Showing posts with label sitcoms. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sitcoms. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Completely Conspicuous 283: Everything Old is New Again

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Ric Dube as we present our ideas for rebooting classic sitcoms. Listen to the episode below or download it directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:
- Recorded at More Lost Time world HQ
- Ric beats a cybersquatter at his own game
- Ric wants to reboot American Idol
- "Celebrity Barrel Jumping"
- Tom Scholz of the band Boston is into "freestyle figure skating"
- Ric: Judges would be voted off each season by fans
- Show would have weekly winner like Jeopardy
- Chuck Barris was talent show pioneer with The Gong Show
- Jay: Reimagined take on Sanford and Son starring Indian father and son convenience store owners
- Stretch of minority-themed sitcoms in the '70s
- UPN network had several black sitcoms in the '90s
- The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer was comedic look at slavery
- All in the Family could never air today; people are too sensitive
- The late '60s scourge of "interracial touching"
- Recent Cheerios commercial with interracial family drew racist complaints
- Racial sensitivity in the workplace
- Ric: Reboot of The Bob Newhart Show, set in a nursing home
- Original Newhart show is a comedy classic
- Wondering how Northern Exposure has aged
- Newhart's breakthrough comedy album was recorded live
- Jay: Modern take on Chico and the Man would touch on immigration debate
- How funny was Freddie Prinze?
- Ric: Simpsons 2800 AD would combine elements of ghost-chasing cartoons
- New Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated show looks interesting
- To be continued
- Bonehead of the Week


Music:
Speedy Ortiz - Tiger Tank

Hunx and His Punx - Bad Skin
Moon King - Only Child
Mikal Cronin - Get Along

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Speedy Ortiz song is on the album Major Arcana on Carpark Records. Download the song for free at Stereogum.
The Hunx and His Punx song is on the album Street Punk on Hardly Art. Download it for free at Hardly Art.
The Moon King song is on the EP Obsession 1 on One Big Silence. Download it for free at Chromewaves.
The Mikal Cronin song is on his self-titled album on Trouble in Mind Records. Download it for free at Chromewaves.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blog Clicky Clicky. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Completely Conspicuous 278: The Mod Squad

Part 3 of my conversation with guest Ric Dube as we dissect a swingin' episode of I Dream of Jeannie. Listen to the episode below or download it directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:
- Recorded at More Lost Time world HQ
- Watch the episode along with us at the CompCon YouTube channel
- Season 2 of I Dream of Jeannie, episode aired in April 1967
- Larry Hagman, R.I.P.
- Did Americans really throw "mod parties"?
- Pre-Summer of Love '67
- Barbara Eden hasn't really done anything else
- Young Dabney Coleman makes a cameo
- Bill Daily plays the George Costanza-esque sidekick
- Sitcom lies are so badly written
- This show was a clear ripoff of Bewitched
- Jay breaks out his Paul Lynde impression
- Trying to create a new dance craze
- Unrelated sight gag in the kitchen
- Imagining a darker turn of events
- Much of the episode was people dancing
- Dube: Too much plot and not enough going on
- The whole master-servant theme was odd
- Dube goes off on Kate Hudson
- Modern version would make the guy dumb and the woman smarter
- Coming soon: We pitch remakes of old shows
- Lassie reimagined
- Bonehead of the Week


Music:
At the Drive-In - One-Armed Scissor

Shellac - Watch Song
Jawbox - 68

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The At the Drive-In song is on the album Relationship of Command on Grand Royal. Download it for free at Epitonic.
The Shellac song is on the album 1000 Hurts on Touch and Go. Download it for free at Epitonic.
The Jawbox song is on the album My Scrapbook of Fatal Accidents on DeSoto Records. Download it for free at Epitonic.
 
The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blog Clicky Clicky. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Monday, March 4, 2013

Completely Conspicuous 268: Takin' It to the Streets

Part 2 of my conversation with guests Ric Dube and Jay Breitling as we dissect a classic episode of the 1970s sitcom What's Happening. Listen to the episode below or download it directly (right click and "save as").
Show notes:
- Recorded at More Lost Time world HQ; check out the 50th episode of MLT (with cameos from Mr. Breitling and myself)
- Inspired by MST3K and Rifftrax, we're commenting while watching video
- Watch the episode along with us at the CompCon YouTube channel
- Breitling joins the fray
- Haywood Nelson was the inspiration for indie rock band Haywood
- JB: The satin jacket died with Rainbow's "All Night Long" video (featuring Graham Bonnet on vocals, not Joe Lynn Turner)
- Enter Big Al Dunbar
- Rerun wore his pants old-man high
- The original discomfort comedy
- Were the Doobies big anti-bootleg advocates?
- Jeff "Skunk" Baxter is a defense industry consultant now
- Baxter's wearing a Warner Bros. jersey
- Rocking out while seated
- Flaming gongs kick ass
- Dee's tripping
- "Pluggin' in the USB"
- Rerun drops tape recorder, feels shame
- The Doobies intimidate Big Al and henchman
- Bonehead of the Week


Music:
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Let the Day Begin

Patrick Stickles - Hey Tonight
Me & Stupid - Receiver

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Black Rebel Motorcycle Club song is on the EP Let the Day Begin. Download it for free (in exchange for your email address) at the band's website.
The Patrick Stickles song is a cover of a Free Energy song and available for free download at Stereogum.
The Me & Stupid song is on the album In a Cabin with Me & Stupid. Download the album for free at the Me & Stupid website.
The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blog Clicky Clicky. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Completely Conspicuous 267: Which Doobie You Be?

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Ric Dube as we dissect a classic episode of the 1970s sitcom What's Happening. Listen to the episode below or download it directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:
- Recorded at More Lost Time world HQ
- Inspired by MST3K and Rifftrax, we're commenting while watching video
- Watch the episode along with us at the CompCon YouTube channel
- What's Happening!! had all the sitcom archetypes
- Formula elements at play
- This was a Very Special Episode
- No continuity in the '70s on TV shows
- The evils of bootlegging
- Check out CompCon episodes 218 and 219 about bootlegs
- Ric: Wonder if there's a bootleg of the Doobies' performance in this show
- Show inspired by the movie Cooley High
- Ric's a fan of Dee
- Did inner city kids really listen to the Doobie Brothers?
- Jay: I rocked the velour shirts back in the day
- Rerun gets roped into the bootlegging world
- All the parodies have been parodied now
- Ric's heard the "Which Doobie You Be?" line a million times
- Doobies are so big they're playing a podunk high school
- Patrick Simmons had a brief solo career
- Michael McDonald's vocal style
- The kids pretend to like the Doobies
- Jeff "Skunk" had magnificent facial hair
- The band Bread appeared on an episode of The Hardy Boys
- Simmons supposedly went to the kids' high school
- Four minutes of scenes from next week
- Theme by Henry Mancini!
- Next week, it's part 2 of the Doobie Brothers episode
- Bonehead of the Week


Music:
They Might Be Giants - You're On Fire

Thalia Zedek Band - Walk Away

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The They Might Be Giants song is on the album Nanobots on Idlewild Records. Download it for free at Stereogum.
The Thalia Zedek Band song is on the album Via on Thrill Jockey. Download it for free at Soundcloud.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blog Clicky Clicky. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.