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The Waves: A Very Waves Reunion Dec 23, 2021

Show notes

On this week’s episode of The Waves, it’s a very special reunion episode. Original hosts of The Waves, June Thomas, Noreen Malone, and Hanna Rosin gather together to catch up on everything that’s happened since their last episode in July 2019. They talk about topics they wish they could have covered, how the workforce has changed for women, bits of culture they’ve loved over the last couple of years, and how hosting The Waves made them more interesting people.

In Slate Plus: Are the holidays sexist?

Recommendations:

June: Showtime’s Yellowjackets

Noreen: Hulu’s series Only Murders in the Building

Hanna: The Electricity of Every Living Thing, by Katherine May, and The Great British Baking Show

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth with editorial oversight by Susan Matthews and June Thomas.

Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to thewaves@slate.com

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Decoder Ring: Custer's Revenge Dec 23, 2021

Show notes

Custer's Revenge is widely considered one of the worst video games ever made. Originally released as part of a series of Swedish Erotica-branded adult games for the Atari 2600, Custer's Revenge involves moving a pixelated General Custer across the screen to rape an Indigenous woman tied to a post. It's unfathomably racist, sexist, and un-fun to play. Today on Decoder Ring we tell the story of how Custer's Revenge came to be, the people who protested it, and the even stranger story of how the whole thing became a considered trolling operation. This is the final episode of our current season, but we'll be back in 2022.

If you love the show and want to support us, consider joining Slate Plus. With Slate Plus you can get ad free podcasts, bonus episodes, and much more.

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Outward: Jingle All the Gay Dec 23, 2021

Show notes

Christina and Bryan discuss the finer points of new queer Christmas movies—like, how realistic is Netflix’s Single All The Way?—and why that harness joke in Lifetime’s Under The Christmas Tree was so jarring. We’re also joined by some special guests who share Prides and Provocations from the past year and explore Premonitions for 2022. We close the year with bell hooks and trans triumphs in the Gay Agenda.

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ICYMI: The Fall of Neopets Dec 22, 2021

Show notes

Neopets, a kid-friendly site from the early 2000s that let users raise digital pets and play games with them, has fallen far from its peak popularity. The nostalgic luster of it also seems to be fading, following the site’s recent failed attempt at Neopet NFTs—not to mention its years-old, mostly broken user interface. On today’s show, Madison and Allegra look back at the happier times of Neopia past, discussing their early experiences on the site and exactly how it’s grown, or not, with the times. Then they interview concept artist Claire Hummel about her teenage years interning at the site, the creative freedom the staff used to have, and why nobody could ever get enough Neopoints to buy all those cool items.

Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Derek John.

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Culture Gabfest: I Love Brucy Dec 22, 2021

Show notes

This week, the panel discusses Aaron Sorkin’s Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz biopic, Being the Ricardos. Next, the panel is joined by contributing writer for the New York Times, Jody Rosen, to make sense of Bruce Springsteen’s latest deal and the confusing world of music rights today. Finally, the panel is joined by Slate’s book critic Laura Miller to discuss her list of the best books (and audiobooks!) of 2021.

In Slate Plus, the panel continues the discussion of music rights and how Taylor Swift changed the game with her re-recordings.

Email us at culturefest@slate.com.

Endorsements

Dana: A video of a series of pianistBill Evans’s live performances over 11 years titled, Bill Evans Live ‘64 ‘75.

Julia: The 2004 film Cellular which stars Chris Evans, Kim Bassinger, Jason Statham, William H. Macy, Jessica Biel, and more.

Steve: A follow-up to the 8 hours of Get Back, one of the greatest works of cultural criticism: Revolution in the Head: The Beatles’ Records and the Sixtiesby Ian MacDonald. Also: Sufjan Stevens’s Christmas catalog, Songs for Christmas.

Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Nadira Goffe.

Outro music is "What Do You Want From Me" by OTE

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Working: How a Museum Curator Decides Which Objects to Put on Display Dec 19, 2021

Show notes

This week, host June Thomas talks to Debra Schmidt Bach, a curator of the New-York Historical Society’s new exhibition, " ‘Turn Every Page’: Inside the Robert A. Caro Archive.” They discuss the art of selecting objects that visitors will respond to; how objects like notebooks and a typewriter showcase Caro’s idiosyncratic writing process; and the particular challenges of maintaining an exhibition that features lots of pieces of paper, a material that needs to rest so that it can be preserved.

After the interview, June and co-host Karen Han discuss what kind of museum visitors they are, the art of winnowing, and how they find projects that will sustain their interest.

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Schmidt Bach reveals her strategy for overcoming “curator’s block” and shares what she learned from working on the Caro exhibition.

Send your questions about creativity and any other feedback to working@slate.com or give us a call at (304) 933-9675.

Podcast production by Kevin Bendis and Cameron Drews.

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ICYMI: Nancy Reagan, Blow Job Queen? Dec 18, 2021

Show notes

This past week, Nancy Reagan trended for her alleged oral talents, and an orange cat named Jorts kept locking himself in a closet. On today’s episode, High Speed Downloads are back. Rachelle and Madison each deliver some rapid-fire information about Nancy Reagan’s blow job skills and why everyone is obsessed with Jorts the cat—and the woman who keeps slathering him in margarine. Then they speak to Kate Lindsay of the Embedded newsletter about how she got started with that project and her advice for healthy online living.

Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Derek John.

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Hit Parade: Chestnut Roasters, Part 1 Dec 18, 2021

Show notes

Bing. Nat. Dean. John and Paul. Darlene. Mariah. Ariana. Musicians so famous, with so many classic hits, you don’t even need their last names. Now here are a few more, with fewer hits: Vince Guaraldi. José Feliciano. Donny Hathaway. The Waitresses. What do all of these acts have in common? Years from now, each of them may be known primarily for a single holiday chestnut. In fact, in the streaming era, some of them already are consumed largely in December.

In this holiday episode of Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy dives deep into radio, streaming and Billboard chart data to compare these acts’ long hitmaking histories to the majority-merry ways they are consumed today. And none has been more condensed by Christmas than another artist who was once famous enough to go by her first name: Brenda. A ’60s chart dominator and double–Hall of Famer, Brenda Lee is now mostly known for that tune about Christmas tree rockin’. How did the legendary “Little Miss Dynamite” become Santa’s little helper? And will she ever pass Mariah and go back to No. 1?

Podcast production by Asha Saluja.

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A Word: Black and Missing: Finding Our Own Dec 17, 2021

Show notes

It’s already a devastating situation when a loved one goes missing. And if you’re Black, you’ll likely have fewer resources and help to find your family member. On today’s episode of A Word, Jason Johnson is joined by Derrica Wilson. She’s the co-founder and CEO of the Black and Missing Foundation, the group that inspired the HBO documentary Black and Missing. They talk about the disparities in the way the media and police treat missing people of color, how that impacts the chances that people are found, and what the Black and Missing Foundation is doing to change the dynamics.

Guest: Derrica Wilson, Co-Founder, and CEO of the Black and Missing Foundation, Inc.

Podcast production by Jasmine Ellis

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ICYMI: One Year: The Spot Dec 15, 2021

Show notes

On today’s episode, Rachelle and Madison are excited to share an episode from One Year: 1995, a Slate podcast focused on telling a series of stories from 1995, ones which we may have forgotten or that merit reexamination. In “The Spot,” producer Evan Chung tells the story of what can be best described as the first internet soap opera.

“The Spot” follows a small group of creators who, through a series of interconnected blog posts, inspired one of the earliest instances of online fandom. It’s a story about online creativity, parasocial relationships, and how not everything on the internet lasts forever—the exact sort of story that we’d feature on ICYMI if we’d been making this podcast in 1995.

Find One Year: 1995 wherever you get you podcasts.

Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Derek John.

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