1990s sports

1993...Jurassic Park, The FBI Siege of the Branch Davidian Cult, The Greater Columbus Convention Center is open for Business, The Lady B*ckeyes Fall Short in the NCAA Women's Basketball National Championship, Chris Webber Calls Time Out, The Clinton White House, Last Call for Cheers, Tom Hanks gets Sleepless in Seattle and battles both AIDS and the courts in Philadelphia, Player's Theatre abruptly folds with lots of unanswered questions, and Lucasville Prison is Under Siege. Those were some of the happenings in 1993 in our world, both here at home, and across the vast land we call Earth.

CENTRAL OHIO HEADLINES:
- The Greater Columbus Convention Center, designed by Peter Eisenman, opens its doors in March.
- Players Theatre abruptly folds in September, due to financial issues.
- The Lucasville Prison Riots take place in April at the Lucasville Federal Penitentiary in Southern Ohio.
- Lima Senior beats Westerville North in a mandated play-in High School Football Playoff Game, following a ruling on the eligibility of a North transfer player; Hilliard and Newark Catholic make the State Football Semi-Finals
- Pickerington Lady Tigers win the State Basketball Championship
- The Ohio State Lady Buckeyes finish as runners-up in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament, led by Freshman phenom (and recent Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Inductee) Katie Smith
- The Ohio State Football B*ckeyes share the Big Ten title with Wisconsin after a 14-14 tie in Madison in November; B*ckeyes get embarrassed in Ann Arbor two weeks later, 28-0. Wisconsin earns the Rose Bowl bid, having not gone since the 1963 Rose Bowl.

NATIONAL/WORLD HEADLINES:
- Bill Clinton takes office as the 42nd President of the United States.
- Federal Agents seige the Branch Davidian Compound in Waco, Texas in the Spring of 1993. After a seven-week standoff, Cult leader David Koresh and 80 of his followers are found dead.

1997. The World Mourned a Princess. College Football Dynasty Returned to Glory. Hockey Was On It's Way to Ohio. Those were among the happenings in 1997.

NEWS HEADLINES:
- Diana, Princess of Wales is killed in a car crash in Paris, along with her companion and their driver, as their car attempts to evade the Paparazzi.
- Mother Teresa of Calcutta passes away.
- The first Harry Potter book is published.
- Steve Jobs returns to Apple Computer.
- NASA's Mars Pathfinder lands on Mars.
- Great Britain returns Hong Kong to China.
- Tony Blair is elected Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
- IBM's Deep Blue defeats Garry Kasparov in Chess.
- Madeleine Albright becomes the first female U.S. Secretary of State in American History.
- Heaven's Gate Cult Commits Mass Suicide near San Diego.
- Rapper Notorious B.I.G. is fatally gunned down in a drive-by shooting.
- Fashion designer Gianni Versace is murdered by serial killer Andrew Cunanan, who later takes his own life.
- The Dow closes above 7,000 for the first time ever.
- Woolworth's closes it's doors forever.
- O.J. Simpson is found guilty in a Civil Trial.
- Dolly the Sheep is cloned at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland.
- Carlos the Jackal is caught and sentenced to life in prison in France.
- Bird Flu hits Hong Kong.

TELEVISION in 1997:
- Ellen DeGeneres comes out as gay following "The Puppy Episode" of her sitcom, "Ellen".
- Top shows include ER, Seinfeld, Friends, Frasier, Ally McBeal, NYPD Blue, The X-Files, Law & Order, South Park, Everybody Loves Raymond, and Mad About You.

EMMY AWARDS:
Best Comedy Series: Frasier (NBC)
Best Drama Series: Law & Order (NBC) - only non-Serialized Drama to win since 1980
Best Daytime Soap: General Hospital (ABC)
Best Variety Series: Tracey Takes On (HBO)
Best Miniseries: Prime Suspect V: Error of Judgement (PBS)
Best Made for TV Movie: Miss Evers' Boys (HBO)
Best Actor, Comedy: John Lithgow, 3rd Rock from the Sun (NBC)

Tonight, on the show a look back at 1994 with some of the songs from that year, with artists like Sheryl Crow, Ace of Base, Haddaway, R.E.M., and a mid-show movie tribute to The Lion King, Forrest Gump, Pulp Fiction, and Philadelphia.

1994 HEADLINES:
- Genocide in Rwanda & Burundi
- Nelson Mandela becomes the first Black President of South Africa, post-Apartheid
- Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres, and Yitzhak Rabin win the Nobel Peace Prize
- The Republicans dominate the Midterm Elections, and Newt Gingrich (R-Georgia), becomes Speaker of the House
- The Whitewater Scandal begins; President Clinton is accused of sexual harassment from his time as Governor of Arkansas
- The drama of sports: Tonya vs. Nancy, OJ, and of course...
- Major League Baseball goes on strike and skips the World Series

SPORTS:
- Dallas Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills (again) in Super Bowl XXVIII
- New York Rangers win their first Stanley Cup since 1940
- Houston Rockets beat the New York Knicks in the "Forgotten NBA Finals"
- Major League Baseball goes on strike in mid-August, and the World Series is not held for the first time since 1904
- National Hockey League begins their lockout
- World Cup Fever takes place in the United States, Brazil wins the World Cup
- Arkansas wins the NCAA Men's Tournament; Nebraska wins the College Football National Championship
- NFL Hall of Fame Running Back O.J. Simpson is charged with the murders of his ex-wife and her friend

ENTERTAINMENT:
- "Friends" and "ER" debut, solidifying NBC's Thursday night dominance for years to come; "My So-Called Life" debuts on ABC
- "The Real World" features Pedro, a housemate who has AIDS, and Puck, who gets evicted in mid-season
- Whitney Houston dominates the Grammys with "The Bodyguard" soundtrack
- Steven Spielberg finally wins an Oscar, as he wins Best Director for the Best Picture winner "Schindler's List"
- "The Lion King" is the # 1 movie of the year, and "Forrest Gump" is # 2