It was a year of huge Hollywood box office, from the slow-build sensation of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” to the steamroller success of “Spider-Man.” It was year in which TV viewers rediscovered old “Friends” and gobbled up new reality fare, such as “The Osbournes” and “American Idol.” It was the year of Eminem and “Hairspray.” 2002 in entertainment offered plenty of escapist fare, as well as new efforts to directly address the fears and tensions of the post-Sept. 11 world.

Movies

Halle Berry (“Monster’s Ball”) and Denzel Washington (“Training Day”) made movie history at the Academy Awards, where black actors won both lead-role honors for the first time.

Others won critical respect that had long eluded them: With “A Beautiful Mind,” Ron Howard and producing partner Brian Grazer took home the best-picture Oscar and best director for Howard; Randy Newman, who had tied an Academy Award record with 15 nominations but no wins, finally took home an Oscar for “If I Didn’t Have You,” his tune from “Monsters, Inc.”

At the box office, Hollywood had another year of record revenues. Studios piled on blockbusters one after another, with the eagerly awaited comic-book adaptation “Spider-Man” scoring an all-time best debut of $114.8 million domestically in its opening weekend.

“Spider-Man” went on to top $400 million, nearly $100 million more than “Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones,” the latest installment of George Lucas’ sci-fi franchise.

Other mega-hits included “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” “Signs,” “Austin Powers in Goldmember,” “Men in Black II” and “Ice Age.”

The year’s surprise success story was the low-budgeted “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” an old-fashioned romance that rode terrific word-of-mouth to a $200-million-plus haul.

Music

On his third album, “The Eminem Show,” Eminem relished his role as America’s most reviled entertainer: “I could be one of your kids!” he taunted in the song “White America.”

And it seemed as if America adopted the rapper as its own. Not only was “The Eminem Show” the top-selling disc of the year, but Eminem’s movie debut in the semi-autobiographical “8 Mile” grossed more than $100 million in a little more than three weeks. Its soundtrack debuted at the top of the charts.

Meanwhile, the teen pop craze continued to wane. “Tweens” who used to mimic Barbie-like warblers such as Britney Spears discovered fully clothed singer-songwriters such as Avril Lavigne, Michelle Branch and Vanessa Carlton. ‘N Sync’s Justin Timberlake’s solo debut fell short of the expected blockbuster; Backstreet Boy Nick Carter’s foray into solo stardom bombed; and Christina Aguilera’s in-your-face sexuality may have turned off more fans than it turned on.

Among the biggest surprises was the success of Ashanti, the R&B songstress who sold nearly 3 million copies of her debut album. And Pink abandoned her R&B sound for rock, going quadruple platinum.

The surge of patriotic discs and the demand for soothing music after the 9-11 attacks lessened this year, but the tragedy still affected music, most notably in Bruce Springsteen’s “The Rising.” The disc spoke not only to the tragedy of that day, but to the importance of love and hope.

Country music veered back toward its roots, led by the soundtrack for “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”, which dominated at the Grammy Awards. The Dixie Chicks’ rootsy return went double platinum.

Television

MTV’s “The Osbournes” became the year’s loudest argument that reality television is here to stay, with Fox’s “American Idol” and ABC’s “The Bachelor” also part of that deafening hit parade.

Viewers didn’t spurn fiction. NBC’s “Friends” was the No. 1-rated program for the first time in its eight-year run. CBS’ “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” was the No. 2 show, became a franchise with “CSI: Miami” and gained the top drama spot that NBC’s “ER” had held each season since its 1994 debut.

“Friends” received the Emmy Award for best comedy series while “The West Wing,” also on NBC, was honored for the third consecutive year as best drama. HBO’s “Band of Brothers” was named best miniseries.

NBC reigned as the most-watched network, with CBS a solid second. ABC began rebuilding after a serious ratings swoon, and Fox struggled to cope with the end of trademark shows “The X-Files” and “Ally McBeal.”

Fox News Channel took the audience lead over CNN. Female journalists at each news channel received awkward attention: Fox’s Greta Van Susteren for her cosmetic eye surgery and CNN’s Paula Zahn as the unwilling subject of a short-lived promotional spot touting her sexiness.

The programming impact of 9-11 was felt in the memorial specials that saturated TV one year later, and in the terrorism storylines that emerged in dramas including “Law & Order,” “The West Wing” and “24.”

Theater

“You Can’t Stop the Beat,” the last 15 minutes of “Hairspray,” erupt in a joyous celebration of song, dance and brotherhood. Young and old, black and white, on stage and in the audience, everyone begins moving to Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman’s hypnotic pop score and Jerry Mitchell’s exhilarating choreography. The pandemonium crystalizes why this musical version of John Waters’ film about a pudgy teen’s triumph has become the biggest hit — and toughest ticket — on Broadway.

“It is one of those magical moments, and one can only feel blessed that the idea, the chemistry, the team and the tenor of the times just converged,” says the show’s lead producer, Margo Lion. “

That kind of energy has helped propel Broadway through one of its toughest years, weathering a steep drop in business following the terrorist attacks 15 months ago on the World Trade Center. The musical, along with other new hits, such as “Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune” and “Movin’ Out,” have contributed to the rebound.

“‘Hairspray’ affords an opportunity for people to have some joy in their life,” Lion said. “There are a lot of things going on in the world right now that are very frightening, and this is a place where you can go and be relieved of those concerns.”