WATP - The Podcaster Who Passes Out

WATP breaks down the video of Joe Cronin, the host of a wrestling podcast, who's so unenthusiastic about wrestling that he simply falls asleep on-air.

Late Show - The David Letterman Story

A Late Show Classic: The David Letterman Story - a fake documentary about the life of David Letterman.

Popcorn in Bed - Dr. Strangelove

Popcorn in Bed watches "Dr. Strangelove."

I've watched a lot of classic movies in my time. I think the #1 thing that disqualifies me from cinephile circles is that I hold no special regard for "The Godfather." But perhaps #2 on the list is that I have no special appreciation of Stanley Kubrick.

But one movie I don't dissent on is "Dr. Strangelove." I do like "Strangelove" and I do think it is a classic. And it's so rare that a comedy ages so well. 1964 here. 

When I was a kid, they showed "Dr. Strangelove" on PBS and I remember being shocked and somewhat traumatized by Slim Pickens sitting on the nuke as it drops from the bomber. The whole idea of comedy/satire was beyond me, I just found it scary. 

WATP - Harrison Young Interviews a Model

Harrison Young is a Public Access talk show host - or maybe he's only on the internet these days - I don't know.

The Stephen J. Cannell Vanity Card

The history behind that video at the end of shows in the 80's where a man is typing on a typewriter, pulls the paper out and throws in on a pile.

The Smashing Pumpkins Ft. Barry Williams - It's a Sunshine Day

Speaking of The Brady Bunch... Barry Williams joins The Smashing Pumpkins for a performance of "It's a Sunshine Day."

Late Show - Staff Life Mistakes

Late Show staff tell the stories of their biggest or most embarrassing life mistakes.

Best of the Worst - Cannon Christmas in July

Back to form, I think, for "Best of the Worst." It's all Cannon movies.

I will say, without spoiling anything, that the Star Trek-related gag they do was very unsettling for me.

The Super Mario 64 Got Milk Commercial

I don't remember this.

Willy Wonka and Other Theater News

 

Willy Wonka is being re-released to theaters for its 55th anniversary. I plan to see it.

Other upcoming re-releases: "Point Break" and "Terminator 2" in August; "The Passion of the Christ," "Transformers: The Movie," "Princess Mononoke" in September.

Also, one of the new episodes of MST3K (from the latest kickstarter) will be in theaters September 9th and 13th (and check your local listings for exact dates).

Greatest Event in Television History #4

In the newest Greatest Event in Television History, Paul Rudd and Adam Scott recreate the opening to "Bosom Buddies."

The Bradys

 

It is the 90's and there is time for... Bradys.

In 1988, CBS aired a Brady Bunch reunion called "A Very Brady Christmas" and it was a big hit. I remember, not so much seeing it, exactly, but learning about it as a myth. "Did you know they made a Brady Bunch movie where they're all adults?" was passed from kid to kid as we watched TMNT or played Nintendo, which was the style of the time.

From that success, TV executives realized they could make Brady specials every few years to allow audiences to check in on the Bradys and see how things are going, and also to keep milking the cash. From that idea, someone said, "Why not a regular series?" "Fine," they said. And at some point - I don't know who or why or how - someone said, "Let's make it a drama."

Yes, the Brady Bunch show of the 90's was a serious drama, for some reason.

It's pretty nuts but this Brady Bunch show went up against "Family Matters" and "Full House" in its time slot. It also failed badly and was axed after only 5 episodes.

Here's the rundown (spoilers to follow for this crappy show):

Bobby Brady became a racecar driver in the Christmas special. In this series he crashes and is paralyzed in the first episode. Throughout the rest of the series he will hope to, and work to, get out of his wheelchair. It's fun, silly, Brady Bunch action.

Also, Bobby meets and marries a woman played by former MTV VJ Martha Quinn, which is notable.

Jan is married and is having sex. Her and her husband are trying to conceive (and having trouble) and the show makes it abundantly clear that Jan is having ALL OF THE sex. So much sex. I will never look at Jan the same way again.

Cindy is a radio DJ and dates her boss.

In the Christmas special, it is revealed that Peter is engaged but in the first episode of this series, he calls it off. Peter is a ladies' man and the joke is he basically dates a new girl every night. The only person having more sex than Peter is Jan.

Greg doesn't have much to do. He's a doctor and married to a beautiful wife (the new Gidget) and is just... kinda... he's just winning at life. That's pretty much his story.

Marsha is an odd situation. Marsha is the only case where the original actor didn't want to be in the show and had to be replaced. Which is too bad because... everyone loves Marsha and I am everyone. The Marsha character is married to a whiny loser for some reason. Her husband's main skill in life is to get fired from as many jobs as possible, leaving his family homeless. It's annoying.

Marsha slips into alcoholism. Why? It seems the show's explanation for her alcoholism is that she's bored one day and just starts drinking. And then she admits she has a problem, says she's going to get professional help and she never does. By the end of the show she is cured of alcoholism merely by deciding not to drink anymore. It's a serious topic, handled with skill and nuance.

Alice is basically comic relief and is just hangin' out. She's still married to Sam the butcher.

Mike Brady gets so fed up with his local government that he runs for office and wins. The Bradys help him with his campaign. Carol is there too.

One other note about "comic relief." The show is a terrible attempt at a serious drama, like I said, but the ratings were so bad that a few episodes in they start adding a fake laugh track to try to tap into the old Brady magic but it just makes things worse. A bad drama with a laugh track is just bonkers.

Behind the Track - Loser by Beck

Beck explains how his hit "Loser" was made. I wish this was longer, with more detail.

And all this time I thought the chorus was "Sore from head to toe /  I'm a loser baby...."

Top 25 David Brent Moments

Ricky Gervais counts down the Top 25 David Brent moments on "The Office" and gives some behind-the-scenes insights.

America is Like the Movies?

If a half hour is too long for you, you can get the core idea from the woman at 23:24.

All people generally know about a place is what the media tells them. For years I've encountered the negative side of this as I've had English people on the internet telling me how Americans are all rednecks and it's a country of uncontrolled, non-stop crime. And so finding there's a flipside to that coin - the idea that movies have imbued the country with a feeling of magic - is pretty cathartic.

The Forecast Today

Pretty much everywhere it's gonna be hot.

E-HEH-HEH-HEH-HEH-HEH!

Popcorn in Bed - The Insider

It seems to me that "The Insider" is an underrated classic.

There's an interesting phenomenon here They say the movie makes them question the government and the News stories they're told, etc. - that's all well and good - but they believe the movie implicitly. Why is one form of storytelling more trustworthy than the other?

Happy 40th Anniversary of Hell Track Day

America's 250th Anniversary isn't the biggest and most important anniversary this year. 

Today (June 26) is the 40th Anniversary of Hell Track. For the background on that, see here.

I'm just assuming here that the year of Hell Track is the year that "Rad" came out. Given that the movie came out in March 1986, and if we assume the events of the movie didn't occur after the movie was released, that would place the first Hell Track Day in 1985, making this post 1 year late and thus, quite lame.

We still don't have a proper tradition for celebrating Hell Track Day. 

This sucks.

How the Lighsaber Sounds Were Made

Rating Foods from Buc-ee's

I've been going through the "World Cup Fans experience America" content and, for whatever reason, the #1 one thing people seem to be focusing on is Buc-ee's.

I have no opinion on the matter - I have never been to Buc-ee's in my life, though I have had one of their snacks: the Famous Beaver Nuggets.

In this video, Babish rates a variety of Buc-ee's offerings, and though the video is 47 minutes long and the title says "eating everything at...", he gets to less than 1 percent of the total number of foods available. Buc-ee's seems to be a wonderland of odd/unique food creations.