1997 Tranniversary: Cooper, River, Adrian
1997 was the year that Madeline Albright became the first female Secretary of State in US History and Tony Blair became the prime minister of the UK. Bill Clinton had just begun his second term as president, and the world mourned the death of Princess Diana, who was killed in a fatal car crash that year while traveling through Paris. 1997 also saw the passing of Mother Teresa, who died that year in Calcutta at the age of 87, as well as the Notorious BIG who was killed in a drive by shooting in LA.
Scientists announced the first successful cloning of a mammal, a sheep named Dolly, spurning a new wave of future panic and a lot of bad sci-fi plots.
1997 was also the year that IBM’s Deep Blue chess playing computer beat reigning world chess champ Garry Kasparov, heralded as the first time machine learning had outpaced human intelligence.
Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule after 156 years existing as a British colony..
And the Hale-Bopp comet passed through the night sky, visible for nearly 18 months.
In LGBTQ news, 8 countries worldwide formally legalized homosexual activity, and several more put into place laws that protected LGBTQ rights; meanwhile back in the US, the great state of Texas went in the opposite direction, amending the family code to expressly prohibit same sex marriage.
The world watched as Ellen Degeneres’s character came out as gay in the famed Puppy Episode of her self-titled sitcom, watched by over 42 million viewers worldwide.
And the famed John / Joan case – widely heralded for years as evidence of the mutability of gender assignment – was publicly and loudly refuted as its subject, David Reimer, finally spoke out against what had been done to him.
In sports, the Greenbay Packers beat the New England Patriots in the Superbowl, taking the title for the first time since 1967. The Detroit Redwings won the Stanley Cup, and at 21, Tiger Woods became the youngest competitor to ever win the Masters. You may also remember 1997 as the year that Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield’s ear, and the year that OJ Simpson was finally found guilty for the deaths of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman.
The Top grossing Films of the year were Titanic (which became the top grossing film of all time up until Avatar in 2009) and Men in Black. The Lion King made its debut on Broadway where it continues to entertain throngs of tourists to this day, and Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (which would be retitled as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone) came to print in the UK.
Top grossing Actors of the year were Robin Williams, John Travolta, Jim Carrey and Mel Gibson, top grossing Actresses: were Sandra Bullock, Julia Roberts, and Rene Russo.
The English Patient swept the Oscars, winning 9 out of 12 nominations including Best Picture and Best Director. Geoffrey Rush won best actor for his role in Shine and Frances McDormand got the title for her role in Fargo.
In music, top billboard hits included Candle in the Wind by Elton John, You Were Meant for Me by Jewel, And I’ll Be Missing You by Puff Daddy and Faith Evans BUT in honor of Conner’s San Francisco Punk Rock roots, we want to appreciate Len for letting us lead in to this episode with Tribe 8’s Wrong Bathroom.