1985 MTV Video Music Awards

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.

1985 MTV Video Music Awards
DateFriday, September 13, 1985
LocationRadio City Music Hall, New York, New York
CountryUnited States
Hosted byEddie Murphy
Most awardsDon Henley (4)
Most nominationsDavid Lee Roth (8)
Television/radio coverage
NetworkMTV
Produced byDon Ohlmeyer
Bob Pittman
Edd Griles
Directed byEdd Griles
← 1984 · MTV Video Music Awards · 1986 →

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

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In June 1985, MTV announced that the 1985 Video Music Awards would be held on September 13 at Radio City Music Hall.[1] Preliminary nominees with 10 videos per category were announced in mid-July before the final set of nominees were announced at a press conference at New York's Hard Rock Cafe on August 13.[2][3] Eddie Murphy was announced as the ceremony's host in mid-July.[4]

Performances

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List of musical performances
Artist(s) Song(s) Ref.
Eurythmics "Would I Lie to You?"
David Ruffin, Eddie Kendrick, and Hall & Oates "Everytime You Go Away"
"The Way You Do the Things You Do"
"My Girl"
[5]
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

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Winners and nominees

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Winners are listed first and highlighted in bold.[6]

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
David Byrne
Russell Mulcahy
Godley & Creme
Special Recognition Award
Bob Geldof[8]

Other appearances

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References

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  1. ^ Lawson, Terry (June 15, 1985). "People Are Talking..." The Journal Herald – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "Buckingham top nominee for Video Music Awards". The Commercial Appeal. UPI. August 14, 1985 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Jackson, Robyn (July 21, 1985). "Superstars dominate MTV awards selection". Hattiesburg American. UPI – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Maksian, George (July 23, 1985). "TV Scene: Burr reviving 'Mason' for NBC". New York Daily News – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Masley, Ed (August 23, 2014). "MTV Video Music Awards: 30 memorable moments through the years". AZ Central. Archived from the original on October 11, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2022.
  6. ^ "Nominations for Second Annual Awards MTV Salutes Behind-The-Scenes Talent". Billboard. Vol. 97. New York: Nielsen Business Media, Inc. August 24, 1985. p. 34. ISSN 0006-2510. Archived from the original on October 11, 2020. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
  7. ^ a b Harrington, Richard (September 14, 1985). "Living Colour, Abdul turn it up at MTV awards". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 10, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2020. ...USA for Africa won the best group video and viewer's choice awards.
  8. ^ "1985". www.mtv.com. Archived from the original on June 9, 2000. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
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