1983
The year in music, movies, TV, fads & memories
In 1983, “Every Breath You Take” by The Police topped the Billboard year-end Hot 100 and Synchronicity by The Police and Pyromania by Def Leppard were on every turntable. Return of the Jedi, Scarface and A Christmas Story were in theaters, and The A-Team, M*A*S*H finale and Webster were on TV.
The headlines: Reagan's 'Star Wars' SDI speech. New that year: Motorola DynaTAC cell phone. Fads of the year: Cabbage Patch Kids riots and Trivial Pursuit (US release). Gas was $1.24 a gallon, a stamp was 20¢ and a movie ticket ran ~$3.15. On the shelf: a bag of Combos, a can of Hawaiian Punch and a Cabbage Patch Kid, with Alvin and the Chipmunks on Saturday morning.
🎂 What music raised you?
Drop your birthday and we'll rewind to your golden era — the years the songs imprinted for life.
🔙 Backtrack — 1983
The world around the music — what was on screen, and what was on the shelf.
🎬 Set the scene
A channel-3 afternoon, 1983: the TV was playing G.I. Joe, a can of Hawaiian Punch was in the kitchen, and later you'd wander the mall food court with nowhere to be.
📼 Saturday cartoons
- He-Man and the Masters of the Universe👕 tee →
- G.I. Joe👕 tee →
- The Smurfs👕 tee →
- Inspector Gadget
- Alvin and the Chipmunks
📰 Headlines
- Reagan's 'Star Wars' SDI speech
- KAL 007 shot down
- Beirut barracks bombing
- US invades Grenada
- Sally Ride first US woman in space
💡 Tech & Firsts
- Motorola DynaTAC cell phone
- First consumer camcorder (Betamovie)
- Apple Lisa launches
- Microsoft Word released
- Nintendo Famicom (Japan)
🏆 Sports
- Orioles win the World Series
- 76ers win the NBA title
- Redskins win Super Bowl XVII
- Islanders win the Stanley Cup
- Australia II wins the America's Cup
🤪 Crazes & fads
- Cabbage Patch Kids riots
- Trivial Pursuit (US release)
- Care Bears debut
- Swatch watches
- A Christmas Story
👖 Clothes
- Parachute pants peak
- Flashdance sweatshirts
- Fingerless gloves
- Leg warmers
- Jelly bracelets
💵 What it cost
- Gas: $1.24/gal
- Stamp: 20¢
- Movie ticket: ~$3.15
- New car avg: ~$10,200
- Median home: ~$70,300
🧸 Toy chest
🍬 On the shelf
Billboard Year-End Hot 100
📊 Full chart →- 1
Every Breath You TakeThe Police - 2
Billie JeanMichael Jackson - 3
Flashdance... What a FeelingIrene Cara - 4
Down UnderMen At Work - 5Beat ItMichael Jackson
- 6
Total Eclipse of the HeartBonnie Tyler - 7
ManeaterDaryl Hall & John Oates - 8
Baby, Come to MePatti Austin & James Ingram - 9
ManiacMichael Sembello - 10
Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)Eurythmics - 11
Do You Really Want to Hurt MeCulture Club - 12
You and I (feat. Crystal Gayle)Eddie Rabbitt - 13
Come On EileenDexys Midnight Runners - 14
Shame On the MoonBob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band - 15
She Works Hard For the MoneyDonna Summer - 16
Never Gonna Let You GoSergio Mendes - 17
Hungry Like the WolfDuran Duran - 18
Let's DanceDavid Bowie - 19
Twilight ZoneGolden Earring - 20
I Know There's Something Going OnFrida - 21
JeopardyGreg Kihn Band - 22
Electric AvenueEddy Grant - 23
She Blinded Me With ScienceThomas Dolby - 24
AfricaToto - 25
Little Red CorvettePrince
More from 1983
🎤 Big in 1983
🎚️ 1983 genres
🎛️ Behind the boards & the pen — 1983
The hands behind 1983 — the producers and songwriters who actually shaped that year's records. Steve Lillywhite was on 4 of them.
🎬 Movies of 1983
All soundtracks →The soundtracks that scored 1983 — every song and where it played.
▶Flashdance
1983 · 3 tracks
♪ Flashdance... What a Feeling
▶The Big Chill
1983 · 6 tracks
♪ I Heard It Through the Grapevine
▶Risky Business
1983 · 8 tracks
♪ Old Time Rock and Roll
▶Valley Girl
1983 · 8 tracks
♪ I Melt with You
▶National Lampoon's Vacation
1983 · 3 tracks
♪ Holiday Road
Eddie and the Cruisers
1983 · 5 tracks
♪ On The Dark Side
🎚️ Related vibes
All themes →Themed rooms that lean on the sound of 1983.
🌀 Things 1983 remembers wrong
All Glitch Files →Mandela-effect cases that were on the shelf, the screen or the radio in 1983. Which do you remember?
What does 1983 remind you of?
The drive, the dance, the heartbreak, the summer. Add a memory of 1983.
Community Memories
How well do you remember 1983?
7 quick questions — the songs, the artists, the year. No cheating. 😏
📼 Take this tape with you
Build this in your own Spotify in two taps — free, no account needed here. (For Apple Music or YouTube, open songs one-by-one below.)
Then open the free helper
🎵 1983 albums on vinyl
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📻 80s gear
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