Deep Cuts

The most expensive film in Japanese History was an insane bootlegged Star Wars ripoff. In 1978, at the height of the global 'Star Wars' craze following the release of the first movie in George Lucas's legendary franchise, tons of knockoff Star Wars movies were produced to try and capitalize off of the space craze. However, there was only one of those movies that was notable for A: being directed by the same guy who directed 'Battle Royale,' B: Having all of its sets and costumed designed by the guy who created Kamen Rider and Super Sentai, C: being the most expensive Japanese live action film produced at the time, and D: being completely insane. On this episode of Deep Cuts, we discuss the history of the making of 'Message From Space,' and break down the pure Japanese insanity of the film.

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The creator of 'The Adventures of Tintin', Hergé, willingly worked for Nazis for years. He's one of the most beloved comic artists in history, deservedly so, but many fans don't want to discuss this dark aspect of his career. For years he produced his long-running comic, 'The Adventures of Tintin,' for Nazi-run magazines in German-occupied Belgium and even collaborated closely with Nazi-sympathizers. Was he himself a Nazi sympathizer, or just struggling to survive in the tumultuous world of comics, made twice-difficult by being thrown into the stage of the Third Reich's European land-grab? And should this fact be acknowledged as a troublesome part of his legacy? On this episode of Deep Cuts, we dive into the history of Hergé's career and the creation of one of the most beloved comic book characters ever made.

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He made a movie about the Zodiac Killer to catch the real Zodiac Killer. It almost worked. In 1973, Tom Hanson wrote and directed the world's first movie about the Zodiac Killer - an infamous serial killer that terrorized Northern California for months, killing multiple victims. The movie was released mere months after the grisly killings. It was one of the most flagrant examples of exploitation cinema, but was there another motive for making the movie besides just shamelessly capitalizing off of a tragedy? In fact, Tom Hanson had made the movie as part of an elaborate plot to catch the real life killer. He planned to have a red carpet premiere for the movie in downtown San Francisco, lure the killer there, trick him into confessing his crimes, and perform a citizen's arrest on him. Sound far fetched and insane? Well, it was. But the craziest thing was - it nearly worked. On this episode of Deep Cuts, we delve into the unbelievable story of Tom Hanson, and his outlandish plot to catch the Zodiac Killer at a movie theater screening.

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She claimed Hollywood stole 'The Matrix' and 'The Terminator' from her. Many still believe her. Sophia Stewart says that she wrote a book in the 80s that was the basis for both smash-hit movie franchises, 'The Matrix,' and 'The Terminator,' and that her ideas were unceremoniously stolen by The Wachowskis (directors of 'The Matrix) and James Cameron (director of 'The Terminator'). She also claims that she sued Warner Brothers over copyright theft and won $1 Billion dollars, but that the WB has paid to keep it out of the media for decades. Is there any basis to these claims? Or is this one of the biggest con jobs in pop culture history? On this episode of Deep Cuts, we delve into the story and figure out if Sophia Stewart truly is the Mother of the Matrix.

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The secret backstory behind 'The Hardy Boys' and 'Nancy Drew' is much darker than you ever imagined. These two beloved classic children's mystery novel series written by Franklin W. Dixon and Carolyn Keene that have entertained children and adults alike since the 1930s. Or are they? What if we told you that Franklin W. Dixon and Carolyn Keene never existed? And that Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, and a slew of other children's mystery books from your childhood were all created by one man -- the shady, mustache-twirling, nefarious businessman, Edward Stratemeyer, who built an empire off of cranking out ideas for mystery books starring pre-teen sleuths, paying a secret syndicate of starving ghostwriters pennies on the dollar to write them, publishing them under false names, and keeping all of the profits for himself?

On episode 1 of Deep Cuts, we delve deep into one of the best kept secrets in pop culture history, the enigmatic figure behind it all, and the unprecedented lawsuit in the 1970s that blew the lid off of everything.

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Hosts Dave Baker and Andrew Price walk you through the ins and outs of a particular topic in film, television and pop culture, no matter how strange or obscure. No matter how small a factoid seems to be, Dave and Andrew will explore its origin and maybe even correct some misconceptions on commonly held pop culture beliefs.

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