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Here’s a reality check nobody asked for: the beginning of the ‘80s is as far away in time as is the year 2068. Yeah, time flies when we’re doom-scrolling cat memes.

So, why not celebrate it with a trip down memory lane with the help of Totally Awesome 80s, an Instagram page that shares all things ‘80s (with a little bit of ‘70s and ‘90s sprinkled in between).

So, Totally Awesome 80s is an Instagram page (Facebook as well) dedicated to celebrating one of the most iconic decades of the last century—the awesome '80s, mixed in with a little bit of the '70s and the '90s.

The page was created back in mid 2018 and has since then posted nearly 8,000 bits of content and amassed a following of 325,000 people.

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James016
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I went for Ulysses 31 and Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors when I was a kid.

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It’s hard to explain what made the '80s such an iconic time period.

On an objective level, it was the decade that gave the world MTV and CNN, some of the first instances of personal home computing with IBM and Apple, and the first mobile phone, Motorola DynaTAC 8000X.

It was also a decade of great tragedy with the NASA’s Space Shuttle Challenger disaster and the explosion of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Reactor #4.

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But the thing folks talk about the most is the sound of the '80s—its music scene.

Many consider the nostalgia that '80s music creates to be the strongest out there with numerous artists coming back to cover popular songs and sounds from the decade.

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One commenter speculated that the '80s was a careless and fun decade. Considering modern day stresses imposed upon new generations, looking back to a decade whose fashion and music sound carefree, it becomes a nice escape for the younger generations.

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ninjaTrashPandaBoom
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Taking a break from riding all over the place eating Ding Dongs that came wrapped in aluminum foil, drinking Tang and battling tanks on Atari 2600 before taking off on another adventure!

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Tucker Cahooter
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I show my age by confessing that I knew the names of all the songs these lines came from straight away

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There’s also the idea of having parents who listen a lot to '80s music, instilling an interesting sense of nostalgia for their kids as well, even if they didn’t live through it.

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Others speculated that it could just be history doing its cyclical thing again. Those who grew up in the '80s are now becoming primary producers of pop culture. Considering all the '80s franchise reboots, Stranger Things and the like, they all come from people who grew up in that era for the people who grew up in that era.

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Mustafa Kiziroğlu
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9 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

For non-Americans, that's Parental Guidance content rating.

Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa)
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Gremlins was PG. Ghostbusters was PG. IIRC Dark Crystal and Labyrinth were both actually G. I'm Gen X and we are what we are.

Cecil
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Poltergeist was on HBO like 24/7 for a year. At least it wasn't the Exorcist... that effed up the young Boomer

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François Carré
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I often rewatch 80'movies wondering if it would be OK to show them to kids now. But I'm baffled by the amount of sheer wanton violence you can find in alleged family movies like Indiana Jones or Willow.

Sumdumfu
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sheena Queen of the jungle was PG. Tanya Roberts went full frontal in that one. Was werewolf in London really PG?!?!

Ken Beattie
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

No AWiL was MA15+. They actually had to censor some violence in Sheena to get a PG. It's mind-boggling them letting full frontal nudity slip through.

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Lyop
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I watched Nightmare on Elm Street and Chucky with friends at a sleepover at my house! Good times!

Poppy
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I showed my bf the 1978 version of Lord of the Rings and he was astounded that it was PG

beautiful plumage
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

watching an 80s pg movie now with kids--there's so much profanity!

BWC
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Back in '84 I remember watching Scarface on vhs and my mother freaking out and yelling at me about them saying "fúç(" every other sentence.

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David Brown
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I know a dude that has that exact werewolf statue. Scarier in person than you'd think.

You stole that from Robocop
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The FX in American Werewolf still hold up very well and it's been nearly 50 years. Don't tell me practical effects don't work. I blame Lucas for pushing cgi before it was mature enough which led to a lot of masters of FX leaving the industry.

Jinx (she/her)
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

they created pg-13 after gremlins, I believe, or at least partially due to it

Sam Cook
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Some PG films even had the f-word. Beetlejuice and Big always come to mind there. I remember watching the former on a channel that didn't censor language, and I was honestly quite shocked since the PG-13 rating had been out since at least late 1984 or 1985.

xolitaire
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember watching Jumpin' Jack Flash as a kid and only while rewatching it recently did I realise how many times Whoopi got away with cursing up a storm totally uncensored through out this movie. It was refreshing and I miss it

Alex Kennedy
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Is that the Nothing? I watched that movie, including the horse dying, in SUNDAY SCHOOL!

Gregg Carr
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ha Ha - I thought you meant PG Tips - Couldnt recall the Chimp looking that bad

Lee
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

An American Werewolf In London was never a PG but I get the point.

El Cucuy
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

American Werewolf in London was rated R when it was released not PG, due to the gore and the porno scene.

Winnie the Moo
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I would love to own the right one so I can leave it in dark rooms around the house so I can scare the s**t out of my husband 🤣

Russell Bowman
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The first thing I thought was: "Mon, it followed me home ... can we keep it?" Now, who said it ... the one on the right or the one on the left.

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This idea of revivals is further supported by another commenter, who explained that the '70s saw a huge '50s revival with the TV show Happy Days and the movie Grease. Then there was a '60s revival in the '80s with The Doors, The Who, and the like filling entire stadiums. Apply the paradigm far enough and you might just be able to explain why “old” things are hip again.

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Poppy
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have a photo of my mum who was very visibly pregnant with me smoking a cigarette.

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But that’s just music. Think of the remaining part of pop culture that happened back in the '80s: the Master System, NES. and Atari 7800 all came out in the early part of the decade; Polaroid reached peak popularity during this time; shows like Full House, The Transformers and Duck Tales were huge back then; movies like Back To The Future debuted during the '80s. The list goes on.

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ninjaTrashPandaBoom
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Your momma is so stupid/fat/lazy...[insert random offensive insult here]...battle it out, everyone laughs, and we all play dodgeball or G.I. Joe until the street lights came on.

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martin734
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember watching Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet on one of these in our English literature class. Olivia Hussey was hot!

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Well, that’s that. If you enjoyed this article, we have plenty more where that came from. Well, not there per se, but the '80s! And you can always check out the Instagram page.

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And if you don’t feel like going back in time any more, then why not stay in the present and share your takes and stories in the comment section below!

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Mandy
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Or a girl and her bike! I loved my bike...the whole neighborhood had bikes and we were outside all day and everyday we could!

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SCamp
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When it’s a school day but Frankie’s vig’s due and he may need some persuasion

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Tiggy Darling
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Time Magazine: "The Red Brick Road is supposed to lead travellers from Quadling Country to the great Emerald City. However, in the movie, the road is shown ending up at…Munchkin City Hall."

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GoGo LaTata
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I watched Sesame Street before there even was an Elmo... And Oscar was orange!

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SarCaustic
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The hole in the ozone layer thanks you for your contribution, hair spray.

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beautiful plumage
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

anyone else try to find adult content no matter how scrambled the picture was? you got super excited when you thought you sorta kinda saw something.

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Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa)
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's a Honda ATC 90. Fun as hell but basically banned after too many people kept dying on them.

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martin734
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9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

For those who don't know, the yellow plug carried the video signal and the red and white plugs carried the stereo audio, red for right and white for left.

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