9/6 - What '80s One-Hit Wonder Was a Rare "Two Time" One-Hit Wonder?
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you loved, forgot, or never knew existed
September 6th, 2024 • Issue 220
Be Kind, Rewind
What happened on this day in the ‘80s and ‘90s — plus lots of bonus trivia
September 6th
1980 - Benny Mardones’s one hit, Into the Night, peaked at number 11.
Though Benny Mardones was a one-hit wonder, Into the Night was a top 20 hit twice — nearly a decade apart.
In 1980, Into the Night peaked at number 11.
Then, in 1989, it re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 and made it all the way up to number 20.
(The song resurfaced after a radio station in Arizona did a “where are they now?” segment on Mardones, and the song caught on again.)
So while Mardones is a one-hit wonder, he’s the rare and borderline paradoxical two-time one-hit wonder.
1986 - Bananarama’s single Venus hit number one.
1991 - The city of Leningrad’s name reverted to St. Petersburg.
1994 - Brandy’s debut single I Wanna Be Down was released.
1994 - 4PM’s single Sukiyaki was released.
1995 - Cal Ripken Jr. broke Lou Gehrig’s record for consecutive games played.
1996 - Bulletproof hit theaters.
1997 - Princess Diana’s funeral was held.
September 7th
1981 - The People’s Court premiered.
1984 - The American Express platinum card debuted.
1985 - Small Wonder premiered.
1985 - John Parr’s single St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion) hit number one.
1985 - Star Wars: Ewoks and Star Wars: Droids premiered on ABC.
1986 - The NFL overturned its first play ever using instant replay.
1987 - Geraldo premiered.
1987 - Keith Sweat’s single I Want Her was released.
1993 - Mark Whitten of the St. Louis Cardinals had the best statistical game ever with four home runs and 12 RBIs.
1993 - The short-lived Chevy Chase Show debuted on FOX.
Chevy Chase was not FOX’s first choice for a late night talk show… they wanted Dolly Parton.
In early 1993, FOX asked Dolly Parton to host a late night talk show, the show they’d previously tried with Joan Rivers and Arsenio Hall.
Dolly turned them down, and suggested Chevy Chase instead.
1996 - Tupac Shakur was shot and killed.
September 8th
1986 - Oprah Winfrey’s talk show became nationally syndicated.
1986 - Herschel Walker made his NFL debut after leaving the USFL.
1987 - Gary Hart admitted to adultery.
1989 - Jean-Claude van Damme’s movie Kickboxer hit theaters.
1990 - Bon Jovi’s single Blaze of Glory hit number one.
1990 - Bobby’s World premiered.
1991 - Herman’s Head premiered.
1991 - Darkwing Duck both premiered.
The team behind Darkwing Duck were originally hired to create a Rocky and Bullwinkle reboot.
But when Disney apparently realized they didn’t own the rights to Rocky & Bullwinkle, they tasked the creative team with coming up with a new show — fast.
Darkwing Duck was the result.
1993 - MLB’s plan to split into three divisions was approved for the American League.
1994 - Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley appeared together at the MTV VMAs.
1995 - To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar hit theaters.
1996 - Arthur and Blue’s Clues both premiered.
1997 - Ally McBeal premiered on FOX.
1997 - America Online acquired CompuServe.
1998 - Mark McGwire hit his record breaking 62nd home run.
2001 - Afroman’s one hit, Because I Got High, peaked at number 13 and Jennifer Lopez and Ja Rule’s single I’m Real hit number one.
September 9th
1985 - She-Ra: Princess of Power premiered.
1988 - Chicago’s single Look Away was released.
1989 - American Gladiators premiered.
1989 - New Kids on the Block’s single Hangin’ Tough hit number one.
1991 - The Maury Povich Show premiered.
1995 - Pinky and the Brain premiered as a standalone show.
Pinky and the Brain were based off two writers from Tiny Toon Adventures.
The writers were Tom Minton, who spoke in a quiet, low voice and always seemed to be scheming. He was the inspiration for Brain. Pinky was based off writer Eddie Fitzgerald, who was louder and would even shout out the word “Narf” (Pinky’s eventual catchphrase) when Eddie got excited about one of Tom’s ideas.
1995 - Skee Lo’s single I Wish peaked at number 13 and Coolio’s Gangsta’s Paradise hit number one.
1995 - The Sony PlayStation was released in North America.
1998 - Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols appeared on Judge Judy.
1999 - The Sega Dreamcast was released.
2001 - Band of Brothers premiered on HBO.
September 10th
1983 - Inspector Gadget premiered.
The face of the villain of Inspector Gadget, Dr. Claw, was ever revealed during the series — only as an action figure in 1992.
During the six-year run of Inspector Gadget, Dr. Claw’s face was never revealed.
In 1992, the official line of Inspector Gadget action figures finally shared what Dr. Claw looks like. But you had to buy the figure to see it — the packaging had a sticker intentionally blocking the face.
1983 - Michael Sembello’s single Maniac hit number one.
1984 - Alex Trebek’s first episode as Jeopardy! host aired in syndication.
1984 - Apple’s Macintosh 512K was released.
1988 - Steffi Graf won the grand slam in tennis.
1988 - Guns N’ Roses’ single Sweet Child O’ Mine hit number one.
1989 - Deion Sanders made his NFL debut after hitting a home run in an MLB game five days earlier.
1990 - The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air premiered.
1990 - The New Adventures of He-Man premiered.
1991 - Nirvana’s single Smells Like Teen Spirit was released.
1992 - Howard Stern appeared as Fartman at the MTV VMAs.
1992 - Lamb Chop’s Play Along premiered.
1993 - True Romance hit theaters.
1993 - The X-Files premiered.
1994 - The Tick premiered.
1998 - Everlast’s single What It’s Like was released.
September 11th
1977 - The Atari 2600 (aka the Atari VCS) was released.
1982 - Chicago’s single Hard to Say I’m Sorry hit number one.
1985 - Pete Rose collected his record 4,192nd hit.
1987 - Prince’s Paisley Park Studios opened.
1990 - Jesus Jones’s single Right Here, Right Now was released.
1992 - Sneakers hit theaters.
1993 - Mariah Carey’s single Dreamlover hit number one.
1993 - Legends of the Hidden Temple premiered.
It was extremely difficult to win the grand prize in Legends of the Hidden Temple by design —because the producers didn’t have the budget to have too many winners.
Only about 30 teams won the grand prize (usually a trip) in the show’s 120 episodes.
That was very intentional, too. The producers made the final obstacle course more difficult than it should’ve been to keep the winners to fewer than eight per season.
1993 - Saved by the Bell: The New Class premiered.
1994 - Andre Agassi won his first U.S. Open.
1998 - Rounders hit theaters, as did Simon Birch.
2001 - Jay Z’s album The Blueprint was released on an unfortunate release date.
2002 - Nick Nolte was arrested for drunk driving and took an infamous mugshot.
September 12th
1981 - The Smurfs premiered.
1983 - G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero premiered in syndication.
1989 - Linda Rondstadt and Aaron Neville’s duet Don’t Know Much was released.
1989 - Life Goes On premiered.
1992 - NBC canceled Saturday morning cartoons to focus on live-action shows.
1992 - California Dreams premiered.
The songwriter for California Dreams also wrote the hit song from The Heights.
If you had a TV show about a fake band in the early ‘90s, Steve Tyrell was your guy.
He wrote all 40 songs over the course of California Dreams’s run along with How Do You Talk to An Angel from The Heights.
1993 - Lois and Clark premiered.
1994 - Party of Five premiered.
1994 - Netscape Navigator launched.
1995 - Mariah Carey’s single Fantasy was released.
1995 - The Harlem Globetrotters lost a game to a team featuring Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
1997 - The Game hit theaters.
1999 - The Cleveland Browns 2.0 made their debut.
1999 - Farm Aid ‘99 took place in Virginia.
What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?
A look at the reboots, revivals, throwbacks, retro insights, and nostalgia in the news
A new reboot of the 1989 Tom Hanks movie The Burbs is coming to Peacock. It will star Keke Palmer.
Amazon is developing a docuseries about Lisa Frank; no word on when it might come out.
The Barney reboot, called Barney’s World, just got a premiere date of October 14th on Max.
There’s a new documentary out called Seeking Mavis Beacon, where two women sought to find the woman who played the fictional typing teacher.
Alison Brie will play Evil Lyn, Skeletor’s most prominent female ally, in the upcoming Masters of the Universe movie.
Weezer will be releasing a new edition of their debut “blue” album for its 30th anniversary, including 36 unreleased tracks.
Riverdale star Camila Mendes has dropped out of the I Know What You Did Last Summer reboot.
Oasis streams have almost quadrupled since they announced their reunion tour.
Get Your Book-It Stickers Here
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Have a great week!
-Sam