The 1980s: 35 Facts That Will Take You Back in Time

In 1984, Michael Larson was a contestant on 'Press Your Luck'. Using the stop-motion on his VCR, he noticed that the presumed random patterns of the game board weren't actually random, and memorized the sequences. He won 45 consecutive spins and earned a total of $110,237 in cash and prizes.

27. The 1980’s song "The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades" is widely misinterpreted as a positive outlook on the future. Writer Pat MacDonald explained the song is actually about a grim outlook, even hinting that the “bright future” was in fact due to an impending nuclear holocaust.

28. In 1983, a 61-year-old potato farmer named Cliff Young won a 544 mile endurance race because he ran throughout the night while the younger 'professional' athletes slept.

29. In 1984, American actress Cynthia Nixon made her Broadway history by appearing in two Broadway plays at the same time. Her roles were short, and the two theaters were only two blocks away from each other, so she would run from one to the other. She was only 18 years old.

30. In 1985, an American teenager named Ryan White was refused re-entry to his school due to him having AIDS. 117 Parents and 50 teachers petitioned for his ban. People even cancelled their subscriptions as White was the paperboy and they believed they would be infected via newsprint.

Muhammad Ali saved a man from committing suicide in 1981 by shouting at him 'I am your brother,' “I love you and I wouldn't lie to you ... I want to help you.”

32. In 1987, a man named Mike Hayes convinced 2.8 million people to send him a penny each for his college education.

33. In 1988, actor Jimmy Stewart made a plea in Congressional hearings against Ted Turner's decision to 'colorize' classic black and white films, including 'It's a Wonderful Life', stating 'It's morally and artistically wrong and these profiteers should leave our film industry alone."

34. The Soviet Union cancelled history exams in 1988 because increased government transparency had revealed that the textbooks were filled with lies.

35. In the 1980's, A&W tried to sell a third pounder burger to rival McDonald's quarter pounder. They sold it for the same price, but nobody wanted to buy it because the majority of people thought they were getting less meat (thinking a third [1/3] was lesser than a quarter [1/4]).