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Facts That Will Overwhelm You with 1980s Nostalgia
Do you long for the days when MTV still played music videos? Do you fondly remember your Cabbage Patch doll as the best birthday present you ever got? If any of this sounds familiar, chances are you still hold a candle for the 1980s—and you're not alone.
A booming era for everything from technology to toys, the 1980s are still heralded by those who grew up in this seminal decade as one of the trendsetting times in recent memory. If you're eager to take a trip down memory lane, check out these 30 facts that are sure to fill you with a fond sense of nostalgia.
1.A billion people tuned in to see Prince Charles and Lady Diana get married.
While royal and celebrity weddings are still a big ratings hit to this day, they pale in comparison to Diana and Charles' wedding in 1981. In fact, over a billion people around the globe tuned in for the July 29th wedding. To give some context to that figure, just 10.5 million viewers watched Kim Kardashian's 2011 wedding to Kris Humphries.
2. The first commercial U.S. cell phone weighed two pounds.
Though the first analogue cellular phone system was introduced in Japan in the late 1970s, it wasn't until 1983 that Americans could get their hands on one of these devices. The Motorola DynaTac 8000X had a waiting list thousands of people long, despite its high price point and low functionality. The phone could only store 30 numbers, charging it took 10 hours, it only offered 30 minutes of talk time, it weighed two pounds, and came with an exorbitant price tag: $3,995—or $9,410 in today's dollars.
3. Customs agents seized 20,000 counterfeit Cabbage Patch dolls in 1984.
The Cabbage Patch doll craze hit fever pitch in the 1980s, to the point that parents were getting into knock-down, drag-out fights with each other at malls across the country to get their hands on one of these chubby-cheeked toys. In fact, the trend was so huge, 20,000 fake Cabbage Patch dolls—many containing volatile compounds that generally don't make their way into doll stuffing—were seized by Customs agents before Christmas in 1984.
4.You didn't have to buckle up until 1984.
As crazy as it may sound, you weren't legally required to use your seatbelt in a car until 1984. While seatbelts had to be included in personal vehicles in the United States by 1968, actually using them was optional until 1984.
5.Candy bars only cost 25 cents.
While kids today may be used to shelling out a dollar or more for their favorite sweets, children of the '80s had a good thing going, only having to spend a quarter for the average Hershey's bar, according to the New York Times. In fact, even adjusted for inflation, that only comes out to about 75 cents in today's dollars.
And as always have a chilled day from the Viking
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