Photos That Capture The Magic Of Miami In The ’80s
It’s hard to think of a decade and a city more synonymous with one another than Miami in the 1980s. The city was glamorized for its extensive beaches and lavish nightclubs, while simultaneously dealing with an uptick in crime.
While the city dealt with significant growing pains during this era, it was able to emerge from the decade as a vibrant, international city that still looms large in pop culture.
Miami Vice helped set the tone.
For many people, the stylized version of Miami depicted on the hit TV show Miami Vice shaped their view of the city.
This promotional image from season one shows Philip Michael Thomas and Don Johnson, who played a pair of detectives who took on Miami’s criminal underworld. With its charismatic leads and cinematic visuals, the show was one of the biggest hits of the decade.
These hotels are quintessentially Miami.
Miami’s art deco hotels, particularly those along Ocean Drive in South Beach, are a symbol of the region. While they weren’t built in the ’80s – most were put up during the ’30s and ’40s – Miami’s role on the national stage helped to make them iconic during this decade.
Of note, many of these hotels were restored during the 1980s by the Miami Design Preservation League. Without these efforts, they may have been torn down.
It was (and is) a hub for Latin American culture.
This image of musician Julio Iglesias relaxing poolside at his Miami mansion in 1980 shows one of the city’s biggest stars in his adopted home city.
Iglesias was already one of the best-selling Latin artists of all time, and his bilingual crossover appeal helped him gain traction with new audiences.
Civil unrest could be an issue.
While not as well known as the various riots that have plagued Los Angeles over the years, Miami was still the site of numerous major riots in the 1980s that underscored deep racial and economic tensions.
This image shows a riot squad patrolling Miami’s Overtown area in the aftermath of a riot. This riot was spurred by the death of a Black motorcyclist who was chased down by police.
Art deco was celebrated.
For decades, the art deco hotels on Ocean Drive were not viewed as anything particularly special, but in the 1980s, preservationists called attention to Miami’s unique design heritage.
This image from 1981 shows dogs and their humans during a meetup in Miami Beach. The occasion was the Art Deco Festival – an example of Miamians celebrating these visual designs.
Miami is an oceanic playground.
It isn’t too surprising that boats have been a part of Miami’s landscape for as long as Miami has been a city, owing to its coastal location. In the 1980s, boating culture was very much in full swing.
This image shows a pair of boaters on a catamaran as they balance precariously in preparation for an upcoming race.
It’s a place for pageants.
Beauty contests have ebbed and flowed in terms of popularity over the years, but in the 1980s, the Miss Universe pageant was a big deal – and it’s safe to say that Miami was its epicenter.
While Miami wasn’t the permanent home of Miss Universe, it did host the pageant several times in the 1980s at the Miami Beach Convention Center.
The work never ends for meteorologists.
Owing to Miami’s tropical climate and susceptibility to hurricanes, it’s always been critical for city planners and officials to be aware of the current hurricane threat.
While storm tracking technology has come a long way since the 1980s, this image of meteorologists at the National Hurricane Center tracking 1985’s Hurricane Maria shows that eyes have always been on the skies.
Customs agents always have their hands full.
Miami is a hotspot for contraband – not just illicit substances, but also counterfeit goods. This image shows a U.S. Customs agent destroying over 17,000 fake designer watches in a novel way: by using a steamroller.
Counterfeit money and goods were so pervasive in 1980s Miami that they shaped one of the city’s defining images: not of a sun-soaked, glamorous paradise, but of a city with a gritty, dangerous criminal underworld.
Celebrities have always flocked to Miami.
Whether it’s an awards show or a big sporting event, it’s always safe to say that on-air personalities have always enjoyed their time in Miami to cover these events.
This 1982 image shows football personalities Don Meredith, Howard Cosell, and Frank Gifford as they shoot an episode of the NFL Superstars TV show at the beach.
There was a booming trade in illicit substances.
This image shows a police dog undertaking a training exercise, but scenes like this were common in 1980s Miami, owing to the city’s central role in the trade of illegal and illicit substances.
For much of the decade, Miami was the prime U.S. entry point for substances that had been smuggled from Central and South America.
The city contributed to today’s vaporwave aesthetic.
There’s something undeniably dreamy about this photo of an Eastern Airlines passenger jet at Miami International Airport, but the photo wasn’t taken for its aesthetics.
Instead, this image underscored an economic issue: the fact that Eastern Airlines, which was a major carrier in Miami and the Latin American markets, was on the verge of bankruptcy.
It’s a place for high fashion.
Miami’s picturesque setting and frequent sunshine have made it a popular spot for fashion photographers over the years, as evidenced by this 1989 Vogue photoshoot on Miami Beach.
Besides the ideal weather, the pastel hues of the buildings on Ocean Drive give Miami a dreamlike quality and visual appeal that’s all its own.
Races aren’t all on the water.
Boat races are a Miami tradition, but road races are also a celebrated facet of Miami’s culture. This photograph shows action at the 1987 Camel GT, which at the time was a premier road racing series.
Camel GT races drew large crowds through the ’80s and into the ’90s, but the series was eventually phased out due to sponsorship changes and shifts in racing trends.
The decade helped shape the city.
While Miami was a significant U.S. city before the 1980s, it didn’t really enter the national or international spotlight until this impactful decade.
The era was not without its challenges, as Miami in the ’80s is associated with violence and unrest nearly as much as it is with beaches and glamour. Still, Miami emerged from this tumultuous decade with a new image and a new importance on the national stage.
