Entertainment
The Australian television industry matured during the 1980s and many new programs launched achieving international success including Neighbours and Home and Away.
Coverage of sport on television advanced dramatically, featuring multi-camera set-ups, slow-motion replays, special effects and computer graphics.
The launch of the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) provided access to a range of foreign-language and special interest program, as well as minority sports and independent films and documentaries.
Mini-series proved to be popular, often depicting historical events and was important in the communication of an Australian image to a global audience.
Many enjoyed American soap operas and sitcoms like Dallas and Dynasty.
Radio stations also began to broadcast on the FM band allowing different stations to appeal to specific groups of audiences.
Personal computers became more affordable and an extensive range of games provided new sources of entertainment. Handheld consoles were introduced and arcades allowed you to play video games like Pac-Man and Donkey Kong as shown in the museum.
VCRs gave people control over viewing habits, allowing them to record programs and hire movie videos. Cinema box sales declined but gradually the novelty wore off and crowds returned to multiplex cinemas.
Government incentives encouraged investment into the Australian film industry. New themes were addressed in films including contemporary issues like adolescence (Puberty Blues) and drugs (Winter of our Dreams).
As private investment was the crucial source of film finance many films became more commercially-oriented. Films like Crocodile Dundee although scripted and produced by Australians were also designed to appeal to mainstream American audience.
Though Australian films achieved local and international success, Hollywood films still retained their dominance at the Australian box office.
Active pursuits like trampolining, skateboarding and roller skating became popular. Different toys and games were also popular including Trivial Pursuit, Cabbage Patch Dolls and the Rubik’s Cube.
Sport
Sporting achievements were celebrated as a nation. Pride surged when Brisbane hosted the Commonwealth Games and spurred participation in some sports like long-distance running.
Paralleling this rising in national spirit was commercialism into the sporting realm. It had a mixed effect as many national and international competitions flourished but led to a dwindling public interest in local competitions.
Political controversy marked the Olympics with allies boycotting the games and wanting Australian athletes to follow.
In 1983 Australia won the America’s Cup, ending America’s 132year domination, boosting national pride. The victory prompted an unofficial public holiday with PM Bob Hawke announcing on national television that 'any boss who sacks anyone for not turning up today is a bum'.
The Australian Institute of Sport opened in Canberra in an million dollar effort by the Commonwealth Government to improve Australia’s international effort as well as promoting health and fitness in the wider community.
The sport science era brought forth new knowledge in areas like nutrition, psychology and biomechanics, improving many athletic performances.
Television coverage and corporate sponsorship became the major source of sport finance as big businesses realised that they could gain huge television exposure by sponsoring sporting groups or games. Rescheduling of matches to maximise the potential television audience was argued that it was not in the best interests of the players themselves.
Television also provided motivation for the expansion of Australian Rules football. Rugby League was also re-invigorated.
Australians made a notable impact on the national tennis scene with Evonne Goolagong-Cawley and Pat Cash winning Wimbledon.
Sports participation remained high throughout the 1980s. Equal opportunity laws made it illegal to discriminate against a person on the grounds of sex, marital status or pregnancy. As a result, women could perform well in many previously male dominated sports.
American influence on the Australian culture
One of the most significant changes to have taken place in Australian society since the end of WWII has been its drift towards American culture.
The nation embraced the American consumerist ideal in the economic boom.
The museum shows how American artists like Madonna and Michael Jackson swept Australian music charts. Rap and hip hop music infiltrated the Australian scene with many people adopting the baggy pants and cap look. The success of imported music is attributed to advances in music video technology and screening on music programs like Rage.
Hollywood films like Terminator and E.T. were a combination of expensive special effects, high-profile actors and massive budgets, cemented dominance in Australian cinemas.
American soap operas like Dallas and Dynasty and sitcoms like The Cosby Show were rated highly.
Since the advent of television, America has been able to produce programs more cheaply than that of Australia’s due to its large population, strong economy and booming entertainment industry. This led to a flooding of the domestic market by less expensive, imported content.
Fast food chains were introduced into the Australian market, offering quick, affordable, takeaway food. This trend led to the introduction of microwave ovens for American-style pre-packaged goods and quickly became an established part of the diets of many Australians.
American influences changed the type of foods consumed and the time people spent preparing food.
Advances in communication technologies enabled wide-spread, frequent and up to date broadcasts of American sport in Australian homes. The uptake of basketball and baseball boomed as well as sports clothing and the use of high-tech sporting equipment that was developed in America.
Australian sport also followed the American trend towards increased corporate involvement. Sporting matches featured American-style glitz and glamour, such as cheerleaders and mascots.
Section 2
Fashion
One third of Australia’s population live in the country in farming and rural communities. Driza-Bone has developed high-quality fashion to suit this lifestyle and to withstand the harshness of the environment. The Driza-Bone (‘dry as a bone’) oilskin riding coat is to Australians what the Burberry trench coat is to the English: a symbol of heritage, values and culture. The coat is the traditional Australian stockman’s coat.
A new generation of street wear designers takes its inspiration from Australia’s surf culture, graffiti and art and has created its own unique style. Internationally acclaimed Sydney designer Akira Isogawa, whose work is known for its impressive cross-cultural fusion, reflects the sophisticated, cosmopolitan and multicultural nature of Australian society. Most Australians are comfortable in T-shirts and foot thongs one minute and appreciative of innovative high fashion the next.
Sport
This torch is from the 2000 summer Olympic Games and reflects how Australians have always loved sport and have generally excelled at it. Even before federation in 1901, ‘Australia’ was competing internationally as a nation. Around 6.5 million Australians are registered as sports participants. Australia has more than 120 national sporting organisations and thousands of local, regional and state sports bodies. We regularly hosts international events and Australian athletes compete in events all over the world.
The 2010 Fifa World Cup brought nations together and proves how Australians love sport, both playing it and watching it. A recent national survey showed that more than 11 million Australians aged 15 or over participated at least once a week in physical activity for exercise, recreation and sport—a participation rate of almost 70 per cent.
Music
“The music of a culture reflects the intonation of language, rhythms of speech, noises in the environment and different aspects of life - all of which is culturally based. Every culture has music that is distinctive and an important aspect of its identity.” Rock music bands like Wolf mother, was, is and forever will be an important aspect of Australia’s distinctive rock music scene.
In 2008, The Wiggles were named Business Review Weekly's top-earning Australian entertainers. They are more than just a children's musical group; their dancing and storytelling, plus their ability to relate to their young audience with both entertaining and educational songs, has entertained audiences since 1991. Upbeat, bright and energetic they are an integral part of Australia’s children’s lives.
Entertainment
The 2002 film Rabbit-Proof Fence based on the book Follow The Rabbit Proof Fence deals with the controversial issue of the Stolen Generations. It has disturbed settled values on how things were in the past. The past is important to us as we see it as part of our identity. Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd made an official apology to the Stolen Generation in 2008, a landmark moment in Australian history.
Kath & Kim is a Logie Award-winning television comedy series, created by Jane Turner and Gina Riley. Kath & Kim follows the characters' day-to-day lives, and document personal struggles, the banality of their achievements and aspirations. Kath & Kim satirises the mother-daughter relationship and the habits and values of modern suburban Australians, and emphasises the kitsch and superficial elements of contemporary society, particularly the traditional working class which has progressed to a level of affluence which previous generations had been unable to achieve.
American Influences on Popular Culture
McDonald's Corporation is one of the world's largest chains of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving nearly 47 million customers daily. Introduced by the Americans in the 1980s it continues to be a famous symbol today. The Grand Angus Burger exclusive to Australia and New Zealand indicates just how much Australians enjoy beef and fast food.
The popular television series Glee has taken Australia by storm, with their many fans calling themselves “Gleeks”. The popularity of this series is a reflection of how Australians still relate to and enjoy American entertainment and their consumerist market. As they did in the past America, being such a leading country in the entertainment sector, will continue to dominate Australian cinemas.
Section 3
‘To understand Australia today you have to understand the 80s.’
The study of history is to some degree the study of the story of humanity. Human curiosity and ingenuity have allowed cultures to evolve and flourish. This thirst for knowledge reaches into the past, even when one is focused on solving contemporary problems. The search for solutions often requires an understanding of how problems developed or how our elders might have approached analogous problems in the past. We study both our collective pasts and our individual pasts to gain a better understanding of who we are today and where we are going in the future. Lessons learned from the past can influence the social, political, and environmental actions we take today. By understanding the past we acquire a broader and richer understanding of our world today and our place in it.
The 1980s is an important part of the past that is required to understand what Australia is today. The 80s were a decade of materialistic values in architecture, entertainment and fashion and this has impacted our current society.
When it comes to architecture and design the 80s were definitely a decade of success. Minimalism was out and an irreverent exploration of colour and form was in, as a generation of designers embraced a postmodern aesthetic as shown in the museum.
By the end of the 80s what had begun as a design revolution by the Memphis collective and others had become mainstream.
The 80s saw a desire to incorporate meaning into buildings and focus on urban form and community, widely perceived as a failure of modern cities at the time. Architects and designers envisioned new and complex high-density cities, designed to reintegrate work, leisure, sporting and other urban functions.
After decades of neglect, Sydney’s public spaces became a focus of the city’s 1980s makeover. The new Darling Harbour leisure precinct was the major outcome. This ‘place for people’ was a new approach to public space, featuring privately developed retail and entertainment venues, two museums and the Monorail people mover. The 80s created the heart of the city, into a place where people work, live and visit today.
The entertainment industry boomed in the 1980’s and has influenced the way many people spend their leisure time in the present day. It was a decade of “must have” consumption for both adults and children alike. Rubik’s Cubes and Cabbage Patch Dolls were essential items for Generation X children. The increasing amount of people with televisions created a whole new world for advertisements and marketing.
Pac Man and Donkey Kong, the 1980s were a golden age for games with innovations in graphics and concepts constantly bombarding the market. Technology advancements made everything more affordable, brought the personal computer into the home and introduced a generation of children to cyberspace. American Superstars like Madonna and Michael Jackson filtered through television sets in Australia with MTV. Music became as much about the look as the sound. The 1980s directly influenced lives today by setting the scene for the digital era.
Most of the fashion designers we see setting our trends have gotten their inspiration from the older eras but bring them up to date, into fashion. Many trends of the 1980s started off as a fashion statement to be something different and something more eccentric, in order to stand out from the crowd. These trends have been modernised, been made to look more chic and wearable for the everyday user, yet also for the couture haute and items that were wearable for everyone on the catwalk. It is because of the 1980s that Australians today have the choice to express themselves in the way they dress.
Exhibition Dress
Many present clothes state boldness, whether it'd be neon pink leg warmers or checked dresses, a style that was inspired by the 80s. The 80s were a chance to be brave with fashion and people created the quirkiness and trendiness that we currently see in our catwalks which are depicted into our streets and modern fashion industry. Before the 2000's, the 1980’s were the only decade where mixing black and blue was somewhat acceptable; it is no longer a fashion faux pas. Rising hemlines were also an influence from the 1980s, a rebellion against previous stuffier styles. Many sub-cultures today would not exist without the influence of designers like Vivien Westwood.
Not every era can find its way into history, while only those eras that have really changed our life value can. We commonly speak about past and the present. Every person wants to know about the present and future but hardly anybody speaks about the importance of past. We must remember that present cannot exist in absence of the past. We can only truly understand what the present is if we understand our past. The 1980s is an era of strong significance in the modern history of Australia.
