Mar 3: Cruel Intentions, 99 Luftballons
Plus '90s cartoons that have not been rebooted, Pocket Rockers, and more
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you loved, forgot, or never knew existed
March 3rd, 2023 • Issue 141
This week in the ‘80s and ‘90s
March 3rd
39 years ago, on March 3rd, 1984, Nena’s one hit, 99 Luftballons, peaked at number two.
99 Luftballons by Nena — which, like Bon Jovi, was a group named after its lead singer — was a huge hit in 1984. The *German* version was a hit.
99 Red Balloons, a loosely translated English version of the song which Nena reluctantly recorded, was not a hit in the U.S.
The German version reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100. The English version did not chart.
Why? It’s possible the English version came off too preachy, where with the German version, people could just lose themselves in the ultra-catchy musical hook.
There had been a handful of hit foreign language songs in the U.S. prior to 99 Luftballons, but, as far as I could tell, this was the first attempt at doubling the success with a translated version. And quite possibly the last.
Since 99 Luftballons’s failed translation experiment, catchy non-English songs have rarely seen a translation for the English-speaking markets — and often still find success.
The ‘80s would later see hits in Rock Me Amadeus (German) and La Bamba (Spanish). The ‘90s had Sadeness (Part 1) (Latin?) and Macarena (the remix had new English lyrics but the only important part, the chorus, was in Spanish).
And even in recent times there’s been Gangnam Style, Despacito, and everything from BTS and Bad Bunny.
1985 - Moonlighting premiered on ABC.
1986 - Metallica’s album Master of Puppets was released.
1989 - Lean on Me hit theaters.
1990 - Janet Jackson’s single Escapade hit number one.
1991 - Rodney King was attacked by the LAPD.
1995 - La Bouche’s single Be My Lover was released.
1997 - Daria premiered on MTV.
1997 - Savage Garden’s single Truly Madly Deeply was released.
1998 - Faith Hill’s single This Kiss was released.
1998 - Madonna’s album Ray of Light was released.
March 4th
1982 - Police Squad! premiered on ABC and didn’t work as a TV show but became the Naked Gun films.
1987 - The series finale aired of Silver Spoons.
1989 - Debbie Gibson’s single Lost in Your Eyes hit number one.
1989 - Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers premiered on The Disney Channel.
1993 - The first ESPY Awards were held.
1994 - John Candy passed away.
1994 - NBA Jam was released for Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo.
1994 - Michael Jordan grounded out in his first at-bat in spring training.
1996 - Dish Network went live.
1997 - Just Shoot Me premiered.
1997 - Savage Garden’s self-titled album was released.
2000 - The PlayStation 2 went on sale for the first time, in Japan.
2000 - Lonestar’s single Amazed hit number one.
March 5th
24 years ago, on March 5th, 1999, Cruel Intentions hit theaters.
The late ‘90s saw a teen movie boom, reviving the popularity of the mid ‘80s genre. But the ‘90s take on teen movies was going to try some different stuff. A lot different. And Cruel Intentions made that abundantly clear.
Cruel Intentions was the first teen movie to come out after January 1999’s Varsity Blues and She’s All That.
She’s All That slotted in perfectly as a successor to the ‘80s teen movies. It had the requisite handful of edgier jokes but was mostly charming and appealing to middle schoolers. Varsity Blues was much raunchier (with an R rating) but still not too far afield from the R-rated teen movies of years past like Porky’s or Revenge of the Nerds.
Cruel Intentions was something different. There was no prior comparison. It was an adult movie, only one starring teenagers. (As an adaptation of Les liaisons dangereuses and Dangerous Liaisons, it really was retelling an adult story with teenagers.) Teen movies featured rich kids running wild before, but not like in Cruel Intentions.
There was no way the average teenager could see themselves in Cruel Intentions. The characters were too impossibly attractive, rich, sophisticated, and sexually advanced. They were also too unsupervised, running wild in a world with no rules. (Cruel Intentions was like Lord of the Flies.) The entire movie existed in a different universe.
Cruel Intentions struggled to find an audience. It was too much of a “hard R” movie for younger teenagers. Adults had their own movies to go to — Analyze This opened on the same day, for example. That was back when there were tons of movies in theaters. Adults didn’t need movies with unrealistic teenagers who were cooler, more mature, and wealthier than themselves.
The movie would, however, become a cult classic after the ‘90s/early 2000s teen movie boom ended. Teenagers grew up, watched the movie, and could now fully enjoy it as a surreal romp.
Plus, it kicked open the door for more stories (your Gossip Girl and beyond) about unfathomably rich kids behaving badly.
In its time, though? It was a whole lot more than audiences were ready to take.
1981 - The Sinclair ZX81 hit the market.
1982 - John Belushi passed away at age 33.
1983 - Michael Jackson’s single Billie Jean hit number one.
1993 - Swing Kids hit theaters.
1993 - Ben Johnson was banned for racing for life.
1994 - The Weird Science TV show premiered.
1994 - US3’s one hit Cantaloop peaked at number nine.
1995 - Yahoo.com went live.
1997 - The Jenny McCarthy Show premiered.
1999 - Analyze This and Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels hit theaters.
2002 - The Osbournes premiered on MTV.
March 6th
1981 - Walter Cronkite had his final broadcast as the anchor of CBS Evening News.
1983 - The Sponge was approved as a contraceptive device.
1983 - The CMT cable network debuted.
1983 - The USFL debuted.
1985 - Mike Tyson won by knockout in his first professional fight.
1987 - Lethal Weapon hit theaters.
1992 - The movie Gladiator — the boxing one — premiered.
1992 - The Michelangelo virus hit computers.
1993 - Digable Planet’s one hit, Rebirth of Slick, peaked at number 15.
1993 - A Whole New World hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
1994 - MTV’s Liquid Television came to an end.
1998 - The Big Lebowski hit theaters.
2000 - Eric Clapton became the first three-time inductee into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
March 7th
1982 - The NCAA’s Selection Sunday was broadcast live on TV for the first time.
1983 - The TNN cable network launched.
1985 - We Are the World was released.
1986 - Highlander hit theaters.
1987 - Mike Tyson became the youngest boxing world heavyweight champion.
1987 - Bruce Willis’s only hit single, Respect Yourself, peaked at number five.
1989 - Milli Vanilli’s album Girl You Know It’s True was released.
1994 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that parody falls under fair use.
1995 - Dr. Dre’s single Keep Their Heads Ringin’ was released.
1997 - Howard Stern’s movie Private Parts hit theaters.
1999 - Stanley Kubrick passed away.
March 8th
1983 - President Ronald Reagan referred to the U.S.S.R. as an “evil empire”.
1987 - The series finale of The A-Team aired on NBC.
1991 - New Jack City hit theaters.
1993 - Beck’s single Loser was released.
1993 - Beavis and Butt-Head premiered on MTV.
1994 - Coolio’s single Fantastic Voyage was released.
1996 - The Birdcage and Fargo both hit theaters.
1996 - Celine Dion’s album Falling Into You was released.
1999 - Joe DiMaggio passed away.
March 9th
1984 - Splash hit theaters.
1985 - REO Speedwagon’s single Can’t Fight This Feeling hit number one.
1987 - Rags to Riches premiered.
1987 - U2’s album The Joshua Tree was released.
1990 - Joe Versus the Volcano and House Party both hit theaters.
1991 - Mariah Carey’s single Someday hit number one.
1995 - Arizona and Tampa were granted MLB expansion teams.
1996 - George Burns passed away.
1996 - Oasis’s Wonderwall peaked at number eight, the band’s only top 40 hit in the U.S. (believe it or not).
1997 - Notorious B.I.G. was killed in Los Angeles and his murder remains officially unsolved.
1998 - Dr. Dre signed Eminem.
Everything old is new again
A look at the reboots, revivals, throwbacks, retro insights, and nostalgia in the news
A Frasier original cast member has finally agreed to join Kelsey Grammer in the Paramount+ reboot. Bebe Neuwirth will be return as Lilith.
There’s a teaser trailer for the Fatal Attraction reboot series, which comes out on April 30th on Paramount+ with Joshua Jackson and Lizzie Caplan.
The True Lies TV series reboot premiered this week on CBS to poor reviews.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie release date has been moved up from Friday, April 7th to Wednesday, April 5th.
Brendan Fraser says he was almost accidentally hanged during The Mummy.
Jennifer Grey says she always cries when she rewatches Dirty Dancing because it reminds her Patrick Swayze is gone.
Recommendations of the week
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you loved
In honor of the 25th anniversary of The Big Lebowski, Jeff Bridges did an interview with The Hollywood Reporter and shared some behind-the-scenes photos.
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you forgot
Here’s a list of 10 forgotten ‘90s kids shows that need a reboot. I’m not sure how “forgotten” all of them are — I think about Pinky and the Brain at least three times a day — but the point remains.
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you never knew existed
Fisher-Price’s Pocket Rockers was a Walkman-style toy from the late ‘80s that played proprietary 8-track style tapes of popular songs. Some of the songs were originals; some were cover versions because of licensing issues. And the Internet Archive now has a collection of many of the recordings. (Here’s a cover version of The Bangles’ Manic Monday.)
Have a great week!
-Sam