the summer of

What it was like to be 15 in 1988 in America

To be fifteen in America in 1988 was to have “Sweet Child o' Mine” by Guns N' Roses everywhere, Rain Man on every screen, and The Cosby Show on after school. That year, gas cost $0.95 and the NeXT Computer was the new thing. Born in 1973? You turned 15 in 1988 — a teenager from 1986 to 1992, right in the window a soundtrack bonds to you for life.

Compiled by the Original Lore archive from period charts, box-office and price records. How we build these · sources noted throughout.

▶ Play your 1988 reel with sounda 30-second video of your year — the song, the screen, the turn.

the mixtape of 1988

Sweet Child o' Mine — Guns N' Roses

  1. Pour Some Sugar on Me — Def LeppardDef Leppard's stomp blasted from every Trans Am, all denim, hairspray, and Friday-night invincibility.
  2. Need You Tonight — INXSHutchence's slinky whisper made the back of the school bus feel dangerous and electric.
  3. Sweet Child o' Mine — Guns N' RosesSlash's opening riff cut through the summer haze and made you believe rock could save you.
  4. Push It — Salt-N-PepaThe block-party jam that had every kid on the driveway busting moves, unashamed and alive.
  5. Don't Worry, Be Happy — Bobby McFerrinThat whistling was everywhere, in every car and waiting room, the sound of a weightless summer.

▶ Play your 1988 reel

why this one mattered

Appetite for Destruction broke wide in 1988 and this was the song that made every 15-year-old want to play guitar — Slash's opening lick is muscle memory for that generation. Dangerous, melodic, and ubiquitous, it was the dividing line between kid pop and the harder world teens were stepping into, and it still snaps them back instantly.

the year-end #1 was Look Away — Chicago.

the movies you are watching in 1988

  • Rain Man
  • Die Hard
  • Who Framed Roger Rabbit
  • Coming to America
  • Beetlejuice

the tv shows you are binging in 1988

  • The Cosby Show
  • Cheers
  • The Golden Girls
  • Roseanne
  • A Different World

the games you are playing in 1988

  • Super Mario Bros. 2
  • Mega Man 2
  • Contra
  • Bionic Commando
  • Ninja Gaiden
  • Double Dragon II: The Revenge

what things cost in 1988

What things cost in 1988
a first-class stamp25¢
a gallon of gas$0.95
a movie ticket$4.11
minimum wage$3.35/hr
the average income$27,225

trending this year

Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Joe Wos (WosToons), via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Die Hard
Argonauta-fx (Roberto Garcia-S) · CC BY 2.0
Die Hard
The Wonder Years
Wilfredor, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · CC0 1.0 (Public Domain Dedication)
The Wonder Years
Roseanne
Wilfredor, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · CC0 1.0 (Public Domain Dedication)
Roseanne
Super Mario Bros. 2

the gadgets you just got

Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) home console
ThomasHarte at English Wikipedia (public domain)
Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) home console
Sega Mega Drive / Genesis (launched Japan Oct 1988)
Mzacha (Wikimedia Commons) · CC0 1.0 (Public Domain Dedication)
Sega Mega Drive / Genesis (launched Japan Oct 1988)
Sony Discman portable CD player
Ubern00b, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Sony Discman portable CD player
Motorola DynaTAC brick cellphone
Redrum0486, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Motorola DynaTAC brick cellphone
Sony Handycam camcorder
Troy Sankey (Wikimedia Commons) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Sony Handycam camcorder

what everyone is snacking on

Fruit Roll-Ups
Mike Mozart / JeepersMedia (Flickr), CC BY 2.0
Fruit Roll-Ups
Combos stuffed snacks
theimpulsivebuy (Flickr), CC BY-SA 2.0
Combos stuffed snacks
Cool Ranch Doritos
Famartin, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2019-02-07_13_01_15_Cool_Ranch_Doritos_in_the_Franklin_Farm_section_of_Oak_Hill,_Fairfax_County,_Virginia.jpg) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Cool Ranch Doritos
Teddy Grahams (launched 1988)
Jellocube27, English Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Chocolate_teddy_graham_closeup.png · Public Domain (author release, worldwide)
Teddy Grahams (launched 1988)
Pop-Tarts
Evan-Amos, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Pop-Tarts

what everyone is drinking

Jolt Cola
Martinultima, Wikimedia Commons / en.wikipedia — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jolt_Cola_0001.jpg · CC BY-SA 3.0 (also GFDL)
Jolt Cola
Coca-Cola Classic
M0tty, Wikimedia Commons (Quality Image) — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Coca-cola_50cl_can_-_Italia.jpg · CC BY-SA 3.0
Coca-Cola Classic
Capri Sun
Photo by Tamzin Hadasa Kelly (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capri_Sun_pouch_standing.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0
Capri Sun
Kool-Aid
Missouri State Archives, via Wikimedia Commons (File:Historic Trademarks - Kool-Aid.jpg) · Public Domain (US, published 1931-1977 without copyright notice; Flickr Commons 'No known copyright restrictions')
Kool-Aid
Pepsi
Michael Thomas (Flickr), via Wikimedia Commons (File:Pepsi Can.jpg) · CC BY 2.0
Pepsi

what made the news in 1988

  • George H.W. Bush wins the presidency after pledging 'read my lips: no new taxes'
  • Pan Am Flight 103 explodes over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing all 259 aboard and 11 on the ground
  • A record drought and brutal heat wave scorch the American heartland through the summer
  • Injured Kirk Gibson hobbles up to pinch-hit a walk-off homer off Dennis Eckersley to win Game 1 of the World Series for the Dodgers
George H.W. Bush wins the US presidential election
Official White House portrait by David Valdez, Executive Office of the President. Public domain. · Public Domain (PD-USGov-POTUS, US federal government work)
George H.W. Bush wins the US presidential election
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie, Scotland
Contains public sector information from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB), Report No. 2/1990, licensed under the Open Government Licence v2.0. · UK Open Government Licence v2.0 (OGL v2.0) — free for commercial use with attribution
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie, Scotland
Summer Olympics held in Seoul, South Korea
CMSGT Don Sutherland, U.S. Air Force / U.S. National Archives (public domain) · Public Domain (U.S. federal government work / U.S. DoD)
Summer Olympics held in Seoul, South Korea
USSR begins withdrawing troops from Afghanistan
RIA Novosti archive, image #58833 / A. Solomonov / CC-BY-SA 3.0 · CC-BY-SA 3.0 Unported
USSR begins withdrawing troops from Afghanistan
Yellowstone National Park ravaged by massive wildfires
NOAA / U.S. Government (public domain) · Public Domain (U.S. federal government work / NOAA)
Yellowstone National Park ravaged by massive wildfires

what everyone is saying

  • "Where's the beef?"Wendy's ad catchphrase still ubiquitous in the late '80s
  • "I pity the fool"Mr. T catchphrase from Rocky III / The A-Team
  • "Gag me with a spoon"Valley Girl slang of the era
  • "Read my lips: no new taxes"George H.W. Bush's 1988 RNC acceptance speech pledge
  • "Cowabunga!"Surfer / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles exclamation

top-performing stocks in 1988

Top-performing stocks in 1988
CompanyTickerPriceChange
Chrysler CorporationC$25+18%
Philip Morris CompaniesMO$48+25%
General MotorsGM$42+15%
Walt Disney CompanyDIS$31+22%
McDonald's CorporationMCD$24+20%

worst-performing stocks in 1988

Worst-performing stocks in 1988
CompanyTickerPriceChange
Eastman KodakEK$45-10%
USX Corporation (US Steel)X$28-12%
Digital Equipment CorporationDEC$95-22%
Western Union CorporationWU$5-30%
Wang LaboratoriesWAN$8-45%

the summer of 1988.

you can't wait to be older.

…and then it cools. Play the reel to feel where 1988 goes.

Turn 1988 into a 30-second reel →

▶ Play your 1988 reel with sound