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Car Trip Trivia is an all ages podcast with an extensive back catalogue of well over 12,000 questions. Have a listen..... Facebook PatreonSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ladies... we let a man in the house. For 120 episodes it's been us, our people, and a lot of opinions about men. This week we finally handed one the mic, and honestly? He came correct. Garth Gerhart is a writer, a former Mad Magazine cartoonist, an Army vet, and the author of Montana Made: How Losing My Father, My Mind, and My Patience Made Me Sort Of a Better Man. (Our favorite part of that title is "sort of." His too.) If you have a complicated dad, a diagnosis you're scared to say out loud, or a man in your life who thinks asking for help is weakness, send this one to them. We got your back. All of you. Even the fellas, apparently.   Get the book: Available on Amazon, at Target, Barnes & Noble, and Simon & Schuster. Follow Garth: Instagram @garthgerhart And listen: his aunt left a one star review. We're asking the Got HER Back family to go handle that.   Chapters: 00:00:00 Cold open: "All my friends are dead" 00:00:45 Gold era, anniversary bracelets, and our first man 00:02:00 Montana Made and why "sort of" is the best part 00:03:00 Estranged since 21 and a phone call asking for $500 00:04:00 When your kid is stuck between two parents 00:05:00 The 2020 snap: a bipolar diagnosis at 45 00:07:00 Mad Magazine, comics, and betting his career on the book 00:08:00 Bozeman, wood paneling, and 40 years of memory 00:09:00 Casino, bar, casino, bar: finding empathy for his father 00:10:00 Dino turns 70 and refuses to enjoy it 00:11:00 Meeting your dad where he is (and the Colorado Bulldog) 00:13:00 Four DWIs, wild stories, and doing the forgiving for yourself 00:14:00 Ashes on the mountain: the first time he ever held him 00:15:30 The clown urn and Megan's cremation panic 00:18:00 Sisters, Beth Dutton energy, and a book they didn't love 00:19:00 Same parents, completely different childhoods 00:20:00 Parenting at 25 versus parenting at 50 00:23:00 Patience, perimenopause, and changing temperaments 00:25:00 The rules: "I'm allowed one vice" 00:28:00 The "drugs are bad" rule that delayed his medication 00:29:00 Why mania feels like a superpower 00:30:00 Old Megan versus new Megan: boundaries and misdiagnosis 00:31:00 Hyperfixation, intrusive thoughts, and the life jacket fight 00:33:00 Emergency protocol and the flight home from Hawaii 00:35:00 The stop sign that saved his life 00:36:00 Men's mental health and the stigma nobody names 00:38:00 Shame, projection, and learning your own symptoms 00:40:00 Where to get Montana Made (and please fix that one star)  

A bestselling computer book and a mayor's office may seem worlds apart, but Dan Gookin's path connects them through curiosity, clear communication, and public service. I talk with the DOS for Dummies author and Coeur d'Alene mayor about making technical writing useful, challenging industries that resist new ideas, and finding success by improving work others do poorly. Dan also shares why he entered local politics, how transparency and community engagement built public trust, and why responsible leadership often means asking the questions others overlook. We close by exploring political division, religious freedom, social media algorithms, and the need to reduce online anger without losing the internet's benefits. Highlights: 00:06:48 - Why leaving your comfort zone creates growth. 00:11:07 - How doing something better can become a business. 00:12:39 - Why writing for beginners changed computer publishing. 00:27:06 - How transparency concerns led Dan into politics. 00:37:30 - Why responsiveness helped Dan earn public trust. 00:54:49 - How social media fuels anger and division. About the Guest: Dan Gookin is the mayor-elect of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, having won election in November 2025 after serving on the City Council since 2011. Known as a fiscal conservative, outspoken advocate for government transparency, and a committed budget hawk who asks tough questions, he is often described as “the lone voice of reason” on the council, consistently championing the public and the “little guy” against bureaucracy. Gookin views his public service as protecting individual rights. He prides himself on listening to all perspectives, welcoming alternative viewpoints, remaining open to new information, and never being a rubber-stamp vote. Professionally, Gookin is known as a writer and online trainer. He has been writing about technology since the early days of personal computing, combining his humor with a passion for gadgets to create informative and entertaining books. He authored the groundbreaking DOS For Dummies in 1991—the world's fastest-selling computer book at the time and the title that launched the iconic For Dummies series, now a publishing phenomenon. With more than 170 titles to his credit, over 12 million copies in print, and translations into more than 30 languages, his popular works include PCs and Laptops For Dummies, Android For Dummies, Word For Dummies, and C For Dummies. He maintains two helpful websites, wambooli.com and c-for-dummies.com. He creates online courses for LinkedIn Learning on diverse topics, and in 2020 published Running for Local Office For Dummies. Gookin graduated from the University of California, San Diego with a BA in Communications/Visual Arts and minors in cognitive psychology and theatrical design. He put his creative talents to work as artistic director of the Lake City Playhouse, where he designed sets, lighting, and directed many productions between 1997 and 2002. First and foremost, Dan considers himself a father who raised four boys in Idaho. Gookin resides in Coeur d'Alene with his wife, Brie, along with various children and pets. In his leisure time, he enjoys woodworking, playing the piano, riding his bike, cooking, gardening, and making lists of things he enjoys doing along with occasionally annoying those who think that they're important. Ways to connect with Dan**:** LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-gookin-46995713/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/dangookin About the Host: Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog. Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards. https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/ Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below! Subscribe to the podcast If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can subscribe in your favorite podcast app. You can also support our podcast through our tip jar https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/unstoppable-mindset . Leave us an Apple Podcasts review Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts. Transcription Notes: Michael Hingson  00:04 What if the biggest thing holding you back isn't what's in front of you, but rather what you believe? Welcome to Unstoppable Mindset, where inclusion, diversity, and the unexpected meet. I'm your host, Michael Hingston, speaker, author, and advocate for inclusion and possibilities. This podcast explores how the beliefs we carry shape the way we live, lead, and connect with others. Each week, I talk with people who challenge assumptions, face adversity head-on, and show what's possible when we choose curiosity over fear. Together, we focus on mindset, resilience, and the small shifts that lead to meaningful change. Let's get started. Hello there, everyone. Welcome to another episode of Unstoppable Mindset. I am your host, Michael Hingston, and today we get to chat with Dan Gookin. Do you know who Dan Gookin is? Probably not, but you will by the time we're done. But I will tell you one thing about Dan. He was elected mayor of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, in November of 2025. I think Dan, you're the first political person as such that we have had on, which is kind of cool. I'm really honored to to have you here, and and we can spend the the whole time picking on on other politicians, but there's no need to do that. I mean, what good does it do? It's a waste of time. But I want to welcome you to Unstoppable Mindset, and Dan, thanks very much for being here. Dan Gookin  01:44 Thank you, Michael. Thank you for having me on. Michael Hingson  01:46 Well, this will, I think, really be a lot of fun. I'm sorry that you guys aren't getting a lot of snow up there. My brother-in-law has been keeping me posted on the lack of snow, so today here we're expecting a temperature at about 70 degrees. Last week it got up to 39. So I don't know. There's something going on with the climate. Dan Gookin  02:10 Something. Michael Hingson  02:11 Yeah, whatever it is. Speaker 1  02:13 Well, there was a name for that. Michael Hingson  02:15 Yeah, yeah. If if there were enough people, would only believe it. But that's another story. You are right. Well, thanks very much for being here. Why don't we start? Tell me about the early Dan growing up and all that. Speaker 1  02:31 So I grew up in San Diego, California. Good place. I still say San Michael Hingson  02:35 Diego has the best weather in the country. Speaker 1  02:38 They do. It's changed a little bit as everything has, but I escaped from there back in 1991. Went up to Washington State because I was doing some work with Microsoft, and then decided that that was Seattle was another big city. So we kept looking east and finally landed in Idaho in Coeur d'Alene because it's pretty. Michael Hingson  03:01 It's a nice area. So you you did your schooling and all that down in San Diego. Speaker 1  03:06 Yeah, I graduated from the University of California, San Diego with a degree in communication visual arts. That was in 1983. Michael Hingson  03:13 Cool, wow. I've spent many a a day down in San Diego. I lived in Vista for six years, so I'm familiar with the area. Yeah, I liked Vista. Vista was a nice place to be. You Speaker 1  03:24 did a radio show out of Vista. Did you for a while? Yeah, computer call-in show. So that was way back. Michael Hingson  03:32 What did you discuss, or just anything dealing with computers? I Speaker 1  03:36 was editing a magazine, a local computer magazine at the time, and we purchased an hour, and so I would drive from my home in Tierra Santa all the way up to Vista to be in this little tiny radio station, where we would do call-ins. And sometimes people would call in, and I would help them solve their computer problems. And sometimes I had to talk to myself for Michael Hingson  03:57 an hour. And and and did you get answers when you talk to yourself. Speaker 1  04:02 No, but I got really hoarse. Ah, okay. Michael Hingson  04:04 Well, you know, just just checking. Well, that's cool. Well, I guess we could tell everyone that, among other things, Dan is also the author of a number of books, including DOS for Dummies. I still like DOS. Thank you. I I like DOS. I've just always enjoyed it. Although, I have to admit, Windows has progressed a whole lot more. But I always liked DOS. Speaker 1  04:27 Yes, it was good, and and it was its complexity or its a rudeness, I shall say. Yeah, that's a good. Sold the book because you had to type. You had to know the commands in Windows. You can kind of look and point and do all this stuff, but in DOS, you had to know the commands and type the commands, and people wouldn't-they couldn't remember. There were all these options, and so we sold a lot of books doing that. It's still, like I said, I I like it too. I like the command line because it's faster if you know what you have to type. Yeah, it takes less time to type. Than it does to look around, point and shoot with the mouse. Michael Hingson  05:04 Yeah, there are a number of blind people on some list serves that I am part of that every so often something regarding DOS comes up, which is I think kind of cool. Speaker 1  05:15 Yep, hasn't gone away. It's it's still lurking in there somewhere. Michael Hingson  05:19 It is still a kind of the basic underpinning foundation of a lot of Windows, isn't it? Speaker 1  05:25 Well, Windows actually does run on top of it still. If you if you when you start a program in Windows, you're actually issuing a text command. So inside there is a long text command that is issued that gets everything running. It's just that you're configuring that from a graphical perspective, Michael Hingson  05:44 right? Yeah, but but it is still running. DOS essentially runs under Windows, which is which is something that is is relevant. So I guess we could blame that on Bill Gates, Speaker 1  05:57 or credit him. I don't know. Michael Hingson  05:58 Or yeah, yeah, one of the other. Well, so you you graduated, you moved to Seattle. As you said, it is a big city, although you know it's kind of hard to fight Pike's fish market. Speaker 1  06:11 Well, there's there's the fun and charming parts of of Seattle that I really enjoyed. So I mean, I can't say that you know it was a horrible city. The thing I admired about Seattle the most was that Seattle would occasionally not take itself seriously, and I liked that it had a sense of humor and that people there were generally good natured. San Diego was a little bit more uptight, you know, fair weather fans, that kind of stuff, where Seattle was more of a community, and I admired that greatly. Michael Hingson  06:43 And there used to be a lot of rain up there. Speaker 1  06:45 Not as much as people say. That's kind of their reputation. The Pacific Northwest we do have. So I moved from Southern California where you have 360 days of sun a year to Pacific Northwest where you have 180, so it was kind of a shock from that point of view. It's mostly like today; it's overcast. It's just there's no sun, so that's the big difference. Michael Hingson  07:10 And then you moved up to Idaho, and and how many days of sun or not sun are there a year? Speaker 1  07:16 Oh, still about 180. 180. Uh huh. But it's you know so you get used to it after a while, and when the sun comes out, you're all happy, and it's like, look, the sun's out, everything's pretty. Michael Hingson  07:27 Yeah, fair. Yeah. So when you were in San Diego and so on, what did you want to do or be when you grew up? Speaker 1  07:36 So originally, I wanted to be a doctor, and then I had the misfortune of being in a hospital, and I said I don't ever want to be back here, and changed my mind and figured I would be a writer. So for years I started writing and submitting things to magazines, trying to work on books and stuff. I mean I wrote a few books, and they say that you have to get about a million words of junk out before you actually are a good writer. So I I worked on that for a long time, and got to the point where I I actually had a reputation with some of the editors in the magazines who would write me back personal notes instead of the generic you know dismissal, and so that was working really well. But then what happened in 1984 was I wrote something for the local computer flyer, and they liked that, and it got published, and that was what really started the career for tech because tech wanted people who knew how to write, so that was good timing. Michael Hingson  08:35 Yeah, so many technical manuals are just so boring. I really wish people would learn how to write more interesting books. Of course, I say that about textbooks as well. I am of the opinion that having a master's degree in physics and having read many a physics book, the and there are so few of them. The best books are the ones where the authors have put some actual personal stories in to draw people in with human interest parts of the science, and I wish more people would do that. Speaker 1  09:03 And that was my point too. It was like these books are dull and boring. And the problem I had because I was writing computer books at the time, I had a computer book literary agent. There is such a thing, and it's it's backwards in that industry though, because the publisher says what they want a book on, and then they have you write the book on the topic, and so I was doing that for many years. But I did not like the fact that they would edit my books to make them dry, and the editors would actually complain to me and say, "There's too much personality in here. You can't have this. It was like it was like they thought that was a built-in feature of the book, and my protest was, "Well, no. Let's make them interesting. Let's use real life examples. Let's have some personality in there. Let's have some interaction with the with the reader. And they didn't like that until DOS for Dummies came around, and the publisher was willing to change the paradigm. Michael Hingson  09:55 Jeez, yeah, it's so unfortunate. They they think they know. Everything there is to know, and the reality is they don't. Speaker 1  10:04 That's the way it is with just about any industry. You know that I think the corporate mentality is kind of to resist innovation, even in the most innovative industries, until something crazy comes along. And I think that's why in Silicon Valley you had all these startups. You know, if you look, if you trace the lineage of a lot of the big companies, they started at other big companies that were unwilling to do the crazy ideas these guys had, and so they went off. I mean, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak left Hewlett Packard and started up Apple Computer, and I'm pretty sure there's probably been some engineers from Apple Computer who've left and started up their own company and becoming Michael Hingson  10:43 well. And Bill Gates is essentially the same way. It's it's he started out doing something, but he attracted people's attention by some of the other things that he did. Speaker 1  10:53 Yep. Michael Hingson  10:54 And that was was very relevant. But I I hear what you're saying. It makes perfect sense because people just don't like to be innovative and don't like change, and and that's unfortunate that we have so many people that just, as much as they talk about the fact that change is everywhere, they don't like it. Speaker 1  11:10 No, it's well, I think yeah, we we get in our comfort zone, and you don't grow out in the comfort zone. So I like to challenge myself and do interesting things like become mayor, and you know you leave your comfort zone. And what what can I do here, or how can I do this better? Michael Hingson  11:26 Yeah, well, and that makes makes perfect sense. Well, what got you started writing about technology? Just because you were writing that that one article there, or those articles that got interest on the part of a publisher, or what? Speaker 1  11:41 What got me started was that I got paid. Ah, Michael Hingson  11:44 good point. Speaker 1  11:45 You know, they they paid me, and then you know, as as someone who was you know using a computer at the time, and they were called microcomputers, and they were really primitive compared to what we have today. Oh yeah, I I used it to write. So, and the the problem with that was that the the documents, the manuals that we talk about, were so dry and boring, and eventually, all of a sudden, it would dawn on me: it's like, well, this is what it's trying to say. So why don't they just come out and say it this way, or why don't they use an analogy and try to explain it in that manner instead of coming at it from this hardcore technical? And that was what really turned off a lot of people, so it motivated me to want to do it better, and that's kind of what I tell the kids, like my kids. I say you should start up a business. That's really the best way to get successful is start up your own business and become famous like that. And they're well, what business should I start up? I said that the easiest way is to find something that you like, something that's being done poorly, and just do it better. Yeah, and that's really a lot of the the creative, insanely genius stuff that's happened throughout the world is just someone who does something routine but does it better. Michael Hingson  12:52 And that's really the operative part about it, and and the real key. I think you're you're absolutely right. Find something that people aren't doing well, and by the time you get creative enough to figure that out, you're well on your way. Speaker 1  13:05 Yep. So that's that's what I did. Michael Hingson  13:08 Yeah. And so you started going off and and writing a variety of things. What what actually got you to write Dos for Dummies? What specifically? That's first of all, I love the the title of all the Four Dummies books. I think it makes sense. But what got you started in writing DOS for Dummies directly? Speaker 1  13:27 Well, I I knew that there was an appetite out there for beginner computer books, but the publishing industry would not publish beginning computer books because they said beginners don't buy computer books. And I explained to them, well, your problem is you don't write beginner computer books. You write something and you call it, you know, the easy guide to whatever, but the content of it is not written for a beginner. Maybe the first chapter is very condescending and patronizing, and then the rest of it is just technical garbage. So I said you have to keep that tone throughout the entire text. You have to identify who it is you're writing to, as who's a smart person who may just not get it, and explain it to them, and just keep going. And that was the problem. So I I did originally called it the Idiots Guide for DOS, which was based after the Idiots Guide to Volkswagen Repair. My dad had a copy of that, and I thought, well, what a brilliant idea. Michael Hingson  14:20 Yeah. Speaker 1  14:21 And so the publisher saw me speak at a conference, and where I was bemoaning the fact that the books were so boring, and they kept editing out my personality. And then went to to him, and and he's like, "This is great. Your outline that you have for this book is perfect. Except we want to call it DOS for Dummies. I thought, like a lot of other people, that was condescending and patronizing, but that it's an alliteration, so that's what they go with. And then he said to make it a reference. Don't make it a tutorial because, and this is brilliant, these people don't want to learn anything; they just want to do their job. Yeah, that makes sense. So that was and that was it, and we put a lot of humor in it. You know, people would tell me that they'd read the book on the subway, and you know, you'd see someone laughing reading a computer book. That's weird, but there would just be enough humor, and I'd use Mad Magazine as my inspiration. So it was kind of like us versus the nerds, and and that was what really founded the whole thing, and I tell you what, it caught on. I did not think it would. There was no way we were planning on writing a book that would sell, you know, 8 million copies. We were just thinking, well, this is going to be fun. Let's just do this, get it out of our system, and then go back to writing boring books. Michael Hingson  15:36 Made the publisher very happy. Speaker 1  15:39 Oh yeah, they were printing Gold bricks, yeah. Michael Hingson  15:43 That, of course, was the real key. Well, that started a brand, didn't it? Speaker 1  15:47 Oh yeah, they did. There was no intention to do that, but then they they followed that up with Max for Dummies and a bunch of other titles that were just very popular at the time. AOL for Dummies, you know, Windows for Dummies eventually came out, and that was the King for Dummies book. But yeah, they have and they have it on all topics. I've even so as someone who is you know starting in government, I got Robert's Rules for Dummies, which you know you've been to a meeting, you know they follow Robert's Rules, which is very dry and boring, but it's it's important. And Robert's Rules for Dummies is a good example of a For Dummies book because it explains everything carefully. Lots of humor in there, and so there's a lot of them. Wine for Dummies was another one that I really liked. I thought they did a good job. Golf for Dummies. There's a there's on every topic. There's a For Dummies book. Michael Hingson  16:37 How many of them did you write? Speaker 1  16:40 Only wrote the ones with my names on them, but probably about 40 separate titles. So over the years, most of them have been rewrites. So technology changes. So there have been 16 editions of Word for Dummies, and 13 editions of PCs for Dummies. There were four editions of DOS for Dummies. So you're you're always writing new editions, so all totaled 180 separate titles. But individual titles, without not counting multiple editions, right? About 60. Michael Hingson  17:09 Wow. Speaker 1  17:10 Yeah. Yeah, Michael Hingson  17:10 and I can appreciate that that books like Word for Dummies or even iPhones for Dummies has to change over time. Speaker 1  17:19 Yeah. Well, some of them. I mean, I've been doing a kind of a review on on YouTube. I've been doing short videos highlighting some of the goofy images that I put in the books over the years. And way back about 20 years ago, I think I was updating these titles once a year. They would say, "We need a new version of this. We need a new version of this. And at the time, technology was just. I mean, they were cranking out new stuff all the time. Michael Hingson  17:44 So, who's written AI for Dummies? Speaker 1  17:47 I don't know, but that is a title, so I wouldn't be Michael Hingson  17:50 surprised. Speaker 1  17:51 It should write itself, though. You think about Michael Hingson  17:53 it. Yeah, you you know, they they really should do that. It should write itself. Speaker 1  17:56 Someone told me once that they they they wanted to do a manual in my style, so they directed AI to write something in the style of Dan Gukan, and apparently AI can do that. So, am I going to get paid? I don't know. Michael Hingson  18:10 Well, that's another story, of course. Yeah, but still, it it is a it's a it's a great franchise. It's a great brand all the way around, and I know different people have written different different kinds of books like that, but still, the the fact is we need that in the world, and and I agree with you, especially that it's good to put humor and personality into it. And I really wish more people would do that. I really wish that would go into the the textbook world, but it hasn't yet. Speaker 1  18:37 No, that's that, and that's a different planet. I tried to break into that world, and that academia is is it's different. It is weird. Michael Hingson  18:44 Yeah, there are just not that many people who can get away with it like Richard Feynman did with some of the things that he did in physics, and even there, his his books were a little boring at times. But still, Speaker 1  18:56 he was awesome. His of course, his his autobiography is a lot of fun. Michael Hingson  19:00 Yeah, surely you're joking, mr. Fineman. Speaker 1  19:03 Exactly. Michael Hingson  19:04 Adventures of yeah, it is. I I keep it around. I've got an audio copy of it, and every so often I will go back and read parts of it. It's a it's a great book. Speaker 1  19:14 He's kind of an inspiration to me, especially in the area of government. And one of the parts of his book where he was on the panel that was reviewing textbooks for, I think, the state of California, and he noticed that one of the books was blank; it was empty, and he was the only one on the panel who did it. And I kind of echo that often in government because I'm occasionally the only person who actually reads some of the material they provide. Yeah, and and those kind of moments are classic. I love those. You know, when you can say, "Well, as everyone notices, you know, page 14 is blank, and they all madly flip to page 14, like, "Oh my gosh, how did you find this? Well, I, I did my job. I read the thing. Michael Hingson  19:54 I had a roommate in college, and we at that time we were using the Berkeley Physics series. I don't know. Whether that even still exists anymore, but different professors from Berkeley wrote various books, and the guy who wrote the book on waves, I had a roommate who was reading that book, and he searched vigorously to try to find a single misspelling of a word in the whole book. Wow! He finally found one. He said there really was one in the book. Kind of makes you wonder if that was deliberate, but but he actually found one. But it took him most of the quarter we had the book to find it. But but he did. Speaker 1  20:33 Excellent. Yeah, I got to say that's that's an art form. I used to work in a publishing house, and we would pore over books looking for spelling errors and mistakes and punctuation and all this stuff and of course you don't find them until the book's actually printed. Michael Hingson  20:46 Of course not. Yeah, yeah. Now it's it should be easier, but it's not, and they still don't come out until the book is already published and it's out there, and then you find out what isn't right. Speaker 1  20:58 Right. Michael Hingson  21:00 I suppose that gives the publisher an excuse to republish the book and make more money. Speaker 1  21:05 Well, yeah, it depends. It's if it is selling. If it doesn't sell, then obviously the the mistake's going to linger out there. Of course, with digital copies, they can update it right away, but not with a print book. Michael Hingson  21:17 Yeah, nowadays there's so many print books that are done pretty much on demand, so that if you want a copy, unless it's just something where they're selling literally millions a month, the book is available on demand. Although there's a little bit of a lag time to get it, my book Thunderdog, which is the story of Roselle and me in the World Trade Center, is is still selling pretty well, but it is more printed on demand by Thomas Nelson than now Harper Collins. Speaker 1  21:46 Yeah, Michael Hingson  21:47 and I understand that as long as it's available, I'm not going to complain. Speaker 1  21:51 And they and they they prefer to sell it that way as opposed to printing out 5000 copies they have to store somewhere. So Michael Hingson  21:56 right, yeah, they don't have to pay for storage and they just print it, and so it takes an extra week to get somewhere. That's fine. We can cope with that as long as it's available, and then that's all that really matters. Speaker 1  22:08 Yeah. Michael Hingson  22:09 But you've written a lot of books. How come so many? Because they're not all for dummies. Ah, okay. Speaker 1  22:16 Well, it just you know that was my profession, and that's what I did. And so, and I had a good agent who would find me a lot of work, so yeah, they would come up and they would want me to write a book on this or that, and a lot of it was because at the time in that industry I had a name and a reputation. I'm also very fast, so and that that kind of surprises people. In fact, there's some someone who accuses me of having a ghostwriter, which I do not. It's just I've been doing it so long, and you know, when I started, my agent said that he said the more you do this, the faster you'll get, the better you'll get. So, whereas in the original book, the first book I wrote took about six months to to write. I've written books in less than a month. It really depends. It depends on the topic, how well I know the topic, but also I do a lot of organizing with an outline, and so I will will work with an outline almost until it's down to the paragraph level, and then that makes it really easy to write the book, especially a technology book where there's a lot of cross references, and this sequence, you know, assuming someone's reading it front to back is really important, so you got to make sure that you touch upon things and do it in the right order. And then that's so yeah. I just got really good at it, which annoyed a lot of my fellow authors because as I was writing and I would get faster and faster, the contracts would start demanding the books in a more expedient manner, so other authors would complain to me and say, "You know, I have to write this book, and they're only giving me three months to do it. They're blaming me because I can do it in three months, and they figure everyone can do it in three months. So that was fun. Michael Hingson  23:54 Have you had books that someone asked you to write where you really didn't know much of anything about the subject, and you had to spend more time researching it, or you just spend time researching it, but you still did that very quickly. Speaker 1  24:06 Yeah, when I first started, that was pretty much the case. In fact, I talked with a guy who he had written the like the best-selling DBase three book. So DBase was a database way back in DOS, and it was the most popular database program, and he wrote the number one best-selling DBase three book that everyone who used that that program would buy, and he told me that he knew nothing about it when he signed the contract. So the the process of writing the book involved this intense deep dive into finding out what it is the program does, and then working on that. Of course, in those days, the books, the software came with a manual, so it was possible to go through the manual and see what the thing was capable of, and maybe get a few hints about that. But the books were not just a rephrase. The manual; they were a little bit better, the project oriented, whatever. So there was one one book that I did on a program called Super Card for the Macintosh, and it was the it was the there was no documentation, and I could call up the developer and I could ask him. So that was that was a tool I could use if I had access to the developer. I could call them up and I could say, "Okay, so I'm I'm doing this. What can you tell me that's like a secret or that is not obvious? And they love to share that stuff. Sure, I just write it all down, and then that that'll make the book better. If you could get through the the gatekeepers and get into where the nerds were, then you could get a lot of good information, and they were happy to share it. I did a few books on OS two that were like that, where I finally was able to escape into the lab and ask them. And the the guy they were so friendly, and they're like, "Oh, you got to tell him this, this, this, this. You know, we we couldn't put this in the manual. You have to tell him this, and so you write a great book. But of course, OS two, no one used it, so no one bought the book. Michael Hingson  26:05 Yeah, yeah, OS two was not one of those things that everybody loved. If Speaker 2  26:13 you enjoy Unstoppable Mindset and would like to help us continue bringing these conversations to you each week, we've created a way for you to support the show. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and continue sharing stories, insights, and ideas that inspire people to live with purpose and possibility. If supporting the podcast feels right for you, you'll find the link in the show notes. Thank you for being part of the unstoppable mindset community. Michael Hingson  26:46 I remember when I was a student at UC Irvine. I wasn't an information computer science major. I was physics major, but several people took ICS one, two, and three, which was a three quarter course, or well, it was a year course, and the the book they used was Introduction to Computer Programming by Ken Ingram. And what was fun about that was that on the first day of class, the professor would come in and he'd say, "Okay, I want you to read chapter one of information of introduction to computer programming by Ken Ingram. It's the textbook we're going to use. I want you to read that before our next class. And of course, most everyone had not touched the book prior to that. And what he didn't say was that that first chapter took up half the book. Speaker 1  27:40 I like it. Michael Hingson  27:43 Yeah, I know. Wasn't that? And I, I, I heard about it. I, I never did get the book, and I didn't get it transcribed into Braille. But I thought that was cute. Chapter one was half the book. Speaker 1  27:53 No one would have suspected chapter one's an easy chapter. It's four pages. Right, supposed to be right. I think it was like Michael Hingson  28:00 180 pages. It was amazing. Michael Hingson  28:03 I'm not sure whether Ingram had a sense of humor or what, but anyway, there you go. But yeah, that that was kind of kind of amazing. So you you wrote all these books and you continue to do that, but somewhere along the line, you got interested in doing things in politics. What was that all about? Speaker 1  28:25 Well, that was frustrating. Not Michael Hingson  28:28 bad, Speaker 1  28:29 because I. So I think a lot of people are kind of interested. They follow politics. If I call up my mom in San Diego, she has to complain to me about you know the mayor of San Diego and what the city council is doing and and it's it's common it's just I think I think the most most people who are active in in their community know a little bit about politics or whatever and in my case I had just moved from the county here near Courtland and then I'd moved into the city, and I had heard that there was someone was buying up properties in my neighborhood, and I thought that was curious, and I wanted to see if this was something that you know are they going to tear down houses? What are they going to do? So I started researching using the the county website to see who was own who owned these properties, and it was a place called the Lake City Development Corporation, and I thought, well, I need to find out what that is, and it turned out that was an urban renewal agency that was formed by the city of Cortland, and I started reading the statutes and I started reading their minutes and finding out what it is they do, and while on the surface it sounded really fun, there were a lot of curious things that I didn't like. A lot of non-transparent things, a lot of things where you know they're spending public money on what I thought were frivolous things, and so I started asking questions. I started coming to meetings, and they're missing. Was that they pushed back, and so I just something triggered me, and I had a red flag, and I just started going after it. We started, we formed a group of people who were all interested in this, and we would meet regularly and go over what was going on with the government. We'd find issues regarding transparency and spending, and lots of interesting stuff. Never really anything nefarious. Never anything that would. But just a lot of stuff that, as we let the public know about what was going on, they would become outraged and they would say, "Wait a second! They're spending millions of dollars on this, and you know, with property taxes so high, and what is this, and why is it affecting me? And and so I went to the city council meetings here in Portland, and I was frustrated because no one else seemed to get it. And I would look at them, and they would have some issue that would come up, and everyone on the council-there were six members on the council-they would all vote in unison, and no one had asked a question. And I would say, "Well, wait a second, why aren't they asking a question about this, or why aren't they concerned about this, or what about the side effects of this? And so I started writing articles for the paper. I eventually did videos and to speak to various groups and such because I was like, we got to hold government accountable. So I ran for office in ran for the city council in 2007, and I lost. And then I ran in 2009, and I lost, but only by like 29 votes. And then I was done at that point. I really didn't want to do it again because running for office is a pain. Michael Hingson  31:33 Yeah. And Speaker 1  31:34 then they had this huge thing where all of a sudden they were going to redo a park without a public vote, and I wanted a public vote. Lots of people wanted to vote on it, but no, they were going to do it, and they didn't care what the public thought. So they made me run. They made me run a third time, and I won. And I've been on the city council ever since. And then, of course, well, since last November when I got kicked up to the mayor seat, which is where I'm sitting Right now, strange journey. Michael Hingson  32:04 Well, yeah, but on the other hand, there is something to be said for transparency, and there's somebody something to be said for somebody who really wants to look out for what what people want and what people are doing. I I got involved. Well, I've not run for public office, but I've been very much involved in political kinds of things because I've been involved in the blindness world since early 1970s, and the National Federation of the Blind has had for well now, gosh, more than 50 years or around 50 years, what used to be called the March on Washington. Now it's called the Washington Seminar, which is a an event that takes place every year, where several 100 blind people descend on Washington and go off and visit legislators. And the idea is to really get them to understand what the needs of blind people are and try to get them to vote on issues that directly relate to issues concerning us, and sometimes they do. Although it's gotten a lot harder to get things passed, especially in the last eight or nine years. But still, that it it has to be done. But I remember, among other things, I was living in Massachusetts when I first started going, and among other things, we we went and saw the Speaker of the House, who was Tip O'Neill at the time, which was kind of fun. And what an interesting, what a charismatic guy! Didn't matter what party he was with; it was a charismatic guy. And we also visited people like Senator at the time Paul Songis, and what was interesting about him was we we talked about our issues, and it was the end of the day, and then suddenly he said, you know, I'm not going anywhere for the next few minutes. Do you guys have time? And we ended up just talking for about an hour and a half about his view of of and our views of what Massachusetts needed to do, not only for blind people but just in general, it was just fascinating. There weren't very many politicians who would do that. Speaker 1  34:08 That's awesome. Yeah, I liked him. I liked Tungus a lot. Michael Hingson  34:12 Yeah, I wish he'd been able to run for president, but he got cancer, and that's that's unfortunate. Yeah, but because I think that he's one of those people who would do what really needed to be done and do it the right way. Speaker 1  34:26 In other words, the people who never win. Yeah, that's unfortunately Michael Hingson  34:31 really the case, isn't it? Speaker 2  34:33 Yeah, Speaker 1  34:33 yeah. Michael Hingson  34:34 But but you got to do that. Speaker 1  34:36 Yeah. Michael Hingson  34:38 So you you know, but you you hopefully you'll make a big difference, and maybe you'll be able to get people to believe in climate change. Oh, did I say that Speaker 1  34:48 this year? Nah, Michael Hingson  34:53 not unless you predict snow when it actually comes. Speaker 1  34:56 That and that and that's the key. Yeah, Michael Hingson  34:59 yeah. No, I understand, but it but it is fascinating. I you know I I enjoy the concept of politics. I enjoy people who really have a vested interest in making government go well, but it is so unfortunate that we don't see that much of it, which is just too bad. Speaker 1  35:18 There are a lot of good dedicated people out there. I think so. Of course, the the problem is is you know, like they say, politics is sports for the uncoordinated, and it's drama for the ugly. But the the thing is, the people who really do a good job, who are out there doing what you want them to do, they don't get the headlines. It's the noisemakers. It's the extremists. It's the people who are going to have some obnoxious opinion because that that gets everyone's attention. You know, the the guy out there who's doing the job, who's putting in the time, representing the citizens, and making his community a better place. You know, you're never going to read that guy in the paper, unfortunately. Michael Hingson  35:59 Yeah, and that's also part of the problem: is that the media looks for all the drama rather than really looking to to represent the the average citizen and what they truly want and need. Speaker 1  36:10 So those don't the actual the things don't make headlines. In fact, it was a it was really funny. There was a guy who was elected to the state house from this county, and one of his campaign platforms, he was going to repeal all the useless laws, all the things that are still on the books. That you know, just we don't need those laws anymore. They're old. They're outdated, and he did that for about a week, and it doesn't make headlines. So here he is, you know, doing this, doing the job that you think they they would want to do and making government more effective, no one cared. I remember there was one year where we actually we cut property taxes here in the city, and I thought, wow, everyone's going to come up and say thank you. No, no one did. So it's like, what's the motivation? If you go, they say, I want you to be I want you to be my mayor and I want you to work to cut that budget and so you cut the budget and then no one says thank you. Michael Hingson  37:08 We got Tom Steyer here in California who wants to become governor and he's talking about all these things that he's going to do. He's going to get electric utility rates lowered by a significant amount. He's going to encourage and bring competition to the electric grid industry, and he talks about lowering housing costs by building a million homes and doing so many things. And every time I hear his campaign commercials, the thing that I keep asking myself is, haven't we learned anything? And no offense to Donald Trump, but Donald Trump made a lot of promises that we're not seeing. Steyer is making a lot of promises that he has yet to say how he's going to pull any of them off. Speaker 1  37:56 Oh yeah, and that's and that's the thing is you got to. There's so much. There's only so much you can do. But you can you when you campaign, they can say anything. Of course, I know they might as well just say free ice cream and ponies for everyone. Michael Hingson  38:07 Yeah, and and that's almost essentially what's happening. And I'm not saying that he'd be a bad governor. I I haven't researched him enough, but the commercials just don't do anything to make me thrilled because he's not saying how he's going to do any of it, and and that's what I really want to know. Speaker 1  38:25 Yeah, I didn't when I when I ran this campaign, I didn't really promise anything that was sexy at all. I said, you know, I'm going to work on a policy manual. I'm going to increase the amount of information and transparency, and it was like nothing that you want to put on a bumper sticker, but I still won. I mean, there were people who were in the race who were promising this and that, and they were going to do this and all this stuff, and somehow I eked it out. Michael Hingson  38:51 Why do you think you won? Speaker 1  38:52 Name recognition, Michael Hingson  38:54 okay, Speaker 1  38:55 and that's and that's pretty much that's a lot of what politics is is is just the the name recognition. You can win on that. I also do have a reputation. I mean, being on council for 14 years and being often called the lone voice of reason, like I said earlier, I'm the one who asked that obvious question. Yeah, and people are in the audience are going, "Well, thank you. Someone's finally asking what what they wanted to ask, and so there was there was that, and and I also, you know, I I do return my emails. I answer the phone calls. I make sure that I'm I'm available. So you know, and I think that that reputation kind of spread itself around that that I would be responsive. It didn't mean that I actually did anything because the you know the powers are really limited. So if someone wanted you know they want to put in a stop sign somewhere, I'll go visit them, and we'll look at the thing, and we'll look at the traffic data, and all this stuff. But there may not be a stop sign there. Still, I showed enough time that I paid attention to them, and I responded to them, and you know, we'll see what we can do. That's the best you can say. Michael Hingson  39:55 And if it didn't happen that there was a stop sign, but there was a good reason for it. I would suspect that you would be the kind of person who would say, "Here's why it didn't happen. Speaker 1  40:03 Right, exactly, and and to explain that for and a lot of people don't understand things like that because it's easy to get defensive with government because sometimes it can be so colossally stupid. Yeah, but but it's just as long as you have that explanation, and sometimes it's it's really it's refreshing because then they hear the answer and they're good with it, so we have a problem here with there's noise on the freeway because they're expanding the freeway, and a lot of people are upset, so they call city hall, but it's not our project; it's the state highway district. So you know, it's like I can do only what I can do, but it's still you know, if you're the only elected official who bothered to reply to them and told them, you know, I hear what you're saying. I'm going to do whatever we can. Sometimes that makes people happy. They may not be happy in the big picture, but at least they got a response. Michael Hingson  40:48 And when you discover something that's relevant, I'll bet you are the kind of person who would then initiate another letter saying, "Here's why it didn't work, or "Here's why it will work. Speaker 1  40:59 Right, and I do follow up. So I did. In that case, I wrote a letter to the governor and said, "You know, is there anything you can do? And then I forwarded the letter on to the person who had contacted me and said, "Okay, this is the best I can do. Let's let's see what he can do. So yeah, Speaker 1  41:14 yeah. Michael Hingson  41:15 I'm I'm curious. You mentioned that property taxes did get lowered once in Cordellane, but nothing. No one ever did anything with that. How come? Speaker 1  41:23 Well, no. It's just we we did. We we kept them. You got you got them lowered. Michael Hingson  41:27 But but why didn't anybody pay attention to that? Speaker 1  41:30 No. Well, see, I'm sure they paid attention to it. We are only one entity on your property tax bill, so there's there's a few. Ah, good Michael Hingson  41:39 point. Speaker 1  41:39 We might have been the the one who kept it down, but the other ones may have kept it up. And then there's all the the formula is really complex, and so it could be that you know their assess property assessment went up, a lot of other things that would have happened that would have affected it. But like I said, I mean we made a big to do about it, saying hey look we worked, we cut the budget. We kept it flat for all you guys, and then no one said anything. But you know that that's it's discouraging, but it doesn't discourage me from continuing to try because I'll always try. Michael Hingson  42:12 You can only do what you can do, but at least at least you're doing it. Yeah. Now, if you want to live in a state where the taxes are very interesting, move to New Jersey, yeah, where we lived, the the taxes every town, every city had its own property taxes. You could live on a street, yeah, you could live on a street where you had a property tax of some amount, and if you walked across to the other side of the street, the property tax would be twice what yours was because the border runs right down the middle of the street. Speaker 1  42:45 That's crazy. Michael Hingson  42:47 We thought it was. Yeah, we thought it was kind of interesting, but we fortunately never had too horrible of property taxes in Westfield. But still, we heard about some other places that had some some horrible property taxes, but you know it's it's what what you have. Speaker 1  43:07 Yep. Michael Hingson  43:08 So you were in the city council for 14 years. What made you decide that you were going to run for mayor? Because you had to do that. You had to make that decision. Speaker 1  43:17 Yeah, didn't want to. You know, wasn't on my on my dance card to like, oh, next step up is going to be mayor. It was more of there was frustration that I had because the the past couple of mayors, good men, good people, but I always wanted to do more. I mean, being on the council, it was frustrating because I wanted a little more leadership out of the center seat wasn't seeing that, and then I worked earlier last year. I called up a bunch of people to see if they'd be willing to do the job. You know, good strong community members who would be provide the leadership and had the name recognition required to do the job, and no one wanted to do it. So I was like, okay, well, I'll I'll see if I can do it. I still have two years left on my council term, so if I lost, I'd still be part of the process. But there ended up being four people in that race, so it was pretty crowded. Which to me, you know, if if you're running if you run unopposed, it's pretty much a sign that people kind of like the way things are going. They're not they're not upset with you. Generally, if you have one opponent, you're considered that you know oh well good you know I get to compete for for the job or someone else is unhappy. But if you have a lot of opponents, it generally means that the public isn't happy with what's going on and they want to see some change. So there were four people in the race. I won with like 38% of the vote, so that's wow, Michael Hingson  44:45 yeah. Well, but clearly you're different than a lot of people. For example, you're a member of the Kootenay County Republican Central Committee, and yeah, and they sued you for defamation. What was all that about? Speaker 1  44:59 Well. So we had an episode here where the first of all the local Republican Party decided that running partisan races wasn't enough; that they wanted to get involved with nonpartisan races. And in Idaho, a lot of the local offices are nonpartisan. So city council is nonpartisan, school districts are nonpartisan. You know, water district, highway district, all these smaller local offices, and we have a community college here called North Idaho College. And the Senate committee decided that they would start to what they call rating and vetting candidates to determine who was the most conservative. And while a lot of Republicans appreciate that and they want to know who the real conservative is. The central committee realized that it was a way for them to exercise political power, because when people would get their recommendations, that would be the person who would win. And so they got power mad, and in my opinion, they hijacked the trustees of our local community college, and pretty much almost ran the thing into a ground. It was the it's the only college a community college in the history of the country that's ever been put on probation for disaccreditation due to board governance. Normally, when you disaccredit a college, you're disaccrediting it because of financial reasons, or something else, but or academics. Never, never has it happened that the board has been so crazy that the the ACL ACCU whatever it is the accreditation agency for community colleges has said, "What we're gonna we're gonna pull away your credentials, and all your students will not be receiving college credit. So, I mean, what what this board did that was endorsed by the local Republican Party, the extremists on the party, they they fired the president for no reason. They they started running up the bills, increasing the athletics budget. The board meetings were just pure chaos. Employees would leave. The local high schools stopped their their co education programs. It was just crazy. Wow! And and a lot of people didn't really understand what was going on. So I did a YouTube channel called Kootenay Rants, and Kootenay is the name of our county. Michael Hingson  47:20 Kootenay, yeah. I said Kootenay. Sorry about that. Speaker 1  47:22 It's no, it's okay. It's it could be either way. Who knows? Up north, they do say Kootenai, so we don't know. But anyway, this really got under the skin of the central committee because I pinned the blame on what was going on at the college on them, which is was justified, and I would not make anything up. Instead, I would just put in highlights from the meetings and say, "Here's what's happening, and here's the crazy stuff. You know, trustees yelling at members of the audience, making fun of them. You know, interrupting people, saying just weird, strange things. I mean, it just-it was odd. It was so bizarre, and so it was easy for me to make these videos. My background is in communications, and I know video production, so I was able to put together these videos on a YouTube channel, and you know, hundreds of people in the county would start watching them, including the central committee that did not like that I was exposing what I consider to be their corruption and their the the fact that I think they were responsible for this and they didn't like that so they accused me of defamation basically mean tweets because I would tweet about them and their nonsense and it was like they they made a big to do out of it because I was running for re-election for city council, so they came to a city council meeting to serve me, and you know recorded it and put it up on the internet and all this other stuff that that was just crazy. But my insurance company fortunately decided to represent me, and they just they thought the the suit was without merit. They don't say frivolous. They say without merit. Without Michael Hingson  49:04 merit. No, yeah. Speaker 1  49:05 And so yeah. And so eventually, now the suit is over, and I figured I would either win in court or it would be dismissed. But the insurance company settled, and I it was against my wishes. I said no. I said don't settle with these people. But the insurance company did settle, and I made sure that, as part of the settlement, that they would not say that I agreed to it, or that I said I was wrong, or I apologized, or anything. No, the insurance company just didn't want to waste any more money, so they decided to settle. They wrote a check. I don't know what it cost the central committee. As a member of the central committee, it has never been reported to the committee how much money they spent on that? Because it's it's pretty much the the Republican Central Committee of Kootenay County is pretty much a tyranny run by one guy and a personality cult, and there are members of the committee. There are some good Republicans such as myself on the committee who do believe in transparency and limited government and all those Ronald Reagan things. But there are these extremists on there who are just nutballs, and so there's a group of us here called North Idaho Republicans who are working to counter their insanity. And we've done a good job, but we need to do more work, and that's the story of the KCRCC. And they sued me for defamation. Michael Hingson  50:21 That's kind of crazy, though. Nevertheless, Speaker 3  50:23 of course. Michael Hingson  50:24 And it's only kind Speaker 1  50:26 of that. I wasn't laying awake. I mean, occasionally someone would call me up and they would say, "So what's the case? What's the what's happening with a lawsuit? And I'd say, "Well, a lawsuit. I said, "Oh yeah, that's right. They're suing me. I mean, it was never really. I was never obligated for it. Michael Hingson  50:39 Yeah. Well, so just out of curiosity, since the Republicans were doing this, where were the Democrats in all of that? Speaker 1  50:47 Well, we don't really have a lot of Democrats. That's Michael Hingson  50:49 what I was wondering. Yeah, Speaker 1  50:51 and so and and I always used to joke. I would say that the the Democrats, the Kootenai County Democrats, are looking for a new meeting location, and if anyone has a spare closet, got it. You let them know. No, they're they're all they're all very nice people. Michael Hingson  51:05 Yeah, Speaker 1  51:05 but they're they are in an extreme minority, and unfortunately, they they do try. So last time they had a body for every seat up for election, but they don't really come close. And it's a lot of it comes down to name recognition, but you also have a lot of red blue state refugees who come here. You have a lot of COVID refugees who came here, and so Idaho is very red. Kootenay County is very red, and it would take a tremendous amount of effort to to have a Democrat win here. We do have Democrats in the legislature, not a lot, but we do have them, and the the National Democratic Party is unwilling to spend a lot of money here because they know they're going to lose. So that's what I hear from them. But they are they are generally nice people. I mean, like you said, you if you wanted to vote for me here and you're a Democrat, I'd happily accept the vote. It's a nonpartisan position. We don't deal with those big divisive issues that you know that you you see on the news. Yeah, we're pretty much community-minded people, and I appreciate anyone who is. I do fight the KCRCC because I don't see them as community-minded, and that's one of the issues. Michael Hingson  52:18 Yeah. Well, it's it's unfortunate that that people are that way, but I I see it all too often in so many different ways. I mean, we face it with even in the blindness world with so many things where there ought to be major improvements and there ought to be defenses of the civil rights of blind people. For example, some of the rideshare programs don't do a lot to train their drivers about the fact that in reality they're obligated to take blind people with guide dogs, and oh, there's there is a fair amount of that, and it's and and the companies aren't willing to do anything about it, and we have to keep fighting it, which is just too bad. But there's just so many stuff, and there are so many people who just have these hidden agendas, or they just what it really comes down to is we don't want anybody telling us what to do, Speaker 1  53:09 right? Michael Hingson  53:11 And that's what it really comes down to. So, do you find that that religion gets into any of it at all, like with the conservative Christian movement or any of that, Speaker 1  53:24 there well, there's I do not like the politicization of the church. Michael Hingson  53:29 Yeah, Speaker 1  53:30 my favorite quote on that is that politics poisons the purity of the church. So I think we should keep the separation of church and state as much as possible, but there are you know politically motivated, politically active pastors, and I just I I think that's that's not the proper role of religion. I know that that there's kind of a battle going on in the far right about you know how much religion or how much that should should should be involved in politics in the public arena. In fact, there's a little across from the Costco up here. There is a little yard sign in front of some business that says "Vote Bible, and I always think that's kind of. I mean, I understand what the sentiment is, and I would always want to think that the people who we elect are good moral people. You know, Adam said that our Constitution is best suited for a moral people. I don't believe that means that there's morality in the Constitution. I believe there's morality in people, Michael Hingson  54:32 right? Speaker 1  54:33 And we do want people who have good ethics and good morals in public office, and it's very obvious when that doesn't happen. But I do not think. I think the purpose of our Constitution and the First Amendment is to ensure that we all have the the right to enjoy whatever religion we want, and we don't want to pick favorites. And so, what I see with a lot of these people is that they want to pick a favorite. Michael Hingson  54:55 Yeah, Speaker 1  54:56 they they not only want to pick the first religion, but they want. Everyone to go to the same church and the same service and sit in the same pew. Yeah, and that's not going to happen in any church. It's not going to happen in any denomination of any church. And then, and see, that's the other question: is if you know if you're going to insist that this is a Christian nation, it's like okay, but which denomination is it? Catholic? Is it Protestant? Is it Mormon? I mean, I you know you tell me because it's just going to be this incredible knot of worms, which is why I think the genius of the founders was that you know the the clause about religion is is two things: it gives you the freedom to exercise your own religion, and it also restricts the government from declaring that there's a religion. Yeah, and I think the far right kind of misses that when they when they take the message of we like moral people in office, but to dictate the morals to someone else is wrong. Michael Hingson  55:52 You know, I and it was Tolstoy who once said the biggest problem with Christianity is that people don't practice it, and I I see that so often. It's it is so unfortunate, but it is Speaker 1  56:03 there. Yeah. So that is a tough one. Michael Hingson  56:07 So if you could change one thing in the world, what would it be? I'd Speaker 1  56:12 get rid of the internet in a heartbeat. Specifically, social media. I think the the problem with social media is it amplifies our immaturities, and that is a huge issue. the The solution to that is to make the the publishers responsible for the content. So, in other words, Facebook could be sued for anything that someone puts on Facebook, and that would terrify Facebook, but it would terrify them to the point that they would actually regulate themselves and and start dialing back. I mean, I can say 20 years ago or so, when I whenever I was first on Facebook, I would go on there and I would see my kids, and they'd be playing a ball game or they'd be over at a friend's house. You'd see birthdays, vacations. It was just kind of like it was a social thing. You go on there now, and it's politics, and it's like this person deserved to be shot, and it's just-it's so-it's so extreme, and it's so rude. And you know, some of the stuff they said about me is not very nice, but I think that if we're going to solve one problem in the world, we really need to dial back all the animosity that's on the inter

Episode 2330 - Kid and El Pres open with a viral story about a female pastor allegedly offering an extremely hands-on form of spiritual cleansing. Naturally, this inspires more interest in church attendance than either man has shown in years. From there, the conversation wanders into Pete Davidson, parental grief, bars as strange rooms where strangers repeatedly buy drinks, and Kid's absolute hatred of line dancing. His scientific breakthrough: slap Benny Hill-style chase music over any line-dancing video and it syncs perfectly, no matter where you start it. Hat Trick arrives with an important design challenge—what belongs beneath her boobs? The proposed tattoo concepts range from delicate floral geometry to a Mad Magazine-style fold-in that reveals Kid's face when the cleavage closes. This quickly becomes the least strange attraction discussed, because Hat Trick introduces her "hear me out" list: Gritty, Venom, Scar, the dragon from Shrek, Puss in Boots, Gill from Finding Nemo, and other characters that require both an explanation and possibly a licensed professional. The distinction is established: Jessica Rabbit doesn't count because everybody already understands. A true "hear me out" should make the room stop, stare, and reluctantly request supporting evidence. The show also checks in on Hat Trick's fireman situation, including a smoke-shortened camping trip, a heroic amount of sex, the hazards of being on top too often, and the revelation that a little extra belly can function as an "added feature." Beneath all the filth is an actual conversation about catching feelings, old relationship damage, ruined plans, emotional boundaries, and the difficulty of pretending a daily connection is still casual just because nobody has upgraded the label. Elsewhere, the crew covers hot people farting in elevators, bodily-function etiquette, "extra creamy" compliments, the looming threat of droopy balls, and Kid's personal rules against back titties and multiple chins. Hat Trick counts threesomes, Kid prepares for the exhausting public service of researching "Guess Her Muff," and everyone meets Jimothy—a short-spined raccoon shaped like an escaped Squishmallow. The mood briefly turns anxious when Kid reveals his cat has disappeared somewhere in or around the house, but the episode ends with Jimothy worship, "hear me out" homework for the listeners, and the promise of more questionable visual research.

Tom Richmond is one of the most recognized caricature artists alive. For over 20 years he's been a staple of MAD Magazine, drawing parodies of shows like Stranger Things, The Sopranos, and Lost. He was the president of the National Caricature Network, author of the definitive caricature guide The Mad Art of Caricature, and has worked for everyone from Scholastic to Sports Illustrated Kids. In this episode, Tom talks about starting out at Six Flags, the long road to breaking into MAD, what it was like when JJ Abrams called him personally, why Aerosmith killed a Disney project over vanity, and what AI really means for illustration careers. What we cover: 40 years of caricature and freelance illustration Behind the scenes at MAD Magazine Celebrity stories: Brian Cranston, James Gandolfini, Aerosmith Turning down Weird Al and working with Jeff Dunham The CNN History of the Sitcom Times Square billboard His new podcast for cartoonists and his sold-out book Clap Trap Tom Richmond's work: tomrichmond.com Follow Passion Pod: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/passionpod/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@passionpod Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Passion-Pod-100063883543053/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRARBmS0h7W2Eh00Y8uyNtA Website: https://passionpod.org

The McGraw Show 7-15-26: Dennis Brown, St. Charles Pasta, Childhood Homes, Mad Magazine & Famous People on Planes by

Patrick brings a playful spirit with references to MAD Magazine, then shifts abruptly to heartfelt, sometimes tense questions about family, faith, and Catholic identity, throwing humor and deep pastoral advice side by side. Here, conflicts between Catholic tradition and new spiritual practices push relatives apart while the struggle for unity, forgiveness, and real answers persists; practical steps mingle with open-ended spiritual journeys, all against a backdrop of Church controversies and historic challenges. Patrick continues his conversation with Joe from the end of the last hour. Joe is asking how to approach family members engaged in new age practices and how to evangelize them? Jed (email) - Do you think that there is any merit to my theory relative to the TLM communities that are in communion with the Vatican being a major component of the "fog"? (11:13) Emily (email) - My husband's 98-year-old grandmother has been in a nursing home for 10 years after a stroke; she is originally from Mexico, speaks only Spanish, and her name plus the use of her baptism date as her birth date suggest she may have been baptized Catholic, yet none of her children are Catholic. How can I respectfully find out if she would like to see a priest and receive the Anointing of the Sick without making assumptions or causing conflict? (16:16) Debbie - I started OCIA this past Easter after a yearlong journey. I was unsatisfied with the Protestant faith. (20:46) Eric - I have a friend who doesn't believe in Catholicism. He was surprised to hear what we believed in. Which Catechism should I give him? (30:13) Sarah - My elderly father is suffering from dementia. He hasn't been to church after his cognitive decline. Is he sinning? Should I get him to go? (38:01) Patricia (email) – How was the Catholic faith coming to the America’s good for the indigenous people who already lived here? (45:37)

Take a trip back to 1976 as we explore MAD Magazine Super Special #19, one of the classic oversized specials from MAD's golden era.  In this episode, we'll flip through the magazine, examine the artwork, revisit the hilarious satire, highlight memorable features, vintage advertisements, and discuss why this issue remains a favorite among collectors and longtime MAD Magazine fans. Whether you're a lifelong MAD reader, a comic book collector, or simply love vintage pop culture, this issue offers a fascinating snapshot fo the humor and entertainment of the 1970s. If you enjoy retro magazines, comic hitory, nostalgia, and collectible publications, be sure to like, subscribe, and leave a comment with your favorite MAD Magazine issue!  

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Victoria “Vicky” Hart, daughter of acclaimed television writer Stan Hart, whose remarkable career helped shape some of the most beloved comedy programs in television history.Stan Hart, alongside writing partner Larry Siegel, was a key writer for The Carol Burnett Show, earning multiple Emmy Awards for his work. His extensive career also included writing credits for films such as Move and Eat and Run (1986), as well as television favorites such as Love, American Style (1971) and Oh, Nurse! (1972), The Hal Linden Special (1979), The Wonderful World of Disney, and many other productions. During our conversation, Vicky shares stories about her father's life, legacy, and impact on comedy writing.Dr. Victoria Hart is an accomplished performer and educator in her own right. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts (D.M.A.) in Vocal Performance from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and has built an impressive career as an operatic soprano and teacher. She has performed leading roles with opera companies across the United States, including Knoxville Opera, Sacramento Opera, Fresno Opera, Greensboro Opera, Opera Santa Barbara, Eugene Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Long Beach Opera, and Rimrock Opera.Join us for a fascinating conversation about television history, comedy, music, family legacy, and the artistic journeys that connect generations.

Cartoonist, Peter Kuper joins us on the podcast this week.Peter is a frequent contributor to the New Yorker, is the current cartoonist for Spy Vs Spy in MAD magazine and was nominated for a Pulitzer prize this last year. We talk with him about his career, his recent books, "Insectopolis" and "Wish We Weren't Here". We also talk about "World War 3", an ongoing collection of graphic stories created by a wide range of artists.You can find more about Peter at his website. You can also purchase his books and original art there as well:https://www.peterkuper.comFollow Peter on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/kuperartSubscribe to MAD Magazine here:https://www.dc.com/madOn Part 1 of the episode, we discuss the current contests:Winning captions for New Yorker contest #991 (Gored of the dance.)Finalists for contest #993 (In a pig's sty.)Current New Yorker contest #995 (Soccer to me!)We also talk about our favorite cartoons from the current issue of the New Yorker.You can buy original New Yorker cartoon art at Curated Cartoons:https://www.curatedcartoons.comThe home for all things to do with cartoon caption contests:https://humororama.lolSend us questions or comments to:  Cartooncaptioncontestpodcast@gmail.com

When Skybound announced M.A.S.K. would be joining the Energon Universe, fans immediately had questions. How would Matt Trakker and Miles Mayhem fit alongside Transformers, G.I. Joe, and Void Rivals? Out this week, we sat down with writer Dan Watters and artist Pye Parr to discuss updating the classic property, designing its iconic vehicles, and why M.A.S.K. offers a unique perspective within the larger Energon Universe. We're running the full uncut interview, featuring even more discussion on cool cars, character dynamics, action sequences, and what readers can expect from the series moving forward. Plus, we recap the biggest comics news of the week, share our favorite new releases, and much more. NEWS Absolute Catwoman #1 heads back to press as DC announces 'Absolute Cassandra Cain' one-shot MAD celebrates 600 issues with new material, classic favorites, and Sergio Aragonés cover Batman, Superman, and "Weird Al" Yankovic unite for DC's strangest team-up yet Marvel launches 'Amazing Venom' starring Boomerang's symbiote-powered comeback Marvel returns to the Mangaverse with five-part 25th anniversary event this September Marvel Zombies returns this September with Punisher leading a desperate fight for survival Spider-Woman's 50th anniversary special launches a darker new chapter for Jessica Drew The Rolling Stones team up with Marvel for exclusive ‘Foreign Tongues' vinyl collector series David Colton's growing power takes center stage in new look at 'Avengers: Armageddon' #4 and 'Cap' Dark Horse launches new oversized Marvel Black & White line with Barry Windsor-Smith's landmark Weapon X Daniel Warren Johnson's 'Beta Ray Bill' gets oversized Artist's Edition in 2027 ROM joins the Energon Universe in surprise comic hidden inside 'M.A.S.K.' #1 blind bags Mike Mignola returns to Hell with new two-issue Hellboy story alongside Cyrille Pomès Shredder gets extended! Our Top Books of the Week: Dave: Skate Ali #1 (Sam Humphries, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Natacha Bustos) The Nice House by the Sea #10 (James Tynion IV, Alvaro Martinez Bueno) Chris:​​ Tigress Island #4 (Patrick Kindlon, EPHK) M.A.S.K. #1 (Dan Watters, Pye Parr) Standout KAPOW moment of the week: Chris: D'Orc #5 (Brett Bean)  Dave: Jay & Silent Bob: Jays of Future Past #1 (Kevin Smith, Giuseppe Camuncoli) TOP BOOKS FOR NEXT WEEK Chris: Concrete: Stars Over Sand #1 (Paul Chadwick) Dave: The Amazing Spider-Man #31 (Joe Kelly, Patrick Gleason) JUDGING BY THE COVER JR. Dave: X-Men United #4 (Kris Anka Cover) Chris: Spectacular Spider-Man: Brand New Day #2 (Phil Jimenez and Alex Sinclair Main) Dan Watters Pye Parr - MASK #1 out June 10th  M.A.S.K. has always had a unique place in Hasbro history, sitting somewhere between G.I. Joe, Transformers, and its own thing. What aspects of the original property were most important to preserve, and where did you see opportunities to reinvent it for the Energon Universe? Matt Trakker's introduction is fascinating because he's being hunted by the military, yet it quickly becomes clear he wants to be captured. Why was that the right way to introduce him, and what does it reveal about who he is in this version of M.A.S.K.? Miles Mayhem comes across as both calculating and completely unhinged. His fear of Transformers and extraterrestrial threats gives him a very different motivation than a typical villain. What interested you about making him someone who might see himself as humanity's last line of defense? One of the most exciting ideas in M.A.S.K. has always been vehicles transforming into weapons and armor systems. Pye, what was the challenge of updating those iconic transformations for modern audiences while still capturing the toyetic fun fans expect? Dan, after writing Destro, what was appealing about tackling another corner of the Energon Universe? Did your experience with Destro help shape how you approached M.A.S.K., or did you want this book to have a completely different flavor? The first issue hints at a larger arms race involving technology and weapons that may not even originate on Earth. How much of M.A.S.K. is a spy thriller versus a science-fiction story, and where does it fit tonally alongside Transformers, G.I. Joe, and Void Rivals? Bruce Sato and Gloria Baker are positioned as key new recruits. What qualities do they bring to M.A.S.K. that complement or challenge Matt Trakker's leadership style? The original M.A.S.K. comic debuted in 1987 and had a very different view of global threats and military organizations. Were there any specific elements from that era that you deliberately updated to reflect modern anxieties and geopolitics? Fun question: If you could each claim one M.A.S.K. vehicle and mask from the entire franchise to use in real life for a week, which would you pick and what completely irresponsible thing would you do with it?

This week, Zach is dead so Brian and Vince revert back to their childhoods to discuss the new DC-focused issue of MAD Magazine.

Kurt Andersen and Joanna Coles dive into the spectacle, symbolism, and political theater surrounding Donald Trump's latest White House ambitions, from plans for a UFC-style event on the South Lawn to a MAGA-branded America 250 celebration that's already losing major performers. Andersen explains why Trump's embrace of entertainment, celebrity culture, and grievance politics was visible decades ago, tracing the roots of what he calls America's long-running “Fantasyland” obsession with self-created narratives. Along the way, they unpack the cabinet's astonishing displays of loyalty, Trump's fixation on revenge, the unraveling politics around Iran, and a startling 1991 MAD Magazine cartoon that seemed to predict Trump's future with uncanny accuracy. It's a conversation about power, performance, and why some of the strangest moments in American politics may reveal more than the biggest headlines. Ready to reach your goals? Visit https://hims.com/BEAST to get a personalized, affordable plan that gets you. #ad Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As an indie and small press show, its only fitting that this week we talk to one of the great of UK underground comics, and all round legend of the scene Hunt Emerson! From his new retrospective collection '50 Years of Big Noses' currently being crowdfunded, to his cartoonist beginnings,  work in adult magazines, Fortean Times, Beano, how long he spends in stationary shops and why he doesn't consider himself to be an artist! As you can read, its another chat not to be missed. Plus there's discussion on disappointing kickstarter comics, the risk of alienating new readers and another slate of great indie books to check out! Great stuff to check out: Hunt Emerson, 50 Years of Big Noses, Zoop, Firkin the Cat, Mad Magazine, Steve Bell, Kevin O'Neill, Gerald Scarf, Fortean Times, Guy D'Lille, Resident Alien, The American lady, Bronze Star, Mike Baron, London Comic Mart, Lawless Comic Con, Comics Assemble, The Guys #8, Suburban Antichrist #3, Dan Hughes, Lizzie Parsec

We have two episodes coming to you in audio form from our April livestream and here is the first!! Billy Z, Steve and Caleb got together in the middle of the month to discuss new books and it was an even split: half DC and half Indie! First from the house of Superman and Batman, we have the Mad About DC one shot, where some of the biggest names in comics take on DC characters and concepts a la Mad Magazine! We also talk about Batwoman #1, the new series feauring Kate Kane written by her co-creator Greg Rucka with art by DaNi! Rounding out the trio of DC books, we have a book about a trio: Detective Comics #1107 by Tom Taylor and Pete Woods which is the start of an arc teaming up Batman, Green Arrow and Black Canary! Then we switch over to the independent side - first with Red Book #1 from Dark Horse, a companion series to Blue Book by James Tynion IV and Michael Avon Oeming crafted by the same creative team examining UFO sightings throughout history in Russia and China! We then shift our sights onto Defenders of the Earth, a reboot of the 80s cartoon and toy line which brings together the most famous King Features heroes - Flash Gordon, Mandrake, Lothar and The Phantom courtesy of Dan DiDio and James Calafiore. And lastly from new publisher Ignition Comics we chat about the first issue of Dennis Hopeless and Brahm Revel's Just Brutal, a kinetic yet chaotic blend of sorcery and family dynamics!! This is a loaded two-hour melting pot of a funny book fondue so hit play and enjoy!

Recording this before NCBD makes it the perfect time for another round of OUFL! When it comes to Jack Kirby's contributions, MAD Magazine's Usual Gang of Idiots, and comic book events find out what we find overrated and underrated and what's our favorite and least favorite. Plus, some Silver Age Suicide Squad, Absolute Batman by Scott Snyder, Nick Dragotta, and Frank Martin, Rikke Villadsen's The Sea, Crazy for You by Paul Theroux and Steve Lafler, and more!

Send us Fan MailIn this episode of Oldish: Conversations on Aging in the 21st Century co-hosts Dr. Janet Price and Gregg Kaloust sit down for a chat with substack humorist Mike Bryskier. Mike's substack is Aging Against My Will. It's a Mad Magazine influence grimace at the perils of Aging. Very funny in a grim kind of a way.Mike's substack is at https://mikebryskier.substack.com/. or go to substack and search for Aging Against My Will.Next up will be an episode of The Oldish Book Club. We're reading When The Cranes Fly South by Lisa Rydzen. Get it from your library or our bookstore at bookshop.org/shop/oldishAnd don't forget to love everyone.Support the showOldish is now on substack! Check us out at https://oldishpodcast.substack.comConnect with Janet at https://drjanetprice.comGregg has a new substack newsletter where he's publishing writings old and new: poems, short pieces, works in progress, opinions and notes.You can email Gregg at gregg@kannoncom.com Gregg is now an ambassador for Revolin Sports Pickleball Paddles. If you are in the market for a new paddle, for any playing level, Revolin is made in the USA from sustainable materials, with the finest engineering and quality. Enter the code pickleballnomad at checkout for 10% discount. Gregg wears Tyrol pickleball shoes, the only company that makes shoes just for pickleball. He has been wearing the same pair of Velocity V model shoes for almost a year, and he plays a lot! Click here to purchase Tyrol Pickleball shoes (note, if you purchase Tyrol pickleball shoes after clicking this link Oldish may receive a commission. Thanks for helping to support our podcast!)Comments, suggestion, requests: oldish@kannoncom.comThanks to Mye Kaloustian for the music.

This week we're finishing our journey through the world of MAD Magazine! It turns out one episode wasn't enough to cover over 70 years of MAD, who could have known! Well there's lots to go through but we'll finish it off in this episode.  We'll be chatting more nostalgia from the world of MAD as well as digging into some of the more modern aspects from the property. This is where we get to some of our favorite offerings from MAD as well as some of the newer stuff that has us excited! We hope you enjoy this conclusion to our MAD-STRAVAGANZA!  If you'd like to unlock bonus episodes from Talking Back every month, then check out our page on Patreon! Check out Tim's Youtube Channel Demo Dash! You can also support Talking Back by sending us a Coffee at Buy Us a Coffee!  Please consider leaving a 5 star rating and review on Apple Podcasts! This helps make our Podcast easier for listeners to find.  Feel free to drop us a line on Social Media at Instagram, and Facebook. Or drop us an email us at talkbackpod@gmail.com. This podcast is part of the BFOP Network 

Today we sit down with Dick DeBartolo—longtime MAD Magazine writer and “The Giz Wiz”—for a lively conversation that bounces between comics, comedy, and gadgets. Dick shares how he broke into MAD during its legendary era, what it was like working alongside icons like Al Jaffee and Don Martin, and how the magazine's anything-goes humor shaped his creative instincts. He also digs into his parallel career in tech and radio, explaining how his love of quirky gadgets led to his long-running “Giz Wiz” persona. Throughout the interview, DeBartolo's trademark wit and self-deprecating humor shine through, offering both a nostalgic look at MAD's golden age and a reminder of how curiosity and comedy can fuel a decades-long career. You can follow Dick on Instagram @thegizwiz. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

En este episodio discutimos The Fury of Firestorm #1, donde DC Next Level continúa con el poderoso regreso de Firestorm bajo Jeff Lemire y Rafael de Latorre en una historia intensa, dramática y cargada de energía nuclear que promete redefinir al personaje.Hoy hablamos de- The Fury of Firestorm #1- Action Comics #1097- Star Wars - Shadow of Maul #2- Bizarro: Year None #1- Mad About DC #1- Estuary: A Ghost Story #1- Neighborhood Watch #1- Pretty Hate Machine #1

This week we're talking all things MAD Magazine! MAD is a humour/satire magazine that's been in publication for close to 75 years. It's credited with influencing multiple generations of humorists and helping to shape modern American satire.  We're doing a deep dive into the history of the magazine, the cultural phenomena it created, and the various side properties that were spawned. As always we'll share our history with MAD and how it affected us then and how it continues to affect us now.  We hope you enjoy this review of MAD! If you'd like to unlock bonus episodes from Talking Back every month, then check out our page on Patreon! Check out Tim's Youtube Channel Demo Dash! You can also support Talking Back by sending us a Coffee at Buy Us a Coffee!  Please consider leaving a 5 star rating and review on Apple Podcasts! This helps make our Podcast easier for listeners to find.  Feel free to drop us a line on Social Media at Instagram, and Facebook. Or drop us an email us at talkbackpod@gmail.com. This podcast is part of the BFOP Network 

Django and Jeff are not here as never, bummed to write about last week's comic books. Bizarro doesn't have a new book, so we won't talk about it. There's also definitely nothing here about Mad Magazine, the least amount of DC books in a short while, and some intranational lack of movement. So don't hit stop, hated readers! (Editor's note: writing in Bizarro-speak is hard.)0:02:42 - Unwell Unwelcome Wellmer. (Editor's note: We actually do love you Will!)0:07:16 - Bizarro: Year None #10:14:25 - Mad About DC #10:22:06 - Batman #80:30:43 - Absolute Superman #180:34:05 - Royals #10:37:39 - The Sacrificers #200:41:33 - Comics Magazine #20:45:29 - Batman / Superman: World's Finest #50SPOILERS! Tread carefully dear listener, because we're going to talk about what happened in these books. So definitely pause this, read your comics, and come back. We'll still be here!And an enormous thank you, as always, to Andrew Carlson for editing this mess into something listenable.Subscribe to us on Apple, Spotify or wherever you like to get your podcasts.Email us at jeff@thecomicsplace.com! We love hearing from you and there's a good chance we will read it on air!Cover art by Nick PitarraVisit us at The Comics Place next time you're in Bellingham, Washington!Comics Place Book Club - second Thursday of every month. Check the shop for details!

In Part 2, Mike Carlin dives deeper into his defining years at DC Comics, sharing behind-the-scenes stories from his time shaping Superman and reflects on co-editing the landmark Marvel vs. DC alongside Mark Gruenwald, which led to the wild creative experiment of Amalgam Comics. From there, Carlin discusses his role as DC's animation liaison from 2010 to 2011, helping bridge the gap between comics and screen on a range of shows and films, as well as his contributions to the energetic DC Nation Shorts.Plus collaborating with Jerry Ordway on The Power Of Shazam. Revistiting his run as a writer on Star Trek comics, including the first Star Trek: The Next Generation miniseries He even brings things full circle with recent work in Mad Magazine, proving his voice in comics remains as sharp and versatile as ever.

Jace of The Comic Source is joined by Rocky from Comic Boom! for this week's DC Spotlight as they break down a lighter but still varied week of DC releases. Batman/Superman: World's Finest #50 gets discussed for its Dr. Destiny dream story, Superman's dream Supermobile, and a backup featuring Robin, Supergirl, Batgirl and Jimmy Olsen in a rivalry-fueled mystery. Batman/Static Beyond #5 continues to build around older Static mentoring a younger Batman Beyond while Failsafe and the larger Q-energy conflict move the story forward. Adventures of Superman: Book of El #7 delivers another dense chapter in the House of El saga with Otho-Ra, the future descendants of Superman and the larger science fiction mythology continuing to expand. Batman #8 is a slower setup issue centered on Bruce Wayne's conversation with Alan Scott, the threat of Vandal Savage, and Gotham's mayor Poison Ivy turning the city against Batman and Robin. Absolute Superman #18 stands out with Lois Lane confronting Talia al Ghul over her father's death, Ra's al Ghul showing the effect Superman has had on him, and the issue introducing Absolute versions of John Henry Irons and King Shazam while also hinting at the Phantom Stranger. Poison Ivy #43 continues G. Willow Wilson's character-driven run with Pamela Isley using her position as mayor to go after Gotham's corruption, while also advancing the fallout with Harley Quinn, Janet from HR and the consequences of Bob Venus. Bizarro: Year None #1 offers a different take on Bizarro through a Jimmy Olsen and Perry White focused story that sends them to Bizarro World, with the Daily Planet itself playing into that world's creation. JSA #18 wraps up the Year One material while also including more of the Search for the Spectre backup and its focus on the newer generation of Justice Society characters. Mad About DC #1 serves as a full Mad Magazine-style send-up of DC characters, creators and fandom with multiple standout gags and a tone both hosts found genuinely funny. Batgirl #18 leans deeper into the Spirit World mythology, Cassandra Cain's growing connection to the Wu clan, and the question of whether Lady Shiva is capable of redemption. The episode also includes a rundown of the week's collected editions along with rankings for the books discussed and selections for Book of the Week.

We pause our nascent Monolith of Phobos episodes yet again due to irrational excitement for the forthcoming CLD record, and this time the great Rich Ragsdale joins the podcast to talk about how the visual components of the album came to be. Rich directed the CLD video Blood & Rockets, and returned to the fold to create the comic book that accompanies The Great Parrot-Ox album; he also directed the Golden Egg of Empathy video, which provides a glimpse of the overarching narrative. Rich discusses the creative and collaborative processes for the comic book, including some abandoned concepts, and how his numerous influences led to what we will soon hold in our hands. Find Rich on Instagram @richragsdale and at richragsdale.comGet involvedInstagramFacebookEmailBurn your money 

Alan Bernstein is a filmmaker whose latest documentary is When We Went MAD! Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren When We Went MAD!https://tubitv.com/movies/100047417/when-we-went-mad Amusing Jews Merch Storehttps://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/ Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcasthttps://www.spreaker.com/show/amusing-jews Adat Chaverim – Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, Los Angeleshttps://www.humanisticjudaismla.org/ Jewish Museum of the American Westhttps://www.jmaw.org/ Atheists United Studioshttps://www.atheistsunited.org/au-studios

Before inboxes and instant replies, there were stamps, cursive, and the nervous thrill of dropping a letter in the mail. In this episode of The Daily Grateful, I share stories of pen pals, teenage crush notes, Catholic school penmanship battles, and the unforgettable day William F. Gaines wrote back to me about how to grow an “Arthur” plant from Mad Magazine. From embarrassing handwriting disasters to the miracle of modern email, this is a warm reflection on connection—then and now. Is something lost when we stop writing by hand? Or have we simply traded ink for immediacy? Let's be grateful for both.#TheDailyGrateful #LetterWriting #EmailLife #Gratitude #Storytelling #Connection #Nostalgia

After being away from Marvel for about 8 years, Brian Michael Bendis is returning to Marvel. In this episode, Joe and Cory!! discuss what that means, and give out Fave Five Bendis stories! They also discuss: Avengers 800 Has Joe found a new children's joke book? When a comic creator returning works and why And why it doesn't work Joe and Cory!! Have done this before! The history behind people freaking out about comics maturing in their subject matter The sales figures for 2025 for MAD Magazine are in and they are dire Retro Review: Post Cereal Presents the Super Friends! All of this, the usual shenanigans, and much, much more!!

SPY vs SPY - How a MAD Magazine Comic Shaped Spy Cinema explores how a silent comic changed espionage storytelling forever. In this episode, we reveal why Spy vs. Spy matters more to spy movies than most audiences realize. This podcast episode from Cracking the Code of Spy Movies looks past punchlines. It uncovers influence, tone, and lasting ideas: Two identical spies, endless conflict, there are no winners. At first glance, Spy vs. Spy feels like pure comedy.  But beneath the humor lies a brutal truth.  There are explosions, traps, and sudden reversals.  All done with a comedic twist. Episode Focus This episode focuses on how Spy vs. Spy captured Cold War thinking. ·       Paranoia ruled every decision. ·       Escalation never stopped. ·       Trust disappeared completely.   We highlight how wordless storytelling shaped modern spy cinema. If you didn't know, there is no dialogue in Spy vs. Spy.  Also, there is no exposition: only action and consequence. This visual language now defines spy films. We recently released an episode examining how James Bond and his villains are mirrors of each other.  The episode also explores why mirrors matter in espionage stories. Listeners will hear how Spy vs. Spy predicted modern spy themes. How moral ambiguity replaced clear heroes. How technology became unreliable, and finally how victory became temporary. We also connect how Spy vs. Spy created lasting ideas that found their way into major spy franchises: James Bond, Jasone Bourne, Mission: Impossible, and modern Cold War thrillers. Rather than parody, Spy vs. Spy became a blueprint filmmakers still follow, often without realizing it. This episode is fast, focused, and insight‑driven. And it reveals how satire clarified espionage mechanics. If you love spy films, this is essential listening. If you study film storytelling, it's revealing. And if you enjoy uncovering hidden influence, it delivers. Episode Highlights ·       A comic strip predicted modern spy movie structure ·       Mirror logic that shaped heroes and villains alike ·       Silence reinforced visual spy storytelling ·       Escalation replaced resolution ·       Satire became the genre's blueprint This episode proves one thing clearly:  Spy vs. Spy understood espionage better than most movies ever did. Tell us what you think about our look at Spy vs. Spy Were you familiar with this comic strip series?  Had you seen the animated shorts?  Do you agree with our analysis? Let us know your thoughts, ideas for future episodes, and what you think of this episode. Just drop us a note at info@spymovienavigator.com.  The more we hear from you, the better the show will surely be!  We'll give you a shout-out in a future episode!   You can check out all our CRACKING THE CODE OF SPY MOVIES podcast episodes on your favorite podcast app or our website. In addition, you can check out our YouTube channel as well.   Episode Webpage: SPY vs. SPY – How a MAD Magazine Comic Shaped Spy Cinema

The venerable Mad Magazine warned about advertisement that was true but misleading. Father McTeigue read Cardinal Fernandez's statement to the recent consistory, and began to wonder… Watch on YouTube: DDF Reads Mad Magazine?

We're thrilled to bring you the full, unedited conversation with Gene Luen Yang, the writer currently steering IDW's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles through one of its most emotional and surprising arcs in years.If you've been reading the book, you know the stakes have never been higher. With the shocking reveal of Ujigami's true identity and the return of Splinter casting a long shadow over the Turtles, Gene joins us to unpack the heart of the story and why this arc is really about family, fear, and the consequences of overprotection.Visit our Patreon page to see the various tiers you can sign up for today to get in on the ground floor of AIPT Patreon. We hope to see you chatting with us on our Discord soon! NEWSMarvel just took over OREO with the biggest special-edition drop in cookie historyMarvel Solicitations April 2026Marvel revisits its most divisive event with 'Civil War: Unmasked'Marvel celebrates 50 years of the Eternals with a new character—and a Fall Out Boy creatorMarvel brings back 'Ultimates' #1–6 just in time for the Ultimate Universe's explosive finaleDeadpool is taking over April Fool's Day again—and the Marvel Universe might not survive it'Alien: King Killer' drops humanity into its darkest nightmare yetThe Future Foundation returns in 'Fantastic Four' #11DC Comics solicitationsDC hands the keys to MAD, and lets Chip Zdarsky roast the entire universeAfter 35 years, DC restores the lost Swamp Thing epic fans never thought they'd readExclusive: Valiant's April 2026 solicitations signal a bold new era with Valiant BeyondPrime Video orders 'Lore Olympus' adult animated series, from WEBTOON and Jim Henson CompanyFrom 'Mafia III' to Image Comics: William Harms unleashes a haunting new apocalypse with 'White Sky'Cobra goes silent: Skybound brings back G.I. Joe's most iconic storytelling, this time for the villainsA Murder in the middle: 'Neighborhood Watch' turns a gated community into a powder keg'Hello Body Horror' #1 brings the most unsettling stories from BOOM! Studios' 'Hello Darkness'Exclusive: Dark Horse's 'Did You Hear About Mimi Green?' turns cancel culture into surreal horroOur Top Books of the Week:Dave:Assorted Crisis Events (2025) #8 (Deniz Camp, Eric Zawadzki)X-Men Of Apocalypse (2025) #2 (Jeph Loeb, Simone Di Meo)Chris:​​Nights #17 (Wyatt Kennedy, Luigi Formisano) Good As Dead #5 (David and Maria Lapham)Standout KAPOW moment of the week:Chris: Nights #17 (Wyatt Kennedy, Luigi Formisano) Dave: Exquisite Corpses #9 (art by Valentine De Landro with story by Tyler Boss)TOP BOOKS FOR NEXT WEEKChris: Iron Man #1 (Joshua Williamson, Carmen Carnero)Dave: Absolute Wonder Woman #16 (Kelly Thompson, Hayden Sherman)JUDGING BY THE COVER JR.Dave: Absolute Martian Manhunter #8 (Eric Canete Variant)Chris: Conan the Barbarian #28 (Gerardo Zaffino Main Cover)Interview: Gene Luen Yang - TMNT #14 out January 14 1. Issue #13 drops a massive bombshell with Ujigami's true identity being Splinter. When you decided to make him the force hunting the Turtles' enemies, what was the emotional core you wanted readers to feel first — shock, tragedy, or inevitability?2. Ujigami isn't just a villain; he's a moral crisis for the Turtles. Was your goal to make this run less about defeating an enemy and more about redefining what justice means for the team?3. In #14, the brothers split up to protect their former enemies from Splinter. That's such a powerful reversal of classic TMNT dynamics — what does this say about how the Turtles have grown since their early days of black-and-white morality?4. You've written a lot about identity and duality in your career. How did that background influence your approach to Splinter becoming Ujigami — a mentor turning into something almost mythic and terrifying?5. Shinigami's introduction brings in mysticism from the 2012 animated series. What made this moment in your run feel right for folding her into IDW continuity, and how did you retool her to fit the tone of your story?6. Your first two issues lean hard into supernatural elements — ninja mythology, death spirits, and destiny. Was that a conscious pivot from recent TMNT runs that focused more on politics and street-level crime?8. You've said the Turtles work in any genre. With Ujigami and Shinigami, you're clearly leaning into horror and dark fantasy — were there specific myths, folktales, or manga influences that shaped this arc?9. You and Freddie E. Williams II are creating some striking, eerie imagery in these issues. How did your collaboration evolve once you realized this arc would live in such a darker, more mystical space?10. With Ujigami revealed and Shinigami now in play, it feels like the table has finally been set for the larger story you and Freddie have planned. Without giving anything away, what should readers be emotionally bracing for as this arc unfolds — heartbreak, redemption, or something even more unexpected?11. If the Turtles had to explain Ujigami to April in the most “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” way possible — full of bad metaphors and half-accurate summaries — which brother would do the worst job, and what would his explanation sound like?

Having worked for Bally Midway in the 1980s, game designer / artist / animator Brian F. Colin has created and worked on more classic arcade games than you can shake a giant mutant wolfman at! RAMPAGE, XENOPHOBE, ARCH RIVALS, PIGSKIN 621ad, GENERAL CHAOS and RAMPAGE WORLD TOUR, just to name a few! Brian infused each of these games with the sardonic wit of MAD Magazine, while ensuring each of these games pushed the limits of what had been created. These were titles that broke new ground and resonated with audiences of the day and are remembered fondly by classic gamers! Brian shares a metric ton of stories from his decades in the industry and dishes all about his upcoming Kickstarter: GENERAL CHAOS - MAJOR SNAFU! The Long-awaited Sequel to the hilarious Squad-based, RTS Sega Genesis Battlegame! General Chaos - Major Snafu is in Pre-Launch now and you should definitely sign up to be notified when the campaign launches! RETRO RIDOCTOPUS is ----------------------------------- "Parasite Steve"...... AKA Steve Van Samson (read) "8-Bit Alchemy "...... AKA Tim Krikorian (listen) "Coopster Gold"...... AKA Justin Cooper (subscribe) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Retro Ridoctopus is a proud member of The Dorkening Podcast Network and is brought to you by Deadly Grounds Coffee. Podcast intro and all heavy metal interstitials by Enchanted Exile.

This week we have...A New Year with Mike and Bill! Same old stuff, different year.Mike started out with his reading and it was about blame and hiding. We were always good at that before we got sober and it could be an easy trap to fall back into. It was a good conversation.We chatted about some medical stuff, New Year's Resolutions, Dry January, Mike's trip to see classic stuff from MAD Magazine, triggers and glimmers, detaching, expressing your feelings, geographicals, Jim Beam shutting down and becoming more difficult with age. Then we wrapped up with Bad Santa. It's a classic.Enjoy the episode.Visit us Podcast  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.sobernotmature.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Store  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.sobernotmatureshop.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hobo ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.themoderndayhobo.com

Welcome to Phase 2 of Muppeturgy! We're following paths and pulling threads that came up during our coverage of The Muppet Show to bring you more 70s and 80s variety show nonsense. It's going to take us to some places! (What about them?)We started off close to home and went to the movies with The Muppets and it was…kind of exhausting, honestly. But if you're a fan of Muppets and Mad Magazine and Swedish art films, this special might be for you! https://muppeturgy.com/episodes/movies

Joining us today are two very significant creative forces over at the upstart indie comics publisher that promotes, “comics of every kind for every mind” Cosmic Lion Productions.One is not just the founder Cosmic Lion, but he is also a comic creator himself, fellow podcaster, and maybe one of the most enthusiastic Grendel megafans I've ever seen. The other is the critically acclaimed, Eisner-nominated cartoonist who you may know for his work on MAD Magazine and his cult comic series Minimum Wage.It is our pleasure to welcome both Eli Schwab & Bob Fingerman onto The Oblivion Bar Podcast!---Thank you Oni Press & Endless Comics, Cards & Games for sponsoring The Oblivion Bar PodcastFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTokFollow us on BlueSkyConsider supporting us over on PatreonThank you DreamKid for our Oblivion Bar musicThank you KXD Studios for our Oblivion Bar art

SCTV legend Dave Thomas reflects on the bold choices that shaped his life and career, from growing up in Canada to navigating success and uncertainty in Hollywood. He discusses how Shakespeare and literature helped ground him early on, and the pivotal decision to leave a lucrative advertising career to pursue improvisational comedy at Second City. Thomas shares stories of becoming head writer on SCTV and collaborating with comedy icons such as Martin Short, Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Harold Ramis, Catherine O'Hara, Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin, and Joe Flaherty. The conversation spans his career-defining work on SCTV, the creation of the McKenzie Brothers, Strange Brew, Mad Magazine, and later successes including Grace Under Fire. Thomas also explores his transition into animation, running his own studio, voice work across major animated series, and eventually shifting into dramatic television with shows like Bones and The Blacklist. He touches on international experiences, including time spent in Ukraine and Thailand, and reflects on lessons learned across decades in entertainment. Throughout the episode, Thomas emphasizes that success in Hollywood depends on having at least two of three essential elements: talent, drive, and luck—along with the courage to take risks and follow creative instincts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SCTV's Dave Thomas talks about making bold life choices, growing up in Canada, Shakespeare saving his ass, choosing between big money success as an ad man or being a broke improviser at Second City, becoming head writer on SCTV, Martin Short, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, John Candy, Catherine O'Hara, Eugene Levy, Joe Flaherty, Andrea Martin, Grace Under Fire, running an animation studio, turning to dramas like Bones and The Black List, going to Ukraine, Thailand, Mad Magazine, The McKenzie Brothers, Chester Hope, and how, to make it in Hollywood, you need at least two of these three things, Talent, Drive, & Luck. Bio: David William Thomas was born May 20, 1949, in St. Catharines, Ontario. He is the eldest son of British parents, Moreen Duff Muir (May 4, 1928 – May 18, 2022), a church organist for thirty years originally from Glasgow, Scotland and composer of church music, and John E. Thomas (1926–1996), a medical ethicist from Merthyr Tydfil, Wales who was head of the Philosophy Department at McMaster University, and the author of several books. Dave's younger brother, Ian Thomas, is a Canadian singer-songwriter. The family moved temporarily to Durham, North Carolina, where his father attended Duke University and earned a PhD in philosophy. The family moved back to Dundas, Ontario, in 1961, where Dave attended Dundas District high school, and later graduated with an honours Bachelor of Arts degree in English literature from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.[1]  Starting his career as a copywriter at ad agency McCann Erickson in 1974, Thomas became the head writer of the Coca-Cola account in Canada within a year. After watching a Second City stage show in Toronto, and while suffering from self-described "boredom" in his advertising work, he auditioned for the Second City troupe and was chosen as a performer.[2] He was a cast member of the Toronto production of Godspell, along with Victor Garber, Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner, and Andrea Martin.[3] Paul Shaffer was the musical director.[3 He first achieved fame as a cast member of the Canadian TV comedy series SCTV, joining Godspell castmates Levy, Martin and later Short, plus Rick Moranis, John Candy, Harold Ramis, Catherine O'Hara and others. Notable characters on the show include Doug McKenzie of beer-swilling brothers Bob and Doug McKenzie, editorialist Bill Needle, Scottish scone-chef/bluesman Angus Crock, motor-mouthed TV ad announcer Harvey K-Tel, Lowery organist/curio pitchman Tex Boil and the "Cruising Gourmet". Thomas's first film role was in Home to Stay, directed by Delbert Mann, in which Thomas played in a scene with Hollywood legend Henry Fonda. He then wrote, co-directed, and starred in the Bob & Doug McKenzie feature film Strange Brew. Soon after, he wrote for and acted in The New Show, produced by Lorne Michaels during his hiatus from Saturday Night Live. Short-lived, this show featured a powerhouse writing staff including Thomas along with Buck Henry, George Meyer, Jack Handey, Al Franken, Tom Davis, Valri Bromfield and Steve Martin. Thomas tried his hand at network television hour-long shows in 1986 when he wrote and co-executive produced Steel Collar Man for CBS. The pilot was produced but did not go to series. He co-wrote Spies Like Us (1985) with Dan Aykroyd.  In 1988, Thomas wrote another hour long show for CBS, B Men, which was back ordered, but Thomas took a directing job at Paramount, which caused the network to drop the series. He reportedly introduced John Travolta and Kelly Preston while directing them in the Paramount film The Experts.  He wrote for, produced, and starred in The Dave Thomas Comedy Show (1990). In 1991, he starred in the Showtime comedy, Public Enemy #2. In 1992, he tried his hand at reality TV and co-executive produced ABC's America's Funniest People with Vin Di Bona, but left after thirteen weeks to appear in the film Coneheads.  In 1993, he co-starred in ABC's Grace Under Fire with Brett Butler and Tom Poston and continued with the show for 5 seasons. In 1995 Thomas starred in the ABC television film Picture Perfect with Mary Page Keller and Richard Karn. In 1995 Thomas produced a pilot of a game show called Family Challenge for ABC. When ABC did not pick up the series, Thomas sold Family Challenge to the Family Channel, where he produced 144 episodes of the show spread over 2 seasons. In 1996, Thomas played the title role in the Fox television film Mr. Foster's Field Trip aka Kidz in the Wood with Julia Duffy. In 1996, he wrote the book SCTV: Behind the Scenes (McClelland & Stewart, publishers). From 1999–2002, he voiced various roles on the animated series Mission Hill. Thomas co-starred in the Paramount feature Rat Race. As of 2001, Thomas has been the Executive Creative Director of Animax Entertainment, an animation studio based officially in Culver City, California. In 2001–2002 Thomas appeared with Eugene Levy and Martin Short on Short's show Primetime Glick as Bob Hope (an impression he had first developed for SCTV with great success). In 2002, he co-starred with Jason Priestley, Dave Foley, and Ewen Bremner in Fancy Dancing. The next year he played a lead role in Beethoven's 5th. In 2003, he directed a hospital comedy feature film entitled Whitecoats, which he also wrote. As of 2004, Thomas was on the official Advisory Committee for the Comedy program at Humber College, the only such diploma program in the world. In 2004, he and Moranis again worked together voicing Rutt and Tuke, two moose based on the McKenzie Brothers, in Disney's animated feature Brother Bear.[4]  Thomas has had a long career doing voices for animation including Animaniacs, Duckman, CatDog, The Adventures of Tarzan, Justice League and multiple roles on The Simpsons, King of the Hill and Family Guy. In 2005, he had a guest stint as Charlize Theron's "Uncle Trevor" on Fox's Arrested Development. In 2006, he reprised his voice role in Brother Bear 2 and appeared as himself in the feature film The Aristocrats. He began production on ArnoldSpeaks.com, a video blog, as the voice of Arnold Schwarzenegger; Animax Entertainment won an Emmy for a broadband animated series produced for ESPN, Off Mikes.  In 2007, Thomas and Rick Moranis reprised their roles as Bob and Doug McKenzie in a one-hour special, Bob & Doug McKenzie's Two-Four Anniversary, for CBC Television. The show featured cameos from McKenzie celeb fans like Ben Stiller, Dave Foley, Tom Green, Paul Shaffer, Andy Dick, Matt Groening, Barry Pepper, Martin Short, and Geddy Lee. Former Prime Minister of Canada Paul Martin was the host. In 2008, Thomas revived Bob and Doug McKenzie in a new animated series, Bob & Doug. While Thomas reprises the character of Doug in the new series, Moranis chose not to voice the character of Bob, which instead is voiced by Dave Coulier. Moranis is, however, involved in the series as an executive producer.[5]  In November 2009, Thomas received an Honorary Doctor of Letters from his alma mater McMaster University and gave the fall convocation speech. In 2010 Animax continued to produce branded entertainment, advertising and digital shorts for corporations like Disney, Warner Brothers, NBC Universal, and Kodak. In 2011, Thomas's company Animax produced another animated show for MTV entitled Big Box along with numerous Internet shorts such as Life With Dad.[6][7]  In 2012 and 2013 Thomas guest starred in the dramatic shows Perception and Bones as well as comedy shows Comedy Bang! Bang! and How I Met Your Mother. In addition in 2013 Thomas voiced the recurring role of Jeff Foxworthy's father Jesco in the CMT show Bounty Hunters.  Thomas joined the writing staff of the Fox crime drama television series Bones beginning in 2013. Thomas worked for two seasons on Bones, writing several episodes and working on staff as consulting producer for two seasons.[8]  In 2015 Thomas joined the writing staff of NBC's The Blacklist as a consulting producer. In 2020 life-sized statues of Thomas and Rick Moranis as their characters Bob and Doug McKenzie were put in place at the ICE District Sports Arena in Edmonton, Alberta.[9] Also in 2020, the Governor-General of Canada announced that Thomas was being appointed to the Order of Canada,[10] Canada's highest civilian award. In 2021, Thomas and Max Allan Collins teamed to write a sci-fi mystery novel, The Many Lives of Jimmy Leighton.

The Cincinnati Art Museum opens “What, Me Worry? The Art and Humor of MAD Magazine.”

In today's #MikeJonesMinuteCon, we'll preview the new Call of Duty and MAD Magazine art exhibit that's opening soon!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jim Woodring (Creator Of Frank) joins Dave to discuss the creative process behind his award winning surrealist comic art and unique personal vision. Jim recalls his early connection to MAD Magazine and Harvey Kurtzman's grotesque, lyrical style. He reflects on the work of R. Crumb, and the defining influence of Salvador Dalí. They discuss Jim's time working with Gil Kane and Jack Kirby at Ruby-Spears, the mastery of Dave Stevens, and the origin of Jim's long standing relationship with Gary Groth and Fantagraphics.https://www.jimwoodring.com/Join my Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/DavengersDirectEditionWWW.WESTCOASTDAVENGERS.COM

Remember the terror of calling a girl and her dad answering the phone?In this nostalgia-packed and hilariously insightful episode of The JB and Sandy Show, the crew dives into what it meant to grow up Gen X—awkward phone calls, Mad Magazine, and the sacred teen landline. But it's not all throwbacks. The conversation takes a wild turn into the world of astrology, cold plunges, and red light therapy hats. Sandy introduces listeners to a young Indian astrologer dubbed the “modern-day Nostradamus,” whose eerily accurate predictions have stunned the world. From earthquakes to crypto booms, this guy's track record is raising eyebrows—and maybe investment portfolios. Meanwhile, Tricia puts Sandy and JB in the hot seat with a round of “One Must Go,” forcing them to choose between their favorite things—from Call of Duty to cold plunges, and even JB's beloved LBJ-style Stetson hat.

Jim Mahfood returns to discuss Defective Comics Presents : Arachnid Enforcer, his newest self-published, Kickstarter-backed bootleg Spider-Man comic. Jim and Dave drink spider-blood and swap stories about their earliest parody influences—MAD Magazine, SNL, and “Weird Al” Yankovic—favorite Spider-Man eras, Jim's character-design work on Into the Spider-Verse, and the perpetual thrill of seeing your work in print.BACK THE KICKSTARTER HERE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jimmahfood/defective-comics-presents-the-arachnid-enforcerJOIN MY PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/davengersdirectedition

Hey everyone, welcome back to The Following Films Podcast, where we dive into the art, craft, and passion behind the movies — and everything that inspires them. I'm your host, Chris Maynard, and today I'm bringing you an interview recorded at this year's Tucson Comic Book Convention.My guest today is a true legend in the world of comic art — Bill Morrison. You might know Bill as the co-founder of Bongo Comics, the longtime home of The Simpsons and Futurama in print. He's also worked as an illustrator for Disney classics, served as Executive Editor for MAD Magazine, and created his own acclaimed series like Roswell: Little Green Man and Dead Vengeance.In our conversation, Bill shares stories from his journey through animation, comics, and publishing — from working alongside Matt Groening to reimagining The Beatles' Yellow Submarine as a graphic novel. We also discuss the evolution of humor, satire, and storytelling in an era when pop culture is more self-aware than ever.Today's episode of the Following Films Podcast is brought to you by Google Workspace. We keep things running smoothly and efficiently at Following Films with the convenience of cloud-based Google Workspace programs. You should try it and see how it can benefit your business as well. If you sign up using my link, I can give you a discount, and it helps to support the show https://referworkspace.app.goo.gl/G6uFEnjoy the show

Meg welcomes Guy Richards Smit to the podcast and recounts the antics and offenses of Imus in the Morning. Guy recalls the perks of being a kid in the city: the practice rooms, the museums, and a grandmother who took him to R rated movies.Please check out our website, follow us on Instagram, on Facebook, and...WRITE US A REVIEW HEREWe'd LOVE to hear from you! Let us know if you have any ideas for stories HEREThank you for listening!Love,Meg and Jessica

Dan Soder and Greg Stone stop by for a wild one. The guys cover everything from steroid-Jesus theories and New York's rat NBA to dissecting cats in high school, Mad Magazine nostalgia, Castro assassination plots, and lemon party memories. Plus, hangover cures that don't work, landlord grudges, and why chest hair is making a comeback. Sponsored by:

Read transcriptGet ready for some black-and-white mayhem that's more chaotic than trying to untangle Christmas lights while wearing oven mitts! This week on Play Comics, we're diving headfirst into the wonderfully ridiculous world of Spy vs Spy for the original Xbox—the 2005 game that took MAD Magazine's iconic feuding spies and somehow convinced them to blow each other up in glorious 3D. This delightfully deranged espionage extravaganza comes courtesy of the twisted minds at Vicious Cycle Software, who apparently looked at the classic NES version and thought, “You know what this needs? More explosions and better graphics!” Whether you're here for the nostalgic callback to those legendary MAD TV shorts or you just enjoy watching cartoon spies meet their doom in increasingly creative ways, this episode promises to deliver more backstabbing action than a corporate boardroom during budget season. Joining us for this masterclass in mutual assured destruction are two absolute legends from the podcasting world: Anthony Sytko and Doc Issues, the brilliant minds behind Capes on the Couch. When they're not busy psychoanalyzing superheroes and providing much-needed therapy to fictional characters who definitely have trust issues, these two bring their expertise in comic psychology to help us understand why watching two spies repeatedly murder each other is somehow deeply satisfying. So dust off that original Xbox controller, practice your best evil laugh, and prepare for an episode that's guaranteed to be more explosive than a briefcase full of dynamite left by your nemesis. We'll explore whether this modern take on the classic formula captured the essence of those timeless comic strips, or if it just left us feeling like we'd been caught in one of the White Spy's elaborate traps. Learn such things as: Does choosing Black Spy make you morally superior? How many ways can a cartoon spy die before it stops being funny? Why do we find such joy in elaborate revenge schemes involving household appliances? And so much more! You can find Anthony and Doc @CapesOnTheCouch on BlueSky, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and of course the Capes on the Couch website. If you want to be a guest on the show please check out the Be a A Guest on the Show page and let me know what you're interested in. If you want to help support the show check out the Play Comics Patreon page or head over to the Support page if you want to go another route. You can also check out the Play Comics Merch Store. Play Comics is part of the Gonna Geek Network, which is a wonderful collection of geeky podcasts. Be sure to check out the other shows on Gonna Geek if you need more of a nerd fix. You can find Play Comics @playcomics.bsky.social on Bluesky, and in the Play Comics Podcast Fan Groupon Facebook. A big thanks to Escape the Mojoverse and The Monitor Tapes for the promos today. Intro/Outro Music by Backing Track, who cloned himself and is both of the spies at the same time. Support Play Comics by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/playcomics Check out our podcast host, Pinecast. Start your own podcast for free with no credit card required. If you decide to upgrade, use coupon code r-89f00a for 40% off for 4 months, and support Play Comics.

  This time he's coming to a different kind of jungle. In a sweltering, crime-ridden Los Angeles, a relentless alien hunter stalks the city's most dangerous criminals and law enforcement. A determined detective finds himself in a deadly game of cat and mouse as he uncovers the creature's terrifying purpose. BPO's Blake O'Donnell returns to to help us wrap up Action August with 1990's PREDATOR 2. Also this week: Cracked vs Mad Magazine, Danny Glover's billowy pants, and Predator munchin' beef. All this--and a whole lot more--on this week's episode of NEON BRAINIACS! "S*** happens." ----- Check out our Patreon for tons of bonus content, exclusive goodies, and access to our Discord server! ----- Predator 2 (1990) Directed by Stephen Hopkins Written by Jim Thomas & John Thomas Starring Danny Glover, Gary Busey, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Peter Hall ----- 00:00 - Intro & Opening Banter 15:46 - "The Shpiel" 44:05 - Film Breakdown 1:54:48 - Brain Bucket & Outro        

Send us a textJoin former child actor Moosie Drier, and author Jonathan Rosen, as they chat with the host of the Fun For All AGes podcast, Frank Santopadre!Frank discusses his time co-hosting the Amazing Colossal Podcast with Gilbert Gottfried, returning to podcasting with his current show Fun For All Ages, working for MAD Magazine, writing for the Friar's Club Roasts, creating jokes for Bazooka Joe, & much more!Support the show

August 14-20, 1999 This week Ken welcomes writer, musician and comedian who has created the video podcast built on music, performance storytelling and Ai visuals, Skulk The Hulk, Steve "Skulk" Pasieka Ken and Skulk discuss Mad Magazine, Steve's Dick DiBartolo mustache, Action shows on TV, Chuck Norris, WWF (WWE), Samo Hung, WCW, Chinese action heroes, Attitude Era of WCW, defining High School by wrestling, backyard wrestling, TV Guide induced vivid dreams, growing up in Chicago, heavy Italian Chicago accents, children with strong regional accents, revolting Pepto Bismol ads, disgusting ice cream photos, Judy Garland, the 90s love of the 70s, no bake Jell-O grossness, too much PB, locking up your Klondike bars, how much smarter Samo Hung is than Kevin Sorbo and Chuck Norris, Halle Berry's comebacks, Brutus the Barber Beefcakes' MBTA "Anthrax" scare, wrestlers lying about their size, Randy "Macho Man' Savage, class action suits, the shock of a Buff Bagwell photo shoot, The Tom Green Show, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai, MTV's Real Life, Chyna, HHH, Behind the Music, going into animation, debating Generative AI, what is a tool and what isn't, challenging norms, controversal issues, Ken's theory of innovative amatuerishness, going to Greece, having experiences outside of America, distribution networks, wrestlers with just regular names, UFC replacing WWF/WCW, how you need rules, how having all things available to you stifles creativity, Antiques Roadshow, Celebrity Tug-O-War, Johnny Bravo, Cartoon Network, Spin City, JAWS, Ray Walston, Star Trek, Dee Snider in Strangeland, how massive David Blaine was, Win Ben Stein's Money, Leeza Gibbons hosting Smoking: Truth or Dare, requiring cigarette holders, lost Comedy Central shows of the late 90s, Steve's love of music videos, how some things don't hold up at all, appreciating Men in Black, the Roller Derby resurgence, Ska Punk, Chicago punk bands, Naked Raygun, and The Many Incessent Lives and Subsiquent Deaths Deserved of Skulk the Hulking. 

Comedian Greg Warren joins Adam in studio to talk about his new YouTube special THE CHAMP and Adam's uncanny ability to riff endlessly on just about anything. The two dive into the absurdities of everyday life, from coffee stirrers and peanut butter to Greg's former life as a Jif salesman. They also debate whether BBQ is better on the road or at home, and take a nostalgic turn with deep dives into Deacon Jones commercials, The A-Team, Run Joe Run, and Renegade—all of which, they agree, owe a creative debt to The Fugitive. Greg also shares a surprising story about how Lorenzo Lamas played a small but pivotal role in his decision to pursue comedy full time.Jason “Mayhem” Miller later joins the show to break down the day's headlines, including the surprising fact that no city in California made the list of the top 250 places to live in the U.S. They also cover Mayor Karen Bass signing executive orders to keep film production in Los Angeles, along with the controversy surrounding the lack of digital communications from her office during the 2025 wildfires.Legendary filmmaker David Zucker rounds out the episode with a look back at his groundbreaking career in comedy, from Kentucky Fried Movie and Airplane! to The Naked Gun and Scary Movie 3 & 4. David talks about working with Val Kilmer, reflects on being pushed out of the upcoming Naked Gun reboot, and recounts how close his house came to being evacuated during recent fires. He also previews his upcoming Masterclass launching in July on Mastercrash.com and discusses his appearance in the new Chassy Media documentary When We Went MAD, a tribute to MAD Magazine, available June 24 and currently up for preorder on Apple and Fandango.David and Adam close out the conversation with a surprising discussion about the sad life of Benny Hill and compare notes on their very different childhoods—David's in Milwaukee and Adam's as the class clown in North Hollywood. Get it on.FOR MORE WITH GREG WARREN: INSTAGRAM: @grockwarrenTWITTER: @gregwarrenWEBSITE: gregwarrencomedy.comSPECIAL: THE CHAMP on YouTubeFOR MORE WITH DAVID ZUCKER:INSTAGRAM & TWITTER: @thedavidzuckerWEBSITE: mastercrash.comWHEN WE WENT MAD (Preorder): https://apple.co/4k1ELuqFOR MORE WITH JASON “MAYHEM” MILLER:INSTAGRAM: @mayhemmillerTWITTER: @mayhemmillerThank you for supporting our sponsors:BetOnlineHims.com/ADAMHomes.comPluto.TVRuffGreens.com - Use promo code “Adam”LIVE SHOWS: May 24 - Bellflower, CA (2 shows)May 30 - Tacoma, WA (2 shows)May 31 - Tacoma, WA (2 shows)June 1 - Spokane, WA (2 shows)June 11 - Palm Springs, CAJune 13 - Salt Lake City, UT (2 shows)June 14 - Salt Lake City, UT (2 shows)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.