The whole patriotism thing was largely 1984-1986. With the peak being the 1984 summer Olympics. Though not everyone was drinking the Kool-Aid.

Looking back, the early 80s (1980-1983) was actually kind of a dark and depressing time. But it did produce the best music and highbrow cinema of the decade.

Mid-80s benefit concerts.

The late 80s was probably the most interesting era: Quite possibly the best years in history for horror (1987) and comedy (1988). The Iran-Contra scandal. Peak AIDS paranoia. Peak Yuppie/Wall Street culture. Nintendo mania. Roseanne. Married with Children. Trash TV was just starting. Celebrity sex scandals galore. The end of the Cold War. 

Trust me, the "patriotism thing" lasted the ENTIRE of the Reagan years. It's what got him elected. the pendulum had swung.

Mid-80s benefits. Live Aid. Next was Farm Aid which grew out of Live Aid when Willie Nelson heard Bob Dylan's comment during his Live Aid set with Keith Richards and Ron Wood, where he suggested that maybe some of the monies generated that day should be given to struggling farmers in the USA. These comments incensed Live Aid organizer Bob Geldof, but it did give birth to farm Aid which exists to this day.

Dylan did a sunning set at the first Farm Aid in 1985. Backed by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers it was worlds away from his ramshackle set at Live Aid.

See it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZbODVff42k

There was also Amnesty International's massive "Conspiracy of Hope" concert at Giant's Stadium in 1986 featuring a reunion of the Police, U2, Bryan Adams, Peter Gabriel, Yoko Ono, Joan Baez, Jackson Browne and many, many more.

You had films with the college guys and girls during The 1980's.

1980s Childhood/Kid culture was the best! It was the best time. Great music videos, great movies, great cartoons and unbelievably great playthings and toys!

1980s Childhood/Kid culture was the best! It was the best time. Great music videos, great movies, great cartoons and unbelievably great playthings and toys!

What was your favorite toy in the 80's, Jess?  :)

What was your favorite toy in the 80's, Jess?  :)


Oh I had them all! But my favorites were the CBKs Pinnups. They were so small and cute!

Oh I had them all! But my favorites were the CBKs Pinnups. They were so small and cute!

My favorites was The 2XL Robot, Teddy Ruxpin, Simon and Rubix Cube.

My favorites was The 2XL Robot, Teddy Ruxpin, Simon and Rubix Cube.


I didn't like Teddy Ruxpin. My mother wanted to get it for me one time but I didn't want it lol. I regret it now! I should have but back then I didn't know any better.

I didn't like Teddy Ruxpin. My mother wanted to get it for me one time but I didn't want it lol. I regret it now! I should have but back then I didn't know any better.

I thought Teddy Ruxpin was kind of weird but the fun part of it was that you could stick any cassette tape in his back and have it play anything you want.

I stumbled across this blog with an article called "TV’s most vomit-inducing decade of sitcoms: the ’80s'. It zeroes in mostly on theme songs.

https://brioux.tv/blog/2020/04/13/tvs-most-vomit-inducing-decade-of-sitcoms-the-80s/

Excerpt:

The ’80s were a dark time when it came to sitcoms. There are so many completely forgettable shows. Each TV theme song sounds like the last.


Partically to blame is the explosive popularity of MTV and MuchMusic during that period. Imitation being the sincerest form of televison, as Fred Allen once said, every TV theme song looked like an MTV video. They all went on too long. For example, the theme song sequence for 1984’s Punky Brewster lasts 1:20 — and seems four minutes longer. The same year, It’s Your Move, starring a very young Jason Bateman, lasts a full minute.

The ’80s theme songs themselves made the sing-a-long intro to Gilligan’s Island look like The Beatles’ Abbey Road. It was a bankable time for “Easy Listening” singers from the Barry Manilow school of warbling. Overuse of sax and synthisizers also led to a decade of bland, sameness.

TV sitcoms, in fact, were give up for dead prior to the explosive popularity of The Cosby Show. One reason that family sitcom broke so big in 1983 may have been the memorable punchiness of its theme, co-penned by Stu Gardner and Cosby. That led to seven seasons of intro indulgence, with the mercifully lyric-less rift re-orchestrated and re-choreographed every season, sometimes to great effect (as in the Bobby McFerrin a cappella version). Other shows, however, soon drove this change-it-up convention into the ground.

Many of the title sequences of the late-’70s, early ’80s were also tarted up with too many pastels, throwing an endless arrary of pink or teal fonts on screen relying too heavily on tricks such as frame grabs. (See 1983’s mirthless John Ritter comedy Three’s a Crowd.) Editors over-used a new generation of transitions and disolves, effects neatly over-parodied at the time on SCTV.

There also seemed to be an endless parade of TV talent before the camera trotted out every season-and-a-half in another bomb that lasted maybe four to six episodes. The so-called “Show Killer” was King in the ’80s. David Garrison and Ted McGinley wish to remain anonymous.

Omg I remember this!

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I stumbled across this blog with an article called "TV’s most vomit-inducing decade of sitcoms: the ’80s'. It zeroes in mostly on theme songs.

https://brioux.tv/blog/2020/04/13/tvs-most-vomit-inducing-decade-of-sitcoms-the-80s/

Excerpt:

The ’80s were a dark time when it came to sitcoms. There are so many completely forgettable shows. Each TV theme song sounds like the last.


Seems typical of somebody who at most barely remembers the era, and knows nothing of the era that came before it.  And only writes to attack other things they do not care for.

In other words, typical millennial.

Like the theme songs.  At that time, they were all long.  On average around a minute, and it was key to get people into the show to come.  In fact, the themes were so important that many of them became hits in their own right, and just hearing a few bars will let you know what is to come.

Heck, I even found a clip of the first one I posted without the name of the show.  But I doubt that many will not recognize it in under a minute.

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2hBSMInlDGg

Before cable television was commonplace there were only three major commercial over-the-air television networks (ABC, NBC, CBS) and PBS, so when the Fox Network was launched in 1986 it was a huge deal. The brand new Fox affiliate in my area, KPTM 42 out of Omaha, promoted this by mailing out flyers with a free loop antenna (to connect to the UHF antenna ports, which were standard on TVs at the time) to every home in eastern Nebraska so we could all receive the signal.

But to really draw viewers to the new network, Fox had to air something that would really grab everyone's attention, and thus Married With Children was born. It was like All In The Family on steroids. It was crude, raunchy, and would definitely be considered offensive by today's standards, and we loved it.  ;D

But to really draw viewers to the new network, Fox had to air something that would really grab everyone's attention, and thus Married With Children was born. It was like All In The Family on steroids. It was crude, raunchy, and would definitely be considered offensive by today's standards, and we loved it.  ;D


Though I see what you are trying to say, I don't really think "Married With Children" can be compared to "All In The Family". Indeed, they were both boundary-pushing shows in their way, but All In The Family made strong, political social commentary, and that wasn't really Married With Children's wheelhouse. All In The Family took on racism, sexism, homophobia, the Vietnam War and the draft, income inequality and so much more at a time (the early 70s) when none of these things were discussed on TV, let alone a situation comedy. And the fact that they did it so incredibly well that it earned a truckload of Emmy (and other) awards over ten years really says something. 

Though I see what you are trying to say, I don't really think "Married With Children" can be compared to "All In The Family". Indeed, they were both boundary-pushing shows in their way, but All In The Family made strong, political social commentary, and that wasn't really Married With Children's wheelhouse.


And that's exactly why Married With Children was so awesome. I really didn't mind most of the 1980's sitcoms, but if there was one thing I couldn't stand it was the Very Special Episodes, where they'd break from the typical humorous fare and tackle serious issues like AIDS and drug abuse. It all seemed so contrived and preachy and corny to me, and one of the best things about Married With Children is that you never, ever had to worry about that happening.

One of my favorite memories of 1980's television for me was an early episode of Married With Children where the Bundys were dining out at a fancy restaurant. After they finished their meal, Al Bundy asked the waiter to bring him a newspaper and then stood up, tucked the newspaper under his arm, and then strutted off screen to the men's room. When I realized what he was doing I about died.  ;D

Before cable television was commonplace there were only three major commercial over-the-air television networks (ABC, NBC, CBS) and PBS, so when the Fox Network was launched in 1986 it was a huge deal.


It was, and was not.  Mostly all it did was bring in a lot of then independent stations.  Most tend to forget that Fox was not even a "full time" network until 1992, they only ran on weekends for the first several years, the rest of the time was still programmed by the stations themselves.

But it was trying to show it was "different", as the other networks were largely the same.  Movies a couple of nights a week, and a variety of family sitcoms and adult dramas.  Fox put their money on three shows.  Married with Children of course being one of them.  Then the next an "adult drama", that was aimed more at teens called "21 Jump Street".  And of course a variety show staring Tracy Ullman.

Which is actually the lone survivor, as a series of short cartoons created as "bumpers" before and after commercial breaks is still on the air to this day.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/97/d9/7f/97d97fefbfb1cd2c47bcec66175cf29b.jpg

Before cable television was commonplace there were only three major commercial over-the-air television networks (ABC, NBC, CBS) and PBS, so when the Fox Network was launched in 1986 it was a huge deal. The brand new Fox affiliate in my area, KPTM 42 out of Omaha, promoted this by mailing out flyers with a free loop antenna (to connect to the UHF antenna ports, which were standard on TVs at the time) to every home in eastern Nebraska so we could all receive the signal.

But to really draw viewers to the new network, Fox had to air something that would really grab everyone's attention, and thus Married With Children was born. It was like All In The Family on steroids. It was crude, raunchy, and would definitely be considered offensive by today's standards, and we loved it.  ;D

Married With Children today would seem offensive compared to the late 80's and early 1990's.

Married With Children today would seem offensive compared to the late 80's and early 1990's.


Heck, today it would mostly be protested by snowflakes that got offended every time Al spoke his mind.

It was, and was not.  Mostly all it did was bring in a lot of then independent stations.  Most tend to forget that Fox was not even a "full time" network until 1992, they only ran on weekends for the first several years, the rest of the time was still programmed by the stations themselves.


I imagine that in larger markets there were quite a few independent stations even before the 1980's that broadcast on UHF, so it probably wasn't that big of a deal in big cities. But in eastern Nebraska, where we had the same three or four network stations all through the 1970's (and which were first established between 1949 and 1957), it was kind of a big deal for us. We never had any UHF stations in the area and I remember fiddling around with the separate UHF tuning dial on our TV as a kid and wondering what it was for.

(Edit: I do now recall that if I turned the UHF knob to 26, I could very faintly pick up a PBS station from Omaha. And as a kid with an active imagination, I was fascinated by it. I almost felt like I was picking up a signal from Mars or something.  ;D)

And then, in 1986 when we got our free loop antenna in the mail from the brand new FOX station, I remember taking it downstairs, connecting it to the TV, turning the top dial to 42, and then seeing the logo for the new station appear crystal clear on the screen. It may sound a little silly now, but back then it seemed almost magical.  ;D


Heck, today it would mostly be protested by snowflakes that got offended every time Al spoke his mind.


So many young people like to say how awesome they think the 1980's were and how they wish they could have grown up in that decade, but it was a lot more rough-and-tumble back then.  :o

And that's exactly why Married With Children was so awesome. I really didn't mind most of the 1980's sitcoms, but if there was one thing I couldn't stand it was the Very Special Episodes, where they'd break from the typical humorous fare and tackle serious issues like AIDS and drug abuse. It all seemed so contrived and preachy and corny to me, and one of the best things about Married With Children is that you never, ever had to worry about that happening.

One of my favorite memories of 1980's television for me was an early episode of Married With Children where the Bundys were dining out at a fancy restaurant. After they finished their meal, Al Bundy asked the waiter to bring him a newspaper and then stood up, tucked the newspaper under his arm, and then strutted off screen to the men's room. When I realized what he was doing I about died.  ;D


One of my favorite eps (and one of the funniest IMO) was the one where they discontinued Peg's bra. I remember there was a big stink about that ep and a lot of people were SOOOO offended by it. I guess they didn't realize that if they were so offended by it, there was a little button on their t.v. sets just for that. It is called the "OFF" button.

Fast forward about 10 +/- years ago. I used to buy my undergarments at Victoria Secret. One day, I walked into the store and was looking around for my bras and when I couldn't find them, I asked the girl (yeah, she was a young pup). She said that they were discontinued. I put my head in my hand and said, "Oh my God! I feel like Peg Bundy." I'm sure that girl had no idea who I was talking about.


Cat

Heck, today it would mostly be protested by snowflakes that got offended every time Al spoke his mind.

I thought Al Bundy was so hilarious the way he'd make fun of fat people a lot.  ;D