Jan 14: Humpty Dance, Simpsons Monorail, Gin and Juice
Plus Half Baked, Deep Thoughts with Jack Handey, and more
The Retro
by 11 Points
Modern perspectives on ‘80s and ‘90s nostalgia
January 14th, 2022 • Issue 82
This week in nostalgic history
January 14th
29 years ago, on January 14th, 1993 - “Marge vs. the Monorail” — often called one of the best Simpsons episodes ever — aired on FOX.
There’s (naturally) plenty of debate in the alt.nerd.obsessive corners of the world over the best Simpsons episode ever. (Though there is little debate that the best episode happened roughly between 1992 and 1994.)
While my personal go-to choice is “Last Exit to Springfield”, the March 1993 episode about a Power Plant strike, lots of others choose the episode that premiered today: the monorail episode.
For those unfamiliar, the episode is a Music Man-inspired parody; a slick monorail salesman convinces the town of Springfield to invest in a monorail, but the con leaves the town with a dangerous, shoddily-constructed monorail that barely averts tragic disaster.
The episode also features a top-tier musical number, endless quotable lines, and, for extra cachet, a writing credit for pre-talk show Conan O’Brien.
I think the plot in the power plant strike episode is a little stronger (the monorail story is much more absurdist), however, neither “best episode ever” choice could be considered incorrect.
Mostly, it’s wild that out of 500+ episodes, two with legitimate claims as the best ever came out within two months of one another.
Also on January 14th: Bobby Brown’s single My Prerogative hit number one (1989)… Paul McCartney’s album Back in the USSR was released exclusively in Russia (1989)… Bart the Genius kicked off the regular run of The Simpsons on FOX (1990)… Cathy Dennis’s single Touch Me was released (1991)… Vanessa Williams’s single Saved the Best for Last was released (1992)… David Letterman announced he was leaving NBC for CBS (1993)… House Party 3 hit theaters (1994)
January 15th
28 years ago, on January 15th, 1994 - Snoop Doggy Dogg’s single Gin and Juice was released.
Gin and Juice was a crucial moment for Snoop Doggy Dogg as the second single off his debut album. His first single, What’s My Name?, was a standard ‘90s “allow me to introduce myself” track.
Gin and Juice needed to be different. And it was. The hook was better. The lyrics were better. The subject matter was better.
There was little doubt surrounding Snoop Doggy Dogg’s career trajectory after his appearances on Dr. Dre’s Chronic singles, but Gin and Juice successfully removed whatever lingering final shreds of doubt there may have been.
In the nearly 30 years since, the song has been so cemented into pop culture lore that “with my mind on my money and my money on my mind” and pretty much any other line from the chorus as well have transcended the song. They just represent moods.
Also on January 15th: Hill Street Blues premiered on NBC (1981)… Men at Work’s single Down Under hit number one (1983)… President Reagan signed legislation to make Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday a national holiday (1983)… Moonstruck hit theaters (1987)… Jimmy the Greek made infamous racist comments (1988)… Big John Studd won the WWF’s second Royal Rumble (1989)… Mega Man 4 was released (1992)… Dennis Rodman kicked a cameraman (1997)… Varsity Blues hit theaters (1999)… Christina Aguilera’s single What a Girl Wants hit number one (2000)… Wikipedia went live (2001)
January 16th
24 years ago, on January 16th, 1998 - Half Baked hit theaters.
A few years back, a friend asked me why Half Baked has held up so well. I wrote a piece about it on my website and basically concluded: it was a funny movie that held up better than most other funny movies because Dave Chappelle stopped making movies. He couldn’t run his on-screen character into the ground like so many other leading comedic actors before and since. And make no mistake, there’s not a ton of daylight between Chappelle and his Half Baked character, so that’s the character we would’ve gotten in future Chappelle vehicles.
In the years since that post, Chappelle still isn’t making movies — but he has become a lightning rod for his comedy specials, often for his unfortunate addiction to punching down.
It’s an interesting contrast between modern Chappelle and the character in Half Baked. That character couldn’t punch down with his jokes because the character was the one who was down. It’s funny when his character steals a few bucks from a blind panhandler to buy ice cream — because that’s a joke on how broke he is, not mocking the panhandler.
Who would Netflix comedy special Chappelle make the target of that joke today?
Also on January 16th: Paul and Linda McCartney were arrested in Barbados for cannabis (1984)… Playboy announced the end of stapling centerfolds (1985)… George Harrison’s single Got My Mind Set on You hit number one (1988)… Depeche Mode’s single Enjoy the Silence was released (1990)… Operation: Desert Storm began (1991)… Hercules and Star Trek: Voyager both premiered (1995)… the UPN Network premiered (1995)… Brandy’s single Have You Ever hit number one (1999)
January 17th
38 years ago, on January 17th, 1984 - The Supreme Court ruled it was legal to use your VCR to record TV shows.
If there’s one constant around innovations in media it’s that the people in media hate those innovations.
One of the biggest turning points in consumer home tech happened today in 1984, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the VCR’s home recording abilities were legal.
Universal Studios filed the lawsuit against Sony over the Betamax recorder in 1976; over the next eight years it worked its way to the Supreme Court.
Had the ruling gone the other direction, home media would’ve likely taken a very different turn. Devices like the DVR wouldn’t have come around because they would also be illegal, and one can only imagine the chaos that would’ve surrounded digital media.
Of course, whenever the next new format comes around we can count on the inevitable lawsuits. (Not sure we can count on the Supreme Court to make a logical decision, but that’s another topic for another time.)
Also on January 17th: Iron Eagle hit theaters (1986)… Gregory Abbott’s single Shake You Down hit number one (1987)… “The Fumble” cost the Cleveland Browns a trip to the Super Bowl (1988)… a method to cheat to win ToppsGold baseball cards was revealed on Prodigy (1992)… a 6.7-magnitude earthquake hit Northridge, California (1994)… Beverly Hills Ninja hit theaters (1997)… Savage Garden’s single Truly, Madly, Deeply hit number one (1998)… Matt Drudge broke the Clinton-Lewinsky story (1998)… Gary Anderson’s missed field goal cost the Minnesota Vikings a trip to the Super Bowl (1999)… Shawn Mullins’s one hit, Lullaby, peaked at number seven (1999)
January 18th
32 years ago, on January 18th, 1990 - Washington, D.C., mayor Marion Berry was arrested for smoking crack in a sting operation.
I only really know about Marion Berry and crack because of Norm Macdonald, who used it as a punchline approximately two times per episode during the years he hosted SNL’s Weekend Update.
Reading the details for the first time now, Berry struck me as a mayor prone to scandal who was entrapped into smoking crack in a sting operation.
Another thing I didn’t realize: A few years after his crack arrest and prison time, he ran for mayor of D.C. again — and won again. It’s truly fascinating what is and isn’t politically disqualifying to a candidate in U.S. politics.
Also on January 18th: Dionne Warwick’s single That’s What Friends Are For hit number one (1986)… Degrassi Junior High premiered (1987)… Eastern Airlines went out of business after 62 years (1991)… Amy Grant’s single Baby, Baby was released (1991)… Martin Luther King Jr. Day became official in all 50 states (1993)… Yahoo.com was registered (1995)… the Major League Baseball owners approved interleague play (1996)… Lisa Marie Presley filed for divorce from Michael Jackson (1996)… Ally McBeal beat Seinfeld to win the Golden Globe for Best TV Comedy (1998)
January 19th
31 years ago, on January 19th, 1991 - Deep Thoughts with Jack Handey debuted on Saturday Night Live.
Deep Thoughts with Jack Handey was a recurring Saturday Night Live interstitial bit. Jack Handey, a writer for the show, would write quick observational and/or surreal ruminations. His “deep thought” would then scroll on screen over B-roll footage and wistful music as he narrated.
The bit was instantly popular — so popular a compilation book was released the following year.
Today, you can draw a straight line from Deep Thoughts to social media comedy. Handey was, essentially, tweeting before Twitter. There are thousands of Twitter folk who now tweet random observations like Handey’s Deep Thoughts. Reddit even has a popular subreddit devoted to a similar conceit, called Shower Thoughts.
And likely as a result of the sheer volume of Deep Thoughts-style social media comedy, it would be hard for SNL to ever bringing back this sketch or a similar one — the surreal one-liner itch is now being over scratched.
Also on January 19th: Michael Jackson’s single Rock with You hit number one (1980)… minor league hockey player was traded for a bus (1983)… Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas? peaked at number 13 (1985)… 48 Hours premiered on CBS (1988)… Ronald Reagan pardoned George Steinbrenner for making illegal campaign contributions to Richard Nixon (1989)… Tremors hit theaters (1990)… Sgt. Slaughter won the WWF title in a shocking upset at the Royal Rumble (1991)… Coffee Talk debuted on Saturday Night Live (1991)… Janet Jackson’s single Love Will Never Do (Without You) hit number one (1991)… Ric Flair won the vacated WWF title at the Royal Rumble (1992)… Snow’s album 12 Inches of Snow was released (1993)… Fleetwood Mac reunited to play at Bill Clinton’s inauguration (1993)… FOX expanded its prime-time lineup to seven days a week (1993)… From Dusk Till Dawn hit theaters (1996)… the first BlackBerry was released (1999)… the WWF’s Times Square restaurant opened (2000)… Michael Jordan joined the Washington Wizards as part owner (2000)… the NFL’s Tuck Rule game helped kick off the New England Patriots’ decades of success (2002)
January 20th
31 years ago, on January 20th, 1990 - Digital Underground’s single The Humpty Dance was released.
Digital Underground didn’t initially set out to be a comedy — or, at least, light-hearted and mirthful — rap group but quickly realized they could fill a gap in the market by becoming one.
Digital Underground started out as a more politically charged, authentically raw act. But as they saw that world becoming crowded — and an acceptance of “minivan rap” in the mainstream record sales world — they softened their edge.
Digital Underground’s founder Shock G leaned into a character he’d created named Humpty Hump and made The Humpty Dance — the group’s biggest hit ever. It made it to number 11 on the Billboard charts, quite high for a rap track at the time.
The track was one of the earliest hits to show rap talent/quality production and fun weren’t mutually exclusive. The drum loop of the song has been repeatedly sampled in the three decades since the song’s release; and most rappers since, from Eminem to Ma$e, have done at least a few whimsical songs as spiritual ancestors to The Humpty Dance.
Also on January 20th: 52 American hostages were released in Iran 20 minutes after Ronald Reagan’s inauguration (1981)… Ozzy Osbourne bit the head off a bat (1982)… the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Miami Dolphins in the Super Bowl (1985)… Ronald Reagan became the first president elected in a year ending with “0” to leave office alive since 1840 (1989)… Michael Bolton’s single How Am I Supposed to Live Without You hit number one (1990)… Roseanne Barr married Tom Arnold (1990)… the Scorpions’ single Winds of Change was released (1991)… The Heights’ single How Do You Talk to an Angel was released (1992)… Ice Cube (probably) had a good day (1992)… the series finale aired of G.I. Joe (1992)… Aubrey Hepburn passed away (1993)… FOX debuted the glowing hockey puck in its NHL coverage (1996)… Deep Blue Something’s one hit, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, peaked at number five (1996)… Dawson’s Creek premiered on the WB as the network expanded to Tuesday night programming (1998)… Wyclef Jean’s single Gone till November was released (1998)… Michael Jordan played in Chicago for the first time as a member of another team (2002)
Everything old is new again
A look at the reboots, revivals, throwbacks, retro insights, and nostalgia in the news.
A reboot of Degrassi is coming to HBO Max. It starts filming this summer.
NBC has ordered a pilot for a Quantum Leap reboot and a Life Goes On reboot.
A new movie about the Beanie Baby fad called The Beanie Bubble is coming to Apple TV+. Zach Galifianakis and Elizabeth Banks are both signed on.
Last year, CDs had their first year-over-year sales increase since 2004. The credit goes to Adele’s album 30, which accounted for 2.15% of CDs sold.
The I Know What You Did Last Summer TV reboot has been canceled by Amazon after one season.
The house from A Nightmare on Elm Street in Los Angeles sold for $2.8 million.
Bob Saget sadly passed away on Sunday at age 65.
Throwbacks and recommendations
Here’s the official trailer for Bel-Air, the dramatic reboot of Fresh Prince. As I say every time this show comes up, yes, the dramatic reboot. After watching the trailer, I am still not convinced this is real.
Mental Floss put together a list of 11 infamous ‘90s school bans.
Thanks for reading!
-Sam