No, not the song, the year!

1985 was home to crazed Madonna fans, Whitney Houston, and "The Golden Girls". Here's a look back at what went on.

Movies:
Commando (Rated R)
A retired commando has only a few hours to rescue his daughter from an estranged, exiled dictator. The movie stars the now-"governator" of Cali-forn-nee-ah, Arnold Schwarzenegger, as, well, the commando.

Prizzi's Honor (Rated R)
A hit-man and -woman fall in love, only to discover they are hired to kill each other. Stars Jack Nicholson and Kathleen Turner.

Witness (Rated R)
A young Amish boy is a witness to a murder. Police officer John Book goes into hiding in Amish Country to protect him until the trial.
Stars Harrison Ford as John Book (he always seems to save the day, doesn't he?).

Back to the Future (Rated PG)
(This one I've actually seen!!)
Marty McFly helps his friend Doc Brown and ends up being sent to the 1950s in his time machine. Marty has to get his parents to fall in love and straighten out the damage his presence causes. Stars Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd.


Music:
First and foremost, I have to mention the greatest thing to ever happen to Van Halen (in my opinion). The former frontman of Montrose, Sammy Hagar, joined the band when David Lee Roth's ego got too big to fit into the recording studio. Okay, that's not what really happened. Is it that obvious that I'm a fan? Anyway, Roth quit and in came Hagar. (Of course, in 1996, Hagar was given the boot. Then after a horrible bout with Gary Cherone, Van Halen came crying back to Sammy in 2004. Chill out, I just had to give a little background. ;-)

Aerosmith's comeback album, Done With Mirrors, debuted that year. In the late '70s, the group had broken apart and tried solo projects and, most importantly, sobered up.

Whitney Houston released her self-titled debut album that year. Meanwhile, her soon-to-be hubby Bobby Brown left his group New Edition to try out a solo career.


TV Debuts:
"The Golden Girls" (1985-1992)
"Growing Pains" (1985-1992)
"MacGyver" (1985-1992)

TV Endings:
"The Jeffersons" (1975-1985)
"The Dukes of Hazard" (1979-1985, and it's being made into a movie now!)


Fashion:
Remember how I mentioned crazed Madonna fans? Well, fashion is how they expressed their love for her. Fingerless gloves, big shirts and tight leggings were all huge that year. Plus, big, BIG hair. Crimped and teased. Hairspray was a girl's best friend! Like, Ohmigod, gag me with a spoon!

Here's some things I couldn't fit into a category:
Ronald Reagan was elected for another four years, and the book "The Polar Express" was written.

Well, we've looked back at things big in '85, now here's some things the hair era didn't have....

First of all, there were no computers, and therefore no Internet. Ugh, imagine if I had had to send in this article by snail mail! Of course, I wouldn't get to, because there'd be no Whyville! *shudders* LOL, let's put that thought out of our heads!

Editor's Note: Actually, the Internet *did* exist then, as did computers!!! Apple Computers sold the first Apple II in 1977, in fact. And experts say that the Internet was technically "born" in 1982, although it didn't get the graphic "World Wide Web" part until the 1990s. Wow, how did this all work? I wonder...

CDs were out then, but people didn't start buying them a lot until later in the decade.

No TiVo!!! I live for that thing!

Cell phones weren't as big as your thumb then. They were big and came in a bag. You plugged them into your car lighter, which means if you couldn't drive, you couldn't talk, either.

No caller ID, no call waiting... more things I TOTALLY take for granted today.

As we head into a new year, looking back 20 years helps us realize how much life has changed, for good and for bad.

We may be blessed with our modern conveniences like the Internet and TiVo, but we're also cursed with war, terrorism and homeland security.

Heading to my stereo (that uses CDs, thank you very much) to play "1985",
Dream02

"...her 2 kids, in high school, they tell her that shes uncool, 'cause she's still preoccupied with 19, 19, 1985"