In 1985, the Kansas City Royals had an improbable run to the World Series, marking the franchise’s first title in its somewhat brief 16-year existence. Little did Royals fans know, their team would fail to make the postseason the following year – in fact, Kansas City hasn’t made it since the days of George Brett and Bret Saberhagen. Now, almost 29 years later, the Royals have a chance to end that streak.
That’s right, you read that correctly, the Royals currently sit atop both the American League’s Central Division, as well as the American League Wild Card race – just in case. But if Kansas City wants to end the longest current postseason drought in, not only Major League Baseball but all four of the major sports, the team might need just need a little bit of luck. If it happens, it’ll be a long time coming, so we decided to take a look back at the last time the Royals made the postseason.
At The Movies
That year featured a number of blockbusters at the movies, however none was bigger than Back to the Future. The film, starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd, was the highest grossing film of 1985 and thanks in part to the DeLorean, Huey Lewis and Nike high tops, epitomized what the 1980s were all about. Of course, we’re still eagerly awaiting the invention of Mattel’s hoverboards.
Other notable films included The Breakfast Club, Rocky IV and The Goonies.
In The Walkman
It was kind of a quiet year for music as compared to the rest of the decade. The No. 1 song on the Billboard Charts was ‘Shout’ by Tears for Fears, though following closely was a much more impactful song: ‘We are the World’ by Various Artists for African Relief. Musicians like Phil Collins, Elvis Costello, U2, Queen and Paul McCartney released the single to help famine in Africa and also took part in Live Aid, a worldwide fundraiser that raised nearly $2 billion for that very same cause.
Other notable singles included Madonna’s ‘Like a Virgin’ and ‘Careless Whisper’ by Wham!.
On Television
It’s safe to say Michael J. Fox was perhaps the king of 1985. While Back to the Future proved to be a hit and launch the actor into stardom, his sitcom, Family Ties, was among the top rated TV shows. The show featured a middle-class family comedically battling all sorts of real life topics, while always squeezing life lessons into the 30-minute program. Along the same lines was another ratings giant, The Cosby Show, featuring comedian Bill Cosby and marking the first time an upper middle-class black family was portrayed on TV. Both shows would eventually become favorites on Nick at Nite, Nickelodeon’s night time programming for adults – which, ironically, began airing in 1985.
Throughout the Sports World
During this time, the National Basketball Association reigned supreme, thanks to players like Magic Johnson, Julius Erving, Isiah Thomas and Akeem Olajuwon. The 1985 NBA Finals once again pitted the Boston Celtics against the Los Angeles Lakers – the greatest rivalry of the decade. In the end, it was Los Angeles that took home its third championship in five years, thanks in part to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who earned the Finals’ Most Valuable Player award.
Meanwhile, the National Hockey League was in the midst of one of its greatest dynasties. The Edmonton Oilers, led by Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier, took home its second straight Stanley Cup in 1985, defeating the underdog Philadelphia Flyers in five games. They were also the last team to appear in the Stanley Cup Finals for three straight seasons.
It was a similar situation for the National Football League, which was witnessing dominance in the making. The San Francisco 49ers won their second of what would be four Super Bowl championships during the decade, thanks to quarterback Joe Montana and running back Roger Craig. It was Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino’s best chance at a championship, a topic people still won’t shut up about today.
But perhaps the biggest surprise in sports came from a small college just outside of Philadelphia – Villanova. In what some still consider the biggest upset in college basketball history, the No. 8 seeded Wildcats defeated the heavily favored Georgetown Hoyas by a score of 66-64. No one gave Villanova a chance, especially considering it has lost to the Hoyas twice during the regular season, boy was there a lot of crow consumed after that one.
Pete Rose broke the all-time hit record as well, four years before his gambling shenanigans.
In Pop Culture
New Coke Falls Flat
In 1985, Coca-Cola got the brilliant idea to mess with their successful soft drink and thus, “New Coke” was born. The plan was to introduce it and then soon replace the original altogether – however, the public wanted none of that. Once Coca-Cola Classic was reintroduced, sales for the original went up considerably, raising one big question – marketing disaster, or stroke of genius? Whatever the case, New Coke, later called Coke II, was all but destroyed in 1998 and officially dead in 2002.
Wrestling Get Bigger
Called “The Greatest Wrestling Event of All-Time,” the World Wrestling Federation began Wrestlemania, its version of the Super Bowl, in 1985 at Madison Square Garden, in front of 19,121 fans. It was viewed on closed-circuit television by over one million fans and featured such wrestling greats as Hulk Hogan, Mr. T, The Iron Sheik and Andre the Giant. While it might not have been the greatest ever, it certainly helped wrestling spill into the mainstream and today it continues to be its biggest event.
Nintendo is Released
Within months of its release, the Nintendo Entertainment System, or NES, took the world by storm, causing fans to fall in love with a pair of plumbers, while leading them to hate ducks. The platform offered several games and soon produced hit after hit. It was the console that revolutionized video games and without it, you damn kids wouldn’t have your fancy Xbox or Playstation!
Down With the Ship
For 73 years, no one was able to find the RMS Titanic, perhaps the most famous ship ever. It rested somewhere deep beneath the Atlantic Ocean and seemed lost forever, that is, until it was found 370 miles off the coast of Canada. The Titanic was discovered by Dr. Robert Ballard, resting almost 13,000 feet below the surface, with much of it looking the way it did on that cold April night.
Hail to the Chief
After four years in office, President Ronald Reagan was sworn in for his second term in office. The former actor, who was a punch line in Back to the Future, served eight years as president, surviving an assassination attempt, the Cold War and Libya’s menstrual cycle.
Calvin and Hobbes Debuts
Considered one of the most recognizable comic strips of all-time, Calvin and Hobbes debuted in November of 1985 and ran for nearly a decade. The daily strip, by American cartoonist Bill Watterson, followed a six-year-old boy named Calvin and his humorous antics with his stuffed tiger. Within a year it was published in almost 250 American newspapers before going global. This is just one more thing that got us through before all of these fancy electronics.
Born in 1985
Notable births include:
Christiano Ronaldo – Brazilian soccer star
Bar Refaeli – Israeli model and actress
T-Pain – American Rapper/Noisemaker
Alex Ovechkin – Russian NHL star
Keira Knightley – British actress
Ed Miller is a contributor for CraveOnline Sports and a movie quote extraordinaire. You can follow him on Twitter @PhillyEdMiller or “like” CraveOnline Sports on Facebook.
Photo Credit: Getty
