American popular culture of the 1980s reflected broader social, political, technological, and media trends, from the rapid spread of cable television to the cultural heyday of suburban shopping malls. Here’s a look at five pop culture trends that strongly shaped the “Me” decade.
Women’s Power Dressing
Diana, Princess of Wales on board the new ‘Royal Princess’ cruise liner, named in her honour, after her official christening ceremony, 1984
Photo library by Tim Graham/Getty Images
Shoulder pads. Oversized double breasted suits. The supple silk “tie”. On catwalks and movie sets, in office buildings and boardrooms, ’80s women dressed in menswear-inspired clothing to express their growing power. Businesswomen First Lady Nancy Reagan and global icon Princess Diana all embraced the suit look, as did top designers of the time, including Giorgio Armani, Thierry Mugler and Calvin Klein. Women’s suits, shoulder pads and ties have also permeated pop culture, featured in films such as 9 to 5 (1980) and A hard worker (1988) and TV shows like Dynasty (1981-89) and Illegal work (1985-89) – all of which featured strong female characters that brought even more popularity to the power dressing trend.
All of this happened in a decade when women’s participation in the labor force rose sharply, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and when Americans saw glass ceilings shatter in the world. entire professional spectrum. In 1981, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor began her nomination as the first woman to the Supreme Court. Three years later, U.S. Representative Geraldine Ferraro became the first female running mate from a major party, and Sally Ride was the first American woman in space. And Oprah Winfrey, in 1986, became the first woman to produce and own her own talk show, encouraging other women to stand on her well-padded shoulders.
Food + fun = ‘entertainment’
A man dressed as Chuck E. Cheese, rodent restorer, 1987.
John Mahler/Toronto Star/Getty Images
Video games saw a huge rise in the 1980s, with stand-alone machines like “Centipede” and “Pac Man” (both released in 1980) and “Street Fighter” (released in 1988) sending children and teenagers into shopping mall arcades en masse. A favorite food of this same public? Pizza. So when Nolan Bushnell, the co-founder of Atari, decided to launch a family restaurant filled with animatronic animals and video games that served, you guessed it, pizza, it was a perfect match. Chuck E. Cheese – and the ‘eatertainment’ trend – was born.
The restaurant, with a giant rodent mascot and the slogan “Where a child can be a child”, was a success. After opening its first location in San Jose, California in 1977, the chain quickly expanded across the country, and rival ShowBiz Pizza purchased the brand in 1984.
The restaurant trend moved beyond pizza when Dave & Buster’s opened its first arcade/sports bar/restaurant in 1982 in Dallas and Medieval Times opened its first US location in Kissimmee, Florida, near from Disney World in 1983 before expanding across North America. The latter’s dinner theater style show, presented in a turreted castle and based on the true story of a medieval noble family, included sword fights, jousting contests and paper crowns for the guests who feasted on hearty meals.
“A big part of the appeal is that the patrons are part of the show, sometimes going so far as to throw a chicken bone into the arena to show their support,” said the Los Angeles Times reported in 1988. “Girls and costumed serfs serve huge platters of roast chicken and ribs, potato and herb pie. Dinner is served without cutlery and soup is sipped from bowls .”
According to New York Times reporting in 2018, more than 66 million people have tuned into the show Medieval Times since its debut in the United States.
Music becomes visual
Bob Pittman, founder of MTV, 1983
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When MTV hit the airwaves in 1981, the world’s first music video channel kicked things off with “Video Killed the Radio Star.” And while the song concept of this song may not have exactly predicted the future, it certainly changed the way fans perceived musical artists.
The 24-hour music channel, with its moon man logo and a target audience of 12 to 34, began as a way to promote new artists by airing videos, music documentaries and concert footage with a rotation of VJs (video jockeys) serving as hosts. Prince, Michael Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, Boy George and others came up with concept videos that often made headlines and broke down barriers. (Jackson’s 13-minute short film/music video for “Thriller” was the first of its kind.) Shows such as “Yo! MTV Raps,” launched in 1988, brought hip-hop culture to the mainstream. And the annual Video Music Awards, launched in 1984, not only recognized music videos as a new art form, but also received huge publicity. wedding cake as she sang “Like a Virgin” – sparking sales of fingerless lace gloves around the world.
Suddenly, an artist’s appearance, visual storytelling ability, dance skills, and fashion sense became as important as their voice. Whitney Houston’s colorful “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” party dresses, Rod Stewart’s shaggy “Forever Young” hairstyle, Janet Jackson’s “Rhythm Nation” military style and many more became instant trends. And, it seems, the timing of the channel was also good for making money: according to Smithsonian Magazinecable television grew to 53 million subscribers in 1989, and soon the world was screaming, “I want my MTV!”
Mall food court at its peak
View of a crowded food court in the Cleveland Arcade, Cleveland, Ohio, August 1985. The Arcade was one of the first indoor shopping malls in the United States.
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There was a time when people would shop in one place, and when they were hungry they would eat somewhere else. And then came the mall’s food court, an open collection of food vendors “expressly designed so shoppers can fill up on carbs while resting their feet – food to keep on shopping,” according to The Washington Post. To a soundtrack of ambient music, mall shoppers could browse an array of popular fast food choices, including orange frothy drinks (Orange Julius), mega slices of pizza (Sbarro), Chinese takeaway (Panda Express) and coarse salt. – soft studded pretzels (Aunt Anne).
Started in the 1970s by mall developer grandfather James Rouse as part of his idea to make the mall a suburban “civic anchor”, the food court emulated the so-called “festival market” projects of urban redevelopment like Boston’s Faneuil. Baltimore Hall and Harbourplace. Rouse’s first try at the mall’s food court in 1971 failed, according to Shopping Centers Today (too small, lacked variety), but he made the concept a reality a few years later at Paramus Park Mall in New Jersey. . Rouse believed that the food court, more open than individual dining spaces, would provide a place for “community picnics” – without the bugs or the weather.
In the 1980s, food courts became a staple of the shopping mall experience and suburban culture. It was a place where harassed parents could soothe hungry little ones and where teenagers, before cellphones, could congregate, grab an after-school snack and score onlookers, as the famous 1982 teen movie recalls. . Fast times at Ridgemont High.
Toy crazes spark frenzies
Hundreds of people rushed to buy Cabbage Patch dolls when the store opened in December 1983.
Carl Bruin/Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix/Getty Images
Buyers camped in line overnight in freezing weather. People snatched boxes from the arms of strangers. A near-riot broke out in Charleston, West Virginia, as 5,000 people showed up to tag one of the 120 dolls available.
All of this behavior happened in the name of Cabbage Patch Kids, a toy described by many as “simple” that carried an often unusual name, along with a birth certificate, adoption papers and orphan story. The dolls, the brainchild of artist Xavier Roberts, hit stores in the summer of 1983, and the 2 million produced sold out that fall. As toy company Coleco rushed to keep up with demand, reports quickly surfaced of trampling, fights and other violence by those desperate to buy the dolls before Christmas.
At a department store in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, a woman broke her leg and four others were injured. The New York Times reported, when 1,000 people rushed into the store. “It’s my life that’s in danger,” the manager said at the time, clutching a baseball bat.
At its peak in 1985, according to Bloomberg, the line brought in $600 million. But while he made headlines, he wasn’t alone in the ’80s toy buying trend. Transformers sales reached nearly $950 million in the 1980s, including $333 million dollars in 1985 alone, reported the Associated Press. The Rubik’s Cube sold out in its first year in 1980. And the animatronic Teddy Ruxpin plush toy that could talk, blink and move its head sold out in the holiday season of 1985. Even at its retail price of $59 to $79, over 800,000 of the dolls were sold that year.
