Too Much Information

Jordan and Alex shake off the funk of 40,000 years to investigate Michael Jackson’s epochal hit “Thriller” and its equally iconic music video! While conceding it’s no “Monster Mash,” the pair delve deep into the track, from its original title “Starlight” to the tricks employed by the engineer who recorded it. They’ll also go long on the music video, from the former Playmate who starred in it — and got in some quality time with Jackson behind the scenes — to the Hollywood royalty who worked on it. They’ll also moonwalk their way through bits on Vincent Price’s monologue — and the time he showed Johnny Carson how to cook salmon in a dishwasher — and how Jackson’s album quite literally saved a flagging record industry. Too Much Information: No one’s gonna save you from the pod about to strike!

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Everybody relax, Jordan and Alex are here ... to talk about Alex's favorite movie of all time, John Carpenter's action-fantasy epic "Big Trouble in Little China." Listeners will trace the film's route from a Gold Rush-era cowboy fable to the film that convinced Carpenter to stop working with major studios after it flopped. But it's not all bad: Detours will be taken to the history of crime in San Francisco's Chinatown, the famous burlesque dancer from the city who cameos in the film, star Kurt Russell and Carpenter's heart-warming friendship and the controversy that greeted the film. Alex will recite approximately 40% of the film's lines and the phrase "hand-punched hairs" will be used referring to at least TWO separate costumes! Too Much Information: If we're not back in two hours after a digression on "The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension..." call the president.

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Hey! Ho! The TMI guys go downtown to NYC's Bowery to examine the birth of punk and one of the greatest debuts in rock history. You'll learn the often-traumatic backstory of these four non-brothers and explore the equally horrific urine-streaked venues in which they played.  You'll also delve into the insanely low-resource recording sessions for their self-titled first album and revisit the Ramones' famous London gig that jump-started punk in the UK. Plus, Heigl makes a compelling argument that the '60s Laurel Canyon music scene was a CIA psy-op, and Jordan makes sure to highlight each of the Ramones MANY surprising Beatles connections. (There are a LOT.) 

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The TMI gang is back when their second installment exploring the work of everyone's favorite besuited eccentric. Today they're looking at Paul Reuben's gift to TV — the trippy Saturday morning show that made an entire generation yearn for a talking chair. You'll learn about the insane lengths that Reubens went to preserve the illusion that Pee Wee was a real person, the insane lengths he went to achieve his creative vision of the perfect Googie Playhouse, and the insane lengths he went to create an all-natural breakfast cereal for kids that looked like dog food. You'll also hear about the time Imelda Marcos signed his marriage license, and... *checks notes​* something about a porn theater.

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Jordan and Heigl kick off the first in their two-part tribute to Paul Reubens and his beloved besuited character by examining his early years on the LA comedy scene and 1985 big screen breakthrough. You'll learn about the strange blend of influences that went into this offbeat comic creation, his surprising debut on The Dating Game, Reubens' early brushes with children's TV greatness, his rivalry with SNL, his friendship (and falling out) with Phil Hartman, the absurd price someone once paid for one of those famous bikes, and how we almost got a Pollyanna remake starring Pee Wee. Along the way, the TMI guys also somehow touch on Greek mythology, the murderous past of boxing promoter Don King, the wit and wisdom of Tom Waits, Michael Caine's fear of blinking, The Goonies star-studded set, Batman and....*shudder* Large Marge. 

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As the record-breaking album turns 25 — and Ms. Hill announces an upcoming anniversary tour — Alex and Jordan educate you on The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. You'll learn all about the intense relationship drama that went into its creation, the controversy surrounding the proper credit for the album's songs, and how the stress of making and then living up to the masterpiece ultimately led Hill to retreat from public life. Plus, they also do a lengthy sidebar on the surprising genesis of "Killing Me Softly With His Song," and a rundown of celebrities who (reportedly) don't let non-famous people look them in the eye.

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As Jordan reveals his true colors as an ardent aughts pop stan, the TMI gang celebrates Ms. Britney Jean Spears. While revisiting her much-maligned feature film debut — written by Shonda Rhimes!? — they somehow manage to touch on the work of Frank Zappa, the origin of the word "yikes," the specifics of the Lunchables product line, and MTV's aborted plans for a musical version of Alice in Wonderland featuring a who's who of TRL-era pop stars. (Plus, they fantasy-cast other epic road movies with Britney and her '02-era associates.) You'll learn about the surprising origins of the Crossroads script, the admirably hands-on role Britney had while working on the plot; her adorably humble culinary demands during the shoot, and the surprising role that Robert De Niro had in rounding out the cast. 

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Jordan and Alex commemorate the recent loss of Robbie Robertson by taking a load off, Fanny, and revisiting The Band's iconic 1968 debut, 'Music from Big Pink.' They trace the group's path from Canadian bar-band hellraisers to woodsy Woodstock balladeers and the album that launched 1,000 Americana bands. Also featuring patented TMI detours that include Alex getting way too excited about Rick Danko's use of the fretless bass and a meditation on the very nature of what collaborative music making means in a capitalist society that demands having the least amount of people on the paperwork. And hey, why not let Alex get a little too angry at a recently deceased icon whose creative output he'd never be able to surpass if he worked ten lifetimes...as a treat? Also, Jordan brings up the Beach Boys at least twice! It's Too Much Information: Tears of Rage edition!

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Get ready for an all-new iteration on the classic Too Much Information: Crystal TMI™!  No, just kidding, it's a game we stole from Tim Heidecker called Stump the Buff, in which a series of increasingly byzantine trivia questions in the buff's chosen field threaten to, well, stump them. And your two hosts couldn't have a more cognitively-dissonant spread for you: Heigl's answering questions about god's chosen movie genre, horror; Jordan's going HAM on his beloved Beatles. Along the way there will be the patented digressions spurred by each question, and Alex will slightly infuriate Jordan with his off-the-cuff question selection. It's Too Much Information: Stump the Buff: BLOOD AND BEATLES!

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Your two bio-exorcists of big-ticket trivia dive into one of the most idiosyncratic movies of all time. This early Tim Burton joint gave Jordan nightmare as a kid, so they brought in a guest expert — the third member of the TMI triumvirate, beloved producer Mykal Alder June! You’ll learn all about the much darker original script, the perils of building a bridge in Vermont for the film, the gross look they landed on for the titular character and an update on its long-delayed sequel. 

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