Calendar Search Results: tv
May 19, 1986 Former Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel transitions from cult performer to pop star with the release of his fifth solo album, So, which includes the hit single "Sledgehammer."More
May 3, 1986 Propelled by a memorable video where lookalike models vamp the song, Robert Palmer's "Addicted To Love" hits #1 on the Hot 100.More
April 26, 1986 Van Halen prove there is life after David Lee Roth as their album 5150, their first with Sammy Hagar, hits #1 in the US for the first of three weeks.More
April 7, 1986 Sade makes the cover of Time magazine under the headline Pop's Smooth Operator. The article lauds her as "a new princess of pop" with a "sophisticated sound, elegant look."More
February 26, 1986 Thanks to their hit "West End Girls," Pet Shop Boys land the cover of Smash Hits magazine, which their frontman, Neil Tennant, used to write for.More
February 22, 1986 MTV, which has bought the rights to 45 episodes of The Monkees TV series, airs them all in the "Pleasant Valley Sunday" marathon in honor of the group's 20th anniversary. The shows launch a Monkees revival, and the group reforms to tour later in the year.More
February 15, 1986 The UK band Sade hit #1 in America with their second album, Promise, led by the single "The Sweetest Taboo." Led by frontwoman Sade Adu, their elegant, understated sound finds an audience looking for an alternative to MTV-powered pop music. It's the only album to hit the top spot in 1986 by an act that isn't American.
February 14, 1986 Frank Zappa guest stars on the TV series Miami Vice in the episode "Payback."
December 21, 1985 Dante Bonutto's Phil Lynott interview is screened. It would be the singer's last TV appearance before his death.
December 3, 1985 The day after taking a loss to the Miami Dolphins that keeps them from going undefeated, 10 members of the Chicago Bears record the "Super Bowl Shuffle," a rap tune where they each drop a verse about their talents. The video permeates MTV and the song spreads well beyond Chicago to become a hit single and Gold record.More
November 2, 1985 The Miami Vice soundtrack album, featuring the #1-hit theme song, tops the albums chart in America, ushering in a new age of TV soundtracks.More
October 19, 1985 Thanks to an innovative video that takes place in a comic book, "Take On Me" gives the Norwegian group a-ha a #1 hit in America.More
October 9, 1985 With Steve Barron as their director, a-ha begin filming their music video for "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." at Saint Alban the Martyr Church and Udney Hall Gardens in Teddington, Middlesex, England.
September 21, 1985 "Money For Nothing" by Dire Straits hits #1 in America. The song is co-written by Sting, who sings the line "I want my MTV." Sting is also on the chart with "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" and "Fortress Around Your Heart," both from his debut solo album, Dream Of The Blue Turtles.
September 14, 1985 The TV series The Golden Girls debuts on NBC. Its theme song is "Thank You for Being a Friend," written by Andrew Gold but sung by a jingle singer named Cynthia Fee. Gold's version was released in 1978 and reached #25 in the US.
August 14, 1985 Three years after their duet "The Girl Is Mine," Paul McCartney advises Michael Jackson to invest in publishing. Jackson makes a winning bid of $47.5 million for the rights to over 250 Lennon-McCartney Beatles songs owned by ATV publishing, which turns out to be a great investment, but kills their friendship.More
July 19, 1985 The Legend of Billie Jean, starring Helen Slater and Christian Slater as teens who become accidental outlaws, debuts in theaters, boasting the hit theme song "Invincible" by Pat Benatar. The teen flick receives mixed reviews but goes on to become a cult classic, despite Benatar calling it "one of the worst movies ever made."More
June 1, 1985 A-ha release their debut album, Hunting High and Low, including their breakthrough hit, "Take On Me."More
June 1, 1985 The innovative computer-animated video for Dire Straits' "Money For Nothing" debuts on MTV, which is very meta because the refrain in the song (sung by Sting), is "I want my MTV." It wins Best Video at the VMAs and helps the song go to #1 in America.
May 18, 1985 After repeated attempts to break through in America, Simple Minds go to #1 with "Don't You (Forget About Me)," which is used in the movie The Breakfast Club.More
May 13, 1985 Bruce Springsteen gets married for the first time, tying the knot with the model/actress Julianne Phillips. The couple divorce in 1989.More
April 7, 1985 Wham! become the first Western pop group to play in China when they perform at the Worker's Gymnasium in Beijing. Footage from their trip appears in the video for their song "Freedom."More
March 1, 1985 Ford licenses The Beatles "Help!" for a commercial, marking the first time one of their songs is used in a TV ad.
February 25, 1985 British synthpop duo Tears For Fears release their sophomore album, Songs From The Big Chair, featuring the hits "Shout" and "Everybody Wants To Rule The World."More
January 28, 1985 With the stars in town for the American Music Awards, "We Are The World" is recorded in Los Angeles, with cameras rolling for the video.More
November 12, 1984 With Chic frontman Nile Rodgers producing, Madonna releases her second studio album, Like A Virgin, her first #1 on the US albums chart.More
November 10, 1984 Frankie Goes to Hollywood's debut album, Welcome To The Pleasuredome, debuts at #1 in the UK, but the band is in America, making their US TV debut on Saturday Night Live, where they perform their UK smash "Two Tribes" and their cover of "Born To Run."
October 9, 1984 The extraordinarily popular children's show Thomas The Tank Engine And Friends begins its run on BBC-TV, featuring a narrator by the name of Ringo Starr.
October 3, 1984 Ashlee Simpson is born in Waco, Texas, to a family that includes older sister and fellow singer Jessica Simpson. Propelled by MTV's The Ashlee Simpson Show, her debut album goes straight to #1 and sells over 3 million copies.
September 16, 1984 The TV series Miami Vice makes its debut with a two-hour episode that includes a scene featuring the Phil Collins hit "In The Air Tonight."More
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