I Love the '80s (American TV series)

I Love the '80s
GenreDocumentary
Written byJames Eatock
Narrated byDoug Jeffers
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes10
Production
Running time41 min.
Original release
NetworkVH1
ReleaseDecember 16 (2002-12-16) –
December 20, 2002 (2002-12-20)
Related
I Love the '70s
I Love the '80s Strikes Back
I Love the '90s
I Love the '90s: Part Deux
I Love the '80s 3-D
I Love the Holidays
I Love Toys
I Love the '70s: Volume 2
I Love the New Millennium
Best of I Love the...
I Love the 2000s

I Love the '80s is a 1980s nostalgia television program and the first installment of the I Love the... series that was produced by VH1, based on the BBC series of the same name.[1] The first episode, "I Love 1980", premiered on December 16, 2002, and the final episode, "I Love 1989", premiered on December 20, 2002.

Commentators

(*) = archive footage

Recurring segments

  • Makeout Songs: Lionel Richie presents the love songs from each year.
  • Babes: Bret Michaels presents the attractive female celebrities or fictional characters from each year.
  • Hunks: Traci Lords presents the attractive male celebrities from each year.
  • Public Service Announcement: A public service announcement (PSA) from each year is presented.
  • Then and Now: "Weird Al" Yankovic compares trends of the given year and the present day.
  • Mr. & Ms.: Andrew Dice Clay presents a male celebrity and a female celebrity of each year.
  • Born In: Soleil Moon Frye presents the people, bands, and products that were born in each year.
  • During the credits of every episode, a clip from a popular music video was played without any type of commentary. These were usually replaced with a show promo by Vh1.

Topics covered by year

1980

Makeout Songs of 1980: "Every Woman in the World" by Air Supply, "Longer" by Dan Fogelberg and "Do That to Me One More Time" by Captain & Tennille

Babes of 1980: Princess Leia, Bo Derek, Charlene Tilton, Victoria Principal and Suzanne Somers

Hunks of 1980: Richard Gere, Jim Palmer, John Travolta, Erik Estrada and Greg Evigan

PSA of 1980: Give a Kid a Book PSA

Then and Now 1980: Sony Walkman with Cassette (Then: $169.00 / Now: $19.95), Ross Harris (Then: Movie star of Airplane! / Now: Video star of "Sad Caper" by Hootie and the Blowfish) and The Big Gulp (Then: 32 oz. / Now: 64 oz.)

Mr. & Ms. 1980: Ronald Reagan and Daisy Duke

Born in 1980: Jessica Simpson, Christina Aguilera, Post-it notes, ethnic Barbie dolls and Macaulay Culkin

1981

Makeout Songs of 1981: "Keep on Loving You" by REO Speedwagon, "Waiting For a Girl Like You" by Foreigner and "Endless Love" by Lionel Richie and Diana Ross

Babes of 1981: Olivia Newton-John, Donna Dixon, Valerie Bertinelli, Kathleen Turner and Sandra Day O'Connor

Hunks of 1981: Patrick Duffy, Burt Reynolds, Harrison Ford, Mick Jagger and Richard Simmons

PSA of 1981: Girl Scouts in Gymnastics

Then and Now 1981: Tom Cruise (Then: Endless Love - $33 Million / Now: Endless Cash - $25 Million), Movie Tickets (Then: $3.00 / Now: $10.00) and Suntan Lotion (Then: Tanning oil / Now: Hawaiian Tropic Ozone SPF 70)

Mr. & Ms. 1981: Tom Selleck and Sheena Easton

Born in 1981: Alicia Keys, Kelly Rowland, Beyoncé, the laptop computer, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, the thong, Serena Williams and Metallica

1982

Makeout Songs of 1982: "Up Where We Belong" by Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes and "Truly" by Lionel Richie

Babes of 1982: Kim Wilde, Rae Dawn Chong, Kirstie Alley, Pia Zadora and Tootsie

Hunks of 1982: John Stamos, David Lee Roth, Sting, Bruce Springsteen and the Soloflex Guy

PSA of 1982: Time for Timer's "Sunshine on a Stick" PSA

Then and Now 1982: Cats (Then: On Broadway now and forever / Now: Gone), Scott Schwartz (Then: Child star of The Toy / Now: Porn star) and Concert Tickets for The Who (Then: Farewell tour - $25.00 / Now: Reunion tour - $250.00)

Mr. & Ms. 1982: Eddie Murphy and Heather Locklear

Born in 1982: Kirsten Dunst, Prince William, Diet Coke, Public Enemy and liposuction

1983

Makeout Songs of 1983: "Every Breath You Take" by The Police, "True" by Spandau Ballet and "Sexual Healing" by Marvin Gaye

Babes of 1983: Maud Adams, Vanity, Joan Collins, Christie Brinkley and Rebecca De Mornay

Hunks of 1983: Lee Horsley, Rob Lowe, Marvin Gaye, Bruce Boxleitner and Chewbacca

PSA of 1983: Smokey Bear - Mask of Joanna Cassidy

Then and Now 1983: Talent Shows (Then: Star Search / Now: American Idol), Cellular Phones (Then: $3,000 / Now: Given Away) and Home Video Cameras (Then: Sony Betamovie - 6.5 lbs. / Now: Sony MicroMV Handycam - 12 oz.)

Mr. & Ms. 1983: Tom Cruise and Ms. Pac-Man

Born in 1983: Michelle Branch, Bon Jovi, the Nintendo Entertainment System, Taylor Hanson and the Red Hot Chili Peppers

1984

Makeout Songs of 1984: "Almost Paradise" by Mike Reno & Ann Wilson, "Against All Odds" by Phil Collins and "Missing You" by John Waite

Babes of 1984: Paulina Porizkova, Daryl Hannah, Tina Turner, Heather Thomas and Geraldine Ferraro

Hunks of 1984: Ralph Macchio, Matt Dillon, C. Thomas Howell, Duran Duran and Tom Hulce

PSA of 1984: "Don't let your lungs go to pot." - Cast of Fame

Then and Now 1984: Recreational Family Vehicles (Then: Chrysler Caravan - $8,669 / Now: Ford Explorer - $24,620), Super Bowl Tickets (Then: $60.00 / Now: $325.00) and The Mac (Then: 131,000 bytes of memory / Now: 500,000,000 bytes of memory)

Mr. & Ms. 1984: Boy George

Born in 1984: Mandy Moore, Freddy Krueger, Kelly Osbourne, hair mousse and Punky Brewster

1985

Makeout Songs of 1985: "Careless Whisper" by Wham!, "Smooth Operator" by Sade and "Crazy for You" by Madonna

Babes of 1985: Kelly LeBrock, Kelly McGillis, Rosanna Arquette, Grace Slick and Tipper Gore

Hunks of 1985: Sylvester Stallone, William "The Refrigerator" Perry, Robert Redford, Jim McMahon and Pee-wee Herman

PSA of 1985: Contract for Life

Then and Now 1985: Hit Soft Drinks (Then: New Coke / Now: Vanilla Coke) and Pro Wrestling (Then: Hulk Hogan / Now: The Rock)

Mr. & Ms. 1985: Dolph Lundgren and Brigitte Nielsen

Born in 1985: Zac Hanson, Air Jordans, Frankie Muniz, Lee Press-On Nails and VH1

1986

Makeout Songs of 1986: "Take My Breath Away" by Berlin, "The Next Time I Fall" by Peter Cetera & Amy Grant and "Secret Lovers" by Atlantic Starr

Babes of 1986: Susanna Hoffs, Kim Basinger, Stevie Nicks, Bette Midler and the Statue of Liberty

Hunks of 1986: Tom Cruise, Walter Payton, Paul Hogan, Keith Hernandez and Howard the Duck

PSA of 1986: "Vote With A Friend. Make It Count More" with Quincy Jones and James Ingram

Then and Now 1986: Highest Baseball Salary (Then: Gary Carter - $2 Million / Now: Alex Rodriguez - $22 Million), David Lee Roth & Sammy Hagar (Then: Rivals / Now: Together) and Ted Danson & Kelsey Grammer (Then: Ted Danson making $45,000 an episode on Cheers / Now: Kelsey Grammer making $1,600,000 an episode on Frasier)

Mr. & Ms. 1986: Mike Tyson and Oprah Winfrey

Born in 1986: Amanda Bynes, The Olsen twins (Mary-Kate and Ashley), Lindsay Lohan, the Goo Goo Dolls, Jolt Cola, the Pixies and the disposable camera

1987

Makeout Songs of 1987: "At This Moment" by Billy Vera & The Beaters, "Don't Dream It's Over" by Crowded House and "I Need Love" by LL Cool J

Babes of 1987: Lisa Bonet, Sheena Easton, Jody Watley, Tawny Kitaen and the Church Lady

Hunks of 1987: LL Cool J, RoboCop, Dennis Quaid, Harry Hamlin and Harry from Harry and the Hendersons

PSA of 1987: Anti-Drug (Marijuana): "I learned it by watching you!"

Then and Now 1987: Richest Person in America (Then: Sam Walton - $4,500,000,000 / Now: Bill Gates - $43,000,000,000), Baby Jessica (Then: Stuck in a well / Now: Well adjusted) and Axl Rose (Then: New face of rock 'n' roll / Now: New face)

Mr. & Ms. 1987: Bruce Willis and Cher

Born in 1987: Lil' Bow Wow, Hilary Duff, Aaron Carter, Nirvana and condom commercials

1988

Makeout Songs of 1988: "She's Like the Wind" by Patrick Swayze, "Hold On to the Nights" by Richard Marx and "The Flame" by Cheap Trick

Babes of 1988: Jessica Rabbit, Kari Wuhrer, Samantha Fox, Julia Roberts and Divine

Hunks of 1988: John F. Kennedy Jr., Donald Trump, Kevin Costner, Joe Montana and Dan Quayle

PSA of 1988: Buckle Up (Car Crash Test Dummies)

Then and Now 1988: A Year of Tuition at Harvard (Then: $12,000 / Now: $35,000), Ricki Lake (Then: 250 lbs. / Now: 120 lbs.) and 100-Meter Sprint (Then: Ben Johnson - 9.79 seconds / Now: Tim Montgomery - 9.78 seconds)

Mr. and Ms. 1988: ALF and Debbie Gibson

Born in 1988: Haley Joel Osment, Mae Whitman, Alexa Vega, Teddy Grahams, Miami Heat, En Vogue and Prozac

1989

Makeout Songs of 1989: "Right Here Waiting" by Richard Marx, "If You Don't Know Me by Now" by Simply Red and "Lovesong" by The Cure

Babes of 1989: Winona Ryder, Paula Abdul, Tiffani-Amber Thiessen, Claudia Schiffer and Barbara Bush

Hunks of 1989: Batman, The Joker, Johnny Depp, Mel Gibson and Leonardo

PSA of 1989: Madonna on AIDS Prevention

Then and Now 1989: Bushes (Then: George H. W. Bush / Now: George W. Bush), Justin Timberlake (Then: Mouseketeer / Now: Michael Jackson) and World Wide Web (Then: Dialing up / Now: Off the hook)

Mr. and Ms. 1989: Fab Morvan and Meg Ryan

Born in 1989: Daniel Radcliffe, Hole, Hootie & the Blowfish, Lil' Romeo and American Gladiators

References

  1. ^ MacLeish, Jessica (September 30, 2019). "How VH1's 'I Love the...' Created a Generation of Culture Students". The Ringer.
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I Love the '70s