Question 1

Which 1982 Michael Jackson album became the best-selling album of all time?

Accepted Answer

Thriller. Released in November 1982 and produced by Quincy Jones, Thriller spawned seven top-ten singles and has sold an estimated 70 million copies worldwide.

Question 2

Which Madonna song and album from 1984 contained the line "Shiny and new"?

Accepted Answer

Like a Virgin. Like a Virgin was Madonnas second studio album. Her performance of the title track at the first MTV Video Music Awards in 1984 became a defining 80s moment.

Question 3

In which year did MTV launch and famously air "Video Killed the Radio Star" as its first video?

Accepted Answer

1981. MTV went on the air on August 1, 1981. The first video played was "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles, setting the stage for the music-video era.

Question 4

Which Prince album and accompanying film, both released in 1984, share the same title?

Accepted Answer

Purple Rain. Purple Rain won Prince an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score and spent 24 weeks at number one on the US album chart. The film grossed over 70 million dollars.

Question 5

Which Bruce Springsteen album from 1984 featured the title track often misread as a patriotic anthem?

Accepted Answer

Born in the U.S.A.. Despite its anthemic chorus, the song is actually a critical look at the treatment of Vietnam veterans. The album sold over 30 million copies worldwide.

Question 6

Which two cities hosted the Live Aid concerts on July 13, 1985?

Accepted Answer

London and Philadelphia. Organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief, Live Aid was watched by an estimated 1.9 billion people across 150 nations.

Question 7

Which song from Whitney Houston self-titled 1985 debut album became her first US number-one single?

Accepted Answer

Saving All My Love for You. Saving All My Love for You topped the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1985 and won the 1986 Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Her debut album sold over 25 million copies worldwide.

Question 8

Which Bon Jovi album from 1986 featured "Livin on a Prayer" and "You Give Love a Bad Name"?

Accepted Answer

Slippery When Wet. Slippery When Wet was the best-selling album of 1987 in the US and helped define the sound of stadium rock and glam metal in the late 80s.

Question 9

In Steven Spielbergs 1982 film, what is the name of the alien left behind on Earth?

Accepted Answer

E.T.. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial became the highest-grossing film of the 80s and held the worldwide box-office record until Jurassic Park in 1993.

Question 10

In "Back to the Future" (1985), what car does Doc Brown turn into a time machine?

Accepted Answer

A DeLorean DMC-12. The stainless-steel DeLorean needed 1.21 gigawatts of power and a speed of 88 mph to travel through time. It became one of cinemas most iconic vehicles.

Question 11

Who directed the original 1981 "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and which actor played Indiana Jones?

Accepted Answer

Steven Spielberg directed and Harrison Ford played Indiana Jones. Created by George Lucas and directed by Spielberg, Raiders of the Lost Ark launched one of the most successful adventure franchises in film history.

Question 12

In "The Breakfast Club" (1985), at what kind of school detention is the film set?

Accepted Answer

A Saturday detention. John Hughes wrote and directed this defining teen film, in which five high schoolers from different cliques spend a Saturday in detention and discover they have more in common than they thought.

Question 13

In "Top Gun" (1986), what is the call sign of Tom Cruises character?

Accepted Answer

Maverick. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell trains at the Navys elite Fighter Weapons School. The Tony Scott film was the highest-grossing movie of 1986 and inspired a long-awaited 2022 sequel.

Question 14

In "Ghostbusters" (1984), what is the name of the giant marshmallow villain at the climax?

Accepted Answer

The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Summoned accidentally by Ray Stantz, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man stomps through New York in one of the most memorable 80s movie set pieces.

Question 15

Which 1987 film features the famous line "Nobody puts Baby in a corner"?

Accepted Answer

Dirty Dancing. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, Dirty Dancing was a sleeper hit that became one of the most successful independent films of the 80s.

Question 16

Which actor played Batman in Tim Burtons 1989 film?

Accepted Answer

Michael Keaton. Tim Burtons darker take on the character, with Jack Nicholson as the Joker, helped redefine superhero films and grossed over 400 million dollars worldwide.

Question 17

In "Cheers", in what city is the bar set?

Accepted Answer

Boston. Cheers ran from 1982 to 1993 and was set in a Boston bar where "everybody knows your name". The exterior was based on the Bull and Finch Pub on Beacon Hill.

Question 18

In "Family Ties", what is the name of Michael J. Foxs conservative young Republican character?

Accepted Answer

Alex P. Keaton. Family Ties ran from 1982 to 1989 and made Michael J. Fox a household name. The sitcom famously contrasted Alexs Reagan-era politics with his ex-hippie parents.

Question 19

Which 1984 NBC sitcom about an upper-middle-class New York family was the top-rated show for five years?

Accepted Answer

The Cosby Show. The Cosby Show ran from 1984 to 1992 and was the number-one rated show on US television from 1985 to 1990. It redefined the family sitcom for a generation.

Question 20

In "Miami Vice", what colors were detectives Crockett and Tubbs famous for wearing?

Accepted Answer

Pastels (often pink and teal blazers over T-shirts). Miami Vices pastel suits, no-socks loafers and synth-driven soundtrack made it as much a fashion statement as a cop show. It ran from 1984 to 1989 on NBC.

Question 21

In "Knight Rider", what is the name of the talking AI-powered black Pontiac Trans Am?

Accepted Answer

KITT (Knight Industries Two Thousand). KITT was voiced by William Daniels and partnered with Michael Knight, played by David Hasselhoff. The show ran from 1982 to 1986 on NBC.

Question 22

In "The A-Team", what catchphrase did Hannibal often deliver as a plan came together?

Accepted Answer

I love it when a plan comes together. Played by George Peppard, Hannibal Smith led a team of Vietnam veterans turned soldiers of fortune. The series ran on NBC from 1983 to 1987.

Question 23

In 1980, the cliffhanger "Who shot J.R.?" came from which prime-time soap opera?

Accepted Answer

Dallas. The November 1980 episode that revealed Kristin as the shooter drew an estimated 83 million US viewers, making it one of the most-watched television episodes in history.

Question 24

In which year did "The Simpsons" debut as a full series on the Fox network?

Accepted Answer

1989. After years as shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, The Simpsons premiered as a half-hour series on December 17, 1989. It went on to become the longest-running scripted prime-time series in US history.

Question 25

Which colorful puzzle, invented in 1974, became a worldwide craze in the early 1980s?

Accepted Answer

The Rubiks Cube. Invented by Hungarian architect Erno Rubik, the cube reached global popularity from 1980 onward and has sold over 450 million units, making it the best-selling toy ever.

Question 26

Which Sony portable cassette player, launched in 1979, dominated personal music listening in the 1980s?

Accepted Answer

The Walkman. Sonys Walkman made music portable for the first time and sold hundreds of millions of units across the decade. It made headphones a normal part of everyday life.

Question 27

Which soft-bodied dolls with adoption papers caused near-riots in 1983 toy stores?

Accepted Answer

Cabbage Patch Kids. Created by Xavier Roberts, Cabbage Patch Kids became the must-have Christmas gift of 1983, with each doll uniquely named on adoption papers. Shoppers fought in stores to secure them.

Question 28

Which Nintendo home console launched in North America in 1985 and revived the video game industry?

Accepted Answer

The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). The NES, known in Japan as the Famicom, launched in the US in October 1985 after the 1983 video game crash. It sold over 60 million units and made Mario a household name.

Question 29

Which video game character, originally called Jumpman, became Nintendos mascot in the 1980s?

Accepted Answer

Mario. Created by Shigeru Miyamoto, Mario first appeared as Jumpman in Donkey Kong in 1981. Super Mario Bros. in 1985 made him one of the most recognizable characters in the world.

Question 30

In which year did IBM release the original IBM Personal Computer (the IBM PC)?

Accepted Answer

1981. IBM launched the IBM PC (Model 5150) on August 12, 1981. It set the architectural standard for personal computers and led to the explosion of the PC-compatible industry.

Question 31

During which 1984 Super Bowl did Apple debut its famous "1984" commercial introducing the Macintosh?

Accepted Answer

Super Bowl XVIII. Directed by Ridley Scott, the ad aired during Super Bowl XVIII on January 22, 1984 and introduced the original Macintosh two days before it went on sale. It is widely cited as one of the greatest commercials of all time.

Question 32

Which handheld pocket calculator-sized game system did Nintendo release in 1989 with a green screen?

Accepted Answer

The Game Boy. Designed by Gunpei Yokoi and launched in 1989, the Game Boy bundled with Tetris in many regions and became one of the best-selling consoles of all time.

Question 33

In which year did the Berlin Wall fall, effectively ending the divide between East and West Germany?

Accepted Answer

1989. On the night of November 9, 1989, East Germany unexpectedly opened its borders. Crowds began tearing down the wall, and Germany was officially reunified less than a year later.

Question 34

On January 28, 1986, which NASA space shuttle broke apart 73 seconds after launch?

Accepted Answer

The Challenger. All seven crew members were killed, including teacher Christa McAuliffe. The disaster led to a 32-month halt in shuttle flights and major reforms at NASA.

Question 35

Which Soviet nuclear power plant suffered a catastrophic reactor explosion in April 1986?

Accepted Answer

Chernobyl. On April 26, 1986, reactor four at the Chernobyl plant in Ukrainian SSR exploded, releasing radioactive material across Europe. It remains the worst nuclear power plant accident in history.

Question 36

Which US president was elected in 1980 and served two terms through the decade?

Accepted Answer

Ronald Reagan. Former actor and California governor Ronald Reagan defeated Jimmy Carter in 1980 and was reelected in 1984. His policies, often called Reaganomics, defined US politics for a generation.

Question 37

Which two countries fought the 1982 Falklands War over a group of islands in the South Atlantic?

Accepted Answer

The United Kingdom and Argentina. Argentina invaded the British-controlled Falkland Islands in April 1982. The UK responded with a naval task force and recovered the islands after a 74-day war.

Question 38

Which two Summer Olympic Games of the 1980s were each affected by political boycotts?

Accepted Answer

Moscow 1980 and Los Angeles 1984. The US led a boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The Soviet Union and 13 allies then boycotted the 1984 Los Angeles Games in return.

Question 39

Which Soviet leader, who came to power in 1985, introduced the reforms of glasnost and perestroika?

Accepted Answer

Mikhail Gorbachev. Gorbachev became General Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party in March 1985. His openness (glasnost) and restructuring (perestroika) policies set the stage for the end of the Cold War.

Question 40

Which catastrophic 1984 industrial accident at a Union Carbide plant in India killed thousands?

Accepted Answer

The Bhopal disaster. On the night of December 2, 1984, a leak of methyl isocyanate gas at the Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal killed thousands within days and injured hundreds of thousands more.

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