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🎄 It’s 2002, and we’re trapped in a horrifying world where Kermit the Frog doesn’t exist.  Join us for a spectacular, spectacular Christmas Eve extravaganza starring Kermit in the George Bailey role of the Muppets’ perfectly silly take on “It’s a Wonderful Life,” also featuring Joan Cusack, David Arquette, Matthew Lillard, the cast of “Scrubs,” and Whoopi Goldberg as God, Herself.   ****  🎙 Guests:   Lindy Kempe (@ieatvideogames, 📸 @pinkmedley).   Adam Jurotich (The Ambassadors of Harmony, 📸 @adam_sr).   Erik Johnson (Erik Johnson Illustrator, 📸 @erikjohnsonillustrator).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Muppet Wiki’s list of similarities between this special and 2011’s “The Muppets.”   2. Joe Snow.   3. Hoggle from “Labyrinth” at the Unclaimed Baggage Center.   4. Director Kirk Thatcher as the punk on the bus in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” and ”Picard.” 5. Jonathan Bruce, who’d later appear in “Elf.”   6. Deleted scenes include more of Carson Daly, Santa, and a lost cut scene with Snoop Dogg.   7. The giant Bossmen Muppets.   8. A scheduling conflict robbed this movie of actual Steve Irwin.   9. Fozzie as “that green guy who stole Christmas.”   10. Today’s TV Tropes: Celestial Bureaucracy, Laser Hallway, and Lampshade Wearing.   11. The Yoda Muppet has his own Muppet Wiki entry.   12. So does Amy, the Dancing Brick!   13. The World Trade Center in alternate timeline Piggy’s apartment window, and that’s not the worst part of that scene.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Mastercard Priceless Getaway Sweepstakes Commercial starring The Muppets, 2002.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Acid Washed Memories, a retro pop-culture celebration podcast starting January 9, 2023.   ****   “It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie” © 2002 The Jim Henson Company.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 2012, and I found a 60-year-old tangerine under a floorboard in my bedroom that’s the perfect size for a snowman’s nose… or is it?   Join us for another walk in the air back to 2012 for the charming sequel to the British Christmas classic, “The Snowman,” by the now-late Raymond Briggs.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Adam Parker Sibun (Merry Britsmas).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. I finally got a copy of the original Raymond Briggs book!   2. UK Christmas’s “The Snowman” TV listing history.   3. Raymond Briggs hails Christmas sequel to his Snowman classic (The Guardian, 2012).   4. Billy has a picture of Fungus the Bogeyman in his room.   5. The Snowman finds a 1960s toy Batmobile in the shed. Maybe it lost a wheel.   6. A newer version of Andy Burrows’s “Light the Night.”   7. An older version of Andy Burrows’s  “Hometown.”   8. “Funny Looking Angels,” a 2011 Christmas Album by Smith & Burrows.   9. ‘Walking In The Air’ composer told to send a demo tape for The Snowman sequel (NME, 2012).   10. London landmarks seen in the special.   11. Let’s start building more creative snowmen with orange slices for ears and asparagus spear mustaches.   12. The Snowdog Art Trails around the UK, including Snowdog sculptures displayed in Brighton.    ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   IRN-BRU Snowman Advert, 2011.   ****   “The Snowman and The Snowdog” © 2012 Snowdog Enterprises Ltd.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🕎 It’s 1998, and we’re praying for a miracle after getting stuck in a snow bank on the side of a dark highway with only an eighth of a tank of gas.   Join us on an enlightening revisit to the Flashy Girl from Flushing on her first Hanukkah as a married woman. Also, Ray Charles is here!   ****  🎙 Guest:   April Ryley (@Where2NextApril).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Watch “The Hanukkah Story” on Facebook.   2. April visits the Sheffield residence, and so can you.   3. Fran Drescher in “UHF.”   4. Fran Drescher says she had to fight to let ‘The Nanny’ be Jewish (L.A. Times, 2020).   5. Benjamin Salisbury (Brighton) on “Teen Celebrity Jeopardy” in 1997.   6. Daniel Davis (Niles) on “The Fran Drescher Tawk Show” in 2010.   7. Max’s childhood memory of his dad at Christmas reminded me of Bruce Wayne’s long dining room table.   8. What to do if you’re stranded in a car during a winter storm.   9. Kenny Rogers Roasters still exists, but only in Asia.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   3 Musketeers Commercial starring Fran Drescher, 1998.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Hyrule Podcasters, an audio “Let’s Play” through The Legend of Zelda.   ****   “The Nanny” and “The Hanukkah Story” © 1998 Global Entertainment Productions GmbH & Co. Medien KG.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 2016, and a Scrooge-like unicorn is brewing a potion to eliminate Hearth’s Warming Eve from the calendar. That’s how potions work, right?   Join us for a Scrooge Sunday canter through a “Christmas Carol” adaptation set in Equestria, the world of “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.”   ****  🎙 Guests:   Jon and Bin (Bin’s Toy Bin, Santa by the Minute).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Watch “A Hearth’s Warming Tail” on YouTube.   2. Mike on Santa by the Minute.   3. The first My Little Pony special, from 1984: “Rescue at Midnight Castle.”   4. Patton Oswalt on My Little Pony.   5. Patton Oswalt literally on My Little Pony.   6. “It’s a Pony Kind of Christmas,” featuring characters who don’t celebrate Christmas singing Christmas songs, so the show’s composer had to clarify it wasn’t canon.   7. The mysterious “Derpy,” a.k.a. Muffins.   8. A short tangent about “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” air fresheners.   9. Today’s TV Trope: And You Were There.   10. A scene was cut featuring Discord in the Jacob Marley role.   11. He’s not in this episode, but there’s a character named Cheese Sandwich who is literally “Weird Al” Yankovic as a pony.   12. Bin takes roll call at the Hearth’s Warming Eve party.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   My Little Pony Dream Castle Commercial, 1983.   The Hub Network: 12 Days of Ponies Promo, 2014.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Santa by the Minute, covering “Santa Claus: The Movie” one minute at a time.   ****   “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic” and “A Hearth’s Warming Tail” © 2016 Hasbro Studios.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1973, and a musical cricket is about to save the Christmas spirit during New York City’s quietest power failure.   Join us for a one-cat open sleigh ride into Chuck Jones’s beautifully animated sequel to “The Cricket in Times Square.”   ****  🎙 Guest:   Michael DiGiovanni (Pop Culture Retrofit, Classic Film Jerks, @TheyCallMeDiGio).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. A very insightful Letterboxd review.   2. Name That Christmas Special’s screenshot gallery for this special.   3. Today’s TV Trope: Bully Bulldog.   4. Mel Blanc’s voice for the Alley Cat sounds his voice for Clarence the Cat in “Birds Anonymous.”   5. DiGio introduces me to Yorkshire pudding.   6. “Down by the Old Mill Stream.”   7. The similar “Joy to the World” segment from “Will Vinton’s Claymation Christmas Celebration.”   8. The final Classic Film Jerks movie, “Babes in Toyland (March of the Wooden Soldiers).”   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Mel Blanc American Express Card Commercial, 1971.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Rediscover the 80s podcasts, including The 80s Weekly and Memory Jogger.   ****   “A Very Merry Cricket” © 1973 Chuck Jones Enterprises.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1970 by way of 1990, and I just noticed the Santa Claus at the mall is actually my gym teacher.   Join us on a revealing trip back to The Wonder Years as we salute Robert Picardo’s standout performance as Coach Cutlip… and Santa.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Andy Gattis (Straight Chilling, AndyGattis.com).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Joe Cocker’s version of “With a Little Help from My Friends” over the opening credits was replaced for streaming with a soundalike, only they don’t sound alike.   2. Almost all the original music is replaced, including a surf rock cover of “Sleigh Ride” by The Ventures.   3. Fred Savage in “Dinosaurs! A Fun-Filled Trip Back in Time,” featuring Rex and Herb from Will Vinton’s Claymation Christmas Celebration.   4. Coach Cutlip’s drawing of the female reproductive system.   5. Oops, Wikipedia linked to the wrong Jay Lambert (Tommy). Here’s the right guy.   6. Brandon Crane’s (Doug Porter) new podcast, “The Errorist.”   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Pepsi “Love Letter” Commercial with Fred Savage, 1990.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   TGI Podcast, diving into Christmas, Halloween, and Thanksgiving episodes from the 1990s era of TGIF and more.   ****   “The Wonder Years” and “A Very Cutlip Christmas” © 1990 New World Television.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1997, and Tim Curry as an evil pipe organ is literally bringing down the house.   Join us as we journey into the depths of Disney’s direct-to-video library for an unnecessary but charming midquel that explains why the Beast hates Christmas and raises even more questions about the curse on his castle.   ****  🎙 Guests:   Kristi (@BadPrincessMov) and Bri (@wallabri) from Bad Princess Movies.   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Bad Princess Movies on Disney’s original “Beauty and the Beast” and “The Enchanted Christmas.”   2. Coming Soon previews from the original VHS.   3. Kathie Lee Gifford sang the soundtrack for “Pooh’s Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin.”   4. Behind “Prince Adam,” the Beast’s real name Disney never made official but keeps occasionally using.   5. Tim Curry as Darkness in “Legend”  and as Hexxus in “FernGully: The Last Rainforest.”   6. How tall is the Beast’s castle compared to the real world’s tallest castle?   7. Disney can’t keep the Feather Duster’s name straight, either.   8. The West Wing at Be Our Guest Restaurant in the Magic Kingdom.   9. The terrifying air conditioner in “The Brave Little Toaster.”   10. The loudest organ ever built.   11. Belle wears her dress from this special during Christmastime at Disney parks.    12. Lisa Temming on designing Belle’s Christmas dress.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Disney Home Video Collection, 1997.   Tiger Electronics Beauty and the Beast handheld game, 1994.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Holidays After Dark, exploring the strange, unusual, and dark sides of the holidays.   ****   “Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas” © 1997 Disney Enterprises, Inc.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1975, and a shepherd boy just lost his sight after staring directly at a lightning bolt.   Join us as we return to enchanted world of Rankin/Bass Christmas specials for an overlooked, underrated, and redundantly titled hidden gem about neither the first Christmas, nor the first Christmas snow.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Mike Troxell (@Prune_Tracy, Mastodon: PruneTracy@sharetron.com).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Vox’s Emily St. James ranks all the Rankin/Bass Christmas specials.   2. A very brief history of the Christmas card.   3. Was There Really Any Winter’s Snow at the Time of the Nativity in Bethlehem?   4. Flash blindness is real.   5. Arthur Rankin Jr. recalling how Irving Berlin really, REALLY didn’t want “White Christmas” in the special.   6. This exact sound of a wolf howling (or, actually, a coyote) is heard over and over again.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Toys “R” Us Time of Year Christmas Commercial, 1976.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Christmas Creeps, keeping the Christmas spirit alive through the magic of terrible holiday films.   ****   “The First Christmas: The Story of the First Christmas Snow” © 1975 Rankin/Bass Productions.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1990, and a little girl’s Christmas wish is about to get shot out of the sky. Join us for the podcast’s first voyage into the Disney Afternoon as Baloo the cargo pilot bear attempts to save his boss’s daughter’s belief in Santa.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Joey O. (Y-Not Radio, Words With Nerds, @imgonnadj24).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Joey’s Christmas TV lineup that he wrote on a piece of paper around 1991 and found again 30 years later.   2. The TaleSpin/Quantum Leap joke.   3. Disney’s “The Jungle Book,” the animated one, is somehow Germany’s biggest box office draw ever.   4. “Tales of the Gold Monkey,” a single-season TV show that inspired “TaleSpin.”   5. “What a Dummy,” an even shorter single-season TV show featuring Janna Michaels (Molly) and a living ventriloquist’s dummy.   6. Joey’s Interview with Pat Fraley (Wildcat), again!    7. Today’s TV Trope: String-on-Finger Reminder.   8. Cape Suzette and Louie’s Place on the Disney Wiki.   9. Flunkey, the Einstein-haired monkey from “The Jungle Book” whose “TaleSpin” counterpart appears to be Santa Louie’s “elf,” Waldo.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   McDonald’s TaleSpin Happy Meal Toys, 1990.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Snow in Southtown, holiday TV specials, movies, music, and more!   ****   “TaleSpin” and “Jolly Molly Christmas” © 1990 The Walt Disney Company.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1979, and no one wants to go to Pat Boone’s lame Christmas party, but we hope you’ll accept our invitation to discover this bizarre but wholesome special featuring the Hudson Brothers, the stars of “The Ropers” as themselves but also still as the Ropers, and a criminally brief appearance by Yogi Bear and his Hanna-Barbera friends.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Guy Hutchinson (GuyHutchinson.com, Drunk on Disney).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Watch the Pat Boone and Family Christmas Special on Tubi.   2. Pat Boone’s album of heavy metal covers from 1997.   3. TV Guide’s ad for the special, prominently featuring Yogi Bear and friends.   4. The Hudson Brothers Razzle Dazzle Show, as seen in a “Family Guy” cutaway gag.   5. “The Seventh Python,” Brett Hudson’s 2008 documentary about frequent Monty Python collaborator Neil Innes.   6. “Largo al Factotum,” the “Figaro” song from “The Barber of Seville.”   7. Dinah Shore’s giant belt buckle.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Master Charge Christmas Commercial, 1979.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Season’s Eatings, exploring the origins and history of your favourite Christmas foods.   ****   “Pat Boone and Family Christmas Special” © 1979 Cooga Mooga Productions.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1971, and Alastair Sim is delivering an even more animated performance as Scrooge.   Join us as we invade your personal space for salute an animated adaptation of “A Christmas Carol” that bent the rules and became the last TV special to win an Oscar, directed by Richard Williams and executive produced by Chuck Jones.   ****  🎙 Guests:   Michael May (MichaelMay.online, AfterLUNCH).   Rob Graham (AfterLUNCH, @spidey004).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Michael May’s Christmas Carol Project entries on 1971’s “A Christmas Carol.”   2. CED Magic’s “Christmas Carol” screen adaptation directory.   3. John Leech’s original illustrations for the Dickens story.   4. AfterLUNCH on Christmas Ghosts (And One Carol in Particular).   5. The rarely seen Phantom Hearse.   6. Visions of Young Scrooge’s favorite stories dancing in his head.   7. Alex Williams’s website and blog post about his memory of voicing Tiny Tim at age 4.   8. One notable businessman from the future and his gross nose.   9. The Making of Richard Williams’s “A Christmas Carol.”   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   NyQuil Scrooge Commercial, circa 1968.   Bell Telephone Christmas Commercial, 1978.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   The Christmas Book: The Ultimate Guide to Your Favorite Holiday, by Ed Daly.   ****   “A Christmas Carol” (1971) © Richard Williams Productions.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s the Advent Calendar House’s 5th anniversary, so instead of celebrating one Christmas special, we watched three! Clear the runway as we salute Disney’s trilogy of 2009’s “Prep & Landing,” 2010’s “Operation: Secret Santa,” and 2011’s “Prep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice.”   SANTA SPOILER WARNING: This episode contains Santa-adjacent spoilers from 1:24:28 to 1:26:49.   ****  🎙 Guests:   Jeff Somogyi (Linktree: @sommerjam).   Paxton Holley (Cavalcade of Awesome, Cult Film Club, Hellbent for Letterbox).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Disney’s Prep & Landing Website from 2009 is still up with character and gadget profiles.   2. “Tiny’s Big Adventure,” a minute-long short starring Magee’s assistant.   3. Super Golden Crisp Cereal’s Sugar Bear musical Christmas ornament.   4. Prep & Landing Easter eggs.   5. Santa’s castle looks familiar.   6. Noel’s early cameo in “Operation: Secret Santa.”   7. A hat tip to the Classic Film Jerks.   8. Captain Avalanche and Snowball’s poster looks like a Batman and Robin Detective Comics cover.   9. “Naughty, Naughty Children” by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals.   10. “Nuttin’ for Christmas” by the Plain White T’s.   11. “The Ballad of Nessie,” who makes 2 cameos.   12. Ralphie from “A Christmas Story” appears.   13. “Mansion: Impossible,” featuring Wayne and Lanny prepping the Avengers Mansion.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Coca-Cola: Santa Packs are Coming, 1994.   Campbell’s Soup: Snowman, 1995.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Can’t Wait for Christmas’s reminder to play “Underneath the Tree” by Kelly Clarkson more.   ****   “Prep & Landing,” “Operation: Secret Santa,” and “Prep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice” © Disney.   Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.   Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 November 1st is Christmas Podcast Day! I don’t make the rules; I just use the hashtag. So join us as on a very important mission to dig up the original animated adventures of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in a 1948 short film that predates the song.   You can follow #ChristmasPodcastDay on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. And probably TikTok, but I’m not on that.   ****  🎙 Guests:   Gerry Davila (Totally Rad Christmas, @RadChristmas).   Matt Spaulding (North Pole Radio).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Watch Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Library of Congress).   2. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’s First Starring Film Role (Library of Congress, 2014).   3. The 1951 re-release, featuring the new Rudolph song.   4. The Advent Calendar House episode on Rankin/Bass’s Rudolph.   5. Disney’s Very Merry Christmas Sing-Along Songs.   6. Water Polo, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer & Chevrolet: The Life of Jam Handy (Collegiate Water Polo Association, 2019).   7. Matt’s Little Golden Book of Rudolph, illustrated by Richard Scarry.   8. Paul Wing’s Rudolph record from 1947.   9. Rudolph’s 2nd Christmas.   10. George Klensinger, who arranged the original Silent Night intro, also composed Tubby the Tuba.   11. The Biggest, Most Beautiful Christmas Tree.   12. James Bond and Blofeld fight on a bobsled in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.   13. Ear trumpets, and Daisy Duck’s mother using one in Donald’s Diary.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Closer to Christmas.   ****   “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” ©1948 The Jam Handy Organization.   Say hi on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1997, and we couldn’t decide which holiday to end the season with, so we’re celebrating them all. Pack up your accordion and join us on a journey 20 miles below the surface of the Earth to the very Pee-wee’s Playhouse-like split-level cave of “Weird Al” Yankovic as he learns to listen to his friends and family.   ****  🎙 Guests:   Joey O. (Y-Not Radio, Words With Nerds, @imgonnadj24).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Weirdle, the “Weird Al”-themed offshoot of Heardle, the music-themed offshoot of Wordle.   2. The Weird Accordion to Al, by Nathan Rabin.   3. Joey interviews Ben Kweller about his appearance with Radish on The Weird Al Show.   4. Al’s got a thing for the number 27, which makes its way into this episode.   5. Stan Freberg’s Christmas Dragnet, which I know from a compilation CD from Philadelphia radio station WOGL.   6. Ed Marques (Varna) as the Surf Guru on ZDTV’s Internet Tonight.   7. I had no idea I Lost on Jeopardy! was a full parody of an actual song.   8. “Weird Al,” Paul Reubens, and Danny Elfman singing Kidnap the Sandy Claws.   9. National Hamster Day exists. It’s May 10.   10. Funny or Die’s original fake trailer for Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.   11. “Weird Al” Yankovic: There’s No Going Home, part of The Disney Channel’s Going Home concert/documentary series. ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   1990 Encyclopedia Britannica commercial starring Donavan Freberg (Baby Boolie).   ****   “The Weird Al Show” and “The Obligatory Holiday Episode” © 1997.   Say hi on Twitter and Instagram.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.

🦃 It’s 1983, and we’re spending Thanksgiving in July at the Saturday Supercade. Join us as we take a cue from Q*bert and pals and try to stay on topic as they learn how to build a Q home in a Q land.   ****  🎙 Guests:   Chad Young (The Horror Movie BBQ, TPIF: Thank Pod It’s Funny, @horrormoviebbq).   Tom Coombs (The Pop Daddy, @thepopdaddy).   Jayme Kilsby (@brainexploderrr).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. We all tried to remember who brought up the Q*bert special last year while talking about A Thanksgiving Tale, and we were all wrong.   2. Even Kangaroo got a Saturday Supercade segment eventually.   3. Peter Cullen was the first voice of Mario in the Donkey Kong segment.   4. The Kingdom Chums: Little David’s Adventure, an animated retelling of David and Goliath featuring Billy Bowles (Q*bert) as a stuffed lion come to life.   5. Pauline and her return in Super Mario Odyssey.   6. We accidentally introduce Chad to Spookley, the Square Pumpkin.   7. They gave the snakes arms!   8. Viper has a Mae West voice, which leads into a tangent about Quasi at the Quackadero.   9. Chief Q*Eagle reminded me of Randall Cunningham’s name in Tecmo Super Bowl.   10. Saturday Supercade’s extensive use of the Hanna-Barbera Sound Effects Library.   11. Home Movies: “Don’t Put Marbles in Your Nose.”   12. Mike guests on TPIF: Thank Pod It’s Funny to discuss the Perfect Strangers Thanksgiving episode, Wild Turkey.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   John Wanamaker’s 1988 Thanksgiving Sale.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Tis the Podcast.   “Saturday Supercade,” “Q*bert,” and “Thanksgiving for the Memories” © 1983 Ruby-Spears Productions.   Say hi on Twitter and Instagram.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1992, and a group of 30-year-old teenagers are on a bus trip to their doom unless an angel in training can convince her supervisor they’re worth saving.   Join us for a very strange and very special visit to America’s most famous ZIP code in our first adaptation of It’s a Wonderful Life, even though this episode seems to have forgotten to actually adapt it.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Ed Daly (The Christmas Book: The Ultimate Guide to Your Favorite Holiday, EZEdDaly.com, @ezeddaly).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. Bonnie Urseth (Miriam) in We’ve Got It Made.   2. Brian Austin Green (David) as Metallo in Smallville.   3. Luke Perry (Dylan) in The Sandlot: Heading Home.   4. Of course Donna’s birthday is on Christmas Day.   4. Brandon’s amazing, generic FOOTBALL/SPORTS poster above his bed.   5. The West Beverly High Madrigal Singers (no relation) sing the original, drinking song lyrics to Deck the Hall.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   7up Cool Spot Christmas Commercial, 1992.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Can’t Wait for Christmas Podcast.   ****   “Beverly Hills 90210” and “It’s a Totally Happening Life” © 1992 Torand Productions, Inc.   Say hi on Twitter and Instagram.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1985, but we’re rocketing into the future, when apparently urgent veterinary care no longer exists. It’s Scrooge Sunday, so join us for a glimpse into the space-age year of 2062 to find out if 3 robotic ghosts of Christmas can convince Mr. Spacely to change his stingy ways, while the clock is ticking for the Jetsons’ dog, Astro, on his deathbed.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Jack Ford (The Total Christmas Podcast).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. George Jetson apparently was/will be born at the end of July 2022.   2. George O’Hanlon (George Jetson) as Joe McDoakes in a series of instructional parody short films from the 1940s and ’50s.   3. The Jetsons’ “laser tree.”   4. “Bongo Feet and Zip,” the classic Hanna-Barbara running sound effect, is heard 9 times in this episode.   5. This episode marks the last appearance speaking appearance of the Jetsons’ pet alien, Orbitty.   6. Astro’s supposed fever is normal for dogs.   7. How the Flintstones movie teenage Spacely and his future wife watch changes the theory that both shows take place in the same time period.   8. The robotic Ghost of Christmas Past, Present (literally a talking wrapped Christmas present), and “Yet to Be.”   9. I had to look up whether Spacely even had a pet to warrant having a personal veterinarian. Meet Zero.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   George Jetson’s Air Pollution PSA, National Clean Air Coalition, 1990.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Cool Kids Club, a nostalgia-fueled trip back to the ’80s and ’90s.   ****   “The Jetsons” and “A Jetson Christmas Carol” © 1985 Hanna-Barbara Productions, Inc.   Say hi on Twitter and Instagram.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1995, and a couple of giant space monsters with swords are about to lose a snowball fight against the powerless Power Rangers, who can’t Morph at the North Pole due to a cross-current of holiday magic. And also magnets.   You can watch I’m Dreaming of a White Ranger on the official Powers Rangers YouTube Channel.   ****  🎙 Guests:   Andre Bennett (@AndreBennettGO).   Lindy Kempe (@ieatvideogames).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. I’m Dreaming of a White Ranger on Ranger Wiki.   2. Dynaman, an English-dubbed parody of Super Sentai on the USA Network’s Night Flight, circa 1988.   3. Rubber Suit Rumble! and Cult Cinema Cloister Facebook groups, maintained by Andre.   4. Differences between the aired TV episode and the VHS cut, which was released 2 months earlier.   5. The Order, a proposed, Expendables-style film starring former Power Rangers.   6. Amy Jo Johnson (Kimberly) directed a Season 2 episode of Superman & Lois.   7. The Ranger “in jail” we alluded to isn’t even in this episode.   8. Affirmative Clothing Company, co-founded by David Yost (Billy).   9. Paul Schrier (Bulk) finally got to play a legit Ranger in 2017 in the web series Power Rangers Hyperforce.   10. Robert von Fliss has 4 credits on IMDb, and they’re all as Santa Claus.   11. The real-life Command Center: The House of the Book at the American Jewish University.   12. Rito Revolto, a giant skeleton warrior, learning about holiday spirit is just the Skeletor scene all over again.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Pizza Hut: “Right Field,” 1990, from the VHS release of the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie.   Diet Coke: “Choose Wisely,” 1990, from the VHS release of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.   OnStar: “Batcave,” 2000, featuring Batman and Michael Gough as Alfred, except I was probably thinking of the Diet Coke ad before Batman ’89.   Saban’s 4½ minutes of commercials in front of the VHS release of I’m Dreaming of a White Ranger, including an ad for THE VIDEO YOU’RE ALREADY WATCHING.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Behind the Bells, a one-horse open sleigh ride into the world of Christmas movies.   ****   “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” and “I’m Dreaming of a White Ranger” © 1995 Saban Entertainment, Inc.   Say hi on Twitter and Instagram.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.

🎃 It’s 1989, and Rue McClanahan is trapped in an underground castle inhabited by a bunch of Gremlin-looking puppets called Greevils — and for some reason wants to leave.   Join us for a Halloween in July celebration of The Wickedest Witch, co-written and produced by ALF creator Paul Fusco, and starring Blanche from The Golden Girls as the evil Avarissa. As far as we know, this Halloween special only ever aired once, but somehow managed to capture our hearts and burrow itself into the cavernous depths of our memories.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Matt from Dinosaur Dracula (The Purple Stuff Podcast, @dinosaurdracula).   ****  📺 Watch It:   There are 3 copies on YouTube — some include commercials, others hit record a second too late. For the closest we can get to a full picture of the special, here are all 3, courtesy of:   1. Dinosaur Dracula,  2. Jared’s VHS Treasures,  3. trivialord.   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. The Wickedest Witch on Dinosaur Dracula.   2. Rue McClanahan on Entertainment Tonight, October 27, 1989 (Interview starts at 6:57).   3. Ronn Lucas (Sammy), creator of Scorch and the 1988 Disney Channel channel special, Who’s in Charge Here?   4. Judge Doom murdering a clown shoe in Who Framed Roger Rabbit?   5. Free Stuff for Kids.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   McDonald’s Halloween Gift Certificate Books, 1989 during the airing of The Wickedest Witch.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   Weird Christmas, all things holly, jolly, and odd-ly.   ****   “The Wickedest Witch” © 1989 Boo You Productions.   Say hi on Twitter and Instagram.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1983, and a young bear and fox are lost in the Big City after accidentally riding the rails on the apparently famous Christmas Tree Train in an obscure special that has little to do with Christmas trees or trains. Climb aboard as we explore the first holiday special starring Buttons and Rusty, known later as the Chucklewood Critters.   You can watch The Christmas Tree Train on the Internet Archive.   ****  🎙 Guest:   Ethan (The Hungry Reader, A Special Presentation or ALF Will Not Be Seen Tonight, @TeeAitchAre).   ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   1. The Unofficial Chucklewood Critters Home Page, which looks like it was created in 2003, last updated in 2011, and is a perfect specimen of an early 2000s Internet fan page.   2. William Boyett (Ranger Jones) in Last Clear Chance, a 1959 driving safety film later featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000.   3. Foxes actually hang out around bears in nature (Nature.org, 2021).   4. A random shout-out to mid-1990s Sonic the Hedgehog wannabe Bubsy the Bobcat.   5. A very difficult jump in a sewer level in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Nintendo game.   6. All the human characters in this special look like they’re related to Gargamel from The Smurfs.   7. RiffTrax Christmas Circus with Whizzo the Clown.   ****  📼 Retro Commercial Break:   Santa’s Village in Southern California, circa 1983 during an airing of The Christmas Tree Train.   ****  🎤 And Now, These Messages:   North Pole Radio, covering the art of representing Santa and all things Christmas.   ****   “The Christmas Tree Train” © 1983 Encore Enterprises, Inc.   Say hi on Twitter and Instagram.  Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost.  Full show notes with links at adventcalendar.house.