Classic Nerd (Depicted characters/word marks are trademarks and copyrights of their respective owners)
Sometimes there are too many incredible things that happen on one day in history, and I can't choose which one deserves to be celebrated, so I'm introducing a new post: "Retro Rewinded Extended"! Now, don't expect this every day (yet), but I think once you see what was released, you'll understand why I needed to do it.
Television
"Batman" (1966)
ABC premiered "Batman" with Adam West as the Caped Crusader and subtlety nowhere in sight. Tilted camera angles, on-screen "POW!" graphics, villains chewing scenery like a competitive sport. The show leaned into comic book pop art and sparked "Batmania" nationwide. It also stuck Batman with a campy reputation that took Tim Burton and Christopher Nolan to undo.
Carroll O'Connor played Archie Bunker, a Queens loudmouth who spent each episode sparring with his liberal son-in-law Meathead (Rob Reiner) over racism, Vietnam, women's lib, and everything else polite television avoided. It was abrasive, uncomfortable, and number one in the ratings for five straight years. Norman Lear proved Americans would watch characters they didn't like talking about things that mattered.
"Dynasty" (1981)
ABC answered "Dallas" with "Dynasty," bringing the Carrington family of Denver and more shoulder pads than a football locker room. The show found its gear when Joan Collins arrived in Season 2 as ex-wife Alexis Colby, armed with revenge and a wardrobe that could bankrupt Neiman Marcus. Catfights, champagne, and conspicuous wealth carried it to number one by 1985.
"King of the Hill" (1997)
Mike Judge and Greg Daniels created Hank Hill, a propane salesman in Arlen, Texas, who wanted to grill in peace while the world got weirder around him. The humor was bone-dry, the characters felt real, and the show treated small-town Texas with actual affection instead of easy jokes. It ran for thirteen seasons and aged better than most of its flashier peers.
"Lizzie McGuire" (2001)
Hilary Duff played the awkward title character, with an animated alter ego voicing all the embarrassing things she was thinking. The show nailed middle school self-consciousness, turned Duff into a star, and wrote the playbook Disney would use for "Hannah Montana" and beyond.
Film
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (2001)
Ang Lee's wuxia epic starred Chow Yun-fat and Michelle Yeoh as warriors who floated across rooftops while the real battles played out through duty, repression, and impossible love. It made $128 million domestically, setting a record for a foreign-language film at the time, and won four Oscars including Best Foreign Language Film.
Albums
"Led Zeppelin" (1969)
Page, Plant, Jones, and Bonham recorded their debut in about 36 hours, and it sounds like they were trying to knock the studio walls down. "Good Times Bad Times," "Dazed and Confused," and "Communication Breakdown" became a blueprint for everything heavy that followed. Rolling Stone hated it, but fans didn't care.
"...Baby One More Time" (1999)
Britney Spears was 17, Max Martin was behind the boards, and the title track conquered the planet. The album debuted at number one, sold 25 million copies, and made her the Princess of Pop. It remains the best-selling album by a teenage solo artist.
Singles
"Rapture" by Blondie (1981)
The first number-one hit to feature rapping. Debbie Harry name-dropped Fab 5 Freddy and Grandmaster Flash, giving mainstream America a taste of what was brewing in New York's underground. Not a hip-hop record exactly, but it cracked open a door.
"Toxic" by Britney Spears (2004)
Five years to the day after her debut album, Britney came back with something strange and irresistible. Bloodshy & Avant built the track from Bollywood strings and surf guitar, and it won her first Grammy for Best Dance Recording.
"Come Clean" by Hilary Duff (2004)
Dropped the same day as "Toxic," this moody pop-rock track became the first song late-millennials universally claimed as their own, with gym floors everywhere forever scarred from kids jumping while screaming the chorus. Hear those opening notes and they're instantly 14 again.
"Deliver Me From Nowhere" Trailer: See Jeremy Allen White Take on Springsteen's "Born to Run" and "Nebraska"
