21 Things that Turned 21 This Year (2017) - mental_floss List Show Ep. 523

TL;DR

21 interesting facts about things that turned 21 in 2017, from toys to movies to pop culture moments.

Transcript

hi I'm John Green welcome to my salon this is Mental Floss video and did you know that 21 years ago tickle-me-elmo dominated the holiday season there was 1996 and the company that produced the toy Tyco experienced a sales bump from 70 million dollars to 350 million dollars and people were selling them for like thousands of dollars on the Internet t... Read More

Key Insights

• 😮 1996 saw the rise of iconic toys like Tickle-Me-Elmo and popularized dishes like deep-fried turkey.
• 🦛 Pop culture moments like Princess Diana's divorce and the Spice Girls' debut also shaped 1996.
• 🥳 Groundbreaking events like Dolly the Sheep's cloning and the birth of Google occurred in this pivotal year.
• 😮 The introduction of beloved characters like Lara Croft and the rise of internet services like Hotmail marked 1996.
• 🎥 Entertainment phenomena like Judge Judy's show and the movie "Space Jam" captured audiences in 1996.
• 🎮 The beginnings of influential book clubs, like Oprah's, and iconic video games like Tomb Raider started in 1996.
• 🖐️ 1996 laid the foundation for tech advancements with the founding of websites like Google and Hotmail.

Questions & Answers

Q: What iconic toy took 1996 by storm?

Tickle-Me-Elmo dominated 1996, with massive sales and high resell prices, marking a significant holiday craze.

Q: How did Betty Rubble become a Flintstones vitamin?

After a voting campaign by Bayer, Betty Rubble was added to the popular Flintstones chewable vitamins in 1996.

Q: What significant pop culture event happened in 1996?

Princess Diana and Prince Charles got divorced in 1996 after being separated, with Queen Elizabeth II encouraging the split.

Q: How did Google become a household name in 1996?

Originally named Backrub, Google emerged as a search engine in 1996, eventually becoming the tech giant we know today.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• In 1996, iconic items like Tickle-Me-Elmo, the Liberty Bell prank by Taco Bell, and deep-fried turkey gained popularity.

• Characters like Betty Rubble and Lara Croft, shows like Judge Judy and Space Jam, and events like Oprah's book club started that year.

• The year 1996 also saw the births of Dolly the Sheep, the beginning of Google, and the introduction of iconic websites like Hotmail.