The globe began to look forward to a new millennium near the close of the twentieth century. However, before the globe was ready to move on, the events of 1998 provided an opportunity for the world to reflect on the previous century.
In terms of film, the year 1998 was dominated by two films that gave audiences a taste of key historical events from the twentieth century. The first of these films, Titanic, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, was released late in 1997 but broke box office records the following year. It was the first picture ever to gross more than one billion dollars in the United States. Saving Private Ryan, a Globe War II epic drama starring Tom Hanks and Matt Damon, startled the world with its violent and starkly realistic depiction of battle. The film was a huge hit, and it sparked a revived interest in WWII history as well as a fresh sense of respect for the “Greatest Generation’s” sacrifices.
After the first Gulf War, tensions between the United States, the United Kingdom, and Iraq persisted into the 1990s. In December 1998, the United States and the United Kingdom launched Operation Desert Fox, a limited aerial bombing operation against Iraq. The United States and the United Kingdom accused Iraq of failing to comply with weapons inspectors, and their four-day bombing campaign, aimed at weakening Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction capability, inflicted significant damage to Iraqi infrastructure. Although the strike knocked Iraqi forces off guard, the operation was met with harsh criticism in the West.
Some analysts questioned whether the operation was sufficient to achieve its goals, while others accused President Bill Clinton of exploiting it to divert attention away from his impeachment. Clinton’s romance with Monica Lewinsky was first revealed by the Drudge Report in January 1998, and the scandal continued throughout the year, culminating in the House of Representatives submitting articles of impeachment against Clinton to the Senate in December. Clinton was the second president of the United States to be impeached, with Andrew Johnson being the first.
Continue reading to discover more about the events of 1998.
Event |
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![]() (January 23, 1998) |
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(March 23, 1998) |
![]() (March 27, 1998) |
![]() (April 23, 1998) |
![]() (May 06, 1998) |
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(May 14, 1998) |
![]() (May 14, 1998) |
![]() (September 02, 1998) |
![]() (September 04, 1998) |
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(September 08, 1998) |
![]() (September 27, 1998) |
![]() (October 23, 1998) |
![]() (October 29, 1998) |
![]() (November 03, 1998) |
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(November 03, 1998) |
![]() (December 19, 1998) |
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