The 80s Rewind: A look at the Gen X experience off the beaten path

A New Monthly Series

Generation X is going to be okay. It was touch and go for a while—at least, that’s what we were told. Pundits labeled us (the generational cohort born between 1965 and 1980) as “latch-key kids” and the “slacker generation.” Countless books and articles sent up warning signals about this first truly “postmodern generation.”

Despite all the skepticism about us, Gen X became the hard-working but underappreciated backbone of the American workforce. We are anything but slackers—we made it through our grunge phase and grew up. We are more than just okay … we might be the “okayest” generation ever. Not the best, not the worst. Whatever.

A stunning fact occurred to me in January. The oldest Gen Xers turn 60 in 2025; the youngest will be 45. Crazy! That thought put me in a nostalgic mood—thinking about the good old days (the 1980s).

Sure, our formative years had some downers. We endured countless “duck and cover” nuclear drills and survived lawn darts and lax seatbelt laws. I will always remember that loss of trust that came during the Iran-Contra Affair (I wrote my first research paper about that fiasco). Good things happened as well. We celebrated the dramatic end of the Cold War and watched the Berlin Wall come down, and all became hockey fans after the “Miracle on Ice” when Team USA beat the USSR at the Olympics. Michael Jackson moonwalked. Most of all, it was just a simpler time … especially where I lived.

Films by John Hughes (and others) continue to introduce new generations to the Gen X experience in cities and suburbia. Some films address social challenges that impacted all Gen Xers, but many just dealt with teenage angst, proms, parties, and the social pecking order. The portrayals often painted our generation with a broad brush, creating misconceptions about our experiences. Life was anything but uniform for Gen X kids. I wasn’t a rich suburban kid. I certainly didn’t know anyone whose dad had a 1961 Ferrari 250 California. My friends’ parents weren’t doctors, lawyers, or ad executives. Instead, they were teachers, farmers, preachers, and oil field workers. We raised sheep.

July 4, 1985: Pictured left to right, my cousin Wayne, me, my cousin Jan, and my sister Lanette.

Gen X Off the Beaten Path

Very few films attempted to capture Gen X life in places like Calvin, Oklahoma, where I grew up. Sure, “Footloose,” “The Goonies,” and “Red Dawn” were set in smaller places, but the storylines were so highly situational and outlandish to offer a look at everyday life. Granted, “Footloose” was inspired by true events in an Oklahoma town. But we were allowed to dance in Calvin, if you were wondering. My experience was much different than “Can’t Buy Me Love,” “The Breakfast Club,” “Sixteen Candles,” “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” “Better Off Dead,” “Say Anything,” or any other Gen X movies.

Interested in a different look at Gen X? “The 80s Rewind” is the series for you. The new monthly series will explore the formative years of Gen X with an emphasis on the rural, small-town experience. I will release “The 80s Rewind” posts on the first Monday of each month (beginning April 7).

Each post with include a suggested song list (“In the Tape Deck”). Some will include a suggested movie playlist (“In the VCR”). I have even tried to capture the idea of cassettes and VCR tapes (the pinnacle of technology at the time) by using “rewind” in the series title. If there is any phrase burned in the minds of Gen Xers, it is “Be Kind and Rewind!”

I hope you will follow along … and I hope you will share your experiences as well.

Be kind and rewind!

In the Tape Desk (Songs to tide you over until April 7, “Yeah, the waiting is the hardest part”)

• “Wait,” White Lion

• “Right Here Waiting for You,” Richard Marx

• “The Waiting,” Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

• “Waiting for a Star to Fall,” Boy Meets Girl