For over a decade, The Retroist Podcast has taken a nostalgic look back at the last 40+ years of retro themed pop culture. The show attempts to connect or reco...
Like most people, I grew up in my own bubble filled with things that me, my family and friends enjoyed together. It didn’t even occur to me that the rest of the world didn’t love UHF. It was very high on my re-watch for at least a year and was very quotable.
I begin the episode talking about what my friends and I took away from our first viewing, Twinkie Dogs! We decided to try it and the results were mixed. I later learned that Weird Al had a similar problem with the Twinkie Dogs. Having to take bites out of too many during shooting was just too much. Also, if you watch closely, he dips the dog in milk. We didn’t do that. After my story, I move onto the film itself. I discuss the plot, its production, the stars of the film, music, its reception and much more.
Weird Al is very funny and he brings his brand of comedy to the big screen and sadly America wasn’t ready for it. I think comedy has evolved over time and maybe the disjointed silliness would be more welcome today? I hope so. This is a film I would like to catch on and be considered something more than a cult classic. So if you haven’t seen UHF, please give it a chance.
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37:30
Retroist Podcast Episode 333 (Burger Chef)
When I say Burger Chef to most people, they might recognize the name from its appearance on Mad Men, but most people haven’t heard of. This, despite it being the second largest fast food chain in the United States by 1973. Its rise was dramatic, its fall, sad. On this episode of the show, I want to talk to you about this wonderful fast food restaurant.
I start the show talking about my childhood visits to the chain. They were all solo trips with my mom and I loved all of them. The place had character and tasty food, plus they had some great options for kids. All things I will talk about during the show. After my story I move on to the chain itself, I talk about its connection to Burger King, its growth, franchising, innovations, sale to General Foods and its decline.
My mom lamented the loss of this chain. She was convinced it was a higher quality offering than other chain. It just goes to show that a lot can go wrong when managing a fast food chain and that it can be difficult to recover when things go wrong.
Starting in the early eighties, they start converting Burger Chefs, mostly to Hardees. Bu the memory of BC lingered and Hardees has re-released the Big Shef a few times. Its been a decade since they release it last and I don’t see it happening again. I think that is a good indicator of people’s interest in the chain. My hope is that by talking about Burger Chef, I can inspire a few people to remember or seek out more info about it.
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27:07
Retroist Podcast Episode 332 (Santa Claus the Movie)
The hype around Santa Claus the Movie put it at the top of my must-see list in 1985. My family were big Dudley Moore fans and McDonald’s was pushing it with a Happy Meal tie-in. So we drove a few towns over to see it the weekend it opened. It was a great movie-going experience with a very well-decorated theater and an appearance by Santa Claus. I was convinced this was going to be a huge hit, but unfortunately it wasn’t in the United States (the people in the UK were more impressed).
I start the episode talking about when my family went to see the movie and how disruptive Santa’s appearance was there. How could you expect a kid to concentrate on on anything when Santa was around? Then I move on the film itself. I discuss the plot, its production, the stars of the film, its reception and much more.
There is a lot of Christmas movies and specials you can watch, but I wanted to talk about Santa Claus the Movie because it is often overlooked. In the United States it doesn’t get a lot of replays. No 24 hour marathon. Nothing. It might not be, A Christmas Store, but I think as a holiday film its charming and deserves to be remembered.
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34:03
Retroist Podcast Episode 331 (Three O'Clock High)
I remember seeing the trailer for Three O'Clock High and then seeing the ad in the newspaper. Luckily my best friend and I went to see it the week it opened because it wasn’t in the theater very long. For years afterwards we would try and champion the film and when we would convince people to watch it, they almost all walked away as a fan. So I am hoping to convince you to watch it by talking about it in a podcast. This episode does have some spoilers, but the movie is still great if you know the ending. Still, it might be a good idea to watch it first.
I start the episode talking about one of my many brushes with bullies over the years. This one was a little bit more interesting in retrospect, but maybe not too uncommon? Then I move on the film itself. I discuss the plot, its production, the stars of the film, its reception and much more.
This film was popular at the video store as a rental, mostly because everyone at the store would champion it. I personally rented it multiple times and was pretty excited when I finally got my own copy.
If you like the movie or some other movie that you don’t think people know about or watch enough, I encourage you to try and champion it. My suggestion? Buy them a copy of the film on some sort of physical media. Even if they don’t have the means to play it, it will act as a visible reminder that you will constantly hound them until they do.
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33:27
Retroist Podcast Episode 330 (Planes, Trains, and Automobiles Revisited)
In 1987, what is arguably the best Thanksgiving movie ever made, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles hit theaters. Like many people who saw it, I instantly fell in love with it and over the years I have watched maybe over a hundred times. Its a heartfelt comedy, that isn’t afraid to go over the top with humor (or its language). So I am very happy to be able cover it on this newest episode of the Retroist Podcast.
I start the episode talking about my brush with being the class clown and how that tied into the film. Learning you don’t have what it takes to be the funny one in class is a tough lesson, but one I needed to learn. Then I move on the film itself. I discuss the plot, its production, the stars of the film, its reception and much more.
For all the years I worked in the video store, this was one film you could count on people renting or buying during the last two months of the year. Even if they weren’t, we only needed to put it on the in-store tv to get people interested. Despite this forced watching, I never grew tired of this film. These characters, especially Candy’s is just so endearing, its just nice to have them around, even in the background.
This is a revisiting of an episode I did back in 2010. Its one that people have mentioned they might like to hear me redo. Its a bit longer than the original, so I hope you like how it turned out.
For over a decade, The Retroist Podcast has taken a nostalgic look back at the last 40+ years of retro themed pop culture. The show attempts to connect or reconnect you to things from your past through storytelling and discussion of compelling milestones and forgotten tidbits of pop culture.
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