The Summer of 1995: 20 Things America Was Obsessed with 20 Years Ago

What do you remember about summer 20 years ago? Is there a certain song or movie or moment that sticks out in your mind?

In case you’re having trouble remembering which earworm was getting heavy rotation through your brain or which TV shows were must-see, we’ve prepared a little nostalgia fest for you: 20 of the biggest pop cultural milestones from the summer of 1995.

(Fair warning: The realization that some of these items happened 20 years ago may make you feel old. Just roll with it. You still look great!)

MOVIES:

1. Braveheart kicked off summer movie season on May 24, and Mel Gibson’s brutal, three-hour ode to a Scottish hero would eventually go on to win Best Picture.

2. Batman Forever opened in theaters on June 16 and introduced the the world to a Day-Glo version of Gotham City – and a Batsuit that had nipples and a codpiece. This third Batman movie raked in $336.5 million.

3. On June 23, Disney’s Pocahontas debuted, claiming historical accuracy, angering anyone who read a history book, inspiring a hit single for Vanessa Williams and making $346 million.

4. Clueless opened in theaters on July 21, making Alicia Silverstone a mid-’90s "It" girl and increasing usage of the word "whatever" nationwide.

WATCH: Jeremy Sisto Reveals Clueless Kiss with Alicia Silverstone Was a Childhood Dream Come True

5. And then Kevin Costner’s epic Waterworld also came out in 1995. Ahem. (It tanked.)

6. Babe hit theaters on Aug. 4, making the entire country fall in love with a pig. It turned a whopping $250 million profit and even scored a Best Picture nomination.

7. Michelle Pfeiffer got tough in Dangerous Minds, which opened on Aug. 11, and soon everyone and their mom would know the lyrics to the Coolio hit "Gangsta’s Paradise."

8. On Aug. 16, The Usual Suspects taught us to fear Kevin Spacey – and probably gave more than a few people reason to lecture friends about spoiler warnings.

9. But not all the movie star goings-on happened on the big screen. On June 27, Hugh Grant was arrested by LAPD vice cops for picking up a prostitute, making the affable chap the butt of more than a few jokes.

TELEVISION:

10. On June 5, Singled Out introduced the world to Jenny McCarthy, Chris Hardwick and a Dating Game variant updated for MTV-addled minds.

11. After six seasons on CBS, Northern Exposure aired its final episode on July 26, 1995.

12. Figuring that those Generation X-ers had to get out of the house, MTV spun Road Rules off from The Real World. It premiered on July 19 and aired for 12 years.

13. On Aug. 8, cult favorite Aeon Flux premiered on MTV, prompting viewers to alternate between "Whaaaa?" and "Whoa."

14. And right at the tail end of summer, a little show called Xena: Warrior Princess premiered and taught America what a chakram was.

MUSIC:

15. What was the song of the summer? Well, that’s up for debate. It could be

… Bryan Adams’ "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?" This one spent four weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 list, making it the most memorable thing about the Johnny Depp movie Don Juan DeMarco, the movie for which it was written.

… TLC’s "Waterfalls", which lasted seven weeks in the No. 1 spot and continues to offer listeners valuable life lessons, even today.

… or it could be Seal’s "Kiss from a Rose," which squeaked onto the charts at No. 1 just in the final week of August 1995.

16. The summer of ’95 also saw the release of former Canadian pop princess Alanis Morissette’s new album – and new angry persona – on June 13.

17. Michael Jackson’s first double album, HIStory, dropped on June 20.

18. Dreaming of You, the first posthumous Selena album, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 on July 18. It was the first predominantly Spanish-language album to do so.

19. Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia died on Aug. 9, bringing an end to decades of keeping the ’60s spirit alive.

20. Not to end on a note that will leave this song stuck in your head, but Aug. 15, 1995, saw the release of a dance tune that refused to go away: "The Macarena."