Those of us who are old enough likely remember the Kirk Gibson home run against the Oakland Athletics in the 1988 World Series. This one scribe was but a young pup, living in the Bay Area. Tears filled his eyes as his A’s lost the World Series after dominating through the regular season.
But what else was happening in the world the last time the Los Angeles Dodgers won the World Series? Who was dominating in other sports? Who were the most-popular singers and actors of the time? What movie came away with best picture? And how was the political landscape some 30 years ago?
With Los Angeles finishing off the defending champion Chicago Cubs in the NLCS Thursday night, we look at what was happening in the world the last time this team won the World Series.
Magic Johnson leads Lakers to second consecutive title
The 1987-88 variation of the Showtime Lakers were a sight to behold. The team averaged nearly 113 points per game with Pat Riley manning the bench. All-team Laker great Jerry West was the GM. Meanwhile, the likes of Magic, Byron Scott, James Worthy, A.C. Green, Michael Cooper, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Mychal Thompson ran roughshod through the west to a tune of a 62-20 record.
It culminated in a seven-game series win over Isiah Thomas and the Detroit Pistons Bad Boys team in an epic NBA Finals clash. That series saw Magic average 21.1 points and 13.0 assists en route to earning the MVP. A star was truly born in Hollywood that summer.
“Senator, you are no Jack Kennedy.”
https://youtube.com/watch?v=iQ5CIkSlUFI
Leading up to the 1988 Presidential Election, the democrats were fighting uphill to defeat then Vice President George H. Bush as Ronald Reagan’s replacement. In the end, Bush came out on top in a demanding Electoral College victory.
But it was the vice presidential debate that made the news, and would have created some amazing GIFs in today’s social media world. Democratic VP nominee Lloyd Bentsen quipped that soon-to-be VP Dan Quayle was “no Jack Kennedy” after the latter compared himself to former President John F. Kennedy. Since, it’s become part of the American political lexicon. It also drew some major laughs from the audience on hand in Nebraska.
Doug Williams makes NFL history
In a history-breaking moment that paved the way for some of the better quarterbacks in today’s NFL, Washington Redskins signal caller Doug Williams became the first black quarterback to play in the Super Bowl when his team took on the Denver Broncos following the 1987 regular season.
Williams would go on to earn XXII MVP in a 42-10 blowout win over the Broncos. That game saw the former Grambling State quarterback throw for 340 yards and four touchdowns. While he would only start 12 more games throughout his career, Williams set the tone for the Cam Newtons and Russell Wilsons of the world.
Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston dominate Billboard
It wasn’t too long ago that these now deceased entertainment superstars were the biggest thing in the music industry. Back in 1988, Jackson and Houston combined for five Billboard No. 1 hits. Michael’s Dirty Diana became one of his biggest hits, finishing in the top 10 on the charts in 10 different countries.
Whitney’s claim to fame that year was So Emotional, which landed her on the Billboard chart for more than 40 weeks. In a tragic and sad turn of events, the two would ultimately die within three years of one another — Jackson passing away in 2009 and Houston dying in 2012.
The trade heard around the NHL world
Fresh off leading his Edmonton Oilers to the NHL title in 1988, Gretzky was abruptly traded to the Los Angeles Kings just a few short months after hoisting up the trophy. In return, Edmonton received Jimmy Carson, Martin Gélinas, $15 million in cold-hard cash and three first-round picks.
This came after the Great One earned nine MVP awards in his tenure with Edmonton. Now in Hollywood, Gretzky would still put up stellar numbers, but failed to lead the team to a title in eight seasons. One still has to wonder how many titles the combo of Gretzky and Mark Messier would have won in Canada.
‘Rain Man’ premieres
One of the best pictures of the 1980s, this movie featured Dustin Hoffman and a young Tom Cruise as brothers fighting over their father’s estate. Hoffman was hilarious as a man with savant syndrome. Socially awkward, he was best known for remembering stuff more of us could scarcely imagine. His brother, Cruise, was a hot shot without compassion until the two reacquainted with one another.
Winner for best picture, best director and best actor (Hoffman), scenes from this movie remain part of American pop culture today. Anyone who has seen this movie is familiar with Hoffman character’s affinity for Judge Wapner and his stance that Kmart sucks. The movie also propelled Cruise into more serious roles in his career.
Miami wins national title
Under a now defunct college football bowl system, Miami earned the controversial national title over Notre Dame following the 1989 season, something that sill upsets former Irish head coach Lou Holtz to this day.
But on New Year’s Day of 1988, Miami won the second of three titles under Jimmy Johnson with a victory over Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl. That season saw the Johnson-led Hurricanes outscore their opponents by an average of nearly 23 points per game. They finished in the top six in scoring offense and second in the nation in scoring defense. It was an absolutely domination from a team that saw four coaches become head coaches in the NFL.
Milli Vanilli’s lip syncing controversy
https://youtube.com/watch?v=VXW9jVV58Og
From 1988-1990, this duo was among the most popular in the world. Their debut album from Germany in 1998 earned the group a Grammy Award for best new group in 1990.
Having sold tens of millions of albums during the span, the duo of Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus were eventually stripped of that Grammy after a performance in which it was proven they had in fact lip-synced throughout their entire careers. It was as embarrassing as it was career-ending for the two. And it remains one of the most infamous events in music history.
Lights at Wrigley Field for the first time
The home of the Chicago Cubs had been open since 1915. The Cubs had played at the friendly confines since 1916. Though, there was not a night game at Wrigley Field unti August of 1988. After a long and dramatic debate in Chicago, lights were officially installed at Wrigley that year. The first night game between Chicago and Philadelphia was actually called before it became official.
Then, the following evening, a last-place Cubs team defeated the first-place New York Mets by the score of 6-4. A lot of younger fans likely don’t know that it took over 70 years for a night game to be played at Wrigley. But it was one of the biggest stories of the 1988 MLB season.
Compact discs are the new rage
Vinyl gave way to CDs, and entire generations of music fans had absolutely no idea what to do with themselves. It happened in 1988. And it was like a funeral for many older music lovers. For the first time in history, compact discs outsold old-school records on the market. It began a death of sorts for vinyl and the mediums they were used on.
The good news here is that vinyl has started to make somewhat of a comeback. People are realizing what they bring to the table in terms of both quality and value. In fact, new artists are once again starting to release their music on vinyl. The 1980s will never die.
Other events
* Colonel Oliver North was indicted on conspiracy to defraud the United States for his role in the Iran-Contra incident. After being found guilty on three of 16 felony charges, North received a three-year suspended prison sentence.
* War on Drugs: President Reagan signed into a law calling for the death penalty for drug traffickers convicted of murder. It was one of the then president’s final acts under the guise of the War on Drugs in his second term.
* The Wonder Years and Roseanne dominated television in 1988. Both first-year shows, they brought us a new way of sitcom television. Wonder Years focused in the main character, Kevin Arnold, looking back on his adolescence in the 1960s and 1970s. Meanwhile, Roseanne brought us in touch with some of the serious stuff happening during that time.
* The Winter Olympics are held in Canada with the now defunct Soviet Union and East Germany coming out on top in the medal count. It also inspired the movie Cool Runnings, which focused on the Jamaican bobsled team.