Question: What did Pepsi dub the caffeine-free cola that it debuted in 1982?
Last Question: Who directed Throw Momma From the Train?
Answer: Danny DeVito
Category Archives: Actors/Actresses
The “Box Office Jocks” Blog-A-Thon is here!
Welcome to the “Box Office Jocks” Blog-A-Thon this fine Super Bowl weekend! A special thank you goes out to Dubsism for host his first blog-a-thon. If you aren’t familiar with Dubsism, it’s a combination of two things which usually don’t go together; rabid enthusiasm for all things sport, and an infatuation with classic cinema. I highly recommend checking out and subscribe to his blog.
This blog-a-thon is all about movies featuring actors who used to be athletes at the college, Olympic, or professional level, OR movies in which a famous athlete appears. It is NOT about movies which have a sports-related theme. This is about actors who once were jocks, or big-time jocks who make cameos.
This is fun topic. Thank you for everyone who participated. Please check out all these awesome articles, and share the love.
- Mister Roberts, 1955 – Features a cameo as an island tribal chief by Duke Kahanamoku. If you’re not familiar, Kahanamoku won gold medals in swimming at the 1912 and 1920 Olympics, as well as a silver in 1924, losing to the gold to Johnny “Tarzan” Weismuller.
- They Were Expendable, 1945 – Before becoming arguably the biggest star in the history John Wayne played guard for the University of Southern California.
- Rocky III – Eye of the Tiger, baby…
- A Lady Takes A Chance, 1943 – Bringing us our second contribution from “The Duke.”
- Hooper, 1978 – SportsChump covers both categories with a Burt Reynolds flick featuring a cameo from four-time Super Bowl champ Terry Bradshaw.
- Prefontaine, 1997 – Before he was “Al Bundy,” Ed O’Neill was a defensive lineman for the Youngstown State Penguins, and earned a tryout with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Wonderful World of Cinema:
- Dangerous When Wet, 1953 – Virginie Pronovost dives into this Esther Williams classic. Williams may very well have been an Olympic gold medalist in swimming had World War II not happened.
- Take Me Out To The Ball Game, 1949 – Michael from Sat in Your Lap doubles down on Esther Williams.
In The Good Old Days Of Classic Hollywood:
- Million Dollar Mermaid, 1952 – Thus completes our Esther Williams trifecta.
- Return to Me, 2000 – Before the X-Files, David Duchovny was an “X and O” guy on the basketball floor for Princeton University.
- Raw Wind In Eden, 1958 – She is also bringing the fourth Esther Williams contribution to this blog-a-thon.
- Into The Sun, 2005 – Here’s a guy looking to win the first Box Office Jocks Heisman Trophy by looking at former Ohio State/Tennessee Titans star Eddie George in this Steven Seagal vehicle.
Love Letters To Old Hollywood:
- Sun Valley Serenade, 1941 – Our first tribute to figure skating legend Sonja Henie.
- Major League, 1989 & Major League II, 1994 – Quiggy from Midnite Drive-In goes juuuuusssst a bit outside going inside the work of former catcher and Hall-of-Fame broadcaster Bob Uecker’s portrayal of the movie voice of the Cleveland Indians, Harry Doyle.
- Black Orpheus, 1959 – Le Magalhaes takes us through a tale set in Rio’s Carnival with Brazil’s two-time gold medalist Ademar Da Silva
- Mike brings us an All-Star championship team.
Here’s to some solid reading about Box Office Jocks!
Follow @returntothe80sKurt Russell Blog-a-Thon Update
Last Call for the Kurt Russell Blog-a-Thon!!!
Hey all you bloggers, podcasters, and Kurt Russell enthusiasts! Next week, Monday May 21, 2018, the Kurt Russell Blog-a-Thon will begin. This special event hosted by RealWeegieMidget Reviews and yours truly, will feature Kurt Russell articles and podcasts from our friends around the globe. There are already a lot of awesome participants, and we would love to have even more. To learn more about this event, visit – https://rtt80s.com/2018/04/05/announcing-the-kurt-russell-blog-a-thon/.
You can also see who’s doing what, here.
Please let us know if you’d like to participate.
Follow @returntothe80sR.I.P. Harry Anderson (October 14, 1952 – April 16, 2018)
We lost another iconic character of the ’80s. Harry Anderson, who was mainly known for playing Judge Harry Stone on Night Court, died in his home in Asheville, North Carolina yesterday.
Anderson, a fellow native Rhode Islander, got a huge break, with his recurring guest role, the hilarious con man Harry “The Hat” Gittes, on Cheers. That role led to him playing Judge Harry Stone on Night Court, from 1984-1992. Harry was just as zany and eccentric as the crazies who passed through his courtroom. And just like his character, Anderson was a magician at heart. And thanks to both Anderson, and his Night Court character, we all discovered the jazz great Mel Tormé. Anderson was nominated for three consecutive Emmys, from 1985 to 1987. In 1990, Harry played the adult Richie Tozier in the 1990 miniseries It, based on the Stephen King novel.
After Night Court’s run ended, Anderson went right back at it, playing Dave Barry on “Dave’s World,” which ran from 1993 to 1997. After that, he was not very active in the acting world anymore.
He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Morgan, and he had two children from a previous marriage.
If, for some reason, you have never seen Night Court, I cannot recommend it enough. I have seen some episodes recently, and it is just as funny now, as it was back then.
Follow @returntothe80sWho’s Doing What in the Kurt Russell Blog-a-Thon 2018
If you want to join us and want more details about this Blogathon CLICK HERE…
And here’s who is doing what,
Gill from RealWeegieMidget Reviews – Escape from New York (1981)
Paul from Return to the ’80s – The Mean Season (1985)
Chris from http://angelman.blogspot.com – Silkwood (1983)
Thoughts All Sorts – Tombstone (1993)
RedBezzleBrand – Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
What The Craggus Saw – Sky High (2005)
Quiggy from Midnite Drive In – The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969), Now You See Him Now You Don’t (1972) and The Strongest Man in the World (1975)
Critica Retro – Follow Me, Boys (1966)
Awesome 80s podcast – Kurt Russell Episode
Paul S from Pfeiffer Pfilms and Meg Movie – Tequila Sunrise (1988)
Crystal from In the Good Old Days of Classic Hollywood – The Best of Times (1986)
Vinnie h…. Escape from New York (1981)
Movie Rob – Stargate (1994), Dreamer (2005) and Used Cars (1980)
Banzai Retro Club – Kurt Russell Icon Episode
Graduated Cylinder – Overboard (1987)
Dubsism – Miracle (2004)
Taking Up Room – Soldier (1998)
Seetimaar-Diary of a Movie Lover – Tombstone (1993)
No Nonsense with Nuwan Sen – The Mean Season (1985)
Kim and Elwood from Movies and Tea (podcast) – Soldier (1998)
Follow @returntothe80sAnnouncing the Kurt Russell Blog-a-Thon!!
I can’t remember how the subject came up, but my good friend Gill, from the awesome blog – RealWeegieMidget Reviews, were discussing the great Kurt Russell. I had mentioned how I have never seen Kurt Russell in a bad movie. So, Gill suggested that we host a Kurt Russell blog-a-thon. What a brilliant idea!
Kurt Russell has an immense body of work in both television and film – from being a child star in the early ’60s through last year’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 to this past December’s Candlelight Procession at Disney’s Epcot:
Yes, I saw him in person, and yes, he was looking right at me.
So I am now formally inviting you to join us in the “Kurt Russell Blogathon” on May 21 – May 23, 2018.
In the blog-a-thon we’d love reviews of his acting career as a film and TV actor in any of his roles large or small. We are accepting no more than 3 duplicates relating to all entries. I’ll be adding a Who’s doing What page.. with a link here. I should also note that this is not limited to his work in the ’80s. Anything from his childhood roles up to his most recent roles, will be accepted and encouraged.
And here’s the rules…
We’d like you to:
Write a post or send us a link to your podcast.
- The link to the review/post must be sent to me at Return to the ’80s or Gill at RealWeegieMidget Reviews. Please send these to us on any day and we both will publish the entries as we get them.
- We will allow no more than 3 duplicates and 3 entries per person.
- Add one of the banners to your site and add this to your post.
- Please include your Twitter handle and Facebook page if you have one, the name of your site along with your review choice. Just so as I can promote your post here, there and everywhere!
- We allow guest posts – if you want to add a post and don’t have a blog we’ll publish it on one of our sites.
- All posts will be published on the Blogathon dates between May 21 – May 23, 2018 and a recap will be added after this.
- Have fun and be creative!
And to get things rolling here’s our choices:
Gill from RealWeegieMidget Reviews – Escape from New York (1981)
Paul from Return to the ’80s – The Mean Season (1985)
For inspiration, you can check out his roles on imdb.
And also a big thanks to Gill for creating these awesome banners…
Looking forward to hearing from you and celebrating the life and times of this kick-ass actor.
Crossover Event: #80sCrushes
Hi Everybody! It’s time again for our monthly ’80s crossover event, brought to you by The ’80s League. As you can tell from the title, this month’s selection is on ’80s crushes. As part of this event, we also contributed a podcast episode. Marissa, Robert, and Paul discussed their ’80s crushes. You can download the podcast from iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever else you get your podcasts from. And you can also go to the show notes, and listen directly on this site right here. The picks we made on the podcast will be different from the crushes I list in this article.
In addition to Return to the ’80s, other participants include:
80s Reboot Overdrive Blog and podcast
Rediscover the ’80s
Realweegiemidget
Killer Kitsch
Now, let’s check out more of my ’80s crushes.
Kristy McNichol
In the summer of 1982, there was a movie I, and apparently the rest of the world, wanted to see – E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. It was playing in a nearby theater that only had 2 screens. And E.T. was only showing on one of them. Of course, when we got to the theater, the movie was sold out. Instead, we saw the movie that was being shown on the other screen – The Pirate Movie. I don’t remember knowing about that movie going into it. Coming out, this 11 year old was in love. I thought Kristy McNichol was beautiful, and I was really drawn to her. Several years later, she starred in The Golden Girls spinoff, Empty Nest. And I found that my feelings had not changed. She still made my heart skip a beat.
Unfortunately, Kristy has not really been in anything in almost 20 years. In 2001, she officially announced her retirement from acting. And years after that, I was dealt another crushing blow. Kristy McNichol revealed that she is gay, in the hopes that her openness would help young people who are bullied because of their sexuality. It’s great that she’s open about it now. But, it killed any shot of us ever getting together. Well, as Samantha’s father says in Sixteen Candles, “That’s why they call them crushes. If they were easy, they’d call ’em something else.”
Tracey Gold
Growing Pains is one of my all-time favorite sitcoms. It was already a great show on it’s own. But, my crush on Tracey Gold (and her character, Carol Seaver) didn’t hurt either. I thought she was so cute, and smart. It used to annoy the crap out of me when her brothers picked on her. And this was made even worse when they made fat jokes about her. That’s so stupid as it is. But, she wasn’t even fat, so it made no sense to me. Then to find out that Tracey battled anorexia made things even worse. She even had to miss several episodes of the show due to her condition. Luckily, she was able to recover. Ah, cute, smart, and strong. Not a bad combination
Samantha Fox
Throughout the ’80s, and to this day, my music taste tends to lean toward Rock. I also love me some R&B and old school Rap. But, I got tired of most pop music. That changed with the arrival of Samantha Fox. I thought she was gorgeous. And I actually liked her music too! Her first album, Touch Me, was mostly pop, but some of it had a little rock edge to it. I loved the title track as well as “Do Ya Do Ya (Wanna Please Me)“. Actually, I liked every song on that album. Next was her self-titled album. “Naughty Girls (Need Love Too)” was the first single released in the U.S. The song opens with her saying “Maybe, just maybe
Naughty girls need love too.” in her British accent. Love that accent!
Her third album, I Wanna Have Some Fun, was also a fun album. The title track always got us all out on the dance floor.
I could go on and on with my crushes. But I’ll stop here, and I’d love to hear from you. Who were some of your crushes – real life or celebrity.
Once again please check out the posts from the rest of the 80’s League:
80s Reboot Overdrive Blog and podcast
Rediscover the ’80s
Realweegiemidget
Killer Kitsch
And you can also check out the Return to the ’80s Podcast to hear about more of our crushes.
Follow @returntothe80s
Episode 10: ’80s Crushes
It’s time for another 80s League event! This month, the 80s League, which consists of 80s Reboot Overdrive, Rediscover the ’80s, Weegiemidget, and Killer Kitsch. As part of this crossover event, Return to the ’80s is dedicating a full episode on the topic instead of only a segment. Joining Robert and Paul is Marissa, a true lover of the greatest decade ever!
Not only do we talk about our celebrity crushes, but we talk about our real life crushes. We also have our regular segments of Play This, Not That, Remember That Song, and ’80s Trivia.
Also, I should mention that as I am fairly new at podcasting, I am still working out some of the technical kinks. So I apologize for some of the minor sound issues that occur this episode. Future episodes should be much better. I hope it’s not distracting. We had a lot of fun recording this, and I think you will have fun listening. And feel free to join in on the conversation by emailing us at returnto80s@gmail.com, and tell us about your 80s crushes, or love story.
Opening
– Welcome Marissa to the show
– New Def Leppard DVD/CD called And There Will Be a Next Time (unless it’s in Providence, apparently)
– New Night Ranger album – March 24 – Don’t Let Up
– Two Super Bowl Commercials with ‘80s music ties:
Wendy’s – “Cold as Ice”
Kia – Holding Out for a Hero
R.I.P.
– Mary Tyler Moore
– John Wetton
– Richard Hatch
– Sorry Al Jarreau. First, Paul didn’t know he died. Then our tribute to him somehow turns into a retrospective look at the career of Curtis “Booger” Armstrong.
Play This, Not That – Air Supply
Instead of playing “Lost in Love”
Play “I Can Wait Forever”
Remember That Song
Last Song:
You play tricks on my mind, you’re everywhere, but you’re so hard to find
You’re not warm, you’re sentimental
“Urgent” by Foreigner
Winner: Peter
New Song: I know what you’re thinking / Cause I’ve been there myself / I’ve been kicked so many times / I don’t know nothing else / Still I noticed your urgency / I recognized the flair / That you got from chasing all those East coast dares
80s Trivia
Last Question:
What screen siren appeared in Stripes, Blade Runner, No Way Out and Wall Street?
Answer: Sean Young
Winner: Jim Vilk
New Question: What brokerage firm’s name, when mentioned in TV ads, silenced entire rooms of people?
Main Topic – ’80s Crushes
– Crossover Event, featuring the following blogs/podcasts
80s Reboot Overdrive
Rediscover the ’80s
Weegiemidget
Killer Kitsch
– Listener Feedback
– Personal Stories
Marissa’s numerous crushes and obsession with swimmers
Robert meets his future wife in high school on a bus to a football game
Paul tells the story of his high school girlfriend and their serendipitous meeting 28 years later
– The gang talk about their celebrity crushes
Rick Springfield (Marissa)
Olivia Newton-John (Robert)
Catherine Bach (Paul)
John Taylor (Marissa)
Elisabeth Shue (Robert)
Erin Gray (Paul)
Richard Gere (Marissa)
Susanna Hoffs (Robert)
Alyssa Milano (Paul)
Mickey Rourke (Marissa)
Christie Brinkley (Robert)
Debbie Gibson (Paul)
’80s Crushes
Hi Everybody! As Valentine’s Day is approaching, we are recording a new Return to the ’80s podcast episode on ’80s crushes. And we would LOVE to hear from you. Ha! See what I did there? Seriously, please email us at Returnto80s@gmail.com, and tell us about some of your ’80s crushes. It could be about a celebrity, or maybe that person you sat behind in class that you secretly (or publicly) pined for. We may read your story on the air. If you don’t want it to be read on the air, let us know, and we can have a fun back-and-forth via email.
Also, I should point out that nobody has answered the ’80s Trivia question from our last podcast episode. So, if you know the answer to that, email us the answer.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Follow @returntothe80sWe’ll Be Right Back – Clips of Alan Thicke, George Michael, and Carrie Fisher
Hi Everybody, After all the devastating news over the past week, Robert and I have been preparing a special podcast episode. The regular Remember That Song and Quote of the Day segments will be back in 2017. In the meantime, here are a few videos of a happier time. Enjoy.
Although he was mainly known as Jason Seaver in Growing Pains, Alan Thicke also starred in this show, Animal Crack-Ups, which aired while he was still on Growing Pains. Not only did Thicke host this show, he wrote and sang the theme song. Here is the opening segment of an episode:
I’m sure all of you have been listening to a lot of Wham! and George Michael songs lately. Here is something a little different. James Corden’s Carpool Karaoke is enormously popular these days. As it so happens, George Michael appeared in the very first Carpool Karaoke. This is from Comic Relief in the U.K. in 2011. At the time, James Corden was best known as Smithy from Gavin and Stacey.
This scene begins with “Smithy” receiving a call from Lenny Henry at Comic Relief who asks him to head to BBC Television Centre to help record a charity single. For U.S. readers who may not know, Lenny Henry is a legendary comic in the U.K. Of course Corden is hilarious. But, this clip really shows George Michael’s sense of humor. ’80s fans may possibly recognize the songs that get played here…
Last but not least, here are a couple of appearances by Carrie Fisher on Late Night. These interviews are from:
May 30, 1983: promoting “Return of the Jedi”
August 27, 1987: promoting her new book “Postcards from the Edge”
Her interviews are always funny and honest (to say the least).
Follow @returntothe80s
Return to the 80s 