We Didn't Start the Fire: Tracking the 59 Mentioned Individuals - Where Are They Now?
Music fans have been keeping track of the 59 people mentioned in Billy Joel's 1989 hit song "We Didn't Start the Fire." The recent passing of French actress Brigitte Bardot has reduced the list to just three individuals who are still alive. Those three are Chubby Checker, Bob Dylan, and Bernhard Goetz. The song reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts in December 1989 and held the No. 1 spot for two weeks.
Chubby Checker is known for popularizing "The Twist," Bob Dylan is a legendary singer-songwriter, and Bernhard Goetz gained notoriety for a shooting incident involving Black teens in a New York City subway in 1984. Each of them is now in their 80s. Bardot was the last living woman mentioned in the song before her recent passing at the age of 91.
A Reddit user shared a chart on the platform's r/dataisbeautiful subreddit, detailing all the individuals named in the song. The chart was updated following Bardot's death. The song serves as a historical snapshot from 1949, the year Joel was born, up to the late 1980s, encapsulating various events and figures from that period.
While the relevance of this list may be debatable, it offers a condensed view of history through the lens of a popular song. The lyrics of "We Didn't Start the Fire" touch on a wide range of topics and personalities, providing listeners with a glimpse into the significant events and figures of the time. Sing along to the iconic lines: "Rock and roller, cola wars, I can't take it anymore."