Katherine Mullan

Evan Chen

Brendan Tsai

Kevin Moskowitz

Sebastian Achterberg 

MYP Unit Question: How did culture, events and leadership shape and reflect post-WWII America?

1980's

"We have the duty to protect the life of an unborn child." - Ronald Reagan

Business & the Economy - Kevin

     The economy of the 1980s started out on a bad note, with interest rates at a record high 20 percent in 1980. Oil prices peaked at over $1.40 per gallon in 1981. Even with Ronald Reagan in the White House, things were not looking up. By the mid-80s, imports were at an all-time high, far surpassing American exports, hurting the U.S. trade balance and crippling the overall value of items in the U.S.

The American automobile industry started to suffer greatly with the oil crisis in the late 70's and early 80's. The big three only had one or two platforms on which they based their cars. This posed a problem when they had to build smaller cars that could be competitive with the increasing number of imports. For example, The best selling car in America in 1981 was the Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, a large, V8 powered sedan, with limousine-like proportions. By 1983, the tiny, lightweight, European-designed Ford Escort, weighing in at almost half of a Cutlass V8, grabbed the top spot, although it actually sold considerably less, due to the tanking economy.

     Unfortunately for General Motors and Chrysler, executives at the top ignored the demand for cheap, small cars. The demand for imports such as the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla seriously cut into the once American exclusive market, starting a trend that is still continuing today. By the late 80's, the new and revolutionary Ford Taurus now had to combat (for the very first time) an import for the best seller slot, the Honda Accord.

     Another example of the down economy was in the housing market. Cost cutting and poor planning made for poorly made homes, that today have a lower value than comparable homes built in the 60's and 90's. It would not be until the very late 80's until the economy picked up enough for better materials and more experienced contractors could be used for the average family.

Education- K

At first education was ...A PARAGRAPH OR TWO...YOU GET THE IDEA.  WE ARE NOT LOOKING FOR A BULLET POINT LIST...BUT WELL THOUGHT OUT RESEARCH AND WRITING. 

Fashion - K

     There were many different trends throughtout the 1980's and unlike the ealier decades people, in there early thirties and up, started going for a  more classy and wealthy look. People wanted to show up there wealth and to do so they bought many high end watches and better quality clothes. 

 Film and Theater

blah blah blah

Food &  Drink - S

Print Culture-Evan

     The daily general-interest newspaper, USA Today, first hit newsstands in 1982. It was mocked for its short articles and generalness. Overtime it became popular and changed the entire newspaper industry. Many of USA Today’s approaches to journalism have become standard practice in the newspaper industry. The magazine, Discover, was introduced in October 1980 by Time Inc. and was sold to Family Media in 1987. Its purpose was to give scientific knowledge to nonprofessionals in a way that is easy to read and understand.

Top 3 bestselling fiction books in the 80s:

1980    1. The Covenant, James A. Michener 2. The Bourne Identity, Robert Ludlum 3. Rage of Angels, Sidney Sheldon

1981    1. Noble House, James Clavell 2. The Hotel New Hampshire, John Irving 3. Cujo, Stephen King
1982    1. E.T., The Extra-Terrestrial Storybook, W. Kotzwinkle 2. Space, James A. Michener 3. The Parsifal Mosaic, Robert Ludlum
1983    1. Return of the Jedi Storybook, J. Vinge 2. Poland, James A. Michener 3. Pet Sematary, Stephen King
1984    1. The Talisman, Stephen King & Peter Straub 2. The Aquitaine Progression, Robert Ludlum 3. The Sicilian, Mario Puzo
1985     1. The Mammoth Hunters, Jean M. Auel 2. Texas, James A. Michener 3. Lake Wobegon Days, Garrison Keillor
1986    1. It, Stephen King 2. Red Storm Rising, Tom Clancy 3. Whirlwind, James Clavell
1987     1. The Tommyknockers, Stephen King 2. Patriot Games, Tom Clancy 3. Kaleidoscope, Danielle Steel
1988     1. The Cardinal of the Kremlin, Tom Clancy 2. The Sands of Time, Sidney Sheldon 3. Zoya, Danielle Steel
1989    1. Clear and Present Danger, Tom Clancy 2. The Dark Half, Stephen King 3. Daddy, Danielle Steel 

     Stephen King, Danielle Steel, Tom Clancy, and Robert Ludlum are just a few of the many great authors during this decade. Stephen King is an author who writes contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction, and fantasy fiction. He also wrote many stories under his pen name, Richard Bachman. Danielle Steel is a romantic novelist who is best known for her drama novels. As of 2005, Steel has sold more than 580 million copies of her books worldwide and is the seventh best selling writer of all time. In 1981, she began a near-permanent fixture on the New York Times bestseller list and was in the Guinness Book of World Records for having a book on the New York Times Bestseller List for the most consecutive weeks of any author (381 consecutive weeks). Tom Clancy is best known for his writings of espionage, crime fiction, and military science. His works include The Hunt for Red October (1981), Red Storm Rising (1986), Patriot games (1987), The Cardinal of the Kremlin (1988), and Clear and Present Danger (1989). Lastly, Robert Ludlum wrote thriller, mystery, and spy fiction stories. He wrote under two pen names, Jonathan Ryder and Michael Shephard. In 1980, 1986, and 1990, he wrote the Bourne Identity, Bourne Supremacy, and Bourne Ultimatum, respectively.

Sports &  Games-Evan

     In 1981, the Japanese game "Puck-man" was introduced to the American public as Pac-man and was an instant success. The game was a big hit and it dominated the gaming industry. All sorts of memorabilia also appeared such as playing cards, soft toys, breakfast cereal, and pasta. Pacman was named "Game of the Century" at Classic Gaming Expo '99.

Though the Rubik's Cube was createc by an english cult in the 1960s, its popularity rose in the 1980s It inspired clubs, books, newspapers, and even Saturday Morning Cartoons. The Ideal Toy Company began marketing cubes in the 80s. Between 1980 and 1982, an estimated one hundred million Rubik's Cube were sold worldwide.

With the release of the Star Wars Trilogy being a big success, Star Wars Action Figures began appearing and soon became popular for young children.

Another popular toy line was the Transformers which was also a very popular TV show.

  Sports of the 80's

The Olympics in this decade were peculiar in comparison to a typical Olympics event. In 1980, the United States and many other ally nations boycotted the Olympics in Moscow to protest the Soviet war in Afghanistan. In response, the Soviet Union and its allies boycotted the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Basketball:  

     The 80s were the decade with the up and coming NBA Star Michael Jordan. In this decade, Michael Jackson played for UNC (University of North Carolina) and though he did not make the team in his freshman year, he showed his clutch strength over the next years. Because UNC was known for its great players, no one payed much attention to MJ because there were other fantastic players. It wasn't until UNC played Georgetown in the NCAA Championships and MJ making a 20-foot jumper for the win. But it was not until the 90s that MJ and the Chicago Bulls ruled the NBA.

     In the NBA during the 80s, basketball was ruled by legendary players Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Some famous basketball players from Detroit were Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars. The LA Lakers pretty much dominated the 80s with championship wins in '80, '82, '85, '87, '88, but the Boston Celtics were not too shabby with championship wins in '81, '84, '86.