Let me set the stage for this one. Coveralls, layers, and scrunchies are in style. So are flannel shirts, sunflowers, and silk pajamas. Those are just a few of the choice wardrobe selections from the early 90s. I recently saw Weezer again (for the millionth time since my teen years), and it caused some nostalgia for the pop-culture of my youth. For me, those feelings coalesce in 1994, the year I started high school.  Here are 8 great moments of 1994 that are cemented in history forever.

Madonna Drops an F-Bomb (or 10)

David Letterman’s interview with Madonna in 1994 is one that he’s probably never forgotten.Long story short, Madonna did what Madonna did back then and drops 14 “f-bombs” while on set. Censors had a wild ride that night! #awkward

Woodstock ‘94

An epic return 25 years after the original, Woodstock ’94 brought 300,000 fans to upstate New York to jam with Green Day, Nine Inch, Nails, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Bob Dylan. I still remember recording pieces of it on my VCR, including the notorious mud fight started by Green Day. Check out this NSFW link to a 35-minute live performance by Green Day.

Michael Jackson Married Lisa Marie Presley

“If I asked you to marry me, would you do it?” Jackson asked Presley during one of their phone calls.  Being such private celebs, the couple chose not to announce the marriage for several months. It lasted less than two years, but it was all anyone could talk about.

A Defining Film Year

October 1994 was one of the greatest months in move releases of all time. Pulp Fiction, Forrest Gump, The Shawshank Redemption, The Lion King, and Jurassic Park were all in theaters at the same time. You will find subtle references in current television, film, and literature. 

The PlayStation

The original PlayStation wasn’t launched in the states until 1995 but had a wildly successful launch in Japan in December of 1994. The US, meanwhile, held its breath for it to arrive, but that didn’t stop EVERYONE from talking about it all year long.

Tonya Harding

Have you seen the 2017 movie I, Tonya? It follows the now-disgraced figure skater and her connection to the notorious attack on Nancy Kerrigan in 1994. Don’t worry, it’s full of contradicting stories by both Tonya and her associates. On June 30, 1994, Harding was banned for life from the U.S. Figure Skating Association. #scandalous

My So-Called Life

Jordan Catalano. Need I say more?

Kurt Cobain

The world will never forget the MTV Special Report where Kurt Loader announced that Kurt Cobain had ended his life in his Seattle home. Cobain was a long-term sufferer of depression and addiction. I found this quote from Lars Ulrich of Metallica on Cobain, just 10 years after his death, ‘”…And with Kurt Cobain you felt you were connecting to the real person, not to a perception of who he was — you were not connecting to an image or a manufactured cut-out. You felt that between you and him there was nothing — it was heart-to-heart. There are very few people who have that ability.”
There you have it. It was difficult to choose just 8, but no one wants to read a novel. (See what I did there?) So, all of you 90s kids, what are your favorite monumental moment memories?