The Eighties in America - Salem Press (2009)

competition. She won gold medals in the 100-meter
dash, the 200-meter dash, and the 4 × 100-meter re-
lay race, as well as a silver medal as part of the 4 × 200-
meter relay team, bringing her total medal count to
three gold and two silver medals. These perfor-
mances won her the Associated Press Female Athlete
of the Year award, the Sullivan Award for the top ama-
teur athlete, and the Jesse Owens Award as outstand-
ing track-and-field athlete of the year. However, in
February, 1989, she announced her retirement.

Impact Griffith-Joyner’s world records in the 100-
meter dash and the 200-meter dash lasted into the

early twenty-first century. Her performance at the

1988 Olympics showcased her incredible talent, while

the fact that she had improved markedly over her

1980 and 1984 performances demonstrated the im-

portance of hard work and perseverance in athletics.

She thus became a role model for young athletes

everywhere.

Further Reading

Aaseng, Nathan.Florence Griffith Joyner. Minneapolis:

Lerner, 1989.

Condon, Robert J. “Delorez Florence Griffith-

Joyner.” InGreat Women Athletes of the Twentieth Cen-

tur y. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 1991.

Griffith-Joyner, Florence, John Hanc, and Jackie

Joyner-Kersee.Running for Dummies. Hoboken,

N.J.: Wiley, 1999.

Susan Love Brown

See also African Americans; Lewis, Carl; Olympic

Games of 1984; Olympic Games of 1988; Sports.

Guns n’ Roses

Identification Los Angeles-based hard rock band

Date Formed in 1985

Guns n’ Roses entered a 1980’s musical landscape that was

typically characterized by the regular use of synthesizers,

heavy studio production, and pop sensibilities, even in such

nominally rough-edged genres as heavy metal. The band’s

raw, live musicianship coupled with its hard-living, rock-

and-roll attitude made it stand out, and it became a center

of musical controversy, both critically and culturally.

In the middle of the 1980’s, L.A. Guns member Tracii

Guns and Hollywood Rose singer Axl Rose founded a

new band in Los Angeles and named it Guns n’ Roses,

after themselves. The name also stood in their minds

for the symbolic meeting of the human-made and the

natural, the destructive and the beautiful. Guns him-

self did not remain in the band for very long, but

the name stuck, and in 1987 Guns n’ Roses released

their debut album,Appetite for Destruction. Though the

band’s lineup would change over the years, Guns n’

Roses 1987 roster comprised Rose on vocals, lead gui-

tarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff

McKagan, and drummer Steven Adler.Appetite for De-

structionwas one of the most popular albums of the

decade, and many observers attributed its popularity

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Guns n’ Roses The Eighties in America

Florence Griffith-Joyner crosses the finish line to win the women’s
100-meter event at the 1988 Summer Olympics.(Hulton Ar-
chive/Getty Images)