Mt. Rushmore Podcast

Is "It's the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" REM's greatest song? Probably not. But it might be their most catchy and it's definitely the one you are most likely to know about 1/10th of the words to. It's such a cultural touchstone that Michael, Richard and Jeff have devoted an entire episode to every aspect of this song, from specific people mentioned to its appropriateness as a karaoke song. And yes, we definitely get into LEONARD BERNSTEIN!

So, it's time to brush up on your celebrities with the initials "LB" and get ready for a symbiotic, patriotic slam but neck, right? Right!

SHOW NOTES

• Leonard Bernstein - Richard's Choice
• The Dreamtime Origins of the Song - Michael's Choice
• Lenny Bruce - Richard's Choice
• Two Types of People - Michael's Choice
• Operation Rescue (Misunderstood Lyric) - Richard's Choice
• Being an A+ Karaoke Song - Michael's Choice
• Being Fine With It Being the End of the World - Richard's Choice
• Right? Right. - Michael's Choice

What's the deal with stand-up comedians? I mean, they don't really "stand up" during their shows – they walk on-stage and then stay standing the whole time! And also, what's up with all of the hacky premises that get used for routines? No, seriously – what's up with them?

This week, we try to find out and we've brought along a special guest – stand-up comedian and host of the Road Stories podcast Murray Valeriano. He and Jeff share their tales from the road and their takes on some of the hackiest of stand-up topics, while Richard and Michael take on the role of opening act and special judges.

SHOW NOTES

• 1:35 – "Give it up for the Troops" (Joint Pick)
• 6:10 – White Girls Rapping in an Awkward White Girl Voice (Jeff's Pick)
• 12:04 – Weed Jokes (Murray's Pick)
• 18:34 – Inauthentic Comedians (Jeff's Pick)
• 26:34 – Tinder Jokes (Murray's Pick)
• 29:10 – "I Look Like a Cross Between Blank and Blank" (Jeff's Pick)
• 37:52 – "I'm a Drunken Whore" (Murray's Pick)

Let's take a trip down memory lane this week and head to your favorite place as a kid: the mall. Where else could you see a movie, eat some questionable "pizza" at the food court, wash it down with a frozen "orange" drink and then blow the rest of your money at the arcade playing Street Fighter AND still have time left over before your mom picked you up?

The mall experience is dying in America: today's teens are spending all of their time cybershopping and playing Fortnight to do something productive like mill around Sam Goody's for a couple of hours. It's a shame, but that doesn't mean we can't wallow in nostalgia and remember all of the best – and worst – parts about a day at the mall.

SHOW NOTES

• The Food Court – Joint Choice
• IDing Malls in Films – Michael's Choice
• Parking – Richard's Choice
• The Mall as the Internet of Its Day – Michael's Choice
• Claire's Boutique – Richard's Choice
• The Sadness of Dead Malls – Michael's Choice
• Sam Goody's – Richard's Choice

Cigars all around! We're delivering...a new episode of the podcast. This week we're discussing TV pregnancies – how they were handled by shows over the years, and what depictions of pregnancies tell us about society as a whole.

Since we're three guys, we're hardly experts at pregnancies, so we brought in someone with a bit more firsthand experience – Sara Reeve, wife of our own Richard Manfredi and mother of their two children. It's an episode filled with tenderness, laughter and an egg coming out of Robin Williams' navel and hatching to reveal Jonathan Winters. So, literally, it has it all.

SHOW NOTES

• 2:25 – Mork from "Mork and Mindy" (Joint Choice)
• 9:36 – Lucy from "I Love Lucy" (Richard and Michael's Choice)
• 17:01 – George/Sam Francisco from "Alien Nation" (Sara's Choice)
• 24:02 – Murphy Brown from "Murphy Brown" (Joint Choice)
• 32:30 – Betty Draper from "Mad Men" (Sara's Choice)
• 38:25 – Marge Simpson from "The Simpsons" (Richard and Michael's Choice)

Horror and comedy movies are like Reese's Cups but with blood instead of peanut butter and brains instead of chocolate – two great tastes that taste great together. Finding the right balance can be tricky, but when it works there's nothing like a movie that can make you laugh and scream at the same time.

We're lucky to be joined this week by two people who know how to combine horror and comedy – Ben Rock and Bob DeRosa of the hit web series "20 Seconds to Live." Make sure you visit 20secondstolive.com to see all of their latest episodes.

SHOW NOTES

Ben and Bob's Choices:

• Return of the Living Dead
• Re-Animator
• Evil Dead 2
• Cabin in the Woods

Richard and Michael's Choices:

• Shaun of the Dead
• Gremlins
• Dead Alive
• Young Frankenstein

Look, we're nerds, and we're proud of it. But that doesn't mean that we're proud of everything. In fact, there are certain elements of the things that we love that we can't defend.

The week we're exploring the cringeworthiest aspects of the things we hold near and dear to our hearts. Even as superfans, we're admitting that these elements aren't so super. We hope this episode is as cathartic for you as it is for us.

SHOW NOTES

• 3:08 – Coffee Culture (Richard's Choice)
• 9:34 – Quidditch, IRL (Michael's Choice)
• 17:57 – Fantasy Football (Joint Choice)
• 27:45 – Cosplay Is Too Damned Good (Michael's Choice)
• 37:26 – The Doors (Richard's Choice)
• 45:36 – Comic Con (Michael's Choice)
• 52:12 – Flopping in Soccer (Richard's Choice)

This week's topic comes from one of our fans: kickball legend, Lefty Slapper enthusiast and all-around good guy Paddy Culham. He joins us to help decide which artists did it better the second time around with the Rushmore of Cover Songs Better Than the Original. It's hard to make someone else's song your own, but these people and bands did it – whether the original song was kind of lousy or already great.

Coming next week: we get the crew from How Did This Get Made to debate the same topic, but be much better at it.

SHOW NOTES

• "Hurt" by Johnny Cash/Nine Inch Nails (Richard/Michael's Choice)
• "Smooth Criminal" by Alien Ant Farm/Michael Jackson (Paddy's Choice)
• "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper/Robert Hazard (Richard/Michael's Choice)
• "People Are Strange" by Echo and the Bunnyman/The Doors (Paddy's Choice)
• "The Tide Is High" by Blondie/The Paragons (Richard/Michael's Choice)
• "Mad World" by Gary Jules/Tears for Fears (Paddy's Choice)
• "Killing Me Softly" by Roberta Flack/The Fugees (Richard/Michael's Choice)
• "With a Little Help From My Friends" by The Beatles/Joe Cocker (Paddy's Choice)

Sometimes, children's television can be a place of wonder, where kids learn valuable life lessons and are entertained by beloved characters. And sometimes, it's a place where monsters with TVs in their stomachs speak in gibberish and create countless nightmares for kids and parents alike.

Let's face it – there's a lot of bizarre children's TV show concepts out there. Even great shows can have premises that are beyond belief. (Seriously, a group of teens and a talking dog travel in a van to solve crimes featuring villains with hyper-realistic masks? OK.) This week we get weird, so join us as we delve into the world of strange kids' TV show concepts and try to emerge with our sanity on the other side.

SHOW NOTES

• 2:23 – Teletubbies (Michael's Choice)
• 7:56 – Jabberjaw (Richard's Choice)
• 12:20 – Zoobilee Zoo (Michael's Choice)
• 17:34 – Slim Goodbody (Joint Choice)
• 26:49 – Lancelot Link: Secret Chimp (Richard's Choice)
• 32:45 – Pee-Wee's Playhouse (Michael's Choice)
• 40:56 – H.R. Pufnstuf (Richard's Choice)

Since you're a listener of our podcast, it's easy to deduce pretty much everything about you. I can tell that you only listen to the best podcasts, that you enjoy hearing grown men argue about trivial points and that you are the type of refined person who loves Sherlock Holmes.

Of course, you've probably never read a Sherlock Holmes story. Who has? So many words – some of them big and old! Instead, I'd wager that you've mainly watched one of approximately 120,000 adaptations that have taken place over the past 100 years or so.

So, knowing what we know about you, will you appreciate our look at some of the best Sherlock Holmes adaptions over the years? The answer is elementary: you bet your sweet bippy you will.

SHOW NOTES

"House" (Michael's Choice)

"Young Sherlock Holmes" (Richard's Choice)

"Deduce You Say" Looney Tunes Short (Michael's Choice)

"The Great Mouse Detective" (Richard's Choice)

"The Beekeeper's Apprentice" (Michael's Choice)

"Without a Clue" (Richard's Choice)

"Sherlock" (Joint Choice)

Ever studied for a test only to discover you have no idea how to answer the questions? Have you gotten a job and realized how unprepared you are for the responsibilities? Ever wish you were BIG on a magic carnival fortune telling machine, get a BIG job in the city, only to be unable to reciprocate an adult relationship because you're actually 13 and then you run home crying to mama?

Well, you're in luck as we debate the Mount Rushmore of People in WAAAAAY Over Their Heads this week. It's a healthy helping of Schadenfreude served up by Michael, Richard and Jeff, with a side dish of awkwardness and pity.