What the HELL Were You Thinking?

Show Notes Episode 348: When Inflation Comes Along, You Must Whip It

This week Host Dave Bledsoe fights the rising costs of his bar tabs by handing the bartender a button asking him to Whip It instead of money. Only to get his ass whipped behind the bar by the bouncers. (Again.) On the show this week, we take you back to a time when the worst possible idea to fight inflation was also the only idea they had! (It is a recurring theme in American History)

Along the way a sad old man complains about being a sad old man. (It is kind of Dave’s leitmotif) Then we dive right into a complex economic and social issue that we have no business discussing because our understanding of economics topped out in about third grade. (If Dave has ten dollars and spends it all on booze, how much money does Dave have left?) From there explain that when the chips were down and the nation needed a hero, they took a look around and all they could find was Jerry. (Not the President we needed and also not the President we deserved) Finally we explain how the Ford Administration decided the best way to fix our problem was to up the pieces of flair on our work uniforms. (The MINIMUM is fifteen) 

Our Sponsor this week is Fast Eddie’s Financial Advisors, we give you money for things and you damn sure will pay us back. We open the show with SNL’s take on Inflation and close with the Fantastic Plastics explaining fiscal policy for the masses.

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The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/wnDom1oXQdk

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

Citations Needed: 

What to know about the main causes of inflation

https://www.businessinsider.com/causes-of-inflation

Gerald Ford responded to an inflation crisis with a voluntary public campaign. It was a disaster.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2021/11/16/gerald-ford-whip-inflation-now/

Uncited Additional Reading:  

https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/ford-pledges-to-whip-inflation-now-video

https://www.investopedia.com/articles/economics/09/1970s-great-inflation.asp

https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/great-inflation

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stagflation

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973%E2%80%931975_recession

https://www.npr.org/2021/05/29/1001023637/think-inflation-is-bad-now-lets-take-a-step-back-to-the-1970s

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Ford

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Show Notes Episode 347: Hold My Hand Across America

This week Host Dave Bledsoe reaches out a hand to his fellow man only to have it smacked down by the bartender who refused to serve him another drink until he paid his bartab. (Again.) On the show this week we link up all the ways people in the 1980’s tried to help people in need because the government didn’t want to anymore. (Same as it ever was.)

Along the way we learn what motivated a young Dave only to discover it is the same thing that motivates an old Dave. (Boobs.) Then we dive right into the history of the various celebrity driven charity events from fighting against nuclear power (because coal could NEVER hurt us!) to famine relief in Africa. (Those songs bought an AWFUL lot of guns!) Then we finally get to the point of the show where we talk about that time America thought hunger could be solved if we all just joined a huge daisy chain of people from sea to shining sea. (Spoiler Alert: It couldn’t and we didn’t.) 

Our Sponsor this week is a Big Dumb Idea, when you’ve got a pressing social problem only government could reasonably solve, try a Big Dumb Idea instead. We open the show with reporting from the Hands Across America line and close with Geargasm who has a plan for YOU!

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The Show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHell_Podcast

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www.whatthehellpodcast.com

Give us your money on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/Whatthehellpodcast

The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/IF7Ct2nAJpQ

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

Citations Needed:

The 80s: The Decade of the Charity Single & the Benefit Concert

https://ifmyrecordscouldtalk.com/2021/07/23/the-80s-the-decade-of-the-charity-single-the-benefit-concert/

The story of Hear 'n Aid, the heavy metal Band Aid

https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-story-of-hear-n-aid-the-heavy-metal-band-aid

Listen Up

https://www.farmaid.org/blog/willie-nelson-listen-up/

Remembering Hands Across America

https://www.history.com/news/remembering-hands-across-america

Great Shakes: 'Hands Across America' 20 Years Later

https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/WolfFiles/story?id=2044810&page=1

REAGAN DECIDES TO JOIN HANDS ACROSS AMERICA

https://www.nytimes.com/1986/05/24/us/reagan-decides-to-join-hands-across-america.html

8 Gripping Facts About Hands Across America

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/577914/hands-across-america-facts

Uncited Additional Reading: 

https://www.vulture.com/2019/03/hands-across-america-in-jordan-peele-s-us.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hands_Across_America

https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/us-jordan-peele-hands-across-america/

https://www.history.com/news/remembering-hands-across-america

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musicians_United_for_Safe_Energy

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Show Notes Episode 346: I Pity the Fool That Don’t Eat My Cereal

This week Host Dave Bledsoe issues a retraction to his Sister after insinuating she used to regularly kick his ass, and regrets any confusion. She is and was all sweetness and light and be humbly beg her pardon and pleads for her not to hurt him. (Again) On the show this week we are looking at all the brands of breakfast cereal that were just basically cash grabs in the 1980’s (There were more than you remember)

Along the way we learn some shocking news about why so many cereals were taken off the shelves so soon after they debuted. (Meaning Dave just made up some shit after reading a single unsourced claim. Again.) From there we plumb the depths of the cereal aisle circa 1989 for all the weird and terrible cereals that people thought kids like to eat. (We liked Apple Jacks and Sugar Smacks, no one wanted Nerd’s Cereal) Finally we wrapped up with the most bizarre and inexplicable cereal of the lot and wondered if something wasn’t going on between Mr T and Nancy Reagan. (She looked awfully happy on his lap)

Our Sponsor this week is Davey-O’s the cereal for podcasters! We open the show with Liam Neeson picking up some groceries and close with Chad and Nora Haynes traveling down that road again.

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The Show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHell_Podcast

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The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/Jd6utRwN6SQ

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

Citations Needed:

BREAKFAST WITH BARBIE CEREAL

https://www.saturdaymorningsforever.com/2019/03/breakfast-with-barbie-cereal.html

Uncited Additional Reading

https://www.metv.com/lists/alas-we-will-never-eat-these-18-cereals-from-the-1980s-again

https://www.80sthen80snow.com/80s-cereal

https://blog.cheapism.com/cereal-brands-we-miss/#slide=8

http://www.liketotally80s.com/2011/09/80s-cereals/

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Show Notes Episode 345: Magically Delicious

This week Host Dave Bledsoe angrily insists that Lucky Charms cereal prizes be tiny bottles of Jameson and is thrown out of the Kroger. (Again) On the show this week we open up the kitchen cabinet and pull down a box of Nostalgio's, the breakfast cereal for old people! (Don’t worry, they taste so bad you won’t WANT to eat them!)

Along the way we learn that Dave’s little sister used to beat him up on the regular. (We’re sure he deserved it!) and then we dive right into the history of a balanced breakfast, from Roman times right through today! (It is surprisingly full of people with some VERY Interesting ideas about race and masturbation.) Then we talk about modern breakfast cereals and how kids in the 1970’s made informed decisions on their breakfast nutrition. (It involved an awful lot of talking animals.) Then we explain that cereal box prizes were ALWAYS a scam. (#Capitalism)

Our Sponsor this week is Vodka Bombs, the breakfast cereal for big girls and boys! We open with George Carlin squabbling with his breakfast and close with Putnam Pig dropping some deft rhymes about a balanced breakfast!

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The Show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHell_Podcast

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www.whatthehellpodcast.com

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The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/OmhusjvU0Ys

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

Citations Needed:

History of Breakfast Fact Sheet

https://www.breakfastcereal.org/assets/uploads/files/00579-history-of-breakfast.pdf

Wikipedia: John Harvey Kellogg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Harvey_Kellogg

Wikipedia: Ralstonism

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralstonism

MONSTROUSLY DELICIOUS: AN ORAL HISTORY OF MONSTER CEREALS

https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/monster-cereals-oral-history

Franken Berry, the Beloved Halloween Cereal, Was Once Medically Found to Cause Pink Poop

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/franken-berry-the-beloved-halloween-cereal-was-once-medically-found-to-cause-pink-poop-7114570/

Uncited Additional Reading: 

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/02/22/dining/history-of-cereal.html

https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/03/10380335/breakfast-cereal-history-future-strange-facts

https://www.seriouseats.com/history-of-breakfast-cereal-mascots

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/648354/cereal-history

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/68718/8-throwback-movie-tie-breakfast-cereals

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_breakfast_cereal_advertising_characters

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Show Notes Special Edition: Me and You in Twenty Twenty Two

In this Special Edition Host Dave Bledsoe does the BARE minimum phoning in a half assed new release whose only real purpose is to get the show back its production and release schedule after the holiday. (So you know, pretty much the usual.)  

It's about stuff that he says will happen in the coming year. (Believe it when you see it). That’s it, I am done here. I had to write this bullshit with a hangover on New Year’s Day, for no extra pay. I hate this job.

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www.whatthehellpodcast.com

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The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/f8A7My38dyg

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

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Show Notes Episode 344: It’s Not THAT Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday

This week Host Dave Bledsoe looks back in anger AND ahead in fear when he realizes he is almost certainly going to need to pay his bartabs before New Year’s Eve. (He won’t) On the show this week we look back at the year that was Two Thousand and Twenty One and realized, it was fucking terrible. (No great surprise there)

Along the way we remember the halcyon days of yesteryear when going out of a bar on New Year’s Eve was fun and potentially resulted in getting laid, and how today we are in bed by 10:30 PM because who can stay awake until Midnight at our age? From there we dive right into all the things that happened in this dog shit year that took us from believing we were getting Hot Vax Summer to the unending repeat of another Covid Variant. (Are we blaming the MAGA chugs who won’t get vaxxed, you bet your ass we are!) We hit all the top stories of the year from big ships in small canals to the enormous size of Pete Davidson’s dick. (We don’t have any first hand knowledge, just some educated guesses) Finally we wrap up the year on a positive note, well not positive but there is a story about smearing butter on a cat. (Poor cat)

Our Sponsor this week is Forgetittol, when you had a year to remember and wish you hadn’t Forgeittitol. We open with a countdown to a year filled with disappointments and close with Bailey Pelkman reminding us that no matter how hard we try, we will still remember this awful year.

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www.whatthehellpodcast.com

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The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/I4ixQxQkow0

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

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It's Christmas Eve and Dave is already in the drunk tank, so we are running this "best of" episode to tide you over until Fast Eddie or Jeremy can get Dave out on bail. (again) We think he might be back in time for next week's show, but you never know.

In the meantime, enjoy the True Story of Colonel Harlan Sanders, who very much IS a Christmas Icon. (In Japan).

Show Notes Episode 292: Finger Licking Good Times

This week Host Dave Bledsoe has his rejection to be named an Honorary Kentucky Colonel due to his love of bourbon rejected with prejudice. (Again.) On the show this week honoring the 40th Anniversary of the passing of an American legend (And notorious fuckboi) we talk about the life and times of Colonel Harland Sanders. (Dude was HORN-EE!)

Along the way we discover the secret of raising children in the 1980’s. (McDonald's six nights a week, KFC on Sunday.) Then we dive right into the life of man who is much more than a white suit and a secret recipe! (He also swore so much it impresses Dave!) From his humble beginnings in Indiana (yeah, the Colonel wasn’t even FROM Kentucky!) to working on the railroad and pretty much every other job you can imagine before he became a fried chicken magnate. We also learn how he lost so many of those jobs. (Turns out, you do not FUCK with the Colonel, he WILL put you down!) Then we chart his rise in the world of chicken sales from humble entrepreneur to world striding titan to the breaded bird arts, and perhaps even to becoming the object of a religion. (Praise his breaded goodness!) Then we brazenly reveal the REAL Secret Recipe! (Come at us Big Chicken!)

Our Sponsor this week is General Slander’s West Virginia Fried Chicken, who wants you to know yeah, we got a GENERAL! We open the show with Mister Mac Kenzie’s conspiracy theories and close with Southern Culture on the Skids roadside cuisine choices.

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The Show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHell_Podcast

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www.whatthehellpodcast.com

Give us your money on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/Whatthehellpodcast

The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/BCCqeHm5VDY

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

Citations Needed:

Colonels of Truth

https://www.damninteresting.com/colonels-of-truth/

Colonel Pleasures A new Lifetime “mini-movie” gets one thing right about the KFC founder: his horniness.

https://slate.com/human-interest/2020/12/colonel-sanders-lifetime-mario-lopez-horny.html

Colonel Sanders Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonel_Sanders

Kentucky∼Fried

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1970/02/14/kentucky-fried

KFC recipe revealed? Tribune shown family scrapbook with 11 herbs and spices

https://www.chicagotribune.com/travel/ct-kfc-recipe-revealed-20160818-story.html

Uncited Additional Background 

https://www.theverge.com/2016/7/5/12096466/colonel-sanders-kfc-meme-life-story

https://vault.fbi.gov/Colonel%20Harlan%20Sanders/Harland%20%28Colonel%29%20David%20Sanders%20Part%201%20of%201/view

https://www.vice.com/en/article/7k94md/kfc-lifetime-movie-colonel-sanders-recipe-for-seduction

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/venessawong/the-real-colonel-sanders

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Show Notes Episode 343: Frosty the Snow Ho

This week, Host Dave Bledsoe is basically phoning it in so he can get on with the business of his Christmas Bender.  (You probably won’t be able to notice anything different)  On the show this week, we take a look at some of the bizarre and inexplicable Christmas specials that taught us that sharing special times with family is the true meaning of Christmas.  (And to buy whatever junk they were plugging in the special.)

Along the way we learn that Dave is not only a bad son, he is a really shitty uncle too!  (Shocked?  Don’t be.) Then we dive right into the strange and questionable television offerings that have “entertained” kids for decades.  (Yes, we mention the Star Wars special, but it is hardly the only one out there.)  From Eternia to 75 million years before the Reason for the Season was ostensibly born in a stable, we pick at all the logical flaws and blatant commercialism we can find.  Finally, we wrap up with REAL Holiday specials, with heartwarming themes like gangbags and sodomy!  (Because spending time with the ones you love, or the ones you love for about an hour is what Christmas is really about!)

Our Sponsor this week is the Elvish Liberation Front, from the North Pole to the Keebler Tree, we won’t stop until every elf is free.  We open with Han and Chewie and close with the Universal Robot Band getting funky for Christmas!

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The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/7NEnSkpbmCY

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

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Show Notes Episode 342: Come And Buy My Weird Ass Toys

This week Host Dave Bledsoe opens up his childhood toybox, by which we mean, he gets drunk and plays with all the toys he, a 52 year old man, has at home. (Again) On the show this week we head back to the 1970’s to look at all the toys that were physically or psychologically (sometimes both) harmful to children that people thought were just fine. 

Along the way we learn where Dave’s phobia about toilet sharks originates. (And why he still poops in a bucket) From there we dive right into all the mind bogglingly bizarre toys that 70’s toy designers brought to market! From plastic cows that may or may not have secreted semen, to Pet Rocks useful for domestic violence, to an indestructible doll that could be placed in plenty of perverse poses. (There was nothing innocent about youth in the 70’s) Finally a game for children about the fragility of human life and how delicious human flesh tasted! (Dahmer the Home Game!)

Our Sponsor this week is DaveCo’s My Pet Fart! The most fun you can have with a bottle of farts! We open with Mainway Toys and close with Christian Lipski trying to move some second hand merchandise.

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The Show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHell_Podcast

The Show on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthehellpodcast/

www.whatthehellpodcast.com

Give us your money on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/Whatthehellpodcast

The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/qTpEB5pP1Qc

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

Citations Needed:

THe Care and Training of Your Pet Rock

https://archive.org/stream/pet_rock_manual_original/pet_rock_manual_original_djvu.txt

Uncited Additional Reading:  

https://www.metv.com/lists/13-funky-bizarre-dolls-you-would-only-find-in-the-1970s

https://www.metv.com/lists/10-toys-every-kid-wanted-in-1976

https://smellslikeinfinitesadness.com/the-top-20-oddball-toys-from-the-70s80s-part-1/

https://omigods.com/weird-70s-toys

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/532200/bizarre-toy-commercials-1970s

https://mom.com/entertainment/9416-hilariously-weird-toys-past/laughing-bag

https://gunaxin.com/ten-kooky-toys-from-the-70s-and-80s

https://medium.com/@margaretw/museum-of-curious-toys-games-kenners-milky-the-marvelous-milking-cow-1977-c39d63b2b351

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Show Notes Episode 341: I Hurt Myself Doing the Lindy Hop

This week Host Dave Bledsoe attempts to do the DC Hand Jive and gets a good slap in the face for being fresh. (Again) On the show this week we talk about that time in the late 1990’s when we all thought we could swing dance! (We were wrong, we were so very wrong!)

Along the way we learn about that time Dave tried on a Zoot Suit only to have it violently reject his body. From there we dive right into the history of Swing music in general and how fifty years after it was popular it came back in a big way for a very short period of time. (As always, blame Capitalism) We find out how a perfect storm of cultural appropriation and Hollywood nostalgia managed to convince Generation X they were so money they did not even know how money they actually were. (Turns out, money is an illusion just like the idea we could all do the Charleston and not look like idiots) Then we learn how the Swing Craze ended just as fast as it began.

Our Sponsor this week is Big Daddy D’s Powerful Pomade, because your hair isn’t going to slick back itself. We open with Gen X talking about why they Swing and close with Big Country Ska being thankful for their good fortune.

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The Show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHell_Podcast

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www.whatthehellpodcast.com

Give us your money on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/Whatthehellpodcast

The Show Line: 347 687 9601

Closing Music: https://youtu.be/-VUvw2eT26E

We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/

Citations Needed:

Wikipedia Swing Music

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swing_music

Zoot Suit Riots

https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/zoot-suit-riots

Why ‘Hell of a Hat: The Rise of ’90s Ska & Swing’ Makes the Case for a Maligned Genre: Book Excerpt

https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/hell-of-a-hat-the-rise-of-90s-ska-swing-book-excerpt-9631485/

Let’s All Remember The Late-’90s Swing Revival

https://www.stereogum.com/1851924/lets-all-remember-the-late-90s-swing-revival/columns/sounding-board/

"Swingers" and the Fashion Faux Pas that Swept America

https://www.grailed.com/drycleanonly/swingers-fashion-faux-pas

Back in the Swing

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/music/features/swing1026.htm

Swing dance in the 90’s and early 2000’s

https://thehomeofhappyfeet.com/swing-dance-as-a-90s-kid/

Uncited Additional Reading:

https://www.avclub.com/read-this-remembering-the-90s-swing-revival-1798247356

https://swingonin.com.au/neo-swing-bit-history/

https://www.cracked.com/article_30008_why-was-the-90s-so-obsessed-with-swing.html

https://www.upworthy.com/gen-x-swing-music-obsession-explained?rebelltitem=6#rebelltitem6

https://mistressofmusic.wordpress.com/2014/09/07/the-swing-revival-of-the-late-90s-how-did-that-happen/

https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/swing-revival-1998-defense-essay-8458221/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swing_revival

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoot_suit

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoot_Suit_Riots

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