Buzz
Happy 30th birthday, 1984! Prince brought his purple magic to the big screen, the first Mac made its way into our homes, and Kevin Bacon helped a small town find its rhythm again. If you're celebrating your 30th this year, you're in fantastic company—here are 30 things that share your milestone year.
1. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT)
The first TMNT comic book hit the shelves in 1984. Created by artists Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman, these pizza-loving, crime-fighting turtles began as a small project in Laird's living room, with the duo selling the comic through mail orders. Initially planned as a one-time story, the comic's success led to more issues in 1985, eventually giving birth to a massive franchise, including cartoons, films, video games, and pizza—the whole works, all generating millions. See also: Turtlepedia, a detailed 2,893-page wiki.
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2. Tetris
Wikipedia / tetrisconcept.net
In 1984, Russian programmer Alexey Pajitnov introduced the world to Tetris (Те́трис in Russian) on June 6. The game featured seven distinct tetrominos that fell from the top of the screen, fitting together like pieces of a puzzle at the bottom. Tetris quickly became a global sensation, with countless versions, many unauthorized, appearing on all types of computer platforms.
Today, the NES (Nintendo Entertainment System) version of Tetris is the centerpiece of the Classic Tetris World Championships, drawing top players from across the globe—many of whom are about the same age as the game itself.
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3. The Cosby Show
On September 20, 1984, audiences across America tuned in to meet the Huxtable family in Brooklyn. The Cosby Show became a cultural phenomenon, breathing new life into the sitcom format and making Cosby sweaters iconic. The show ran until 1992 and even led to the spinoff A Different World in 1987. If you've forgotten what a Cosby sweater looked like, here are five minutes of Cosby Show bloopers for you to enjoy:
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4. Scarlett Johansson & LeBron James
Happy 30th birthday to the following famous (and sometimes infamous) faces: Kid Cudi (Jan 30), Olivia Wilde (Mar 10), Sarah Jean Underwood (Mar 26), Mandy Moore (Apr 10), America Ferrera (Apr 18), Mark Zuckerberg (May 14), Aubrey Plaza (Jun 26), Prince Harry (Sep 15), Randall Munroe (Oct 17), Katy Perry (Oct 25), Scarlett Johansson (Nov 22), Trey Songz (Nov 24), and LeBron James (Dec 30). (Phew.)
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5. "Where's the Beef?"
One of the most iconic fast food ads of the year was Wendy's bold campaign to highlight the size of its burgers. In the commercial, actress Clara Peller receives a burger from a competing chain, only to find that the bun is huge while the patty is laughably small, prompting her to ask, "Where's the beef?!" The catchy phrase became a cultural sensation, even transforming into a song and making its way into the political arena, where it had a modest impact on the Democratic presidential primaries that year.
The campaign ended in 1985, but Wendy's revived it in 2011 with the playful tagline, "Here's the beef."
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6. Ronald Reagan's Bombing Gaffe (And National Ice Cream Month)
Reagan Library
During a routine mic check for his weekly radio address, President Reagan cracked, "My fellow Americans, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes." Although this was never aired at the time, the tape was eventually leaked. Oops.
On a lighter note, in July 1984, President Reagan officially declared July as National Ice Cream Month, with National Ice Cream Day falling on the third Sunday of that month. According to the International Dairy Foods Association (which, we assure you, is completely a thing):
[Reagan] acknowledged ice cream as both a fun and wholesome treat, enjoyed by a staggering 90 percent of the U.S. population. In his official proclamation, President Reagan encouraged Americans to celebrate these occasions with "appropriate ceremonies and activities."
Time to kick off your ice cream celebration, folks. But remember to keep it appropriate.
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7. The Mac
TERRY SCHMITT/UPI/Landov
Apple revealed the Mac on January 24, 1984. During the demonstration, Steve Jobs pulled the Mac from a bag, inserted a " floppy disk, and powered it up. The iconic Chariots of Fire theme played, the Mac showcased a stunning A/V demo, and then it spoke: "Hello, I'm Macintosh. It sure feels good to get out of that bag. Not being accustomed to public speaking, I'd like to share a maxim I thought of the first time I met an IBM mainframe: Never trust a computer you can't lift!"
The original Mac was priced at $2,495, which equates to over $5,600 in today's dollars. It featured a single floppy drive and a modest 128k of RAM, yet it ignited a revolution in personal computing. The creators were so proud of their invention that they signed the inside of the computer's case. Later in the same year, a version with four times the memory was released, quickly earning the nickname Fat Mac.
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8. MAC
After years of experimenting with homemade lip gloss and selling eyeshadow from their salon, Frank Toskan and Frank Angelo launched a different kind of MAC from a single counter in a Toronto department store. The Makeup Art Cosmetics brand was born out of necessity: the available cosmetics couldn't withstand harsh lighting in photography, had limited color choices, and were hard to work with for stage makeup. Originally designed for makeup artists, MAC became a hit through word-of-mouth, a perfect mix of novelty and practicality, and a price point that made it accessible. (A little help from Madonna—who paired the brand's Russian Red lipstick with her cone-shaped bras during her Blond Ambition tour—certainly didn't hurt.)
Today, the company operates as a subsidiary of the $3.7 billion Estée Lauder empire and remains one of the most popular cosmetic brands for both professional and personal use. And yes, they're still crafting those iconic lipsticks, which now come in over 160 shades.
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9. Doug Flutie's Hail Mary
In what is considered one of college football's most unforgettable moments (at least until Auburn's stunning last-second win over Alabama in 2013), Doug Flutie's miraculous heave propelled Boston College to a 47-45 victory over powerhouse Miami. Flutie went on to win the Heisman Trophy, and the play was said to have contributed to an increase in applications to Boston College, although the so-called "Flutie Factor" might be exaggerated.
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10. This is Spinal Tap
Image via cinemasquid
Rob Reiner directed the groundbreaking mockumentary This is Spinal Tap, which debuted on March 2, 1984. The film, following the fictional British heavy metal band Spinal Tap on their comeback tour, quickly became a cult classic. It proudly carried the tagline: "Does for rock and roll what 'The Sound of Music' did for hills." Here's a clip:
Naturally, this list goes to 11...and beyond. Moving on....
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11. Legal Taping of TV
Wikimedia Commons / Tomasz Sienicki
In January 1984, the Supreme Court ruled on a landmark case known as the "Betamax case". The question at hand was whether home VCR users could legally record TV shows for later viewing, a practice called "time-shifting." The court ruled that recording episodes of The Cosby Show was perfectly legal, and the use of VCRs took off. Ironically, movie studios, who had initially brought the case, went on to make millions from selling home video copies of films using the very same technology they had once tried to block.
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12. The Video Music Awards
The VMAs made their debut in 1984. Cyndi Lauper took home the award for "Best Female Video" with "Girls Just Want to Have Fun"; Madonna performed "Like a Virgin," crawling around the stage in a provocative pseudo-wedding gown; and Michael Jackson dominated the night with multiple awards for Thriller. The VMAs were just as outrageous back then as they continue to be today.
You can watch the full two-and-a-half-hour show on YouTube. For now, anyway.
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13. The Print Shop
The Internet Archive
Brøderbund's desktop publishing software The Print Shop was the epitome of 80s computing. It allowed users to create everything from cards to signs and banners. Before printing, a colorful "THINKING" screen appeared as it calculated the necessary graphics. According to the Internet Archive, "In 1988, Brøderbund announced that it had sold over a million copies, with 4% of the entire U.S. software market in 1987 dedicated to The Print Shop." You can run The Print Shop online in your browser, though to fully experience it, you'll need an old PC and a dot-matrix printer.
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14. The Trebek Era of Jeopardy!
"Who is an amazing game show host?" Canadian quizmaster Alex Trebek began a new chapter for Jeopardy! in 1984. Although the show had aired with Art Fleming in the 60s and 70s, Trebek firmly anchored the show in the 80s. Trebek planned to retire in 2016, marking an impressive 32-year run on the iconic quiz show.
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15. The "Press Your Luck" Incident
In 1984, ice cream truck driver Michael Larson made history by winning a staggering $110,237 (a mix of cash and non-cash prizes) on the game show Press Your Luck. He achieved this feat by exploiting the system. (His appearance aired in June, just one month before Reagan's National Ice Cream Month, which could have boosted his ice cream truck earnings...a little.)
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16. Law on the Moon (Sort Of)
NASA
The Agreement Governing the Activities of States on the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, more commonly referred to as the "Moon Treaty," came into effect in July 1984, although it had been in the works in international legal circles since the early 1970s. The goal was to establish an international consensus that the Moon, along with other celestial bodies, would be used exclusively for peaceful endeavors and not, say, to build a Death Star.
While the treaty became official and was ratified by 15 countries, none of them are currently engaged in human space exploration. So, while you're on the Moon, feel free to have some fun! (Though remember the Outer Space Treaty still applies.)
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17. The "Death Star" Hypothesis
Image via Wookieepedia
Seven years after the destruction of Alderaan by another Death Star in a galaxy far, far away, the scientific journal Nature published two competing hypotheses from separate teams of astronomers. These teams proposed that mass extinctions on Earth could be the result of an unseen companion star to our Sun. The hypothesis suggested that Nemesis, a brown dwarf star, orbits the Sun beyond the Oort cloud and disrupts the orbits of comets and asteroids, causing them to collide with the planets. One such impact may have led to the extinction of the dinosaurs, and similar events are thought to happen on a regular cycle of 26-28 million years. This idea was widely discussed in the 80s and 90s, but Nemesis has since been largely dismissed. Despite its alleged proximity, we have yet to detect it using modern instruments. While nearly 2000 brown dwarf stars have been discovered, none of them are located within our solar system.
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18. Canadians in Space
NASA
Marc Garneau, now a Canadian Member of Parliament, was the first Canadian to journey into space. Thirty years ago, he flew aboard the space shuttle Challenger, making history as Canada’s first astronaut. After that mission, he embarked on two more spaceflights, accumulating over 677 hours in space.
Garneau’s historic flight paved the way for future Canadian astronauts, including the legendary Commander Chris Hadfield, who became a beloved figure in space exploration.
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19. TED
The first TED conference was a one-time event held in Monterey, California, back in 1984, and was organized by graphic designer Richard Saul Wurman. The conference featured a sneak peek of Sony's new, yet-to-be-released "compact disc," a demo of Apple's Macintosh computer, presentations from Nicholas Negroponte (who would go on to found One Laptop Per Child) and Benoît Mandelbrot (the mathematician behind the Mandelbrot set), as well as exciting 3D graphics from LucasFilm. Despite the incredible content, the event lost a lot of money, preventing another TED conference until 1990. Since then, TED has become an annual occurrence.
Today, those of us who aren’t fortunate enough to receive TED invitations can still enjoy the incredible presentations via TEDTalks, free online videos, and podcasts launched in 2006. These videos have become some of the most captivating and binge-worthy content on the Internet. The talks feature big names like Al Gore, Jane Goodall, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and Bono, but some of the most memorable moments come from unexpected sources. For example, neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor's talk, where she shares the gripping story of experiencing a stroke from the perspective of someone who studies the brain.
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20. Transformers
Thirty years ago, Transformers made its U.S. debut after Hasbro acquired the distribution rights to the Diaclone and Microman toy molds from the Japanese company Takara. The first series, Generation One, introduced 28 characters—18 Autobots and 10 Decepticons—including the infamous Megatron figure, which transformed into a gun (truly, "more than meets the eye").
In September of 1984, a three-episode miniseries introduced American kids to the classic battle between Autobots and Decepticons as they fought for resources to return to their home planet of Cybertron. The series also featured the human allies, Spike and Sparkplug Witwicky. The full series followed soon after, running through December. During this time, new characters like the Dinobots, Insecticons, and Constructicons were introduced, along with new Autobots, Decepticons, and the beloved character Chip Chase. In 1985, the second series introduced 76 new Transformers toys.
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21. Movies: The Karate Kid, Footloose, Purple Rain, Revenge of the Nerds, and More
1984 was a standout year for movies. With blockbusters like Footloose, Splash, Revenge of the Nerds, and Ghostbusters, the year presented a recurring theme of underdog protagonists triumphing against seemingly impossible odds, often in strange or unconventional circumstances.
Other key films from that year include Beverly Hills Cop, Police Academy, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Gremlins, The Karate Kid, Dune, and Purple Rain. In an impressive feat of quick production, both Breakin' and Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo were released in the same year. It was also the year that the Coen brothers made their directorial debut with Blood Simple, and Joel Coen married the film's star, Frances McDormand (they're still together).
Even with all the action and excitement in these popular films, 1984’s Amadeus dominated the Academy Awards the following year, winning Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Picture, Best Director, and several other honors. Prince also won the Oscar for Best Original Song for "Purple Rain."
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22. BOOKS! (Other Than 1984)
While the world was captivated by the dystopian future depicted in Winston Smith's journal, set 30 years ago on a cold, bright April day, many remarkable books were being published in the real 1984. These included Tom Clancy's The Hunt for Red October, Stephen King and Peter Straub's The Talisman, Pulitzer-winning Glengarry Glen Ross by David Mamet, Dr. Seuss's The Butter Battle Book, Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution by Steven Levy, King's Thinner, The House on Mango Street (which quickly became an AP Readers list staple), William Gibson's Nebula Award-winning Neuromancer, John Updike's The Witches of Eastwick, and Milan Kundera's The Unbearable Lightness of Being.
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23. Born in the U.S.A.
Bruce Springsteen released his iconic album, Born in the U.S.A., a twelve-track masterpiece featuring seven singles, including the massive hits "Dancing in the Dark," "Born in the U.S.A.," "I'm on Fire," and "Glory Days." Rolling Stone dubbed Springsteen the "voice of a decade" and wrote, "It’s as if Springsteen were saying that life is made to endure and that we all make peace with private suffering and shared sorrow as best we can."
Although the track "Born in the U.S.A." left a significant cultural mark, the most enduring legacy of the album may well be "Dancing in the Dark," an upbeat pop song with surprisingly dark lyrics, and its iconic video featuring a young Courteney Cox dancing on stage. Yes, in 1984, we all danced like that—at least those of us who were born in the U.S.A.
While 1984's pop music scene was dominated by stars like Springsteen, Prince, and Wham!, the year also witnessed the formation of influential groups such as Primus, Warrant, Gwar, Soundgarden, Big Audio Dynamite, Fine Young Cannibals, and—brace yourself—New Kids on the Block.
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24. George Michael Started Being a Big Deal
1984 was a breakout year for George Michael. As part of Wham!, his catchy dance anthem "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" topped the charts in both the U.S. and the UK. He followed that with the smooth, sax-driven hit "Careless Whisper," which was a solo effort but still credited to Wham! in certain countries. Michael's successful year also included hits like "Freedom" and "Everything She Wants," and he contributed to the Band Aid project, performing on the charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?"
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25. Band Aid
After BBC broadcasted a report by Michael Buerk about the catastrophic famine in Ethiopia, musicians Bob Geldof and Midge Ure teamed up to raise funds for relief. Together, they penned the song "Do They Know It's Christmas?" and gathered an all-star cast to form the supergroup Band Aid. The final lineup included members from Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Bananarama, Culture Club, Kool & the Gang, U2, Chris Cross, Paul Young, George Michael, Glenn Gregory, Martyn Ware, Phil Collins, Paul Weller, Status Quo, Jody Watley from Shalamar, Marilyn, and the Boomtown Rats.
The single sold over a million copies in its first week and went on to become the UK's best-selling single ever... until Elton John's "Candle in the Wind 1997" tribute to Princess Diana took the top spot.
In total, Band Aid raised £5 million for famine relief. The following year’s Live Aid, Band Aid II in 1989, Band Aid 20 in 2004, and Live 8 in 2005 collectively raised £150 million, and the Band Aid Trust still generates around £2 million annually to fund relief work in Ethiopia, Uganda, Sudan, and other African nations facing poverty.
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26. The Quagga's Second Life (Sort of)
There once lived an animal called the quagga. Imagine a zebra with its distinctive front stripes, but a back end resembling that of a regular horse. The last known quagga in captivity passed away in 1883, though it had been absent from the wild for nearly a decade before that. The species was hunted easily due to its desirable hide and struggled to compete with domesticated animals for grazing land.
What makes the quagga particularly fascinating is what happened after it was gone. In 1984, a team of scientists from the University of California at Berkeley successfully cloned DNA fragments from a 140-year-old quagga sample. This marked the first time DNA from an extinct species had been successfully cloned, and set the stage for future attempts to bring back creatures like woolly mammoths and velociraptors.
However, we may not need to wait for futuristic cloning technologies. It turns out that the mitochondrial DNA from the quagga revealed it was actually a subspecies of the still-existing plains zebra. Through selective breeding, the Quagga Project aims to eventually recreate a living population of quaggas. In 2005, the first foal resembling a quagga was born, and her lighter striping was seen as a step toward bringing the quagga back to life.
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27. Dude, You're Getting a Dell
Michael Dell began building his computing empire while still a student at the University of Texas. He created affordable PCs using off-the-shelf parts, with his business initially going by the name PC's Limited. One of his first customers even shared with The Smithsonian, "[The computer] always sounded as if it were coming apart. I never did figure out why."
Fast forward three decades, and Dell is still in the business of selling customizable PCs. Whether you need extra RAM, a student discount, or just want a keyboard but no mouse, Dell has you covered. Dude, you're getting a Dell!
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28. Muppet Babies
In 1984, Jim Henson took us into the animated childhoods of our beloved Muppets. The Muppet Babies made their first appearance in a fantasy scene from The Muppets Take Manhattan, and their own TV show debuted that fall. Kermit, Miss Piggy, and the rest of the crew gave us their playful takes on Star Wars, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, The Twilight Zone, The Jetsons, I Love Lucy, and many more classics.
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29. The "Baby Bell" Telephone System
Wikimedia Commons / Badmachine
On January 1, 1984, AT&T was split into seven distinct "Regional Holding Companies," commonly known as the "Baby Bells." This marked the conclusion of a prolonged series of anti-trust lawsuits against AT&T, which had previously held a monopoly over the U.S. telephone industry. The emergence of the Baby Bells introduced competition to the telecommunications market, leading to reduced long-distance rates and shaking up the system throughout the 80s and 90s. Today, three major phone carriers—AT&T Inc., CenturyLink, and Verizon—can trace their origins back to these Baby Bells.
In 2008, Network World asked, "Does the AT&T breakup still matter 25 years later?" The answer is complicated, but essentially, "maybe."
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30. Ghostbusters
The first Ghostbusters film introduced us to a trio of ex-Columbia University professors who made it their job to rid New York City of various paranormal phenomena. Bill Murray became the standout as Dr. Peter Venkman, a character originally meant for the late John Belushi. Renowned film critic Roger Ebert awarded the movie out of 4 stars, praising it as "one of those rare films where the original, delicate comedic vision has endured a multimillion-dollar production."
Ghostbusters led to the creation of a second movie, two television series, multiple video games, comic books, and of course, this iconic single by Ray Parker, Jr.:
Images courtesy of Getty unless specified otherwise.
