1996, Jon Finkel
1996, Jon Finkel
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

1996
A Biography - Reliving the Legend-Packed, Dynasty-Stacked, Most Iconic Sports Year Ever

Author: Jon Finkel

Narrator: Barry Abrams

Unabridged: 9 hr 9 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 05/11/2021


Synopsis

Take a rollicking tour through the sports world of 1996, when debuts, comebacks, movies, and pop culture crossover changed the sports landscape forever. From college to the Olympics to the pros; from the NBA to golf, tennis, and boxing, 1996 was home to athletes and teams who were among the best marketed, most beloved, colorful, and greatest in history. In 1996: A Biography, sportswriter and author Jon Finkel uncovers the stories behind the stories while interviewing a who's who of '96ers to reveal in thrilling detail how their collective influence on sports and pop culture still resonates to this day.

For those of us who remember when Iverson, Kobe, The Rock and Stone Cold, the MLS and the WNBA all debuted; when the US Women's Olympic Gymnastics Team—the Magnificent Seven—won gold for the first time in history; when Mike Tyson and Magic Johnson made their comebacks; when MTV's Rock n' Jock, Michael Jordan's Space Jam, and ESPN's Dan Patrick and Stuart Scott were the bomb; when the Fun 'n' Gun offense changed college football; when Ken Griffey, Jr., ran for president (really! remember?); when Derek Jeter won Rookie of the Year, Favre marched to his first Super Bowl, and Jerry Maguire had everyone saying "show me the money" . . . 1996 is a sports time machine you've got to take for a spin.

About Jon Finkel

Jon Finkel is the award-winning author of The Life of Dad, The Athlete, Heart Over Height, "Mean" Joe Greene, the Greatest Stars of the NBA series, and other books about sports, fatherhood, fitness, and more. His work has been endorsed by Spike Lee, Tony Dungy, Jerry Jones, Mark Cuban, and Chef Robert Irvine. He is cohost of the Life of Dad Sports Show podcast and Lunch Break Facebook Live show with more than one thousand viewers. He has written for GQ, Men's Health, Yahoo! Sports, the New York Times, and dozens of other national publications. He lives in Royal Palm Beach, Florida.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Ralphz on January 13, 2026

I shouldn't have liked this book as much as I did, but it was fun. It triggered memories of sports in the 1990s in general and 1996 in particular - the college football goliaths, Florida, Florida State and Nebraska. The Triplets of the Dallas Cowboys. The debut of Tiger Woods. The Bulls, the Yankees......more