2003 History, Trivia and Fun Facts

• The Politics of War: The 2003 invasion of Iraq was initially called "Operation Iraqi Liberation", but was quickly changed to "Operation Iraqi Freedom" due to the acronym spelling out "OIL".
• The Top Song was Hey Ya! by OutKast
• The Big Movies included The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Finding Nemo and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
• Price of Gold Star Air conditioner 5,200 BTU in 2003: $85.00
  Coppertone Waterbabies suntan lotion, 5 oz: $4.99
• The World Population was ~ 6,326,000,000
• "5 Hour Energy" entered the market.
• The Alibi: Juan Catalan was cleared of murder charges, after outtake footage shot for "The Car Pool Lane" episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm showed him and his daughter attending the Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Atlanta Braves baseball game some 20 miles from the crime scene at the time of the murder.
• And... After Michael Jordan retired in 2003, The Miami Heat retired his number 23 jersey even though Jordan never played for the team.

Christina Aguilera, Jessica Alba, Pamela Anderson, Jennifer Aniston, Pamela Anderson, Christina Applegate, Ashanti, Morena Baccarin, Tyra Banks, Drew Barrymoore, Victoria Beckham, Kate Beckinsale, Monica Bellucci, Halle Berry, Beyonce, Selma Blair, Brooke Burke, Gisele Bündchen, Brooke Burns, Laetitia Casta, Kelly Clarkson, Penélope Cruz, Elisha Cuthbert, Rosario Dawson, Cameron Diaz, Carmen Electra, Jennifer Garner, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Salma Hayek, Katie Holmes, Kelly Hu, Kate Hudson, Scarlett Johansson, Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, Heidi Klum, Keira Knightley, Kristin Kreuk, Mila Kunis, Ali Larter, Avril Lavigne, Lucy Liu, Kristanna Loken, Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Eva Mendez, Kylie Minogue, Brittany Murphy, Mya, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sarah Jessica Parker, Pink, Jaime Pressly, Trista Rehn, Tara Reid, Denise Richards, LeAnn Rimes, Julia Roberts, Michelle Rodriguez, Rebecca Romijn, Kelly Rowland, Paulina Rubio, Shakira, Jessica Simpson, Molly Sims, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Julia Stiles, Hilary Swank, Shania Twain, Aisha Tyler, Naomi Watts, Reese Witherspoon, Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones

Brad Pitt, Jude Law, Heath Ledger, Hugh Grant, Ben Affleck, Ewan McGregor, Colin Farrell, Russell Crowe, Johnny Depp, Julian McMahon, Justin Timberlake, Adam Brody

"Where do buffalo wings come from? Chickens or buffaloes?"
-Jessica Simpson, on her Newlyweds reality show.

"He's just not that into you."
-Jack Berger, Sex In The City

"We'd love to have children of our own one day. That would be such a dream come true."
- Louise Brown Mullinder, the first test-tube baby (1978), on her wedding day.

The 2003 invasion of Iraq was initially called "Operation Iraqi Liberation", but was quickly changed to "Operation Iraqi Freedom" due to the acronym spelling out "OIL".

Mitsubishi offered a "0-0-0" deal in the US which offered a new car for 0 down, 0% interest and 0 payments for a year. Many buyers defaulted after the year leaving Mitsubishi with used vehicles for which they'd received no money and which were now worth less than they cost to manufacture.

The original "Dunkin' Donut" from Dunkin' Donuts had an actual pastry handle for dipping into coffee. It was discontinued this year because it had to be cut by hand.

Country Music Star Brad Paisley saw Actress Kimberly Williams in the movie Father of the Bride while he was on tour and decided to track her down to ask her on a date. They've been married since 2003.

The $2 dollar bill is still in circulation and last had a printing in 2003.

Robert Downey Jr. thanked Burger King for getting him off drugs. In 2003, with a car full of drugs he had a burger that was so disgusting it made him rethink his life, and dump the drugs in the ocean.

A philosophy riddle from 1688 was recently solved. If a man born blind can feel the differences between shapes such as spheres and cubes, could he, if given the ability, distinguish those objects by sight alone? In 2003 five people had their sight restored though surgery, and, no they could not.

Frane Selak: the luckiest unlucky person in the world. Cheated death seven times (including falling out of an airplane) and then won the lottery in 2003.

Dodge built and sold nine motorcycles with a Viper V-10 engine called the Dodge Tomahawk.

'Lord of the Rings: The Return Of The King' won 11 Oscars, winning every it was in. For this reason, many consider it to be the greatest film of all time. Several books have been written regarding the making of the Lord of the Rings film series.

Rock band Green Day had finished an album in 2003, but it was never released because the master tracks were stolen from the studio. Instead of re-recording the album, the band decided to write and record an entire new album, which turned out to be their hit record.

When Andy Serkis (appearing as Gollum) delivered his acceptance speech for "Best Visual Performance," in the Two Towers, at the MTV Movie Awards, the speech itself won a Hugo award for "Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form".

Queen are the only group in which every member has composed more than one #1 single, and hence, all four members were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003.

HERO - 13 year old Surfer Bethany Hamilton jumped right back on a surfboard after getting patched up from her shark-bite, which took her left arm. A 2011 film, Soul Surfer, starring AnnaSophia Robb, was made about her life.

HERO - Aron Ralston - while canyoneering in Utah, he was forced to amputate his right arm with a dull knife in order to free himself from a boulder. A 2011 film, 127 Hours, starring James Franco, was made about the adventure.

HERO - Elizabeth Smart was found alive, 9 months after she was kidnapped. She has become an activist, working with Sexual Predator Legislation and the AMBER Alert system, and she spoke after the signing of the Adam Walsh Act. A TV movie about the ordeal, The Elizabeth Smart Story, was shown on CBS.

Juan Catalan was cleared of murder charges, after outtake footage shot for "The Car Pool Lane" episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm showed him and his daughter attending the Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Atlanta Braves baseball game some 20 miles from the crime scene at the time of the murder.

Steven Bartman, sitting in Section 4, Row 8, Seat 113 of the stands at Wrigley Field, reached for and deflected a foul ball that Cubs left fielder Moises Alou was trying to catch. The Florida Marlins won the game and the chance to be in the World Series.By all reports, Steven is a decent guy, and still a Cubs fan. A film, featuring Kevin James, was proposed.

The word "McJob" was added to the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, defined as "a low-paying job that requires little skill and provides little opportunity for advancement".

Leonardo Notarbartolo stole diamonds worth $100 million after getting past a lock with millions of possible combinations, infrared heat detectors, a seismic sensor, Doppler radar, a magnetic field and security force. He was caught because he left a partially eaten sandwich near the crime scene

Cost of a Superbowl ad in 2003: $2,100,000

The Human Genome Project that mapped the structure of DNA and all the specific information that it contained completed its work.

Game Boy Advance SP, Beyblades, Bionicle, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Flavas dolls, Barbie as Supergirl, Barbie as Wonder Woman

Teen Vogue began publication

(according to boxofficemojo)
1. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2. Finding Nemo
3. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
4. The Matrix Reloaded
5. Bruce Almighty
6. X2: X-Men United
7. Elf
8. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
9. The Matrix Revolutions
10. Cheaper By The Dozen

2 Fast 2 Furious, Anger Management, Bad Boys II, Bringing Down the House, Bruce Almighty, Cheaper by the Dozen, Elf, Finding Nemo, Freaky Friday, Hulk, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Seabuscuit, Something's Gotta Give, Spy Kids 3D: Game Over, S.W.A.T., Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, X2: X-Men United