The Complete Disaster Podcast

(Part 4)

Bob and his co-author, Tom Clavin, write about a man who was captured in WW2 three times, parachuted into German-occupied France twice, and forced some Nazi officers to toast FDR once. And the most interesting part is, it's all true. His name was Peter Ortiz, also known as The Phantom. Also also known as Das Fantom, depending on how German you are.

You can get The Phantom here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250285850/thephantom/

(Part 3)

It's October, so it's time to get spooky. Carrie was pretty spooky, right? And by "was" I mean "is", because it's back as a miniseries. Other Mommy is also apparently great if you like being jump scared every ten minutes. Lastly, Nic Cage is in Stillwater. That's not really scary, but it is worth mentioning.

(Part 2)

Want to be an audience member for DWTS? Apparently, it's free. Aside from the plane ticket. And lodgings. And the fact that you have like three days between being selected and having to be in studio. But you know, aside from that, no cost at all.

Topics:

DWTS studio audience lottery

TV viewership is down

Category 3 hurricane about to hit Florida

Colin's big no

Kristyn in Ottawa

Brightline and other failed infrastructure projects

(Part 1)

Christa Pike is all over the news for having her execution botched. Apparently the same doctor who botched hers did the same thing to another prisoner just a few months ago. You'd think that would be impossible, but then we get into stories about pets not being put down properly, sedatives not being administered, and other fun stuff. It's a very cheery episode.

Topics:

U of M theme song

Sports radio

Kathryn gets into mahjong

Margaret Hamilton dies at 90

MLB...

(Part 3)

Part 3 continues the stream of consciousness, where we start talking about Chinese food for some reason and never really stop. We also do a deep analysis of a picture a listener sent in that looks like it was taken from 1989.

There is no part 4 today because part 2 was like an hour long by itself.

(Part 2)

Jimmy Francis won second place at the 2026 On the Road Again pickle contest. He's even got a trophy as proof. He also brought the pickles in, making us de facto pickle judges. This episode is a weird one - we had two no-shows in one day (a first in our podcast's history!) so we just kind of let it ride. We started with pickles and ended with Chinese food. Because it's lunch and we're hungry.

Topics:

Jimmy's second place pickles

Mall of America attempted mass shooting...

(Part 1)

It's Amazon Prime Days. We have an Amazon storefront now. You know what that means: buy stuff from our storefront. Or else. Or else we won't make any money, I mean. Think about it this way: if you buy enough stuff, not only could we reduce our ad load, but you'd be more like us. And who wouldn't want that?

Visit the Complete Disaster Podcast Amazon storefront at https://a.co/d/09gzqFa7!

Topics:

Amazon Prime Days

1984 KSTP We're The Team video<...

(Part 4)

You heard us. 100% chance of victory. Calling it now. And while we're being optimistic, the Falcons will also make it to the playoffs why not. The Titans and Dolphins? No, they're just bad. We're being optimistic, not pollyanna.

(Part 3)

Tamara - or Tam, as they call her - has written two books with over 1000 music quiz questions between them. She's also written a children's book with 500 references to 70s and 80s music hidden in it. Needless to say, she's got her niche and she's making it work for her. She even did a bit of quizzing on the show today. Quizzing we knocked out of the park, I might add.

For Tamara's stuff, including The Day We Found Yesterday and Ultimate Mix Tape, visit https://www.totallycool80s.com/!<...

(Part 2)

Al learned that he was adopted at 52. That's pretty late to get that one dropped on you. That's just the beginning of the story, however. For the whole story, you'll have to read the book. For a medium amount of the story, you can listen to this podcast.

You can find Al's book, Finding Mary Smith, at https://www.alisaacs.com/!

This guest was booked using PodMatch! Interested in being a guest on the show? Sign up for PodMatch at https://www.joinpodmatch.com/completedisaster and ge...

(Part 1)

It's nothing but the four horsemen of the apocalypse out there. Lipomas may not be quite at the same level as plague, but they're still a form of pestilence. Sort of. Midterms are even harder to get rid of. They just keep coming back, and they bring months of attack ads with them. But then you've got Still Making Waves, the new show with Tom, John Hines, and Jack Hicks. There's no apocalyptic imagery behind that one.

Listen to Still Making Waves here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/still-making-waves...

(Part 4)

If you've been listening to the podcast for at least ten years, you'll remember when Cy used to pop into the studio all the time. Then, one day, he vanished. Why? Find out today! Also find out why you should go see the last two days of Comedy Crash and Burn XV.

(Part 3)

Digger is out, and apparently it's pretty polarizing. Tim says it's good. Critics do not. Apparently you'll have to watch for yourself to determine if you love it or hate it. Kind of like the Lizzie Borden season of Monster, which Tim does not say is good.

Topics:

Digger

Coyote vs. Acme

Lioness

Lizzie Borden

(Part 2)

DWTS - that's Dancing With The Stars for those of you out of the loop - has been going for a very long time. Over twenty years, in fact. Proving that it's never too late to start, Kathryn has decided to start watching it this week. Speaking of which, if you've never watched the Rankin Bass Christmas specials, don't let the fact that they're a million years old deter you.

Topics:

Kathryn and Alex watch Dancing With The Stars

Cornell controversy

Paramount/WB merger<...

(Part 1)

Have you ever been in a situation where you could either say "hey Siri" and have your phone respond, or die a gruesome death? At least one person has.

Topics:

Kaohly Her is a lunatic

Sage is the future running champion

Dog tries to play with home invader

Oregon man uses earbuds to save life

3 year old brings gun to daycare

Andy blows baking soda in Alex's face

(Part 4)

The 25th anniversary of 9/11 is over, but interest in the story never dies. Especially because, apparently, there is a functionally infinite number of them. Jeffrey compiled a portion of this infinity into a book.

You can buy Ash and Honor: The Untold 368 Minutes of 9/11 at https://www.amazon.com/Ash-Honor-Untold-368-Minutes-ebook/dp/B0G76Y3NZZ!

(Part 3)

Today's episode piques Alex's interest: Russell has spent over 20 years researching dyslexia and helping others overcome theirs, and Fawn is dyslexic. What a coincidence.

You can find more about Russell's methods at https://dyslexiaclasses.com/!

This guest was booked using PodMatch! Interested in being a guest on the show? Sign up for PodMatch at https://www.joinpodmatch.com/completedisaster and get in touch!

(Part 2)

Did you know that Angie Dickinson is still alive? She's 95 as of a few hours ago. As a 95 year old, she remembers when kids didn't have smartphones. That's not why we got onto the latter topic. To be honest, I don't even remember why.

You can help revive Bill's Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/bill_mendieta!

Topics:

Angie Dickinson turns 95

Dennis Haskins, Principal Belding in Saved by the Bell, dies at 75

Chad Lowe's daughter Fiona dies from suicide...

(Part 1)

Hey, it's a valid question. Six protein shakes a day is going to do something to your digestive system, and Kroger isn't open 24/7. There's always the battering ram method, but then you go to jail, and the toilets there are out in the open.

Topics:

Texas man rams Kroger with car

In Korea, Jesus looks Korean

Did Pasqual Piñón have two heads?

Toshisuke Kanazawa, 90 year old bodybuilder

(Part 4)

Costaki is a comedian and a football fan. The combination of these two basically defines his career. That's why today, we make sure to talk a bit about both. We've always liked comedy, and we've also liked football ever since the Vikings went 3 and 0. But, can they keep our favor?

(Part 3)

Jerry has been a part of the show almost as long as we have. He's famous for bringing in various enormous quantities of food. Ribs, mostly. Today it's pumpkin bread. He also brought his experience with New Hope Cinema Grill and being around comedians for half his life.

Also, did you know his name isn't actually Jerry?

(Part 2)

Alex saw The Golden Ticket. Apparently they made some questionable choices with this one. Will it improve? Or will it end up like MTV: merely a reminder of the good times?

Topics:

Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom

Toy Story 5

Willy Wonka's The Golden Ticket

The Breadwinner

MTV VMAs

Madonna's filler

Funny Money (Dane Cook documentary)

(Part 1)

Today, we start the show with sports, not news. Unless you count some lunatic smearing someone else's blood on his face as news. It's not really sports, even if it happened during a football game.

(Part 4)

Speaking of that time of year, Crash and Burn has been going for fifteen years, so it should really count as an annual tradition at this point. After wrestling with tech problems for a while, Tim joins us to remind everyone to be at Acme Tuesday through Saturday. That's right, you have to be there every day or it doesn't count.

(Part 3)

The only thing you really need for a 10/10 film is a dog. Especially a heroic dog. And especially a heroic dog who doesn't die at the end. We can't say whether or not the dog in Heart of the Beast makes it to the credits, but here's hoping.

Topics:

Packers lose to the Falcons

Nicolas Cage as John Madden

Heart of the Beast

Lioness

Toy Story 5 on streaming

Mobland

(Part 2)

It's 9/25. Get it? Nine two five? You know, like the thing. Of course in most countries it'll never be 925, which is why our system is superior. Until they invent a 25th month, anyway.

Topics:

Dolly Parton Day, and her final song

Bono sucks

Massive federal tax cut for filming in America

(Part 1)

It's that time of year again. Time to eat salmon until you gain 200 pounds, then sleep for 6 months. If you're a bear, that is. I cannot condone that behavior from a human, even if I do understand it. What I don't understand is how someone would have the patience to make an entire scale model of NYC.

Topics:

Water treatment woes

The Catman - no, not that one

Joe Macken makes scale model of New York City

Fat bear week

...

Christopher Warden joins us from Embody Health and Performance, where Tom's been getting red light therapy. Shortly thereafter, Tony Price joins from the Gold Star Ride Foundation. Tom has not been actively involved in that one. Can't get him on a motorcycle.

Embody's website is https://liveembody.com/, so check them out if you're interested in red light therapy, physical therapy, or any of their other services!

You can check out https://www.goldstarride.org/ to see where Tony's been, what families he's met, or to donate to his cause!

Do you know how many words of a song you're allowed to write in a book? Matthew does. It's not as many as you'd think. It's still more than the number of Jews allowed at the Protestant club. Or Protestants at the Catholic club. Maybe things have changed in that regard, though.

You can check out Matthew's book, The Chestnut Tree, at https://www.mathewtekulsky.com/!

This guest was booked using PodMatch! Interested in being a guest on the show? Sign up for PodMatch at https://www.joinpodmatch.com/completedisaster and ge...

Lizzie Borden. The Pickwick triplets. JonBenet Ramsey. Today's all about murderers, murderees, fictional squadrons of murderous children, and other such things. Things like Willy Wonka. He is suspected to have killed some kids, though it's never been proven.

Topics:

Lizzie Borden on Monster

Nicole Richie is not Lionel's biological daughter

Willy Wonka's Golden Ticket

JonBenet Ramsey

You Can See Everything Elizabeth Holmes documentary

Brothers

Everyone knows someone who is, or at least was, into Pokemon cards. Some of us even know people who get way too into it and start scalping cards. But do you know anyone who stalked someone to do it? Someone out there does.

Topics:

Kathryn's Sonos speaker

Guy tracks Pokemon card deliveries with GPS bug

6 month old with a BAC of .383

Last Ditch attempts mask optional night

"26 cent" coin sells at auction

Today, we learn what sports betting odds mean. You see, the bigger numbers are worse. Or better, if you win. Which you won't. There's a reason the people you bet against have so much money. Still, 1000 to 1 sounds pretty good, unless you're the Titans.

Topics:

Sports betting

Costaki's Falcons disappointment

Madden games

Every night football

Every generation has its crap that teenagers spray on themselves to smell better. Or at least, what they think is better. In the days of yore it was Hai Karate. Then it was Axe. What is it today? We don't know, because we still smell like propellant and chemicals from some stuff we sprayed on 20 years ago.

Topics:

Perfumes past and present

NFL players

The Conclave

Apparently cigarettes and THC are cool again, because everything is cyclical, including addictions. Great news for fans of 1960s vices. Also great news for people who want to do a lot of coke in about ten years.

Topics:

Cindy Crawford's son Presley Gerber dies in rehab

Cigarettes and the smoking thereof

Scented candles and detergents

Some people hear about a 70 mile bike ride and think "sounds like a challenge worth taking". Personally, I do not think that, but some do. Those are the people who raise thousands for Alzheimer's research and support. As for the rest of us, we're content to donate.

Topics:

Dan rides 70 miles for Alzheimer's

1940s WDGY clip

Gordon Ramsay doing Restaurant Rescue in Minnesota

Carrot Top's attempted suicide

Meryl Streep as Aslan

(Part 4)

John and Tom have known one another for a very long time. They've both known Jack Hicks for a long time as well. Are you thinking what I'm thinking? And by "I'm", I mean "they're".

(Part 3)

Resident Evil is not a new IP. It's Playstation 1 old, if that tells you anything. And yet, it keeps getting movies. It's been getting them for decades, and the latest one just came out. Tim's hammer gives it two thumbs up, which is interesting because the rest of them are nothing special. Perhaps 2026 is the beginning of the silver age of zombies.

Topics:

Resident Evil is good

Vin Diesel is not a good singer

Lizzie Borden will be on Monster

Shatner is...

(Part 2)

CNN might merge with CBS News in the future, which means one of them is going to be subsumed by the other. That means layoffs. Makes you pine for the days of stability and reliability. Good news on that front: Dancing with the Stars is entering its ten billionth season. It'll never go away.

Topics:

Kristyn at KPBS

TMZ might be leaving California

Paramount merger affecting CNN and CBS News

Dancing with the Stars

Ezra Frech

(Part 1)

They discovered a new cat in Bolivia. It weighs three pounds and would probably try to kill you if you tried to pet it. But it sure is cute.

Topics:

Roastinears

Leopardus Tilcayo

Mighty Mike Plays

Pete Hegseth doesn't get fired

(Part 4)

Jordan has created Anxin, an app you use to scan your grocery receipts and get notified of any food recalls. That's pretty nifty, especially if you've experienced food poisoning before. It can also tell you where your products originated, when they're going to expire, and probably other things we forgot to ask.

Visit https://pieceofmind.fyi/ to check it out, or download Anxin on the App Store or Google Play!

This guest was booked using PodMatch! Interested in being a guest on the show? Reach out to...