Countdown to 2012: 1982 was 30 years ago

2012 is just around the corner! Let’s take a few minutes to reflect on the past year. Done? Me too. Now let’s reflect on everything that’s coming up on 30 years old (other than Philip and Jenny). In 1982, New Wave reached a peak, several genre-shaping sci-fi and fantasy flicks were released, and the personal computer was named Man of the Year by Time Magazine.

1982 in Music:

• Survivor – Eye of the Tiger
• Michael Jackson – the album Thriller, which included Thriller, Beat It, and Billie Jean
• Madonna’s debut – Everybody
• Men Without Hats – The Safety Dance
• Men At Work – Down Under
• Dexys Midnight Runners – Come On Eileen
• Modern English – I Melt With You
• Prince – 1999
• The Clash – Should I Stay or Should I Go?
• Joan Jett – I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll
• Whitesnake – Here I Go Again
• John Cougar – Jack & Diane
• Duran Duran – Hungry Like The Wolf
• Cats debuts on Broadway

 

1982 in Film:

• E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
• Blade Runner
• Tron
• The Dark Crystal
• Star Trek II – The Wrath of Kahn
• Fast Times at Ridgemont High
• Rocky III
• Conan the Barbarian
• The Beastmaster
• The Thing
• The Secret of NIMH (but let’s be honest, that movie was seriously terrible)
• Annie (yes, that Annie)

1982 in Electronics:

• The Commodore 64 8-bit computer
• TIme Magazine’s Man of the Year is awarded to the computer
• Compact discs start to appear in Japan and Germany

 

Sources: Wikipedia, my media library, and random corners of my brain