Favorites Through The Decades

Back in June, Chris from The Collector had a very well written and enjoyable blog post where he listed his favorite movie, song, and card design from every decade from the fifties to present. It'evolved to a bat-a-round and many other bloggers have offered up their take.

I was all on board too! Let me tell you, this was no easy task! Picking my favorite card design was pretty easy, but the movies and songs....yikes! So many choices, and every time I thought I had settled on a choice, a forgotten title popped in my head and made me question everything!

The obvious disclaimer is that all of these choices are subject to change. I wouldn't bet against me coming up with replacement choices even after this post has published!

The 1950's

Favorite Card Design: 1955 Bowman

Favorite Movie: Alice In Wonderland (1951)

Favorite Song: "Johnny B Goode" by Chuck Berry (1958)

The first 1950's card I ever owned was a 1955 Bowman Gil McDougald - that retro TV border has a special place in my memories. "Alice In Wonderland" continues to be a vibrant and visually stunning movie. Rock 'N Roll in the fifties doesn't get any better than Chuck Berry.

The 1960's

Favorite Card Design: 1965 Topps

Favorite Movie: The Birds (1963)

Favorite Song: "Ticket To Ride" by The Beatles (1965)

Those big waving pendants make the 1965 design an easy choice for me. Even today, if I see an unusually large gathering of birds, I get uneasy. Picking music gets terribly hard starting in this decade - Led Zeppelin, Cream, and Deep Purple all had contenders here. Even when I decided on the Beatles, picking which song of theirs was a task unto itself.

The 1970's

Favorite Card Design: 1976 Topps

Favorite Movie: Young Frankenstein (1974)

Favorite Song: "Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas (1976)

In the end, those little cartoon guys in the corner gave 1976 the edge. "Young Frankenstein" is one of those movies that, no matter how many times I've seen it, I will stop and watch again and again. I know all the lines, and still I find it funny. From it's lyrical poetry ("If I claimed to be a wise man, it surely means that I don't know...") to it's amazing guitar solo, Carry On is a stadium rock classic!

The 1980's

Favorite Card Design: 1987 Topps

Favorite Movie: Time Bandits (1981)

Favorite Song: "Birdhouse In Your Soul" by They Might Be Giants (1989)

I know everyone is sick of now, but 1987 Topps was the first set I completed by hand. The eighties had a ton of great blockbusters, but I decided on one that probably not a lot of people have seen. It's my favorite time travel movie! I've seen They Might Be Giants in concert 4 times, so I had to pick a favorite song from them!

The 1990's

Favorite Card Design: 1990 Topps

Favorite Movie: The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

Favorite Song: "If I Had $1,000,000" by Barenaked Ladies (1992)

You either love the pop-art comic style of the 1990 Topps borders, or you hate them. I'm in the former category. The Shawshank Redemption is one of those movies that I'll admit was better than the story it came from ("Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" by Stephen King). The Barenaked Ladies are another favored band, and this classic tune is something everyone can relate to.

The 2000's

Favorite Card Design: 2008 Topps

Favorite Movie: The Lord Of The Rings - The Fellowship Of The Ring (2001)

Favorite Song: "The Pretender" by Foo Fighters (2007)

I wasn't actively collecting during this decade, but the bubbles come to mind. The LOTR books are some of my all-time favorites, and the entire movie trilogy is an amazing piece of cinematic art. The Foo Fighters kick ass, that's all that needs to be said.

The 2010's

Favorite Card Design: 2015 Topps

Favorite Movie: Marvel's The Avengers (2012)

Favorite Song: "Live To Rise" by Soundgarden (2012)

2015 Topps will go down as one of those iconic set designs, if it isn't already. I'm a big fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the first Avengers movie stands as the movie that first tied everything together. Even after 22 movies, this one is still fun to watch. The Avengers weren't the only super-group to return with this movie -  the first Soundgarden song in over a decade was part of the soundtrack, and it's hard to not love it. These lyrics still get to me:

"Like the sun, we will live to rise

Like the sun, we will live and die
And then ignite again"

So there you go, my favorites through the decade. Chances are by the time you read this, I may have other suitable choices in mind, but I'm content to roll with these.