What’s everyone’s favorite PSA from 1980? Mine is the “I learned it from watching you dad!” anti-drug commercial. As well as the “This is your brain on drugs” commercial. (follow up question, anyone know if these gems are anywhere on the internet?)
Hehe…
o/Users are losers, and losers are users...o/
I’m gona flip this – it’s not the PSA I admire, but what was done with it.
Busta Rhymes sampling a 1983 PSA to the platinum selling “Dangerous” (1998) single:
Talk about a silk purse from a sow’s ear.
Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!
Actually, it’s more of a 1970’s PSA, but…
clears throat
o/ Mr. Yuck is mean! Mr. Yuck is green! o/
Those two ads aren’t that old, are they?
[url=http://cnnstudentnews.cnn.com/fyi/interactive/news/brain/brain.on.drugs.html]This CNNfyi.com link says that the “this is your brain on drugs” ad debuted in 1987.
“I learned it by watching you” I can’t establish a year for. When I google it I get 4 kablillion hits because it somehow became a watchword of the blogosphere at some point and it seems like everybody and their mother was parodying it in their journals. Also, there’s someone named “Alli with an I” who has a song with that title, so add that to the confusion. I do know for certain that it was after the egg one.
Oh, fudge!
Any of the ones from the G.I. Joe cartoon.
“Now I know!”
“And knowing is half the battle.” 
It’s just too easy to squeeze that into everyday conversations…
The airline.
After all, their smile’s weren’t just painted on.
Some of these PSAs are probably on old-school sites like RetroCRUSH.com or X-Entertainment.com. I’m pretty certain I’ve seen the G.I. Joe spots on one of these sites (or perhaps I-Mockery.com), at the very least.
On that note, I remember Aquaman telling a pair of bikini-suit-clad preteen twins that hitch-hiking was dangerous, but not specifically telling them why.
Damn it, Aq, don’t hold out on us!
I’ll bet Aquaman didn’t know why, either.
We’re talking about a “super” hero who gets himself captured by the Legion of Doom almost every week.
Aquaman made great bait.
I’m not a chicken, you’re a turkey!
My favorite was in the late 80s. It showed a guy in a small room looking at the camera who said, “I do cocaine, so I can work more” the camera pans back and he starts walking in circles in the room and adds, “so I can make more money, so I can do more cocaine.” He says it faster and faster and kept going in circles around the room.
Gotta love the 80s!
“we’re from mars and we eat lots of candy bars. . .”
Hmmm, I don’t have a cite, but I am almost positive the “I learned it by watching you” ad was somewhere around 83/84.
My favorite was One Dumb Move. I think it was an anti-drug PSA. It started in a highschool classroom and then this black teacher starts doing a rap song (this was the early 80s when rap was still mostly underground). Then the rest of the class starts joining in.
Anyway, what I remember most about it was right in the middle there was this incredibly dorky, Pat Boone-looking white jock teen. He had this ridiculous smirk on his face and was ungainly rocking his head back & forth as he was, um, trying to get down with homey’s rap. The shot of him only lasted a second but god it was unbearable…
I recall this one from the 80’s, but it may predate that:
Anyone remember the “Have You Hugged Your Kid Today?” PSA’s?
“‘Can’t you see that I’m on the phone?’
‘Hold it down! I just got home!’
‘Isn’t it enough that I work all day?’
Please! I need a chance to get away!’
Dishes! Diapers! Dirty rags!’
'Bosses, bills, and nag-nag-nags!
‘Daddy!’
‘Shut up, kid! You’re in the way!’
‘I’m so mad, I could slap your face!’”
Cut to a kid crying, saying, “Did I do something wrong?”
Then the cheesy music starts.
I guess Busta and I have something in common.
*This is serious.
We could make you delirious.
You should have a healthy fear of us.
Too much of us is dangerous.
Doctors tell the pharmacy.
The kind of pills that you will need.
And they know the harm that we can be.
If we’re not taken carefully.
We are not candy (you need us!)
Even though we look so fine and dandy.
When you’re sick we come in handy.
But–we’re not caaaaandy! (ohhh noooo!)*
From memory. 
I didn’t know that played only on Long Island. The rest of you missed out. That ad was awesome.