I love the song “We Didn’t Start The Fire” by Billy Joel. It’s like 40 years of history crammed into one song. However, it is now a little out of date because, let’s face it, alot has happened since the song’s release in 1989. So Mr. Joel, if you are reading this, here is a list of suggestions you can put in from the past 22 years.
1990
- Mandela freed – Future President of Africa Nelson Mandela is freed from a political prison.
- Gulf War – USand coalition forces invade Kuwait in order to get Iraqi President Saddam Hussein out of Kuwait.
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- CGI – Computer Generated Imagery is further utilized in the film Total Recall.
- Unplugged – Mtv premieres the successful Unplugged concert series featuring Squeeze.
- Nirvana
1991
- Rodney King riot – After a videotape leaked of LAPD cops beating suspect Rodney King, the cops were freed. Rioting in South Central Los Angeles ensued.
- Mike Tyson – Boxer who was charged with rape as well as domestic abuse. He also won many fights and even bit the ear of fellow boxer Evander Holyfield.
- Truth Or Dare – Madonna documentary showing her during the Blonde Ambition World Tour. Was considered the highest grossing documentary of its time and is currently the 8th highest grossing documentary of all-time.
- Beauty and the Beast- 1st animated feature to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars.
- Magic Johnson – NBA star that announced he had HIV
1992
- Apartheid Ends -White South Africans vote to end apartheid and have more racial equality in government in South Africa.
- EuroDisney opens
- Bill Clinton
- LA riots
- Boris Yeltsin
1993
- Monica Seles – tennis player that was stabbed during a match.
- Bosnia – lots of war between Muslims and Eastern Orthodox followers.
- Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell – Military policy enacted by President Bill Clinton that allowed closeted gays and lesbians into the military as long as they kept quiet about their personal lives. It was repealed by President Barack Obama in 2011.
- Schindler’s List – high grossing Steven Spielberg film about Oskar Schindler, a man who helped save many Jewish people during the Holocaust.
- Prince’s new name – Singer Prince changes his name to an unpronounceable love symbol.
1994
- Kurt Cobain blown away – lead vocalist for Nirvana commits suicide.
- Baseball strike - ends the season
- Forrest Gump – won Best Picture at the Oscars.
- Weezer
- Jenny Jones murder tv- On an episode of the Jenny Jones show entitled “Same Sex Crushes,” 32-year old Scott Amedure revealed to a heterosexual friend Jonathan Schmidz that he had a crush on him. A few weeks after the show, Schmidz killed Amendure with a shotgun at his mobile home.
1995
- Selena – extremely popular Tejano singer who was murdered by her fan club president, Yolanda Saldivar. This may not have been a big deal in the rest of the country, but it was a BIG deal in Texas and the Southwest, as the Wild Heart was born and raised here.
- Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee – Motley Crue drummer and a playboy model make a sex tape.
- Rox – 1st show broadcasted over the internet.
- Who Shot Mr. Burns – shocking Simpsons episode where Mr. Burns gets shot.
1996
- HDTV - 1st introduced in 1996.
- Taco Liberty Bell
- Evita starring Madonna, is released.
1997
- Surfing the web – term used to describe the fact that you were now on the internet.
- Princess Diana dies
- Titanic
1998
- Another Congo War
- El Nino – weather cell that wreaked a great deal of the west and south coast.
- Van Halen version 3 – Gary Cherone takes the seat of lead vocalist. It was previously held by David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar.
1999
- US President Bill Clinton admits he lied about having sex with Monica Lewinsky
- Woodstock 99 becomes known as “Woodstock Apocalypse” due to the raging bonfires, theft, violence, and rape.
2000
- New millenium
- Y2K
- Elian Gonzalez
- President George W. Bus vs. Vice President Al Gore in the election.
2001
- World Trade Center in flames – The World Trade Center and the Pentagon in New York City and Washington DC are attacked by terrorists piloting major airliners and ramming them into the buildings. The World Trade Center crashes to the ground. The US is DEVASTATED.
- Enron files for bankruptcy in Houston, TX.
- Clear Channel Memorandum – after 9/11 Clear Channel issues a memorandum containing a list of 150 potentially offensive songs in light of the terrorist attacks.
- US goes to war with Afghanistan.
2002
- U2 performs during the Superbowl Halftime show and pays tribute to those killed on September 11, 2001.
- The Lord of the Rings
- Daniel Pearl
2003
