Throwback Thursday: The 1989 Skydome Opening (VIDEO)

Back in the summer of 1989, the city of Toronto and all of Canada was so excited about its brand new, retractable roof stadium.

So, what do you do to open a stadium with a retractable roof and hotel? You hold an Olympic-like opening ceremony that airs on CBC. After the first five minutes, you find yourself questioning if this is actually real.

It is...sadly.

The Skydome (now Rogers Centre. Thanks Corporate Canada), was Canada's pride and joy before Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole joined forces at TSN. The great, white North were out to celebrate the "engineering miracle," in an era when the cookie cutter stadium was going out of style.

North America's favorite TV dad, Alan Thicke, sang the opening number, as well as some opera. American actress Andrea Martin joined Thicke (possibly a subliminal message to get the Buffalo Bills to move to Toronto). 

Of course, the Toronto Blue Jays and the Argonauts of the Canadian Football League would call it home, and nothing says baseball and football like dancing men in sports uniforms.

Interpretations of Raindrops Keep Pouring on My Head and Singing in the Rain were sung, and the guys ballet dancing in full pads was a sight to see. Thicke seemed to get a kick out of it as well. Never in my life have I ever seen athletes so giddy about no rain outs and having clean jerseys all the time. 

This is the first 10 minutes of the ceremony. It is the one piece of evidence of what the 1980s, Alan Thicke and Canada were all about back in the day. A shame Robin Sparkles didn't come along until later.