The Nerdologues Present: MBSing

Some time in or shortly after college, Lisa Beasley binge-watched the first few seasons of Grey's Anatomy in a matter of days. She hasn't stopped rewatching the series since. The show has become her background sounds, and she cites the comfort level a diverse cast of characters who only discuss their jobs brings her. Meredith Grey's progression as a character, the passionate monologuing throughout the show, and the knack Shonda Rhimes has for presenting powerful women have been the backdrop for Lisa's career as a writer/performer and as Creative Director for the Nova Collective.

Disclaimer: MBS says some stuff about Callie Torres thinking she was talking about Erica Hanh. She remembers not liking Hanh. She remembers liking Torres. It's been a long time since she watched this show.

Notes:

Lisa's website and The Nova Collective

Gossip Girls, a member of the Chicago Podcast Cooperative

Thanks to Backblaze for sponsoring. Try their online backup service free!

Maria Ranahan was named after her Italian grandmother, Mary (whose name was Anglicanized at Ellis Island). She has recently been cataloging her Italian mom's recipes for the first time, but she's had trouble translating things like "between these lines on my hand" into teaspoons and "up to here on your grandmother's pot" into cups. Food culture, rebelling against (or conforming to) your parents' norms, and how eating habits (and other behaviors) evolve throughout your life all get a lot of play in this loving conversation about moms and food.

Notes:

Maria is the director of Cards Against Humanity's Science Ambassador Scholarship. Support and spread the word.

She also played a major role in planning Cards Against Humanity Saves America.

Here's Maria on fellow Chicago Podcast Cooperative show Roboism.

Andy Kushnir started his Chicago journey as an improviser and sketch comedian, but he slowly realized that the anxiety he felt was not worth the performing, especially when he found himself so much happier at a keyboard writing scripts for others to perform. He still loves being a part of the process on set and in editing film and has done plenty of it with his own film projects, but his writing 3-4 hours a day for 6-7 days a week combined with his experience in writers' rooms at Cards Against Humanity and Freeform have certainly shaped his life into the one-track mind of a writer. Hear his thoughts on getting back into writing after a break, what kinds of stories he finds himself drawn to watch and write, and what medium he's itching to explore.

Notes:

AndyKushnir.com

Thanks to Overcast for sponsoring and the Chicago Podcast Cooperative for coordinating sponsorships and creating a collective.

Stanley is a self-proclaimed Reacher Creature. Having read most of the Lee Child novels with intentions of continuing (he recently took a break to read about the history of the FBI, so there's a bit of a theme), he can recognize how gripping the stories become and how ready-made they are for film thrillers (even if the second installment fell short... this is not a Tom Cruise joke, but it could be). A lot of time is spent unpacking the nature of characters like Jack Reacher: Professionally trained but acting entirely outside of what appears to be a broken establishment. One man on a mission to solve all of society's problems from the outside. Is Jack Reacher a superhero? Or just a dangerous display of the American Dream gone rogue? Stanley's not quite sure, but he knows he has to read all of Jack's seemingly-identical adventures to find out.

Notes:

Stanley's film work

A hilariously appropriate article re the appeal of Jack Reacher that came out the same day as this ep

Thanks to Overcast for sponsoring and the Chicago Podcast Cooperative for continued support.

Caroline fell for traveling from the first time she flew on an airplane to big NYC from South Carolina as a high schooler. Between traveling abroad as an undergraduate and returning to Europe as a grad student, she has [inflicted] some battle scars, had her fair share of TSA troubles, and accrued an impressive list of places she's peed in public. Hear how her time traveling to other countries has shaped her as a theatremaker, and try not to hold anything against her (or MBS for that matter).

Thanks to Overcast for sponsoring and the Chicago Podcast Cooperative for coordinating sponsorships.

In the studio with Abraham Lincoln AGAIN and this time with fellow former president Thomas Jefferson?! For the unfamiliar, last year past guest of MBSing Timothy Dunn took a trip to Springfield, IL, and Abraham Lincoln appeared before him. They've been making a podcast together ever since. Tim's even producing a rap album Thomas and Abe are making together. This episode is about how 8 Mile inspired them to make that album. Or maybe about how they inspired 8 Mile to be a movie. It's pretty unclear, but there's an unfortunate amount of freestyle rapping. 

For more backstory and fun with Lincoln, listen to Tim and Abe's show at www.15MinutesWithLincoln.com

Thanks to Cards Against Humanity for sponsoring and the continued use of their studios, and thanks to the Chicago Podcast Cooperative for lending a sense of legitimacy.

After years of loving pro wrestling and knowing it's what he wanted to do with his life, a 14-year-old Colt Cabana found a way to get dirt sheets - all the insider info on what was happening behind the scenes and on smaller stages than what he could watch on TV. From there he quit being a bad Division I-A football player to focus on wrestling in college, then he quit a teaching assistant job to fully commit to wrestling at 23. Colt has been hustling his way through training and touring, a stint with the WWE, and cultivating a fan base via comedy and podcasting to support himself ever since. He's even recently authored a children's book called Wrestling Dreams loosely based on his love of wrestling and fight against naysayers as a kid.

Notes:

Colt's podcast The Art of Wrestling

Colt on fellow Chicago Podcast Coop show Hello From the Magic Tavern

ColtMerch.com

Frank Spiro fell in love with the Saints, the Pelicans (née Hornets), and the atmosphere surrounding them when he landed in New Orleans for college. Forever loyal to Drew Brees and Anthony Davis, the New Orleans fan base seems unwavering to Frank in spite of their recent struggles and general lack of media coverage. As a frequent contributor to The Bird Writes, Frank is given the opportunity to stretch his comedic muscles while writing about a team he loves, a privilege he attributes to the overall c'est la vie attitude that seems to pervade New Orleans in general. Don't sleep on the hilarious and adorable minor league Baby Cakes, and remember, you only get to visit New Orleans for the first time once.

Notes:

The Harold Ramis Film School

In Defense of Boogie

MBSing is a part of the Chicago Podcast Cooperative. Thanks to Cards Against Humanity for sponsoring. If you like MBSing, please check out the coop's other shows.

Symphony Sanders has been interested in the personal stories behind her favorite performers since she was a kid. She likes being informed on what goes on in artists lives at least partially because she feels it brings important interpersonal and sociopolitical realities into public conversations, but also because she has a good time with it and likes being expressive about her own life on social media as well. Expect some talk about the Knowles-Carter family, Bill Murray, Cardi B, the Kardashians, Will and Jada, Mark Hammill, and some other hot topic celebrity news that fills social media with articles and takes. And, of course, there's plenty of frustration aimed at the celebrity news that became the POTUS.

Notes:

Symphony's first appearance on Welcome to Nightvale

Our Fair City in the Chicago Podcast Cooperative

Live Wire with Luke Burbank podcast recording 10/28

The Fishbowl at the Annoyance Theatre

Once Matt had wrestled with the big Qs of "Where do we go after this?" and "Why do we do what we do?" in his youth, he found himself more focused on the even bigger picture as as adult: "Where did this all come from?" Now, oscillating between all three and folding these big questions into being a psychiatric nurse, writer, and improviser, he finds the idea that all of existence came from cosmic "shrapnel" inordinately comforting. If it makes no sense as to how we got here in the first place, why not see it through? Matt unpacks how these big questions shape his life as a caretaker, performer, and adult.

Notes:

One of the stories Matt brought to the show he created at the Annoyance, Sad Clown.