By this, I mean not only when you feel 80s culture started and ended, but also if and when you felt there were sub-eras within the decade.

I'd personally frame the decade's culture as following:

The Early 80s (January, 1981 - Autumn, 1983):
http://www.arcade-museum.com/images/118/1181242123198.png
+ Reagan Revolution
+ Arena rock (Journey, Survivor, Toto, Styx, etc.)
+ Atari 2600
+ Old-school arcade games (Galaga, Donkey Kong, Mario Bros., Pac-Man, etc.)
+ Post-Disco
+ Michael Jackson's Thriller
+ The Police
+ Brian Johnson-era AC/DC
+ Men at Work
+ New Wave of British Heavy Metal (Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Dio-era Black Sabbath, solo Ozzy Osbourne, etc.)
+ Olivia Newton-John abandons her innocent persona
+ Kool & the Gang
+ Early 80s Recession
+ Peak of new wave music
+ Synthesizers began to overtake pianos and guitars in popular music
+ Country Renaissance (Dolly Parton, Juice Newton, Kenny Rogers, etc.)
+ Tron
+ Renewed tensions with the Soviet Union
+ Gradual ascent of MTV
+ Discovery of the AIDS epidemic
+ The Smurfs
+ E.T.:  The Extra-Terrestrial
+ Action-fantasy media (Conan the Barbarian, Dragon's Lair, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe; a vague argument could also be made for Return of the Jedi)
+ Hair begins to grow larger and curlier

The Mid-80s (Winter, 1983 - Summer, 1988):
https://ranaemerson.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/pretty-in-pink.jpg
+ Teen flicks (Footloose, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Pretty in Pink, Dirty Dancing, etc.)
+ Cassettes overtake vinyls as preferred music format
+ Bruce Springsteen
+ Breakthrough of hair metal (Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Ratt, Poison, Bon Jovi, etc.)
+ Madonna's first three albums
+ Hi-NRG
+ Tina Turner's comeback
+ Lionel Richie
+ The Cosby Show and Cheers
+ Rise of personal computers (Apple II, Commodore 64, etc.)
+ Yuppie culture
+ Gated drums are ubiquitous in popular music
+ First wave of old school hip hop (Run-DMC, Licensed to Ill-era Beastie Boys, Radio/Bigger and Deffer-era LL Cool J, etc.)
+ Peak of action flicks (Terminator, Rambo 2, Die Hard, Predator, Lethal Weapon, etc.)
+ Horror comedies (Ghostbusters, Gremlins, Child's Play, Beetlejuice, etc.)
+ Neon clothing
+ Big hair is fully established
+ The Transformers cartoon
+ First G.I. Joe cartoon
+ American reconciliations with the Soviet Union
+ Contra wars

The Late 80s (Autumn, 1988 - November, 1991):
http://www.history.co.uk/sites/default/files/berlin-wall.jpg
+ George H. W. Bush
+ Fall of Soviet Communism
+ Peak of the original NES
+ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
+ Saved by the Bell
+ Full House
+ Bill & Ted
+ Beginning of the Disney Renaissance (The Little Mermaid, The Rescuers Down Under)
+ Home Alone
+ Bartmania
+ Second-wave old school hip hop (Tone Loc, MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice, Young MC, De La Soul, etc.)
+ New-jack swing (Bobby Brown, Keith Sweat, Bell Biv Devoe, etc.)
+ Old-school house (Technotronic, Black Box, C+C Music Factory, etc.)
+ Gulf War
+ Tim Burton's Batman
+ Full House
+ Erasure cuts in the black community
+ Alternative rock becomes moderately popular (Faith No More, Pixies, Mother's Milk-era RHCP, Jane's Addiction, etc.)
+ Power ballads are more popular than traditional hard rock songs
+ Rom-coms (When Harry Met Sally, Pretty Woman, etc.)

Common trends from all three eras:
+ Conservative politics (Reagan, Bush, Thatcher)
+ 8-bit video games
+ Duran Duran
+ MTV
+ Michael Jackson
+ Prince
+ Dance-pop Divas (Physical-era Olivia Newton John, Madonna, Paula Abdul, etc.)
+ Old school hip hop (Grandmaster Flash for the early 80s, Run-DMC for the mid-80s, Tone Loc/MC Hammer/Vanilla Ice for the Bush '41 era)
+ AIDS Epidemic
+ Commercial, materialistic culture
+ Teen flicks (these peaked in the mid-80s, but the early 80s had Flashdance, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Endless Love, and Risky Business; the late 80s had movies like Bill & Ted and Heathers)
+ Synthesizers and drum machines
+ Gated drums
+ Big hair
+ Bright clothing
+ Acceleration of new technology
+ Classic Mario games (Donkey Kong, Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, etc.)
+ Belinda Carlisle
+ Eddie Murphy comedies
+ Resurgence of sitcoms (Family Matters, The Cosby Show, Full House, etc.)
+ Macho action flicks (Escape from New York, Terminator, Total Recall, etc.)
+ Indiana Jones movies
+ Lots of movie sequels
+ U2
+ Don Bluth Animation (Dragon's Lair, An American Tail, The Land Before Time, etc.)

1980-1982 Recession years. Music industry had low albums sales, probably not as low as right now though.

1983-1985- Fun pop. One of the most catchy era for pop music.

1986-1989- Hair metal, Bon Jovi, Peak of big hair, Rap becomes popular, Teen princesses like Tiffany and Debbie Gibson.

1980-early 1981 (the leftover '70s) It felt really early for the 70s to end (obviously), so I guess 1980 was the only year of where it felt 70s to some people. Those were the pre-MTV years anyways.

mid 1981-1983 (the early '80s) MTV was first launched, 80s trends were started to get crazy and slasher movie franchises like Friday The 13th were starting to get more popular.

1984-1986 (the mid '80s) Those were the years when slasher movies, music videos (along with MTV), synthesizer-pop, Nintendo games and the late Hanna-Barbera cartoons were at its prime.

1987-1990 (the late '80s) Rappers like Eazy-E, Ice Cube (even though they were still in the N.W.A at the time) were getting a bit popular, slasher movies were starting to get more awkward and some early 90s culture kicked in as well. The Game Boy for example, was a sign that the 80s were dying a bit. Even with the Berlin Wall getting demolished, it was also a sign that the Cold War was ending, and so was the Soviet Union.

1991-1992 (the leftover '80s) Pretty much some 80s culture was still alive at the moment, but most people were starting to notice the changes. For instance, Freddy's Dead (the so-called final NOES installment) was released, while everybody just didn't gave that much of a crap about slasher movies. Most of the big ones went on hiatus until the mid 90s. This was also the era when the Cold War finally ended, along with Eastern Europe being democratic again.

1978-1981: The very start of the 1980s. The first Garfield comic strips debuts in newspaper. Star Wars trading cards and action figures by Kenner are in stores.

1981-1984: Atari jackets are popular. Just Say No is born. The Farrah Fawcett hairdo is now a thing of the past.

1984-1987: He-Man or The Smurfs are adorned by children everywhere. Madonnabes are in all parts of the mall. Just about every person living in America knows the jingle to The Facts of Life.

1987-1990: In this time, you were guaranteed to find at least one ALF doll by Coleco in toy and drug store window displays. Teenage girls everywhere wanted to be Mrs. Johnny Depp. People were rushing to theaters to see any Nightmare on Elm Street sequel. Adidas rugby sweaters and sweatshirts were a hot commodity.

1978-1981: The very start of the 1980s. The first Garfield comic strips debuts in newspaper. Star Wars trading cards and action figures by Kenner are in stores.


I consider that era to be very 70s. Especially 1980. Disco was still popular at the time and Jimmy Carter was still president. Even with Ronald Reagan as president in 1981, we were barely out of the 70s pop culturally.

1980-early 1981 (the leftover '70s) It felt really early for the 70s to end (obviously), so I guess 1980 was the only year of where it felt 70s to some people. Those were the pre-MTV years anyways.

mid 1981-1983 (the early '80s) MTV was first launched, 80s trends were started to get crazy and slasher movie franchises like Friday The 13th were starting to get more popular.

1984-1986 (the mid '80s) Those were the years when slasher movies, music videos (along with MTV), synthesizer-pop, Nintendo games and the late Hanna-Barbera cartoons were at its prime.

1987-1990 (the late '80s) Rappers like Eazy-E, Ice Cube (even though they were still in the N.W.A at the time) were getting a bit popular, slasher movies were starting to get more awkward and some early 90s culture kicked in as well. The Game Boy for example, was a sign that the 80s were dying a bit. Even with the Berlin Wall getting demolished, it was also a sign that the Cold War was ending, and so was the Soviet Union.

1991-1992 (the leftover '80s) Pretty much some 80s culture was still alive at the moment, but most people were starting to notice the changes. For instance, Freddy's Dead (the so-called final NOES installment) was released, while everybody just didn't gave that much of a crap about slasher movies. Most of the big ones went on hiatus until the mid 90s. This was also the era when the Cold War finally ended, along with Eastern Europe being democratic again.


1990-The Start of 1993 (The Early '90s): Children and teenagers alike were collecting, trading and showing off Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures by Playmates Toys. Teenage males either wanted to be Vanilla Ice or Bobby Brown. People in their 20s and 30s were cracking Dan Quayle jokes. Macaulay Culkin was the only child star anyone knew of, then.

1990-The Start of 1993 (The Early '90s): Children and teenagers alike were collecting, trading and showing off Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures by Playmates Toys. Teenage males either wanted to be Vanilla Ice or Bobby Brown. People in their 20s and 30s were cracking Dan Quayle jokes. Macaulay Culkin was the only child star anyone knew of, then.


Yeah, Culkin was just popular in the early 90s, since a lot of people only liked the first two Home Alone movies. Even to this day, Culkin was just great as a child actor. I don't think he does movies or TV shows anymore.

I consider that era to be very 70s. Especially 1980. Disco was still popular at the time and Jimmy Carter was still president. Even with Ronald Reagan as president in 1981, we were barely out of the 70s pop culturally.


This shirt sums up that whole era:

https://bulldogvintage.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/discosucks.jpg

Yeah, Culkin was just popular in the early 90s, since a lot of people only liked the first two Home Alone movies. Even to this day, Culkin was just great as a child actor. I don't think he does movies or TV shows anymore.


Remember the cartoon?

https://chrispearce.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/nbcomics1.jpg

Remember the cartoon?

https://chrispearce.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/nbcomics1.jpg


Not really. I'm a 2000s kid, so I didn't really read any cartoons from the early 90s.

This shirt sums up that whole era:

https://bulldogvintage.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/discosucks.jpg


Unfortunately, that was the minority. 1978 was essentially disco's finest hour, along with the first half of 1979, and whatever "eighties" there was lying underground was by far overwhelmed by the still-current '70s culture. Sure, it wasn't quite the Brady Bunch/Afro Hair/Disaster Movie/Streaking era around 1973, but still very '70s nonethless.

And while I'll give 1990 as being late '80s even with a definitive changing of the guard taking place, 1991-1992 are definitely part of the early '90s. Beverly Hills, 90210 was becoming popular, hair metal's fall, an economic recession made the yuppies of the mid/late '80s passe for a few years.

In terms of technology:

Early '80s
-Large Floppy disks
-Dot-matrix printers
-8-track tapes still available but get harder to find
-Boomboxes and portable cassette/radio players proliferate
-Personal computers boom
-Atari 2600's peak, along with Colecovision and Intellivision
-Electronic Typewriters appear, but electric typewriters still common for those not ready for an upgrade
-Analog synthesizers
-Cordless telephones and answering machines
-Ugly, boxy cars with storm drain-grate style grilles
-Single screen, unicolor handheld games (continues through most the decade)
-Top-loading VHS/Betamax
-Laserdisc players
-Cable TV becomes popular, but still a minority of TV owners

Mid-'80s
-Computers with a limited color palette appear (i.e. 4, 6, 8, or maybe 12 colors)
-Digital synthesizers such as the Yamaha DX7
-CDs first appear on the market, with cassettes at their peak of their popularity, vinyl starting to fade but still widely available, and 8-tracks relegated to record clubs
-The earliest cellphones appear
-Electronic trip computers on some cars
-Some cars like the Thunderbird start to get a more streamlined, "Aero" design even if most cars are still boxy
-Stereo sound on TV
-Apple's Macintosh and the first Microsoft Windows
-The third generation of video games starts after a crash/recession
-Front-loading VHS/Betamax
-Early CGI animation on TV/movies
-Camcorders

Late '80s
-Multicolor computers
-Inkjet/laser printers start to appear (most still use the old Dot Matrix)
-Fax machines
-Cell phones aren't just for the car, but are still heavy/expensive
-The birth of 16-bit video games, but the third generation peaks in popularity
-Claymation animation
-Betamax/Laserdisc fade and die
-Vinyl fades, cassettes stall, and CDs make a sharp rise
-The Discman
-MiDI-style synthesizers start giving a more earthier sound to music
-Small floppy disks
-Lots of squiggles, triangles, and weird geometric shapes appearing in graphical designs
-Cable TV now found on the majority of people with a TV

This shirt sums up that whole era:

https://bulldogvintage.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/discosucks.jpg


;D ;D ;D ;D

This shirt sums up that whole era:

https://bulldogvintage.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/discosucks.jpg


Yeah, those were the days of Rock n' Roll vs. Disco. It's pretty much safe to say that rock n' roll won the battle.

IMO
1980-early 1981: VERY Early 80s (Late 70s extension)

1981- spring 1984: Early 80s

Fall 1984-1986: Mid 80s

1987-spring 1990: Late 80s

Infinity you should do the 70s and 60s next!

Unfortunately, that was the minority. 1978 was essentially disco's finest hour, along with the first half of 1979, and whatever "eighties" there was lying underground was by far overwhelmed by the still-current '70s culture. Sure, it wasn't quite the Brady Bunch/Afro Hair/Disaster Movie/Streaking era around 1973, but still very '70s nonethless.

And while I'll give 1990 as being late '80s even with a definitive changing of the guard taking place, 1991-1992 are definitely part of the early '90s. Beverly Hills, 90210 was becoming popular, hair metal's fall, an economic recession made the yuppies of the mid/late '80s passe for a few years.

In terms of technology:

Early '80s
-Large Floppy disks
-Dot-matrix printers
-8-track tapes still available but get harder to find
-Boomboxes and portable cassette/radio players proliferate
-Personal computers boom
-Atari 2600's peak, along with Colecovision and Intellivision
-Electronic Typewriters appear, but electric typewriters still common for those not ready for an upgrade
-Analog synthesizers
-Cordless telephones and answering machines
-Ugly, boxy cars with storm drain-grate style grilles
-Single screen, unicolor handheld games (continues through most the decade)
-Top-loading VHS/Betamax
-Laserdisc players
-Cable TV becomes popular, but still a minority of TV owners

Mid-'80s
-Computers with a limited color palette appear (i.e. 4, 6, 8, or maybe 12 colors)
-Digital synthesizers such as the Yamaha DX7
-CDs first appear on the market, with cassettes at their peak of their popularity, vinyl starting to fade but still widely available, and 8-tracks relegated to record clubs
-The earliest cellphones appear
-Electronic trip computers on some cars
-Some cars like the Thunderbird start to get a more streamlined, "Aero" design even if most cars are still boxy
-Stereo sound on TV
-Apple's Macintosh and the first Microsoft Windows
-The third generation of video games starts after a crash/recession
-Front-loading VHS/Betamax
-Early CGI animation on TV/movies
-Camcorders

Late '80s
-Multicolor computers
-Inkjet/laser printers start to appear (most still use the old Dot Matrix)
-Fax machines
-Cell phones aren't just for the car, but are still heavy/expensive
-The birth of 16-bit video games, but the third generation peaks in popularity
-Claymation animation
-Betamax/Laserdisc fade and die
-Vinyl fades, cassettes stall, and CDs make a sharp rise
-The Discman
-MiDI-style synthesizers start giving a more earthier sound to music
-Small floppy disks
-Lots of squiggles, triangles, and weird geometric shapes appearing in graphical designs
-Cable TV now found on the majority of people with a TV


Any way you cut it, 1990 was the first year of the early '90s.

Dave Dinkins wasn't the mayor of New York City in 1987, 1988 or 1989.

The Burger King Kids Club wasn't unveiled to the world until January of 1990.

Not to mention, Steve Urkel wasn't known as the pesky next door neighbor to the Winslow family in 1989.

Yelimsexa, you are entitled to your own opinion.

This shirt sums up that whole era:

https://bulldogvintage.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/discosucks.jpg


He was the one who killed disco.

Any way you cut it, 1990 was the first year of the early '90s.

Dave Dinkins wasn't the mayor of New York City in 1987, 1988 or 1989.

The Burger King Kids Club wasn't unveiled to the world until January of 1990.

Not to mention, Steve Urkel wasn't unknown as the pesky next door neighbor in 1989.

Yelimsexa, you are entitled to your own opinion.


Same goes to you because talking about different eras is subjective. Also, IMO, 1990 wasn't really the first year of the 90s. I don't even think any year that has the number '0' will ever be the first year of the new decade, culturally. The 1920s were kinda the only excuse, since Prohibition started around January of 1920. The rest of them just start on either 1, 2 or 3. That's why the early portion of the decade usually has pop culture leftovers of the previous decade.

I consider that era to be very 70s. Especially 1980. Disco was still popular at the time and Jimmy Carter was still president. Even with Ronald Reagan as president in 1981, we were barely out of the 70s pop culturally.


By the start of 1978, everything done for the 1980s decade was in place. Think of it like this, without A New Hope, there could never be Empire Strikes Back.

Same goes to you because talking about different eras is subjective. Also, IMO, 1990 wasn't really the first year of the early 90s. I don't even think any year that has the number '0' will ever be the first year of the new decade, culturally. The 1920s were kinda the only excuse, since Prohibition started around January of 1920. The rest of them just start on either 1, 2 or 3. That's why the early portion of the decade usually has pop culture leftovers of the previous decade.


How old were you in 1990? Nothing I said was subjective; I even used the facts to back my claim.

How old were you in 1990? Nothing I said was subjective; I even used the facts to back my claim.


I was born in December 1999, so I wasn't even born yet in 1990.

Infinity you should do the 70s and 60s next!


I'm not quite as well-versed with those decades, pop culturally, but I'll try!

The Early 60s (Summer, 1959 - November 22, 1963):
http://stars.topnews.in/sites/default/files/images/jackie-kennedy154545.jpg
+ Really an interchangeable term with the "late 50s"
+ The Twilight Zone
+ The Flintstones
+ Women's fashion becomes larger, rounder, and brighter
+ John F. Kennedy
+ Climax of the Civil Rights movement
+ Creative renaissance in jazz (Kind of Blue, Giant Steps, Shape of Jazz to Come, etc.)
+ Death of Marilyn Monroe
+ Still the golden age of Dr. Seuss books (which began in 1957)
+ The Dick Van Dyke Show
+ Leave It to Beaver
+ Surf Rock (Early Beach Boys, Surfin' Bird, Wipeout, etc.)
+ Cuban Missile Crisis

The Mid-60s (November 22, 1963 - Summer, 1968):
https://beatlesmantra.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/thx-lucky-stars-28march1965.jpg
+ Escalation of the Vietnam War
+ British Invasion (The Animals, Manfred Mann, The Kinks, etc.)
+ Beatlemania
+ The Supremes
+ Dollars Trilogy
+ Star Trek
+ Peak of the Sean Connery-era James Bond films
+ Bob Dylan
+ LBJ and the Great Society
+ Landmark Civil Rights legislation
+ Adam West Batman Series
+ The Addams Family
+ Gilligan's Island
+ Lost in Space
+ The Graduate
+ Psychedelic drugs
+ Robert F. Kennedy
+ Black Panther Movement

The Late 60s (Summer, 1968 - Spring, 1970):
http://in1.ccio.co/r8/h2/c4/143552306841941914lLdM0OSWc.jpg
+ Political protests reach a violent peak
+ Call for a return to law and order
+ Woodstock
+ Scooby Doo, Where Are You?
+ Led Zeppelin's first two albums
+ Credence Clearwater Revival
+ Stonewall Riots
+ Election of Richard Nixon
+ The American South fully realigns itself with the Republican Party
+ Elvis' comeback
+ The Beatles start to disband

The Early 70s (Summer, 1970 - August 8, 1974):
http://nme.assets.ipccdn.co.uk/images/gallery/2014LedZeppelin_Getty76687356_250414.jpg
+ Led Zeppelin
+ Long, straightened hair for women
+ Lots of facial hair for men
+ Richard Nixon
+ End of Vietnam War
+ The Carpenters
+ Singer-songwriters become popular (Neil Diamond, James Taylor, Elton John, etc.)
+ Black Sabbath
+ Creative peak of Beatles solo material (Imagine, Plastic Ono Band, Ringo '73, All Things Must Pass)
+ Watergate
+ The Mary Tyler Moore Show
+ Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon
+ Video games become a commercial industry (Computer Space, Pong, Magnavox Odyssey, etc.)
+ Oil crisis
+ Monty Python's Flying Circus
+ The Brady Brunch
+ The Partridge Family

The Mid-70s (August 9, 1974 - Summer, 1977):
http://i2.cdnds.net/14/42/618x394/ustv-snl-season-1.jpg
+ Disco is a significant cultural force
+ Creative recession for rock & roll
+ Bob Dylan's first comeback (Blood on the Tracks, Desire)
+ Jaws
+ Gerald Ford
+ Stagflation
+ 70s fashion is fully established
+ Premiere of Saturday Night Live
+ Texas Chainsaw Massacre
+ Aerosmith
+ Kiss
+ Progressive rock (Rush, Genesis, Pink Floyd, etc.)
+ Peak of Happy Days (before Fonzie jumps the shark)
+ Robert DeNiro movies (The Godfather, Part II, Taxi Driver)
+ Rocky
+ American Bicentennial

The Late 70s (Summer, 1977 - December, 1980):
http://www.bam.org/media/876672/2012_Ctek_Saturday-Night-Fever-5_613x463.jpg
+ Saturday Night Fever
+ Star Wars
+ Grease
+ John Travolta
+ Peak of disco
+ Disco backlash
+ Second generation video games begin to increase in popularity (Atari 2600, Space Invaders, Asteroids, etc.)
+ Blondie
+ Billy Joel
+ Punk (The Clash, Ramones, Sex Pistols, etc.)
+ Initial rise of new wave (The Cars, Talking Heads, Devo, etc.)
+ Arena rock becomes more popular (Styx, Toto, etc.)
+ Mork & Mindy
+ Jimmy Carter
+ Iran Hostage Crisis
+ Long gas lines
+ Taxi
+ Superman: The Movie
+ Alien
+ Animated LOTR movies
+ Slasher horror flicks (Halloween, Friday the 13th)

To be honest, I don't really see the 60s and 70s as divided into three distinct phases like the 80s, 90s, and 2000s.  I see the first few years of the 60s as just the elder years of the 50s, with a few subtle winks of change towards the end, while the rest of the decade is pretty much just its own, full era.  The 70s are really divided into two halves; the first is a continuation of new culture from 1969, before disco and while Vietnam and Nixon were still around, but not really the same overall feel as the late 60s; the latter half is the period dominated by disco, Star Wars, punk, and Jimmy Carter, and is probably more what comes to mind when most people think of "the seventies," although much of the culture from the late 70s would really peak during the early 80s, particularly new wave, Atari, and arena rock.

I'm not quite as well-versed with those decades, pop culturally, but I'll try!

The Early 60s (Summer, 1959 - November 22, 1963):
http://stars.topnews.in/sites/default/files/images/jackie-kennedy154545.jpg
+ Really an interchangeable term with the "late 50s"
+ The Twilight Zone
+ The Flintstones
+ Women's fashion becomes larger, rounder, and brighter
+ John F. Kennedy
+ Climax of the Civil Rights movement
+ Creative renaissance in jazz (Kind of Blue, Giant Steps, Shape of Jazz to Come, etc.)
+ Death of Marilyn Monroe
+ Still the golden age of Dr. Seuss books (which began in 1957)
+ The Dick Van Dyke Show
+ Leave It to Beaver
+ Surf Rock (Early Beach Boys, Surfin' Bird, Wipeout, etc.)
+ Cuban Missile Crisis

The Mid-60s (November 22, 1963 - Summer, 1968):
https://beatlesmantra.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/thx-lucky-stars-28march1965.jpg
+ Escalation of the Vietnam War
+ British Invasion (The Animals, Manfred Mann, The Kinks, etc.)
+ Beatlemania
+ The Supremes
+ Dollars Trilogy
+ Star Trek
+ Peak of the Sean Connery-era James Bond films
+ Bob Dylan
+ LBJ and the Great Society
+ Landmark Civil Rights legislation
+ Adam West Batman Series
+ The Addams Family
+ Gilligan's Island
+ Lost in Space
+ The Graduate
+ Psychedelic drugs
+ Robert F. Kennedy
+ Black Panther Movement

The Late 60s (Summer, 1968 - Spring, 1970):
http://in1.ccio.co/r8/h2/c4/143552306841941914lLdM0OSWc.jpg
+ Political protests reach a violent peak
+ Call for a return to law and order
+ Woodstock
+ Scooby Doo, Where Are You?
+ Led Zeppelin's first two albums
+ Credence Clearwater Revival
+ Stonewall Riots
+ Election of Richard Nixon
+ The American South fully realigns itself with the Republican Party
+ Elvis' comeback
+ The Beatles start to disband

The Early 70s (Summer, 1970 - August 8, 1974):
http://nme.assets.ipccdn.co.uk/images/gallery/2014LedZeppelin_Getty76687356_250414.jpg
+ Led Zeppelin
+ Long, straightened hair for women
+ Lots of facial hair for men
+ Richard Nixon
+ End of Vietnam War
+ The Carpenters
+ Singer-songwriters become popular (Neil Diamond, James Taylor, Elton John, etc.)
+ Black Sabbath
+ Creative peak of Beatles solo material (Imagine, Plastic Ono Band, Ringo '73, All Things Must Pass)
+ Watergate
+ The Mary Tyler Moore Show
+ Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon
+ Video games become a commercial industry (Computer Space, Pong, Magnavox Odyssey, etc.)
+ Oil crisis
+ Monty Python's Flying Circus
+ The Brady Brunch
+ The Partridge Family

The Mid-70s (August 9, 1974 - Summer, 1977):
http://i2.cdnds.net/14/42/618x394/ustv-snl-season-1.jpg
+ Disco is a significant cultural force
+ Creative recession for rock & roll
+ Bob Dylan's first comeback (Blood on the Tracks, Desire)
+ Jaws
+ Gerald Ford
+ Stagflation
+ 70s fashion is fully established
+ Premiere of Saturday Night Live
+ Texas Chainsaw Massacre
+ Aerosmith
+ Kiss
+ Progressive rock (Rush, Genesis, Pink Floyd, etc.)
+ Peak of Happy Days (before Fonzie jumps the shark)
+ Robert DeNiro movies (The Godfather, Part II, Taxi Driver)
+ Rocky
+ American Bicentennial

The Late 70s (Summer, 1977 - December, 1980):
http://www.bam.org/media/876672/2012_Ctek_Saturday-Night-Fever-5_613x463.jpg
+ Saturday Night Fever
+ Star Wars
+ Grease
+ John Travolta
+ Peak of disco
+ Disco backlash
+ Second generation video games begin to increase in popularity (Atari 2600, Space Invaders, Asteroids, etc.)
+ Blondie
+ Billy Joel
+ Punk (The Clash, Ramones, Sex Pistols, etc.)
+ Initial rise of new wave (The Cars, Talking Heads, Devo, etc.)
+ Arena rock becomes more popular (Styx, Toto, etc.)
+ Mork & Mindy
+ Jimmy Carter
+ Iran Hostage Crisis
+ Long gas lines
+ Taxi
+ Superman: The Movie
+ Alien
+ Animated LOTR movies
+ Slasher horror flicks (Halloween, Friday the 13th)

To be honest, I don't really see the 60s and 70s as divided into three distinct phases like the 80s, 90s, and 2000s.  I see the first few years of the 60s as just the elder years of the 50s, with a few subtle winks of change towards the end, while the rest of the decade is pretty much just its own, full era.  The 70s are really divided into two halves; the first is a continuation of new culture from 1969, before disco and while Vietnam and Nixon were still around, but not really the same overall feel as the late 60s; the latter half is the period dominated by disco, Star Wars, punk, and Jimmy Carter, and is probably more what comes to mind when most people think of "the seventies," although much of the culture from the late 70s would really peak during the early 80s, particularly new wave, Atari, and arena rock.

You did a DAMN good job!

Sorry to bump such an old thread, but I just felt I had to give my input on this.

Here's how I break down the cultural 80's:

1979-1982 was the transitional period between the 70's and 80's. New wave was big (although had yet to make it big via MTV), video games and VCR's were getting popular, Reagan and Thatcher came into office. While this period had a 70's feel as late as 1982, I'd call it a liitle more 80's-ish.

1983-1987 is the main "80's" to me - MTV at its peak. Madonna, MJ, Billy Idol and countless others were huge. The John Hughes movie phase began, as did big hair and yuppies. The era encompassed in "The Wedding Singer".

In 1988, the transition between the late 80s into 90s began. New wave was no longer a cultural force, 80s slang was starting to die out, and things like new jack swing and hardcore rap and were getting popular and even grunge started to appear for the first time.

So as a recap:

Phase 1, 1979-82 - 70's holdover years, with 80's styles slowly emerging, but not "taken over" yet.

Phase 2, 1983-87 - "Main" 80's. The MTV peak, Miami Vice/Wedding Singer-ish years where the 80's culture peaked.

Phase 3, 1988-91 - "Fringe late 80's" era. Some very slight influences up as late as '94, but the 80's certainly weren't cool past '91.

1980 to 1982- Recession, music industry suffering declining sales, 70's holdovers, Slasher flicks very popular.
1983 to 1985- Dancey music, hair steadily becoming big, economy picking up again, MTV becoming prominent, music sales pick up mainly due to MTV's influence.
1986 to 1987- Bon Jovi, hair is very big, Aerosmith and Run DMC, Janet Jackson, 1987 stock market crash.
1988 to 1989- Hair is still very big in 1988, some 90's influences show some signs, 80's shows signs of being past its peak, horror genre starts to decline in popularity in 1989, Berlin Wall falls.