Podcasts about White Christmas

"THE JACK SHOW" talks Kirk assassination trial and televising it, plus is Jasmine Crockett a media creation, do we need more nanny state or more dodge ball, and "White Christmas".

MUSICViolet Grohl, daughter of Dave Grohl, released her first two solo singles, "THUM" and "Applefish", on Dec. 5. ICYMI: Filter, Filter Eleven and Local H are teaming up for a spring tour that starts March 5th in Wenatchee, Washington and wraps up April 1st in Cleveland. Tickets go on sale Friday. It looks like Oasis fans will definitely have to wait until 2027 to see the band again. Liam Gallagher answered fans' questions on X about continuing their reunion tour, and when one fan asked him to announce dates for next year already, Gallagher replied: “We're not doing anything in 2026 sorry.” Loudwire.com published a list of five '70s rock stars who never drank or did drugs. Could they seriously only find FIVE? https://loudwire.com/1970s-rock-musicians-no-drugs-alcohol/ 1. GENE SIMMONS2. FRANK ZAPPA3. ANGUS YOUNG4. TOM SCHOLZ5. TED NUGENT TVTwo TV critics from "Variety" chose the 10 best shows of 2025. List 1:1. "Adolescence", Netflix2. "The Pitt", HBO Max3. "Forever", Netflix4. "Paradise", Hulu5. "It: Welcome to Derry", HBO6. "Outlander: Blood of My Blood", Starz7. "A Thousand Blows", Hulu8. "Untamed", Netflix9. "The Gilded Age", HBO10. "Murdaugh: Death in the Family", Hulu List 2:1. "Andor", Disney+2. "Long Story Short", Netflix3. "The Pitt", HBO Max4. "Dying for Sex", FX5. "The Righteous Gemstones", HBO6. "Everybody's Live with John Mulaney", Netflix7. "The Lowdown", FX8. "The Gilded Age", HBO9. "Pluribus", Apple TV10. "The Studio", Apple TV https://variety.com/lists/best-tv-shows-2025/ MOVING ON INTO MOVIE NEWS:Best movies of 2025 … Rolling Stone just released their list of the Top 20 movies of 2025. These are the Top 5. The question is … Did you see any of them? Did you see any of them in the theater?Nouvelle Vague (5) Train Dreams (4) Black Bag (3) Hamnet (2) One Battle After Another (1) I've never wanted a celebrity relationship more than I want Pamela Anderson and Liam Neeson. Unfortunately, it sounds like it's not happening. At least not anymore. On the bright side, it sounds like they're in a really good place. https://people.com/pamela-anderson-on-liam-neeson-relationship-exclusive-11864356 AND FINALLY'USA Today' has picked its list for the worst Christmas songs of all time. They are: Alvin and the Chipmunks, ‘The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)' Elmo and Patsy, ‘Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer'NewSong, ‘The Christmas Shoes' Jessica and Ashlee Simpson, ‘The Little Drummer Boy' New Kids on the Block, ‘Funky Funky Xmas' 'USA Today' called their number one pick for worst Christmas song "the novelty song from Hell."Sure there's those annoying Christmas songs we hear every year . . . but let's take it up a notch with Christmas carols from HELL. 1. "Here Comes Santa Claus" by Mrs. Miller. She was discovered by the announcer from "Laugh-In", which should tell you all you need to know.2. "Silent Night" by Wing. Wing Han Tsang was from Hong Kong and started singing as a hobby when she moved to New Zealand. Surprisingly, she made it kinda big. "South Park" even parodied her back in the day.3. "White Christmas" by Tiny Tim. There's also "Silent Night", featuring a spoken-word break where he takes aim at hypocrites, fornicators, and child molesters. You know, just regular Christmas caroler stuff. 4. "Little Drummer Boy" by William Hung. Isn't it crazy to think there's a whole generation who has no idea who this "American Idol" treasure is? 5. "I Got a Cold for Christmas" by the Three Stooges. Not terrible, but not exactly a classic.6. "Jingle Bells" by William Shatner, featuring Henry Rollins. Yes, THAT Henry Rollins.7. "Santa Claws Is Coming to Town" by Alice Cooper, featuring John 5, Billy Sheehan, and Vinny Appice. 8. "The Night Before Christmas" by David Hasselhoff. This one is extra cheesy, but did you expect anything less?9. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" by Regis Philbin. This one has a cameo by a pre-Oval Office Donald Trump, who offers Rudolph a job in place of Santa.10. "Jingle Hell" by Christopher Lee. Yes, one of the greatest actors of all time. He dabbled in heavy metal later in life. This actually isn't his only holiday song, either. He also did covers of "The Little Drummer Boy" and "Silent Night".11. "Away in a Manger" by the Brady Bunch. This one only features the vocal talents of Marcia, a.k.a. Maureen McCormick. It's from an album called "Merry Christmas from the Brady Bunch".See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Eggnog is one of the strangest holiday traditions we have — a creamy mix of eggs, milk, spices, and often a splash of rum. Yet people look forward to it every December. Where did this unusual drink come from, and how did it become tied so closely to Christmas? We start with the surprising history behind this centuries-old holiday concoction. Source: https://time.com/3957265/history-of-eggnog/ Chances are you have a favorite Christmas movie — White Christmas, It's a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, Home Alone, or one of dozens of others that seem to define the season. Film historian Jeremy Arnold, in collaboration with Turner Classic Movies, has chronicled the backstories behind 30 beloved holiday films. He joins me to reveal the little-known details, production tales, and cultural trivia that shaped some of the most iconic Christmas movies ever made. He is author of Christmas in the Movies: 30 Classics To Celebrate the Season (https://amzn.to/3GzDZ3S). If you feel stuffed-up, sneezy, or irritated during the holidays, your Christmas tree may be the culprit. Real trees can carry mold spores and other irritants that trigger allergy-like symptoms. We explore why this happens and what you can do to minimize the problem — without giving up the tree. Source: https://www.entandallergyspecialists.com/uncategorized/can-christmas-trees-cause-allergy-symptoms/ PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS! AURA FRAMES: Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://AuraFrames.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ and get $45 off Aura's best selling Carver Mat frames by using promo code SOMETHING at checkout. INDEED: Get a $75 sponsored job credit to get your jobs more visibility at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://Indeed.com/SOMETHING⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ right now! DAVID GREENE IS OBSESSED: We love the "David Greene Is Obsessed" podcast! Listen at ⁠⁠ https://link.mgln.ai/SYSK⁠⁠ or wherever you get your podcasts. QUINCE: Give and get timeless holiday staples that last this season with Quince.  Go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://Quince.com/sysk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns! DELL: It's time for Cyber Monday at Dell Technologies. Save big on PCs like the Dell 16 Plus featuring Intel® Core™ Ultra processors. Shop now at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://Dell.com/deals ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ AG1: Head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://DrinkAG1.com/SYSK ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to get a FREE Welcome Kit with an AG1 Flavor Sampler and a bottle of Vitamin D3 plus K2, when you first subscribe!  NOTION: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Notion brings all your notes, docs, and projects into one connected space that just works . It's seamless, flexible, powerful, and actually fun to use! Try Notion, now with Notion Agent, at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://notion.com/something⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PLANET VISIONARIES: In partnership with Rolex's Perpetual Planet Initiative, this… is Planet Visionaries. Listen or watch on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're always dreaming of one of our all-time favorite holiday movies, and we're excited to talk all about it on today's episode! We're taking it back to 1954... with White Christmas! Support the show on Patreon Our Instagram Our Website Our Facebook Our TikTok Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Welcome back to the Rick's Rambles Podcast, your weekly destination for fun facts, positive mental health insights, and quirky entertainment! In this episode, we kick things off with 10 fun facts about The Three Stooges—and keep your ears open for a bonus fun fact you won't want to miss. Next, in our mental health and good news segment, we explore the healing power of listening to music and how it can boost your mood, focus, and overall wellbeing. In The Story Behind the Song, we dive into the history of the legendary holiday classic, “White Christmas”, uncovering the stories and surprises behind this timeless tune. Finally, we wrap up the week with our quirky and odd holidays of the week, celebrating the fun and unusual moments that make life more interesting. Tune in and join Rick for laughter, reflection, and uplifting stories that will brighten your week!

What are you dreaming of this Christmas? Most believers are not worldly, and we know the reason for this season, are you one of these believers? Praise The Lord! Simeon was a believer just like you who was dreaming of a White Christmas, the promised Messiah who would come and make us white as snow. He was dreaming and hoping in this promise of God, and this beautiful dream and promise was revealed in Jesus as Simeon held The Christ Child in his arms. Today He is not a Child, but the Christ who is knocking on the door of our hearts, to make all of His promises a reality. What are you dreaming of this Christmas? Are you holding on to Christ The Savior? I'm dreaming of a Christmas where the reality of our sins being washed clean shines brighter than snow.Stay tuned, this reality is coming your way.

New developments in the investigation into a high school cheerleader found dead on a cruise ship. There have been questions about why she and her stepbrother, who the family says is a suspect, were sharing a room on the trip. Today the stepbrother's mother took the stand saying Anna, her stepbrother, and another family member also staying in that room were super close, calling them “The Three Amigos.” And a possible motive revealed for the suspected D.C. pipe bomber. The attempted attacks happened after the 2020 Presidential Election and now we're learning the suspect, Brian Cole Jr. thought that election was rigged. Les Trent is in D.C. with the latest. Plus, we're seeing new video of actress Tara Reid at a hotel bar before she ended up slumped over in a hospital. The American Pie star claims her drink was spiked and this man says she's accusing him of doing it. Now in an Inside Edition exclusive, he tells Alison Hall it never happened. And along with “White Christmas” and “Jingle Bells” this season, you're also hearing offbeat holiday songs such as “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer”, which just landed on a list of the worst Christmas songs of all time. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Join us as we express gratitude and honor the guests we've had throughout the year and invite them back to share a message for the season and perform a holiday tune.We have messages and songs from:Kyle Lacy & Amanda D'Amico - "Holly Jolly Christmas"Kahone Concept - "Christmas, How I've Missed This"Joe Edelmann - "Nice Dream / War Is Over"Emma Bockrath - "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" The Flying Vees - "On This Christmas Night"Avery Ballotta of Damn Tall BuildingsJohn Kim Faye - "White Christmas"Hermosa - "Wonderful Things"Galen Deery - "Helplessly Hoping"Koyal - "Santa Baby"Lia Menaker - "Christmas Alone - Together At Home"Zach Miller of Dr Dog - "I'll Be Home For Christmas"Gina Zo - "Santa, Do You Know?"Nervous Nikki & the Chill Pills - "Murder By Mistletoe"TIOGA - "Blue Christmas"The Hot Mamas - "Maybe This Year Will Be Better Than The Last"And we will also share highlights from last year's Winter WonderJam event from Joe Edelmann and Emma Bockrath and hope you will consider joining us for this year's extravaganza happening once again at the legendary Godfrey Daniels on Sat Dec 6th at 7:00pm ET.We will also honor and raise awareness of those homeless shelters and food banks in our communities that are doing such amazing work - in particular our own New Bethany in Bethlehem, PA, as well as the national nonprofit organization Feeding America.Please join as we kick of the holiday spirit with this 4th annual Winter WonderJam programming.Text us your thoughts on this episode, and who should be OUR #NextFavBand...As always, our hope is to bring you "your next favorite band". If you tuned in today because you already knew this musician - thank you very much! We hope that you enjoyed it and would consider following us and subscribing so we can bring you your #nextfavband in the future. And check out nextfavband.com for our entire catalog of interviews!If you have a recommendation on who you think OUR next favorite band should be, hit us up on social media (@nextfavband everywhere) or send us an email at nextfavband@stereophiliastudio.com.Thank you to Carver Commodore, argonaut&wasp, and Blair Crimmins for allowing us to use their music in the show open and close. It makes everything sound so much better! Let's catch a live show together soon!#nextfavband #livemusic #music #musicinterview #musician #singer #guitar #song #newmusic #explorepage #instamusic #bestmusic #musicismylife #musicindustry #musiclife #songwriter #musiclover #musicfestival

If you've been around a while, you'll know that getting one of the girls from actual Santa Summit is just about the biggest deal ever?!? We have the lovely, talented, effervescent Stephanie Sy on the pod today covering the classic, White Christmas! If you haven't heard it, we really encourage you to listen to the Santa Summit episode, where we all had a bottle of wine and waxes rhapsodic for an hour about the magical film. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donna left her cellphone in her front yard, Matt Lauer is apparently eyeing a return TV and we try to pitch a new TV show about calling and hanging up on people.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

WMAL GUEST: JORDAN EVANS (WJLA Meteorologist) on Today’s Snow Showers and White Christmas Odds SOCIAL MEDIA: X.com/JordanEvansWX LIVE FORECAST: WJLA First Alert Weather Where to find more about WMAL's morning show: Follow Podcasts on Apple Podcasts, Audible and Spotify Follow WMAL's "O'Connor and Company" on X: @WMALDC, @LarryOConnor, @JGunlock, @PatricePinkfile, and @HeatherHunterDC Facebook: WMALDC and Larry O'Connor Instagram: WMALDC Website: WMAL.com/OConnor-Company Episode: Tuesday, December 2, 2025 / 5 AM HourSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Originally released in 2005 as a bonus disc to Chemistry, Girls Aloud's holiday collection "Christmas 'Round At Ours" has officially been reissued for the first time in 2025 as a standalone album - on red vinyl, CD, and streaming.In this episode, Chris and Chantel Nicole review the full album, from festive originals like "Not Tonight Santa", "Count the Days", and "I Wanna Kiss You So (Christmas in a Nutshell)" to classic Christmas covers including "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" and "Jingle Bell Rock". We discuss the vocals, production, songwriting, and legacy of this fan-favorite release and whether it deserves a spot among the best pop Christmas albums.0:00 - Intro1:12 - Album Info2:12 - Album Cover4:21 - “Christmas ‘Round At Ours”8:58 - “Merry Xmas Everybody”12:40 - “Not Tonight Santa”17:33 - “Jingle Bell Rock”22:25 - “Count The Days”28:03 - “I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday”32:28 - “I Wanna Kiss You So (Christmas in a Nutshell)”36:43 - “White Christmas”40:48 - Cut or Keep42:55 - Overall Thoughts & Final RatingReferences:“Not Tonight Santa” MV https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tm6lZ7pvj5M&pp=ygUdZ2lybHMgYWxvdWQgbm90IHRvbmlnaHQgc2FudGE%3D“Jingle Bell Rock” Live at Christmas Mania https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQFRR4Zs-m4&pp=ygUcZ2lybHMgYWxvdWQgamluZ2xlIGJlbGwgcm9ja9IHCQkVCgGHKiGM7w%3D%3D“I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday” Live at Christmas Mania https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dwpt4Fjyjas

She's Kentucky royalty and America's greatest ever MISS AMERICA, the ageless beauty Heather French Henry.As always, Heather is working to alleviate homelessness, especially centered on military veterans who are struggling at life.Heather and Terry Meiners discuss the mission, the White Christmas film artifacts displays, and HALOREA, a stunning collection of charms created by Kentucky's goddess.

Michaella MarlyWhite ChristmasA legszebb karácsonyi dalA könyv a valóságnak megfelelően Irving Berlin White Cristmas című, mindenki által jól ismert slágerének keletkezés történetét mutatja be. Az idei adventben ezt a könyvet fogom felolvasni 24 részben. Minden nap hajnali 5-kor új részt teszek közzé. A könyv szerzője bizonyos fejezetekhez egy-egy Irving Berlin dal meghallgatását javasolja. Ezeket mindig a leírásban megjelenítem, de én más zenei aláfestéseket fogok használni. Ez a rész 1937 decemberében játszódik Beverly Hillsen.Fejezet: 1. fejezetÍró által javasolt zene: There's No Business Like Show BusinessKülön köszönet az általam használt zenéért Sangah Noona zongoristának! - ⁠White Christmas⁠

Advent reminds us that real hope isn't better circumstances—it's God drawing near. Jesus' presence enlarges our story, restores courage, and leads us into God's greater story. Robin Gough November 30, 2025 For more information, visit us at fxcc.org.

Michaella MarlyWhite ChristmasA legszebb karácsonyi dalA könyv a valóságnak megfelelően Irving Berlin White Cristmas című, mindenki által jól ismert slágerének keletkezés történetét mutatja be. Az idei adventben ezt a könyvet fogom felolvasni 24 részben. Minden nap hajnali 5-kor új részt teszek közzé. A könyv szerzője bizonyos fejezetekhez egy-egy Irving Berlin dal meghallgatását javasolja. Ezeket mindig a leírásban megjelenítem, de én más zenei aláfestéseket fogok használni. Ez a rész 1900 decemberében játszódik New Yorkban.Fejezet: ElőszóÍró által javasolt zene: Happy HolidayKülön köszönet az általam használt zenéért Sangah Noona zongoristának! - White Christmas

# A Weather-Watching Arborist Shares Tree Wisdom and Winter Forecasts In this engaging episode, renowned arborist Ron Rothhaas brings his expertise to the garden, discussing everything from the fate of recovering ash trees to the best choices for street tree plantings. With his unique combination of tree knowledge and meteorological insight, Ron offers practical advice for homeowners while sharing his predictions for an unusually snowy December across the Midwest and Northeast. ## Episode Highlights: **3:15** - Emerald ash borer update: Ron explains that while the insect remains present in smaller numbers, treatment protocols have been extended from every two years to every three years, and some untreated ash trees show surprising resilience. **9:20** - Street tree selection: Discussion of infrastructure damage from tree roots, with recommendations for black gum and ginkgo over red maple in limited planting spaces. **12:05** - Winter pruning benefits: Why arborists prefer dormant-season pruning for oaks to prevent oak wilt disease, plus structural pruning tips for young trees. **18:40** - Winter weather outlook: Detailed forecast of an active storm pattern bringing significant snow to the Midwest, with Cincinnati potentially facing accumulating snow by Tuesday morning. **21:30** - White Christmas predictions: Ron breaks from his usual "50% chance" stance, suggesting significantly higher odds this year for the Ohio Valley and Northeast regions. Whether you're managing trees on your property or preparing for winter weather, Ron combines scientific knowledge with practical experience to help you make informed decisions. Listen now to benefit from his decades of expertise in both arboriculture and meteorology!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The end of the year is nigh, and it's our holiday romance novel episode! We're talking about a collection of romances that are entirely new to us (except for the one moment where Sarah talks about that old McNaught short story that installed all her cold-weather romance buttons). We've got Austen retellings, Regency cats, characters playing with holiday toys, CIA agents and, of course, some sexy Santas. You deserve nice things. Don't forget--you can buy the Fated Mates Best of 2025 Book Pack from our friends at Pocket Books Shop in Lancaster, PA, and get eight of the books on the list! Scoundrel Take Me Away and Lazarus, Home from War (independently published) are not in the box. As always, you can add additional romances, or one of Sarah's books to your box. If you want other people to discuss holiday (or other) romances, maybe you want to join our Patreon? You get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord! Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon. Our next read along will be KJ Charles's The Magpie Lord. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.NotesThere are several accounts as to where Irving Berlin wrote White Christmas. Sarah stayed at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel, which claims it inspired the song (by being the opposite of snowy), but there's also an account that he wrote it in La Quinta, CA at the La Quinta Hotel (not to be confused with just any LaQuinta). Check out our prior holiday romance episodes:2024, including Sara Raasch, Vivian Mae, Evie Rose, Timothy Janovsky & more2023, including Holly June Smith, Oona Grace, Kayla Grosse, Tracey Livesay & more2022: Here Comes Santa Claus2021: Short & Sexy Christmas Recs2019, including Adriana Herrera, Delilah Peters, and several anthologies2018, including Therese Beharrie, a Chanukah anthology, Cecilia Grant, Tiffany Reisz & moreBooks

Larry Blank is a prolific Composer, Conductor and Orchestrator across Theatre, TV and Film. He is a 3x Tony Nominee and a 6x Drama Desk nominee. His works include orchestrations of Catch Me If You Can, White Christmas, Fiddler On The Roof and La Cage Aux Folles. He was co-orchestrator for the stage and film versions of The Producers, and additional TV credits include The Grammy Awards and The Academy Awards.My featured song is “New York City Groove” from the album Made In New York by my band Project Grand Slam. Spotify link.—-----------------------------------------------------------The Follow Your Dream Podcast:Top 1% of all podcasts with Listeners in 200 countries!Click here for All Episodes Click here for Guest List Click here for Guest Groupings Click here for Guest TestimonialsClick here to Subscribe Click here to receive our Email UpdatesClick here to Rate and Review the podcastClick here for Robert's “Dream Inspire” App—----------------------------------------CONNECT WITH LARRY:www.larryblankmusic.com—----------------------------------------ROBERT'S NEW “DREAM INSPIRE” APPYour personalized Coach to Motivate, Pursue and Succeed at Your DreamCLICK HERE—----------------------------------------ROBERT'S LATEST SINGLE:“MI CACHIMBER” is Robert's latest single. It's Robert's tribute to his father who played the trumpet and loved Latin music.. Featuring world class guest artists Benny Benack III and Dave Smith on flugelhornCLICK HERE FOR YOUTUBE LINKCLICK HERE FOR ALL LINKS—--------------------------------------ROBERT'S LATEST ALBUM:“WHAT'S UP!” is Robert's latest compilation album. Featuring 10 of his recent singles including all the ones listed below. Instrumentals and vocals. Jazz, Rock, Pop and Fusion. “My best work so far. (Robert)”CLICK HERE FOR THE OFFICIAL VIDEOCLICK HERE FOR ALL LINKS—----------------------------------------Audio production:Jimmy RavenscroftKymera Films Connect with the Follow Your Dream Podcast:Website - www.followyourdreampodcast.comEmail Robert - robert@followyourdreampodcast.com Follow Robert's band, Project Grand Slam, and his music:Website - www.projectgrandslam.comYouTubeSpotify MusicApple MusicEmail - pgs@projectgrandslam.com  

Milwaukee Film's annual “Season's Screenings” holiday movie series just got underway this week, and if you're listening to this episode on its release date, that means you've only missed one of the 22 selections that will run at the Oriental Theatre between now and Jan. 1 (if you really love The Holiday, you can always fork over $3.99 to stream it). With our resident Milwaukee Film-ite Kpolly, it seemed silly not to use this opportunity to dig into the topic of holiday movies. It won't surprise you to learn that both of our hosts find this part of the calendar cinematically delightful. It's kind of hard to argue with them, considering how un-genre-specific these movies are. Traditionalist? You've got White Christmas and It's a Wonderful Life. Romantic? Bridget Jones' Diary and When Harry Met Sally. Holiday hater? Krampus and Christmas Evil. Prefer straight-ahead comedies? Planes, Trains and Automobiles and Scrooged.Speaking of the Bill Murray-starring take on A Christmas Carol, only one entry in this year's “Season's Screenings” has an interactive element, and it happens Dec. 11 with what we're calling “Scrooged with Cinebuds Live”! Because we believe in delivering on things promised in titles, everyone in attendance at the Oriental Theatre will enjoy a screening of the movie and a live taping of Cinebuds immediately following.So if you've ever fancied the idea of hearing your voice on the podcast, this is your big chance. We'll even sweeten the deal by knocking $3 off your ticket, since you're clearly a devoted Cinebuds fan if you've gotten this far down the page. Just enter the code “SCROOGED” when you check out on the Milwaukee Film website, and you'll see the discount applied.#####Cinebuds is sponsored by Joe Wilde Garage Door Company.

AN EVENING WITH THE RAT PACK Tony Sands as "Frank Sinatra" Robert Cabella as "Dean Martin" & Jeff Foote as "Sammy Davis Jr."   The Tony Sands Rat Pack Tribute, often titled "Rat Pack Together Again," is a live stage show that brings to life the style, music, and camaraderie of the legendary Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr.. The performance is a mix of iconic songs, comedy sketches, and witty banter, designed to transport the audience back to the golden era of Las Vegas entertainment. Key Features of the Show: Performers: Tony Sands stars as Frank Sinatra, with other performers taking on the roles of Dean Martin (e.g., Robert Cabella) and Sammy Davis Jr. (e.g., Jeff Foote). Their portrayals are described as "spot on," capturing the unique charisma and vocal styles of the original stars. Live Big Band Music: The show features a "wonderful mix" of the Rat Pack's greatest hits, including Sinatra's "Come Fly With Me" and "My Way," Martin's "That's Amore" and "Everybody Loves Somebody," and Davis Jr.'s "Mr. Bojangles" and "Candy Man". The performers sing individual hits as well as songs where they would have united on stage. Live Band: The impersonators are typically backed by a live big band, such as the group Swingtopia, which provides rich and authentic musical arrangements that fill the room.Atmosphere: The performance aims to recreate the experience of seeing the original Rat Pack live at the Sands Casino in the 1960s. This includes "breezy" onstage banter, light-hearted comedy, and crowd work that captures the genuine chemistry and "mischief" of the trio. Themed Shows: Sands also offers a Christmas-themed version of the show, which incorporates seasonal classics like "White Christmas" and "Let It Snow" alongside the standard hits. The overall experience is a high-energy, nostalgic journey that pays tribute to an era of classic American entertainment, leaving audiences feeling as though the legends are still performing today. You can find more details about the performer and tour dates on the Tony Sands website. See less

Dean Richards, entertainment reporter for WGN, joins Bob Sirott to provide the latest news in entertainment. Bob and Dean share details about the death of Joe “JoBo” Colborn, a celebrity who was allegedly drugged at a Rosemont bar, and Dean’s review of “White Christmas” at the Paramount in Aurora. They also talk about Scarlett Johansson’s […]

We spoke with  Dan McMahon, Goodspeed Musicals' Director of Marketing, about the heartwarming holiday show, White Christmas, and upcoming shows in the 2026 season.

Riverside Center CEO and Producing Artistic Director Patrick A'Hearn discusses the theatre's holiday production of White Christmas, running through December 28. He also outlines highlights from next season's schedule and provides historical context on several well-known Christmas musicals.  riversidedt.com

By Walt HickeyWelcome to the Numlock Sunday edition.This week, I spoke to Chris Dalla Riva, author of the new book Uncharted Territory: What Numbers Tell Us about the Biggest Hit Songs and Ourselves. Chris is a fixture here at Numlock, we're big fans of his newsletter Can't Get Much Higher and have been eagerly waiting for this book, which tracks the history of music by coasting along the top of the Billboard Hot 100. The book can be found at Amazon and wherever books are sold, grab a copy!This interview has been condensed and edited. Chris Dalla Riva, it is great to have you back on. Especially great this week, because you are finally out with a book that I know you've been working on for a very long time, Uncharted Territory. Thanks for coming back on.Yeah, thrilled to be back, but also thrilled to have the book come out. The book publishing world is one of the only worlds left in the world that moves slow enough where you're waiting for so long for something to happen.You have guest-written for Numlock before; you have been a staple of the Sunday editions in the past. You are definitely familiar to the audience at this point because you are doing some of the best music data journalism out there. You've been working on this thing for, I feel like, as long as I've known you, and it is just great to have it come out finally, man.Yeah, actually, I met you because I was working on this project. I was trying to track down some data that you'd used at FiveThirtyEight, and you responded to my email with your phone number. You were like, “This is easier to explain over the phone.”Yeah, I remember I had scraped the radio for months at FiveThirtyEight just to see where it went, and you hit me up with that. I think that you focused some of your energies on the newsletter, and that's been so fun to follow, but this is truly what you've been working at. It is great to get you on finally to talk all about it.What would you describe this book as? How would you describe it, either to folks who might be familiar with your newsletter or unfamiliar with your newsletter, about what you're setting out to do with this particular project?The subtitle, I think, is helpful. It's What Numbers Tell Us About the Biggest Hit Songs and Ourselves. My typical pitch is that it's a data-driven history of popular music that I wrote as I spent years listening to every number one hit song in history. You get a balance of music history, data analysis, just random music chart shenanigans. I wrote it over such a very long period of time that you get a little bit of how my life was intersecting with this book over the years as I tried to get it published.I love the angle on the No.1s being a place to go with, because it gives you a pulse on what's popular at the time and not necessarily what's the most influential at the time. You can see there's a lot of stuff that hit number one at one point or another that have no musical legacy whatsoever, but nevertheless are still interesting. It's dipping your toe in the stream, right? You can see that a lot of things that we assume about how the music industry works weren't always the case.You wrote a little bit about the early transition from big bands to singers as the front-facing people in their operation. That was informed in no small part by what was performing on the charts, but also, I think, labor action, right?An under-discussed part of music history in the last 100 years is that when thinking of any band now or any musical artist, you almost certainly think of the front person being the singer. But if you go look back at big bands of the 1930s and 1940s, anyone whose name was attached to the band was often not a singer. Some that come to mind are Glenn Miller, the Glenn Miller band. Glenn Miller was a trombone player. Artie Shaw was a clarinet player. If none of these names are familiar to you, that's okay. But you can ask your grandparents.Why does this transition happen: suddenly, the lead singer is always getting top billing in a band? There are a bunch of things that contributed to this. One thing I talk about pretty extensively is just the advent of better microphones. If a voice cannot be heard over the roar of an orchestra or a big band, you need a choir of people to sing. It makes the singer less identifiable. As we get better amplification, better microphones, you can get a wider range of vocal styles. Those vocalists can now compete with the sound of a ton of instruments.At the same time, something you mentioned that I think is a fun bit of history is how music used to be much better organized. They had better labor organization, the same way that Hollywood has much better labor organization than music these days. There still exists a group called the American Federation of Musicians. For two years, they had a strike for a work stoppage, when no new music was being recorded. This was during World War II. You weren't allowed to strike during World War II.They were frowned upon very much, it seems, yes.Yes, even if you were a musician. People were like, “Come on, why are the musicians striking?” There's a lot of interesting history there. One of the weird loopholes was that singers could not join the American Federation of Musicians. Because of that, some labels would get around the strike by just recording acapella songs or songs with instruments that were not eligible to be membership because they weren't “serious” enough, like the harmonica. There were weird harmonica songs that were popular at this time. By the time the strike ended, by the time World War II ended, suddenly, singers had a much more prominent role because they were the only ones allowed to perform.There is tons of weird stuff about this strike. Like, labels backlogged tons of recordings because they knew the strike was coming. “White Christmas,” maybe the best-selling record of all time, was one of those backlogged recordings — recorded in July of 1942 and put out however many months later.That's fun. That's basically why Tom Cruise is in a union but Bad Bunny isn't?I guess so. Music and labor have a history that I'm not an expert on. For some reason, musicians have had a much more difficult time organizing. It seemed to be a little bit easier back when there were these big bands that needed to be rolled out to perform in movie theaters or local clubs. You needed a tuba player and a trombone player and a sax player. I guess it was easier for those musicians to organize. Whereas now, things are so scattered and productions can be super small, and you could record something in your bedroom. They never got that level of organization. I think it's actually hurt artists to some degree because they don't have the protections that the film industry does.Because you're able to just coast along at the top of the charts throughout basically the century, you're able to get lots of different interweaving stories of labor and also legal disputes/legal outcomes, as well as this technological evolution. What are some of the ways that technology has informed how the music that we listen to changes or evolves over time? Or even some of the litigation that we have seen over the course of the century of musical creation. It just seems like it's a really fun way to track some of these bigger trends that we don't even know are really trends.Yeah, totally. I think one of the key themes of the book is that musical evolution is often downstream from technological innovation, which has a nice little ring to it. But in general, there's this idea that creativity is being struck by the muse, and you create something. Whereas in reality, there are usually physical constraints or technological constraints that shape the art that we make. One of the most basic examples is the length of songs. From the '40s up till the early, mid-60s, the pop song sits around 2.5 to three minutes. The reason for this is that vinyl singles could literally not hold more sound without degrading, which is completely backwards from the idea that there was an artist who chose to write a 2.5-minute song.I was like, “Well, you had to work within the constraint.” Then technology gets better, singles start to get longer. During the disco era, they actually made bigger discs to put out these long dance mixes. The single sat around like 3.5 to 4.5 minutes for decades until about 10 years ago, when it started to shorten again. People typically point to music streaming for this reason, because artists are paid if a song is listened to for more than 30 seconds, so it's really just a volume game. If you have a 14 minute song that someone listens to one time, they get paid once. But if I listen to a two-minute song seven times (which is again, the same amount of time spent listening), I will be paid out seven times. There is this financial incentive to shorten songs.I don't think artists are sitting in the studio thinking about this constantly. But what I see, what I saw again and again, is that artists were rational beings to some degree and would work within the constraints that they were given. They would usually push against those constraints. That's where a lot of great art comes out of.Even new mediums are offering new opportunities. You wrote a little bit about MTV and how that really changed a lot of what was able to be successful at the time. You had new types of acts that were able to really start competing there, and other acts that just weren't. Do you wanna speak a little bit about like what video did?Yeah, video certainly changed the game. There were artists who had visual presences earlier. The Beatles had a very visual presence. I think part of their success is tied to the fact that television was becoming a thing, and mass media was really becoming a thing. However, we associate musicians with visuals so much these days. That really emerged in the 1980s, where you needed your visual concepts to be as strong, if not stronger than, your musical concepts. I think because of that, you start seeing some artists break through who I don't think are considered great musicians.I always sadly point to the song, “Hey Mickey” by Tony Basil. If it's your favorite song, sorry. I don't think it's a masterful musical creation, but it had this fun music video where she's dressed up as a cheerleader. A lot of that song's success was just the fact that MTV was willing to put that in heavy rotation because it was a fun video to watch. We live in the shadow of that era where visuals matter just as much as anything else.When you think about the most popular artists, outside of maybe a handful, you think of their visual concepts. You think of what Beyoncé looks like, what her videos are like, same with Taylor Swift, as much as you think about their music. That really reshaped our relationship with popular music. We expect to know what artists look like. It's odd to think about that; it really wasn't a thing decades before. You could be a fan of an artist and not really know what they look like. How would you know? Maybe you saw them in a magazine. Maybe you caught them on one television show. The idea that we have access to what everyone looks like is a pretty new phenomenon.That's fun. It's just so interesting to see how a simple change, whether it's today an algorithm or then a medium of distribution, can just have material impacts on the popularity of British synth music in America.Yeah, that's the perfect example. There's a great book called I Want My MTV, and it's an oral history of MTV. They talked to one of the founders. Early MTV would play, as you're saying, all these British new wave acts. Think A Flock of Seagulls, Duran Duran or even someone like U2. They asked the founder, “Why were you playing so many British artists on early MTV?” He was like, “For some reason, British artists happened to make music videos. And there were about 200 music videos in existence. We had to fill 24 hours of programming.” A Flock of Seagulls was gonna get played a bunch of times just because they happened to make music videos.It is a weird thing. Why would anyone make a music video if there was nowhere to really play them? I don't know why specifically the British had more videos, but there were occasional times where television shows might show a video.They do love that over there, like Top of the Pops. I can see why.Music and television have always been connected. You even think Saturday Night Live still has musical acts. Back then, say your label didn't wanna send you out to Britain to go on Top of the Pops. Maybe they would send a video of you instead. There were videos that would float around on these variety shows, and some early videos were just concert footage. It was like, it was a chicken or the egg thing. Once some people had success on MTV, everyone started producing videos. MTV somehow pulled off the miracle of convincing labels that they needed to make videos and that they needed to front the cost for that. Then they had to give MTV the video for free. I don't know how MTV managed to do that.Well, all of Gen X can't be wrong. If you do wanna get it out there, you do have to get it out there. One really fun recurring thing in the book — which again, like I really enjoyed. I think it's a phenomenal work. I think it's a great history. I'm telling stories that I learned in your book to everybody. It is a really fun read in that regard, I wanna say.I do love how you occasionally clock a genre that really only exists briefly. There's one that always goes around for like the strangest things to hit number one, like the Ballad of the Green Berets. I think like there's a Star Wars disco track that I definitely have on vinyl at home about that. You wrote a lot about like teen tragedy songs. What are some of the fascinating like brief trends that only made a small splash and that all of us have forgotten ever existed, but nevertheless achieve some measure of immortality?Yeah, the teen tragedy song is a good one. That actually inspired the writing of this whole book because I got 50 No. 1s, and I was like, “Why are there so many number ones about teenagers dying? That's a little weird.” And then I did a little digging and tried to piece together why that was. The teenage tragedy song, late '50s, early '60s, there are all of these songs about two teenagers in love, usually high schoolers. One tragically dies often in a car crash, and the other is very sad and maybe says that they'll reunite again one day in the afterlife. Some of the big ones are “Leader of the Pack” by the Shangri-Las and “Teen Angel” by Mark Dinning.It's a very weird blip in popular music history. I won't say it has cast a long shadow, but there are some occasional people who pull from that tradition. The craziest teen tragedy song ever was “Bat Outta Hell” by Meatloaf, in which Jim Steinman tried to write a nine-minute motorcycle crash song. I think that's a really interesting one.Disco: bizarre in the amount of people that made disco songs. I really came to like disco and the best disco music, I'm like, “These are the greatest sounds that have ever been recorded.” But it got so big and so popular that everyone felt the need to record disco songs.Not everything is “I Feel Love,” right?No, most things are not. It strikes me that this happened with disco, but has not happened with other genres. Frank Sinatra recorded disco songs. Basically, every television theme song got a disco remix. I Love Lucy had a disco remix. The Rocky theme song had a disco remix.What? I'm sorry, Frank Sinatra did a disco song? Is it good?It's not good. It's “Night and Day” over a disco beat. And it's not clear to me if they just remixed it or if he actually recut the vocal because I just cannot imagine him doing that. In the mid-60s, there was a nun who topped the charts, The Singing Nun with a song called “Dominique.” Of course, during the disco era, it was remixed as a disco song. There are examples of this where people went sort of disco. The Rolling Stones record “Miss You” and it has the disco beat, or Pink Floyd does “Another Brick in the Wall” or Queen does “Another One Bites the Dust.”Everyone was gonna give it a try. There was so much money being made in the disco world at the time. You can always find some artists you would never think would do a disco song probably tried. They probably gave it their best.That's great. It's just fun because the things that hit number one for a week don't necessarily have to be good. They just have to be popular for like a week. Even the construction of the Top 40 chart, which you get into in the book, isn't exactly science. A lot of times, it's a little bit of intuition. It's a lot of what's selling and what's selling where specifically. It is a little bit woo woo, right?Yeah, definitely. The goal of this chart is “What's the most popular song in America in a given week?” Back in the day, that meant what were people buying? What were people listening to on the radio? What were people spinning in jukeboxes? Today, most music is done on streaming. It's consumption-based, rather than sales-based. So the chart's the same in name only, but it's really measuring very different things. The equivalent would be if we knew after you purchased your copy of “I Feel Love,” how many times did you actually play it at home? You could have purchased it, went home and never played it again. Something like that would not register on the charts these days.I respect the people at Billboard because they have an impossible task. It's like “We're gonna take all the information and we're going to boil it down into choosing or measuring what the most popular song is.” It's an impossible task to some degree.I have watched the evolution of the chart, and I go back and forth on whether they have given up on actually trying to rank stuff or if they are just ranking things in a different way. I think that the apples-to-apples between the era stuff is just so hard to do.One thing I really enjoyed about your book, in particular, is that it's not a story of why these songs are the best. It's a story of why these songs were popular at the time, just dipping the toe into the river of human sound. One thing that I'll ask as you wrap: as you were going through these eras, who did you hear a lot more of than you thought? Who did you hear a lot less than you expected?I joked with some people that if you just looked at the top of the charts, the greatest rock band of the 1970s is either Grand Funk Railroad or Three Dog Night because they both had three number one hits, and many other bands in the classic rock canon have none. Led Zeppelin does not really exist on the pop chart, the singles chart. Led Zeppelin really only put out albums. The Eagles were also big during the '70s on the music charts. But Three Dog Night, they're the legends.There are tons of people that I didn't realize how much I would see of them. Someone like Lionel Richie and Phil Collins, of course, they're tremendously popular, but they were so popular. Phil Collins was popular at the height of the bald pop star era, which I think is a thing of the past. You had multiple bald men who were regularly topping the charts in the mid-80s. You see a ton of Phil Collins, more than I was expecting, even though I know he's very popular.Who don't you see a ton of? Sometimes you don't see people until a bit later in their careers. This is actually an interesting phenomenon. Artists do not score a number one hit during their most critically acclaimed period, and then a decade later, they do. For example, Cheap Trick. They have a number one hit, but it's at the end of the '80s song called “The Flame.” Whereas if you hear Cheap Trick on the radio, it's probably their live album from the 1970s. This is a phenomenon you see again and again. Some old timer will get their number one much later in their career. Tina Turner gets her number one when she's probably in her 40s. It's always interesting to see that.There are also some artists where I feel like there's a divergence between what their most popular songs are these days and what was topping the charts. Elton John is a good example there. “Benny and the Jets” was a number one hit, still a tremendously popular song. But he's got a lot of weird No. 1s that I don't think have as much street cred these days. He has a song called “Island Girl.” Did not age like fine wine. I don't even think he plays it live anymore because it's considered somewhat racially insensitive. But it was a No. 1 hit at the time. “Philadelphia Freedom” is another one by Elton John. I feel like when people think of the Elton John catalog, it's probably not the first song that comes to mind. But it was a No. 1 hit, huge smash. His cover of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” was a No. 1. Elton John has been very popular throughout the decades, but I feel like the reasons he's been popular have changed.People have just gravitated towards different songs as time has gone on. You get distortions at the top of the charts. But I think, as you mentioned, it provides a good sample of what was actually popular. You have the good, the bad, and the ugly. Whereas if you look at some other sources, people are just gonna be like, “Oh, listen to these records. These are the best records.” In reality, the bad records are important, too.Yeah, bad records are great. They're at least interesting. I imagine also some of this process must have been missing out on a lot of interesting music because one song was just dominating the charts. Were there any songs in particular that come to mind that wooled the roost for potentially a little bit too long?Yeah, the quintessential example is the “Macarena” in the ‘90s.Oh, no!I think it was No. 1 for 13 weeks.Christ!There's a great clip of people at the Democratic National Convention and '96 dancing the “Macarena.” It's so bad. Yeah, so a very popular song. There are tons of stuff that gets stuck behind it. There's a great No.1 hit in the '90s called “I Love You Always Forever.” It's a very nice song by Donna Lewis. It's stuck at No. 2 because it just happened to be popular during the “Macarena's” very long run. YYour life's work, your greatest accomplishment, being stymied by the “Macarena” feels like a level of creative hell that I have never envisioned before.Yeah, there are other artists who got unlucky. Bruce Springsteen never performed a No. 1 hit. He wrote a No.1 hit for another artist. His closest was “Dancing in the Dark” got to No. 2, but that was also when Prince released “When Doves Cry,” so it's a tough, tough week. Bob Dylan, similar thing. He wrote a No. 1 hit, but he only ever got to No. 2. I think he got to No. 2 twice. Once, he got stuck behind “Help” by the Beatles, and another time he got stuck behind “Monday Monday” by the Mamas and the Papas.This is another thing when I talk about the charts. There could be many fewer units sold in a given week, or there could be many more units sold. There's a lot of luck involved if you're gonna go all the way to No. 1. You could be Bruce Springsteen: you release the biggest record of your life, and Prince also releases the biggest record of his life at the exact same time.Incredible. So again, I have read the book. I really, really like it. People are doubtlessly familiar with the newsletter at this point, but I am also a big fan and booster of that. But I guess I'll just throw it to you. Where can folks find the book, and where can folks find you?Yeah, you can find me, Chris Dalla Riva, basically on every social media platform under cdallarivamusic. I'm most active on TikTok and Instagram. The book, Uncharted Territory: What Numbers Tell Us About the Biggest Hit Songs and Ourselves, should be available from every major retailer online. Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Walmart, Booklist, all that good stuff. Not available physically in stores, so definitely order it online.Like I said, I spent years listening to every No. 1 hit in history, built a giant data set about all those songs and used that to write a data-driven history of popular music from 1958 to basically 2025. So go pick up a copy, buy one for your mother for Christmas. Or your father, I don't discriminate. Yeah, check it out. I'm hoping people enjoy it, and I'm really excited to finally get it out in the world. It's been a long, circuitous journey to get it published.It's a really fun read, and I wish it nothing but the best. And yeah, congrats, thanks for coming on.Yeah, thanks for having me.Edited by Crystal WangIf you have anything you'd like to see in this Sunday special, shoot me an email. Comment below! Thanks for reading, and thanks so much for supporting Numlock.Thank you so much for becoming a paid subscriber! Send links to me on Twitter at @WaltHickey or email me with numbers, tips or feedback at walt@numlock.news. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.numlock.com/subscribe

Es ist Mitte November, offiziell noch kein Weihnachten, aber die Streamingdienste wissen's besser: Holiday-Movie-Season is here. Ob Tatsächlich Liebe, Liebe braucht keine Ferien oder die endlosen Hallmark-Weihnachtsfilme, jedes Jahr flüchten sich Millionen von Menschen in künstlich verschneite Kleinstädte, Zimtduft und heteronormative Happy Ends. Frauen sind in diesen Welten oft die emotionalen Dienstleisterinnen: tröstend, verstehend, heilend. Aber was macht dieses Genre so erfolgreich – obwohl (oder gerade weil) es so rückwärtsgewandt ist? In dieser Folge sprechen wir über das Phänomen der Holiday Movies: woher es kommt (Spoiler: aus der Grußkartenfabrik Hallmark), warum diese Filme das perfekte Gemisch aus Nostalgie, Eskapismus und Kitsch sind, und weshalb sie konservative Weltbilder im Wohlfühlgewand verkaufen.

Cardi B and Stefon Diggs' baby is here, Jonas Brothers find the real Scott Kelly and Nina Dobrev is unbothered by Shaun White rumors. Plus Amy Schumer marriage issues. Kendall went to White Christmas last night and Karin Newhouse checks in LIVE from Bravo Con. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

La serie de juegos 19xx de la editorial española Looping games propone juegos basados en sucesos históricos misceláneos del siglo XX y su último lanzamiento es este 1975 White Christmas, que te ubica al mando de un barco y dos helicópteros en el operativo Frequent Wind, que terminó sacando de la capital vietnamita, abandonada por EEUU, a más de 7000 personas entre militares y civiles.Tremendo Pick-up and delivery que te desmenuzamos en estos 40 minutos.

Welcome to Season 05 Episode 5.07- the "Lake Effect" edition - of Notes from the Aisle Seat, the podcast featuring news and information about the arts in northern Chautauqua County NY, sponsored by the 1891 Fredonia Opera House. Your host is Tom Loughlin, SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor and Chair Emeritus of Theatre and Dance at SUNY Fredonia. Guests on this episode include: Dr. Don Marrazzo, Assistant Professor of Voice and Producer of the Hillman Opera, and comedian Mr. Pete Correale. Notes from the Aisle Seat is available from most of your favorite podcast sites, as well as on the Opera House YouTube Channel. If you enjoy this podcast, please spread the word through your social media feeds, give us a link on your website, and consider becoming a follower by clicking the "Follow" button in the upper right-hand corner of our home page. If you have an arts event you'd like to publicize, hit us up at operahouse@fredopera.org and let us know what you have! Please give us at least one month's notice to facilitate timely scheduling. Time Stamps (Approximate) Don Marrazzo - Hillman Opera The Consul - 01:19 Arts Calendar - 19:05 Don Marrazzo - Live at the Met Arabella - 21:35 Pete Correale - 32:48 Artist Links Mr. Don Marrazzo Mr. Pete Correale Media "Snow, Snow, Beautiful Snow", Music by Sherm Feller; Lyrics by Carl Sigman; performed by Bobby Wayne, Mercury Records, 1953 from Act I of The Consul, music and lyrics by Gian Carlo Menotti, from a performance at Teatro Nuovo, Spoleto, Italy, 1998; performed by Susan Bullock (Magda Sorel), Louis Otey (John Sorel), Jacalyn Kreitzer (Mother); directed by Gian Carlo Menotti "Nocturne Op 9 No. 2" by Frederic Chopin; performed by Frank Levy for YouTube, Feb. 2016 "Peanuts, Pretzels, Cookies", written and performed by Pete Correale, from the album For Pete's Sake, December 2019. "Snow"; from the motion picture White Christmas; written by Irving Berlin; performed by Bing Crosby, Virginia Mayo, Danny Kaye, and Vera-Ellen; Paramount Pictures, October 1954 SUNY Fredonia School of Music Event Calendar Box Office at SUNY Fredonia Lake Shore Center for the Arts Main Street Studios Ticket Website WCVF Fredonia WRFA Jamestown   BECOME AN OPERA HOUSE MEMBER!    

Why do we picture Christmas under a blanket of snow—even in places it never falls? This episode traces the history of the White Christmas story from the Little Ice Age (LIA) in 19th-century England's icy winters to Dickens's classic tales, Victorian holiday art, and the global impact of Bing Crosby's 1942 hit. This episode shows you the magical mix of climate, culture, and nostalgia that shaped how the world celebrates Christmas.Contact:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠email⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Special thanks to:The Christmas Song/Heaven/Slow 3/4 Song by Peter Evans, Tom Blancarte, and Brandon Seabrook - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CC by 3.0⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Santa Claws is Coming by Ergo Phizmiz - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CC by 3.0⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠holiday by Dee Yan-Key - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CC by 3.0⁠⁠⁠⁠

Send us a textToday's episode is the first in a look at several dozen musicians who lived after 1900, roughly in chronological order.  And let me emphasize this is a extremely subjective look - it seems like every time I would look at my list, I f would find a new musician that just had to be on there - so I'm not presenting this in any way as an ideal selection of the most popular or talented or well known musician - just a deep dive into the lives and talents of some of the greatest singers and musicians of the 20th and 21st centuriesAnd I'm going to start with Bing Crosby mainly because he is widely considered the first multimedia star.  Bing Crosby was able to achieve unprecedented and simultaneous superstardom across the three dominant entertainment mediums of his time: recorded music, radio, and motion pictures. In other words, Crosby's career was characterized by his massive and concurrent success in multiple platforms, a feat unmatched by performers who came before him.Crosby was by far the best-selling recording artist of his time and remained so until well into the rock era. His recording of "White Christmas" is the best-selli Setting a standard for future male vocalist such as Frank Sinatra and he was also a major    ng single of all time. And he had 41 number one hits, a number that even surpassed Elvis Presley and The Beatles.Support the showThank you for experiencing Celebrate Creativity.

The Bama Geeks welcome legendary Alabama Theatre house organist Gary W. Jones to talk about the magic of the 2025 Holiday Film Series—a beloved Birmingham tradition featuring classics like "White Christmas," "Elf," "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," "Die Hard," and "The Polar Express." Buy tickets: https://alabamatheatre.com/events ---------- Website: http://bamageeks.com Become a Bama Geeks supporter: http://www.bamageeks.com/join Available on Apple Podcasts (iTunes), Amazon, Spotify, and YouTube. Come sit a spell on the Bama Geeks Front Porch: https://www.facebook.com/groups/bamageeksfrontporch Check out and follow our socials! Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bamageeks Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bamageeks X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/bamageeks YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/@BamaGeeks TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@BamaGeeks

Shelley and I check out two small-box games that provide a much bigger experience than their boxes might suggest. First up is Allplay's tableau builder released earlier this year Oddland by Dan Schumacher then we check out a brand new Essen 2025 release 1975: White Christmas by Albert Reyes  Remember you can support this podcast and our video series by going to www.patreon.com/garrettsgames OR check out the extensive list of games that no longer fit on our shelves, but belong on your table: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16ovRDNBqur0RiAzgFAfI0tYYnjlJ68hoHyHffU7ZDWk/edit?usp=sharing Remember to SUBSCRIBE!

"What would you do if a UFO picked you up and flew you across the country in under an hour?" That's just one of the unforgettable stories in this special Greatest Hits edition of Kent Hance, The Best Storyteller in Texas Podcast. This episode is packed with Kent's trademark humor, candid reflections, and legendary anecdotes—from Bobby Bare's hilarious showdown over God Bless America Again to Kent's pivotal vote on the Fair Housing Act that changed history by a single vote. You'll hear about unexpected press conference zingers, armchair philosophers at the VFW, and Kent's belief that education is the ultimate weapon against hate. Along the way, Kent shares memorable quotes like: "It's hard to hate people that you know." "I may see a flying saucer someday…but I'll be dad gum if I tell anybody." Whether you're here for the laughs, the life lessons, or the behind-the-scenes political drama, this episode delivers it all. Call to Action: Don't miss out—subscribe now, leave us a review, and share this episode with friends who love a good story. New episodes drop every Monday!  

"At the Flying 'W'" - Bing Crosby; "How Lucky You Are" - Bing Crosby; "Top Hat" - Fred Astaire & Bing Crosby; "Cheek to Cheek" - Peggy Lee & Fred Astaire; "Caught in the Rain" - Peggy Lee & Fred Astaire; "A Fine Romance" - Peggy Lee, Fred Astaire, & Bing Crosby; "They Can't Take That Away From Me" - Bing Crosby & Peggy Lee; "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" - Peggy Lee; "Dearly Beloved" - Peggy Lee & Bing Crosby; "White Christmas" - Peggy Lee & Bing Crosby; "Catalog Day" - Bing Crosby, Peggy Lee, & Fred Astaire; "Kamehameha Day" - Bing Crosby, Peggy Lee, & Fred Astaire; "Buy a Philco Day" - Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, & Peggy Lee;Original air date: April 7, 1948

Kathy Halenda and Robert Biederman join Patrick A'Hearn for a lively preview of White Christmas, coming to Riverside Center for the Performing Arts in Stafford on November 5 through December 28.   The beloved holiday classic brings dazzling music, heartwarming storytelling, and all the nostalgia of the season to the stage. Robert shares that his favorite moment comes near the end of the show — because of it's military connection.  We also talks about the magic of giving the gift of live theater, offering an unforgettable experience to share with family and friends.  riversidedt.com.

Believe it or not, but Houston's theater scene is one of the best in the nation. So, why don't we get the respect we deserve?! Host Raheel Ramzanali is learning about just how robust our scene is with Hillary Hart, Executive Director at Theatre Under the Stars. Plus, Hillary is giving her picks on what shows you should watch this season.  Hillary's recommendations of productions you should check out:  • Spelling Bee and White Christmas at TuTs • Shows at Discovery Green  • Shows at POST Houston  • The Nutcracker  Looking for more Houston news? Then sign up for our morning newsletter Hey Houston  Follow us on Instagram  @CityCastHouston Don't have social media? Then leave us a voicemail or text us at +1 713-489-6972 with your thoughts! Have feedback or a show idea? Let us know!  Interested in advertising with City Cast? Let's Talk! Photo by Jeswin Thomas on Unsplash.jpg

We now know Diane Keaton's cause of death, Kim K is on with Alex Cooper and Kevin Federline drops more stories about Britney Spears. Kendall recaps last night's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show and our new Bachelorette is not happy!We are joined by Ann and Andrea from Chanhassen Dinner Theatres showing of White Christmas. Details HereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Holiday classic is a winner for your family and friends to get together for the holidays and celebrate the season. Find out how rehearsals are going from cast member Andrea Mislan

When two podcasts collide, the conversation gets wild — and that's exactly what happened when Mike Abrams of The Wrong Cat Died joined me for this crossover episode with actor Ian Knauer. We cover Ian's journey through Broadway, the West End, regional theater, and even his time performing on Disney Cruise Line. Along the way, Ian shares the perseverance it took to finally land Cats after years of auditioning, what it was like stepping into the role of Jafar at sea, and how those experiences shaped his career both onstage and off. Of course, with Mike in the room, we couldn't resist diving headfirst into the eternal Cats debate — was Grizabella really the right choice, or did the wrong cat die? Ian makes a compelling case for Old Deuteronomy, and things only get livelier from there. From cruise ship lore to Broadway memories to a game of “Did the Wrong Cat Die?” reimagined with iconic stage and screen deaths, this episode is equal parts thoughtful and hilarious. Ian Knauer's career spans Broadway (Anastasia), the West End (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), national tours, regional theater (Cats, White Christmas), and concert and film appearances. A University of Michigan graduate, he has also performed with Disney Cruise Line as a Broadway guest artist, where he delighted audiences as Jafar in Aladdin and beyond. This episode is powered by WelcomeToTimesSquare.com, the billboard where you can be a star for a day. Connect with Ian and Mike: Ian's Instagram: @theianknauer Ian's website: www.ian-knauer.com Mike Abrams' podcast: The Wrong Cat Died Mike Abrams' Instagram: @thewrongcatdied Connect with The Theatre Podcast: Support the podcast on Patreon and watch video versions of the episodes: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/TheTheatrePodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter & Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@theatre_podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook.com/OfficialTheatrePodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TheTheatrePodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Alan's personal Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@alanseales⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Email me at feedback@thetheatrepodcast.com. I want to know what you think. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When two podcasts collide, the conversation gets wild — and that's exactly what happened when Mike Abrams of The Wrong Cat Died joined me for this crossover episode with actor Ian Knauer. We cover Ian's journey through Broadway, the West End, regional theater, and even his time performing on Disney Cruise Line. Along the way, Ian shares the perseverance it took to finally land Cats after years of auditioning, what it was like stepping into the role of Jafar at sea, and how those experiences shaped his career both onstage and off. Of course, with Mike in the room, we couldn't resist diving headfirst into the eternal Cats debate — was Grizabella really the right choice, or did the wrong cat die? Ian makes a compelling case for Old Deuteronomy, and things only get livelier from there. From cruise ship lore to Broadway memories to a game of “Did the Wrong Cat Die?” reimagined with iconic stage and screen deaths, this episode is equal parts thoughtful and hilarious. Ian Knauer's career spans Broadway (Anastasia), the West End (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), national tours, regional theater (Cats, White Christmas), and concert and film appearances. A University of Michigan graduate, he has also performed with Disney Cruise Line as a Broadway guest artist, where he delighted audiences as Jafar in Aladdin and beyond. This episode is powered by WelcomeToTimesSquare.com, the billboard where you can be a star for a day. Connect with Ian and Mike: Ian's Instagram: @theianknauer Ian's website: www.ian-knauer.com Mike Abrams' podcast: The Wrong Cat Died Mike Abrams' Instagram: @thewrongcatdied Connect with The Theatre Podcast: Support the podcast on Patreon and watch video versions of the episodes: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/TheTheatrePodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter & Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@theatre_podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook.com/OfficialTheatrePodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TheTheatrePodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Alan's personal Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@alanseales⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Email me at feedback@thetheatrepodcast.com. I want to know what you think. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1. The Experience Machine: How Our Minds Predict and Shape Reality by Andy Clark, presents a groundbreaking theory that our minds are fundamentally "prediction machines" that actively forecast and shape reality, rather than merely passively receiving sensory information. Perception, Clark explains, is a dynamic interplay between the brain's internal expectations and incoming sensory input. This process is so powerful that strong predictions can even lead to "hallucinations," as demonstrated by the "White Christmas" experiment where participants confidently "heard" Bing Crosby's song in pure white noise when they expected it. Clark emphasizes a key physiological insight: information flowing from the brain "downward" towards the senses far outnumbers the sensory information flowing "inward" (a ratio of approximately 4:1). This suggests the brain primarily predicts what it expects to encounter at the sense organs, then adjusts its models based on any "prediction errors" that arise from actual sensory input. This active inference model means that our mind is constantly seeking to minimize these errors, not just by internal adjustments but also by taking actions in the world (e.g., moving for a better view, checking a dog's reaction) to confirm or correct its predictions. Our perceptions are thus deeply rooted in past experiences and project into the future, anticipating the outcomes of our actions. A significant implication of this predictive framework is the concept of the "extended mind," where our cognitive processes are not confined to the skull but extend to incorporate tools (like an iPhone) and even other beings (such as a pet dog like Sailor). The example of MIGO the orangutan using a stick to probe water depth illustrates how animals take actions to reduce uncertainty and error in achieving their goals, similar to how humans use the internet to find movie times. Clark applies this "prediction machine" model to understand various conditions: • Autism Spectrum Condition is characterized by an "overweighting" of sensory information relative to predictions, making it harder to discern faint patterns (like facial gestures) and causing noisy environments to be uncomfortable. • PTSD appears to involve a "very, very strong response to unexpected negative information," where certain brains are more susceptible to this intense reaction following traumatic events. • Depression, a complex condition, is linked to impaired bodily predictions (e.g., misjudging future energy needs) and a diminished "value of positive information," hindering one's ability to improve mood through positive expectations. The book also explores the integration of mind and body, asserting that internal bodily predictions (e.g., heart rate, energy levels) profoundly influence our external perceptions, a phenomenon shown by experiments where false cardiac feedback alters facial perception. Clark extends the notion of sentience beyond humans, arguing that it is widely shared among animals, including dogs, as they also bring predictions to bear on their experiences and learn from their histories. Emotions, rather than being separate brain circuits, are seen as "reflections of the bodily element of the prediction machine in action," acting as "markers" of how successfully the brain is minimizing prediction error. Ultimately, The Experience Machine suggests that by understanding the mind's active, predictive nature, we can better appreciate consciousness, address cognitive challenges, and harness the power of expectation (as seen in the placebo effect) to influence well-being, albeit with clear limits on curing major diseases.

2. The Experience Machine: How Our Minds Predict and Shape Reality by Andy Clark, presents a groundbreaking theory that our minds are fundamentally "prediction machines" that actively forecast and shape reality, rather than merely passively receiving sensory information. Perception, Clark explains, is a dynamic interplay between the brain's internal expectations and incoming sensory input. This process is so powerful that strong predictions can even lead to "hallucinations," as demonstrated by the "White Christmas" experiment where participants confidently "heard" Bing Crosby's song in pure white noise when they expected it. Clark emphasizes a key physiological insight: information flowing from the brain "downward" towards the senses far outnumbers the sensory information flowing "inward" (a ratio of approximately 4:1). This suggests the brain primarily predicts what it expects to encounter at the sense organs, then adjusts its models based on any "prediction errors" that arise from actual sensory input. This active inference model means that our mind is constantly seeking to minimize these errors, not just by internal adjustments but also by taking actions in the world (e.g., moving for a better view, checking a dog's reaction) to confirm or correct its predictions. Our perceptions are thus deeply rooted in past experiences and project into the future, anticipating the outcomes of our actions. A significant implication of this predictive framework is the concept of the "extended mind," where our cognitive processes are not confined to the skull but extend to incorporate tools (like an iPhone) and even other beings (such as a pet dog like Sailor). The example of MIGO the orangutan using a stick to probe water depth illustrates how animals take actions to reduce uncertainty and error in achieving their goals, similar to how humans use the internet to find movie times. Clark applies this "prediction machine" model to understand various conditions: • Autism Spectrum Condition is characterized by an "overweighting" of sensory information relative to predictions, making it harder to discern faint patterns (like facial gestures) and causing noisy environments to be uncomfortable. • PTSD appears to involve a "very, very strong response to unexpected negative information," where certain brains are more susceptible to this intense reaction following traumatic events. • Depression, a complex condition, is linked to impaired bodily predictions (e.g., misjudging future energy needs) and a diminished "value of positive information," hindering one's ability to improve mood through positive expectations. The book also explores the integration of mind and body, asserting that internal bodily predictions (e.g., heart rate, energy levels) profoundly influence our external perceptions, a phenomenon shown by experiments where false cardiac feedback alters facial perception. Clark extends the notion of sentience beyond humans, arguing that it is widely shared among animals, including dogs, as they also bring predictions to bear on their experiences and learn from their histories. Emotions, rather than being separate brain circuits, are seen as "reflections of the bodily element of the prediction machine in action," acting as "markers" of how successfully the brain is minimizing prediction error. Ultimately, The Experience Machine suggests that by understanding the mind's active, predictive nature, we can better appreciate consciousness, address cognitive challenges, and harness the power of expectation (as seen in the placebo effect) to influence well-being, albeit with clear limits on curing major diseases.

3. The Experience Machine: How Our Minds Predict and Shape Reality by Andy Clark, presents a groundbreaking theory that our minds are fundamentally "prediction machines" that actively forecast and shape reality, rather than merely passively receiving sensory information. Perception, Clark explains, is a dynamic interplay between the brain's internal expectations and incoming sensory input. This process is so powerful that strong predictions can even lead to "hallucinations," as demonstrated by the "White Christmas" experiment where participants confidently "heard" Bing Crosby's song in pure white noise when they expected it. Clark emphasizes a key physiological insight: information flowing from the brain "downward" towards the senses far outnumbers the sensory information flowing "inward" (a ratio of approximately 4:1). This suggests the brain primarily predicts what it expects to encounter at the sense organs, then adjusts its models based on any "prediction errors" that arise from actual sensory input. This active inference model means that our mind is constantly seeking to minimize these errors, not just by internal adjustments but also by taking actions in the world (e.g., moving for a better view, checking a dog's reaction) to confirm or correct its predictions. Our perceptions are thus deeply rooted in past experiences and project into the future, anticipating the outcomes of our actions. A significant implication of this predictive framework is the concept of the "extended mind," where our cognitive processes are not confined to the skull but extend to incorporate tools (like an iPhone) and even other beings (such as a pet dog like Sailor). The example of MIGO the orangutan using a stick to probe water depth illustrates how animals take actions to reduce uncertainty and error in achieving their goals, similar to how humans use the internet to find movie times. Clark applies this "prediction machine" model to understand various conditions: • Autism Spectrum Condition is characterized by an "overweighting" of sensory information relative to predictions, making it harder to discern faint patterns (like facial gestures) and causing noisy environments to be uncomfortable. • PTSD appears to involve a "very, very strong response to unexpected negative information," where certain brains are more susceptible to this intense reaction following traumatic events. • Depression, a complex condition, is linked to impaired bodily predictions (e.g., misjudging future energy needs) and a diminished "value of positive information," hindering one's ability to improve mood through positive expectations. The book also explores the integration of mind and body, asserting that internal bodily predictions (e.g., heart rate, energy levels) profoundly influence our external perceptions, a phenomenon shown by experiments where false cardiac feedback alters facial perception. Clark extends the notion of sentience beyond humans, arguing that it is widely shared among animals, including dogs, as they also bring predictions to bear on their experiences and learn from their histories. Emotions, rather than being separate brain circuits, are seen as "reflections of the bodily element of the prediction machine in action," acting as "markers" of how successfully the brain is minimizing prediction error. Ultimately, The Experience Machine suggests that by understanding the mind's active, predictive nature, we can better appreciate consciousness, address cognitive challenges, and harness the power of expectation (as seen in the placebo effect) to influence well-being, albeit with clear limits on curing major diseases.

4. The Experience Machine: How Our Minds Predict and Shape Reality by Andy Clark, presents a groundbreaking theory that our minds are fundamentally "prediction machines" that actively forecast and shape reality, rather than merely passively receiving sensory information. Perception, Clark explains, is a dynamic interplay between the brain's internal expectations and incoming sensory input. This process is so powerful that strong predictions can even lead to "hallucinations," as demonstrated by the "White Christmas" experiment where participants confidently "heard" Bing Crosby's song in pure white noise when they expected it. Clark emphasizes a key physiological insight: information flowing from the brain "downward" towards the senses far outnumbers the sensory information flowing "inward" (a ratio of approximately 4:1). This suggests the brain primarily predicts what it expects to encounter at the sense organs, then adjusts its models based on any "prediction errors" that arise from actual sensory input. This active inference model means that our mind is constantly seeking to minimize these errors, not just by internal adjustments but also by taking actions in the world (e.g., moving for a better view, checking a dog's reaction) to confirm or correct its predictions. Our perceptions are thus deeply rooted in past experiences and project into the future, anticipating the outcomes of our actions. A significant implication of this predictive framework is the concept of the "extended mind," where our cognitive processes are not confined to the skull but extend to incorporate tools (like an iPhone) and even other beings (such as a pet dog like Sailor). The example of MIGO the orangutan using a stick to probe water depth illustrates how animals take actions to reduce uncertainty and error in achieving their goals, similar to how humans use the internet to find movie times. Clark applies this "prediction machine" model to understand various conditions: • Autism Spectrum Condition is characterized by an "overweighting" of sensory information relative to predictions, making it harder to discern faint patterns (like facial gestures) and causing noisy environments to be uncomfortable. • PTSD appears to involve a "very, very strong response to unexpected negative information," where certain brains are more susceptible to this intense reaction following traumatic events. • Depression, a complex condition, is linked to impaired bodily predictions (e.g., misjudging future energy needs) and a diminished "value of positive information," hindering one's ability to improve mood through positive expectations. The book also explores the integration of mind and body, asserting that internal bodily predictions (e.g., heart rate, energy levels) profoundly influence our external perceptions, a phenomenon shown by experiments where false cardiac feedback alters facial perception. Clark extends the notion of sentience beyond humans, arguing that it is widely shared among animals, including dogs, as they also bring predictions to bear on their experiences and learn from their histories. Emotions, rather than being separate brain circuits, are seen as "reflections of the bodily element of the prediction machine in action," acting as "markers" of how successfully the brain is minimizing prediction error. Ultimately, The Experience Machine suggests that by understanding the mind's active, predictive nature, we can better appreciate consciousness, address cognitive challenges, and harness the power of expectation (as seen in the placebo effect) to influence well-being, albeit with clear limits on curing major diseases.

The talented cast of White Christmas LIVE at the Chanhassen Dinner Theater join us in studio to talk about the upcoming holiday show and remind you this is your LAST CHANCE to catch it before it's gone! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This episode of The American Tapestry Project begins on “Popular Music: A Window Into the Soul of America.” It examines the Top Ten Hits of the 20th Century for cultural insights as it surveys the history of American popular music from 19th century minstrelsy shows to the latest streaming “hit” on the platform of your choice. “American Pop” and the tapestry of America's many stories. This episode asks, “What was the Top Hit of the 20th century? Spoiler alert” It wasn't “White Christmas.” “All this and more”, as they say on late night TV, on Episode 52 of The American Tapestry Project.

"EDITH HEAD: OLD HOLLYWOOD'S QUEEN OF FASHION" (093) EPISODE 93 -  6/23/25 With eight Academy Awards to her name — more than any other woman in history — EDITH HEAD wasn't just a costume designer; she was a storyteller in fabric, silhouette, and sparkle. From BETTE DAVIS to GRACE KELLY to AUDREY HEPBURN, she dressed the biggest stars of the silver screen, leaving an indelible mark on both fashion and film. In this episode, we explore how a shy schoolteacher became the most powerful woman in Hollywood wardrobes, her collaborations with iconic directors like Alfred Hitchcock, and how her designs helped shape characters, define eras, and influence fashion far beyond the studio lot. So, slip into something fabulous, and let's step behind the curtain into the life and legacy of the great Edith Head. SHOW NOTES:  Sources: Dressing Up The Stars: The Story of Movie Costume Designer Edith Head (12022), by Jeanne Walker Harvey;  Edith Head: The 50 Year Career of Hollywood's Greatest Costume Designer (2010), by Jay Jorgensen; Edith Head: The Life and Times of Hollywood's Celebrated Costume Designer (2003), by David Chierichetti; Edith Head's Hollywood (1983), by Edith Head; The Dress Doctor (1959), by Edith Head; “How To Dress For the Oscars,” February 11, 2015, ⁠www.oscars.com⁠; Wikipedia.com; TCM.com; IBDB.com; IMDBPro.com; Movies Mentioned:  Wings (1927); The Saturday Night Kid (1929); Love Me Tonight (1932); She Done Him Wrong (1933); Little Miss Marker (1934); Rhythm on the Range (1936); College Holiday (1936); The Jungle Princess (1936); Internes Can't Take Money (1937); The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938); Thanks for the Memories (1938); Mad about Music (1938); Dangerous To Know (1938);  Beau Geste (1939); Remember the Night (1939); The Cat and the Canary (1939);  The Lady Eve (1941); Sullivan's Travels (1941); The Glass Key (1942); I Married a Witch (1942); Star Spangled Rhythm (1942); Hold That Blonde (1945); The Blue Dahlia (1946); Holiday Inn (1942); The Uninvited (1944); Double Indemnity (1944); Incendiary Blonde (1945); To Each His Own (1946); The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946); A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949); The Great Gatsby (1949);  Notorious (1946); The Emperor's Waltz (1948); The Heiress (1949); All About Eve (1950); Sunset Boulevard (1950); Samson & Delilah (1949); A Place in the Sun (1951); Roman Holiday (1953); Sabrina (1954);  Funny Face (1957); Rear Window (1954); To Catch a Thief (1955); The Trouble With Harry (1955); The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956); Vertigo (1958); Ace In the Hole (1951); The Greatest Show on Earth (1952); Shane (1953); White Christmas (1954);  The Rose Tattoo (1955); The Rainmaker (1956); The Ten Commandments (1957); Loving You (1958); The Pink Panther (1963); A Shot In the Dark (1964); The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1963); Love With the Proper Stranger (1963); Sex and the Single Girl (1964); Inside Daisy Clover (1965); The Great Race (1965);  Penelope (1966); This Property is Condemned (1966); G.I. Blues (1960);  Blue Hawaii (1961);  Girls! Girls! Girls! (1962);  Fun In Acapulco (1963);  Roustabout (1964); Paradise Hawaiian Style (1966); What a Way to Go! (1964); Sweet Charity (1969); Summer and Smoke (1961);  Hud (1963); The Birds (1963); Harlow (1965); Barefoot in the Park (1967); Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid (1969); Topaz (1969); Airport (1970); Airport ‘75 (1974); Airport ‘77 (1977); Myra Breckenridge (1970); Lady Sings The Blues (1972); The Sting (1974); The Great Waldo Pepper (1975);,  The Man Who Would Be King (1976);  Family Plot (1976); Gable and Lombard (1976); W.C. Fields and Me (1976); Rooster Cogburn (1975); Sextette (1978); Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982); --------------------------------- ⁠http://www.airwavemedia.com⁠ Please contact ⁠sales@advertisecast.com⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices