Sun, 25 December 2022
Last show of the year! So it's a quick one, as we look back on another goofy year of Flopcasting, including our 2022 Flopcast guests (all four of them), our strict cupcake and lobster roll diet program, and our ongoing obsession with Canadian PSAs. Plus: Happy Birthday to Ted Danson! Part 2 of our holiday podcast crossover with But First, Let's Talk Nerdy! (Warning: May contain Sponge Awareness music.) One last Electra Woman and Dyna Girl review on The Batcave Podcast! (Yes, it's the bizarre Markie Post pilot.) And A Very Pac-Man Christmas with the DragonCon American Sci-Fi Classics Track! (Also A Very Manimal Christmas and A Very Turbo Teen Christmas. Someone probably should have stopped us.) And finally... our New Year's Resolutions. Sort of. See you in 2023, nerds. The second half of our holiday crossover with But First, Let's Talk Nerdy! Our final Electra Woman review on The Batcave Podcast! Christmas Comes to Pac-Land: The American Sci-Fi Classics table read! And our regular links... NEW! The Flopcast on Mastadon! Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation!
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Sun, 18 December 2022
Lots of weird holiday mirth and/or merriment this week! First we celebrate National Hard Candy Day with a True Tale of Ribbon Candy. Then Kornflake's annual pilgrimage to the Trap Tree yields startling results. Kornflake also has a new favorite holiday special, and of course the star of Footloose is involved. We also flip through Holly Jolly, a wonderful book of pop culture Christmas history, and learn that the first store Santa appeared in 1890 in nearby Brockton, Massachusetts. (We assume he was as cranky and unpleasant as the rest of us locals.) Then it's time for The Figgy Pudding Pages, and Kornflake has a True Tale of Holiday Air Hockey Injuries. And for our main event, we welcome back Martha and Brittany, the hosts of our sister podcast But First, Let's Talk Nerdy! Reporting live from Las Vegas, they tell us about Christmas at Disneyland, miserable Christmas decoration vandals, and their recent discovery of a Hallmark Christmas movie that actually wasn't bad. Then it's time for a silly little game, as Martha and Brittany take our Christmas Cartoon Quote Quiz! We assume you've been studying all those classic Rankin/Bass shows, so you can play along too! Grab an egg nog, feel free to spike it until you're properly nogified, and enjoy. This week's show is so festive that you'll feel like Jack Frost is nipping at you inappropriately. Find the second half of our holiday crossover on Episode 79 of But First, Let's Talk Nerdy! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 11 December 2022
It's no secret that we're obsessed with holiday cartoons, and this week we're diving into Frosty the Snowman and its sequels. Everyone knows the 1969 Rankin/Bass original, in which Frosty and Karen hitch a train to the North Pole so Frosty can melt away while Karen freezes to death. Then there's Frosty's Winter Wonderland from 1976, with Jack Frost serving as Best Man at a bizarre snow-person wedding. 1979 saw the ultimate Rankin/Bass crossover event: Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July. (Worlds will live, worlds will die, Ethel Merman will sing, and the RBU will never be the same.) Things get even weirder in 1992 with Frosty Returns. John Goodman is the voice of Frosty, SNL's Lorne Michaels is the producer, music is by Devo's Mark Mothersbaugh, and director Bill Melendez makes the whole thing look like a Charlie Brown special. Finally we have 2005's The Legend of Frosty the Snowman, which brings it all back to the original cartoon with a cameo from long-suffering magician Professor Hinkle. And if you've been waiting for a Frosty cartoon narrated by Burt Reynolds, this is it. (Also this week: Kevin Geeks Out About Christmas. Seriously.) So slip into your favorite magic hat and we'll all go belly-whopping together. Happy Birthday. And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 4 December 2022
For our holiday shopping, we're traveling back to 1981 and looking through an advertisement flyer from Child World, a toy store chain that just happened to have a Woonsocket, Rhode Island location. Kevin and Kornflake have selected 4 1/2 gifts for each other, but we used very different shopping strategies. Kornflake thoughtfully chose classic video games, Star Wars toys, and super hero action figures. Meanwhile Kevin was just looking for strange stuff, so we have a freaky doll with hair that really grows, a forgotten (but possibly awesome) game called Baboon Ball, a forgotten (but possibly terrifying) playset called the Clown House, and more. Cover yourselves; things are about to get weird under the tree. The 1981 Child World flyer, compliments of Plaid Stallions! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 27 November 2022
As is tradition around here, we're taking a bunch of those Hallmark-style made-for-TV holiday movies, and we're fixing them. Over 150 goofy new holiday movies are debuting this year, and they're all the same: random big city career women are returning to their hometowns to save their grandfathers' stuggling figgy pudding shops while also falling in love with flannel-shirted dudes who run kitten orphanages. Our plan is to randomly insert some weird new element to each movie, thus creating an instant holiday classic. Can these movies be redeemed by adding stuff like roller disco, giant starfish, or actors from Happy Days? We think you know the answer. Hang on, kids, we're gonna save Christmas. Earth Station One's Geek Holiday Gift Guide! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 20 November 2022
We're creeping into the holiday season with a concert report, because Boston rock heroes Letters to Cleo are back for their annual homecoming shows. This year they brought along super-cool Brooklyn-based band Thick to open the show, and Cleo frontwoman Kay Hanley is clearly a fan. Throw in a surprise Cleo horn section, and a festive time was had by all. We're also looking ahead at the goofiness of the Macy's Thanksgiving parade. This year's balloons include the Pillsbury Doughboy, Baby Yoda, and (thanks to recent exposure here on The Flopcast, we assume) Smokey Bear. There's also a giant acorn balloon, because why not. And if you've been secretly hoping for a bread-themed parade float, with hundreds of giant foam bread slices rising into the sky, this is your year. Also: On The Batcave Podcast, Kevin and John finally wrap up their review of the 1970s Saturday morning series Electra Woman and Dyna Girl! So there, you finally have something to be thankful for. More Electra Woman talk on The Batcave Podcast! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 13 November 2022
Inspired by our recent discussion of synthpop band A-ha and their massive hit "Take On Me," we're making a list of other 1980s songs with iconic keyboard parts. Plenty more synthy new wave acts are on the list (such as Eurythmics, Soft Cell, and Men Without Hats), but several rock bands better known for their guitars actually provided some of the decade's most memorable keyboards. (One obvious example: Van Halen and "Jump.") Check out our list and let us know what we missed. (It would be appropriate for this to be our FINAL COUNTDOWN, but you know we'll keep making more goofy lists around here...) Also: We're frightened by Hug a Runner Day, a delightful "What's in the Bag?" package arrives at the studio, and a "Chickens in the News" item gives us just one more reason to stay out of Florida. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 6 November 2022
Join us as we flip through another old issue of your favorite magazine from the school book club, Dynamite! This one is from way back in 1976, and the cover just might feature an arm wrestling competition between the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman. We have so many questions. Inside the magazine we'll find Robolar's cousins, the truth about mummies (and baboon mummies), disco with KC and the Sunshine Band, a freaked out turkey, gymnast Nadia Comaneci, piles of disgusting hamburgers, a Donny Osmond lookalike, a card trick from Magic Wanda, and lots more Dynamite weirdness. Also: The Hillbilly Bears; a Fruit Brute review; a surprise Top 4 1/2 List; and Happy Birthday to Peter Brady himself, Christopher Knight. You know it's time to change. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 30 October 2022
It's a good old fashioned Flopcast Top 4 1/2 List, and the subject is bears. We have bears from TV (remember Grizzly Adams and his pal Ben?), cartoons (you know the Care Bears, but what about the Wuzzles?), songs (in case you were wondering how Lyle Lovett feels about bears), breakfast cereal (Sugar Bear really wanted to fatten up the children), and more. This is the goofiest bunch of bears you've seen since the Super Bowl Shuffle. And some very important bears are missing from our list, so let us know your favorites! (Send them over to the studio with a pic-a-nic basket.) Also: Happy Birthday to A-ha keyboardist Magne Furuholmen. Kornflake even tries to pronounce his name, because it's no better to be safe than sorry. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 23 October 2022
More goofy Halloween fun this week, as we flip through the book An Old School Halloween and learn about the costumes of Ben Cooper Inc. This was the company that sold those quick simple Halloween costumes (a cheap plastic mask and vinyl smock) at discount department stores for decades. We discuss the odd history of Ben Cooper's Spider-Man costume, why Yoda was blue, how Fonzie's catchphrase was bungled, why Scooby Doo looked like Scrappy Doo, and the awesomeness of the Sleestak costume. Also: Another new Halloween book called Full Moon, written by friends of Kornflake; scary 1970s Halloween stories from Power Records; Matt's Count Chocula review; a concert report on folk rock musician (and camping enthusiast) Brett Dennen; the spooky return of our sister podcast But First, Let's Talk Nerdy; and Happy Birthday to Annie Potts, star of every Ghostbusters movie. Now have a creepy yet festive week, and hand over the Reese's. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 16 October 2022
Our pal Blasted Bill returns to the Flopcast for some Halloween talk! Bill shares his memories of Halloweens past as well as the 8,000 Halloween events he has planned for this year. (That certainly beats our big Halloween plan to do nothing...) Including: Superman, Ghostbuster, and red crayon costumes; hay rides vs. straw rides; trick-or-treating aboard the beer tractor; a defense of Necco wafers; scary cousins in the cemetery; Hocus Pocus drinking games; building your own coffin; freaking out your Uber driver; butter beer vs. Zima; Scooby Doo-costumed bar crawls; a peanut butter pumpkin possum; and lots more seasonal silliness. Plus: Matt concludes his Boo Berry review, Bill is on TikTok, Kevin is on The Batcave Podcast (talking Electra Woman and Dyna Girl) and Gleaming the Tube (talking The Commitments), and Kornflake might be a Yip Yip. Our latest Electra Woman review on The Batcave Podcast! Reviewing The Commitments on Gleaming the Tube! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 9 October 2022
Welcome to a very special Flopcast, because for the first time in almost three years, Kevin and Kornflake are together in person! We're not on Zoom! It's a weird outdoor recording session on a chilly October night up north at Chickentown Outpost! But we have coffee, so it's just like old times. Including: National Decorate a Cake Day (which we celebrate by devouring a couple of boozy cupcakes), another monster cereal review from Matt (this time it's Boo Berry part 1 - more next week), the official presentation of all the Flopcast badge ribbons Kornflake has missed since 2020 (so much Potsie Panic), a concert report on Letters to Cleo frontwoman Kay Hanley (strangely including thousands of Lizzo fans), Kevin's big plan to lose a half marathon, Kornflake's remarkable quest for the perfect lobster roll, and our visit to a giant outer space-themed light show (we were just looking for Robolar from Mars). Okay, that was about enough human interaction for now, so next week, it's back to Zoom... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 2 October 2022
It's a weird mix of topics for this quick little show, including: Kornflake mini-golfing in a hockey uniform; fun with standing desks (we've cleared the studio of silly old-fashioned chairs); International Teachers Day (just an excuse to celebrate Welcome Back, Kotter); the new season of Cobra Kai (and Kornflake's controversial Swank theories); ESO Network updates (300 episodes of Earth Station DCU! Monkeeing Around, a fun new Monkees podcast! And a Modern Musicology interview with an actual member of The Go-Go's!); a bizarre Chickens in the News story from a Florida garage; and a shockingly enthusiastic review of Frankenberry. Next week: Something special is happening here on The Flopcast. Not Go-Go's-level special, but something... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 25 September 2022
Let's wrap up our review of our long wacky weekend in Atlanta for DragonCon! Including: More Sci-Fi Explosion (with Fonzie, Spider-Woman, and maybe even Robolar from Mars); more Flash Gordon panels with Sam J. Jones and Melody Anderson; the return of the Manimal Panimal; the cast of Doom Patrol; the George Pérez memorial panel; the 10th anniversary of the ESO Network; more late night fun with Good Enough Cosplay, Deena the "Last DragonCon" lady, and the falafel truck; the science of multiverses; a very Needless Things Christmas (with a mechanical Santa and a peppermint pig); a charity screening of Legends of the Superheroes (in which the audience must pay to escape from the American Sci-Fi Classics Track room); and a whole bunch of muscovy ducks. It was weirder than the New Zoo Revue, and we loved it. See you next year, nerds. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 18 September 2022
We survived DragonCon 2022, more or less, so it's time to review the first half of that wacky weekend! Including: Kevin's Flash Gordon panel with Sam J. Jones and Melody Anderson; Kevin's other panels on Cowboy Bebop, Lost in Space, and Upload; The Mayor's Severance panel (and Severance costume!); Kornflake's Elton John panel; Sci-Fi Explosion fun with Billy Ocean; the Geek Girls Run; an Aquaman-style visit to the Georgia Aquarium; late night pizza pie with Kate from Strange Animals Podcast; late night fun with Good Enough Cosplay; a late night movie with Dr. Strange and the American Sci-Fi Classics Track; and how to avoid obnoxious parking lot DJs. Next week: The rest of DragonCon. It just kept getting weirder. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 11 September 2022
We're back from DragonCon, but not quite ready for our DragonCon review show. (Hey, we were surrounded by Yip-Yips for several days. Readjusting to reality is a process.) Meanwhile, we have this special episode previously available only to ESO Network Patreon members. And the subject is appropriate, considering our favorite guests at DragonCon this year. For you see... Kornflake had a deep dark secret. She had never seen the 1980 sci-fi classic Flash Gordon. So tonight, Kornflake joins Kevin and the Mayor of Chickentown (who have each seen the movie about six thousand times) to right this terrible wrong. Armed with coffee and pizza pie, we all watch Flash Gordon together, and discuss. Along the way we cover: The amazing sets and costumes, the less-than-amazing special effects, the killer Queen soundtrack, the football fight, our encounters with stars Sam Jones and Melody Anderson, the rest of the wonderful cast (Brian Blessed! Max von Sydow! Topol!), other versions of the story (don't miss the Filmation cartoon), and just why we've been so obsessed with it all for forty years. (A certain talking teddy bear seems to be a fan too.) Whether you're a longtime Flash Gordon fan or a new one (like Kornflake), please enjoy our silly little show, and check out the movie too. It will save every one of us. A bunch more extra Flopcast episodes (as well as Earth Station DCU Classics, ESO Board Silly, and lots more) can be found at the ESO Network Patreon! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 4 September 2022
It's DragonCon weekend! So while we're flopping around our favorite convention, please enjoy the return of Movies With the Mayor! This time Kevin and the Mayor of Chickentown are watching and discussing the 1987 made-for-TV movie The Spirit! It's based on Will Eisner's classic Golden Age comic book character, and it stars Sam J. Jones (Flash Gordon!) and Nana Visitor (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine!)... and since Sam is a guest at DragonCon this year, we just had to check it out. Is there a secret headquarters in a cemetery, a femme fatale in a hot tub, a kid selling stolen Whitney Houston records, and a finale involving topless Flash Gordon and a giant cake? Come on, what do you think? It's magnificent. Kornflake is here too with National Whatever Day, celebrating a certain 80s Heather who starred in The Fall Guy and Zapped! Next week: Our DragonCon review. If we survive. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 28 August 2022
With DragonCon just days away, here is your guide to finding Team Flopcast at the convention! Kevin will be absurdly busy as usual (that's how we like it), appearing on panels and presentations about old stuff (1978's Dr. Strange, 1979's Legends of the Superheroes), new stuff (the sci-fi comedy series Upload, and the reboots of Cowboy Bebop and Lost in Space), podcasting, and more. Kevin also has the honor of hosting Flash Gordon stars Sam J. Jones and Melody Anderson for a series of Q&A panels all weekend! (We're so excited that we might start screaming like in the Queen theme song.) Meanwhile The Mayor of Chickentown has a panel on the compelling (and disturbing) new series Severance, and... could Kornflake be participating in DragonCon this year too? Oh my. So find us in Atlanta! We have new badge ribbons for you, and they're completely ridiculous, of course. Also: Happy Birthday to Deborah Van Valkenburgh! Deborah starred in The Warriors, Streets of Fire, AND Too Close For Comfort, which probably makes her the most important human who has ever existed. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Sun, 21 August 2022
Laverne & Shirley actress Cindy Williams turns 75 this week, which inspired Kornflake to surprise Kevin with a Laverne & Shirley pop quiz! (This is why the kids love The Flopcast.) Can Kevin identify quotes from various characters, despite not having seen the show in literally decades? And is there a bonus round dedicated to our favorite weirdos, Lenny and Squiggy? Let's find out, as we revisit those wacky 1950s Milwaukee girls at the Shotz brewery and the Pizzabowl, before they pack up and move to Hollywood along with everyone they ever met. Also: Kornflake rides the Boston Harbor booze bike. She's gonna make our dreams come true, for me and you. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 14 August 2022
We're getting ready for DragonCon, the biggest craziest nerdfest of the year! It's so big that it's divided into dozens of separate programming tracks, and we're going through the whole track list. Including: Kevin's favorites (American Sci-Fi Classics! American Sci-Fi and Fantasy Media!), Kornflake's favorites (Brit Track! Kids Track!), and everyone's favorites (PUPPETRY!). We also take a quick peek at the guest list, which just happens to include the saviors of the universe, Flash Gordon's Sam J. Jones and Melody Anderson! Also: Kornflake has crab whiskey, Kevin has stolen pizza, and Steve Carell has space chickens. More DragonCon talk is coming soon. Get ready, nerds. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 7 August 2022
It's a super-short super-silly summer show! Kevin is exhausted and weirdly terrified of movie trailers; Kornflake is baking and flopping on a hammock; it's Book Lovers Day, and our friends are writing too many really good books; we're preparing for DragonCon with School House Rock and Electra Woman face masks; and our Ranking the '80s random song game finally lands on a song that we like. So get on the yacht and let's go. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 31 July 2022
Over the years, there have been more comic book series based on TV shows than you'd think. Back in the 60s, if your newsstand was sold out of Batman comics, you could still read My Favorite Martian or Petticoat Junction comics, you lucky kid. This week we're diving into the weird world of television-based comics, using the new book American TV Comic Books as our guide. And yes, we made a dumb game out of it. Kornflake is guessing which TV shows were also comic books (The Flying Nun? Welcome Back, Kotter? Laverne and Shirley?), and her competition is the random flip of a shiny Rhode Island state quarter. Listen as these grizzled warriors face off on a battlefield of sitcom reruns and obscure old funnybooks. Only one shall survive. And our money is on the money. Kornflake is talking Barenaked Ladies on Earth Station One! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 24 July 2022
Taylor Dayne is still telling it to our hearts; Maya Rudolph is a Rental; West Virginia is overrun by surfing chickens; and thanks to the DragonCon American Sci-Fi Classics Track, Mork and Mindy are now soldiers of fortune. It's a short show, but it's a goofy show. Enjoy. We last discussed Taylor Dayne three years ago in episode 361! What If Gilligan Met Gomez? Classic TV Mash-Ups! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 17 July 2022
It's the middle of stupid summer, so here in Chickentown, it's time for more hot robot talk. But we've turned our annual robot-themed Top 4 1/2 List over to a special guest: it's Chris, creator of the wonderful show Sci-Fi Explosion! (Having someone else make the robot list just means more nap time for us. Why didn't we think of this years ago?) Chris has assembled a crazy fun list of favorite pop culture robots, including robots from Buck Rogers (but not the one you're thinking of), Logan's Run (a robot that collects frozen naked people, just like in your dreams), Canadian PSAs (a favorite topic of ours, of course), and more. And if you think Chris got out of here without discussing the sci-fi triumph that is the Billy Ocean "Loverboy" video, you don't really know us at all. Also: Happy Birthday to Don Henley. If you've never experienced a weird robot list before, this is the end of the innocence. Our special guest is Chris of Sci-Fi Explosion! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Sun, 10 July 2022
We're talking about the goofy MTV game show Remote Control, because recently we got to play it! Not the MTV version, but the (also goofy) home game version! We played Remote Control live online with our pals at the DragonCon American Sci-Fi Classics Track, and you can watch the whole crazy thing on YouTube. Meanwhile we're looking back at the original show, live from Ken Ober's basement, with Marisol, Kari, pre-SNL Colin Quinn, pre-SNL Adam Sandler, and even an occasional appearance by Weird Al. Brush up on your Brady Physics and join us. Also: More Electra Woman and Dyna Girl talk on The Batcave Podcast, and a National Whatever Day/Trapped in the House combo game that's beyond human comprehension. Kevin and Kornflake playing Remote Control with the American Sci-Fi Classics Track! Our latest Electra Woman review on The Batcave Podcast! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 3 July 2022
One more concert report, this time on a fine evening of synthpop and rock from Freezepop, Carissa Johnson, The Daylilies, and Telelectrix! (We were lurking in the corner, hiding behind a Sleestak mask, but we were there.) And the rest of the episode is also quite musical, including: Happy Birthday to Joan Osborne, Kornflake's weird recipes for Bananarama (and Shakespears Sister) pancakes, another losing round of our Ranking the '80s game, and our exciting new business venture. (We're gonna sell John Denver-themed car air fresheners. Don't tell anyone. We thought of it first.) And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 26 June 2022
It's another concert report, because legendary Australian band Midnight Oil came to Boston. Find out if their beds are still burning, if frontman Peter Garrett is still very tall and very bald, and why we expected to be crushed by an anvil during the show. Also: Happy Birthday to Blues Brother/Conehead/vodka enthusiast Dan Aykroyd, Grape Ape talk with Kornflake and the American Sci-Fi Classics Track, and how to tell if Ally Sheedy is really in Boston. Meanwhile, this is Midnight Oil's final tour, and we'll miss them... but we'll always have Air Supply. Funshine Saturday - Saturday Morning Cartoons of 1976! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 19 June 2022
We have a special concert report this week, because the pioneering German electropop band Kraftwerk came to Boston! Kevin was there, wearing official Kraftwerk 3-D glasses, because this was not a normal show. We also recall the time Kornflake saw a very different German act in Boston many years ago. (We wish we could say it wasn't Lou Bega, but it was TOTALLY LOU BEGA.) Also: We check out that new Ally Sheedy show Single Drunk Female, National Whatever Day is all about Brian Wilson (he's a Beach Boy, not a Barenaked Lady), and a round of Pudding Pages about large TV families leads to some disturbing Smurf talk. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 12 June 2022
We just noticed that 1997 was a quarter century ago, so we thought we'd celebrate with a FlopFight tournament of 1997 pop songs. (It's not quite an official FlopFight; we've relaxed the rules a bit, because we're sleepy.) The competing songs are a mix of pure pop (Spice Girls, Hanson), alt-rock (Cranberries, Third Eye Blind), Lilith ladies (Sheryl Crow, Paula Cole), and crazy goofy weird stuff (get ready for some "Barbie Girl"). Kevin is randomly drawing the contestants, and Kornflake is picking the winners. This won't end well, but neither did the 90s. Also: In honor of a certain Brat Packer's birthday, we're comparing Sheedy notes. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 5 June 2022
Inspired by our friend Jon Sloan's comic book series Jim & Celeste, we have a Top 4 1/2 List of movies to watch while stranded on an island. The catch is that the movies must be from 1975-1985. Which should be fine, because that's when all the good stuff happened. But we still manage to make some terrible choices. (How many blaxsploitation, vansploitation, car wash, and Gary Coleman movies would you pack for a three hour tour? Probably not as many as us. Although speaking of Gilligan's Island, two of our picks do star Jim Backus. Oops.) Also: We wish a Happy Birthday to a Jedi, and we're sleepy. As usual. Cartoonist Jon Sloan brings you webcomics The Do-Jahng and Jim & Celeste! The Earth Station One podcast: All About Streming! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 29 May 2022
While Kevin relaxes in the background making sarcastic comments, Kornflake presents a Top 4 1/2 List of weird superheroes! Including: a rejected Legionnaire (even goofier than Chlorophyll Kid), a Perhapanaut, a Mystery Man, an Aquabat, and more. Along the way Kevin chimes in with Captains Carrot and Marvel (Split!), as well as Turnipman (a hero so obscure he was invented by us). Not weird enough for you? Well, it's also Global Running Day, and Kornflake is running through the ocean. Aquaman is not amused. Kevin and John are back discussing Electra Woman and Dyna Girl on the Batcave Podcast! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 22 May 2022
Kevin and Kornflake have concert reports from two different "Weird Al" Yankovic concerts! (That's right, we actually left the house. Still a rare event these days...) This is Weird Al's Ridiculously Self-Indulgent Ill-Advised Vanity Tour, with a constantly changing set list of obscure album tracks, so we saw two very different shows. Included in our reports: The remarkable Emo Phillips opens the show by making fun of a Flopcast guest; Weird Al has his own brand of coffee (and so does Green Day); Kornflake has her own row of seats, plus the best parking space in New Hampshire; Kevin once bought a velvet Elvis painting; drummer Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz impersonates Amanda Palmer; and Weird Al covers Little Richard and The Doobie Brothers, just like in your dreams. Also this week: Happy Birthday to a soap opera star who also appeared in Weird Al's movie UHF, Kornflake teaches water aerobics to a dog, and Kevin stops toasting marshmallows and breaks into a stranger's house instead. It's Decade Two of The Flopcast. Get comfortable. This will take about ten years. And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Mon, 16 May 2022
It's our big silly tenth anniversary show! Yes, we have released a Flopcast episode every week for TEN YEARS. (Also, yes, we're sleepy, and yes, we're completely out of ideas. But here we are.) And we're celebrating with a special tenth anniversary FlopFight! Kornflake provided the contestants, and it's a bizarre randomized assortment of characters from sitcoms, movies, cartoons, and more. The competitions are equally ridiculous, involving jug bands, ant farms, and an Etch A Sketch. The results will shock you! Unless you've been listening all these years. Then it's pretty much what you'd expect. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 8 May 2022
After a too-long break from the show, the Mayor of Chickentown is back as our special guest co-host! (It's more court-ordered community service, we assume.) We start with a look at the recently-announced 2022 inductees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. (We're happy about Lionel, Dolly, Pat Benatar, and all those Durans. On the other hand, still no 38 Special, but we can dream...) Then Kevin reports on this year's Watch City Steampunk Festival, where amongst all the geared and goggled humans, we found old friends Jessica, Sergio, and Panda! (Jessica gave a stunning performance as festival queen, she and Sergio are working on new music with their metal band Anaria, and Panda is actually Draculina in the comic books now. Our friends are pretty ridiculously amazing.) Kevin also picked up some weird old paperback books, including Mad books by Al Jaffee and novels based on Leave It to Beaver and The Brady Bunch. (Just try to keep us away from a Brady book. We'd read one about Fake Jan alone.) Also: A surprise caller on the Flopcast Hotline! (You'll probably recognize the voice.) Next week: Our tenth anniverary episode. Do not get excited. A correction from this episode: Kevin gave the wrong name for that excellent comic book shop in Waltham, Massachusetts! It is actually The Outer Limits! Sorry about that! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 1 May 2022
Kevin is being watched by enemy birds; Green Day coffee is on the way; Hit Parade celebrates five years of podcasting (with a quote from the Mayor of Chickentown!); The Flopcast celebrates ten years of podcasting in a couple of weeks (but we don't know what we're doing); we lightning-round through a bunch of TV talk (about Atypical, Picard, Derry Girls, Stranger Things, Girls5eva, Russian Doll, Umbrella Academy, Bridgerton, Is It Cake?, Vegetable Soup, The Monkees, This Is Us, Taskmaster, and especially Diff'rent Strokes); and things get weirdly musical when Kornflake breaks out... the Orba. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 24 April 2022
One again we've let the Chickentown Studios Supercomputer randomly determine our discussion topics, which means we're talking about "Talking Out of Turn" (an obscure 1980s single from a classic rock band), Action Jackson (the 1988 movie sadly not based on the Mego action figure line), The Young Rebels (a 1970s Revolutionary War-era TV series with Louis Gossett Jr.), and The Young Riders (a 1980s western TV series totally not inspired by Young Guns). Also: Classic rock keyboardist Chuck Leavell has a birthday, and Kornflake rides the prog rock school bus. And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 17 April 2022
It's a Chickens in the News follow-up report! We're revisiting the rogue hen that tried to break into the Pentagon a few weeks back, but now we have the official incident report to examine. (Has the Freedom of Information Act ever been put to better use?) And we've unearthed some startling new details, which may or may not involve a parking lot salad bar. Also: Kornflake is reading about a lost dog, Kevin is reading about Dazed and Confused, Ricardo Montalbán is reading to the children, comic book creators are stealing Kornflake's dreams, and there's a surprising connection between rare insect species and the stars of Baywatch. Just a typical Saturday morning here in Chickentown. The 42cast - Bill and Ted Panel with the Mayor! Earth Station One - more comic book trivia, and Fred Hembeck! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 10 April 2022
Special guest Blasted Bill is still here, and our favorite vehicles from 1980s pop culture are still doing battle in our latest FlopFight tournament. Some major players were knocked out last week (farewell, A-Team van) as Airwolf flew straight into the finals. Can anything stop that high-tech TV helicopter? The train from Silver Spoons and the station wagon from Nation Lampoon's Vacation are sure gonna try. Surprise upsets and random moments of silliness are guaranteed. Also: Happy Birthday to legendary voice actor Billy West! If the Red M&M were a 1980s vehicle, Billy would easily win the FlopFight. See Blasted Bill at Penguicon in Southfield, Michigan, April 22-24! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 3 April 2022
Our old pal Blasted Bill returns, and Bill is here for a FlopFight! The subject is 1980s vehicles, so your favorite cars, trucks, vans, and bikes from 80s movies and TV shall do battle. (Mr. T has the van. And if Jan Michael Vincent brings the helicopter, Hasselhoff will supply the talking car.) And it's a FlopFight, so the battles will be weird. (Which vehicle would make the superior birdwatcher? Let's discuss.) Also: Happy Birthday to Billy Dee Williams! Time to party on Cloud City. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 27 March 2022
It's just more random silliness, just for you. We imagine a world in which Kornflake is in control (it'll be all Howard Jones concerts, all the time), and Kevin recalls racing a turkey through the mean streets of Chickentown (the turkey won, of course). Then our supercomputer forces us to discuss Capitol Critters (the short-lived cartoon series with Doogie Howser as a field mouse in Washington DC), Arcade (a Tron-like movie starring Q from Star Trek and Ralphie from A Christmas Story - how did we miss this?), and another mystery pop song from the 1980s. Can you guess the song before Kornflake? Probably. The DragonCon American Sci-Fi Classics Track's "Novelization Readings" panel, including Tron! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 20 March 2022
Another quick random show, including: Happy Birthday to Matthew Broderick (star of Ladyhawke) and Elton John (star of the "Nikita" music video); Kevin has a pile of 80s movie promo buttons ("Free Johnny Dangerously!"); Gloria Estefan is a cat; Madonna is not a mermaid; the American Sci-Fi Classics Track hosts another Battle of the Fictional Bands (former champion Dr. Teeth was excused this time); they're rolling D&D dice on But First, Let's Talk Nerdy; and of course, we're celebrating Pi Day. With pie. Battle of the Fictional Bands 2022! But First, Let's Talk Nerdy - the Dungeons & Dragons edition! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 13 March 2022
Time for a hugely important correction: Last week we got a couple of obscure Julian Lennon videos mixed up. (The "we" means Kevin. Kornflake was innocent this time...) But it's an excuse to revisit the wonderfully ridiculous "Stick Around" video, featuring cameos by stars from Square Pegs, Family Ties, The Karate Kid, and Saturday Night Live. Then we look at the week that "Stick Around" peaked on the pop chart in May 1986. Julian only reached number 32, while Flopcast favorites like The Outfield, OMD, Whitney, and Janet had top ten hits. If you managed to look away from MTV that Saturday night, your options included Gimme a Break, The Facts of Life... and the 1986 Miss Hollywood beauty pageant. (We checked - the whole thing is on YouTube, and it's hosted by Alan Thicke. You know what to do.) Meanwhile the Brat Pack continued to dominate the big screen, with Ally Sheedy starring in two of the top four movies. (Johnny 5? Yeah, he's still alive.) So pop in a Pet Shop Boys cassette and flop back 36 years with us. Also: World Frog Day is this week. Celebrate by hopping into traffic. Julian Lennon's goofy fun "Stick Around" video (watch for Jami, Joe, and Michael)... And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 6 March 2022
This week we let the Chickentown Studios supercomputer randomly determine our discussion topics. (Does this mean we're completely out of ideas? Oh, that happened six or seven years ago...) The result is an even weirder show than usual. Including: The 40th anniversary of Pac-Man Fever; songwriter Carole Bayer Sager's tribute to Mac and Me; Julian Lennon music videos (Correction: Kevin confused "Say You're Wrong" with "Stick Around"); how Wayne and Garth inspired Kornflake to pierce her ears; a 1980s sitcom Kornflake does not remember but hates anyway; Michael J. Fox's stunt double; Sheena's sugar walls; and oh yeah, a mystery date with a bowling chicken. Clearly our little experiment was a huge success, and humans should not be in charge of podcasts anymore. Eclectic Lee brings you 52 Weeks of Pac-Man Fever! (Also on Twitter!) And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Sun, 27 February 2022
It's a Tuesday spectacular! This episode was recorded on Tuesday, 2/22/22, so we're looking at the 2nd, 22nd, 222nd, and 2222nd biggest 1980s pop songs, according to the amazing book Ranking the '80s. You'd better believe Billy Ocean is involved, and he's gonna get out of our dreams and into our podcast. Also: A chicken tried to break into the Pentagon; Insane Ian is on HBO; Kevin is on Pop Culture Cosmos (discussing the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame), Earth Station One (discussing comic book trivia), ESO Board Silly (discussing the Olympics), and Earth Station DCU Classics (discussing Beppo the Super Monkey); and Happy Birthday to Jennifer Warnes, queen of the 80s pop duets. Yes, we swear it's the truth, and we owe it all to Jennifer. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Talk on Pop Culture Cosmos! Comic book trivia on Earth Station One! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Sun, 20 February 2022
Another weird mix of stuff from our latest Saturday morning recording session (for which we keep forgetting the Cocoa Puffs): For National Whatever Day we're celebrating a forgotten 1920s silent movie (and also guys named Mike); a box of wine was shipped to the studio from Washington state (or possibly Mars); Kornflake witnesses the miraculous birth of a shrimp; a miraculous newborn shrimp receives an inappropriate name; we zip through a lightning round of TV talk (covering Derry Girls, Bridgerton, The Book of Boba Fett, Peacemaker, Pen15, and Norwegian game shows); and Kornflake is back on Twitter for an online concert by Jim's Big Ego. Now enjoy, while we spend the rest of our Saturday flopping around doing nothing. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 13 February 2022
Just a weird mix of stuff this time: Kornflake learns that a former New England Patriots quarterback (no, not that one) is now in the wine business, and takes appropriate action; a giant Asian sea eagle has been hanging around Massachusetts, and we're trying to lure it to Chickentown Studios for an interview; Kornflake recommends a new webcomic about high school kids in the 80s (of course); and our friends at Rubber Chicken Comics brought an amazing 1974 anti-smoking PSA to our attention, and suddenly it's all we care about. (It's connected to Happy Days AND The Brady Bunch, so, you know...) Here it is, the bizarre 1974 PSA "Let's Call It Quits"... Kornflake's favorite new webcomic is Jim & Celeste! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Sun, 6 February 2022
It's a quick but fun show this week, as we review this year's nominees for induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Now if it were up to us, the list would include The Monkees, Weird Al, Men Without Hats, Martika, and The New Monkees. (There's a reason no one trusts us with anything.) But the actual list isn't bad! Some of our favorites from the 80s have been nominated again (come on, Pat Benatar and Devo). Dionne Warwick is back on the list too, because that's what psychic friends are for. Dolly Parton is a surprise first time nominee, and we certainly approve. (Why, we pour ourselves a cup of ambition here every week.) But we're probably most excited about Lionel Richie. Get off the floor, get on the ceiling, and let's do this. Hello. It's Lionel we're looking for. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net |
Sun, 30 January 2022
We love Canada, and we love goofy public service announcements, so Kornflake has rounded up a bunch of Canadian PSAs to watch and discuss. And while nothing can replace Schoolhouse Rock and Robolar from Mars in our hearts, these videos (mostly from the 80s, of course) are pretty fantastic. They include: anti-smoking cartoon aliens, puppet geese in hot air balloons, puppet mice with a giant mousetrap, Canadian pop stars and hockey players, a freaky bear from space, a mystery in the woods, a beheaded kid (don't worry, he's fine), a depressed television, an angry furnace, an amputated robot (also fine), and an astonishing "Drugs, Drugs, Drugs" conga line. Links to all these weird and wonderful PSAs are in the show notes, so we can all play along together. We might even learn a valuable lesson or two. But probably not. Here you go, all the Canadian PSAs discussed in the show... Canadian geese in hot air balloons... Crazed anti-smoking bear with a rock band... TV that doesn't want you to watch TV... Canadian pop star Luba wants you to break free... Drugs, Drugs, Drugs conga line... Puppet mice and giant mousetrap... Something will happen to you in the woods. We just don't know what... Boating safety - just pretend you're on the water... Beware the freaky singing furnace in your basement... Puppets shouldn't put things in their puppet mouths... 1970s appliances are very angry about hot water... And the return of Astar, the frequently amputated robot... And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Sun, 23 January 2022
Our first Top 4 1/2 List of the year was perhaps inspired by how crazy cold it's been here in Chickentown. The topic is... ice. We have some ice-themed 80s music (remember Australian band Icehouse?), some Karate Kid ice-breaking action, several ice-powered superheroes (from Marvel, DC, and even Pixar), and a bunch more icy oddities. So stay inside and enjoy. Have some coffee. But not iced coffee, unless you're as weird as Kornflake. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Sun, 16 January 2022
Way too cold to leave the house, so today we're just flipping through another old issue of Dynamite, that classic magazine for kids of the 70s and 80s. (You could get Dynamite through the school book club or by subscription, so either your teacher or your mailman would know you're a huge nerd.) This issue is from 1981, and features an exclusive interview with Rick Springfield! (Rick is on the cover AND on a giant fold-out poster. Somebody's bedroom wall just got a lot dreamier.) Also inside: a Dark Crystal sneak preview, Brooke Shields and her Calvins, useless video game tips (your Gorf score is not likely to improve), the DynaMates pen pal service (surely a disaster in the making), more Dynamite Bummers (as lame as ever), a horse raffle (?), and a horrifying recipe for a rolled-up white bread pizza abomination. There, we read the whole thing for you, probably saving you 75 cents. Go buy a Twinkie or something. Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
Sun, 9 January 2022
Let's wrap up our annual two-part memorial show by getting through a long list of everyone we lost in the second half of 2021. From television, we have stars from The Andy Griffith Show, Night Court, Quantum Leap, Newhart... and a couple more (!) from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. From the world of music, we have members of ZZ Top and Kool & The Gang, rapper Biz Markie, a Rolling Stone, an Everly Brother... and yeah, a Monkee. And on and on it goes... there's the founder of Hands Across America... the voices behind Charlie in the Box and Billina the talking chicken... the writer of "I'm Just a Bill"... the Big Ragoo from Laverne and Shirley... the forgotten older brother from Happy Days... the World Wrestling Federation's Mr. Wonderful... and many more, including a certain beloved goddess from Saturday morning TV. Once again we recommend listening with a beverage close at hand. Kevin is sticking with coffee, while Kornflake has switched to the hard stuff. Because that's what Betty White would have wanted. Links: Speaking of Betty White, one of Kornflake's favorite animal rescue organizations is Almost Home Rescue - throw them a few bucks! And our regular links... Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promo: |
Sun, 2 January 2022
As usual we're kicking off the new year by looking back on everyone we lost in the old year. This week's show covers the first half of 2021, with many of our favorites from the world of pop culture and beyond. Including: The voice of Hermey the Elf, the designer of our all-time favorite Muppets (Yipyipyipyipyip), two of the stars of Midnight Run, two Saturday morning TV genies (Jambi and Weenie), a Supreme, a Bay City Roller, one of the greatest songwriters in rock history, the man inside Twiki the Buck Rogers robot... and Herb from WKRP. And of course, hitting especially close to home here at The Flopcast, we have a couple of stars from The Mary Tyler Moore Show, although we knew them better from later projects: Gavin MacLeod (The Love Boat's Captain Stubing) and Cloris Leachman (The Facts of Life, School House Rock, and everything else). Next week we'll wrap this up with Part 2. But for now, grab a beverage and join us. (Kevin has coffee and Kornflake has tea, but something a bit stronger would be appropriate too...) Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation! This week's promos: |
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