My New Best Friend

We get a tantalizing offer from a foreign nation, give bad advice to our only fan, and reveal numerical details about ourselves that are (in order of appearance) embarrasing, boastful, and just odd. Cardinals also lose to the Phillies, sorry Robbie.

Robbie Benedict has Jewbears Disease.  Never mind that I tried to look this up online and it doesn't exist.  HE HAS IT, ALRIGHT? Also in this epsiode, Ducey clips articles like an old woman, Greg gets a stern warning about diabetes, and we are all racist. We also learn the origin of the Ass Bandit.  Hi Ryan!

After a long hiatus things can get testy.  And after Greg talks much too fast about South by Southwest and Ducey talks in much too little detail about his new Survivor gig, we enter the game round.  And that's where it all falls apart.  Robbie tries to keep us together... but it's hard when murder isn't mean.

So Robbie and Ducey decide to have a sushi dinner on their own, to make this Best Friend thing a reality.  But 30 minutes in they call in Rice so we can turn it into a podcast.  We thought it would be an "extrasode" bonus content, but it turns out to be our official podcast for the month of February. Do these men just demand a non-public life?  Or was this an easy way to knock off a podcast while having some saki? Listen for the fate of the American Sitcom, how to live forever, and who was sercretly mean in the 2008 election. Music by Louden Swain and Matt Thompson, cause it is.

What started with all good intentions to be a discussion around our holidays, quickly slides into the toilet.  Literally. Then we embark on an ill-conceived guessing game of our favorite films and TV shows of 2010, in which we ask an existential question.  If you have never seen a movie, can it be your favorite?  Discuss.  

After a long time off, we are back with My New Best Friend 2.0 - the courtship of Robbie and Ducey. Now that we have exited The Bachelor phase of the show, we return with a monthly format where we check in with the two newlybests on how this crazy thing called love is taking hold. In this episode, we set a Baseline by playing the Newlywed Game.  Will they earn the coveted 7 out of 10 Sticker of Accomplishment?

Climax or Anit-Climax?  Last Episode of MASH or Last Episode of After-MASH?  New Best Friend Forever or New Best Friend Provisional? Answers held within!   Enjoy this FINAL episode of My New Best Friend Season One Stay Tuned on this feed for the FIRST episode of My New Best Friend Season Two (Friends in Training) Music by Louden Swain, except that first bed music which ain't from them.

Chris LaRose, Old Best Friend, joins us for a final check in before The Decision is made. We discuss the role Hawkeye played in the chicken/baby death, the dirtiest tourist area in America, and how you should deal with a missing wallet. Listen to a non-drunk Chris LaRose for the very first time! music by louden swain, sitting on the sidelines, wiping a tear of days gone by...

We celebrate the launch of Starcraft 2 with its BEST voice actor: standing-up stand-up comedian Darren Capozzi.  Darren will tell us the critical 5 songs you need to DJ a wedding (hint: "Celebrate" is for amateurs). ALSO Don't miss this opportunity to get in on the ground floor of the latest Crocs-like craze!  It's called POWERPHRASING and it is the fastest way to summarize ever invented.   Music, LOUDen Swain. (powerphrased.)

This week John welcomes Jon in an episode that will make you do a "Parent Trap"esque double take. Screenwriter Jon Hartmere joins us this week to tell us what highly structured coupon clipping has to do with hell week at a baseball frat.  Beyond the obvious connection. Much of this episode was recorded in the dark. Music by Louden Swain, which should be obvious by now.

After a summer hiatus, we are back for the home stretch.  In this episode, we invent dubious games with Josh Meyers - star of Mad-TV and That 70's Show. Is Josh the Ted McGinley of the 2000s?  Is he a man with a photographic memory of flower gardens?  Or the best firefighter Pee Wee Herman ever had? Is Ducey about to move this family to 42nd street to find out?  Listen up! Music by Louden Swain.  www.loudenswain.com for all your needs.  ALL of them.

We welcome Robbie Benedict for this 4th appearance.  Just like Shrek. In the style of a Steven Soderbergh film,  this mind-warping episode is a time-mix-em-up in which Ducey and Robbie come to terms with their new record label and ticket writing service. There is also a partial premiere of a new song, aborted quickly.  Lots of kind-of-pointless, highly-nested callbacks await.  Still lots of fun!  music = louden swain.  

  Sometimes your new best friend is an old friend who gets the call.  But sometimes it is someone out of nowhere!  We introduce our first new “Blind Date” to Ducey, Eisner award-winning comic retailer Atom! Freeman.   He looks a lot like Vladimir Lenin. We discuss taping Thomas Guides maps to the wall, Old Timey Theme Park Western Photo Booths and punching someone with keys in your hand. Music by Louden Swain, and why wouldn’t it be!  

As anticipated as the final episode of Lost, here is the final part of a three part episode, our very special time with Nicole Sullivan. Now the sh*t gets real. Music by louden swain.

There is no better way to celebrate the 6 month anniversary of the My New Best Friend podcast than this episode.  Nikki Sullivan, Ducey, and Greg continue their discussion and never before has an “explicit” tag been so warranted. Not only do we talk about some “relations” that may have gone on… we focus a lot of attention on the legendary series of parties called Survivor Nights.  If you want stories about debauchery, including shock collars, Laurel Canyon nudity, and pancake syrup, then this is the episode for you. If anyone wants to fund a documentary of Survivor Nights, here is your pitch. Music by Louden Swain (hi Robbie!)

Ducey may have lost his Best Man, but his Best Woman is still in LA, and ready to take on the mantle of John’s New Best Friend.  Nicole Sullivan joins us to discuss Elective Cat-Scans, Malcolm Gladwell’s Connector Theory, and why we’re all f*cked. Nikki and Ducey have such a long, storied past, so like JP's this will be a multi-part episode.  At least two parts, but dare it go for a record three-peat? And like every episode it seems, we had a new audio problem to deal with – this week Greg’s mic blew out around 15 minutes in.  But honestly, you won’t even notice.  I’m not what you would call a “paid” comedian, so I edited out most of my asides and demands for attention.  (The mic issue is fixed in the follow-up Nikki episodes, I'm sorry to say.) Music, as always, is by Louden Swain.

OK, so I am frankly a lousy audio engineer.  Even with my new fancy set-up, this episode turned out to be recorded from the mic in our laptop and not the mics we were holding.  I tried to compress the file the best I could, but well, it may be hard to hear.  But Rachel Reenstra was amazing, so if you can gut through the audio problems, you'll hear some terrific stories of Ducey and Rachel's past.  Rachel is a TV host (HGTV's Designed to Sell, and Animal Planet's Ms. Adventure), and vlogger.  And a holder of a $2000 bottle of wine! Audio issues ironed out next episode.  Sorry Rachel and Ducey.  DON'T JUDGE ME!

Ducey and Greg are passing each other in the night due to travel and liquor sweats.  So Greg Skyped JP Manoux to put a final bow on their SxSW experience.  No Ducey, boo. Interested on how to audition for Burn Notice in a hotel room, or get out of an awkward conversation with Ryan Phillippe, or find a secret rock show lit by flame throwers?  Then listen on! YES BONUS NOT A REAL SHOW AGAIN, YES YES I KNOW!

Greg declared 2010 year of the film festival.  And we start at South by Southwest in Austin Texas.   And we end there too. Greg brought along a couple of potential Ducey Best Friends - JP Manoux and Atom! Freeman.  We talk about the movies we've seen over the first few days and the BBQ sweats we got. Ducey isn't here, so he can't play. YES THIS IS ANOTHER BONUS!

Every 4 episodes, we bring back our own Tony Randall, Robbie "Supernatural" Benedict. Does bringing Robbie back so much mean he is going to be a finalist?  Of course not. BUT music as always is by the great Louden Swain.

We are detoxing from a long casino weekend, so we thought we would play Ducey's "Celebrity" roast of many past and future New Best Friend nominees. Sound quality is a bit dicey and the jokes are 'inside.'  But Ducey knocks it out of the park. Filmspotting is a terrific podcast and deserves better than what they got here.  

"So... when you made a fake lottery ticket..."  Our tense conclusion with JP Manoux. WHEEEEEEEEE! Music by Louden Swain

JP Manoux joins us...  JP and Ducey are long time friends, Disney channel co-workers, and... lets just say they have a past.  A past with no shortage of issues that we had to work through.  And after two hours of podcast, we may have barely scratched the surface. Since this was such an epic conversation, we are splitting it into two parts.  Forgive the abrupt cliffhanger... but we will pick up the 2nd hour in a week. After the podcast, we all had a smoke on Ducey's porch, hugged it out, and began the initial planning of John Ducey Day. Music as always by the terrific Louden Swain...

After much hype and ballyhoo, we finally get to talk to John Ducey’s OBF (Old Best Friend), Chris LaRose. We have been talking up Chris quite a bit to this date, so does he deliver the goods?  Not so much.  Why is that?  A surprising, dramatic reveal half-way through the episode will explain all!  Chris we love you, but you talk very slowly after six beers.  OK that was the dramatic reveal, Chris had been drinking.   Not all that surprising after all. Enjoy the triangle-challenged Chris LaRose, everyone, if you can. Next episode, we are back to a new and exciting NBF candidate! Music, as always, by the wonderful Louden Swain…  Check them out at www.loudenswain.com

Our Thrilling Conclusion.  Which Christian Bale movie will make Devin's list?  Which Vivica Fox movie will make mine? Music by Louden Swain.

Our "real" guest got busted by the Man this week and gave him a baaaaad case of the Mondays.  So John welcomes show moderator Greg Rice as the next candidate for best friendship. That's me, by the way, and frankly I didn't put my heart in it. But it's a lively conversation about broken glass and alcohol in auto travel mugs. Music by Louden Swain, as always.  Thanks Robbie. P.S.  Top 1-10 movies of the decade coming soon.  It's timely!

OK, it's been tough to schedule our next guest, mainly because the NFL playoffs are very important things to watch on television. So as a sort-of, kind-of treat, Greg and past guest Devin Barry decide to rank their top 20 movies of the past decade. If you are a movie nerd, you'll love this. Otherwise, well... Ducey and Greg are in Vegas this week (we did not win, thanks for asking). So to stretch this out, you get Part 1 now of the movie nerd fest (films 20-11), followed by Part 2 (the top 10) next week. After that, we will be back on our regular recording. Otherwise, feel free to argue with us at duceybestfriend@gmail.com Music, still by Louden Swain. Go Colts. 18 is coming.

Technology ain't got nothing on the My New Best Friend podcast. After the dog ate our file, we regroup a day later with a 'live' (ne in-person) episode with graphic designer and award-winning color maven Molly Kloss. Can Ducey have a platonic female best friend? Only if she shares his love of sushi, playing cards, and scrap-booking. So, yes. Molly also used to date someone who is unimportant to this conversation. Music, as always, is by Robbie's band, Louden Swain. www.loudenswain.com

We taped a WONDERFUL episode 6 with Molly Kloss that was eaten by "the dog that ate my homework." This time the imaginary dog took the form of Skype recording software that imploded our episode into a garbled mess. To explain this, Greg brings in his wife Sue for a brief but entertaining chat using the "My 'Lil Podcaster" kit he got for Christmas. They also talk about their child's poop obsessions. Look out for the REAL episode 6 with Molly Kloss soon. Also coming up are bonus episodes where Devin and Greg count their top 20 movies of the decade. AND perhaps the premiere of the man himself, the erstwhile Chris LaRose.

Our belated holiday present to you… the triumphant return of Robbie Benedict (aka Robert Patrick Benedict)! Robbie responds to a cease-and-desist letter, makes some audio engineering gaffs, and sends out a secret offer to his Supernatural fans. Will you get choked out by Robbie at the next Supernatural convention? Enjoy the last MNBF of the decade (good times… good times…)

The Terror of “The Search for Santa Paws” is now over, and our beloved John Ducey is back home. Greeting him is young whipper-snapper Devin Barry (actor and co-host of the Flick Fights podcast, official podcast of Flickchart.com). Devin regales us on his internet based twitter web 2.0 relationships and other things that Ducey and Greg are too old to understand. We also finish the "What Would Ducey Pick" movie game from last week. Will Devin's predictions be perfect, or be undermined by Greg talking up the other films too much? Music is, as always, from Robbie Benedict's Louden Swain (he is always with us)! Look for Louden Swain on iTunes or loudenswain.com.

Oh, "The Search for Santa Paws!" This prequel movie's Canadian schedule has kept our star John Ducey for making a podcast taping this week. So we have our very own prequel of Episode 4, a bonus episode with Devin Barry (actor and co-host of the Flick Fights podcast on iTunes). Devin and Greg nerd-out on movies and play the game "What Would Ducey Pick?" Were Devin's choices correct? Stay tuned to Episode 4 Actual, coming soon!

Matt Corboy joins us. Matt played Ray Carlson on "The Shield" (the best cop show of all time despite what Greg says...), but you may also know him as the color commentator to the world. Is Matt's encyclopedic knowledge of Ducey's filmography genuine, or driven by IMDB? Will we ever know? Greg also makes a Norm Crosby reference. Music, as always, is by Louden Swain. Look for their new album "A Brand New Hurt" on iTunes!

This week, we welcome hilarious comedy actor and mix-tape expert Ike Barinholtz (MAD-TV, Meet the Spartans). Can the man who can jump the line at Magic Mountain jump the line to John Ducey's heart? Ducey is calling from his Disney Channel movie set home for the next few weeks, so we are going to have a several Skype shows in a row before all parties are back in LA. If he is allowed back. Our music the song "Better" from Louden Swain. Find this track (with lyrics) and more from their new album, A Brand New Hurt, at www.loudenswain.com or at iTunes.

John Ducey, television actor and fake father of the Jonas Brothers, lost his best friend when his childhood buddy Chris moved from LA. So with the help of moderator Greg Rice, John has conversations with not-best-friends in an attempt to find a New Best Friend. We start strong. In the opener, we welcome good-but-not-best-friend Robbie Benedict (aka Chuck Shurley from the CW's "Supernatural"). Robbie's band also supplies the intro-outro music for the show. Thanks to Louden Swain for the song "Better" from their new album, A Brand New Hurt. To hear the song with words, and lots of other great music, to www.loudenswain.com or search for Louden Swain on iTunes. Comments, questions, suggestions for New Best Friends? email NewBestFriend@gmail.com