Yo…
Channel Surfing: I stumbled onto Jonathan Demme’s 1993 movie Philadelphia.
Tom Hanks is a lawyer who’s fired for having AIDS and being gay.
(Denzel does a solid job expressing the prejudices of that era—AIDS was terrifying and he’s openly frowny on gay people. Apparently, as a lawyer, he was too busy to listen to the Pet Shop Boys (which is a shame because their 1990 album Behaviour is outstanding!).)
Officially, Tom Hanks gets fired because Josh Lyman can’t find a legal brief.
He’s looked everywhere in the West Wing and can’t locate a physical copy. So, Hanks tells him, “It’s on my hard drive.”
Josh Lyman says, “Get out!” as he frantically searches Tom’s computer…and comes up empty.
I felt that stomach sinking feeling; that horrid ‘90s emotion when you know there’s a file on your computer. You swear you hit save.
And yet…
No file on the computer.
No physical copy.
Can you start over??
Do all that work again?
When is it due?
Josh Lyman is freaking out.
Tom Hanks is freaking out.
I’m freaking out.
Yo, Son: the ‘90s were rough.
Looking back, it totally makes sense why grunge took off. Those were dirty, disastrous days.
We needed music to to soundtrack our dark struggles,
Ironically, for most of us, Nirvana wasn’t even that "Big."
“Back it up, Back it in, let me begin…”
On July 1st, Paramount released the first trailer for Edgar Wright’s remake The Running Man.
It’s the second adaptation of the Stephen King novel, following the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger classic.
(King’s movies are so old that we’ve culturally entered a remake/reboot phase: recent releases include: 'Salem’s Lot, Firestarter and IT.
Following this Running Man remake we’ll be running towards a crapload of King remakes: Carrie (TV miniseries by Amazon MGM Studios), Christine (movie remake by Blumhouse), Cujo (movie remake by Netflix), The Dark Tower (TV series by Mike Flanagan). Is any of that necessary?
Sigh. 8 out of 10 remakes fail within their first year.)
Granted, I’m old. I remember Arnold’s version, so there’s zero incentive to check out Wright’s Running Man. (Although do check out Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver. Fantastic film.)
Unfortunately, to many, foolishly this Running Man is "new."
Truthfully, everything feels new when you don’t know history or lack context.
I’m slowly realizing that a vital pop culture food group is retreads and revisits. Going back is vital and healthy.
A lot of stuff "feels" new or even like news—but it’s truly not. (Sometimes new is ew. Like a movie remake i.e. Total Recall in 2012. That wasn’t new that was strictly ew.)
Airing tonight on CNN is Live Aid: When Rock ’n’ Roll Took On the World. (Second episode, it’s a four part docuseries.) “Celebrating the 40th anniversary of Live Aid, this four-part series tells the definitive story of how two rockstars inspired the largest global music events in history. Their inspiration sparked a remarkable social movement, raising tens of billions of dollars.” That’s an amazing invitation to go back. RSVP that invitation.
To put Live Aid into historical context: celebrity activism is only effective when the celebrity is well-read and can accurately convey insight. Otherwise it’s just for show and or worse…for cheap likes.
It takes a long time to build trust, fame isn’t a shortcut to authority. (If you’re dumb before you’re famous; you’re still dumb after you get famous.)
With this Live Aid documentary we can revisit many of our flawed African narratives…remember when Africa was a broken continent plagued by poverty, conflict, corruption and disease? Does that narrative persist? Is it accurate?
What we’re wrong about is more valuable than everything we’re right about.
By going back we can update the current narratives.
Do a quick social media scan: you know how many fools are still trotting out a variation of Nike uses child labour? They look and sound stupid because that narrative has become bright branding: it’s a shorthand for ignorance.
Like, really? Nike hasn’t changed any aspect of production since that ‘80s narrative? What about the rest of the fashion industry? Is this a Nike problem or a fashion industry issue?
You can’t claim to be progressive if you’re narratives are also progressing.
More? On July 27 Nat Geo TV is gonna release a Hurricane Katrina documentary for the 20th anniversary of the horrible catastrophe.
Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time: “exposes how a natural disaster became a national tragedy.”
It’s the exact same issues with President Trump and the Texas flood calamity and the sloppy FEMA aftermath...did they warn the people in enough time? As a President, Donald Trump isn’t special or unique, we’ve seen and lived through this sad movie before. (I wish it was different. I’m not alone.)
That’s why you go back…that’s why you revisit all that’s come before.
It’s hectic...trying to keep up with whatever is current when so much has already unfolded.
Every so often I see an online post...a hubris desire from an avid reader who wants to start reading Stephen King. I honestly don’t know how you start reading Stephen King in 2025. Do you start with a brand new novel? It’s what is driving current conversations. Do you go back to the ‘70s or ‘80s? You’ll be out of time. Which is sometimes dope.
Read the novel of a movie just released? Either way? It’s all work.
Marvel movies are closing in on 40 movies now. Plus those goofy TV shows. (Eh, you can skip almost all of the MCU TV shows.)
It’s all work.
If it wasn’t so fun it’d be exhausting.
In cop TV shows and movies they scream for backup into walkie talkies when a situation gets hectic. It’s a request for support.
In arguments at work, employees will ask somebody on their team: back me up on this. It’s a demand for evidence.
So, back me up on this…going back in pop culture allows you to speak more freely.
In action movies you know there’s a guy who can…back it up. He doesn’t always hafta say it, the audience knows. Keep going back to back it up.
Continue mining the past and you’ll be wealthy in the present.
Vampire Zombies…From Space!
“I’m not afraid of werewolves or vampires or haunted hotels, I’m afraid of what real human beings to do other real human beings.”
~ Walter Jon Williams
What you’re about to hear is a passionate MSL conversation between two fans of B-movies and magic. We go back…way back.
Some of the movies Michael Stasko and I discuss include Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957), Invaders from Mars (1953), They Live (1988), Night of the Living Dead (1968), old school Halloween (1978) and so much more. Whew.
And that’s why magic comes up often because these movies are…truly…magic.
They’re endearing.
With their humble stories these dynamic movies offer a stark simplicity that weirdly creates a compelling engagement.
You eagerly come back to these movies. You happily reference these movies.
In this episode I referenced this scene from Tim Burton’s 1994 film Ed Wood. Johnny Depp plays Ed Wood (in drag) and has a stirring conversation with Orson Welles (played by Vincent D’Onofrio.). I went back because it applies to the present.
Meet Michael Stasko the director, co-writer (along with Jakob Skrzypa and Alex Forman) and co-producer behind Vampire Zombies…From Space!
Oh, I like all those things!
The movie description reads: “If you put Mel Brooks, Ed Wood, and South Park into a blender you’d get Vampire Zombies…From Space! an over-the-top comedy which satirizes and pays homage to drive-in, creature-feature horror films of the 1950’s.”
Yes! For this movie you can see the string that holds up the UFO on purpose. And bonus fun? It’s the same string that holds up bats as well. These guys made a hilarious B-movie…on purpose.
The description continues: “From the depths of space, Dracula has devised his most dastardly plan yet; turning the residents of the small town of Marlow into his personal army of vampire zombies! A motley crew consisting of a grizzled detective, a skeptical rookie cop, a chain-smoking greaser, and a determined young woman band together to save the world from Vampire Zombies…From Space!”
Notable Vampire Zombies…From Space! cast includes: Craig Gloster plays Dracula (his Dracula is amazing!!), Lloyd Kaufman (the co-founder of Troma Entertainment film studio) and Judith O’Dea (who played Barbara in 1968 as in “they’re coming to get you, Barbra!” yeah that Barbara).
This MSL conversation with Michael Stasko was so fun…it’s why I have this podcast. When was the last time somebody brought up Windsor, Ontario while talking about Orson Welles and Tim Burton?
We even acknowledge Val Kilmer…I’d say more about that movie reference but that’s…Top Secret. (#RimShot!)
More than Ed Wood and Vampires and Zombies, Michael and I discussed the renting movies ritual.
Michael says:
“If you went to Blockbuster to rent a VHS, it meant you made a contract. You were gonna watch that film all the way where I think the audience today can just swipe left and right and click on something new, or change it. And I think we're all guilty of it. I've watched the first five minutes of many Netflix movies. But back then there was something endearing about doing the work and having to get a half hour into it, and once you were a half hour into it, and the inciting incident happened. You’re on board, so you would stay.”
That’s far more eloquent, for what I am trying to express: “Back then there was something endearing about doing the work…”
My position is The Work hasn’t changed. It is, honestly…a lot more work, though.
If you dig Mel Brooks and classic horror movies and B-movies and magic and you enjoy laughing this movie is totally your jam.
This is you go Back…To The Future…
On May 24, 2019 I wrote the following confession on The Facebook…
Recently finished a Mel Brooks biography.
Biographies (slash memoirs) make up a large portion of my reading...before Mel Brooks I finished a biography on Dr. Seuss. And the next one on my desk is Norma Lear’s autobiography published in 2014.
Thing is unlike every other book I read I start with First Contact; not page 1.
For Mel Brooks my First Contact was Spaceballs...amazing movie, right?
It’s 1987 I have no idea what a Mel Brooks is or was or anything. I’m not even 15.
So, I opened the Mel Brooks bio to the Spaceballs pages and I start reading forward.
I get to the end of the book and then...then I flip to page 1 and read up to the Spaceballs section where I started.
This way the bio in a weird way somewhat mirrors my life with Mel Brooks.
Somewhere along my path after Spaceballs I saw Blazing Saddles (hilarious!!) and Young Frankenstein (hey! I’m getting these jokes...I’m making pop culture connections!) and of course Robin Hood: Men in Tights and Dracula: Dead and Loving It (neither I’ve seen recently but I remember Dracula cracking me up back in the day.)
Often, we don’t consume pop culture in a linear fashion; especially as we’re growing up.
It’s all haphazard pop culture tapas until we develop a proper appetite. Pop Culture is a wonderful Choose Your Own Adventure book where you jump around a lot but thankfully never get impaled by stalagmites.
So yeah when I read bios I typically start with First Contact...read to the end of the book then start on page 1 at the beginning to understand how we got here.
I’m sharing because I recently said this out loud (like I’m doing here) and a couple of people found my process...strange and weird.
While I don’t think it’s common I assume other people are doing this.
Are y’all reading biographies (slash memoirs) starting on page 1 and faithfully reading the pages in order as the writer and publisher have set it out OR...are you starting with First Contact?
So Bad It’s Good…Doesn’t Apply To Me…
Sammy Younan
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Sammy Younan is the affable host of My Summer Lair podcast: think NPR’s Fresh Air meets Kevin Smith: interviews & impressions on Pop Culture.
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