1980's Archives - Page 2 of 10 - Retro Reminiscing Video and Pictures

1984: Red Dawn Invades Theaters

Today marks the anniversary of the release of Red Dawn, which opened in theaters on August 10, 1984. For anyone who grew up during the Cold War, the idea of Soviet and Cuban paratroopers suddenly dropping into an American high school felt a lot more believable then than it probably does today

Patrick Swayze led a remarkably young cast that also included Charlie Sheen, C. Thomas Howell, Lea Thompson and Jennifer Grey. Their characters escaped into the mountains and became the Wolverines, a teenage resistance group fighting the occupying forces. Swayze and Grey would reunite just three years later in a very different movie, Dirty Dancing

Red Dawn also holds an unusual place in movie history. The MPAA had only recently created the PG-13 rating, and when the film opened on August 10, 1984, it became the first PG-13 movie actually released in American theaters

The movie began as a screenplay called Ten Soldiers by Kevin Reynolds before director John Milius reshaped it into the version we know. Although the story takes place in Colorado, much of it was filmed around Las Vegas, New Mexico, which was transformed into the fictional town of Calumet

It was considered extremely violent for its time, but audiences responded. The movie earned more than twice its reported production budget domestically and became one of those films that seemed to capture the tension and fears of the early 1980s

Its influence even reached the real military. When U.S. forces captured Saddam Hussein in 2003, the mission was called Operation Red Dawn, with search locations named “Wolverine 1” and “Wolverine 2” after the movie

Burger King Sold Veal?

Do you remember when Burger King sold veal? Watching this commercial again, it almost seems impossible that one of America’s biggest hamburger chains was trying to convince us that a Veal Parmigiana sandwich belonged in the drive-through

Burger King had been expanding beyond burgers with its Specialty Sandwich line, offering chicken, roast beef, ham and cheese, fish and steak on those familiar long rolls. Then came the Veal Parmigiana — a breaded veal patty with tomato sauce and mozzarella — tested in selected markets before going national in 1982. The idea was to give adults something that felt a little more like restaurant food than ordinary fast food.

And Burger King really was out there by itself on this one. A May 20, 1982 Christian Science Monitor report specifically called Burger King the only major fast-food chain then selling veal sandwiches, adding that representatives from both McDonald’s and Jack in the Box said they had no plans to follow. Historical accounts of Burger King’s Specialty Sandwich program also cite that contemporary report.

The sandwich soon became controversial. Animal-rights groups organized a boycott over the treatment of calves raised for veal, putting Burger King in the middle of a debate that was becoming much more visible nationally. Burger King later said the protests were not why it removed the sandwich and blamed weak consumer demand instead. By 1983, it had disappeared from almost every Burger King menu.

What I find especially interesting is that Burger King didn’t completely forget the idea. Veal Parmigiana reportedly made a limited return in New England in 1988, and Burger King later had much more success putting marinara and mozzarella on chicken instead with its Italian Chicken Sandwich.

It’s hard to imagine McDonald’s, Wendy’s or Burger King introducing a veal sandwich today, but for a brief time Burger King actually tried to make Veal Parmigiana mainstream fast food

Did anyone actually try one of these, and was it any good?

Peter Pan Peanut Butter

How many of you remember this Peter Pan Peanut Butter commercial? This one really seems to have stuck with people, and watching it again I can understand why. Instead of giving us a normal family making peanut butter sandwiches, they filled the commercial with recognizable characters and images including Peter Pan and Captain Hook, Beethoven, the Mona Lisa and even a hockey-masked horror character, all brought together by Peter Pan Peanut Butter

The biggest surprise for me is the music. That catchy “peanut, peanut butter” jingle wasn’t originally written for the commercial at all. The melody goes back to “(Baby) Hully Gully,” written by Fred Sledge Smith and Cliff Goldsmith in 1959. H.B. Barnum and Marty Cooper then adapted it into “Peanut Butter,” recorded by The Marathons in 1961, and that song eventually found another life in Peter Pan’s advertising more than twenty years later.

Peter Pan needed memorable advertising at the time, too. In early 1984, Skippy controlled about 40 percent of the national peanut-butter market and Jif had 17 percent, while Peter Pan was down around seven percent. So this wonderfully strange commercial was coming from a famous old brand trying very hard to get our attention, and I’d say they succeeded.

The brand itself goes all the way back to 1928 and was once the dominant national peanut butter. By the time this commercial appeared, Peter Pan was also changing corporate hands as Beatrice acquired Esmark, which explains that very familiar 1980s “We’re Beatrice” identification some of us remember seeing at the end of commercials.

Peter Pan advertising had also featured some familiar faces over the years, including Sterling Holloway, Alan Sues, Art James and later Perfect Strangers star Mark Linn-Baker. I tried to track down the performers in this particular commercial, but I couldn’t find a reliable cast list, so rather than guess at their identities or what became of them, I’m leaving that part as one of the mysteries behind the commercial.

Do you remember this one, and did that “peanut, peanut butter” jingle immediately come back to you?

Remember the Fruit of the Loom Lady?

A lot of us remember Fruit of the Loom commercials because they were just plain fun, but this one has an extra connection many people may not realize. The woman in the commercial is Loretta Tupper, a veteran actress who became one of television’s most recognizable commercial performers. Kids remembered her as the Fruit of the Loom lady, while older viewers may have spotted her in all kinds of other ads during the 1970s and ’80s.

What made these commercials so memorable was the simple but clever idea of bringing the Fruit of the Loom characters right into an everyday home setting. It gave the brand a playful personality and helped make those fruit costumes instantly unforgettable. Looking back now, it’s another reminder of how much charm older commercials had, when a funny concept and one memorable performer could make an ad stick in your mind for years.

Do you remember seeing these Fruit of the Loom commercials when they first aired, and did you recognize Loretta Tupper?

Whoop-dee-doo for my Subaru Midas Ad

I recognized Midas right away, but the lady driving the Subaru is another familiar part of this commercial. That’s Loretta Tupper, one of those faces we saw over and over again in commercials during the 1970s and ’80s. I’m going to save more about her for another commercial later, because she had quite an interesting career.

Midas itself started back in 1956 and, for its first few years, was basically all about mufflers and exhaust systems. One of its biggest selling points was the famous guarantee that covered the muffler for as long as you owned the car. The company gradually expanded, adding shocks in 1960 and brakes in 1979 before eventually becoming the full-service auto repair chain we know today.

It’s also a reminder of how common muffler shops once were. Replacing an exhaust system was simply a much more routine part of owning a car than it is today.

Do you remember going to Midas for a muffler, and did you recognize Loretta Tupper when she appeared?

7 UP the Uncola

How many of you can still hear Geoffrey Holder’s booming voice and unforgettable laugh before this commercial even gets going? This 1983 spot came during the later years of his long association with 7UP, when he reminded viewers that the Uncola was “crisp and clean” with no caffeine.

Holder was much more than a memorable commercial spokesman. He was a Trinidad-born dancer, painter, choreographer, actor and director who played Baron Samedi in the James Bond film Live and Let Die. He also won two Tony Awards in 1975 for directing and designing the costumes for The Wiz. That voice and laugh were entirely his own, and they gave these commercials a personality few soft-drink campaigns could match.

The name 7UP remains one of the interesting mysteries in advertising history. Creator Charles Leiper Grigg apparently never explained it. The most repeated theories involve seven ingredients, the original seven-ounce bottle or lithium’s approximate atomic mass, but none has been conclusively proven. Even the familiar story that its original name was “Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda” has been challenged because researchers found little historical evidence that it was ever the product’s official name.

Did your family regularly buy 7UP, or was it something you mostly remember being served when someone had an upset stomach?

New Coke

Wearing one of his familiar sweaters and sitting against a dark background, Bill Cosby holds up the can, calls it the best Coca-Cola ever and ends with “Coke is it!”

Coca-Cola replaced its original formula on April 23, 1985, after extensive taste testing. According to Coca-Cola’s own history, nearly 200,000 consumers participated in tests that favored the new formula. What those tests failed to measure was the emotional connection people had with the original drink.

Cosby was an obvious choice because he was one of television’s most familiar and persuasive advertising personalities. However, his appearance created an amusing contradiction. Shortly before New Coke arrived, he had appeared in commercials criticizing Pepsi for tasting too sweet. New Coke was then introduced with a sweeter taste designed partly to compete with Pepsi.

The reaction quickly became part of advertising history. Coca-Cola received thousands of complaints, consumers began hoarding the remaining original Coke and protest groups demanded its return. One Texas customer reportedly purchased $1,000 worth of the old formula before it disappeared.

Coca-Cola finally brought the original drink back as Coca-Cola Classic on July 11, only 79 days after introducing New Coke. The new formula remained available beside it, was eventually renamed Coke II and quietly survived until 2002.

Did you try New Coke in 1985, and was it really as bad as everyone remembers?

It Was More Fun the Colorforms Way

As requested by a number of viewers, here is the Raggedy Ann Colorforms commercial I remember from childhood. I have since discovered just how many different Colorforms kits were made, and I will share more of them over time.

Colorforms used colorful pieces of reusable vinyl that clung to smooth surfaces without glue. Children could dress the characters, rearrange the scenes, peel everything off and begin again. The Raggedy Ann kit shown in this 1967 commercial allowed kids to change her dresses and accessories as often as their imaginations allowed.

Colorforms began in 1951 after Harry and Patricia Kislevitz experimented with colorful vinyl originally used to make handbags. They discovered that the pieces clung to the glossy walls of their bathroom and began cutting them into different shapes. What started as a creative experiment soon became a successful toy.

FAO Schwarz placed an early order for 1,000 sets, helping turn the small project into a real company. The first kits featured basic geometric shapes, but licensed characters soon followed. Popeye became the first in 1957, opening the door for hundreds of television, comic book and movie characters.

Even the familiar Colorforms logo has an interesting history. Legendary graphic designer Paul Rand, who also designed logos for IBM, ABC and UPS, created it in 1959.

I also remember watching the local weather forecast as a child. The station used happy, smiling suns, large red H’s for high pressure and other colorful symbols that looked like oversized Colorforms.

Before computer-generated weather graphics, forecasters physically moved reusable symbols around a large map. Depending on the station, those symbols could be made from magnetic rubber, felt or another cling-on material. Whatever they were made from, they looked remarkably similar to the Colorforms we played with at home.

Maybe that is why those old weather maps remain so memorable. The smiling suns, rain clouds and giant H’s and L’s made the forecast feel like a giant Colorforms set coming to life on television.

Do you remember your local weather forecaster moving those colorful symbols around the map?

Two All-Beef Patties…

This 1975 commercial begins with customers confidently attempting to describe a Big Mac. Most of them quickly stumble over the ingredients until the familiar jingle takes over: “Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame-seed bun.”

The Big Mac was created by Pennsylvania McDonald’s franchisee Jim Delligatti and first sold in 1967 for 45 cents. McDonald’s initially considered calling it the Aristocrat or Blue Ribbon Burger, but 21-year-old advertising secretary Esther Glickstein Rose suggested the much simpler name “Big Mac.” It became available nationwide in 1968.

The ingredient chant arrived in 1974 through a campaign developed by Keith Reinhard’s creative group at Needham Harper & Steers. The ingredient list had first appeared in college newspaper advertising before Mark Vieha turned the words into music and performed the original jingle.

The campaign became so popular that some McDonald’s restaurants offered a free Big Mac to customers who could recite the complete list correctly within just a few seconds. A longer version of the commercial also appeared during Super Bowl IX in 1975.

The commercial lasted only seconds, but it taught generations exactly what was inside a Big Mac. In 1986, The Economist even began using Big Mac prices around the world to compare the purchasing power of different currencies.

Can you still say the entire Big Mac chant without stumbling?

The DeLorean: A Dream Car With a Wild Story

The DeLorean DMC-12 looked like it had arrived from the future, even before Doc Brown turned one into a time machine. With its gull-wing doors, stainless-steel body and low, sharp styling, nothing else on the road looked quite like it. Unfortunately, the performance did not match the appearance, and buyers discovered that the futuristic-looking sports car was not especially fast.

The company was also running out of money. In 1982, John DeLorean became involved in what appeared to be a plan to finance the company through a cocaine transaction. The deal was arranged with James Hoffman, a convicted drug smuggler working as a federal informant. DeLorean was arrested during a videotaped hotel-room sting, but his attorneys argued that the government had pressured a financially desperate businessman into committing a crime.

A jury agreed with the entrapment defense and acquitted DeLorean of all charges in 1984. By then, however, the company had collapsed and his reputation had been permanently damaged.

Was the DeLorean reliable? Early cars had electrical problems, weak alternators, troublesome power windows and inconsistent assembly. The V6 engine itself could be durable, but the car needed attentive maintenance and knowledgeable mechanics. A properly restored DeLorean can be dependable today, although owning one is still more of a passion project than ordinary transportation.

Did you dream of owning a DeLorean before Back to the Future, or did the movie make you want one?