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1985 MTV Video Music Awards
1985 Award ceremony
1985 Award ceremony
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | 1985 MTV Video Music Awards |
| image | 1985-mtv-vma-logo.png |
| date | Friday, September 13, 1985 |
| location | Radio City Music Hall, New York, New York |
| country | United States |
| host | Eddie Murphy |
| producer | Don Ohlmeyer |
| Bob Pittman | |
| Edd Griles | |
| director | Edd Griles |
| most_awards | Don Henley (4) |
| most_nominations | David Lee Roth (8) |
| network | MTV |
| previous | 1984 |
| main | MTV Video Music Awards |
| next | 1986 |
Bob Pittman Edd Griles The 1985 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 13, 1985, honoring the best music videos from May 2, 1984, to May 1, 1985. The show was hosted by Eddie Murphy at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
Don Henley was the night's biggest winner, taking home four Moonmen, including Video of the Year. In fact, his video for "The Boys of Summer" was also the year's most nominated video, receiving seven nominations in total. Meanwhile, David Lee Roth turned out to be the most nominated artist that night, receiving eight nominations for two of his videos: five for "Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody" and three for "California Girls." Nevertheless, Roth came out of the ceremony empty-handed that night.
Other major nominees included Lindsey Buckingham, Bryan Adams, Eurythmics, Madonna, and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Buckingham tied with Don Henley with seven nominations: three for "Slow Dancing" and four for "Go Insane." Right after him came six-time nominee Adams, who received five nominations for "Run to You" and one for "Heaven." Lastly, Madonna, Eurythmics, and Petty received five nominations apiece: Madonna split her nominations between "Like a Virgin" (three) and "Material Girl" (two), while Tom Petty and Eurythmics received all five nominations for "Don't Come Around Here No More" and "Would I Lie to You?," respectively.
Background
In June 1985, MTV announced that the 1985 Video Music Awards would be held on September 13 at Radio City Music Hall. Preliminary nominees with 10 videos per category were announced in mid-July before the final set of nominees was announced at a press conference at New York's Hard Rock Cafe on August 13. Eddie Murphy was announced as the ceremony's host in mid-July.
Performances
| Artist(s) | Song(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| Eurythmics | "Would I Lie to You?" | |
| David Ruffin | ||
| Eddie Kendrick | ||
| Hall & Oates | "Everytime You Go Away" | |
| "The Way You Do the Things You Do" | ||
| "My Girl" | ||
| Tears for Fears | "Shout" | |
| John Mellencamp | "Lonely Ol' Night" | |
| Pat Benatar | "7-Rooms of Gloom" | |
| Sting | "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" | |
| Eddie Murphy | "Party All the Time" |
Presenters
- Sheila E. and Paul Young – presented Best Overall Performance in a Video
- Run-DMC – rapped the eligibility and voting rules for the VMAs
- Foreigner (Mick Jones and Lou Gramm) – presented Best Stage Performance in a Video
- Bryan Adams and Jim Kerr – presented Best New Artist in a Video
- The Cars (Benjamin Orr and Elliot Easton) – presented Most Experimental Video
- Martha Quinn – introduced the presentations of the professional categories
- Mark Goodman – announced the winner of Best Art Direction in a Video
- Alan Hunter – announced the winner of Best Cinematography in a Video
- Nina Blackwood – announced the winners of Best Special Effects in a Video
- J. J. Jackson – announced the winner of Best Editing in a Video
- Julian Lennon and Corey Hart – presented Best Choreography in a Video
- Morris Day – presented Best Concept Video
- John Taylor and Andy Taylor – presented Video Vanguard to Russell Mulcahy
- Chrissie Hynde – presented Video Vanguard to David Byrne
- Herbie Hancock – presented Video Vanguard to Godley & Creme
- Glenn Frey – presented Best Direction in a Video
- Joan Baez – presented the Special Recognition Award
- Don Henley – presented Best Group Video
- Aimee Mann and Stephen Pearcy – presented Viewer's Choice
- Grace Jones – presented Best Male Video
- David Lee Roth – presented Best Female Video
- Tina Turner – presented Video of the Year
Winners and nominees
Winners are listed first and highlighted in bold.
| Video of the Year | Best Male Video | Best Female Video | Best Group Video | Best New Artist in a Video | Best Concept Video | Most Experimental Video | Best Stage Performance in a Video | Best Overall Performance in a Video | Best Direction in a Video | Best Choreography in a Video | Best Special Effects in a Video | Best Art Direction in a Video | Best Editing in a Video | Best Cinematography in a Video | Viewer's Choice | Video Vanguard Award | Special Recognition Award |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Byrne | |||||||||||||||||
| Russell Mulcahy | |||||||||||||||||
| Godley & Creme | |||||||||||||||||
| Bob Geldof |
Artists with multiple wins and nominations
| Wins | Artist |
|---|---|
| 4 | Don Henley |
| 2 | Art of Noise |
| Bruce Springsteen | |
| USA for Africa |
| Nominations | Artist |
|---|---|
| 8 | David Lee Roth |
| 7 | Lindsey Buckingham |
| Don Henley | |
| 6 | Bryan Adams |
| 5 | Eurythmics |
| Madonna | |
| Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | |
| 4 | USA for Africa |
| 3 | Bruce Springsteen |
| Sheila E. | |
| Tina Turner | |
| 2 | Art of Noise |
| Chris Isaak | |
| Culture Club | |
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood | |
| Glenn Frey | |
| Sade | |
| Simple Minds |
Music Videos with multiple wins and nominations
| Wins | Artist | Music Video |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | Don Henley | "The Boys of Summer" |
| 2 | Art of Noise | "Close (to the Edit)" |
| USA for Africa | "We Are the World" |
| Nominations | Artist | Music Video |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Don Henley | "The Boys of Summer" |
| 5 | Bryan Adams | "Run to You" |
| David Lee Roth | "Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody" | |
| Eurythmics | "Would I Lie to You?" | |
| Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | "Don't Come Around Here No More" | |
| 4 | Lindsey Buckingham | "Go Insane" |
| USA for Africa | "We Are the World" | |
| 3 | David Lee Roth | "California Girls" |
| Lindsey Buckingham | "Slow Dancing" | |
| Madonna | "Like a Virgin" | |
| Sheila E. | "The Glamorous Life" | |
| 2 | Art of Noise | "Close (to the Edit)" |
| Bruce Springsteen | "Dancing in the Dark" | |
| Chris Isaak | "Dancin'" | |
| Culture Club | "It's a Miracle" | |
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood | "Two Tribes" | |
| Glenn Frey | "Smuggler's Blues" | |
| Madonna | "Material Girl" | |
| Sade | "Smooth Operator" | |
| Simple Minds | "Don't You (Forget About Me)" |
Other appearances
- Little Steven – accepted the Best Stage Performance award on behalf of Bruce Springsteen
- Lou Reed – appeared in a video package about the year's new artists
- Kris P. – accepted the Best Editing award on behalf of Zbigniew Rybczyński
- Dave Stewart – accepted the Best Choreography award on behalf of Elton John
- John Sayles – accepted the Best Male Video award on behalf of Bruce Springsteen
References
References
- Lawson, Terry. (June 15, 1985). "People Are Talking...". The Journal Herald.
- (August 14, 1985). "Buckingham top nominee for Video Music Awards". The Commercial Appeal.
- Jackson, Robyn. (July 21, 1985). "Superstars dominate MTV awards selection". Hattiesburg American.
- Maksian, George. (July 23, 1985). "TV Scene: Burr reviving 'Mason' for NBC". [[New York Daily News]].
- Masley, Ed. (August 23, 2014). "MTV Video Music Awards: 30 memorable moments through the years". [[The Arizona Republic.
- . (August 24, 1985). ["Nominations for Second Annual Awards MTV Salutes Behind-The-Scenes Talent"](https://books.google.com/books?id=2iQEAAAAMBAJ&q=Eurythmics+i+need+a+man+best+group+mtv&pg=PT33). *Nielsen Business Media, Inc.*.
- Harrington, Richard. (September 14, 1985). "Living Colour, Abdul turn it up at MTV awards". [[The Washington Post]].
- "1985".
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