Search Results

🎄It’s 1990… or 1962… and a quantum physicist forgot to powder his boss’s underwear.  🎙 Erin Evans and Joey O. join us for a Scrooge Sunday involving time travel of a different sort as we follow Dr. Sam Beckett on a mission to save a mission, and the soul of the man trying to tear it down.  🚨 Warning: This episode briefly discusses the death of actor Charles Rocket and the would-be death of his Scrooge-like character, Michael Blake.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Episode guide on Al’s Place.  A Christmas story from the Quantum Leap comic: “He Knows If You’ve Been Bad or Good.”  Charles Rocket drops an F-bomb on “Saturday Night Live.”  “Bringing in the Sheaves” on “The Simpsons” and “Batman” (1966).  Polish Christmas desserts piernik and makowiec.  Al’s Ghost of Christmas Future costume looks more like Jacob Marley mixed with the Ghost of Christmas Past from “Scrooged.”  Goldie Wilson III from “Back to the Future Part II.”  ****  📼 Commercials:  Squarbles (circa 1987)  Can’t Wait for Christmas Podcast.  ****  “Quantum Leap” and “A Little Miracle” © 1990 Universal City Studios, Inc.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s12 #1990s #scroogesunday

🎄It’s 1992, and there’s no such thing as Buster Bunny.  🎙 Adam Pope, William Bruce West, and Chad Young help the Advent Calendar House wrap up Christmas in July with the unofficial series finale of “Tiny Toon Adventures,” when Buster wishes he’d never been on the show, and the horrors within Montana Max’s Biff Tannen Pleasure Palace or whatever.  📺 I found this special hiding in a 4-hour Christmas special compilation on the Internet Archive.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  “Meet the Tiny Toons” in the special edition magazine “Bugs Bunny: He’s 50, Folks” (1990).  “The Chipmunks Go to the Movies.”  Tony Pope (God) as Goofy in “Watch Out for Goofy” (the theme song for Adam’s 2 Goofs Podcast) and as the first voice heard in “Back to the Future.”  John Kassir (who voices Buster in this episode) as the Crypt-Keeper in RD’s Retro Detention Halloween Specials in 2019 and 2023.  Today’s TV Trope: Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal.  Jacoby & Meyers and a 2-minute-long tangent about personal injury lawyer commercials.  Arnold Schwarzenegger’s upcoming role as Santa in “The Man with the Bag.”  American Express Commercials with Mel Blanc and Jim Davis.  Bugs Bunny may have been voiced by an uncredited Noel Blanc, Mel’s son, for a single line at the end.  ****  📼 Commercials:  Godzilla: The Series Promo (1998)  Toy Story: Holiday TV Spot (1995)  ****  “Tiny Toon Adventures” and “It’s a Wonderful Tiny Toons Christmas Special” © 1992 Warner Bros.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s12 #1990s #itsawonderfullife #warnerbros

🎄 The Advent Calendar House is back in time for a freakin’ country bear jamberoo as a family of Muppet mice risk their lives to bring home the top of the top of the top of the top of a Christmas tree fit for an eccentric future Iron Man. 🎙 Anthony Strand from ToughPigs.com and Tim Babb from the Can’t Wait for Christmas Podcast join us for a waltz back to 1995 as Robert Downey Jr. may or may not be holding Kermit the Frog hostage until he gets his perfect Christmas tree. Plus: Shy butler Leslie Nielsen, homesick Swedish maid Stockard Channing, and a pre-Bobo Bobo the Bear!  📺 We watched this 1995 broadcast of “Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree,” with 1995 commercials.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  “Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree” on Muppet Wiki.  The original book.  An odd TV promo featuring Brian Cummings’ Kermit the Frog impression.  Kermit and Miss Piggy’s music video of “She Drives Me Crazy,” featuring Leslie Nielsen.  Movin’ Right Along talks Kermit: Unpigged.  The Sesame Street Muppets on “The West Wing” with Stockard Channing.  Mama and Papa Bear are Beth from “The Muppets Take Manhattan” and the future Bobo from “Muppets Tonight.”  “Jim Henson’s Animal Show” on Owls… and Humans.  Sandra Bullock plays the glass harp in “Miss Congeniality.”  An Oreo commercial where a mall Santa takes off his beard way too quickly.  ****  📼 Commercials: Dizzy Grizzlies and Ritz Air Crisps (1995)  “Santa in His Own Words,” a book by Matt Spaulding. ****  “Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree” © 1995 Jim Henson Productions, Inc.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s13 #1990s #muppets

🎄 It’s 1990, and Santa’s lost in my confusing network of chimneys.  🎙 Adam Parker Sibun from Merry Britsmas join us for a more silly than spooky Christmas special that takes us from Castle Duckula to a concussion-induced space adventure and back.  📺 You can find “A Christmas Quacker” on the Internet Archive (it’s mislabeled as another episode).  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  “Count Duckula” on Nick Knacks.  Count Duckula’s first appearance on “Danger Mouse.”  UK Christmas TV, an extensive archive of Christmas TV listings for the UK’s main channels.  Jack May (Igor) was the original English voice of Muzzy.  The Odd Case of Dennis the Menace: 2 separate comic strip characters with the same name debuting on the same day on opposite sides of the Atlantic.  Return to the Turducken Hunger Games.  The daydream scene in “Sidekicks.”  Mike Oldfield’s “In Dulci Jubilo.”  Today’s TV Trope: Blunder-Correcting Impulse.  ****  📼 Commercials:  Shreddies Cereal: Count Duckula Adventure Scratch & Win Game (1989)  Muzzy (circa 1989)  ****  “Count Duckula” and “A Christmas Quacker” © 1990 Carleton Productions.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s13 #1990s #nickelodeon

🌴 The Advent Calendar House has awoken from what feels like a thousand-year slumber and a lame April Fool’s joke. As a peace offering, here’s the first of two back-to-back episodes celebrating Xmas as imagined by “Futurama.”  🎙️ It’s extra crowded in the cryogenic chamber as Michael DiGiovanni, Erin Evans, Joey O., and Donnie Storms drop in for 1999’s “Xmas Story,” in which we’re introduced to the annual tradition of gift-giving and shelter-taking from a killer robot Santa Claus that awaits our descendants in the year 3000.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  “Fresh Hare” (1942).  Orange Cassidy sleeping through his own wrestling match.  “Why Chaucer Said ‘Ax’ Instead of ‘Ask,’ and Why Some Still Do” (NPR, 2013).  “Why is the number 1,729 hidden in Futurama episodes?” (BBC, 2013).  The classic dangling from a clock tower scenes from “Safety Last” and “Back to the Future.”  John Goodman’s other appearances as Santa.  Randy Johnson hits a bird with a fastball.  Corona Extra’s Christmas palm tree commercial.  The lyrics to “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town” are sinister enough by themselves.  ****  📼 Commercials:  Hess Truck 1999 Space Shuttle Toy.  Stick to Shorts: A Classic Cartoons Podcast.  ****  “Futurama” and “Xmas Story” © 1999 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s14 #1990s

🎃 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.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s14 #1990s #halloween #scroogesunday

🎄 Now it’s time for a Muppety holiday fix, so let’s turn the clock back to 1996, to a show I’m excited to reintroduce: it’s “The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss.”  🎙️ The Advent Calendar House welcomes 2 of Muppet Wiki’s finest, Tony Whitaker and Shane Keating, to join our Jingle Day pageant.  📺 You can watch “Mrs. Zabarelli’s Holiday Baton” on the Jim Henson’s Family Hub YouTube channel.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Where in the who-heck is the Grinch?  “The noozle at the end of the hoose,” (surprisingly not a Dr. Seuss reference).  Michael K. Frith on Muppet Wiki.  The Muppets on “Family Feud” (2001).  Kathy Mullen (Morton) interview with ToughPigs.com (2013).  These aren’t Whatnots; they’re Whozits.  “Sesame English,” an English as a second language “Sesame Street” series.  “Good grief! The comedian’s a bear!”  Cindy Lou Who’s on First?  Defunctland Podcast: Working in a Wubbulous World with Stephanie D’Abruzzo and Craig Shemin.  There’s a rolling drum gag, so here’s the “Emmet Otter” outtake reel again.  “You’re the poet laureate of…”  Shane and the ToughPigs staff visit the “Sesame Street” set.  Shane’s supercut of Gordon from “Sesame Street” saying, “Oh, hi!”  ****  📼 Commercials:  Hallmark’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” Collection (1998)  Closer to Christmas.  ****  “The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss” and “Mrs. Zabarelli’s Holiday Baton” © 1996 Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s14 #1990s #drseuss #muppets

🎄 Join us for a short spin back to 1993 as I spend 48 minutes blah blah blah yackety schmacketing about Taz’s attempt to spread Christmas cheer.  🎙️ Sammy Hain and Joey O. join us for Summer in December during Christmas in July in a land that’s way under Down Under.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Tasmania was once home to the world’s tallest decorated Christmas tree.  John Astin (Bull Gator) in “Return of the Killer Tomatoes.”  How the origins of Taz’s creation involve Errol Flynn and the Los Angeles Zoo.  Hot Dr. Pepper.  Bing Crosby’s Minute Maid Orange Juice Commercials.  ****  📼 Commercials:  Tornado Taz Plush (1997)  Christmas Creeps.  ****  “Taz-Mania” and “No Time for Christmas” © 1993 Warner Bros. Inc.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s14 #1990s #warnerbros

🎄 Found under a pile of too many toys, enough for 442 boys, is a little-known gem of a Christmas special from 1993.  🎙️ Chad Young from the Horror Movie BBQ, Jeff Loftin from the Lost Christmas Podcast, and Sean Sotka from ChristmasPodcasts.com join us for the story of Jeremy Creek, a kid so greedy, Santa mistook his list for an entire town’s. Featuring the voices of Dick Van Dyke, Hal Smith, and the kid from “Kindergarten Cop” who gave us an anatomy lesson.  📺 You can find “The Town Santa Forgot” on the Internet Archive.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  The original poem: “Jeremy Creek” (Indianapolis Star, 1985)  Jeremy Creek (no relation) from the “Smallville” pilot.    Miko Hughes (Jeremy) in People magazine (2024): “Kindergarten Cop Child Actor Recalls Working with Arnold Schwarzenegger — and the Origin of That Iconic Line.”  Today’s TV Trope: Signs of Disrepair.  One of Hal Smith’s final voice acting roles during his lifetime. (He had a posthumous credit in “Zelda’s Adventure.”)  Larry Walters has a flying lawn chair and a BB gun.  ****  📼 Commercials:  NBC Commercial Break during the original 1993 airing of this special, including “The Muppet Christmas Carol” on VHS, and Wendy’s Big Bacon Classic.  ****  “The Town Santa Forgot” © 1993 Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s15 #1990s #hannabarbera

🎄 If you thought Christmas was fast approaching, hang onto something as we zip back to 1996 and do our best to keep up with Sonic the Hedgehog on a mission to save Christmas.  🎙️ Mike (Bitter Karella) and Ethan (The Hungry Reader) from A Special Presentation, or ALF Will Not Be Seen Tonight join the quest to rescue Santa from the evil Robotnik Claus, obtain the Secret to Ultimate Velocity, and find a gift for Sonic’s girlfriend from another universe.  📺 You can watch “Sonic Christmas Blast” for free on YouTube.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  How Sonic scored two different animated series at the same time (Polygon, 2020)  This specially was originally called “An X-tremely Sonic Christmas” to promote a Sega Saturn game that ended up getting canceled.  Jay Brazeau (Santa) as the referee in “Air Bud” who says the line.  The robot queen in “The Great Mouse Detective.”  “Let the Heartaches Begin” by Long John Baldry (Robotnik).  The original “Ugly Sonic” movie trailer.  Dr. Robotnik’s in-game design looks like both an Eggman and a walrus.  The other cartoon’s theme song.  ****  📼 Commercials:  Sonic & Knuckles Christmas Elves Commercial (1994)  ****  “Sonic Christmas Blast” © 1996 DIC Productions, L.P.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s15 #1990s #videogames #dic

🕎 Celebrate Hanukkah with a community talent show we don’t even get to watch.  We’ve miraculously found another Hanukkah special — with yet another spelling of it — so join us as we instantly reappear back in 1991 with a bunch of Canadian animal puppets to discover the magic of the holiday Under the Umbrella Tree.  🎙️ April Ryley is our lovely assistant as we meet a humble shopkeeper and former magician once known as “The Great Goldberg,” played by the equally great Harvey Atkin.  📺 As of this recording, you can watch “Hanukah Under the Umbrella Tree” on YouTube.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Holly Larocque in “The Big Band Broadcast” (2008)  Stephen Brathwaite’s (Jacob) artwork portfolio.  Bob Stutt (Iggy) as Wander McMooch on “Fraggle Rock.”  David Copperfield makes the Statue of Liberty disappear.  “Peoples is peoples.”  Today’s TV Trope: Magicians Are Wizards.  A Star is Borscht: The Harvey Atkin Young Jewish Performer Competition (2022)  “Under the Umbrella Tree: The Mask Special” (2020)  ****  📼 Commercials:  Happy Holidays from “Under the Umbrella Tree” (CBC)  Hallmark “Old Friends” Hanukkah Card Commercial (1993)  Remember That Show?  ****  “Hanukah Under the Umbrella Tree” © 1991 Noreen Young Productions, Inc.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s15 #1990s #hanukkah #puppets

🎄 Fresh from 1996 comes a Christmas tale that’ll make you cry, but only because it’s being told by an onion.  🎙️ Anthony Strand hops along for the ride as we buzz back to the VeggieTales’ first Christmas special, in which the only children’s toy that comes with a working circular saw embarks on a quest to find the true reason for the season.  📺 You can watch the official version of “The Toy That Saved Christmas” for free on YouTube, or the original 1996 version on the Internet Archive.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Differences between the original and the reanimated version from 1997.  “Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus.”  “Most folks call ’em green onions, but they’re really scallions.”  This Mr. Nezzer is not the previously seen Nebby K. Nezzer, but his brother, Wally P. Nezzer, who’s not as cleverly named.  The original vs. the new, improved Bunny Song.  The shelves of Buzzsaw Louies predate the shelves of Buzz Lightyears in “Toy Story 2.”  Ken Cavanagh (Buzzsaw Louie) may have authored this Medium post from 2020: “Leave Jesus Out of It. Viruses don’t care what you believe.”  “The Dead Sea Squirrels,” by Mike Nawrocki.  Today’s TV Trope: Blatant Burglar.  Doctors in the hallway in “Muppets From Space.”  What do you call a group of penguins?  Two More Eggs: CGI Palz.  ****  📼 Commercials:  VeggieTales: “The Incredible Singing Christmas Tree” album (2005)  The Incredible, Edible Egg: Wisecracks (1991)  Mouse Trap (1990)  The Studio Demands It!  ****  “VeggieTales” and “The Toy That Saved Christmas” © 1996 Big Idea Productions.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s15 #1990s #nativity

🎄 Rise and shine while you still can! Since this year’s December Solstice falls on a Sunday, I’ve come bearing the gift of an unexpectedly very merry Scrooge Sunday episode of “Xena: Warrior Princess” from 1996.  🎙️ April Ryley and Sammy Hain join the mission to warm the cold heart of a king who’s banned all Solstice celebrations on an almost wibbly-wobbly timeline that manages to smash together “A Christmas Carol,” the Three Fates of ancient Greek tradition, a Santa Claus origin story, and the Nativity. It even throws in some “Home Alone” style shenanigans, as a treat!  📺 As of this recording, “A Solstice Carol” is available to watch on Prime Video.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Lucy Lawless in “Spider-Man.”  “Ebenezer and the Invisible World,” the video game.  Moirai: The Three Fates.  The Simpsons: “Desperately Xeeking Xena” from “Treehouse of Horror X” (1999)  Inside Senticles’s toy closet, and his King Friday XIII lookalike jack-in-the-box.  The song: “Solstice Night.”  Karl Urban as Cupid in a Valentine’s Day episode.  ****  📼 Commercials:  7up: Holiday Celebration (1996)  Bad Princess Movies.  ****  “Xena: Warrior Princess” and “A Solstice Carol” © 1996 MCA Television Limited.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s15 #1990s #scroogesunday

🎄 Somehow Frosty returned.  🎙️ The Advent Calendar House is back open for Christmas in July as Donnie Storms and new guest Collin Murr from Scrooge: A Christmas Carol Podcast drop in seeking shelter from “Frosty Returns,” which despite the title, is not a sequel, and not even a Christmas special. From Lorne Michaels and Kermit the Frog’s ghostwriter comes a message about the environment delivered by the voices of John Goodman, Jonathan Winters, and a young Elizabeth Moss.  📺 You can find “Frosty Returns” on the Internet Archive.  ****  (00:00) - Intro  (02:10) - Guest Histories  (05:57) - The History of Frosty Returns  (12:06) - Act 1  (44:41) - Retro Commercial Break  (45:57) - Act 2  (01:08:14) - Act 3  (01:22:28) - Final Thoughts  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  An interview with story writer Jim Lewis (The Muppet Newsflash, 2007).  Today’s TV Tropes: Stern Teacher and Right-Hand Cat.  “Dick Tracy Special: Tracy Zooms In.”  “Donald’s Snow Fight.”  “I have a hole in my stomach!” from “Death Becomes Her.”  The parade from “Batman” (1989).  ****  📼 Commercials:  Trix Cereal Christmas Commercial (circa 1992)  Festive Foreign Film Fans  ****  “Frosty Returns” © 1992 CBS Inc.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  #s16 #1990s #frosty

💝 We’re celebrating Valentine’s Day in July with a deep dive into a 1990 “DuckTales” special that aired on “The Magical World of Disney.”  🎙️ Erin Evans and Joey O. join us as we tune our heart-shaped TVs to watch Scrooge McDuck search for the lost treasure of Aphroducky, which nearly ends in him marrying the avian goddess of love and angering her Honeymooner of a husband.  📺 You can watch “A DuckTales Valentine” on Disney+.  ****  (00:00) - Intro  (02:26) - Our Histories with DuckTales  (08:34) - The Magical World of Disney Intro  (10:32) - Act 1  (31:45) - Retro Commercial Break  (35:29) - Act 2  (54:42) - Final Thoughts  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  The accompanying shorts: “Mickey’s Delayed Date,” “Mr. Duck Steps Out,” and “Canine Casanova.”  This special’s intro featuring Michael Eisner and original commercials.  Michael’s Disney varsity jacket is on eBay.  Terry McGovern (Launchpad) in a “Back to the Future” deleted scene.  Terry McGovern on voicing Stormtroopers and accidentally inventing the word “Wookiee.”  Get the Phillies Feeling (circa 1988)  Today’s TV Trope: Cupid’s Arrow.  “Stop the presses!” from “The Great Muppet Caper.”  Sesame Street’s Love Boat.  Peter dives into a money bin on “Family Guy.”  Revenge of the Turducken Hunger Games.  Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: “The Lost Queen of Atlantis.”  “Donald Duck: Instant Millionaire.”  ****  📼 Commercials:  Isuzu Trooper Commercial starring Joe Isuzu (1990)  Holidays After Dark  ****  “DuckTales” and “A DuckTales Valentine” © 1990 The Walt Disney Company.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s16 #1990s #valentinesday #disney

🐰 This Easter in July, we’ve hopped back to 1994 on a rather stressful and dangerous trip through Jellystone Park.  🎙️ Sammy Hain and Gerry Davila join us for a visit to the Easter Bunny, the Magical Easter Chicken, and the world’s least eco-friendly plastic factory, all of which somehow call Jellystone Park home.  📺 You can find “Yogi the Easter Bear” on the Internet Archive.  ****  (00:00) - Intro  (02:23) - Guest and Special Histories  (05:50) - Act 1  (46:15) - Retro Commercial Break  (47:50) - Act 2  (59:22) - Act 3  (01:18:36) - Final Thoughts  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  There’s a whole franchise of Jellystone Park campgrounds.  Don’t feed bears chocolate!  Today’s TV Tropes: “Oh, Crap!” Smile and Bat Scare.  The International Ranger Federation was founded way more recently than I expected.  Sesame Street News Flash: Holiday Mix-Up.  The creepy Easter Bunny from “Teen Titans Go!”  “The Simpsons,” Duff, Duff Light, and Duff Dry.  “Saturday Night Live,” Colon Blow.  Easter Sammy’s Spring Breakers T-shirt, designed by Jayme!  ****  📼 Commercials:  Cadbury Bunny Tryouts (1994)  Totally Rad Christmas  ****  “Yogi the Easter Bear” © 1994 Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s16 #1990s #easter #hannabarbera

🎄 It’s that time of year again: Time to deal with smarty-pants 4th-graders who think they know how Santa Claus works.  🎙️ The Advent Calendar House welcomes Caleb Cote from Insert Reference Here and Robert Nicholas from Behind the Bells as we watch a very special 1998 Christmas episode of Disney’s “Recess,” featuring elementary school hierarchy, a globally televised Christmas pageant, and the dulcet tones of a 10-year-old who sings like Robert Goulet.  📺 “Recess” is available on Disney+. “Yes, Mikey, Santa Does Shave” is Season 2, Episode 10.  ****  (00:00) - Intro  (02:26) - Our Histories with Recess  (10:49) - Our Histories with “Recess”  (24:11) - Act 1  (1:03:55) - Retro Commercial Break  (1:06:12) - Act 2  (1:29:02) - Act 3  (1:48:48) - Final Thoughts  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Caleb introduces us to Goalball.  Mike talks about The Legend of Zelda on Insert Reference Here.  Dabney Coleman (Principal Prickly) in “The Muppets Take Manhattan.”  Robert Goulet sings “Jingle Bells, Batman Smells” on “The Simpsons.”  Today’s TV Tropes: Cast Calculus, Noodle Incident, and Glass-Shattering Sound.  Kevin sits on Santa Michael’s lap on “The Office.”  Ronnie Schell (Mayor Fitzhugh) as Peter Puck.  “Local Politician” by The Arrogant Worms.  ****  📼 Commercials:  Bubble Tape (circa 1991)  ****  “Recess” and “Yes, Mikey, Santa Does Shave” © 1998 Disney Enterprises, Inc.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s16 #1990s #disney

🎄 It’s Christmas time for teddy bears in this 1992 prequel to what I thought until very recently was a one-off special called “The Teddy Bears’ Picnic.”  🎙️ Ethan “The Hungry Reader” and Anthony Strand join us as we meet the title teddy from a later cartoon series called “The Secret World of Benjamin Bear,” his first encounter with his friend, Wally, and a new, but familiar set of rules of being a living teddy bear. Many comparisons to “The Christmas Toy” ensue.    📺 You can find “The Teddy Bears’ Christmas” on YouTube.  ****  (00:00) - Intro  (02:09) - The History of Benjamin Bear  (05:26) - Act 1  (23:22) - Act 2  (35:40) - Retro Commercial Break  (36:50) - Act 3  (1:08:44) - Final Thoughts  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  “The Teddy Bears’ Picnic” (1989)  “The Secret World of Benjamin Bear.”  Today’s TV Trope: Sliding Scale of Living Toys.  “A celebrity is not a people.” — Lew Zealand.  Mike on A Special Presentation for “The Hugga Bunch Movie.”  The Price of His Toys store catalog.  When Houses Had Built-In “Milk Doors.”  Goofy gets kissed by the milkman (“Father’s Day Off,” 1953)  “The Birthday Dragon” (1991)  “Rollin’ with Saget” by Jamie Kennedy and Stu Stone (Wally), featuring Bob Saget.  Garfield: “Pooky has two ears and no mouth.” (1985)  More talk about Santabear.  Mike previewed the Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring the Muppets… and interviewed the Electric Mayhem for ToughPigs.com!  ****  📼 Commercials:  TV Teddy (1993)  Christmas Creeps.  ****  “The Teddy Bears’ Christmas” © 1992 Longboat Productions, LLC.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s16 #1990s

🎃 It’s Halloween in July, and it’s time to spookalize!  🎙️ Becca Petunia joins us as we creep back to 1997 for a howling good time at the spookiest address on Sesame Street, as Elmo pays a visit to Count von Count with one mission: To tell him a bunch of funny, scary jokes!  📺 You can find “Elmo Says BOO!” on YouTube.  ****  (00:00) - Intro  (02:19) - History of the Special and Accompanying Album  (14:12) - Funny, Scary Jokes!  (48:26) - Retro Commercial Break  (49:43) - More Funny, Scary Jokes!  (1:02:29) - Into the Pyramid  (1:07:53) - Even More Funny, Scary Jokes!  (1:26:28) - More About the Album and Final Thoughts  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Muppet Wiki notes this Halloween special doesn’t mention Halloween… on purpose.  The “Elmo Says BOO!” album featuring songs not in the special, including a weird “Monster Mash” cover.  ToughPigs: My Week with Halloween: Elmo Says BOO!  A Definitive Rating of All 15 Funny, Scary Jokes in Elmo Says BOO!  Becca discusses “Kermit Unpigged” on Movin’ Right Along.  The Count and Susan Sarandon in a “Rocky Horror” spoof.  Jim Henson’s Monster Cereals.  “The Song of the Count” art by Luke Flowers.  Shriek on “Batman Beyond.”  Julia Roberts shares a limo with the Two-Headed Monster.  “Java.”  Mike’s Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring the Muppets preview and interviews with Imagineers and Electric Mayhem guitarists.  Elmo’s debut in the original “We Are All Monsters,” and the redub that’s a rare instance of Elmo speaking in the first person.  Bert & Ernie’s Pyramid Scheme: The Sesame Street Sketch You Might Have Repressed.  The Other Top 70 Muppet Moments.  “Fem myror är fler än fyra elefanter” (It’s Swedish for “Five ants are more than four elephants.”)  Frazzle shows his range of emotions.  J.D. Hansel interviews Noel MacNeal, including his work on “The Batty Bat.”  Liszt’s “Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2” as performed by Tom Cat and Bugs Bunny.  “Mysterioso Pizzicato,” or “The Villain’s Theme.”  Jackman Wolf on home video and at Sesame Place.  ****  📼 Commercials:  Elmo Says BOO! VHS Commercial (1997)  Micro Machines Micro Lights (1990)  ****  “Elmo Says BOO!” © 1997 Children’s Television Workshop.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s16 #1990s #halloween #muppets

🎄 Today’s adventure finds us caught in the middle of a battle for the North Pole in multiple dimensions.  🎙️ Sammy Hain and Jeff Loftin join the march back to 1997 to witness the Christmas clash of Santa vs. the Snowman, a TV special from creator Steve Oedekerk and director John A. Davis, who’d later team up to write and direct “Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.”  📺 You can find “Santa vs. the Snowman” on YouTube, both an original 1997 broadcast with commercials, and its 2002 update for IMAX 3D.  ****  (00:00) - Intro  (02:16) - Guest and Special Histories  (07:31) - 3D Opening  (12:58) - Act 1  (26:19) - Retro Commercial Break  (28:51) - Act 2  (52:19) - Act 3  (1:00:50) - Final Thoughts  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  Don LaFontaine in “Five Guys in a Limo” (1997)  Don LaFontaine’s final TV voiceover role on “Phineas and Ferb.”  Ben Stein’s “Confessions for the Holidays” (2005) taken way out of context.  Hershey’s Chocolate Tour: Holiday Edition.  Today’s TV Trope: Animated Outtakes, and an example from “A Bug’s Life.”  ****  📼 Commercials:  Bell Atlantic: Wild Things Are Happening (1997)  Old Navy: A Very Magic Holiday Special (1997)  The Lost Christmas Podcast  ****  “Santa vs. the Snowman” © 1997, 2002 Steaming Monkey, Inc.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Find us at adventcalendar.house.  Hosted by The Retro Network.  #s16 #1990s