SIMONE DEL ROSARIO:
GET YOUR YEEZYS! ADIDAS IS SELLING OFF ITS EXTRA INVENTORY AFTER A VERY PUBLIC BREAKUP WITH KANYE WEST. WHILE YE WILL STILL RAKE IN ROYALTIES, THE GERMAN ATHLETIC GIANT WILL DONATE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF THE SALE TO ORGANIZATIONS FIGHTING HATE. IT’S BETTER THAN BURNING THEM. WE’VE GOT THE BRANDS AND PRODUCTS THAT WERE LEFT FOR DEAD BUT MADE A COMEBACK IN THIS WEEK’S FIVE FOR FRIDAY.
WHILE MICHAEL JORDAN AND THE BULLS WERE BUSY WIPING THE COURT IN THE 90S, THE CHARLOTTE HORNETS WERE MAKING WAVES WITH PERSONALITIES LIKE LARRY JOHNSON’S “GRAND MAMA.” BUT THE CITY ITSELF DIDN’T CARE FOR THE TEAM OWNER AND IN 2002, THEY UP AND MOVED TO NEW ORLEANS. CHARLOTTE GOT ANOTHER SHOT WITH B-E-T FOUNDER ROBERT JOHNSON’S BOBCATS IN 2004. AND AFTER YEARS OF STRUGGLE, IN 2010 JORDAN HIMSELF BOUGHT MAJORITY STAKE OF THE TEAM HE ONCE DOMINATED. THE ONLY PROBLEM WAS THE NAME, AN ODE TO THE FORMER OWNER, JORDAN CHANGED IT BACK TO THE HORNETS IN 2014.
WHAT’S THE 90S WITHOUT FLUORESCENT BEVERAGES? ENTER SURGE, COKE’S ANSWER TO MOUNTAIN DEW, FOR THE EXTREME BEVERAGE DRINKER. REMEMBER THIS WAS BEFORE THE ENERGY DRINK ERA. ITS LAUNCH SUCCESS IN ‘97 QUICKLY FIZZLED AND THE DRINK WAS PULLED IN 2003. THANKS TO AN ONLINE CAMPAIGN KNOWN AS THE “SURGE MOVEMENT” COKE BROUGHT IT BACK IN 2014 AS AN AMAZON EXCLUSIVE, WHERE IT PROMPTLY SOLD OUT, PROVING NOSTALGIA’S A PRETTY GREAT SELLING POINT.
MCDONALD’S MCRIB HAS BEEN ON AND OFF THE MENU TOO MANY TIMES TO COUNT SINCE LAUNCHING IN THE EARLY 80S. BUT THE CYCLE REALLY PICKED UP THIS CENTURY, AND IT’S GONE ON MULTIPLE FAREWELL TOURS, GIVING CHER A RUN FOR HER MONEY. IT’S HARD TO SAY IF THE BONE-IN-RIB SHAPED PORK PATTY WILL BE BACK THIS YEAR, BUT THERE’S A GOOD BET YOU’LL SEE IT NEXT TIME PORK PRICES DROP. INTERESTING…
BEFORE SMARTPHONES, THE DEVICE IN YOUR POCKET WAS ACTUALLY THERE TO MAKE CALLS. AND IN 2000, EVERYONE KNEW SOMEONE WITH A NOKIA 33-10. IT WAS VIRTUALLY INDESTRUCTIBLE, WHICH IS LIKELY WHY IT SOLD 126 MILLION UNITS. BUT WHEN PHONES WITH BELLS AND WHISTLES TOOK OVER THE NOKIA FELL OUT OF FAVOR. IT MADE A COMEBACK IN 2017 WITH MORE FEATURES LIKE A CAMERA AND COLOR DISPLAY. GOOD LUCK TEXTING WITH THE T9, NOT EVERYTHING COMES BACK IN STYLE.
POLAROID USED TO MAKE CAMERAS THAT SHOT OUT PRINTED PHOTOS IN AN INSTANT. YOU’D HAVE TO WAVE EM AROUND IN THE AIR FOR SOME REASON. BY 2008, MORE PEOPLE HAD PHONES THAT ACTED AS A CAMERA IN THEIR POCKET, AND THEY STOPPED MAKING INSTANT CAMERAS. THE IMPOSSIBLE PROJECT LAUNCHED SHORTLY AFTER TO MAKE FILM FOR CAMERAS STILL IN CIRCULATION, AND IN 2017 THEY BOUGHT THE POLAROID NAME AND I-P AND NOW IT’S THE COOL VINTAGE THING TO HAVE AT A PARTY.
IF ONLY THEY’D BRING BACK TGIF, THAT’D BE GREAT. FIVE FOR FRIDAY WILL HAVE TO DO! I’M SIMONE DEL ROSARIO, IT’S JUST BUSINESS.