We here in America, love our cars. We love them so much we even make allowances for them in every aspect of our lives. You want to eat? Head for the nearest fast food drive thru. Want to have coffee? There's a drive thru for that also. Banking? Who has time for that? Drive-Thru teller, here we come.
The 80's were no different. Well maybe except for the coffee shops, but for the most part the 80's was a time for new and improved and better than ever.
Cars were no exception. We were just coming out of a time in the 70's when oil was scarce and gas prices were high and gas was in short supply. We didn't like that at all. In order to keep up with the times and the rest of world, we had to reinvent our cars and make them smaller and more fuel economic, and yay, perhaps even a bit more stylish.
And we wanted the latest trends too, no old standards for this generation, we wanted what was hot, fast and easy on the eyes. Something the girls would like to look at and what guys would love to drive.
And what better way to find out what was the hottest cars out there? Why movies of course! Movies were an excellent venue to see what the best, hottest, fastest and unique cars were to hit the market, if they hadn't already. Unfortunately with some of these babies, we would need to be a stock broker on Wall Street to afford one. Take our first car for instance:
This lovely man is standing in front of an even lovelier vehicle. The man, Timothy Dalton as James Bond in the Living Daylights. The vehicle? Why it's an Aston Martin V8 Vantage Volante, 1986 I believe. Where would James Bond be without a gorgeous Aston Martin to ultimately destroy? Probably pretty bored I would think.
James Bond's Aston Martin.
We had quite a few James Bond films in the 80's. Living Daylights just happens to be one of my favorites, as well, my favorite band sings the title song. A-ha Living Daylights. Excellent tune.
Another one of my favorite movies was Pretty in Pink. I'm not going to explain the synopsis of the film everyone one knows it. But is everyone familiar with the cars from that movie? Well of course we know Andie's car, the 1959 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia. But there were a couple of other cars in that movie also. Take the 1984 BMW E30 that Blaine drove. We all remember that iconic scene where they are kissing in front of the car with it's headlights on? That's what it was. I know we saw it earlier in the film as well, but I like this picture better :)
Now there was another car in that film that was just as memorable. You only see it once but you immediately know who owns it. That's right, it's your favorite bad boy and mine James Spader as Steph in his awesome cherry red Porsche 911. The perfect car for the perfect jerk. I think it suits him well.
Another one of my favorite movies is the cult classic The Wraith. This movie was all kinds of weirdness and the car that the Wraith drove was no different. It was a 1984 Dodge M4S. A prototype that never became a vehicle that you could own. I'm thinking that was probably a good idea as it's design and uniqueness would probably fetch a pretty wicked penny.
Now I know your saying..."Rose? is that all you got is fancy expensive sports cars and one of a kind prototypes?" Heck no! Another one of my favorite movies is Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Steve Martin and the late John Candy set out on an adventure of a life time, trying to get home to their families over the Thanksgiving holiday. At some point when the planes and trains give out, it's time for the automobiles to take over and John Candy's character selects none other than a good old American 80's classic, the 1986 Chrysler Le Baron Town and Country. Why the wood paneling alone is worth every penny he didn't spend to rent it.
I must interject at this point, this particular car did not make the trip in its entirety. If you are familiar with the story, you will know that there was a bit of a roadside mishap and well, Steve and John ended driving or trying to drive something completely different until they get pulled over by the State Patrol.
Yeah...I don't think they are going to get very far. Oddly enough, the radio still works...
Last but not least, another holiday favorite of mine, Christmas Vacation. Now Clark Griswold was definitely not a person who could be considered fancy or pretentious or even stylish actually. But his car just screamed aerodynamically enhanced, it was none other than the 1989 Ford Taurus. Raise your hand if you had one. No! I'm not raising my hand *rolls eyes* You know, for its size, it actually maneuvered pretty well, especially at high speeds when you needed to out run a huge logging truck :)
I personally think it should be illegal to drive and sing Christmas Carols, but that's just me. What is it with the faux wood paneling? Yikes!
Well kids, that's our blog for today. I hope that you enjoyed it. I made some pretty tough decisions trying to not only be true to my 80's self, but also add a bit of fun and flair to entertain the readers. You should make sure and check out some of these other great bloggers who wrote their own take on their favorite 80's cars in movies and television. Here is a list below with direct links to their articles:
Killer Kitsch - What’s Your #Fave80sCar?
Realweegiemidget - 5 Fave 1980s Film and Telly Cars
Return to the 80's - FAVORITE ’80S CARS (Bonus Article)
80's Reboot Overdrive Podcast - Top 3 Favorite 80's Cars
Before I leave, I do have to leave you all with a few of the most iconic cars of some of my favorite 80's movies. While they may not be cars of the 80's they will definitely be remembered. Thank you all again, this is 80's Music Girl, Ciao for Now!
Lane Meyer's "Tasty" 1967 Chevy Camero SS from Better Off Dead
Griswold Family Ford Ltd 1979 in Vacation
1979 Mercury Marquis Brougham Coupe from Uncle Buck *cough cough*
Grandpa's gorgeous 1972 Cadillac Coupe DeVille from License to Drive.
Oh dear, i seem to have forgotten something:
1959 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia Coupe
There, that's better.