The 80s – A Daily Tribute to the Greatest Decade of Them All

A Little Help From Our Friends: Backseat Drivers of the 80s

Once a musical artist makes it big, we usually assign to them the stereotype of having big egos and being selective of who they choose to work with in the future. But it seems in the 80s and even in earlier decades, there were many well-known singers and musicians that would jump in the backseat […]

Where Are They Now? Winnie Cooper

by Corey Chapman @chapmanrunner

If you are a red blooded male who grew up in the 80s, you compared every possible girlfriend to Gwendolyn “Winnie” Cooper, Kevin Arnold’s love interest on the hit ABC series “The Wonder Years.” She was sweet, smart and loyal, and if you dont agree, you may not have a pulse. The character was created […]

The 5 Deadliest Players in Tecmo Super Bowl

by Howie Decker @HowardTheDeck

One of my favorite Twitter accounts to follow is @AKAtheMaskedMan. The man behind the mask is David Shoemaker, a writer for Grantland and Deadspin. His columns have become ‘must read’ for me, as he writes about professional wrestling in a way I’ve never experienced before. If I had jumped off the pro wrestling ship a […]

UnderScoopFIRE Podcast #15 – The 1983 JCPenney Catalog

by Howie Decker @HowardTheDeck

Thanks to the fine folks at Plaid Stallions we have the page you see below from the toy section of the 1983 JC Penney catalog. If you are anywhere close in age to me, the JC Penney catalog was one of the most highly anticipated and visually gratifying annual publications to grace your parents’ coffee table on a yearly […]

Careless Whispers & Smooth Criminals: A Tale of 80s Covers Gone Wrong (and Right)

by Jason Gross @SockofFleagulls

If you’ve known me for more than five minutes, you know how I feel about music from the 1980s. If you’ve known me for more than 5 weeks, you might know how I feel about artists who sample songs from the 80s in their music. (See my Sloppy Seconds of the 80s article on this […]

The 15 Biggest Two-Hit Titans of the 80s

by Jason Gross @SockofFleagulls

The 1980s are well known for their one hit wonder bands and artists like Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Devo, Soft Cell, Tony Basil, Kajagoogoo, and of course my favorite- Flock Of Seagulls. I’m not ashamed to admit…some of these songs were just plain awful; however, many of them happened to have a catchy hook. In some […]

Podcast #13 – Thundercats & Shadowlaw Writer Brandon Easton

by Howie Decker @HowardTheDeck

Brandon Easton knows a thing or two about patience. He began work on his graphic novel Shadowlaw in 1996. After 15 years of leaving it alone, coming back to it, artist turnover and other obstacles, at long last Shadowlaw was slated for a November 16, 2011 release. That release date has now been moved to […]

The 80s Court: David Lee Roth vs Van Halen

by Jason Gross @SockofFleagulls

Welcome again to the halls of musical justice known as The 80s court. Upon considering the following case, I went through much deliberation on which parties should be involved. After all, it seems like Van Halen has broken up and reunited more in the past 10 years than Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards. That being […]

Where Are They Now? Craig Kilborn

by Corey Chapman @chapmanrunner

Right now, Craig Kilborn should be backstage at the Ed Sullivan Theatre, waiting for long time host of Late Night, Mr. David Letterman, to introduce him as his next guest. They should banter back and forth, discussing topics they covered in a pre-interview, from the economy to Occupy Wall Street to the NBA Lockout. At […]

The Rise and Fall of the Garbage Pail Kids

by Jason Gross @SockofFleagulls

Ten years prior to the Pokemon frenzy in the late 1990s, the Garbage Pail Kids ruled the trading card world. But what happened?

Podcast #11 – 80s Fantasy Draft feat. USA Today’s Brian Truitt & WOJM’s Justin Bell

by Howie Decker @HowardTheDeck

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned… How many evil plots were foiled by our favorite heroes in the 1980s? Based on facts in this blog post from the fine folks at M.A.S.K. Movie, and some simple geek math, I estimate well north of 500. That’s factoring in the plenitude of 80s properties that […]

UnderScoopFire Podcast #10 – Halloween Past & Present

by Corey Chapman @chapmanrunner

In our first holiday special, Joe, Tank, and Corey discuss everything Halloween. No topic is taboo, from wearing “candy pants” to making your own costumes and learning about “the stranger”. The boys dive deep into the past to tell stories of cross dressing, rickets, Unicef, and camouflage. The round table discussion will have you […]

VOTE: Which 80s Property Would Make the Best Modern Video Game?

by Howie Decker @HowardTheDeck

Just imagine if the current video game platforms existed when these properties were in their prime (or vice-versa). I could see a first-person shooter where you play as a mercenary for hire, and can join forces with G.I.Joe or Cobra. Picture an Arkham City-style game where you play as He-Man and defend Castle Grayskull from […]

The History of the Keytar

by Jason Gross @SockofFleagulls

Let’s face the facts of keyboard players in 1979: Fact #1: Piano or keyboard players in rock and roll bands never got as many groupies as the lead guitarist. Fact #2: Expressing your tremendous talent at a piece of musical furniture just didn’t give you the stage presence and attention you needed to attract those […]

UnderScoopFIRE Podcast #6 – Top 5 Cartoon & Toy Villains of the 80s

by Howie Decker @HowardTheDeck

This edition of the UnderScoopFire podcast is hosted by Howie Decker & Christopher “Googs” Gadawski. We each list our Top 5 Villains of the 80s (movies, toys, tv) – sure to strike up some debates! The focus here is on “80s properties”, not so much movie franchises – but you’ll see what we mean… Snake Mountain […]

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