The 1990s was a decade of great change and technological advancement. It was a time of grunge music, boy bands, and the rise of the internet. It was also a decade of political and social upheaval, as well as significant cultural shifts. In this list of 1990s trivia questions, we will test your knowledge of the people, events, and pop culture that defined the decade.
From the Gulf War to the impeachment of President Bill Clinton, these questions will cover a wide range of topics. You will learn about the major events that shaped the world during the 1990s, as well as the popular culture that defined the decade. You will also discover the personalities and celebrities that rose to fame during this time. Whether you're a history buff, a fan of 90s pop culture, or just someone who loves trivia, this list of 1990s trivia questions is sure to challenge and educate you.
So, grab a pen and paper, and get ready to test your knowledge of the decade that brought us Nirvana, Friends and the World Wide Web. Let's see how well you remember the 1990s!
169 1990s Trivia Questions Ranked From Easiest to Hardest (Updated for 2024)
- What is the name of the stock market bubble that occurred in the late 1990s fueled by investment in Internet-based companies? The common name of this stock market bubble takes its name from a top-level domain in the Domain Name System. Other top-level domains include “.edu” and “org.”
Answer: Dot-com bubble
- What 1997 N64 video game, widely cited as one of the greatest of all time, features James Bond up against a criminal syndicate and is named after the 1995 film in the Bond franchise?
Answer: GoldenEye
- Just down the street from Monica's apartment, Central Perk was a fictional coffee shop and gathering spot for the title characters of what long-running sitcom?
Answer: Friends
- In the 1990s, what illness previously thought to be confined to cattle was found to have been expanded to impact livestock, other animals, and even humans?
Answer: Mad cow disease
- If you’ve ever “shipped” two fictional characters, you have the online fandom of which ‘90s classic sci-fi show to thank for coming up with the term to describe their impassioned support of a relationship between two alien-hunting FBI agents?
Answer: The X-Files
- What African American author and activist was beaten by Los Angeles police in 1991? When the police officers were not convicted in their 1992 trial, despite video evidence of the incident, the ruling on this man’s charges started the Los Angeles riots.
Answer: Rodney King
- Jaleel White wore famously huge glasses playing Steve Urkel on what long-running sitcom of the 1990s?
Answer: Family Matters
- Voice actor Elwood Edwards recorded the famous “You’ve got mail!” announcement (as well as “Welcome,” File’s done,” and others) on a tape deck in his home. You’d know his voice if you had which Internet service provider in the 1990s?
Answer: AOL
- What fitness program is said to have originated in the 1990s when Colombian aerobics teacher Alberto Perez subbed salsa and merengue for his normal workout-class music?
Answer: Zumba
- What logistics company's orange and purple corporate logo was created in 1994 and has a hidden arrow between the two penultimate letters?
Answer: FedEx
- Signed in May 1918, The Pittsburgh Agreement was a document created by expats in the U.S. that described the intent to create what Central European nation? The document was named because it was signed in Pittsburgh and its primary author later became the first president of this newly-formed nation (which split into two different nations in the 1990s).
Answer: Czechoslovakia
- Luis Garavito murdered over a hundred victims in Colombia and neighboring areas in the 1990s. He was given what “B” nickname due to his animal-like viciousness, a name otherwise often associated with beauty?
Answer: The Beast
- What island in the Detroit River shares its name with the Disney Princess who starred in a 1991 animated film set in France?
Answer: Belle Isle
- What mammalian genre of sex toy boosted in popularity in the 1990s after its appearance in the 1998 Sex and the City episode entitled “The Turtle and the Hare?”
Answer: Rabbit
- After the breakup of Nirvana in 1994, Dave Grohl went on to found what alliteratively named Seattle band?
Answer: Foo Fighters
- Aunt Viv's husband, Uncle Phil, runs for Superior Court Judge against his former law school mentor in an episode of what 1990s sitcom?
Answer: The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
- What numerically named 1995 film about two detectives tracking down a serial killer was the second feature film directed by David Fincher?
Answer: Seven
- What were the names of the two rappers who were the focal points of the East Coast and West Coast hip hop rivalry that ultimately led to both of their deaths in the mid 1990s?
Answer: 2Pac and Biggie Smalls
- Set in Detroit, what 1990s sitcom featured real-life identical twins Tia and Tamera Mowry as siblings who were separated at birth and reunited as teenagers?
Answer: Sister, Sister
- The fictional Atlanta interior decoration firm of Sugarbaker and Associates was the center of the action of what sitcom of the 1980s and 1990s?
Answer: Designing Women
- Mikhail Popkov, a Russian rapist and serial killer who tallied over 70 victims in the 1990s and 2000s, is known by what lycanthropic nickname, associating him indirectly with Team Jacob and Lon Chaney, Jr.?
Answer: The Werewolf
- What superstar sheep, who became the first mammal cloned from an adult somatic cell when she was born in 1996, was named after a legendary country musician?
Answer: Dolly
- Quoting “you have died of dysentery" didn’t come from “Grey’s Anatomy” or “House, M.D.”—it’s a throwback to which computer lab pioneering game from your ‘90s childhood?
Answer: The Oregon Trail
- What St. Louis Cardinal and first basement broke Roger Maris's 37-year record when he hit his 62nd home run of the season in September 1998?
Answer: Mark McGwire
- Now 31 years old, Spencer Elden is most famous as the baby swimming toward a dollar bill on the iconic cover of what 1991 Nirvana album?
Answer: Nevermind
- If you were a kid in the ‘90s, when you weren’t looking for Waldo in the pages of a book, you might have wondered “where in the world” a certain trench coat-clad criminal mastermind was. What was the name of the ACME Detective Agency’s nemesis?
Answer: Carmen Sandiego
- Irish singer-songwriter Sinead O'Connor received a lifetime ban from Saturday Night Live after ripping up a photograph of what world figure during her 1992 performance?
Answer: Pope John Paul II
- Moe from The Three Stooges had one. It regained popularity in the U.S. for straight hair textures in the late 1980s and early 1990s. I'm talking about a mushroom cut, AKA a style named for what piece of dinnerware?
Answer: Bowl cut
- "Zombie" and "Linger" were two of the biggest 1990s hits for what kidney-friendly Irish rock band fronted by Dolores O'Riordan?
Answer: The Cranberries
- What popular band of young men released the hit music video “As Long As You Love Me” in 1997? It was a big hit on the long-play charts for Nick Carter, AJ Maclean, and others.
Answer: Backstreet Boys
- Nike's 1990s commercial titled " The Morning After" explored a satirical view of what might face runners on what "post-apocalyptic" date?
Answer: January 1 2000
- The 2005 movie “Jarhead” is about a US Marine’s experience in fighting in which 1990s conflict?
Answer: Persian Gulf War
- What athletic and fitness apparel company began in the late 1990s by launching their Heatgear and Coldgear products? Their 2003 commercial with the tagline "Protect This House" raised their profile another level, and in 2004 they became the official outfitter of Maryland athletics. By 2010, they were a billion dollar brand.
Answer: Under Armour
- What 1996 romantic comedy was nominated for five Academy Awards and was the origin of the following quotations? "Show me the money." "Help me help you." "You had me at hello."
Answer: Jerry Maguire
- Her life tragically cut short in 1995 by a former employee, what Texas-born one-named singer was known as "The Queen of Tejano Music?"
Answer: Selena
- What space telescope became notorious for its technical issues, thanks to a badly installed mirror, immediately after it was launched into orbit in 1990?
Answer: Hubble Space Telescope
- What Green Bay Packers quarterback of the 1990s and 2000s played in a record 297 consecutive regular games?
Answer: Brett Favre
- What actor hosted the Academy Awards a whopping six times during the 1990s? His nine total hosting stints are second only to Bob Hope's nineteen.
Answer: Billy Crystal
- What's the name of the fictional 56-carat blue diamond that appears in the movie Titanic? (Appropriately, the name also describes the place the diamond ends up at the end of the film.)
Answer: The Heart of the Ocean
- The most successful pinball machine of all time has sold over 20,000 units since its early 1990s release. Like many pinball machines, its theme was based off a pop cultural phenomenon and contains objectives such as "The Mansion," "Graveyard," "THING," and "Fester's Tunnel Hit." What piece of pop culture is this machine designed around?
Answer: The Addams Family
- What talking paper fastener, who served as a virtual assistant in Microsoft Office programs from 1997 until the mid-2000s, will be making a comeback as an emoji, according to the company?
Answer: Clippy
- What is the name of the German board game, invented in the 1990s, where players compete to settle, build, and connect cities on an island game board comprised of hexagonal tiles?
Answer: Catan
- Melissa Joan Hart played which “darling” teen who “explained it all” on a Nickelodeon sitcom that ran from 1991-1994?
Answer: Clarissa
- If you were a kid in the ‘90s, you probably begged your parents to buy you a box of which fruity gummy candies that unleashed an explosion of gooey flavor when you bit into them?
Answer: Gushers
- In 1997, David Wolf became the first American to vote from where? A Texas state law enabled him to do so.
Answer: Space
- Lindt expanded their chocolate empire in the 1990s with the acquisition of what California-based chocolate company founded by and named after an Italian immigrant?
Answer: Ghirardelli
- Zig-a-zig-ah! What word for a person who aspires to look or act like someone else, is the title of the only Spice Girls song to hit number one on the US Billboard charts?
Answer: Wannabe
- Marking the first normalization of relations between Israel and a neighboring Arab state since the mid-1990s, the Abraham accords were signed in 2020 between the U.S., Israel and what Arab country?
Answer: United Arab Emirates
- In Barbie’s office, there’s a picture of her debating George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and H. Ross Perot in front of PBS’s Jim Lehrer, during her first presidential run way back in what 1990s year?
Answer: 1992
- "Bart Gets Hit By a Car" and "Realty Bites" are 1990s episodes featuring ambulance-chasing lawyer and real-estate agent Lionel Hutz on what TV series?
Answer: The Simpsons
- Brian Mulroney, Kim Campbell, and Jean Chrétien each served during some part of the 1990s as Prime Minister of what country?
Answer: Canada
- Bill Pullman played the role of President Thomas J. Whitmore, a former fighter pilot and Gulf War veteran, who delivered a highly-acclaimed fictional speech in what 1990s action movie?
Answer: Independence Day
- In 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales died in a car crash that took place in a tunnel in which European capital city?
Answer: Paris
- Invented in the mid 1990s by Masahiro Hara from the Japanese company Denso Wave, the QR code system today is used by hundreds of millions of consumers. What does QR stand for?
Answer: Quick Response
- "For Harry and Lloyd, every day is a no-brainer" is a tagline that appeared on posters for what 1994 Jim Carrey movie?
Answer: Dumb and Dumber
- One of the longest-running original Cartoon Network series ran from 1999 to 2009 and featured three boys with the same name and their adventures in a cul-de-sac. What is this show?
Answer: Ed, Edd, 'n Eddy
- "Egg watch" is the English translation of the name of what popular 1990's toy, released in the U.S. in 1997?
Answer: Tamagotchi
- All featuring in the new Broadway jukebox musical "& Juliet", the songs "Stronger", "Overprotected", and "...Baby One More Time", were all originally performed by which pop star and icon of the 1990s?
Answer: Britney Spears
- What was the two-word name for the American campaign that liberated Kuwait following an Iraqi invasion in 1990? The U.S. led a coalition of 39 countries in the effort.
Answer: Desert Storm
- What 1990 Rob Reiner psychological thriller film gave Kathy Bates an Academy Award for playing a nurse that holds author James Caan hostage so he can rewrite one of his books? Based on a Stephen King book, the title implies that sad things are going to happen.
Answer: Misery
- What is the name of the show within a show, conceived as a parody of PBS's "This Old House," that was hosted by Tim Taylor on the 1990s sitcom "Home Improvement?"
Answer: Tool Time
- Created in 1990s at Lola’s West Hollywood restaurant, an appletini includes which liquid as its primary alcoholic ingredient?
Answer: Vodka
- A Singaporean ban on long hair that existed from the 1960s to the 1990s prompted concert cancellations by Led Zeppelin and what "Night Fever" disco band?
Answer: Bee Gees
- The hard-drinking protagonist of Chumbawamba's 1997 hit "Tubthumping" has four different kinds of drinks, according to the song's lyrics. One is a whiskey drink, and one is a vodka drink. Name either of the other two "drinks" he imbibes.
Answer: Lager Drink, Cider Drink
- Involving a U.S.-led coalition fighting against Iraq, what early 1990s conflict involved Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm?
Answer: Gulf War
- There is a series of Canadian children's books that was adapted into a late 1990s TV show about an anthropomorphic turtle. This turtle attended a school in which the character Mr. Owl worked. What is the name of this show?
Answer: Franklin
- Having a golden era in the 1980s and 1990s, how many Super Bowls have the San Francisco 49ers won in their history?
Answer: Five
- After his first book "Invisible Monsters" was rejected, Chuck Palahniuk worked as a diesel mechanic while finishing up what 1996 novel narrated by an unnamed insomniac with a new soap-making, pugilist best buddy?
Answer: Fight Club
- What eponymous star of a "show about nothing" did an American Express commercial in the 1990s in which he played cricket and said "wicked googly?"
Answer: Jerry Seinfeld
- Which 1990 Christmas classic started out as an idea that came to John Hughes while he was planning a family vacation?
Answer: Home Alone
- On the 1990s sitcom "Moesha," the title character was played by what one-named singer of "Sittin' Up in My Room" and "The Boy Is Mine?"
Answer: Brandy
- "Moesha" was a popular 1990s sitcom starring what one-named pop singer, whose hits include "Sittin' Up in My Room" and "The Boy Is Mine," in the title role?
Answer: Brandy
- What was the name of the 1990s fad, generically known as milk caps, which involved the players taking turns hitting a stack of pieces with their "slammers"?
Answer: Pogs
- Alex Dimitriades and Katherine Halliday starred as students at an inner-city Sydney school on the first season of what alliteratively named 1990s Australian teen drama?
Answer: Heartbreak High
- In October 1995, an event that Louis Farrakhan and the National African American Leadership Summit helped execute took place on the National Mall in Washington D.C. What three-word alliterative name did this event go by?
Answer: Million Man March
- The original version of the song “Torn” was released in 1995 and sung by Danish pop star Lis Sorensen. It didn’t take off until which Australian-British pop star released her cover of the song in 1997?
Answer: Natalie Imbruglia
- Played mostly unseen by Earl Hindman, what is the name of the neighbor Tim Taylor frequently turned to for words of wisdom on the ABC sitcom "Home Improvement"?
Answer: Wilson
- If you wanted to type up a “flawless” document in the 1980s or early 1990s, which Windows word processor would you use? (Hint: It was owned by Novell before being acquired by Corel in 1996, and your file would be saved in “.wpd” format)
Answer: WordPerfect
- In the 1990s, Walmart went global for the first time when partnering with Cifra, who was a retailer in what country?
Answer: Mexico
- In what decade did the city of Portland's population cross the half-million mark for the first time?
Answer: 1990s
- What “B” Isle in the Detroit River was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974? It shares its name with a Disney Princess of the 1990s.
Answer: Belle
- The real-life Torrance High School in Southern California played the fictional Sunnydale High on what TV series of the late 1990s and early 2000s?
Answer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- Since about the early 1990s, Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan have been lumped together in an informal economic group known as the Four Asian Tigers or the Four Asian what kind of mythical creatures?
Answer: Dragon
- What popular gay 1990s standup starred on her titular sitcom from 1994 to 1998, and hosted a popular syndicated talk show, starting in 2003, ending in 2022?
Answer: Ellen DeGeneres
- What 1990s sci-fi TV show featured Jerry O’Connell as a scientist who invents inter-dimensional travel, but ends up getting himself and a group of people lost, going from dimension to dimension ever week? The “S” name of the show is also the plural term for tiny cheeseburgers that some restaurants sell.
Answer: Sliders
- American lawyer Johnnie Cochran famously argued, "If it [the glove] doesn't fit, you must acquit," at whose trial in the mid-1990s?
Answer: O. J. Simpson
- What 1998 tropical storm killed 13 people in Texas, making it the state's deadliest tropical storm of the 1990s?
Answer: Tropical Storm Charley
- Yes, as if: Cher Horowitz donates her skis to a Pismo Beach disaster relief team near the end of what classic 1995 teen comedy?
Answer: Clueless
- What author who's written for Esquire, ESPN.com and as "The Ethicist" for The New York Times Magazine wrote the 2022 book "The Nineties?" Much like his other works, including "Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs" and "Eating the Dinosaur," "The Nineties" is presented as a series of essays.
Answer: Chuck Klosterman
- Describing the life of a supermodel, who famously told Vogue magazine for their October 1990 issue that "We don't wake up for less than $10,000 a day?"
Answer: Linda Evangelista
- In the 1990s, the United Nations established the Oil-for-Food Program to allow what Middle Eastern nation to sell enough oil to pay for food and necessities without expanding its military program?
Answer: Iraq
- What territory of Canada (and traditional Inuit homeland) was officially established in 1999, after being carved out of the extensive Northwest Territories?
Answer: Nunavut
- January 1, 1999, saw the introduction of what brand spanking new currency that supplanted the franc, the mark, and the Irish pound?
Answer: Euro
- In 1999, Jesse Ventura became the first actor from the movie Predator to serve as governor. What state did Ventura govern?
Answer: Minnesota
- In 1989, which football player and later failed politician (in 2022) was traded by the Dallas Cowboys to the Minnesota Vikings for four players and many draft picks, thus letting the Cowboys build their dynasty team of the 1990s?
Answer: Herschel Walker
- Which came first chronologically, the first Pokémon video games or Pokémon trading cards?
Answer: Pokemon video games
- What 1990s TV show starred Jane Seymour as a 19th century doctor who settled in Colorado Springs, at the foot of the Rockies?
Answer: Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman
- Including the Oscar-winning "You'll Be in My Heart," Phil Collins provided the songs for what vine-swinging 1999 Disney animated film?
Answer: Tarzan
- What word did Microsoft use for their bestselling CD-ROM encyclopedia, which first appeared on the market in 1993? It later moved online, but was discontinue in 2009.
Answer: Encarta
- In the 1990s, which American automaker was the center of a major safety controversy when it was discovered that the Firestone tires they used for models like the Explorer were failing at an unusually high rate, leading to hundreds of deaths?
Answer: Ford
- In 1998, which website for journaling and early social media community started by Bruce Ableson set the stage for the blogging boom with LiveJournal, Xanga, and WordPress?
Answer: Open Diary
- The abduction of a popular Texas teen in the 1990s kicks off what Hulu series that shares its name with a Bananarama song?
Answer: Cruel Summer
- In the late 1990s, PepsiCo's Lay's brand released a line of potato chips called WOW!, which was made with what trendy fat substitute, the first potato chip brand to do so?
Answer: Olestra
- Tech mogul Jack Dorsey reportedly came up with the idea that would become what website in the late 1990s, while studying at NYU (before dropping out)?
Answer: Twitter
- What is the name of the software framework developed and maintained by Microsoft that was first built in the late 1990s and continues to primarily run on Windows machines with the C# language? Fun fact: This is a key piece of the Water Cooler Trivia stack.
Answer: .NET
- Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone, Layzie Bone, Krayzie Bone, and Flesh-n-Bone are the sweetly singing members of what Cleveland hip hop group?
Answer: Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
- Which Italian designer from a fashion-family empire, known for his sensual collections, was murdered on July 15, 1999?
Answer: Gianni Versace
- What is the name of "The Last Rainforest" in the title of a 1992 film? The magical characters of this forest try to save their home from logging and pollution.
Answer: FernGully
- In 1997, the NHL's Hartford Whalers moved down south, where they won a Stanley Cup nine years later. What team did the Whalers become?
Answer: Carolina Hurricanes
- The total amount of greenhouse gas emissions created by human activity is better known by what two-word term which originated from a concept conceived by environmentalists William E. Rees and Dr. Mathis Wackernagel during the 1990s?
Answer: Carbon footprint
- What British actress played the titular frontier physician on the 1990s TV series "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman?"
Answer: Jane Seymour
- In the 1990s the majority of emigration of South African health care professionals was to what European power?
Answer: United Kingdom
- What legendary University of Nebraska football coach won three championships in the 1990s, later riding this popularity to a career in the U.S. House of Representatives? His last name is the same as the comedy daredevil “Super Dave.”
Answer: Tom Osborne
- "When there's trouble, you call DW" was part of the theme song to what early-1990s show from the Disney Afternoon?
Answer: Darkwing Duck
- 1993's Rudy was the first movie to be permitted to shoot on the campus of what U.S. university in over 50 years?
Answer: The University of Notre Dame
- What is the title of the popular book and recent TV series about two families living in 1990s Shaker Heights that opens with a family home catching fire?
Answer: Little Fires Everywhere
- "Scent of a Woman" and "Batman and Robin," in which he played the Caped Crusader's titular sidekick, were 1990s movies starring what heartthrob actor?
Answer: Chris O'Donnell
- During what decade of the 20th century did Georgia's population grow the fastest? The population grew by over 26% in this decade and no other decade even cracked 20%.
Answer: 1990s
- In 1991, the World Wide Web was released for the first time outside of the research organization where it had been invented in 1989 by Tim Berners-Lee. What is the name of that organization, more famous today for operating the Large Hadron Collider on the border between France and Switzerland?
Answer: CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research)
- What 1990 champion is the only nation to win a World Cup that no longer exists? (Or, perhaps more accurately, no longer exists under the same common name.)
Answer: West Germany
- What web browser, released by Netscape in 1994, was the browser of choice for a majority of internet users throughout the remainder of the decade?
Answer: Navigator
- Now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, what African country experienced a coup overthrowing longtime dictator Mobutu Sese Seko in 1997?
Answer: Zaire
- "Birdhouse in Your Soul" is a song from the 1990 album "Flood" by what possibly-huge-sounding alternative rock band?
Answer: They Might Be Giants
- Melissa Joan Hart told us everything about why people do the things they do as the title character of what 1990s Nickelodeon sitcom?
Answer: Clarissa Explains It All
- 60 years after it was taken, the famous "surgeon's photograph" purported to be of what cryptid was finally exposed as a hoax in 1994?
Answer: Loch Ness Monster
- In one of the world's most famous cases of insurance fraud, the Beverly Hills ophthalmologist Steve Cooperman faked the 1999 theft of two paintings worth millions of dollars (they were being stored in a Cleveland storage locker) to claim a $12.5 million insurance payout. With one guess, name either of the two artists behind the "stolen" works.
Answer: Monet and Picasso
- Anthony Sullivan (often referred to as The OxiClean Man) pitched dozens of home products to American shoppers via television commercials throughout his career. What was the name of the circular lighting fixture he pitched in the 1990s which he claimed can be "conveniently placed almost anywhere"?
Answer: TapLights
- What is the "flavorful" stage name of Robert Van Winkle, who contributed "Ninja Rap" to the soundtrack of the 1990 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie?
Answer: Vanilla Ice
- Which 1995 drama that bombed at the box office but became a hit with the home video crowd starred Elizabeth Berkely as Nomi, a young woman trying to make it as an erotic dancer in Vegas?
Answer: Showgirls
- Pioneering for its use of multiple producers and the first-person narrative, what is the sick-sounding name of rapper Nas's 1994 debut studio album?
Answer: Illmatic
- In what part of Seattle could you once find the “mystery soda machine,” a Coca-Cola vending machine that has miraculously never ran out of beverages from the 1990s to 2018, when it disappeared (also under mysterious circumstances…)?
Answer: Capitol Hill
- 1991's "Hunger Strike" was a hit for Temple of the Dog, a band featuring the vocals of Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell and what other grunge star, who hit it big with his own band's debut a few months later?
Answer: Eddie Vedder
- What 1990s America band from Seattle is considered one of the early emo bands that helped establish the genre with their debut album "Diary"? The band's name features four words, and the last two words are the name of an unrelated "dream pop" band from the 2000s.
Answer: Sunny Day Real Estate
- What nickname, coined by Myron Cope as a play on the city name, is used to refer to Steelers defenses that use the 3-4 zone blitz scheme developed by defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau to attack opposing offenses, notably in the 1990s?
Answer: Blitzburgh
- Which category 5 hurricane that devastated Florida, the Bahamas, and Louisiana in August of 1992 is remembered as one of the worst natural disasters of the ‘90s?
Answer: Andrew
- In which year of the 1990s was the Winter Olympics held in a non-leap year for the first time?
Answer: 1994
- What was the two-word name of the cult led by David Koresh, whose leadership culminated in a deadly raid of their Waco compound by Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms agents in 1993?
Answer: Branch Davidians
- What city on the east coast of India was known as Madras until changing its name in 1996?
Answer: Chennai
- What British man received two Oscar nominations for acting roles in the 1990s for playing two different American presidents? The presidents were Richard Nixon and John Quincy Adams.
Answer: Anthony Hopkins
- In the 1995 NBA Playoffs, Michael Jordan wore the signature shoes of another player for the only time in his career. However, these non-Air Jordan Nikes removed the signature “1 Cent” graphic. What player's shoes was MJ wearing?
Answer: Penny Hardaway
- What is the name of the lead singer of the grunge band Alice In Chains who battled addiction throughout his touring days and died of a drug overdose in 2002?
Answer: Layne Staley
- Though he had an amusing surname, Brian was the original given name Jim Jinkins came up with for what titular Nickelodeon cartoon guy?
Answer: Doug
- The official state bird of Georgia was the mascot for what Atlanta NHL hockey team that played from 1999 until 2011?
Answer: Thrashers
- "Hold On," "Don't Let Go (Love)," and "Free Your Mind" were 1990s top-ten hits for what all-girl group?
Answer: En Vogue
- What decade was the majority of the 2019 film "Captain Marvel" set in?
Answer: The 90s
- Featuring songs like "Drive" and "Nightswimming," "Automatic For the People" was a popular 1992 album from what dreamy alt-rock band?
Answer: R.E.M.
- In 1995, which “Back to the Future” star got her own sitcom, “Caroline in the City?”
Answer: Lea Thompson
- What was the name of the franchise of educational video games from the 1990s that featured a green protagonist and titles such as "Episode I: In Search of Spot" and "Episode II: Secret of the Lost City"?
Answer: Math Blaster!
- Founded in the 1990s as American Institute of Philanthropy (AIP) but since rebranded, what is the name of the U.S.'s self-proclaimed "most independent, assertive charity watchdog?" The group reports on how efficiently a charity will use donations to fund programs.
Answer: CharityWatch
- "Alive," "Even Flow," and "Jeremy" were singles from what classic 1991 Pearl Jam debut album?
Answer: Ten
- What gymnast suffered a severe lateral sprain and torn tendon in her ankle at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 at the very same moment she clinched gold for the American team?
Answer: Kerri Strug
- Queen Latifah and Kim Coles played cousins named Khadijah and Synclaire who roomed together in Brooklyn on what 1990s Fox sitcom?
Answer: Living Single
- The Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association became what conference—home to Nebraska, Missouri, Colorado, and Oklahoma—that combined with the Southwest Conference to form the Big 12 in 1996?
Answer: Big Eight
- If you had a lot of hair things, jewelry, and other random odds ‘n ends in your bedroom in the ‘90s, what colorful, plastic storage container might you have wanted to help you get organized (and popular)?
Answer: Caboodle
- What portmanteau word was introduced to the world in 1994, when the first motorists made the trip between the towns of Folkestone and Coquelles?
Answer: Chunnel
- When Jose Saramago, the author of Blindness and The Double, won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1998, he became the first and (to date) only winner from what Lusophone European country?
Answer: Portugal
- Drawing comparisons to "The Brady Bunch," what 1990s sitcom starred Patrick Duffy and Suzanne Somers as single parents, each with three children, who marry to create a blended family?
Answer: Step By Step
- According to Guinness World Records, what Sega title—which features characters including Akira Yuki, Jeffry McWild, and Wolf Hawkfield—was released worldwide as the first-ever 3D fighting video game in 1993?
Answer: Virtua Fighter
- Which kid’s punching toy of the ‘90s was “more fun than a pillow fight?” (Hint: If you think your memory is being challenged by the Mandela Effect, the first part of the name did get changed after Mattel sued for copyright infringement on their boxing robot toy).
Answer: Socker Boppers
- Prior to the 1990s, fewer than 25% of all drugs prescribed in the U.S. for WHAT GROUP of people were tested for safety or efficacy in their population? This was due to ethical concerns around testing, which were not (somewhat) resolved until 1997 when incentives were granted that gave pharmaceutical manufacturers a six-month patent extension if they explicitly trialed this group while drug testing.
Answer: Children
- Allied codebreakers at Bletchley Park and 1990s programmers trying to establish anonymous Internet banking create the storylines in what 1999 Neal Stephenson novel with a 13-letter title?
Answer: Cryptonomicon
- Which Nabisco brand of cakes, cookies, crackers, puddings, and even toaster pastries, was marketed as a “guilt free” dessert for dieters with the slogan “So good, can we ever make enough?”
Answer: Snackwell's
- "South of Cincinnati" is a 1986 song from the album "Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc." by what country singer who's more famous for his 1990s song "Fast as You?"
Answer: Dwight Yoakam
- The agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), signed in 1993 and 1995, were named after what European capital? Although the first agreement was signed in Washington, D.C. and the second was signed in Taba, Turkey, the negotiations mainly took place in the capital in question.
Answer: Oslo
- From the years 1990-1999, how many times did the National League Champions go on and with the World Series in Major League Baseball?
Answer: 3
- What is the groovy, feminist name of En Vogue's second studio album, which was released in 1992 and includes the hit song "Free Your Mind?"
Answer: Funky Divas
- What 1995 film was based on former Marine LouAnne Johnson's memoir titled My Posse Don't Do Homework?
Answer: Dangerous Minds
- What man was the founder of mortgage giant Rock Financial in 1985, which became the largest independent mortgage lender in the U.S. by the late 1990s? The company later rebranded to Quicken Loans and also includes the Rocket Mortgage brand.
Answer: Dan Gilbert
- Featuring partially overlapping blue and orange circles as its logo, what smart card electronic cash system was founded in the United Kingdom in the 1990s and acquired by Mastercard in 2001?
Answer: Mondex
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About the Author
Eli Robinson is the Chief Trivia Officer at Water Cooler Trivia. He was once in a Bruce Springsteen cover band called F Street Band.
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