When you hear people talk about the 80s do you ever think, "Hmmm, that's not entirely accurate..."  If so, what do you want to correct people about?  The thing that drives me batty is the idea that we were all walking around in neon day glow clothes looking like Rainbow Bright.  There was a failed spin off show called "That 80s Show" that got it all wrong, and unfortunately the people allowed it to be a representation of the decade (the young school kids I worked with at the time).  It's like the producers thought, "OK this is what that Dire Straights" video looked like (Money For Nothing) so that must be what everything looked liked.  Sadly, I think a lot of people that were not there think the same way.

Pay attention next time you watch a movie from the 80s.  I'll select some of the most iconic movies where you do not see neon fashion but you see the "hip teens" of the time that are represent fashion of the time.

Weird Science
Sixteen Candles
St. Elmos Fire
The Lost Boys (there's one scene where Corey Haim has a pastel neon shirt on which is very rad)
Pretty in Pink
Some Kind Of Wonderful
The Goonies
Christine
Carrie

In all those movies... no neon in the clothing.  You might see neon in those hair scrunchies for girls, or in kids clothing.  You'd see it on Trapper Keepers and such.  You would see it in Music Videos , but not as many as you might think. 

If anything the kids of the 80s dressed nearly close to the kids in the grunge 90s.  A lot of black, a lot of rock shirts. I've noticed the height of neon was really in the later 80s rolling into the 90s.

I think the most neon videos I recall are Tarzan Boy, Lets Go (from Wang Chung), and Money For Nothing from Dire Straights. 

I like neon, as long as there's a separation with darker colors or dark lines.  If a person is truly rainbow bright, I understand the aversion to that.  There was a character in the movie "The Gate" that made the mistake of wearing nothing but neon without separation.  She looked like a sherbet ice cream pop.

That's a misconception / misdirection of the 80s that I notice. Are there any other things of the 80s you feel people get wrong when they talk about the decade now?

This is a great topic and all, but there is already a thread based on those misconceptions.

http://www.inthe00s.com/index.php?topic=54838.0

Yeah, like Ultra Game Dog said, you should post in my neato thread. :P

It's so weird... Everyone sees fashion in the 80's so oddly. On one hand, you see people thinking everyone wore neon barf spandex on rollerskates but on the other hand you see people who think everyone still dressed like the late 70's (shaggy long hair or feathered Farrah Fawcett styles and tucked in tight polos) until 1989 came around. I can definitely see the similarities between 80's fashion and 90's grunge. Hell, 90's styles in general started in the early 80's and really kicked off around the second half of the decade. Flannel and skate/surf/streetwear brands like Stussy, Ocean Pacific, Gotcha and Vision were really big parts of everyday fashion from 85-89. There was a lot of crazy big hair and loud colored clothes back then, too, though. It was a very experimental and diverse time where so many things were being done. You could dress like 1995 (some fashions like a big t-shirt, converse and somewhat baggy pants) in 1985 and fit in pretty well.

Yeah, like Ultra Game Dog said, you should post in my neato thread. :P

It's so weird... Everyone sees fashion in the 80's so oddly. On one hand, you see people thinking everyone wore neon barf spandex on rollerskates but on the other hand you see people who think everyone still dressed like the late 70's (shaggy long hair or feathered Farrah Fawcett styles and tucked in tight polos) until 1989 came around. I can definitely see the similarities between 80's fashion and 90's grunge. Hell, 90's styles in general started in the early 80's and really kicked off around the second half of the decade. Flannel and skate/surf/streetwear brands like Stussy, Ocean Pacific, Gotcha and Vision were really big parts of everyday fashion from 85-89. There was a lot of crazy big hair and loud colored clothes back then, too, though. It was a very experimental and diverse time where so many things were being done. You could dress like 1995 (some fashions like a big t-shirt, converse and somewhat baggy pants) in 1985 and fit in pretty well.


Grunge also started in 1985 when Green River released "Come on Down", it was even popular then too, but only in Seattle.

Grunge also started in 1985 when Green River released "Come on Down", it was even popular then too, but only in Seattle.


Oh yeah, I knew that. :P But you're right. Hell, even emo was a thing in 1985 with Rites of Spring and Grey Matter's debut albums.

So many things from the decade bled into the 90's that most people don't realize a lot of the things they think are "90s" are also 80s.

Oh yeah, I knew that. :P But you're right. Hell, even emo was a thing in 1985 with Rites of Spring and Grey Matter's debut albums.

So many things from the decade bled into the 90's that most people don't realize a lot of the things they think are "90s" are also 80s.


Were guys dressed as emo too?  ???

Were guys dressed as emo too?  ???


Here's what 80's emo bands looked like:

https://ccpopculture.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/rites-of-spring-e1408598730779.jpeg

http://s3.amazonaws.com/assets.dischord.com/images.d/artist/image/6600/gray-matter-sandstrom.jpg

http://www.wxdu.org/sites/default/files/image/dag%20nasty.jpg

Nothing close to what emo became in 2003.

Here's what 80's emo bands looked like:

https://ccpopculture.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/rites-of-spring-e1408598730779.jpeg

http://s3.amazonaws.com/assets.dischord.com/images.d/artist/image/6600/gray-matter-sandstrom.jpg

http://www.wxdu.org/sites/default/files/image/dag%20nasty.jpg

Nothing close to what emo became in 2003.


That's pretty interesting.

That's pretty interesting.


The music was great, too!

The music was great, too!


It sure was!  :)

The music was great, too!
At the time the music was new and interesting, nowadays I find it all noisy.

At the time the music was new and interesting, nowadays I find it all noisy.


I agree.