To be fifteen in America in 1990 was to have “Nothing Compares 2 U” by Sinéad O'Connor everywhere, Home Alone on every screen, and Cheers on after school. That year, gas cost $1.16 and the Hubble Space Telescope was the new thing. Born in 1975? You turned 15 in 1990 — a teenager from 1988 to 1994, right in the window a soundtrack bonds to you for life.
Compiled by the Original Lore archive from period charts, box-office and price records. How we build these · sources noted throughout.
That single tear-streaked close-up was inescapable on MTV in 1990, and for a 15-year-old it was the most devastating thing on the dial — a raw, adult heartbreak distilled to one face and one voice. It taught a generation what a music video could feel like, and the chorus still cracks people open.
the year-end #1 was Hold On — Wilson Phillips.
the movies you are watching in 1990
Home Alone
Ghost
Pretty Woman
Dances with Wolves
Total Recall
the tv shows you are binging in 1990
Cheers
Roseanne
The Simpsons
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
Twin Peaks
the games you are playing in 1990
Super Mario Bros. 3
Mega Man 3
Dr. Mario
DuckTales
Final Fantasy
Super Mario World
what things cost in 1990
What things cost in 1990
a gallon of gas
$1.16
a movie ticket
$4.23
the federal minimum wage
$3.80/hr
a first-class stamp
$0.25
the average income
$29,943
trending this year
Naula Ayisabun Aningore · CC BY-SA 4.0The SimpsonsWilfredor (CC0, no attribution required) · CC0 1.0 (Public Domain Dedication)Beverly Hills, 90210Methem (Mikko J. Putkonen), via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0Windows 3.0Super Mario Bros. 3NASA / NASA Hubble Space Telescope, CC BY 2.0 · CC BY 2.0 (also public domain as NASA work)Hubble Space Telescope
the gadgets you just got
Evan-Amos (Vanamo Media), via Wikimedia Commons · Public Domain (released to public domain worldwide)Sega GenesisEvan-Amos (Vanamo Media), via Wikimedia Commons · Public Domain (CC0 / released to public domain worldwide)Nintendo Game BoyPhalange7, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0Super Famicom / SNESPhoto by Redrum0486 (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MicroTAC.jpg · CC BY-SA 3.0Motorola MicroTACIsabelle Hurbain-Palatin (Balise42), via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0Sony Discman
what everyone is snacking on
Photo by chee.hong (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), CC BY 2.0Doritos Cool RanchMarco Almbauer (public domain, no attribution required) · Public Domain (released by copyright holder)Buglestaylorhatmaker (Flickr), CC BY 2.0DunkaroosEvan-Amos (Vanamo Media), via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Reeses-pieces-loose.JPG) · Public DomainReese's PiecesJellocube27, English Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Chocolate_teddy_graham_closeup.png · Public Domain (author release, worldwide)Teddy Grahams
what everyone is drinking
Masashi Yanagiya · CC BY-SA 2.0Hi-C Ecto CoolerPhoto by ZolHaj (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Squeezeit-flavours.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0SqueezitSunny DelightPhoto by Tamzin Hadasa Kelly (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capri_Sun_pouch_standing.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0Capri SunMarcus Quigmire (Flickr), via Wikimedia Commons (File:Diet (3298274926).jpg) · CC BY-SA 2.0Snapple
what made the news in 1990
Nelson Mandela walks free after twenty-seven years in a South African prison
East and West Germany formally reunify into a single nation on October 3
Iraq invades Kuwait, drawing American troops to the Persian Gulf
The Hubble Space Telescope launches into orbit aboard shuttle Discovery
U.S. Department of Defense / Sgt. Cumper (public domain) · Public Domain (U.S. Department of Defense work, not protected by copyright per 17 U.S.C. 105)Iraq invades Kuwait, sparking the Gulf crisisGeorge Bush Presidential Library and Museum (public domain) · Public Domain (U.S. federal government work, 17 U.S.C. 105)Nelson Mandela freed after 27 years in prisonBundesarchiv, Bild 183-1990-1003-031 / Uhlemann, Thomas / CC-BY-SA 3.0 · CC-BY-SA 3.0 Germany (CC-BY-SA 3.0 DE)Germany reunifies as the Cold War order crumblesNASA (Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center) (public domain) · Public Domain (NASA material, not protected by copyright)Hubble Space Telescope launched into orbitU.S. Army / SSgt. Ruark (public domain) · Public Domain (U.S. Army work, 17 U.S.C. 105)Operation Desert Shield deploys US troops to Saudi Arabia
what everyone is saying
"Cowabunga!"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles catchphrase at peak Turtlemania in 1990
"Don't have a cow, man!"Bart Simpson catchphrase from The Simpsons, which exploded in 1990
"Eat my shorts!"Bart Simpson's rebellious schoolyard line plastered on 1990 merch
"Read my lips: no new taxes"George H. W. Bush's 1988 pledge that resurfaced in the 1990 budget fight when he broke it
"Stop! Hammer time!"From MC Hammer's smash 1990 single 'U Can't Touch This'
