TV Guidance Counselor

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TV Guidance Counselor Episode 595: Taffeta Darling Aug 21, 2023

Show notes

March 4-11, 1995

This week Ken welcomes Twitch Streamer, Auction curator, and one of the world's greatest cosplayers Taffeta Darling.

Ken and Taffeta discuss Texas, Dallas, the burbs, Austin, Robocop, I Like to Singa, TV Theme Songs, tattoos, video games that look like actual cartoons, Cuphead, Kids TV, violence on TV, how superheroes are good for kids, Gargoyles, Claire Danes turning down Schindler's List, My So-Called dialog, whatevers, X-Men the Animated Series, Batman, The Tick, Slim Goodbody, Body Worlds, being easily traumatized, obsession with the macabre, local kids shows, Wishbone, Cowboys of Moo Mesa, comics art, Heritage Auctions, getting used to Frazetta, The Wizard, Kurt Russell, Abe Lincoln's blood, the entire set of Cheers, The Last Starfighter, channel surfing, Beverly Hills 90210, reunion shows, SNL, The Critic and Simpsons crossover, groin hits, People's Choice Awards, country music, Garth Brooks, If Tomorrow Never Comes, Mummies, creepy doll collectibles, Franklin Mint garbage, Fresh Prince, Blossom, Monty Python, James Cameron, BMG Music, Weird Science TV vs Weird Science the movie, Made for TV movies, Deadly Invasion: The Killer Bee Nightmare, Boyz N the Hood edited for network TV, terrible Red Hot Chilli Peppers lyrics, seeing Joey Lawrence at a shopping Mall, Markey Mark, Living Single, Mad About You, Hope & Gloria, TGIF, Boy Meets World, Step by Step, Family Matters, good Tom Hanks movies, Lori Singer, the 5th level of virtual reality, VR.5, being scared of toilets and french kissing from Ghoulies, Marvel's Bronze Age Legion of Monsters, Ghost Rider, nudity on TV, profit from obits, wrestling, 900 numbers, Dan Rather's Comedy Club, and loving and recommending Clarence.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 594: Will McRobb Aug 14, 2023

Show notes

This week Ken welcomes writer, director and co-creator of The Adventures of Pete & Pete, among other things, Will McRobb to the show.

Ken and Will discuss growing up in Ithaca NY, suburbia, Nickelodeon's "kids point of view" era, doing corporate videos for Goldman Sachs, working in the promo department at Nick at Nite, MTV Networks, Rin Tin Tin, Mr. Ed, Donna Reed, The magic four ingredients: Funny, Sad, Strange and Beautiful, Green Acres, Patty Duke's double, MTV's Remote Control, Lassie, My Three Sons, Bub vs. Uncle Charlie, The Monkees, live action cartoons, the reason you'd go live action instead of a cartoon, Snow Day, added farts, working for the man, the shift on TV Land and Nick at Nite to newer "quality" shows, punk rock, Savage Steve Holland, The War Next Door, Hal Hartley, Damian Young, Michael Stipe, Iggy Pop, The Police, Joe Jackson, the unlocking of coolness with Elvis Costello's This Year's Model, The Embarrassment, the origin of Wellsville, Season 3 of Pete and Pete, Saturday, the rush to be an adult, saying goodbye to Artie, Adam West, the original 60 second Pete and Pete promos, Katherine Dieckmann, wasted years of cute Little Pete, Inside Out Boy, voice over, why perspective matters, John Hughes, "when you grow old, your heart dies", Inspector 34, Johnny Earwax, getting away with stuff, the controversy of The Orange Lazarus, Endless Mike, Frank Gifford cameos, Arnold Palmer golf clubs, how nobody likes Chevy Chase, SNL, Weekend Update, NY theater actors, William Hickey, One Crazy Summer, J.K. Simmons, and how Batman will always need The Joker.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 593: Matt McCarthy Aug 07, 2023

Show notes

MATT-A-THON CONCLUDES

May 9-15, 1992

This week Ken welcomes the host of the We Watch Wrestling Podcast, fellow New Englander, comedian Matt McCarthy to the show.

Ken and Matt discuss Matt's rabbit holes, GWF, Killer Kowalski, Freddie Prinz Jr, Cable Access, New England, Tony Rumble, Bob Mould, self abuse based public crimes, laserdiscs, classical music, yuppies, dead formats, VHS, Justin Case, VHS Cases, WSBK TV38, Marvin's collection, taped off TV with original commercials content, Monty Python, Dana Hersey, We Don't Knock, Silver Bullet, Dana Gould, Ask the Manager, Providence, Dialing for Dollars, Richard Simmons greatest photo ever, Meredith Viera, PM Magazine, Evening Magazine, The Golden Girls series finale, obsession with the Johnny Carson era of The Tonight Show, lost media, WCVB 5 not airing perfect strangers, taped with an antenna, SNL, Saturday Night's Main Event, The Bundys in London, The Goons, Evening at the Improv, rape revenge genres, The General's Daughter, exploitation, Ravishing Rick Rude, Brutus The Barber Beefcake's T station cocaine scare, One Crazy Summer, Savage Steve Holland, how Dads love Frank Burns week, Chuck Norris, the fuzz, static, I Come in Peace, Dolph Lundgren, competitive eating, movie tag lines, Dirty Harry movies, A Different World, when characters are too dumb, Family Matters, Rosie and Buddy, failed pilots, wearing a wire, Duckman, getting renewed for two seasons, sore losers, and taking digs at FOX.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 592: Matt Farley Jul 31, 2023

Show notes

June 20-26, 1987

THE TV GUIDANCE COUNSELOR MATT-A-THON CONTINUES!

This week's Matt is fellow North Shore kid, the man behind over 25k songs, filmmaker, podcaster, it's Motern Media's Matt Farley.

Ken and Matt discuss New England eccentric driven artists, the motivational power of spite, the power of novelty, putting in the work, using non-actors, making money as an artist, being a consumer, Strawberries, regional Mass record stores, Coconuts, how Lechmere curated your musical tastes, The Liberty Tree Mall, meeting Scott Baio, the power of mico-niche, Markie Post, Sledgehammer, bad sports, The Red Sox, badnwagons, K-Mart Swimwear, Jello, cigarette ads, Dana Hersey's Movie Loft, Spenser for Hire, Karl's Sausage Kitchen, Golden Girls, celebrity kids, Scott Bakula as Batman, investments, renting movies, loving 80s horror flicks, Friday the 13th, Prom Night, horror comedy, Winterbeast, Neon Maniacs, athletes as actors, Brian Bosworth, Alf, rigging the Nielson Ratings, My Sister Sam, Newhart, Kate & Allie, the weird pseudo documentary format, multi cam sitcoms, roller skating, rug burn, Who's the Boss, Mannys, Sarah Douglas, having no shame, how TV Guide wrote show synopsis, movie reviews, Perfect Strangers, I Love Lucy, that frigging chocolate scenes, not finding the funniest TV moments of all time funny, Johnny Carson, Facts of Life, Stacey Q, shark jumping, hunting things down, testing board games, where the Maine Children are, Back to School, starting in the middle of a movie, The Hitcher, writing fan fiction about strangers in public, art reflecting the crimes, hindsight, The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Ellen, Billy Vera, Cheers, influence of Woody's The Kelly Song, Mr. Belvedere, laugh tracks, David Rasche, the faceless nature of the nameless '00s, Police Squad, Rambo, Beef Battles, and being proud of where you come from.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 591: Matt Jatkola and JP DiSciscio Jul 24, 2023

Show notes

August 24-30, 1996

This week Ken welcomes singer/songwriter and frontman of his name sake band "Jatk", Matt Matkola, and the director of Jatk's "Don't Come Knocking", JP DiSciscio.

Ken, Matt and JP discuss central Mass, rural internet, body swapping movies, rediscovering (or discovering for the first time) the 60s and 70s talk show era, Ed Sullivan, vintage technology, video cameras, building things to last, cable access, local news stations, R&B, VHS, Arlington Mass, how sometimes you cannot recreate the magic of a piece of analog technology, ghosted images, being on mushrooms, why talk shows are irrelevant now, The Doors, middle school, Summer birthdays, the prime years of Summer TV watching, Star Trek, Tek Wars, 90s Comic collecting, uniformed professions on TV, MTV's Singled Out, Hallmark Christmas Ornaments, five easy payments of $39, adjusting for inflation, My So-Called Life, SNICK, growing up without cable, Showgirls, Rambo, Columbo, Shelly Duval's Tall Tales, Swayze Crazy, WWF vs WCW, George Hamilton, The Simpsons, Mind Ripper, Ghost Hunting, Sightings, Unsolved Mysteries, Alien Autopsy, Dropdead Fred, T2, casting days, Rescue 911, Home Improvement, Drew Carey Show, The Bob Barker Years of Price is Right, Supermarket Sweep, celebrating your Sweet 16 with Apocalypse Now, The Bradford Exchange, Elvis Beer Steins, Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy block, Carnosaur, Bringing Up Baby, horny Party of Five, watching Karate Kid over and over again, Italian American love of Goodfellas, Kobra Kai, WGN, Superstations, heist movies, Congo, Boy Meets World, Hangin' With Mr. Cooper, Disclosure, Summer School, Rob Morrow, the Bewitched that never was, Cheers within Cheers, and David Letterman's Olympic Level Disrespect.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 590: Hugh Howey Jul 17, 2023

Show notes

This week Ken welcomes author (Wool), showrunner (Silo on Apple Plus) and all around interesting guy Hugh Howey to the show.

Ken and Hugh discuss post apocalyptic fiction, the oldest stories in the world, how America loves and Apocalypses, 70s dystopia, Ken's wish fulfillment theory, society's collapse, the evolution of the stories of the unknown, sailing, human stories, fear of God, authoritarianism, fascism, Russ vs Hobbs, rebirth is painful, Dawn of the Dead, blogs, digital journals, how people are the same, how politics actually isn't as violent as it has been in the past, the theory that sci-fi isn't a pure genre, the Alien movies, character vs plot, the 80s pre-pocalypse, Nuclear War, the Cold War, Lucifer's Hammer, Watchmen, how the HBO series adaptation of Watchmen is a better version of the story than the actual movie, Alan Moore, comic books, outliving your creators, McFarlane's Spider-Man, how Batman is DC's most Marvelish character, Daredevil, not being overpowered, gods, Hawkeye, allowing creators to be in charge, Suicide Squad, James Gunn, telling a complete story, planning the right story and right number of episodes, Chuck, Doctor Who, mourning TV shows, working with a writing partner, brainstorming, fan fiction, self publishing, Amazon, Drops of God, Evil, streaming vs networks, Cartoons and Kung Fu Theater, GI Joe, Adventure Time and how a good story is a good story.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 589: Jason Klamm Jul 10, 2023

Show notes

May 14-20, 1994

This week Ken welcomes comedian, podcaster and author of the upcoming new book about 90s US Sketch Comedy (which you can and SHOULD purchase at sketchcomedybook.com), Jason Klamm.

Ken and Jason discuss podcasting, not making money with your art, The Vacant Lot, Exit 57, Amy Sedaris, getting turned down by a person's "people", Almost Live, The Bert Fershners, the nicest millionaire you know, Adam McKay, 9 Lives, UCB, Phil Hartman, Newsradio, history being written by the victors, sending flowers, FTD, Mrs. Doubtfire, weird places you got VHS tapes from, Star Trek The Next Generation, Laugh-In, Ruth Buzzi, Nixon, Nick at Nite, shows canceled after one episode, character vs plot, Ken's mean prank phone calls to Joe Piscapoe as a kid, MTV and Nickelodeon interstitials, Jimmy the Cab Driver, Toby Huss' Sinatra covers of 90s alt rock, Baby Jessica, Bob Hope, MacGuyver's Lost Treasure of Atlantis, COPS and the LA riots, terrible people on good shows, SNL, Heather Locklear and Janet Jackson, musical guests, Hee Haw, realizing T2 is the greatest movie ever way too late in life, not being allowed to watch violence as a kid, My Breast, Made for TV Movies, Lexi Alexander, growing up in Germany as a military kid, German kids toys, the final episode ever of In Living Color, Evening Shade, Burt Reynolds, hypernesia, Marylou Henner, Lori Laughlin in a brutal made for TV movie "One of Her Own", Reginald Veljohnson, Bob Newhart, loving Phil Silvers, being a young old man, Rescue 9-11, Clinton's favorite SNL sketches, Billy West, Searching for Grace, Sesame St's 25th Anniversary, Dr. Seus and Jim Henson, thinking you'd be an animator and a puppeteer, Don Blueth, Robert Townsend, Ann-Marie Johnson, Hollywood Shuffle, Rod Serling, the carousel in Bimington NY, TGIF, Sasha Mitchell, Hangin with Mr. Cooper, Todd Oldham, Ken's love of TV pagent shows growing up, the Adventures of Briscoe Country Jr., USA World Premier movies, Ken insulting Judd Nelson, Where on Earth is Carmen San Diego?, complaining about Charles Barkley and Nixon's death.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 588: Sam Delaney Jul 03, 2023

Show notes

February 23 - March 1, 1985

This week Ken welcomes UK writer ('Sort Your Head Out - Mental Health Without All The Bollocks'), podcaster (Top Flight Time Machine, The Reset), broadcaster and all around fascinating guy Sam Delaney to the show.

Ken and Sam discuss living in London, the suburbs, New Cross, violent cities, how 1985 is EVERYTHING, being the editor of Heat Magazine, the editorial decisions behind what goes on the cover, watercolors, Live Aid, pop music, toys, Glen A. Larson, the history of TV Guide, TV/Radio Times, smoking, Christmas Cigarettes for children, the golden age of "Kids Gone Wild" media, Terrorism on TV, Posh Families, the TV Guide Empire, Kirstie Allie as Gloria Steinem as a Playboy Bunny, being completely confused and perplexed by the TV Guide listings, The Young Ones, US vs UK news, visiting NYC with your Dad, how low it took for the UK to get movies from the US, Christmas movie premiers, James Bond, teenage mini bar raids of beer, how everyone in America seemed rich, ET, the mind blowing concept of pizza delivery, The Damned, boredom, recovering from addiction, The A-Team, how prime time action shows in the US were for children in the UK. 70s UK sci-fi shows, Day of the Triffids, Tripods, The Day After vs. Threads, reassessing Reagan, the horrors of Thatcher, TJ Hooker, Starsky and Hutch, Kojak, sleazy cops, grim 70s cinema, the delusional positivity of 1980s pop culture, time investment, how amazing Sesame St is and was, how TV can help kids, Jim Henson, The Atomic Testing Museum, having a near death experience, Rockford Files, Dukes of Hazard, war games, being judged by your parents, low culture vs high culture, 60s movies in the 80s, how class effects how you view commercials, loving Harold Lloyd, and how TV was the center of the family.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 587: Mitchell Hadley Jun 26, 2023

Show notes

This week Ken welcomes fellow TV obsessive and the man behind the It's About TV site Mitchell Hadley to the show.

Ken and Mitchell discuss Indiana, Ken's awful short term memory, growing up in Minnesota, Canadian TV, the Twin Cities, TV Guide's amazing writing, time capsules, futurism, the original source documents, why a period piece will never get it quite right, the golden age of television, sci fi, the benefits of television, how sugar is bad, making us further apart as a society, Howdy Doody, rethinking TV for kids, how crime shows can be instructional, politics on television, doom saying, Nixon getting TV right before he got it wrong, JFK, the 1968 Democratic Convention, Ronald Regan's origin story, the night James Brown saved Boston, The Year of the Sex Olympics, Bread and Circuses, the power of the Beverly Hillbillies, TV moving west from NY to LA, Edith Efron, the fake version of LA, essays, Gomer Pyle, a war show that never discusses a war, dragging TV into a more socially conscious world, allegory, Twilight Zone, how rules can be good sometimes, cringe, shades of grey, Barney Miller, true Broadcasting, Ed Sullivan, Stiller and Mira, Lawrence Welk, Vanilla Fudge, letting your guard down, Dick Cavet, reaction, the best way to interview people , worshiping the creed while forgetting the message, being superficial, things that are important to you, people who grew up watching TV making TV, MST3k, deconstruction, watching sports, '77 Sunset Strip, cookie cutter shows, commercials, TV regulating itself, The Family Hour, Donna Reed, legal dramas, spy shows, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., exposing new generations to shows, It's About TV, TV Guide as a serious historical document, revisiting shows from your youth that end up even BETTER, The Rifleman vs Branded, Rockford Files, Chuck Connors, The Prisoner, Patrick McGoohan, actors with drinking problems, Mitchell's book The Electronic Mirror and Atomic Bombs.

TV Guidance Counselor Episode 586: John Safran Jun 19, 2023

Show notes

August 9-15, 1980

This week Ken welcomes Australian writer, TV personality, journalist and author John Safran to the show.

Ken and John discuss John Safran vs God, John's range of work, talking listeners out of liking John, documentaries, Gonzo journalism, Always Wear Sunscreen, Not the Sunscreen Song, having a hit single, novelty songs, Raspberry Cordial, High School accomplishments, Music Jamboree, backmaked Ozzy Osbourne, how helpful dressing up is, Yeshiva College, Brooklyn, loving hip hop, Public Enemy, Professor Griff, Judaism, antisemitism, youthful confusion, Vanilla Ice, the pre-internet days, compartmentalization, Steve Vizard, stealing from Letterman, ABC, multi-cultural programming, offensive stuff, Jocko, Eric Bana, VFL/AFL, I'm An Individual, the mystery of the Croc Hunter, Steve Irwan's relationship with Australia, Round the Twist, Ross Noble, Home and Away, New South Wales, Queensland, finding pornography in the wild, Number 96, Ken's mysterious age, Prisoner in Cell Block H, The Castle, David vs Goliath stories, Mad Max, stunts, CGI, the Australian 70s remake of The Wizard of Oz simply called Oz, The Blizzard of '78, Looney Toons, loving Warner Bros, Fat Albert, racial identity, very special episodes, perverts, American Culture, hyphenated Americans, missing subtext, the post Civil Rights 1960s progress that dissolved in the 1980s, Reagan, American Identity, Pakistani American heavy metal bands, Mulan, cigarettes, Israel and it's place in American apocalyptical evangelical Christianity, menthol cigarettes, true crime, and the strangeness of prescription drugs in the US.

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