Login
Login

I Love the '80s (American TV series)

{{More citations needed|date=March 2021}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}

{{Infobox television

| image = I Love the '80s (American TV series).jpg

| caption =

| alt_name =

| genre = Documentary

| creator =

| developer =

| writer = James Eatock

| director =

| narrated = Doug Jeffers

| theme_music_composer =

| opentheme =

| endtheme =

| composer =

| country = United States

| language = English

| num_seasons = 1

| num_episodes = 10

| list_episodes =

| executive_producer =

| producer =

| editor =

| location =

| cinematography =

| camera =

| runtime = 41 min.

| company =

| channel = VH1

| first_aired = {{start date|2002|12|16}}

| last_aired = {{end date|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.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theringer.com/tv/2019/9/30/20887782/vh1-i-love-the-series-80s-90s-nostalgia|title=How VH1's 'I Love the...' Created a Generation of Culture Students|first=Jessica|last=MacLeish|date=September 30, 2019|website=The Ringer}} The first episode, "I Love 1980", premiered on December 16, 2002, and the final episode, "I Love 1989", premiered on December 20, 2002.

Commentators

{{div col}}

{{div col end}}

(*) = 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

  • [https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10417940902741514 I Love the 80s: The Pleasures of a Postmodern History] (2010) 75 Southern Communication Journal 76

{{Reflist}}

External links

  • {{IMDb title|0346299}}
  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20060718174945/http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/i_love_the_80s/series.jhtml I Love the '80s] on VH1

{{S-start}}

{{S-ttl|title=I Love the '80s}}

{{S-after|after=I Love the '70s}}

{{S-end}}

{{I Love the ... series}}

Category:Nostalgia television shows

Category:Nostalgia television in the United States

Category:VH1 original programming

Category:2000s American television miniseries

Category:2002 American television series debuts

Category:2002 American television series endings