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The Movies of 1984

Trivia, Word Search, and a Quiz

On June 8, the supernatural comedy Ghostbusters is released to critical acclaim and becomes the highest grossing movie of the year. It also becomes the highest grossing comedy to date.

What Ghostbusters achieved this year was no mean feat. In 1984, U.S. box office sales reached $4 billion for the first time. This was also the first year that four movies would each exceed $100 million by the end of their theatrical run. Perhaps most telling, it was the first time in five years that the top-grossing movie did not involve George Lucas or Steven Spielberg — two men who seemingly have the Midas touch when it comes to creating motion pictures.

Here's some more trivia from the world of cinema in 1984:

  • Actress and comedian Kate McKinnon is born this year. Barely three decades later she would begin filming the box office bomb Ghostbusters (2016), which was an all-female reboot of the original movie.
  • Actors making their big screen debuts this year include Johnny Depp in the supernatural slasher A Nightmare on Elm Street, Colin Firth in the British historical drama Another Country, Corey Haim in the drama Firstborn, Val Kilmer in the action comedy Top Secret!, Kyle MacLachlan in the sci-fi epic Dune, Aidan Quinn in the romantic drama Reckless, and Tim Roth in the British crime thriller The Hit.
  • The Last Starfighter becomes the first movie to use 'integrated CGI' where special effects replace real-world objects and can be fully integrated with live-action sequences.
  • The 1980s breakdancing movie craze has its best year, starting with the release of Breakin'. It is quickly followed by Beat Street and Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo.
  • James Mason, who stars in the spy thriller North by Northwest (1959), dies this year. Sam Peckinpah, who once directed Mason in the World War II movie Cross of Iron (1977), also dies.

1984 Movies Word Search

The movies in the following two word searches were movies released in 1984. Just like all the movies on this page (unless otherwise noted).

The first word search is easy: 20 movie titles hidden in a small 22 × 20 letter grid. The second is more challenging: 36 movie titles in a large 34 × 32 letter grid.

So load your printer with standard 8.5" × 11" paper, download, hit print and start solving. Our PDF files print out beautifully and are always free to download on our site.

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More Word Searches

These word search puzzles are on particular movies from 1984. They each have 36 terms hidden in a large 34 × 32 letter grid.

Gremlins Footloose Sixteen Candles Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

10 Question Quiz on 1984 Movies

How well do you know what came out on the Silver Screen in 1984? Take our quiz and find out. There's no time limit and no scoring. Just have fun!

1. In Gremlins there are 3 rules to be followed if you own Mogwai, or these cute little creatures will create chaos: Don't get them wet, keep them out of bright lights, and don't feed them ___.

A. cheese
B. after midnight
C. vegetables
D. chocolate

2. Which 1980s pop artist makes his/her acting debut in the musical drama Purple Rain?

A. Prince
B. Madonna
C. Michael Jackson
D. George Michael

3. In Splash, Tom Hanks falls in love with a woman who is secretly what?

A. Surfer
B. Navy SEAL
C. Lifeguard
D. Mermaid

4. John Hughes, who wrote and directed the coming-of-age teen comedy Sixteen Candles, was born on February 18, 1950 or 2/18/50. Where does the number 21850 appear in this movie?

A. Car license plate
B. House number
C. Bank statement
D. Address zip code

5. Although over 150 different pairs of dancing feet were shot, only 24 pairs actually made it into the opening credits sequence for Kevin Bacon's Footloose. Interestingly, each pair had shoes (except for one doing a moonwalk in red socks) and each appeared for a total of 6 seconds.

Here's the question: the 14th pair of feet are wearing gold dress shoes and blue jeans. Whose dancing feet are these?

A. John Lithgow
B. Kevin Bacon
C. Kenny Loggins
D. Tom Cruise

6. In Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom chilled monkey brains are served as a dessert. What was actually served to the cast in this scene?

Hint: it was covered with raspberry sauce.

A. Mini marshmallows
B. Rice pudding
C. Ice cream
D. Custard

7. If the Paris of Paris, Texas actually exists, what is its approximate population?

A. 250
B. 2,500
C. 25,000
D. Does not exist

8. The Flamingo Kid was the first movie to receive a PG-13 rating, but not the first to be released into theaters with that rating. Which 1984 movie bears that distinction?

9. What was the mantra repeated over and over again in The Karate Kid, which was first learned in the scene where Ralph Macchio had to clean his martial arts instructor's cars?

A. "Apply, polish."
B. "Wax on, wax off."
C. "Wet, wash, wipe."
D. "Soap, scrub, spray."

10. What was Robert De Niro's character name in Sergio Leone's gangster saga Once Upon a Time in America?

A. Vito Corleone
B. Noodles
C. Paul Vitti
D. Max Cady

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