Flopcast 744: TV Reunion Movies Part 1 - Crisis on Brady Earths
The Flopcast
Back in the day, when your favorite goofy TV show was cancelled, it was not necessarily the end. Years (or even decades) later, it just might be resurrected in the odd format of the made-for-TV reunion movie. Thus we returned to Mayberry to catch up with Andy and Opie, we reconnected with Gomez and Morticia in the disco era, we attended the double wedding of Jan and Marcia... and we even learned the final fate of ALF. And because this is such a rich complex subject, we have a special guest to help sort it all out: Dragon Con American Sci-Fi Classics Track co-director Joe Crowe! And we're just...
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Flopcast 743: F.L.O.P. in the U.S.A.
The Flopcast
We have one more summer concert report for you, because thanks to an old friend, Kevin and the Mayor had VIP tickets to see John Mellencamp! (Are you like us? Do you still miss the "Cougar" part?) So today we're breaking down the whole show for you. Including: Pre-concert South Shore bar pizza with a kissing waitress! The Mellencamp VIP tent, featuring Mellencamp memorabilia, a Mellencamp video game, Mellencamp Jenga, and a non-Mellencamp medical emergency! Seats that were shockingly close to the stage! A backup singer we recognized from Billy Joel's band! The entire hit-packed set list! (If...
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Flopcast 742: Because We're Beautiful
The Flopcast
Our friend Judy is here again, and we're looking back at the supermodels of the 1980s! They popped up in movies and music videos, they sold jeans and shampoo, they married rock stars, and we just couldn't get enough of them. So to pay tribute to Cindy, Christie, Paulina, and the rest, Judy has prepared what might be our sexiest Top 4 1/2 List ever. (That's if we don't count our list of cartoon robots. Obviously.) Also: If you're gonna be in Massachusetts in September, and feel like running through the woods for a long time, you can join Judy at the Race for the Refuge! Meanwhile, slip into...
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Flopcast 741: A Menacing Sort
The Flopcast
We have another summer concert report, because "Weird Al" Yankovic's Bigger and Weirder Tour returned to New England! Also: Retro 80s games at the Free Play Bar Arcade in downtown Providence! The Logan Awards for Excellence in Comedy Music! The return of Chickens in the News, in which we learn about a farm where you can gamble on chicken races! (Correction: This farm is in Boulder, Montana, not Boulder, Colorado! Sorry!) And a long-awaited conversation about the 80s cult film Streets of Fire! Hopefully you can stand this much excitement! Okay, nap time. And our regular links... Email:...
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Flopcast 740: Happy Days Spinoffs Part 2 - A Future Chick
The Flopcast
We're still looking at Happy Days spinoffs, because that's what the kids are excited about these days. There was Joanie Loves Chachi, of course, in which the two worst singers in the world dream of making it big. But does anyone else remember Out of the Blue, a sitcom about a guardian angel named Random? No, just us? Whatever. Then there were the Saturday morning cartoon spinoffs: Fonz and the Happy Days Gang (in which our heroes travel through time in a flying saucer), Laverne and Shirley in the Army (with their sergeant, an actual pig voiced by Horshack), and Mork and Mindy (but they're in...
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Flopcast 739: Pour Some Tequila On Me
The Flopcast
From the middle of a horrifying Chickentown heatwave, we present a Top 4 1/2 List of summer songs of the 80s! (Yes, this is ground we've covered before. If you thought we were ever going to stop yammering about Belinda Carlisle, you really don't know us.) And for more 80s summer music action, we also have a Sammy Hagar concert report! Sammy's show featured plenty of Van Halen classics, Joe Satriani on guitar, Rick Springfield topless, and free booze for everybody in the front row. Plus: A weird conversation about Weird Al on The Best Stuff in the World podcast! Enjoy, and stay cool. We...
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Flopcast 738: Happy Days Spinoffs Part 1 - Mork and Pepsi
The Flopcast
As promised/threatened, we're looking at all the TV series that can be considered spinoffs of Happy Days. And yikes, there are so many that we're splitting them into two episodes. So this week, we're covering: Laverne and Shirley! (Remember when Laverne, Shirley, and everyone they knew all moved from Milwaukee to Los Angeles together?) Mork and Mindy! (Remember when Mork gave birth to a weird old man?) And Blansky's Beauties/Who's Watching the Kids! (What?) And yeah, we're just getting started. If you can't stand the excitement, just have Fonzie whack your phone and stop the podcast....
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Flopcast 737: Ease On Down to Chickentown
The Flopcast
Our series of Wizard of Oz adaptation reviews brings us to 1978's The Wiz, an ambitious reimagining with an all-star all-Black cast led by the great Diana Ross. Also featuring: Richard Pryor, Lena Horne, Nipsey Russell, Mabel King, graffiti Munchkins, crow monsters, poppy girls, and way more long slow musical numbers than anyone really wanted. (Seriously, they could have cut the running time in half with no complaints.) Can Emerald City survive the disco era? Perhaps. Just barely. #wizardofoz #thewiz #dianaross #esonetwork #eso #geektalk #geekpodcast #geek #nerdtalk #nerd #nerdpodcast #podcast...
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Flopcast 736: Devo Was Right
The Flopcast
Flopcast episode 736! It's another quick fill-in show as we await the return of the Mayor! Including: Kevin's recent guest appearance on Monkeeing Around to discuss a weird obscure Micky Dolenz movie! The new book Raised on Radio, an oral history of the arena rock bands of the 70s and 80s! (Worried that you don't know quite enough about REO Speedwagon? Well, here you go.) And we just saw Devo live in concert, and we need them now more than ever. So slip into a yellow jumpsuit, stick an energy dome on your head, and join us, you spuds. #raisedonradio #devo #monkees #monkeeingaround #esonetwork...
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Flopcast 735: Monkeeing Around in 1986
The Flopcast
Sixty years ago, The Monkees debuted as a TV show about a band, quickly grew into a real band, were wildly successful for just a few years, then faded away. Forty years ago, reruns on MTV inspired a new generation of Monkeemania, and so Micky, Davy, and Peter hit the road for the big 1986 Monkees reunion tour. Kevin saw them on that tour, and our guest this week did too! We're joined by Elaine, co-host of the fine podcast Monkeeing Around, which you'll find right here on the ESO Network. And our conversation includes: A breakdown of the whole Monkees set list (including their 80s hit "That Was...
info_outlineThis is a short one, because here in Chickentown, we're all a bit under the weather. (And the weather is not good. A massive snowstorm approaches, and we may be trapped in the studio until June. Please send coffee.) But we do have a quick concert report on The Monkee Men, an excellent Monkees tribute band we learned about from our friends at the Monkeeing Around podcast. This leads to a discussion of tribute bands in general, and we also announce the formation of Toy Soldiers, our new Martika tribute band. But that might be the medication talking.
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