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Before Arrested Development’s Gob appeared on the scene to (accidentally) spill the secrets of magicians everywhere, the only way many of us could uncover the the real “how to” behind magic tricks was if we had, like, a magician for an uncle. Or if you had one of these Magic Works kits! Who remembers The Crystal Cleaver? Or Mystery Dice? I definitely remember Clean Cut! I now have the urge to use words like “abra cadabra” and “shazam!”
Submitted by Sky Eagle, turban collector and psychic:
Johnny Carson (1925-2005). This guy made “late night” with his talk show. I’m reminded of Carson whenever there’s talk of the “late night wars” between Leno and Letterman. Though, neither Leno nor Letterman could ever measure up to Carson. Carson was the guy who STARTED many entertainers’ careers through exposure on his show. This guy had the most famous sidekick ever, Ed McMahon (who deserves a post of his own), and the most famous band-leader of the time (Doc Severinson). This guy knew how to make his guests look good (and get out of the way when needed), and make any moment entertaining. When he retired after 30 years on TV (in 1992), it was an EVENT. I still fondly remember watching Carson when I was a kid.
You know the drill by now. But if not: Welcome to ’80s Music Video Thursday, where we post gems from the Golden Age of music video clips. As always, suggestions for next week are welcome in the comments.
“I Heard a Rumor” by Bananarama, submitted by QuoteMan.
Some of the fashion in this video makes Lady GaGa look like a jeans-and-t-shirt gal. Quality ’80s “what were they thinking” to be found here. Personally, I can’t listen to Bananarama without thinking of Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders’ parody of the band called “Lananeeneenoonoo.”
“Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do) by Wham, submitted by uffda.
I imagine that they were going for “cool.” But it mostly just looks like Grease.
“The Big Picture” by Y Kant Tori Read, submitted by Leven:
Ladies and gentlemen, I proudly (well, with as much pride as I can muster for even knowing about this video) present Y Kant Tori Read’s lone single and music video: The Big Picture.
Wow. Ms. Amos certainly has…evolved…artistically since the ’80s, has she not?
Submitted by Austin H, pasteurized processed mozzarella cheese product.
Because it would have been impractical (and too expensive, considering our measly allowances) to order real pizza for school lunch, Lunchables Pizzas became The Thing to bring (rhyme: intentional). Lunchables had an entire line of processed, pre-packaged, build-your-own lunches (the gelatinous deli meats with stale crackers, anyone?), but it was their pizza that was the coolest. I seem to recall they became something of a status symbol. Mmmmm…Can’t you just taste the cardboard-esque crust now?
Submitted by Katie, press “sea urchin” now to hear her speak:
Does anyone even remember these? They were basically “electronic storybooks”. You were supposed to read the book and whenever you came across a picture within the text, you had to press the button on the side panel that matched the picture to hear the sound it represented. Quite a few of them were put out by Disney. I think they make books with the same concept today, but the ones from the early 90’s were so much cooler.
Confession: I still sometimes play with these in the store. They combine my three favorite things: Pictures, sound clips, and button pressing.
