In the mid 80s there wasn’t much of anything that was more front and center of the pop culture zeitgeist than professional wrestling. The popularity of wrestling, specifically the WWF, was white hot and off the charts thanks to their crossover with MTV and the “rock ‘n’ wrestling connection” which started off as a bit on Roddy Piper’s “Piper’s Pit” when “Captain” Lou Albano – a “heel” (bad guy) manager claimed that he was pop star Cyndi Lauper’s manager. The story of how that all played out – how Mr. T became involved, how the first Wrestlemania got its main event – is a story unto itself and deserves its own multi-part look back. But for our purposes here all we need to know is “rock ‘n’ wrestling” was a thing and it was a very popular thing at that.
Saturday, January 29, 2022
Tuesday, January 25, 2022
8 From the 80s: Unforgettable Sports Moments
Each installment Mike will look back to the decade of decadence and provide a list of eight things – from movies to music to memorable moments and everything in-between. Keep in mind, this isn’t a TOP 8 list and any numerical notations are included to merely designate one item from another. Because, frankly, how can you rate one thing over another when it comes from a decade as totally tubular as the 80s?
Unforgettable Sports Moments
Now I know, you’re thinking that sports moments aren't exactly "pop culture" but, if you stop and think about it, there are a number of athletes and teams that eclipse the sport that made them famous. They become more than just a sports figure – picture Michael Jordan in Space Jam – or, at worst, footnotes in pop culture history. In some instances there are moments that become touchstones for an entire generation (see #1 on this list) that even the most hardened non-sports fan is aware of. So, while sports may not be pop culture, per se, they can, and often do, cross over. Here’s eight moments that did.
8 - Pete Rose Banned from Baseball
It was 1989 and Rose, known as “Charlie Hustle” during his playing days, was banned from baseball. Three years removed from being an active player, Rose had become the manager of the Cincinnati Reds and had agreed to permanent ineligibility from baseball after accusations began to fly that he’d bet on games involving himself both as a player and as a manager. He remains banned from the game as well as the Hall of Fame to this day.
7 - The “Super Bowl Shuffle”
in 1985, American football team, The Chicago Bears, dominated not only their opponents during a 15-1 season, but the airwaves as well. Recorded three months prior to beating the New England Patriots in Superbowl XX, players from The Bears, “The Superbowl Shuffle” sold over half a million copies and peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. They remain the only professional sports team to have a Top 50 hit song.
Saturday, January 22, 2022
Update and Other Things
Remember the "Bullpen Bulletins" in older Marvel Comics that news items, all preceded by ITEM!?
Yeah, we're borrowing that for this update.
ITEM! You'll not that we actually missed dropping an episode this week. Our track record on not missing a show, even if it was a repackaged 'clip show', was something we were proud of. However, Mike has been waylaid by some health problems (thankfully NOT Covid!) and we just haven't been able to record. We might miss the next episode as well, but hopefully not.
ITEM! We're going to try and get some movie reviews done and posted so we can at least provide a little new content for you in the absence of a new episode. You'll notice a couple of press releases a day or two ago and Mike has a screener for one of them headed his way any day now (you'll have to wait to find out which one, but you might be able to guess if you know anything about Mike). Joseph also has a few movies he'll be looking at soon, so expect a few nice surprises from him as well.
ITEM! Twenty Twenty-Two isn't starting out too nicely - a lot of celebs have passed away in the past couple of weeks and we here at Uphill Both Ways will miss all of them.
ITEM! We saw this on Facebook and knew we needed to repost it here:
Wednesday, January 19, 2022
High School Nerds Try to Grab the Brass Ring in Supercool
Cinematic tales of high school nerds trying to break the glass ceiling between them and the cool kids — often involving the girl or guy of one’s dreams — resonates through the decades. From The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis in the 1950s to the John Hughes classics of the 1980s to today, the themes of dreaming big and being true to yourself are popular with all ages. Vertical Entertainment presents the latest in this subgenre of comedy films when it releases Supercool on February 11, 2022. Uphill Both Ways has the just-released trailer for you, along with the following information from the official press release.
Release Date: February 11, 2022
Run Time: 1 hour 32 minutes
Director: Teppo Airaksinen
Executive Producers: Scott Einbinder, Heikki Herlin, Peter Barkman, Jorma Reinila, Giancarlo J. Sini, Eric Goren, Patricia Goren & Marko Talli
Producers: Olli Hakka
Writers: Ali Moussavi, Olli Hakka, Patricia Goren & Eric Goren
Logline:
High school nerds Neil and Gilbert's lifelong friendship is tested when Neil makes a deal with the universe to transform into a supercool stud over the course of one epic night to win the heart of his long-time crush, Summer.
Synopsis:
High school nerds Neil (Jake Short) and Gilbert's (Miles J. Harvey) lifelong friendship is tested when Neil's wish to transform into a handsome 'cool' guy comes true. When Neil wakes up with the face and body of a model, he sets out on his quest to impress the girl of his dreams, Summer (Madison Davenport), at her raging house party. With the help of a suave neighbor, Jimmy (Damon Wayans Jr.), and a brand-new Porsche, Neil and Gilbert embark on an epic night that spins wildly out of control, pushing the limits of beauty, brains and what's truly important — friendship.
Tuesday, January 18, 2022
Verdugo Entertainment Resurrects ‘80s Horror Flick Ghostriders
“You Can’t Kill What’s Already Dead"
Uphill Both Ways listeners and readers know that Mike and Joseph were both big on the rerelease of Action USA, an insanely fun film from the 1980s. Now the fine folks behind that rerelease at Verdugo Entertainment are all set to blow minds once again as they unleash another 1980s cult film on an unsuspecting world with the newly remastered print of western/horror hybrid Ghostriders, due out on Blu-ray and DVD on February 8, 2022. Following is the trailer and information from the official press release to whet your appetites.
Nothing says 1980s like Walkmans, mullets, legwarmers . . . and of course, campy horror movies. Verdugo Entertainment, the company that recently released the 1989 action flick Action USA, once again pays homage to this nostalgic era with the launch of the 1987 cult western-horror classic Ghostriders
on Tuesday, February 8, 2022.
Sunday, January 9, 2022
"School's Out"
Episode #120
It may be a new year, but it's time to go back to when you'd race home from school, throw your stuff onto a chair, grab a snack and then flip on the TV to catch your beloved after school shows. Whether it was Ultraman, Gigantor, Spider-Man, or even the aptly-named "Afterschool Special" on ABC, chances are high that you had something you just couldn't miss and Mike and Joe are ready to run down some of their favorites. But first it's Joseph running down his playlist for the SLP VHS Dub Tape Challenge in which he floods us with Drastic Weather Events!
Saturday, January 1, 2022
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