Stuck in the '80s Podcast

Episode 790: Not every story from the 1980s comes wrapped in neon, movie quotes, and mixtapes. Some begin in darkness. This week on Stuck in the '80s , I sit down with author Tracy Viola to discuss her remarkable memoir, Pretty Wrecked: Confessions of a Teenage Addict and Her Road to Recovery . While many of our episodes celebrate the music, movies and pop culture that made the decade unforgettabl...

Episode 789: Summer has a funny way of collapsing time. One minute you're hearing a familiar song on the radio or smelling charcoal from the neighbor's grill, and suddenly you're sixteen years old again. You're counting down the days until the next blockbuster hits the theater. You're hanging out with friends until the streetlights come on. You're convinced that summer might actually last forever....

Episode 788: If you grew up in the 1980s, chances are your childhood memories can be measured in action figures, toy catalogs, and Saturday mornings spent convincing your parents that you absolutely needed "just one more." The toys weren't simply things we owned—they became the stars of our own adventures. They transformed living room floors into battlefields, bedrooms into space stations, and bac...

Episode 787: When people talk about the summer movies of 1986, the conversation usually starts with Top Gun and ends somewhere around Aliens , The Karate Kid Part II , and Ferris Bueller's Day Off . It was one of the strongest movie summers of the decade, packed with blockbusters that still dominate pop-culture conversations 40 years later. But every great movie season leaves a few worthy titles b...

Episode 786: From sci-fi parodies and comedy catchphrases to political satire and celebrity rap records, the ’80s produced some truly unforgettable novelty hits. Steve and Chuck revisit songs that were silly, bizarre, occasionally controversial—and somehow impossible to forget. In this episode, they discuss: • "Star Trekkin'" by The Firm, the cult classic that became a No. 1 hit in the United King...

Some songs don’t just define a decade — they instantly improve your mood the second they begin playing. Few tracks from the MTV era carry that kind of joyful energy quite like Walking on Sunshine by Katrina and the Waves. This week on the Stuck in the ’80s Podcast , Steve sits down with frontwoman Katrina Leskanich for a lively conversation about music, touring and the remarkable twists and turns...

Forty years later, So still stands as one of the most ambitious, emotional and sonically adventurous albums of the 1980s. Released in 1986, the landmark record transformed Peter Gabriel from respected art-rock innovator into a full-fledged MTV superstar thanks to unforgettable songs like Sledgehammer, In Your Eyes, Big Time and Red Rain. This week on the Stuck in the ’80s Podcast , Spearsy revisit...

This week on the longest-running ’80s pop culture podcast, Steve Spears and Brad Williams return to one of their favorite recurring topics: unlikely cover songs of the 1980s. Did you know Eddie Money’s “I Wanna Go Back” was originally recorded by Billy Satellite? Or that Chaka Khan’s Grammy-winning “I Feel for You” began as a deep cut by Prince? Episode Timeline 00:00 – Welcome back to Unlikely Co...

This week on the longest-running ’80s pop culture podcast, Steve Spears and Brad in California hit the gas for a deep dive into the most iconic TV and movie cars of the 1980s. Joined by Retro DJ and car expert Travis Bell, the gang explores the legendary “star cars” that became just as famous as the actors who drove them. From Pontiac Trans Am KITT in Knight Rider to the time-traveling DeLorean DM...

Soccer legend and longtime friend Alexi Lalas joins us to talk about the 1981 movie "Victory" starring Michael Caine and Sylvester Stallone. On Sale Now! Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, is finally for sale as both a paperback and ebook. Featuring more than 60 interviews from the podcast, along wit...

We introduce the 2026 class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We talk who got in, who got snubbed, and which choices will have us yelling at our dashboards like it’s 1987 and the DJ just skipped our favorite song. On Sale Now! Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, is finally for sale as both a paperback and eboo...

Remember our amazing interview with Kenny Loggins? Here it is again from 2007. Full show with co-host Sean Daly. On Sale Now! Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, is finally for sale as both a paperback and ebook. Featuring more than 60 interviews from the podcast, along with insider stories and other previously...

Which '80s teen romance movie is stronger: "Pretty in Pink" or "Some Kind of Wonderful?" We decide today. Plus, full seggies, a book update, and our review of the 2026 voyage of The 80s Cruise. On Sale Now! Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, is finally for sale as both a paperback and ebook...

TV's "The Greatest American Hero" debuted 45 years ago today - March 18, 1981. We honor the '80s TV show with a reairing of our 2007 interview with actor William Katt. On Sale Now! Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, is finally for sale as both a paperback and ebook. Featuring more than 60 interviews...

The new Stuck in the '80s podcast book is finally for sale. Brad interviews Spearsy about a project 20 years in the making. On Sale Now! Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, is finally for sale as both a paperback and ebook. Featuring more than 60 interviews from the podcast, along with insider stories and other...

"Highlander" is officially 40 years old. Well, technically Connor MacLeod is 508 years old now. Here's our tribute episode recorded in 2012 with co-host Sean Daly. Coming in March Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, will finally be published. Featuring more than 60 interviews from the podcast, along w...

Relive the Miracle on Ice from the 1980 Winter Olympic Games and the gold medal performance of US Men's Hockey with hosts Steve Spears, Sean Daly and Tom Jones. This a re-run from Episode 190 in 2010. Coming in March Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, will finally be published. Featuring more than 60 interview...

Original MTV veejay Martha Quinn makes her first visit to Stuck in the '80s in 10 years. Martha talks about her induction into the Radio Hall of Fame along with her thoughts on the enduring love for '80s nostalgia and music. Plus full seggies. Coming in March Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, will finally be...

Sean Daly, one of the original hosts of the Stuck in the '80s podcast, returns this week to talk about the podcast's first 20 years. Plus, full seggies! Coming in March Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, will finally be published. Featuring more than 60 interviews from the podcast, along with insider stories a...

"When We Were Invincible: Life Lessons from the ’80s that Defined a Generation" is a new book by Becky Kliss, who joins the show to talk about Gen X and what we learned from our teen years. Plus, seggies including TV Party Tonight and Spin Me Round. Also a podcast book update and great promo code from our new sponsors Rotella Resale. Coming in March Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Convers...

Glass Tiger frontman Alan Frew joins the podcast to talk about the band's history, his background growing up in Scotland, and Glass Tiger's upcoming performance on The 80s Cruise. Seggies include: Stuck in the Arcade and Listener Mailbag. Guest co-host Chuck Coverly. Coming in March Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve...

The year 1976 seems so long ago, and it was. Here are 10 songs we loved from that year that are turning 50 in 2026. Songs from Boston, ABBA, Diana Ross, the Eagles and more. Plus full seggies. Coming This Spring Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, will finally be published. Featuring more than 60 interviews fro...

On New Year's Eve, we look back at the end of 1985 and see how it shaped the rest of the decade. Seggies include Stuck in the Arcade. Coming This Spring Stuck in the '80s: 20 Years of Conversations with Pop Culture Icons Who Defined a Decade , by podcast creator Steve Spears, will finally be published. Featuring more than 60 interviews from the podcast, along with insider stories and other previou...

We say goodbye to Rob Reiner by honoring the films he directed in the '80s and the parts he played throughout his career. Our Sponsors The 2026 lineup of The 80s Cruise is now sold out, but you can still join the waiting list and use our promo code. Royal Caribbean's Adventure of the Seas departs Port Canaveral on February 27 with stops in Nassau, Falmouth and Grand Bahamas Island. Artists include...

Award-winning author Michael Weitz joins Brad to talk about his new novel, We Be  Dragons, which drops readers into 1986 in rural Washington State, where real-life small-town struggles collide with a Dungeons &  Dragons campaign. Plus, full seggies. Our Sponsors The 2026 lineup of The 80s Cruise is now sold out, but you can still join the waiting list and use our promo code. Royal Caribbean's...