Enjoy Stuff: A TechnoRetro Podcast

April 2024
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Mon, 9 March 2020

Beneath your feet a superheated maelstrom is churning, burning, yearning to be borne to the surface through a crack in the crust and carried to new heights in a funnel-shaped mountain in hopes of bursting forth into our cruel, cool world. Magma, lava, it’s all the same — just a different location. Tune in for explosive eruptions on TechnoRetro Dads as we explore the hot topic of volcanoes.

In the NEWS

Nik Wallenda walks across the mouth of a volcano . . . on a tightrope. And he did it just in time to be featured on this volcanic episode of TechnoRetro Dads. Yep. We’re that hot!

We Love Our Cereal…

…even in pancakes. And the world seems to agree. Cap’n Crunch has a new Berrytastic Pancake Mix you can make at home. Or, if flipping flapjacks sounds like too much work, you can go to IHOP and enjoy their cereal pancakes. Swiss Miss will soon release Lucky Charms hot chocolate you can heat over the cone of a volcano (if you’re daring). Florida girl is a cereal hero who continues collecting boxes of cereal for the less fortunate in the Tampa area.

Joe Versus The Volcano

Thirty years ago, Tom Hanks was connived into agreeing to jump into a volcano for Lloyd Bridges because Robert Stack clouded his mind through masterful manipulation. And just when it seemed that things couldn’t get any stranger, Meg Ryan showed up with Meg Ryan and Meg Ryan — all of whom were more than a tad bit interested in Tom Hanks. Add some orange soda and an island big enough for Abe Vigoda and Nathan Lane and you’ve got a match Vegas would love to see. In the aftermath of Mike Tyson vs. Buster Douglas, we were given a red hot battle in Joe Versus the Volcano.

TechnoRetro Arcade: Volcanoes in Video Games

Whether it was the never-changing vector-graphic volcano in Battlezone or “Lethal Lava Land” in Mario 64, we lava the explosive eruptions and magmaficently brilliant digital flows in video games at home and in the arcade.

Feedback

The Jeffries tubes on the Enterprise-D came from the Red October.
Less than Jake did a song for a Pac-Man cereal commercial.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Go online for more TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, RetroZap.com, or TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Pick up your TechnoRetro Dads merchandise at TeePublic. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merchandise at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_07.46.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 2 March 2020

March for Cereal Day on the Red October

You can #chillyourbowl in the frigid waters of Russia with Sean Connery and Alec Baldwin in the first film adaptation of a Tom Clancy “Jack Ryan” novel.

In the NEWS

Tony Soehner publishes the first book in a new series of Dungeons & Dragons novels.
Bob Iger leaves office and people want to know if he will pursue a political office.
Jif peanut butter gets into the digital graphics game with a bit of flavorful fun.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and when there’s gold in boxes of Lucky Charms, there’s even more to love. But when buying a box of cereal means you have to pawn your wedding ring, we’re not overly excited.

TechnoRetro Arcade: Video Game Cereals

From Donkey Kong to Pac-Man, cereals have been known to capitalize on licensing video games to garner more of the Saturday morning cereal lovers’ pastimes.

The Hunt for Red October

With an iconic soundtrack by Basil Poledouris and an all-star cast featuring Sean Connery, Alec Baldwin, Scott Glenn, Sam Neill, James Earl Jones, Joss Ackland, Tim Curry, Stellan Skarsgård, Courtney B. Vance, Jeffrey Jones, Fred Thompson, Sven-Ole Thorsen, and Gates McFadden, The Hunt for Red October preyed on our lingering fears from the Cold War and our interest in suspenseful action movies. JediShua and shazbazzar remember and rewatch The Hunt for Red October thirty years later.

Feedback

Check out these voicemails and electronic-Ms from our EarBuds!

Onkl Mawks analyzes the voices of your hosts.
Chris the Arvadinian has a favorite arcade game.
Ben C. Foster shows his artistic talent in music and pen & ink drawings.

Direct download: TRDads_07.45.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 24 February 2020

Celebrate TechnoRetro Day on February 27th

How did two years of “Retro Day” pass without us noticing? Join shazbazzar and JediShua as we make up for lost time in a week devoted to a mix tape of truly TechnoRetro tributes.

In the NEWS

Masters of the Universe finds its voice(s)
Scott Bakula talks Quantum Leap
Rick Moranis and Joe Johnston to return for Shrunk.
Wil Wheaton hosts E-Sports game show.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars is back!
New Amazing Stories trailer.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and magic. However, the lines between science, magic, and downright witchcraft are getting blurry with the pink pebbles that may make blue poo as Post announces Magic Fruity Pebbles.

Vinyl Scratchback: Retro Mix Tape

JediShua and shazbazzar suggest five-song TechnoRetro Day mix tapes from the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s. Several EarBuds chime in with their ideas, too!

TechnoRetro Arcade

Remember what it was like to go into the arcade at the mall or shopping center with a five-dollar bill? With a bit of foresight based on hindsight (it is 2020, after all), JediShua and shazbazzar plan their TechnoRetro Day trip to the arcade.

Saturday Mornings

The ‘Dads dig into truly retro cartoons they dug as kids (even if they weren’t strictly Saturday morning fare). With just a bit of controversy, their lists of TechnoRetro Day cartoons will have you reaching for a chilled bowl of your favorite cereal this Thursday.

The Road to the Empire Strikes Back

During the three year-long interval between Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back, the kids of the ‘70s needed something to keep them in that galaxy far, far away without losing their minds waiting for there heroes to return. Thankfully, Kenner had the prescription to keep hypersensitive kids from going full-on hyperactive: Star Wars action figures, playsets, and vehicles. Take a trip back in time as shazbazzar and JediShua relive the timeless toys from 1978, 1979, 1980, and beyond on the Road to the Empire Strikes Back.

Direct download: TRDads_07.44.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 17 February 2020

Witness the Cartoon Music Festival

Tune up and tune in for some cartoon tunes as animated bands set the stage for music and memories on this mid-February episode of TechnoRetro Dads.

In the NEWS

The Academy Speaks Korean
Gear up for Retro Day

We Love Our Cereal…

…and Buffalo does, too. Check out The Cereal Spot where the bowls are chilled all winter! Go to Kansas City and get you a super bowl of Mahomes Magic Crunch! In Japan, you can even get a sweet box of Hershey’s Matcha Chocolate cereal.

Saturday Mornings

Listen to the bands as they play cartoon tunes on Saturday mornings from the 1960s to the early 1990s. Some of these may be more obscure than others, but with a little help from EarBuds, shazbazzar and JediShua have pieced together a nice set list of songs from animated television.

Let’s All Go to the Movies: Witness

When an eight year-old Amish boy witnesses a murder as he travels to Philadelphia, John Book has to get involved for everyone’s safety as the case is investigated. Remember Witness from 1985 starring Harrison Ford, Lukas Haas, and Kelly McGillis, and many more famous faces.

The Road to the Empire Strikes Back

From soundtracks to disco covers, the music of a galaxy far, far away lived on in the late ‘70s and 1980 as we all eagerly awaited the sequel to Star Wars. Get out the turntable and spin some vinyl with JediShua and shazbazzar as we listen to everything from orchestral music, disco, and even read-along books on the Road to the Empire Strikes Back.

Direct download: TRDads_07.43.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 10 February 2020

The Wizard of Super Mario Bros. 3

The football champions have been crowned. Grammy and Oscar have had their nights. Once again, it’s time for TechnoRetro Dads with an episode that’s longer than a commercial for Super Mario Bros. 3.

In the NEWS

Starbucks has secret drinks from a GFFA.
Galaxy’s Edge has new drinks, too.
New DeLoreans are coming.
Atari is in the hotel business.

We Love Our Cereal…

…but not the way everyone eats it. JediShua reveals why #ChillYourBowl is better than a recent TikTok challenge as shazbazzar unveils the best ice cream cereal ideas ever will soon be in the freezer at your local grocery store.

TechnoRetro Arcade

In 1990, Mario and Luigi got new powers and costume changes in Super Mario Bros. 3. The U.S. release of this game brought in lots of cash for Nintendo after the longest commercial in video game history was shown in theaters under the name The Wizard.

Romantic Scenes from TechnoRetro Movies

With Valentine’s Day coming this week, it’s a great time to look back at some great movies from our younger years to highlight some of the most romantic scenes in the movies we love. It shouldn’t surprise anyone to learn that these movie scenes taught us life-long lessons about love.

Don’t Forget!

Although the GOLIVERSE marathon for Cure Childhood Cancer is over, you can still make your tax-free donation to help eliminate childhood cancer in our lifetime by making your gift here!

Direct download: TRDads_07.42_.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 27 January 2020

Is the Wheel of Fortune in Jeopardy?

Sure, you recognize Mom and Dad are palindromes, but did you notice the racecar? It was a Toyota. Yep, that was another one. It could be expanded in context, too: A Toyota. Race fast, safe car. A Toyota. Wow, that was long! And we saw a Jawa sew DNA. Okay, that really didn’t make much sense, but if it was an offworld Jawa, it might explain something about baby Yoda. Since this is the last show before Palindrome Day, shazbazzar and JediShua wanted to remind you that next Sunday is 2020.02.02 (or 02.02.2020). So get busy going backwards and forwards at the same time. Wait, isn’t that what TechnoRetro Dads is all about?

In the NEWS

Funko Vinyl figures in retro soda cans.
Classic Dungeons & Dragons modules altered.
Denver artist creates visionary worlds in retro objects.
Terry Jones of Monty Python departs this life.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Nintendo seems to have forgotten Stanley, the hero of Donkey Kong 3. So have the rest of us, evidently. Witness the child of Galaga and Donkey Kong below:

https://youtu.be/n3kjQzcp7Lk

Game Shows

From Wheel of Fortune to Jeopardy, game shows have been a part of our lives since childhood. We remember hosts, games, prizes, and more from shows like Tic Tac Dough, Press Your Luck, Scrabble, Hollywood Squares, $10,000 Pyramid, $25,000 Pyramid, The Price is Right, The Gong Show, Name that Tune, Sale of the Century, Concentration, Card Sharks, Jokers Wild, Win, Lose, or Draw, as well as Double Dare, Remote Control, and Legends of the Hidden Temple.

The Road to The Empire Strikes Back

Comic books were essential for the continuing story of Luke Skywalker and his friends after Star Wars left theaters. Part of the hype leading up to The Empire Strikes Back included catching up with old friends and meeting new ones in the pages of Marvel’s Star Wars comic books.

Direct download: TRDads_07.41.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 20 January 2020

Football Games, Video Games, and a Game of World Domination called Risk

The LSU Tigers are the undisputed champions of college football. JediShua has had some experience with electronic and hard-hitting Big Toe football. Scott Ryfun has an odd collection of football games. The Mississippi State Bulldogs have an entertaining new coach. And of all the games we're talking about this morning, football really isn't it. But you would do well to take a RISK and tune in to TechnoRetro Dads right now!

In the NEWS

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker nominated for the Academy Awards with Missing Link.
Disney is considering remaking Space Camp.
Quantum Leap looks like it might be making a comeback.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and Cheerios love our hearts. Plus: Reese's Big Puffs have been spotted in the stores. Is the picture on the front of the box a scale version of these enormous cereal puffs we've been hearing about?

TechnoRetro Arcade

JediShua and shazbazzar imagine what their home arcades could be like even as Shua is actually putting his together.

Saturday Mornings

Part of the fun of our youth was sitting in front of the TV with a bowl of cereal on Saturday mornings before your friends (and maybe your family) got up. Some EarBuds chime in on shows they remember.

Risk: A Game of World Domination

Start with one continent and then expand outward while protecting your land from outside attackers in the classic game of Risk. Draw your cards, move your pieces, roll the dice, get ready to fight in this game that continues to be popular after over sixty years.

The Road to The Empire Strikes Back

With no internet access to quench Star Wars' fans' thirst for information about the upcoming sequel, kids and adults relied on print media to provide sufficient bits of news to keep the hype going and growing on the long, long drive down the Road to The Empire Strikes Back.

Direct download: TRDads_07.40.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 13 January 2020

Herbie Goes Bananas while anticipation grows for The Empire Strikes Back

Whether Mr. Cab Driver refuses to pick you up or Lady Cab Driver is caught in the Crosstown Traffic, Baby, You Can Drive My Car while we talk about cars this week on TechnoRetro Dads. Take us along on your Monday morning commute for a road trip through five decades of love bugs, imperial slugs, with wheels, deals, and lots of banana peels.

In the NEWS

Disney+ Willow series in preproduction.
Legendary Visual Futurist Syd Mead dies at 86.

We Love Our Cereal…

…but Mexico evidently doesn’t like iconic cartoon cereal mascots like Tony the Tiger. However, Gene Simmons does enjoy his cereal — with ice cubes.

Herbie Goes Bananas (1980)

In the third sequel to Disney’s The Love Bug, Herbie has ended up in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and has been inherited by Pete from his uncle Jim Douglas. As he goes to pick Herbie up with his friend DJ, the two are pickpocketed by an orphan boy named Paco. In an unexpected twist, Paco also robbed some bad guys, who are after some Incan gold. In the stolen wallet was a piece of film that would lead the villains to the gold. Seeking an escape, Paco hides in Herbie and gets onboard the cruise ship Sun Princess. All our heroes meet up with Captain Blythe, Louise, and her anthropology student niece, Melissa. The captain tosses Herbie overboard after his mischievous antics and all seems lost. But Herbie swims to shore, meets up with Paco, fights a bull, and helps Paco, Pete, and DJ race for the gold.

JediShua’s New TechnoRetro Studio

The walls are up. The shelves are installed. The collectibles are being displayed. Soon, JediShua will share the O.A.S.I.S. with family, friends, and EarBuds in a fun-filled room with absolutely no rabbits allowed — except on boxes of TRIX.

The Road to The Empire Strikes Back

Forty years ago, young Shua and younger shaz anxiously awaited the sequel to the most amazing movie they had (and have) ever seen. Join the TechnoRetro Dads each week as we remember the five month long drive down the Road to The Empire Strikes Back.

Direct download: TRDads_07.39.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 6 January 2020

Star Wars Aftershocks featuring The Black Hole

As the smoke clears from shazbazzar’s ongoing battle with the chipmunks, Sheldon Norton and JediShua help clear shazbazzar’s vision by providing insights into some aftershocks of Star Wars that could have catapulted Disney into the modern age of science fiction with the last movie made “the old-fashioned way”. It’s perfect 20/20 vision in the first episode of 2020 this Monday morning!

Sad NEWS

Jack Sheldon of SchoolHouse Rock fame dies at 88.
Caroll Spinney from Sesame Street dies at 85.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and dad jokes on cereal containers’ labels that our Roving Spoonster discovered over the holidays.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Sheldon, Shua, and shaz recount their experiences watching The Rise of Skywalker for the first (second and third) time before studying some Star Wars Aftershocks from 1979.

The Black Hole

After the blockbuster success of Star Wars, filmmakers rushed headlong into the cinematic “space race” in hopes of capitalizing on the success of George Lucas’s zeitgeist. Even Disney was not immune to the attraction of the stars above, embarking on a quest the Mouse had never before undertaken. That’s how Disney found themselves pulled into the inescapable gravity of a huge budget and PG rating of The Black Hole. In a quest to discover answers, Disney tells the story of how German scientist Hans Reinhardt maintains his ship, the Cygnus, next to a black hole, planning to plunge the ship into and through the dark monstrosity in his quest for knowledge: specifically, what caused the cause that created the known universe.

EarBuds’ Toy Catalog

The results of the “toys for all” bracket of 2019’s toy catalog are in. SPOILER ALERT: It’s Nerf or nothing!

Direct download: TRDads_07.38.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 23 December 2019

UnScrooged 6

’Tis the season of Star Wars with The Rise of Skywalker, and of course the ‘Dads seen it…once or twice. Now shazbazzar and JediShua go window shopping and find special last-minute gifts for each other in the spirit of Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas (or The Gift of the Magi, if you prefer).

Take 77 minutes of music with you on your last day of work and final shopping trips this weekend with tunes by Buster Poindexter, Kurt Russell, John Kirby, The Monkees, Brian Setzer, Yogi Yorgesson, Danger Danger, Dropkick Murphys, William Shatner, Ray Stevens, The Matinee, Cyndi Lauper, and more. Experience cartoon voices from The Smurfs, ALF, The Transformers, Pinky and the Brain, G.I.Joe, and Pac-Man. Finally, plug into the Christmas spirit with Star Wars and video game music. It’s the sixth edition of UnScrooged — share and enjoy!

Merry Christmas, EarBuds!

Direct download: TRDads_UnScrooged_6.mp3
Category:Music Special -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Mon, 16 December 2019

Skywalker Rising toward a Conclusion

Join us for an “uncut” and “raw” episode of TechnoRetro Dads in this Star Wars Scrapbook covering eight movies, several theaters, and a handful of states as we recall our lifetime of involvement with the Skywalker family in the films that have had the biggest impact on our lives.

May the Force Be with you.

Direct download: TRDads_07.37.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 9 December 2019

Don’t Get Bored on Christmas Vacation — Play Board Games!

If your family’s antics are a bit more for you to deal with for two or more weeks of winter break, you can always ease the tension with a highly competitive board game like Battleship or a nerve-wracking round of Perfection.

Whether Sorry summons your inner sadist to the surface or your masochistic side years for endless hours of Monopoly, we’re all likely to break out the board games over the holidays. So put your copy of Christmas Vacation in the VCR and gather the family for a rousing game of Trivial Pursuit.

In the NEWS

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in concert
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance on vinyl
Star Wars deck of Cards Against Humanity
Disneyland After Dark goes totally TechnoRetro

We Love Our Cereal…

…and cereal boxes with Star Wars themed T-Shirts from Funko at your local WalMart!

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

Celebrate thirty years with the Griswolds at their home in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. JediShua and shazbazzar recall the Vacation movies, especially Christmas Vacation as the season continues to be holly jolly in spite of Murphy’s Law interrupting this movie for a couple hours of laughs most of your family will enjoy (others will squirm in their seats, become sick, or just walk out of the room).

TechnoRetro EarBuds’ Toy Catalog

Games are on deck as Mattel Electronic Football, Battleship, skateboards, Connect Four, Mousetrap, Barrel of Monkeys, Monopoly, and Risk compete for votes from our EarBuds. Don’t let your vote go unnoticed. Be sure to check social media outlets every day and voice your choices in the Toy Catalog brackets this week!

Board Games

JediShua and shazbazzar thumb through EarBuds’ comments about the games they have loved from childhood and today. Play on!

Direct download: TRDads_07.36.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 2 December 2019

The Forty Year Mission of the Starship Enterprise

Their five-year mission was cut short on television, but a decade later, Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, and Dr. “Bones” McCoy embarked on a brand-new ongoing mission that would take them beyond the limitations of living rooms and into the cinematic universe with Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

TechnoRetro Toy Catalog
The second round of wish book wishing has finished with Earbuds’ pics for creative toys in 2019, but there’s more to come this week as games are in the brackets next. Be sure to check our social media pages every day for your chance to cast your votes.

Star Wars Aftershocks: Star Trek: The Motion Picture
SuperFriend Jovial Jay (Jedi Journals, Scarlet Velocity, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Case Files) adds valuable insight into the discussion of Star Trek: The Motion Picture as the first (and sometimes maligned) Star Trek movie…er, uh, motion picture… gets its due in this rematch and review.

TechnoRetro Arcade
Star Trek wasn’t just a motion picture, though. Before the Star Wars vector-based game hit arcade in 1983, Sega’s Star Trek vector-based game showed what was possible in first-person space shooters. Although the game doesn’t resemble the concept or sounds of Star Trek (on small or silver screens), the music is there, the computer logic-produced synthetic voice is virtually Spock-like, and the game play is a fun and challenging arcade experience — especially the alternate seated version of the cabinet.

Science Lesson
EarBud JediHolmes wonders about Pluto’s planetary status and the Voyager program is discovered to include Pluto’s potential in mankind’s future among the stars.

Direct download: TRDads_07.35.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 25 November 2019

Supergirl Celebrates 35 Years on the Silver Screen

When Mr. Carlson gets his next hair-brained idea for a Thanksgiving promotional for WKRP, someone please remind him of what happened last time. Especially if he thinks he can use the Omegahedron to create some gobblers to save the world from the evil witch Serena. Maybe it would be better to stay in and watch Gary Coleman’s appearance on Buck Rogers in the 25th Century on Turkey Day. It might avoid another Turkeypocalypse.

In the NEWS
Ron Howard and Warwick Davis have a promising future on Disney+ with an upcoming Willow series.

We Love Our Cereal…
…and the Roving Spoonster gives us more reasons to love coffee with news of Cinnamon Toast Crunch Coffee-Mate. PLUS: you can enjoy a bowl of Oreos cereal in a new, comfy Oreos onesie (or with a friend in a Double Stuf sweater).

Prime Time on Thanksgiving (1979)
After the football games, you might have enjoyed these prime time programs with your family on Thanksgiving 1979: The Waltons on CBS, Laverne & Shirley on ABC, or enjoy Gary Coleman’s appearance on NBC’s Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. Can you guess what we were watching?

TechnoRetro Toy Catalog
The first round of wish book wishing has finished with the ultimate action figure for EarBuds in 2019, but there’s more to come this week as creative toys hit the brackets next. Be sure to check our social media pages every day for your chance to cast your votes.

Let’s Go to the Movies: Supergirl
SuperFriend Steve Glosson (The Big Honkin’ Show, Geek Out Loud, Disney Vault Talk, and Forceology) brings his depth of superhero (superheroine) knowledge to TechnoRetro Dads. Now that Supergirl has earned her own ongoing television series, it’s a good time to look back at her big screen appearance thirty-five years ago this month.

Direct download: TRDads_07.34.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Sun, 17 November 2019

The Holiday Special Strikes Back at the Mandalorian on Life Day

Perhaps you remember seeing Chewbacca’s family on your TV that fateful night in November of 1978, but it’s highly unlikely that you knew about the sequel to The Star Wars Holiday Special before today. We have rediscovered the promo for The Star Wars Holiday Special Strikes Back and think we know why the program was shelved before its release. Tune in for a bonus-sized, early release of TechnoRetro Dads on the 41st anniversary of The Star Wars Holiday Special.

In the NEWS

Hey, hey, the Monkees (well, half of the Monkees) are going on tour again this April.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and Twinkies, too! Beware of speeding to the store to find Post Hostess Twinkies cereal, though. The police are watching for people who eat cereal and drive — they may be impaired.

TechnoRetro Toy Catalogue

The brackets begin this week as we scour the pages of our old toy catalogues for the action figures we want most for Christmas this year. Be sure to watch our social media pages every day this week to vote for the toys you want Santa to put under your tree this year — or last year — or in 1984…

The Star Wars Holiday Special (Strikes Back)

On November 17, 1978 at 8:00 PM Eastern Standard Time, lucky kids across the nation were treated to two hours of indistinct chatter (and growls) from Wookiees, threats from Imperials, music, magic, and mania that was The Star Wars Holiday Special. And for the past six years, shazbazzar and JediShua have been celebrating Life Day this time every year in honor of the television special we thought we would never see again. But this year we have rediscovered the nearly unknown sequel, The Star Wars Holiday Special Strikes Back. Thankfully, we have the promo for the unaired special on cassette tape, so strap in for excitement and entertainment from a galaxy far, far away with Yoda and the Wookiees as we play the tape for you this week!

The Mandalorian

Chris Luby, cohost of The Geek State Podcast, joins the ‘Dads for an extended discussion of the first chapter of The Mandalorian and speculation about future chapters and seasons of this instant hit series on Disney+.

Direct download: TRDads_07.33.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 8:00pm EDT

Mon, 11 November 2019

Puff the Magic Dragon in the Land of the Living Lies

Take a walk in a field of clever with shazbazzar and JediShua this Veterans’ Day as TechnoRetro Dads eat cereal, a magic dragon eats homework, and everyone peruses the menu of Disney+ to see what’s for breakfast, lunch, and dinner tomorrow.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the Roving Spoonster continues to share the love:

Google brings back prizes in boxes of cereal?
Hershey Kisses cereal doesn’t look appetizing
Shelf Elves get sugar cookie cereal

Puff the Magic Dragon in the Land of the Living Lies

He’s your big, green buddy who teaches life-lessons in television specials featuring sing-a-long songs, imaginative animation, and Mickey from Rocky. Puff the Magic Dragon in the Land of the Living Lies is the sequel that aired one year after The Star Wars Holiday Special. The second of three Puff the Magic Dragon TV specials featured Sandy who had a penchant for telling whoppers to get attention and/or get out of trouble, so Puff the Magic Dragon selflessly sacrificed himself to teach her the sad truth about lying.

The Wonderful World of Disney+

JediShua and shazbazzar talk about the movies and programs they’re looking forward to watching on the new Disney+ service that kicks off tomorrow.

Star Wars Scrapbook

The Rise of Skywalker discussion continues with the scene of C-3PO with his “friends” that was seen in the final trailer for the final film in the Skywalker saga. The Elton John soundtrack is not included in this episode.

Feedback

Discord goes to the dogs with feedback from Joey, Laffy, and others on the RetroZap Discord TechnoRetro Dads channel.

Direct download: TRDads_07.32.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 4 November 2019

Dogs, Disney+, and Discussion of The Rise of Skywalker

Open up a bottle of LaCro IX or StCro IX and kick back with the TechnoRetro Dads and other EarBuds as we speculate about Star Wars and reminisce about celebrity dogs in movies and on television.

In the NEWS:

Reno Pop Culture Con
Disney+ for Verizon customers
The Mandalorean posters

Saturday Mornings Go to the Dogs

From cartoon canines like Astro, Clifford, Dino, Droopy, Mr. Peabody, Pluto, and Scooby Doo to movie mutts like Benji, Beethoven, Cujo, K-9, Hooch, Otis, and The Shaggy D.A., Saturdays have often “gone to the dogs”. Tune in to see which barkers you remember from the ‘70s, ‘80s, and beyond.

Star Wars Scrapbook

The Rise of Skywalker is just weeks away, and we’re hyped with more discussion from the final trailer for the movie. JediShua and shazbazzar talk about the voice-overs and speculate about what each of them might mean as the Star Wars Skywalker saga ends with Episode IX. TEASER: JediShua is drinking LaCroIX.

Direct download: TRDads_07.31.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 28 October 2019

Trick or Treat with RetroZap Friends

It’s the last Monday before Halloween, the National Peanut Festival, November, and the return to standard time. Oh, yeah, and the first Monday after the last trailer for a Skywalker saga Star Wars movie. Yep. There’s lots to talk about today. PLUS: jokes from our friends and fellow RetroZap celebrities.

In the NEWS:

Emmett Otter’s Jug Band Christmas is being rewritten, rescored, and remade…maybe.

We Want Candy!

Get out your plastic pumpkins and pillow cases; trick-or-treat is almost here! We remember some of our favorite sugary treats from Halloweens past as we scrounge around in our closet floors and find remnants of forty-or-so years gone by. This year’s top treats are also in the mix.

Creative Costumes

EarBuds and SuperFriends share memories of trick-or-treating in costumes from boxes, costumes made of boxes, and costumes created by moms, dads, and kids and kids-at-heart.

Star Wars Scrapbook

With the final trailer of the Skywalker saga available for viewing, rewinding, and viewing again and again (slow-motion and pause enabled), shazbazzar and JediShua start speculating in earnest based on what little has been shown so far. Let the hype begin!

Direct download: TRDads_07.30.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 21 October 2019

Space Camp with JediShua and Scary Robots

Halloween is coming soon and robots on screen can be the most terrifying creatures ever invented. The sights and sounds of robots in movies, TV shows, and video games can get your heart beating faster while sitting absolutely still (which you want to do if they haven’t seen you, yet).

We Love Our Cereal…

…and so do Michael Nipp, Ron Lafontaine, and the Roving Spoonster.

Froot Loops Pop Tarts
Saturday Morning Cartoon Cavalcade and Cereal Extravaganza
Funko Pops cereals
Star Wars cereal returns

Space Camp

JediShua enjoyed his journey to Mars after a day’s training to be an astronaut in Huntsville, Alabama. From learning more about the history of the space program and NASA to hands-on experience, Space Camp was well worth the money spent on this thoughtful gift.

But Space Camp isn’t just a weekend adventure; it’s a campy movie from 1986! The ‘Dads talk about the movie that likely suffered from the Challenger tragedy that struck just a few months before its release — it’s plot, odd geography, and big name actors in this oft-forgotten flick.

Scary Robots

From theaters to living rooms to arcades, robots can be scary. Remember these films, shows, and games?

Terminator
Lost in Space
Alien
Blade Runner
Logan’s Run
The Black Hole
Westworld
Superman 3
Ex Machina
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Small Wonder
The Six Million Dollar Man
Battlestar Galactica
Robotron 2084
Berzerk
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes. Then share with others on social media, and join us on Discord for discussions about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s. While you’re at it, give the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us a message or mp3 via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_07.29.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 14 October 2019

The Long Lineage of the Addams Family

It’s Monday, but we’re talking Wednesday as Pugsley realizes that Thing on his back might just Fester. When you Add(ams) it all up, it’s a creepy, kooky, mysterious, spooky family that is rooted in the early 1930s. And with a new movie out in theaters, The Addams Family is the epitome of #TechnoRetro.

In the NEWS:

The confetti king, the props meister, the triumph of the toupee Rip Taylor leaves this world after marking it with his flair for flamboyance. Picard is coming and the new trailer is the next generator of discussion in the science fiction community. PLUS: Netflix’s Lost in Space will continue on Christmas Eve!

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the Roving Spoonster has some ‘80s style updates as Honeycomb and Super Golden Crisp bring wrestlers back to cereal boxes in your supermarket. Cheerios add yet another flavor to the classic cereal with coconut. We don’t think the texture will accompany the flavor, though.

Let’s All Go to the Movies (and television shows)!

The Addams Family is rooted in Charles Addams’s 1930s comic strip, but has been in pop culture through the 1960s television show, a ‘70s variety pilot (which thankfully didn’t get a green light), a ‘70s cartoon series, a made-for-TV movie on ABC in 1977, two movies in the ‘90s with Raul Julia, Anjelica Houston, and Christopher Lloyd, a ‘90s era cartoon on television (with Rip Taylor), and now an animated movie in theaters. After a great first weekend, The Addams Family is doing well at the box office, but hasn’t put Joker in a Lurch. We cover decades of wealthy weirdos in this mid-October episode of TechnoRetro Dads.

Star Wars Scrapbook

From Ben Cooper boxes of cheap plastic masks and vinyl coveralls to homemade costumes of varying screen-accuracy and craftsmanship, Star Wars costumes have been part of our lives since 1977. Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Yoda, and Ewoks are fondly remembered by shazbazzar and JediShua as well as some memorable costumes from several EarBuds. It’s all in this week’s Star Wars Scrapbook memories.

Direct download: TRDads_07.28.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 7 October 2019

Hard-Hitting Horror in a Haunted House with Jovial Jay

Who will dare to enter the haunted house first?
Why is there an arcade and theater in there?
What is a “fun scare”, anyway?
Will JediShua ever wear pants?
While all the answers to these pertinent questions will not be solved in this episode, you’ll have a ghostly good time wondering who is holding Jovial Jay’s hand.

TechnoRetro Arcade: Horror or Horrendous?

From the pre-digital days of arcade games to full-scale cabinets and even home consoles, Jovial Jay, JediShua, and shazbazzar share some TechnoRetro games you might remember.

Let’s All Go to the Movies!

The Professor of Film, SuperFriend Jovial Jay, lends his cinematic expertise to the show (and adds at least some credibility to all the silliness) by explaining why some horror/suspense/thrillers stand the test of time and introduces his “31 Days of Horror” series on RetroZap.com.

Direct download: TRDads_07.27.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 30 September 2019

October Looms on the Horizon with Movie Monsters from the ‘80s

What do Frankenstein, a French octopus, and frightening frogmen from the Soviet Union have in common? They are all mentioned on this week’s TechnoRetro Dads. Tune in for 77 minutes of fun as September ends and the month of monsters begins.

In the NEWS…

The answer to everything is solved!
TR3N may be in the news?
Captain Kirk celebrates Kringle Klaus.
Triple Force Friday is days away.
Casting news from Jurassic World 3.

We Love Our Cereal!

Halloween cereals are spotted in Walmart (with “Spooky Marshmallows”)!

TechnoRetro Arcade: King of the Monsters

Somewhere between Street Fighter and Rampage lives a NeoGeo game from the early ‘90s that pits enormous beasts (with odd names) against each other over a backdrop of Japanese cities.

Let’s All Go to the Movies!

Sticking with the theme of monsters, shazbazzar and JediShua look back at some movies from the ‘80s and the monsters that might have plagued our nightmares (or just lived under Fred Savage’s bed).

TechnoRetro Feedback

Ska Geek recalls the Time Killers arcade game.
Fettmatic and Michael Nipp mention more time travel movies/shows.
Shane in Grand Rapids finds a VW camper that reminds us of the A-Team van.

Direct download: TRDads_07.26.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 23 September 2019

More Time Travel, Money, and Cars

Although we’re all a bit down about losing musical icons like Eddie Money and Ric Ocasek, this morning also features some good news about a specific SuperFriend and some exciting TechnoRetro shows on NBC’s streaming service, a peek at some spooky cereals, terrific (or terrible) autumnal jokes, timely arcade games, informative science lessons, and feedback.

In the NEWS:

SuperFriend Michael Price receives an Emmy for writing “Mad about the Toy” episode of The Simpsons!
The Far Side is returning. The time is near.
Peacock to stream TechnoRetro shows like Battlestar Galactica, Punky Brewster, Saved by the Bell, and A Brave New World.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and so do Disney and Funko. Maleficent, Oogie Boogie, and four more Disney villains get mini-pops in the continuing Funko cereal series this October.

Vinyl Scratchback

Eddie Money and Ric Ocasek debuted in the ‘70s with hit tunes and continued their popularity into the ‘80s and beyond. With recent news about their recent deaths in mind, we remember some of their hits from our youth.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Hologram Time Traveler
Time Pilot

Science Lesson

JediShua teaches various theories about time travel and how they work and how they don’t work. You can decide which theory or theories you think might be possible.

Feedback

Jovial Jay discovers digital assistants’ rap crossover. Onkl Mawks has an entire collection of Elton John records for shAbbeyzzar. And Wes loves to ride his Mongoose (bicycle).

Direct download: TRDads_07.25.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 16 September 2019

Travel through Time with Jovial Jay

Traveling through time is a weekly event for shazbazzar and JediShua, but we never realized just how many movies (and how many genres) feature time travel in some way or another. Thankfully, Jovial Jay lends his expertise in cinematic time travel to reveal the many movies and many means of traveling through time since film projectors brought motion pictures to life on the big screen.

In the NEWS…

The highly anticipated Muppet project for Disney+ will not be seen any time soon.
HGTV takes time travel to a new level with A Very Brady Renovation.
Comparative sales of vinyl records and compact discs look like something straight out of 1986.

Let’s All Go Back to the Movies!

Jovial Jay joins shazbazzar and JediShua for a more expansive look at movies featuring time travel. Whether the film was fantasy or a science-fiction story, the sheer number of movies that deal with traveling through time in some manner or another is almost enough to power a flux capacitor! JediShua, shazbazzar, and Jovial Jay discuss this timeless trope in various decades and genres with special attention to some favorites from EarBuds.

Direct download: TRDads_07.24.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 9 September 2019

Bicycles: Breaking Away with American Flyers

Whether it was your first Bike, a Bicycle Race, a Huffy, Murray, Kent, or Free Spirit, kids loved and lived on their bikes in the ‘70s and ‘80s and we all remember taking off the training wheels, sliding into skids, popping wheelies, and telling Mom to “Look! No hands!” It’s all about bicycles this week, EarBuds!

We Love Our Cereal

Cool cereal stories this week!

You could turn up your Snap, Crackle, and Pop to eleven with this amplified cereal bowl.
Tony the Tiger teams up with the Sun Bowl for a stadium-sized part of your nutritious breakfast.

Let’s All Go to the Movies…on our bikes!

Whether it was Breaking Away, American Flyers, BMX Bandits, Rad, or Quicksilver, the pedals pushed the gears to the limits in some fun and memorable movies from the ‘70s and ‘80s featuring bicycles.

Toys in the Attic: Bikes

We remember riding our bikes in the driveway, around the block, at the playground, the park, and even down to the crawdad hole.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Bikes are for fun. And they’re even fun at the arcade (if yours doesn’t get stolen when you’re inside shoving quarters in the machines). Sometimes, even simulating working on your two-wheeler in the classic Paperboy cabinet.

Direct download: TRDads_07.23.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 2 September 2019

Max Headroom, Network 23, and D23 Star Wars Updates

Before (or after) he was a spokesman in Coke commercials, spinning tunes as a virtual VJ, or even a TV talk show host, Max Headroom was the iconic example of artificial intelligence (well, perhaps computerized charisma) brought to “life” by a scan of Edison Carter’s brain and 3D imaging of Matt Frewer’s head and shoulders. This week’s episode is a tribute to Max Headroom with a lot of excitement about upcoming Star Wars opportunities in the near future.

In the NEWS…

D23 has happened without TR3N news, any mention of The Black Hole or Something Wicked this Way Comes remakes, reboots, or sequels, but lots of Star Wars updates which may or may not include the following TechnoRetro Facts:

See Jefferson Starship on the Galactic Starcruiser as you travel through hyperspace to Galaxy’s Edge.
The Rise of the Resistance ride is coming soon to Walt Disney World and Disneyland complete with Force-wielding kids shoving aside stormtroopers with their minds.
See how a squid-headed Quarren meets with danger in our first real look at The Mandalorean.
The Rise of Skywalker seems to present multiple opportunities to walk over rises in topography to reveal various vistas with the heroes of the sequel trilogy.
Although we still don’t know if Ewan McGregor will portray Carl Jung on film, we are fairly certain he will reprise his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi in an upcoming series on Disney+. James Arnold Taylor is rumored to appear as either OB-2 or OB-6 in the new show.

Max Headroom: 20 Minutes into the Future

JediShua and shazbazzar watch the complete Max Headroom TV series from 1987 and explain the origin(s) of this iconic computer-generated character who continues to be a familiar face (and simulated stutterer) more than thirty years later.

Direct download: TRDads_07.22.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 26 August 2019

From The Dark Crystal to Age of Resistance

From the second episode of TechnoRetro Dads until just a couple weeks ago, shazbazzar and JediShua have been covering news and rumors about The Dark Crystal from movies, books, toys, and games. For 82 minutes this Monday morning, relive the past through six seasons of TechnoRetro Dads and take another look at the only official appearance of Thra onscreen before The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance emerges on Netflix this Friday.

In the NEWS…

Space: 1999 radio drama
A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy TV series
Masters of the Universe by Kevin Smith
Custody battle between Disney and Sony over Peter Parker
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
FLASHBACK through the archives of The Dark Crystal in the NEWS from 2013-2018

At the Movies: The Dark Crystal

JediShua and shazbazzar watch The Dark Crystal again this week and focus on the “hero’s journey” and the characters from the world of Thra.

Family Circle: The Dark Crystal FLASHBACK

Two families in two different cities across the country watched The Dark Crystal “together” on Skype. Then the TechnoRetro Dads talked about their experiences with the movie as kids and as fathers. The initial discussion from April 2013 has been remastered (from available recordings) for this exciting episode.

Direct download: TRDads_07.21.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 19 August 2019

Dreams, Dreaming, and Dreamscape

When you need someone to falsely support your delusions, when you wear boxer shorts appropriate for work (remember it’s called underwear for a reason), when everything is controvurtial, even if you’re a Streamer (our official designation of Generation Z), TechnoRetro Dads wants you to dream big — but not right now. It’s Monday morning and you’ve got to go to work/school so kickstart your week with 77 minutes of fun and fandom.

In the NEWS…

Will Star Wars Resistance return for another season?
Will Ewan McGregor make our dreams come true and play Obi-Wan in a series?

We Love Our Cereal

The Addams Family teams up with GM’s Monster Cereals.
Fruity Pebbles might make a neat marshmallow treat.
Boxes of cereal marshmallows are spotted at FAO Schwartz.
Lucky Charms marshmallows get Jet Popped.

At the Movies: Dreamscape

Dennis Quaid, Kate Capshaw, Max Von Sydow, Christopher Plummer, and Eddie Albert meet together in their dreams in the second PG-13 movie, Dreamscape.

Vinyl Scratchback: Music of Your Dreams

Musical groups from the ‘70s and ‘80s were living the dream with nocturnal themes:

Eurythmics — “Sweet Dreams”
Van Halen — “Dreams”
Heart — “These Dreams”
Tom Petty — “Runnin’ Down a Dream”
Dan Hartman — “I Can Dream about You”
Moody Blues — “Your Wildest Dreams”
Hall & Oates — “You Make My Dreams”
Fleetwood Mac — “Dreams”
George Harrison — “Dream Away”
Aerosmith — “Dream On”
Blondie — “Dreaming”
Cheap Trick — “Dream Police”, “All We Need Is a Dream”, “I Must Be Dreamin’”, “Mandocello”

Direct download: TRDads_07.20.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 12 August 2019

Cloak & Dagger, Red Dawn, and Uncle Buckaroo Banzai

While some aspects of ‘70s and ‘80s pop-culture is undoubtedly lost on those who didn’t experience the Cold War, wear brightly-colored JAMZ and Bugle Boy jeans, or remember when phones were attached by wires, the movies, music, and TV shows of that era can still elicit deeply emotional responses that transcend the generation gap. If only the whole world could just sit back and enjoy stuff for 77 minutes every Monday morning…

In the NEWS…

The Matrix returns to theaters for its 20th anniversary.
The Black Hole will finally be released on Blu-ray.

We Love Our Cereal

The Roving Spoonster reports bowls full of delicious news worthy of Saturday mornings!

Jurassic Park’s Dr. Ian Malcolm Pop Cereal
Good Guys cereal (from Child’s Play) is real!
St. Paul, Minnesota gets a new cereal bar.
Discover what it’s like to be Cinnamon Toast Crunch!
Froot Loops Birthday Cake — how sweet.

At the Movies:

Three great movies hit theaters on the same day thirty-five years ago. (One fun one showed up a week and five years later.)

Peter Weller is Buckaroo Banzai in The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai across the 8th Dimension.
Henry Thomas gets involved with Russian spies (Hmmm… Stranger Things?) in Cloak & Dagger.
C. Thomas Howell goes wild when Russians kill his father in the first movie with a PG-13 rating: Red Dawn.
John Candy is Uncle Buck. Watch and laugh.

TechnoRetro Arcade: Crazy Climber

This vertically scrolling game pits a skyscraper climber against flowers, bird droppings, girders, and giant apes. Nope, it’s not Donkey Kong. It’s not even Krazy Kong. It’s Crazy Climber, and it deserves its moment in the limelight.

Direct download: TRDads_07.19.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 5 August 2019

MAD Magazine and “Weird Al” Yankovic

Although MAD will cease its magazine’s regular publications, the satirical wit will remain with us with decades worth of art and humor. The ‘Dads remember their experiences with zany humor from the artists and writers of MAD and the strangeness of “Weird Al” Yankovic on UHF and his decades of musical comedy and parody.

In the NEWS…

Star Trek: The Motion Picture returns to theaters.
The C64 reboots nostalgia for Commodore owners.
Upcoming Dungeons & Dragons movie finds directors.
MAD Magazine shuts down after nearly 7 decades.

In the Magazine Rack: MAD

JediShua and shazbazzar remember the clips, quips, and snips of pulp as they recall their own experiences with the satirical publication: MAD. First published in 1952, the magazine has entertained and influenced generations with adolescent humor and cultural commentary.

At the Movies: UHF

George Newman has lost yet another job due to his preoccupation with his imagination. Does he get mad? Maybe. Does he despair? A bit. But then his aunt finds a career opportunity for her favorite nephew. She insists that her husband hires George to manage his recently-acquired UHF television station. Watch “Weird Al” Yankovic, Victoria Jackson, Kevin McCarthy, and Michael Richards on their mad trip through manic mishaps as they try to make or break the success of a small TV station just trying to garner viewers and generate ad sales. It’s UHF from 1989!

Vinyl Scratchback: “Weird Al” Yankovic

From his early days of parodies and filks on The Doctor Demento Show to polka medleys and original comedy songs, “Weird Al” Yankovic consistently hits listeners’ funny bones and pinches the nerves with his catchy tunes and accordion-based numbers like “Yoda”, “Another One Rides the Bus”, “I Lost on Jeopardy”, “Smells Like Nirvana”, “Fat”, “Eat It”, “Word Crimes”, and “The Saga Begins”. Whether you simply enjoy laughing at the weirdness, singing along in the family minivan (or station wagon), or writing your own parody creations after being inspired by Weird Al’s ingenuity, you’ll enjoy sharing memories with shazbazzar and JediShua as they recall “Weird Al” Yankovic’s albums.

Direct download: TRDads_07.18.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 29 July 2019

The NeverEnding Story of Mall Culture

While shazbazzar and JediShua aren’t in middle school themselves (neither are their kids), they still enjoy traipsing through the huge corridors eating Karmelkorn and drinking Orange Julius while listening to muzak echoing through the vaulted ceilings. Add a 35 year-old fantasy movie to the mix and you’ve got a never-ending story that only lasts 77 minutes (which, by the way, is only 25 minutes shorter than The NeverEnding Story from 1984).

In the NEWS…

Rutger Hauer, star of great ‘80s films like Blade Runner, The Hitcher, Blind Fury, and Ladyhawke, left this life at 75 (in 2019, the same year that the replicant Roy Batty was terminated).

On the ESCALATOR…

You’ll think the trip to the second story of the mall is never-ending with the mall gags and Dad jokes that creep up in unexpected corners their minds.

At the FOOD COURT…

JediShua and shazbazzar pause to talk about some of the cool things from San Diego Comic Con. Marvel movies may be the next never-ending story as there seems to be no end in sight. Plus: The Dark Crystal and toys from The Black Hole.

In the CORRIDORS…

Memories of memorable malls of EarBuds and SuperFriends dominate the discussion as shazbazzar and JediShua look at the stores and arcades that used to populate the never-ending list of malls that grew in popularity during the heyday of ‘80s consumerism.

At the MOVIE THEATER…

The NeverEnding Story is playing on the big screen 35 years ago, and the ‘Dads recall and rewatch this inspirational film based on the book by Michael Ende (who didn’t love the movie adaptation).

Direct download: TRDads_07.17.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 22 July 2019

FLASHBACK+: TechnoRetro Dads Don’t Want to Live on Moonbase Alpha

Flashback with shazbazzar and JediShua to moon-moments from 2013, 2014, and 2017 as the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission weekend celebrations come to a close. Many EarBuds will remember our Moonbase Alpha discussion with SuperFriend Paul Bateman about the short-lived TV series Space 1999, but fewer will remember the brief mentions of the moon in some older clips from NEWS and HISTORY LESSON segments from seasons one and two. PLUS: JediShua and SuperFriend Tony Soehner tell about their experiences at Galaxy’s Edge.

Moon Moments

Scouring the archives of TechnoRetro Dads for tidbits of moon news and history from seasons past resulted in some strange-sounding stories we had forgotten about — and even a couple of references to the Red Julius kiosk at the Mars Mall (maybe a few EarBuds will remember that reference). From staking claims on the moon to naming moon craters after your sweetheart, in retrospect, we may have discovered how some moon-based locations got their strange names: Mare Fecunditatis, Mount Marilyn, and Crater Joliot-Curie.

Moonbase Alpha: Space 1999

In this remastered flashback, Concept Artist, Art Director, and SuperFriend Paul Bateman joins shazbazzar and JediShua on Moonbase Alpha to talk about Space: 1999, a British television series that lasted a brief two seasons from 1975 to 1977. From big budget beginnings and a great premise in the spirit of 2001: A Space Odyssey to a choppy second season resembling an homage to Star Trek, Space: 1999 is nevertheless an iconic must-see with its curious creatures, magnificent Moonbase Alpha, and classic crafts, the Eagles.

Direct download: TRDads_07.16.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 15 July 2019

Monday Morning Men on the Moon

Huntsville, Alabama will celebrate the anniversary of putting the first men on the moon this Saturday — probably Houston and Cape Kennedy will too — but TechnoRetro Dads kick off the half-century celebration Monday morning with 77 minutes of lunacy as the 15th episode of the 7th season airs on the 15th day of the 7th month. The zaniness all started when JediShua’s doorbell rang as he was expecting a birthday present to arrive…

Science Lesson: Apollo 11

On 16 July 1969, a Saturn V rocket launched from Cape Kennedy, Florida at 9:32 AM, beginning the Apollo 11 mission to the moon. Four days later, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin successfully landed on the moon, putting an end to the “space race” between the United States of America and the Soviet Union. The world celebrated the landing confirmed by the immortalized words, “The Eagle has landed,” only to be surpassed by Neil Armstrong’s statement as he placed his footprint on the moon’s surface, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Although some still debate whether the moon landing was genuine or an elaborate hoax, the excitement of those watching and listening on July 20, 1969 briefly united the world as mankind reached their greatest height to date.

TechnoRetro Arcade: Lunar Lander

Ten years after the first manned mission to the surface of the moon, Atari capitalized on the public’s continuing interest in the moon and space with the vector-graphic arcade game Lunar Lander. The original 1979 game was made of simple graphics constructed of white lines on a black background as players tried to land their lunar module on small, level sites on the surface of the moon before running out of fuel or crashing. Points are earned for each successful moon landing until the player’s supply of fuel or “lunar landers” are exhausted.

Saturday Mornings: Moon-Adjacent Cartoons

In the ‘70s and ‘80s (even the ‘90s), lots of spacetastic cartoons (not necessarily moon-oriented). JediShua, shazbazzar, and Jovial Jay talk about Bravestarr, GoBots, Gilligan’s Planet, Space Cats, and Yogi’s Space Race. A live-action show called Far Out Space Nuts gets an honorable mention because of its relationship to Gilligan’s Planet (Bob Denver).

Let’s Go to the Moonvies: Apollo 13

Ron Howard’s film based on the third mission to put men on the moon is an amazing combination of historical facts and Hollywood effects that continues to stir the emotions of audiences today. The 1995 film is mostly faithful to the events that transpired before, during, and after the “successful failure” of the Apollo 13 mission of 1970 that prevented Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks), Fred Haise (Bill Paxton), and Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon) from completing their mission and landing on the moon. SPOILER ALERT: Even though they didn’t land on the moon, these astronauts successfully returned to Earth after circling the moon.

Also noted are other “moon landing” movies like First Man, The Right Stuff, and Airplane II: The Sequel.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! While you’re waiting for a brand-new episode, why not read (or lazy read) Michael Witwer's Empire of Imagination? But don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_07.15.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 8 July 2019

TechnoRetro Dads Together Again: The Muppets Take Manhattan

Whether you’re returning from summer camp in hopes of a glorious reunion with your friends, coming home after a vacation at the beach, or just happy to be “Together Again” with your EarBuds after a week of fun and fireworks, shazbazzar and JediShua are serving up seventy-seven minutes of GenX news and discussion and large bowls of tasty cereal for your tum-tums on this Monday morning!

In the NEWS…

Goodbye, Willie. Max Wright from ALF succumbs to cancer at age 75.
Hello, Hamill. Cast and characters of the upcoming Netflix series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance are revealed.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the Roving Spoonster, Shane in GR does, too!

Keto friendly cereals that will dent your wallet.
MELK Diner & Cereal Bar closes its doors.
Fire at the Battle Creek Kellogg’s facility. What does burning cereal smell like?

Let’s Go to the Movies: The Muppets Take Manhattan

The summer of ’84 continues with cinematic hits like The Last Starfighter and The Muppets Take Manhattan. But 1979 isn’t without a notable movie from this week — The Frisco Kid may have been the last movie starring Harrison Ford that doesn’t focus on the Han Solo/Indiana Jones icon in its trailer.

TechnoRetro Arcade: The Last Starfighter

JediShua asks which video games would make suitable trainers/testers for potential candidates to save the galaxy in an epic space battle as seen in The Last Starfighter.

Science Lesson

Loads of cool, geeky stuff is going on in our world these days:

NASA makes their entire media library publicly accessible and copyright free.
NASA introduces Dragonfly, the quadcopter concept for a mission to Titan.
LightSail 2 has begun its mission.

Feedback

Swamp Angel sends in a message for JediShua.

Direct download: TRDads_07.14.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 1 July 2019

Beach Boys, Bernie, and BOOM!

Whether you’re celebrating Canada Day today or hurriedly getting work done in hopes of a four-day weekend beginning on the 4th of July, you’ve gotta make time for shazbazzar and JediShua before getting to work as the second half of 2019 begins. The TechnoRetro Dads have a summer-packed show to kick of the month of July with Bernie, Beach Boys, and big boomers!

In the NEWS…

The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance will have an accompanying comic book series to delve more deeply into the many characters from the Netflix series.
Don’t forget that Stranger Things 3 is coming to Netflix this Thursday. Find out how Hawkins, Indiana deals with another attack from another dimension.
Tickets to Star Wars Celebration Anaheim 2020 went on sale…and were quickly sold out.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the Roving Spoonster, Shane in GR does, too!

Two new Cap’n Crunch flavors for your bowl!
The UK may have lost major holdings in North America, but they get the last laugh by getting white chocolate Coco Pops while the former colonies fill their bowls with empty wishes.
Evidence of the TechnoRetro Dads’ time-traveling tours is discovered by Austrian archaeologists who dug up three thousand year-old Cheerios (not Oreos, shaz).

Vinyl Scratchback: The Beach Boys

Summer time is a funner time with music blaring from your boombox at the beach — as long as it’s beach music. And what could be more summer-centric than the tones of The Beach Boys? From wave-riding songs like “Surfin’ Safari” and “Surfin’ USA” to cruising songs like “Fun, Fun, Fun” and “I Get Around”, The Beach Boys have been an integral part of summer. But boys will be boys, and therefore had to include songs about the girls like “California Girls” and the wistful “Wouldn’t It Be Nice”. Rounding out the mix is their huge summer hit in the ‘80s called “Kokomo” (which, evidently, isn’t about white chocolate Coco Puffs).

Let’s Go To the Movies: Weekend at Bernie’s

Richard and Larry discover a discrepancy in their company’s financial records that reveals more than a clerical error. To reward them for their diligence and vigilance in their work, their boss Bernie invites them to his beach house for the weekend — and plans to have them silenced…forever. But when Bernie gets on the wrong side of his nefarious partner-in-crime, the hitman is given a different target and the two young employees spend a wild weekend trying to conceal the fact that their boss is dead so that they can enjoy a well-earned weekend on the beach.

Fireworks!

Pack black powder into a paper cylinder, set it aflame, and watch it smoke, skip, snake, skyrocket, or simply go “BOOM!” The first week of July is a great time for blowing things up at home, the beach, or dirt roads on the way back from another state with less-stringent laws regulating fireworks. The ‘Dads and several EarBuds recall their experiences with sparklers, firecrackers, bottle rockets, Roman candles, and more as we celebrate national holidays this week.

Feedback: New Coke and the Cola Wars

New Coke turned Jeremy into a Pepsi drinker. Norman speaks of the Cola Wars in coded speech. Myles can’t find New Coke in Canada and needs help.

Direct download: TRDads_07.13.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 24 June 2019

Coke Is It! But Which Coke?

Whether you’re looking for sunny days or a funny joke, you can “Catch the Wave” with the old New Coke (and catch up on some exciting news, reviews, and stand-up comedy even if you’re lying down. Where else can you get 77 minutes of foolish futility to kickstart your work week for zero dollars? You’re sure to get what you pay for on TechnoRetro Dads this week!

In the NEWS:

New Arcade 1Up machines coming this year!
TRON action figures from Diamond Select.

Star Wars Scrapbook

Put down your Coca-Cola for a few minutes and listen to some EarBuds’ scrapbook entries as they go to Galaxy’s Edge (not as far, far away as you might have thought). Armando and Jack give their thoughts about Smuggler’s Run and more.

History Lesson: New Coke

In the late ’70s and early ’80s we experienced Star Wars, the Cold War, and the Cola Wars. The Pepsi Challenge had evidently increased Pepsi’s market share of carbonated beverage business and Coca-Cola was feeling it in their wallet. With the popularity of diet drinks rising, Coke needed to do something to bring more bucks home. Brilliant minds came up with a solution: cease production of their hundred year-old formula and release a new recipe for the Coke brand with much more sugar and BOOM! New Coke was born. But long-time Coca-Cola drinkers didn’t appreciate the change to a more Pepsi-like taste. They wanted the classic taste back. Seventy-nine days later, Coke announced the original formula would return under the name Coca-Cola Classic and would exist alongside the new Coke (which would carry the Coke name). Eventually, demand (?) for New Coke waned enough to stop making it altogether — until now.

With the highly anticipated release of Stranger Things 3 coming to Netflix on July 4th, The Coca-Cola Company decided to rerelease New Coke for a limited run to coincide with the new season’s setting in 1985. Coca-Cola produced 500,000 cans of New Coke which has been available for the past three weeks, and shazbazzar and JediShua have gotten their hands on some. It’s time for a taste test, EarBuds. Can you guess the results? (Video available on YouTube.)

Vinyl Scratchback

What did you do in the ‘80s when you had trouble going to sleep in a quiet room? Lie down and listen to stand-up comedy, of course! JediShua and shazbazzar (with input from EarBuds) remember some comedy albums they heard when they were younger. George Carlin, Robin Williams, Justin Wilson, Laurel & Hardy, Howie Mandel, Eddie Murphy, Sam Kinison, Gallagher, Cheech & Chong, and Steve Martin all make the list as we remember comedy on vinyl.

Direct download: TRDads_07.12.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 17 June 2019

How These Summer Movies Affected Us

As the summer solstice approaches in the northern hemisphere with the longest daylight hours reaching their zenith, shazbazzar and JediShua remember the summers of ’79, ’84, and ’89 with four movies that impacted them in their youth and beyond. Tune in for 77 minutes of retro joy and techno hope with your EarBuds this Monday morning and get your week off (and summer) off to a great start!

In the NEWS:

Get caffeinated drinking “Coke with Coffee”.
Play in the Upside Down with Stranger Things games.
Experience the return of great LucasArts games.
Dare to strategize in the new Nintendo Switch adaptation of The Dark Crystal Resistance.

We Love Our Cereal…

…but the Roving Spoonster (Shane in GR) may well have surpassed us this week as he chronicles his experience at the Battle Creek, Michigan Cereal Fest. PLUS: John Schepler gives us a sneak peek at some new cereals in supermarket aisles and the ‘Dads give their takes on cereals they’ve tasted so far this summer (Fillows, Drumsticks, and Sour Patch Kids).

Let’s All Go to the Movies: Summer Movie Extravaganza

Anniversaries abound this week with four flicks from our youth hitting 30, 35, and 40! JediShua and shazbazzar remember The Muppet Movie (1979), The Karate Kid (1984), Top Secret! (1984), and Batman (1989) with memories and interesting connections from actors and EarBuds in this banner week for fun summer movies.

Direct download: TRDads_07.11.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 10 June 2019

Father’s Day Is Almost Here!

Dads come in all shapes, sizes, and colors (even blue), so shazbazzar and JediShua take time for some Dad-discussions about fictional fathers from Saturday morning cartoons to movies on the big screen with an extended chat about the father who assumed the title of Mom… Mr. Mom, that is.

Saturday Mornings

For kids of the ‘70s and ‘80s, cartoon fathers were part of the cartoon watching experience. From shows that were #TechnoRetro in the ‘70s like The Flintstones and The Jetsons to The Smurfs, The Chipmunks, The Transformers, M.A.S.K., Dungeons & Dragons, and Ewoks, animated fathers and father-figures on Saturday mornings and weekday afternoons took charge and taught lessons to the TechnoRetro Dads of today.

Let’s Go to the Movies

With a bit more “techno” than there was in the Saturday Morning discussion, Father’s Day is a good time to look at memorable fathers on the big screen like cinema icons Mufasa and Darth Vader, respectable Henry Jones, Sr. and the President of the United States, heroic Chief Brody and Mr. Incredible, and homemakers like Mrs. Doubtfire. Dads can be funny and strong or scary and cuddly — in the end, these fathers are just like many dads today.

Mr. Mom

Before he took on the Joker in Batman (1989), Michael Keaton battled the stench of diapers, the temptations of neighborhood wives, the public address systems of supermarkets, and the comfort of the couch in Mr. Mom. After losing his job, Jack Butler earned the title of Mr. Mom in this riotous comedy from 1983 as he made grilled cheese sandwiches with an iron, fed chili to a baby, competed in office olympics, and won his wife’s heart (again). JediShua and shazbazzar have a blast reliving the laughs this Father’s Day with Mr. Mom. Who says Dad can’t cook?

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Beware of Gremlins online when logging on to your favorite TechnoRetro websites on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, RetroZap.com or TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merchandise at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_07.10.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 3 June 2019

Gremlins Are Another Reason for PG-13

Gremlins was on the marquis at theaters 35 years ago, but we all wanted a Mogwai in our rooms. “I promise,” we all begged, “I won’t feed it after midnight.” Nevertheless, Gizmo remained in our dreams and still looks the same even 35 years later.

In the NEWS:

Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge is open!
Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance is coming soon.

We Love Our Cereal…

…but we might like it more if it multiplied with popping-sweet goodness like Gremlins when you poured milk on it. New cereals like Drumstick Cereal and Fillows get our attention while pizza challenges cereal to a healthy breakfast showdown.

Saturday Morning Crush

Mac from The Sandcrawler let us know about a Twitter thread about cartoon crushes and we discuss some possibilities. Several EarBuds get into the swing of things with their own suggestions, too. It begs the question: what will happen when the Gremlins cartoon comes out?

Gremlins

Billy’s dad finds the perfect Christmas present for his son who works at the local bank: a Mogwai he found at a curiosity shop in Chinatown. But Gizmo, as he called him, comes with three important rules:

Keep him away from bright light; sunlight will kill him.
Don’t get him wet.
No matter how much he cries, no matter how much he begs, never feed him after midnight.

We all found out why these rules were so important in June 1984 when Steven Spielberg presented Gremlins, a horror/comedy that combined with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom to bring about the PG-13 rating we have today.

Star Wars Scrapbook

June has been a busy month since Star Wars hit theaters a week before. From Corvette Summer (1978) to comic adaptations and more, shazbazzar and JediShua talk about times they have filed away in the Star Wars Scrapbook.

Feedback

Chris the Arvadinian chimes in on Tim Conway’s passing.

Direct download: TRDads_07.09.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 27 May 2019

Last Crusade to the Temple of Doom

If adventure has a name, it must be Indiana Jones. This week, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade turns 30 and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom turns 35!

In the NEWS:

The Muppet Movie returns to theaters
New Coke returns with Stranger Things 3

SuperFriend: Antony Soehner

The author of Gather the Party, Unite the Party, and Assemble the Party stops in for a chat about Denver Pop Culture Convention, lessons learned in the adventure of writing, and what we are likely to see from him next.

The Temple of Doom and The Last Crusade

Indiana Jones returned to theaters in 1984 and 1989 with a prequel and a sequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is set before the events of Raiders as Indy and Short Round end up rescuing enslaved children in India. We get an even earlier look at our adventurous archaeologist in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade when we see Henry Jones, Jr. as a Boy Scout in the sequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark. PLUS: shazbazzar and Jedi Shua remember the night they saw Raiders of the Lost Jedi Temple of Doom at Hollywood Studios in 2010.

TechnoRetro Arcade: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

If arcade adventure has a name, it might be Indiana Jones. In 1985, the arcade adaptation of Temple of Doom hit malls, pizza places, and skating rinks with a fun rendition of the movie that drove the MPAA to invent the PG-13 rating. Rescue slaves. Defeat Thuggees. Return the Sankara stones. All in the name of fortune and glory (the arcade makes a fortune in quarters by the guy who gets the glory for his high score on the game).

Feedback:

EarBud Jedi Holmes shares the origin story of the Mogwai from Gremlins and reveals Hondo in the next issue of Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merchandise at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_07.08.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Mon, 20 May 2019

Controversy, Conspiracy, and Tim Conway

Whether you remember him from The Carol Burnett Show, The Apple Dumpling Gang, or his appearances as Dorf on The Tonight Show or home video releases, if you remember Tim Conway, you remember him fondly. We remember the laughter and joy he brought us from childhood into the age and size of grown-ups.

In the NEWS:

TRON goes vertical in Walt Disney World
Muppet Babies are actual Muppets again
Comedian Tim Conway dies at age 85

We Love Our Cereal…

…and new kid-style adult-cereal claims to love us back. Magic Spoon launches four flavors of “healthy” cereal with a hefty price tag. PLUS: Toy Story 4 has inspired cereal makers to create Carnival Berry cereal.

TechnoRetro Arcade

CONSPIRACY: The government used unsuspecting video gamers in arcades in the Pacific Northwest in psychological experiments in 1981 through a strange coin-operated game called Polybius.

CONTROVERSY: Polybius is an urban legend that has contributed to countless hours wasted in search of a fictional video game that never really existed.

Which side do you take in the ongoing debate about Polybius?

TIM CONWAY:

From The Carol Burnett Show to Saturday Mornings with The New Scooby-Doo Movies, Tim Conway lent his vocal talent as well as his knack for physical comedy to television screens across America.

But that’s not all! When families said, “Let’s All Go to the Movies” in the ‘70s, it could have been in anticipation of lots of laughter in response to watching the comedic prowess of Tim Conway in The Apple Dumpling Gang or The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again.

Thanks, Tim Conway, for years of funniness and fond memories!

Direct download: TRDads_07.07.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Tue, 14 May 2019

What a Wookiee! Peter Mayhew Is Chewbacca

Chewbacca immediately connected with audiences, both young and old, when Star Wars first hit theaters in 1977. Imagined by George Lucas and realized through Peter Mayhew, Chewbacca has continued to be the loyal friend and lovable copilot we always wanted to have.

In the NEWS:

Get scholarly with Gremlins 2. Willow will likely return in a sequel series on Disney+. Peter Mayhew, the big-hearted man who gave life to Chewbacca, left this life a couple weeks ago. In other Star Wars news, Jeff Baucom shared a link to a fan edit of the lightsaber battle in Star Wars: A New Hope and Disney announces release dates for three new Star Wars movies.

Star Wars Scrapbook

May has always been Star Wars month for fans of the saga. Pop-culture has saddled the pun-laden “May the 4th” as Star Wars Day, but long before that, May 25th has been considered the more significant day, being the release date of the movie that started it all with Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, Chewbacca, R2-D2, C-3PO, and Ben Kenobi. In this week’s Star Wars Scrapbook, JediShua and shazbazzar look back at major events in May over the past several decades.

Feedback

A brief note from Kali (“13K”) reminds us of the ever-growing number of EarBuds tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads every week. Thanks for tuning in, EarBuds, and thanks for your input each week. Let your voice be heard by calling (209) TR-TRDAD (209) 878-7323 and leaving us a voicemail. Maybe you have a memory of (or with) Peter Mayhew that you’d like to share with other fans of Chewbacca. Call soon!

Direct download: TRDads_07.06.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00pm EDT

Mon, 6 May 2019

TechnoRetro Dads FLASHBACK: Dungeons & Dragons

It’s been an adventurous week with the ‘Dads as shazbazzar took an unexpected trip to Ashland, Kentucky and JediShua battled strange magicks which had cursed his castle in Arvada, Colorado. So this seemed like a good time to FLASHBACK to seasons 2, 3, and 5 of TechnoRetro Dads in some of the Dungeons & Dragons discussions from the past.

Toys in the Attic

JediShua and shazbazzar first talked about playing Dungeons & Dragons in July 2014. From their first Basic Sets to their experiences with the “older kids” and Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, shazbazzar and JediShua remember friends like Randy McClure, Jason Fisher, Jeff Grimm, Perry Lipker, and more. Dungeons & Dragons was nothing like the ‘Dads expected (no one was actually killing anyone), it was all about becoming a different person in a moderated community story-telling adventure where players’ characters interact with foes and friends in a fantasy setting where magic is real, dragons exist, and it’s always good to have an interesting (and interested) Dungeon Master. And try not to shoot your friends’ pets.

SuperFriend Michael Witwer

After last fall’s release of his second book about Dungeons & Dragons, it seemed fitting to revisit the first two times SuperFriend Michael Witwer appeared on TechnoRetro Dads. Introducing his book, Empire of Imagination: Gary Gygax and the Birth of Dungeons & Dragons, Mike gives some insight into what EarBuds can expect in the book. Then, soon after its release, he returns for a more-informed discussion with the ‘Dads after they had both read the biographical history of Dungeons & Dragons.

Saturday Mornings

JediShua and shazbazzar reminisce about watching Dungeons & Dragons, an animated series from the ‘80s that featured a group of kids at an amusement park who were magically transported into the world of Dungeons & Dragons when they rode a specific rollercoaster. As one of the last cartoons of their childhood, the ‘Dads fondly remember the short series as their imaginations ran wild with ideas of how to incorporate some ideas from the television show into their gaming experiences.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the younger versions of our kids did, too! The shazlings and the Shualings join in for a cereal challenge, long ago, as the ‘Dads sat down for a bowl of Corn Pops in a Cereal Challenge from years ago. Part of the Cereal Challenge was to eat cereal while watching some classic cartoons from the ‘70s and ‘80s. While eating Corn Pops, the TechnoRetro families tuned in to the animated Dungeons & Dragons cartoon from the mid-eighties.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_07.05.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 29 April 2019

Blondie Has More Fun in a Pet Sematary

The gasps from watching the “Heart of Glass” video in 1979 and Pet Sematary in 1989 were likely equal in volume, but radically different in emotion. These two blondes (Gage from Pet Sematary and Debbie from Blondie) both affected pop-culture in their time and continue to have fans decades later.

In the NEWS:

We’re back with news this week — Back to the Future news, that is.

We Love Our Cereal…

Does the overabundance of sweetness in Cap’n Crunch’s Cotton Candy Crunch make it really crunchy or a phenomenon of galactic proportions? Does a box of Blueberry Cheerios remind you of a certain gum-chewing girl who visited a chocolate factory? Will Bob Ross really bring us The Joy of Breakfast with painted marshmallow goodness in a new cereal from FYE? All these questions, along with the new Mikey for Life, are addressed this week!

Vinyl Scratchback

She’s blonde, she’s beautiful, she’s broken-hearted…and maybe she even has a bit of a stalker in her. She’s Deborah Harry and she found a place at #1 on American Top 40 this week in 1979 with “Heart of Glass” from the Blondie album Parallel Lines. Blondie (the band, not the girl) entranced listeners with her sultry, other-worldly voice which juxtaposed passion with passivity in the ‘70s and ‘80s. Ranging from punk reggae to pop disco, Blondie seized our attention with raucous riffs, awkward raps, and a hypnotic sound that separated music aficionados from their cash in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. The band continues playing today with a fan following that fell in love with the lead singer four decades ago.

Let’s All Go to the Movies: Pet Sematary

Speaking of a blondie, the young toddler Gage Creed (he was so cute!) met with tragedy while playing in the front yard with his family in Maine when he wandered into a busy road and met with an accident. From the mind of Stephen King and the vision of director Mary Lambert came a story that turned hope upside-down in the haunting horror flick that drew audiences to the box office to see Pet Sematary. Whether you loved it or hated it, it became an instant classic for movie-goers. Featuring Tasha Yar, Herman Munster, and that vocal know-it-all from Kindergarten Cop, Pet Sematary spawned a sequel in the ‘90s (not good) and even a remake which is in theaters now (in case you can’t get tickets to Endgame).

Science Lesson: The Voyager Golden Record

When Voyager was launched, scientists (hoping for contact with alien life forms) included a golden record with sounds from Earth in the deep space probe. Now, for the first time on earth, you can get your own copy of this record for $100.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_07.04.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 22 April 2019

Star Wars Celebration Chicago Recap

Last Monday, Star Wars Celebration Chicago was still in swing. This Monday, we just can’t let go of a good thing. And if you have thoughts to share about all the Star Wars news (or anything else you’re looking forward to), give us a call at (209) 878-7323.

Star Wars Scrapbook

Star Wars Celebration Chicago is the newest addition to our scrapbook with pins, buttons, swag, pics, and lots of experiences that have generated lots of speculation…

The Rise of Skywalker Teaser Trailer
Galaxy’s Edge
The Mandalorian
The Clone Wars Saved

TechnoRetro Arcade

Star Wars Celebration Chicago revealed first looks (and even opportunities to play) upcoming additions to the TechnoRetro Arcade with Jedi Fallen Order (think of the Jedi Purge with Inquisitors and a Jedi-in-hiding reminiscent of Canaan Jarrus in John Jackson Miller’s A New Dawn) and Vader Immortal (a tether-less VR experience where the player is a smuggler conscripted into the service of the Dark Lord of the Sith).

Toys in the Attic

From Hasbro’s Retro figures to new 6" Black Series figures (Hondo Ohnaka as he appears at Galaxy’s Edge) to a playset from Jabba’s Palace, Star Wars Celebration Chicago revealed some exciting toys we would like to add to our collections.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_07.03.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 8 April 2019

Read-Along Books of Our Childhood

It’s Monday, but Thursday’s coming as Star Wars Celebration Chicago is just a few days away. So pack your bags, double-check your reservations, raid your bank account, and then plug in your ear buds and let the TechnoRetro Dads take the edge of with fun memories of the past and happy hopes for the future packed into 77 minutes of audio. Yep. That means we would fit on a cassette tape or compact disc. But don’t speak too loudly about tape recorders; Shua still feels the impact of what his dad did to his first tape player.

In the NEWS:

a musical rendition of The Princess Bride
streaming Farscape
Mark Hamill’s other current and upcoming projects
Vinyl Scratchbacks of TechnoRetro Tunes
Masters of the Universe set to start shooting
Dungeons & Dragons Art &Arcana nominated for a Hugo award
Indy-Cast produces a real radio drama

We Love Our Cereal…

…and thanks to our Roving Spoonster (Shane in GR), we’ve found others who love cereal (and arcade games) just as much! Discover peanut butter and chocolate Easter bunnies in Reese’s Puffs in stores near you. Stare with amazement at Toucan Sam’s replacement on some boxes of Froot Loops cereal (she has a tail). Best of all, if you’re anywhere near Wichita Falls, Texas, you’re going to want to check out Maniac’s Mansion, a truly TechnoRetro cereal cafe/video arcade that is one man’s realization of a childhood dream. So cool!

Lazy Book Club: Read-Along Books

After the feedback from last week’s “read-along book” special, shazbazzar and JediShua take time to recall the magic of read-along books and their history. Sometimes, they were on record. Sometimes, they were on tape. They’ve even made it to compact disc! The magic is the same every time, though. Linking technology to the written word on a page has been a winner for generations.

Even some EarBuds get in on the conversation online with some of their memories as well as future endeavors in acquiring some classic read-along books.

Star Wars Scrapbook

Beginning in April 1976, the ‘Dads travel through the years for a history lesson in notable moments of Star Wars history.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_07.02.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 1 April 2019

TechnoRetro Dads Season 7 Premiere: The Star Wars Read-Along (sort of)

For nearly forty-two years, pop-culture has been populated with images, sounds, and hundreds of plastic characters. Yet, there always seem to be new opportunities to explore the original Star Wars among fans of the franchise. The seventh season of TechnoRetro Dads continues this tradition of exploration as shazbazzar and JediShua (and the talented voice of narrator Scott Ryfun) find themselves in this special version of the Star Wars Read-Along….

Star Wars Stuff to Enjoy…

Vinyl Scratchback of TechnoRetro Tunes
Memorable Toys in the Attic
Space Games in the TechnoRetro Arcade

No, the words to the book aren’t found here.

But, yes, we know that it’s April 1st. After all, we released our first for-the-public episode on 1 April 2013, the last time Monday marked April Fool’s Day. And while we didn’t really prank you, we hope you’ll find fun in our foolishness in this bonus-length episode of TechnoRetro Dads. After all, if it hadn’t been for Star Wars, we might never have started this crazy show to start with. It certainly wouldn’t normally be 77 minutes long! So sit back and let yourself go as Scott Ryfun narrates the TechnoRetro Dads’ Star Wars Read-Along (when shazbazzar and JediShua went back in time far enough to actually see that galaxy far, far away).

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_07.01.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 25 March 2019

TechnoRetro Dads: 80 Years of Batman

In the season finale of TechnoRetro Dads (season finale, not series finale), shazbazzar and JediShua look back at various iterations of Batman from the days of Bob Kane and Bill Finger to Neal Adams and Frank Miller, Batman has changed over the past eight decades in comics. In film, from the ‘40s serials to the camp-ridded ’66 movie to the ’89 Tim Burton reimagining to the darkest depths of his persona in Nolen’s trilogy, Batman has gone from black and white, to light, to darkness along with cultural shifts. Yet the character continues to connect with readers and viewers throughout the generations.

In the NEWS

RUMOR has it that a new Star Wars trilogy set in the days of the Old Republic will begin shooting this fall.
Jim Henson’s Labyrinth has become a role-playing game.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and cereal candles, too! Jovial Jay Shepard lets us know about a scented candle that looks and smells like a half-eaten bowl of Froot Loops cereal. Shane, the Roving Spoonster, reports another Lucky Charms giveaway for free boxes of totally marshmallows. Good luck!

PLUS: we remember some amazing prizes found in boxes of cereal from our childhood even into adulthood. From a Batman bank to diving frogmen to lightsaber spoons to records to flying discs and rings, the ‘Dads and EarBuds recall some memorable toys that made opening a box of cereal on Saturday mornings even better.

Batman

JediShua and shazbazzar revisit the Batman of their youth on TV, in comics, and on the big screen while diving into some of the history of the Dark Knight and the Dynamic Duo. Even SuperFriend Adam O’Brien chimes in with some memories of Batman. Travel through the inception of the character on the pages of Detective Comics to the oft-forgotten movie serials of the 1940s, the campy zaniness of the Batman TV show in the ‘60s, the animated team-up with the Super Friends, as well as the various actors who played Bruce Wayne/Batman since 1989: Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, Christian Bale, and Ben Affleck. And with a new Batman movie slated to release in 2020, we’re sure to get a new impression on this Dark Knight fairly soon.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.47.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 18 March 2019

Spring into the Adventures of Baron Munchausen

If the living creatures around you seem a bit twitterpated, it's because the seasonal changes are finally happening this week as the sun crosses the equator to bring more daylight to the northern hemisphere and more dark to the southern hemisphere. But wherever you may be, TechnoRetro Dads will brighten your day with memories of the past and hopes for the future, even if it means telling tall tales the likes of The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.

In the NEWS

New Dungeons & Dragons animated series in the making by the good folks at Critical Role.
Disney may give subscribers a digital doorway into the “Vault” when the Disney Plus streaming service goes live.
Terry Gilliam (director of Time Bandits, Brazil, and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen) slated to work with Taika Waititi in the upcoming Time Bandits series.

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

When, in an Age of Reason, it seems reasonable to order capital punishment for remarkable acts of heroism and bravery (because, after all, we wouldn’t want “ordinary people” to become demoralized because their lives are absent such feats), it takes outlandish tales of fiction (it must be fictional, after all, for all is governed by the age’s intellectual rationalism that must not tolerate anything that cannot be explained by “science, progress, laws of hydraulics, laws of social dynamics, laws of this, that, and the other”) to set straight the path to victory over what simply must be true because the superior minds of elitists insist that they know more than what is clearly evident to a child. Such a victory is relished in Terry Gilliam’s The Adventures of Baron Munchausen from 1988. JediShua convinces shazbazzar to watch this amazing adventure for the sake of EarBuds around the world. Aren’t you glad he did?

Star Wars Scrapbook

In anticipation for the upcoming Star Wars Celebration in Chicago, shazbazzar and JediShua cover what was happening in our galaxy the third week of March from 1977 to 2008 relative to Star Wars.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.46.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 11 March 2019

Video Game Cartoons make a Splash on Saturday Mornings

Try on your best Irish accent, fill up a bowl with beans (but not too full), and pull your flashy, splashy green suit out of the closet for next Sunday as shazbazzar and JediShua travel back and forth through time in TechnoRetro Dads.

We Love Our Cereal

The Roving Spoonster finds places to eat cereal all round the United States while shazbazzar risks injury to his still recovering gums with a bowl of Cap’n Crunch’s Chocolatey Berry Crunch splashed with milk. A singular question arises: “How powerful are the Soggies?”

Saturday Mornings: Video Games Cartoons

Sure, you remember Pac-Man and Super Mario Bros. Super Show, but were you around when Pole Position seemed like Speed Racer and Knight Rider made a guest appearance on M.A.S.K.? Was the Legend of Zelda the adventure you craved? Maybe you’re one of several EarBuds who witnessed Kevin splash into the games like Flynn into TRON in Captain N: The Game Master. Whatever your interest, from cute to captivating, ‘80s and ‘90s Saturday mornings (and weekday afternoons) were able to capitalize on consumers’ interest in video games whenever and wherever possible. SuperFriends and EarBuds remember some shows that made a lasting impact on them back in the day.

Let’s All Go to the Movies: Splash

Tom Hanks is rescued by Darryl Hannah as John Candy and Eugene Levy seek their own interests in this thirty-five year-old romantic comedy that had us rolling as kids and continues to provide a good time in Ron Howard’s Splash. This very well might have been your father’s The Little Mermaid if he was part of Generation X.

Star Wars Scrapbook

In anticipation for the upcoming Star Wars Celebration in Chicago, shazbazzar and JediShua cover what was happening in our galaxy this month in the ‘90s with the likes of Steroid Luke, Hahnold Swartzenegger, and Yoda Garcia and other memories from twelve to twenty-two years ago when Star Wars was making a big splash twenty to thirty years after its inception.

Feedback

The EarBuds and RetroZappers are making their own splash on TechnoRetro Dads this week as Stuffedy tries to let us in on a free play point-and-click adventure online and Joey of the Animanicast finds his Indiana Jones role-playing game book as well as Palpatine and Shmi in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.45.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 4 March 2019

High Adventure with Young Indiana Jones and RPGs

Grab a pencil, paper, and some six-sided dice for High Adventure in the past, present, and future as the TechnoRetro Dads kick off the month of March with role-playing games, Star Wars Scrapbook, young Indiana Jones, news, Cereal Day, and ridiculous Dad jokes.

In the NEWS

Gremlins will soon invade your technology in Warner Media’s new streaming service.
Jim Henson’s The Storyteller is returning with an all-new series.
Terry Gilliam will finally complete his dream story about jousting windmills in The Man Who Killed Don Quixote.
Star Wars clothing on display in a preview of Galaxy’s Edge.

We Love Our Cereal

JediShua prepares us for the upcoming Cereal Day later this week.

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles

What do Sean Patrick Flannery, George Hall, Corey Carrier, and Harrison Ford have in common? They all shared the small screen playing the same character in the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. JediShua and shazbazzar share their thoughts on the series and bemoan the lost scenes from the original airing of the two-season television show from the early 1990s.

Game Master Day

Today is Game Master Day, and whether you played Dungeons & Dragons, Star Frontiers, Palladian, Indiana Jones, Toon, or some other role playing game, it’s a great day to remember and recognize those game masters who kept the stories flowing in these imaginative games. Several EarBuds and SuperFriends chime in about their experiences with role playing games.

Star Wars Scrapbook

In anticipation for the upcoming Star Wars Celebration in Chicago, shazbazzar and JediShua cover what was happening in our galaxy as Star Wars hype began and the fascination with the franchise continued in the month of March.

Special thanks to High Adventure for use of their song “The Ballad of Indiana Jones” from their incredible Acoustic Prog Pop album.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.44.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 25 February 2019

TechnoRetro Dads: Star Trek IV and Time-Traveling Whales

Time-travel with Kirk, Spock, Bones, Uhura, Sulu, Chekov, and Scottie to bring the future to San Francisco in 1986. SuperFriend Jovial Jay Shepard joins shazbazzar and JediShua for some whale songs as they remember (or misremember) the conclusion of the Genesis/Khan trilogy in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.

In the NEWS

Find out how to get a “fast pass” to the Rancho Obi-Wan exhibit at Star Wars Celebration Chicago.
An original, sealed-in-package Super Mario Bros. cartridge sells for a record high price that will send you down the pipes in unbelief!

We Love Our Cereal

Exclusive Caticorn Berry cereal hits shelves at Sam’s Club.
Maple Bacon Donut comes to Walmart.
Chocolate and Berries in new boxes of Cap’n Crunch.
The World’s Largest Breakfast Table is coming this summer.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

In one of the most down-to-earth Star Trek features that showed the crew of the Enterprise in perhaps the strangest surroundings, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home pits the Federation of the future against the crazy culture of the ‘80s as Kirk and Spock are unleashed on the streets of San Francisco in 1986. Jovial Jay Shepard joins the ‘Dads for a fun trip to a past “today” as Spock strives to get into the groove of punk rock and capitalism that seems completely alien to the crew of the recently destroyed Enterprise. Though our memories are a bit sketchy, the fun flavor of the fourth feature film shines through the banter between the three Gen-Xers.

Toys in the Attic: Toy Fair 2019

JediShua and shazbazzar take a peek at pics and slideshows from the recent Toy Fair in New York. Loads of retrotastic four-inch fun for fans of ‘70s and ‘80s action figures. Someone needs to win a lottery.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.43.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 18 February 2019

ThunderCats

On this Presidents’ Day (Presidents Day, President’s Day), a day designed to give federal employees a three-day weekend (yes, that’s the real purpose of the holiday), the ‘Dads invite all EarBuds to pull their VHS copies of ThunderCats off the shelf, get their LJN action figures out of that dusty old attic, and get into the spirit of Thundera here on Second Earth for a time-traveling trip back to 1985-1989 with the unforgettable ThunderCats!

In the NEWS

Howard the Duck Hulu series greenlit
Upcoming Muppets series is an ‘80s sequel
Sesame Street may celebrate 50th anniversary with a movie

Saturday Mornings: ThunderCats

From 1985 to 1989, kids were treated to a sci-fi/fantasy cartoon about cat people fleeing their destroyed home planet of Thundera to a futuristic Earth as they battled evil mutants who wanted to get their slimy (or furry) hands on the Sword of Omens. Lion-O, Tygra, Cheetara, Panthro, Wilykat, Wilykit, and Snarf were pitted against the evil mutants S-S-Slithe, Jackalman, Monkian, Vultureman, and their terrifying undead leader Mumm-Ra. The combination of a kicking theme song, an amazing style that blended Rankin-Bass designs with Japanese animation, cool characters, fantastic weapons and vehicles, and a story that captured the imaginations of kids, teens, and maybe even some parents for fun afternoon television viewing.

Toys in the Attic: ThunderCats

LJN toys produced loads of figures, vehicles, and even a couple playsets alongside the ThunderCats animated series. More in scale with He-Man figures than Star Wars and G.I. Joe, ThunderCats followed the pattern of Mattel, Hasbro, and Kenner to fill toy aisles with plastic versions of the heroes and villains kids were watching on TV sets in their homes. Some of these toys can even fetch a hefty price with collectors. Be sure to watch garage sales and flea markets for bargains on these classic toys.

Star Wars Scrapbook

As Celebration Chicago draws ever nearer, and the future of Star Wars is yet to be seen (no trailer or title as of yet), shazbazzar and JediShua dust off Star Wars Year by Year: A Visual Chronicle in the Star Wars Scrapbook to look into the history of Star Wars and the people and events surrounding the 42 year-old franchise.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.42.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 10:00am EDT

Mon, 11 February 2019

Ewoks Win Time After Time

George Lucas pushed to capitalize on cuteness after Return of the Jedi left theaters with two made-for-television Ewok features and two seasons of animated Endorians in Nelvana’s Ewoks. Both shazbazzar and JediShua love every incarnation of the little furry guys and share their appreciation for the tribe from Bright Tree Village before taking another trip through time in the dark comedy/love story/science fiction movie, Time After Time.

In the NEWS

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge may open with little pomp and circumstance — perhaps with even a single tweet.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and so will you. It seems that these days, time after time we discover new cereals in supermarkets across the nation. Today, JediShua quickly reviews several new cereals as EarBuds and the Roving Spoonster chime in on what they are finding in store aisles, home pantries, and cereal bowls everywhere.

Saturday Mornings: Ewoks

From fall 1985 to spring 1987, shazbazzar and JediShua enjoyed Ewoks on Saturday mornings — with and without Droids. Wicket W. Warwick is joined by Princess Kneesaa and all their friends time after time on Saturdays in this short-lived cartoon by Nelvana.

Time After Time

Malcolm McDowell, David Warner, and Mary Steenburgen star in this week’s time-traveling tale about inventor H.G. Wells’ pursuit of villainous Jack the Ripper through time in the machine he created. 1979’s Time After Time is an unforgettable story that many remember seeing on cable or renting at the video store. Whether this movie is a sci-fi flick, a love story, or a dark comedy is your guess. One thing is certain, Time After Time is clearly a product of the disco era.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Answering the popularity of Nintendo’s NES, Sega pushed its Sega Genesis to retail outlets in 1989, hoping to gain some of the home console business with its 16-bit system. Children of the ‘80s will remember such classics as Sonic the Hedgehog, Mortal Kombat, and Toejam & Earl.

(Don’t forget Aunt Marge!)

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.41.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 4 February 2019

Be Excellent to Each Other

Whether it’s the Rams vs the Patriots or the Cowboys vs the Steelers, Extreme asks the pertinent question: “Do You Want to Play?” The results are finally in, and the final score was 35 -31 — Pittsburgh wins Super Bowl XIII. We know (and you know) who won Super Bowl LIII, so we thought you should know who won forty years ago. After last night’s battle between Bill & Ted (Belichick and Rath, respectively), it’s time to sit back and relax for fun with shazbazzar and JediShua.

In the NEWS

The Dude invades Super Bowl LIII
The Lost Boys will be coming to the CW
Starship Troopers also may become a TV series
Bill & Ted Face the Music soon — maybe Christmas

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure

In just a couple weeks, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure turns thirty, and with a threequel in the works, it’s a great time to return to San Dimas in 1988 for some most excellent riffs by Wyld Stallyns. JediShua and shazbazzar dig into their teenage years and revisit this just-for-fun-but-better-than-many-Oscar-nominees movie from 1989. Featuring Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, George Carlin, RAM (from TRON), the French foreign exchange student (from Better Off Dead), and Jane Wiedlin (from the Go-Go’s), Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure follows two rock star wannabes who must get an A+ on their history final in order to pass the class, avoid Alaskan military school, and keep the band from breaking up (before it ever happens). Bill & Ted have less than a day to travel through history (thanks to a time machine from seven hundred years in the future that resembles a phone booth) and put together a bodacious history presentation. Spoiler Alert: They succeed and come back for a sequel (and the aforementioned threequel).

TechnoRetro Arcade

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure made it to home consoles for gamers who couldn’t get enough Bill & Ted in the movie. As an adventure game somewhat resembling the key parts of the movie, players had to talk to NPCs (kind of like in Zelda) to accumulate what they need to ace their history presentation.

Feedback

We finally get to some feedback from our EarBuds covering a variety of topics from video games to G.I. Joe memories.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.40.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 28 January 2019

G.I. Joe with Retro Joe Tavano

After you titillate your taste buds with a Cuppa Joe or some bubble-gum with a Bazooka Joe comic this morning, treat your ear buds with memories of G.I. Joe with Retro Joe Tavano on TechnoRetro Dads as shazbazzar and JediShua dig into the toys and cartoons of the ‘80s that made fighting Cobra fashionable.

In the NEWS

Ghostbusters III teaser trailer

Saturday Mornings
Weekday Afternoons: G.I. Joe

It’s been a while since the Daddio of RetroZap.com has been on TechnoRetro Dads, but SuperFriend Retro Joe Tavano joins shazbazzar and JediShua at the perfect time as we approach G.I. Joe Day this Friday, February 1st! Although Saturday mornings were not typically the time these weekday afternoon cartoons aired, memories of Duke, Flint, Scarlet, Lady Jaye, Mutt, Roadblock, and Snake Eyes are full of fun times, cool music, informative PSAs, and rockets. Hasbro’s marketing machine churned out a winner with this half-hour show featuring toys that were on shelves and pegs in stores across the nation when G.I. Joe made an epic return after some serious plastic surgery to reduce his size, making him more attractive to consumers in the 1980s.

Toys in the Attic: G.I. Joe

Since the cartoon was invented as a launching platform for Hasbro’s redesigned G.I. Joe line, it only makes sense that shazbazzar, JediShua, and Retro Joe head up to the attic to see if their G.I. Joe figures have survived the test of time or if their internal organs have dried up due to age and they’ve fallen to pieces. We talk about the toys we had, the toys we played with, and the toys we wanted. From the Cobra H.I.S.S. to the Killer W.H.A.L.E. to the Defiant, we’re spanning a range of several years of prime G.I. Joe collecting.

Vinyl Scratchback

Forty years ago, Chic returned to the number one spot on Billboard’s charts for a third time with their song “Le Freak”. The first song to top the charts three times, this disco ditty is an earworm almost everyone will remember.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.39.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 21 January 2019

TechnoRetro Dads from V to Z: 1979 Vampire movies and Nintendo’s Zelda

When you want to make Monday mornings great again, you get some pretty strange looks and people start to ask questions like, “When were Monday mornings ever great?” While we may not be qualified to give documented histories about great Monday mornings, we do know where to get the answers to the tough questions. We call Chris Luby (the Specialist), cohost of The Geek State podcast and long-time SuperFriend for answers to life’s most challenging quandaries…

“How does a vampire select his prey?”

“What flavor are the red Funkos?”

“Who composed the music for the top five vampire movies in 1979?”

“Which version of Zelda best encapsulates the totality of Hyrule lore?”

You’ll have to be the judge of how well Chris answers questions like these, even though we don’t dig that deeply ourselves, in this federal holiday Monday morning episode for January 21st.

In the NEWS

Eddie Murphy reprises his royal role in the upcoming Coming to America sequel.
The crew of The Muppet Show had some fun at the end of the first season of the program and we get to watch it! Muppets not included.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and EarBuds do, too! Russ “Honey Buns” Doutt and RealtorAngie report on finding new cereals in the aisles of their local stores and even give a review of Honey Bun cereal for the insatiable appetites of cereal lovers everywhere. The Roving Spoonster warms up a story from Europe that has JediShua ready to let Dracula turn him into a vampire bat to cut back on the cost of flying overseas for a morning cup of coffee and cereal at Starbucks Europe.

SuperFriend Chris Luby

After a prolonged absence from TechnoRetro Dads (and a hiatus from his own podcast, S’more Geeks), the Specialist Chris Luby returns with a brand-new show, The Geek State. Chris and cohost James take their podcast to the next level with a revamped and reimagined weekly podcast that keeps listeners attuned to the state of affairs in geek culture. Today, Chris shares his fondness for Funko Pops as well as Funkos cereal and even samples a box on the air. From Boba Fett to Elvira (is she a vampire?), Chris has become obsessed with the vinyl figures that fill store shelves in stores everywhere.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Before the break of dawn signals all vampires to hurry home, Chris tours the TechnoRetro Arcade with shazbazzar and JediShua to play various Zelda games in the console room. Tune in for Hyrule-ing excitement in these adventure games by Nintendo.

Let’s All Go to the Movies: 1979 Vampire Movies

Forty years ago, vampires were all the rage at the cinema as well as at the disco. From genuine horror flicks like Salem’s Lot and Nosferatu the Vampyre to the romance of Dracula to more humorous approaches like Nocturna and the fondly-remembered Love at First Bite, the ‘Dads give a brief overview of the bloodsucking box office of 1979.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.38.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 14 January 2019

Choose Your Own Adventure — He-Man or Bandersnatch

The adventure continues whether you’re turning back and forth through the pages of a book, making decisions digitally, or playing with He-Man and the Masters of the Universe toys from the ‘80s on TechnoRetro Dads — this week with a Big Honkin’ dose of Steve Glosson from Geek Out Loud.

In the NEWS

Dave Bautista joins the cast of Denis Villeneuve’s version of Dune.
(Maybe someone will seek him out for a He-Man movie.)
Walmart welcomes pop culture cars to their parking lot.
William Morgan Sheppard departs.

Toys in the Attic

SuperFriend Steve Glosson joins shazbazzar and JediShua in the attic to play with He-Man and the Masters of the Universe toys by Mattel from the 1980s. These action figures were a huge departure from the popularity of the incredibly successful 3 3/4” action figures from Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, and of course G.I. Joe. Beginning with several characters, a couple of vehicles, a non-articulated green tiger, and a large castle playset, the Masters of the Universe toys

Saturday Mornings: Black Mirror “Bandersnatch”

JediShua and shazbazzar remember the fun of Choose Your Own Adventure books when they check out the latest Netflix addition to the Black Mirror series, “Bandersnatch”. This dark, weird interactive movie allows viewers to choose the actions of an on-screen character to determine the plot and end of the movie. “Bandersnatch” is a quality first effort at merging game books with digital technology for an effective Choose Your Own Adventure experience. Definitely for “mature audiences”, the back-and-forth feel of this movie is a genuine throwback to the joy of reading Choose Your Own Adventure books. Perhaps more of these will be created soon. Maybe bring in some of our favorite franchises like G.I. Joe, Transformers, or even He-Man. The possibilities are only limited by imaginations at this point.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.37.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 7 January 2019

4000 Resolutions for the New Year PLUS Arcade 1UP and SuperNES

The last year of the twenty-teens begins with an amazing blend of new and old with feedback from EarBuds, new TV shows focusing on ‘80s culture, AI reminiscent of HAL from 2001, boxes of cerealicious breakfast food, and new video games in a classic style.

Feedback

Discover the intrinsic relationship between Speak & Spell and the Little Professor. TRON goes X-Wing thanks to Mark Ham All. Mark Hamill jokes about Joker cereal. Several EarBuds chime in with fond memories from 2018, ranging from Solo to Spider-Man to Pac-Man to chicken walkers to vacations in O’Lando.

In the NEWS

The International Space Station has a floating half-spherical artificial intelligence who behaves like a toddler. Thankfully, it’s named CIMON and not HAL, and “Daisy” doesn’t seem to be on its playlist. The ‘80s get turned upside-down again this year on July 4th when Stranger Things 3 shows up on Netflix. Speaking of sequels, They Live may finally have one in the works according to John Carpenter. Python Michael Palin is to be honored by the British Crown this year and gain the knightly honorific, “Sir”. We think he maybe knighted at sunset.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the pics we’re getting from EarBuds! From exciting wall decor in the image of favorite retro cereal mascots to boxes of marshmallowy grandeur to stockings backed by boxes of favorite cereals, there are bowls and bowls of breakfasts just waiting to be poured over milk. Suddenly, our bowls overflow with reports from the Roving Spoonster: new GM cereals hitting shelves, Netflix goes viral with a cereal question, a principal feeds kids over the holidays with gift boxes of…yep — cereal! Still, some cereal aficionados might give the rest of us a bad name; specifically with frivolous lawsuits.

TechnoRetro Arcade

The Super NES game console was Nintendo’s 16-bit submission to the home video game market. SNES and Sega Genesis battled head-to-head thirty years ago for a bigger piece of the pixelated pie. With Street Fighter II and Donkey Kong Country, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System was popular with gamers of all ages, even as the 32-bit systems came into the market.

Toys in the Attic

If you ventured into Walmart anytime during the past couple months, you may have noticed some larger than desktop sized arcade games featuring side art and classic marquees reminiscent of the mid-eighties with Pac-Man, Galaga, Rampage, Centipede, and more. A new retro idea — 3/4 scaled arcade games — hit the pallets in November and continue making their way out retail stores even today. With a $300 price tag, these aren’t cheap , but they might just satisfy your craving for a bit of the old arcade in a corner of your office.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to check out episodes you may have missed on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.36.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 24 December 2018

The Best Hype Is Christmas Eve

The gifts are all purchased and wrapped, the food is mostly prepared (to be further prepared), the bags are packed for the trip to Gramma’s, and everything is ready for Christmas. But don’t discount the joy of pre-Christmas hype on Christmas Eve. Join shazbazzar and JediShua for a final 77 minutes of #TechnoRetro in 2018.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and so do our EarBuds. On Christmas Eve, the kids are already excited and might get up before Mom and Dad are ready to take on the day. What are parents to do when the kids are up at 5 AM and really hungry? Direct them to the cereal shelf in the pantry with a bowl, a spoon, and milk, and tell them to make their favorite Christmas Eve combination of cereals and watch cartoons.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Remember when you played last year’s Christmas gift (Atari, Nintendo, Sega, PlayStation, Game Cube, etc.) on Christmas Eve to get your mind off what might possibly be under the tree in the morning? JediShua and shazbazzar take a peek back at several video games with snow themes and snow screens that are perfect for a “Sleigh Ride” with “Jingle Bells”.

EarBuds Toy Catalog: Mixed Bag

The results of the fourth bracket of the EarBuds Toy Catalog are in and some of the retro toys challenge the newer products. From Speak and Spell to Whirly-Wheels, from Bop-Bags to Magic 8-Balls, the toys are as hot as Hot Wheels, bigger than Micro Machines, springier than a Slinky, and less talkative than Teddy Ruxpin. Remember, even though it’s Christmas Eve, it’s never too late to give hints to loved ones. Maybe you’ll get your winner tomorrow morning.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! We’ll be back next year, but if you’re looking for more content before then, check out some older episodes on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, or at TechnoRetroDads.libsyn.com. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.35.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Sat, 22 December 2018

UnScrooged 2018

UnScrooged is what the Doctor would prescribe (if only he knew about it) for relief from holiday anxiety, reversing persistent frowns, rejuvenating old bones and muscles, and reviving memory centers. This special 99-minute bonus episode is the longest UnScrooged to date, and perhaps the most potent. You need to take a full dose today -- repeat as necessary during the winter holidays this year and every year. There is no expiration date.

WARNING

A full dose of UnScrooged 2018

will likely cause some, if not all, of these side effects:

rhythmic toe-tapping
chortling from chest and larynx
obsession with stuffing pockets with quarters and similarly sized coins
searching storage areas, attics, closets, and even online for He-Man figures and Castle Grayskull
compulsion to go to the nearest video arcade

If these symptoms are present in yourself or a loved one, do not panic -- simply help them find favorite toys, take them to a real video arcade, and encourage them to sing on key. Who knows? Maybe your loved one will be featured on a talent-seeking reality show and win a million dollar contract!

SuperFriends in UnScrooged 2018

Steve Glosson
Dennis Keithly
Adam O'Brien
Scott Ryfun
Jay Shepard
Tony Soehner
Hunter Wahl
Michael Witwer

Direct download: TRDads_UnScrooged2018.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 17 December 2018

TechnoRetro Dads: Scrooged from 1988 before UnScrooged 2018

Yule love this week’s show, even if you’re a Humbug! Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol takes on an eighties upgrade with Bill Murray and Bobcat Goldthwait in Scrooged. Don’t wait for three ghosts to make you regret your choices today — tune in to TechnoRetro Dads early this morning, share, and enjoy all the fun and fandom with family, friends, and EarBuds for 77 minutes.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the cereal companies like special cereals for Christmas. From the Cronut creator’s Christmas Morning Cereal to Lucky Charms Chocolatey Winter Cereal to Strawberry Krispies, the seasonal flavors are ready to be enjoyed by the spoonful (#ChillYourBowl). Perhaps the reason Ebenezar Scrooge was so grumpy is the notable lack of Christmas cereal in his day.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Our super-sized celebration of Superman’s 40th (80th) anniversary last week left out a very important element: video games. Superman’s video game debut was for the Atari 2600 console in the 1979 super-pixillated classic Superman. Six years later, Superman: The Game (see what they did there?) was released for home computers. To provide picky, pestering Scrooges with something worthy of complaint, the NES Superman game only had a vague resemblance to Superman in 1988. That same year, a full-sized arcade version of the Man of Steel was released by Taito. Best of all, the ultimate Superman video game has yet to arrive!

Scrooged

Frank Cross (Bill Murray), a television network executive with more dollars than sensitivity, faces a long night of regrets, repentance, and redemption with visits from three time-traveling ghosts. It’s A Christmas Carol for the ‘80s with a healthy, heaping spoonful of meta as life and fiction intersect on a live broadcast that’s likely to reduce at least one of the ‘Dads to tears — like, Niagara Falls!

EarBuds Toy Catalog: Creative Toys

The results of the third bracket of the EarBuds Toy Catalog are in as retrotastic toys that engaged the mind in creative ways went head-to-head in physics, chemistry, and engineering matchups that challenge the brain, hands, and eyes. Knobby flat screens like Etch A Sketch faced the colorful three-dimensional Tinker Toys. Artistic minds that need to knead found fun in yellow cans of Play-Doh as the modeling compound squared off against another drawing toy — Magnadoodle. Tune in to see who won!

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! While you’re waiting for this year’s UnScrooged, be sure to subscribe on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, vote in the EarBuds Christmas bracket, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.34.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 10 December 2018

Superman the Movie 40th Anniversary Super-Sized Episode

Faster than shazbazzar driving through Atlanta. More powerful than JediShua’s art pen. Look! There, up in the sky, it’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s…Superman! Standing for truth, justice, and the American Way, Superman continues to inspire the best in people — at least the 1978 version of Superman does.

Feedback

EarBuds both new and old (experienced?) send in their feedback to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com with comments and questions about TRON, animated giant robots in Force Five, and a discovery about JediShua’s weekly introduction.

EarBuds Toy Catalog: Action Figures

The results of the second bracket of the EarBuds Toy Catalog are in as four sets of “action figures” of times past go head-to-head against each other (via EarBuds’ voting). Madballs, Micronauts, Mego Superheroes, and Mattel’s He-Man and She-Ra lines face off for the EarBuds’ favorite. With many more participants this week, the challenge was more intense. Find out if the ‘70s or ‘80s take the prize in this episode!

Sadly, the Mego Superheroes (including Superman) didn’t make it very far in this round, but you can always be a part of the brackets as these rounds continue over the next two weeks. Keep checking various social media outlets for updates and ways you can vote for your favorite toys in the EarBuds Toy Catalog contest.

Superman (the Movie)

Christopher Reeve filled out the blue spandex (“That is one bad outfit!”) in 1978 as Superman is pitted against arch villain Lex Luthor in a real estate scuffle that brings out the best in Clark Kent. Standing for truth, justice, and the American Way, the orphan from Krypton becomes the altruistic hero we all love as he saves the day for Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and everyone else in California when Otisville nearly becomes a reality.

Vinyl Scratchback: Superman Soundtrack

The score for Superman helped make this movie iconic, branding Superman with the John Williams theme that can be recognized almost anywhere — even when sung a bit off-key! In an era when disco was driving everyone wild, another orchestral score turned out to be a hit among movie goers.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! While you’re watching Superman, be sure to subscribe on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, vote in the EarBuds Christmas bracket, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.33.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 3 December 2018

Ernest Saves Christmas from Laika’s Missing Link

It’s been over a week since Thanksgiving, and we’ve just awakened from the full-belly naps we’ve enjoyed over the holidays. As college football season closes and anticipation arises for upcoming bowl games (Outback Bowl in Tampa, anyone?), the season’s greetings turn towards trees, snowmen, reindeer, and Santa Claus! Don’t worry, we’re sure that Ernest Saves Christmas just in time (like he has for the past three decades).

In the NEWS

Looks like there’s something strange in the neighborhood for the third time according to Dan Aykroyd. Ghostbusters 3 is confirmed to be a sequel to the original Ghostbusters movies from the ‘80s. Great news! Sadly, however, Bikini Bottom mourns the loss of SpongeBob Squarepants creator Stephen Hillenburg who ended his fight with ALS. He was 57.

EarBuds Toy Catalog: Games

The results of the first category of the EarBuds Toy Catalog brackets are in as four games of times past go head-to-head against each other (via EarBuds’ voting). Hungry Hungry Hippos, Trivial Pursuit, Battleship, and the Nintendo Entertainment System face off for the EarBuds’ favorite. Perhaps the ultimate winner isn’t all that unexpected.

But you can always be a part of the brackets as these rounds continue over the next two weeks. Keep checking various social media outlets for updates and ways you can vote for your favorite toys in the EarBuds Toy Catalog contest.

SuperFriend Hunter Wahl

Laika’s newest addition to their amazing stop-motion features is coming this April, and SuperFriend Hunter Wahl joins us to tell us about the movie and gives us insight into behind-the-scenes activities that go into making a stop-motion feature in the 21st Century. Missing Link will premier on April 12th of next year and we’re excited to see this movie.

Ernest Saves Christmas

Hunter (who was, at least in part, raised by a TechnoRetro Dad) sticks around for some fun chatter about Ernest Saves Christmas as Ernest P. Worrell helps Santa fulfill his mission to pass the torch (or magic sack) to the next Santa to carry on the tradition and ensure that Christmas continues. Ernest Saves Christmas turns 30 this year as the iconic ‘80s character invented and portrayed by Jim Varney appears in what some consider his best movie role.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! While you’re watching Ernest Saves Christmas, be sure to subscribe on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, vote in the EarBuds Christmas bracket, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.32.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 19 November 2018

TechnoRetro Dads’ Thanksgiving: Turkeys, Trains, and Television

Thanksgiving is a time to remember and confess the things for which we are thankful, and thankfully, you’re still listening to TechnoRetro Dads even after this past Saturday’s Holiday Special! Thanks for tuning in, EarBuds! There’s enough in this episode for a full meal with leftovers to boot.

In the NEWS

It’s Thanksgiving week, so don’t forget to defrost that turkey NOW! Laika discovers the Missing Link in an upcoming film (Hunter, one of JediShua’s former students, worked on this movie). Fettmatic on Discord spotted the animated Dungeons & Dragons characters in maquette form through Iron Studios. Jim Henson’s Christmas specials (Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas and The Bells of Fraggle Rock) are coming to theaters in December.

We Love Our Cereal…

…even if the Golden Girls cereals are never gold. Funko announces more colors for their very popular offering coming soon. The Roving Spoonster (Shane in GR) has more bowls of cereal news this week, too!

Weet-Bix turns 90
Mr. Kellogg’s home is for sale in Tampa.
Sour Patch Kids Cereal is real.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Hunters and gamers could find common ground on Thanksgiving in 1984 with Nintendo’s release of Duck Hunt in arcades and at home. An effective light-sensing zapper allows players to shoot digital ducks and pixelated clay pigeons on CRT monitors in a fun (and sometimes frustrating) game that everyone can play. However, the dog can be a jerk.

Thanksgiving Television

From the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thanksgiving morning to the holiday specials (nope, not that Holiday Special — see last Saturday for that one), while Gramma works in the kitchen, the kids and dads watch TV with traditional programming that marks the fourth Thursday in November. Dallas and Detroit are sure to play and Bugs plays “Diet Doctor” in a Looney Tunes special.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Thanksgiving is about spending time with family, but when you’re out-of-town trying to get home to be with your loved ones and transportation problems threaten your relaxing holiday, you may have to team up with a stranger to make everything work out. Steve Martin and John Candy star in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, a John Hughes film. Everyone has met “that guy” — just a common, ordinary guy who doesn’t seem to have everything figured out as much as he thinks he does. He means well and has a positive attitude, but his optimism doesn’t always work out. Settle down for raucous laughter with family and friends for a gut-busting good time this weekend with Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to subscribe on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, vote in the EarBuds Christmas bracket, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.31.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Sat, 17 November 2018

TechnoRetro Dads: 2018 Holiday Special

Forty years ago today, 17 November 2018, The Star Wars Holiday Special aired for its one and only appearance on television. For years, fans have sought out black market copies of the program in order to see it for themselves. As for the TechnoRetro Dads, they have adored this heart-warming story for four decades.

Today, thanks to a discovery in Ralph McQuarrie’s personal items in 2012, shazbazzar and JediShua present a rendition of an early story treatment of the Star Wars Holiday Special as made available on StarWarsHolidaySpecial.com.

We hope you will share and enjoy this audio tribute to the “Could’ve Been but Wasn’t Actually the Star Wars Holiday Special”.

Special thanks to:

High Adventure “Light the Sky on Fire” and “Happy Life Day”

Supernova “Chewbacca”

Donny & Marie Osmond

Kevin Rubio TROOPS

Battlestar Galactica

CHipS

Mork & Mindy

Wheel of Fortune

WKRP in Cincinnati

Starring:

JediShua -- Narrator
Jessizzar -- Operator
shazbazzar -- Mechanical Jawa
Mrs. Shua -- Captain Rockie Welchel
Joe Tavano -- Sauna-Mann

Direct download: TRDads_LifeDay2018.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 8:00pm EDT

Mon, 12 November 2018

Bilbo Baggins, Dragon’s Lair, and Ralph Bakshi’s The Lord of the Rings

Hobbits, a Dragon’s Lair, and The Lord of the Rings make for a great Dungeons & Dragons campaign in the ‘70s and ‘80s as shazbazzar and JediShua take a trip back 40 years (and more) into the past for this episode of TechnoRetro Dads.

Feedback

From the Misfits of Science to pumpkins, from snowmen to bubblegum, and a brand new mini-store from the people who brought us Toys ‘R’ Us — several EarBuds send pics and electronic-Ms about several things we’ve been talking about (and should be talking about).

The Lord of the Rings (1978)

Animator Ralph Bakshi committed J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings to film in 1978 with a combination of animation styles from traditional cels to rotoscoping to make a very ‘70s movie that challenged young viewers and made an imprint on impressionable young minds. Even Peter Jackson was not immune to the magic of Ralph Bakshi’s The Lord of the Rings, evident in his 2001 version of the first third of the story with scenes derived from this mind-blowing masterpiece that kept kids coming back for more.

Vinyl Scratchback

When JediShua introduced shazbazzar to “The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins”, the younger ‘Dad sought out more music from Leonard Nimoy, and shazbazzar discovered the album Spaced Out featuring Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner. With original songs and covers of popular tunes, Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock got groovy in the late ‘60s with an album that boldly went where no record had gone before.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Sword and sorcery continue in the arcade with the impressive and challenging Don Bluth cartoon video game Dragon’s Lair. For only two quarters, gamers could control Dirk the Daring in his quest to rescue Princess Daphne from the Dragon’s Lair.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.30.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 5 November 2018

When Pumpkins Fall, Snowmen Arise, and They Live

The pumpkins have fallen out of fashion, Christmas commercials invaded televisions the day after Halloween, the smell of peppermint is in the air, and it won’t be long before there’s enough snow on the ground to build a snowman. Do you want to? You know… build a snowman?

In the NEWS

A YouTube channel has compiled “all” Ready Player One references in one gigantic video list. You can soon build your own virtual reality bedroom (Ready Player One style) will memorabilia, movies, TV shows, and even classic video games! Beetlejuice is now a musical stage production on its way to Broadway.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Star Wars landed on home game consoles everywhere in 1982 with the release of The Empire Strikes Back, a scrolling shooter that pitted players’ snowspeeders against AT-ATs on the march towards Echo Base. The low-resolution game (hey, it was 1982) did not diminish game play in the least. The walkers looked like walkers. The snowspeeder looked like a snowspeeder. The snow-covered terrain looked like snow-covered terrain. And the FORCE… Well, it was multicolored flashing and had cool music. The Empire Strikes Back on Atari may not have been “winnable”, but it sure did provide hours of fun reliving the “Battle in the Snow”.

Saturday Mornings

In 1985, Bill Watterson brought the dark imagination of a small boy to life in the funny papers under the title Calvin and Hobbes. Calvin, a bright, energetic, and playful boy, teamed up with his striped friend Hobbes to remake the world as they wanted it to be. From transmogrification to snowmen in somewhat disturbing positions, Calvin and Hobbes kept parents on their toes as the pair (?) delivered joy to newspaper subscribers every day as the paperboy completed his neighborhood route. JediShua and shazbazzar recall some memorable “snowman” strips from the ‘80s and ‘90s. (Thanks for the idea, Russ!)

They Live

Evil-Lynn returns from Masters of the Universe to fill her role in this John Carpenter film from thirty years ago. They Live is a creepy look at ‘80s culture through the eyes of the filmmaker as Carpenter warns his audience of the dangers lurking beneath the surface in our capitalistic economy. But theater-goers weren’t as interested in the underlying message of the director (who claimed the film is a documentary), they just wanted to be entertained by the likes of pro wrestler “Rowdy” Roddy Piper. From muscles to mullet to mouthing-off, Roddy Piper drew in audiences to see this sci-fi thriller about friendship, aliens, magic glasses, and street brawling. Featuring Roddy Piper, Keith David, and Meg Foster, They Live is an essential part of ‘80s pop culture.

Feedback

Jedi Holmes presents One Punch Man.
Jack o’ Lanterns
Matt Marks shows off his designs.
Armando discovers an amazing carving.
Raising Fangirls shows off some cool creations, too.
Even “Little ‘A’s” has a round rendition of retroism for her orange gourd.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to subscribe on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.29.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 29 October 2018

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice

He’s the ghost with the most: a moldy, decaying, concoction of phlegm and philandery who is eager to help rid your home of those pesky living people who can make your death a living hell. Michael Keaton’s portrayal of Beetlejuice in the 1988 film rapidly became a staple of late ‘80s pop culture and continues to be recognized today. From the film to television to the toy aisles, Beetlejuice wormed his way into our homes and lives in one way or another (or all three).

In the NEWS

Warner Brothers cuts Six Billion Dollars in upgrades as the anticipated and updated Steve Austin movie gets yanked from their release schedule. News from Thra continues to enthrall fans of The Dark Crystal as producers confirm that the upcoming Netflix series will be free from computer generated effects. That galaxy far, far away draws ever nearer as China plans to build an artificial moon (“That’s no moon.”) and NASA floats the concept of Cloud City on Venus in future plans. Christmas presents are already being anticipated with Target’s Big Book, an announcement about a Toys ‘R’ Us reemergence, and a Kurt Russell Christmas movie. There is a lot to talk about in the world of #TechnoRetro goodness!

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the Roving Spoonster has bowls full of sweet breakfast goodies to share with a unique cereal cup, Golden Girls cereal, a Canadian pop-up cereal cafe, and the first Christmas-based cereal to hit store shelves.

Beetlejuice

Tim Burton’s 1988 Halloweenish movie (released in March of that year) introduced movie-goers to a disgusting and deadly creature from the other side who enjoys scaring the life out of the living in Beetlejuice. Stinky, filthy, and foul-mouthed, Beetlejuice specializes in his own brand of haunting in this unique and oddly funny addition to the ever-growing library of movies you might enjoy around Halloween. If you’ve never seen Beetlejuice, take a trip down to your local video rental store and grab a VHS for viewing this Wednesday. Parental guidance definitely suggested.

Saturday Mornings

From the silver screen to the small screen, kids could get in on the fun of Beetlejuice in the ‘80s and early ‘90s, too. The animated version of the green-haired weirdo from who-knows-when engaged younger viewers who may have missed the Michael Keaton version when they turned on their TVs on Saturday mornings. Voiced by Stephen Ouimette, the titular antagonizer isn’t quite as villainous as his live-action counterpart, but the grodinous of the character isn’t a far cry from the 1988 version.

Toys in the Attic

Not enough Beetlejuice for you, EarBuds? Perhaps you remember the action figures that featured Beetlejuice in various outfits from the film as well as his “friends” in the netherworld. From film to television to plastic, Beetlejuice continued to entice the unsuspecting world to call out his name three times so he could wreak havoc on the land of the living.

Feedback

We’re able to dip into the mail bag for some great pics of Jack o’ Lanterns created by our EarBuds. You can view them on our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Be sure to subscribe on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.28.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 22 October 2018

TechnoRetro Dads: Dungeons & Dragons Art and Arcana with Michael Witwer

Dungeons & Dragons was part of every GenXer’s experience growing up, whether they played the game or not. From the “Satanic Panic” to the toys, magazines, and cartoon, D&D prevailed in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. Even today, as comic book stores and specialty shops host in-house role-playing games, Dungeons & Dragons continues to be an important part of pop culture. This week, shazbazzar and JediShua invite SuperFriend Michael Witwer to talk about Dungeons & Dragons Art and Arcana, his second publication centered around this “Daddy of Modern Gaming”.

Dungeons & Dragons Art and Arcana

Co-authored by Michael Witwer, Kyle Newman, Jon Peterson, and Sam Witwer, this oversized hardcover focuses on the artwork essential to understanding a game that was often played with little more than a pencil, some paper, strangely-shaped dice, and a lot of imagination. Yet, as the book’s subtitle proclaims, this 400+ page tome is more than a high-quality art book, it is indeed a Visual History of the game itself as well as its impact on the culture of the ‘70s and ‘80s and even today. The history of the game and its various editions runs throughout the course of the book, as original artwork from the ‘70s to the ‘10s fills every page in brilliant, full color reproductions.

From artwork created for the game itself to images surrounding the game, such as actual advertisements and flyers, photographs of items that inspired aspects of the game, and even early drafts and sketches of the game’s most memorable features, Dungeons & Dragons Art and Arcana is a treasure worthy of the adventure — and it’s available for purchase tomorrow.

Join shazbazzar and JediShua as they talk to co-author Michael Witwer about the contents of the book, its origins, and general discussion about Dungeons & Dragons itself. TechnoRetro Dads recommend not only the book itself, but (if you can get a copy, the Special Edition of the book with some great ephemera for those with a penchant for history and rarities of days gone by). You’ll love Dungeons & Dragons Art and Arcana — and we hope you enjoy this episode of TechnoRetro Dads, too.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t get burned by missing a single episode of TechnoRetro Dads — subscribe on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.27.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Wed, 17 October 2018

MacGyver Saves Halloween with Jack O’Lantern

The winds and rains ceased, but the trees kept tumbling down after Hurricane Michael pounded the SouthEast last week, but even with the lights out, shazbazzar got his MacGyver on by fashioning a light from a pumpkin, a candle, and a knife. Discover more about October Oddities and a classic ‘80s TV show on this “better late than never” episode of TechnoRetro Dads.

In the NEWS

MondoTees.com goes Back to the Future
Some cool TechnoRetro parents BTTF their twins
Aquaman mini-movie excites audiences
Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance update

October Oddity: Jack o’ Lanterns

From the Irish folk tales of “Stingy Jack” to front porch adornments, Jack o’ Lanterns have a rich history that will surely surprise you.

Halloween Candy

With the ingenuity of MacGyver, Jack o’ Lanterns were transformed from actual pumpkins with carved faces with lights inside into plastic buckets for carrying candy for Trick or Treaters. JediShua and shazbazzar remember some of the popular candies from the ‘80s to warm up your sweet tooth and get you ready for the upcoming holiday.

MacGyver “The Secret of Parker House”

The secret agent with an engineer’s mind solved problems each week on MacGyver for seven seasons from the ‘80s to the ‘90s. Thirty years ago, MacGyver aired a spooky episode for Halloween with mystery, music, intrigue, and a skeleton. How will Angus “Mac” MacGyver save Penny from certain doom? Find out as we spoil the ending of “The Secret of Parker House”.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t let the ghosts of the ‘70s and ‘80s fade from your memory by missing an episode of TechnoRetro Dads — subscribe on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.26.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 2:00pm EDT

Mon, 8 October 2018

Ghosts, Ghostbusters, and a Ragged Book Back

Whether you need something to pick up your spirits or make ghosts float, the hair-raising spookiness of this week’s TechnoRetro Dads will possess you with urges for cereal and cartoons, snack cakes and TV shows, toys, games, and even more canned laughter. Cover your eyes and plug in your ear buds, EarBuds, and the ‘Dads will heighten your October outlook with fun and frights (and few insights) this morning or tonight.

In the NEWS

Star Wars is all over the news this week and it looks like TechnoRetro Dads are the last to cover it when it’s actually new. Besides Star Wars Reads Month, the ‘Dads speculate on rumors surrounding The Mandalorian, a live-action series helmed by Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni’s part in the series (of course, since recording this episode, much more information has been forthcoming). But not all the news is old Star Wars news. Oh, no! EarBud T-Bird provides even older news for the ‘Dads with 3500 year-old ingredients for pumpkin spice (or is it purple-yam pie spice?). Now that’s news!

We Love Our Cereal…

…and the Roving Spoonster loves fruity-shaped Trix coming back some twenty years after being discontinued, JediShua loves looking for Elvira cereal by Funko, and shazbazzar loves getting visions of ghosts from his past upon seeing a picture of a box of OJ cereal.

October Oddity: Pop-Culture Ghosts

Although their presence is sensed throughout the year, our cultural fascination with ghosts only increases during the month of October. People love getting spooked by the idea of discorporate beings floating around to advise, prank, or otherwise involve themselves in the daily lives of the living. JediShua and shazbazzar remember some pop-culture ghosts from their childhood. Strangely, the ghosts of Poltergeist and Ob-Wan from The Empire Strikes Back didn’t jump out at them. It’s at times like these when there’s something strange in TechnoRetro minds that you just ask yourself, “Who am I gonna call?”

TechnoRetro Arcade

In 1988, Capcom released the third arcade game in the Ghosts ’n Goblins series of games, Ghouls ’n Ghosts. Arthur the knight must once again rescue his sweetheart Princess Prin Prin from the clutches of ghosts, goblins, ghouls, and other inhabitants of the Great Demon World Village. This time, Arthur’s abilities increase as do the opponents who attack him from the underworld and the damage they can inflict if he doesn’t DUCK!

Saturday Mornings

When the world outside your window is just a bit too normal on a Saturday morning, you could embrace the paranormal with The Real Ghostbusters, the animated version of the characters introduced in the 1984 movie Ghostbusters. Egon, Venkman, Ray, and Winston are joined by Slimer and a host of other ghosts in every episode of The Real Ghostbusters were gleefully welcomed to the televisions of kids in the mid-eighties to early-nineties.

Toys in the Attic

Not only did The Real Ghostbusters find their place on the small screen during this time, but they graced the pegs and shelves of toy stores and toy boxes in kids’ rooms everywhere. Like many movies and TV shows of the time (Star Wars, Transformers, G.I. Joe), The Real Ghostbusters seized the opportunity to turn plastic ghosts into profits with Kenner figures that enabled kids to continue the adventures of Slimer, Ray, Winston, Peter, and Egon as they interact with the paranormal in an effort to protect the public (for a fee, of course).

Feedback

EarBuds submit questions, ideas, and memories through electronic-M, Twitter, and Discord about a variety of techno and retro topics.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.25.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 1 October 2018

Haunted House Toys, Games, Memories, and...Cereals?

Welcome to October, EarBuds! Pass through the creaky garden gate and step cautiously as you wind your way along the weedy cobblestone path. Once you’ve passed under the schpooky tree from whence Gramma gained her schtick, step up on the porch and open the door to our haunted house party for a month of creepy-crawly kooky fun. Only 30 days ’til Hallowe’en!

In the NEWS

Star Wars is all over the news this week as Gary Kurtz is fondly remembered by family, friends, and fans alike. From American Graffiti to Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back to The Dark Crystal, Gary Kurtz produced many great memories of our childhood. Disney’s Galaxy’s Edge is garnering attention as the countdown to the launch of “Star Wars Land” continues. Luke Skywalker dons the garb of a Knight Templar in the History Channel’s Knightfall.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and some cereal would be right at home in the pantry of any reputable haunted house. In addition to the annual appearance of General Mills’ Monster Cereals, Reese’s Puffs adds some seasonal spice to its appearance with Reese’s Puffs Bats.

The Roving Spoonster keeps us updated on the cereal trademark controversy Down Under as a judgment is made in the Weet-Bix vs Weetabix conundrum plaguing Australasia in New Zealand.

October Oddity: Haunted House

All month, the ‘Dads will talk about the marks of the Hallowe’en (Halloween) season with their memories of the traditional fare that can send chills up your spine and warm your heart at the same time. This week, we dare to journey into a haunted house (or two, or three, or…) from the ‘80s when everyone paid to be afraid. Whether your experience was in a mall or storefront location, a dilapidated old house or building, an amusement park or carnival ride, or even out in the woods, the Haunted House continues to be an iconic part of October.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Atari gathered their pixels to join this haunted house party, too, with their Adventure-like maze/puzzle cartridge for the Atari 2600, Haunted House. This game program features four floors of fun (?) for gamers who move their square eyes around in the dark to find Mr. Graves’ urn so they can escape his haunted house. Watch out for ghosts, bats, and spiders in this confusing and challenging game from 1982.

Toys in the Attic

Finally, shazbazzar and JediShua tone down the scare factor just a tad with miniature versions of the haunted house. From the Weebles Haunted House to Colorforms Castle Dracula to Ideal’s Haunted House game and Disney’s Haunted Mansion Game, these plastic, vinyl, and cardboard toys and games are not for those easily frightened by glowing ghosts, hooting owls, or wobbly witches. Oh, and don’t forgey Remco’s Mini-Monsters!

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t be afraid of missing an episode of spooky and kooky trips to the ‘70s and ‘80s — subscribe to TechoRetro Dads on iTunes or Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.24.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 24 September 2018

Ice Pirates or Pumpkin Spice Pirates?

Now that Autumn has fallen upon us, you’re permitted to savor the flavor of the season — so grab a bowl of Pumpkin Spice Frosted Flakes and settle in for 77 minutes of fun in past, present, and future tense on this episode of TechnoRetro Dads (where time-traveling takes a clever and curious turn in the 1984 sci-fi spoof Ice Pirates).

In the NEWS

Henry Cavill may still be super after all!
The Monkees’ Christmas album is coming soon!
Jordan Peele takes Rod Serling’s place!
TechnoRetro Dads apparel and merch at TeePublic!

We Love Our Cereal…

…and cereal flavored donuts from a certain fast food chain. Yep, shazbazzar taste-tests the Froot Loops mini donuts from Hardees and the results are in! The Roving Spoonster reports with monstrous cereal/adult beverage mash-ups and Kellogg’s acknowledgement and correction to their sexist marketing. PLUS: EarBuds tell about what’s in their cereal aisles and JediShua discovers the next fall flavor trend at Cereal Box, Inc.

Of course, the discussion deteriorates into the scourge of the season, pumpkin spice, with a few undocumented “memories” of how the flavor imbedded itself into pop-culture over the decades on TV, radio, and the big screen.

Ice Pirates

In the far flung reaches of outer space in a distant future, a band of private entrepreneurs embark on a quest to open convenient $2 ice shacks along the space lanes in Ice Pirates. Actually, no, that’s not the plot of the campy Stewart Raffill flick from 1984 that continues the trend of pushing the limits of what audiences will pay for at the box office on the heels of Return of the Jedi. Starring Robert Urich, Mary Crosby, Michael D. Roberts, and more familiar faces from the mid-80s, Ice Pirates threatens to raid your freezer while pillaging your wallet to cash in on the continuing craze for space-movies combined with a taste of Police Academy comedy.

SuperFriend Adam O’Brien (The Fantha from Down Under) joins shazbazzar and JediShua for a chat about Ice Pirates with some stunning revelations about how the movie came to be the campy ‘80s spoof we remember from childhood. Can you believe that Ice Pirates was initially slated to be a serious attempt at a science fiction film? Find out how and why the script was altered to become classic camp that still elicits a laugh with its illicit humor aimed squarely at teenage boys in 1984. Target acquired: it’s a hit!

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Keep sailing the high seas (and space lanes) with Ice Pirates and share us with your friends and families. Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, get TechnoRetro merch at TeePublic, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.23.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 17 September 2018

Captain Power, Pirates, and Plenty of Feedback

Chris Hamilton kicks off this Monday morning with a little ditty called, “Mamma’s in the Minivan” from his Boogie Child album. And that’s just the beginning of the insanity this week, since "Talk Like a Pirate Day” is coming up Wednesday and the ‘Dads are already getting into the spirit of things by stealing several minutes from this week’s show in their high seas hijinks! Whether you feel like Captain Jack Sparrow, Captain Hook, or Captain Power, you’re sure to feel the waves breaking the ocean of the internet with this very odd episode of TechnoRetro Dads.

In the NEWS

Henry Cavill gets an opportunity to continue being the villain with rumors that his cape has been torn away from him as Superman stands to be recast. Jonathan Clark (no, shaz, not the one from Man of Steel) gets down to boogie with other retro celebrities on Dancing with the Stars. Sir Paul McCartney churns out yet another album with Egypt Station. Nerdist suggests a fun drink for your Monster Cereal Tiki cups.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and young Oliver does, too! However, both the ‘Dads and the Roving Spoonster question this youth’s taste in cereals. But that’s not the big cereal news this week. Nope. The big news is that Oliver found an eight inch bran flake in his cereal box! Huge.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future is a blend of ‘80s TV show, action figures and toys, and interactive video game. One of several “blast the screen” interactive games that gained some popularity in the mid- to late-eighties, Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future merged live-action television with electronic plug-in gaming for additional excitement for your Saturday mornings. Thanks to Jedi Holmes for introducing us to this one!

Feedback

Derek (Raising Fangirls) remembers NFL Quarterback Club for Nintendo64. Jorbex rebukes us for not remembering “Weird” Al Yankovic’s UHF. Kendall remembers the local UHF channel. Fettmatic, Jorbex, and Joey all chime in with their lunch box memories.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, and join discussions on Discord about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us your mp3dback via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.22.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 10 September 2018

Are You Ready for Some Football (Video Games and Nerf)?

Are you ready for some football? Ready or not, the football season has arrived. As tonight marks the beginning of Monday Night Football, shazbazzar and JediShua are dealing with all sorts of activities surrounding and honoring the festivity of the oblong ball. So plug in your ear buds, EarBuds for 77 minutes of joyful reminiscing and hopeful anticipation of some of the funner things in life.

In the NEWS

Star Trek: The Next Generation (pics)
The Last Starfighter - The Next Starfighter
DC Injustice vs Masters of the Universe
Choose Your Own Adventure board game

We Love Our Cereal…

Healthy Cereals Questioned (Roving Spoonster)
Hardee’s Cereal Questions (Roving Spoonster)
P______kin S____ce Cheerios (Roving Spoonster)

TechnoRetro Arcade

When video games mimic actual sports and games the results could be good or bad. If the game play is similar enough to the real thing, sports fans may love it…but geeky gamers may not. However, if the game fails to closely resemble the actual sport, fans may reject the game but gamers may love the concept. With a variety of Football video games in arcades and home consoles in the ‘70s and ‘80s the hits and misses are to be expected, but the value of nostalgia — that’s where the magic happens!

Atari Football (arcade)
Cyberball (arcade)
Atari 2600 Football
Realsports Football for Atari
Mattel Football

Saturday Morning

Fall ushers in school, football, and new seasons and series on television. JediShua and shazbazzar take a look back at the big three networks’ fall lineup on Saturday mornings thirty years ago.

Toys in the Attic

Non-Expanding Recreational Foam doesn’t sound like a great toy at first, but when it’s pronounced “NERF” you know that fun is the game. Created by Parker Brothers in 1969, NERF continues to thrill kids and adults with their made-for-indoor-play balls, darts, boomerangs, swords, and more. Of course, shazbazzar and JediShua kick off this discussion with NERF football, basketball, and bullets, but the stories continue with ping-pong, billiards, and other NERF products not everyone remembers. But everyone remembers the fun of NERF.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.21.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 3 September 2018

Lunchboxes and the Sweet Snacks Waiting Within

One of the greatest things about elementary school was the school cafeteria. The smells, the lighting, the squat milk cartons, and the sounds of metal lunchboxes opening somewhat simultaneously. As the latches released and the hinges creaked, the anticipation grew as kids looked inside to see what their moms had packed for them. Just wait till you see what the ‘Dads have packed into this episode of TechnoRetro Dads.

In the NEWS

TRON > DATA
Weird Al virtually has a Shady Neighbor
The Big Trouble continues in Little China
Doctor Who enters a galaxy far, far away

We Love Our Cereal…

Roth in Wyoming @ The Cereal Box, Inc.
Froot Loops clothing (Roving Spoonster)
“Healthy cereals” (Roving Spoonster)
Pop Tarts cereal (Roving Spoonster)

https://youtu.be/8GFeHrENnfQ

School Lunch: Lunchboxes and Snack Cakes

JediShua consumes the calories of some of the ‘Dads’ favorite snacks from their school days after discussing the history of lunchboxes (metal, vinyl, and plastic), their own lunchboxes, and the lunchboxes of several EarBuds. From Mickey Mouse to Hopalong Cassidy to Luke Skywalker and Luke Duke, the cafeteria was a funner place (yes, Shua said, “funner”) with the heavily decorated lunchboxes of days gone by. With input from Puddingsbane, Chris the Arvadinian, Jedi Holmes, Shane in GR, Courtney Martin, Joe Tavano, Fettmatic, Kendall Shroeder, and Bill from DorkLair, our virtual lunchboxes are filled with

Vinyl Scratchback

This week in 1978 and 1988 had some memorable hits from Olivia Newton-John, Huey Lewis and the News, Robert Palmer, Whitney Houston, and George Michael. Both shazbazzar and JediShua show their knowledge and lack thereof regarding these artists, their songs, and the videos.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.20.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 27 August 2018

Star Wars Aftershocks featuring Battle Beyond the Stars

After Star Wars thrilled audiences in theaters, everyone wanted to tap into the collective consciousness of pop culture that had embraced that galaxy far, far away. Some saw an opportunity to for storytelling in an exciting new way while others simply rushed out to cash in with anything somewhat similar to Star Wars. How Battle Beyond the Stars fits into those categories must be judged by the eye of the beholder, however, shazbazzar, JediShua, and SuperFriend Paul Bateman agree that without Star Wars, Battle Beyond the Stars would never have seen the light of day.

Battle Beyond the Stars

On the surface, Battle Beyond the Stars is a fitting tribute to the popularity of Star Wars. A tyrant with a planet destroying “super-weapon” threatens to destroy Akir, a planet populated by peaceful folk with no weapons. A young “farm boy” named Shad (Richard Thomas) volunteers to find willing fighters for his aged mentor, the last Akira warrior (Jeff Corey) before Sador (John Saxon) returns. Add a rogue’s gallery of a space cowboy (George Peppard), a Valkyrie (Sybil Danning), a dangerous-looking creature (Morgan Woodward), a wealthy assassin (Robert Vaughn), five hive-minded clones (Earl Boen et al), and a beautiful love interest (Darlanne Fluegel) and you get a Magnificent Seven worthy of Kurosawa’s namesake.

Beyond the caricatures, names, and concepts similar to the original Star Wars (1977), Battle Beyond the Stars borrows heavily from Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai (1954). Those familiar with the origins of Star Wars will immediately recognize that George Lucas based his initial space opera on The Hidden Fortress (1958), another Kurosawa film. In this regard, Battle Beyond the Stars delves deeply into the planetary crust in this spacey adaptation of a Star Wars influence.

Share and enjoy this special episode of TechnoRetro Dads as Paul Bateman joins shazbazzar and JediShua for a fun, loving, and fun-loving look back at Battle Beyond the Stars.

Direct download: TRDads_SW_Aftershocks_BBTS.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 20 August 2018

ABCs with Asteroids, Back-to-School supplies, and Cinema 1988

Whether you’ve been lost in Pine Apple, Alabama or busy blasting Asteroids in outer space, it’s time to get up, grab your supplies, and head out to school because summer vacation is gone — at least summer vacation 1988 is over. But with kids returning to school, we thought it would be cool to recall some classic ‘80s essentials while trading tips about how to (and how not to) play Atari’s Asteroids. All this and a look back at 1988’s summer cinema fare, too! All it will cost you is 77 minutes — so tune in.

In the NEWS

Remembering Aretha Franklin and Charlotte Rae

Peter Weller may return as RoboCop.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and our Roving Spoonster, Shane in GR suggests a popping-good time with his discovery of a Sea of Thieves styled “cereal cannon”, a collage of his daughters’ cereal tarts from his commercial, and a report of “on-the-go” cereals from General Mills and Nestle.

TechnoRetro Arcade

JediShua fondly remembers Atari’s 1979 vector-based arcade hit Asteroids while shazbazzar flees the scene in inexplicable panic. Asteroids, a rather simplistic game that is fraught with harrowing consequences from any false move, continues to challenge and thrill visitors to any video arcade. Maybe shaz will learn to quit hitting the thrust button.

Let’s Go to the Movies

EarBuds chime in with their memories of movies from the summer of 1988:

Above the Law

Beetlejuice*

Big

The Blob

Bloodsport

Coming to America

Crocodile Dundee II

Die Hard

A Fish Called Wanda

Funny Farm

Police Academy 5

Poltergeist 3

Rambo III

Red Heat

Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Willow

Young Guns

School Supplies

Gear for your feet, your Trapper Keeper, and your pencil box — and all of it was plastic! Going back to school meant school supplies and in the ‘80s that meant stickers, shoes of the Jelly kind, shaped erasers, and more. The ‘Dads remember some common school-day fare and fashion that made the end of summer a little easier to bear.

Feedback

From Garfield to Opus to Foofur, the EarBuds chimed in with their “Pooh Bears” and stuffies from childhood. Find out what Glen Nelson, Mike MacDonald, and Mark Ham(All) have in common with JediShua before hearing an endearing tale of a love lost and gained with the help of a friend of Melmac thanks to Steven Chopchik and Gordon Shumway. After all, we all want to know what happened to Alf after the final cliffhanger episode. Maybe he was attacked by cat-shaped asteroids!

Direct download: TRDads_06.19.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 13 August 2018

Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh

From the stories by A. A. Milne to Walt Disney’s adaptations, Winnie the Pooh has been a joyful childhood classic for nearly one hundred years. The ‘Dads are certainly fans of these imaginative stories. Mixed with tears and laughter, Christopher Robin continues the tradition with a story of Pooh’s grown-up friend’s return to the Hundred Acre Wood in a movie that thrills audiences of any age.

In the NEWS

Patrick Stewart returns to Star Trek.

Star Trek Discovery comes to Blu Ray and DVD.

Supergirl returns to the big screen.

More Carrie Fisher footage coming to Episode IX.

Jon Favreau’s Star Wars gets a big budget.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and so does EarBud Brian who has found Funko Pop cereals. PLUS: Hear the cereal commercials for the contest and find out who wins the grand prize! Thanks to all who participated. Keep sending in your imaginative radio commercials to TechnoRetro Dads — even when there is no contest. We love them!

Vinyl Scratchback

Mac from Canadia submits a short dystopian playlist (probably because the world ended as he was making it) with tunes from the Ramones, Bruce Springsteen, The Clash, Johnny Cash and U2, and The Specials.

TechnoRetro Arcade

JediShua and shazbazzar focus on video games that were featured in movies but don’t exist — or at least they didn’t exist when the movies came out. From Wreck-It Ralph to The Last Starfighter to WarGames to TRON to Ready Player One, everyone wants a shot at playing the games the characters played on the silver screen. Come on, game designers, let’s get these made!

Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh

Now that both TechnoRetro Dads have seen Disney’s new Christopher Robin movie with their families, it’s time to talk about Christopher Robin and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Disney’s adaptations of the written word and artist illustrations to film never fail to excite the emotions, entertain the brain, and provide a lasting theme. JediShua and shazbazzar continue to love the “silly old bear” in this ingenious live-action feature. We think you will, too.

Toys in the Attic

Like Christopher Robin, shazbazzar and JediShua had their own cast of characters with stuffed toys from their childhood days. From popular characters to homemade toys from garage sales, these plush and plump friends provided endless hours of play and creativity that the ‘Dads fondly remember decades later.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.18.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 6 August 2018

Summer Arcade with Vectrex, Robocop, and a Bowl of Cereal

Even though summer vacation is winding down, summer is still in full effect as shazbazzar and JediShua enjoy their last full week before school starts back again at the beach, at the arcade, and in a puppetry museum in South Metropolis.

In the NEWS

Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation lands on Supergirl with Sam Witwer. Biff joins the cast of Legends of Tomorrow. Anakin ends his stint on Timeless. An Indiana cornfield emerges from Stranger Things’ Upside-Down. Transformers: The Movie returns to theaters next month. Billy Vann from The Hilarious House of Frightenstein is honored in a museum. Cats’ nine lives will soon be tested if a new ALF series gets the green light for television.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and EarBuds do, too. The Cereal Commercial Contest continues with a few submissions, but you still have time to send us your 30-60 second spot. Imagine a cereal and waffle dessert while playing a Monster Cereals’ card game in your brand new cereal sneakers with a bowl of quinoa before realizing that Coco Pops drops 40% of their sugar content.

Vinyl Scratchback

Summer vacations need their own playlists, and EarBud Andy Lindemann has one for his trip to Pensacola Beach before returning to his responsibilities at school.

TechnoRetro Arcade

JediShua and shazbazzar are introduced to the “portable” Vectrex video game system from the early ‘80s. PLUS: Robocop is added to the TechoRetro Arcade.

Feedback

Jedi Holmes shares his Godzilla knowledge.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.17.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 30 July 2018

The End of Dystopia and the Return of the Clone Wars

Greetings, PROGRAMS!

The greatest dystopia is when the story ends with a brighter hope for the future. Comic Con always has some exciting things to enjoy now and in the future. This year, one of the first panels celebrated ten years of The Clone Wars with a stunning announcement: The Clone Wars will return with promises of a fitting conclusion to this Emmy award-winning animated series.

In the NEWS

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Shazam, Godzilla, and Aquaman have exciting trailers to get everyone hyped for the movies. Matt Groenig and Neil deGrasse Tyson fans are promised with the introduction of Disenchanted and the return of Cosmos. And in a stunning move that has had a positive effect on Star Wars fandom, Lucasfilm announced the return of The Clone Wars with 12 new episodes to air on the upcoming Disney streaming service.

The Clone Wars

JediShua and shazbazzar revisit The Clone Wars, describing their affection for the series as well as giving reasons for anyone who missed out on the first 6 seasons to go back NOW and catch some of the best Star Wars ever on Netflix (so Disney can know how valuable great storytelling can be for the company). From character development to amazing revelations about the Force to the story behind that cool reveal at the end of Solo: A Star Wars Story, more than 40 hours of Star Wars content is currently at the fingertips of anyone with access to Netflix.

Disappearing Dystopia

As the summer of dystopia dwindles to its inevitable close and the sunrise of school lingers just beyond the horizon, the ‘Dads take a final look at some notable, retrotastic, dystopian movies, shows, books, and radio dramas. The Running Man, Total Recall, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Ice Pirates, V, 12 Monkeys, and Max Headroom all find their home in the annals of dystopian fun.

Feedback

Chris the Arvadinian and Andy Lindemann love Herculoids. Shane in Grand Rapids shows us Karate Kid action figures. Kendall chimes in with a Ready Player One video and a cool retro Kickstarter from Matt Kindt. JediHolmes provides another cool video — a 2112 motion comic from Rush’s website. And the Spider-Pan from Neverland ices the dystopian cake with a high school class on the various types of futures from dystopias to negative utopias and the differences between the two.

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Direct download: TRDads_06.16.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 23 July 2018

Dystopian Arcades and Movie Mashups (with Technical Difficulties)

Summertime is a funner time with your EarBuds, as long as the internet is being friendly. Take a 77 minute trip with TechnoRetro Dads along for the ride on your family vacation for a dystopic change of pace this Monday morning afternoon.

In the NEWS

Ready Player One arrives in stores tomorrow. Robocop returns in the future.

We Love Our Cereal…

Do not eat those Honey Smacks! No matter how much you “Dig ‘em."

Vinyl Scratchback

Distopian and Pre-Dystopian tunes are on the playlist this week with “Mr. Roboto” by Styx, Rush’s “2112”, “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” by R.E.M., “Road to Nowhere” by Talking Heads, “Eve of Destruction” by Barry McGuire or Joey Scarbury, and Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire”.

Let’s Go to the Movies

JediShua and shazbazzar mix-and-mash yesterday’s dystopian characters with today’s heroic movies. Where did they come up with that?

TechnoRetro Arcade

The Anato No Warehouse in Japan is a journey into a dystopian cityscape with arcade amusement games everyone can enjoy. Dress appropriately.

Feedback

Funko Pops cereal, Mego toys, and Fraggle Rock.

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Direct download: TRDads_06.15.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 2:00pm EDT

Mon, 16 July 2018

Atari’s Missile Command can’t keep Spacehunter out of the Forbidden Zone

Remember a time when arcade games could capture your imagination so effectively that read-along books with cassette tapes and even “radio drama” styled records would draw dollars out of you faster than you could put a quarter in the slot? This week is just like that. As the Zardonians prepare for the Krytolian attack, shazbazzar and JediShua train cadets for Missile Command.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and JediShua got some cool swag at Cereal Box, inc for his birthday (and for our EarBuds), so stay tuned for more on that…

In the meantime, shazbazzar talks about his experience with Post Nilla Wafers Banana Pudding cereal and JediShua enjoys a bowl of Lion Cereal with a Cap’n Crunch Slurpee to wash it down. PLUS: loads of information from our Roving Spoonster Shane in GR and other cereal correspondents Jeffrey Fischbach and Jonathan Bell.

Saturday Mornings

The Herculoids have always been a favorite of shazbazzar and JediShua, and with their amalgamation of style (prehistory fused with the future), the cartoon looks a bit dystopia. The eight-member team is heavily weighted against the humans on this super team of good guys.

History Lesson

In May 2013, shazbazzar mentioned a movie’s release on May 20, 1983. That movie was Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone. Guess what? We watch it again.

The Future’s Not So Bright (Dystopian Summer)

If Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone even remotely resembles the future, we’re all going to be disappointed. That’s nothing against the 1983 film’s effects, props, story, or acting chops and everything with all the bad things that happen to Wolff and Niki during their 3-D adventures in the Forbidden Zone. Even if you’ve never seen this movie, you should check out the discussion. It’s a good movie!

TechnoRetro Arcade

Atari’s Missile Command put the power in your hands with a roller ball, three buttons, three bases, and six cities to protect. The game has always been popular at arcades, and it even ported to home consoles really well. Grab a few quarters and join us at the arcade.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes. Then share us and with us on social media, and join us on Discord for discussions about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s. While you’re at it, give the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us a message or mp3 via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy!

Direct download: TRDads_06.14.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Thu, 12 July 2018

TechnoRetro Dads: Star Wars Aftershocks featuring Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

After Star Wars thrilled audiences in theaters, everyone wanted to tap into the collective consciousness of pop culture that had embraced that galaxy far, far away. After Battlestar Galactica was declined a second season, Glen A Larson made another attempt to seize audiences’ interest in futuristic space shows. This time, he chose to update an iconic character to suit the culture of the late 1970s. Buck Rogers, a character created by Philip Francis Nowlan in 1928 had already been featured in print, film, and on radio, and was ripe for a modern makeover. NBC picked up the pilot which was packed with movie-style special effects, classic characters, and a light-hearted spirit that quickly caught on with young and older viewer. Buck Rogers in the 25th Century sated our appetites for two seasons while we awaited the anticipated sequel to Star Wars.

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

The pilot episode of the television series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was released theatrically in March 1979 as a prelude to the TV show which would air later that year. Reworked and edited as a two-part first episode, “Awakening” revealed Buck’s backstory and his return to Earth five hundred years after being cryogenically frozen soon after lift-off in 1987. We watched as Captain Buck Rogers (Gil Gerard) was captured by Princess Ardala’s (Pamela Hensley) flagship and subsequently set back on course to return to Earth at its previously programmed destination, Chicago.

Upon his return “home”, Buck encounters a world alien to his senses as he comes to realize his planet had undergone devastating changes. Colonel Wilma Deering (Erin Gray), Dr. Elias Huer (Tim O’Connor), and a pint-sized drone called Twice (Felix Silla) curiously and cautiously befriended Buck as the adventures began in the 25th Century.

The first season of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was a hit with audiences as Gerard’s portrayal of a confident 70s "macho man” with a penchant for twentieth century references and an attractive personality (and sufficient chest hair) was alluring to female characters on screen and young viewers at home. The characters’ interactions with each other week-after-week made this NBC program “must see TV” until the show radically changed course in the second season, losing audiences and frustrating members of the cast and crew.

However, as is evident in this discussion between shazbazzar, JediShua, and SuperFriend Paul Bateman, the show is still remembered fondly by those who saw it in its initial run from 1979-1981. With audio from Gil Gerard’s appearance at Alabama Phoenix Festival in 2013 and “Keep on Sailin’”,a musical piece by High Adventure with lyrics by shazbazzar, this episode of TechnoRetro Dads Star Wars Aftershocks is sure to get you ready to don some white spandex and groove to a rockin’ disco beat in a 70s’ version of the 25th Century.

For a look back at more Star Wars connections with Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon, check out shazbazzar’s article on RetroZap.com!

Direct download: TRDads_Star_Wars_Aftershocks_Buck_Rogers.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Mon, 9 July 2018

Mad Max Celebrates JediShua’s Birthday with the Fantha from Down Under

This week marks another great moment in history as JediShua’s birthday returns a week after Independence Day. Armed with a 7/11 slurpee, a microphone, and Suckerman, Shua celebrates his birthday with shazbazzar and all EarBuds across the globe (including Australia) for this maddening voyage into the not-so-distant future for 77 minutes (listen all the way to the end) as TechnoRetro Dads continue looking to the past for clues about the looming dystopian future.

In the NEWS

Logan’s Run reboot/remake to be directed by Simon Kinberg
Sir Patrick Stewart might be willing to reprise his Star Trek role.
Sonic the Hedgehog finds a villain in Jim Carrey to play Dr. Robotnik.
Mobile Suit Gundam gets a live-action movie.
Ultraman (no, not the original) will be a Netflix series.
Star Wars Resistance images found online.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and Cereal Correspondant (or whatever we finally decide to call him) Shane in Grand Rapids finds multi-grain Nestle’s cereal in India and sends us a link to some cereal recipes for those new Post cereals JediShua definitely doesn’t crave. Jovial Jay (yes, the Trix cereal singing Jovial Jay) shares a fantastic video of a gourmet chef attempting to remake Lucky Charms.

Saturday Mornings

In honor of JediShua’s 47th birthday (no, really, he’s just 47), we scour the Saturday morning lineup for the Saturday adjoining the day of his birth to figure out what he would have been watching, had he been offered the choice. Surprise, BabyShua, you only have three channels to choose from. Archaic, we know.

Toys in the Attic

Both shazbazzar and JediShua recall some of their most memorable birthday presents from the ‘70s and ‘80s. Ranging from Big Wheels to Chevy Vegas, with The Beatles in-between (with a CD boombox and Sony Walkman, respectively), the all-around winner of a birthday present, edging out six (6) Yodas by the width of a plastic orange snake, is “Suckerman”!

The Future’s Not So Bright (Dystopian Summer)

Adam O’Brien, the Fantha from Down Under, joins shazbazzar and JediShua for a journey through the wastelands of the future in Mad Max, a low budget film that has spawned two or three sequels (depending on how you fit Fury Road into the canon) and successfully defined the look and feel of the genre for nearly forty years. Follow Rocketansky down the rabbit hole as he deals out retribution to those who destroyed his life and murdered those he loves.

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t forget to give JediShua a birthday present by rating and reviewing TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes. Then share us and with us on social media, and join us on Discord for discussions about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s. While you’re at it, give the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us a message or mp3 via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.13.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 2 July 2018

Logan's Run and Summer Fun with the Snoopy Sno-Cone Machine

Run, Logan, Run! Before we heard Jenny’s cry for Forrest to flee from danger, Jessica was helping the sandman-turned-runner Logan flee from his imminent doom in the 23rd Century. SuperFriend, Paul Bateman (art director and concept designer) lends his filmatic expertise to the conversation about Logan’s Run as shazbazzar and JediShua face a frightening future in the dystopian movies of the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s.

We Love Our Cereal…

…but not necessarily every cereal equally. Before JediShua, shazbazzar, and the shazlings give their thoughts about the new Dippin’ Dots cereals and a Cold Stone Creamery / Malt-O-Meal mashup, Shane in Grand Rapids chimes in with news that Cliff Bars are dipping their granola into the cereal bowl. Are they macadamia nuts? PLUS: Darth Taxus debates his dilemma with an abandoned (?) box of Special K Blueberry with Lemon Clusters.

Logan’s Run

Summertime is a funner time when you’re not living in a bleak dystopia. Still, the ‘Dads are embarking on a voyage into one of science fiction’s shadowy realms this summer by looking back at dystopian movies from decades past. This week, art director and concept artist Paul Bateman brings his wit and wisdom to the conversation as the projector plays Logan’s Run. Saul David’s seemingly utopian city belies a hidden dystopian truth as technology encourages the young to placate themselves with peaceful pleasure until some begin to realize that being “renewed” at thirty years-old isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

Toys in the Attic

After several long days in 2074 mixed with the heat of summer, we’re all due for something cold and refreshing, and Snoopy gives us the perfect treat — snow cones! JediShua and shazbazzar recall, not only their memories of the Snoopy Sno-Cone Machine, but also Kool-Aid and Lemonade stands from the yonder years of youth. After all, who can forget that catchy tune from the old commercial?

Feedback

Andy “Let Me Google that for You” Lindemann sends in an electronic-M with mp3dback because he has music on his mind. From Rush to Cheap Trick to playing a benefit concert for kids (filled with tunes from the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s), Andy brings a musical flair to graying hair. Puddingsbane on Discord (#TeamSteve!) reveals the answer to a lingering question about Burger Chef and Burger King regarding Star Wars glasses and the words “only eight million” escape shazbazzar’s lips.

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Direct download: TRDads_06.12.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 25 June 2018

Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Why Is Mario Helping Him Out?

When a serious Private Investigator takes a cartoonish case, the possibility of insanity (or at least inanity) increases by a factor of 88. To prove the point, Robert Zemeckis, Steven Spielberg, and Alan Silvestri combined film noir with cartoon antics in a live action/animated movie named Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Tune in for ‘toons this week on TechnoRetro Dads.

In the NEWS

The Hilarious House of Frightenstein looks to get a reboot, eh? Eggo’s boost in sales from the Stranger Things craze has abated. Showbiz Pizza’s house band, The Rockafire Explosion is back together, playing at an arcade in Kansas City. Everyone’s favorite video game hedgehog (Sonic) is getting his own movie.

We Love Our Cereal

Shane in Grand Rapids lets us know about the Cold Stone Creamery mashup with Malt-O-Meal for ice cream cereal. After hearing about the Dippin’ Dots cereals last week, we think this might be a trend. PLUS: JediShua gives his first thoughts on Chips Ahoy! cereal and shazbazzar reviews Dippin’ Dots Banana Split cereal.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, Kathleen Turner, and Charles Fleisher combined forces in 1988 to create the one-of-a-kind live action/animation movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit. It’s a tale of mystery, murder, and maroons in a world where cartoons are people, too. The trouble doubles when Roger Rabbit is framed for the murder of Marvin Acme and Judge Doom’s goon squad searches high and low for the scared hare. Reluctant detective Eddie Valiant goes against his long-standing practice of avoiding ‘toons and protects Roger long enough to get to the bottom of the case. Speaking of bottoms, Lou Hirsch portrays Baby Herman, a baby-faced ‘toon actor who is in dire need of a diaper change. If you haven’t seen Who Framed Roger Rabbit, you need to get to it immediately! (WARNING: Parental Guidance Suggested)

Feedback

Mike MacDonald spots Star Wars in The Great Outdoors so shaz and Shua identify the fast food premiums from 1980 and 1983. Jonathan Bell lets us know what he thought about Won’t You Be My Neighbor and The Dark Crystal. Jeff Baucom pulls out the Brian Daley Han Solo novels and reminds us about the Lando Calrissian Adventures (which, evidently, Lando didn’t forget to chronicle in Solo: A Star Wars Story).

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, and join discussions about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us a message or mp3 via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.11.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 18 June 2018

Summer Vacation in The Great Outdoors

School’s out and this week marks the official start of summer and the longest day of the year (in the northern hemisphere), so shazbazzar and JediShua kick off the season with a trip to the great outdoors. Grab a tent, a pack, and all your camping gear and join TechnoRetro Dads for news, cereal, and fun as we travel down life’s pizza-paved pathway together this Monday morning.

In the NEWS

Alexa goes full-on L3-37 in the hands of a hacker. Entertainment Earth turns Monster cereals into Tiki cups. The Power of Myth with Joseph Campbell is on Netflix. Disney Jr. will kick-off its new Rocketeer animated series with a six year-old lead character. Galaxy’s Edge gets closer and closer to “reality” as news about the Star Wars themed resort is released. PLUS: Wreck It Ralph 2, Dumbo, and a Willow sequel.

We Love Our Cereal

Does granola cereal? That’s what Shane wants to know. But that’s not all. He’s also interested in the Funko horror cereals like the Freddy Krueger FunkO’s and the Pennywise cereal. Dippin’ Dots cereals should be in Wal*Mart today. PLUS, Shane in GR turns us on to a Twitch video of Apology Man nuking his cereal bowl (with milk) for a minute before adding his cereal. #NukeYourBowl Thanks to @JediMasterJBell for more pics of new cereals at WalMart.

The Great Outdoors

With Dan Akroyd and John Candy, this 1988 movie written by John Hughes and directed by Howard Deutsch is a great catch. The Great Outdoors is a comedy of horrors. Imagine taking a summer vacation in the woods with your wife and kids and then, suddenly and unexpectedly, your annoying, know-it-all brother-in-law shows up (uninvited) with his family. What can go wrong does go wrong, even with the ever-heroic and Zeus-like Chet Ripley on the case. With bears, bats, and bandit-like raccoons, this movie still keeps you laughing with its wild life and wild antics in the wilderness of The Great Outdoors.

Feedback

Matt Marks sends in his mp3dback with his thoughts on the Avengers (spoiler alert!). Chris Hardy yearns for more positivity in geekdom as the Star Wars tweet-wars persist. Darth Hound suggests The Writers’ Journey by Christopher Vogler (3rd Edition) as a companion book for Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Jacob Roth likes Corvette Summer. Jeff Baucom plugs potholes with pizza (well, he tells us about Domino’s doing it).

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Direct download: TRDads_06.10.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 11 June 2018

TechnoRetro Dads: The Big Mile-High Episode with Air Hockey

Greetings, PROGRAMS!

No need to fret when shazbazzar isn’t around — at least not when SuperFriend Tony Soehner and the lovely and loquacious Mrs. Shua are already a mile high in the sky. It’s a very special “mile-high” episode of TechnoRetro Dads.

In the NEWS

Galaxy’s Edge will feature Black Spire Outpost, Nien Nunb, and a handsome space pirate who can really dance (Go Hondo! Go Hondo!). The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is coming out on vinyl. Antony Soehner’s Unite the Party continues the story where Gather the Party left off. Ready Player One hits your TV on DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K in July.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Gather the quarters, crank up the air, grab a paddle, and get ready for air hockey. JediShua, Tony, and Mrs. Shua talk about the fast-paced action of this classic two-player game. Shua provides advice for those who want to win: “Don’t hit the puck into your own goal.”

Big

With Robert Loggia and Tom Hanks, this movie had to be Big. Of course, it was Big, and as it hits the thirtieth anniversary of its release, Zoltar made sure it was covered in this episode. Josh Baskin just wanted to be Big, but before long, he realized being a grown-up isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Revisit Big with a big floor piano, a big robot that turns into a building, and big stars who made Big a huge success.

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Direct download: TRDads_06.09.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 28 May 2018

Five Speeds, Spinouts, and Donuts in a Corvette Summer

Forty years ago, after huge success with Star Wars, Mark Hamill showed up in a down-to-earth comedy about a boy and his car in Corvette Summer. Join shazbazzar and JediShua as they get revved up in high speed at 77 minutes per episode on this Memorial Day TechnoRetro Dads.

In the NEWS

Thundercats return to the small screen, but they don’t appear to be like the classic ‘80s cartoon. A She-Ra reboot looks like it will be more faithful to the original. Kitsis and Horowitz line up to run the Amazing Stories reboot overseen by Steven Spielberg. Galaxy’s Edge gets a release date…sort of. And in sadder news, legendary movie poster artist Bill Gold and Lois Lane Margot Kidder both leave this life.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and other sweet, sugary, and colorful breakfast foods. This coming Friday is National Doughnut Day…again! It seems like it comes twice a year, doesn’t it? PLUS: Cereal Feedback from Jonathan, Adam, and Shane.

Corvette Summer

Mark Hamill and Annie Potts make an unlikely couple in 1978’s Corvette Summer, a RomCom featuring a boy’s automotive dreams, a girl’s effort to make it in the world, and the love they find along the way. Although JediShua saw this one in theaters in 1978, shazbazzar didn’t see it until a week ago. But in the end, the ‘Dads both love this movie! Check it out when you can. It’s a fun flick with lots of surprises and flashbacks to ‘70s culture for GenXers.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Drop a quarter in the slot and take off with a shot in some great driving games we played in arcades and at home. From the confusing axonometric driving in Super Off Road to the “behind the car” perspective of Pole Position, driving games have always been popular in the arcade. We remember Rally X, Spy Hunter, futuristic F-Zero, and (of course) Super Mario Kart as we put one foot on the brake and one on the gas at the TechnoRetro Arcade.

Feedback

Mike MacDonald agrees that Twiki and Dr. Theopolis are similar to Bollux and Blue Max from the Brian Daley Han Solo novels, but Mac admits he hasn’t seen Willow, yet. Shane in GR recalls the blue Hot Wheels carrying cases he used to have as a kid and wonders if they’re still in his parents’ house. Jimmy in GA submits some sketches of Tony the Tiger and Buzz from Honey Nut Cheerios. John Schepler helps shazbazzar out with the identity of Chris Claremont.

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Direct download: TRDadsd_06.08.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 21 May 2018

The Apollo, Willow, Solo Scenario

Thirty years ago, Ron Howard and George Lucas teamed up to make a movie. That movie was Willow. This Friday, the Howard/Lucas connection returns with Solo: A Star Wars Story. And we’re kicking the hype up a notch by revisiting Willow, replaying video games featuring the Millennium Falcon, rereading the Brian Daley Han Solo novels, and joking around. And if you don’t think it’s worth 77 minutes of your day, listen at 2x the speed and only waste 38 1/2 minutes!

In the NEWS

Sledgehammer might get a reboot, but The Greatest American Hero reboot pilot didn’t get picked up by ABC. A potential G.I. Joe spinoff featuring Snake Eyes is in early stages of writing. A Willow sequel has been hinted by Ron Howard. PLUS: some new details about Disney’s Star Wars resort and next year’s Celebration!

We Love Our Cereal…

…with Star Wars masks on the back or plastic droids inside. With Solo: A Star Wars Story coming this week, we chat about some of our favorite Star Wars cereal crossovers and premiums. Plus, Shane in Grand Rapids lets us know about Toucan Sam’s nose and a new version of Froot Loops cereal.

Willow

Val Kilmer and Joanne Whalley met on the set of Willow more than thirty years ago. And though they didn’t last in real life, their chemistry still reacts well on screen thirty years later. Willow premiered on May 20, 1988 to appreciative audiences who loved seeing Warwick Davis as the lead as Willow, the reluctant hero who achieves greatness through persistence and a little help from friends, both big and small. With magic, swashbuckling, and special effects, Willow continues to thrill the homes of TechnoRetro Dads today!

TechnoRetro Arcade

Fly the Millennium Falcon in Atari’s vector-graphic The Empire Strikes Back arcade game or the axonometric Return of the Jedi game just a couple years later. Play Falcon Gunner on your iPhone or iPad or dust off your Super Nintendo for a sluggish ride through hyperspace in Super Star Wars Return of the Jedi. On modern consoles, you can soar in the iconic ship in Battlefront and Disney Infinity. And for those who can deal with the vertigo of immersive gaming, Star Wars Battle Pods allows you to climb into the pilot seat and punch it with Chewie.

Star Wars Scrapbook

Not long after Splinter of the Mind’s Eye enjoyed success in bookstores, Brian Daley’s Han Solo at Star’s End kicked off a trilogy of late-seventies / early-eighties novels featuring our favorite scoundrel, Han Solo. Rounding out the Daley novels were Han Solo’s Revenge and Han Solo and the Lost Legacy. These books were shazbazzar’s introduction to the Expanded Universe and still hold up as a fun look into Han Solo’s life before meeting Luke and Leia.

Share and enjoy.

Direct download: TRDads_06.07.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 14 May 2018

TechnoRetro Dads Consult Earth, Wind & Fire to Rescue Sgt. Pepper

It was forty years ago this year when Sgt. Pepper taught the band to steer. They were playing up on top of the bus, causing everyone to make a fuss. They were the Gibb brothers and Peter Frampton and the movie was 1978’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Get set for psychedelia, disco, and colorful digital gaming on this episode of TechnoRetro Dads.

In the NEWS

We’ve mentioned it before, but now Bill and Ted are officially returning for the long-awaited sequel, Bill and Ted Face the Music as these definitive TechnoRetro Dads try to save the world with a little help from their friends daughters. A unique theatrical experience is just around the corner as the Choose Your Own Adventure books make the move into movies with interactive technology that gives the audience the choice of what they want the story to be.

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

Not the 1967 Beatles album but the 1978 rock opera featuring the Bee Gees, Peter Frampton, Steve Martin, Alice Cooper, Earth, Wind & Fire, George Burns, Aerosmith, and more! Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band took its influence from the Beatles’ song and crafted a story about love, joy, peace, and the business side of the music industry and threw it all together with bright colors, lots of dancing, and some trippy effects to make one of the most controversial films of 1978. Don’t miss out on this classically good (or bad) piece of music and movie history!

Vinyl Scratchback

Although we’ve already covered the Bee Gees, disco isn’t far from our minds when we spin some records with Earth, Wind & Fire. Featured in Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Muppets in Space, and Rock and Rule, Earth, Wind & Fire is a bit of everything: funk, soul, boogie, disco, pop, rock, Latin, and African. They stormed the scene in the ‘70s and are still performing today. After getting a taste of this amazing band, you’re going to want to rush out to the record store to start your own collection.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Shoot wave after wave of robots to save the last human clones: Daddy, Mommy, and Mikey. With two joysticks and no buttons, players move their digital character around the screen, avoiding obstacles and blasting robots and their spawning sources on colorful levels of frenzied action in Robotron 2084, an iconic arcade game from 1982. JediShua and shazbazzar revisit their experience at Flashback Games in Loganville, GA before digging into the full description of the game itself. We hope you have greater success than shazbazzar.

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Direct download: TRDads_06.06.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 7 May 2018

Get Lost in Space with the Bee Gees

Whether they’re from Switzerland or they’ve been Lost in Space multiple times over decades and even centuries, the Robinsons are an adventuresome lot regardless of their past or future. Future and past are the name of the game today — your present from TechnoRetro Dads! Get ready for 77 minutes of pop-culture, fandom, and geekiness with shazbazzar and JediShua.

In the NEWS

The bad news this week is about Kevin Bacon (though, thankfully, he has not passed). SyFy has passed on the pilot to a new Tremors series. Sorry, Mr. Bacon. We still like you sizzlin’ hot. Another male icon is getting his own movie — and two directors have been named; Adam and

Aaron Nee (they’re brothers) have been announced as the directors who will head up the new He-Man movie. Bill Nye (yes, the science guy) has published three new children’s books. Steven Spielberg hints that a new “Indy” may be female. What this means for Indiana Jones 5, we don’t know. Disney announces a digital series that will stream this summer called Star Wars: Season of the Fan.

Lost in Space

The Robinsons were first known as a Swiss family lost in the jungle, but became even more familiar to the X Generation for being Lost in Space. Created and produced in 1965 by Irwin Allen, the original show centered around a family of space pioneers whose mission was interrupted by a saboteur, Dr. Zachary Smith. Smith and the youngest Robinson (Will) became the central humans on the three season series as did Robot’s familiar phrase, “Danger, Will Robinson!”.

Thirty years after the series ended, New Line Cinema produced a Lost in Space film including nods, homages, and cameos from the television program. It was a fun movie with some hope for a sequel, but due to its lackluster reception in the box office and somewhat lacking special effects for 1998, the sequel never happened.

Not to be stopped by one “poor” performance, however, the Robinsons re-emerged with a pilot for a TV reboot. Directed by John Woo and penned by Irwin Allen, The Robinsons: Lost in Space was dead on arrival, sabotaged, not by Dr. Smith, but by a teen-drama feel that was really, really, really bad. Really. Totally 2004. Some good things came from this version, however, including plot points that would be resurrected in the brand-new series from NetFlix.

Lost in Space returned to the small screen (iPhones, iPads, and anything else that streams NetFlix) in April to raucous praise. And for good reason. The cast is good, the story is good, the character development is excellent, the effects are effective, and a second season has been approved. Haven’t seen it yet? Stop what you’re doing and watch all ten episodes!

Vinyl Scratchback

The Bee Gees were topping the charts this week in 1978 with “Night Fever” and three other tunes from the band and/or a Gibb brother. Since their foundation in 1958, the Bee Gees have gone through various and vibrant changes. They’re best remembered for their work during the disco era with popular songs like “Tragedy”, “Jive Talkin’”, “How Deep Is Your Love”, “Stayin’ Alive”, and “You Should Be Dancin’”. For a band called “Bee Gees”, they sure like to leave out their “g”s in song titles. Weird, isn’t it?

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Direct download: TRDads_06.05.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 30 April 2018

TechnoRetro Dads: Rampage with Ralph, Lizzie, George, and The Rock

What do you get when you combine wrestling with genetic experiments in space gone awry and mix it up with some skyscrapers? Rampage! And the ‘Dads have more than their share this week with the classic arcade game and the new movie featuring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

In the NEWS

More sad news as we say goodbye to jazz musician/School House Rock composer Bob Dorough and WarGames soundtrack composer Arther B. Rubenstein. Their music will live on indubitably. Labyrinth returns to theaters and will likely make its musical debut on the theatre stage in the near future. Nickelodeon spends a dime to reboot the ‘80s kids’ game show Double Dare — few details known at the moment, but we’re sure slime will be involved. Shooting for Stranger Things 3 is underway with a fourth season already confirmed. Star Wars Resistance will debut this fall on Disney Channel promising that Oscar Isaac and Gwendoline Christie will reprise their roles as Poe Dameron and Captain Phasma. Han Solo’s Lando Calrissian’s YT-1300 will be on display (at least the interior) over the next few weeks in select cities as The Millennium Falcon Experience travels cross-country to promote Solo: A Star Wars Story.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and cereal snacks, be they frozen or refrigerated. PLUS: Purdue engineering students show off their talents with a Rube Goldberg machine that not only pours a bowl of cereal, but adds the milk in a most imaginative and enjoyable way.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Midway Games’ Rampage showed up in arcades, bowling alleys, and skating rinks in 1986 to pockets full of quarters as gigantic beasts George (gorilla), Lizzie (lizard), and Ralph (wolf) begin their 128-day journey across the nation to wrestle skyscrapers to the ground as they eat people, smash cars, and often end up reduced to normal-sized humans sans clothing, sliding off the side of the game screen. This classic arcade game was a staple of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s when shazbazzar and JediShua were in high school and college. PLUS: Jovial Jay shares a story about an unboxed, mint condition Robotron 2084 game that was discovered in a warehouse filled with floors of “brand new” video games and pinball machines from the ‘70s and ‘80s. Oh, to be a millionaire!

Rampage

Dwayne Johnson (yes, he even calls himself “Rock” in this movie) and Jeffrey Dean Morgan star in a movie adaptation of Midway Games Rampage in this spring’s Rampage. Focusing on George, an albino gorilla whose growth is accelerated by secret experiments conducted in space, this popcorn flick is full of action and humor in a movie that’s light on life lessons and heavy on simple fun. It’s a great catch on the silver screen that doesn’t take itself too seriously.

Feedback

Wes comments on Prince and his guitar collection. Jeremy the Spider-Pan from The Neverland Podcast provides an update on the TRON ride at Walt Disney World. Mark All mentions Cheap Trick’s rendition of the Transformers theme and shAbbeyzzar chooses a Cheap Trick theme song for her class assignment podcast.

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Direct download: TRDads_06.04.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 23 April 2018

Go to Night Court for a Cheap Trick of Rock and Rule

In the wake of recent losses shazbazzar and JediShua recall good times from the ‘70s, ‘80s, and even the early ‘90s with television, music, and an animated movie that stays fresh every time shaz sees it.

In the NEWS

We lost R Lee Ermey, Harry Anderson, and former First Lady Barbara Bush. Billy Mitchell lost all his video game high scores for allegedly cheating on Donkey Kong. Netflix releases a reboot of Lost in Space. Steven Spielberg finds another movie to helm — DC’s Blackhawk.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and cereal loves sugar. Mmmm! Cereal companies discover the age-old cure for low sales — a teaspoon (or more) of sugar! PLUS: professional wrestlers open a totally geeky cereal cafe in Rochester, New York.

Night Court

In tribute to the magically comedic talent of Harry Anderson, shazbazzar and JediShua turn on the tube to remember the long-running Thursday night sitcom Night Court. Play a clip on YouTube and you’re guaranteed to laugh out loud…a lot.

Vinyl Scratchback

Rockford, Illinois produced an all-too-often overlooked rock band with a real penchant for covers and original content — Cheap Trick. From 1977 to today, Cheap Trick has been strumming the six strings and kicking the bass with hooks that are sure to catch more than fish. We all remember “I Want You to Want Me” and “Surrender”, but do you remember “The Flame”, “Dream Police”, and “Mighty Wings”? Did you know Cheap Trick is the band that plays the theme from That 70s Show? Were you aware of their performances in movies like Transformers, Heavy Metal, and Rock and Rule?

Rock and Rule

Another time. Another place. The war was over and dogs, cats, and rats became the dominant sentient beings on the planet. Hitting heavy chords over the “sell your soul to the devil” trope, Nelvana involved Blondie, Cheap Trick, Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, and Earth, Wind, and Fire for an animated feature from 1983 that draws its inspiration of a future Earth from Moebius and 70s rockers. Mok recruits Angel to summon a demon from the underworld, but Omar won’t let her go so easily. If you haven’t checked out Rock and Rule, now is the time to sit down and enjoy one of the best lesser-known movies.

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Direct download: TRDads_06.03.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 16 April 2018

TechnoRetro Dads Go Crazy for Adventure on Atari 2600

Adventure. Excitement? Well, at least puzzling. Whether you’re in the mood for three keys to three castles with three dragons and an Easter Egg or want to groove with the artist formerly known as Prince before he was knows as Prince again, you’ll have at least something fun for your morning run on this week’s TechnoRetro Dads. So put on your pajamas (since you’re evidently allowed to wear them to work today) and tune in for a 77-minute dose of nostalgenergy.

In the NEWS

In the wake of Ready Player One, Ernest Cline’s second novel Armada gets the go-ahead for filming. Gary Whitta’s The Last Starfighter is getting attention. Spyro the Dragon gets an upgrade. You can “play” Ready Player One as you read it on ReadItForward.com. Pick up as many NECCO wafers as you can, because they’re nearly extinct. And TRON Light Cycles go Lego.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and Funko is promising more reasons to love cereal. With mini-pops in every box of pop culture themed cereal, Funko is showing their love for sugary grains in artificial colors!

TechnoRetro Arcade

In the Home Console section of the arcade, our Atari 2600 gets enchanted with Adventure, the original Easter Egg game that inspired Halliday’s game (Thanks, Warren Robinett). Due to the ‘Dads’ limited experience in actually playing the game (as opposed to watching others play it), JediShua brought “Dolly”, A.K.A. Mrs. Shua, the resident expert on wacky bats, shiny chalices, and passive dragonslaying techniques (and mercury-filled stickers, evidentally). Mrs. Shua lends her voice to this entertaining and informative look at Atari’s hit puzzle-game, Adventure. You’re guaranteed to score more just by tuning in this week!

Vinyl Scratchback

Have you ever Batdanced with the devil in the pale moonlight? What about in the Purple Rain? Would you drive to the Distracted Globe in your “Little Red Corvette”? This morning, we’re going to party like it’s 1999 with Prince and our memories about the uber-talented ‘80s icon’s music.

Toys in the Attic

They’re round. They’re squishy. They’re gross! Madballs were a throwable tribute to kids’ obsession with disgusting concepts in the mid-1980s, and they just might help you out in a jam when you run into Director Krennic. From toys to comics to cartoons (well, maybe), Madballs continue to captivate kids with their gross caricatures of scary and silly faces.

Feedback

Jeff Baucom plays Galaga. Cereal Connoisseur Sheldon Norton enjoys Ready Player One. We love feedback!

Thanks for tuning in to TechnoRetro Dads, EarBuds! Don’t forget to rate and review TechnoRetro Dads on iTunes, share us and with us on social media, call-in with HalfBowl of Cap’n Crunch Mystery tips, and join discussion about toys, cereal, games, movies and/or shows from the ‘70s and ‘80s by giving the ‘Dads your feedback via voice mail at (209) 878-7323 or sending us a message or mp3 via electronic-M to podcast@TechnoRetroDads.com.

Direct download: TRDads_06.02.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Fri, 6 April 2018

Ready Player One and Sixers by Twos

If you are one who is ready to watch Ready Player One (again), you’re gonna be egg-static about this episode of TechnoRetro Dads as shazbazzar and JediShua as all the signs combine to form the number six — but not for Sixers. Or are they? Dive in to the deep well of wonder as we enter a world of pure imagination with Ernest Cline, Steven Spielberg, and James Halliday in the audio-only version of the OASIS called “Active Unlimited Dive Into Our Open Nostalgic Liquid Youth” (also called TechnoRetro Dads).

In the NEWS

Monty Python (there are six of them, you know, but that’s not important right now) are coming to Netflix in U.K. and CAN next week. We’ll get it later. Shane in GR suggests you #ChillYourPothole with a big breakfast on the road…literally on the road. The extended version of Superman is playing at select Alamo Draft House Theaters and 2001: A Space Odyssey is celebrating its fiftieth anniversary in theaters this year. The Ready Player One soundtrack is available, and so are the tunes from various artists digitally.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and unicorns, too. If you can find the elusive cereal that’s nearly as rare as unicorns themselves, you can make some fun concoctions as suggested by CheatSheet.com.

TechnoRetro Arcade

It’s not Galaxian. It’s not Galaxian II. It’s Galaga, the natural evolution of a game filled with space bugs that shoot, dive-bomb, and even capture your defense fleet starship in this much-beloved game played by David Lightman and recognized by Tony Stark from across a computer-filled room. JediShua promises to help shazbazzar achieve a perfect score in the bonus round next time they go to the arcade together.

Ready Player One

We’ve been waiting a long time for this. Longer than there’ve been fishes in the ocean. Well, not really, but longer than TechnoRetro Dads have been on-the-air, shazbazzar and JediShua have been waiting for Ready Player One to make its way to theaters. And we weren’t disappointed at all. Neither were you, EarBuds. The TechnoRetro novel became a TechnoRetro movie and we’re totally #TechnoRetro about the whole thing — except for glitches in theaters from time-to-time. Steven Spielberg hits a home run with this film adaptation of James Halliday’s Egg Hunt. EarBuds Kermmit the Frog, James Burns, Obi-Roth Kenobi, T-Bird, JunkMan, Tony Soehner of Nerds Gallery podcast, and families all contribute to our initial post-screening discussion of Ready Player One. With just 10 minutes of (announced) spoilers, you can listen to almost the whole conversation without being spoiled (if you haven’t yet seen Ready Player One in theaters). But the discussion isn’t enough for EarBuds; if you haven’t seen the movie, yet, gather your party and head down to the theater to check it out time and time again. PLUS: the grand prize winner of the TechnoRetro Dads EggHunt is revealed!

Feedback

Jeff Baucom gets into the discussion of movies Star Wars influenced, inspiring ideas for more Star Wars Aftershocks. Jonathan Bell suggests watching The Theory of Everything starring James Halliday as Stephen Hawking. John Schepler pops off with news about Funko Cereal Pops. Ted Adam Green adds to the cereal news with pics snack bags of Cap’n Crunch. Adam O’Brien compares Clint Eastwood with Harrison Ford in a truly TechnoRetro matchup. Chris from Arvada calls in with his excitement about Ready Player One, Cereal Box, Inc., and his own recipes for cereal mixes. PLUS: Chris remembers the TRON/WarGames mashup from TRON: Decoding the Grid from a few years back. If you’re interested in what he’s talking about, check it out here.

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Direct download: TRDads_06.01.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Sun, 1 April 2018

News Blast!

Greetings, PROGRAMS!

This news brief will catch you up on the most significant TechnoRetro NEWS hitting the airwaves as March concludes and April begins, so WAKE UP!

In the NEWS

Feelin’ Newsy? You will be when you wake up to this morning’s News Blast. Superman turns 80 later this month on the anniversary of the release of Action Comics #1. Direct Current Comics will release a limited edition of the premiere issue of Aluminum Boy. With Facebook’s popularity fading in recent weeks, The WELL (Whole Earth ‘Lectronic Link) was recently purchased by Innovative Online Industries in a move to reintroduce this early ISP/forum to users. Hasbro and Twentieth Century Fox reveal plans to make a movie based on the classic game Operation. Jonah Hill and Rowlf are confirmed to star in the film which will begin filming soon. And in a story that’s truly out-of-this-world, a miniature space station has been discovered in orbit around Earth equipped with a rocket that will evidently be launching for Mars in the near future. SETI and NASA confirm the construction crew plans to colonize the red planet before man will plant his flag on Mars.

Vinyl Scratchback

The Doobie Brothers, Bjork, Beatles, Def Leppard, Queen, and more fill your ear buds with folly before the ‘Dads replay some favorites from the past five years.

Direct download: TRDads_Ps14.1.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Mon, 26 March 2018

Rush into WarGames, Ultraman, If You’re Ready, Player One

Spring is here, and March is all set to go out like a lion with the bombastic retrorific movie adaptation of Ernest Cline’s bestselling novel, Ready Player One. JediShua and shazbazzar have a few important influences to prepare all EarBuds for the movie release this week!

In the NEWS

Indiana Jones and the Fifth Chapter not only has a release date, but a filming date as Steven Spielberg anticipates his next blockbuster after Ready Player One. Toys ‘R’ Us is closing, but Kay-Bee Toys is coming back? Maybe so. Muppet Babies has returned to TV in a reboot format. Of course, Ready Player One is everywhere.

We Love Our Cereal…

…and peanut butter? Well, with cereal, we certainly do. Spread some up on a couple pieces of bread and you will, too! (Have plenty of milk handy.)

Vinyl Scratchback

Ready Player One influences this week’s Vinyl Scratchback with one of Ernie Cline’s audio influences: Rush. The Canadian Prog Rock band features heavily in all of Cline’s work and plays an important role in Ready Player One with their 1976 album 2112.

TechnoRetro Arcade

Wade Watts played Dungeons of Daggorath on a TRS-80 in Ready Player One. This predecessor of hits like Castle Wolfenstein and Doom earns its place in the TechnoRetro Arcade with its sparse sound effects, basic vector graphics, yet immersive gameplay.

Saturday Mornings

Cartoons weren’t the only fare on Saturday mornings. Sometimes, live-action “cartoons” made their way to American television with shows like Ultraman that captured the imaginations of kids everywhere.

WarGames

David Lightman is an intelligent underachiever who really likes playing video games on his computer. He will do just about anything to play them — even hacking into Protovision (or some other computer in the Sunnyvale area). Will he inadvertently cause World War Three? WarGames capitalized on the Cold War worries of Generation X with a fun and somewhat frightening film featuring Matthew Broderick, Ally Sheedy, John Wood, Dabney Coleman, and Barry Corbin. An all-time favorite of shazbazzar and one of many rewatchable movies for JediShua, WarGames not only influenced young computer programmers to become hackers, it influenced at least two stories by novelist Ernest Cline, namely Ready Player One and Armada. JediShua and shazbazzar make a strong case for watching WarGames one more time before heading to theaters this week for Ready Player One.

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Direct download: TRDads_05.47.mp3
Category:TechnoRetro Dads -- posted at: 6:00am EDT