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Weekly Entertainment Section ★ The Daily Tar Hf.fi
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This past April, a great tragedy befell the world.
“Thriller,” Michael Jackson’s pop masterpiece
which had held the title of the biggest selling
album of all time for the past fourteen years, was
robbed of its throne by the “Eagles Greatest Hits.”
Blasphemy! The definitive ’Bos album, overthrown by
a bunch of neo-country, long-haired, hippie wannabes?
Say it ain’t so!
But, alas, it is so. Nor is this incident alone in sig
naling the trouble that ’Bos nostalgia is in. Molly
Ringwald’s new show was
cancelled by ABC. Sting still
won’t talk to the rest of the
Police. And when was the last
time you heard someone say
“grody to the max?” Let’s face
it the ’Bos need help. And
we, the children of the ’Bos,
are the only ones who can give
it.
Think of all that the ’Bos
have done for us. The pop cul
ture of the ’Bos helped us to
laugh in a time in which a lot
of serious things were happen
ing.
Worried about the prospect of thermonuclear anni
hilation? All you had to do was turn on MTV and see
Martha Quinn introducing the new Devo video. Iran-
Contra got you down? There was undoubtedly a Steve
Guttenberg movie playing somewhere. Jim and
Tammy Faye have stolen millions in the name of God?
Like Frankie Goes to Hollywood said, “Relax!”
I know that there are people out there saying, “The
’Bos were too cheesy.” Of course it was cheesy! The
majority of pop culture in every decade is cheesy. The
’7os? It gave us such gems as Supertramp, “Three’s
Company,” and John Travolta in “The Boy in the
Plastic Bubble.”
As for the ’9os? Now we’ve got future classics like
Collective Soul, “Family Matters,” and John Travolta
in “Michael.” Honestly, can any of these be seen as an
improvement over the decade of Members Only jack
ets and “Rock Me Amadeus?”
The beauty of the ’Bos was the fact that it recognized
its own cheesiness and it reveled in it. Do you think
that the lead singer of Flock of Seagulls thought that
his haircut looked good? Do you think that anyone
associated with the movies “Rad” or “Thrashin”’ saw
them as serious cinema? Do you think that Ally
Sheedy had any illusions as to her acting abilities? No!
They were all cheesy, but they knew that they were
cheesy, and that made them fun.
I think that the big problem with the ’9os is its inabil
ity to laugh at itself. The whole angst-ridden grunge
thing is no more serious than new-wave synth pop was,
but say that to a Pearl Jam fan and the flannel will fly.
Tears for Fears fans didn’t have that kind of fragile sen
sitivity about their music; they knew it was just enter
tainment. Artists in the ‘Bos basically knew how to
have fun and be upbeat with their music.
So where does that leave us? Are we hopelessly
stuck in the pretentious, uptight ’9os? Can there be no
return to the days of big hair and skinny ties that
embodied that wonderful decade that was file 1980s?
Sadly, we may never completely recapture the glory
of the ’Bos as it once was. However, there are things
that we can all do to ensure that the memory and the
spirit of those years live on.
Have a Brat Pack movie marathon. Learn to break
dance. Sing the theme song to “Greatest American
Hero.” Pull the Atari 2600 out of the attic. Go to the
WXYC Eighties Dance at the Cradle tonight. Better
yet, buy a copy of “Thriller.” Let the ’Bos rule, and tell
the Eagles to “Beat It.”
The Weekly Barometer
Carey hits top note
Mariah Carey returns to top form with | j
a song as sweet as ’Honey/ yet
another No. 1 hit for the pop diva.
Artist Song
1. Mariah Carey 'Honey*
2. Backstreet Boys 'Quit Playing Games'
3. Usher "You Make Me Wanna*
4. The Notorious 8.1. G. 'Mo Money
5. LeAnn Rimes 'How Do I Live'
' SOURCE; BILLBOARD CHARTS
matt
MULLER
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Upbeat sound of 4 Big ’Bos’ returns
BY BROCK PIERCE
ASSISTANT ARTS & DIVERSIONS EDITOR
Ask anyone who turned on a TV in
1979 to name the most exciting thing
they saw, and you can bet that they prob
ably won’t mention the pre-election
political jockeying between Ronald
Reagan and Jimmy Carter. However, a
more popular, and far more hip answer,
would be “Video Killed the Radio Star”
by the Buggies on MTV.
As MTV’s first video phenomenon,
the Buggies helped open the door to a
brave new musical world known as the
“Big ’Bos.” Yes, this is the decade when
bands like Genesis, Dire Straits and the
Police ruled not just on the radio waves
but on the television screen as well.
Perhaps nothing signifies the musical
transition of the ’Bos better than the
shooting death of John Lennon in 1980.
' JBBL ~ :
’Bos formative years for
nation’s society, cinema
BY JIM MARTIN
ARTS & DIVERSIONS EDITOR
The upcoming rerelease of
“Dirty Dancing” is living proof
that the decade of trickle-down eco
nomics is not dead. It is coming
back in a big way. The formative
years of the majority of college stu
dents were shaped in large amounts
by the cinema of the 1980s.
As if the rerelease of “Dirty
Dancing” was not proof enough of
the ’Bos return, there continues to
be a multitude of ’Bos antiques pop
ping up in film. Enter John Cusack.
In tie ’Bos, Cusack’s characters
were the ones everyone cheered for.
Whether he was trying to date lone
Skye in the romantic comedy of
romantic comedies, “Say
Anything,” or trying to get his life
straightened out in the bizarre but
classic “Better Off Dead,” Cusack
was the man for the ’Bos man.
If anyone was to succeed in film,
it was Cusack. He never made it
until recently, when in the summer
of 1997 he was the star in the sum
mer hit “Con Air” and inthe criti
cally acclaimed, “Grosse Pointe
Blank.” Ferris Bueller, I mean
Matthew Broderick’s worked the
same way. Who’s next, Jon Cryer
from “Pretty in Pink?”
During the ’Bos, the words block
buster and trilogy defined them
selves. Directors created memo
rable trilogies which broke box
office records left and right. Robert
Zemeckis had the “Back to the
Future” movies, and Stephen
Spielberg, of course; had the
“Indiana Jones” trilogy. Franchises
were started and the necessity for a
sequel began.
Had it not been for the continued
success of the above movies, Ridley
Scott’s “Alien" movies and the
“Star Wars” movies, studio heads
would never have thought to fran
chise. The action genre contributed
more than others with Stallone and
Thursday, September 18,1997 ■
With this musical muse of the ’6os and
70s gone, MTV swiftly stepped in to fill
the huge creative void with an in-your
face assault on the senses by way of the
music video.
The result was the rise of musical
artists like Duran Duran, Prince (when
he still had a name), the Cars and a myr
iad of others who championed the won
ders of the electric keyboard and
screeching electric guitar. Not to steal the
Agassi-coined phrase, but image certain
ly seemed to be everything. However,
despite its image conscious attitude, ’Bos
music still holds a certain zest that has
yet to be replicated.
It was a time of feel good tunes and
musical lightheartedness that seems like
a breath of fresh air stuck between the
stuffy and brooding decades of the ’7os
and ’9os.
For instance, take a pop act like
Schwarzeneggar pumping out
generic testosterone fests like
“Rambo” and “Commando.”
The mainstay of actors nowa
days used the ’Bos as their spring
board. Tom Hanks got “Big” and
Mel Gibson was a “Lethal
Weapon.” Tom Cruise became a
“Top Gun” and Nicholas Cage was
se became a green possibil
)las Cage was
t got touched
“Raising Arizona”
while “Peggy Sue
Got Married.”
Even Christian
Slater had to “Pump
Up the Volume” with a
bunch of “Heathers.” (
So why is it now that ’Bos
movies are being retouched and
rereleased? “Better Off Dead” is
just one of many that got touched
up and sent back out on video storfe
shelves. The answer is not just
about money.
In the age of big-budget, high
tech, superfluous special effects and
small-budget, idiosyncratic films,
there seems to be no movie to sim
ply connect with. Alas, that was the
magic of ’Bos cinema. “St. Elmo’s
Fire,” “The Breakfast Club" and
“Sixteen Candles” were all movies
which mirrored society especially
the individual in society.
Just a decade ago, movies were
not as complicated as today.
Audiences can no longer root for a
character on the screen that
reminds them of themselves or
someone they know. Where current
movies tend to put unusual people
in ordinary circumstances or vice
versa, the ’Bos could place ordinary
people in everyday situations but
still manage to tell a gripping story.
By no stretch of the imagination
are the only good movies from the
’Bos, but the decade did provide
audiences with compelling stories
and upcoming actors. The movies
from just 10 years ago are ageless
for those reasons. And in case they
were forgotten by some, they are
coming back to the future
Page 5
Madonna singing “Holiday” or Michael
Jackson’s “Beat It” and then think about
how these songs would fare amidst
today’s musical tastes. They would prob
ably be criticized for being up-beat and
for lacking the self-seriousness that ’9os
music culture seems to have mistaken for
ingenious talent.
That’s not to say that today’s music
lacks substance, because many of
today’s bands play brilliantly crafted
songs. But, it seems that, as of late,
many music listeners have tired of life in
the musical doldrums and like to occa
sionally revisit those glory days when
Bruce Springsteen could draw a stadi
um-sized crowd to hear “Born in the
USA.”
Even the hard rock genre seemed
more happy-go-lucky way back when. A
See ’Bos MUSIC, Page 8
‘Material Girl’ tailors fashion trends
BY AMELIA RASMUS
STAFF WRITER
From rich bitch to trashy tramp, 80s influences are
everywhere in women’s fashion for Fall 1997.
This season, fashion borrows from both the
fierce career and punky dance cultures of the mate
rial decade. Women may end up looking like a com
posite of “Dynasty”’s Alexis Colby Carrington and
Madonna.
There are some familiar pieces worth digging
back out. Some are better left in the back of the clos
et or the bottom of a drawer. But all of them bring
back positive memories of powerful women and
clothes with an edge, even if they should never be
worn again.
The power suit was as much a business staple for
the 80s as a computer is for the 90s. Almost every
designer has anew version, but most of its charac
teristics have stayed the same. The skirt is short and
body skimming; the jacket’s waist is cinched in; and
the shoulders are big, pointy and futuristic.
From the streets of the “Borderline” video, high
tops return, but they have been reinterpreted. They
are made of black leather rather than canvas. They
zip up rather than lace. They are ankle boots rather
than tennis shoes. And they are sexy rather than
sporty.
In fact, spike heels are everywhere this season, but
tfpu this time, no one
will be wearing
Ten years change what goes in one's 'Centerfold*
The time that passes in a decade sure does make past fads look pretty wild. Just a few years ago. people
tried to break their necks to look cool on the dance floor. What will we think of our "Birks" in ten years?
Favorite 1980s 1990s
Song Thriller' - Michael Jackson 'You Oughta Know’ - Alanis Morrisette
'Like A Virgin* - Madonna 'Let Her Cry' - Hootie and the Blowfish
Movie 'Breakfast Club/ 'Better Off Dead' 'Silence of the Lambs/ "Forrest Gump/
"Pretty in Pink,' 'Back to the Future' 'Pulp Fiction/ 'lndependence Day'
Fashion jumpsuits, fingerless gloves bootleg pants, Birkenstocks
Dance moonwalk, Electric Slide the grind, butterfly
Car Pontiac Fiero any 4x4 (i.e.. Jeep Wrangler)
Presidents Carter, Reagan, Bush Bush, Clinton
Quote 'Read my lips, no new taxes." "Life is like a box of chocolates.'
- former President George Bush - Forrest Gump
Hair BIG, spikes, mohawks sideburns, Caesar-cuts
Events 1(1
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PHOTOS COURTESYOFTHEYACKETYYACK
them with lacy little ankle socks.
Michael Jackson’s jacket never looked like real
leather simply because it was red, but a darker inter
pretation, a burgundy blazer, looks just as edgy even
though it lacks the zippers and chains.
Unfortunately, wearing multiples of anything is
a trend that the fashion industry did not revisit. The
80s bulked girls in inches of lace tank tops, midriff
baring t-shirts and denim jackets. This time, layers
do not go any deeper than a white shirt underneath
a blazer.
Apparently designers did not want accessories to
go retro along with their clothes. Jewelry is savage
and silver but small and sparse. Where are the big,
dangling star earrings? Is a single chunky belt better
than several lengths of leather and chain wound the
waist? And is one bracelet or watch really enough?
Gloves reappear, but they are sleek, black, leather
second-skins. Designers missed a good chance to
bring back the short, fingerless lace gloves worn
scrunched on the hands of teenagers back when
MTV was new.
It is a relief that some pieces are not sneaking
their way into fashion magazines, though. No mat
ter how permed and teased up her hair, no one
looked good in the big, floppy hair bow-no, not even
Madonna, not Minnie Mouse.
Thankfiilly, fashion-followers will not see that uni
sex, wind-breaking wonder, the “Member's Only”
jacket, either. Who could still match anything in his
or her wardrobe with the bubblegum pink and mint
green possibilities of the reversible jacket, anyway?
Pants were also a particularly low
point. Whether the body disappeared
under amorphous, zippy-sounding
parachute pants or was too exposed
in quarter-bouncing tight acid wash
jeans, legs could hardly have been less
stylish.
Best of all, designers left the 80s
colors and prints in the decade where
See ’Bos FASHION, Page 8
Magic *Bos comes
toCradle tonight
WXYC hosts a retro 'Bos party
at the Cat s Cradle tonight.
With dancing until 3 am,
trivia contests with prizes and
the era's classic movies, the
Cat's Cradle will be the place
to moonwalk over to later, all
for only $3.