42 trivia questions from the 80s with answers

Questions for an 80s party or a quiz night: MTV and Thriller, Live Aid, Back to the Future and Top Gun, the Rubik's Cube, Pac-Man and Tetris, the Challenger launch and the first woman on the Supreme Court. Each of the five sections makes a round, and every answer links to its source.

42 questions · Trivia questions from the 80s with answers · answers included

Updated 26 Oct 2026

Music and MTV

1
In which year did MTV go on the air?

medium

Answer
1981, on August 1.
It began by playing music videos introduced by video jockeys, or VJs.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV?oldid=1381462863
2
What was the first music video MTV played?

hard

Answer
"Video Killed the Radio Star", by the Buggles.
The title fit the new channel.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV?oldid=1381462863
3
Which dance did Michael Jackson first show on the Motown 25 TV special?

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Answer
The moonwalk.
Sales of his album Thriller rose fast afterward.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_(album)?oldid=1379025389
4
By early 1984, what record had Michael Jackson's Thriller set?

medium

Answer
The best-selling album of all time.
It had sold over 30 million copies by then.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_(album)?oldid=1379025389
5
Who produced Michael Jackson's Thriller?

hard

Answer
Quincy Jones.
He had also produced Jackson's album Off the Wall.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_(album)?oldid=1379025389
6
Live Aid, in July 1985, was held in which two stadiums at once?

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Answer
Wembley Stadium in London and John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia.
About 1.9 billion people watched the broadcast.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_Aid?oldid=1377845668
7
Live Aid raised money to relieve a famine in which country?

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Answer
Ethiopia.
Bob Geldof and Midge Ure organized it.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_Aid?oldid=1377845668
8
Which 1984 charity single started the movement that led to Live Aid?

medium

Answer
"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
It was released in December 1984.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_Aid?oldid=1377845668
9
Which two companies developed the compact disc, or CD?

medium

Answer
Philips and Sony.
The first CDs went on sale in Japan in October 1982.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_disc?oldid=1379402942
10
How many minutes of music did a standard CD usually hold?

hard

Answer
74 minutes.
Later discs stretched it to 80 minutes.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_disc?oldid=1379402942
11
Who sang the theme song from the film Ghostbusters?

medium

Answer
Ray Parker Jr.
The song went to number one.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghostbusters?oldid=1381958002

Films and TV

12
In Back to the Future, how fast must the DeLorean go to travel in time?

easy

Answer
88 miles per hour.
The film's makers chose the speed because it was easy to remember.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Back_to_the_Future?oldid=1379382201
13
In Back to the Future, to which year is Marty McFly sent back?

easy

Answer
1955.
The film itself is set in 1985.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Back_to_the_Future?oldid=1379382201
14
In which city do the Ghostbusters set up their ghost-catching business?

easy

Answer
New York City.
The film came out in 1984.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghostbusters?oldid=1381958002
15
In The Breakfast Club, why are five teenagers at school on a Saturday?

medium

Answer
Detention.
Each comes from a different high school clique.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Breakfast_Club?oldid=1380365740
16
Who wrote and directed The Breakfast Club?

hard

Answer
John Hughes.
He also wrote Home Alone a few years later.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Breakfast_Club?oldid=1380365740
17
What is Tom Cruise's call sign in Top Gun?

easy

Answer
Maverick.
His full name in the film is Pete Mitchell.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_Gun?oldid=1380379970
18
In Top Gun, what is the call sign of Maverick's radar intercept officer?

medium

Answer
Goose.
Anthony Edwards plays him.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_Gun?oldid=1380379970
19
Which 1980 film was the second Star Wars film?

easy

Answer
The Empire Strikes Back.
It is also called Episode V.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Empire_Strikes_Back?oldid=1380952859
20
"Who shot J.R.?" was the big question about which TV show in 1980?

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Answer
Dallas.
About 83 million Americans watched the episode that gave the answer.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_shot_J.R.%3F?oldid=1380208189

Games and toys

21
Who invented the Rubik's Cube?

easy

Answer
Ernő Rubik, a Hungarian professor of architecture.
He invented it in 1974; it went on sale around the world in 1980.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubik%27s_Cube?oldid=1380802996
22
What was the Rubik's Cube first called?

hard

Answer
The Magic Cube.
Its Hungarian name is bűvös kocka.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubik%27s_Cube?oldid=1380802996
23
How many stickers covered each face of the original Rubik's Cube?

medium

Answer
Nine.
Six faces of nine make 54 stickers in all.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubik%27s_Cube?oldid=1380802996
24
What was Pac-Man called when it first came out in Japan?

medium

Answer
Puck Man.
It reached North America in October 1980.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man?oldid=1381362926
25
Which food gave the designer the idea for Pac-Man's shape?

easy

Answer
A pizza with a slice removed.
The designer was Toru Iwatani.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man?oldid=1381362926
26
What happens to the ghosts when Pac-Man eats a Power Pellet?

medium

Answer
They turn blue, and Pac-Man can eat them.
Eating a ghost scores bonus points.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man?oldid=1381362926
27
Which famous character first appeared in the 1981 arcade game Donkey Kong?

easy

Answer
Mario, then sometimes called Jumpman.
He climbs ladders to rescue Pauline from the gorilla.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donkey_Kong_(1981_video_game)?oldid=1381647539
28
Who designed Donkey Kong?

hard

Answer
Shigeru Miyamoto.
It was his first video game.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donkey_Kong_(1981_video_game)?oldid=1381647539
29
What was the Nintendo Entertainment System called in Japan?

hard

Answer
The Family Computer, or Famicom.
It came out there in July 1983.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_Entertainment_System?oldid=1381905156
30
In which year did the first Game Boy come out?

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Answer
1989.
It came out in Japan in April and in North America in July.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_Boy?oldid=1377322017
31
Who created Tetris?

medium

Answer
Alexey Pajitnov, a Soviet software engineer.
He made it in his spare time in the mid-1980s.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetris?oldid=1381892036
32
How many blocks make up each falling piece in Tetris?

easy

Answer
Four.
The pieces are called tetrominoes.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetris?oldid=1381892036
33
Which company first made Cabbage Patch Kids dolls, in 1982?

hard

Answer
Coleco.
The dolls set toy sales records three years running.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabbage_Patch_Kids?oldid=1380629318

News and history

34
Which space shuttle broke apart 73 seconds after launch in January 1986?

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Answer
Challenger.
All seven crew members died.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Challenger_disaster?oldid=1381384970
35
Which schoolteacher was chosen to fly on the space shuttle in 1986 as the Teacher in Space?

medium

Answer
Christa McAuliffe.
Many schoolchildren watched the launch live.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Challenger_disaster?oldid=1381384970
36
In 1986, a reactor exploded at Chernobyl. Which country was Chernobyl in then?

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Answer
The Soviet Union, in today's Ukraine.
It remains the worst nuclear disaster.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster?oldid=1380805589
37
In which London cathedral did Prince Charles marry Lady Diana Spencer in 1981?

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Answer
St Paul's Cathedral.
The United Kingdom had a national holiday that day.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wedding_of_Prince_Charles_and_Lady_Diana_Spencer?oldid=1379995429
38
In 1981, who became the first woman to serve on the US Supreme Court?

medium

Answer
Sandra Day O'Connor.
President Ronald Reagan nominated her.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandra_Day_O%27Connor?oldid=1381313067
39
During which TV event was Apple's "1984" ad for the first Macintosh shown?

medium

Answer
The Super Bowl, Super Bowl XVIII.
Ridley Scott directed the ad.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macintosh_128K?oldid=1381880280

Sport

40
What was Wayne Gretzky's nickname?

easy

Answer
The Great One.
He played 20 seasons in the NHL.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Gretzky?oldid=1380831440
41
Wayne Gretzky is the only NHL player to score more than how many points in one season?

hard

Answer
200 points, which he did four times.
He retired in 1999 holding 61 NHL records.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Gretzky?oldid=1380831440
42
At what age did Mike Tyson become the youngest boxer to win a heavyweight title?

medium

Answer
20.
He won his first 19 professional fights by knockout.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Tyson?oldid=1381501821

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