probably
trying your hand at Donkey Kong, which hit arcades that year.
It introduced the world to a little character known as Jumpman,
who you might know better today as Mario Yep. The
mustached plumber started out climbing ladders and dodging barrels thrown
(19:28):
by a giant ape. Arcades were basically the TikTok of
eighty one, addictive everywhere, and the reason kids begged their
parents for quarters like their lives depended on it. While
arcades got all of the attention, families were still gathering
around board games like Monopoly, Clue, and Sorry, all classics
(19:53):
that kept their place in eighty one, but new at
home electronic games were creeping in. Handheld led games like
Mattel Football were still around, and more kids were starting
to dream of having a full console system in their
living room instead of just chasing ghosts at the arcade.
(20:16):
Toys and games in nineteen eighty one had one rule,
go big or go neon whether you were mastering Eternia
with he Man, battling ghosts with Pat Man, or peeling
the stickers off your Rubik's Cube and frustration, there was
no shortage of fun. Playtime was loud, colorful, and, let's
(20:37):
be honest, a little bit weird, but that's the magic
of the early nineteen eighties. Nineteen eighty one was a
year when Hollywood was equal parts dazzling glamour and campy chaos.
A mix of Oscar worthy drama and box office bombs
(20:59):
that people pretend they didn't see but absolutely did. First
up the movies, Let's just say if you went to
(21:24):
the theater in nineteen eighty one, you were probably watching
Harrison Ford crack a whip and run from a giant
boulder in Raiders of the Lost Arc. It was pure
popcorn spectacle, the birth of Indiana Jones and the reason
archaeology majors briefly thought their lives were going to be adventurous,
(21:45):
only to discover it's mostly about cataloging pottery shards and
dusty basements. Still, Spielberg and Lucas delivered what was basically
two hours of cinematic adrenaline see these snakes, explosions, and
audiences couldn't get enough. Meanwhile, on the darker side, we
(22:09):
had The Evil Dead, Sam Raymie's low budget horror masterpiece
that looked like it was held together with duct tape
and gallons of fake blood because it pretty much was.
Despite the shaky camera work and effects that looked suspiciously
like oatmeal and red food dye, it became an instant
(22:29):
cult classic. Nothing says let's have a good time like
Demonic Possession and a remote cabin, and speaking of demons,
an American werewolf in London had people questioning whether they'd
ever trust a full moon again. Rick Baker's transformation effects
(22:49):
were so groundbreaking that the Academy had to invent a
brand new category Best Makeup Translation, where We'll pair and
latex skin finally got the respect they deserved. But nineteen
eighty one wasn't all blood and monsters. Chariots of Fire
(23:10):
gave audiences something more refined, a British period piece about
Olympic runners, It walked away with Best Picture at the
Oscars and more importantly, gave the world its iconic slow
motion beach running scene. To this day, people still use
that music whenever they jog fifty feet and want to
(23:33):
feel like an Olympian. On the lighter side, we had
author starring Dudley Moore as a drunk millionaire who proved
that if you were charming enough, you can get away
with anything, even slurring your way through most of the dialogue.
And if you were a kid in eighty one, chances
(23:54):
are you dragged your parents to Superman two. Christopher Reeve
was back in the tight Zod was demanding everyone Neil
and kids were realizing that, yes, sequels really can be fun. Now,
let's slip over to TV. Nineteen eighty one was the
(24:39):
year networks really leaned into the comfort food of television.
Sitcoms and soaps ruled the airwaves. Dynasties strutted onto screens
that January, dripping with diamonds, shoulder pads, and enough backstabbing
to keep America hooked. It was ABC's answered to Dallas,
(25:01):
which had already made Who Shot Jr? A national obsession.
Dynasty basically said hold my martini and watch me throw
it in your face. Meanwhile, daytime TV was pure drama.
Luke and Laura's wedding on General Hospital wasn't just a
soap opera event, it was a full blown cultural phenomenon.
(25:25):
Thirty million people tuned in, making it the most watched
hour and daytime TV history. To put that into a perspective,
that's basically the population of Canada. The ceremony was like
the royal wedding of Port Charles, with just slightly fewer
tierras and way more hairspray. Comedy got a boost with
(25:49):
Hill Street Blues, which debuted in eighty one and redefined
the police procedural instead of the squeaky clean case of
the week formula. It gave viewers messy storylines, overlapping plots,
and characters with flaws. Suddenly, cops were not just heroes,
(26:10):
they were humans who yelled at each other in the
squad room and forgot to shave. It set the stage
for every gritty drama to come. So in short, nineteen
eighty one's Entertainment Buffet gave us Nazis getting punched, wear wolves,
sprouting hair in real time, soap opera, weddings bigger than
(26:33):
real weddings, and a brand new channel dedicated to watching
men and eyeliner strum guitars. It was messy, it was glamorous,
and it was unforgettable. Nineteen eighty one was one of
those years where technology really started stretching its legs, tripping
(26:56):
over them, and then somehow sprinting into the future anyway.
A mix of clunky plastic, flashing green text, and state
of the art machines that today could not outcompute your toaster.
First up the crown jewel, the IBM personal computer fifty
(27:19):
one point fifty, released in August of nineteen eighty one
for the first time IBM made a computer for the masses,
and by masses, I mean anyone who had one thousand,
five hundred sixty five dollars to drop on a base
model with sixteen K of memory. Yes, K, that's less
(27:41):
than the average emoji filled text message today, but back
then that was enough power to make businesses swoon and
hobbyist faint with joy. The IBM PC used Microsoft's MS
DOS operating system, which meant you spent a lot lot
of time staring at a black screen and typing cryptic
(28:03):
commands like some kind of hacker and a Cold War
spy movie. No icons, no mouse, no candy crush, just
a blinking cursor daring you to figure out what the
hell see colon greater than symbol meant. And while IBM
was convincing office managers they absolutely needed a computer, portable
(28:27):
music was having a glow up. Sony's Walkman was still
the must have gadget in eighty one. Picture it teenagers
with giant foam headphones, dramatically rewinding mixtapes with a pencil
and feeling cooler than anyone else on the planet. The
Walkmen did not just change how people listened to music.
(28:49):
It basically invented the concept of a soundtrack for your life.
Nothing says the main character energy like blasting journeys don't
stop believing on a cassette player the size of a brick.
Speaking of bricks, mobile phones in nineteen eighty one were
more gem workout than sleek accessory. The first commercially available
(29:15):
mobile phone, the Motorola Dine Attack eight thousand X, was
still a couple of years away, but prototypes existed. Early
adopters in eighty one were basically lugging around car phones
that required an actual car to function. Imagine trying to
flirt on the phone while shouting over the sound of
(29:38):
an idling engine. Smooth. Now, let's get into the games.
(30:00):
Video games were exploding as we talked about the arcade
was the place to be. Nineteen eighty one gave us
a little gem called Donkey Kong, where a plumber named Mario.
Yes that Mario had to rescue his girlfriend from a
barrel throwing gorilla. Fun fact. Nintendo originally wanted Popeye as
(30:24):
the star, but licensing fell through, so instead of Spinach,
we got mushrooms, princesses, and a billion dollar empire. Probably
the best copyright problem in history, Home gaming also got
an upgrade. The Colac Vision was announced in nineteen eighty one,
(30:44):
though it wouldn't hit shelves until eighty two, promising arcade
quality graphics in your living room. This was revolutionary because
it meant you didn't have to leave the house to
play games, although to be fair, it still meant fighting
with your siblings over who got the joystick and blowing
(31:05):
into cartridges when they inevitably glitched. And for photography fans,
nineteen eighty one marked the debut of the Sony Mavaca,
the first consumer still video camera aka the great great
grandfather of your iPhone camera. It recorded images onto many
(31:26):
floppy discs. Imagine telling someone today that to send a
selfie you had to mail them a literal disc slide
into my floppy drive doesn't have the same ring to it. Meanwhile,
in the world of video entertainment, laser disc were trying
their hardest to look futuristic. These dinner plate sized discs
(31:51):
looked like the future, but played like the past. They
were expensive, bulky, and required special players, which meant most
people stuck to their trusty VHS tapes. The format war
was brewing, and spoiler alert laser disc lost hard. Oh,
and if you were rich enough, you could impress your
(32:13):
neighbors with a VCR, a device so coveted in eighty
one that families would practically plan movie nights around it.
Imagine renting Raiders of the Lost Dark and knowing you
could pause Harrison Ford midwhip Magic. So Yeah. Tech in
nineteen eighty one was equal parts groundbreaking and laughably primitive.
(32:39):
Computers with less power than your fridge, magnet phones that
lived in cars, cameras that ate floppy discs, and video
games that introduced the world's most famous plumber. Looking back,
it's easy to laugh, but in the moment, this was
the bleeding edge. If nineteen eighty cracked open the door
(33:04):
on the MTV era, nineteen eighty one barged in and
made itself comfortable. But outside of music videos, the year's charts, albums,
and celebrity drama were pure entertainment gold. Let's start with
the charts. Nineteen eighty one was ruled by arena rock, synthpop,
(33:37):
and ballads so powerful they could knock over your boombox.
Journey dropped Escape, giving us don't Stop Believing, the karaoke
anthem that refuses to die to this day. If you've
ever found yourself belting that song in a dive bar
at two am, you have nineteen eighty one to think. Meanwhile,
(34:00):
Phil Collins officially stepped into his solo era with Face Value,
featuring in the Air Tonight. The song's drum break became
so iconic it's practically a rite of passage to air
drum along. Legend has it the track was inspired by
Phil collins crumbling marriage, proving once again that heartbreak makes
(34:24):
for killer music. Speaking of heartbreak, Stevie Nix was flying
high on her solo debut Bella Donna, the witchy Queen
of rock, gave us edge of seventeen Yes the White
Winged Dove Song. Her mystical image, flowing shawls, and rumored
(34:44):
drug use made her a tabloid magnet, toss in whispers
of ongoing Fleetwood Mac drama and her on again off
again fleeing with Don Henley of the Eagles, and you've
got gossip writers foaming at the mouth. Not to be outdone,
the Rolling Stones were busy reminding everyone they weren't done
(35:06):
yet with Tattoo You. The singles start Me Up would
go on to become a stadium anthem and Microsoft's theme
song decades later. Mick Jagger also had the side hustle
of being photographed with every it girl alive, which only
fueled the image of him as rock's eternal playboy. Across
(35:29):
the Pond, durand Duran burst on the scene with their
self titled debut album, combining new wave sound with smoldering
good looks. They didn't just have fans, they had fangirls.
By the end of the year, they were unofficially crowned
the new heart throbs of the British Invasion two point
(35:49):
zero Q, the shrieking teenagers and the are they actually
musicians or just pretty boys? Debates. Then you had Sheena Easta,
who became America's sweetheart almost overnight with Morning Train nine
to five, innocent image, catchy song everyone's mom approved, but
(36:11):
behind the scenes Prince took notice. By the mid eighties,
she'd be in the Purple One's orbit, giving tabloid writers
plenty of ink to spill. And let's not forget Diana Ross,
who was living her best disco diva meets pop goddess
life with Endless Love. Her duet with Lionel Ritchie. The
(36:34):
song was massive, the kind of ballad that made couples
slow dance at weddings for decades. Diana Ross was also
sparking rumors with her high profile social life, including a
speculation about her relationship with Gene Simmons of Kiss. Imagine
that crossover motown glamour meets glam rock face paint behind
(36:59):
the glitter. Though the music scene was shifting, Punk's chaos
gave way to new wave. Polish fans like The Go
Gos released Beauty and the Beat, the first album by
an all female band who wrote their own songs to
hit number one on the Billboard chart. They were playful, punky,
(37:19):
and partied harder than most of their male peers, which
tabloids ate up. Let's just say they're behind the scenes
antics made almost famous look tame, and of course, rock
drama was eternal. Ozzy Osbourne made headlines not just for
leaving Black Sabbath, but for biting the heads off two
(37:43):
live doves at a CBS Records meeting in nineteen eighty one.
This was before the bat incident in nineteen eighty two.
Totally normal workplace behavior. Debbie Harry and Blondie kept disco
and punk. Married with the Tide is high, cementing Debbie
(38:04):
Harry as both a music and fashion icon, and rumors
swirled around Elton John's love life as he navigated his
career post seventies superstardom. Let's go through the top ten
singles of nineteen eighty one the Billboard year end Hot
one hundred, Coming in at number one, Betty Davis Eyes
(38:28):
by Kim Carnes, The raspy voice anthem about the ultimate
fem fatale absolutely dominated the year. Fun fact, Kim Carnes
wasn't even the first to record it, but she made
it unforgettable. Coming in at number two, Endless Love by
Diana Ross and Lionel Richie, the wedding song of the
(38:50):
early eighties. This duet was so big it turned Lionel
Richie into a full blown solo star. Number three was
Laid by Kenny Rogers, written by Lionel Richie. So Yeah,
nineteen eighty one was basically his year number four, just
like Starting Over by John Lennon. Tragically, his death in
(39:14):
December of nineteen eighty made this track bittersweet. Coming in
at number five was Jesse's Girl by Rick Springfield. The
teen crush anthem of all time. Springfield even won a
Grammy for it, and Yes, Jesse was based on a
real person. Number six Celebration by Cool in the Gang,
(39:37):
still a party playlist essential. If you've ever been forced
onto a dance floor at a wedding, blame this song.
Number seven Kiss on My List by Daryl Hall and
John Oates. The duo was unstoppable in the early eighties,
and this sugary pop track put them at the top
(39:57):
of the charts, coming in at number eight. I Love
a Rainy Night by Eddie Rabbit, a little country pop
crossover magic that soaked up the airwaves, coming in at
number nine. Nine to five by Dolly Pardon, the working
woman's anthem that was as sassy as it was catchy.
(40:18):
Dolly owned both the movie and the charts, and coming
in at number ten, Keep On Loving You by Reo
Speedwagon Arena rock perfection, slow build, big chorus, lighter waving,
power ballad vibes. Now, let's go through the Billboard year
(40:40):
end top ten albums of nineteen eighty one, coming in
at number one. Double Fantasy by John Lennon and Yoko
Ono shot to the top after Lennon's Murder. It's a
strange mix of optimism and tragedy in Hindsight. Number two
High Infidelity by Reo Speedwagon, packed with its hits like
(41:03):
keep On Loving You and Take It on the Run.
It basically soundtracked Middle America in nineteen eighty one, coming
in at number three. Paradise Theater by Styx, concept rock
about a Chicago Theater's glory days, proving progressive rock could
steal chart big Number four Back in Black by ACDC,
(41:27):
released in nineteen eighty but still crushing it in nineteen
eighty one, pure riff driven perfection and a tribute to
their late singer Bond Scott. Number five Glass Houses by
Billy Joel. Billy Joel went rockier here and it worked.
(41:47):
Its still rock and roll to me kept him on top,
coming in at number six. Galcho by Steely Dan slick
jazz rock perfection a critics, even if some listeners didn't
get it. Number seven The Game by Queen thanks to
(42:08):
another One Bites the Dust and crazy little thing called Love.
This was Queen's US chart peak, coming in at number eight.
Against the Wind by Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band.
The album that made Bob Seger a household name. Heartland
rock at its peak number nine, Zenyata Mandada by The
(42:32):
Police features Don't Stand So Close to Me and d
Do Doodoo De Dodada. Sting and Crew were building towards superstardom,
coming in at number ten Crimes of Passion by Pat
Benatar with hit Me with Your Best Shot. Pat cemented
herself as the queen of rock radio. By year's end,
(42:57):
it was clear nineteen eighty one was an just about
the launch of MTV. The music itself was wild, emotional, experimental,
and often tangled up in deliciously messy personal lives. Between
Stevie Nix's whitchy love triangles, Mick Jagger's endless Conquests, and
(43:18):
Ozzie's Bird Buffet, the tabloids had no shortage of copy
and the music It's still on your playlist today. That's
it for today's trip through the pop culture Diary. Thanks
for tuning in and taking a trip back in time
for a hit of nostalgia with me. Don't forget to
(43:40):
follow the podcast wherever you get your shows, rate review,
and keep an eye out for the podcast on social
media over on Instagram. At the pop Culture Diary Podcast,
Twitter at pop cult Diary Pod, Tumblr at the pop
Culture Diary podcast, and the Facebook page the pop Culture
(44:04):
Diary for more pop culture fun, extras, and behind the
scenes madness. Until next time, everyone, take care of yourselves
and I'll see you in the next episode.
Welcome to the pop Culture Diary. This is your go
to spot for trends, gossip, and throwbacks. I'm your host page,
and each week we're flipping through the pages of pop
culture history. We'll talk about everything from neon soaked eighties
nights to the wild early days of the two thousands
(00:23):
and beyond. You can expect the fashions, the music, the movies,
the biggest news headlines, the scandals, and basically everything that
had us talking, laughing, and obsessing. So grab some snacks,
get cozy and luxury wine the pages of time. All right,
(00:49):
Diary friends, here we go again. Welcome to nineteen eighty one.
This was a year that proves the eighties were not
easing into anything. They We're diving headfirst. We've got a
brand new president moving into the White House, and before
he can even hang up his coat, someone tries to
take him out across the pond. The world tunes in
(01:13):
for a royal wedding that looked like a fairy tale,
if your fairy tales involve a dress with a train
so long it needed its own postal code. But nineteen
eighty one isn't just about the big headlines. It's the
year music finally got a face or a whole new
channel really thanks to MTV. All of a sudden, how
(01:37):
you looked was just as important as how you sounded.
And while all of that was happening, arcades were full
of people feeding quarters into a game about a little
yellow circle with an eating problem. On the toy shelves,
action heroes got muscles that made Arnold Schwarzenegger look underwhelming.
(02:00):
And of course, the celebrity gossip pages, let's just say
they were very busy this year. So grab your diary,
get comfy, and let's flip the page to nineteen eighty one.
It's messy, loud, and it's gonna be fun. Nineteen eighty
(02:22):
one was a year where the world decided new decade,
new chaos. Let's take a little trip through the news
cycle that kept everyone talking, worrying, or just scratching their heads.
Ronald Reagan becomes the fortieth president on January twentieth. The
(02:44):
Gipper took the oath, and immediately America's vibe was like
cowboy optimism meets Hollywood's star power. It was like electing
your grandfather if your grandfather starred in Bedtime for Bonzo.
Just minute after Reagan took office, the fifty two American
hostages held in Iran for four hundred and forty four
(03:07):
days were released. The timing was suspiciously cinematic, like Iran
was waiting for Reagan to say action before they let
the curtain drop. Still, after more than a year of
nightly news updates and yellow ribbons tied around trees, the
return of the hostages felt like a Super Bowl win.
(03:30):
Then came March. A man named John Hinckley Junior decided
the best way to impress Jody Foster was by attempting
to assassinate Reagan. Spoiler alert. It didn't work. Reagan survived,
and Hinckley became famous for all the wrong reasons. Three
other men were injured, including Press Secretary James Brady, who
(03:55):
was left permanently disabled. The incident also gave Reagan a
bout Czar approval Bomp. Turns out nothing says leadership like
surviving a gunshot and cracking jokes about it in the er.
In a much more positive milestone, Sandrady O'Connor was sworn
in as the first woman on the US Supreme Court. Finally,
(04:19):
the highest court in the land looked a little less
like the world's most exclusive men's club, a genuinely historic moment.
It was one of the few headlines of nineteen eighty
one that didn't end in assassination, attempt or crisis. Meanwhile,
NASA gave us a peek into the future with the
(04:41):
launch of Space Shuttle Columbia. It was the first reusable
spacecraft mission, proving you could blast something into orbit and
bring it back home in one piece, which honestly feels
more impressive than any moon landing. Columbia's success was like
the tech demo of the decade, the first step towards
(05:03):
space travel being less sci fi movie and more reality
show pilot episode. But nineteen eighty one wasn't just about rockets.
It was also the year that doctors began reporting rare
cancers in young gay men, early signs of what we
now know as the aide's crisis. At the time, it
(05:25):
was called quote the gay cancer, causing both medical confusion
and the deep stigma that would really be the foundation
for the epidemic four decades. This was the start of
one of the most heartbreaking health crises and modern history.
But in nineteen eighty one, most people had no idea
(05:48):
what was coming on the other side of the Atlantic.
The world stopped everything on July twenty ninth to watch
the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Dianas Spencer. Over
seven hundred and fifty million people tuned in, making it
the most watched TV event in history. Diana's dress had
(06:11):
a twenty five foot train, her face had a shy smile,
and by the end of the day she was a
global icon. Forget presidents and astronauts, nineteen eighty one belonged
to Lady die Back. In the US, air traffic controllers
went on strike in August, demanding better working conditions. Reagan
(06:35):
responded by firing over eleven thousand of them in one swoop.
He made it clear you don't mess with the president
unless you want to end up unemployed. Commercial flying was
never quite the same, but hey, at least Reagan proved
he knew how to swing the corporate acts. In October,
(06:56):
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was assassinated by extremists during a
military parade. Sadat had signed the Camp David Peace Accords
just a few years earlier, earning a Nobel prize. His
murder was a harsh reminder that world peace doesn't come
easy and that standing up for diplomacy often makes you
(07:20):
a target. So there you have it. Nineteen eighty one's
headlines had historic firsts, pop culture, pageantry, and more than
a little gunfire. From Reagan dodging bullets to Diana walking
down the aisle to Columbia touching the stars, the year
(07:41):
was nothing if not dramatic. If the headlines were dramatic,
the gossip columns were like theater. And let's be honest,
half of what we remember about the early eighties is
not politics or economics. It's who wore what, who kissed who,
(08:03):
and who made the tabloid's cry uncle. Let's start with
the obvious, Princess Diana. If celebrity gossip was a stock
market in nineteen eighty one, Diana's value shot through the
(08:23):
roof overnight. One minute, she's a shy, nineteen year old
kindergarten teacher, the next she's a princess with more photographers
in her face than actual wedding guests. The press couldn't
get enough, from what she wore, to how she smiled,
to the fact that her engagement ring wasn't even custom
(08:47):
a royal picking a catalog ring scandalous. The press called
her shy Die, which was ironic because she couldn't take
a step without a hundred flash of popping in her face.
Her every outfit became headline news. People wrote think pieces
(09:08):
about how she waved and behind the fairytale wedding where
she walked down the aisle in that huge, puffed up
wedding dress with a twenty five foot train, there was
already a fairytale crack. Charles was famously quoted before the
engagement about being quote in love whatever that means end
(09:31):
quote translation. The tabloids had a field day speculating about Camilla.
Spoiler alert, they were not wrong. On the Broadway front,
Patty Lapone was giving critics goosebumps as avida and giving
backstage crews migraines. Her reputation for being let's say direct,
(09:55):
was already taking shape. Gossip flew about her off stage intensity,
and while some called it diva behavior, others called it passion.
Either way, she was unforgettable, both on stage and in
the rumor mill. Broadway insiders whispered, don't cross Patty, and
(10:18):
the press loved every second of it. Over in Hollywood,
the early eighties were prime time for blockbuster filmmaking, but
Can's Film Festival leaned extra artsy this year with appearances
from Jack Nicholson, Jessica Lang, and Shaka Khan. Somewhere between
(10:39):
cocktails and standing ovations, actors and musicians were deciding who
would be the next serious artiste and who would just
end up on the gossip pages. Jack Nicholson was Hollywood's
unofficial mascot of Mayhem, Can's Film Festival in nineteen eighty
one was practice his personal playground. He showed up with
(11:03):
a grin that said I know something you don't and
sunglasses that said and I'm not telling. Add Jessica Lang
into the mix with her rising star power and whispered flings,
and you had gossip writers scribbling like mad just to
keep up. While Reagan was dodging bullets and astronauts were
(11:26):
floating in space, music was getting its own makeover. MTV
was born on August first, nineteen eighty one at twelve
oh one am. The network launched with Video Killed the
Radio Star by the Buggles. MTV was the real gossip machine.
For the first time, musicians were not just sounds, they
(11:50):
were visuals, fashion icons. Gossip fodder. David Bowie didn't need
the gossip columns his video. Those were gossip columns. Madonna
was just beginning her climb, and Debbie Harry of Blondie
was the poster girl of coool, with people dissecting her
(12:11):
every haircut and outfit. Suddenly rock stars could not hide
behind their records. Their cheekbones and fashion choices were now
part of the package. And yes, that meant gossip mags
had a whole new playground. Hair got bigger, pants got tighter,
(12:32):
and suddenly everyone had a smoke machine in their garage.
Oh and let's not forget the Hollywood meets politics crossover.
Ronald Reagan being both a president and a former movie
star meant gossip columns were not just asking about foreign policy.
They were asking who the Reagans invited to dinner, what
(12:55):
Nancy wore, and how the First Lady's astrology obsession was
running the calendar. Yes, Nancy really did rely on an astrologer,
and yes that was whispered about endlessly. In nineteen eighty one,
the gossip pages also had their somber notes. The assassination
(13:17):
of John Lennon in late nineteen eighty was still dominating conversations.
In nineteen eighty one, paparazzi hounded Yoko Ono, dissected Lennon's
last interviews and asked tasteless questions about his legacy. Not
even grief was safe from gossip. So nineteen eighty one,
(13:40):
as I mentioned, was like theater. It was about royalty
as soap opera, politics as Hollywood, and musicians as fashion models.
The gossip rags were chok full and they had no
intention of losing momentum. Next up, fashion trends. We all
(14:19):
know Lady Dye stole the Royal Fashion Show, But on
the other end of the spectrum, women in the workplace
were embracing the early stages of power dressing. Shoulder pads
were still quietly padding their way into boardrooms, giving everyone
that linebacker chic silhouette. The message was clear, Yes, I
(14:41):
can balance this spreadsheet and tackle you if I need to.
Designers like Giorgio Armani were pioneering chic, structured suits for women,
creating a look that screamed authority with just enough style
to keep it. Glam bands and hop stars started leaning
(15:01):
into visual, flare, punk and new wave looks like Neon colors,
asymmetrical cuts, wild hair, eyeliner for everyone started spilling off
stage and onto the streets. Fashion wasn't just clothes anymore.
It was costume, attitude and brand identity. Sunglasses got bigger,
(15:25):
belts got wider, jewelry got louder. This was the dawn
of the more is More era. If you had earrings
that could brush your shoulders, you were doing it right.
If your makeup did not look like it could be
seen from space, were you even trying? Shows like Dynasty,
(15:46):
which premiered in January of nineteen eighty one, pushed high
glam styles straight into American living rooms. Viewers tuned in
not just for the scandal, but to see Joan Collins
dripping in sequins, feathers, and enough diamonds to blind her
co stars under the studio lights. The drama wasn't just
(16:08):
in the dialogue. It was in the shoulder pads, the gowns,
and the hair that defied gravity. Nineteen eighty one wasn't
about playing it safe. It was about looking like the
main character wherever you went, whether you were getting married
on live television in front of seven hundred and fifty
million people, sitting behind a desk, or just heading to
(16:32):
the grocery store. The bigger, shinier, puffier, or boulder the better.
All right, let's talk about toys and games in nineteen
eighty one. This was the year kids begged their parents
for things that either glowed, beeped, or looked like they
(16:53):
could beat up Gi Joe. So let's start with the
he Man and the Masters of the Universe. This was
the toy launch of nineteen eighty one. Mattel introduced he
Man action figures, and suddenly every living room had a tiny, plastic,
(17:15):
muscle bound warrior shouting by the power of gray Skull.
He Man was not just a toy, he was basically
a steroid ad that you could play with. His supporting
cast included Skeletor, who somehow managed to be both terrifying
and fabulous with his purple hood and blue muscles. Kids
(17:39):
loved it, parents not so much once they realized they'd
be buying thirty different figures, a giant castle, and a
plastic battle cat that cost as much as a tank
of gas. If there's one thing that truly sums up
nineteen eighty one, it's pac Man, released in nineteen eighty
(17:59):
and Japan by nineteen eighty one, it had exploded in
the US. Arcades were stuffed full of people guiding that
little yellow pizza with a missing slice around mazes, chomping dots,
and dodging ghosts. The game was so popular it didn't
just stay in arcades. There were pac Man board games,
(18:23):
pac Man cereal, pac Man toys, and even pac Man cartoons. Basically,
pac Man was the Kardashian of nineteen eighty one, everywhere,
unavoidable and merchandised within an inch of its life. Cabbage
Patch kids were not huge just yet. Their big boom
(18:44):
would come in a couple of years, but eighty one
kids were still big on dolls, hot wheels, and good
old Lego sets. Rubik's Cube, launched globally in nineteen eighty,
was still melting brains everywhere, mostly because no one could
actually solve it without peeling off the stickers. If you
(19:05):
weren't playing pac Man in eighty one, you were probably
trying your hand at Donkey Kong, which hit arcades that year.
It introduced the world to a little character known as Jumpman,
who you might know better today as Mario Yep. The
mustached plumber started out climbing ladders and dodging barrels thrown
(19:28):
by a giant ape. Arcades were basically the TikTok of
eighty one, addictive everywhere, and the reason kids begged their
parents for quarters like their lives depended on it. While
arcades got all of the attention, families were still gathering
around board games like Monopoly, Clue, and Sorry, all classics
(19:53):
that kept their place in eighty one, but new at
home electronic games were creeping in. Handheld led games like
Mattel Football were still around, and more kids were starting
to dream of having a full console system in their
living room instead of just chasing ghosts at the arcade.
(20:16):
Toys and games in nineteen eighty one had one rule,
go big or go neon whether you were mastering Eternia
with he Man, battling ghosts with Pat Man, or peeling
the stickers off your Rubik's Cube and frustration, there was
no shortage of fun. Playtime was loud, colorful, and, let's
(20:37):
be honest, a little bit weird, but that's the magic
of the early nineteen eighties. Nineteen eighty one was a
year when Hollywood was equal parts dazzling glamour and campy chaos.
A mix of Oscar worthy drama and box office bombs
(20:59):
that people pretend they didn't see but absolutely did. First
up the movies, Let's just say if you went to
(21:24):
the theater in nineteen eighty one, you were probably watching
Harrison Ford crack a whip and run from a giant
boulder in Raiders of the Lost Arc. It was pure
popcorn spectacle, the birth of Indiana Jones and the reason
archaeology majors briefly thought their lives were going to be adventurous,
(21:45):
only to discover it's mostly about cataloging pottery shards and
dusty basements. Still, Spielberg and Lucas delivered what was basically
two hours of cinematic adrenaline see these snakes, explosions, and
audiences couldn't get enough. Meanwhile, on the darker side, we
(22:09):
had The Evil Dead, Sam Raymie's low budget horror masterpiece
that looked like it was held together with duct tape
and gallons of fake blood because it pretty much was.
Despite the shaky camera work and effects that looked suspiciously
like oatmeal and red food dye, it became an instant
(22:29):
cult classic. Nothing says let's have a good time like
Demonic Possession and a remote cabin, and speaking of demons,
an American werewolf in London had people questioning whether they'd
ever trust a full moon again. Rick Baker's transformation effects
(22:49):
were so groundbreaking that the Academy had to invent a
brand new category Best Makeup Translation, where We'll pair and
latex skin finally got the respect they deserved. But nineteen
eighty one wasn't all blood and monsters. Chariots of Fire
(23:10):
gave audiences something more refined, a British period piece about
Olympic runners, It walked away with Best Picture at the
Oscars and more importantly, gave the world its iconic slow
motion beach running scene. To this day, people still use
that music whenever they jog fifty feet and want to
(23:33):
feel like an Olympian. On the lighter side, we had
author starring Dudley Moore as a drunk millionaire who proved
that if you were charming enough, you can get away
with anything, even slurring your way through most of the dialogue.
And if you were a kid in eighty one, chances
(23:54):
are you dragged your parents to Superman two. Christopher Reeve
was back in the tight Zod was demanding everyone Neil
and kids were realizing that, yes, sequels really can be fun. Now,
let's slip over to TV. Nineteen eighty one was the
(24:39):
year networks really leaned into the comfort food of television.
Sitcoms and soaps ruled the airwaves. Dynasties strutted onto screens
that January, dripping with diamonds, shoulder pads, and enough backstabbing
to keep America hooked. It was ABC's answered to Dallas,
(25:01):
which had already made Who Shot Jr? A national obsession.
Dynasty basically said hold my martini and watch me throw
it in your face. Meanwhile, daytime TV was pure drama.
Luke and Laura's wedding on General Hospital wasn't just a
soap opera event, it was a full blown cultural phenomenon.
(25:25):
Thirty million people tuned in, making it the most watched
hour and daytime TV history. To put that into a perspective,
that's basically the population of Canada. The ceremony was like
the royal wedding of Port Charles, with just slightly fewer
tierras and way more hairspray. Comedy got a boost with
(25:49):
Hill Street Blues, which debuted in eighty one and redefined
the police procedural instead of the squeaky clean case of
the week formula. It gave viewers messy storylines, overlapping plots,
and characters with flaws. Suddenly, cops were not just heroes,
(26:10):
they were humans who yelled at each other in the
squad room and forgot to shave. It set the stage
for every gritty drama to come. So in short, nineteen
eighty one's Entertainment Buffet gave us Nazis getting punched, wear wolves,
sprouting hair in real time, soap opera, weddings bigger than
(26:33):
real weddings, and a brand new channel dedicated to watching
men and eyeliner strum guitars. It was messy, it was glamorous,
and it was unforgettable. Nineteen eighty one was one of
those years where technology really started stretching its legs, tripping
(26:56):
over them, and then somehow sprinting into the future anyway.
A mix of clunky plastic, flashing green text, and state
of the art machines that today could not outcompute your toaster.
First up the crown jewel, the IBM personal computer fifty
(27:19):
one point fifty, released in August of nineteen eighty one
for the first time IBM made a computer for the masses,
and by masses, I mean anyone who had one thousand,
five hundred sixty five dollars to drop on a base
model with sixteen K of memory. Yes, K, that's less
(27:41):
than the average emoji filled text message today, but back
then that was enough power to make businesses swoon and
hobbyist faint with joy. The IBM PC used Microsoft's MS
DOS operating system, which meant you spent a lot lot
of time staring at a black screen and typing cryptic
(28:03):
commands like some kind of hacker and a Cold War
spy movie. No icons, no mouse, no candy crush, just
a blinking cursor daring you to figure out what the
hell see colon greater than symbol meant. And while IBM
was convincing office managers they absolutely needed a computer, portable
(28:27):
music was having a glow up. Sony's Walkman was still
the must have gadget in eighty one. Picture it teenagers
with giant foam headphones, dramatically rewinding mixtapes with a pencil
and feeling cooler than anyone else on the planet. The
Walkmen did not just change how people listened to music.
(28:49):
It basically invented the concept of a soundtrack for your life.
Nothing says the main character energy like blasting journeys don't
stop believing on a cassette player the size of a brick.
Speaking of bricks, mobile phones in nineteen eighty one were
more gem workout than sleek accessory. The first commercially available
(29:15):
mobile phone, the Motorola Dine Attack eight thousand X, was
still a couple of years away, but prototypes existed. Early
adopters in eighty one were basically lugging around car phones
that required an actual car to function. Imagine trying to
flirt on the phone while shouting over the sound of
(29:38):
an idling engine. Smooth. Now, let's get into the games.
(30:00):
Video games were exploding as we talked about the arcade
was the place to be. Nineteen eighty one gave us
a little gem called Donkey Kong, where a plumber named Mario.
Yes that Mario had to rescue his girlfriend from a
barrel throwing gorilla. Fun fact. Nintendo originally wanted Popeye as
(30:24):
the star, but licensing fell through, so instead of Spinach,
we got mushrooms, princesses, and a billion dollar empire. Probably
the best copyright problem in history, Home gaming also got
an upgrade. The Colac Vision was announced in nineteen eighty one,
(30:44):
though it wouldn't hit shelves until eighty two, promising arcade
quality graphics in your living room. This was revolutionary because
it meant you didn't have to leave the house to
play games, although to be fair, it still meant fighting
with your siblings over who got the joystick and blowing
(31:05):
into cartridges when they inevitably glitched. And for photography fans,
nineteen eighty one marked the debut of the Sony Mavaca,
the first consumer still video camera aka the great great
grandfather of your iPhone camera. It recorded images onto many
(31:26):
floppy discs. Imagine telling someone today that to send a
selfie you had to mail them a literal disc slide
into my floppy drive doesn't have the same ring to it. Meanwhile,
in the world of video entertainment, laser disc were trying
their hardest to look futuristic. These dinner plate sized discs
(31:51):
looked like the future, but played like the past. They
were expensive, bulky, and required special players, which meant most
people stuck to their trusty VHS tapes. The format war
was brewing, and spoiler alert laser disc lost hard. Oh,
and if you were rich enough, you could impress your
(32:13):
neighbors with a VCR, a device so coveted in eighty
one that families would practically plan movie nights around it.
Imagine renting Raiders of the Lost Dark and knowing you
could pause Harrison Ford midwhip Magic. So Yeah. Tech in
nineteen eighty one was equal parts groundbreaking and laughably primitive.
(32:39):
Computers with less power than your fridge, magnet phones that
lived in cars, cameras that ate floppy discs, and video
games that introduced the world's most famous plumber. Looking back,
it's easy to laugh, but in the moment, this was
the bleeding edge. If nineteen eighty cracked open the door
(33:04):
on the MTV era, nineteen eighty one barged in and
made itself comfortable. But outside of music videos, the year's charts, albums,
and celebrity drama were pure entertainment gold. Let's start with
the charts. Nineteen eighty one was ruled by arena rock, synthpop,
(33:37):
and ballads so powerful they could knock over your boombox.
Journey dropped Escape, giving us don't Stop Believing, the karaoke
anthem that refuses to die to this day. If you've
ever found yourself belting that song in a dive bar
at two am, you have nineteen eighty one to think. Meanwhile,
(34:00):
Phil Collins officially stepped into his solo era with Face Value,
featuring in the Air Tonight. The song's drum break became
so iconic it's practically a rite of passage to air
drum along. Legend has it the track was inspired by
Phil collins crumbling marriage, proving once again that heartbreak makes
(34:24):
for killer music. Speaking of heartbreak, Stevie Nix was flying
high on her solo debut Bella Donna, the witchy Queen
of rock, gave us edge of seventeen Yes the White
Winged Dove Song. Her mystical image, flowing shawls, and rumored
(34:44):
drug use made her a tabloid magnet, toss in whispers
of ongoing Fleetwood Mac drama and her on again off
again fleeing with Don Henley of the Eagles, and you've
got gossip writers foaming at the mouth. Not to be outdone,
the Rolling Stones were busy reminding everyone they weren't done
(35:06):
yet with Tattoo You. The singles start Me Up would
go on to become a stadium anthem and Microsoft's theme
song decades later. Mick Jagger also had the side hustle
of being photographed with every it girl alive, which only
fueled the image of him as rock's eternal playboy. Across
(35:29):
the Pond, durand Duran burst on the scene with their
self titled debut album, combining new wave sound with smoldering
good looks. They didn't just have fans, they had fangirls.
By the end of the year, they were unofficially crowned
the new heart throbs of the British Invasion two point
(35:49):
zero Q, the shrieking teenagers and the are they actually
musicians or just pretty boys? Debates. Then you had Sheena Easta,
who became America's sweetheart almost overnight with Morning Train nine
to five, innocent image, catchy song everyone's mom approved, but
(36:11):
behind the scenes Prince took notice. By the mid eighties,
she'd be in the Purple One's orbit, giving tabloid writers
plenty of ink to spill. And let's not forget Diana Ross,
who was living her best disco diva meets pop goddess
life with Endless Love. Her duet with Lionel Ritchie. The
(36:34):
song was massive, the kind of ballad that made couples
slow dance at weddings for decades. Diana Ross was also
sparking rumors with her high profile social life, including a
speculation about her relationship with Gene Simmons of Kiss. Imagine
that crossover motown glamour meets glam rock face paint behind
(36:59):
the glitter. Though the music scene was shifting, Punk's chaos
gave way to new wave. Polish fans like The Go
Gos released Beauty and the Beat, the first album by
an all female band who wrote their own songs to
hit number one on the Billboard chart. They were playful, punky,
(37:19):
and partied harder than most of their male peers, which
tabloids ate up. Let's just say they're behind the scenes
antics made almost famous look tame, and of course, rock
drama was eternal. Ozzy Osbourne made headlines not just for
leaving Black Sabbath, but for biting the heads off two
(37:43):
live doves at a CBS Records meeting in nineteen eighty one.
This was before the bat incident in nineteen eighty two.
Totally normal workplace behavior. Debbie Harry and Blondie kept disco
and punk. Married with the Tide is high, cementing Debbie
(38:04):
Harry as both a music and fashion icon, and rumors
swirled around Elton John's love life as he navigated his
career post seventies superstardom. Let's go through the top ten
singles of nineteen eighty one the Billboard year end Hot
one hundred, Coming in at number one, Betty Davis Eyes
(38:28):
by Kim Carnes, The raspy voice anthem about the ultimate
fem fatale absolutely dominated the year. Fun fact, Kim Carnes
wasn't even the first to record it, but she made
it unforgettable. Coming in at number two, Endless Love by
Diana Ross and Lionel Richie, the wedding song of the
(38:50):
early eighties. This duet was so big it turned Lionel
Richie into a full blown solo star. Number three was
Laid by Kenny Rogers, written by Lionel Richie. So Yeah,
nineteen eighty one was basically his year number four, just
like Starting Over by John Lennon. Tragically, his death in
(39:14):
December of nineteen eighty made this track bittersweet. Coming in
at number five was Jesse's Girl by Rick Springfield. The
teen crush anthem of all time. Springfield even won a
Grammy for it, and Yes, Jesse was based on a
real person. Number six Celebration by Cool in the Gang,
(39:37):
still a party playlist essential. If you've ever been forced
onto a dance floor at a wedding, blame this song.
Number seven Kiss on My List by Daryl Hall and
John Oates. The duo was unstoppable in the early eighties,
and this sugary pop track put them at the top
(39:57):
of the charts, coming in at number eight. I Love
a Rainy Night by Eddie Rabbit, a little country pop
crossover magic that soaked up the airwaves, coming in at
number nine. Nine to five by Dolly Pardon, the working
woman's anthem that was as sassy as it was catchy.
(40:18):
Dolly owned both the movie and the charts, and coming
in at number ten, Keep On Loving You by Reo
Speedwagon Arena rock perfection, slow build, big chorus, lighter waving,
power ballad vibes. Now, let's go through the Billboard year
(40:40):
end top ten albums of nineteen eighty one, coming in
at number one. Double Fantasy by John Lennon and Yoko
Ono shot to the top after Lennon's Murder. It's a
strange mix of optimism and tragedy in Hindsight. Number two
High Infidelity by Reo Speedwagon, packed with its hits like
(41:03):
keep On Loving You and Take It on the Run.
It basically soundtracked Middle America in nineteen eighty one, coming
in at number three. Paradise Theater by Styx, concept rock
about a Chicago Theater's glory days, proving progressive rock could
steal chart big Number four Back in Black by ACDC,
(41:27):
released in nineteen eighty but still crushing it in nineteen
eighty one, pure riff driven perfection and a tribute to
their late singer Bond Scott. Number five Glass Houses by
Billy Joel. Billy Joel went rockier here and it worked.
(41:47):
Its still rock and roll to me kept him on top,
coming in at number six. Galcho by Steely Dan slick
jazz rock perfection a critics, even if some listeners didn't
get it. Number seven The Game by Queen thanks to
(42:08):
another One Bites the Dust and crazy little thing called Love.
This was Queen's US chart peak, coming in at number eight.
Against the Wind by Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band.
The album that made Bob Seger a household name. Heartland
rock at its peak number nine, Zenyata Mandada by The
(42:32):
Police features Don't Stand So Close to Me and d
Do Doodoo De Dodada. Sting and Crew were building towards superstardom,
coming in at number ten Crimes of Passion by Pat
Benatar with hit Me with Your Best Shot. Pat cemented
herself as the queen of rock radio. By year's end,
(42:57):
it was clear nineteen eighty one was an just about
the launch of MTV. The music itself was wild, emotional, experimental,
and often tangled up in deliciously messy personal lives. Between
Stevie Nix's whitchy love triangles, Mick Jagger's endless Conquests, and
(43:18):
Ozzie's Bird Buffet, the tabloids had no shortage of copy
and the music It's still on your playlist today. That's
it for today's trip through the pop culture Diary. Thanks
for tuning in and taking a trip back in time
for a hit of nostalgia with me. Don't forget to
(43:40):
follow the podcast wherever you get your shows, rate review,
and keep an eye out for the podcast on social
media over on Instagram. At the pop Culture Diary Podcast,
Twitter at pop cult Diary Pod, Tumblr at the pop
Culture Diary podcast, and the Facebook page the pop Culture
(44:04):
Diary for more pop culture fun, extras, and behind the
scenes madness. Until next time, everyone, take care of yourselves
and I'll see you in the next episode.
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