Things have been a little hectic with the Jackson's lately but after reviewing the 40's, 50's,60's, and 70's finally had a little time to write about the 80's. The drastic ways that things have changed
from decade to decade I just find fascinating.
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Money and Inflation 1980's
To provide an estimate of inflation we have given a guide to the value of $100 US Dollars for the first year in the decade to the equivalent in today's money
If you have $100 Converted from 1980 to 2005 it would be equivalent to $243.45 today
In 1980 a new house cost $68,714.00 and by 1989 was $120,00.00 In 1980 the average income per year was $19,170.00 and by 1989 was $27,210.00
In 1980 a gallon of gas was $1.19 and by 1989 was 97 cents
In 1980 the average cost of new car was $7,210.00 and by 1989 was $15,400.00
A few more prices from the 80's and how much things cost
Camaro Coupe $7,571 Pontiac Grand AM $9,965
Nike Air Force Basketball Shoes $54.90
Tailored Style Silk Blouse $15.99 Amiga 500 with Color Monitor $849 From Our 80s Electrical and Electronic Prices in the 80's
Hands Free Operating Car Phone Leg O Lamb $2.19 per pound
Milk 85 cents 1/2 gallon From Our 80s Price of Food Section
Bunk Beds with Mattress $148
Chrome Sling Chair $76.00 From Our Furniture Prices Section in the 80's
Cheer Laundry Detergent $1.59
Events 1980's
During the 80's we also saw the collapse of the traditional communism and the end of the cold war .The fragmentation of communism included the collapse of the Berlin wall and the breakup up of what was the USSR towards the end of the 80's. and leading to German reunification.
The 80's also signaled a period of the rise of conservatism as the in political and cultural life, caused by Margaret Thatcher in the UK and Ronald Reagan in the USA .
Argentina invaded and occupied the Falkland islands in 1982 but is subsequently defeated by the United Kingdom.
China continued it's growth and liberalization but suffered unrest towards the end of the 80's after student's protested in Tiananmen Square on June 4th 1989 and the authorities used force to quell the protests
Famine in Ethiopia was shown to the world on our television screens in 1984 - 1985 and the pain and suffering caused the western world to find new ways to help including the Live Aid concert and many of the most popular stars contributed their time and performed for free in cities throughout the world , This has to be one of the most successful campaigns ever to create awareness and raise much needed funds by those who have the power to draw TV audiences around the globe.
Many South American Countries return to democracy after a period of dictatorships
The mixing of politics and Sport in both 1980 and 1984 Olympics Boycotts by the worlds major powers
Sporting Changes In The 80's
Baseball
Players go on strike again in 1981 they win but lose fans for the game through their actions for striking and from drugs or alcohol used by the players.
Basketball
During the eighties new stars emerge Larry Bird, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Hakeem Olajuwon and Michael Jordan drawing fans back to the games .
Association Football (Soccer)
24 teams fight for the World Cup in 1982
Soccer Hooliganism and the Heysel Stadium Disaster give English Football a bad name the Hooliganism continues through to the mid 90's
American Football
Miami Hurricanes win college national championships
California Teams The Raiders and San Francisco 49ers Dominate The NFL
The 80's was the decade of the quarterback and the best of them was Joe Montana
The 1985 Chicago Bears with running back Walter Payton considered by many to be one of the greatest teams of all time.
Ice Hockey
New York Islanders Dominate The First Half Of The Decade
The Great One Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier Help Edmonton Oilers Dominate The Second Half Of The Decade
Technology 1980's
The 80's signaled the start of the computer age, following on from the creation of Microsoft and Apple towards the end of the 70's , the technology and the speed of innovation both in Hardware and Software together with the cheapness provided a speed of growth and take up . The birth of the IBM PC signaled the start of Personal Computers first in the Offices and then into peoples homes becoming an integral part of our lives. following on from Micrsofts MSDOS on PC's to the first versions of Windows a GUI Graphical User Interface
As well as the Hardware and Software changes a new technology was evolving starting as Bulletin boards later to become what we now know as the Internet invented by English physicist Tim Berners and the beginnings of the World Wide Web
This was also the Decade that the Post-It was introduced which came from a glue invented in 1968 accidentally while trying to discover a stronger glue at 3M by Spencer Silver
The 80's also signaled the age of the video game in arcades, Games Machines and PC's the most popular games being Space Invaders and Pac Man
Another technology that was also just starting was that of cellular mobile phones , in the beginning the phones were big and heavy and hit and miss for signal strength , but as with the Internet would change our lives .
After many years of ignoring the impact on our environment ,the world also took more notice of the impact that we were having on our planet and more research was done on the effects on global warming through population growth, land clearing of rain forests for agriculture and logging, increased use of fossil fuels for power generation together with our love affair with the car for transport .
Popular Culture 1980's
John Lennon is shot outside his New York apartment
MTV (Music Television) is launched
Floppy shirts, Backcombed hair, Padded shoulders, big hairdoes and white stilettoes
The Simpsons Is First Seen On Tracey Ullman Show April 5th 1987
Michael Jackson releases his second adult solo album, Thriller.
Some of the Most Well Known Movie Stars of the Eighties
Clint Eastwood
Burt Reynolds
Harrison Ford
Michael J Fox
Eddie Murphy
Tom Cruise
Dudley Moore
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Popular Musicians
Bucks Fizz
The Jam
Olivia Newton-John
Chicago
Lionel Richie
ABBA
Black Sabbath
Queen
The Police
Tina Turner
David Bowie
Whitney Houston
Culture Club
Bruce Springsteen
U2
Television During the 1980s
The 1980s was an important decade in the television industry. Not only were great strides made in the way of “pushing the envelope” with shows like Married…With Children, but other programs displayed a stark contrast with family-friendly issues and themes. The Cosby Show began in the mid-1980s and it enjoyed several years as the #1 television program because it was a witty and realistic rendering of family life during the era. It also destroyed the stereotype of poor African-American families that shows in the past only helped to reinforce. Heathcliff Huxtable – the father on The Cosby Show – was an obstetrician while his wife – Claire – was a successful lawyer.
TV Shows 1980s
Married with Children 1987 - 1997.
Baywatch 1989 - 1999.
Chips 1977 - 1983.
Hill Street Blues 1981 - 1987.
Highway to Heaven 1984 - 1989.
Knight Rider 1982 - 1986.
Dukes Of Hazzard 1979 - 1985.
The Benny Hill Show 1969 - 1989.
Fame 1982 - 1987.
Cagney & Lacey 1982 - 1988.
Dallas 1978 - 1991.
Matlock 1986 - 1992.
MacGyver 1985 - 1992.
Little House on the Prairie 1974 - 1983.
Doctor Who 1963 - 1989.
Columbo 1968 - 2003.
The A Team 1983 - 1987.
Laverne & Shirley 1976 - 1983.
The Cosby Show 1984 - 1992.
Happy Days 1974 - 1984.
Cheers 1982 - 1993.
Taxi 1978 - 1983.
Benson 1979 - 1986.
Growing Pains 1985 - 1992.
The 1980s also saw the creation of a number of cable networks that viewers still enjoy today. The Weather Channel – based in Atlanta, GA – premiered in 1982 as a cable network that covered the weather 24 hours a day. The Cable News Network, better known as CNN, was also created as television’s first 24-hour news network. It created a trend and today you have the option of several 24-hour cable news networks to choose from. Rupert Murdoch also created the Fox Network in the 1980s as a challenge to the only three major networks at the time – NBC, CBS, and ABC. Even though many people scoffed at the idea of Fox being a major competitor, it has since created several popular and award-winning shows in its more than 20 year existence. Music Television (MTV) was also a major breakthrough network in the 1980s and today viewers can choose from a large number of music-based television channels.
Other shows that began in the 1980s that are still memorable and popular today include Cheers, The Golden Girls, Miami Vice, and Family Ties. Along with The Simpsons, many of these programs are available as DVD box sets for those who lived through the era and want to experience a feeling of nostalgia by experiencing these shows again.
As is the case of all the decades I have done so far a lot of things happened to the Jackson's, family and friends.
After moving to Florida in 1973 and opening our first Shell Station we opened our second one in 1984.
1984 sadly was the start of a lot of Bubba's health problems. She had her first heart attack in 1984.
The big population growth was really starting in the 80's but from 1973 to almost the end of the 80's Palm Beach County was almost like living in paradise. There was still places where we could ride our four wheelers close to home. Boating was such great fun, room to water ski tie up go swimming, party, just a great time.
Bubba and I celebrated our 25 TH wedding anniversary, any one who was along on that party never forgot it. LOL
Martha and Jimmy were married in the 80's.
All in all the 80's was a very time.
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