Damn Dirty Geeks

The geek-driven podcast where a group of film industry pros and Special Guests discuss all aspects of genre entertainment. So expect a lot of talk about classic horrors, dinosaurs, black lagoons, monsters from the Id, time lords, final frontiers, galaxies far, far away and, of course, planets where apes evolved from men.

Julie Ann Emery Part 2: Star Wars, Catch-22 and more! 03/12/2020

Julie Ann Emery Talks PREACHER, STAR WARS and more Part 1 09/02/2019

Pruitt Taylor Vince and Jennifer Lynn Warren: Part 3 08/03/2019

Pruitt Taylor Vince and Jennifer Lynn Warren Part 2 07/07/2019

WHAT ABOUT BLOB? 02/09/2019

Pruitt Taylor Vince & Jennifer Lynn Warren: Part 1 01/07/2019

MEET THE REVIVAL LEAGUE 11/19/2018

DDG & The Revival League present 'Shorts in a Bunch: Back to School!' 10/02/2018

Uncle Ira's Basement: INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS 09/15/2018

That Tom Everett Scott Thing We Do 08/04/2018

DEBORAH BAKER JR. ON STAN AGAINST EVIL, PLAN 9 LIVE AND COMEDY 05/28/2018

Planet of the Apes 50th Anniversary with Lou Wagner 05/06/2018

Patricia Tallman on NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD 04/02/2018

Bobby Porter on the Planet of the Apes - Part 2 12/16/2017

Bobby Porter on the Planet of the Apes Part 1 11/11/2017

JANET VARNEY AGAINST EVIL 10/08/2017

Live from WonderFest with David Hodge and Brian Howe 09/24/2017

WILLIAM MALONE on FORBIDDEN PLANET 08/23/2017

Live from Monsterpalooza with Kirk Thatcher & David Colton 04/19/2017

Live from Monsterpalooza with Kirk Thatcher & David Colton On April 7th, the Damn Dirty Geeks recorded our first live audience podcast episode at Eliot Brodsky's fantastic annual convention, Monsterpalooza, in Pasadena -- an entire weekend filled with guest appearances, star-studded stage panels and the top monster artists in the business. We launched the event with our live podcast recording with two special guests: actor/writer/director/puppet creator Kirk R. Thatcher and co-creator of The Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards, writer David Colton. Get ready for a rip-roaring, fun hour-plus as Kirk takes us on a whirlwind tour of his career, from working in the creature shops of RETURN OF THE JEDI and GREMLINS, to playing the annoying punk opposite Kirk and Spock in STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME, to writer of MUPPET TREASURE ISLAND and director of JIM HENSON'S TURKEY HOLLOW. Kirk is a barrel of laughs and has a hilarious gift in telling stories about working with George Lucas, Jim Henson, Leonard Nimoy and many other talented collaborators on Thatcher's many creative projects. David Colton, a journalist and executive editor for USA Today, is a lifelong fan and supporter of horror films and founder of the Classic Horror Film Boards who coined the term Monster Kid to celebrate the generation of fans who grew up watching and loving horror and monster films. David also runs the , an annual fan-voted presentation nominating the best and most talented writers, journalists, artists, filmmakers and Hall of Fame inductees who preserve and perpetuate horror, sci-fi and genre entertainment in all forms. Members of the CHFB and participants in the Rondo Awards extend the continuum of classic monster films like the original DRACULA and FRANKENSTEIN though 1950s sci-fi classics, the explosion of iconic horror film characters in the 1970s and '80s, up through today's horror renaissance with THE WALKING DEAD and beyond. Enjoy the energy of this live audience podcast episode in which the Damn Dirty Geeks and our guests chat and laugh off-the-cuff on stage at Monsterpalooza. Even so, we barely scratched the surface of discussion with both Kirk and David, and hope very much to have both back on our show as guests again soon to continue the fun. Special thanks to our sound engineer Brice Cranston for his extra efforts making this live recording run so smoothly, and to friend of the show Eric Kurland of for letting us share his convention theater to record this episode. And don't forget to listen to this episode with your glasses on as we recorded the show in 3-D! For more photos and full show notes/links, visit our website at DamnDirtyGeeks.com /episode/index/show/damndirtygeeks/id/5278408

Going Ape with H.M. Wynant and Michael Schlesinger 03/26/2017

Going Ape with H.M. Wynant and Michael Schlesinger The Damn Dirty Geeks geek out with the amazing character actor H.M. Wynant, star of one of the best Twilight Zone episodes plus a featured actor in CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, among his lengthy list of credits. H.M. is the first APES veteran we’ve had as a guest on our podcast, though he won’t be the last! Joining the Geeks and H.M. is a talented director/producer and film historian Michael Schlesinger, a friend of the Geeks with a steel trap mind when it comes to Hollywood history — which came in very handy during this episode as H.M. recaps his decades-long acting career and lengthy list of co-stars! Being lifelong fans of the PLANET OF THE APES films, the Geeks were thrilled to have H.M. Wynant as a guest on our podcast as a cast member alumnus from the classic franchise films — but there’s so much more to H.M.’s acting career. Enjoy the tales of his lengthy credit list that including dozens of Hollywood legends including: Clark Gable (RUN SILENT, RUN DEEP), Errol Flynn (PLAYHOUSE 90), director Sam Fuller and actor Charles Bronson (RUN OF THE ARROW), Randolph Scott and director Budd Boetticher (DECISION AT SUNDOWN), creator Rod Serling and actor John Carradine (THE TWILIGHT ZONE), Elvis Presley (IT HAPPENED AT THE WORLD’S FAIR), Adam West (BATMAN), Roddy McDowall, Don Murray, Ricardo Montalbano and Severn Darden (CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES) and many more. We try not to fan-geek out discussing H.M.’s guest starring turn on excellent 1960 episode of THE TWILIGHT ZONE, “The Howling Man,” which series fans often consider among the very best produced by Serling for the landmark show. H.M. regales us with tales of how writer Charles Beaumont and episode director Douglas Heyes battled over whether or not to reveal the prisoner’s true identity, and a surprising resolution to this decision. As the delirious and eventually doomed David Ellington, H.M.’s multi-layered performance makes this tale of good versus evil immensely believable despite its simple setup. Enjoy listening to how H.M. approached this pivotal role in the episode, and speculate on why “The Howling Man” remains so highly praised after five decades of syndication. H.M. spoils the Geeks with his tales on the set of CONQUEST, working with Don Murray (who got his first job in Hollywood via H.M.) and Severn Darden, who made an indelible impression on H.M. Then he shifts gears to play a villain with a farcical comedy touch in two episodes of the classic BATMAN series, co-starring as henchman Frosty working for Mr. Freeze (Eli Wallach) in the second season episodes “The Duo Defy” and “Ice Spy.” Not only does our added guest Michael Schlesinger save our conversational bacon by pulling historic Hollywood names out of thin air during our chat with H.M., but you’ll learn some fascinating details about his work on Larry Blamire’s feature comedies THE LOST SKELETON RETURNS AGAIN and DARK AND STORMY NIGHT, both also featuring H.M. in hilarious supporting roles. Michael also co-wrote and directed THE ADVENTURES OF BIFFLE AND SHOOSTER, a series of simulated 1940s comedy shorts starring a fictional comedy duo (Nick Santa Maria and Will Ryan), along with co-stars including H.M. plus our own Frank Dietz and Trish Geiger. To enjoy this podcast episode, just wire yourself up to the authenticator and we’ll begin streaming the show! /episode/index/show/damndirtygeeks/id/5203489

The Fear Fetish with Staci Layne Wilson & Curt Lambert 02/26/2017

Going Wild Card in THE TWILIGHT ZONE 01/11/2017

Filmmaker IZZY LEE on LOVECRAFT HORROR 09/26/2016

JIM BEAVER on DEADWOOD & CRIMSON PEAK 08/20/2016

MIKE HILL: MAKER OF MONSTERS 07/31/2016

THE JOHN CARPENTER LEGACY 07/09/2016

MIKE MENDEZ: BIG ASS SPIDERS and MODERN HORROR 06/14/2016

SAM WITWER Part 2: The STAR WARS Universe 05/17/2016

SAM WITWER Part 2: The STAR WARS Universe The Damn Dirty Geeks welcome back our special guest actor Sam Witwer, who returns for Part 2 to discuss his prolific voice work throughout the STAR WARS cinematic galaxy, from his likeness and voice at the center of The Force Unleashed video game series up through THE CLONE WARS, STAR WARS REBELS and even THE FORCE AWAKENS. Sam launches us into the STAR WARS universe immediately with an awesome taste of his voice work as Palpatine (both in Chancellor and Emperor mode), which soon branches into a deeper discussion of how Sam approaches the character in his own original ways. Sam also delves into the creative side of voice acting, how he molds his sound-alike assignments to the script rather than simply imitate the actor who originated the role. While Part 2 of our episode with Sam Witwer talks at length about STAR WARS, his insights into voice acting apply to screen acting as well as the work all boils down to character building. Sam tells a fascinating story about how he built up the character and voice of the Son, an original character created in the Mortis arc of episodes in STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS: ultimately blending aspects of multiple villain characters to give a unique but familiar voice to the Son. Sam and the DDG also have lots of laughs discussing the ridiculous deaths of video game characters and the silly sounds voice actors create to kill them off at the click of your controller. Sam offers some fascinating insights into George Lucas as a storyteller, and how Lucas being tired of making STAR WARS movies prompted him to tell tales of Jedi and Sith in an entirely different format by creating THE CLONE WARS animated series. Our discussion also taps into the non-canon "demise" of Expanded Universe fiction as the Star Wars Legends line with the creation of the Lucasfilm Story Group -- which continues to borrow and rework EU story facts and situations in a way that unifies current STAR WARS fiction with the films more directly. It's not all STAR WARS talk in Part 2 with Sam, though! This episode also takes a fun detour into discussion of MAD MAX: ROAD WARRIOR which speaks to a larger discussion with Sam about fandom in general, and fan expectations (including Sam's) of these mythic, larger-than-life story franchises. Our listeners have long awaited Part 2 of our podcast with popular, prolific actor Sam Witwer, but we hope you'll agree that the wait was worth it! Between detailed discussions of STAR WARS, voice acting for animation and video games, and fandom in general, once again Sam Witwer knocks a Damn Dirty Geeks' podcast out of the park. Enjoy! /episode/index/show/damndirtygeeks/id/4376094

SamPart2_clip.mp3 05/15/2016

TED NEWSOM Reunites CHRISTOPHER LEE and PETER CUSHING 05/10/2016

TED NEWSOM Reunites CHRISTOPHER LEE and PETER CUSHING The Damn Dirty Geeks are back after a busy hiatus (of exciting new projects) with the first of a string of new podcast episodes! First up is our salute to two Hammer horror greats, Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing, who were united by our episode guest Ted Newsom in his superb documentary FLESH AND BLOOD: THE HAMMER HERITAGE OF HORROR. In this hour, Ted regails us and DDG listeners with tales of bringing Lee and Cushing together professionally for the final time as narrators of Newsom’s Hammer documentary, as Cushing passed away only three months after the duo recorded their parts in early 1994. Longtime friends, Peter and Christopher were delighted to spend this time together — as you can see from Ted’s photos of the pair during their narration recording sessions. Ted describes his own amazement at reunited Lee and Cushing for his documentary, watching another chapter of Hammer horror history in the making — and just in time. Beyond this work, Newsom speaks of the affectionate bond between Peter and Christopher off-screen, including the silly trick Cushing would do to have Lee in stitches with laughter. FLESH AND BLOOD brought Dracula and Van Helsing together one last time, fortunately for us Hammer horror fans, and the DDG are proud to host Ted Newsom sharing his personal adventures in uniting them as performers and dear friends. Our episode with Ted expands hilariously beyond Hammer horror to include: debates about the comedy quotient of IT’S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD; tales from David Prowse about working with Stanley Kubrick: Christopher Lee’s appearance hosting Saturday Night Live and his second career of “not playing Dracula” in many films about a tall, sinister vampire character; and a very touching story of how Lee’s fear of seeing an ill, aging Cushing almost prevented their reunion from happening until Newsom gathered them together in his documentary. This episode with Ted Newsom is a wild ride through horror history peppered with plenty of laughs, so grab your vampire hunting kit and enjoy! A link to purchase the updated edition Ted’s documentary FLESH AND BLOOD: THE HAMMER HERITAGE OF HORROR is provided in Show Notes on our website at . /episode/index/show/damndirtygeeks/id/4359880

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