TV Guidance Counselor Podcast
Ken Reid and his guests explore the tough television watching decisions of our past.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 703: Robert Fitzgerald
08/25/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 703: Robert Fitzgerald
This week Ken welcomes academic, fellow middle aged punk, and author of the new book "Hardcore Punk in the Age of Reagan: The Lyrical Lashing of an American Presidency ", Robert J. Fitzgerald. Ken and Robert discuss Robert's favorite TVGC episodes, Jane Seymour, Ted Danson, his love of House of Pain, Ken's high school punk band, Goonies, doing your research, The Pogues, Mike Watt, living in the UK from Summer of '75-77, being a Military kid, Fort Mead MD, living in Seoul Korea as a young kid in the early 80s, living two hours south of Chicago, getting a new job, being a skater kid, second tier cities, the DC/LA/NYC hardcore trinity, Naked Raygun, Ronald Reagan, suburban kids, post-Vietnam, boredom, the ridiculousness of punk culture Presidents, when white suburban kids ruin punk scenes, all dude affairs, Wasted Youth, Only in America, the correct use of saxophone, Throb Throb, Bad Religion, Dead Kennedys, the death of Mall Culture, Fast Times, The Elks Lodge Riot, Black Flag, police brutality, Plugz, metal vs. punk, Bones Brigade, the hip hop connection, Anthrax, appocalyptic Boston, Discharge, Nuclear War, appocalypse anxiety, The Cold War, Threads, The War Game, Big Black, Steve Albini, being out of phase, The Business, cosplay, being a musical civil war reenacter, Motorhead, Battalion of Saints, Taang! Records, how DIY punk kids were actually living the capitalist American Dream, Alternative Tenticles, SST Records, The Laffer Curve, real time populist grass roots resistance, distribution, touring, writing off certain sub-cultures, academic looks at punk rock, tape trading, the mainstreaming of alternative culture, Quincy Punks, Yo! MTV Raps, Rap City, BET, finally getting cable, watching reaction videos on YouTube, Living Colour, Bad Brains, explaining things to teenagers, the love of the hunt, record shopping, buying bad records, 7"s, Fishbone, late night underware tai chi, Youth of Today, spiritual journies, Boise Idaho's State of Confusion, pretentious record collectors, Naked Raygun's hiatus, growing up, sticking to your ideals, phone calls from Ian MacKaye, Minor Threat, playing guitar for children, heroes of the no heroes movement, being an Assistant Principal, being a historian, Riot Fest, Jake Burns, Stiff Little Fingers, playing in bands, the cringe of many 80s hardcore songs, homophobia, The Descendents, MOD, context, writing character songs, Pegboy, and cultural connections.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 702: Jim Tews
08/18/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 702: Jim Tews
July 29 - August 4, 1989 This week Ken welcomes the comedian behind the new special "with Picture", Jim Tews. Ken and Jim discuss hot aural experiences, college text book rip offs, professors who make you buy books they wrote, pen names, sci-fi, Married...with Children, lazy writing, being 10 years old, being a child of divorce, permissive Dads, basic cable, black "cheater/scrambler" boxes, cigarettes, Joe Camel, being in the U.S. Coast Guard, your cigarette brand, having a terrible memory, broad characters, how Peggy is the MVP of Married...with Children, the horrors of being at a multi-cam show live taping, Maria Shriver, horny Benson and Hedges, tasting the richness of America, random collages, reimbursement for guesting on TV talk shows, pranking news programs, nonsensical MTV ads, the love triangle of Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth, the revelation of Joe Bones, the devolution of COPS, Golden Girls drug episode, Beyond Tomorrow/Beyond 2000, Acid Rain, Sammy Davis Jr on Hunter as a boxing coach, having a bully bossy big sister, having the "Jimmy wasn't here last week" advantage, avoiding serialized shows, TGIF, MTV's Half Hour Comedy Hour, Stand Up Spotlight, skateboarding, Sk8 TV, Ken watching TVs at department stores, Murder She Wrote, National Geographic, the Family Ties compromise, being land locked, divorced Dad boats, World travel, having an obsession with Chile, visiting Austria, having family in Germany, doing a stand up tour for Armed Forces Entertainment, seeing the pyramids, the classic underage mail fraud to get free CDs, Debbie Gibson and Living Colour being classic 1989, MacGuyver, National Geographic, Baby Boom, annual traditions of playing your brass on the roof on New Year's, unsolicited musical accompaniment at parties, saxophone, Chuck Norris, practicing Karate, Unsolved Mysteries, Who's the Boss?, Wonder Years, Roseanne, Queens, Malls lost to time, FYE, Swimsuit '89, Head of the Class, kicking a hole in the wall watching Sidekicks, Ernie Reyes Jr, Knight and Daye, Shark Week, how the 1983 made for TV movie "Who Will Love My Children?" is four times better than Hot Dog: The Movie, Jesse Jackson guest starring on A Different World, living in a Reader's Digest household, "Humor in Uniform", Cheers, the 1989 writers' strike, The New Mission Impossible, saying no to the SF Strip Club with your Coast Guard co-workers so you can visit shooting locations from Full House, texting Bob Saget, slapstick humor in Perfect Strangers, 20/20, the 20th Anniversary of Woodstock, Minga the Demon, Doctor Doctor, Matt Frewer, Tales from the Crypt, Miami Vice, the commercial exploitation of the Woodstock 20th Anniversary, and getting VIP treatment at outdoor festivals.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 701: Will Dailey
08/11/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 701: Will Dailey
This week Ken welcomes fellow Bostonian, and singer songwriter, Will Dailey to the show. Ken and Will discuss being gross, growing up in Boston, touring, staying in Boston, how massive the United States is, not just wanting numbers and followers, wanting to make art, Boys Talking, not releasing an album, doing it for the art, playing live, journey with no destination, The $10 Song, catharsis, feeding off of feedback, pure intentions, having your music used on television, The Good Wife, being on CSI, having Gary Sinise play bass for you on TV, how art is being a chef, how hearing yourself in something takes you out of it, realizing you were learning a formula and breaking the cycle, trying to avoid mediocrity, hanging out, not over producing, how the 20th Century is a Rennisance of human beings recording themselves, what we do next, gatekeepers, toxic nostalgia, hating Blockbuster, the incredible music talent in Boston, Juliana Hatfield, Bill Janovitz, how for some people sometimes it's never enough, how there is no finish line, how COVID changed everything, The Good Fight, "Previously On...", getting targeted ads for guitars, SNL, loving the 21st Century SNL, not wanting to hear the same classic rock songs in everything, Joe Pera Talks with You, Will McRobb's "Funny, Strange, Sad and Beautiful" philosophy, living in a world without shared experiences, and wanting all shows to end with Perfume Genius.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 700: Shanna Christmas
08/04/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 700: Shanna Christmas
December 28th, 1991 - January 3, 1992 This week Ken welcomes Las Vegas comedian behind the new special "Highly Intelligent", Shanna Christmas. Ken and Shanna discuss the heat, growing up in Las Vegas, how they were both 6'3" at age 14, being a jock, the nerd school, buying booze underage, hanging in night clubs, enjoying the word "Geriatric", dumb kids Ken grew up with, Jerry's Kids, how you never see teenage boys, having your own TV, wrestling, skillsets younger people miss out on, 1-900 spank lines, being between the Holidays, being born at Christmas, John Goodman, New Year's Eve, Moonlighting, unlikely movie stars, working at hotels, staying home on New Year's Eve, avoiding the strip, Marky Mark, the hit on the head cool guy character cliche, Family Matters, canceling shows that are already made, Sinbad, never watching stand up growing up, forgetting Sidney Poitier directed Ghost Dad, Fox making moves, In Living Color super bowl half time show, Summer Seasons, Beverly Hills 90210, befriending the homeless/downtrodden in the 80s and fixing all their problems with a bath, Murphy Brown, Blossom, Home Improvement, JTT posters, child acting aging weirdly, Ken's bias against the South, Rescue 9-1-1, homework, Neil Breen, New Year's Day, Jetsons meet the Flintstones, Jake and the Fatman, Wilfred Brimley, the technology on The Flintstones, Lisa Bonet, A Different World, how Ken wanted to go to an all black university, Hanging with Mr. Cooper, Holly Robinson, how there are no black people on Seinfeld, Soapdish, America's Most Wanted, Married...with Children, Martin, and how Ken should write a book.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 699: Mike and Scot from First Seven Inch Club
07/28/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 699: Mike and Scot from First Seven Inch Club
October 8-16, 1988 This week Ken welcomes Mike and Scot from the First Seven Inch podcast. Ken Mike and Scot discuss obscure hardcore, punk rock, having to pivot to make the fans happy, the power of Patreon, The Equalizer, TV and movies with punks, John Wick, Donnie Yen, being an easy mark, Midnight Caller, Silk Stalkings, Nick/Forever Night, USA Network, what to do when it's "too hot to sleep", creepy work pervs, smoking, being straight edge, brown cigarettes, Brendan Tartikof, Ed Grimley, the mythical magic of the big white TV Schedule board, testing your brain at the pharmacy, Amazon Women on the Moon, Real Men, Hellraiser, anthology TV, WNDS TV 50, Weather with Al, Mary Woronov, Sledge Hammer, NBC, Alf, Stevie Wonder, TV's Blooper and Practical Jokes, Librace, Throb, the career of Jim Hanks, CT people, the Moby of Puppets, The Hogans, Mr. Rogers, Letterman, Dear John, US remakes of UK shows, Who's the Boss, Donna Mills in Outback Bound, the American obsession with Australia, 'roid free world, Growing Pains, Nova, sexy Walter Mathau in Hopscotch, why 1985 is Ken's favorite year in movies, why the early 80s made us desperate for nerds to save us, fascist eagles, Slayer, Tyne Daly and kids in gangs, Just a Regular Kid an AIDS story, Highway to Heavan, Halloween epsiodes, Michael Berryman, being obsessed with guns, Chuck Norris' uzis in the Invasion USA poster, divorced parents, Just the Ten of Us, Crossing the Mob with Jason Batemen, Philly accents, the wonder of the phrase "also starring Frank Stallone", just the Maura Tierny scenes, bad NJ accents, Bush v Dukakis debate, collar up acting, UFO Coverup, Perfect Strangers, not liking Full House, how awful Halloween is Grinch Night is, Disney Channel, spoiled cousins getting cable channels from your grandparents, being a Freddy Kruger Kid, Corbin Bernson, Amanda Payes, and finally doing the show and hoping it holds up to all your hopes and dreams.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 698: Matt Manjourides
07/21/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 698: Matt Manjourides
October 27 - November 2, 1990 This week Ken welcomes former MA resident and current producer of The Last Drive-In, and owner of Not a Funeral Home productions Matt Manjourides. Ken and Matt discuss working at video stores, MA Video Stores, Video Smith, Mike's Video, Video Oasis, Live Poultry Fresh Killed, Palmer Video, buying VHS tapes, having cable growing up, black boxes, "On Deman" video that was just 24 hours of a movie in a loop, Pay Per View, why horror almost always makes money, the video boom, PG-13 Movies with Nudity, realizing women love horror and marketing to them, the CW, Get A Life, going to school for animation, Warriors of the Wind, Fist of the North Star, the 5am Saturday morning weird local slot, 5 and 10 Store, Child World, Mr. Big's Toyland, GI Joe, Alien Nation, Return of Swamp Thing, why working with restrictions can get better results, Wes Craven, weird sleazy vibes, Day of the Dead, collecting screen used props, weird relaxing go to sleep movies, Made for TV Movies, the movie section of TV Guide, Angelica Houston's sexual explosion, Best of the New, personally killing Sadam Hussain, The Gulf War, Full House, MacGuyver, Jasmine Guy in "A Killer Among Us", when the killer is on the jury, Major Dad, Murphy Brown, Who's the Boss, Head of the Class, Coach, why Salem's Lot is Ken's favorite Tobe Hooper movie, Funhouse, Return to Salem's Lot, Sam Fuller, TCM II, Billy Connolly, Nightmare on the 13th Floor, occult elevators, USA Network Original movies, haunted item films, haunted dresses, being afraid to compete with Must See TV on Thursday, Arthur C. Clark's Mysterious World, The 1990 Flash, Quantum Leap, contempt for your audience, why Universal Studios Florida Amusement Park meant Superboy and Swamp Thing stayed on the air way too long, shared experience, and convincing a major streaming network to air "Things".
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 697: Steve "Skulk" Pasieka
07/14/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 697: Steve "Skulk" Pasieka
August 14-20, 1999 This week Ken welcomes writer, musician and comedian who has created the video podcast built on music, performance storytelling and Ai visuals, Skulk The Hulk, Steve "Skulk" Pasieka Ken and Skulk discuss Mad Magazine, Steve's Dick DiBartolo mustache, Action shows on TV, Chuck Norris, WWF (WWE), Samo Hung, WCW, Chinese action heroes, Attitude Era of WCW, defining High School by wrestling, backyard wrestling, TV Guide induced vivid dreams, growing up in Chicago, heavy Italian Chicago accents, children with strong regional accents, revolting Pepto Bismol ads, disgusting ice cream photos, Judy Garland, the 90s love of the 70s, no bake Jell-O grossness, too much PB, locking up your Klondike bars, how much smarter Samo Hung is than Kevin Sorbo and Chuck Norris, Halle Berry's comebacks, Brutus the Barber Beefcakes' MBTA "Anthrax" scare, wrestlers lying about their size, Randy "Macho Man' Savage, class action suits, the shock of a Buff Bagwell photo shoot, The Tom Green Show, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai, MTV's Real Life, Chyna, HHH, Behind the Music, going into animation, debating Generative AI, what is a tool and what isn't, challenging norms, controversal issues, Ken's theory of innovative amatuerishness, going to Greece, having experiences outside of America, distribution networks, wrestlers with just regular names, UFC replacing WWF/WCW, how you need rules, how having all things available to you stifles creativity, Antiques Roadshow, Celebrity Tug-O-War, Johnny Bravo, Cartoon Network, Spin City, JAWS, Ray Walston, Star Trek, Dee Snider in Strangeland, how massive David Blaine was, Win Ben Stein's Money, Leeza Gibbons hosting Smoking: Truth or Dare, requiring cigarette holders, lost Comedy Central shows of the late 90s, Steve's love of music videos, how some things don't hold up at all, appreciating Men in Black, the Roller Derby resurgence, Ska Punk, Chicago punk bands, Naked Raygun, and The Many Incessent Lives and Subsiquent Deaths Deserved of Skulk the Hulking.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 696: Glenn Rubenstein
07/07/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 696: Glenn Rubenstein
January 5-11, 1985 After a long time coming Ken welcomes podcast inovater, writer, video game expert and all around brother from another mother Glenn Rubenstein. Ken and Glenn discuss strange hobbies they explored during COVID, The Ratings Game with Danny DeVito, Double Trouble, It's Your Move, twins, not remember who is who, hunting down theme songs, testifying against Nintendo, The Game Genie, Galoob, holy grail toys, Inspector Gadget, PXL2000, Made for-TV Movies, The Mod Squad, recognizing the false sense of danger that sensationalized news stories have created, mentioning Bill Campbell pre-Rocketeer, being incredibly angry that the Love Skills VHS tape isn't sexy or instructional enough, shaming adults for renting adult films, CES, meeting John Eric Hexum as a kid, Voyagers, writing a heist movie, freeing digital archives, not living in the streaming future we were promised, getting into Spanish language pop music, Menudo, Dance Fever, the GOOD David Horowitz, Fight Back, avoiding Sam episodes of Diff'rent Strokes, meeting Dana Plato, Kids Inc, removing the adult references from songs covered by Kids Inc, having a crush on Bess Armstrong, loving a Catherine Hicks type, certain actors you always confuse, the TV version of a certain movie actor, buying and resurrecting defunct brands, L.A. Gear fantasies, Phoebe Cates in Lace, Revenge of the Nerds, Just One of the Guys, Jeff Franklin's James Brown obsession, sequel TV series, Michael Keaton, Savage Steve Holland, Jason Bateman, LA Law, shows that feel like work to watch, how somebody being a good podcast guest can make you enjoy their work, Night Court, the versatility of Fischer Stevens and Vincent DeNofrio, Jeff Altman in The Dukes of Hazard, guys an executive clearly loved, when Webster was the victim of a house invasion, Cheers, visiting the set of your favorite show, and tips for interviewing celebs.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 695: Kendall R. Phillips
06/30/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 695: Kendall R. Phillips
Ken and Kendall discuss The Place of Darkness, silent horror cinema, the birth of the horror movie, Kolchak the Night Stalker, how the late 80s and early 90s mirrors the silent to talkies era, basic cable TV, thirst for content, imported horror, anthology horror, radio horror, Monster Kids, Witches Tale, Tales from the Crypt, The Hitcher, Dracula the Series, Tales from the Darkside, Dark Shadows, Monsters, Friday the 13th The Series, Video Nasties, how exposure always eventually makes horror into kiddie fair, TV movies, high concept low budget films, Full Moon Pictures, arguing about the true core elements of the Halloween series, TV versions, how Dr. Loomis could be the real villain, Blood and Thunder stories, how radio shows are like a home invasion, television ghosts, Swamp Thing, Tom Noonan's adaptation of Stephen King's The Moving Finger on Monsters, one season wonders, gothic investigators, Ken Ober, the first TV adaptation of Parenthood, official sanctioned fan fiction, The Horror Hall of Fame, taking horror cinema/media seriously, the shadow of Vietnam, how sanitized the first Gulf War was, how action movies became the new slasher/video nasties, Ken's unconventional order for the best Tobe Hooper flicks, Salem's Lot, TCM2, Funhouse, Poltergeist, 80s remakes of 50s movies, The Stand, adapting novels, Castle Rock, Dr. Sleep, the wonder of having to take what you can get, The Avengers, how great things are when they go wackadoodle, the beauty of trying things you've never heard of, horror from foreign countries, the reward of getting outside your comfort zone, how sci-fi is a grafted genre, Alien, throwing candy at children, Halloween night, Ben Cooper costumes, precious leaves, how horror works best without explanation, The Incredible Hulk, the Hulk Out List, Halloween II, the 1969 Made For-TV movie The Profane Comedy starring Chuck Connors, the sad November post-Halloween come down, Quantum Leap, The Rockford Files, the 1985 Made For-TV remake of The Bad Seed, The Hitchhiker being Paige Fletcher, KISS, Land of the Lost and the golden days of cigarettes when it was cheap and filled with carbon monoxide.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 694: Joel Thurm
06/23/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 694: Joel Thurm
This week Ken welcomes the astounding accomplished, TV all star, casting royalty Joel Thurm on the show. Ken and Joel discuss his book, "Sex, Drugs & Pilot Season", the importance of caffiene, Hollywood tellalls, how to guides, judging all of the NBC pilots from 80-90 ish, the Brendon Tartikoff era of NBC, Fred Silverman, making money producing old people shows, Grant Tinker, homophobia in Hollywood, producing Elvira Mistress of the Dark, NBC Films, trusting and listening to your star, how "difficult" actresses are usually just right and standing up for themselves, getting typecast casting comedy, Bicentenial Minutes, growing up in rural Brooklyn, starting out at the top, working on high quality projects at CBS, Bob Newhart, starting on Broadway, getting Charlton Heston gas, having mentors, your grandparents having a dairy farm, befriending Pearl Bailey, the choice of being fired or promoted, always having an eye for casting, strong women, moving to LA with a job that wasn't a job, Nell Carter, the creation of Gimme a Break, Baywatch, discovering David Hasselhoff, being head of talent for Spelling-Goldberg, Starsky and Hutch, only being friends with excelleng casting directors, Love Boat, Fantasy Island, casting reality TV, Pop Stars for Stone Stanley, giving Nicole Scherzinger her big break, needing to remind Nicole Scherzinger you gave her her big break, why casting directors are like fairy godmothers, having a very small part in casting the post Lorne year of SNL, casting Grease, Rocky Horror, having four hours of network TV you cast on the air every week, telling it like it is, Ted Danson's f**kability, Boy in the Plastic Bubble, being handy, charity work, and casting Cheers.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 693: Jeremy Alder
06/16/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 693: Jeremy Alder
December 14-20, 1991 This week Ken welcomes former preacher, home school all star and current comedian behind the new Blonde Medicine lp "Almost a Grown Man", Jeremy Alder. Ken and Jeremy discuss growing up religious, Hannibal Lecktor's cell in Manhunter, birthdays, being 12, growing up in Texas, having to sneak TV at grandparents and friends houses, TV Guide's excellent writing, parents vs teens views on Beverly Hills 90210, the genius of Jane Pratt, Car 54, Where Are You? and the awful movie, the early 90s boom of movies based on old TV shows, being totally traumatized by the Christian appocalyptic scare film A Theif in the Night, The Rabbit VCR multipier, not knowing who certain products are for, Christmas movies, It's a Wonderful Life, how Ken feels Frosty the Snowman is blasphemous, how Madonna was best gotten in touch with via TV Guide, In Living Color, America's Funniest People, National Geographic Explorer, Ken's ultimate fear of deep water animals, treasure hunting scams, Silk Stalkings, when it's "Too Hot to Sleep", the religious Madonna episode of MacGuyver, cults, A Place for Mom, creepy non-discript low rent ads, suckling pigs, how it's not what you're eating it's what's eating you, detention, Michael Jordan, fake names, Waco, Santa lap time, simple folk at Christmas, Unsolved Mysteries, attemps at diversity, Bob Hope, Strays, Doogie Howser, Tracy Ullman Show, Real Stories of the Highway Patrol, Top Cops, The Simpsons, Can't Buy Me Love, Ken's small handful of celebrity impressions, Youth Group "Slave Auctions" for charity, when Jamacians were the #1 villain in action cinema, Austin, square dancing, wearing a cowboy hat, Ken's quest for "The Best of the Worst" and how Beavis and Butthead will never die.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 692: Owen Hammer
06/09/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 692: Owen Hammer
April 7-13, 1990 This week Ken welcomes author of super cool graphic novel Von Bach, and man behind the fanstic YouTube channel Hammered Out, , Owen "The Hammer" Hammer. Ken and Owen discuss Hammered out, ABC's reputation, Twin Peaks, the premiere of Twin Peaks, David Lynch, film criticism, media review, how the actors aren't always the best person to have insight into a show they are on, Jim Belushi, Jay Larson, Twin Peaks the Return, the 4 and a half hour Twin Peaks explained Twin Perfect YouTube video, how there IS an explanation for Twin Peaks, avoiding conspiracies, artist intent, the late 80s early 90s meta fiction trend, Animal Man, Perfect Blue, the only bad movies are boring and/or insincere, Donnie Yen, Star Wars, Rogue One, water cooler media, On the Air, people not expecting humor from David Lynch, Fire Walk with Me, mid-season replacements, Comedy Central the Comedy Channel and HA!, how Lost Highway is Lynch's criticism of Quinten Tarantino, superficial readings, missing the point, TM, Eastern Mysticism, Henry Rollins, Bill Cosby, Mad Movies, MST3k, loving Murder She Wrote so watching Twin Peaks, John Waters, Looney Tunes, The Simpsons, David Lynch bringing a cow and a marching band around to publicize Inland Empire, the 1977 Jesus of Nazareth, how Laura Palmer is self aware, murder on TV, what it means to be human, The Incredible Hulk, Alien Nation, Ken Johnson, Dobie Gillis, the lambada, Missing in Action III, America's Funniest Home Videos, Star Trek the Next Generation, pigs getting sunburned, being offended by bungee cord based sneaker ads, and the greatness of Nick at Nite.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 691: Jason Bailey
06/02/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 691: Jason Bailey
March 6-12, 2004 This week Ken welcomes podcaster, film critic and author of the new book "Gandolfini: Jim, Tony, and the Life of a Legend", Jason Bailey. Ken and Jason discuss living in The Bronx, moving from Kansas to NYC, wanting to leave your home town, the Sopranos phenomenon, HBO original programming, 1st and Ten, prestige TV, unlikeable protagonists, America Undercover, Tales from the Crypt, Mario Van Peebles, werewolves, Daybreak, failed pilots, Cast a Deadly Spell, working at video stores, dropping out of playing Sammy the Bull, being replaced by William Foresythe, the complicated history of James Gandolfini, standing out in the sea of books about the Sopranos, True Romance, IDing future stars, how Karen "Duff" Duffy is the greatest human being ever, Duff and Gandolfini's high school days together, New Jersey, Steve Buscemi, stealing behind the scenes people from Trees Lounge, Season 5 of the Sopranos, Larraine Braco, Goodfellas, avoiding the press, taking years long breaks between seasons, TV on DVD, the post 9-11 TV landscape, why it was a benefit to have a higher retail price, American Idol, William Hung, Jeffery Donovan, Touching Evil, Burn Notice, Ressurecting Judas, Easter programming, "Invasion of the Dumb Blondes", how reality TV killed Anna Nicole Smith, how the US remake of The Office will never work, TrimSpa, David Mamet plays, Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, basic cable network identity, Six Feet Under, Paige Davis and Trading Spaces, writing a book about Die Hard, Die Hard rip offs, E! True Hollywood stories, sleaze, Gilmore Girls, Michael Chiklis, being told you'll never work in Hollywod again, The Shield, Nip/Tuck, bad investments, The Danbury Mint, Brian DePalma, Femme Fatale, TiVo, lost media, how awful The Apprentice was and how it ruined the world forever, mean spirited prank shows, Jaime Kennedy Show, why big budget movies are all now geared towards 12 year olds, seeing R rated movies with your parents, Playing it Straight, Wonderfalls, and Jason's fantastic podcasts.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 690: Andy Woodhull
05/26/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 690: Andy Woodhull
May 9-16, 1998 This week Ken welcomes comedian behind the new comedy LP "Beach Brain", Andy Woodhull. Ken and Andy discuss being live via sattellite, coast to coast, refusing to partake in daylight savings time, having never read a TV Guide, having a stand up bit that never works but you refuse to dump it, when fonts are too small, growing up in Indiana, refusing reality, supper, even uglier Jerry Seinfeld, Jerry Seinfeld dating a teenage girl, your dad buying a Playboy for your teenage friend (when your dad isn't Jerry Seinfeld), Jenny McCarthy, when Seinfeld ended, how Michael Jordan was so famous that even cardboard cutouts of him got ad deals, graduation speeches, how milk chocolate is for children, Jerry Seinfeld picking up teenagers in Central Park, Regis, claiming change is bad, Beetlejuice, Dunkaroos, Saturday Morning Cartoons, how the Babe movies fit into the Mad Max universe, David Ducovney 's music career, not buttoning shirts, America's Funniest Home Videos, being a part of the Vin De Bona family, hosting Totally Funny Animals, Daisey Fuentes, ska remake of theme songs, Matlock, JAG, Jag offs, The Good Wife being watched by your wife, unexpected character deaths, Tony Clifton, seeing your friend prosecute a terribly disturbing case in court, avoiding Miss Universe, Home Improvement, sitcoms based on stand up acts, Geriatric indecent proposals, shows we pitched that never went, divorces, TeenBeat, Mad About You, having the juice to make your TV show commercial free, learning the word "epiphanic", Paul Reiser, the death of Chris Farley, Just Shoot Me, the original voice of Shrek, auditioning for the part of Robin in Batman, T2, people hating the Seinfeld finale, Police Squad, loving The Naked Gun, why Ken should avoid the Lord of the Rings movies, how Andy rewatches the LOTR series every year, Airplane, 30 Rock, and not asking for a short history of bullsh*t.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 689: Mangesh Hattikudur
05/19/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 689: Mangesh Hattikudur
May 9-16, 1992 This week Ken welcomes co-founder of Mental Floss, co-founder of Kaleidoscope and host of the Part-Time Genius and Skyline Drive podcasts, Mangesh Hattikudur. Ken and Mangesh discuss downtown Brooklyn, going to college in North Carolina, spending your Summers in Idia, spending a year abroad in Atlanta, Brooklyn Manners, not being able to watch R rated movies, the book adaptation life hack, VHS terror, bootleg tapes, the hunt for nudity, The Carolinas, brown outs, shows the US exports, saying goodbye to Johnny Carson, Ken's day with John Cleese, Bob and Ray, the launch of Comedy Central as CTV/Comedy Channel/HA!, hunting down comedy lps, learning joke structure, Stephen Wright, Conan, talk shows, the death of John Candy, Jim Henson's death, Ed McMahon, what local news casters are paid, Vanna White's music career, the greatest picture of Richard Simmons ever, Jake Steinfeld, why Saturdays were tough, turning your house into a mini-golf course, the sries finale of Golden Girls, why Caddyshack II is better than Caddyshack, talk shows hosted by people playing a character, swear replacements, Parker Lewis Can't Lose, ripped from the headlines made for TV murder, how 70s vigilante revenge movies became 90s made for TV movies for women, Risky Business, the nostalgia lens, why you should always go back and revisit your childhood favorites, Police Academy, Revenge of the Nerds, movies that don't fly now, the evolution of R rated movie to children's cartoon, The Boston Celtics, Rescue 9-1-1, the theme song from Rescue 9-1-1, the 3.2.1 Contact Sex Special, Mental Floss, Davis Rules, the TV road not taken, network executives ruining shows, Night Court's final season before the reboot, when Harry Anderson would guest start on Cheers, how Park St Under was absolutely NOT ripped off to make Cheers, how one script became Beverly Hills Cop AND Cobra, Roald Dahl, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, loving Tom Arnold, 20/20, live exorcisms, and getting to the bottom of if the bush really burned.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 688: Brien Kielb
05/12/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 688: Brien Kielb
November 14-20th, 1992 This week Ken welcomes long time Ken Reid superfan, NASCAR expert and the co-host of the Meet Me at Applebees Podcast Brien Kielb. Ken and Brien discuss NASCAR video games in Chuck E Cheese, growing up in upstate NY, The Showcase Showdown, punk rock teens, Boston Punk, Motorsports, Albany, moving to Cleveland, Pittsburgh PA, local cuisine, watching old NASCAR races, meeting friends due to mutual interests, the politics of driving, racist redneck hicks, Formula One, 24 hour races, endurance, soiling yourself, bicycle repair, fake wakes, smoking slims, cigarettes for women, Monster Trucks, the real truck that turns into a fire breathing car eating monster, the TWO Big Foot Cartoons, searching for Stivy Posnanski, Video Power, the Power Team, satellite dishes, above ground pools, divorced Dads, how Baby Boomers have hoarded all the money, before the discovery of tweens, original works of art by internationally acclaimed artist Paul Kale, collector's plates, weird NASCAR merchandise, The Georgia Dome, NASCARman, YouTube, Alabama Salutes Richard Petty, Joe Diffie, 900 numbers based auctions, wondering what Tom Arnold donated, The Kids Choice Awards, Red & Stimpy, Primus, coming from a weigh lifting background, yelling at Emo bands, WWE, the drug addict to weight lifting to right wing grifter highway, USA Up All Night, Saturday Nightmares, Days of Thunder, the Days of Thunder Soundtrack, what the best NASCAR movie is, Ravishing Rick Rude lookalikes in prison riots, The Real World, GI Joe, Sgt. Slaughter, Refrigerator Perry, Married...with Children, stunt episodes, musical episodes, very sad made for TV movies, collecting and framing t-shirts, Ken's Just the Ten of Us autographed cast shirt, screen worn t shirts from The Adventures of Pete and Pete and Revenge of the Nerds, Rescue 9-1-1 in Ohio, Roseanne, the Lanford Loose Meat Lunchbox, TBS, WCW, Disney Studios, Street Stories, Sightings, Stephen Wright guest starring on Bob as a guy in charge of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Balloons, Frozen Assets sperm count contest, the Whoops! Christmas episode and fundamentally misrepresenting Ray Walston's career.
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TV Guidance Counselor 687: Ahmed Khalaf
05/05/2025
TV Guidance Counselor 687: Ahmed Khalaf
October 18-25, 2018 This week Ken welcomes comedian behind the new comedy album Hobble D. Hoy, Ahmed Khalaf. Ken and Ahmed discuss moving to Minnesota, parental death, obvious Prince, So-Cal, reasons for the mid-west, hating the heat, just how big America is, world travel, having nothing else to do but watch 15 seasons of Supernatural, Supernatural cast members Ken has had on the show, superior Monster of the Week episodes, Supergirl, CW, how things Ken should love he doesn't, Dean, The Mark of Cain, Roseanne into The Connors, Scrubs, recasting shows, hating horror films, being scared by loud noises, polarizing issues, Marvel Super heroes, lazy nicknames, Jeff Dunham, freak pointing, Jared from Subway, Dinklidge, playing Tattoo, ska bands, H. John Benjamin, Bob's Burgers, Francis Ford Coppola, reality shows, loving Forged in Fire, Joker and Red Skull, how we should all hate racists and fascists, Ken's failed war crime forgiveness based on love of ethnic cuisines, X-Files, Halloween, lazy movie descriptions, winning a bet, Easy A, The Usual Suspects, not being a movie guy, MMA, boxing, WWF, the first Suicide Squad, buying a ton of meat for a little bit of money, and loving video games.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 686: Chris Cluess
04/28/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 686: Chris Cluess
This week Ken welcomes writer, producer and all around superstart Chris Cluess to the show. Chris and Ken discuss being alive, New Jersey, SCTV, winning an Emmy, Sweeps Week, Moral Majority, the amazing wonderful world of John Candy, Toronto, being polite, forgetting names, stripping on bear rugs, supporting the arts, being beloved by the public, the guy with a snake on his face, the greatness of Juul Haalmeyer, Alan King, Alan King's Second Final Warning, working at National Lampoon, Cleveland, Blackstone, The Pretenders, Boomtown Rats, plugging 5,000 year old shows you get not royalties from, "...from Cleveland", Bob and Ray, Kurt Vonneget, how sometimes you can't completely your mission, writing a terrible Barney Miller spec script, the massive sketch book, trying to get hired to write for SNL, scaring John Belushi, chasing Garret Morris, the kindness of Dan Ackroyd, sketch comedy, Al Franken, Tom Davis, Michael O'Donoghue, getting a master class in sketch writing pro bono, John Candy, moving to LA in 1978, haunted houses, attending the Emmys in 1982, being Catherine O'Hara's date, working on Night Court and the running the final seasons of Night Court, tall people, winning over Marsha Warfield, Nothing but Trouble, Madman of the People, the mysterious ways of Bill Murray, getting offers you can't refuse, being uncanceled, Selma Dimond's funeral, writing for the Happiest Place on Earth, I Married Dora, breaking the 4th wall, and begging Chris to write a memoir.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 685: Matthew Broussard
04/21/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 685: Matthew Broussard
December 9-16, 2000 This week Ken welcomes pun loving comedian behind the comedy special "Hyperbolic", Matthew Broussard. Ken and Matthew discuss Pokemon, the repressed feelings from the turn of the century, giving up video games, enjoying arts and crafts, not being into sports, swimming, genius ads, homoerotic break in fantasies used to sell breath mints, Madden, sculpting, the genius of gang signs, economy of words, living in a sponsored society, SNL, the one t-shirt that offended Ken, being polite, miss opportunities with Tony Hawk, having your own rope, naked babies on Al Roker, Braveheart, the Discover E-Book, Cartoon Cartoon, Cow and Chicken, I am Weasel, how Adventure Time might just be the greatest show of the 21st Century, Emergency Vets handle vomiting monkeys, South Park, financial struggles, Sopranos, Malcolm in the Middle, Kirk Cameron hosting Santa's Funniest Moments, Brad Pitt's early days on Growing Pains, over the top acting, the heavy drama of Hey! Arnold!, Becker, Becker's 9/11 episode, silly accents, Uma Thurman for president, The Riddler, how Tom Waits influenced the Joker, the moneyball-ificiation of America, the mixed world of childhood play, limitless imagination, Looney Tunes, being shot in front of a live audience, puns, Tom Kenny, the Ice King, old school voice over talent, Sex and the City, Will and Grave, Tom and Jerry, writing for Sean Hayes, The Real World, how Puck is an a-hole, how Carrie is the Villain, how Ferris Buheler is the villain, and the man who is married to Claire Danes.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 684: David Klein
04/14/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 684: David Klein
This week Ken welcomes author, music fan, semi-pro plus one and cousin of the famous, David Klein () to the show. Ken and David discuss his new book "The Plus-One: Getting by on Good Connections in the Analog Age", being Winona Ryder's cousin, growing up in suburban NJ, moving to North Carolina, mix tapes, personal memories tied to pop culture, David's brother's work with MTV, getting kicked out of a youth program resulting in riding in an airplane with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, going to the Night on Earth premiere, meeting Bono, having an ex-roomate who dated Marisa Tomei, MTV Europe, record shopping in London, cool older brother effect, Willie Alexander, a song for every number, the two 50s chord progressions, the highlight of a funeral, those people who not only light up a room but light up everyone in the room, trying to get your kids to like cool stuff, The Ramones, being ahead of your time, finding your thing, The Replacements, My Boyfriend's Back, finding your voice, becoming the author you always should have been, being fueled by rejection, how being bored by your work is the most offensive thing, suburban kids getting in trouble on a Friday night, Led Zepplin, Tenafly NJ, Tenafly Viper in Street Trash, the Pixies, how love is a jigsaw puzzle, Mermaids, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, how you only need to see the movie Hapiness once, reading underground Comix, Timothy Leary, the beauty of Monty Python's Flying Circus, Ken's advocacy for Adrian Borland's The Sound, still discovering new music as you get older, having your uncle ask Jerry Lee Lewis how he drove here tonight, Glen Miller, and how the Adventures of Pete and Pete is the greatest television show of all time.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 683: Andrew Chenault
04/07/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 683: Andrew Chenault
July 12-18, 1997 This week Ken welcomes the drummer in the Ohio punk band Bandages, Andrew Chenault. Ken and Andrew discuss Ken's confusion about Ohio's position in the United States, Central Time, The Adventures of Pete and Pete, how Ken has had many of Andrew's favorite show stars on TVGC, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Used Cars, Garrett Graham, The Phantom of the Paradise, Horror flicks, watching Showgirls with your mom, Demi Moore, the US Cable TV premiere of Striptease, Duckman, Dr. Katz, Spicy City, King of the Hill, Daria, WWF vs WWE, the golden age of awful graphic design, bad favorite bands, Lord of Illusions, sexy Sheryl Crow videos, how a teenage boy cannot pass up watching Barb Wire, Canadian Bacon, Christmas in July except its Halloween, loving SNL, Molly Shannon's pre SNL career, Robert England's Phantom of the Opera, Mad TV, Kids in the Hall, Dolemite, Mr. Show, and Mandy Pantinkin's constantly questioning of what you put in the toilet.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 682: Rob Turbovsky
03/31/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 682: Rob Turbovsky
March 25-31, 1995 This week Ken welcomes old friend, favorite person, and TV Writer (Only Murders in the Building, Silicon Valley), Rob Turbovsky. Ken and Rob discuss Rob's time in Boston, moving to LA, Thai food, Ken catching Rob on his failing into retirement journey, getting to write for your heroes, Martin Short doing a Clifford impression JUST for you, The Oscars, David Letterman, Forrest Gump and Pulp Fiction, cigarettes to Rx drugs, Ask TV Guide, how you used to have to ask questions about pop culture before the internet, placing Greg Barnes, Geraldo's legal background, Martin Landeau, Ed Wood, shows set in Boston, people stalking TV members, Tracy Gold in Ladykiller, Made for TV movies, weird horny Tylnol ads, male fragility, Chicago Hunk: Peter Berg, the odd 90s trend of barefoot celebrity photos, Aspen Extreme, celebrith recipies, using a sword to chop lettuce, Dave Couler's Swordfish with tomato sauce, Alex Trebek's dangerous frying style, Charles Grodin's talk show, Rob's oral history of Clifford for Vulture, SCTV, how Ken insists the Martin Short role in Captain Ron was written for Steve Martin, The Bob Hope Young Comedian's Special vs. The HBO Young Comedians Special, the memory hole of Backdraft, the lost era of movies, Taxi reruns, MST3k, Lawmower Man, Oscar counter programming, Cabin Boy, Raising Caine, the lost full musical cut of "I'll Do Anything", Phantom of the Paradise, Dead Pilots Society, the greatness of Mark McKinney, Exit 57, The Vacant Lot, Twilight Zone: The Movie, American Inventors Corp, a Tribute to Andy Kaufman, Unsolved Mysteries, Stormy Justice, Crime Story, being pranked by Tony Clifton, how turning to stand up is the worst thing ever, Major League, Midnight Run, how Beverly Hills Cop II is the better movie than Beverly Hills Cop, and loving John Waters.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 681: John Easdale
03/24/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 681: John Easdale
September 10-16, 1966 This week Ken welcomes singer/songwriter/Dramarama frontman and fellow TV addict John Easdale to the show. Ken and John discuss how weird it is to chat about normal and fun things in 2025, the introduction of color TV, the 1966 television season, being the envy of the block when your family has the first and only color TV, The Dramaram lp Color TV, being beneath the Zenith, how old TVs were massive pieces of furniture, how people always take convinience over quality, the new embrace of hi-fi audiophile culture, the all you can eat aspect of streaming, The Monkees, living with your band, when long haired rock groups were on every TV show, educating yourself on film, the inspiration of punk rock DIY spirit, dropping off paying attention to new media at a certain point, focusing on making things instead of consuming them, Nightmare on Elm St 4: The Dreamaster, "Anything, Anything", KROQ, Rodney on the ROQ's connection to The Monkees, WFNX, how Freddy Kruger unbroke up Dramarama, growing up in Wayne New Jersey, how Dramarama all went to high school together, relocating to L.A., Made-For-TV bands, the 80s Monkees reunion shows, Rhino Records, Lancelot Link Secret Chimp, knowing the horrors of animals on TV now, Canadian TV guide, Frankenstein Jr, The Impossibles, Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom, NY Metro TV, Davey Jones on Ed Sullivan, Ken forgetting that Lidsville was Butch Patrick, Jack Wild on HR Puffnstuff, Ken's theory of rock n roll popularity tied to visual media innovation, The Monkees Head, Mike Nesmith, Repoman, lost media, tape wiping, loving digital comics, living in the future, Batman '66, burning out quickly, Bruce Lee, The Green Hornet, wanting to be Mickey Dolenz, Lost in Space, how Adam West was a beautifully strange guy, Milton Berle, how cartoons went into space when they lost all inspiration, and how Ken and John's pop culture filled minds may save history in the appocalypse.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 680: Danny Peary
03/17/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 680: Danny Peary
This week Ken welcomes author of the absolutely life changing "Cult Movies" series of books, among lots of other great things, Danny Peary. Ken and Danny discuss the massive volume of guests Ken has had on the show, wanting to expose people to art they never would have known about otherwise, growing up in the 1950s, loving Westerns, Danny's brother Gerald and his film criticism, loving television, Abbot and Costello and Jack and the Bean Stalk, Lone Ranger, foreign cinema, college campus cinema clubs, Hopalong Cassidy, Red Rider, Baseball, Igmar Bergman, seeing subtitled movies as a small child, The Harder They Come, Midnight Movies, NYC, seeing movies alone in the theater, Rocky Horror, word of mouth, why The Wizard of Oz is a cult movie, the niche cults, John Waters, the classics, the weird, and the wonderful, why horror isn't always cult, not just writing about plots, real film criticism, analysis, how you can't have a wrong insight into a movie, giving people something to think about. Eraserhead, doing research in the pre-internet days, Freaks, loving Val Lewton, how the flow of cult movies has damartically slowed in the 21st Century despite more movies than ever and more movies than ever trying to be cult movies, giving things time to build, how you can't make a cult movie on purpose, film festivals, The Substance, Basket Case, The Wasp Woman, The Alternative Oscars, Ken being baffled at how Speed Racer never developed a cult, Howard the Duck, Heaven's Gate, George Cukor, retiring, the lost Val Lewton movie, The Ghost Ship, making movies with zero heroic characters, I Walked with a Zombie, going to USC Film School, writing for Thundercats and Silverhawks, having a love of comedy, James Gray, the film Deep End, Phatom of the Paradise, and the early days of Brian DePalma.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 679: Jenny Chalikian & Erin Judge
03/10/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 679: Jenny Chalikian & Erin Judge
April 10-17, 1999 This week Ken wades through a dog related false alarm emergency as he welcomes returning guest Erin Judge and first time guest Jenny Chalikian who have a brand new live record out called "Romantic Comedy: Live! at the Ripped Boddice" Ken, Erin and Jenny discuss Star Trek, Discovery, Xena, the greatness of Jeri Ryan, Star Trek Voyager, hating a Doug Henning future, being gay, gay icons, Hercules, watching TV with your very conservative family, shows shot in New Zealand, Hong Kong action, representation on TV, Dawson's Creek, growing up in Texas, Ken's history with Richard Roundtree, the is Xena butch or not debate, how Jeri Ryan's ex-husband's bad behavior gave us Obama, femme'd out TV stars, Evil Dead The Series, Cynthia Rothrock's greatness, kids who's sketch show was All That, SNL, SNICK, the power of 90s Comedy Central, Are You Being Served?, Alias, why Jennifer Garner always deserves better, Tom Green, Futurama, Family Guy, the post-Simpsons prime time animated world, how Heaven is America, Millenium, X-Files, Walker Texas Ranger, Chuck Norris' syndicated editorial newspaper column, The Awful Truth, Ally McBeal, how television teaches women you either have powerful careers OR a love life but not both, Highlander: The Series, Becker, whatever the hell JAG was, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, loving monsters and loving weeks but not always monsters of the week, how insane people generally are, Laura Kightlinger, Pulp Comics, Kathy Griffith, The Nanny, the Massachusetts factual inacuracies of Dawson's Creek, the double standard of teacher/student relationships dynamics, Delacatessan, Norm, Dr. Quinn, the bizarre-ness of the streaming business model, Irish Wish, Strangers with Candy, Spin City, Just Shoot Me, The Drew Carey Show, nostalgia for Scared Straight, Sabrina the Teenager Witch, Ben Savage working out his family issues via Boy Meets World, Two Guys, a Girl and a Pini's Pizza Place and wishing you could google who somebody is right in front of you because they are clearly famous but you have no idea who they are.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 678: Miya Folick
03/03/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 678: Miya Folick
This week Ken welcomes singer-songwriter behind the must buy brand new album "Erotica Veronica", Miya Folick. Ken and Miya discuss the troubles of LA, the stress of 2025, trying to be creative and make a living as an artist in 2025, life without respite, no longer being the main character, the dark timeline, allowing yourself to work through your own experience, promoting your stuff, not having kids, growing up as a huge nerd, being social, not getting into music until you were in college, loving doing homework, not having the "cool older brother" effect growing up, college radio, mix tapes, KERTH 101, good peer pressure, Live Journal, being a musician without being able to make every specific tone reference possible, collaboration, songwriting, being an idea generator, planning to learn about music history upon retirement, wanting to shred, Tidal, trusting the algorithym, finding new music, going through music droughts, mood and music, auditory sensitivity tied to your menstral cycle, listening to podcasts, The Ezra Klein Show, The Daily, Democracy Now, Heavyweight, Jonathan Goldman, unresolved issues of the heart, developing parasocial relationships with podcast hosts you listen to, being into super dorky opera competitions, Downtown LA, growing up in Orange County, jumping on the turtleneck bandwagon, master classes at the classical music society, trying and hating acting, the audition process, thinking about a return to acting, Paris, Texas, being inspired by Cinema, Portishead, The Three Colors Trilogy, the magic of cinema, pop music, wanting producers across the country, Steve Albini, the belief that the only good album a band makes is their first album, thinking about going back to or even starting a day job, going to sleep with white noise, not watching TV at night, Marvel Comics in the 1970s, and the nature of storytelling.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 677: Matt Knudsen II
02/24/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 677: Matt Knudsen II
January 3-9, 1998 After 10 years Ken welcomes return guest, and certified Hunk, author of the book "Have I Seen You in Anything?", Matt Knudesen. Ken and Matt discuss living the dream, how great we still look, Sears Craftsman Tool Chests, art supplies, growing up in Iowa, RIP K-Mart, North Dakota, finishing high school in So-Cal, cheap motels, the wonder of cable TV while traveling, Nickelodeon, You Can't Do That on Television, Stacey Keach, taking out a loan to get your first apartment, acting, Kevin Costner's post-appocalytpic obession, TV Guide in the movies, confusing Star Trek and Star Wars, Joe's Apartment, getting the Jerry O'Connell upgrade, Richard Belzer's WWF lawsuit, seeing Stevie Wonder live, The Family Channel JAMS, Bosom Buddies, debates about nerdy minutia, how sometimes stories just should end, the Animal that is Cosby, experiencing a lion in person, Y2K, Man or Astroman?, go bags, House II: The Second Story, old character actors, Royal Dano, Fast Times, Paul Dooley, Breaking Away the TV Series, US remakes of UK shows, streaming, how even huge stars can't get movies into theaters, Starting Over, Burt Reynolds, location shooting, being in commercials, stunt driving, Kurt Fuller, the actor to real estate agent track, how Ken feels Seinfeld doesn't hold up, massive executive mistakes, Woman of the People, watching yourself in something and realizing the project is awful, Mike Hammer, Mickey Spillane, Cloris Leachman, not knowing if you can do something but claiming you can anyway, cheating at Celebrity Jeopardy, laughing Gary Owens bobbleheads, and how Santa Claus as a music critic is a total jerk.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 676: Christine Little
02/17/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 676: Christine Little
February 12-18, 1994 This week Ken travels back to Valentine's week 1994 with the great human and very funny comedian behind the new album "Mixed and Confused" (available everywhere great digital albums are sold/streamed), Christine Little. Ken and Christine discuss if we really want to know how people are doing in 2025, stomach issues, cutting your own hair, funeral barbers, Boyz II Men, weird perverted graphic layout cover artists, Nancy Kerrigan, ice skating, getting "Pullout" on the cover, Ask TV Guide, where the college from Beverly Hills 90210 is located, what pony tailed guys on TV are ok to punch, Luke Perry, 8 Seconds, riding mechanical bulls, posters on your walls, dying doing what you love to do, posthumiously being embarrassed, drunken actors, Lenox Crystal cats, Boomerang, The Mommies, getting a development deal, Sisters, Bone Thungs n Harmony, Schitt's Creek, Charles Bronson Pinchot, Living Single, 900 numbers, Pee Wee Hockey Dads fighting in Boston area parking lots after games, writing your own theme song, graduating in the future, live on television executions, being into psycho-sexual thrillers, Sliver, mail fraud, Fresh Prince of Bel Aire, Point Break, Blankman, Fabio playing Cupid, birds flying into Fabio's face, bird blood, teen idol Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson's house chores, Police Acadamy, Melrose Place, Andrew Shue and how he's persuing a propect doing very well and his kids are very happy, The Truman Show, Jim Carrey, In Living Color, people you know into erotic asphyxiation, Wonder Years, Family Matters, Married...with Children, Hanging with Mr. Cooper, Kids in the Hall, The State, waiting on Fred Savage, waiting on Stephen King, and the gross brilliant nature of The Substance.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 675: 11th Anniversary Special, 2015 The Year In Review
02/10/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 675: 11th Anniversary Special, 2015 The Year In Review
Travel back a decade ago, to 2015 as we go week by week through the high highs (and the shocking low lows, some Trigger Warning here re: trauma, suicide, abuse etc, about half way through) of 2015. Is it the year the show peaked? You be the judge.
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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 674: Gregory Lay
02/03/2025
TV Guidance Counselor Episode 674: Gregory Lay
April 18-24, 1998 This week Ken welcomes actor, producer, director, writer Gregory Lay. Ken and Gregory discuss growing up as a TV Guide guy, calling out sick to school for game shows, cultural markers, pop culture reflections, making the case for what you like, Press Your Luck, Classic Concentration, Savage Steve Holland, One Crazy Summer, why Late Night talk shows are totally useless now, access to stars, actors who started on TV, George Clooney, Elizabeth Shue, Michelle Pfeiffer in Delta House, Meritt Ultra Lights, pay TV channels, Break Down with Kurt Russell, being forever disturbed by Pet Semetary, The Omen, Backdraft, being terrrified of The Incredible Hulk, how people can't stop talking like Hunter S. Thompson or Jeff Goldblum when they hang out with either, failed pilot "My Dad with the President's Daughter", how we'd vote for Dabney Coleman for president, E! True Hollywood Story: Bob Crane, how the X-Files CLEARLY didn't have a plan, the fake Dukes, The Moonlighting problem, realism vs. escapism, shows with all bad people, Shelly Long and Robert Hayes returning to sitcoms, The Brady Bunch films, how irony can be done well, The Prophecy, all the weird religious films around the turn of the Century, Presumed Innocent, when Leslie Neilson stopped being funny (hint: It's when he started to think he was funny), The Omega Man, Frankenstein, Top Gun, the 30th Anniversary of Friends, movies that don't hold up, movies that DO hold up, Steven Segal, Jurrasic Park, CGI, when stories are thrown by the wayside, how Dark City is The Matrix if it was good, being trapped in an elevator, Beyond Belief, memes, Scott Baio's complete lack of selfawareness and reality, Pumpkinhead, Stan Winston, hating crossovers, and why P. Diddy was a sack of garbage even BEFORE we learned about him being a sexual deviant assaulting waste of humanity.
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