Nonstop glamour and excess find a new poster girl in the 1980s when a hot young singer sees her chance to create her own brand. Madonna inspires countless girls across the globe to hit the nearest shopping mall to match her distinctive style. Young men with money to burn are buying into the young professional - or "yuppie" - lifestyle, and scooping up the latest expensive gadget: the cell phone. And, marketers learn an important lesson about the power of these new consumers in 1985 when Coca Cola’s disastrous launch of New Coke threatens its position against Pepsi.

• Rob Lowe
• Nancy Davis Reagan