Sunday, May 10, 2026

Flopcast 731: Holding Out for a Tractor Fight

We actually left the studio a few times this week, so this show is just a quick recap of our various silly activities. Including: Beloved folk singer-songwriter Dar Williams live in concert! The Footloose musical live from New Hampshire! Losing at trivia to Britney Spears's lower back tattoo! And a live Happy Days cast reunion with Henry Winkler, Anson Williams, and Donny Most! This is The Flopcast's big chance to jump the shark, and we shall not disappoint.

Sunday, May 3, 2026

Flopcast 730: Dream of the Nineties

The Flopcast Book Club is back in session as we discuss Even the Good Girls Will Cry, the new memoir from Melissa Auf der Maur. Melissa was just a young photography student in Montreal when she was recruited to play bass in Courtney Love's band Hole, and suddenly found herself in the eye of the 90s alt-rock storm. And yikes, she has stories. We'll learn about life on the road with Hole (yeah, it was as crazy as you think), Lollapalooza bus trips with Sinéad O'Connor, haunted houses on fire in New Orleans, tea with Ozzy Osbourne, leaving Hole and joining Smashing Pumpkins, going solo, and finally walking away from it all. And we even recall the time we met Melissa a few years back, which shockingly is not covered in the book. (Gotta leave something for the sequel, right?) Also: Kevin joins Joe and Gary for another online American Sci-Fi Classics panel! And this time we're discussing the world of Sid and Marty Krofft! Slip into a Sleestak costume and join us.

Sunday, April 26, 2026

Flopcast 729: Rusty and Dandy

A few months before the debut of their classic Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer cartoon, Rankin/Bass produced their very first prime time animated TV special. And it was very, very different. So this week we're looking at yet another Wizard of Oz adaptation: 1964's Return to Oz. The animation was simple, but a little of that classic Rankin/Bass weirdness was already present. Including: Munchkins who look like turnips, a mayor with a top hat, some of the same voice actors from Rudolph, flying crocodiles to complement the flying monkeys, and a chicken. It's goofy fun and it's waiting for you on YouTube right now. Also: How to cross the street during the Boston Marathon. (It's complicated.)

Sunday, April 19, 2026

Flopcast 728: Turkeys Walk the Earth

It's another extra-quick show because we're extra-sleepy. But we do cover: Running with turkeys! Old comic books starring Superman and Supergirl! A new comic book starring a decapitated chicken! Celebrating Record Store Day with German disco Christmas music! And celebrating the 40th anniversary of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns with the American Sci-Fi Classics Track! Next week we'll have more going on, assuming we're done relaxing.

Sunday, April 12, 2026

Flopcast 727: Hard Knock Flop

We've been poking through our stack of old Dynamite magazines again, and we fished out a good one. This issue is from 1982, and the cover features Aileen Quinn, star of Annie. Inside we learn that Annie auditions were held in Boston! We should have slipped into a curly red wig and tried out. Also: Weird sherbet recipes! The Mayor at the Baseball Hall of Fame! The Dynamite Duo at summer camp! A futuristic flying monkey known as the Flunkey! How to eat a taco! The secret history of the popsicle! Darth Vader's birthday! Facts of Life underwear! Styx vs. Air Supply! An angry Star Trek fan! Dynamite Bummers! And lots more early 80s silliness. Dynamite was the best. It hasn't been published since the early 90s, but we're still trying to renew our subscription.

Sunday, April 5, 2026

Flopcast 726: Television of 1976 - Lousy With Detectives

Say, what was on TV fifty years ago this week? Let's check our local listings and find out. Okay, the answer is: Lots of sitcoms, lots of variety shows, and about 6,000 detective shows. But as we go through the week, we'll also find: Weird cartoons about Noah's Ark and the Easter Bunny! Carl Reiner as an angel who grants wishes! Joanie loves Potsie! Gerald Ford loves truckers! A pilot about pilots! Helen Hunt is shipwrecked! Tony Orlando meets the cast of Hee Haw! Gilbert Gottfried meets Bea Arthur! Bob Newhart meets the Winter Warlock! And much more Bicentennial television weirdness! If your all-time favorite shows are Jigsaw John, The Blue Knight, and Bronk, this was your week.

Sunday, March 29, 2026

Flopcast 725: School of Flop

In yet another Flopcast Top 4 ½ List, we're counting down our favorite movies about bands. And since we've ruled out documentaries and biopics, that leaves movies about fictional bands. Some of our picks are obvious, as Jake and Elwood get the band back together, some wacky Irish kids bring soul to Dublin, and Eddie, you know, cruises. But one or two lesser known films also make the list. (Did anyone besides us see Still Crazy? Come on, get on that.) If this isn't enough fictional band action for you, go see our friends at Dragon Con's American Sci-Fi Classics Track, where this subject is an ongoing obsession. Meanwhile, enjoy, and remember: This podcast goes to eleven, but then immediately sinks back down to about a three.

Sunday, March 22, 2026

Flopcast 724: The Wizard of Oz 1939 - We're Off to See the Chicken

A few weeks ago, we reviewed the 1925 silent black and white version of The Wizard of Oz, and it was... not great. So this week, we're watching the 1939 version, which has sound and color (you know, mostly), and is arguably the superior film. And we're here to talk about it. Our discussion includes: Professional show chickens, crullers, how people are still suckered by psychics, Dorothy's red hair, professional show crows, Martin Short as a picket fence, the Tin Man's Boston accent, "Existential Blues" by Tom "T-Bone" Stankus, a scarecrow with a gun, fake owls, and Huey Lewis. If this is all too much for you, just click your heels 251 times and download a different podcast.

Sunday, March 15, 2026

Flopcast 723: Superstars of Soul Silliness

While poking through a box of old magazines at Rubber Chicken Comics, we found something called Superstars of Soul. It's an odd little educational workbook from 1986, and it taught vocabulary and reading comprehension to the kids while they learned about their favorite soul acts. So we're flipping through the whole book today, and our conversation includes: Chaka Khan on The Love Boat! Prince punching a guy! Coffee for the Pointer Sisters! Jeffrey Osborne meets the Big Blue Bug! Hall meets Oates in a freight elevator! And lots more. (Is this just our excuse to talk about Irene Cara for two episodes in a row? Perhaps...) Also: Kevin is talking Scooby Doo on A Podcask of Amontillado, and we're celebrating Pi Day with an irrational pie.

Sunday, March 8, 2026

Flopcast 722: Uncertain Fury

In the wake of last week's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame episode, Kevin and the Mayor check out documentaries about two of the nominees: Luther Vandross and Jeff Buckley. (Kevin also stumbled upon a 1985 movie starring Tatum O'Neal and Irene Cara that we suspect has never been seen by anyone else ever.) And we brave the mean streets of Allston, Massachusetts (featuring poorly shoveled sidewalks and drunk college kids) to see a couple of wonderful bands: Foxy Shazam (those glam rock maniacs responsible for the Peacemaker opening theme song) and Descartes a Kant (a Mexican quartet with Devo-style costumes and a super-cool retro-futuristic concept album). Plus: The Mayor is a guest on a couple of other podcasts (The Doctor's Beard and The 42cast) to discuss Doctor Who, Witchblade, and perhaps other nerd stuff.

Sunday, March 1, 2026

Flopcast 721: Still Whining About the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

The new list of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees was just released, and as usual we spend a whole episode kicking it around. And once again we're joined by writer, publisher, and podcaster (BatChums, Dragon Con Report, Earth Station Who) Michael Gordon! Join us as we recall seeing INXS live, wonder if this will finally be Mariah's year, and try to figure out what a "sussudio" is. Of course, Air Supply still has not been nominated. And that's why we're furious.