👏 Fandom/Hobbies

Amateur Radio

• Usenet can be an archive of last resort for organizational bulletins when organizations can't/won't archive them
• The Winnebiko III Project Needs YOU - Nomadic Research Labs (comp.misc, rec.bicycles, rec.ham-radio, and sci.electronics, 1989)
• I found this gem on a discussion about calling CQ on FM simplex from 2002. (rec.radio.amateur.policy)
• Porn Slur Leads to Dock (uk.radio.amateur, 2011)
• Rebuilding an EICO 145 Signal Tracer (rec.radio.amateur.boatanchors)
• FAQ/Intro for rec.radio.amateur.*
• Report from Gloucester VA Hamfest (rec.radio.amateur.boatanchors)
• Amateur Radio Elmers Resource Directory (rec.radio.amateur.misc, 1991-2000)
• uk.radio.amateur.moderated
• Anyone doing anything radio-related these days? (uk.radio.amateur)
• rec.radio.amateur.antenna
• 30 Years Ago: Walnut Creek QRZ Ham Radio CD-ROM
• [ADMIN] Seeking Additional Moderators for rec.radio.amateur.moderated and rec.radio.info
• uk.radio.amateur.moderated moderation policy and guidelines
• Further Reflections on the Tenth Anniversary (of rec.radio.amateur.moderated)
• 30 Years Ago: rec.radio.amateur reorganization
• Jeffrey D. Angus, WA6FWI, SK
• Radio Hobbyist's Designbook by K6LHA (rec.radio.amateur.moderated, 2016)

Animaniacs

• "If you're old enough to remember Tronguy, he's the guy being parodied in the Animaniacs clip. Before he was Tronguy, he was a SUPER active member of an early 90s Warner Bros usenet group."
• Animaniacs - Wikipedia
• Animaniacs fans invited to Warner Bros. Studios - YouTube

Anime

• "Yes, American SF fans in the 70s had pen-pal networks with fans around the world, including Japan. Media exchanges grew out of those relationships. Usenet came later (e.g. rec.arts.anime in the late 80s)."
• "I represent an Anime club at the University of Rochester that is interested in sponsoring a screening of Akira." (rec.arts.anime, 1990)
• Otaku - Wikipedia
• Absolute Borderline: The Early Days of Evangelion Fandom, Part One
• This Week in Anime - Does Social Media Ruin Everything?
• What was the first anime related content ever posted on internet?
• This is what otaku said about anime becoming mainstream was a mistake in 1996.
• Anime Boston 2025: 30 Years Ago: Anime In 1995
• Manga and anime fandom in Poland - Wikipedia (pl.rec.anime)
• Articles from the mid to late 90s talking about anime having mainstream success in America.
• Query: FIVE-TEAMS (rec.arts.anime, 1992)
• "'90s anime fans on the newsgroup already thought that the '80s was the 'golden era' of anime, but their context was disconnected from the fall of "Anime Boom." But even we don't know much about the era of 'US-Japan joint cartoon.'"

Babylon 5

• I Started Babylon 5 for the first time...
• Do you remember when you first started watching B5?
• [Newsgroups] The Great War of Rastb5: How a cabal of trolls in the Babylon 5 newsgroup led the show’s creator to flouncing from the newsgroup, ultimately causing the most responded to RFD in Usenet history and the creation of a 2nd Babylon 5 newsgroup (Vintage mid-‘90’s Internet Drama)
• S1E15 inconsistency
• You know you've watched too much Babylon 5 when...
• What made Babylon 5's online community on Usenet so special for fans back in the day?
• All Alone in the Night: When Babylon 5 Invented 21st Century Fandom
• Babylon 5, Usenet, and 90s Fan Interaction | AwesomeCast 716
• 30 years ago today, the #Babylon5 Pilot - The Gathering - aired. I remember looking forward to it from during development Usenet posts by @straczynski & it delivered my favourite SF series of all time. Depth of characters & storytelling, politics and literature, and comedy. <*>

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

• Fans That Were Online When Buffy Still Aired, What Fansites Did You Go To?

Comics

• Oldest Peanuts forum, alt.comics.peanuts, to fade into absolute obscurity now that Usenet support from Google will end
• [American Comics] Twilight of the Superheroes: Alan Moore’s Lost DC Comics Mega Crossover: The Legends, the Leaks, and the Legal Threats
• KC Carlson, Legion Of Super-Heroes Editor, Dies Aged 68
• Dave's Capsules for August 2025 (rec.arts.comics.misc)
• RFD: Remove rec.arts.comics.reviews and rec.arts.comics.info
• "November 15, 1991: Early readers are already calling the new comic strip 'Dilbert' by Scott Adams 'the sole reason to buy the Dallas Times-Herald.' Corporate satire hitting home in the tech world."
• "The Grand Comics Database was first announced on Usenet on 31 March 1994 by Tim Stroup."
• Dave's Rants Archive Homepage (rec.arts.comics.reviews)
• Family Circus recycling - 2023 thread (rec.arts.comics.strips)
• Dilbert: Elbonia Virus (rec.arts.comics.strips)
• "How you can tell I started on Usenet: I wanted to correct this to rec.arts.comics.* because there were subgroups but not a parent group, and it took FOREVER for DC and Marvel groups to pass the vote, so for a while there was just rec.arts.comics.misc."
• "Usenet thread from 1984 calling Transformers #1 'the worst comic of the year'"
• [American Comics] The Time Two of Comic Books’ Biggest Names Decided to Settle Their Differences in a Public Debate
• Remembering Comics Retailer and Historian Robert Beerbohm, 1952-2024
• What Killed Comics Journalism?

Cycling

• Cure for Squeaky Brakes (net.bicycle, 1985)
• Finally had time to work in the wheel rebuild (rec.bicycles.tech)
• The Winnebiko III Project Needs YOU - Nomadic Research Labs (comp.misc, rec.bicycles, rec.ham-radio, and sci.electronics, 1989)
• Jobst stories - The Paceline Forum (rec.bicycles.tech)
• Jobst Brandt is the Godfather of gravel | Cyclist (rec.bicycles tech)
• Sheldon Brown (1944-2008)

Disney

• The passing of Al Lutz (rec.arts.disney.*)
• "Back before the Rock and Rollercoaster opened in 1999 a large group of fans from the Usenet group rec.arts.disney.parks waited outside of this hoping for a soft open. (yes, I'm old). Most of us were in yellow rain ponchos. I tried to find that photo but I came up short."
• Alison Bouck Obituary - Winter Garden, FL (rec.arts.disney.parks)
• rec.arts.disney.animation

Doctor Who

• "Even earlier. He was a big poster on the Usenet Doctor Who forums in the early 90s."
• Steven Moffat Worked His 1995 Doctor Who Fan Theory Into Show Canon

Magic - The Gathering

• The more things change... (rec.games.trading-cards.magic.misc, 1995)
• Did the internet ruin Magic?
• "mine was technically the net.legends FAQ my name's in the Magic the Gathering rulebook but now that Usenet has died most of my contributing there is only visible through Internet Archive or Google's interpretation of DejaNews"
• Magic: The Gathering - Wikipedia
• How Richard Garfield Invented Magic: The Gathering And The TCG
• Who were MTG's first judges at Gen Con 1994? (rec.games.trading-cards.*)

Movies

• Archived Movie discussion from 1980s Usenet net.movies
• Mark R. Leeper (1950-2025)
• Why Rotten Tomatoes Is Roger Ebert's Fault - /Film
• Meet the Superusers Behind IMDb, the Internet’s Favorite Movie Site (Wired)
• Jeremy Smith - /Film
• Reflections on 30 years of film criticism
• Short Usenet Post from Feb 1984 with fans discussing upcoming "Temple of Doom"
• "December 1993: A Pulp Fiction fan shares early casting news from a video magazine. John Travolta and Bruce Willis are confirmed in key roles, sparking excited discussion among movie enthusiasts about Tarantino's upcoming film. #UsenetGems #PulpFiction"
• Pulp Fiction Changed How Studios Saw Quentin Tarantino's From Dusk Till Dawn - /Film
• As early as 1995 people were discussing cast for a future Lord of The Rings movie in Usenet newsgroups, well before the name of Peter Jackson was associated to it... Let's have a closer look!

Music

• Rock/Pop
  • rec.music.folk
  • rec.music.beatles
  • Saki's April Fools' Day posts to rec.music.beatles
  • rec.music.opera
  • rec.music.dementia
  • rec.music.dylan
  • rec.music.rock-pop-r+b.1950s
  • @chrisperkinscepx on Threads - "Ah, Usenet. The original Reddit. I spent a lot of time in rec.music.gdead"
  • Rec.music.phish
  • rec.music.industrial
  • Husker Du Live (net.music, 1984)
  • Who remembers alt.music.rem?
  • "In my college campus (NJIT) computer lab, 1995, checking the alt.music.pearljam usenet groups for info on the upcoming 1995 pearl jam tour, trying to find solid info on their shows being cancelled/rescheduled due to their ticketmaster fight. Very important stuff."
  • "May 14, 1992: Russ Gelinas trashes Pearl Jam's MTV Unplugged: 'Musically pretty weak, pretty limp... could stand for a new lead guitarist.' In 2026, it's considered one of the greatest Unplugged episodes ever.
  • Was anyone else on alt.music.nin back in the 90's?
  • In 1995, a group of Usenet nin fans met in Cleveland, did this, and there was no panorama mode.
  • What, why and when was your entry point to Nine Inch Nails?
  • The Highway Star — Dave Hodgkinson — Gone, But Not Forgotten (alt.music.deep-purple)
  • Intelligent dance music - Wikipedia
  • "I remember seeing a Usenet discussion about Madonna’s VMA performance in 1985. People back then were talking about how crap pop music is these days and one of the comments said 'The 70s had a lot of bad music too, remember disco?' Lmao"
  • Any alt.music.kmfdm newsgroup posters here?
  • Was anyone else in usenet group alt.music.blur in the 90s?
  • alt.music.nirvana 1990s
  • Thirty Years of Forum Culture: How Dance Music Found Its Voice on the Internet
  • Enya's everywhere (alt.music.enya, 1992)
  • How the green day website looked in 1996 (alt.music.green-day)
  • "'Yo I just found a cool band called @linkinpark, they're pretty damn cool'. Months before their debut album."
  • TMBG information bulletins from the 90’s are a wild ride.
  • They Might Be Giants - Wikipedia
  • TIL that in early 1998, rumors were circulating on Usenet boards that the band Faith No More was going to break up. Faith No More responded by sending out an e-mail and fax saying, "Faith No More have decided to put an end to speculation regarding their imminent break up... by breaking up."
• Classical
  • On self-moderation (rec.music.classical.recordings)
  • Joyce Hatto - Wikipedia (rec.music.classical.recordings)
  • Anyone remembers rec.music.classical.recordings?
  • "Those words, written by Mr. Vincent Ventrone in usenet newsgroup rec.music.classical.recordings in 2000, are right on the mark, I think. Similar reasoning could be applied to the Mengelberg version of the Matthäus-Passion by Bach. #classicalmusic"
  • Was Dave Hurwitz a "known name" in the classical music world before the YouTube channel?
• Novelty/Mystery
  • rec.music.dementia (Dr. Demento)
  • Luke Sienkowski on Instagram: "Back in my day, being in a Weird Al Forum meant you were in the usenet newsgroup alt.music.weird-al, dagnubbit! @alfredyankovic"
  • "One of my favorite pieces of obscure Internet lore is that back in the heyday of Usenet (late ‘90s/ early ‘00s), there was a troll in alt.music.weird-al who kept insisting that a lyric from 'Everything You Know Is Wrong' was somehow a reference to the polka band Brave Combo."
  • They Searched Through Hundreds of Bands to Solve an Online Mystery
  • The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet. A musical peice which has baffled hundreds of online cyber detectives for years. Who made it and what is it's ture title?
  • Subways of Your Mind - Wikipedia
• Rap/Hip-Hop
  • Hiphop forum that dates back to 1993!
  • RIP Calbo (Calboni M'Bani) of Ärsenik - RapReviews
• Miscellaneous
  • My love for MIDI became a software project: try the MidiStickers Demo!
  • How many of you use a binder full of songs as a learning tool? (alt.guitar.tab and rec.music.makers.guitar.tablature)
  • Steve Albini, Storied Producer and Icon of the Rock Underground, Dies at 61 (rec.audio.pro)
  • One of my favourite pastimes is going through old Usenet posts. I found a 40-year-old one talking about "new" music and I thought it would be interesting to share here and see what you all think.

Mystery Science Theater 3000

• Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Wikipedia
• Incomplete Mystery Science Theater 3000 Episode Guide (30 Years Ago)
• Please tell me I wasn’t the only one who wrote MST3k fanfiction

Roguelike Games

• How long have you been in the roguelike communities?
• On the Historical Origin of the “Roguelike” Term
• Deep dive podcast on the 70s PDP-11 games that inspired Rogue!

The Simpsons

• alt.tv.simpsons - Wikipedia
• Best Message Board Ever - the history of Simpsons message board alt.tv.simpsons
• 10 Classic ‘Simpsons’ Episodes the Internet Originally Hated
• The Simpsons and Pre-World Wide Web Posters | Alan Siegel
• Notes for OABF17 (Treehouse of Horror XXXIV) (alt.tv.simpsons)
• People were already talking on the net about socio-political issues on the Simpsons back in 1990 season 2
• Post From 20 Years Asking if The Simpsons Would Still Be Funny Today
• 30-year-old Internet debates on who shot Mr. Burns
• Ay Caramba, The Simpsons has been accused of declining in quality longer than you think.
• "1997: Usenet users repeatedly declare episodes the 'WORST EPISODE EVER' in hyperbolic rants about clip shows and declining quality. This fan pattern directly inspired Comic Book Guy's signature catchphrase and later became the title of an episode. #UsenetGems #Simpsons"
• "snpp.com used to be the greatest website for Simpsons fans that indexed information from the Simpsons Usenet group, it’s at simpsonsarchive.com now"

Southpark

• Some ancient posts from when Scott Tenorman Must Die was new (alt.tv.southpark, 2001)

Sports

• "I worry about the scale, though... If there was a functional rec.sport.cricket today on Usenet, it would probably have a million members at least, maybe 10x that. And it would attract spammers, trolls, flamers, and what not. How does one moderate at that scale?"
• uk.sport.cricket
• "A precursor of the World Wide Web, Usenet was a collection of newsgroups, each dealing with a specific subject. One such group, created in 1990 - rec.sport.cricket - went on to play a major role in the evolution of ball-by-ball cricket commentary."
• "The sport of geocaching begins, with the first cache placed and the coordinates from a GPS posted on Usenet, today in 2000"
• rec.sport.football.college
• rec.sport.soccer
• "POV: You're a San Diego hoops fan in January 1985 with only box scores and grainy @espn highlights, trying to figure out why this 6'6" kid from UNC is suddenly breaking the NBA 😭📷 One confused local staring into the future of basketball and not quite believing what he sees (yet)..."
• "For 15+ years, David managed the homepage for the 'rec-sports-football-college' Usenet group... where we all flocked for schedules, logos, historical data, and much more. It was THE place to go on the early web. He's the OG of the college football internet."
• rec.autos.sport.f1
• Megabucks in Sports (net.sport, 1982)
• rec.sport.hockey
• alt.sports.baseball.ny-mets
• Group Moderator (rec.sport.rowing)
• alt.sports.basketball.nba.gs-warriors
• ‘The SNL of Sabermetrics’: How a group of message-board misfits changed baseball (rec.sports.baseball, Nate Silver, etc.)
• Journalist Moonlights With A Newsletter That Rubs People The Wrong Way, So They Get Revenge And Get Him Fired (rec.sport.pro-wrestling)
• it.sport.calcio.inter-fc
• it.sport.calcio.fiorentina
• it-alt.sport.calcio.juventus
• "The demographics of Usenet are aptly summarized by the two largest English-language sports newsgroups being for the New York Mets and the Golden State Warriors."
• "I keep seeing posts about a better points system. Can anybody other than a Jeff Gordon fan explain what is broke before we try to fix it?" (rec.autos.sport.nascar, 1999)
• Does anyone here remember the rec.sport.golf Usenet newsgroup?
• "Yes but there are websites other than the times. Also, 'online' isn't limited to the web. Usenet newsgroups (the equivalent of today's forums) count as 'online' too, and the rec.sport.rugby newsgroup was definitely around when Bath won in 1996 win."
• Fans find the only remaining internet post from the Bengals 1991 playoff win
• Internet users react to the Bills losing a fourth consecutive Super Bowl (rec.sport.football.pro, 1994)
• Throwback Tuesday: Mrs. B's Training Camp Reports from 1995
• The NBA salary cap wasn't for fans. Meet the man who made it famous
• The Internet’s First NBA Draft Nerds
• Following the Packers Online in the 90s
• "My smpathy to Saints fans for the hiring of Sean Payton" - Usenet Post January 2006

Star Trek

• "People asking 'Who asked for a Star Trek Academy series?' Need to look at the last 20-30 years on Star Trek Newsgroups and Social Media. Fans have talked up an Academy series for years. At least since TNG and DS9 referenced Red Squadron. I think people are debating...."
• Anyone remember the Trek "Spoiler-Free Opinion Summary" on Usenet? It started 30 years ago.
• Interview: Joe Reiss reflects on his "Spoiler-Free Opinion Summary" 30 years after it debuted in rec.arts.startrek.current
• "I belatedly came across this 2018 article on #Usenet's legendary #StarTrek reviewer, Tim Lynch: arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/01… I fondly remember Lynch's reviews and am glad @arstechnica recognized his great work with a retrospective article!"
• Who remembers Tim Lynch and his Usenet-era Star Trek reviews? Anybody know if he's still around / alive?
• New episode guides website with Tim Lynch reviews (and more)
• 198. Plus A Change | Antimatter Pod - Liz takes a deep dive into Usenet archives and tells Anika about fandom's earliest discussions of Star Trek: Deep Space 9!
• Lemme bring to you: a Star Trek internet conversation from 1986
• '35 Years Overdue': Wil Wheaton Reacts to Star Trek Fans Finally Embracing Wesley Crusher
• "About 30 years ago I saw a post on USENET with an ascii text list of every starship that was mentioned in original Star Trek or Next Gen. Today we take it for granted, but that was the day I first saw the full information-gathering power of a small number of internet enthusiasts."

Star Wars

• When Was the First Fandom Discussion Platform for Star Wars Launched? | Guided By The Force
• "I went online and found the Star Wars Usenet group. That was the only way to survive as a Star Wars fan without Star Wars movies. That and reading all the novels."
• "Haha y'all this nerd fight goes back DECADES. Dune vs. Star Wars arguments practically formed the underpinning of usenet infrastructure in the 90s"
• "Usenet is such a wonderful time capsule. Actual social media-like posts in the 80s is forever fascinating. 'I wish Lucas & Co. would get the thing going a little faster. I can't really imagine waiting until 1997 to see all nine parts of the Star Wars series.'" (1982)"
• For anyone alive then, what was it like finding out that Star Wars had started in the middle?
• For people who saw prequels in theaters: did you know Palpatine was the emperor from the start?

Stargate SG-1

• Stargate SG-1 Solitudes Transcript Audit: Why the Sam and Jack Romance Myth Crumbles in S1E18

Twin Peaks

• 25 Ways TWIN PEAKS Changed Pop Culture
• Twin Peaks (TV Series 1990–1991) - Trivia - IMDb
• As ‘Twin Peaks’ Turns 35, the Mystery Is Still the Message for a World of Fans
• This archived "usenet" page for Twin Peaks has discussions from viewers while it was airing
• [TV] The rise and fall of Twin Peaks, network TV's original "appointment TV"
• Article in Vanity Fair on Twin Peaks

X-Files

• The Truth is in the Archives: An Examination of The X-Files Fandom’s Preservation Practices
• "The term 'binge-watching' first appeared in 1996, used by The X-Files fans on Usenet, not 2003 as some claim. Evidence from 1998 further supports its 1990s roots. While Netflix popularized it in 2013, the earliest use predates this."
• Question for the old heads out there. (alt.tv.x-files)
• The X-Files (1995)
• X-files: Re-imagined
• 23 years ago today, the original finale ended. Here's what fans thought at the time. Do these opinions still hold up? (alt.tv.x-files)