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"They gave it a 50!"
Today, we’re dialing the time machine to February 6th, 1988. This was the day of the 1988 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, which featured a colossal showdown between high-flying legends Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkins.
Speaking of MJ, I’m staring at a never-opened Michael Jordan Collectors Edition Wheaties box from 1994. If we reach 500 subscribers by the end of February, I’ll have a bowl. Copy and paste this link to refer your friends to On This Day to help us get there!
February 6th, 1988 📆
“They gave it a 50!”
Even if you’re not a sports fan, you’ve heard of Michael Jordan. And you’ve likely seen this photo that was taken on February 6th, 1988, at the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. It’s truly iconic.
Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkins battled it out round by round with arguably some of the greatest dunks ever seen. And then things got heated in the final round. On his final dunk, Wilkins unleashed a ferocious windmill dunk that was controversially scored just 45 out of 50 by the judges to earn a total score of 145. MJ needed a 49 out of 50 on his final dunk to win.
You rarely hear about what came next: MJ missed his dunk.
Jordan missed his first attempt at the iconic free throw line dunk, but was given a second attempt due to contest rules. On his second attempt, Jordan threw it down to earn a perfect 50 and immortalize himself at the center of one of the most iconic sports photos of all time. Some say Jordan earned the perfect 50, and some (like Wilkins) say he got a little home-court advantage since the contest was held in Chicago.
Watch the 3-minute recap of the 1988 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. 👇
Take Me Back ⏮️
🎥 What we’re watching: Good Morning, Vietnam featuring Robin Wiliams as Adrian Cronauer
🕹️ What we’re playing: Final Fantasy on NES
🍔 What we’re eating: Chick-fil-A, which had just moved from mall food courts to standalone locations
🥤 What we’re drinking: Mello Yello, because Dusty Rhodes told us to
🛒 What we’re buying: A collection of Micro Machines
👦 Who we’re following: Tom Cruise AKA “Maverick”
🎤 What we’re singing: “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley
🚙 What we’re driving: A 1988 Ford Mustang 5.0 👇
Just For Fun 🙃
1988 marked the first year that CD sales surpassed vinyl. CDs would surpass cassette tape sales just three years later.
We were listening on this behemoth.👇
Fun fact: CD sales and vinyl sales were nearly equivalent in 2024. What goes around comes around…
OOTD On This Day🧢
Jumpsuit January may have been over, but today was Sweatsuit Saturday. Also, Keds.
Happy Birthday🎂
Two Rick Astley references in one newsletter? Yep. The rising pop star turned 22 today!
Thanks to the “rickrolling” trend, the music video for “Never Gonna Give You Up” has over 1.6 billion views. 🤯
Past Meets Present 📰
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