Brandon Medley

🎃 This year, Halloween in July has fallen on a Scrooge Sunday, so we’re hitting two holiday tropes with one garbage disposal.  Gerry Davila and Brandon Medley join us on a journey back to 1992 to watch Roseanne endure a haunting by the Ghosts of Halloween Past, Present, and Future.  At press time, the episode “Halloween IV” is available on Peacock.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  The Story Behind Roseanne’s Iconic Chicken Shirt (Decider, 2018).  The “Psych” pineapple.  October 30th is Mischief Night in New Jersey and, apparently, nowhere else.  Elks Lodges lodges are real.  Our Halloween costumes from around 1992, and the worst things we’ve gotten while trick-or-treating.  Lee Arenberg (Ghost of Halloween Past) in “The Wizard.”  Mario Reccuzo (Ghost of Halloween Present) on “California Dreams.”  Dan and Jackie’s amazing beheaded Marie Antoinette costume.  A background actor is wearing a Pigs in Space costume.  ****  📼 Commercials:  Walgreens Halloween Decorations (1992)  How a Count Eats a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup (1990)  ****  “Roseanne” and “Halloween IV” © 1992 The Carsey-Werner Company.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.

Rogue One: A Nativity Story. Guest: Brandon Medley.

Put one foot in front of the other, and soon you’ll hit 100 episodes. Guests: Michael DiGiovanni, Erin Evans, Michael May, Brandon Medley, Joey O. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

Hello! Wintertime’s fun! Follow me! Guests: Brandon Medley, James Riley. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

Young Conan the Barbarian meets baby Jesus. Guests: Michael May, Brandon Medley. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

Mr. Snowman, I don’t feel so good. Guest: Brandon Medley. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

The Weird Science of Christmas specials. Guest: Brandon Medley. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

A sequel special bonus for your oversized ears. Guest: Brandon Medley, Joey O. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

Time to address the spotted elephant in the room. Guests: Brandon Medley, Joey O. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

Every unstoppable monster has a beginning. Guests: Erin Evans, Brandon Medley, Joey O. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

Fights are fun! I like fights! Guests: Brandon Medley, Chad Young. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

Part 2 of our Christmas donkey double feature covers Disney’s 1978 short. Guests: Lindy Kempe, Brandon Medley. Find show notes at https://adventcalendar.house

🎄 Extend your ears as we revisit a lesser-known Rankin/Bass special from 1977 that unravels a new side quest to the Nativity story.  🎙️ Lindy Kempe and Brandon Medley droop in to salute “Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey,” the first of a Christmas donkey double feature.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Roger Miller performing “Do Wacka Do” in 1966 with another guitarist, “Stubbs,” who’s wearing a Batman T-shirt.  Roger Miller’s “Whistle Stop” in Disney’s “Robin Hood” is secretly the Hamster Dance.  Tilly’s ascension back to heaven is strikingly similar to Poochie’s exit from “The Itchy and Scratchy Show.”  Mary has the Glow from “The Last Dragon.”  Annalee Santa dolls.  ****  “Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey” © 1977 Rankin/Bass Productions, Inc.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.

From the author of “The Wizard of Oz” comes one of the craziest Santa origin stories ever.  Brandon Medley and Paxton Holley stop by to witness Rankin/Bass go off the rails in its last-ever stop motion animated Christmas special, 1985’s “The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, based on the 1902 book by L. Frank Baum, which explains a lot.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Santa Claus’s growth to manhood, from J.D. Roth to Mumm-ra, and the rest of the Thundercats are here, too!  L. Frank Baum’s original book on the Internet Archive, in ebook, PDF, and audiobook format.  Pax’s review of the book and “Road to Oz,” which also features Santa.  Baum’s sequel story, “A Kidnapped Santa Claus.”  King Awgwa looks like My Pet Monster.  The Most Pagan Christmas Special You Will Ever See (Fit for Dragon Con, 2013)  That’s not Santa in “Return to Oz.” That’s the Shaggy Man.  A Doom Metal Tribute to The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus.  ****  “The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus” © 1985 Rankin/Bass Productions, Inc.Find us at adventcalendar.house.

We’re back! This surprise springtime episode covers the 1976 Rankin/Bass special, “The First Easter Rabbit,” which despite its name and main theme, still relies heavily on Christmas.  Brandon Medley hops by to discuss this special’s very obvious and very uncredited connection to “The Velveteen Rabbit,” Easter Valley’s odd location next door to the North Pole, and Rankin/Bass’s habit of giving bad directions.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  They named the talking snowball “Br-r-ruce,” a joke I didn’t notice until just now!  ****  “The First Easter Rabbit” © 1974 Rankin/Bass Productions, Inc.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.

Happy birthday! Join us as we begin our salute to all holiday specials, but mostly the Christmas ones by attempting to answer questions no one asked about the 1969 Rankin/Bass TV special, “Frosty the Snowman.”  Brandon Medley joins the parade as we try to find out how hard it is to escape a locked greenhouse, when something you throw away stops legally being yours, and how long it would actually take to write, “I am very sorry for what I did to Frosty” a hundred zillion times.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Oatmeal is a perfectly adorable name for a snowman.  Frosty Day in Armonk, New York.  A closer look at the absurdly long and zigzagged train route to the North Pole.  The stupidest places we’ve ever been dropped off.  ****  “Frosty the Snowman” © 1969 Rankin/Bass Productions, Inc.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.