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Top Cultural Game-Changers

What will we still be talking about next decade? Britney, for one

By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff

Posted Dec 7, 2009 2:11 PM CST

(Newser) – The ‘00s were full of important contributions to culture, but which ones will we still be talking about in another decade? Here are some of New York’s picks:

  • TV: The Sopranos for inventing quality cable, American Idol for changing the music industry, and of course all things Oprah Winfrey.
  • Books: The Da Vinci Code for singlehandedly sustaining the book industry, and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay for blazing the trail of combining geek lit with high lit.

  • Movies: The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Identity—“Not art, but everyone will imitate it”—and Best in Show, one of the greatest mockumentaries ever.
  • Art: David Hammons’ pitch-black gallery with tiny blue lights was “the best manifestation of life in the bad days after 9/11.”
  • Architecture: Hearst Tower for being the first tall building to emerge after 9/11, and IAC Headquarters for challenging long-held ideas about office buildings.
  • Music: The Strokes’ Is This It, which everyone is still trying to imitate; Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak for defining the Auto-Tune era; and, sadly, Britney Spears’ Oops I Did It Again.
  • Theater: Mamma Mia!—the only Broadway show that will probably still be running in 2020—and The Producers: “Man, remember when that silly musical with the dancing Nazis was the hottest ticket in town? How the hell did that happen?"
  • Comics: Infinite Crisis and Civil War, DC and Marvel's enormous crossover events, and Japan’s mega-selling Naruto.
For the complete list, click here.

In this April 6, 2009 file photo, Oprah Winfrey arrives at the Chicago 2016 gala dinner at the Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago.
In this April 6, 2009 file photo, Oprah Winfrey arrives at the Chicago 2016 gala dinner at the Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago.   (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, file)
Edie Falco, James Gandolfini, Robert Iler, and Jamie-Lynn Sigler portray members of the Soprano family in the final season of the HBO hit dramatic series The Sopranos.
Edie Falco, James Gandolfini, Robert Iler, and Jamie-Lynn Sigler portray members of the Soprano family in the final season of the HBO hit dramatic series "The Sopranos."   (AP Photo/HBO, Craig Blankenhorn)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 3 comments
Michael_CT
Dec 8, 2009 7:20 AM CST
I thought the Harry Potter series had more to do with sustaining the publishing business than the 'single-handedness' of The Da Vinci Code. . . (?)
RCAnder
Dec 7, 2009 8:44 AM CST
LOST
Jes
Dec 7, 2009 8:28 AM CST
Whoo! White Stripes, The Amber Spyglass, and The Daily Show! The full article is good, and pretty much hit my big ones for the decade. (Even if it missed the mark by not including any video games. No respect.)

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