Pop Culture in Review for the Year 2002

2002 was a year of politics and government reform; the Department of Homeland security came into existence, the average median income was $42,409, and the cost of gas per gallon was $1.61. Apple revealed its new computer, the XIX Olympic Winter Games took place, traces of water were found on Mars, and the popular TV show American Idol was introduced.

The highlights of the year are as follows:

Film

2002 was a year where the most memorable of films were made and produced, such as:

Spider-Man

This classic movie was the first installment of the series. The film directed by Sam Raimi, produced by Laura Ziskin and Ian Bryce, premiered at the Mann Village Theatre in Los Angeles, California, on 29th April 2002. Spider-Man was declared a financial success worldwide, becoming the first film to earn over 80 million dollars in the first week of the release, grossing over $821 million worldwide. Moreover, it became the third highest-grossing film of the year.

The film was based on the Spider-Man comics, made by Stan Lee of Marvel, featuring the story of an average high schooler in New York named Peter Parker, played by Toby Macguire.

Die Another Day

Die Another Day is the twentieth film in the famous spy film James Bond series produced by Eon Productions. The film, directed by Lee Tamahori, was released on 22nd November 2002, in the United States, grossing about $431.9 million worldwide in the box office, becoming the highest-grossing James Bond movie of that time.

The plot features an MI6 agent James Bond, played by Pierce Brosnan, trying to infiltrate a North Korean military base to stop an Operation of trying to take over the world using solar energy controlled by satellite using sunlight as the weapon of destruction.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The famous Harry Potter is back again in the second installment of the series. The film, distributed by Warner Bros Pictures, was written by J.K. Rowling and directed by Chris Columbus. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets became an international success grossing over 800 million dollars worldwide, becoming the second-highest-grossing movie just behind The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. The premiere was held at the Odeon Leicester Square on 3rd November 2002 and was later released in the United States on 15th November 2002.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

The Lord of the Rings

The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers was the biggest and highest-grossing film of 2002. The film is the second installment of the series and is considered one of the most influential films ever made in the history of fantasy film and is known as the landmark. The film grossed over $951 million worldwide, and it became the third highest-grossing film of all time at the time of its release. The premiere of this film was held at Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City on 5th December 2002.

The film was an adaptation of the second novel of J. R. R. Tolkien called The Lord of the Rings. The film starts from the ending of the first installment, following the journey of Sam and Frodo on their quest to destroy the Ring, and somehow they ended up in the middle of a tremendous battle.

The Pianist

The Pianist is a war drama biographical film that was released on 24th May 2002. The film directed by Roman Polanski, produced by Robert Benmussa, Alain Sarde, and AkshanshNikhanj, first premiered at the Cannes Film Festival held in Paris. The film received many Oscar nominations and has won the Oscars for Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Actor.

The film features the story of a Polish-Jewish, WładysławSzpilman, who was a musician by trait. The events featured were based on the accounts mentioned in the audio biography of the same name, of a Holocaust survivor, telling his story on how he lived through the world war and survived the holocaust and his experiences seeing the horrors of it first-hand.

Music

‘How You Remind Me’ by Nickelback

How You Remind Me is a rock song by the Canadian rock band Nickelback. The song was released in 2001 originally, but due to its popularity, the song landed on Billboard’s Top 100 for the most played song of the year 2002. Accolades brought by this song was the reason people became aware of the band and their songs, hence leading to their fame.

‘In the End’ by Linkin Park

‘In The End’ was produced by the band Linkin Park. This song became a hit right off the bat and became one of the most played rock songs of all time, reaching number 2 on Billboard Top 100 in March of 2002. Furthermore, it became the highest-ranking song ever and is also known as the second most played song of the decade. It was released in 2001, but also maintained its popularity throughout the next year.

Complicated by AvrilLavigne

AvrilLavigne became one of the most popular artists of 2002, with three singles on Billboard’s top 100. Among them,“Complicated” was the most popular of them. Avril’s music is pop-rock, which attracted teens like a magnet. The song was released on 23rd April 2002, and sold 3 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the most successful songs of 2002.

The song was also nominated for two Grammy awards and won the Best New Artist award at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards.

Lose Yourself by Eminem

‘Lose Yourself’ was a song that Eminem recorded in the movie 8 Mile, which was based on his life. Eminem himself wrote the song. The song talks about never giving up and never losing hope. The song was a hit becoming Eminem’s first number one on Billboard’s hot 100, which remained there for several weeks. The song was released on 28th October 2002 and won not just an Academy Award for Best Original Song but also the Grammy awards for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Solo Performance.

Technology

Hewlett Packard takes over Compaq

Hewlett Packard or HP, as we know, is the largest manufacturer of computers to date. This all started when Hewlett Packard took over the company Compaq, which also manufactured computers. However, it was struggling due to the dotcom crisis. It made a deal with HP and hence merged with them, giving HP more power to manufacture computers. The merger happened in May 2002.

Sony Slashes The Price of PlayStation 2

Sony, in May of 2002, slashed the price of PS2 to a third of it to compete with other consoles such as Nintendo, Sega, and Microsoft. Due to the decrease in its price, PS2 units began selling even more, and their marketing was done twice as much, which is why it became the top-selling PlayStation console with the most units sold.

Apple Unveils the iMac G4

In January of 2002, Apple unveiled its most expensive all-in-one computer with 80 gigs of storage and 256 Megabytes of RAM, operating on both Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X. The computer was sold separately, with Apple Mouse and Keyboard, where the cost of the original PC was about $1,799, which was their most expensive product at the time.

Unfortunately, due to its high price and the competition in the market, it didn’t do well in terms of sales and hence was discontinued in 2004 when a newer model was launched.

Computers without Windows OS

Sun Microsystems was a huge manufacturer of computers, computer parts as well as software and programs. In September of 2002, they announced that they would release computers without having Windows as their own operating systems but would rather have open-source programs such as Linux as their operating systems.

Sports

Winter Olympics were held

The 19th Winter Olympics were held in Salt Lake City in Utah in February of 2002. The event featured 2,399 athletes from 77 countries participating in 80 different athletic events. This event marks the first time a black athlete won a gold medal at the winter games with Vonetta Flowers in women’s bobsleigh, and the first black male athlete won a winter gold with JaromeIginla of Canada in men’s ice hockey.

Superbowl 36

Super Bowl 36 saw a historic win for the New England Patriots as they defeated the St. Louis Rams 20 to 17, making it their first win of the Superbowl game.

Television

24

24 was a thriller action series that broadcasted on Fox Network. The show was created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran and released on 6th November 2001, with the first season making its way to 2002. It was received very well by the viewers. 24 has won numerous awards including, the Golden Globe Award for Best Drama Series.

The show features the story of Jack Bauer, a counter-terrorist agent who fights against terrorists in the United States, racing against the clock to stop plots of destruction and terror. Thrilling suspense and mysterious vibes were frequent while watching the show.

The Sopranos

When you talk about a show that has left an impact on TV, it would be this show. The Sopranos was directed by David Chase and produced by Brad Grey, Robin Green, Mitchell Burgess, Ilene S. Landress, Terence Winter, and Matthew Weiner. The show originally aired at the end of 1999, but due to its popularity and intense plot, it gained massive public attention as the seasons aired.

In 2002, season 4 was released, which had an average of 10 million viewers, the biggest viewership of the whole series, and has received a lot of awards since its release, including the Primetime Emmy Awards as well as Golden Globe Awards. The show explores the life of an Italian-American mobster living in New Jersey, named Tony Soprano, as he struggles with his daily life activities as well as trying to balance things at home with his family.

American Idol

American Idol

American Idol was aired on the Fox Network on 11th June 2002. It is a singing competition TV show featuring candidates who participate to show their singing skills for a chance at getting a record deal. It has been the most influential show when it comes to finding talented artists who have not yet discovered and, in the past, has resulted in finding artists like Jennifer Hudson, Adam Lambert, and many others.

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