Slashers Podcast

To celebrate/ mourn the end of TroMarch, enjoy my interview with Mark Torgl, who played Melvin Ferd, in The Toxic Avenger. 

We talk about his career as an editor, along with some of his favorite projects, such as Stan Lee's Who Wants to be a Superhero?. We talk about filming The Toxic Avenger many moons ago, the process and the relationships he built along the way. Did you know Mark leveraged his nerdy looks into getting a script supervisor position from Lloyd Kaufman on The Toxic Avenger? 

We talk some of his later acting work and his pre-COVID convention circuit, along with how those things coincided in Toxic Tutu, the predominantly real documentary, sprinkled with some Troma-esque nonsense.

We also talk about what we hope for in the supposed big-budget remake with Peter Dinklage. 

If you ever have feedback or recommendations on future episodes, please let us know at [email protected]. You can always find us on  our social media: Instagram, Twitter, Slasher App:  @slasherspod  Facebook: /slasherspod Reddit: u/slasherspod  https://www.youtube.com/c/slasherspodcast

You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod

Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/

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It’s here!  The end of TroMarch is finally here!  And what better way to send you Goons off with the last episode discussing Cannibal! The Musical?  This one’s special, because not only is it a musical, but it’s Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s debut full-length feature film.  Before South Park was conceived, this was the first love child, so-to-speak. It’s interesting how this film came to be in the first place, how this showcases a funny little character attribute of Trey Parker, and all of the trivia and tidbits that make this Troma film so perfect--especially if you’re introducing Troma to a Troma virgin.

The episode also features our unsolicited opinions of South Park, The Simpsons and even Family Guy’s Seth McFarland.  We even get into Troma’s only PG film, Monster in the Closet, starring a very young and adorable Paul Walker (which we did on our recent Patreon watch party).

Be sure to check out the entire episode through the end to hear what our buds, Damn! That's Scary, had to say about the film

We had a bat shit crazy month of Troma, so this ending is bittersweet, but we stay tuned for a new theme next month!

This week's "Hidden Track" is You're Not Alone by The Sams. Check them out at linktr.ee/sorocabapunx and get their new EP, "Karma."

If you ever have feedback or recommendations on future episodes,  please let us know at [email protected]. You can always find us on our social media: Instagram, Twitter, Slasher App:  @slasherspod Facebook: /slasherspod Reddit: u/slasherspod https://www.youtube.com/c/slasherspodcast

You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod

Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/

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Check out our latest contribution to TroMarch, the crossover event no one wanted, besides us and Damn, That's Scary! This week, we review Redneck Zombies from 1987, which was only distributed by Troma, not made by. 

Of course-- OF MOTHER FLIPPIN' COURSE, on the one episode where we got an interview with someone from the actual movie this month, our pals from Damn, That's Scary! don't like it. Well, we at Slashers love Redneck Zombies, and that was even before we set up the interview with Ed Bishop. Ed was the producer, editor, cameraman, effects guy, script supervisor, casting director, and basically "D) All of the above" for this film. 

He and his high school friend, director, Pericles Lewnes set out to make a movie, which became a year-long, weekend-only project. The whole process was very similar to that of Peter Jackson with Bad Taste. Peri actually went on to continue working with Troma, working as the special effects supervisor for Sgt. Kabukiman and Toxic Avenger III. Fun fact, he is actually the first person onscreen in Toxie III, while making a reference to Redneck Zombies. 

Ed has continued his film career as an editor for the UFC. He talks about ending up there after he and Peri did a documentary on mixed martial arts years ago. Peri now owns and operates InGrano Bistro Bakery in Annapolis, Maryland. We talk about their early discussions, which lead to their lives after the radioactive moonshine had long been swallowed and peed away. 

The entire film is something of a masterwork, especially given the budget of $10,000 (roughly $23,152.64, when adjusted for inflation to 2021). Ed discussed his efforts in editing and makeup effects. He even talks his inspiration from effects artists like Tom Savini, and how his book helped bring this idea to screen. We even talk about the many references to other films and franchises. 

What are your favorite moments from Redneck Zombies? Be sure to let us know!

If you ever have feedback or recommendations on future episodes, please let us know at [email protected]. You can always find us on   our social media: Instagram, Twitter, Slasher App:  @slasherspod     Facebook:    /slasherspod Reddit: u/slasherspod        https://www.youtube.com/c/slasherspodcast

You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod

Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/

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This week, we are continuing our TroMarch collaboration with Damn, That's Scary with probably the second most famous Troma film ever: Class of Nuke 'Em High!

Written and directed by Richard W. Haines, Michael Herz, and good ol' Uncle Lloyd Kaufman (under that weird pseudonym Samuel Weil), the film takes us back to Tromaville, New Jersey. More specifically, we end up at Tromaville High. 

This film features veterans of multiple other Troma films such as Toxic Avenger, Lexx, and Werewolf Bitches from Outer Space, which unless I am much mistaken, won Best Picture in 2016.

Pat Ryan Jr. plays Mr. Paley. You may recall that he was in Street Trash, a film which is often mistaken for a Troma joint. 

The title track was written and performed by Ethan Hurt and The Coup. Jake failed to mention that if you speed that song up to like 1.25x speed, it is a serious jammer. 

The film had several sequels: Class of Nuke 'Em High 2: Subhumanoid Meltdown, Class of Nuke 'Em High 3: The Good, the Bad and the Subhumanoid, Return to Nuke 'Em High Volume 1, and finally Return to Return to Nuke 'EM High AKA Volume 2. 

The original Nuke 'Em featured some seriously gnarly creature effects. The biggest missed opportunity in film history was not putting this monster against one of those radioactive squirrels from the sequels. 

This episode also features an interview with Nathan Baesel of  Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon. We discuss his acting process, his teaching experience, and what plans are ahead for his career. We talk sequels, prequels, and the Leslie Vernon comicbook. You can find him on social medial @nbaesel. 

Be sure to check out Damn, That's Scary and all their episodes for TroMarch, featuring mini reviews from Slashers. 

If  you ever have feedback or recommendations on future episodes,  please let us know at [email protected]. You can always find us on  our social media: Instagram, Twitter, Slasher App:  @slasherspod    Facebook:    /slasherspod Reddit: u/slasherspod       https://www.youtube.com/c/slasherspodcast

You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod

Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/

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It’s Week 2 of our Tro-March collaboration with Damn, That’s Scary! Podcast, and this week we’re featuring the Troma distributed (but not created) Rabid Grannies.  Join all four Slasher goons as we discuss all the goey, gory fun of Grannies gorging on their ungrateful relatives (my alliteration skills are something to be envied).

We talk about the somewhat deceptive title and whether demonology can count as hydrophobia (rabies). 

Filmed in Belgium at the Ingelmunster Castle in 1988 and written and directed by Emmanuel Kervyn, this is a dark, gritty take on a possession horror film.  While this is not an Uncle Lloyd Troma film, it has its moments.  Find out why you need to see this uncut and some of our favorite comedic moments, as well as why Mr. Bean, Bill Murray, Ghostbusters 2, Angelica Huston, Witches and Stephen King are completely appropriate topics for this discussion.

In addition, we have a kick ass interview with Lew Temple, who you may know from The Walking Dead, Devil’s Rejects, Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, 31 and a million other things. Truly, Lew is one of Jake's favorite interviews of all time. He is incredibly mindful, candid, and informative regarding his multiple careers, which lead him to the stage and silver screen. 

Be sure to stay tuned through the end to see what Damn, That's Scary! thought of the film and then head on over to their channel to see what we think of the film they are reviewing this week.

If you ever have feedback or recommendations on future episodes, please let us know at [email protected]. You can always find us on our social media: Instagram, Twitter, Slasher App:  @slasherspod   Facebook:    /slasherspod Reddit: u/slasherspod      https://www.youtube.com/c/slasherspodcast

You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod

Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/

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And the award for longest episode title in Slashers Podcast history goes to... Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead (2006) & Interview with Price James! As the title suggests, this episode is a hearty slaw of content, so let's get right down to it!

This kicks off Tro-March! That's right, an entire month of Slashers dedicated to Troma. But wait, I can hear the disappointment in your collective sighs through the ether of space and time. If five episodes and a Patreon bonus are not enough Troma content for you, rest assured, we've called in the cavalry; our friends from the podcast, Damn, That's Scary!, are joining us in the fun. We are swapping short bits for each of our episodes all month long, so if you liked their take on Poultrygeist in this episode, please give them a listen. Similarly, if you found us through their show, please let us know at @slasherspod on virtually every platform ever. 

Poultrygeist was written by Daniel Bova, Gabriel Friedman, and Lloyd Kaufman. Many of you know that Uncle Lloyd has his finger in virtually every Troma project, as if he was the perpetual zombie finger for each film's butthole, which, yes-- occurs within the first five minutes of the film. 

We talk the Troma film making process, their style, and their cinematic universe which includes The Toxic Avenger, Class of Nuke 'Em High, and several others we will be featuring throughout the month. 

Of course we also discuss dem Southpark boys who show up in the credits, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, along with the late Lemmy Kilmister of Motörhead.

Some of you may know, but Doug actually has a feature film streaming on Troma Now, along with an episode of Mulligan's Monsters. Please consider at the very least doing a trial subscription to follow along all month and support Doug (free, shameless plug). 

Next, we move on to our interview with Price James. Recently, he directed the documentary: You Can't Kill David Arquette. That film is streaming on Hulu and it is incredible. We talk about towing the line between kayfabe, reality, and being a redemptive cinematic story. 

The reason we absolutely had to have Price on was his Action Man: Battlefield Casualties short, available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KtyMcb86go&ab_channel=VFPUK

In the storied tradition of the raconteurs and troubadours before him, Price does an amazing job of highlighting truly terrifying issues, through a lens of comedy. We highly recommend checking out the short, which features Matt Berry of Toast of London and What We Do in the Shadows fame. 

If  you ever have feedback or recommendations on future episodes, please     let us know at [email protected]. You can always find us on our     social media: Instagram, Twitter, Slasher App:  @slasherspod  Facebook:    /slasherspod Reddit: u/slasherspod     https://www.youtube.com/c/slasherspodcast

You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod

Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/

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To cap off Femme Fatale February, we are slipping a spit-covered pinky finger into your ears in the form of a review of Becky. Yeah, remember that movie that came out in June of last year? I think that was during the "murder hornet" phase of that dumpster fire of a year. So, being realistic, you probably didn't see it. Wanna find out if you should? Why not listen to us ramble about it?

The movie stars Lulu Wilson as Becky Hooper. Lulu has been in tons of horror movies, for a kid who is not legally allowed to see them unattended in a theater. Not that anyone would want to go to a disease-ridden theater right now anyway. Her works include Deliver Us from Evil (2014), Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016), Annabelle: Creation (2017), and The Haunting of Hill House (2018).

Opposite Lulu, is Kevin James as Dominick. Before this movie, the closest James came to the horror genre was Hotel Transylvania and that time Peter Boyle guested on King of Queens. 

Joel McHale plays Jeff Hooper, the titular Becky's dad. He was also in Deliver Us from Evil. I guess the closest to horror he would have been aside from that is The Happytime Murders. Meh. 

Reformed pro-wrestler, Robert Maillet, is Apex. We briefly discuss his in ring career, his gimmicks, and his acting roles which include the films Monster Brawl, Septic Man, and Lexx.  

The film was directed by the duo of Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion. They previously did Cooties (2014) and Bushwick (2017). We talk about their directing style, homage, and editing choices. 

We also go into the unique distribution for the film, given the ongoing pandemic. 

If you ever have feedback or recommendations on future episodes, please    let us know at [email protected]. You can always find us on our    social media: Instagram, Twitter, Slasher App:  @slasherspod Facebook:    /slasherspod Reddit: u/slasherspod    https://www.youtube.com/c/slasherspodcast

You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod

Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/

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For this week's installment in Femme Fatale February, imagine this: you waddled into some video store and you need to pick a movie. You want to pick something empowering to womyn, because you aren't no scrub (also known as a "busta"). In this scenario, the alphabet is different and you see two options side by side, Teeth and Frankenhooker. Which do you choose?

Teeth was written and directed by Mitchell Lichtenstein. It features Jess Weixler as Dawn O'Keefe, who just happens to have a Gilgamek vagina from South Park... y'know, lined with teeth. Weixler recently wrote and starred in Fully Realized Humans. Please see it and report back, because it seems to be a really interesting character study. 

Rather than ending up in Charles Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, this poor girl just goes to Jesus parties and talks about abstinence. We didn't talk about this on the show, but I am dying to know what you think her X-Man-- X-Woman? Aha! X-Person name would be. Let us know at [email protected]. Best submissions will get read on next week's episode. 

She is repeatedly victimized by the men in her life, though refreshingly not the one guy you would expect if you've ever seen a horror movie before. The main antagonist in the film is John Hensley as Brad. You may recall he was in Nip/ Tuck. Remember when that show was kinda like a thriller and then it just became gross and sad? Anyway, his mutation is being (and not having) a massive dick-- which you get to see onscreen! ...albeit mangled and bleeding. 

The other choice is Frankenhooker. I know, you are probably rolling your eyes, but let's have a candid discussion about it. This film was "written" by Bob Martin and Frank Henenlotter. I say "written," because Henenlotter has basically admitted that this movie had very little in terms of a script, yet somehow it provides pretty timeless social commentary and has structural elements like callbacks. 

You may know Henenlotter from the Basket Case trilogy. He is also a renowned cinema historian. If you are a fan of this show, please consider checking him out. He has some great interviews and can talk everything from pulp exploitation films to b-movie creature features. 

Frankenhooker stars James Lorinz as Jeffrey Franken. He is an electroengineer, blessed and cursed with brilliance, and seemingly doused in rotten luck. His fiancee, played by Patty Mullen, is Elizabeth Shelley/ the TITular Frankenhooker (see what I did there?). Sadly, her onscreen career was very short, with her only other film being Doom Asylum. She was a Penthouse playmate of the month and year though, so that's cool. 

When tragedy befalls Elizabeth, Jeffrey exploits working women, trying to harvest their parts to reconstruct the love of his life. Truly, a romantic masterpiece. 

Which is better? Which is more fun to watch? Which is more empowering to women? Which should you rent in this scenario? Listen, and find out!

If  you ever have feedback or recommendations on future episodes, please   let us know at [email protected]. You can always find us on our   social media: Instagram, Twitter, Slasher App:  @slasherspod Facebook:   /slasherspod Reddit: u/slasherspod   https://www.youtube.com/c/slasherspodcast

You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod

Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In honor of Groundhog Day, enjoy Jake's new spinoff show with his wife, Ciara: I Got You, Babe: A Groundhog Day Podcast. 

Be sure to review and subscribe to that show for new episodes!

Welcome  to Punxsutawney! On this, our debut episode, we introduce you to your  new favorite podcast about your favorite 27 year old movie: Groundhog  Day.

On this introductory episode, we do an overview of the film itself and get you prepped for what is to come on this show.

The movie stars Bill Murray (Ghostbusters, Caddyshack, Stripes) and  Andie MacDowell (St. Elmo's Fire, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Ready or  Not). We talk about everything from Bill Murray's divorce at the time of  filming, to how long Phil Connors is trapped in the time loop, to  potential re-casting.

There are notable side characters, such as Chris Elliot of Schitt's  Creek and Stephen Tobolowsky of Californication and Silicon Valley.

Groundhog Day was partially written and entirely directed by the late  Harold Ramis (Multiplicity, Analyze This, National Lampoon's Vacation).  We talk about his contributions to the script itself and his offscreen  frustrations with Bill Murray.

The film was conceived of and written by Danny Rubin (Hear No Evil,  S.F.W., Our Own Devices). Did you know he had a cameo in the Jamie Lee  Curtis/ Lindsay Lohan version of Freaky Friday? We talk about his  conception of the movie, the themes, and how he came to hinge the movie  on this holiday. Also, I guess for good measure, we talk about the  origins of the holiday itself.

The film was not entirely without controversy. Author, Richard A.  Lupoff, accused the filmmakers of plagiarizing his short 12:01 pm, which  was adapted into an Academy Award winning short of the same name, and  later a feature-length made for TV movie. The short is definitely far  superior, starring Kurtwood Smith (That '70s Show, Robocop).

There are also similarities with the film and Ken Grimwood's 1986  novel: Replay. Oh, and I guess I'll throw this in for the metadata: it  is similar to Friedrich Nietzsche's "The Gay Science."

We also go into detail as to the musical, the Italian remake "Stork  Day," and the video game, Groundhog Day: Like Father Like Son.

Be sure to check out Jake's other podcast: Slashers. Every week they  put out new episodes on topics ranging from movie reviews to debates on  all your favorite horror franchises: linktr.ee/slasherspod

If you are looking for I Got You Babe merch, you will have to check  on the Slasher's Redbubble page for now:  https://www.redbubble.com/people/Slasherspod/shop

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