12 Stars Who Were Lost in the '80s

By Saryn Chorney

When we heard "Top Gun" star Kelly McGillis recently came out as a lesbian, it wasn't her sexuality that shocked us so much as, well, her name altogether. Instead of saying, "What? No way!" we said, "Who? Really? Oh yeah. What happened to her?"

But Kelly's resurgence also made us wonder — no, not who else is gay — who else had a major movie role in the '80s, then faded away into obscurity?

Kelly McGillis wasn't the only actor who played second fiddle to Tom Cruise in "Top Gun." Before Val Kilmer was Iceman, he was Chris Knight in 1985's "Real Genius." But everyone knows that.

What we don't know is: What the heck happened to the little dorky dude Mitch who co-starred in "Real Genius"? He may resemble a young Sarah Jessica Parker, but actor Gabriel Jarret did not grow up to star in "Sex and the City." Aside from a bit part in "The Karate Kid, Part 3," his only other notable role was in the recent Oscar-nominated film "Frost/Nixon." Hey … that's actually pretty impressive! Jarret may have some genius cred after all.

Long before Gabriel Jarret was making unidentifiable cameos within "The Karate Kid" trilogy, actor Ralph Macchio rose to mega-stardom as Daniel LaRusso. He may have been a bit gawky with a silly Jersey accent and poofy '80s hair, but the kid had gumption — and the love of quintessential '80s girlfriend Elisabeth Shue.

Macchio did a few other trivia-worthy turns in movies like "Crossroads" and "My Cousin Vinny," but his name will forever be synonymous with Daniel-San. (Oh, wax off about Jaden Smith — we'll believe it when we see it, Hollywood.)

"He dresses like Elvis Costello and looks like the Karate Kid." Or so claimed Sandy the Fish Girl (aka Sherilyn Fenn) of Joyce Hyser's character, Terry, in 1985's "Just One of the Guys." In order to win a high school journalism contest, our leading lady transforms herself into the new wave new boy, goes undercover at a rival school, and, of course, hijinks ensue — like dumping lunch tables full of food on the school bully. Classic!

"The Karate Kid" comparison is solidified by the typecasting of perpetual blond '80s villain William Zabka, but arguably the most memorable scene is Hyser's shocking breasts reveal at the prom. We haven't seen or heard from her since, but apparently she played one of Jimmy Smits' girlfriends on "L.A. Law" — and dated Bruce Springsteen and Warren Beatty in real life. Clearly her movie brother the Budster was right: Terry is a stallion!

The '80s were truly a magical movie decade. Dorky guys got the girl, girls pretended to be boys, and kids "switched" bodies with adults on a fairly regular basis. Case in point: Charlie Schlatter became old-timey comedian George Burns in "18 Again!"

Unlike its descendant "17 Again," this film was more of a cult classic than a blockbuster hit, and Charlie's only notable follow-up role was starring as Ferris Bueller in the one-season TV series based on the movie. However, Schlatter did date his co-star Jennifer Aniston (she played sister Jeannie Bueller) long before her love life became a popular tabloid topic. Today his voice can be overheard in a variety of animated projects. Not a bad living, kid.

Casting Ami Dolenz (of "She's Out of Control" '80s movie fame) as the dream teen girlfriend next door in the TV version of "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" wasn't a bad idea, but the truth of the matter is that actress Mia Sara owned that role in the 1986 movie.

Sure, Matthew Broderick was cute as Ferris, but there was always a sense that he didn't quite deserve a girl as hot and cool as Sloane. And we know for certain that Jean-Claude Van Damme didn't deserve her as a wife in the '90s flick "Timecop." Otherwise, Mia has been M.I.A. — although she does have a daughter with Brian Henson, heir to the Muppets fortune. He's no Abe Froman, Sausage King of Chicago, but he ain't too shabby.

As a rule, young characters in '80s movies weren't very good at following rules. This was true — to disastrous effect — in the 1984 hit "Gremlins." Zach Galligan starred as the leading human, Billy Peltzer, while '80s babe Phoebe Cates was his girlfriend. Howie Mandel provided the voice for Gizmo the Mogwai, who, alongside an army of evil green creatures, were the real stars of this horror/comedy blockbuster.

Zach reprised his role in "Gremlins 2: The New Batch," but after that, who knows? Maybe someone fed him after midnight … and he turned into a Columbia grad working as an acting teacher in New York City. Let's just pray Zach learned his lesson and stays out of Chinatown pet stores.

Speaking of magical pets, Barret Oliver (Bastian) and Noah Hathaway (Atreyu) took turns riding a furry white dragon named Falkor in the 1984 classic "The Neverending Story." Oliver left acting in 1989, while Hathaway (no relation to Anne) dabbles in combat training and voiceover work.

But please fans, never despair. We heard a rumor that the two fellas may team up again for a remake … of "Perfect Strangers!" Oliver will star as Larry Appleton and Hathaway as Balki Bartokomous, who has come all the way from Fantasia, uh, we mean Mypos with his lucky pet sheep, Dimitri, to spice up his cousin's life. (OK, we made that up, but one must never stop dreaming!)

Speaking of dreams, Ronnie Miller (Patrick Dempsey) had one in 1987's "Can't Buy Me Love": to be popular. The nerdy lawn boy seizes an opportunity and pays Cindy Mancini (Amanda Peterson), the stereotypical blond cheerleader, $1,000 to help make it happen.

With her perfectly permed blond hair and teen queen tan, Peterson was every nerd's high school dream girl. So how come Dempsey gets to have a huge career comeback with "Grey's Anatomy," but we never saw Peterson's pretty face again? (Someone should suggest a cameo for sweeps week.) Well, she left the business, got married and now lives in Napa Valley, where she's careful not to spill red wine on any white suede outfits.

Hot chicks helping nerds become cool was obviously yet another popular theme in '80s movies, and 1985's "Weird Science" was probably the best example. Gary (Anthony Michael Hall) and Wyatt (Ilan Mitchell-Smith) co-starred as sci-fi geeks who turn to computers (the magical tech innovation of the future!) to create Lisa, played by supermodel-turned-actress Kelly LeBrock.

While Hall and LeBrock went on to varying degrees of movie and TV success, we haven't heard a peep from Mitchell-Smith past 1990. Turns out he left Hollywood and is now a history professor at Texas A&M University — and he hates when his students recognize him as Wyatt. Lame.

Star-crossed, or rather, clique-crossed love affairs were also a popular element of '80s teen movies. One of the forerunners of this genre, 1983's "Valley Girl" starred Nicolas Cage (the punk) and Deborah Foreman (the titular valley girl). Cage went on to become an Oscar-winning actor and blockbuster action hero, but what happened to Foreman?

With her blond curls, chipmunk cheeks and sweet demeanor, Foreman was named "Most Promising New Star" by ShoWest in 1986, but she barely worked at all past 1988. Contrary to popular belief, she did not open a Pizza Hut — she now owns an online graphics house and teaches yoga. Totally bitchin'.

Last but not least comes a sweet little movie from 1986 about a boy who could fly, called, um, "The Boy Who Could Fly." Jay Underwood starred as Eric, the flying boy who lives next door to Milly, played by Lucy Deakins. (Who are they? Exactly.)

The silent, autistic boy obsessed with airplanes and the lonely new girl strike up an unlikely friendship that's eventually sealed with a kiss. Meanwhile, a cast of familiar '80s faces — Bonnie Bedelia, Fred Savage and even Mindy Cohn — round out the film.

So, where did Underwood fly off to at the end of the movie, anyway? If you guessed the heavens, well, you're half-right. The boy who could fly is now a pastor at the First Baptist Church of Weaverville in California. It's an '80s miracle!