Time flies over us, but leaves its shadow behind.

– Nathaniel Hawthorne

With time passing so quickly, let’s take a look at the 80s in comparison to the present day. One way that time leaves its shadow is through pop culture, and it can be fun to see how various industries have changed over the years. Without further ado, here are some head-to-head comparisons from the 80s to now, in movies, music, and sports.

Movies

Information gathered from Film Site

Rankings based on box-office earnings

Highest grossing movie by year in the 1980s:

1980: Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back

1981: Raiders of the Lost Ark

1982: E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial

1983: Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi

1984: Ghostbusters

1985: Back to the Future

1986: Top Gun

1987: Three Men and a Baby

1988: Rain Man

1989: Batman

Highest grossing movie by year since 2010:

2010: Toy Story 3

2011: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2

2012: Marvel’s The Avengers

2013: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

2014: American Sniper

2015: Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens

2016: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

2017: Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi

2018: Black Panther

2019: Avengers: Endgame

2020: Bad Boys for Life

While some things never change, such as Star Wars’ popularity, there are some differences between the two groups of movies. Many movies from the 1980s are originals. On the contrary, every single movie listed in the second batch is based off of something – all Harry Potter and Hunger Games movies are based on their respective book series, all Marvel movies are based on the comics, American Sniper is based on an autobiography, and Toy Story 3, all Star Wars movies of the 2010s, and Bad Boys for Life are based on prior movies from their franchises. Some may see this as a sign that we are running out of ideas. However, I believe that it is just a great example of the idea, ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’. This idea is very consistent in the entertainment industry, and almost always leads to success. It is the reason why so many reboots are coming out, and it goes to show just how good the originals were. These movies entertained countless people decades ago, and they still continue to do so today.

Music

Information gathered from Billboard

Top 15 from Billboard Hot 100 (1980s):

1. “Physical” – Olivia Newton-John
2. “Endless Love” – Diana Ross and Lionel Richie
3. “Bette Davis Eyes” – Kim Carnes
4. “Every Breath You Take” – The Police
5. “Say, Say, Say” – Paul McCartney & Michael Jackson
6. “Eye of the Tiger” – Survivor
7. “Flashdance…What a Feeling” – Irene Cara
8. “Ebony and Ivory” – Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder
9. “Waiting for a Girl Like You” – Foreigner
10. “I Love Rock ‘N Roll” – Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
11. “Call Me” – Blondie
12. “Another One Bites the Dust” – Queen
13. “Centerfold” – J. Geils Band
14. “Lady” – Kenny Rogers
15. “Billie Jean” – Michael Jackson

Top 15 from Billboard Hot 100 (Week of August 14th, 2021):

1. “Stay” – The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber
2. “Good 4 U” – Olivia Rodrigo
3. “Levitating” – Dua Lipa feat. DaBaby
4. “Butter” – BTS
5. “Bad Habits” – Ed Sheeran
6. “Kiss Me More” – Doja Cat feat. SZA
7. “Industry Baby” – Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow
8. “Montero” (Call Me By Your Name) – Lil Nas X
9. “Deja Vu” – Olivia Rodrigo
10. “Save Your Tears” – The Weeknd & Ariana Grande
11. “Happier Than Ever” – Billie Eilish
12. “Leave The Door Open” – Silk Sonic (Bruno Mars & Anderson .Paak)
13. “Peaches” – Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar & Giveon
14. “Skate” – Silk Sonic (Bruno Mars & Anderson .Paak)
15. “Fancy Like” – Walker Hayes

In comparison to film, the music industry has drastically changed. Over the years, new and different genres of music have become popular. If you listen to music from the 80s in comparison to current hits, they will sound very different.

Sports

Information gathered from NHL.com and NBA.com

Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy* Winners of the 1980s:

*The Conn Smythe Trophy is awarded to the most valuable player of the playoffs.

1980: New York Islanders – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Bryan Trottier

1981: New York Islanders – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Butch Goring

1982: New York Islanders – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Mike Bossy

1983: New York Islanders – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Billy Smith

1984: Edmonton Oilers – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Mark Messier

1985: Edmonton Oilers – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Wayne Gretzky

1986: Montreal Canadiens – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Patrick Roy

1987: Edmonton Oilers – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: N/A

1988: Edmonton Oilers – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Wayne Gretzky

1989: Calgary Flames – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Al MacInnis

Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy Winners since 2010:

2010: Chicago Blackhawks – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Jonathan Toews

2011: Boston Bruins – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Tim Thomas

2012: Los Angeles Kings – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Jonathan Quick

2013: Chicago Blackhawks – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Patrick Kane

2014: Los Angeles Kings – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Justin Williams

2015: Chicago Blackhawks – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Duncan Keith

2016: Pittsburgh Penguins – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Sidney Crosby

2017: Pittsburgh Penguins – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Sidney Crosby

2018: Washington Capitals – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Alex Ovechkin

2019: St. Louis Blues – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Ryan O’Reilly

2020: Tampa Bay Lightning – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Victor Hedman

2021: Tampa Bay Lightning  – Conn Smythe Trophy Winner: Andrei Vasilevskiy

NBA Champions and Finals MVP Winners of the 1980s:

1980: Los Angeles Lakers – Finals MVP: Magic Johnson

1981: Boston Celtics – Finals MVP: Cedric Maxwell

1982: Los Angeles Lakers – Finals MVP: Magic Johnson

1983: Philadelphia 76ers – Finals MVP: Moses Malone

1984: Boston Celtics – Finals MVP: Larry Bird

1985: Los Angeles Lakers – Finals MVP: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

1986: Boston Celtics – Finals MVP: Larry Bird

1987: Los Angeles Lakers – Finals MVP: Magic Johnson

1988: Los Angeles Lakers – Finals MVP: James Worthy

1989: Detroit Pistons – Finals MVP: Joe Dumars

NBA Champions and Finals MVP Winners since 2010:

2010: Los Angeles Lakers – Finals MVP: Kobe Bryant

2011: Dallas Mavericks – Finals MVP: Dirk Nowitzki

2012: Miami Heat – Finals MVP: LeBron James

2013: Miami Heat – Finals MVP: LeBron James 

2014: San Antonio Spurs – Finals MVP: Kawhi Leonard

2015: Golden State Warriors – Finals MVP: Andre Iguodala

2016: Cleveland Cavaliers – Finals MVP: LeBron James

2017: Golden State Warriors – Finals MVP: Kevin Durant

2018: Golden State Warriors – Finals MVP: Kevin Durant

2019: Toronto Raptors – Finals MVP: Kawhi Leonard

2020: Los Angeles Lakers – Finals MVP: LeBron James

2021: Milwaukee Bucks – Finals MVP: Giannis Antetokounmpo

When it comes to sports, there is a general consistency that is not found elsewhere. Going into each season, you know what to expect as a fan. Pre-season, regular season, playoffs, finals, and the crowning of a champion. Over the decades, that stays the same for the most part. However, the successful and struggling teams are not the same at all. As a team becomes successful, they go through a term of ‘glory days’, in which their core is in their prime years, and the team keeps winning. They are at the top of the food chain, finding immediate success. However, the best teams receive the lowest draft picks. This impairs their ability to build for the future. At the same time, teams at the bottom of the standings are feasting on the best of each draft class, assembling solid teams for years to come. Then, as the winning teams’ superstars exit their prime, and the newly drafted young guns enter their own, the tables are turned. The struggling teams enter their ‘glory days’ and find success, and the winning teams find themselves at the bottom of the food chain. They then receive their set of high draft picks over the course of a few years, and rebuild for the future when they will once again rise to the top. This ongoing cycle is exactly why dynasties occur so frequently – an example of this would be the Chicago Bulls winning 6 championship titles from 1991 to 1998. Because of this cycle, you often see a handful teams winning multiple championships within a few years, and then completely new teams entering the picture. Due to league expansion, modern dynasties are not as extreme – think about the Golden State Warriors winning 3 championship titles from 2015 to 2018 – but a similar pattern has been maintained in sports even several decades later.

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