HISTORY: Pop culture. It’s a fascinating look at society, driven from the bottom up — it’s the interactions and tastes of a broad audience, not the creators, that drive it.
The biggest pop culture trends ever to influence society were things like rock and roll music starting up in the 1950s, the rise of television, music videos, video games and social media/ streaming.
The website History.com offers a look at the top five pop culture influences of the 1980s, and it’s neat. The first is women power dressing — shoulder pads, double-breasted suits, ties. The look was driven by women such as Princess Diana and Nancy Reagan. The “masculine-inspired fashions” expressed the growing power of women.
Next was the mall food court. Before that, people would leave the mall to grab lunch. Now, they could stop and browse selections from lots of fast-food choices before getting right back to shopping. The food courts were good places for people-watching, too, History.com reminds, like in the film “Fast Times at Ridgemont High.”
Remember toy frenzies? Cabbage Patch dolls? There were frenzies over Teddy Ruxpin, the talking teddy bear, along with Rubik’s Cube and Transformers — rioting, fighting, injuries, damages to stores.
We hadn’t heard this term before — “eatertainment.” That’s how History.com describes the rise of places like Chuck E. Cheese, where folks could have some pizza and play video games. And then came Dave & Buster’s and places like Medieval Times, with a dinner-theater style show.
And the fifth trend of the ’80s, MTV. Back when it showed music videos. Artists were catapulted to huge heights of fame. Their styles and clothing drove sales across the nation. And cable television rose to 53 million subscribers by 1989.
