1997

1997: Top Songs, Movies, TV Shows, Sporting Events, World Events And More

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Climbing the ladder of time, we’re now in 1997. Take a look back at all the amazing things that happened back in the year and then think of how many of those are still part of our lives today. How many aren’t?

Check out everything that was from this decade, year by year – from the sporting events to world events, the top TV shows, songs, movies and more.

As you’re going back in time, think about some of the things in our lives today that you don’t see appearing here because they didn’t exist yet. Then, think about how many of those things we use, hear about or are part of our lives today were introduced in this year or the decade. Progress is amazing.

Let us know some of the things that come to mind below.

For more great memories from any of the years The Beat’s music focuses on, click a year below and we’ll transport you back in time to see everything you may remember or have forgotten.

TOP SONGS
1. Elton John Candle In The Wind 1997
2. Jewel Foolish Games / You Were Meant For Me
3. Puff Daddy and Faith Evans I’ll Be Missing You
4. Toni Braxton Un-Break My Heart
5. Puff Daddy Can’t Nobody Hold Me Down
6. R. Kelly I Believe I Can Fly
7. En Vogue Don’t Let Go (Love)
8. Mark Morrison Return Of The Mack
9. LeAnn Rimes How Do I Live
10. Spice Girls Wannabe

TOP ALBUMS
1. Spice – Spice Girls
2. Tragic Kingdom – No Doubt
3. Falling Into You – Celine Dion
4. Space Jam – Soundtrack
5. Pieces Of You – Jewel
6. Blue – LeAnn Rimes
7. Bringing Down The Horse – The Wallflowers
8. Life After Death – The Notorious B.I.G.
9. Secrets – Toni Braxton
10. No Way Out – Puff Daddy/The Family

GRAMMY WINNERS
Single Record: Eric Clapton, ”Change the World”
Album: Celine Dion, ”Falling Into You”
Song: Gordon Kennedy, Wayne Kirkpatrick and Tommy Sims, ”Change the World”
New Artist: LeAnn Rimes
Pop Vocalist, Female: Toni Braxton, ”Un-break My Heart”
Pop Vocalist, Male: Eric Clapton, ”Change the World”
Pop Duo or Group: Beatles, ”Free as a Bird”
Pop Collaboration: Natalie Cole and Nat King Cole, ”When I Fall in Love”
Pop Instrumental Album: ”The Sinister Minister,” Bela Fleck and the Flecktones
Pop Album: ”Falling Into You,” Celine Dion
Traditional Pop Album: ”Here’s to the Ladies,” Tony Bennett
Rock Vocalist, Female: Sheryl Crow, ”If It Makes You Happy”

MOVIES
1 Titanic Par. $600,788,188
2 Men in Black Sony $250,690,539
3 The Lost World: Jurassic Park Uni.
4 Liar Liar Uni. $181,410,615
5 Air Force One Sony $172,956,409
6 As Good as It Gets Sony $148,478,011
7 Good Will Hunting Mira. $138,433,435
8 Star Wars (Special Edition) Fox $138,257,865
9 My Best Friend’s Wedding Sony $127,120,029
10 Tomorrow Never Dies MGM $125,304,276

OTHER MOVIES
Face/Off, Batman and Robin, George of the Jungle, Scream 2, Con Air, Contact, Hercules, Flubber,
Conspiracy Theory, I Know What You Did Last Summer, 23 Anaconda, L.A. Confidential, In & Out,
The Fifth Element, Mouse Hunt, The Saint, The Devil’s Advocate, Spawn, Starship Troopers

ACADEMY AWARDS (Winners in bold)
Picture:
“TITANIC”, “L.A. Confidential”, “As Good As It Gets”, “Good Will Hunting”, “The Full Monty”
Actor:
JACK NICHOLSON in “As Good As It Gets”, Matt Damon in “Good Will Hunting”, Dustin Hoffman in “Wag the Dog”, Robert Duvall in “The Apostle”, Peter Fonda in “Ulee’s Gold”
Actress:
HELEN HUNT in “As Good As It Gets”, Judi Dench in “(Her Majesty) Mrs. Brown”, Helena Bonham Carter in “The Wings of the Dove”, Kate Winslet in “Titanic”, Julie Christie in “Afterglow”
Supporting Actor:
ROBIN WILLIAMS in “Good Will Hunting”, Robert Forster in “Jackie Brown”, Anthony Hopkins in “Amistad”, Greg Kinnear in “As Good As It Gets”, Burt Reynolds in “Boogie Nights”
Supporting Actress:
KIM BASINGER in “L.A. Confidential”, Joan Cusack in “In and Out”, Minnie Driver in “Good Will Hunting”, Julianne Moore in “Boogie Nights”, Gloria Stuart in “Titanic”
Director:
JAMES CAMERON for “Titanic”, Peter Cattaneo for “The Full Monty”, Atom Egoyan for “The Sweet Hereafter”, Curtis Hanson for “L.A. Confidential”, Gus Van Sant for “Good Will Hunting”

TOP TV SHOWS
E.R., Seinfeld, Suddenly Susan, Friends, Naked Truth, Fired Up, NFL Monday Night Football, Single Guy,
Home Improvement, Touched By An Angel, 60 Minutes, 20/20, NYPD Blue, CBS Sunday Movie, Primetime Live
Frasier NBC, Spin City, NBC Sunday Night Movie, Drew Carey Show, X-Files

EMMY AWARDS
Outstanding Drama Series The Practice (ABC)
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Andre Braugher, Homicide: Life on the Street
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series Christine Lahti, Chicago Hope
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Gordon Clapp, NYPD Blue
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Camryn Manheim, The Practice
Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series John Larroquette, The Practice
Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series Cloris Leachman, Promised Land
Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (tie) Mark Tinker, Brooklyn South: Pilot
Paris Barclay, N.Y.P.D. Blue: “Lost Israel, Part 2”
Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series Bill Clark, David Milch and Nicholas Wootton, N.Y.P.D. Blue: “Lost Israel — Part II”
Outstanding Comedy Series Frasier (NBC)
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Kelsey Grammer, Frasier
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Helen Hunt, Mad About You
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series David Hyde Pierce, Frasier
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Lisa Kudrow, Friends
Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Mel Brooks, Mad About You
Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series Emma Thompson, Ellen
Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series Todd Holland, The Larry Sanders Show:“ Flip”
Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series Peter Tolan and Garry Shandling, The Larry Sanders Show: “Flip”
Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series Late Show With David Letterman (CBS)
Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special The 1997 Tony Awards (CBS)
Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program Billy Crystal, The 70th Annual Academy Awards
Outstanding Directing in a Variety or Music Program Louis J. Horvitz, The 70th Annual Academy Awards
Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program Eddie Feldmann, Dennis Miller, David Feldman, Leah Krinsky, Jim Hanna, David Weiss and Jose Arroyo, The Dennis Miller Show
Outstanding Miniseries From the Earth to the Moon (HBO)
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Special Gary Sinise, George Wallace
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Special Ellen Barkin, Before Women Had Wings
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Special George C. Scott, 12 Angry Men
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Special Mare Winningham, George Wallace
Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries or a Special John Frankenheimer, George Wallace
Outstanding Made for Television Movie Don King: Only in America (HBO)
Outstanding Non-Fiction Series The American Experience (PBS)
Outstanding Non-Fiction Special Discovery Sunday – Vietnam POWs: Stories of Survival (Discovery Channel)
Outstanding Children’s Program Muppets Tonight (Disney Channel)
Nick News Special Edition: What Are You Staring At? (Nickelodeon)
Outstanding Animated Program The Simpsons (Fox)

SPORTS
NBA: Chicago Bulls vs. Utah Jazz Series: 4-2
NCAA Football: Michigan & Nebraska Record: 12-0-0 & 13-0-0
Heisman Trophy: Charles Woodson, michigan, DB-WR points: 1,815
Stanley Cup: Detroit Red Wings vs. Philadelphia Flyers Series: 4-0
Super Bowl XXXI: Green Bay Packers vs. New England Patriots Score: 35-21
US Open Winner: Ernis Els Score: 276 Course: Congressional CC Location: Bethesda, MD
World Series: Florida Marlins vs. Cleveland Indians Series: 4-3

TOP WORLD EVENTS
Scientists cloned Dolly the sheep at the Roslin Institute in Scotland.

Heaven’s Gate Cult mass suicide – A mass suicide in which 39 members of a “Heaven’s Gate Cult” in California killed themselves thinking they would be sent up to a spaceship behind the passing Hale Bopp comet. Strange and sad story showing how fanatical people can be when they ‘follow’ someone they think is ‘their guy’.

July 1, after 156 years of British rule, Hong Kong was turned back over to China.

Cyber-Radio is the first dance music station broadcast online from Chicago to the world

Mars Pathfinder lands on Mars – The little remote control rover landed and took pictures and samples of the planet surface. Rumor has it that Martians were hiding so humans would leave

Princess Diana’s Funeral – Millions of mourners gathered outside a London cathedral for the funeral of Princess Diana. Princess Sara and her children showed up in the crowd of mourners. Camilla Parker Bowles, refered to by Diana as a Rottweiler, was the only one who wasn’t invited to the funeral. Diana was later laid to rest at the Spencer family plot.

Comet Hale-Bopp 1st spotted, It was considered to be the greatest comet in the 20th century. About 80% of Americans saw it without a telescope.

In California, a state ban on all forms of affirmative action was passed. Proposed in 1996, the ban had been delayed in the courts for almost a year before it went into effect. Proposition 209 stated “the state shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting.” Seems like eons ago when we thought you should judge people on whether or not they were qualified for something. What a concept.

Paducah High School shootings – Mentally ill Michael Carneal, 15, was charged with killing three Paducah high school classmates and wounding five others who were in a prayer circle. December 1997. If he were in Cook County in the 2021, he’d probably been elected to office.

Versace was murdered July 15, 1997- Andrew Cunanan murders fashion designer Gianni Versace

Tony Blair becomes prime minister of Great Britain in a landslide election victory ending 18 years of Conservative rule.

Married With Children Was Cancelled After 10 Years.

On 2 July, the devaluing of the Thai babt triggered off the currency crisis, which devastated the many Asian countries’ economies in ensuing months.

Titanic opened in 1997 and became the BIGGEST Total Box-Office Film ever in film history with over 1 Billion dollars and also became the movie with most Academy Award totaling 13

Harry Potter was published in 1997 and written by J.K. Rowling, inspired millions to read.

The Flood of 1997 hit the Red River Valley in April. Many towns had to be evacuated in North Dakota and Minnesota. Many families lost their homes.

Bill Cosby’s Son Ennis Is Murdered, Teenage Russian Immigrant Is Arrested

OJ Simpson Is Found Guilty Of Wrongful Death Suit Filed By Brown And Goldman Families

Dow Tops 7,000

Timothy McVeigh Is Sentenced To Death In Oklahoma Bombing which just wasn’t good enough, torture should’ve been a choice.

Paparazzi Blamed For Chase Which Caused Crash Killing Princess Di

Dow Drops Record 554 Points In One Day

Dow Gains Record 337 Points Day After Record Drop

Marlins first Wild Card team to win the World Series. The Florida Marlins led by the strong bats of Gary Sheffield and Moises Alou and the strong arms of Robb Nen and Livan Hernandez win the World Series

World’s First Surviving Set of Septuplets Kenneth Robert, Alexis May, Natalie Sue, Kelsey Ann, Brandon James, Nathan Roy, and Joel Steven were born to Bobbi and Kenny McCaughey on November 19, 1997 making them the world’s first surviving set of septuplets.

Mother Theresa of Calcutta died a week later after Princess Diana, Sept 1997

March 9, 1997: Christopher Wallace aka Notorious B.I.G. was gunned down in his car in Los Angeles after an awards show after-party. It is unknown if Biggie’s death is related to Tupac’s death. To this day neither homicide has been solved.

The Packers Win The Super Bowl beating the Patriots 31-27.

Men’s college basketball – The Arizona Wildcats win the National Championship.

Madeleine Albright was sworn in as Secretary of State, becoming the first woman to head the State Department

February 28 1997 At 9:15 a.m., Phillips and Matasareanu robbed a Bank of America branch office in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.

Pokemon the major kids game was released to the U.S. and swept the Nation with its great gaming fun. Kids still love to play Pokemon games all over the world.

Camel cigarettes removes Joe Camel[a drawing]from it’s advertising because opponents claim the cartoon causes kids to smoke cigarettes. But it’s ok to teach kids how to whack off in 3rd grade, that’s not harmful at all.

LeAnn Rimes was the youngest person ever to win the ‘Best New Artist” Grammy.

Purell was launched as a product for consumers. It had been used by healthcare workers since 1988.

WebMD went online in 1997.

Pfizer’s Lipitor has been reducing cholesterol since 1997.

Mike Tyson bites off ear of Evander Holyfield in title fight

Cost of a Superbowl ad in 1997: $1,200,000

Beanie Babies become the must-have toy for Christmas 1997. Teletubby toys, Pokemon, Tamagotchi, Spice Girls Dolls, Repunzel Barbie

The U.S.A.
President: Bill Clinton
Vice President: Al Gore

Population: 267,743,595

Dow-Jones
High: 8,250
Low: 6,300

Federal spending: $1635.33 billion
Federal debt: $5498.9 billion
Inflation: 2.5%
Consumer Price Index: 160.5
Unemployment: 5.4%

Prices
Cost of a new home: $176,200.00
Cost of a new car: $16,900.00
Median Household Income: $37,005.00
Cost of a first-class stamp: $0.32
Cost of a gallon of regular gas: $1.23
Cost of a dozen eggs: $1.17
Cost of a gallon of Milk: $3.22