Historic 25: Pop culture landmarks that are celebrating a silver jubilee

The fall of the Berlin Wall, a big step for democracy, began on November 9, 1989. Here are other pop culture landmarks that are celebrating a silver jubilee.

SACHIN TENDULKAR

The master blaster made his Test debut against Pakistan in Karachi in November, 1989 aged just 16 years and 205 days. His One Day International debut followed soon after in the same year.



DALAI LAMA

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for consistent opposition to the use of violence in his struggle for the liberation of Tibet.

THE SIMPSONS

One of the greatest television series of all time and the longest running American sitcom aired its first episode on December 17, 1989. It has since broadcast 558 episodes and the 26th season premiered on September 28, 2014.



TAYLOR SWIFT

The music industry’s golden girl was born in 1989. Her latest album, which sold close to one million copies in the first week of its release, is also titled 1989 and is inspired by the music of her birth year.



SALMAN RUSHDIE

His book The Satanic Verses released in late 1988 to rave reviews as well as violent controversy in the Muslim community. On February 14, 1989, a fatwa was issued calling on all Muslims to kill Rushdie and his publishers.



THE WORLD WIDE WEB

Tim Berners-Lee, a British computer scientist, wrote a proposal meant for a more effective CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) communication system on March 12, 1989. Berners-Lee later realised the potential of the concept, and this proposal eventually became the World Wide Web.