V is for Vietnam

Now I know what you're thinking - Vietnam wasn't in the 80s and you're right the Vietnam war officially finished in 1975, but the 80s saw the rise of the Vietnam war movies. From the Oscar winning Platoon to the (put on your best Robin Williams voice for this one) Good Morning Vietnam movie. Missing in Action and Full Metal Jacket were also released during the 80s, it seemed that film makers had found that the Vietnam War provided great fodder for an action film.

There were also the feelings of shame that people felt in the USA over how they had treated their Vietnam Vets, there were no ticker tape parades like there was for the WWI and WWII vets and this was reflected in movies and songs. In particular there was the Stallone classic - Rambo (and it's sequels). The biggest song that I can think of which criticized the way the vets were treated was Born in the USA.

There were other songs of course, in fact it's because of eighties music that I know the average age of the combat soldier in Vietnam was 19.   I'm talking about Paul Hardcastles - 19.

What was your favorite Vietnam action movie of the 80s?   "I love the smell of napalm in the morning" - if you can't pick a favorite or you were more a John Hughes movie fan than an action film fan then tell me which movie that famous quote came from.

Q is for Queen

Queen had the fourth biggest selling album of the 80s in the UK with their first compilation album named simply - Greatest Hits.

Featuring some great songs like Bohemian Rhapsody, Crazy Little Thing Called Love and  We Will Rock You.

As a band Queen were formed in 1971, but the 80s still saw these rockers gathering more fans as they released classic songs such as Radio Gaga and I Want To Break Free - they also produced the soundtrack album for the movie Flash Gordon.

One of the first music videos I can remember watching on Top of the Pops was I Want To Break Free - it might not have been the first, but it was memorable enough for me to still remember it far too many years later.

Queen were also one of the great attractions at the 1985 Live Aid concert in Wembley and the following year they released the album 'A Kind of Magic' which was, like so many other Queen albums, definitely a kind of magic.

The eighties ended with rumors that Freddy Mercury had AIDS and he passed away in 1991 confirming on his deathbed that the rumors had, in fact, been true.

Queen really were a phenomenal group and their music will be popular for ever - even my nine year old daughter knows the words to a lot of their hit singles such as We Are The Champions and We Will Rock You.

What's your favorite Queen song, if you can name just one?

P is for Peace & Protests

Did you know that 1986 was the designated International Year of Peace?   There was certainly a lot of talk about peace during the 80s - the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament was in full flow in the UK and even in our music charts we were singing about peace.

In early 1981 Give Peace a Chance re-entered the UK Top 40 12 years after it's first foray into the charts - this was in response to John Lennon's murder in December 1980.

In 1983 John Lennon's former band mate Paul McCartney also had a 'peace' song enter the UK charts - Pipes of Peace was based on a true event that happened during the first World War.

Not to be outdone even the Eurovision Song Contest wanted a little bit of peace.   In 1982 the winner of Eurovision was a German singer called Nicole and her song was called A Little Peace.   An English version was released which jumped up the charts to the coveted number one position.

1982 also saw a duet between Bing Crosby and David Bowie released as a Christmas single - Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy.

If you're remembering the days of campaigning for peace and thinking - why have all of the politicians not figured out how to let us all live as one then you may be ready to hang up a Peace Poster!

I don't know about you, but I had some really big silver peace sign dangling earrings that I wore all the time, one of my friends wore bright pink ones which were really cool!   

In a battle cry for peace we were singing along to protest songs just like our parents did during the 60s, let's look at what songs were protesting against the state of the world during the 80s -

99 Red Balloons/99 Luftballoons

Another Brick in the Wall

Beds are Burning

Born in the USA

Brothers in Arms

Do They Know It's Christmas

Everybody Wants to Rule the World

Free Nelson Mandela

Island on No Return

19

No More War

Peace in our Time

Tramp the Dirt Down

You're In The Army Now

You're the Voice

There are hundreds more, but I can't think of them right now - add any that you think I should have added.

O is for Oscars

There are so many cult 80s movies like Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Red Dawn, Sixteen Candles and Ghostbusters, but although these are movies that come to mind when you think of the 80s not one of them won an Oscar during the 80s.

The Oscars of the 80s went to movies such as Chariots of Fire and Out of Africa.   Classics such as E.T and Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark were both nominated for Best Film Oscars, but were pipped to the post by Ghandi and Chariots of Fire respectively.

What is your favorite 80s movie and did it win a Best Film Oscar?    You can check out a full list of movies that won the best film Oscar during the 80s on the Oscars of the 80s webpage.

I find it very hard to choose a best movie for the whole decade as there were quite a few I loved, my hubby barely hesitates as for him it's always been Ferris Bueller's Day Off.   My brother surprised me last year by saying his favorite 80s movie was Top Gun and he's even managed to get my middle niece hooked on that movie!

The clerk at my local video store claims that Red Dawn is his favorite 80s movie......I was renting it out at the time so who knows if he meant it, but for someone who was probably only born during the 80s he knew the storyline really well :D

One of my closest friends always picks one of John Hughes' movies usually Sixteen Candles or Pretty in Pink, personally Uncle Buck is my favorite of John Hughes' films and Mr Mom should really rate a bigger mention than it often gets.

You can vote for your favorite 80s movie at Top 80s Movies, but be warned once you see the list it's really hard to choose just one.   I think for today I'm going to have to pick War Games, but if you ask me tomorrow I'm bound to have changed my mind yet again :D

N is for New Romantics

The New Romantics were part of the New Wave music movement of the 80s which started in London in 1980. They were a group of musicians who were brought up watching television and believing Andy Warhol's words that everyone would have their fifteen minutes of fame.   They wanted their 15 minutes and more, but they didn't want to be relegated to hearing their music on the radio they wanted to own the television sets and saw the 'whole look' of the band as being just as important as the sound.

The New Romantics evolved from the Blitz Kids in London and almost overnight similar groups were popping up in other parts of the country most notably a certain group of five guys in Birmingham who named themselves after an evil character from the movie Barbarella - yes I'm talking about Duran Duran!

The problem was that the New Romantics who were originally referred to as the Cult With No Name weren't easily categorized which meant that you had bands such as Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran, Human League, Adam and the Ants and Bow Wow Wow all labelled as the same.

M is for Madonna

Madonna sprang onto our radio sets during the 80s and hasn't left since!   Her 1983 singles Holiday and Lucky Star were pure 80s pop and exactly what our dance floors needed at the time.   Her style was copied by girls around the world and her second album was just as popular with songs such as Like A Virgin & Material Girl Madonna really was on the fast track to superstardom.

Madonna showed her versatility during the 80s earning her the title of Queen of Reinvention and her music ranged from the very poppy sound of Holiday to the more mature sounding Live to Tell.

In total Madonna had 4 chart topping albums filled with numerous hit singles throughout the 80s, but she wasn't content with that!   Madonna also decided to try her hand at acting during the 80s as well, in 1985 she starred in the cult comedy about mistaken identity - Desperately Seeking Susan.   That wasn't the only movie she was to star in during the 80s, however and you can check out the rest of Madonna's 80s movies and musical success in my Madonna, Madonna, Madonna post.

Madonna wasn't just about the music and the acting though she also influenced fashion with millions of young girls embracing her look.   I admit I had black lace fingerless gloves with lots of bangles a la Madonna, and I wasn't even a huge Madonna fan!

L is for Leg Warmers

Who lived through the 80s without a pair of leg warmers?   Tell the truth you had leg warmers didn't you?   I don't know whether to blame the movie Fame or the television series or whether it was really Flashdance that galvanized us all into wearing leg warmers in various different colors.

Then when it appeared as though leg warmers were gone from the fashion scene what took it's place?   Slouch socks!   Now I must admit I thought slouch socks, leggings and ankle boots were a pretty good look for me along with a long 'sloppy joe' style jumper :D   It was certainly better than my goth/punk look that I loved at the time and shudder at the memory of now.......luckily there's no photographic evidence of that particular fashion stage of my teen years.

So tell the truth - did you wear leg warmers?   Just take a breath and repeat after me -

Hello my name is insert your name and I wore leg warmers during the 80s and I was cool!

K is for KITT

I can't believe I've still managed to keep up with this challenge - for new readers I'm competing in an A-Z Blogging Challenge where every day (except Sundays) we have to blog out way through the alphabet.   Today we get to K which just has to be KITT as in my favorite star of Knight Rider.

Michael Knight was the character that David Hasselhoff played before he started sporting swimming trunks in the popular Bay Watch television series.   Although he was supposed to be the star of the show in my eyes KITT was always the star :D   KITT stands for Knight Industries Two Thousand and was a car that could drive by itself and talk as well!

I can't tell you the amount of times I would watch Knight Rider and think to myself one day I'm going to own a Kitt all of my own.   A few years ago I would've thought that the time was a long way off, but with in car navigation systems and the like maybe, just maybe I will own my very own Kitt.

Which Knight Rider character was your favorite?

Madonna, Madonna, Madonna

Madonna's 80s Collection

Photo of Madonna's Album Covers by Author

Madonna found fame in the 1980s producing 4 chart topping albums. Madonna seemed able to tune into the winds of change just before they occured and reinvented herself several times.

Songs such as Holiday and Lucky Star from her first album the self-titled Madonna catapulted her to stardom. With her resulting chart topping success throughout the rest of the eighties Madonna became a superstar and the rest as they say is history.

Not only was Madonna singing and dancing her way to stardom, she was also acting in movies such as Desperately Seeking Susan and Shanghai Surprise, as the 80s drew to a close she was working on the movie Dick Tracy with Warren Beatty.

Madonna's album Madonna

Madonna's first album was the self titled Madonna. It featured the singles Holiday, Borderline and Lucky Star.

Madonna
This album was pure pop and was exactly what was needed in the early 80s. Madonna jumped into the limelight with all of her energy. She had bleach blonde hair and wore dozens of bangles.

These songs will still get people onto the dance floor 25 years later. The unpolished performance of Madonna in 1983 compared to now is quite interesting.

Madonna Album Cover & Inner Sleeve by author

This album is a must for any Madonna fan or even an 80s music lover as it documents the birth of -

The Queen of Pop

Madonna's album Like A Virgin - Madonna's second album

Madonna's second album gave us the singles Like A Virgin, Material Girl, Angel, Dress You Up & Into The Groove.

Like a Virgin
The title track Like A Virgin caused widespread controversy which 'little catholic girl' Madonna lapped up. The album continued on with the pop sound of her first album with Dress You Up and Into The Groove becoming 80s dance club staples.

Material Girl was a tongue in cheek look at the 'buy it now' generation. She tried to morph into Marilyn Monroe's character from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, this was really our first taste of how Madonna could reinvent herself.

Madonna really embraced the MTV culture and worked on giving a good show as well as singing her best. She was always working on her dancing as she realised how important the complete package was.

She also realised the importance of video, in fact in Material Girl the video runs longer than the song telling a story.

Her single Into The Groove as well as being a big hit in dance clubs was also the 3rd best selling single of 1985 in the UK.

Madonna's Like a Virgin LP Cover & Inner Sleeve by author

Madonna Branches Out

1985 was a year for consolidating on her pop music success. Not only did Madonna start her first US tour - The Virgin Tour - she also did some mainstream acting.

The Virgin Tour was really big and was the reason she was unable to be a part of the Feed The World single. She did perform at the Live Aid concert however.

The beginning of the year saw Madonna make a brief appearance in the movie Vision Quest. Later in the year she would co-star in Desperately Seeking Susan with Rosanna Arquette.

Vision Quest
Matthew Modine stars in this coming of age movie as a high school wrestler. He doesn't have much support from his father and sets about trying to achieve his goal on his own -enter Linda Fiorentino.

His father rents out the spare room to a drifter, played by Linda Fiorentino, promptly our hero falls for this older woman. She helps him to focus on his goal - does he make it? Well that would be telling.

Madonna's performance is as a lead singer in a local band - not a big stretch for her. She performs her hit song Crazy for You. The movie is credited with helping her song Crazy for You become her second US number one hit.

Desperately Seeking Susan
This likeable comedy is about a case of mistaken identity. I believe this has been Madonna's best movie role and Rosanna Arquette is also great in what is a cult 80s film.

Rosanna's character is that of a bored suburban housewife while Madonna plays a free spirited NY drifter.

Madonna's Album True Blue - Madonna's third album

Madonna's third album featured the singles Live to Tell, Papa Don't Preach, True Blue, Open Your Heart and La Isla Bonita.

True Blue
True Blue shows Madonna's growing confidence and maturity. It also has my favorite Madonna track - Papa Don't Preach, although controversal at the time I think it is a great song. I'm not the only person who appreciated this song as it was the ninth best selling single of 1986 in the UK.

With the ballad Live to Tell, Madonna was able to silence her critics as it really showed off her singing ability.

La Isla Bonita hints to us that Madonna hasn't finished her ability to become a musical chameleon which in hind sight we have come to realise that she never will!

Madonna released her album True Blue in 1986, the same year as she starred with her then husband Sean Penn in the movie Shanghai Surprise.

True Blue LP Cover & Inner Sleeve by author

Madonna also made her first appearance as a stage actress alongside Sean Penn in Goose and Tom-Tom.

The following year in 1987 Madonna starred in another movie called Who's That Girl. She contributed four songs to the movie's soundtrack and embarked on another tour. This tour was called Who's That Girl?

Madonna also released an album of her past hits in 1987 called You Can Dance.

1987 also saw the town of Pacentro start to construct a statue of Madonna in a bustier. Madonna's Ciccone grandparents emigrated to America from Pacentro.

Pope John Paul II urged Catholics to stay away from Madonna's Who's That Girl tour as she began her Italian leg of the tour.

Shanghai Surprise (Special Edition)
This movie stars husband and wife duo Sean Penn and Madonna. It is set in 1930s China and has been described as anything from mediocre to a disaster.

The film was such a total flop that plans to release the soundtrack (by the talented George Harrison) were scrapped.

Considering that Sean Penn and Madonna were married and supposedly in love there is no chemistry between them at all.

Who's That Girl? (1987)
This screwball comedy was panned by critics, although Madonna received some really good comments for critics for her performance. Including "Madonna is sexy and funny - a very engaging comedian.

It may not be an award winning movie but if you like films such as Superbad then you should 'go retro' and watch Who's That Girl. It has some hilarious moments along with a great soundtrack.

Madonna's Like a Prayer Album - Madonna's fourth album

Madonna's fourth album features the singles: Like a Prayer, Express Yourself, Cherish, Oh Father, Dear Jessie & Keep it Together.

Like a Prayer
This album was the first one that Madonna seemed to recieve BOTH critical and commercial success with. It shows a lot of maturity in her singing as well as her versatility. Rolling Stone magazine actually said the album was as close to art as pop music gets.

According to Time magazine in 2006 the Like A Prayer album made the list as one of the greatest 100 albums of all time

n 1988, the year before releasing Like a Prayer, Madonna appeared as Karen in the stage performance of Speed the Plow.

In 1989 the film Bloodhounds of Broadway was released. Starring Madonna & Josef Sommer this film is set during the roaring 20s with gangsters and go-go girls. It is worth watching if only to see a young Steve Buscemi and Randy Quaid.

Leaving the 80s Madonna was co-starring next to Hollywood heavyweight Warren Beatty in Dick Tracy. Dick Tracy would be released in 1990.

Madonna also tried out for a role on the hit television series Fame. Although Madonna was unsuccessful in getting a role she did write a couple of songs for the series.