That 70’s Show!

As soon as I read this weeks blog topic, I knew exactly what I was going to write about: “That 70’s Show.” One of my favorite television shows, “That 70’s Show,” according to my mom, is an accurate depiction of life in the 70’s.

From Steven Hyde’s Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Jethro Tull T-shirts to Eric Foreman’s Star Wars obsession “That 70’s Show” will forever preserve the good and bad of the seventies. Covering all the bases of pop culture, through the adventures of Eric Foreman and his friends: Steven Hyde, Jackie Burkhart, Donna Pinciatti, Michael Kelso, and Fez,  “That 70’s Show” constantly references the popular music, movies, shows, and trends of the 70’s.

In addition to dealing with issues still relevant to teens today, such as parents divorce, sex and relationships and illegally obtaining beer (going as far as Canada to do so), “That 70’s Show” devoted entire episodes to everyday events occurring specifically in the 70’s like going to the drive-in or going to a record store.

Everything about the characters, their clothes, cars, bedrooms and hobbies all teach us something about the 70’s. Jackie’s clogs and peasant dresses and Hyde’s denim jackets and work boots are both examples of different styles that were popular and the Vista Cruiser, Kelso’s Van, and Hyde’s hand-me-down El Camino are all typical of the 70’s. The bright furnishings in the Forman’s house were stereotypically 70’s and Eric’s bedroom contained all of the things deemed essential to a teenage boy growing up during the decade: a lava lamp, poster of Farah Fawcett, Kiss poster, and of course Star Wars figurines.

Entire episodes are devoted to aspects of 70’s pop culture including “A New Hope,” in which Eric and the gang go to see the new Star Wars Movie and Eric has a dream in which Eric plays Luke, Donna Leah, Hyde Han Solo, Kelso Chewy, and Fez and Jackie are storm troopers and “Red Sees Red” in which Kitty dreams that she hosts her own version of the Brady Bunch Variety Hour featuring Churro and Gene Simmons.  In other episodes, there are shorter dream sequences casting members as Jackie Chan and Charlie’s Angels as well as one or two line references to Happy Days (when Jackie dresses Kelso as the Fonz), Soul Train, and Gilligan’s Island.

Great music was part of what made the 70’s so memorable. On “That 70’s Show,” Steven Hyde, my favorite character, is the music aficionado, at least when it comes to 70’s rock, which is, in my opinion, the best. Almost every episode, Hyde dons a band t-shirt paying subtle tribute to bands including Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, The Rolling Stones, Santana, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jethro Tull, The Allman Brothers Band, Blue Oyster Cult, and The Who – basically all of the musicians I love.

The teen obsession with marijuana, which was particularly big in the 70’s, is featured in almost every episode of  “That 70’s Show.” Mostly within “the circle” in Eric’s basement, “special brownies” also made regular appearances on the show, which inevitably made smoking weed look cool. Leo, the drug-saturated hippie, “chill” as he is, shows the long term affects of drug abuse and how may war veterans turned to drug use to cope with what they had experienced overseas.

In addition to preserving the pop culture and trends of the 70’s, “That 70’s Show” also shines a light on political issues that took place during the 70’s. Through Kitty and Red’s money troubles, “That 70’s Show” addresses the economic recession that took place from 1973 to 1975 and through Midge and Bob’s turbulent relationship,“That 70’s Show” reminds viewers of the women’s rights/feminist movement, which also took place during the 70’s.