I remember it too. First comet I could see with bare eyes!
Yep, you could actually see it and see it well
Since then there’s been a dozen or so comets that were declared the “Comet of the Century”, but they turned out to only be able to be seen if you were below -70 degree south latitude with 400x binoculars 10 minutes before sunrise.
A friend and I drove up to the Kiameechi Mts. to see it in all its glory for a couple nights. It was awesome.