What were the fifty most-aired movies on HBO in the 1980s?

The premium television network Home Box Office, a.k.a. HBO, launched as a regional service in northeastern Pennsylvania back in 1972, gradually building up over the years until it became the nationwide, 24-hour powerhouse we know it as at the end of 1981. Needing to fill 24 hours of programming every day of the year, the network ended up showing some movies over and over – with one of the most-aired movies being the fantasy adventure film The Beastmaster, which got shown so much that some subscribers would joke that HBO stood for “Hey, Beastmaster’s on!” This brings up the question, have you ever wondered how many times The Beastmaster was shown on HBO in the ‘80s – and building from that, have you ever wondered what the top fifty most-aired movies were in the ‘80s?

I can’t say I ever pondered these specific questions – and yet, when I saw that the newly launched YouTube channel The HBO 80s Database had the answers, I immediately clicked on their video.

What were the top 50 most-aired movies on HBO in the 1980s? You can watch the video embedded above to find out, and I highly recommend spending the 25 minutes it takes to watch it. But, if you want the cheat sheet, here we go:

Numbers 50 through 39 are a twelve-way tie, as Yes, Giorgio (1982), Under the Rainbow (1981), The Man from Snowy River (1982), The Competition (1980), Tender Mercies (1983), Superman: The Movie (1978), Star Wars (1977), On Golden Pond (1981), Looker (1981), Gloria (1980), Dirty Tricks (1980), and Brainstorm (1983) were all shown 38 times throughout the ‘80s.

From 38 through 34, we have a five-way tie between Threshold (1981), Second Thoughts (1983), Raggedy Man (1981), Lone Wolf McQuade (1983), and King of the Mountain (1981). They were all shown 39 times.

Numbers 33 through 25 are a nine-way tie between The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia (1981), The Jazz Singer (1980), The Great Muppet Caper (1981), The Four Seasons (1981), Superman II (1980), The Sea Gypsies (1978, a.k.a. Shipwreck!), Kiss Me Goodbye (1982), Continental Divide (1981), and Any Which Way You Can (1980). They all aired 40 times. (I have a feeling I saw most of those airings of Any Which Way You Can.)

24 and 23 brings a tie between St. Helens (1981) and Six Weeks (1982), both shown 41 times.

Also tied at 22 and 21 are The Incredible Shrinking Woman (1981) and Chariots of Fire (1981), shown 42 times.

With 20 and 19 we get another two-way tie, as The Secret of NIMH (1982) and Blue Skies Again (1983) were both shown 43 times.

We get a four-way tie with numbers 18, 17, 16, and 15. Wonder of It All (1974), Right of Way (1983), Eddie and the Cruisers (1983), and Absence of Malice (1981) each aired 44 times.

14, 13, and 12 is a three-way tie between The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), Dragonslayer (1981), and Arthur (1981). They each aired 45 times.

Numbers 11, 10, and 9 aired 46 times. The movies: Super Fuzz (1980), My Favorite Year (1982), and Finnegan Begin Again (1985).

Numbers 8, 7, and 6 are 9 to 5 (1980), Flash Gordon (1980), and Between Friends (1983). Apparently no movies were shown on HBO 47 times in the ‘80s, because the airing count on these three is 48.

Two movies were shown 51 times in the ‘80s, and they’re numbers 5 and 4 on the list. They are Victory (1981) and Daffy Duck’s Fantastic Island (1983).

Two other movies were shown 54 times: numbers 3 and 2 are The Terry Fox Story (1983) and The Cannonball Run (1981), and I do remember watching the hell out of The Cannonball Run when I was a youngster… although I think caught more viewings of Any Which Way You Can.

And the number one most-aired movie on HBO in the 1980s was the 1983 stand-up comedy special Bill Cosby: Himself.

Yes, in a shocking turn of events, The Beastmaster didn’t even make it into the top fifty! According to the video, it was only shown 23 times.

Were you watching HBO in the 1980s? Reminisce in the comments!

The post What were the fifty most-aired movies on HBO in the 1980s? appeared first on JoBlo.