New questions every morning · Free, no sign-up

80s trivia

One quiz, 10 questions, answers explained as you play. More levels land here soon.

  • 1 quiz
  • 10 questions
  • 1 level
  • Printable list
Easy
Questions and answers — printable list
  1. Which Michael Jackson album, released in 1982 and produced with Quincy Jones, includes the hits "Beat It" and "Billie Jean"?ThrillerThriller came out on November 30, 1982, and was produced by Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones. Both "Beat It" and "Billie Jean" reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 (Britannica).
  2. Which band's "Video Killed the Radio Star" was the first music video shown when MTV launched on August 1, 1981?The BugglesMTV launched just after midnight on August 1, 1981, and its first video was the Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star" (Britannica).
  3. In the 1985 movie Back to the Future, what kind of car does Marty McFly use as a time machine to travel back to 1955?DeLoreanMichael J. Fox's Marty McFly is sent back to 1955 in a DeLorean time machine. Director Robert Zemeckis chose the DeLorean DMC-12 for its gull-wing doors and spaceship look (Britannica).
  4. Which arcade game, released in Japan by Namco in 1980 and designed by Toru Iwatani, was built around eating instead of violence?Pac-ManNamco released Pac-Man in 1980. Toru Iwatani wanted a game that was not violent, so he built it around eating (Britannica).
  5. Teacher Christa McAuliffe died in 1986 aboard which Space Shuttle, which broke apart 73 seconds after launch?ChallengerChallenger broke apart 73 seconds after its January 28, 1986, launch, and all seven crew members died. Christa McAuliffe was aboard as the first private citizen selected for spaceflight (Britannica).
  6. Who became the first American woman in space when she flew aboard Space Shuttle Challenger in June 1983?Sally RideSally Ride became the first American woman in space on June 18, 1983, aboard Challenger on STS-7 (NASA).
  7. In what year did the Berlin Wall open, after standing since 1961?1989On November 9, 1989, East Germany opened its borders, and openings were made in the Berlin Wall so East Germans could travel west (Britannica).
  8. Which national team did the US men's hockey team beat 4–3 in the "Miracle on Ice" game at the 1980 Winter Olympics?Soviet UnionThe US beat the Soviet Union 4–3 at Lake Placid on February 22, 1980. The Americans then won gold by beating Finland in the final (Britannica).
  9. In which US state is Mount St. Helens, the volcano that erupted on May 18, 1980?WashingtonMount St. Helens is in the Cascade Range of southwestern Washington and erupted on May 18, 1980 (Britannica).
  10. Which movie was the highest-grossing film of the 1980s?E.T. the Extra-TerrestrialE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) was the top-grossing film of the 1980s. It earned about $359 million in the US alone, well ahead of Return of the Jedi, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Back to the Future.

Keep playing

90s10 questions, 1 quiz Pokemon20 questions, 2 quizzes

Top scores

Most right answers first. Level pegging is broken by time. Only your best run on a quiz counts, so replaying it can improve your place but never stacks up.

Overall leaderboard →

About the 80s trivia quizzes

The decade runs from the US men's hockey team beating the Soviet Union 4–3 at Lake Placid on February 22, 1980, to the opening of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989. In between came MTV's launch on August 1, 1981, the Challenger accident on January 28, 1986, and Madonna's Like a Virgin in 1984. The hard part is that music, film, games, space and politics crowd into the same ten years, so dates blur together.

The 1 quizzes hold 10 questions spread across music, movies, games and toys, computers, space, sports and world events. Easy questions ask for the headline names, such as who directed Back to the Future or what Pac-Man was first called. Medium questions want the year or date, like the Famicom's July 15, 1983 debut in Japan. Hard questions go into the footnotes, such as which performer played both Live Aid stages.

Frequently asked questions

What are some fun facts about the 80s?

There is no single official list, but Live Aid supplies a good one. It was held on July 13, 1985, at Wembley Stadium in London and JFK Stadium in Philadelphia, to raise money for Ethiopian famine relief. Phil Collins was the only performer of more than 70 acts to play both stages, flying between them on the Concorde. Details like that make strong tiebreaker questions at a party.

What were some interesting trivia facts about 1985?

No official list covers a single year, but 1985 has a clear film answer: Back to the Future was the highest-grossing film of 1985 and entered the National Film Registry in 2007. When writing or answering 1985 questions, keep the release year and the registry year separate, since those two dates are easy to mix up.

Sources for the answers above

No made-up answers

Every question here was written from a named source and reviewed before it went live.