THE WORLD'S BIGGEST PARTY

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A millennium, ours or  any other, is as much an emotion as it is a record of time. At the first millennium, the emotion was that of fear, for many believed 1,000 AD would be the end of times. By contrast, for most of us, the coming of the second millennium was a wondrous and happy event.

So happy was the coming of 2,000 AD, that we all worked hard to plan the party for it years in advance. Notably, the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square was built in 1981, and began taking millennium reservations—nearly 2 decades before the event!

While most of the world planned to host their own new year’s celebrations, there was always the understanding that at the end of the day the eyes of the entire world would all be on Times Square in New York City.

The folks at The Times Square Alliance, and the leaders of the city all knew this. And were determined to not only live up to it, but rise above whatever could be imagined. They decided that unlike any year before or since, the best way to have the entire world share in the Times Square New Year’s, would be to have the Square celebrate with the rest of the world. And thus, the idea of hosting a complete New Year’s extravaganza every hour, for 24 hours. One for every times zone around the globe.

Our images cover this historic event. Not only every hour of celebrations, but also the rehearsals the week before, and the behind the scenes. And the conversion of Times Square from the 20th century version, into the millennium version that began that week.

THE MILLENNIUM:

The Fulcrum That Changed Our World

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With the commercial hype before the millennium, and a world of distractions afterwards, it’s easy to lose sight of the broader picture. But now, over 20 years later, it’s obvious how drastically different the world is prior to and after the few years surrounding the millennium. Technically, Geo-politically, socially and in our minds.

• Prior to 2000, our phones were “dumb” (though we didn't know it at the time). After 2000, they became “smart”.
• Before the millennium, computers were mostly for offices, and after, every home needed one.
• Before, if we were “online” it still probably meant we were standing and waiting our turn in a store.
• Prior to 2000, if you did go online digitally, you did it with a slow modem. After:  Broadband started to appear.
• And if you were progressive enough to get online before 2000, your were probably told “You Have Mail”.
• If you managed to get on the real web and buy something, it was probably from Amazon, and it was a book. Because before 2000 they only sold books.
• Before 2000, we had just started to realize terrorism could effect the United States. After, it has effected us in very dramatic ways, most notably 9/11.
• Prior to the millennium, we had not been in an extended war since Vietnam. Since shortly after 2000, we have been in the longest wars of our American history.
• Since the millennium, our views on the world, and our place in it have dramatically changed. And so have the world players, many times over.
• Prior to 2000, we viewed women’s rights and gay rights in a different way than since. And the idea of a black, female or gay President would have been unrealistic, at best. Since then, realities have flipped.

While the Millennium was not the cause of these changes, it is undeniable that the time period that surrounded it has brought us some of the most significant changes since pre/post World War II. Looking back to the 1990’s, we can’t help but to think of it as “quaint”, compared to the world we live in today.

The new Millennium’s brave new world has brought us vast new possibilities and opportunities. But this new field that lay before us is also scattered with many land-mines. Many of which we are still working to figure out.

© 2022 Lance Evans and Graphlink Media