The clock struck 12:00. People either calmly or frantically switched their calendars from 1989 to 1990. It was 1/1/90. A new decade had begun, and it would conclude one of the greatest centuries of all time. Things were mostly looking up, politically. The Berlin Wall had just been destroyed, and the Cold War officially ended this year. I was not yet born, but that doesn't mean 1990 wasn't cool. Let's see what was doing on in 1990.

Politics in 1990

In the U.S.A., George Bush was president for a year. While he put on a good front, he would later pave the way for his less-than-spectacular son that currently rules the nation. The Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union ends. In South Africa, Nelson Mandela, a long-time civil rights activist who had been imprisoned for decades was finally set free, and he would later change the face of the segregated nation. East Germany and West Germany re-unite, with the Iron Curtain gone. Conflict between the United States and Iraq heats up in the Gulf War, which fortunately lasts less than a year.


Music in 1990

In 1990, little had changed from what music meant in the 1980s. Kids and adults alike still danced to Michael Jackson, teenaged boys and girls loved hair metal like Poison, and metalheads headbanged to Metallica. Hip-Hop and dance music were also popular in 1990. Of course, not all of these bands were good.
Here's a list of artists that were popular in 1990:

AC/DC
The Beastie Boys
Bell Biv DeVoe
C+C Music Factory
Guns n' Roses
Journey
Madonna
M.C. Hammer
Metallica
Michael Jackson
Milli Vanilli
Motley Crue
New Kids on the Block
Pantera
Poison
Sonic Youth
Styx
Vanilla Ice
ZZ Top

Alternative bands like Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains had just formed, but it would take them another year or two to become mainstream. I'll discuss this genre in later articles.


Television in 1990

1989 and 1990 were revolutionary years in television history. Sitcoms like Family Matters, the Simpsons, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and Mr. Bean just began airing and would find immediate success. Sketch Comedies like In Living Color and Harry Einfield's Television Programme also hit airwaves. FOX adds the "FOX Kids" block to its lineup and Disney does the same with "Disney Afternoon". "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" is more popular than ever, and many other 80's cartoons are still going strong. There are many other great shows that went on the air in 1990, but I don't have time to mention them all.


Video Games in 1990

NEC and SEGA had just released their systems, the Turbografix-16 and the Genesis, respectively, a year prior. While technologically inferior to these two systems, the NES remained the most popular system. Besides, it's not like either of them had a mascot like Mario. The Atari 2600 was seeing its last days, and was about to retire. "Commander Keen" proved that home computer games could be just as high in quality as console games. SNK released their video game system, the Neo-Geo which is notable for being one of the longest-lasting systems of all time. Here's a list of popular games released in 1990:

Bomber-Man (1990 Remake)
Bonk's Adventure
Commander Keen
Final Fantasy
Kingdom of Kroz II
Mega Man III
Super Mario Bros. 3
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game


Movies in 1990

As a new decade hit, nobody knew what new ideas would come next. Well, adolescents were going crazy over the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Home Alone movies, a sequel to "Die Hard" had just been released, Aarnold Schwarzenegger starred in Kindergarten Cop, and "Child's Play 2" was released. Here's a list of popular movies of 1990:

Child's Play 2
Die Hard 2
Ducktales: The Movie
The Exorcist III
Gremlins 2
Home Alone
Kindergarten Cop
Predator 2
The Rescuers Down Under
Robocop 2
Rocky V
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles


The 1990s just began, and the greatness would shine brighter as the decade went on. I hope you liked my article, because there's many more in this series on the way!