Pop Culture January 28

Raiders of the Lost Ark June 12, 1981 Starring Harrison Ford, whose biggest role previously had been Han Solo in Star Wars. Sequels: Temple of Doom (1984), and the Last Crusade(1989). Also Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) is considered a sequel but most people try to forget that it exists. George Lucas conceived of the idea for the film in collaboration with Steven Spielberg. At the time Lucas was riding on the success of Star Wars, and creating the Star Wars sequels.

1998. American Film institute ranked Raiders at 60 of the top 100 movies in the 1900s AFI updated the list and placed it at number 66. It also sparked the beginning of the family friendly movie that the whole family could enjoy.

Cabbage Patch Kids Xavier Roberts registered the idea for Cabbage Patch Kids with the U.S. copyright office in Xavier sold his idea to Coleco in Coleco changed the name of the dolls from The Little People, to the Cabbage Patch Kids. Remembered for causing the 1983 Black Friday Riots. Instead of buying the dolls, children could “adopt” them.

Celtics vs. Lakers Rivalry Rivalry revived because of Larry Bird on the Celtics, and Magic Johnson on the Lakers. Together the Celtics and Lakers hold 33 of the 69 championships, which is around 47% of the championships. Some journalists believed that the Johnson–Bird rivalry was so appealing because it represented many other contrasts, such as the clash between: The Lakers and Celtics. Hollywood flashiness vs. Boston blue color grit. Blacks and whites.

Cheers 1982 to Spawned Fraiser (1993 to 2004), the most successful spinoff in television history. Kelsey Grammar played Fraiser Crane, the longest running character played by a single actor in TV history. 18 th, of the 50 best TV shows according to TV guide. Represented the connection between the blue collar working classes, and the upper classes. Nearly cancelled in the first season, before reaching #1 in the 9 th season. In the top 10 for ratings 8 out of 11 seasons.

Sony Walkman Introduced a change in music listening habits by allowing people to carry recorded music with them and listen to music through lightweight headphones. Sony predicted it would only sell about 5,000 units a month, the Walkman sold over of 50,000 in the first two months. Popularity based on running on just 2 AA batteries, and on privacy since it didn’t have an external speaker. Helped cassette tapes to outsell vinyl for the first time ever in 1983.

Born in the U.S.A. Reagan controversy In 1984, during his campaign for the presidency, Ronald Reagan used the song briefly as a campaign song. "America's future rests in a thousand dreams inside our hearts. It rests in the message of hope in the songs of a man so many young Americans admire: New Jersey's own Bruce Springsteen. And helping you make those dreams come true is what this job of mine is all about." Springsteen, a devout liberal, had the Reagan campaign stop using his song.

Walter Mondale, Reagan's Democratic opponent, quickly seized on the opportunity and said Bruce supported him for president. Springsteen's manager, John Landau, issued a quick denial, and the Mondale campo issued an apology and correction. Part of the song's confusion probably lies in the unintelligibleness of Bruce's voice and the singing of the song's lyrics. “"Born in the U.S.A” is about a working class man in a spiritual crisis, in which a man is left lost. It’s like he has nothing left to tie him to society anymore. He's isolated from the government, isolated from his family, to the point where nothing makes sense.”