1990 Fun Facts, Trivia and History

Quick Facts from 1990:

• World Changing Event: Solitaire was originally included in early computer programs to help users strengthen their clicking and dragging skills.
• The Top Song was Because I Love You (The Postman Song) Stevie B
• The Movies to Watch include Home Alone, Ghost, Edward Scissorhands, Dick Tracy and Dances with Wolves
• The Most Famous Person in America was probably Madonna
• The Bestselling books:
• Minimum Wage in 1990: $3.80 per hour
  Tandy Computer 1000RL & color monitor: $799.00
  Nintendo Game Boy: $89.97
• The Funny Guy was: Billy Crystal
  The Funny Lady: Paula Poundstone
• The Long Break Up: When Simon and Garfunkel were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Art Garfunkel thanked Paul Simon for enriching his life and Paul said, “Arthur and I agree about almost nothing. But it’s true, I have enriched his life quite a bit.” They sang three songs together and left the stage.

“The Quotes:”
“I’ve fallen and I can’t get up”
– Mrs. Fletcher in a Lifecall commercial

“I do not like broccoli. I haven’t liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I’m the President of the United States, and I’m not going to eat any more broccoli.”
-George H.W. Bush

The Scandals:
Rocker Chuck Berry was accused and sued by several women who claimed that he had installed a video camera in the ladies’ bathrooms at two of his St. Louis restaurants.

Rob and Fabrice, better known as Milli Vanilli, have to return their “Best New Artist” Grammy because they didn’t sing on their hit album.

World News:
North and South Yemen, also known as the Yemen Arab Republic and the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen, unified as the Republic of Yemen

North and South Yemen, also known as the Yemen Arab Republic and the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen, unified as the Republic of Yemen

A Community Charge (poll tax) takes effect in England and Wales amid widespread protests. Shortly after Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher resigned, the abolition of the poll tax was announced on 21 March 1991

In Iran, the Manji-Rudbar Earthquake struck with a 7.4 magnitude earthquake, Killing between 35 and 50,000 people.

On May 17, the World Health Organization (WHO) removed homosexuality from its list of diseases.

Iraq invaded Kuwait, eventually leading to the Gulf War. Operation Desert Shield began as the United States and the United Kingdom sent troops into Kuwait.

US President George H.W. Bush and Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev signed a treaty (Agreement on Destruction and Non-production of Chemical Weapons and on Measures to Facilitate the Multilateral Convention on Banning Chemical Weapons) to end chemical weapon production and begin destroying their respective stocks.

Lech Walesa became president of Poland, withdrew from the Warsaw Pact.

In December, the German federal election (the first election held since German reunification) was won by Helmut Kohl, who became Chancellor of Germany.

Nelson Mandela was released from prison in South Africa after 27 years of imprisonment.

One of the largest and most well-preserved Tyrannosaurus Rex fossilized skeletons was found by paleontologist Sue Hendrickson near Faith, South Dakota in August. They named the T-Rex “Sue”.

West Germany won the FIFA World Cup Final (Association football): West Germany defeating Argentina 1–0, in Italy.

The Channel Tunnel workers from the United Kingdom and France met beneath the English Channel seabed, making the first ground connection between the United Kingdom and the mainland of Europe since the last ice age, 8,000 years ago.

The CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) Ban on the Trade of Ivory went into effect.

The first McDonald’s in Moscow, Russia opened 8 months after construction began on May 3, 1989. On September 10, the first Pizza Hut opened up in the Soviet Union. On September 11, the first Pizza Hut opened in the People’s Republic of China.
On October 8, the first McDonald’s restaurant is opened in Mainland China in Shenzhen, near Hong Kong

The removal of the wall began in June of 1990 and by October, the reunification of West and East Germany was completed. Demolition on the wall was finished in 1992.

Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Douglas Wilder became the first elected African American governor, in Virginia.

Pop Culture News:

Art thieves stole 12 paintings of art and a Shang dynasty vase, worth some $500 million – the greatest known property theft in history, from the Isabella Gardner Museum in Boston. They have never been recovered.

On September 29, Washington, D.C.’s National Cathedral was finished. Construction began on September 29, 1907.

Smoking was banned on all cross-country flights in the United States. The first ban on smoking in bars in the US was passed in San Luis Obispo, California.

The first self-wringing mop (The Miracle Mop) was invented in 1990 by Joy Mangano.

On July 30, 1990, the first Saturn (“A new kind of car company”) was built, a red 1991 model-year Saturn SL2.

According to the 1990 United States Census, there were 248,709,873 residents in the U.S.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa was closed for repairs over 11 years due to safety concerns of it falling over.

On June 7, 1990, Nickelodeon Studios and Universal Studios Orlando opened in Florida.

On June 8, the 1990 FIFA World Cup began in Italy. It was the first broadcast of digital HDTV in history.

The inventor of the internet, Tim Berners-Lee published his formal proposal – World Wide Web/Internet protocol (HTTP) and WWW language (HTML) – for the World Wide Web in November 1990.

Russian Garry Kasparov holds his title by winning the World Chess Championship match against his countryman Anatoly Karpov.

President George H. W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Boston Herald reporter Lisa Olson was sexually harassed by multiple New England Patriots players while trying to conduct a locker room interview.

Carried on the Space Shuttle Discovery, NASA’s STS-31 mission deployed the Hubble Space Telescope.

In a joint effort between the ESA and NASA, the Ulysses spacecraft was launched in 1990. The probe’s mission was studying the Sun and solar system’s magnetic field, also known as the heliosphere.

Launched in 1972, 18 years after its launch, the US Space Probe Pioneer reached a distance of 46.5 billion miles beyond all planetary orbits

President George H. W. Bush posthumously awarded Jesse Owens the Congressional Gold Medal.

Portrait of Dr. Gachet by Vincent van Gogh was sold for a (then) record $82.5 million.

The 1990 England world cup song, World in Motion by New Order, was originally called ‘E for England’, but was vetoed by the FA, because of the rampant Ecstasy Drug Culture in England at the time.

Cost of a Superbowl ad in 1990: $700,000

The Habit:
The “cool” people were watching Twin Peaks on ABC, everybody was watching Macauley Culkin in Home Alone.

The really, really cool people were wearing parachute pants, just like M.C. Hammer. Can’t touch that.

1990 Billboard Number One Songs:
December 23, 1989 – January 13, 1990:
Another Day In Paradise – Phil Collins

January 20 – February 9:
How Am I Supposed To Live Without You – Michael Bolton

February 10 – March 2:
Opposites Attract – Paula Abdul with The Wild Pair

March 3 – March 23:
Escapade – Janet Jackson

March 24 – April 6:
Black Velvet – Alannah Myles

April 7 – April 13:
Love Will Lead You Back – Taylor Dayne

April 14 – April 20:
I’ll Be Your Everything – Tommy Page

April 21 – May 18:
Nothing Compares 2 U – Sinead O’Connor

May 19 – June 8:
Vogue – Madonna

June 9 – June 15:
Hold On – Wilson Phillips

June 16 – June 29:
It Must Have Been Love – Roxette

June 30 – July 21:
Step by Step – New Kids on the Block

July 21 – August 3:
She Ain’t Worth It – Glenn Medeiros featuring Bobby Brown

August 4 – August 31:
Vision of Love – Mariah Carey

September 1 – September 7:
If Wishes Came True – Sweet Sensation

September 8 – September 14:
Blaze of Glory – Jon Bon Jovi

September 15 – September 29:
Release Me – Wilson Phillips

September 29 – October 5:
(I Can’t Live Without Your) Love & Affection – Nelson

October 6 – October 12:
Close to You – Maxi Priest

October 13 – October 19:
Praying For Time – George Michael

October 20 – October 26:
I Don’t Have the Heart – James Ingram

October 27 – November 2:
Black Cat – Janet Jackson

November 3 – November 9:
Ice Ice Baby – Vanilla Ice

November 10 – November 30:
Love Takes Time – Mariah Carey

December 1 – December 7:
I’m Your Baby Tonight – Whitney Houston

December 8, 1990 – January 4, 1991:
Because I Love You (The Postman Song) – Stevie B