The Last '80s Newsletter (You'll Ever Need)

Why?

Why would I add another thing that I am obligated to do?

Because this is a promise I already made you once before, and this time, I intend to finish it.

I loved ‘80s All Over more than you know. It was, on the whole, one of my favorite experiences I’ve ever had creatively. I wish desperately that I had made it all the way to the end, but the way we built that particular show was not built to last. There’s no point in dissecting it or bemoaning it. It’s just the way creative endeavors go sometimes, and I still think the world of Bobby Roberts and Scott Weinberg, as well as the show we made. There’s no shame in any of that.

But I did a ton of research for that show. I was the guy who was building all of our schedules and compiling all of our lists and I bought books to help reverse engineer things and old research materials I had to hunt down and all of it was this mountain of work that went unfinished when the show blew up.

I still plan on putting all of this together as either a book or a series of books. I’m not sure which yet. It depends on how big this all is once it’s put together.

In the meantime, I want to continue the work I’ve been doing. I’ve been refining the original lists, nailing down actual release dates for everything, and compiling even more research materials. I now actually have in my possession every film released commercially in the US between January 1, 1980 and December 31, 1989, and I have everything listed by release date and I am actually moving it all onto my Plex server so I can access it any time I want to… all of it. Every single film. All 2500+ of them. I’m not there yet, but it’s underway…

And I want to start sharing this work. And I want to start monetizing this work. So I am going to make this particular newsletter subscription-only from the start. To be clear, I am sending this to everyone who gets the free version of Formerly Dangerous, but just once. This is not covered by a subscription to that newsletter. This is a whole different thing. I may share little bits and pieces in the main newsletter, but if you want to read this work in progress as I share it, along with updates about what’s going on with the larger project, then this is the way to do it.

We’re going to take this month-by-month. There is a limit to the size of these newsletters, though, so some months may be broken up into a series of newsletters that I publish in one day. We are going to publish once a month on the 15th, and each newsletter is going to be broken down in chronological order. Once this is done, you’re going to have the most comprehensive research project on American movies in the ‘80s that anyone’s ever published. And in order to get there, I’m going to need your help financially. That’s why this one’s not free or just an add-on to the main newsletter. This is a separate thing.

Each issue is $5. You can buy an annual subscription for $55. That is not cheap for something you’ll only get once per month, but it’s also an incredibly difficult project in terms of time and energy, and I’ve got to make it worthwhile as it’s underway. It may sound like a lot of money, but you’re covering a major research project for me and you’re getting an amazing amount of material in return. Even if you listened to ‘80s All Over, you have no idea what you’re in for.

Neither do I, honestly. But I know it’s going to be a good time.

Subscriptions are live now and the first issue will be sent to subscribers on June 15.

I hope you’re part of it.