Snakes & Otters Podcast

Listeners, pardon the exceptional length of this episode, but it features our first guest ever, our good friend Marcus Aurelius. He claims to be of exceptional length as well. We tell stories and celebrate friendship. Welcome to the Brotherhood of Snakes & Otters Marcus.

Pop culture episode and Francis takes the reins to talk Samurai Cinema and what it meant in Japan, both pre and post WWII. The guys salute famed director Akira Kurosawa, and talk the way the Samurai movies became the basis for revisionist Westerns, Clint Eastwood and antiheroes. 

Martin captains and the gang talks about gonzo journalist, satirist and general ne'er do well P. J. O'Rourke. Martin reveals the number 1 item on his bucket list is to have a drink with PJ. That's how big a deal this heroes episode is. 

P. J.'s books are too numerous to list here, but head to his website, www.pjorourke.com. His publisher, Grove Atlantic, has a full bio and a list of his stuff. If you take the plunge and buy a PJ, be sure it is one that includes his seminal article "How to Drive Fast on Drugs While Getting Your Wing-Wang Squeezed And Not Spill Your Drink".

"In the dark days during the spread of the Covid 19 virus, three brave men decided to risk everything by talking about it . . .

Well, we're not quite THAT brave, but we do talk a lot about the Great Covid Quarantine of 2020.

Join the guys as we talk about how things are going, and some of the important things they've learned so far in what the old Chinese curse called "interesting times".

And you can see a special video version with the guys in their quarantine getup on our YouTube channel! Just search Snakes and Otters on YouTube to find us!

Martin captains our 50th episode and the guys rise to the special occasion. Francis kicks off with words of wisdom from Leo Tolstoy. Martin jumps back in with the Chairman of the Board, Francis Albert Sinatra, and Robert hammers it all home with Lao Tzu. Yes you read that right, Tolstoy, Sinatra and Lao Tzu. All to give hope and purpose during COVID-19 isolation. Bonus, Chef's parents and the Loch Ness monster make a surprise appearance. 

Our quotes this time:

• Francis – “A man on a thousand-mile walk has to forget his goal and say to himself every morning, 'Today I'm going to cover twenty-five miles and then rest up and sleep.” (Leo Tolstoy)

Robert captains the first of 4 Civil War episodes, discussing the pivotal battles that led from the dismissal of George McClellan to the rise of US Grant. In today's episode we talk Ambrose Burnside and the disaster that was Fredricksburg. Some sources we use include The Civil War by Geoffrey Ward with Ric and Ken Burns, and we heartily applaud Jeff Shaara's Gods and Generals.

The guys look back with nostalgia at the old classic TV cop shows and what they meant. 

Want a challenge? Try talking about Winston Churchill in less than an hour. The guys examine the life of British statesman Winston Churchill. There's a lot to unpack.

Martin doesn't mention it, but he's read what's considered the sine qua non of modern Churchill bios, Martin Gilbert's 1 volume Churchill: A Life.

Benjamin Disraeli, Helmuth von Moltke (the Elder) and Ronnie James Dio. Yep. The guys take quotes from a British statesman, a German field marshal and a rock n roll singer to give you April's words to live by. And like always, it works. 

Our quotes this time:

• Francis – “Don’t complain, don’t explain.” (Benjamin Disraeli)

Martin captains an episode on the pivotal elections of 1824 and 1828. The guys then turn it into a character study of Old Hickory, Andrew Jackson.