Gorilla Monsoon squares off against Muhammad Ali in 1976, prior to the Ali vs Inoki fight.
It’s our second WON HOF show of the week. We’re happy to have back on the show author and podcaster Brian R Solomon (@brianrsolomon) for another round of discussions about this year’s ballot. We cover a lot of the same topics as we did with Greg on the last show, including measuring tag teams in dog years, not voting for active competitors, judging someone’s entire career regardless of the category in which they are placed and comparisons to both Cooperstown and the Rock and Roll HOF.
We also to talk to Brian about his upcoming book next year on the legendary Gorilla Moonson and what surprised him most while researching the man, in his career, billed from both Manchuria and Cherry Hill, NJ. And since it’s almost Halloween, we also threw out a couple of film recommendations for the season, including Gothic, The Abominable Dr. Phibes and The Black Cat.
Be sure to check out Brian’s podcast Shut Up and Wrestle, especially if you love hearing about the Weston/Apter wrestling magazines, as well as Brian’s great ability to get wrestlers’ children on as guests, as they always have fascinating stories to tell.
Episode 134 - Yippy-Yo Yippy-Yeah
Oct 21, 2024
Michael Hayes blinds the Junkyard Dog with the Freebird Hair Cream in 1981.
It’s WON Hall of Fame season and this is the first of our shows examining this year’s candidates. We’re happy to welcome back Greg Klein (@jydbook) to discuss his advocacy of two people in particular, the Junkyard Dog and Houston promoter Morris Sigel. We go over both candidates in detail, including JYD’s drawing power in Mid-South and New Orleans in particular, his time as a main eventer versus his later career, the cultural implications of JYD’s push and his feuds, comparing him candicacy to Paul Orndorff, Sigel promoting Houston for 40+ years, the scope of the Texas wrestling office and how that compares to Roy Welch in the Southeast, wrestlers who got their break in Houston, the Texas Wrestling War and more.
We also go over the rest of the ballot discussing things like “should tag team longevity count in dog years,” lack of footage for pre-territory wrestlers, voting for still-active competitors on the ballot and comparing candidates to their baseball equivalents.
Be sure to check out Greg on some other wrestling podcasts this HOF season. The more discussions on worthy candidate, the better.
Episode 133 - Legend of a Mind
Aug 12, 2024
Kevin Sullivan, King Curtis Iaukea and Mark Lewin. Sullivan passed away on August 9 at age 74.
Before we start, an apology for no podcasts during or after the Tragos/Thesz Hall of Fame a few weeks ago. During the travel to the event, we had some weather-related issues at home that necessitated putting any recording plans on hold. But we are now back, although we were it were under better circumstances.
We’re very grateful to Mike Sempervive (@sempervive) to take some time to discuss the recent passing of the great Kevin Sullivan at age 74. There’s no rhyme nor reason for how we talk about the great man’s career: We go from Florida to Knoxville (all six more or times he worked there) to WCW to ICW to Hawaii and all points along the way. We discuss our favorite angles, try to place the Prince of Darkness gimmick in historical context, our favorite angles and promos, including The Dream Mike Davis, the Slaughterhouse, the Varsity Club, the third Head Hunter, the Sheik, Mark Lewin, King Curtis and so much more.
It’s great when Mike has time to fit us in. If we had him on more often, maybe the shows wouldn’t be as long, but the winding road takes us to where we want to be, in the end.
Episode 132 - Furious Anger
Jun 03, 2024
Come on, join our convoy. Praetorian Jack (Tom Burke) and Furiousa (AnnaTaylor-Joy) in Furiousa.(c) 2024 WB.
It’s movie time again, as we are again joined by Justin Jones (@xPrimusPilusx) to discuss Furiousa, the latest film in George Miller’s Mad Max series and the prequel to Fury Road focusing on the origin of the character played by Charlize Theron.
As you might imagine, it’s a spoiler-filled discussion of all aspects of the film,so if you’ve not seen it yet, you’ve been warned. We start with our overall thoughts and then break down the story beats, the characters, the acting, the practical stunts and everything else under the hot Australian desert sun.
There’s also some other movie chat, including the issues of presenting historical artifacts through contemporary mores, the sale of Criterion and should we worry about its future and a tease of a future episode detailing the great cinematic year that was 1999.
This episode was recorded on my phone immediately after seeing Furiousa, so we apologize for the dip in audio quality Also, to answer some questions asked in the episode, the actor who originally played Immortal Joe, Hugh Keays-Byrne, did pass away in 2020 and the role was played this time by Lachy Hulme, who also played Rizzdale Pell, Dementus’ chief lieutenant. And “the truck driver” was Praetorian Jack, played by Tom Burke.
Episode 131 - Old Lady McDuffie
Jun 01, 2024
Greg Klein returns to discuss the UWF Title Tournament, held in May 1986 in Houston, Texas.
Episode 130 - Some Jackets Required
Apr 06, 2024
Don Fargo and his new Fabulous Fargos (Ken Timbs and Pat Rose) with host Christopher Love (Bert Prentice) from a 1987 episode of World Organization Wrestling
We’re happy to welcome back Al Getz (@AlGetzWrestling) to discuss the latest edition of his Charting the Territories books, this one covering 1971-1973 Gulf Coast Wrestling. We talk about the main players in the territory at this time, including Cowboy Bob Kelly, Bobby Shane, Don Fargo and Rip Tyler, as well as future stars like Kevin Sullivan, Steve Keirn, Ron Bass and Greg Valentine, wrestling as Don’s brother Johnny Fargo. We talk about the towns the promotion ran and some of the interesting ways they crowned champions there (not with belts or trophies).
Then, as we did recently with Beau James, we talk about the travails of being a wrestling historian, covering a business that’s built on a lie. How hard is it to get “accurate” data on things like shows, box office and the like? And Al talk us through his methodology, both online and boots on the ground research.
We chat about Al being inducted into the Tragos/Thesz Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame in Waterloo, Iowa, getting the James C. Melby Historian Award.
The show ends with some quick baseball chat, with the season just a week old and Al’s Atlanta Braves being the only National League East team with a winning record. He also tells us about his first road trip of the year and dealing with weather issues with early spring baseball in the Midwest.
And the next episode of the Charting the Territories will look at Dick the Bruiser’s WWA in Indianapolis coming next week.
Episode 129 - I Am A Rock
Mar 10, 2024
Young Tony Schiavone interviews Ole Anderson on WTBS in 1985. RIP Ole Anderson.
We welcome back Beau James (@kingofkingsport) to the show for some wrestling history chat, including looking back at the lives of Ole Anderson and Mike Jones aka Virgil.
We discuss Ole’s long career, as wrestling and booker in both Georgia and Charlotte. We talk about his tag teams with Gene Anderson, Stan Hansen, Ivan Koloff and Arn as a member of the Four Horsemen. We talk about his famous feud with Dusty Rhodes, the ups and downs of Georiga Championship Wrestling and more. Beau also tells us some stories about running into Ole at the Gulf Coast Wrestler Reunions.
We chat briefly about the passing of Mike Jones, his longevity in the business in both WWF and WCW, his internet notoriety and meeting him on indy shows.
From there, we talk about the Iron Claw movie, even though Beau hasn’t watched it yet. There’s chat about dramatic licenses vs historical inaccuracies, Easter Eggs, when can a sad movie have a positive ending and more.
That segues into a long discussion about being a wrestling historian and the problems that can entail, when you research something built on a lie, including primary sources and their trustworthiness, faulty memories and newspaper reporters keeping kayfabe.
We end the show with a talk about Beau’s Southern States Wrestling promotion, their recent Hall of Fame inductions and upcoming shows this spring and summer.
Episode 128 - Hellfire and Brimstone
Feb 05, 2024
L: Peter Wyngarde as Jason King. C: Jason Wyngarde and Jean Grey in Uncanny X-Men 132. R: Jason Wyngarde and Diana Rigg in The Avengers. Imitation and flattery, et cetera.
It’s been a while, but we are happy as heck to welcome back writer, journalist and From the Sublime editor Iain Hepburn back to the show for a long chat about some classic British popular culture (and other stuff).
We start with the recent passing of film and tv music composer Laurie Johnson at age 96. Although probably best known for The Avengers (and New Avengers) themes, he had a long career that includes Jason King and The Professionals on TV and films including Dr. Strangelove. We talk about his career and other British TV composers like Ron Grainer (The Prisoner and Doctor Who) and Edwin Astley (Randall and Hopkirk Decased, Danger Man). This leads into a chat about 1960 British shows, the ones that made it to the US and the ones that didn’t and the fun of spotting actors on those before before they were famous.
Then, there’s plenty of chat about Doctor Who and the return of Russell T. Davies to run the show. We talk about how the vast Doctor Who library is now on BBC iplayer, the Tales of the Tardis special featuring classic cast members, modernizing old episodes for a contemporary audience and the hunt for missing episodes. This segues into a chat about physical media, streaming services, the phenomenon of Talking Pictures TV in the UK, preservation and restoration of older programs, how that relates to classic wresting TV shows and more.
There’s also chat about Iain’s magazine From the Sublime, who third/fourth issue is currently in production. We talk about the previous issues and some of the topics, including a Buck Rogers-themed restaurant in Glascow in the 1980s and futbol kit culture, including an unexpected discussion of the NASL and MLS. If you want a copy of From the Sublime and you order from their website, enter “WINTERPALACE” for 15% discount.
It’s always great to talk to Iain about stuff, so hopefully it won’t be more than eight years before he is back on the podcast.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 20 - Oh, Wolfie
Jan 16, 2024
Salieri (F. Murray Abraham) in disguise. From Amadeus.
Continuing our podcasts centering on biopics, we turn our attention to one of the best of the 1980s, Amadeus, directed by Milos Forman and adapted by Peter Schaffer from his play of the same name. It’s a look at the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Tom Hulce), through the lens of his rival, Antonio Salieri (F. Murray Abraham). We discuss Schaffer’s play, which turned into the film, including all the well-known actors who starred in both the UK and Broadway. We look at the plot of the film, discuss some of the historical liberties taken in play and film, including the question of “did Salieri really kill Mozart?” We discuss the rest of the cast, including some well-known character actors and one young actress who would go on to star in one of the biggest US TV shows of this century.
If that wasn’t enough, we talk about Rock Me Amadeus, the 1985 song by Austrian singer Falco and marvel at not only how many versions of the song there were (over 20) but just how amazingly successful it was around the world.
We might be having a new comics podcast coming soon. Still working on logistics. So be on the lookout for that, maybe, along with some big name guests coming to the main show (fingers crossed).
Episode 127 - Yellow Rose of Texas
Dec 27, 2023
Von Erichs vs Freebirds six-man match from 1984 David Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions.
It’s a same day turnaround for this holiday treat, as Justin Jones (@xPrimusPilusx) returns to the podcast to discuss The Iron Claw, the new movie about the Von Erich family, which we saw earlier today.
There are plenty of spoilers (for a docudrama), so if you haven’t seen it yet, save it for after you watch it. Short answer: it’s a good movie, in and of itself, but not great, and pretty good for a wrestling movie. We discuss the whole film, which actors we thought did the best jobs in the main cast, as well as looking at all the actual wrestlers in the movie. (The one everyone is making fun of on social media isn’t that bad.)
There’s also a lot of general wrestling chat: territorial history, foreign menaces as world champion, attendances now and then and how to judge them, the careers of Ross and Marshall Von Erich and more. We also tease which new biopic will probably be the subject of an upcoming pod and will be praised nearly as much as this picture.
Note: we recorded this in the movie theater parking lot, while sitting in the car, and so the quality is not as good as usual. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Episode 126 - Tokyo Giant
Dec 17, 2023
Godzilla vs The Marvel Universe. From Godzilla 24 by Doug Moench, Herb Trimpe, et al. (c) 2023 Marvel Comics.
After seven long years, we’re happy to welcome Zander Cannon (@zandercannon) to the pod to discuss the mad monster party, officially known as Godzilla Minus One. We basically go through the entire film plot point by plot point, so if you haven’t seen it yet, save the pod for after you’ve watched it. Short version: it’s as good or better than all the buzz you’ve heard about it. We talk about the main characters, both the humans and Big G himself, compare it to the original 1954 film (with and without Raymond Burr in the American version), the call-backs to previous movies, the drama at the heart of the movie and what very nerdy fan service thing I would have loved to see in the movie, even if most viewers may not have gotten the reference.
From there, we discuss the 1979 Godzilla comic from Marvel. Zander only read a couple issues as a kid, but I reread all 24 issues for the show. So, we discuss the creators and art style, which Marvel super heroes appear in the book and, of course, the giant Mattel Godzilla toy from that era (you know, the one with the spring-loaded fist you could shoot).
That’s a natural segue into Zander’s comic Kaijumax, which finished up last year and the third of three hardcover collections is coming out soon (it may be out when you hear this) from Oni Press. We talk about the evolution of the series over its 30 issues, the lack of monster vs monster splash pages in the series, all the tropes that got turned on their heads in the series and more.
We end with what could a general talk abou the comics industry, largely about original art, prices these days for older pages, creating comics digitally vs the old pen and ink days, color guides and how cool they are to see, retro technology and a bunch of other topics.
It was great to talk to Zander again on the show and hopefully it won’t take seven years to invite him back.
Episode 125 - Sweet F.A.
Nov 11, 2023
The famous 1974 photo of Exotic Adrian Streeet and his coal mining father.
It’s always great to welcome back birthday twin Kevin Day (@kevinhunterday) to the show. First up, once I learned Kevin had been a fan of World of Sport wrestling growing up, I knew that would be the subject of his next appearance. Since he was casual fan watching, he brings a different perspective to the business than most of our usual guests, who are historians or competitors themselves. We talk about how it evolves over the 20+ years it was on ITV in the UK and chat about most of the well-known names: host Kent Walton, Big Daddy (no HOF talk here), Giant Haystacks, Mick McManus, Kendo Nagasaki (I explain to Kevin about his Japanese namesake in 80s American wrestling), Johnny Saint, Steve/William Regal, Robbie Brookside, Catweazle and others. But we spent a lot of time talking about Adrian Street. (Kevin was originally going to do the pod right after Adrian’s death earlier this year). We talk about his career in the US and the UK, the famous photo (seen above) with his Welsh coal mining father in 1974, his influence on glam rock, how the character was presented at the time and now in present day and, of course, his infamous showdown with a certain disgraced UK TV presenter.
From there, we discuss Kevin’s new book he co-wrote with former guest Kieran Maguire and their Price of Football producer Guy Kitty called “Unfit and Improper Persons.” We discuss how the book came about as a way to discuss the myriad of issues in the world of football finance without it being just a textbook (since Kieran already wrote that book). Here, the three of them start a fictional football team named West Park Rovers and we follow their journey from pub team to Europa League participant. Along the way, they discuss many of the issues plaguing the modern game: financial fair play, sustainability, accessibility, inclusivity and, of course, amortization. There’s also some chat about Lionel Messi in MLS, David Beckham, Pele, The New York Cosmos, Once in a Lifetime, the NASL, the NFL and other American sports.
Wrapping up, we learned on the Price of Football that both Kieran and Kevin were also gamers and both were playing the new Zelda game, “Tears of the Kingdom.” We heard from Kieran a few months ago about his thoughts on the game and now we hear Kevin’s opinions having finished the game and how it compared to its predecesor “Breath of the Wild.”
And, by happenstance, we recorded the show the night before our two teams played in the Premier League, so there’s some brief chat about the fortunes of our two clubs this year.
I love talking to Kevin about old school British popular culture, as he provides an eye witness account on shows and sports I either watched here in the US on PBS with no cultural context (Monty Python, Doctor Who) or only discovered years later (Randall and Hopkirk, Dad’s Army and Department S/Jason King for example).
Episode 124 - Just Gone Noon, Half Past Monsoon
Oct 29, 2023
The Sheik and Princess Salima, also known as Edward and Joyce Farhat.
Who better to have on the show to discuss scary wrestlers for Halloween than the man who wrote a book about maybe the scariest of them all, The Sheik (Edward Farhat)?
I’m happy to welcome for the first time on the show, author, historian and podcaster Brian R Solomon (@BrianRSolomon). Brian’s biography of the Sheik, Blood and Fire, tells the story of how the boy fascinated by Middle Eastern culture in things like Rudolph Valentino’s The Sheik and Michael Powell’s The Thief of Bagdad, would provide the basis for his wrestling persona. We talk about his amateur wrestlingcredentials garnered during World War II and how they were part of his initial pro wrestling career, before he eventually became the Madman from the Middle East. We go over most of his career, both in the US, including his promotion Big Time Wrestling in Detroit and his phenomenal success in Japan, first with All Japan and then a decade later in FMW.
Since Brian is currently working on a book about Gorilla Monsoon, we talk about the similarities, at least being amateur wrestlers who ended up with “foreign heel” gimmicks. We also have a fascinating conversation about early 20th American attitudes toward “exotic” cultures, like the Middle East and the Far East and how that shaped their gimmicks. We also look at how The Sheik, one of the biggest heels in the 1970s, never portayed the kind of anti-American character we associated with people like the Iron Sheik, Adnan Al-Kaissie or Scandar Akbar.
From there, we have a long chat about the candidates for this year’s Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame. Since we both have votes, we go over who we think the strongest candidates should be, even if there’s no guarantee they’ll be elected. We also discuss of the flaws in the system and ways it could be improved.
We also have some chat about wrestling’s place in popular culture in the 1970s and how the bloody wrestling magazine covers played into the seediness of the sport, before it became more sanitized in the 1980s.
Finally, there’s some comics chat, where I recommend some current books Brian might enjoy as a lapsed comics reader.
This was a great show and I hope to have Brian back on the future to discuss some of the things we only briefly mention. Make sure to check out Brian’s books and his podcast, Shut Up and Wrestle, part of the Arcadian-Vanguard network.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 19 - Pulse/Kairo (2001)
Oct 22, 2023
Dust in the Wind. What happened to Michi’s (Kumiko Aso) friend? From Pulse (2001).
It’s spooky season, so let’s have a review of famous 2001 J-horror film Pulse aka Kairo [Circuit], written and directed by Kiyoshi Kurasawa.
It’s literally a “ghost in the machine” plot, as it appears a group of Japanese students have found out the dead are trying to come back to our world through … the internet? Luckily, it’s 2001, so it takes a while thanks to dial-up.
While some of the deaths are horrific, none are anything I’d call gory by 2023 standards. And not as many jump scares as you’d expect from a J-horror picture.
And if sounds familiar, it’s because there was a 2006 American remake starring Kristen Bell and one of the guys from Lost who never seemed to become a breakout star. But dont make the mistake of watching the wrong one. The Japanese version is a somber reflection about loneliness and solitude, which certainly hits harder now in a post-COVID world. The other is a horrible remake that took the plot but not the soul of its predecessor. I mean, it’s so bad, that there’s a joke about it in another Kristen Bell movie (Finding Sarah Marshall).
Episode 123 - It's Full of Stars
Sep 30, 2023
It was a Starfield wedding and the old folks wished them well.
I’m excited to welcome back Jason Plays (@jasonplaysNMS) to the show to discuss a variety of topics.
First up, Starfield has been out for about a month now and we were both super looking forward to it. How has Jason found the game so far, his likes and dislikes, comparing it to both past Bethesda games and space operas like Mass Effect. I’ve been slow playing, where Jason is on his fourth playthrough, so while there are discussions of characters and missions, a lot of the big spoilers are not discussed, since I haven’t gotten to them yet.
Then, of course, we talk about No Man’s Sky, which dropped an update and expedition right before Starfield’s launch. How did Jason cope with trying to consume and play both at the same time? We discuss the most recent expedition and how it feels like Hello Games just might be making adventures to put a burr in the saddle of speedrunners.
We also chat about the upcoming Metal Gear Solid remastered releases. Jason was a huge Solid Snake fan in the day, so we talk about our memories of the games both good and bad (Raiden, I’m looking at you).
Then we shift gears for a long chat about the James Bond franchise. We discuss our favorite Bond actors and films, the out-of-continuity movies, serious spy films vs funny/campy pictures, other favorite spy properties and more. There’s also a lot of random popular culture chat, including (again) the greatness of Green Acres, the early years of having a VCR, life as a video game streamer and attracing an audience and other stuff.
I want to thank Jason for his time for doing a long episode, especially since we started late, thanks to a seemingly interminable traffic jam on my way home from work, which pushed back the recording time.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 18 - Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Sep 24, 2023
A murderers’ row of Whose Line panelists: Josie Lawrence, Paul Merton, Tony Slattery, Mike McShane.
First off, get well soon to When It Was Cool head honcho Karl Stern, after his medical incident, as we know say these days.
Onto the show, a love letter to one of my all-time favorite shows, the original, British version of Whose Line Is It Anyway?, which just celebrated its 35th anniversary.
We discuss the history of the show, first on BBC Radio 4 (of course) and then its debut on Channel 4. Who was in the original pilot along with host Clive Anderson and radio holdover John Sessions? Find out. And how did the show evolve over the years: which segments made the grade, which were forgotten and which were likely added to accommodate the influx of North American panelists over the years? Which now famous personalities appeared on the show when they were relatively unknown, at least here in the US, where the show aired on Comedy Central.
Then, some clips featuring some of my favorite panelists: Josie Lawrence, Greg Proops, Paul Merton, Ryan Stiles, Mike McShane and my personal number one, Tony Slattery.
It was wonderful to relive some episodes that I watched so many times that I can remember some of the bits 30 years later. Thanks for the memories, one and all.
Episode 122 - Hotscakes
Aug 27, 2023
The Cary Grant of Pigs, Arnold Ziffel. (c) 2023 MGM.
We’re happy to welcome Daniel Budnik (@dannyslacks1) to the podcast to discuss an underrated comic great of the 1960s, Green Acres. Daniel wrote “From Beverly Hills to Hooterville,” an episode guide and analysis of the three shows created by Paul Henning in the 1960s: The Beverly Hillbillies, Petticoat Junction and Green Aces.
We talk about the show’s origin and how Jay Sommers based on the show on “Granby’s Green Acres,” a radio show with a similar premise back in the 1950. There’s a lot of talk on the show about Sommers and writing partner Chevillat, who scripted almost all of the show’s 170 episodes over six seasons.
There’s lots of talk about the cast, headed by Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor and the various folks that inhabit Hooterville, including handyman Ed (Tom Lester) shifty salesman Mr. Haney (Pat Buttram) and of course, the breakout star of the show at the time, Arnold Ziffel (Arnold the Pig).
We discuss the surreal and absurdist comedy found on the show, which probably goes back to the careers of Sommers and Chevillat, who worked with people in vaudeville, film and radio like the Marx Brothers, Burns and Allen and Laurel & Hardy.
There’s lots of talk about our favorite and/or memorable episodes and bits, including Lisa’s cooking, Oliver’s empassioned speeches about farming and all the metatext in the show.
This was a very fun show to record and discuss such a television classic. We hope to have Daniel back on the show to talk about some of his other areas of research he has done in his books and podcasts, including Supertrain and Time Express, that’s the Vincent Price “Fantasy Island on a train” show whose name we couldn’t remember.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 17 - Enola Gay
Aug 06, 2023
On the 78th anniversary of the Atomic Bomb being dropped on Hiroshima, we look at some of the popular culture around that event.
We start by discussing the 1980 song “Enola Gay,” by the 1980s British band Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark (OMD). We look at a brief history of the band, the success of the song both at the time and its historical legacy and a not-necessarily-obvious resonance it had in popular culture.
After that, given the box office success of Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” we look some other films that take on the creation of the bomb in 1945. That includes the 1989 films “Day One” starring David Strathairn as Oppenheimer and “Fat Man and Little Boy,” starring Paul Newman and Dwight Schultz (who you may remember from “The A-Team” or “Star Trek: The Next Generation”) as Oppenheimer. We also briefly discuss the 1980 BBC mini-series “Oppenheimer” with Sam Waterston in the title role.
We end with a brief mention of two other foreign language films related to the events: Alain Resnais’ “Hiroshima Mon Amour” from 1959 and Akira Kurosawa’s “Rhapsody in August” from 1991.
Episode 121 - Boys Don't Cry
Jul 30, 2023
An ad for the New York Cosmos that ran in DC Comics in 1977.
We are happy to finally have Kieran Maguire (@kieranmaguire) from the Price of Football podcast on the show. Even though he only a few miles up the road in Philadelphia last week, this episode was a Trans-Atlantic recording, done both late night and early morning. While his teaching day job brought him to the States, he managed to get to see his Brighton and Hove Albion squad take on Chelsea in one of this year’s Premier League pre-season matches taking place here. We started off discussing how he found the atmosphere of the match, both on- and off-pitch, desegregated crowds and exorbitant concession prices. That branched out into a general chat about football in England and the growth of MLS, the thorny topic of American ownership of British teams and the old chestnut, promotion and relegation. We also talked about some recent US-related topics that had come up on the Price of Football that related to US sports, like public salaries and agents’ fees.
Believe it or not, I wanted to keep the football chat to a minimum, but it was the first half of the episode. After that, we talked about Kieran’s other great cultural love, music, particularly the 70s and 80s bands in what some call the Second British Invasion. We discuss how the Manchester music scene in the early 80s influenced where he went to university and our mutual love for bands like New Order and Joy Division, OMB, the Smiths and the Cure. Also, some love for the New Music Express, Danny Kelly and Danny Baker, the intimacy of podcasts vs modern radio and more.
We wrap up with some video game chat. Kieran and co-host (and former podcast guest) Kevin Day were both playing the new Zelda game, Tears of the Kingdom. We talked about how he has found the game so far, comparing it to Breath of the Wild, using video games as decompression time and more.
We had hoped to do a separate show with Kevin and pair them together, but scheduling issues kept that from happening. Hopefully, Kevin will be on before or in conjunction with the next Price of Football book, Unfit and Improper Persons, where the guys discuss how to start a local pub team and build it all the way up to Champions League success and what the financial realities are in such an endeavor. And yes, we did talk about how an unlikely Odd Couple of a Crystal Palace supporting comedian and Brighton supporting academic have managed to produce a successful podcast.
The Plot Podcast - Holiday Special - The Force of July
Jul 04, 2023
The Force of July, from their Who’s Who entry. (C) 2023 DC Comics
Every year on American Independence Day, I post a picture of The Force of July on social media, both as cheeky humor, but also to make a small comment about 1980s comics and authoritarianism. This year, instead of that, I decided to do an episode devoted to the short-lived DC Comics villains (Yes, if you couldn’t tell, they are the bad guys). We start by discussing their first appearance in Batman and the Outsiders Annual 1, by Mike W. Barr, Jim Aparo and others. We explain the original creation of the Outsiders and their patriotic-themed foes. If you’ve never read this issue before, get ready, because it’s a doozy, straight out of 1984, the novel and Reagan’s America. Then, we talk about the return appearances facing the Outsiders and later the Soviet Super Team, the Peoples’ Heroes. Then, it’s onto the Outisders/Infinity Inc crossover, not only featuring the Force of July, but also (spoiler alert) The Psycho-Pirate (hooray). We end discussing The Force of July appearing in the John Ostrander version of the Suicide Squad comic in 1989, and that can’t be good news for Major Victory, Mayflower, Lady Liberty, Silent Majority and Sparkler. (Yes, those are their names.)
I love C-list super villains and these guys are so of their time, that they are an intersting to examine from a historical and socio-political context. All of the issues discussed in the pod are available on DC Comics Unlimited App, if you want to read them for yourself.
Note: Had some coughing issues while recording. So, if some made it through the edit or it seems more choppy than usual, that’s why. Apologies
The Plot Podcast - Episode 15 - Serpentine (RIP Alan Arkin)
Jul 02, 2023
The Plot looks back at the career of the late, great Alan Arkin, who recently passed away at the age of 89.
We talk about his folk music career before getting into acting and then play some clips from a number of our favorite films in which he starred, from “The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming” to “Grosse Point Blank.” Did you know Arkin was on both Sesame Street and The Muppet Show in his career? Whether comedy or drama, one of the best actors of the last half-century. Rest in Peace.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 14 - Stanley and His Monster
Jun 19, 2023
Stanley meets The (well, a) Sandman. From Stanley and His Monster 1. (c) 2023 DC Comics.
Inspired by the Sandman re-read that Joe and Todd are doing at Longbox Heroesv (@longboxheroes), we look at a tangentially-related series, the 1993 series Stanley and His Monster, by Phil Foglio.
We give a brief history of Stanley’s creation, in the mid 1960s in the funny animal comic Fox and the Crow, how Dennis the Menace/Ralphie Phillips mash-up Stanley Dover meets his pet monster and how he has to hide him from his parents.
Then, we discuss Foglio’s work before this book, both at DC (Angel and the Ape, Plastic Man) and elsewhere (Buck Godot, Zap Gun for Hire). And explain what happened in Sandman: Season of Mists sets up the mini-series.
We do an issue-by-issue breakdown, with all the main characters, including some guests from the DCU proper and what would become the Vertigo section of the spinner rack.
We close out by mentioning more recent appearances by Stanley and the Monster, including the great Scooby Doo Team-Up, which features Angel, Ape, The Inferior Five, The Maniaks and a couple suprise cameos as the bad guys.
If you miss the funny wing of DC comics, look for these books in your local comic shop. Don’t think the mini-series is available digitally yet.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 13 - Don't Mess Around With Jim
May 22, 2023
If you come at him, you better not miss.
Although we cover sports (and pseudo sports) here, we felt it was better to have our tribute to the late great Jim Brown, who passed away this week, was to analyze a small part of his popular culture career, by looking at some of his most-famous Blaxploitation films.
Brown made two films as the Green Beret turned Mob enemy Slaughter, in Slaughter (1972) and Slaughter’s Big Rip Off (1973). In the first, he squares off against the psychotic Rip Torn and in the second, the mob boss tried to take out Slaughter is … Ed McMahon?
Maybe Brown’s best known genre role was as Jimmy in Three The Hard Way, which is like The Blaxploitation Avengers, where he teams up with Fred “The Hammer” Williamson and martial artist Jim Kelly to fight a white supremacist group out to poison the black population of Los Angeles, Detroit and Washington, DC.
If you like old school 1970s violence with plenty of fights, shoot outs and car chases, along with some gratuitous nudity, these pictures are for you. (That presumes you all know about all the cultural mores of the genre, especially the language and the racism.)
We had planned on including the Richard Pryor routine about Jim Brown, but it was just too many bleeps to add for a five minute routine. Listen to it when you get the chance; one of my favorite all-time favorite comedy albums.
Episode 120 - May Day
May 01, 2023
My second favorite wrestling angle of all time. Eddie Gilbert buries Bill Watts.
Amazingly, it’s taken almost eight years of the podcast to discuss officially discuss the Russian Flag Burial angle. It’s my second favorite angle of all-time and I once named a blog after it.
I had to get a fellow Mid-South/UWF fan on the show, so I’m happy to welcome back Greg Klein (@jydbook) to discuss it. There’s a preamble before we get to the angle, discussing Watts’ use of Russian heels in Mid-South (Volkoff, the sympathizer Khrusher Khrushchev, etc), Gilbert’s place in Mid-South before he starts managing Kortisa Korchenko and the evolution of Mid-South Wrestling into the UWF. Right before we discuss the angle, we play the clip (it’s around five minutes long) and then discuss it (from memory, we were not watching it in real time): the set-up, the commentary, the blocking, the props and the immediate aftermath. Then we talk about the Watts vs Hot Stuff feud, how it was booked, the insertion of Dusty and some JCP talent on the shows in Houston and New Orleans and how abruptly the angle segues into Watts’ feud with the Freebirds.
There’s also random wrestling talk later in the show, including Nick Bockwinkel as a touring World Champion (as Greg discussed on his podcast), gimmick matches in Houston, going to house shows in Baltimore and some other chit-chat, including Mid-Atlantic beaches and tax-free shopping in Delaware. Greg also mentions his books, including a new one hopefully out at the end of the year.
This pod was done on the spur of the moment and I appreciate Greg squeezing in the time to do it with a few hours’ notice.
Episode 119 - Why Always-a Me?
Apr 16, 2023
Dem Bones, Dem Bones, Dem Dry Bones. From the Super Mario Brothers Movie. (c) 2023 Universal.
With such a huge week for Nintendo, who else could we get to talk about it but Andre Segers (@andresegers) from GameXplain?
Of course, we start with the juggernaut that is the Super Mario Brothers Movie. On the day of recording, it had just passed the $500 million plateau, and still hadn’t opened in Japan yet. In a spoiler-filled chat, we discuss the plot (does it matter it was straightforward?), the voice acting (such a talking point prior to release) and some of the criticisms the picture has gotten from mainstream film critics.
From there, we talk about the last trailer for Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom before its release in about a month. We look at the new elements in this version, including finally getting some clue about the plot, the game mechanics and how silly the idea was that it was “just a $70 DLC for Breath of the Wild.”
Andre tells us about his trip to the opening of Super Nintendo World in California, although he still hasn’t had the change to go to the park in Japan.
We end with the pain Andre went through to replay Paper Mario Sticker Star on its tenth anniversary. He famously hated the game when it came out and we chat about why there may have been extenuating circumstances then and have his feelings toward the game after all this time.
It was obviously a big week for GameXplain, so we thank Andre for finding the time to do the show again.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 12 - Year of the Domino
Mar 27, 2023
Subliminal Messaging as seen by Reuben Flagg in American Flagg issue 1. (c) Howard Chaykin
We take a look at the use of subliminal message in two classic 1980s pieces of science fiction - Howard Chaykin's American Flagg comic from 1983 and the original British pilot for Max Headroom from 1985. We discuss the history of each project, how subliminals were used in the plot and just ahead of their time both projects were and would fit right in today's culture in 2023.
Episode 118 - No Man Is An Island
Mar 11, 2023
Just another day in the Euclid Galaxy. No Man’s Sky screenshot.
We’re happy to welcome video game streamer Jason Plays (@jasonplaysnms) to discuss, among many topics, our mutual love of No Man’s Sky. We talk about its notorious debut in 2016, rebound in 2018 and how it continues to grow in 2023. We also look about the free update strategy employed by Sean Murray and Hello Games, is there a method to their updates and things like Expedition events and what the future holds for the game and studio.
The podcast was recorded on the same day that Microsoft announced their highly-anticipated exploration game Starfield was not coming out in the spring as many expected, but is now coming out in September 2023.
There’s also chat about some of the other games Jason has been playing recently, including Hogwarts Legacy and Atomic Heart, which I tout some smaller games on the Switch from the last year that I’ve been waiting years to play, the grifting game set in Revolutionary France Card Shark and Sports Story, the long-awaited sequel to Golf Story.
The show concludes with a discussion of terrestrial radio, which Jason worked in before becoming a full-time streamer. How did radio stations cope during lockdown and has the fight against things like podcasts, streaming music and satellite radio meant radio as we knew it in the 20th century will never be the same again?
Jason was a great guest, so we hope he’ll come back on the show in the future, maybe when Starfield debuts later this year.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 11 - Conquistador
Feb 12, 2023
Kang meets Merlin in Strange Tales 134, July 1965, by Stan Lee and Bob Powell. (c) 2023 Marvel Comics.
“The best laid schemes of mice and men…”
To tie-in to both Valentine’s Day and the upcoming Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania movie, the plan for the podcast was take a look at the wedding of Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne from Avengers 60. But that story, and the previous issue, the first appearance of Yellowjacket, present a lot of stuff that is very totally out-of-place for 2023 sensibilities. So, we called an audible.
Instead, we look at the long and convoluted history of Kang the Conqueror, which, as it turns out, doesn’t even start with his first appearance in Avengers 8. So, let’s talk about Kang, Rama-Tut, the Scarlet Centurion, Immortus, Ravonna, Nathaniel Richards, Doctor Doom, The Council of Cross-Time Kangs, The Time Variance Authority, Mobius M. Mobius and more. We also (for the second pod in a row) discuss Omniverse, the 1970s fanzine started by the late Mark Gruenwald and the article in issue two of that magazine devoted to all those characters, or is it just one character?
(Note: this only goes up to the late 1980s. We don’t talk about the Avengers story by Kurt Busiek and various others in the early 2000s or anything from the last few years after the characters became part of the MCU in the Loki TV show.
This is a great companion piece to the recent episode of The Winter Palace where we talked to Mark Waid about continuity in comics.
Episode 117 - Sunshine Superman
Feb 01, 2023
The March 1986 issue of Amazing Heroes, guest edited by Mark Waid.
After many years, I’m happy to say we have got Mark Waid (@markwaid) as a guest. And what better subject to discuss, fresh off his new book Dark Crisis - Big Bang, than the concept of continuity and the multiverse. Why has the idea of multiple worlds become so popular in the last decade or so, when it was something often thought as troublesome years earlier? We discuss how omnipresent it is now, in comics, movies and more. We also talk about the original Crisis in 1985, including Mark editing an issue of Amazing Heroes all about the post-Crisis landscape at DC following the series. There’s also talk about Hypertime and other attempts DC made to try and “simplify” continuity over the years and how things are going the other way now. There’s also a deep-dive on things like The Super Sons, The Inferior Five, Cancelled Comics Cavalcade and more. We also discuss Mark’s current books at DC, including Batman-Superman World’s Finest, Batman vs Robin and the upcoming Shazam (don’t call him Captain Marvel).
It was great to talk to Mark after seeing him for a few years and almost 25 years I sold him his weekly comics when Mark lived on the East Coast. Hopefully, we can get him back on the show in the future for more deep dives into DC lore.
Episode 116 - It's a Family Affair # 4 - La Vie en Rose
Jan 08, 2023
The Natural Blonds, Ken Timbs and Pat Rose, with Chris Love (Bert Prentice) from WOW TV. in 1987.
It’s been a while, but this is episode number four of the It’s a Family Affair episode of the podcast. We’re very happy to welcome to the show for the first time, and hopefully not the last, veteran wrestler Pat Rose.
We go over a good chunk of Pat’s career, starting with Nick Gulas in Chattanooga in 1979, working most of the territories in the 1980s and then retiring in the mid 1990s.
Of particular note for us here on this pod is both his time in Southeastern and Continental, teaming with first his boyhood idol Mr. Wrestling II and later Randy Rose as the Rose Cousins and, more importantly, his time in the short-lived independent promotion World Organization Wrestling (WOW).
You’ve heard us talk about WOW here on the pod with Armstrong Alley, who has about 8 months of the promotion on his YouTube channel and on Between the Sheets, when we talked about the week in December 1987 when Nick Gulas showed up on set with Christopher Love (Bert Prentice) and had a showdown with Don Fargo, Ken Timbs and Pat himself.
We talk about the promotion’s start, who was in charge and a number of the wrestlers who came in and out of the territory, including Bob Sweetan, Bob Holly, Marcel Pringle, Bad Company, Samu and Kokina (Yokozuna) and others.
There’s also talk about his time in Memphis with Dr. Tom Prichard and Sherri Martel as the Heavenly Bodies, how they got put together, the run’s premature end and the “Dear John” letter Pat read on live Memphis TV when Tom and Sherri left the area.
We also talk to Pat about working with people like Lord Humongous (Jeff Van Camp), Sid Vicious, the Master of Pain (The Undertaker) and how important it was for guys like him to make those guys look like stars.
To wrap up, Pat tells us about his fishing show Set the Hook, how it got started, where you can hear it and also his son’s country music career.
We had a great time talking to Pat and hopefully he will be back on the show with more stories from his time in the business.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 10 - Singing Cowboy Xmas Movies
Dec 25, 2022
Gene Autry and “Santa” (Hank Patterson” deliver Xmas presents in The Cowboys and the Indians.
What better way to celebrate the holiday season than looking at two very loosely Christmas-themed singing cowboy pictures?
First, it’s Roy Rogers and “Trail of Robin Hood.” There are no merry men or archery contests, but we do have a turkey shoot in a story about a businessman, his daughter and their nefarious foreman trying to corner the marker on Christmas trees. Leave it to Roy, Trigger and Bullet to put a stop to it.
Then, it’s Gene Autry in “The Cowboys and The Indians.” For 1949, this is a fairly progressive picture about the maltreatment of Natives on reservations, in this case by a villainous and greedy trading post owner. Gene teams with a female doctor and a local tribesman to try and expose the corruption going on. The Christmas stuff doesn’t come until the end when Gene sings one of his famous holiday songs (we won’t spoil which one he sings).
Episode 115 - The Grandaddy
Nov 22, 2022
An original 1985 Starrcade VHS tape clam shell. Bought from the pages of PWI.
I’m always happy to welcome back Beau James (@kingofkingsport) back to the show. Just in time for Thanksgiving, we’re going to talk about the Grandaddy of them all, Starrcade. Well, the shows that were held on Thanksgiving by Jim Crockett Promotions, from 1983-1987.
We’re going to go over the cards on all five shows, spotlighting some underrated matches, as well as the ones everyone remembers: Flare for the Gold, The I Quit Match, the scaffold matches and more. We discuss some of the controversies on those shows, be it odd match selections, questionable booking and which show managed to kill two towns and a promotion in one night.
We also talk about the show Beau is running on Thanksgiving weekend in Kingsport and how people can help donate for folks in need this holiday season. If you can’t make it there live, you can donate on their website at https://donations.hungerfirst.org.
Happy holidays to those celebrating. Watch out for that tryptophan.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 9 - BTAS
Nov 17, 2022
Batman and the Gray Ghost from BTAS episode “Beware the Gray Ghost.”
The Plot returns with a tribute to Kevin Conroy, who sadly passed away on November 10, 2022 at the age of 66. In our corner of the popular culture universe, he’s best known for being the voice of Batman (and Bruce Wayne) in the DC Animated Universe starting with Batman the Animated Series in 1992 and continued until 2019, encompassing animation, video games and even live action.
So, here’s a short look at some of our favorite BTAS episodes: the origin of the BTAS Riddler (John Glover) in “If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich?”, Batman teaming up with his childhood hero (Adam West) in “Beware the Gray Ghost” and an episode with not much Batman, “Showdown,” an Old West tale featuring Jonah Hex (Billy McKinney) versus Ra’s Al Ghul (David Warner) and his son Arkady Duvall (Malcolm McDowell).
The Plot Podcast - Episode 8 - Spooky Seventies Saturday Morning TV
Oct 29, 2022
The Original Ghostbusters. No, really. Bob Burns, Larry Storch and Forrest Tucker.
To wrap up Hallowe’en Month at When It Was Cool, let’s look at some spooky 1970s Saturday morning TV shows.
First, the original Ghostbusters from 1975. Spencer (Larry Storch), Tracy the Gorilla (Bob Burns) and Kong (Forrest Tucket) are bumbling detectives fighting vampires, monsters, ghosts and the like. There’s a little bit of Borscht Belt comedy, some vaudeville humor and a lot of silly gags. Some famous character actors show up as bad guys like Ted Knight as a ghost, Bernie Kopell as Dr. Frankenstein and Jim Backus as Eric the Red. If you loved F-Troop, you’d probably enjoy Storch and Tucker here.
Then, after the success of Scooby Doo for Hanna Barbera in the early 1970s, there were quite a number of mystery-solving teens with animal sidekicks and we spotlight a couple of them: The Funky Phantom and Goober and the Ghost Chasers.
Kids, when we say popular culture was always better in the old days, just point to some of these and say “Not so fast.”
Episode 114 - Louisiana Hayride
Oct 24, 2022
Al’s new book. Go buy it.
We’re happy to welcome Al Getz (@AlGetzwrestling) back to the show to discuss a variety of topics, but most importantly his new book, Charting the Territories: The 1971-1973 LeRoy McGuirk Oklahoma/Louisiana Wrestling Almanac.
We talk about the process of putting the book together from all of Al Getz’s into the 20+ year history of the territory and the use of his wrestling statistics to look at where people worked on a card and how prominent their feuds were during a particular time. We look at some of the familiar names in the territory, like Bill Watts and Danny Hodge, superstars working there regularly like Dusty Rhodes and the Spoiler and youngsters in the infancy of their careers, like Bob Backlund and Pez Whatley.
Al also talks about his odyssey this year to visit every Major League Baseball park and some of the minor league stadia as well. We learn what state Al visited for the first time, as well as some of the atypical ballpark food he ate during the course of the year.
We wrap with a cursory look at the new Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame ballot which had just been released when we recorded the pod. Rather than discuss individual candidates, we talked about some of the procedural changes implemented this year, increasing the number of votes and the inclusion of many tag teams and how that could effect people’s voting.
The Plot Podcast - Episopde 7 - Ultraviolet (1998)
Oct 15, 2022
The Ultraviolet team in their prison vault. Don’t call it a cemetery.
The Plot Podcast in Hallowe’en Month at the When It Was Cool Network goes from tongue in cheek to deadly earnest. We’re joined by Odessa Steps Magazine contributor Justin Jones (@xPrimusPilusx) to discuss one of his all-time favorite TV shows, 1998’s Ultraviolet. The British show, written and directed by Joe Ahearne, stars Jack Davenport, Susannah Harker, Philip Quast and a young Idris Elba as a team trying to fight the good fight against … well, they call them Code V’s or leeches, but those monsters who want our blood to stay alive. We discuss how we both found the show here in the early 2000s, the premise of the show, and what we love about it. Since there are only six episodes, we discuss each one in detail, so spoilers ahoy. We rave about the quality writing and acting on display, some of our favorite scenes and more. It’s a Valentine in October to a program I often describe as “The X-Files and Blade fight Vampires.”
Episode 113 - Fat Pigeons
Oct 06, 2022
Morpheus meets Hector Hall. (c) 2022 DC Comics.
Much like the comic itself, our podcast on the first season of the Sandman TV show is finally here. To do so, we’re happy to welcome back AP reporter Ashraf Khalil (@ashrafkhalil) to talk about it. It’s only fitting since Ash read many of those issues by borrowing them off me or reading them in our dorm in college, when the series was being originally published back in the 1990s. We’ll talk about reading the series in real time, the pain of publishing delays, favorite stories and such. Then, we’ll discuss the TV show, what we liked and didn’t like, being faithful to the source material, casting choices in 2022 vs how the characters were written or created 30 years ago, future seasons and more. We also discuss some of Neil Gaiman’s other work adapted to TV, like American Gods and Good Omens.
(1:43:00) We also managed to sneak in some wrestling chat. Ash talked about what he is liking about the two big promotions currently and I mention some of the other stuff I’ve been watching. We also talk about the recent death of Antonio Inoki, some of his matches and his out-of-the-ring notoriety.
At the end, there’s some brief futbol chat, about Egypt not making the upcoming World Cup and the rivalries between African futbol powers.
A shout out to Vintage Phoenix Comics in Bloomington, Indiana, where many issues of Sandman were bought in the 1990s and our friend Victoria who was often along for the comic shop trips back then. Hope you are well, Vic.
The Plot Podcast - Episode 6 - 1960s Spy Shows and ... Creatures?
Oct 02, 2022
Martin Landau as Count Zark in The Man From UNCLE’s “The Bat Cave Affair.”
As part of When It Was Cool’s Hallowe’en Month, the pod looks at some of its favorite 1960s spy TV shows and what happens when they run into some creatures. Or do they?
First, we have the Man from UNCLE and the second season episode “The Bat Cave Affair.” What is THRUSH’s “Operation Night Flight” and why does the agent behind it, Count Zark (Martin Landau using his Bela Lugosi impression 30 years before Ed Wood), seem to be dressed as a certain Transylvanian nobleman? Can Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn) and Ilya Kuryakin) stop him from grounding the world’s aircrafts?
Next up, it’s the Avengers and the fifth season episode "Never Never Say Die.” When a man hit by a car doesn’t stay dead, it’s up to Steed (Patrick Macnee) and Mrs. Peel (Diana Rigg) to find out how and what does it have to do with the secret government lab run by Professor Frank N. Stone (Christopher Lee)?
Finally, we go full on spy spoof with Get Smart and the first season episode “Weekend Vampire” (not to be confused with the band of a very similar name). When CONTROL agents are being found dead with two puncture marks on their necks, Max (Don Adams) and 99 (Barbara Feldon) are sent to investigate the disgraced scientist Dr. Drago (Martin Kosleck).
We’ll be back soon with a slightly more serious look at spies and the undead in the 1999 British TV show Ultraviolet starring Jack Davenport, Susannah Harker and a young Idris Elba. It’s The X-Files plus Blade vs Vampires in the next episode of the podcast.
Episode 112 - Wowie Zowie
Sep 30, 2022
Don Fargo, Rip Tyler and Mike Diamond in “Rip’s Corner” from WOW TV.
We have our first back to back guest, even though it’s been two months and there were also three episodes of the Plot Podcast since then, but we’ve happy to welcome back Kris P Lettuce (@krisplettuce) from the Armstrong Alley You Tube channel to talk more rediscovered old school wrestling.
We start by talking about his upcoming order from his tape source “the Greek” and just what will be on that 100 DVD order, including Windy CIty, WIld Wrestling and wrestling from Montreal and the Maritimes.
Then we discuss some of the wrestling on his channel now, including IWA from Nashville, featuring a young Maxx Payne, Texas Championship Wrestling (including the American Ninja, who we discussed last episode) and WOW, World Organization Wrestling. WOW is easily my favorite promotion of the stuff Kris has uploaded, so we spend a good portion of the show talking about some of the better-known names that worked there, including Bob Holly, Pat Tanaka and Paul Diamond, Bob Sweetan, Jerry Stubbs, Kokina (aka Yokozuna) and more. We also mention how many of these promotions in the late 80s and early 90s had a connection to legendary promoter Nick Gulas.
Also, coming up this month on the Plot Podcast, look for some vampire-themed shows, as part of When IT Was Cool’s Dracula Month. How well do spies and vampires? Tune in and find out.
The Plot - Episode 5 - French New Wave
Sep 18, 2022
A looby card for Shoot the Piano Player.
With the recent passing of Jean-Luc Godard, we look at three French New Wave heist films: Shoot the Piano Player, Band of Outsiders and Le Doulos.
We start with a very cursory explanation of the French New Wave, Cahiers du Cinema and the influence of Post WWII gangster films, what we would later call film noir: private eyes, trench coats and fedoras, femmes fatale, chiascuro lighting and so on. (Apologies to all my former film professor for some very brief oversimplifications.)
Shoot the Piano Player (1960) was Truffaut’s second film after The 400 Blows. It’s the story of a piano man with a dark secret, his ne’er-do-brothers, some gangsters and the bar maid that has a crush on the piano man and who also knows his secret. Plenty of humor in this often-dark movie.
Band of Outsiders (1964) is often called Godard’s most accessible film, thanks to its straightforward plot, humor and pop references. Two guys and a girl plan to steal a pile of cash from the villa where the girl Odile (Anna Karina) lives nearly. There’s also the burgeoning love triangle between Odile and the two guys, Franz and Arthur. And a lot of silliness before the robbery, where, of course, things go wrong.
Le Doulos (1962) was one of many crime films made by Jean-Pierre Melville, who is sometimes called “The Godfather of the French New Wave” since he was making films before the Cahiers critics and mentored some of them along the way. Le Doulos was the slang term for a police informant and the question is the film is just who was tipped off the police to the heist being pulled by Maurice and Remy? Was it Silien, the film’s trench coat and fedora wearing gangster, played by perennial French New Wave star Jean-Paul Belmondo? Or was it someone else? You need a score card to keep track of the twists and turns, as the body count grows throughout the picture.
There are of course many other heist films worth checking out. These three are currently streaming on the Criterion Channel and HBO Max and Prime also have a number of French New Wave classics. We wanted to talk about Rififi, but it’s not currently streaming anywhere, so we’re saving that for another day.
The Plot is a co-production of Odessa Steps Magazine and The When It Was Cool Network.
The Plot - Episode 4 - Inspector Clouseau / The Inspector
Aug 21, 2022
The Inspector and The Matzoriley Brothers, from The Great De Gualle Stone Operation. (C) 2022 MGM.
In this episode, we look at what happens when a studio makes a sequel without its creator and without its star and its more successful cartoon analog.
In 1968, Mirisch Films decided to make a third Pink Panther without Blake Edwards, Peter Sellers and Henry Mancini. And we got Inspector Clouseau, directod by veteran comedy producer/director Bud Yorkin and starring Alan Arkin, in between making The Russians Are Coming and Catch-22. If every a film was less than the sum of its parts, it’s this film, which just doesn’t work on so many levels. But its an interesting study in what happens when you remove the creators that make something special.
We also take a look at The Inspector, the animated film/tv series that actually preceded the aforementioned film by three years. The second animated spin-off series from the Pink Panther franchise debuted a year after the first Pink Panther cartoon won an Oscar. The Inspector (and his assistant Doux-Doux) are voiced by Pat Harrington Jr and The Commissioner is originally voiced by the recently-departed Larry Storch and later by Paul Frees. There were 34 cartoons eventually made for either the movies or Saturday morning TV, with such great episodes titles as Napoleon Blown Aparte and Toulouse La Trick. Full of traditional cartoon gags like exploding bombs and surrealistic situations, your tolerance for them in 2022 may be determined by your tolerance for comedy French and Spanish accents.
The Plot - Episode 3 - Secret Six / Showcase 43
Jul 27, 2022
Introducing the team in Secret Six issue 2. (2) 2022 DC Comics.
We’re back with a new episode of The Plot and it’s back to the spies, this time in comic book form with two topics for discussion
First up is Secret Six, the seven-issue DC Comics from 1968 and 1969. We look at the creation of the book, its fairly obvious inspiration (see Episode 1), the members of the team, their mysterious leader and an issue-by-story description of their missions. We talk about the book’s premature end, the unsolved mystery surrounding Mockingbird and how that was unofficially resolved and how to read it today. (Note: This is about the Silver Age team, not the Gail Simone books of the 2000s.)
And then, it’s Showcase 43, cover dated April 1963, the DC Comics adaptation of Dr. No, the first James Bond movie starring Sean Connery. We look at the comic’s original home, how it got to DC Comics. how were it’s sales since it was published before the movie was released in the US and some of the major and minor changes back to the movie versus the comic. We also touch on, 60 years after being published, it’s quite the rarity in the collector’s world.
Special shout out to comics scribe and font of knowledge Mark Waid for research help. Check out the Irredeemable Kickstarter still going on as this episode debuts. And remember to check out the other podcasts on the When It Was Cool network.
Episode 111 - Let's Go to the Videotape
Jul 24, 2022
The American Ninja from Texas Championship Wrestling.
We’re happy to welcome for the first time to the show, Kris P Lettuce (@krisplettuce), the man behind the Armstrong Alley You Tube channel. We discussed the treasure trove of found footage he has been posting on his channel featuring independent wrestling from the 1980s., 1990s and 2000s.
First up, we talked about his channel and the origins of all this footage, including a subject we’ve been talking a lot lately on the show, tape trading. Just how big was the list of footage from which he was choosing?
From there, we talk about a number of short-lived promotions, including: Austin Idol’s 1993 USA Wrestling, the 1987 Alabama promotion World Organization Wrestling, the 1990-91 Texas Championship Wrestling, the 1991 Nashville International Wrestling Alliance, the 1990 Arkansas International Pro Wrestling, The 1990-91 North American Wrestling Assocation/South Atlantic Pro Wrestling and more. There’s a littany of people we mention here: Idol, Junkyard Dog, the Bullet and the other Armstrongs, Bob Holly, Bill Ash, Stunning Steve Austin, Paul Jones, Robert Fuller, Willie the Wrestling Clown and even Nick Gulas.
There’s also chat about Southeastern/Continental, missing and found footage, Ron Wright and Ron’s Championship Wrestling, wrestling fan subcultures, Kris’ new Patreon, wrestling books, what footage he hopes to get next and more.
Note: The next episode of The Plot should feature two spy-themed Silver Age comics and should be out in a week or two. Thanks for listening.
Episode 110 - Million Dollar Bash
Jul 12, 2022
The Great American Bash issue from Pro Wrestling Illustrated.
We’re happy to welcome back Mike Sempervive (@sempervive) for another marathon pod. The main focus of the episode is the first Great American Bash in July 1985. We go over the show match-by-match, what was going on for each person at the time going into the show and where things were going after the show on the road to Starrcade 1985. We also talk about the other JCP show that night in Columbus, Georgia. There’s also discussion of both the magazine coverage of the show and the video tape, put out in conjunction with Pro Wrestling Illustrated.
From there, it’s a free for all, as we talk about tape trading, not only in wrestling but also hockey fights and old television shows, running shows in high school gyms and armories, which led to a discussion of the 1993 film Blue Chips, hockey road trips, the usual discussion of 1980s wrestling TV in the Baltimore/Washington area and much more.
As with most people these days, you can’t talk this long without some coughing fits. We tried to edit them out, but may have missed some, so please accept our apologies.
Also, our new podcast The Plot, done with When It Was Cool, now has two episodes:. The first is about the Mission Impossible TV show and the second is about the heist comedy The Lavender Hill Mob. You can find it in this podcast feed or over at the When It Was Cool Website. .
Thanks for listening.
The Plot - Episode 2 - The Lavender Hill Mob / Card Shark
Jun 24, 2022
He loves only gold. Henry Holland (Alec Guinness) in The Lavender Hill Mob.
The Plot returns with a look at one of the greatest heist comedies in film history, 1951’s The Lavender Hill Mob., starting Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway. We discuss the film’s plot, how a mild-mannered bank clerk masterminds a robbery of an armored car full of gold. We also give some background on the film, Ealing Studios, some of the creators behind the scenes and its filming.
We also give a quick shout to the new video game Card Shark, a tale of grifting and card cheating in Pre-Revolutionary France. We hope to have some of the folks behind the game on a future episode of the Winter Palace Podcast.
Thanks for listening. Be sure to listen to the other shows on the When It Was Cool Network.
The Plot - Episode One - Mission Impossible 1966
Jun 06, 2022
What happens when a safecracker breaks his hands? Willy (Peter Lupus) and Terry (Wally Cox) from the Mission: Impossible pilot episode.
We’re happy to debut a new podcast series in conjuction with the When It Was Cool network with the first episode of The Plot. What’s that, you ask? It’s going to be an examination of the spy/heist genre. It will look at film, television, comics, cartoons and whatever else that can fall under that umbrella.
First up, we go to the very top of the genre for me, the original Mission Impossible TV show, which ran on CBS from 1966 to 1975. Naturally, we start with the Pilot, which starred Steven Hill as Dan Briggs, the team leader, along with regulars Barbara Bain, Greg Morris, Peter Lupus, Martin Landau and guest star Wally Cox. We look at the background on the show and then some brief chat about the episode itself, where the team goes to a Caribbean country to stop a dictator from using newly-acquired nuclear warheads against the United States.
We also look at arguably the most-remembered episode of the show, Season 3’s The Execution. We have Peter Graves in his second year as Jim Phelps, the regular team and guest villains Vincent Gardenia, Val Avery and Lew Askew. The team needs to get the goods on a mobster trying to control food prices and must get a hitman to rat out his boss by making him believe he is days away from being killed in the gas chamber.
This episode was a little shorter than we planned, but didnt want to just add filler. It was the demo episode, so please forgive any hiccups or glitches. We’ll be back soon with another episode.
Thanks to Karl for the invitation. Make sure you sample the other shows on the When It Was Cool Network.
Episode 109 - Stray Cat Strut
May 31, 2022
The Injustice Society, from History of the DC Universe. Pencils by George Perez, inks by Karl Kesel.
(c) 2021 DC Comics.
We’re happy to welcome Karl Kesel (@karlkesel) back for his annual visit to discuss the latest Impossible Jones kickstarter. At the time of recording, there were two days left in the Impossible Jones / Polecat Kickstarter, which has been trying to reach its latest stretch goals in the final days. Karl tells about new character Polecat, what he has in common with last issue’s guest star Captain Lightning and some of the other new friends and foes in this issue. We also talk about the Even Steven back-ups this time around, with new origin stories being written by Alex Segura and Gail Simone. Karl also updates on us the state of the latest Section Zero project, on which he and Tom Grummett are still working. If you listen before the deadline, you can still pledge at impossiblekickstarter.com.
We also talk about some of Karl’s older work, starting with Final Night, the 1998 DC mini-series he created with Stuart Immonen, the Amalgam and Unlimited Access books and some of the projects he worked on with the late George Perez, including the great History of the DC Universe, written by Marv Wolfman, drawn by George and inked by Karl. We also discuss, in a wonderfully nerdy way, the differences between DC’s Who Who and the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe.
Parish Notice: By the time you listen to this, we might have a new podcast officially launched over at the When It Was Cool Network. If you’re a long-time listener of the pod, the subject of this new project will not be a surprise. Be on the lookout on social media when it actually debuts.
Episode 108 - Son of a Gypsy
May 06, 2022
Before he was Handsome Jimmy or the Boogie Woogie Man, he was Big John Vallen.
We have a very special show and a very special guest today. It’s our first on-location recording and it’s a big one. While going through Southwestern Virginia, I was able to stop and have a conversation with the legendary Hall of Famer, the Boogie Woogie Man, Handsome Jimmy Valiant.. We sat down ringside at Boogie’s Wrestling Camp to have a chat about a lifetime in the wrestling business. We couldn’t get to everything in his almost six decades career , but we talked about his early years in the business, who gave him the Jimmy Valiant name, working for Vince Senior in the WWWF, Dick the Bruiser in Indianapolis, his many years in both Memphis and the Carolinas and more. We also talk about his singing career and the three singles he recorded, including at the legendary Sun Records. There’s plenty more but that’s a sampling of our chat. Thanks again to Jimmy for his hospitality. And if you’re in the area, make sure to come to Boogie’s Wrestling Camp on Sunady afternoon June 5th for the annual Valiant Cup Battle Royal. You can get more info at Jimmy’s website. And thanks for friend of the show Beau James for helping line up the interview.
Note: we recorded this on my phone so the sound quality is not as great as usual. Also, about halfway through the interview, Jimmy starts calling me Chris. I wasn’t going to stop Handsome in the middle of story to correct him, so you just go with the flow. Thanks for listening and we hope you enjoy the show
The Charlie Brown mask, made by the Great Kabuki.
Episode 107 - Children of the Night
Apr 17, 2022
Good Night, Funny Man. RIP Gilbert Gottfried.
It was a bittersweet podcast to do, reliving the life and career of the great Gilbert Gottfried with Longbox Heroes’ co-host Joe Sposto (@joesposto). Most of our memories revolve around Gilbert’s 122 appearances on the Howard Stern show. We discuss our history of hearing Gilbert on the show and many of his famous incidents over the years: Dracula Gottfried, the Jerry Seinfeld voicemail, arguing with Amy Heckerling’s assistant and many more. We also go over many of his other credits: from animation to TV to celebrity roasts to commercials. to his podcast and what futures does it have with his passing. We were both huge fans of Gilbert, so we hope we did his memory justice.
It’s been quite a while since Joe has been on the show, so we also caught up some of our other common interests. We talk about about what comics Joe and Todd have been discussing on their podcast and what he’s been enjoying lately. There’s mention of One-Star Squadron, Word’s Finest, The Nice House on the Lake, Marvel’s Spider-Man books and a few others.
There’s also wrestling chat, mainly about the success of Eddie Kingston, who Joe has been watching for almost 20 years in Chikara and other promotions. We also discuss about the folly of hate watching, watching what content you like, whether it’s new, old, international or some combination of all of it.
And we couldn’t not mention Marvel Puzzle Quest. We mention my passing day 3000 of playing, with Joe not far behind, the choice of new characters being introduced into the game and is it still fun to play after almost a decade of being around.
Apologies for the lack of formal introduction and the occasional cough throughout the show. Our long chat and the wacky spring weather left my voice a little froggy.
Episode 106 - Bad Moon Rising
Apr 01, 2022
Moon Knight 24 cover by Bill Sinkiewicz. (c) 2022 Marvel.
We’re happy tp welcome back Karl Stern (@WIWCool) from When It Was Cool to talk comics, comics TV, popular culture and classic wrestling.
We start the show talking about the first episode of the new Moon Knight show on Disney+. If you want to avoid spoilers, skip ahead to around the 15:00 mark. We discuss what we did and did not like in the first episode, where they might go from there, changes to the characters from the comics, Karl’s long-time love of the character since the 1970s and more.
From there, we have some general comics chat. We talk about the comics Karl has been reviewing on his podcast network, old comics vs new comics, comics reflecting society, popular culture and the fallacies of high culture vs low culture and more.
Then, it’s on to the wrestling discussion. We talk about wrestling perceptions, how opinion has been shaped over the years by the newsletters, how sources shaped the newsletter’s narratives, particularly in the 1980s, noticable blind spots and biases in newsletter coverage over the years, the “found” Southeastern Wrestling now on Youtube, heel Bob Armstrong, the history of the Original Midnight Express, Norvell Austin and other topics.
Always a fun show with Karl. We have an idea for a show that we hope to do in the future, either here or on his network.
Also, I was on a recent episode of Between the Sheets podcast, talking March 1984., specifically about the start of the Last Stampede, with The Cake and The Slap from the March 17 1984 episode of Mid-South Wrestling TV show. Be sure to check it out.
Episode 105 - Tyger, Tyger
Mar 09, 2022
A 1912 T202 Hassan Triple Folder tobacco card featuring Hughie Jennings and Ty Cobb.
We’re happy to finally have filmmaker, journalist and author Greg Klein (@JYDbook) on the pod for a chat his new book, his old book and more..
To start, we discuss Greg’s new book, The Paper Tigers, a fictional account of a real-life incident in baseball history. After Ty Cobb was suspended in 1912 for going into the stands and attacking a fan, his teammates refused to play a game in Philadelphia, leaving manager Hughie Jennings to find replacement players. The novel tells the story of some of those players, including two con men and a seminary student., with the central character being a local barmaid who was the sister of one of the con men and married to the other. We talk about how Greg got the idea for the book, which was originally a screenplay, balancing facts and historical fiction, the truth behind Cobb’s attack on the fan, the connection to the 1919 Black Sox Scandal, baseball movies and more.
(22:20) - From there, it’s mostly wrestling chat. We talk about Greg’s book The King of New Orleans about the Junkyard Dog, Sylvester Ritter. We talk about Greg’s fandom growing up in suburban DC but also getting to see Houston wrestling, the rise of JYD in Mid-South Wrestling for Bill Watts, his popularity in New Orleans and the rest of the territory, his leaving for the WWF, Watts trying to replace him with other black wrestlers, Greg meeting JYD in later years and more. We also talk about our shared love of Mid-South as a whole, some of its more famous angles, the transition to the UWF, studio wrestling vs arena wrestling and lot of other wrestling topics.
There were a lot of planned topics left on the table, including Greg now living in Cooperstown and how the Baseball Hall of Fame was effected by the pandemic and past and present work stoppages in the sport, his wrestling career and being trained by Adrian Street and lots of other fun stuff, so we will definitely try to get Greg back on in the future.
Note: We had some Skype issues during recording, so hopefully the editing was not too egregious and the flow of the conversation was maintained.
Thanks for listening.
Episode 104 - He Who Laughs Last
Feb 01, 2022
Sean Lock, Jimmy Carr and Jon Richardson play Carrot in a Box on 8 out of 10 Cats Does Countdown.
We’re very happy to welcome back writer, comedian and podcaster Kevin Day (@kevinhunterday) back to the show to talk comedy, football and more.
The reason we wanted to have Kevin back on the show was to discuss the British panel show on TV, following the death last year of Sean Lock. Kevin worked with Sean on a number of shows and has written for dozens of shows including Have I Got News for You, 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, Here Comes the Buzzcocks and many more. We talk about why they are so popular in the UK and haven’t really worked as well in the US. But we do talk about one of the shows that has succeeded in both places and that’s Whose Line Is It Anyway. We talk about improv comedy, the genius of Paul Merton and Tony Slattery, among others, the culture of improv in the US vs the UK and the challenge of doing improv vs stand up. We also talk about the problems of diversity in booking panel shows and the difficulties of avoiding tokenism.
We also talk about podcasts as a means for young comedians to get exposure and segue that into chatting about comedians doing football podcasts, including Quickly Kevin, Comedians Playing Fantasy Premier League and, maybe the grand dame of the genre, The Tuesday Club. We also reminisce about Kevin doing the Chappers podcast more than a decade ago with Mark Chapman, Graham Poll and Roy Meredith.
That leads into actual football chat. We recorded this on Transfer Deadline Day, but not much talk about that. We discuss the arrival of Patrick Viera at Crystal Palace and how much Kevin is enjoying the football at Selhurst Park this year, the rivalry (derby?) with Brighton and the challenges that brings with hosting The Price of Football with Seagulls supporter Kieran Macguire. We also talk about the proliferation of London football clubs, rivalries and tribalism and comparing that to American sports. (Disclaimer: I accidentally swapped Alabama and Auburn in my story and flip-flopped the fandom of the tree killer in that heated blood feud. My apologies to the fans of both teams.)
Kevin is always a great guest and we hopefully to get back in the near future to continue the chat about British sportswriting vs American sportswriting and the other stuff we ran out of time to discuss.
Episode 103 - Blood Will Have Blood
Dec 30, 2021
Ric Flair vs Ted DiBiase, 1985 Mid-South TV. Thanks to Dick Murdoch, one of the best angles in wrestling history. It’s also one of the 100 Greatest Bloody Matches in Way of the Blade by Phil Schneider
We’re joined on the podcast by Phil Schneider (@philschneider) from DVDVR and Segunda Caida to discuss his new book, Way of the Blade: 100 of the greatest bloody matches in wrestling history.
We talk about how he came to write the book and some of the nuts and bolts behind it: how did he pick the matches to include and not include, wanting a wide geographical and historical spread without overloading one particular time and place and such. We talk about a good number of the matches in the book and many of the names you would expect in this type of project; Ric Flair, Terry Funk, Jerry Lawler, Abdullah the Butcher, the Great Muta and many more. We also talk about the companion podcast to the book, where Phil has had both wrestling writers and well as wrestlers themselves on discuss matched from the book, including Steve Keirn and Dustin Rhodes.
There’s also chat about the differences between watching wrestling live versus on tape or television, the greatness of Eddie Kingston, Negro Casas and Black Terry and all that French Catch Wrestling that Phil and his crew watch on Segunda Caida.
You can find Way of the Blade in print and digital at your favorite bookseller and the Way of the Blade podcast where you get your shows.
Episode 102 - My Coffee with Andre
Nov 18, 2021
Chillin’ with Andre in the Roost. I don’t think he has an iced latte.
We’re happy to welcome back Andre Segers (@andresegers) from GameXplain, depsite Nintendo doing one of their famous stealth drops a few hours before our scheduled recording time.
We talk about that announcement, an update for Mario Karl Live, as well as some of the other games Andre has been playing recently. He’s been playing Mario Party Superstars just about every day with fans on the GX Youtube channel, so we chat about how that has been going so far, future additions and how conectivity has been, since he is playing with folks around the world.
There’s also a deep dive on Animal Crossing, both the 2.0 update and the Happy Home Designer DLC. Andre has only dabbled with them so far, so I give him a run-down on stuff like the Roost (see above), Harv’s Island, the Kap’n tours, gyroids and more. We also discuss the DLC, some of its features and not needing to burn through new content as quickly as possible. We also talk about the new Nintendo Online Expansion Pack, the reaction to it online and our opinions on the pricing and its future.
We also talk about a variety of other topics, including the new OLED Switch, a year of the next generation Xbox and Playstation systems, the Game of the Year nominees for 2021 vs 2020, Big Brain Academy, the upcoming new Pokemon game and a lot more.
Big thanks to Andre for still doing the show in the middle of hectic few days.
Episode 101 - Teenage Kicks
Oct 16, 2021
Impossible Jones and Holly Daze. (c) Karl Kesel and David Hahn.
I’m happy to welcome @karlkesel back to the show to talk about his newest Kickstarter project, Impossible Jones & Captain Lightning Team Up. With less than a week to go, Karl talks to us about the new project, the recently shipped Impossible Jones & Holly Daze Team Up, the creations of those characters and how they were influenced by his writing Harley Quinn, the creation of Captain Lightning, bringing childhood creators to life, the Ditko-like Even Steven and the back-up that will be written by Mark Waid and more, We also start about the nuts and bolts of creating comics via Kickstarter, the ups and downs, lessons he learned with the original Section Zero book and wearing multiple hats in the job, from creator to editor to fulfillment. We also talk about the popularity of King Shark, who he created back in the pages of Superboy and is now a popular culture phenomenon, thanks to the Suicide Squad movie. You can find more information about the Impossible Jones Kickstarter here.
Note 1: Former guest @jeffparker was supposed to be on the show too, since he also has a new Kickstarter project, but couldn’t make it. His book, also ending this week, is Blighter: Tracker of the Realm.
Note 2: We had talked to Friends of the Show @paultobin and @colleencoover about doing the pod to discuss their new book Wrassle Castle, but they too couldn’t make. It’s out now so pick up a copy and as always, read Bandette.
Episode 100 - Family Affair #3 - Caged Heat
Aug 08, 2021
The sons vow to avenge their father.
We had such great plans for episode 100. Unfortunately, life gets in the way sometimes. We had lined up a bunch of folks to discuss the night that changed Continental Championship Wrestling, when Robert Fuller turned on Bob Armstrong in a steel cage and joined the Stud Stable with his brother Ron and cousin Jimmy in August 1985. But, due to all the sad wrestling news from this week, we were left with the only piece of the show that was recorded before the deaths of Jody Hamilton, Bert Prentice and Bobby Eaton.
So, we welcome back Karl Stern (@WIWCool) from When It Was Cool to talk about the fateful evening. We discuss the build-up to the cage match, not just from the start of Continental in June, but seeds that had been planted for years in the long-running Armstrong family feud with the Fuller/Golden/Welch clan. Then we analyze the match and the angle, including one part of the story that bugged Karl for many years.
We follow that up with a more general discussion of Continental and Southeastern, including why some parts of the wrestling community have overlooked or ignore the contributions made by Roy Welch, Buddy Fuller and Ron Fuller over the years.
The show wraps up with some comic book talk, as Karl had been gushing online about the first issue of the new Moon Knight comic, so we chat about that and whether this version will tie into the new Disney/Marvel TV show featuring the man of many personalities.
We have some shows lined up in the future, so hopefully those will materialize. Given all the problems we have had with guests lately, we don’t feel confident giving a timetable anymore. But thanks for listening for any and all of the first 100 episodes.
Episode Ninety-Nine - The Night of the Affair Affair
May 05, 2021
Barbara Feldon and Robert Vaughn from the Man from UNCLE
There were two choices for what to do for episode 99 - hockey or female spies, so we chose the latter. To talk about Agent 99, Mrs. Peel, April Danger and lots others, we’re happy to welcome back to the pod John Champion (@DVDGeeks) from the Mission Log Podcast amongst other shows.
We start, of course, with Agent 99 herself, Barbara Feldon and Get Smart, including the start of the show, her role as straight woman/love interest, the evolution of the show , the 90s Fox sequel/revival and the Numb Bomb movie which noticably did not have Feldon in the cast.
Feldon’s appearonce on the Man from UNCLE led us into discussing The Girl From UNCLE, the one-season spiin-off starring Stefanie Powers. This segues nicely into a chat about the number one female TV spy, Mrs. Peel, played by Diana Rigg on the Avengers. We talk about what made her so special and tallk about some memorable episodes.
Naturally, this brings us to James Bond, where we start with the whole notion of “the Bond Girl,” and how the term has outlived its usefulness in 2021. We discuss our favorite from the movies, whether they were leading ladies or dastardly femme fatales. And that includes some of the lesser-known characters over the years, not just the obvious ones.
(editor’s note: Shamefully, we forgot to discuss Barbara Bain and Mission: Impossible. My apologies)
We end the show with some brief Star Trek talk. Mission Log recently reviews the Deep Space Nine episode “Far Beyond the Stars,” so we discuss how that episode still holds up 30 years later. There’s also some brief chat about season two of Star Trek Picard and the new Roddenberry podcast “Sci Fi 5.:”
As we mentioned on the show, episode 100 is next and hopefully we will be having someone as a very special, after literally years of them asking to do the show. Tune in next time to see if they are here.
Episode Ninety-Eight - The Warrior of the Wasteland
Apr 08, 2021
The Lord Humongous (Jeff Van Camp) from his Mid-South debut in 1985.
The It’s a Family Affair podcast makes its return with a very special guest, Jeff Von Camp aka Lord Humongous (Continental/Mid-South version). We discuss how Jeff was broken into the business by Jerry Lawler, cutting his teeth in Indianapolis teaming with Dick the Bruiser, being given the Humongous gimmick, working in Southeastern/Continental for the Fullers, joining the Stud Stable, turning babyface, wrestling Ric Flair for the NWA World title and some of his opponents in Pensacola, including Porkchop Cash, Bob Armstrong and The Flame (Jody Hamilton). We then go over his move to Mid-South, where he could have gone at the time, his debut angle with Dick Murdoch, being managed by Sir Oliver Humperdink, teaming with Nord the Barbarian and his memorable feud with Jake Roberts. We end by talking about why he left the business after such a short time and his career after that.
Amazingly, I forgot to ask about the thing I was most curious: the Mid-South Lord Humongous music video,, set to War Machine by Kiss (see below). Jeff was nice enough to tell me after the show that it was Bill Watts’ idea and it was shot at a body shop in Watts’ hometown of Bixby, Oklahoma.
Thanks to Jeff for talking about his brief-but-memorable time in the business. We hope to have more wrestlers from that era on the podcast in the future so stay tuned. Thanks for listening.
Episode Ninety-Seven - Nothing Could be Finer
Mar 11, 2021
Jim Crockett Jr shakes hands with Paul Ellering at the 1986 Crockett Cup as Bill Watts and Elizabeth Crockett look on.
We’re happy to welcome back Beau James (@kingofkingsport) to the show for another history lesson.
First, we discuss the recent passing of Jim Crockett Jr, who ran Jim Crockett Promotions from 1973 until selling the company to Turner Broadcasting in 1988. JCP promoted in the Tri-Cities, when Beau saw his first live shows in the early 1980s. We talk about how Jim Crockett Sr promoted there before moving to North Carolina in the 1930s, the history of the Crocketts promoting the area off and on over the years, including once the Knoxville War ended in 1979 and eventually taking over the territory when it was sold by Ric Flair and Blackjack Mulligan. We also talk about them running in the late 1980s there, including a record-setting show in Kingsport in 1987.
After that, we spend a good while talking about Ron Fuller’s Southeastern Wrestling in Knoxville and Pensacola and Continental Championship Wrestling., including the 1977 time period Ron is currently discussing on his podcast and the 1980s stuff that will be part of the It’s A Family Affair project, which you can find elsewhere on the website. All the names you would expect to hear are brought up: Ron Wright, Robert Fuller and Jimmy Golden. Ron Garvin, the Mongolian Stomper and many more.
Of course, plenty of other stuff too, as you would expect when Beau is on the show, including some baseball chat and an update on Beau’s health issues. It’s always great to talk to the King of Kingsport.
Episode Ninety-Six - The Sheik of Araby
Mar 07, 2021
Sarge gets a “gift” from Saddam Hussein. Or so he says.
We welcome back Ashraf Khalil (@ashrafkhalil) to take about a dubious wrestling anniversary, the 30th anniversary of Iraqi Sympathizer Sgt. Slaughter winning the WWF title during the Persian Gulf War. We talk about the whole history of the gimmick, friom Sarge’s return to the WWF in the Summer of 1990, his initial heel gimmick, the pairing with General Adnan, his winning the WWF title, the Wrestlemania VII match with Hulk Hogan, the addition of Colonel Mustafa to the group, the split and face turn and blow-off. We discuss what was going in Middle East as all this was going on, as well as the WWF’s war with Dave Meltzer over his coverage of the angle in the National. (Check out the recent Between the Sheets Patreon episode for more on this topic).
This leads into a broader discussion of the depiction of Arab/Middle Eastern wrestlers, from the Terrible Turk in the late 1900s up until the present, including looking at the Iron Sheik, Sheik Adnan Al-Kaissie, Scandar Akbar, the Great Mephisto, Muhammad Hassan, the Original Sheik, Sabu and many more. Who were Arab-Americans, who were from the Middle East, who used a fake accent and who didn’t and other relevant questions. Shout out to Charting the Territories podcast for their recent look at the in=ring career of Scandar Akbar, which helped out conversation.
There’s also a lot of digressions in the show, including stuff about comics, Indiana University’s “eight front doors,” pre-Internet journalism and more. Thanks for listening.
Episode Ninety-Five - New Math
Dec 31, 2020
Danny Hodge on the cover of the April 1, 1957 issue of Sports Illustrated.
We’re happy to have the debut on the pod this week of Al Getz (@AlGetzwrestling) from Charting the Territories for a wide ranging conversation.
First, we discuss the life and times of Danny Hodge, who passed away last week at the age of 88. One of Al’s main areas of research is the Leory McGuirk territory, Hodge’s home for most of his career. We discuss Hodge’s amateur accomplishments in both wrestling and boxing, his transition to pro wrestling and his career highlights. Al has a number of great stories about Hodge, both in his younger days and the unfortunate end of his in-ring tenure following a car accident.
After that, we talk about an article Al wrote about the early career of pod favorite Buddy Landell. We talk about his start in Poffo’s ICW and his journey up the card until becoming a main eventer in Memphis, during his infamous run in 1986 teaming with Bill Dundee. We talk about his time in Mid-South, Mid-Atlantic and Puerto Rico. This leads to a wonderful digression about the journey wrestlers go on in finding the right persona to adopt in the ring.
We also talk about the statistical-based Al uses on his website and podcast to evaluate wrestlers, how it was inspired by baseball sabermetrics and the folly of using traditional sports metrics to try and analyze pro wrestling. There are also some fun stories about indy wrestling, involving folks like King Kong Bundy and the Honky Tonk Man.
Thanks for listening. Work is slowly continuing on our new It’s A Family Affair project, with a few weeks of Continental TV recapped on the website. We hope to have the next episode of the podcast up soon with a former wrestler as guest. Stay turned for more information. We hope you enjoy the show.
Episode Ninety-Four - It's a Family Affair Number One
Nov 07, 2020
Ron Fuller on the Continental Championship Wrestling set.
We are happy to debut the first episode of the “It’s A Family Affair” Podcast, the companion piece to the website project of the same name examining Continental Championship Wrestling. And for our first show, it’s great to welcome back Karl Stern (@WIWCool) to the show. Not only is Karl a wrestling historian, but an Alabama native who grew up watching Southeastern Wrestling and saw its transition to Continental.
In a very wide-ranging discussion, we talk about the transition of the promotion in June 1985, the logistics of the change, why they changed names, format and even announcers, bringing in Gordon Solie to replace longtime host Charlie Platt. We talk about where the promotion was in terms of angles they were running at the time and what they did on the debut show, including bringing in world champion Ric Flair to kick off the first episode.
After that, quite frankly, we just all over the place, talking about just about everything related to the company, including their start in Knoxville in 1974, Ron Fuller acquiring the Gulf Coast terrritory and renaming it Southeastern in 1978, the towns they ran and where the TV show was seen in that part of the country. We talk about Ron Fuller’s career as a wrestler and promoter, including whether we think buying Knoxville cost him the change of being NWA World Champion .
And we discuss just about every name you can think of from this era: Robert Fuller, Jimmy Golden, all of the Armstrongs (Bob, Brad, Scott and Steve), Adrian Street, Rip Rogers, Austin Idol, Tommy and Johnny Rich, the Nightmares (Danny Davis and Ken Wayne), Tom Prichard, Tony Anthony, Jerry Stubbs, The Flame (also known as the Assassin), Roy Lee Welch, Bill Ash, Lord Humongous and more.
We also talk about Karl’s When It Was Cool website, a wide ranging popular culture site, very akin to our own. We even find time to talk about Southern Basterds, then now missing in action comic set in the part of Alabama Karl knows very well.
The goal of the podcast is not only have wrestling journalists and historians on the show, but also the wrestlers were that is possible.
Note: You can also hear me on an upcoming episode of Ron Fuller’s Super Stud Cast, where I can to ask Ron about the creation of Continental and hear how it happened from the man himself.
Be sure to check out the It’s A Family Affair section of the website for a look at the Continental television shows and other articles about the promotion. Thanks for your time.
Episode Ninety-Three - Tragedy Tomorrow, Comedy Tonight
Oct 30, 2020
Kevin’s new book, Who Are Ya?
Sometimes the podcast you plan isn’t the one you end up doing. That’s the case with our new pod with writer/broadcaster/comedian Kevin Day (@kevinhunterday). What was supposed to be a chat about Kevin’s new book and his podcast ended up starting with a long conversation about comedy, old TV shows and more.
We innocently began the pod talking about time zones in the United States, which somehow turned into a long chat about old school British comedies, especially the shows that were shown in the States on PBS. This turned into a wide-ranging discussion about American comedy vs British comedy, Monty Python, Dad’s Army, Whose Line is it Anyway?, 1970s British sitcoms brought over to the States, classic spy shows, referentiality in comedy, stand-up versus improv and more. We also talked about Kevin’s son Ed Night (@_ednight) also being a stand-up comedian and the challenges facing the comedy business in Great Britain during the pandemic.
Eventually, we did get around to talking about Kevin’s new book, Who Are Ya?, an examination of the (current) 92 clubs in the English football pyramid. We discuss Kevin’s famous interview on Match of the Day 2 with Sylvester Stallone at Goodison Park, football’s working class roots and the contrast with today’s big business philosophies, at least among many of the Premier League clubs.
We close it out with Kevin’s current podcast, The Price of Football, and some of his old ones. How did Kevin end up working with Kieran Maguire and would the pod have even started had he known Kieran supported Brighton, the hated rival of Kevin’s beloved Crystal Palace. We also talk the old Chappers podcast that Kevin did with Mark Chapman, Graham Poll and Roy Meredith and discuss how the podcast model can be better for concent creators than trying to work in radio or TV.
This was a fun show that went in so many different directions. It’s always fun when you have a guest as multi-faceted as Kevin who can talk about everything from football finance to Randall and Hopkirk Deceased to Robin Williams. Hopefully, we will have Kevin back on the show in the future.
Also, when this show debuts in late October 2020, we hope to be announcing in the next week or so our next project which will have written content on the website and an audio companion, either on this feed or a new one.
Thanks for listening.
Episode Ninety-Two - Dream Catching
Sep 29, 2020
Rey Cometa and Espirtu Negro.
We are happy to welcome The Cubs Fan (@luchablog) back to the pod for the annual post CMLL Anniversary show under very unusual circumstances to say the least.
First off, there’s a match-by-match breakdown of the show, including discussing the matches that did not take place, either due to injury or COVID-related illness. Which matches were exceeded expectations, which did not and how did the luchadors that getting a chance to shine in the spotlight fare on the night?
Then, we discuss how lucha as a whole has dealt with the pandemic in Mexico. Who has been able to run shows, how have the wrestlers coped with no income for months now, how have the promotions and officials taken care of them (or not)?
Next, with voting still taking place at time of recording, we examine all the lucha candidates on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame ballot. After the logjam in the lucha category was thinned out last year, how do the prospects of old and new candidates look for the likes of Los Brazos, Caristico and others?
We end the show with some quick postseason baseball chat, with the playoffs Astarting tomorrow and a discussion of the next generation video game consoles. Is it worth getting a new PS5 or Xbox Series X at launch?
Also, we are hoping to very soon launch a new project on the website that may or may not have a podcast component to it. Keep an eye on the website and Twitter for details.
Thanks for listening.
Episode Ninety-One - Long and Lean and the color of the sun
Sep 01, 2020
The Tennessee Stud, Charlie Platt and Bob Armstrong. Not pictured: Ron Fuller.
We are beyond thrilled to welcome The (original) Tennessee Stud Ron Fuller (@RonFullerWelch) to the podcast for the first time (hopefully not the last) to discuss a wide variety of topics.
First, we discuss Ron’s new novel Brutus, about a cunning and deadly man-eating lion that gets loose in the Smoky Mountain National Park. We talk about how long ago Ron wrote the book, how it got published, some (but not all) of the plot, the characters involved, how writing can be like being a wrestling booker, comparing Brutus to the Mongolian Stomper and more.
From there, we pay tribute to the late Bullet Bob Armstrong, who passed away a few ago as of recording. Ron talks about his long friendship and business relationship with Bob outside the ring and some of the famous angles with and against him in the ring. We talk about how Bob excelled at being a heel for the first time and discuss the psychology of heels growing mustaches.
This segues into a chat about Ron’s promotions in Knoxville and Pensacola and some of the folks he worked with in those places, including some Ron Wright stories.
Lastly, we talk about how Ron ended up in hockey, owning teams in Nashville and Cincinnati, bringing wrestling showmanship to the ice and the resistance that entailed and how he helped pave the way for the successes the NHL has found with the Nashville Predators.
There’s also talk about doing the Studcast, the Super Studcast, the largest wrestling family in American history, playing against Artis Gilmore in college, watching his dad stretch Elvis in the family barn, and so much more. You can buy Brutus from Amazon or you can get it from Ron directly at tnstud.com, where you can get an autographed copy.
This might be one of my favorite episodes, getting to talk Southern Rasslin’ with someone so important to its history. We didn’t get to talk about so many topics that we can’t wait to have Ron on again.
Episode Ninety - Paper Mache, Confetti and Kings
Jul 30, 2020
Animal Crossing in action (or is that inaction).
We welcome GameXplain’s Andre Segers (@andresegers) to the pod for the first time to chat about past, present and future of some video games.
First up is the new Paper Mario game, The Origami King. It’s a spoiler filled discussion, so if you haven’t finished the game yet, this section starts around 03:10 and goes until 22:36. We discuss the story, the characters (old and new), the bosses, the game play, the music and how it compares to past games in the series, including the loved Thousand Year Door and no so loved Sticker Star.
Then, we talk about the phenomenon that is Animal Crossing. Just how was this the perfect to be released when the world was sequestered in their homes and how even Andre’s mom became an AC player. We talk about the updates, Andrew recreating a movie scene on his island, the ennui that sets in after playing daily for months and what might the future hold for the game. For context, we recorded the show the day before the August update came out.
We discuss the next generation of consoles, did the recent trailers from Sony and Microsoft really make either of us want to get a Playstation 5 or Xbox Series X at launch and what if anything is coming for the Switch the rest of 2020.
We close out with some retro gaming talk, including reminiscing about the Nintendo 64, Sony Dreamcast, text based game and getting Japanese imports. Andre also talked about the upcoming 200th episode of GameXplain’s Real Talk podcast. Check out @Gamexplain on YouTube for much of what we talked about on the pod and more.
Episode Eighty-Nine - The Force of July
Jul 02, 2020
The 1986 Great American Bash program cover
We look back at a special wrestling event that took place 36 years ago as we write this, the first date on the 1986 Great American Bash tour, held on July 1, 1986 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The Winter Palace host was at the shot and has a couple guests to look back at the show.
First up is one of the hardest working man in the podcast business, Kris Zellner (@kriszellner), co host of Between the Sheets (@BTSheetspod) , Exile on Badstreet, Cover 2 Cover and more. We go over the card, match-by-match and talk about some of the infamous stories that happened backstage. We also talk about the 1986 Bash tour as a whole, where it was successful and where it was not. We also talk about a bunch of other subjects including the logistics of watching wrestling in the 1980s, the days of tape trading, how Kris managed to find the time to do all those shows and some recommendations of classic matches to watch online.
(52:18) Also on the show is Mark’s high school friend Jim, who, to protect his real identity, we will call Jim K. Fabe. Jim and Mark were impressionable 16-year old wrestling fans who attended that Bash show in Philadelphia. We talk about what we remember about the show live, other wrestling shows we attended back in the 1980s, favorites then vs favorites and more. We also talk about the current problem in popular culture of separating the art from the artist, centering about Jim’s teenage fandom for Jimmy Snuka and reconciling that with what we know about the death of Nancy Argentino. That branches out into the same problems effecting creators in film and tv, sports, comics and more. It was Jim’s first podcast appearance and we think he did a bang up job talking a trip down memory lane.
Check the show notes below for The Final Best of 7 match between Magnum TA and Nikita Koloff for the Unites States Title from JCP TV and Jim Cornette’s podcast where he discusses the Great American Basn tours.
Episode Eighty-Eight - Let Loose the Cannons
Jun 18, 2020
Ron Wright, Dennis Condrey and Phil Hickerson from a 1978 episode of Southeastern Wrestling.
We are thrilled that today’s episode featuring what we hope is the first of many podcast appearances by the longtime wrestler/announcer/trainer/promoter Les Thatcher (@LesThatcher). The main reason we invited Les to come on the show was to talk about the just-passed 20th anniversary of the 2000 edition of the Brian Pillman Memorial Show, which featured a famous match between Chris Benoit and William (then Steven Regal). We talk about that match, the creation of the Pillman Memorial Shows, the Mark Curtis (Brian Hildebrand) Fantasy Camps and some great news about how people will soon be able to see many of those matches.
Speaking of lost footage, we talk about the 1978 episode of Southeastern Wresting that was just posted to Youtube (see link below). Les explains his part in getting that tape out to the wrestling watching public, the creation of the revolutionary television program with Ron Fuller (@RonFullerWelch), working Knoxville for at least five different companies, teaming with Whitey Caldwell vs the Wright Brothers and more.
We only scratched the surface of Les’ 60 year career, so we definitely want to have him back to talk working in the Maritimes, characters like The Mongolian Stomper and Kevin Sullivan and too much to list here. And don’t forget Les is still doing wrestling seminars with folks like Dr. Tom Prichard (@drtomprichard).
Episode Eighty-Seven - Jazz Hands
May 26, 2020
Bix meets Louis Armstrong. from BIX by Scott Chantler. (C) Scott Chantler
I’m happy to welcome to the show for the first time cartoonist Scott Chantler (@scottchantler) to discuss his new book BIX and a number of his other books, along with some industry chatter.
BIX tells the life and times of Jazz great Bix Beiderbecke, from growing up in Iowa to playing with Louis Armstrong to his all-too-early passing. We discuss how Scott chose Bix as a subject for his book, separating fact from fiction and legend and some of the stylistic choices he made in designing the book.
We also discuss a number of his past projects, including Northwest Passage, Two Generals, the Three Thieves series, his Red Ensign strip in the True Patriot Canadian anthology projects, which features folks like J. Torres (@jtorrescomics) and Faith Erin Hicks (@faitherinhicks) and more.
The pod ends with a discussion of the comics business, comic shops and the book market. Scott talks the pros and cons of having books distributed in each one, while I tell some stories about working in both an indy friendly comic shop and as a clerk and manager at Borders (RIP). We mention how often one does not know the workings of the other (how many folks do not know Raina Telgemeier)) and how people like Jeff Smith paved the way for comics in the book trade.
Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the show.
Episode Eighty-Six - Kaos Theory
May 08, 2020
The high point of Star Trek Picard: the reunion with Riker, Picard and Troi.
With the Splendid Isolation mini-series ended, we are back to regular episodes. Thanks to those who listened while I tried to keep busy.
We welcome back John Champion (@dvdgeeks) from the Mission Log Podcast (@missionlogpod) to discuss the recently-completed Star Trek Picard season one. We chat about what we liked and what was problematic and where the show might go in future seasons. On the Trek front, we talk about the changes to Mission Log, with Ken Ray departing and Norman Lao arriving at the beginning of the year.
From there, it’s lots of spy talk, starting naturally with Get Smart (since it’s episode 86). From there, it’s a cornucopia of shows on the docket, including Mission: Impossible, the Man from UNCLE and more. With the passing of Robert Conrad, we of course discussed the Wild Wild West, including why the show was so fun. And with the recent death of Honor Blackman, we talk about the Cathy Gale version of The Avengers, as well as her role in Goldfinger.
To round up the show, it’s some other British programs to examine, including Danger Man, the Prisoner, Randal and Hopkirk Deceased (which John had not seen before) , Department S, Jason King and how the star of the last two shows had a connection to the Bronze Age X-Men comic books.
Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the show.
Episode Eighty-Five Splendid Isolation Four
Apr 23, 2020
Jerry Lawler, Dave Brown and Scott Bowden. RIP Scott.
First off, condolences to the friends and family of Scott Bowden, who died earlier this week. We had been talking to Scott the last couple weeks about returning to the podcast to talk Memphis wrestling and even were Tweeting with him a few days ago.
On the show we are finally to nabbed The King of Kingsport Beau James (@kingofkingsport) to be on the show. We start by remembering Scott, as Beau had just done his Kentucky Fried Rasslin’ podcast not that long ago. As one of the foremost experts on East Tennessee wrestling, we pick Beau’s brain on all things about the Knoxville/Southeastern/Continental/USA territory, so plenty of stories about Ron and Don Wright, Whitey Caldwell, Les Thatcher, Ron and Robert Fuller,, Jimmy Golden, Ron Garvin and many more folks. We also talk about Memphis, including the angle (see below) when Robert Fuller brought back Nick Gulas to do an angle about the control of the promotion. There’s way too many stories to listen here, including Beau’s long friendships with Buddy Landell and Jimmy Valiant, starting in the business at 16 years old, indy wrestling horror stories and so much more. Easily one of my favorites podcasts, as Beau is a master storyteller. If you want more, be sure to check out his new Patreon and his King of Kingsport website.
Episode Eighty-Four - Splendid Isolation Number Three
Apr 11, 2020
They Buried The Cowboy Under the Russian Flag!
We’re back with an extra-special edition of the new Splendid Isolation podcast series, as we welcome back Mike Sempervive (@sempervive) from Wrestling Observer Live and the Mid Atlantic Championship Podcast (@midatlanticpod).
We kick if off with a long chat about Bill Watts and the UWF, discussing how hot the promotion began after the name change from Mid-South Wrestling and its expansion outside its home region into places like Baltimore, where young Mike and slightly older Mark watched it in the spring of 1986. We reminisce about the initial title switches, promoting the Jim Crockett Sr Memorial Cup and one of the greatest angles of all-time, one so good we named a spin-off magazine after it: Eddie Gilbert and the Russians burying Watts under the USSR flag. We bracket that with the UWF TV show after the promotion was bought by JCP and just how quickly the show changed.
One of the other big topics covered is Mike’s new Mid-Atlantic Championshop Podcast, which he co-hosts with Roman Gomez. We talk about how the show started, why they chose 1982 as a starting point, some of the main players in the territory at the time and plenty of other JCP topics, including the Final Conflict show in 1983 and play WHAT IF? with various wrestlers (What if Gino had come in 1986? What if Buddy Landell had shown up for that TV taping?).
There’s plenty of other chat for the rest of the podcast, not limited to: the state of the territories by the mid 1980s, the hidden gem that was Southeastern Wrestling, the greatness of Ron Fuller’s Studcast podcast, classic 1980s TV and a brief chat at the end about sports uniforms.
Mike is always a great guest, so big thanks for him for giving so much of his time. We have more shows planned for the future, branching out in topics, so keep an eye out for them. Thanks for listening.
Episode Eighty-Three - Splendid Isolation Number 2
Apr 09, 2020
Nick Bockwinkel and Ray Stevens. Almost always worth watching
Splendid Isolation Number Two takes us around the world as we welcome back Odessa Steps contributer and Segunda Caida writer Matt D.
The fine folks at Segunda Caida (@segundacaida) embarked a little while ago on this project of reviewing classic French Catch wrestling. Matt is going to explain how the project started, describe what the product was like in France in the 1950s and 1960s, who some of the better wrestlers have been and more. (And all of this done without mentioning Roland Barthes.) Matt picked some of his favorite bouts so far for folks to check out if they have never seen this footage before.
Matt is also one of the more knowledgeable folks on the Paul Boesch era of Houston Wrestling, so we talk about the footage that the NWA posted on their youtube channel recently. We talk about what was new in that upload, but what to look for online of the Houston stuff that was put online as part of the NWA On Demand service a few years ago.
There’s also some brief lucha chat, because we never pass up a chance to talk about Negro Casas. Look for more episodes coming soon. Thanks for listening.
Episode Eighty-Two - Splendid Isolation Number One
Apr 08, 2020
You can’t go wrong recommending Negro Casas
Just when you thought it was safe to presume the podcast was gone. Our idle hands were put to use with the creation of a new podcast series “Splendid Isolation,” where we get folks on the blower to recommend things to watch or read or play during all this down time most people now have in their lives.
After a long hiatus, it’s the return of The Cubs Fan (@luchablog). We start off talking about the recent empty arena match held days ago by @LuchaMemes and shown on Lucha+ TV (see link below). Cubs gives a rundown on the show and what matches are worth watching. Then, we discuss the future plans of Lucha in Mexico, including the recently postponed Dos Leyendas show, and when will the hair match between Cavenario and Felino take place. We also mention some recent matches now online to watch and reminisce about CMLL’s 2014 Busca de un Idolo tournament. And if you didn’t notice elsewhere on the site, we are finally reviving our review of that event, which we started a year or ago but progress on it got delayed and delayed. But, now is a good a time to bring it back as ever. You may have even see Friend of the Show @hechicero tweeting clips from some of his matches.
Finally, like millions of people around the world, Cubs and I are addicted to the new Animal Crossing game on the Nintendo Switch. We talk about our respective progresses so far in the game, watching YouTube hint videos versus avoiding spoilers and how it has helped while away the time.
We have a few guests lined up for these short mini-episodes, so hopefully they will help. Thanks for listening
Episode Eighty-One - A Pox on Both Your Houses
Oct 15, 2019
Charles Xavier in House of X #1. (C) 2019 Marvel Comics
It’s an old school Beat reunion as we welcome the other half of the House to Astonish podcast, Paul O’Brien (@ifdestroyed), to discuss the relaunch/reboot of the X-Men with the recently concluded House of X and Powers of X. As a long-time chronicler of the mutant corner on the Marvel Universe with his X-Axis column, who better to examine what Jonathan Hickman has done and might do with the new era of X-books. We chat about the events of HOX and POX, the portrayal of various characters in the book and the new line of books, some of which will written by Hickman.
Leaving the X-books aside, there’s also talk about noteworthy books that Paul and HTA co-host (and our first pod guest) Al Kennedy (@housetoastonish) have discussed on their show, including Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen by (former pod guest) Matt Fraction and Steve Lieber, Strange Skies Over East Berlin, Steeple and more.
We end the show with some quick wrestling chat, with the first shots of the new Wednesday Night Wars having just been fired a few weeks ago. There’s talk about the inaugural AEW shows, what worked and what didn’t, the booking so far, the new NWA Power show on Youtube, the greatness of Eddie Kingston and a few other things.
Episode Eighty - Arm It In Rags
Oct 03, 2019
The podcast is back and we’re happy to welcome two comics veterans folks should check out.
First up is Rob Walton (@robwaltoon), creator of the 1990s comic Ragmop. A few years ago, Rob decided to revisit his story about talking dinosaurs, conspiracy theories and slapstick comedy that was the hallmark of the original series (which was collected about 10 years ago. It’s out of print but you can get them straight from Rob himself). Now, he has taken those online stories and put them together as a new Kickstarter graphic novel: Ragmop. The World Needs Laughter. At the time of the episode’s recording, the project was 67% funded with a little over two weeks to go. During out chat, we talk about the book’s initial life as a small press book before becoming part of Image’s black and white boom in the mid to late 1990s. We recall some other great books from that era, including Replacement God by former podcast guest Zander Cannon (now of Kaijumax). We go through a lot of the book’s inspirations, including Jack Kirby, classic animation, the Marx Brothers and more. We also go into the history of Rob ended up writing Grendel Tales: The Devil’s Hammer back in 1993 (Now available in the Grendel Tales Omnibus Volume 1).
After that, we welcome back to the show Phil Hester (@philhester). The Wretch Omnibus from Ohama Bound (@omabound) is now out. We talked about it on the pod in 2017, but good things come to those who wait. We discuss the creation of the character, the name change, its move from publisher to publisher, how the trade came out, some of the most fondly remembered stories and more. We also talk about some of Phil’s current work. The first trade for Stronghold, written by Phil and drawn by Ryan Kelly (@funrama), is hot of the presses. And later this year, Phil is drawing Family Tree, written by Jeff Lemire (@jefflemire). We also discuss two of Phil’s favorite topics: DC’s Tattered Tatterdemalion Ragman and the pain and pleasure of buying original comic artwork.
Note: We know today (as the pod drops) is the start of hockey season. We were hoping to get some of our past puckhead pals on the show before the season started, but did not. Hopefully soon. And hopefully soon is another comics guest to discuss one of the biggest comic stories of the year. That is, actually discussing the stories, not stories about the business, although that will likely come up too.
Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the episode.
Episode Seventy-Nine - Handsome
Aug 12, 2019
Did anyone put more bounties on their opponents than Harley?
We welcome back Wrestling Observer Live’s Mike Sempervive (@sempervive) to the pod, to discuss the life and times of former NWA champion Harley Race, who passed away on August 1 at the age of 76. We discuss the amazing obstacles Harley overcame to become one of the most admired and respected wrestlers on the modern era. We also look at some of his career highlights, opponents and angles. In addition to the appreciation of Handsome Harley, we chat about wrestling history, the greatness of the @RonFullerWelch podcast, the place of the Welch/Fuller dynasty in wrestling history, Jim Barnett, Jerry Jarrett, Ron Wright, Les Thatcher, the Knoxville 5 tape, the old school Wrestling Observer newsletter, watching wrestling in the pre-cable era and much more. An extra-sized show this episode, fitting to discuss the greatest wrestler on god’s green earth.
Episode Seventy-Eight - Authentic Frontier Gibberish
May 29, 2019
Why yes, my RDR2 Online character is Dum Dum Dugan.
Only a few months late, we finally do an episode about the greatness that is Red Dead Redemption 2. And to share in our joy, we welcome in YouTube gamer Tag from @TagBackTV. We start off by discussing the new updated Online mode, which finally went live officially a few weeks ago: what is new, what did they fix, what did they not fix yet and what is coming in the near future and maybe down the line. There’s also chat about RDR1 vs RDR2 and what we both preferred about each game, including story, game play, free roam and the beauty of Monument Valley. We also discuss the ins and outs of being a full-time YouTube gamer. Do you get to play games for fun? What happens when a game you like doesn’t get enough views and a game you don’t like does? Also, the frustrations when a video gets copyright claimed and how that can disrupt plans. We also mention what’s coming in the future that might be worth checking out and what recent title turned out to be a major disappointment. Be sure to check out Tag’s channel (TagBackTV) for daily RDR2 videos, live streams and more.
Also, thanks to everyone we chatted with at the TMPT3 Convention in Richmond. It was cool to catch up with some friends from Virginia and chit chat with some of the wrestling legends from 1980s Jim Crockett Promotions. Hopefully, we lined up some future podcast guests while talking about King Curtis Iaukea, Gino Hernandez and Phil Hickerson, among other folks from the past.
Episode Seventy-Seven - Blue Moon Odom
Apr 04, 2019
To help us kick off the baseball season and the closing stages of the European futbol season, we’re happy to welcome back Awful Announcing Managing Editor Joe Lucia (@joe_TOC). We talk about the first week of the baseball season, the surprises both good and bad. What’s going right for Seattle, the Mets and Milwaukee and wrong for the Yankees, Boston, the Angels and Joe’s Braves. Just how early is too early to panic if you are one of the struggling teams? Who is the biggest heel in baseball? Is it Bryce Harper? Or someone else? And just how well will a heel Bryce fit it in Philadelphia?
We also talk about just what is going on in the Premier League and the Champions League, as their seasons wind down. Just how confident is Joe that his Manchester City can win the quadruple? Where are they most likely to slip up? If they don’t win the Champions League, who will? Messi? Ronaldo? Pogba?
There’s some fun random stuff thrown in, like doing a fantasy league for pro wrestling in the mid 1980s, price-for-rental videotapes and hand-typing in statistics from USA Today in the early years of rotisserie baseball.
As we teased last episode, we will be doing a convention soon. We will be appearing at TMPT 3 in Richmond, VA on May 18th. Scheduled to be at the show are Jim Cornette and the Midnight Express (including Dennis Condrey), The Rock and Rock Express, JJ Dillon and more folks. If you come to the show, please stop by and say hello. We hope to have a wrestling themed issue of the magazine debuting at the show. You can get your tickets here.
Episode Seventy-Six - Divided by Zero
Mar 02, 2019
The pod returns with a guest we have been trying to get on for quite a while. Longtime comics creator Karl Kesel (@karlkesel) is here to discuss his current Kickstarter project Section Zero 1959, a continuation of the series he and Tom Grummett started almost 20 years ago. We talk about the creation of that series in 2000 and its return as a Kickstarter project in 2017., with the hardcover out now and the story being serialized by Image Comics in April. We talk about the book’s inspirations , notably the work of Jack Kirby. (I interviewed Karl way back in issue 27 of the Jack Kirby Collector about his love of the King and some of his more esoteric characters).
We also do a deep dive into Karl’s career, featuring some of our favorite books over the last couple decades. We chat about a few books he did with Stuart Immonen, Adventures of Superman, the Fantastic Four Annual from 1998 and the DC event series Final Night. We also discuss one of my all-time favorite (and all too brief) comic books series his run on Daredevil with Cary Nord.
On the day of our interview, Section Zero 1959 had two weeks left to go in its Kickstarter campaign and was just over 80% funded. For information on the book and some very cool incentives if you pledge, head over to SectionZero1959.com.
Two other pieces of business: We will soon be starting our series on the website called High Wire Act, which is an episode by episode break-down of the classic 1960s spy show Danger Man (aka Secret Agent). We hope to have a pod up soon discussing that with a returning podcast guest. Also, we are in talks to do our first convention in a few years in the summer. If we do the show, we will likely have a new issue of the magazine out to go along with the appearance.
Episode Seventy-Five - The Shareef Don't Like It
Oct 29, 2018
On the eve of the WWE Crown Jewel (aka Blood Money) special, I’m joined by Associated Press reporter Ashraf Khalil (@ashrafkhalil) to talk about a variety of issues related to the show. Among the various topics discussed, we talk about the history of xenophobia in pro wrestling, Middle East politics, the familial permutations of all the Samoans and other Pacific Islanders, late 1980s AWA and other diversions. We also actually talk about the show next week, how it will be booked and how much propaganda there will be compared to the first KSA show held earlier this year. Apologies if some of the facts are a little off. We recorded the show a few days after originally scheduled and I did not have all the prep work I had done earlier readily available. Also, this show was recorded with a new program, so there may not sound the same as part shows.
Also, there’s a brief obituary to Keiichiro Kimura, the Japanese animator who passed away recently. He was the animation director and character designer for the classic TIger Mask cartoon, a favorite amongst longtime Japanese wrestling fans around the world.
Episode Seventy-Four - The Skeleton Dance
Aug 25, 2018
The podcast is back from its summer holidays just in time to discuss a big week of lucha libre news and to help us digest it all, we welcome back Rob Viper (@robviper) to the show.
CMLL just announced the card for the Anniversary show in September and needless to say, many folks are not happy we are not getting a Rush vs LA Park main event. We go over the whole card and spend plenty of time discussing why it did not happen, who's to blame, who's spinning their version as to why the match is not happening this year and more. There is the usual talk about CMLL booking philosophy and business management, as well as talking about all the big crowds this year, in Mexico CIty, but also in Puebla and Guadalajara.
Rob also tells us about his recent trip to Mexico to see a bunch of shows, including the Negro Casas 40th Anniversary card a few weeks ago (see below), the Mexa Wresting and Pura Raza show, featuring (friend of the pod) Hechicero vs Christopher Daniels.
We also discuss the recent passing of the legendary Villano III, including some match recommendations (including the famous WON Match of the Year vs Atlantis). For more on Villano III's career, make sure to read Fredo Esparza's obit at Luchaworld.
Other topics include: the atmosphere at lucha shows compared to American/Canadian shows and online pals like Puma King (@pumakingoficial) and Zeuxis (@ZeuxisLucero) leaving CMLL and going independent and their upcoming big events in PWG and the Mae Young Classic, respectively.
At the end, we also sneak in some summertime hockey chat, since John Tavares just had his first public skate as a member of Rob's Maple Leafs.
The dear, departed National. Is The Athletic its spiritual successor?
The podcast returns after a medically-related hiatus to a jam-packed sports calendar. To help discuss it, we are very honored to have on the show Stephen Brunt from Sportsnet and the Fan 590 in Toronto.
First, we discuss Stephen's return to co-host Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown, the genesis of his return, sharing the co-host chair with former pod guest Richard Deitsch and more. That segues into a discussion about sports journalism in 2018, the pay model of things like The Athletic and Second Captains, sportswriters moving to TV and and radio, the late, lamented National Sports Daily and what demographics will pay for content, sports or otherwise.
Then, we talk about a variety of sports topics, including the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Maple Leafs struggles vs the Bruins, playoff predictions, the CONCACAF Champions League final between Toronto FC and Chivas de Guadalajara, the UEFA Champions League semi-finals, Arsene Wenger leaving Arsenal, the recent HBO documentary on Andre the Giant, the passing of Bruno Sammartino and more.
You can hear Stephen on Prime Time Sports (when he is the co-host) 5-7 PM weekdays on the Fan 590 and read him on Sportsnet.ca. You can also get his books on Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Orr, Muhammad Ali and more at Amazon and the other usual places they are sold.
Episode Seventy-Two - Nueva Generacion de Energia
Feb 06, 2018
Nueva Generacion Dinamita - Rocket Strapped by CMLL
For the first podcast of 2018, we are happy to welcome back The Cubs Fan (@luchablog) to talk about the resurrected Tapatia Awards and a plethora of lucha libre news.
We start with the 2017 Tapatia Awards and why Cubs decided to bring them back. We then discuss all the winners (a clean sweep for CMLL) and what that says about the year in lucha.
Then, it a look at lucha news with no real rhyme nor reason, including: Fantasticamania, the upcoming Angel de Oro vs Cuatrero mascara match, the mega push of theaasa NGD, the Parejas tournament and who will face Volador and Ultimo Guerrero, the font office acchanges headed by Sofia Alanso and more. We also cover the new Arolucha promotion, US companies and booking indy luchadors and what will the future hold for Rey Misterio Jr?
Note: It may be a few weeks before the new podcast. We are trying to line up some fun guests in the future. Thanks for Listening.
Episode Seventy-One - Rock Me Salieri
Nov 22, 2017
Pep and Jose, the prequel
The podcast returns before the holiday season kicks in discussing the world of futbol and more with Ken Early (@kenearlys) from the Irish Times and the Second Captains podcast (@secondcaptains).
We start with how Ireland is dealing with their elimination from the World Cup and what the future holds for coaches Martin O'Neill and Roy Keane. That segues into a discussion about why they and the Irish national team have such a poor relationship in recent years with Everton.
Then, it's onto a chat about the Champions League, which resumed with Match Day Five when this episode debuted. From there, we talk about two of Ken's favorite subjects: Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola. We examine the relationship between the two in Spain and now in the Premier League. To which historical rivals does Ken compare the two managers? And just how of The Special One's wrestling heel persona is a work?
Lastly, we talk about the Second Captains World Service podcast network, their move to becoming a paid subscription model earlier this year and the decision for Ken to a political podcast as one of their shows and the whole "stick to sports" opinion held by a segment of the sports fans around the world.
Note: The political chat starts around 34:30 and includes a number of current events. If that's not your cup of tea, please feel free to give that section a pass. No offense taken.
You can join the Second Captains World Service at Patreon. For US subscribers, it's (at current exchange rates) $5.35 a month for at least six podcasts a week.
Episode Seventy - Here Come De Judge
Oct 03, 2017
Will the Cubs be able to defend their World Series crown?
Just in time for playoff baseball,, we welcome back to the podcast the Managing Editor of Awful Announcing Joe Lucia (@joe_TOC). We start with the news of the day, the resignation of Atlanta GM John Coppolella and which managed might get the pink slip this offseason. We then give our picks for the American and National League Cy Young and MVP awards. Then, it's a series-by-by-series breakdown of each round of the playoffs, culminating with who we each think will win the World Series.
After that, it's some quick Premier League chat. As a Manchester City supporter, Joe is flying high at the moment, with his team top of the table when the podcast was recorded. Conversely, my Everton is under-performing and plenty of folks calling for the manager's head. We also give our thoughts on who may or may not end up in the relegation dogfight.
Episode Sixty-Nine - When First We Practice to Deceive
Sep 19, 2017
Martin Landau as Rollin Hand.
On the ever of Star Trek: Discovery debuting, we are pleased to be joined by John Champion (@dvdgeeks), co-host of the Mission Log Podcast, to talk Trek and more.
We begin by going over the career of Martin Landau, who passed away in July 2017. Lots of Mission Impossible chat here, including some of his most memorable episodes and also some of his other guest star appearances as well as playing Bela Lugosi in Ed Wood. We also mention a number of connections between Mission Impossible and the 1960s Star Trek show, including the overlapping guest stars and address the rumor about Landau possibly being on the list of actors to play Mr. Spock.
This segues into our Trek talk, starting with Mission Log about to wrap up reviewing The Next Generation and moving on to the TNG movies and then Deep Space Nine. And we preview Star Trek: Discovery, starting next week on CBS before moving to CBS' streaming service. What do we know so far based on the trailer and advanced information? John also lets us now how Mission Log is going to cover an on-going TV show.
We end with a very nerdy chat about the 1967 Bond movie Casino Royale and why we both love it, despite being "a glorified mess."
Mission Log Podcast (@missionlogpod), host by John and Ken Ray (@macosken) drops every Thursday wherever you get your podcasts.
Episode Sixty-Eight - Red Fog at Night
Sep 10, 2017
The scheduled card for the CMLL Anniversary show. But will the main event happen as planned?
The CMLL Anniversary show is next week, so Dr Lucha Steve Sims (@drluchajr) returns to the show to discuss it. We talk about Niebja Roja's injury and what that might been to the scheduled main event. We also discuss Diamante Azul possibly being off the show, despite still be on the poster released today. We discuss the lackluster go-home show Friday night and speculate about the winner of the mask match between Princess Sugheit and Zeuxis. We also discuss the usual head scratching of CMLL booking, can Micro-Man win Rookie of the Year? and some of the other news in lucha, such as Dr. Wagner Jr's mask loss at Triplemania this year. (Note: zero discussion of the lady boxer/wrestler most everyone has been talking about the last week or so).
Then, we ask Steve just what is up with his LA Dodgers, from potential record breakers to a team that can't buy a win lately. Was getting Yu Darvish a mistake? Will the Diamondbacks catch them for the division title?
We end with a look ahead to the first season of Sreve's new hometown hockey team, the Vegas Golden Knights. How successful can a hockey team be in Sin City, where will attendance come from and can they establish a foothold before the Raiders come to town
You can hear Steve weekly on Wrestling Observer Radio and is a regular guest on Luchaword's Lucha Classica podcasts.
Episode Sixty-Seven - Campeones, Campeones
Aug 26, 2017
Hot balls. The UEFA Champions League draw happened this week in Monaco.
With all sorts of news going on in the futbol word, we welcome ESPNFC journalist Gabriele Marcotti (@marcotti) to the show. We start with an analysis of the draws for the Champions League and Europa League, held this week in Monaco. Which groups look the toughest and what are the prospects for the Premier League teams. Then, we discuss the flurry of transfer activity this summer, including news just today that Ousmane Dembele is headed to Barcelona and Kylian Mbappe could be on the verge of joining Neymar at Paris St-Germain. That leads to a talk about PSG and Financial Fair Play, something Gab has written about over the last couple weeks. We end the futbol talk with a look at Week Three in the Premier League, including the match at Stanford Bridge between Chelsea and Everton.
The rest of the show, we talk about how Gab became an ECW hardcore regular in the mid to late 1990s while a student at Penn. What was his first trip to ECW Arena like? What angles does he remember seeing at the shows? Does he still keep up with the business in 2017?
We really want to thank Gab for his time, as the pod was recorded after he flew back this afternoon to London from Monaco. You can read Gab's work at ESPNFC.com, The Times (of London) [paywall] and you can hear him as the host of The Game podcast every Monday during the futbol season, on Soundcloud, iTunes, or most listening platforms.
Episode Sixty-Six - Islands in the Stream
Aug 11, 2017
NBC's excellent EPL studio cast: host Rebecca Lowe, and analysts Kyle Martino, Robbie Earle and Robbie Mustoe.
With some sports media news in the headlines, we are pleased to be joined again by Richard Deitsch (@richarddeitsch) from Sports Illustrated. We recorded on Operning Day for the English Premier League, so we chat about NBC's near-universal popular coverage as well as their paid app and whether people will purchase. That seques into a discussion of The Athletic, the paid content sports writing site, their successes so far and would their model work in a city like New York. We talk about ESPN and how necessary they are for a fan whose favorite sports are undercovered (like hockey and soccer). We also discuss where ESPN fits in with Disney's new streaming strategy. We end with some brief wrestling chat, what Richard is enjoying with the current WWE product and being able to wrestling from around the world online.
We are working lining up some guests to discuss the Premier League and the other European leagues starting up, but were not able to get them in time for today's podcast. Hopefully, they will be on the next episode. Thanks for listening.
Episode Sixty-Five - El Gringo Enojado
Jul 25, 2017
Love Machine Sam Adonis on his way to fight Blue Panther in Arena Mexico.
Sam Adonis (@realsamadonis) returns to the podcast to discuss his upcoming hair vs hair match against Blue Panther August 4th in Arena Mexico.
We discuss the world-wide media attention he has gotten for his flag-waving American gimmick in Mexico and how that fits in with wrestling's history of xenophobic heels. We talk about the feud with Blue Panther and invoking the name and gimmick of the late Love Machine Art Barr and his feud 25 years ago in CMLL. We chat about his favorite opponents and partners over his year in Mexico, his upcoming trip to Japan and how things are going for his brother, WWE announcer Corey Graves.
Sam is super busy these days, so we thank him very much for his time.
Also, a quick shout-out to former podcast guests Colleen Coover and Paul Tobin, for their third consecutive Eisner Award for Bandette. You can hear them discuss it on episode 24. Congratulations to all the winners, some of whom are tentatively planned as future guests.
Episode Sixty-Four - The Mad Titan
Jul 19, 2017
From the Death of Captain Marvel. (c) 2017 Marvel Comics.
Just in time for San Diego Comic-Con, an over-stuffed episode about comics, movies, TV and video games. We welcome Craig from the Puzzle Warriors 3 podcast (@PuzzleWarriors3) to talk all that and more.
We start by going over what got Craig back into comics after a couple decades, what we are both enjoying right and looking forward to coming out soon. Plenty of good recommendations here. Also, why does Craig love Dazzler so mych?
From there, we talk about the just completed season of Doctor Who and what we could happen in the Xmas Special as well as thoughts on the new creative team and cast.
And lots of Marvel Puzzle Quest talk, including why he, Ian and Craig started the show, thoughts of some of the more powerful characters in the game, balancing PVE, PVP and DDQ, how much fun the special events have been of late and chat about the special plants for their 100th episode in two weeks time.
Lots of random stuff at the end, including wrestling and hockey talk. We never got around to all the old TV show and cartoon talk that was on the docket, so hopefully Craig will be back in a future episode.
Note: We had a brief addition to the show for a mention of the passing of George A. Romero and Martlin Landau. As a huge Mission Impossible fan, I am working on lining up a special guest to talk about Landau's career.
Episode Sixty-Three - Es Un Asunto de Familia
Jun 27, 2017
Puma King with his copy of issue six at Break the Barrier 2017.
If you missed the news a couple weeks ago, issue six of the magazine is now out. It debuted at the Break the Barrier show in Old Forge PA, where Puma and his dad Felino wrestled Guerrero Maya Jr and Skayde. That match was the basis for our cover (by Kcidis) and cover story bios by The Cubs Fan (@luchablog).
To talk about his article in the magazine, we were joined on the pod by Dr. Lucha Steve Sims. We discussed his article on the Alvarado Family (Los Brazos, Maximo, La Mascara), their history and how that related to what happened to Ultimo Guerrero's car, the guys who were and were not fired over the incident and all the things that connect to the incident. We also discuss some of the other big families in lucha right now: The Munoz Family (Rush, Dragon Lee, Mistico and Pierroth), the Ibarra Family (LA Park, Volador Jr, Super Parka), the Panthers (Blue Panther Sr and Jr, The Panther) and of course, the Casas Family (Negro Casas, Felino, Puma, TIger, Dallys, Canelo), There's also other lucha talk, including why hasn't there been any legal action over the vandalism, the usual head scratching involving CMLL booking and talk about the next project coming to the website, a look back at what Rob Viper called CMLL's best tournament ever, the 2014 En Busca De Un Idolo tournament, which involved people like Hechicero, Barbaro Cavernario, Dragon Lee, Cachorro/The Panther and Sobernao Jr.
After that, we talk about Matt's article on Gino Hernandez's time working in Houston for Pail Boesch. We talk about his matches there, both as a single and a tag team with Tully Blanchard. Unfortunately, Matt was unable to be on the podcast to discuss his article. But if you want to see many of the matches he wrote about and we discussed, you can see them on the NWA Streaming Service (at least as of this writing).
Then there is a whole mish-mash of subjects, from what wrestling we could watch in the mid-1980s to watching wrestling in college (Steve in Chapel Hill in the 70s, me in Bloomington in the 80s) to a bunch of other stuff.
For more information on the magazine, check out its page here on the website.
Episode Sixty-Two - Los Persuasores!
May 25, 2017
RIP Sir Roger Moore
To talk about a wild time in the world of lucha libre, we welcome back to the show Rob BIhari (@robviper). We start off by discussing the circumstances that led CMLL to fire Maximo, La Mascara and Bobby Villa. We go over the facts as we know them and where things go from here for those wrestlers, Super Porky, Psycho Clown and others. We also discuss the history of micros in wrestling, from their start as a drawing act, through Antonio Pena reviving the concept in AAA in the 1990s to the recent matches involving Micro Man, Gallito, Mije and magazine/podcast favorite Zacarias. We also mention the return of Lucha Underground and some indy lucha Rob recommends. Then we discuss powerbomb.tv's Break the Barrier show June 11 in Old Forge PA, which both of us will be attending. We are planning to debut the next issue of Odessa Steps Magazine at the show (details soon). We go over some of the luchadors working the show, as well as hoping to see more lucha talent wrestling in the US.
(51:20) Then, we have some Stanley Cup playoff chat, including Who will Win Game 7 between Pittsburgh and Ottawa, how we both are rooting for Nashville in the Final, the PK Subban story, playoff parity, the World Championships, Mitch Marner's soclal media, the usual love for past pod guests Jeff Marek and Grey Wyshynski and more.
(1:15:30) To close the show, a brief memorial to Sir Roger Moore, who passed away earlier this week. Some chat about his work, well-known and some not as much: the Bond movies, The Saint, The Persuaders, ffolkes, spoofing his image in The Cannonball Run and on the Muppet Show and more.
Episode Sixty-One - Masters of the World
May 02, 2017
Parejas Increibles. Valeria Richards and Victor Von Doom. (c) 2017 Marvel Comics
Todd Rowker (@rowkerthejoker) from The Longbox Heroes Podcast (@longboxheroes) returns to the show for a chat about a variety of subjects. First, we talk about the new season of Doctor Who, what has and has not worked so far and a brief discussion of the rest of the season. Some small spoiler talk but only things shown in the teaser trailer. We then talk about the Gallifreybirds project Todd and Joe (@joesposto) are doing this year on Longbox Heroes After Dark, We go over why Todd chose each episode of Doctor Who so far for Joe to watch, as well as thoughts on the wrestling he has seen so far. Then, some chat about current comics, including the Batman/Flash cross-over "The Button", Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps and another endorsement for Scooby Doo Team-Up. We briefly chat about some Marvel books, including thoughts after the deep dive re-read I did recently of Jonathan Hickman's run on Fantastic Four and FF.
Also, as mentioned on the show, we will be setting up at the Powerbomb.TV Breaking the Barrier show on June 11 in Old Forge PA. Hopefully, there will be a new Odessa Steps Magazine debuting at the show.
Episode Sixty - Dangerous Va-K-tion
Apr 26, 2017
Tim gets a handshake from Kawada, instead of a stretch plum. Photo courtsey Tim Livingston
Tim Livingston (@mrtimlivingston) joins the show to talk some basubaru and puroresu. First, we discuss his trip/vacation to South Korea and Japan, why he went and what he did while he was there. Plenty of talk about video games, baseball (in both countries) and pro wrestling, when Tim went to some famous venues and ate at some famous places. He even got to meet his favorite Japanese wrestler, Toshiaki Kawada. Then, we talk about his career in baseball, from working for the Dunedin Blue Jays to being the play-by-play voice of the Sonoma Stompers @sonomastompers). We chat about how he got the gig for his hometown nine, their progressive philosophies on and off the field, how Francis Ford Coppola fits in to the story and hanging out with "the Spaceman" Bill Lee.
Tim did a write-up for Place to Be Nation. You can also catch Tim as the voice of Phoenix Pro Wrestling (@PPWPetaluma).
Episode Fifty-Nine - The Royal Flush Gang
Apr 22, 2017
Would you trust Noh-Varr? From Royals 1 by Al Ewing and Johnboy Meyers.(C) Marvel Comics.
Today on the show, writer Al Ewing (@Al_Ewing) stops by for a wide-ranging chat about his work. First, we discuss his current work at Marvel, including the recently-launched Inhumans book Royals, including the book's creation, it's outer space setting, the inclusion of Noh-Varr and more. We also chat about his other current books Ultimates and US Avengers, and their predecessors, New Avengers, Mighty Avengers and Contest of Champions. Lots of fun stuff for you here, including the joy of C-list villains, serious vs fun superhero books and we even discuss Iso-8, the MacGuffin Mineral that features throughout Marvel's comics and video games.
Then, we chat about Doctor Who in a number of forms. We mention the "Doctor What" story in 2000AD done by Al and Brendan McCarthy, as well as the Matt Smith Era Doctor Who comics Al wrote for Titan. We also discuss the current season (following the season premiere), Peter Capaldi's performance as the Doctor and more.
Finally, we go on a bunch of tangents and have a long chat about UK and US television, everything from World of Sport to Gladiators to The Great British Bake Off to QI and lots more. If you are a fan of British Comedy, there's a lot of it mentioned, including Whose Line Is It Anyway, Blackadder, The Young Ones, Dad's Army, Morecambe and Wise, Fry and Laurie, but no French and Saunders.
Note: Stephen Fry left QI after the "M" season in 2015. Sandi Toksvig became host with the "N" season in 2016. Alan Davies' "magician murder mystery show" is Jonathan Creek.
You can get Al's comics from your local comics shop, Amazon or Comixology. You can get The El Sombra Trilogy from Amazon.
Paste Pot Pete sketch by Phil Hester.
Kirby's Sandman costume. From Fantastic Four 61. (C) Marvel Comics.
Episode Fifty-Eight - Di-no-mita
Mar 24, 2017
We welcome lucha libre promoter Dhani Ledesma (@luchamemes) to the podcast to talk about his career and upcoming shows. We talk about how he started in lucha and the various companies he worked for until his current promotion Lucha Memes. We discuss his working relationship with CMLL, how it began and how he hopes itwill grow in the future. We also discuss booking foreign talent for shows, matches that did not come off as planned and ones he hopes to put together in the future. If you are familiar with our stuff, you know we talk about some of our favorite luchadors on these upcoming shows, including Puma (@pumaking), Tiger *@yosoutiger), Virus (@virus_cmll) and friend of the magazine, Hechicero (@_ReyHechicero). We discuss his thoughts on making his shows available on-line.
You can now watch the Black Terry /Negro Navarro vs Hechicero/Virus match on youtube
Episode Fifty-Seven - Antidiluvian Kings
Mar 06, 2017
Doctor Lucha Steve Sims (@Drluchakr) returns to the show to preview the upcoming CMLL Dos Leyandas show and the match it is honoring, the 2000 Wrestling Observer Match of the Year, the Atlantis vs Villano III mascara contra mascara match. We discuss the build-up for the match, the match itself (watch before listening if you haven't see it already) and the aftermatch. We talk about this year's show, the potentially-horrendous main event, the rest of the card, who was not booked on the show (hint: if you last name is Casas, you) and what may happen to set the stage for this year's Anniversary show. We also talk about some of the other current lucha news, including the AAA exodus, luchadors in Impact Wrestling, what's the deal with the Crash and how long will Psycho Clown stay in AAA, the future for Lucha Underground and could LU change its generic influences and still be successful?
51: 43 - For the back half of the show, we switch topics and talk Steve's annual trip(s) to spring training and the upcoming baseball season. We mention his first trip this season to Arizona, who has he seen so far, what's Cubs mania like already,futures bets for the season to come, the proposed rules changes and the like.
If you want more on the Atlantis vs Villano III feud, I would encourage you to check out the upcoming Luchaworld Lucha Classica podcast done by recent guest Alfredo Esparza (@therealfredo) and Vandal Drummond (@vandaldrummond) on the match.
Episode Fifty-Six - Ursa Major
Feb 26, 2017
Ivan, Nikita and Don Kernodle.
Wrestling Observer Live's Mike Sempervive (@sempervive) joins the pod to talk about the recent deaths of Ivan Koloff and George Steele. We discuss Ivan's historic win over Bruno Sammartino for the WWWF title, his part in Ole Anderson's turn on Dusty Rhodes in 1980 and a long review of Ivan in Mid-Atlantic, from teaming with Don Kernodle to teaming with Nikita Koloff and Khrusher Khrushchev. We also mention some of his other career highlights, including the infamous "Russian Flag Burial" of Cowboy Bill Watts (my second favorite angle). We then discuss the passing of George "the Animal" Steele and his evolution or is that devolution from title contender to lovable "missing link" and his role in the Savage/Steamboat feud. There is also brief talk about the passing of Bruiser Bob Sweetan.
(1:00) - At the hour mark, we do some hockey talk. Mike talks about the playoff changes for the Rangers and the cataclysmic system for the Red Wings. We discuss the upcoming trade deadline, ways to improve it (many ideas borrowed from friend of the pod @jeffmarek), the success or lack thereof this year of the World Cup, ESPN's relationship to hockey and the NHl and more.
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