10 Hypes That Took Over America in 1997

DVD Comes Home

The first DVD players reached U.S. stores in 1997. Most living rooms were still VHS, but the idea that movies could look that sharp — and skip that fast — started the living-room argument that would end the videotape.

Austin Powers

Mike Myers turned a swinging-'60s spoof into a catchphrase factory. Yeah, baby — the hair, the glasses, and a comedy that made kitsch feel current again.

South Park Debuts

Comedy Central's little cutouts arrived in August and immediately sounded like something you were not supposed to watch. That was the point. Kids found it. Parents found out.

Teletubbies Hit the U.S.

Four brightly colored creatures from a British kids' show landed on American PBS and then on every merch rack that would have them. Toddlers were hooked. Everyone else had an opinion.

Hanson and MMMBop

Three brothers from Tulsa turned a nonsense chorus into a national earworm. You did not have to like it. You just had to survive it.

Men in Black

Will Smith in black, Tommy Lee Jones unamused, and a summer that made sunglasses and a neuralyzer feel like required equipment. The soundtrack did the rest.

Tamagotchi

A keychain pet that died if you ignored it. Schools banned them. Kids smuggled them. America discovered that guilt could be a gameplay loop.

Spice Girls

Wannabe had already cracked the charts. 1997 is when Spice mania went full merch — dolls, movies on the horizon, and five nicknames every kid could recite.

Beanie Babies

Ty's small stuffed animals were treated like a stock market. Tags stayed on. Retired designs sparked rumors. People really did believe a plush toy was a college fund.

Titanic

James Cameron's shipwreck romance opened in December and did not behave like a normal movie. People went back. And back. The iceberg, the door, the song — 1997 ended with America living on that deck.