TheFW » ’80s

See The Cast Of 'Say Anything' Then and Now

Jeremy Taylor — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 19:02:48 +0000

When one thinks of ‘Say Anything…,’ John Cusak, holding a boom box above his head and serenading Ione Skye with the Peter Gabriel song ’In Your Eyes’ likely comes to mind. But beyond that iconic scene, Cameron Crowe’s directorial debut is perhaps one of the most well-crafted and nuanced teen romantic comedies of all time.A [...]

John Cusack Channels Lloyd Dobler, Holds Boombox at Peter Gabriel Concert

Emerald Catron — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 19:55:51 +0000

Here’s something for all you painfully nostalgic types out there. It’s video footage of John Cusack awkwardly shuffling onstage with a boombox and handing it to Peter Gabriel before he performed “In Your Eyes” in concert over the weekend. No, he wasn’t wearing a trench coat. He didn’t hold the boombox up in the air, [...]

Mr. Wizard Is Back and Jerkier Than Ever

Emerald Catron — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 16:45:08 +0000

PBS mainstay 'Mr. Wizard' was so crotchety back in the day that comedy writers Mike Schuster and Diane Bullock had to make two videos just to contain all of his hilarious put-downs and snide remarks directed towards his young sidekicks. (You can watch the first Mr. Wizard supercut here.).

Bruce Willis Gets Down in '80s Levi's Commercial

Emerald Catron — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 19:31:13 +0000

Everyone starts small. Unless you're Will Smith's kids. But other than them, most people tend to start somewhat smallish, even Bruce Willis. Way back, even before 'Moonlighting,' Bruce was slowly climbing his way up. Here he is showcasing his hot moves for Levi's. We're going to call this video his "stripper money," you know, since he's dancing to get paid and it's pretty embarrassing.

'Perfect Strangers' Video Game Lets You Pursue Your Dreams With Balki

Jeremy Taylor — Fri, 04 May 2012 20:45:39 +0000

'Perfect Strangers' was about more than just mismatched cousins who often found themselves in ridiculous circumstances and occasionally danced the "Dance of Joy." The sitcom, which ran from 1986 to 1993, was about following one's dreams.

In the case of Balki Bartokomous (Bronson Pinchot), his dream was to escape his family sheep farm in the Greek-like island of Mypos and start anew in America. Balki is also the star of an addictive new 'Perfect Strangers' video game from designer Jason Oda.

Man Replicates 'A-Team' Van to a (Mr.) T

Jeremy Taylor — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 21:23:47 +0000

If you were a child of the '80s, there was a good chance you owned some kind of model toy version of the A-Team's specially modified black and red GMC Vandura van.

That was also apparently true for kids in England, like 40-year-old Tag Majid, who's spent $30,000 pounds ($47,000) to turn a beat-up old 1985 Vandura he found into a real-life version of the legendary TV wheels.

15 Awesome Vintage PSAs You Probably Forgot

Nick Nadel — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 21:09:41 +0000

Children of the '80s and '90s pretty much learned everything they need to know from TV. (It was basically like a third parent.) Besides "very special" sitcom episodes, one of the major ways we learned about how to say no to drugs and avoid "stranger danger" was from public service announcements.

Jeremy Lin Gets the Inevitable 'Teen Wolf' Theme Song

Jeremy Taylor — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 20:49:53 +0000

The Jeremy Lin tale is one of a basketball player who happens to be a little different than his teammates coming out of nowhere to dominate from the point guard position. So where have we seen that story before?

Yup, 'Teen Wolf,' the 1985 movie in which Michael J. Fox played a much more hirsute and acrobatic version of Lin.

1984 'Sesame Street' Video Asks Kids What a Computer Is

Chip Sandalwood — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 19:38:02 +0000

In 1984, ‘Sesame Street’ asked a group of New York school children what a computer was. Though computers have certainly come a long way since then, this video shows us that actually many things haven’t changed. For example, computers still don’t have bones and they still are a lot like TV’s that “make designs” and [...]

B.B. the Christmas Bunny Decorates a Tree in the Weirdest Video You'll See All Day

Donald Deane — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 17:04:27 +0000

Normally, we wouldn’t expect much from public access TV, but this segment from a locally-programmed 1983 show in Tuscon, Arizona has the most adorable Christmas bunny ever! Also, two incredibly weird hosts. While wearing a miniature Santa hat, B.B. the Christmas bunny performs a trick — if you can call it that — involving candy [...]

Five TV Shows Based on Fairy Tales That Predate 'Grimm' and 'Once Upon a Time' [VIDEOS]

Jeff Giles — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 20:04:53 +0000

ABC's 'Once Upon a Time' debuted to unexpectedly strong numbers last night, delivering the highest ratings for any new drama series this season and bringing ABC a much-needed hit after the quick cancellation of its heavily hyped 'Charlie's Angels' reboot.

The show, which follows the real-world adventures of classic characters such as Snow White, Prince Charming and Pinocchio, is one of two new series (the other being NBC's upcoming 'Grimm') that take inspiration from fairy tales. As it turns out, these two buzzworthy shows are part of a long, somewhat eccentric TV tradition. Here are five other shows, from comedies to dramas, that cribbed from the Brothers Grimm first.

Splash Mountain Rap Has Mullets and Neon and Dancing… Oh My! [VIDEO]

Jeremy Taylor — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 15:33:02 +0000

Disney pulled out all the stops back in the late 80s for their Splash Mountain promotional video.

And by all the stops, we mean mullets, neon, huge hair, dancing construction workers and a synth-heavy remix of the Song of the South 'Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah.' All that was needed was a glitter bomb from Tinker Bell to get things started.

This is one of those videos where we dare you not to crack a smile.

Toys From the '80s Get a Musical Tribute in 'King of Legoland' [VIDEO]

Jeremy Taylor — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 14:01:26 +0000

Micaël Reynaud stop motion short ‘King of Legoland’ features a nostalgic look at the popular childhood favorites of the 1980s like Transformers and Matchbox cars. Check out the video, which is set to Hunting Charlie’s Band(e) Samuel Vielliard’s catchy song of the same name, below. [via The Daily What]

'GMA' Unearths Vintage Clip of Smug William Shatner [VIDEO]

Donald Deane — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 21:55:29 +0000

As ‘Good Morning America’s’ week-long celebration of the ’80s continues, they offer us this gem: A snippet from a classic interview with an exceedingly self-satisfied William Shatner! In this vintage clip, Shatner offers a completely baffling answer to a simple question about his ’80s cop drama ‘T.J. Hooker.’ Clearly, he’s trying to make a point, [...]

Josh Elliott Recreates Iconic 'Say Anything' Boombox Scene on 'GMA' [VIDEO]

Donald Deane — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 14:25:35 +0000

Anchorman Josh Elliott paid homage to John Cusack’s iconic boombox scene from ‘Say Anything’ on ‘Good Morning America‘ as part of “Totally Awesome ’80s Week.” Sniff. Sorry, that moment always gets us a little choked up. As Elliott stands outside the ‘GMA’ studios with a boombox held over his head, Peter Gabriel’s ‘In Your Eyes’ [...]