Feb 24: Lauryn Hill, Pokemon, Nokia's Snake, Worst Sequels
Plus is there going to be a Wayne's World 3?
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you loved, forgot, or never knew existed
February 24th, 2023 • Issue 140
This week in the ‘80s and ‘90s
February 24th
24 years ago, on February 24th, 1999, Lauryn Hill won five Grammys for her album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.
It was a big moment in Grammys history when Lauryn Hill, now out of the Fugees but not yet out of her early 20s, won five major awards in one night. The biggest of the five: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill was the first hip-hop album to win Album of the Year.
But what happened next was even more unprecedented: Lauryn Hill fell off the map.
With the universal acclaim surrounding The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill — plus an incredible 10 million copies sold — Lauryn Hill was poised to be the next true superstar. Of hip-hop, of music, and beyond; movie offers were pouring in through her late '90s run.
But instead of following that path, she withdrew from the spotlight. And no one can fully agree on one reason why. (Basically every publication has written an article on the topic over the past 20 years, and they all pitch different reasons.)
Maybe there wasn't a single reason. Hill quickly grew disillusioned with the music industry. Her production and songwriting team was suing her. She was just starting a family and had a one-year-old baby. She hated the endless criticism endemic to being a celebrity (especially a false rumor that she said she didn't want white people to buy her album). Her personality was a bad fit for the daily superstar grind — she was often late and had a reputation for being erratic. She felt like she was losing her identity and didn't want to conform to expectations.
Whatever the reason or mix of reasons — she was gone.
Lauryn Hill would pop in and out of the music world after 1999. She released an MTV Unplugged album and singles here and there. But she never made a full comeback.
You can count on one hand the number of people who’ve voluntarily withdrawn from superstardom in their prime. It’s exceedingly rare. And as time goes on and no one repeats what she did... it becomes even rarer and rarer.
1980 - Harper Valley P.T.A. premiered on NBC.
1981 - Charles and Diana announced their engagement.
1982 - The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Larry Flynt.
1990 - The Mission: Impossible reboot series aired its series finale.
1992 - Kurt Cobain married Courtney Love.
1993 - Ice Cube’s single It Was a Good Day was released.
1994 - One of the top Simpsons episodes ever, “Deep Space Homer”, premiered.
1996 - The Late Shift TV movie (about the Leno/Letterman Tonight Show battle) premiered.
1997 - The FDA approved the morning after pill.
1998 - Fastball’s single The Way was released.
1999 - Juvenile’s single Back That Azz Up was released.
2001 - Joe’s hit Stutter, featuring Mystikal, hit number one.
February 25th
1984 - Van Halen’s single Jump hit number one.
1987 - The Supreme Court upheld affirmative action.
1992 - TLC’s debut album, Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip, was released.
1995 - Madonna’s single Take a Bow hit number one.
1997 - Monica’s single For You I Will was released.
2000 - Reindeer Games and Wonder Boys hit theaters.
February 26th
1983 - Musical Youth’s one hit, Pass the Dutchie, peaked at number 10.
1983 - Michael Jackson’s album Thriller hit number one, where it would stay for 37 weeks.
1987 - The first Beatles CDs were released.
1988 - Hairspray hit theaters.
1988 - George Michael’s song Father Figure hit number one.
1991 - LL Cool J’s single Mama Said Knock You Out was released.
1993 - Falling Down hit theaters.
1993 - The World Trade Center was bombed.
1995 - Selena performed her final concert before she was murdered.
1997 - Booty Call hit theaters.
2002 - Alanis Morissette’s album Under Rug Swept was released.
February 27th
27 years ago, on February 27th, 1996, Pokemon debuted with the release of two Game Boy games in Japan.
Pokemon is the third-bestselling video game franchise in history, the bestselling trading card game, and quite possibly the highest-grossing media franchise of all time.
27 years after its debut it's still captivating new generations — one of those new captives is my seven-year-old. And all his friends at school. The school had a book fair last night and they all bought Pokemon guides. (Even ones they already owned, as kids do.)
And while it's reductive to say all of Pokemon’s success is due to the greatest marketing slogan of all time — there's an argument to be made.
If you're not familiar, the slogan for Pokemon is "Gotta Catch 'Em All!"
And right there, it's imbuing every fan with a mission. It's not enough to watch Pokemon TV or movies, to casually play the video games, or collect a few cards. You've gotta catch 'em all.
"All" is not finite, either. Pokemon is now up to 1,008 species according to the Pokedex.
"Gotta Catch 'Em All" is rarely mentioned in the same breath as other top advertising slogans (e.g., Just Do It, Betcha Can't Eat Just One, Think Different, and Because You're Worth It). But it should be.
Because the Pokemon has grossed an estimated $77.1 billion since this day in 1996, or about $2.86 billion per year — all on the strength of kids following instructions and trying to catch 'em all.
1980 - Gloria Gaynor won the one and only Grammy ever for Best Disco Recording for I Will Survive.
1984 - The Michael Jackson Pepsi commercial where he caught on fire aired, with the flames edited out.
1987 - The series finale aired of The Love Boat.
1987 - The NCAA canceled SMU’s entire football season.
1988 - Patrick Swayze’s single She’s Like the Wind peaked at number three.
1990 - Milli Vanilli claimed they were more talented than all the top artists of all time.
1990 - Wilson Phillips’ single Hold On was released.
1990 - Janet Jackson’s iconic Rhythm Nation World Tour kicked off.
1991 - Roxette’s single Joyride was released.
1992 - 16-year-old Tiger Woods played in a PGA event.
1995 - Nicki French’s cover of Total Eclipse of the Heart was released.
1996 - Four singles were released: Quad City DJs’ C’mon N Ride It, Alanis Morissette’s Ironic, Dishwalla’s Counting Blue Cars, and Busta Rhymes’s Woo Hah.
1997 - Divorce was finally legalized in Ireland.
1998 - Tupac’s single Do For Love was released.
1998 - Apple discontinued the Newton handheld.
2003 - Mr. Rogers passed away.
February 28th
1983 - The record-breaking series finale of M*A*S*H aired on CBS.
1983 - U2’s album War was released.
1986 - Wham! broke up.
1986 - Pretty in Pink hit theaters.
1989 - The series finale aired of Coach.
1995 - Jewel’s album Pieces of You was released.
1995 - Blues Traveler’s single Run Around was released.
1996 - Kiss reunited at the Grammys.
1997 - Donnie Brasco hit theaters.
1998 - Celine Dion’s single My Heart Will Go On hit number one.
1998 - Ben Folds Five’s only top 40 hit, Brick, peaked at number 19.
2000 - WWF’s Mae Young “give birth” to a hand on Monday Night Raw.
March 1st
1983 - Swatch watches hit the market.
1986 - Baltimora’s one hit, Tarzan Boy, peaked at number 13.
1986 - Mr. Mister’s single Kyrie hit number one.
1987 - Pro Wrestling for NES was released.
1988 - Ice Hockey was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
1991 - Clarissa Explains It All premiered on Nickelodeon.
1991 - The Doors movie hit theaters.
1993 - The Cranberries’ album Everybody Else Is Doing It was released.
1995 - Yahoo was incorporated.
1996 - The 888 toll free area code debuted.
1997 - Notorious BIG’s single Hypnotize was released.
1997 - The Cardigans’ one hit, Lovefool, peaked at number two.
1998 - Titanic became the first movie to gross $1 billion worldwide.
2000 - Rick Pitino said in press conference Larry Bird is not walking through that door.
2001 - Monster’s Ball hit theaters.
2002 - 40 Days and 40 Nights hit theaters.
March 2nd
1983 - The first CD players and CDs were released in the U.S.
1984 - This Is Spinal Tap and Repo Man hit theaters.
1987 - The Apple Macintosh II was released.
1989 - Pepsi’s controversial ad featuring Madonna premiered.
1989 - The New York Mets’ Keith Hernandez and Darryl Strawberry almost got into a fistfight in front of reporters at spring training.
1990 - The Hunt for Red October hit theaters.
1991 - Color Me Badd’s single I Wanna Sex You Up was released.
1994 - Miami began its Latin Walk of Fame.
1996 - Seven Mary Three’s one hit, Cumbersome, peaked at number 39.
Everything old is new again
A look at the reboots, revivals, throwbacks, retro insights, and nostalgia in the news
Wayne’s World 3 or Uber Eats commercial 2? Dana Carvey posted a photo on Instagram two days ago of he and Mike Myers shooting… something in their Garth and Wayne getups.
The cast of Back to the Future reunited at a pop culture convention in Portland, Ore., last weekend.
The True Lies reboot TV series begins on Wednesday on CBS.
Disney+ has canceled the Mighty Ducks reboot after two seasons.
Two shows that have been in first-run syndication since the ‘90s — The People’s Court and Judge Mathis — have both been canceled.
American Girl announced two new “historical” dolls… from the ‘90s.
Lego has de facto confirmed Legend of Zelda sets are coming after they filed copyright claims against people posting YouTube videos showing hints of them.
Bette Midler says she turned down Sister Act. And Misery.
Recommendations of the week
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you loved
Believe it or not, there’s an oral history of Snake on Nokia — and how it launched the mobile gaming industry as we know it.
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you forgot
Here are the 25 worst movie sequels ever based on Rotten Tomatoes scores. More than half of the movies on the list are from the ‘80s and ‘90s, though it does include three of the Police Academy movies.
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you never knew existed
Here’s a 25th anniversary story on the origins of Destiny’s Child, from the pair of founding members who were eventually ousted from the group.
Have a great week!
-Sam