Tuesday, July 30, 2019

A Few of My Favorite Things: The 80's

Four weeks ago, I hopped on board the latest Blog Bat-Around that involved bloggers sharing their favorite baseball sets, movies, and songs from the 1950's to the 2010'sThe Collector shared his responses here and got the ball rolling.  It didn't take long for me to make the executive decision and turn this into a series... rather than cram everything into a single post.

Today I'll be sharing my favorites from the 80's... which is officially the halfway mark in this BBAThis decade played a pivotal role in the development of who I am today.  I was in the second grade when the decade started.  By the time it was over, I was a senior in high school.  That's why I have always associated my childhood with the 80's instead of the 70's.


Favorite Baseball Card Set: 1983 Topps


Before the 1956 Topps set became my favorite Topps baseball card design of all-time, the honor went to the 1983 Topps set.  Ever since I started opening packs of this stuff back in 1983, I loved the dual image design.  And the fact that my favorite player's best rookie card is part of this set is a nice bonus.

I think 1983 was the first year my mom purchased rack packs for me.  I didn't open a bunch, but every now and then she'd let me pick one out when we'd go to Long's Drug Store.  I would have snagged the one pictured above quickly... but back in 1983... it would have been for the Billy.  I didn't start chasing Gwynn until 1985 or 1986.

I purchased this rack pack off of eBay back in 2014 for $48.77... which is around the same price they sell for today.


Favorite MovieThe Breakfast Club (1985)


VacationSixteen CandlesThe Breakfast ClubFerris Bueller's Day OffPretty In PinkWeird Science.  These are just six more reasons why I loved the 80's.  And each of these movies have one thing in commonJohn Hughes.

I could sit down right now and watch any of these films again and be entertained, but The Breakfast Club has always been my personal favorite.  In fact, I'm tempted to throw in my DVD and watch it before I head back into the classroom in a few weeks.


Favorite SongJust Like Heaven (The Cure 1987)


When it came down to choosing a favorite song from the 80's, I ran into the same dilemma as I had with the 70's.  There are just way too many great songs to choose from.  Heck... even narrowing it down to a band/artist proved to be challenging.  Should I go with The Police?  Maybe Def Leppard?  Metallica?  How about Journey?  Or U2?  Honestly... on any given day any of these groups would suffice.

I decided to go with The Cure, and their 1987 hit "Just Like Heaven".  It sort of called out to me while sifting through songs for this post on my 80's Spotify playlist.

Well... that wraps up the 80's.  As of today... I haven't even thought of my 90's selections.  The selection process won't be easy.  The 90's were filled with awesome movies and innovative cardboard.  As for music... I'm thinking it'll be a Beastie Boys song.  Although... I am a huge fan of 90's alternative and hip-hop.

Hope everyone is enjoy their week.  Happy Tuesday and sayonara! 

14 comments:

Hackenbush said...

The 83 set is great. I love the John Hughes films as well. Close between Breakfast Club (more serious) and Ferris. I didn't grow up on the North Shore but I did work there, Deerfield, IL, for 15 years.

Johnnys Trading Spot said...

All great choices.

night owl said...

Good music choice. Always one of my favorites. Nice choices on the others, too. It's all downhill from here.

gcrl said...

your choices represent the decade well!

Sean said...

I do love the 1983 Topps set (and agree that the 1956 is the best design all time). That is a beauty 1983 rack pack with the Billy Martin on the front (and a Gwynn rookie thrown in to boot)!

I love those John Hughes movies too, though I don't know if I would put them at the top of my list. Its so hard to choose since there were so many great movies and, having seen them as a kid in the 80s, they all bring back super nostalgic memories that make objectivity difficult.

Zippy Zappy said...

Bruh, where's your favorite 80's porno?

Big Tone said...

Amazing 80s!I never get enough of seeing rack packs showing prominent cards through the cellophane!

Big Tone said...

Could you imagine opening that rack pack and finding another Gwynn!!!!!!!

Steve at 1975BaseballCards.com said...

Same. 90s are still really good but definitely rolling down the hill in following decades.

Nick said...

I'm probably in the extreme minority, in that my favorite set of the 1980s is '81 Topps. Still, that's one cool rack pack!

Fuji said...

hackenbush - a few years ago i asked people on my blog what their favorite hughes film was... and ferris won by a landslide. it's an iconic film

johnnys trading spot - thanks

night owl & steve at 1975baseballcards.com - the 90's had some of my favorite films of all-time... and i do love some autograph sets from the decade. but it's a steep drop off after that.

gcrl - thanks

sean - there were a few others i could have gone with like empire strikes back, the terminator, stand by me, do the right thing, and fast times at ridgemont high. but i could only pick one

zippy zappy - the sperminator? lol

big tone - i went through a phase where i was buying up rack packs and cellos with rookie cards showing.

nick - 1981 isn't in my top 3. i'd probably go with 1983, then 1987, then 1984 or 1982.

gregory said...

SAVE FERRIS!

Chris said...

Excellent choices, I wasn't old enough to remember most of the '80s but it's my favorite decade. That rack pack with the Gwynn RC facing is a terrific item!

Fuji said...

gregory - oh yeah!

chris - the 80's for you are like the 70's for me. i love 70's cardboard, but when it comes to childhood memories from that decade, there aren't a ton i remember.