Phoenix Foundation - A MacGyver Podcast

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: May 15th, 1989 —

Earl Dent needs MacGyver’s training to punch his way to custody of his daughter

MISSION: Earl Dent convinces MacGyver to train him for an upcoming boxing match with a twenty-five thousand dollar grand prize. He needs the money to prove to the Department of Children’s Welfare that he makes enough money to provide for his estranged daughter.

This week’s highlights include:

Here’s a link to The MacGyver Project’s interview with writer David Rich (evidently no relation to John.)

…and here’s some info on that Tales From the Crypt reboot!

Michael Buffer (Sports)

Michael Buffer (born November 2, 1944) is an American ring announcer for boxing and professional wrestling matches. He is known for his trademarked catchphrase, “Let’s get ready to rumble!”, and for pioneering a distinct announcing style in which he rolls certain letters and adds other inflections to a fighter’s name. His half-brother is UFC announcer Bruce Buffer.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Buffer.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: November 18th, 1991 —

An aging silent film star recruits MacGyver to rescue his lost films from thieves.

MISSION: Phoenix Foundation has signed on to restore Pinky Burnette’s long lost silent films, but after a screening for MacGyver at Pinky’s home, the prints are stolen. MacGyver and Pinky chase the film thieves to a now-defunct film studio across town.

This week’s highlights include:

Buster Keaton (Actor)

Joseph Frank “Buster” Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, director, producer, writer, and stunt performer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname “The Great Stone Face.” Keaton was recognized as the seventh-greatest film director by Entertainment Weekly. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Keaton the 21st greatest male star of Classic Hollywood Cinema. Critic Roger Ebert wrote of Keaton’s “extraordinary period from 1920 to 1929, [when] he worked without interruption on a series of films that make him, arguably, the greatest actor-director in the history of the movies”. His career declined afterward with a dispiriting loss of his artistic independence when he was hired by MGM, which resulted in a crippling alcoholism that ruined his family life. He recovered in the 1940s, remarried, and revived his career to a degree as an honored comic performer for the rest of his life, earning an Academy Honorary Award in 1959.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buster_Keaton.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: November 11th, 1991 —

In the exciting conclusion of MacGyver and Merlin’s medieval adventures we learn MacGyver’s first name!

MISSION: Merlin and Mac continue wizarding their way to Morgana’s castle to rescue the bride-to-be of Sir Galahad. MacGyver continues a personal quest to clear his families name (and learn his own?).

This week’s highlights include:

Take a gander at the amazing filmography of Mr. Scott. Shaw.

Also, Ty Burrell has an Awesome Hitler Story.

A live cam of the world’s longest continuously running light bulb!

Brown note (Audio)

The brown note is a hypothetical infrasonic frequency that would cause humans to lose control of their bowels due to resonance. Attempts to demonstrate the existence of a “brown note” using sound waves transmitted through air have failed.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_note.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: November 4th, 1991 —

MacGyver is transported through time to King Arthur’s court by a magical flower box.

MISSION: MacGyver is given the opportunity to clear the name of his ancestors by traveling back to medieval times to save the lives of Galahad and his betrothed with the help of Merlin under orders from King Arthur himself.

This week’s highlights include:

Electrolysis (Chemistry)

In chemistry and manufacturing, electrolysis is a technique that uses a direct electric current (DC) to drive an otherwise non-spontaneous chemical reaction. Electrolysis is commercially important as a stage in the separation of elements from naturally occurring sources such as ores using an electrolytic cell. The voltage that is needed for electrolysis to occur is called the decomposition potential.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrolysis.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: October 21st, 1991—

A kidnapped friend of MacGyver’s is transformed into a zombie by a local voodoo gang.

MISSION: MacGyver takes a crash course in zombies from Mama Lorraine to save a friend who has been abducted and zombified to scare people into believing an evil offshoot of voodoo.

This week’s highlights include:

Toxoplasma gondii (Disease)

Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular, parasitic protozoan that causes the disease toxoplasmosis. Found worldwide, T. gondii is capable of infecting virtually all warm-blooded animals, but felids such as domestic cats are the only known definitive hosts in which the parasite can undergo sexual reproduction.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasma_gondii.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: October 14th, 1991 —

MacGyver cameos briefly in a case handled entirely by the bounty hunting Colton family.

MISSION: Jesse, Frank, Billy, Mama Colton, and Frog Dog are on the case when a series of gang killings threaten the life of a young woman.

This week’s highlights include:

Dimetrodon (Dinosaur)

Dimetrodon (meaning “two measures of teeth”) is an extinct genus of synapsid that lived during the Early Permian period, around 295–272 million years ago (Ma). It is a member of the family Sphenacodontidae. The most prominent feature of Dimetrodon is the large sail on its back formed by elongated spines extending from the vertebrae. It walked on four legs and had a tall, curved skull with large teeth of different sizes set along the jaws. Most fossils have been found in the southwestern United States, the majority coming from a geological deposit called the Red Beds in Texas and Oklahoma. More recently, fossils have been found in Germany. Over a dozen species have been named since the genus was first described in 1878.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dimetrodon.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: October 7th, 1991 —

A series of explosions rock the city as a mad bomber challenges MacGyver’s wits.

MISSION: A bomber calling himself (or herself) Prometheus detonates a series of intricate bombs and MacGyver teams up with the Fire Department to track down the person responsible.

This week’s highlights include:

Prometheus (Mythology)

Prometheus (/prəˈmiːθiəs/ prə-mee-thee-əs; Greek: Προμηθεύς [promɛːtʰeús], meaning “forethought”) is a Titan in Greek mythology, best known as the deity in Greek mythology who was the creator of mankind and its greatest benefactor, who stole fire from Mount Olympus and gave it to mankind.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prometheus.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: September 30th, 1991 —

MacGyver’s recurring nightmares of Murdoc come true on the eve of an important court case.

MISSION: Phoenix Foundation has been hired to maintain security for an upcoming trial. MacGyver is plagued with visions of Murdoc that call his focus into question.

This week’s highlights include:

Liquid nitrogen (Chemistry)

Liquid nitrogen is nitrogen in a liquid state at an extremely low temperature. It is a colorless clear liquid with a density of 0.807 g/ml at its boiling point (−195.79 °C (77 K; −320 °F)) and a dielectric constant of 1.43. Nitrogen was first liquefied at the Jagiellonian University on 15 April 1883 by Polish physicists, Zygmunt Wróblewski and Karol Olszewski. It is produced industrially by fractional distillation of liquid air. Liquid nitrogen is often referred to by the abbreviation, LN2 or “LIN” or “LN” and has the UN number 1977. Liquid nitrogen is a diatomic liquid, which means that the diatomic character of the covalent N bonding in N2 gas is retained after liquefaction.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_nitrogen.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: September 23rd, 1991 —

A case of mistaken identity lands one of MacGyver’s new neighbors in a morgue.

MISSION: MacGyver is immediately caught up in a life-or-death situation with his new neighbors who have stumbled upon evidence of a conspiracy to commit murder.

This week’s highlights include:

Wayans family (Entertainment)

The Wayans family is an African-American family including a number of successful directors, screenwriters, comedians and actors.

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayans_family.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: September 16th, 1991 —

On the way to a bar mitzvah, MacGyver is hijacked by a wacky CIA agent.

MISSION: MacGyver is tasked with picking up a friend’s father and escorting him to a Bar Mitzvah, but things get complicated when MacGyver wakes up from having been drugged in a military helicopter landing in a foreign country.

This week’s highlights include:

Here’s that music video I worked on where MacGyver was filmed.

Fun fact: One of these angsty kids later became Skrillex.

Zener cards (Parapsychology)

Zener cards are cards used to conduct experiments for extrasensory perception (ESP), most often clairvoyance. Perceptual psychologist Karl Zener (1903–1964) designed the cards in the early 1930s for experiments conducted with his colleague, parapsychologist J. B. Rhine (1895–1980).

Check out the article on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zener_cards.