Home : The Retro Network

Cage Without a Key – Was Sidney Sheldon Inspired by It?

Did they do it all in the ‘70s with nothing left untouched when it came to storylines for cinema and TV? Revisiting little known or long-forgotten gems from the decade supports this impression. Even Sidney

Breaker Breaker: The CB Radio Craze That Took Over The 70s

The 1970s CB radio craze turned everyday Americans into road‑ready personalities, creating a nationwide culture of slang, handles, and open‑road connection.

He Man And The Masters Of The Universe: The Cartoon That Helped Build A Toy Empire

The 1980s He Man cartoon became a landmark in toy history, created to support the Masters of the Universe line after FCC rule changes allowed shows built around merchandise.

Burger King’s Forgotten ‘Fine Dining’ Experiment in the 1990s

Burger King’s early 90s Table Service brought popcorn appetizers, Dinner Baskets, new sides, and Bob Uecker and Dan Cortese ads to a slower, friendlier fast‑food experience.

Mighty Max: The Pocket Sized World Of Monsters, Mayhem, And 90s Imagination

Mighty Max turned pocket sized playsets into sprawling worlds of monsters and adventure, proving that 90s imagination did not need big toys to feel enormous.

Batman 1989: The Summer the Dark Knight Ruled Pop Culture

Batman’s 1989 takeover turned a simple movie release into a cultural tidal wave, with the bat emblem dominating stores, fashion, music, and the entire summer landscape.

Cheers: The Show That Made America Feel At Home

Cheers turned a simple Boston bar into one of television’s most beloved gathering places, blending sharp humor, unforgettable characters, and a sense of community that still resonates decades later.

Visionaries Action Figures Are Returning After Nearly 40 Years

Visionaries is officially returning to store shelves for the first time since the late eighties, with Super7 launching new ReAction+ figures based on the classic hologram‑driven toy line.

The Wild History of Action Park and the Chaos That Closed It

Action Park delivered wild, barely supervised thrills where concrete slides, brutal wave pools, and experimental rides made danger part of the fun and ultimately part of its downfall.

The Herculoids: The Most Unusual Heroes Hanna‑Barbera Ever Created

Long before sleek space operas filled the airwaves, The Herculoids gave kids a wild, untamed universe where laser dragons, rock apes, and shape‑shifting blobs defended a distant planet with raw, primal energy.

RollerJam: Pro Wrestling on Wheels

RollerJam brought pro‑wrestling theatrics to the banked track, reviving roller derby in the late ’90s with hard hits, big personalities, and storylines that made every episode feel like a collision of sports, spectacle, and pure adrenaline.

The Lost Treasures of Atari’s Swordquest

Atari’s Swordquest series promised real‑world treasure and a quest unlike anything the arcade world had seen. Blending comics, puzzles, and high‑stakes competition, it became one of gaming’s most fascinating lost legends.

Whatever Happened to MTV’s Original VJs?

When MTV launched on August 1, 1981, it didn’t just revolutionize music television—it introduced the world to a new kind of celebrity: the Video Jockey, or VJ. Five charismatic personalities became the faces of the

The Failed Coke MagiCan Promotion of 1990

In the ’80s and ’90s, America had some of the best contests. We had Publisher’s Clearing House where you could win huge fake checks. We had McDonald’s Monopoly which took just as long and was

Hollywood’s Most Memorable Disaster Movies

Oh the calamities…Disasters from the exhilarating highs of airborne disaster movies to the dramatic sea depths and everything in between. In those halcyon years of the 1970s, those masters – and mistresses – of disaster

The Rise of the Personal Pan Pizza and the BOOK IT Generation

For eighties and nineties kids, the Personal Pan Pizza wasn’t just lunch. It was a moment. It was the smell that drifted through the mall, the hot pan placed on a red plastic tray, and the feeling that you finally had a pizza that belonged entirely to you.

Construx: The Toughest, Coolest, Most Underrated Toy of the Eighties

Construx didn’t look like LEGO or Tinkertoys. It looked like something pulled off a futuristic workbench, and for a few magical years in the eighties, it turned bedrooms into engineering labs.

When Star Wars Became Playable: Why Classic Star Wars Games Still Hit So Hard

Star Wars was never just a movie series. Retro fans have always known that. After 1977 it spilled out everywhere — toy boxes, playgrounds, lunchboxes, comics, TV specials, Saturday morning cartoons, VHS tapes, and eventually

A League of Their Own: The Sitcom That Couldn’t Match the Movie Magic

The Rockford Peaches made a quick jump to prime time in 1993, but their sitcom run was so short and shaky that most viewers never even knew it existed.

From Boom to Bust: The Story of the Nineties Comic Book Gold Rush

The 1990s comics boom erupted with speculation, superstar artists, and flashy new publishers, reshaping the industry before its sudden crash exposed how fragile the frenzy truly was.

Rehearsal and Audition Footage from 1984’s The Karate Kid

I make it no secret that I am a huge fan of the original 1984 film The Karate Kid. I am not embarrassed to say that it is not only a guilty pleasure movie for

A Look Back at Nick at Nite

This coming week will celebrate 35 years of Nick at Nite, the family-friendly programming block during the evening hours on Nickelodeon. On July 1, 1985, Nick at Nite launched with only a handful of shows

Big Trak: The Programmable Tank That Drove Our Childhoods

November of 1979 was the moment the future finally arrived in the American living room. When the holidays arrived a month later, many American children (mostly boys) were treated to the toy of their dreams,

The Last Action Heroes: A Journey into the Golden Age of Action Movies

In a world where action movies rule supreme, there is one decade that stands above the rest, the 1980s! Recently I discovered the book, The Last Action Heroes: The Triumphs, Flops and Feuds of Hollywood’s

15 Totally Awesome 90s Infomercials

I think it’s been pretty well established that I think of the 90s as the best decade. I think it’s also been pretty well established that I watched A LOT of television during that time.

How a Little Train Ride Became Dollywood

Dollywood rose from a simple Smoky Mountain train ride, growing through four identities before Dolly Parton transformed it into one of America’s most beloved family parks.

When the Chipmunks Ruled Saturday Mornings

The Chipmunks turned eighties Saturday mornings into a musical playground, blending pop hits, bright animation, and sibling chaos that made Alvin, Simon, and Theodore unforgettable.

When KFC Tried to Build a Roast Beef Empire

For a brief moment in the 1960s, the Colonel tried to expand his kingdom with Kentucky Roast Beef, a forgotten venture that proved not every roadside dream could match his famous chicken.

Plastic Terror: The Jaws Toy That Ruled Toy Boxes

Ideal’s snapping shark turned Jaws into a hands‑on thrill, letting kids recreate the movie’s suspense with a plastic predator that made every game feel like a close call.

The All American Dessert From the ’90s Will Be the Star of Your Fourth of July

Bring a cool burst of nineties nostalgia to your Fourth of July table with this All American Dessert, a sweet and colorful throwback that always shines at a summer cookout.

Super ’70s

Awesome ’80s

Nostalgic ’90s