Rob Lowe was young, famous and single at the height of 1980s Hollywood, and more than four decades later, he still remembers the era as even better than people imagine.
The 62-year-old actor reflected on that period during a Sept. 23 appearance on Chicks in the Office while promoting his new movie The Musical. Lowe described the decade as an extraordinary time to make movies, party and navigate fame without the constant documentation that comes with social media.
The Outsiders arrived in 1983, followed by Class, Oxford Blues and St. Elmo’s Fire, establishing Lowe as one of the most recognizable young actors of the decade.
When host Ria Ciuffo said the era sounded like a time she would have loved to experience, Lowe replied, “It was better than you dream,” according to People.
Lowe Calls the ’80s an ‘Incredible Time to Be Single’
During the full Chicks in the Office interview, Lowe listed several reasons he remembers the decade so fondly, calling it an incredible time to work in Hollywood, make movies, go out and be single.
Asked whether younger generations romanticize the 1980s too much, Lowe said his own experience lived up to the image. If he could choose any era in which to have come of age, he said he would choose that one.
That period of his life ended before the decade was far behind him. Lowe married makeup artist Sheryl Berkoff in 1991, and they later welcomed two sons, Matthew and John Owen.
Life Before Social Media Made Nights Out Less Predictable
Lowe also pointed to the absence of smartphones and social media as one of the biggest differences between celebrity life then and now.
He remembered making plans to meet friends at a club without being able to text for updates or know whether everyone would actually arrive. Someone could show up hours later, or not at all, and Lowe said the anticipation surrounding those nights was “beautiful.”
There were also far fewer cameras following every interaction. Lowe said young actors today face a different kind of scrutiny because nights out can be photographed, filmed and posted almost immediately.
He described modern fame as more burdensome in that respect, particularly for younger performers who have fewer opportunities to make mistakes or socialize without a digital record following them.
‘The Outsiders’ Turned Lowe Into a Heartthrob
Lowe’s experience of the decade changed dramatically after The Outsiders made him a teenage heartthrob. He recently told People that he went from considering himself an uncool theater kid to dealing with fans breaking into his home and stealing his underwear.
Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 film placed Lowe in a young ensemble that also included Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze, Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio and C. Thomas Howell.
Two years later, St. Elmo’s Fire further cemented his place among the actors associated with the Brat Pack era.
Lowe is now promoting The Musical, a dark comedy in which he plays a middle school principal.