Totally Rad Christmas!

What's up, dudes? Halloween is almost here, so we're looking to the skies for the weirdest trick-or-treaters ever to land in a small town. It's the 1991 Hanna-Barbera CBS special “The Last Halloween!” I've got Mike Westfall from Advent Calendar House, Chad Young from Horror Movie BBQ with me to talk all about it!

Mars is in big trouble: it's completely out of coobi. So four brave Martians (Romtu the Great, Gleep, Scoota and Bing) blast off, lock onto Earth and crash-land in the woods outside Crystal Falls on Halloween night. That's lucky timing, because coobi turns out to b...

What's up, dudes? Grab your pillowcase, your sincerity, and maybe a spare rock for the bag, because we're gonna have a watch-along party for the 1966 Peanuts classic "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown"! I've got Anthony Caruso from ‘Tis the Podcast, Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas podcast, and Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa with me to talk all about it!

Halloween's creeping up on the Peanuts neighborhood, and things get off to a rough start: Lucy carves up a pumpkin from the patch (Linus is horrified she "killed it"), then pulls the football away from Charlie Br...

WARNING!! PARENTAL DISCRETION IS ADVISED!

What’s up, dudes? We all know what fear is… but tonight fear has fur, silver bullets, and a live-TV transformation nobody at home believes. We’re talking Joe Dante’s 1981 werewolf classic “The Howling”! I’ve got Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa with me!

News anchor Karen White walks into a sting for a killer named Eddie Quist and walks out with amnesia and a therapist who thinks a countryside retreat called the Colony is medicine. It is not medicine. It is a werewolf timeshare. Dee Wallace is Karen, Robert...

What’s up, dudes? Perhaps you can help… solve a mystery. Robert Stack has put on his holiday voice — which still sounds like a missing-persons bulletin wrapped in tinsel — and we’re diving into a special holiday edition of “Unsolved Mysteries”! I’ve got Joe Martinez from Now Watch This and CM Chuck from Just Another Friday Night here to unpack the miracles, the tip lines, and the tonal whiplash.

Stack promises stories that capture the spirit of the season, then delivers the full UM buffet: seven-year-old Chucky McGivern of Philly slides from chicken pox into a Reye’s syndrome...

What’s up, dudes? Halloween is creeping up on us, so we’re checking into the spookiest resort on Saturday morning TV. It’s the 1980 Hanna-Barbera monster mash Drak Pack and the episode “Hideout Hotel”! I’ve got Joe Martinez from Now Watch This with me to talk all about it!

Drak Jr., Frankie, and Howler (the teenage descendants of Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, and the Wolf Man, who fight crime to make up for their ancestors being total jerks for a few centuries) are stuck freezing in the snow back home while their great-great-uncle Big D is soaking up...

PARENTAL WARNING: DO NOT LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE WITH CHILDREN PRESENT!

What’s up, dudes? Cue the piano, because we’re gonna have a watch-along party for the 1965 Peanuts classic “A Charlie Brown Christmas”! I’ve got Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas podcast and Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa  with me to provide commentary and enjoy the ride!

This is the special CBS was pretty sure they’d just made a mistake. Charles Schulz wrote it, Bill Melendez directed the animation, Lee Mendelson produced it, and Coca-Cola sponsored it after an ad guy asked if...

What’s up, dudes? Grab your camp flashlight and whatever you do, don’t touch the plunger — we’re gonna talk Nickelodeon’s Salute Your Shorts classic “The Ghost Story / Zeke the Plumber!” I’ve got Mike Westfall from Advent Calendar House, Chad Young from Horror Movie BBQ, and Joe Fulton the Christmas Aficionado with me to provide commentary and enjoy the ride!

It’s Camp Anawanna, June 1991, and Budnick’s weaponizing bedtime. He spins the legend of Zeke — camp custodian, parrot-bit nose, couldn’t smell a gas leak, lit a match, and became what Budnick lovingly calls a human party-popp...

What’s up, dudes? Grab your fold-out poster and your secret word, because we’re cracking open one of the most Christmas-adjacent kids’-mag crossovers of the late ’80s — Muppet Magazine #17, Winter 1987, the “Pee-Wee & Kermit: Playhouse Pals!” cover! I’ve got Tim Babb from Can’t Wait for Christmas  and Mike Westfall from Advent Calendar House with me to talk all about it!

It’s Volume 5, Number 1 of the Henson Company’s full-color quarterly, and the cover alone is peak Saturday-morning destiny: Kermit the Frog hanging with Pee-wee Herman right when Pee-wee’s Playhouse and Muppet Babies were sharing the CBS morn...

What’s up, dudes? Grab your pillowcase and your leftover Halloween candy, because we’re gonna have a watch-along party for A Pup Named Scooby-Doo’s holiday-adjacent spookfest “Ghost Who’s Coming to Dinner!” I’ve got Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas podcast with me to provide commentary and enjoy the ride!

Kid-sized Mystery Inc. is trick-or-treating when they stumble on the Johnsons’ ramshackle haunted house — the one Shaggy swears used to belong to pirate Boobeard. Inside: a kindly couple, a park full of trees somebody wants to bulldoze, and the one (1) Scooby-Doo ghost who is actually a ghost. Bartholom...

What’s up, dudes? I’m dreaming of a white Christmas… and also punk Christmas, pizza-place Christmas, power-metal Christmas, and New Kids on the Block Christmas! Today we’re diving into the ’80s versions of Irving Berlin’s classic “White Christmas!”

Before the neon snowstorm hits, a quick rewind: Berlin wrote it around 1940, Bing Crosby introduced it on radio at Christmas 1941, then recorded it May 29, 1942 for Holiday Inn. Wartime America lost its mind for that wistful fireplace fantasy — 11 weeks at No. 1, an Oscar for Best Original Song, the 1954 movie, a 1947 re-record that became the one everybody knows, and roughly 50 mil...

PARENTAL WARNING: DO NOT LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE WITH CHILDREN PRESENT!

What’s up, dudes? We’re closer to Christmas, so we’re gonna have a watch-along party for the absolute classic “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”. I’ve got CJ Bélanger from Rose Suchak Ladder, Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas podcast, and Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa with me to provide commentary and enjoy the ride!

The story chronicles the seasonal psychosis of the Grinch, a green, cave-dwelling misanthrope whose undersized cardiovascular organ has left him irrationally enraged by the annual Christmas festivities o...

PARENTAL WARNING: DO NOT LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE WITH CHILDREN PRESENT!

What’s up, dudes? It’s one of the bleakest Christmas movies ever made—and Disney apparently decided dead parents, unemployment, bank robberies, and existential despair were exactly what kids needed for Christmas! Yes, it’s “One Magic Christmas!” I’ve got Santa Ambassador Matt Spaulding from North Pole Radio, and Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa here to discuss it.

In this 1985 film, Ginny Grainger is a financially struggling mom who has completely lost her Christmas spirit. Her husband Jack is unemployed, the family has to...

PARENTAL WARNING: DO NOT LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE WITH CHILDREN PRESENT!

What’s up, dudes? It's July, and it's ridiculously hot, so we’re gonna have a watch-along party for the Rankin Bass classic “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town”. I’ve got CJ Bélanger from Rose Suchak Ladder, Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas podcast, and Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa with me to provide commentary and enjoy the ride!

The story chronicles the rise of Kris Kringle, an abandoned ginger baby who grows up with a family of toy-making elves and eventually decides to de...

What's up, dudes? It's been a beast of a week. We lost two legends of their respective industries. Dolly Parton was one of the greatest people of our time. She was a musician, actress, and humanitarian. Her Christmas albums, all of which were accompanied by a tv special, have been staples of many a family's Christmas season. We've even covered some of her '80s Christmas endeavors on this show previously. 

Tim Curry was a genius in his own right. Had he not made it as an actor, he could've been a prolific musician as well. His r...

What's up, dudes? Remember standing in line for hours to get that one toy? Your parents probably did, especially after you sat down and circled all the toys you wanted in the Wishbook? Vinnie Brezinsky from Huey and Bax joins me to talk holiday shopping and wishbooks! Malls and shopping and commercials! Oh my! 

From Toys 'R' Us to Sears, from JC Penney to Kmart, we talk all about shopping and wishbooks. The Sears Wish Book began in 1933 as a special Christmas edition of the Sears, Roebuck and Co. catalog, packed with toys, games, dolls, bicycles, clothing, a...

What’s up, dudes? It’s Christmas in July, and apparently Santa is getting a serious head start on his deliveries! The Rainbow Panthers are seeing red—and white—when the big guy himself drops by in Pink Panther and Sons “Insanity Claus!” Yes, Panky believes in Santa, even when everyone else thinks he’s completely crackers! I’ve got Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas and Alamo City Santa Jeremy Phelps with me to talk all about it!

Pinky, Panky, and the Rainbow Panthers are having a slumber party when a mysterious stranger comes down the chimney. It’s Santa Claus...

What’s up, dudes? What are you people? On dope?! I’ve got Michael May from After Lunch, Crestwood House, and Hellbent for Letterbox, Scott Leopold from Holly Jolly X'masu, and Tim Williams from 80’s Flick Flashback are with me to talk the Christmas-adjacent movie “Fast Times at Ridgemont High!”

Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) follows a group of Southern California teenagers as they stumble through a school year filled with first jobs, romance, sex, friendship, and the everyday humiliations of being young. At the center is Stacy Hamilton, a shy sophomore who begins exploring dating and relationsh...

What's up, dudes? It's another minisode! Today we're celebrating Halloween and Christmas with the John Barrett penned Ted E. Bear story "Christmas Comes to Monster Mountain!" It’s a the literary sequel to “The Bear Who Slept Through Christmas” and “The Great Bear Scare.”

John Barrett came up with the story to “The Bear Who Slept Through Christmas” and developed the teleplay for the special which was subsequently produced by DePatie-Freleng Enterprises in 1973. The special stars Ted E. Bear as a curious bear who yearns to discover and experience Christmastide, even as he endures ridicule from the entire bear co...

What’s up, dudes? Kevin Williams from ‘Tis the Soundtrack joins me to talk about Rainbow “Snowman!” Yes, the former Deep Purple guitarist took Howard Blake’s song from the 1982 classic and reworked it as an atmospheric synth and electric guitar anthem!

Rainbow was formed in 1975 by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore after he began to tire of Deep Purple and the band’s changing musical direction. Deep Purple had already replaced Ian Gillan and Roger Glover with David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes, but Blackmore remained unhappy with where the music was headed. What began as Blackmore recording a single with...

What’s up, dudes? It’s the greatest store ever to an ‘80s kid! Yes, it’s Toys “R” Us, the category killer! Today we’re talking the Toys “R” Us Christmas Dream Book 1986!

Toys “R” Us goes all the way back to 1948, when Charles Lazarus opened a little Washington, D.C. shop called Children’s Bargain Town, selling baby furniture. Eventually he pivoted from cribs and strollers to playthings. In 1957, Lazarus opened the first store under the Toys “R” Us name, built like a supermarket for toys—long aisles, stacked shelves, self-service shopping, and wall-to-wall kids’ stuff. 

This book provides...

What's up, dudes? I've got Ken Kessler from Sounds of Christmas and Scott Leopold from Holly Jolly X'masu here to talk the jangle pop/alternative rock album by the Chris Stamey Group “Christmas Time!” After a stint with the dB's, Chris Stamey went out on his own as a solo artist. He invited his former bandmates back for a fun Christmas album.

"Christmas Time" was released as a 7-song vinyl EP under the credit Chris Stamey Group with Special Guests The dB’s. The EP mixed original songs with inventive takes on Christmas music, emphasizing chorused and reverb...

What’s up, dudes? I wanna rock and roll all night while dreaming of a white Christmas! Yes, we’re talking KISS “White Christmas!” I’ve got my whole band with me: Adam Pope from Wizards! The Podcast Guide to Comics and The Retro Network (Geekster), and Remember That Show?, Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa, Vinnie Brezinsky from Huey and Bax, and Kathryn Sugg!

On Dec 19, 1987, KISS came out for an encore and sang the Irving Berlin classic “White Christmas!” The a capella harmonies were tight! And yes, Gene helps the audience keep the beat as they start cla...

What’s up, dudes? If you’re looking for the ultimate Dolly Christmas special, her 1990 NBC holiday TV event “Dolly Parton: Christmas at Home” is a heartwarming trip back to a simpler Christmas. CJ Bélanger from Rose Suchak Ladder and I have a blast with this one! 

The special was made to coincide with the release of her new Christmas album. It follows Dolly from a charming Christmas store to a garland-filled Nashville recording studio in the middle of July—where she records holiday classics surrounded by enough tinsel, bows, and magnificent mullets to m...

PARENTAL WARNING: DO NOT LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE WITH CHILDREN PRESENT!

What’s up, dudes? It's July, and it's ridiculously hot, so we’re gonna have a watch-along party for the Rankin Bass classic “Frosty the Snowman”. I’ve got CJ Bélanger from Rose Suchak Ladder, Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas podcast, Anthony Caruso from ‘Tis the Podcast, Santa Ambassador Matt Spaulding from North Pole Radio, and Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa with me to provide commentary and enjoy the ride!

The story chronicles the experiences of Frosty the Snowman, an anthropomorphic being of precipitat...

What's up, dudes? It's the third episode of the second season of the Stay Lit! podcast, all about the professional Christmas Light Installation industry. Matt Billington of Big & Bright Inflatables, retail genius Russ Schaller, and I sit down with A.R. Woodworking from The Woodworking Group. Is Christmas light installation a good fit for woodworkers? Can they use this business to supplement their slow months? Can they design custom woodworking projects to coincide with Christmas light installs? Tune in to find out!

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What's up, dudes? It's the second episode of the second season of the Stay Lit! podcast, all about the professional Christmas Light Installation industry. Nick Glassett of The Jump Off and Let's Get Lit and I break down the first half of the production cycle: pre-qualifying and making the deal with the client. There are quite a few items on a checklist to go over when first contact with the potential client is made. Don’t know them? Even if you do, check out this dive into the initial steps of a Christmas light installation business sale process.

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What’s up, dudes? Now that Masters of the Universe is out in theaters, we’re gonna have a watch-along party for the Filmation classic “He-Man and She-Ra: A Christmas Special”. I’ve got Mike Westfall from Advent Calendar House, Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas podcast,  and Chad Young from Horror Movie BBQ with me to provide commentary and enjoy the ride!

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Horror Movie BBQ
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What’s up, dudes? It’s another bonkers He-Man Christmas tale from the UK comics! This time I’ve got Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas and Thom Crowe from ‘Tis the Podcast with me to break down the power of Grayskull!

Hordak has cast a spell that freezes men’s hearts, cutting out all hope. Desperate to lift this ice-fear, He-Man and the heroic warriors battle the evil Horde. Unfortunately, the villains escape through a portal leaving Eternia to the desolation.  In a last ditch effort to bring hope to his people, He-Man concocts a plan with Man-At-Arms...

What’s up, dudes? Tim Babb from Can’t Wait for Christmas joins me to dive into the bonkers special “Andy Williams & the NBC Kids Search for Santa!”

Andy Williams is on a mission to restore his family's honor. Years ago his ancestor used to help Santa with his mail until one day he abandoned his mission out of frustration. Andy convinced  several NBC kid stars from The Cosby Show, Silver Spoons, and more to join him. You see, if 12 true believers accompany him to Santa's, there's a chance Santa will forgive his bloodline. Dark!

After sea...

What’s up, dudes? It’s the toy company that practically owned Christmas morning in the mid-80s! Yes, it’s Mattel — the plastic powerhouse behind Barbie, He-Man, Hot Wheels, and enough colorful cardboard packaging to completely bury your living room floor! Today we’re talking the 1984 Mattel Christmas Wish List!

Mattel goes all the way back to 1945, when Harold “Matt” Matson and Elliot Handler started a small company making picture frames. Eventually they pivoted from household goods to toys, and by the time the 1980s rolled around, Mattel had become an absolute giant in the toy indust...

What’s up, dudes? We had a blast covering the last few movies, so we’re continuing our live commentary series! This time we’re breaking into TV Specials, and we had to start with  the Rankin Bass classic that launched it all: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer! Jeff Loftin from Lost Christmas podcast, Jeremy Phelps the Alamo City Santa, and I have a blast with this watch along! 

The story chronicles the experiences of Rudolph, a youthful reindeer buck who possesses an unusual luminous red nose. Mocked and excluded by his peers because of this trait, Rudolph proves h...

What's up, dudes?  So you want to be a cop? All you do is join the farce. Laramy Wells from Moving Panels and Vinnie Brezinsky from Huey and Bax have signed up to join the "Police Academy!"

After thwarting the Santa Claus burglar--so called because he breaks in through the chimney--the Police Academy squad run into a little orphan girl named Ginny.  She asks Carey Mahoney and his gang to help her friends believe in Santa Claus since the orphans never get any presents. Simultaneously, there's a robbery at I. Gottem's department store. Ginny even gets a lo...

What's up, dudes? The Saturday Morning Mafia breaks down the Knight Rider Christmas episode "Silent Knight" with me! It's all about the Hoff and K.I.T.T. in one of the coolest shows of the decade!

While shopping for a Christmas tuxedo for the Foundation banquet, Michael and KITT meet Tino, a young gypsy who has pickpocketed a valuable watch from bank robbers. These robbers, disguised as clowns and Santa Claus, need the watch back to destroy evidence of their crime. Michael promises Tino's sister Marta that he will keep the boy safe and deliver him...

What's up, dudes? Andy Williams is back, and he’s chaperoning the NBC kids in Europe once again! Mike Westfall of Advent Calendar House and Tim Babb from Can’t Wait for Christmas are with me to talk “Andy Williams and the NBC Kids Easter in Rome!”

Apparently, Andy Williams wanted to spend spring in Europe, so he gathered his friends from NBC and met them in Rome. They take a horse drawn carriage, sing a song, then go their separate ways. Tina Yothers hunts for guys at an ice cream disco. Kim Fields goes shopping for pink bla...

What’s up, dudes? Well, the new 2026 Hallmark Dreambook has been released, and I’ve got thr Hallmark Dream Guys on to discuss it! Yes, CJ from Rose Suchak Ladder, Anthony from ‘Tis the Podcast, and Todd from Christmas Clatter, are here to pick their favorite ornaments and shoot the breeze for a bit! From Optimus Prime to Deadpool, from Frosty to the Super Saiyan Goku, we choose the coolest looking accessories for our Christmas trees! Which ornaments do we like best? Tune in to find out our faves from the Hallmark Dreambook 2026!

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What’s up, dudes? It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for! That’s right! It's the 6th Annual Totally Rad Christmas Awards! This year we’re broke, so we found the cheapest place we could get! This decrepit old house has definitely seen better days, but there’s enough room for us all and I’m pretty sure Scooby Doo checked it out and gave it the okay. A slew of CPN friends help me host the awards. In fact, I got a ton of assistance from ‘Tis the Podcast elves Thom Crowe and Anthony Caruso, Mike Westfall fr...

What’s up, dudes? It's time for the 6th Annual Totally Rad Christmas Awards, colloquially known as the Raddies! Join me as I interview a few of the guests and nominees as they make their way down the red and green carpet! This Raddies pre-show has it all!

Give us a buzz! Send a text, dudes!

Check us out on Facebook, Twitter,  Instagram,  Totally Rad Christmas Mall & Arcade, Teepublic.com, or TotallyRadChristmas.com!  Later, dudes!

What’s up, dudes? Well, it seems that Little #1, Little #2, and Little #3 hijacked my recording studio and held their own episode all about the 1976 Rankin Bass Easter special "The First Easter Rabbit!" It's an adaptation of the children's book "The Velveteen Rabbit," and it's wild!

A young girl named Glinda gets a stuffed bunny for Christmas which she names Stuffy. She loves it unconditionally, but when she contracts scarlet fever, it has to be burned. Stuffy is approached by a magical sprite named Calliope, who transforms him into a real rabbit. She mandates that he become the fi...

What's up, dudes? It's the first episode of the second season of the Stay Lit! podcast, all about the professional Christmas Light Installation industry. I've joined as the showrunner and host, with original hosts Nick Glassett of The Jump Off and Let's Get Lit and Matt Billington of Big & Bright Inflatables and Let's Get Lit Supply! This is just the introductory episode where we're all just getting to know each others' styles. Later on this season we'll dive into a lot of cool things in the Christmas Light industry, and I'm really looking forward to it!

Give...

What’s up, dudes? It was the miniseries that examined fascism through a 1980s American lens…with sci-fi! Michael May from After Lunch, Crestwood House, and Hellbent for Letterbox and I talk the Christmas episode from V  “Reflections in Terror!”

In this 9th episode from the 1984 series, Diana sends a mistletoe sales lady to collect the starchild Elizabeth’s blood. With it, she’s able to clone the starchild at Christmastide. Unfortunately, the clone is feral and kills just about everything. 

Meanwhile, Donovan, Ham, and Farber work with a church to smuggle orphans into the free city of L...