September 26, 2025 • 24 mins
1982 was a year dripping with drama. From Princess Diana giving birth under the world’s watchful eye to Hollywood couples burning hot in the tabloids, gossip was everywhere…and we were eating it up. Music, movies, fashion, and scandals collided in a year that defined the glossy side of the ‘80s.
Sources:
Social Media:
Sources:
- https://www.history.com/a-year-in-history/1982
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982_in_the_United_States
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_Year-End_Hot_100_singles_of_1982
- https://www.classicpopmag.com/features/1982-music
- https://www.wired.com/2012/12/dec-26-1982-times-top-man-the-personal-computer
- https://www.historic-newspapers.com/blogs/article/1982-timeline
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982_in_American_television
- https://slicingupeyeballs.com/2013/05/01/best-albums-of-1982
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_(album)
Social Media:
- Twitter / X: https://x.com/popcultdiarypod
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/thepopculturediarypodcast
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/thepopculturediary
- ThePopCultureDiary@gmail.com
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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. Nineteen
(00:47):
eighty two was a turning point. The world was in
political upheaval, music was changing forever, movies were completely changing
what it meant to feel wonder or terror, and a
few scandals made headlines so juicy they still drip decades later.
(01:08):
Grab your walkman, adjust your shoulder pads, and log into
a year when even Time magazine admitted that humans were
not the most important story anymore. Welcome to nineteen eighty two.
Let's get right into the big headlines. Nineteen eighty two
(01:35):
wasted no time stirring the pot and April Argentina invaded
the Falkland Islands, setting off a ten week war with Britain.
It was like a playground fight, except instead of name calling,
it was airstrikes and naval battles. Enter Margaret Thatcher, the
(01:56):
iron Lady. She wasn't about to let a few windswept
rocks slipped through her manicured fingers. By June, Britain had won,
Argentina's military government was humiliated, and Margaret Thatcher's approval ratings
shot up like a Thatcher era interest rate. Back in
(02:17):
the US, a tragedy hit Detroit. Vincent Chen, a twenty
seven year old Chinese American, was brutally beaten to death
by two auto workers who blamed him for Japan's dominance
in the auto industry, except Vincent was not Japanese. The
(02:37):
killers got light sentences, sparking outrage and igniting the Asian
American civil rights movement. It was one of those moments
that made people realize the justice system wasn't exactly just Meanwhile,
the Equal Rights Amendment fizzled out after ten years of
(02:58):
debate to win enough state ratifications. Women were told essentially sorry,
equalities not in fashion this season, and a spoiler, we're
still waiting another headline grabber, John Hinckley Junior, the man
(03:18):
who shot Ronald Reagan in nineteen eighty one to impress
Jody Foster, went on trial. The verdict not guilty by
reason of insanity. Americans were not thrilled, because apparently shooting
the president wasn't insane enough for some people. Then came
(03:39):
one of the most shocking tragedies of the year. Princess
Grace of Monico, formerly Hollywood's Grace Kelly, died after suffering
a stroke and crashing her car. The fairy tale of
a movie star turned Royal ended far too soon, casting
a shadow over Monica sunshine and as if Hollywood did
(04:04):
not have enough drama. John DeLorean, the carmaker behind the
goal Winged Wonder that would one day star and back
to the Future, was arrested in an FBI sting for
cocaine trafficking. He was acquitted, but the trial left his
reputation stalled somewhere on the side of the highway across
(04:27):
the globe. Leonid Breznev, the Soviet leader who'd been in
power so long he was practically Soviet furniture, died in November.
He was replaced by Yuri Andropov, a man with all
the warmth of a Siberian winter. If you needed an
(04:48):
escape from the chaos, nineteen eighty two's box office was
more than happy to provide. The year's biggest hit was
(05:12):
E t The Extraterrestrial, Steven Spielberg's heart tugging alien story
that made audiences cry, laugh, and suddenly crave Reese's pieces.
Elliott and his glowing fingered friend became instant icons and
bicycles were never looked at the same way again. But
(05:33):
if you weren't into adorable aliens, you could turn to horror.
Poltergeist had TVs sucking children into the static and clowns
terrorizing bedrooms. Suburban life was officially terrifying. Teenagers got their
moment in the spotlight with Fast Times at Ridgemont High,
(05:56):
where Sean Penn's Spacoli defined stonor philosoph for a generation.
Quote All I need are some tasty waves, a cool buzz,
and I'm fine end quote. The film didn't just capture
teen life, it launched careers for Jennifer Jason Lee, Judge Reinhold,
(06:17):
and even a young Nicholas Cage. And let's not forget
the darker side of Hollywood that year on the set
of twilight Zone, the movie, a helicopter accident killed actor
Vic Morrow and two child actors, sparking outrage and lawsuits
that haunted the film industry four years now, Grab your
(06:45):
clicker and let's flip through television shows. On the TV front,
(07:10):
the Golden Globes were thrown into scandal when Pia Zadora
won New Star of the Year. Rumor had it her
wealthy husband bought the award, because when your career is shaky,
it helps to have deep pockets. Meanwhile, cable TV was
making history. CNN launched Headline News, a twenty four hour
(07:34):
feed of bite sized news stories. The idea of endless
news seems strange at the time. Now we'd call it Tuesday.
Let's get into the music, because the music scene was
pure electricity. Olivia Newton John ruled the charts with physical
(08:07):
making workout leotards and sweatbands hotter than any gym membership survivors.
I of the Tiger roared onto the radio thanks to
Rocky three, and suddenly everyone thought they could box. Spoiler,
they couldn't. Jon Jet gave us I Love rock and Roll,
(08:29):
an anthem that turned jukeboxes into declarations of Rebellion. Meanwhile,
Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder tried to teach the world
about harmony literally with Ebony and Ivory. The reviews were
not all glowing, but hey, the message was nice. But
(08:49):
the real earthquake came. In November, Michael Jackson released Thriller.
The album didn't just sell, it rewrote music history. Seven
top ten singles, record breaking sales, music videos that became
cultural events, and that red leather jacket suddenly everyone wanted one.
(09:15):
MTV may have launched the year before, but Thriller turned
it into a cultural juggernaut. Not only that, gossip swirled
around how eccentric he was, the pet animals, the glove,
and whispers that Wacko Jacko wasn't far from becoming his
tabloid nickname for sheer spectacle. Nothing topped Ozzy Osbourne biting
(09:41):
the head off a live bat at a show in Iowa.
He thought it was fake until he realized it wasn't.
Around of Raby's shots. Later, Ozzie's legend was cemented. Mick
Jagger never left the gossip pages, his casual fleeings and
(10:02):
affairs keeping rock and roll excessive indulgence in Sensual Pleasures Alive.
Stevie Nicks was flying high after Belladonna in nineteen eighty one,
but rumors of love triangles, breakups and wild backstage antics
with Fleetwood Mac never died down. Punk was giving way
(10:24):
to new wave, and with it came outlandish fashion and
more outlandish behavior. Think hair jail budgets higher than some
movie productions. So let's go through the top ten Billboard
Hot one hundred singles of nineteen eighty two. Coming in
(10:45):
at number one, Olivia Newton John with Physical number two,
Survivors I of the Tiger number three, Jone Jet and
the Blackhearts I Love Rock and Roll coming in at
number four, Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder with Ebony and
Ivory number five, The Jay Gails Band with Centerfold number six,
(11:12):
The Human Leagues Don't You Want Me? Number seven and
eight belonged to John Cougar Mellencamp, with number seven being
Jack and Diane and number eight Hurt So Good, Number
nine Soft Cells Tainted Love, and coming in at number
ten was Chicago with hard to Say I'm Sorry. Billboard
(11:37):
had their top two hundred albums of nineteen eighty two,
and these were the top ten number one Asia with
their self titled album. Coming in at number two was
John Cougar Mellencamp American Fool number three, The Go Gos
album Beauty and the Beat. Coming in at number four
(12:01):
was Fleetwood Mac with their album Mirage number five, Men
at Work with Business as Usual number six, Paul McCartney
with Tug of War number seven, al Do Nova with
their self titled album number eight, The Human League with
(12:22):
Dare number nine, Stevie Nicks Bella Donna, and coming in
at number ten was Rick Springfield with success Hasn't Spoiled
Me Yet. Nineteen eighty two was the year of anthems
and power hits, from I of the Tiger turning every
(12:42):
treadmill into a rocky montage, to Tainted Love making Heartbreak
sound like a goth dance party if. Nineteen eighty one
set the stage for bold Fashion nineteen eighty two to
crank the volume all the way up to You're going
(13:03):
to see me whether you want to or not. Shoulder
pads were still dominating in nineteen eighty two. Women in
(13:25):
the workplace were dressing like they were about to body
slam anyone in their way. Think Dynasty wardrobes, sharp tailoring, sequins,
and I will crush you in this boardroom, but still
look fabulous doing it. Energy. Jane Fonda's workout tapes hit
in the early eighties and instantly turned neon spandex into
(13:49):
casual wear. Suddenly, it was socially acceptable to look like
you just stepped out of an aerobics class, whether or
not you'd ever lifted a leg warm in your life.
Jeans went from casual to luxury. Statement labels like Jordash, Calvin,
Klein and Guests made denim a high fashioned staple Brooks
(14:13):
Shields infamous, nothing comes between Me and my Calvin's ad
still echoing in America's collective memory and in every suburban mall.
Chunky plastic jewelry, massive belts, and sunglasses that looked big
enough to shield your entire face from the sun were everywhere.
(14:35):
If your earrings couldn't double as a weapon in a
street fight, you were not doing it right. The preppy
handbook dropped in nineteen eighty, and by nineteen eighty two
the trend was in full swing. Popped collars, pastel sweaters,
and boat shoes galore, basically the uniform of every future
(14:58):
frat boy was born here. Nineteen eighty two, style was
either about to break into an aerobics montage or I'm
Joan Collins and I will eat you alive. There was
no middle ground. Eighty two was a huge year for toys,
(15:20):
where old classics meshed with innovative tech. Home gaming was
at its peak with the Atari. Twenty six hundred kids
were glued to Pong, Pac Man and Space Invaders. The
(15:43):
graphics may have been blocky enough to make your eyes cross,
but at the time it was mind blowing. And yet
the infamously terrible Et video game would follow in nineteen
eighty two, making landfill history. By eighty two, Rubik's Cubes
were in every household, every school desk, every frustrated kid's bedroom.
(16:09):
The World Cube Championship was even held in Hungary, where
competitors raced to solve it in seconds, all the while
the rest of us were still peeling the stickers off
and arranging them, pretending to be champs to all our
friends and families. Mattel's toy line exploded in popularity, paving
(16:30):
the way for the cartoon he Man and Masters of
the Universe. Every kid suddenly wanted a castle a sword
and a plastic muscle bound action figure who yelled, I
have the power. There was also My Little Pony. These
pastel ponies debuted in eighty two, complete with colorful manes
(16:54):
and cutesy symbols on their rumps, a toy that somehow
managed to be ador horrible, collectible, and slightly creepy when
you had twenty of them lined up. When it came
to board games, Trivial Pursuit was first published in eighty
two and quickly became the game to prove you knew
(17:14):
random trivia that nobody cared about until they lost and
cared very much. Nineteen eighty two Toys dared to ask,
do you want your entertainment blocky pastel or capable of
giving you carpal tunnel before you hit middle school? Let's
(17:36):
talk about the world of tech and gadgets of nineteen
eighty two, CDs hit the market. Compact discs debuted in Japan,
with Sony and Phillips pushing the shiny little discs as
the next big thing in music. Suddenly Vinyl wasn't just
(17:59):
for boomer it was getting dethroned. Commodore sixty four, the
best selling computer of all time dropped in eighty two, Affordable, colorful,
and revolutionary for home computing. Kids who got one were
the envy of the block, even if half the time
(18:20):
it just displayed ready still reigning supreme, the Walkman turned
every sidewalk into a potential runway. By eighty two, it
wasn't just a gadget, it was a lifestyle bonus points.
If you rewound your mixtapes with a pencil, then we
(18:41):
had camquarders and vhs. The VHS versus Betamax war was
still raging, but by eighty two VHS had pretty much
secured the crown. Families were now recording birthday parties, embarrassing
dance recitals, and way too many hours of shaky camcorder footage.
(19:05):
While still the size of bricks and reserved for the rich,
the groundwork for mobile phones was well underway. Imagine carrying
something heavier than your lunch box just to make a call.
In eighty two, the gadgets were screaming the future is
now if you could afford a computer, a Walkman, and
(19:27):
maybe a twenty pound camquorder. Otherwise the future was watching
someone else show it off. Oh, now we get into
the celebrity gossip up. First, we have Richard Pryor's fire
(19:50):
incident fallout. The infamous nineteen eighty freebasing accident where Richard
Pryor set himself on fire was still making headlines in
nineteen eighty two. His return to the stage had people
whispering was he a survivor, a cautionary tale or both.
(20:11):
Hollywood spun it as a miracle comebat, but comedians behind
the scenes treated it as dark material for years. Saturday
Night Live was in its shaky years, but Eddie Murphy
was the breakout star who single handedly saved it. Gumbye
(20:33):
buckwheat mister Robinson's neighborhood. Eddie Murphy wasn't just famous, he
was the new face of comedy. Studios started chasing him,
and rumor sworld about whether he would ditch SNL too soon.
He would, and he'd conquer movies. Then the Kennedy curse continued.
(20:57):
The Kennedys could not escape the spotlight or the drama.
William Kennedy Smith's scandals were bubbling, Jackie O's every move
was scrutinized, and John F. Kennedy Junior was already being
dubbed America's Prince even in nineteen eighty two, tabloid culture
(21:19):
could not resist their tragedies, romances and mysterious ara. Of course,
there was Joan Collins and Dynasty Mania. Joan turned Dynasty
into the most deliciously scandalous soap on TV, and her
offscreen reputation was just as buzzy. Joan Collins leaned into
(21:43):
her man eater image, feeding gossip columns with juicy tidbits
about her marriages, affairs, and diamond dripping lifestyle. She became
the blueprint for tabloid stardom. We all still had Prince
This Diana fever two years into her marriage with Prince Charles.
(22:05):
Diana was the global obsession, the fashion, the fairy tale,
the charity work, and the cracks beginning to show. By
eighty two, rumors were already whispering about Charles and Camilla. Meanwhile,
Diana gave birth to Prince William that summer, and the
(22:25):
press practically camped outside her hospital window. And there were
Hollywood's odd couples. Bert Reynolds and Lonnie Anderson were everywhere,
matching tans, glitzy appearances, and rumors of things going sour.
They were the golden couple of gossip, Cher's love life
(22:47):
stayed under a microscope. She was dating younger men, reinventing
her image, and keeping the tabloids fed. Even in eighty two,
Elizabeth Taylor could an escape ape the gossip cycle. Multiple marriages, illnesses,
and diamonds that could blind the press. She was always relevant,
(23:09):
even when she wasn't starring in anything. Nineteen eighty two.
Gossip was a cocktail of royal fairytales cracking at the seams,
soap opera villains spilling into real life, and rock stars,
proving that eyeliner and scandal were inseparable. If the seventies
(23:31):
gave us wildness, the eighties made it glossy, televised, and
impossible to escape at the grocery store checkout. 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 head of nostalgia with me. Don't forget to follow
(23:53):
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 Diary
(24:18):
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. Nineteen
(00:47):
eighty two was a turning point. The world was in
political upheaval, music was changing forever, movies were completely changing
what it meant to feel wonder or terror, and a
few scandals made headlines so juicy they still drip decades later.
(01:08):
Grab your walkman, adjust your shoulder pads, and log into
a year when even Time magazine admitted that humans were
not the most important story anymore. Welcome to nineteen eighty two.
Let's get right into the big headlines. Nineteen eighty two
(01:35):
wasted no time stirring the pot and April Argentina invaded
the Falkland Islands, setting off a ten week war with Britain.
It was like a playground fight, except instead of name calling,
it was airstrikes and naval battles. Enter Margaret Thatcher, the
(01:56):
iron Lady. She wasn't about to let a few windswept
rocks slipped through her manicured fingers. By June, Britain had won,
Argentina's military government was humiliated, and Margaret Thatcher's approval ratings
shot up like a Thatcher era interest rate. Back in
(02:17):
the US, a tragedy hit Detroit. Vincent Chen, a twenty
seven year old Chinese American, was brutally beaten to death
by two auto workers who blamed him for Japan's dominance
in the auto industry, except Vincent was not Japanese. The
(02:37):
killers got light sentences, sparking outrage and igniting the Asian
American civil rights movement. It was one of those moments
that made people realize the justice system wasn't exactly just Meanwhile,
the Equal Rights Amendment fizzled out after ten years of
(02:58):
debate to win enough state ratifications. Women were told essentially sorry,
equalities not in fashion this season, and a spoiler, we're
still waiting another headline grabber, John Hinckley Junior, the man
(03:18):
who shot Ronald Reagan in nineteen eighty one to impress
Jody Foster, went on trial. The verdict not guilty by
reason of insanity. Americans were not thrilled, because apparently shooting
the president wasn't insane enough for some people. Then came
(03:39):
one of the most shocking tragedies of the year. Princess
Grace of Monico, formerly Hollywood's Grace Kelly, died after suffering
a stroke and crashing her car. The fairy tale of
a movie star turned Royal ended far too soon, casting
a shadow over Monica sunshine and as if Hollywood did
(04:04):
not have enough drama. John DeLorean, the carmaker behind the
goal Winged Wonder that would one day star and back
to the Future, was arrested in an FBI sting for
cocaine trafficking. He was acquitted, but the trial left his
reputation stalled somewhere on the side of the highway across
(04:27):
the globe. Leonid Breznev, the Soviet leader who'd been in
power so long he was practically Soviet furniture, died in November.
He was replaced by Yuri Andropov, a man with all
the warmth of a Siberian winter. If you needed an
(04:48):
escape from the chaos, nineteen eighty two's box office was
more than happy to provide. The year's biggest hit was
(05:12):
E t The Extraterrestrial, Steven Spielberg's heart tugging alien story
that made audiences cry, laugh, and suddenly crave Reese's pieces.
Elliott and his glowing fingered friend became instant icons and
bicycles were never looked at the same way again. But
(05:33):
if you weren't into adorable aliens, you could turn to horror.
Poltergeist had TVs sucking children into the static and clowns
terrorizing bedrooms. Suburban life was officially terrifying. Teenagers got their
moment in the spotlight with Fast Times at Ridgemont High,
(05:56):
where Sean Penn's Spacoli defined stonor philosoph for a generation.
Quote All I need are some tasty waves, a cool buzz,
and I'm fine end quote. The film didn't just capture
teen life, it launched careers for Jennifer Jason Lee, Judge Reinhold,
(06:17):
and even a young Nicholas Cage. And let's not forget
the darker side of Hollywood that year on the set
of twilight Zone, the movie, a helicopter accident killed actor
Vic Morrow and two child actors, sparking outrage and lawsuits
that haunted the film industry four years now, Grab your
(06:45):
clicker and let's flip through television shows. On the TV front,
(07:10):
the Golden Globes were thrown into scandal when Pia Zadora
won New Star of the Year. Rumor had it her
wealthy husband bought the award, because when your career is shaky,
it helps to have deep pockets. Meanwhile, cable TV was
making history. CNN launched Headline News, a twenty four hour
(07:34):
feed of bite sized news stories. The idea of endless
news seems strange at the time. Now we'd call it Tuesday.
Let's get into the music, because the music scene was
pure electricity. Olivia Newton John ruled the charts with physical
(08:07):
making workout leotards and sweatbands hotter than any gym membership survivors.
I of the Tiger roared onto the radio thanks to
Rocky three, and suddenly everyone thought they could box. Spoiler,
they couldn't. Jon Jet gave us I Love rock and Roll,
(08:29):
an anthem that turned jukeboxes into declarations of Rebellion. Meanwhile,
Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder tried to teach the world
about harmony literally with Ebony and Ivory. The reviews were
not all glowing, but hey, the message was nice. But
(08:49):
the real earthquake came. In November, Michael Jackson released Thriller.
The album didn't just sell, it rewrote music history. Seven
top ten singles, record breaking sales, music videos that became
cultural events, and that red leather jacket suddenly everyone wanted one.
(09:15):
MTV may have launched the year before, but Thriller turned
it into a cultural juggernaut. Not only that, gossip swirled
around how eccentric he was, the pet animals, the glove,
and whispers that Wacko Jacko wasn't far from becoming his
tabloid nickname for sheer spectacle. Nothing topped Ozzy Osbourne biting
(09:41):
the head off a live bat at a show in Iowa.
He thought it was fake until he realized it wasn't.
Around of Raby's shots. Later, Ozzie's legend was cemented. Mick
Jagger never left the gossip pages, his casual fleeings and
(10:02):
affairs keeping rock and roll excessive indulgence in Sensual Pleasures Alive.
Stevie Nicks was flying high after Belladonna in nineteen eighty one,
but rumors of love triangles, breakups and wild backstage antics
with Fleetwood Mac never died down. Punk was giving way
(10:24):
to new wave, and with it came outlandish fashion and
more outlandish behavior. Think hair jail budgets higher than some
movie productions. So let's go through the top ten Billboard
Hot one hundred singles of nineteen eighty two. Coming in
(10:45):
at number one, Olivia Newton John with Physical number two,
Survivors I of the Tiger number three, Jone Jet and
the Blackhearts I Love Rock and Roll coming in at
number four, Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder with Ebony and
Ivory number five, The Jay Gails Band with Centerfold number six,
(11:12):
The Human Leagues Don't You Want Me? Number seven and
eight belonged to John Cougar Mellencamp, with number seven being
Jack and Diane and number eight Hurt So Good, Number
nine Soft Cells Tainted Love, and coming in at number
ten was Chicago with hard to Say I'm Sorry. Billboard
(11:37):
had their top two hundred albums of nineteen eighty two,
and these were the top ten number one Asia with
their self titled album. Coming in at number two was
John Cougar Mellencamp American Fool number three, The Go Gos
album Beauty and the Beat. Coming in at number four
(12:01):
was Fleetwood Mac with their album Mirage number five, Men
at Work with Business as Usual number six, Paul McCartney
with Tug of War number seven, al Do Nova with
their self titled album number eight, The Human League with
(12:22):
Dare number nine, Stevie Nicks Bella Donna, and coming in
at number ten was Rick Springfield with success Hasn't Spoiled
Me Yet. Nineteen eighty two was the year of anthems
and power hits, from I of the Tiger turning every
(12:42):
treadmill into a rocky montage, to Tainted Love making Heartbreak
sound like a goth dance party if. Nineteen eighty one
set the stage for bold Fashion nineteen eighty two to
crank the volume all the way up to You're going
(13:03):
to see me whether you want to or not. Shoulder
pads were still dominating in nineteen eighty two. Women in
(13:25):
the workplace were dressing like they were about to body
slam anyone in their way. Think Dynasty wardrobes, sharp tailoring, sequins,
and I will crush you in this boardroom, but still
look fabulous doing it. Energy. Jane Fonda's workout tapes hit
in the early eighties and instantly turned neon spandex into
(13:49):
casual wear. Suddenly, it was socially acceptable to look like
you just stepped out of an aerobics class, whether or
not you'd ever lifted a leg warm in your life.
Jeans went from casual to luxury. Statement labels like Jordash, Calvin,
Klein and Guests made denim a high fashioned staple Brooks
(14:13):
Shields infamous, nothing comes between Me and my Calvin's ad
still echoing in America's collective memory and in every suburban mall.
Chunky plastic jewelry, massive belts, and sunglasses that looked big
enough to shield your entire face from the sun were everywhere.
(14:35):
If your earrings couldn't double as a weapon in a
street fight, you were not doing it right. The preppy
handbook dropped in nineteen eighty, and by nineteen eighty two
the trend was in full swing. Popped collars, pastel sweaters,
and boat shoes galore, basically the uniform of every future
(14:58):
frat boy was born here. Nineteen eighty two, style was
either about to break into an aerobics montage or I'm
Joan Collins and I will eat you alive. There was
no middle ground. Eighty two was a huge year for toys,
(15:20):
where old classics meshed with innovative tech. Home gaming was
at its peak with the Atari. Twenty six hundred kids
were glued to Pong, Pac Man and Space Invaders. The
(15:43):
graphics may have been blocky enough to make your eyes cross,
but at the time it was mind blowing. And yet
the infamously terrible Et video game would follow in nineteen
eighty two, making landfill history. By eighty two, Rubik's Cubes
were in every household, every school desk, every frustrated kid's bedroom.
(16:09):
The World Cube Championship was even held in Hungary, where
competitors raced to solve it in seconds, all the while
the rest of us were still peeling the stickers off
and arranging them, pretending to be champs to all our
friends and families. Mattel's toy line exploded in popularity, paving
(16:30):
the way for the cartoon he Man and Masters of
the Universe. Every kid suddenly wanted a castle a sword
and a plastic muscle bound action figure who yelled, I
have the power. There was also My Little Pony. These
pastel ponies debuted in eighty two, complete with colorful manes
(16:54):
and cutesy symbols on their rumps, a toy that somehow
managed to be ador horrible, collectible, and slightly creepy when
you had twenty of them lined up. When it came
to board games, Trivial Pursuit was first published in eighty
two and quickly became the game to prove you knew
(17:14):
random trivia that nobody cared about until they lost and
cared very much. Nineteen eighty two Toys dared to ask,
do you want your entertainment blocky pastel or capable of
giving you carpal tunnel before you hit middle school? Let's
(17:36):
talk about the world of tech and gadgets of nineteen
eighty two, CDs hit the market. Compact discs debuted in Japan,
with Sony and Phillips pushing the shiny little discs as
the next big thing in music. Suddenly Vinyl wasn't just
(17:59):
for boomer it was getting dethroned. Commodore sixty four, the
best selling computer of all time dropped in eighty two, Affordable, colorful,
and revolutionary for home computing. Kids who got one were
the envy of the block, even if half the time
(18:20):
it just displayed ready still reigning supreme, the Walkman turned
every sidewalk into a potential runway. By eighty two, it
wasn't just a gadget, it was a lifestyle bonus points.
If you rewound your mixtapes with a pencil, then we
(18:41):
had camquarders and vhs. The VHS versus Betamax war was
still raging, but by eighty two VHS had pretty much
secured the crown. Families were now recording birthday parties, embarrassing
dance recitals, and way too many hours of shaky camcorder footage.
(19:05):
While still the size of bricks and reserved for the rich,
the groundwork for mobile phones was well underway. Imagine carrying
something heavier than your lunch box just to make a call.
In eighty two, the gadgets were screaming the future is
now if you could afford a computer, a Walkman, and
(19:27):
maybe a twenty pound camquorder. Otherwise the future was watching
someone else show it off. Oh, now we get into
the celebrity gossip up. First, we have Richard Pryor's fire
(19:50):
incident fallout. The infamous nineteen eighty freebasing accident where Richard
Pryor set himself on fire was still making headlines in
nineteen eighty two. His return to the stage had people
whispering was he a survivor, a cautionary tale or both.
(20:11):
Hollywood spun it as a miracle comebat, but comedians behind
the scenes treated it as dark material for years. Saturday
Night Live was in its shaky years, but Eddie Murphy
was the breakout star who single handedly saved it. Gumbye
(20:33):
buckwheat mister Robinson's neighborhood. Eddie Murphy wasn't just famous, he
was the new face of comedy. Studios started chasing him,
and rumor sworld about whether he would ditch SNL too soon.
He would, and he'd conquer movies. Then the Kennedy curse continued.
(20:57):
The Kennedys could not escape the spotlight or the drama.
William Kennedy Smith's scandals were bubbling, Jackie O's every move
was scrutinized, and John F. Kennedy Junior was already being
dubbed America's Prince even in nineteen eighty two, tabloid culture
(21:19):
could not resist their tragedies, romances and mysterious ara. Of course,
there was Joan Collins and Dynasty Mania. Joan turned Dynasty
into the most deliciously scandalous soap on TV, and her
offscreen reputation was just as buzzy. Joan Collins leaned into
(21:43):
her man eater image, feeding gossip columns with juicy tidbits
about her marriages, affairs, and diamond dripping lifestyle. She became
the blueprint for tabloid stardom. We all still had Prince
This Diana fever two years into her marriage with Prince Charles.
(22:05):
Diana was the global obsession, the fashion, the fairy tale,
the charity work, and the cracks beginning to show. By
eighty two, rumors were already whispering about Charles and Camilla. Meanwhile,
Diana gave birth to Prince William that summer, and the
(22:25):
press practically camped outside her hospital window. And there were
Hollywood's odd couples. Bert Reynolds and Lonnie Anderson were everywhere,
matching tans, glitzy appearances, and rumors of things going sour.
They were the golden couple of gossip, Cher's love life
(22:47):
stayed under a microscope. She was dating younger men, reinventing
her image, and keeping the tabloids fed. Even in eighty two,
Elizabeth Taylor could an escape ape the gossip cycle. Multiple marriages, illnesses,
and diamonds that could blind the press. She was always relevant,
(23:09):
even when she wasn't starring in anything. Nineteen eighty two.
Gossip was a cocktail of royal fairytales cracking at the seams,
soap opera villains spilling into real life, and rock stars,
proving that eyeliner and scandal were inseparable. If the seventies
(23:31):
gave us wildness, the eighties made it glossy, televised, and
impossible to escape at the grocery store checkout. 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 head of nostalgia with me. Don't forget to follow
(23:53):
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 Diary
(24:18):
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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