2006 Trivia, Fun Facts and Pop Culture History
Quick Facts from 2006
- World Changing Events: Facebook opened to anyone over age 13 with a valid email address, and Twitter launched — two moves that would permanently rewire how humans communicate, argue, and share photos of their food.
- Top Song: Irreplaceable by Beyoncé
- Must-See Movies: Dreamgirls, Mission: Impossible III, The Da Vinci Code, and Happy Feet
- Most Famous American: Probably Beyoncé — or, depending on your news diet, George W. Bush
- Notable Books: The Secret by Rhonda Byrne and Wisdom of Our Fathers by Tim Russert
- Daily Hershey Kisses (14 oz): $2.50 | I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter (15 oz): $2.29
- The Fad: The Chicken Noodle Soup dance briefly dominated, before Crank That (Soulja Boy) by Soulja Boy Tell’em outlasted it
- #TBT: Throwback Thursday entered mainstream pop culture in 2006 — the trend of posting nostalgic photos on Thursdays under #ThrowbackThursday
- Tech Debut: Blu-ray discs became commercially available in 2006, capable of holding up to five times more data than a DVD
- The Message: Western Union sent its last telegram in 2006, ending 150 years of service. Founded in 1851, the telegram had survived two world wars, the telephone, and the fax machine — but not email.
- Super Bowl XL ad cost: $2.5 million for 30 seconds
Top Ten Baby Names of 2006
Girls: Emily, Emma, Madison, Isabella, Ava
Boys: Jacob, Michael, Joshua, Ethan, Matthew
Fashion Icons and Sex Symbols
Jessica Alba, Angelina Jolie, Scarlett Johansson, Christina Milian, Keira Knightley, Katherine Heigl, Gisele Bündchen, Stacy Keibler, Eva Longoria, Lindsay Lohan, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Kristen Bell
Hollywood Hunks and Leading Men
Channing Tatum, Hugh Laurie, David Beckham, Justin Timberlake, Antonio Sabàto Jr., Johnny Depp
The Quotes
“Stay hungry. Stay foolish.” — Steve Jobs, Stanford commencement address, 2005 (went viral in 2006)
“I’m the decider, and I decide what is best.” — President George W. Bush, press conference, April 2006
“Erin, I have a dream. A dream to move to Oslo and be with you.” — Michael Scott, The Office, 2006
Time Magazine Person of the Year
“You” — honoring all worldwide web users and the rise of user-generated content
Miss America and Miss USA
Miss America: Jennifer Berry, Tulsa, OK Miss USA: Tara Conner, Kentucky
We Lost in 2006
Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter — killed by a stingray barb to the heart on September 4, age 44. Stingray injuries are almost never fatal. It was only the second recorded stingray-related death in Australia since 1945. He was a hero to millions of children worldwide.
Coretta Scott King, civil rights leader and widow of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., died January 30, age 78
James Brown, the Godfather of Soul, died December 25, age 73
Gerald Ford, 38th President of the United States — died December 26, age 93
Peter Boyle, actor (Everybody Loves Raymond) — died December 12, age 71
Don Knotts, actor (The Andy Griffith Show, Three’s Company) — died February 24, age 81
Shelley Winters, actress, died on January 14, age 85
Syd Barrett, co-founder of Pink Floyd, died July 7, age 60
Billy Preston, musician — died June 6, age 59
Aaron Spelling, TV producer (Dynasty, Beverly Hills 90210, Charlie’s Angels) — died June 23, age 83
Buck Owens, country music legend — died March 25, age 76
The Scandals
Congressman Mark Foley, a Republican from Florida, resigned after sending sexually explicit messages to an underage congressional page.
The Duke University lacrosse team scandal: members of the team were accused of assaulting a dancer hired to perform at a party. The charges were eventually dropped after the accuser’s story fell apart. All charges were dismissed in 2007.
Terrell Owens allegedly attempted suicide by taking 35 painkillers. His publicist insisted it was an accidental reaction.
French soccer legend Zinedine Zidane headbutted Italy’s Marco Materazzi in the chest during the World Cup Final. Zidane was ejected. Italy won. Zidane retired. Materazzi has dined out on that story ever since.
Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot his friend Harry Whittington in the face during a quail hunting trip in Texas. Whittington later publicly apologized to Cheney for the inconvenience.
The Break-Ups
Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards
Britney Spears and Kevin Federline
Paul McCartney and Heather Mills
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown
Pop Culture Facts and History
Russ Heller set a record for consecutive listens to Starship’s “We Built This City” — widely considered one of the worst songs ever recorded. Russ endured it 324 times over 24 hours. Whether this was dedication or penance is unclear.
M&Ms launched a campaign offering 2 million dark chocolate M&Ms to whoever returned The Scream, a painting stolen from a Norwegian museum in 2004. Within days of the campaign launching, Norwegian police found the painting. The M&Ms were presumably eaten in celebration.
Simone Origone set a world speed skiing record in 2006 at 156.2 miles per hour — faster than most road cars travel on a highway.
Year 3000 was originally recorded in 2003 by British pop-punk band Busted. The Jonas Brothers covered it in 2006 for their debut album. Most people assume it was always a Jonas Brothers song.
The first most-subscribed YouTuber was Peter Oakley, known as Geriatric1927, who talked about growing up in the UK during World War II. He passed away in 2014 at age 86 — a reminder that the internet has always been about sharing stories.
Katie Melua gave a concert 303 meters below sea level inside one of the legs of the Troll A oil rig in Norway, setting the Guinness World Record for deepest underwater concert.
After Disney acquired Pixar in 2006, Steve Jobs became Disney’s largest individual shareholder, with a 7% stake.
The U.S. Senate was one vote short of passing a constitutional amendment banning flag burning. Sixty-six senators voted in favor.
The one-billionth song downloaded from iTunes was “Speed of Sound” by Coldplay, purchased in February 2006.
In 2006, a panel of 424 astronomers at the International Astronomical Union in Prague voted to reclassify Pluto as a dwarf planet, reducing the solar system’s official planet count from nine to eight. Pluto has never forgiven them.
A Russian cosmonaut hit a golf ball during a spacewalk from the International Space Station, producing an estimated 2.2-billion-yard drive. The golf ball is presumably still out there.
Bambi II was released in 2006, 64 years after the original Bambi (1942), making it the record holder for the longest gap between a film and its sequel.
Disney quietly ended its decade-long Happy Meal partnership with McDonald’s in 2006, citing concerns about childhood obesity. The last Kid’s Meal toys were from Cars and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
Cars earned $462 million at the box office in 2006 — and then generated $10 billion in merchandise sales over the next five years. Pixar occasionally makes toys.
In 2006, audio software analyst Peter Shann Ford found evidence supporting Neil Armstrong’s claim that he said “one small step for a man” on the moon — the “a” had simply been dropped by radio interference. Armstrong had been trying to correct the record for 37 years.
William Shatner auctioned off a kidney stone for $25,000. The proceeds went to Habitat for Humanity.
Anousheh Ansari became the first female space tourist in 2006, paying $20 million for a trip to the International Space Station.
Lambda Lambda Lambda, the fictional fraternity from Revenge of the Nerds, was formally established as a real fraternity at the University of Connecticut in 2006.
Kongō Gumi, the world’s oldest continuously operating company at 1,441 years old, was absorbed into a larger Japanese construction conglomerate in 2006. It had survived wars, earthquakes, and centuries of Japanese history — but not a cash flow crisis.
Heinz discontinued its colored EZ Squirt ketchup line in 2006 after six years. The product included green, purple, mystery (pink, orange, or teal), and blue varieties. America decided it preferred its ketchup red after all.
In 2006, relics of Joan of Arc held by a Paris museum since 1867 were tested and found to be from an Egyptian mummy. So that mystery is solved — kind of.
Napoleon reportedly signed the Louisiana Purchase in his bathtub. An American hotelier bought the tub in 2006 and installed it in a New Orleans hotel for guests to use. One assumes the historical significance is disclosed before checkout.
The 118th element in the periodic table was named Oganesson (Og) in 2016. It had been provisionally called Ununoctium since 1979. (Note: officially named 2016 — discovered/confirmed 2006.)
The Habit
Facebook, YouTube, MySpace — the three-headed monster of early social media that consumed approximately 2006–2009.
National Toy Hall of Fame — 2006 Inductees
Easy-Bake Oven, Lionel Trains
Christmas Gifts, Toys, and First Appearances of 2006
Nintendo Wii, Elmo TMX, Dora the Explorer dolls, Apples to Apples
Nobel Prize Winners
Physics — John C. Mather and George F. Smoot
Chemistry — Roger D. Kornberg
Medicine — Andrew Z. Fire and Craig C. Mello
Literature — Orhan Pamuk
Peace — Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank
Economics — Edmund S. Phelps
Popular and Best-Selling Books of 2016
The Secret — Rhonda Byrne
Wisdom of Our Fathers — Tim Russert
For One More Day — Mitch Albom
Cross — James Patterson
Dear John — Nicholas Sparks
Lisey’s Story — Stephen King
Cell — Stephen King
On Chesil Beach — Ian McEwan
The Road — Cormac McCarthy
The Audacity of Hope — Barack Obama
Broadway and Theater in 2006
The 39 Steps (play) opened September 14, 2006, and ran until September 5, 2015. Wicked (musical) expanded its run — opened on Broadway in 2003, extended through 2006 and beyond Mary Poppins (musical) opened November 16, 2006, and closed March 3, 2013
Best Film Oscar Winner
Crash, directed by Paul Haggis, won Best Picture — presented at the 2006 ceremony for the 2005 film year. Still one of the most debated Best Picture wins in Oscar history.
The Bomb
Movie: Lady in the Water — M. Night Shyamalan cast himself as a man whose writing would change the world. Critics disagreed. TV: The War at Home on Fox was so poorly received it was canceled after two seasons, despite airing after Family Guy.
2006 Entries to the National Film Registry
Applause (1929)
The Big Trail (1930)
Blazing Saddles (1974)
The Curse of Quon Gwon (1916/1917)
Daughter of Shanghai (1937)
Drums of Winter (1988)
Early Abstractions (1939/1956)
Fargo (1996)
Flesh and the Devil (1927)
Groundhog Day (1993)
Halloween (1978)
In the Street (1948)
The Last Command (1928)
Notorious (1946)
Red Dust (1932)
Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (1971/1972)
Rocky (1976)
sex, lies, and videotape (1989)
Siege (1940)
St. Louis Blues (1929)
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964)
Tess of the Storm Country (1914)
Think of Me First as a Person (1960/1975)
A Time Out of War (1954)
Traffic in Souls (1913)
Top Movies of 2006
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
- Night at the Museum
- Cars
- X-Men: The Last Stand
- The Da Vinci Code
- Superman Returns
- Happy Feet
- Ice Age: The Meltdown
- Casino Royale
- The Pursuit of Happyness
Most Popular TV Shows of 2006
- American Idol Results Show (Fox)
- Dancing With the Stars — Fall (ABC)
- CSI (CBS)
- Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)
- House (Fox)
- Sunday Night Football (NBC)
- Desperate Housewives (ABC)
- CSI: Miami (CBS)
- Deal or No Deal (NBC)
- Survivor: Cook Islands (CBS)
2006 Billboard Number One Songs
December 30, 2005 – January 13, 2006: “Don’t Forget About Us” — Mariah Carey
January 14 – January 20: “Laffy Taffy” — D4L
January 21 – February 3: “Grillz” — Nelly featuring Paul Wall, Ali, and Gipp
February 4 – March 10: “Check on It” — Beyoncé featuring Slim Thug
March 11 – March 17: “You’re Beautiful” — James Blunt
March 18 – March 31: “So Sick” — Ne-Yo
April 1 – April 7: “Temperature” — Sean Paul
April 8 – May 12: “Bad Day” — Daniel Powter
May 13 – June 2: “SOS” — Rihanna
June 3 – June 16: “Ridin'” — Chamillionaire featuring Krayzie Bone
June 17 – June 30: “Hips Don’t Lie” — Shakira featuring Wyclef Jean
July 1 – July 7: “Do I Make You Proud” — Taylor Hicks
July 8 – August 18: “Promiscuous” — Nelly Furtado featuring Timbaland
August 19 – September 8: “London Bridge” — Fergie
September 9 – October 27: “SexyBack” — Justin Timberlake
October 28 – November 10: “Money Maker” — Ludacris featuring Pharrell
November 11 – December 1: “I Wanna Love You” — Akon featuring Snoop Dogg
December 2 – December 29: (chart gap in source data — likely held by “I Wanna Love You”)
December 30, 2006 – February 23, 2007: “Irreplaceable” — Beyoncé
Sports Champions of 2006
World Series: St. Louis Cardinals
Super Bowl XL: Pittsburgh Steelers
NBA Champions: Miami Heat
Stanley Cup: Carolina Hurricanes
U.S. Open Golf: Geoff Ogilvy
U.S. Open Tennis — Men: Roger Federer | Women: Maria Sharapova
Wimbledon — Men: Roger Federer | Women: Amélie Mauresmo
NCAA Football: Florida
NCAA Basketball: Florida
Kentucky Derby: Barbaro
FIFA World Cup: Italy
Sports Honorable Mention: Shaun White won snowboarding gold at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics with a near-perfect halfpipe run that cemented his status as the sport’s greatest competitor.
FAQ — 2006 Trivia, Fun Facts, and Pop Culture History
Q: What was the biggest news event of 2006?
A: Facebook opened to anyone over 13, and Twitter launched — two platforms that would reshape global communication, politics, and culture within a decade.
Q: What was the #1 song of 2006?
A: “Irreplaceable” by Beyoncé ended 2006 at #1 and held the top spot through February 2007.
Q: What was the biggest movie of 2006?
A: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest was the top-grossing film of 2006, followed by Night at the Museum and Cars.
Q: Who won the Super Bowl in 2006?
A: The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Seattle Seahawks 21–10 in Super Bowl XL.
Q: What happened to Pluto in 2006?
A: The International Astronomical Union voted to reclassify Pluto as a dwarf planet, reducing the solar system’s official planet count from nine to eight.
Q: What technology was launched in 2006?
A: Twitter launched in 2006, Facebook opened to the general public, YouTube was purchased by Google for $1.65 billion, and Blu-ray discs became commercially available.
Q: What was the most popular Christmas gift of 2006?
A: The Nintendo Wii was the must-have gift of 2006, selling out immediately and remaining nearly impossible to find through most of 2007.
Q: Who won the FIFA World Cup in 2006?
A: Italy defeated France in the final, most memorably because French star Zinedine Zidane headbutted Italian defender Marco Materazzi and was ejected in extra time.
Q: What was the biggest celebrity death of 2006?
A: Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, died on September 4, 2006, from a stingray barb to the heart — one of the rarest causes of death in the world.
Q: Who was Time Magazine’s Person of the Year in 2006?
A: “You” — recognizing every person who contributed to the rise of user-generated content on the internet.
Q: What classic song finally entered the public domain in 2006?
A: “Happy Birthday to You” was freed from copyright in 2016 when Warner Music paid $14 million to settle the lawsuit, ending decades of royalty fees for public performances.
Q: What sports record ended in 2006?
A: The Chicago White Sox — wait, wrong year. The Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro shattered his leg shortly after winning the 2006 race. He underwent months of treatment before being humanely euthanized in January 2007. His courage during recovery made him a national story.
