August 22nd in nerd history: That's the p-p-p-power of love
Last updated: June 3, 2024
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August 22 in Nerd History
Here are 5 things that happened on August 22nd for those of us who sense a disturbance in the Force whenever our spouses seem annoyed, which only makes them more annoyed.
I.
Birthdays of honor: Kristen Wiig (1973), Layne Staley (1967), Ray Bradbury (1920), Cindy Williams (1947), Tori Amos (1963), Dorothy Parker (1893), John Lee Hooker (1917).
II.
In 1995, what is objectively one of the greatest games ever made — and easily among the top RPGs of all time — was released for the Super Nintendo in Chrono Trigger.
And why wouldn’t it be? The development team was called “The Dream Team” by Square (before it was Square-Enix) as it included folks who had worked on Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and the Dragonball manga.
The battle system, character development, meaningful side-quests, and multiple endings were all hailed as revolutionary. I was all-in on this game.
Still have the original cartridge somewhere in your basement? Even for just a used, original cartridge, you’ll easily fetch a couple hundo for it.
III.
In 1997 the Ridley Scott directed G.I. Jane hit theaters. Starring Demi Moore who seemed to be hitting the other side of her ’90s resurgence, the movie’s greatest contribution was the pun in the title. Also, wow, Demi was shredded for this film.
And one of the more underrated sci-fi-action movies of the last 20 years came out today in 2008: Death Race.
Directed by Paul W. S. Anderson, there’s very little plot and mostly just death — you know, while racing in cars. What else did you expect?
IV.
In Nolan Ryan history, on this day in 1989 the pitcher became the first in MLB history to record 5,000 strikeouts. His victim was Ricky Henderson. To celebrate, here’s Ryan punching someone.
V.
Today in 1985 “The Power of Love” by Huey Lewis and the News was the number one song — perhaps, in part, because it was made for a little movie called Back to the Future.