A look back at the world in 1980

There was an undeniable mood of excitement and optimism as this newspaper rolled off the presses each Wednesday morning in 1980.

The new owners of the Tri-City Times, Marty and Delores Heim, were living a lifelong dream of coming home to publish the local paper. And Marty’s ability to excite all around him was one of his strongest suits.

It seemed like in an instant he changed the format of the newspaper, developing a fresh new look, new strategies and a new newspaper philosophy.

Marty held morning meetings talking with editor Karl Bayer about news coverage, headline writing and photography. Later he’d pull his daughter, Kim (my wife) and I aside and pass on a lesson or two in advertising sales, layout and in general, community newspapering.

Marty was assembling his newspaper staff, a team to accomplish his goals. A staff that for the most part he had inherited from the previous owners, and of course his wife, daughter and son-in-law.

Yes, it was exciting to be in the newspaper business in 1980, although for most everyone else it was anything but exciting.

Interest rates were climbing and a horrible recession was sure to hit. Unemployment was high, new car sales poor. The Iran hostage affair dominated the headlines of the daily newspapers, and small businesses were closing their doors. Times were tough.

It was a world in transition.

Here are some of the things I remember—and had help remembering— in the ’80s.

•School millages were impossible to pass and teachers held strikes. Later in the decade, teachers did strike in Imlay City and they picketted in Capac.

•Ronald Reagan was elected president.

•The average price of a gallon of gas was $1.03. Today it’s triple that.

•The Champion Homes plant in Dryden began reporting losses in July of 1980, the first sign it was facing closure.

•In April of 1980, Hugh Gorey closed his Ford dealership on Van Dyke in Imlay City. High interest rates on his floor plans forced him out of business.

•The auto industry announced enormous layoffs.

•The cost of a postage stamp was 15 cents.

•Going almost unnoticed by everyone, 3-M introduced the Post-It-Note. And 7-Eleven introduced the “Big Gulp.”

•The average income in 1980 was $11,321.00

•The average cost of a new car was $5,413.00.

•A gallon of milk was $1.60, and you could buy a dozen eggs for 69 cents.

•Mount St. Helen erupted on May 18, 1980. It had been a dormant volcano since 1857.

•The Imlay City Spartans varsity football team surprised the almighty Marysville Vikings 25-13 in October of 1980. The loss shocked the football fanatics in Marysville, making Imlay City an arch rival that endured to the late 1990s.

•The top movies were, The Empire Strikes Back, Raging Bull and Caddy Shack.

•Ted Turner launched CNN News in 1980.

•Ron Kalanquin upset Carl Langley in the Lapeer County Sheriff’s race.

•The prime time TV schedule included, Charlie’s Angels, Archie Bunker’s Place, Little House on the Prairie, M*A*S*H, Mork & Mindy, Eight is Enough, Happy Days, CHIPS, That’s Incredible, The Facts of Life, Three’s Company, Magnum P.I., The Walton’s, Real People, Trapper John, M.D., and Too Close For Comfort.

Ring a bell with any of you? Well how about, Hart to Hart, Soap, Diff’rent Strokes, or Barney Miller?

•Do you rememer wanting an alien like Alf to live in your house?

•In March of 1980, Lapeer County veterans filed an agent orange lawsuit.

And to close this week, I can’t tell you I knew anyone who owned a cell phone back then. Today, nearly everyone has a cell phone. In fact, your considered a little odd if you don’t!

Editor’s Note: If you have something you’d like to add to this list or future lists, email Randy at rjorgensen@pageone-inc.com.