memories of the ’80s – Cheers

Despite its humble beginnings, this tv series soon became a national addiction to see what was going on in the cosy Boston bar of Cheers.

Created by James Burrows, Les Charles and Glen Charles, the series was set in a Boston bar, where the characters were the bar staff and a few patrons. Debuting on CBS in September 1982, the show had a terrible first season and came in second to last in the overall ratings, almost causing it to be cancelled.

The producers and writers reworked the half hour sitcom and the inclusion of a couple of new characters gave Cheers a new life, and the fanbase started to form around its unique group of people.

The bar was owner by Sam Malone (Ted Danson) a former baseball player, well known ladies man, and bartender, who was helped by Coach (Nicolas Collasanto) a kind yet gullible man, Carla (Rhea Perlman) a smartass waitress/housewife and Diane (Shelley Long), a know-it-all waitress/graduate student.

Their regulars included Norm (George Wendt), an accountant, and Cliff (John Ratzenberger) a postal worker, who added their wit and wisdom to the daily conversations and goings on at the bar.

The interplay of dialogue was what captured viewers, as those who were smart seemed ignorant of the real world, while those who were perceived as not smart knew more about the world.

The tv show’s theme song “Where Everybody Know Your Name” was written and performed by Gary Portnoy.

The blue collar vs white collar backdrop, mixed in humour, oddball characters, fan worship of Sam and targeting Diane for her smartypants behaviour was a regular concoction for each episode.

After the death of Nicolas Collasanto in season three, the character of Coach was also written out because of death, and Woody (played by Woody Harrelson) was added, a somewhat dim young bartender/actor, as well as eventually including Dr. Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammar), a psychiatrist and highly intelligent friend of Diane’s and Dr. Lilith Sternin (Bebe Neuwirth), fellow psychiatrist, and finally Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) as a businesswoman brought in to save the bar.

Cheers became one of those shows that developed a cult following, with many knowing the intricacies of the relationships, the catchphrases (the bar would always yell out Norm’s name when he arrived) and the love affairs of the infamous Sam Malone.

Despite humble beginnings, it ended up as a top 10 series for the rest of its run, earning 28 Emmy Awards ( a past record of 117 nominations)  and having one of the highest ratings overall for its last episode in May 1993.

Successful for 11 seasons, the series ended in the following decade, still popular, but its first years, with the snappy dialogue of Sam, Coach, Carla, Diane, Norm and Cliff, is still television humour at its finest.

memories of the ’80s – Donkey Kong

An animated ape made us all want to become more competitive with the game Donkey Kong.

The game was the result of the failure of Radar Scope – a game tested that didn’t meet expectations of gamers. Nintendo hired designer Shigeru Miyamoto to redesign the game to make it more appealing.

The basic premise of the game is Mario’s rescue of Pauline from Donkey Kong through a construction site (Mario appeared four years later in his own game, Super Mario Brothers).

For all those gamers, it was a wildfire response to the rescue game and avoiding the Donkey’s barrels, which were used as weapons and transport.

The game was available for many platforms including arcade, Atari, Apple and Commodore in 1981 and in 1983 was launched via Family Computer as one of its three lead titles.

The success of the game spawned many sequels including Donkey Kong 2, Donkey Kong Jr.,  and Donkey Kong Country. The success also spawned a lawsuit from Universal Studios, who claimed the game was an infringement of their copyright of the film King Kong.

The court found Universal Studios claim was not valid and that the public would never confuse an animated video game with a black and white screen classic.

For Nintendo, Donkey Kong was a major success for this company, which in the early 1980s was in its infancy in its presence in North America.

For this occasional arcade visitor, I could never get close enough to the machine, as the obsessed gamers dominated the lineup for Donkey Kong – only the hardcore seemed to want to spend hours just playing that game.

One of the first games that created a family of games and merchandise, Donkey Kong was awarded seven Guinness Book of World Records for their achievements in video gaming. To date, the franchise has sold 40 million units worldwide.

Portrait of a lady

Amongst the old brick ovens of Toronto’s Evergreen Brick Works, a portrait of a lady:

memories of the ’80s – Tiffany

Pop idols come and go – in the late 1980s, the pop world crowned a new queen – Tiffany.

Tiffany Renee Darwish started singing as a child – her first public gig was in 1981 at a country music fair in small town northern California, where she sang a few songs, passed the hat and collected over $200.

Country star Hoyt Axton saw her perform at a club in Los Angeles and brought her to Nashville to perform on the Ralph Emery Show.

In 1984 she was signed by manager George Tobin and in 1985 she competed on Star Search, finishing second.

Tobin signed Tiffany with MCA Records and she recorded her first album, Tiffany, and released her first single, Danny in 1987. Although the single fell flat, Tiffany went on tour in shopping malls across America, “The Beautiful You: Celebrating the Good Life Shopping Mall Tour”.

Tiffany’s second single, a cover of I Think We’re Alone Now, hit the mark with listeners, capturing the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100. Tiffany was seen in the pages of Tiger Beat and Teen Beat as well as in regular rotation on MTV. In February 1988, Tiffany grabbed her next number one hit with the song Could’ve Been.  She followed up with singles I Saw Him Standing There (Beatles) and Feelings of Forever, setting a Billboard record as the youngest female artist to top charts with a debut album.

Later in 1988, Tiffany was the opening act for the New Kids on the Block tour but her career took a backseat to a squabble between her parents and her manager George Tobin over her career earnings. She applied to the court to become an emancipated minor, which was rejected by the judge, while she became the temporary ward of her Grandmother. When she turned 18, she fired Tobin and hired new management, but her teen idol time has passed.

Her second album Hold an Old Friend’s Hand, was released in late 1988 and although went platinum, didn’t have the impact of her previous effort. She ended the decade doing the voice of Judy Jetson in  the animated film The Jetsons, as well as contributing three songs to the soundtrack.

I wasn’t a fan of Tiffany, finding her style not attractive to my cool teen self, nor her music that interesting or original. But her flash into the pop world was big and bright and like so many before her and after, she got her 15 minutes of fame.

memories of the ’80s – Punky Brewster

A humorous sitcom with serious overtones about foster care? A spunky child whose life lived on in pop culture’s dictionary as a kid with an attitude? That would be Punky Brewster.

This NBC television showed aired for two seasons from 1984-1986, the story of Punky, whose father disappeared and whose mother abandoned her in a shopping mall with her dog.

Not wanting to be thrown into foster care, Punky inhabits her apartment with her dog, but comes under the watchful eye of  Henry, a grumpy widower who discovers Punky is living on her own in the abandoned apartment.

There are other adults and kids who help take care of Punky like Betty, as her grand daughter Cherie becomes friends with Punky and school chums Allen and Margaux, as well as Punky’s teacher Mrs. Morton.

Shown on Sunday evenings, NBC tried something unique with the show, as it didn’t want to disrupt viewers despite Sunday Night Football games. So the show was filmed in 15 minute segments, instead of the traditional 22-24 minutes for a half hour sitcom, so viewers didn’t have to join the show in progress when the football games went overtime.

Punky’s second season showcased the state of foster care, when Henry ends up in the hospital and  a social worker discovers the unofficial relationship of Punky and Henry. Punky ends up living with wealthy family for the short term, but eventually ends up back with her new adoptive parent, Henry. Although ratings for the show were ok, at the end of the second season, NBC cancelled the series.

But the show survived, going into syndication for two more years and allowing Punky to become a teenager and her avante garde neon outfits that she was known for disappeared into more traditional styles as story lines revolved more about her meeting up with boys. Henry created Punky’s Place, a teen hangout at the mall, which becomes the focus of season four for Punky and her friends.

Punky Brewster was one of those shows I never watched, deeming it for much younger viewers and absolutely not interesting to me at all. But it was a show I couldn’t escape, with the actor Soleil Moon Frye and her character’s unique style seen in teen and adult magazines as well as a cult favourite with many people. I was  glad when the show finally ended, as it just seemed an oddity that got entrenched in pop culture, despite its lack of substance.

Punky Brewster is a blip on the tv schedule of almost forgotten sitcoms and Soleil Moon Frye a forgotten kid actor, hopefully forever buried in the past and never to be revisited or reinvented. But even if you say the name to certain people of a certain age, there’s a nostalgia for the kid with attitude.

memories of the ’70s – Dy-no-mite!

The 1970s had its select catchphrases that divided the young from the old, the cool from the uncool. For the mid ’70s, JJ Walker’s character on Good Times caught the wave of pop culture with his signature comment – Dy-no-mite!

First spotted on 1960s variety show Rowan and Martin’s Laugh In, James ‘Jimmie’ Walker was a up and coming stand up comedian, using his skinny body and large eyes to emphasize his comedic patter.

Cast as the oldest son on the tv sitcom Good Times in 1974, Walker made the most of bringing the cool African American male to prime time, with a buffonish edge that delighted audiences.

The series, produced by Norman Lear, was based on the childhood memories of writer Eric Monte. As the show wrapped serious issues within its humorous 30 minutes, Walker’s distinct character became household favourite across North America, as he poked fun at his younger siblings and stereotypically acted as the big brother as typical irritant. Good Times was a spinoff from fellow tv series Maude.

The family was the first time a working class African American family was portrayed on network television. Good Times pushed the boundaries for viewers in the 1970s and did so with a unique combination of humour, sass and intelligence. Set in Chicago, the family of Good Times including sister Thelma and little brother Michael, living in a housing project. This series showed the reality of Dad and Mom working multiple jobs to support the family, while the kids dealt with the pressures of growing up.

JJ was a favourite of mine, with his silly body language and odd slang phrases. I would wait to hear him say Dy-no-mite in each episode, gleefully laughing at the expressive delivery of the word, while his on-screen family cringed at his continuous use of the word. The use of the word became so powerful, JJ the character became a spokesperson for Panasonic, appearing in tv commercials for the electronics manufacturer.

The series continued until 1979, reaching its shelf life after six seasons. Notable guest stars during the series include Robert Guillaume, Kim Fields, Gary Coleman, Lou Gossett, Philip Michael Thomas and Jay Leno. Singer Janet Jackson joined the cast in season five, playing the adopted daughter of a good friend of the family.

Although many people still dwell on the silly antics of JJ and the memory of Dy-no-mite!, the power of Good Times was its depiction of hardworking Americans, just wanting to be able to put food on the table and live their dreams of increased opportunity.

memories of the ’80s – Bo Derek

The ideal beauty for the 1980s was a California girl – she epitomized the sexy beach culture and was the source of many a man’s fantasy: Bo Derek.  

Her role in Blake Edwards film 10 launched her into the world as the latest sexy starlet. Bo Derek was the pinup girl that made many a man and teenage boy dream of beach bunnies, with her long blonde hair and buxom body.

Mary Cathleen Collins was a California girl, growing up at the beach and wanting to be a surfer. In order to pay for a new surfboard, Collins started modelling, and then started doing commercials. Collins got herself an agent and on an audition, met director John Derek.

Derek fell for the 16 year old model, divorcing his wife, actress Linda Evans, and moving to Germany with the young Mary, in order to avoid statutory rape charges in the United States, as she transformed from young surfer to Bo Derek. At age 18, the couple returned to the US,  and in 1976 were married, when Bo was 20.

Bo appeared in the 1979 film 10 – as the fascinating sexy beach girl who captures the attention of actor Dudley Moore. Her cornrowed hair and gold tanksuit catapulted Bo to become a favourite of the male-dominated media and  for women across North America the inspiration to want their hair braided.

She made her first appearance in Playboy Magazine in 1980, in a 12 page pictorial showing her frolicking with her dog at the beach, photographed by her husband John. She appeared twice in the pages of Playboy in 1980 and several times over the next five years.

Her poster (sourced from the film 10) was a favourite for teen boys to have on their wall, and her image was a popular style influencer to the 20-something woman of the 1980s. But her acting ability, in such gems as Tarzan, the Ape Man and Bolero, led Bo to be awarded two Golden Raspberry Worst Actress Awards.

Derek was also a producer on these film projects; and named in a lawsuit by the Edgar Rice Burroughs estate over the creation of Tarzan, the Ape Man, for its weak depiction of Tarzan and its emphasis on her character.

I remember my friends and I trying to figure out how to cornrow our hair, and realizing it was more difficult than it initially seemed. My Mother wasn’t too impressed with the four or five cornrowed strands in my hair, and certainly didn’t want me to think Bo Derek’s hairstyle was something to be emulated.

Derek didn’t act again until the end of the decade, in a film produced by her husband, Ghosts Can’t Do It, which earned her a third Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress. She continues to act in small roles, and has been less seen in public since her husband passed away in the late 1990s. Bo Derek may have never conquered Hollywood’s A-list as an actress, but Derek certainly was the epitome of a 1980s sex symbol with her come-hither aura of a California girl.

memories of the ’70s – Adidas gym bag

Girls have many options for carrying their stuff – from purses to messenger bags, from hobo bags to backpacks. For guys of the 1970s, it was the Adidas gym bag. This simple bag carried everything for school.

Most guys I knew had this bag – in combinations of red/blue, blue/dark blue, yellow/blue, brown/white and green/blue.

Simple in its design , the bag sported one zipper and no pockets of any form. It had a small area to put your name and the Adidas logo on the side. It was the carry-all that all guys seem to want – easy to use, stuff it in and you’re on the go – whether its to carry to school or throw in the back of your buddy’s car. It may have been a trend that came from the athletes of the school, but it wasn’t just their option – every guy seemed to have a version of this bag, ready for lunch, snacks, clothes, binders and books.

I never wanted this bag. I didn’t think it was stylish or feminine. It wasn’t in colours I liked or in an acceptable size for my use. But somehow its simplicity was a favourite amongst guys, who don’t really discuss the bag in any way the way a girl would talk about her purse.

Adidas, a venerable German sportswear company, has been creating sportswear since the late 1940s and has been favourite amongst athletes for its stylish and practical shoes, clothing and accessories. But in the 1970s, this simple athletic bag became the go to option for teen boys, a fashionable trend spoken about by women, but created by men.

N+D – Canadian National Exhibition

 

The Lowdown: Founded in 1879, The Canadian National Exhibition or “ The Ex,” as it’s affectionately called by locals, is one of the continent’s biggest annual summer fairs, with over 500 attractions, 700 exhibitors, and a massive midway with 65 rides.

With well over a million visitors, the festivities include something even for those whose tastes don’t run to fairs. There’s live music on small and midsize stages as well as the CNE Bandshell, the long-running Horse show, and the hugely popular Food Building, where you can eat your way through the cultures that make up the city.

An on-site casino offers gaming tables and an air conditioned poker room, along with a pub that features live entertainment. See the human cannonball or the Superdog show, and be sure to catch the Canadian International Air Show on the last weekend.

This year: lecture by Former US President Bill Clinton and performances by Andre-Phillipe Gagnon,Petula Clark, Shiloh, Tokyo Police Club and Matt Dusk.

When and How Much: 18 days from August 21-September 7 ( Labour Day), 10am-midnight daily. About $15 for general admission, and if you purchase online, ticket buyers receive express entry.

Where: Exhibition Grounds, Lakeshore Drive & Dufferin Street.

Contact: 416-393-6300 / theex.com