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1996: A Biography ― Reliving the Legend-Packed, Dynasty-Stacked, Most Iconic Sports Year Ever
On its 25th anniversary, relive the legend-stacked, dynasty-packed, most iconic sports year ever with the athletes, teams, and more whose collective influence affected every aspect of a generation of sports and pop culture fans―Jordan, Shaq, Iverson, Kobe, Gretzky, Tiger, Griffey, Jeter, Tyson, the Cowboys, the Yankees, the Bulls, The Rock, Stone Cold, Kentucky, Florida, Agassi, Graf, the Williams Sisters, Happy Gilmore , Space Jam , the Olympics in Atlanta, Muhammad Ali, the Magnificent Seven and more!
Take a rollicking tour through the sports world of 1996, when debuts, comebacks, movies, and pop culture crossover changed the sports landscape forever. From college to the Olympics to the pros; from the NBA to golf, tennis, and boxing, 1996 was home to athletes and teams who were among the best marketed, most beloved, colorful, and greatest in history. In 1996: A Biography , sportswriter and author Jon Finkel uncovers the stories behind the stories while interviewing a who’s who of ’96ers to reveal in thrilling detail how their collective influence on sports and pop culture still resonates to this day.
For those of us who remember when Iverson, Kobe, The Rock and Stone Cold, the MLS and the WNBA all debuted; when the US Women’s Olympic Gymnastics Team―the Magnificent Seven―won gold for the first time in history; when Mike Tyson and Magic Johnson made their comebacks; when MTV’s Rock n’ Jock , Michael Jordan’s Space Jam , and ESPN’s Dan Patrick and Stuart Scott were the bomb; when the Fun ’n’ Gun offense changed college football; when Ken Griffey Jr. ran for president (really! remember? ); when Derek Jeter won Rookie of the Year, Favre marched to his first Super Bowl and Jerry Maguire had everyone saying “show me the money”. . . . 1996 is a sports time machine you’ve got to take for a spin.
Take a rollicking tour through the sports world of 1996, when debuts, comebacks, movies, and pop culture crossover changed the sports landscape forever. From college to the Olympics to the pros; from the NBA to golf, tennis, and boxing, 1996 was home to athletes and teams who were among the best marketed, most beloved, colorful, and greatest in history. In 1996: A Biography , sportswriter and author Jon Finkel uncovers the stories behind the stories while interviewing a who’s who of ’96ers to reveal in thrilling detail how their collective influence on sports and pop culture still resonates to this day.
For those of us who remember when Iverson, Kobe, The Rock and Stone Cold, the MLS and the WNBA all debuted; when the US Women’s Olympic Gymnastics Team―the Magnificent Seven―won gold for the first time in history; when Mike Tyson and Magic Johnson made their comebacks; when MTV’s Rock n’ Jock , Michael Jordan’s Space Jam , and ESPN’s Dan Patrick and Stuart Scott were the bomb; when the Fun ’n’ Gun offense changed college football; when Ken Griffey Jr. ran for president (really! remember? ); when Derek Jeter won Rookie of the Year, Favre marched to his first Super Bowl and Jerry Maguire had everyone saying “show me the money”. . . . 1996 is a sports time machine you’ve got to take for a spin.
288 pages, Paperback
Published May 11, 2021
1 person is currently reading
7 people want to read
About the author
Jon Finkel
38 books18 followersJon Finkel is the award-winning author of 1996: A Biography, Hoops Heist, The Life of Dad, Jocks In Chief, The Athlete, Heart Over Height, “Mean” Joe Greene and more. His books have been endorsed by everyone from Mark Cuban and Tony Dungy to Spike Lee, Kevin Durant and Chef Robert Irvine.
He has written for GQ, Men’s Health, Yahoo! Sports, The New York Times and has appeared on CBS: This Morning, Good Morning Texas, and hundreds of radio shows, podcasts and streams. Jon was recently profiled in The New Yorker about the awesome community he’s built around his Books & Biceps newsletter. They describe him as “a gym rat’s Reese Witherspoon”.
His upcoming biography, Macho Man: The Untamed, Unbelievable Life of Randy Savage, comes out Spring 2024.
He has written for GQ, Men’s Health, Yahoo! Sports, The New York Times and has appeared on CBS: This Morning, Good Morning Texas, and hundreds of radio shows, podcasts and streams. Jon was recently profiled in The New Yorker about the awesome community he’s built around his Books & Biceps newsletter. They describe him as “a gym rat’s Reese Witherspoon”.
His upcoming biography, Macho Man: The Untamed, Unbelievable Life of Randy Savage, comes out Spring 2024.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
January 13, 2026
I shouldn't have liked this book as much as I did, but it was fun.
It triggered memories of sports in the 1990s in general and 1996 in particular - the college football goliaths, Florida, Florida State and Nebraska. The Triplets of the Dallas Cowboys. The debut of Tiger Woods. The Bulls, the Yankees, the Magnificent Seven. Jordan, Griffey, Tyson. The MLS, WNBA, WWF and other acronyms. "Happy Gilmore" and "Space Jam" and the Atlanta Olympics.
It's a breezy book, with short chapters and lots of memories.
Usually, I take off half a point if a book doesn't have photos, but in this case, it didn't really need them.
It triggered memories of sports in the 1990s in general and 1996 in particular - the college football goliaths, Florida, Florida State and Nebraska. The Triplets of the Dallas Cowboys. The debut of Tiger Woods. The Bulls, the Yankees, the Magnificent Seven. Jordan, Griffey, Tyson. The MLS, WNBA, WWF and other acronyms. "Happy Gilmore" and "Space Jam" and the Atlanta Olympics.
It's a breezy book, with short chapters and lots of memories.
Usually, I take off half a point if a book doesn't have photos, but in this case, it didn't really need them.
Displaying 1 of 1 review