What was prom like in *your* decade?

yoopermom

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Reading the other prom thread made me realize we sure didn't do much in the '80s :rotfl2:. Fancy dress and hair, but no professional nails or tanning. No limo, no "groups", parents took pictures in the backyard. Dinner out somewhere "nice" before the dance (which was in the school gym, that we had spent all afternoon decorating, with a live band). Postprom at the local VFW, then driving around/getting in trouble until dawn:rolleyes1.

We still managed to have lots of fun and still only spent a couple hundred bucks (and most of that went to hairspray for our tall bangs;)).

You?

Terri
PS Prom song? "Almost Paradise" from the Footloose soundtrack...
 
Went stag with buddies to jr prom. Wore a regular suit from the closet. Didn't even go to sr prom. (Edit: 1985) :rotfl2:
 
I went to a couple proms in 1971 and while we had fun, they were much the same as the "mixers" we used to have. Of course, we were busy rejecting the establishment back then, lol. My daughter graduated in 2002 and she didn't go to any of her proms, thought they were silly events, so I don't know what that group did.

I do think things have gone overboard these days, starting with birthdays, homecoming, proms, weddings, etc. If your prom is like a wedding, what the heck are you going to want for a wedding? It's just crazy to me.
 

Late 70s.
Junior prom, I wore green. He wore a gray tux. I did my own hair and make up. We went in his parents car...they gave him the "good" car for the night. Went out to eat at Beefsteak Charleys. Prom was fun. DJ, dancing. Pictures.

Senior Prom. I wore pink. He (a different "he") wore a burgundy tux.:crazy2: At the time though, we thought we were FABULOUS!!!!!:lmao: Again did my own hair and make up. Again his parents let him use the "good" car. Went to a local steakhouse for dinner, then onto the prom then down to the beach for an all night beach party. Went home for a while and then the next day we went to a local state park for yet more beach partying.

Nice memories...
 
We wore dresses that usually did dbl duty as bridesmaid attire. The guys rented tuxes. We got rides with friends/siblings with cars or parents.
A corsage was given to the girls from their dates. The school provided eats punch and music usually a disk jockey. We were expected home by midnight.
 
I didn't go to prom. But I also was an 80's teen, oh the Aqua Net, lol.

My friends mom rented a limo, for the 3 couples. No tanning.

My friend made everyone 2 hours late , dinner was missed.. So glad I didn't go.

But,, I did have some fun the next morning doing the cop knock at the pay by the hour motel the were at, lol.
 
/
1985, senior prom. lots of kids (most?) did limos, but my boyfriend had just bought a new sports car so we took that. lots of girls had their hair/nails done, but mine (asymmetrical and permed!) was easy to do so I just went ahead and did it. fancy/long dress and I wore gloves. and a wrist corsage!

our prom was at a gorgeous resort hotel on the beach, included dinner and dancing (band). prom song/theme was Tears for Fears, "everybody wants to rule the world."

there was no after prom lock in like there is around here now. my friends and I all went out to an over 21 club near the university (friend's bf knew a bouncer there). cannot believe we got away with it, we were in our prom gear still. after that we ended up at an after party in a hotel suite (more like a townhouse) that a bunch of people rented.

the big thing in our area was to stay out all night, go out to breakfast, and then head home. I just remember going to breakfast and still being wired around 6am. by the food got there, we all hit a wall, took two bites then headed home.

fun night! but thinking towards my own kids eventual proms, I love the idea of a lock-in like the do around here.

I just remember not wanting prom to end, I wanted to keep going, so we went with the options we made for ourselves. and yes, there was drinking involved at mine. but I know I would have loved it if we were all at the local club having a blast at the lock-in as well.
 
Well first thing that I remember is there were at least 5 other girls with my same Guinea Sax style dress. Today I hear they register dress so no duplicates. We had dinner at our prom site. There were pictures but I have none. We rented a few hotel rooms and crammed tons of kids in them and drank and partied all night. Drinking age was 18 so most of us were legal.
 
dress was very adult sexy
guy rented tux
guy was older and had very cool car:smokin:
guy was total jerk:rolleyes2
ditch prom date:thumbsup2
crashed after prom party at one of the beach hotels
got wasted sleep on the beach with friends

Best part of prom was the breakfast the morning after still dressed in our prom outfits.:cool1:

1980's, no pre dinner included in ticket price, at hotel banquet hall, 7- 11pm, no after prom, no tanning, most did own hair and makeup, lots of group limo action.
 
My prom was in 2006, Poofy dresses... The bigger and sparkley the better. We all shared a limo. Our school had it at a hotel banquet hall where dinner was included in the ticket. It was $90 a ticket.
 
My prom in the 80's was pretty much the same as dd17's here - fancy gown/tux's (with the ties matching the dresses), wrist corsage, hair and nails done (no spray tan - we did the real thing), fancy venue, limos, multi-course dinner, dj, weekend at the shore.

Not much has changed.
 
graduated in 81, went to prom 3 of my 4 years in high school.

It was in the gym. No limos or rented cars, it was "mandatory" (at least in our minds) that the guy have an awesome muscle car. Dinner out was at a popular pizza place which was really a lot of fun because everyone went there so it was more like a pre-party.

Dresses to the floor and high heels that came off the moment we hit the dance floor (the heels not the dress) :cool1: Most girls had their hair done but that was it--no nails or tanning.

Pictures were only done at prom with those cheesy backgrounds.

After parties were NOT done by parents. Usually at a lake or the creek or some open field. Lots of people went to the after parties and then to the beach until daylight.
 
1978-Sr Prom. My date wore a yellow tux. I wore a flowered full sleeved long dress. I did my own hair. No limo, no mani/pedi-heck I did my own nails and didn't know you could pay to have someone else do them.:lmao:

My date drove his dad's car. Can't remember the model, but it was nice (maybe a Monte Carlo). Dinner at the AFB Officer's club. Prom at a big hotel in Washington DC (I went to HS in suburban MD) Went to a party at someone's house that my date knew. I got home at 5 am. My date was a nice guy and I last saw him at my 10 yr HS reunion where he met my DH. We actually went out a couple of times before prom. We might have dated longer but a guy who liked me but took someone else to prom interfered. My date bought us a bottle of champagne and we brought it into the dance. I was 18 and it was legal. We partied all night and had a good time. It probably didn't end the way he wanted it to, but we had fun.

Back then, if you didn't have a date, you didn't go to prom. No group thing. I know a couple of girls who weren't asked and they were a little bitter at the time.
 
Mine was cancelled...in respect for the Vietnam war. :cool2:

I was fine with it!:yay: I hate those kind of things!
 
1978-Sr Prom. My date wore a yellow tux. I wore a flowered full sleeved long dress. I did my own hair. No limo, no mani/pedi-heck I did my own nails and didn't know you could pay to have someone else do them.:lmao:

Oh, I forgot about those colored tuxes! Now its just the tie and vest maybe that match the dress, in my day it was the whole tux. Red, yellow, blue, purple and at our school maroon was a popular tux color (school color). The guys looked like Easter eggs!

And there was always the guys that had the tails, top hats and canes. Too cool! :rotfl:
 
Oh, I forgot about those colored tuxes! Now its just the tie and vest maybe that match the dress, in my day it was the whole tux. Red, yellow, blue, purple and at our school maroon was a popular tux color (school color). The guys looked like Easter eggs!

And there was always the guys that had the tails, top hats and canes. Too cool! :rotfl:

Ours were pastels-blue, green, yellow with ruffled shirt. My date had red hair so yellow worked well.:lmao:

My dress had pastel blues and yellows which is why he picked yellow. And we had a couple of guys in top hats and tails with canes. It was so 1970's. We danced to disco music and slow music (Color My World)
 
Mine was cancelled...in respect for the Vietnam war. :cool2:

I was fine with it!:yay: I hate those kind of things!



Wouldn't that have meant canceling prom for a looooooooong time?

We had jr/sr prom. We paid nothing, since we started fundraising in 9th grade. We had a sit down dinner for both grades & their dates, then a dance with a DJ at the same venue. Once that was over, we rented someplace with lots of activities and most of us stayed there for a few hours and then headed for the lake. Grabbed breakfast and got home around 6:30 a.m.

No limos, tuxes instead of suits, we did our own nails and hair, etc.

I'm sure it will be night and day when DD goes to prom.
 
1977 The prom was at a local hotel. Even in a relatively affluent school district, renting a limo was simply unheard of at the time. I managed to get my mother's new Dodge Aspen for the evening instead of driving my clunker 1967 Plymouth Belvedere. Drinking age was 18; many of the seniors were of age but it was still an alcohol-free event. Of course many snuck out to their cars from time to time for refreshments.

Nothing was too elaborate or over the top like many proms are today.

My rented tux was rust colored, which was popular at the time. My date wore a nice pale blue dress, but nothing fancy.

After the prom we made the round of several parties then had breakfast about 5am at the all night diner. The next day many people went to various shore locations to spend the rest of the weekend.

Jim
 
I went to a private, Christian school, so, instead of prom, we had Jr./Sr. Banquet - for both the Junior & Senior classes.

It was our version of "prom" - fancy dresses, tuxes, etc.

But, instead of dancing, we had a fancy sit-down 3-course dinner & a speaker - both years it was some kind of chicken dish. LOL! And, then after the banquet, we headed out for our real parties.

When you were a junior, your class paid for the banquet, decided the theme & venue, & decorated for the event.

You fund-raised from the time you were in 9th for the Jr/Sr Banquet (your junior year) & your senior trip & senior graduation reception (your senior year).

Teachers & their spouses, the speaker & his spouse, & seniors attended for free. If the seniors asked any non-students as their dates, then they had to pay for their dates. Juniors & their dates had to pay. Tickets were like $25/person.

In 1990, for our junior year, the banquet was held in the ballroom of a historic hotel in our downtown area. The theme was "Always & Forever" - which is NOT what I wanted. I wanted "As Time Goes By," but I was outvoted. Our colors were cream & burgundy.

I wore a emerald green & black dress & some awesome black heels. My date wore a black tux w/ an emerald green bowtie. I did my own makeup & nails, but did have my hair professionally done. We drove my car because it was nicer than my date's. My date gave me a matching pin-on corsage.

In 1991, for our senior year, the banquet was held in the ballroom of another historic building in our downtown area. I can't remember what the theme was, but the colors were cream & navy blue.

I wore a white lace dress... very bridal! My date (the same date I had my junior year) wore a black tux w/ a white tie... very groomish. As we were actually dating, we received plenty of comments. I again did my own nails & makeup, but had my hair professionally done. And we again drove my car. This time, my date gave me a matching wrist corsage.

For both years, we went to someone's house for the after-party & spent some time just cruising around trying to stay out as late as we could.

At the time, renting limos wasn't very popular, but, in the years following, it became more of a "thing".

We girls would get out of class around noon for our hair appointments & to "get ready".

When my date came to pick me up, my mom took several pictures of us, but my date's mom wasn't also there taking pictures. We also just took pictures at my house. There was a professional photographer at the venue taking pictures of each couple.

We didn't really go in "groups." Sometimes 2 couples might go together, but that was really the extent of things. And there were no huge elaborate "prom-posals." I can't even remember if my date asked me or just assumed we were going together.

Funny aside, my date's best friend was my future DH. DH's date was my then best friend. But I had a secret crush on DH.
 













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