Once Upon A VHS - 80s and 90s Fantasy

"Be sure and tell 'em Large Marge sent ya!"

Joined by our super-talented friend, illustrator and comics artist Jules Scheele, we chart the rise, fall and comeback of Pee-wee Herman - the pop culture phenomenon and alter ego of Paul Reubens - focusing in on this wild road trip movie which was also Tim Burton's feature debut.

Getting goofy with the Groundlings, Saturday Night Live disappointment, Frankenweenie, fruit salad marriage, THAT stop motion jump scare, the utopian chaos of Pee-wee's Playhouse, going in and out of the closet, mythologised Americana, E.G. Daily's pop career, clown surgeons and beautiful dinosaurs await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

Is this something you'd like to share with the rest of us, Amazing Larry? Listen and find out!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"It's plot exposition, it has to go somewhere."

Hey, a movie! Jim Henson's feature directorial debut, following up The Muppet Show and The Muppet Movie with a madcap jewel heist comedy set in London. Jonathan North of the Joncast Media multiverse of podcasts joins us for a fun chat about this old favourite and the legendary love affair between Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy.

The rat bellhops of the Happiness Hotel, screen icon Diana Rigg, an unsettling father of identical twins, bicycle puppetry, Busby Berkeley style synchronized swimming, and Gonzo's feelings towards chickens await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

What does "BSC" stand for? British Society of Cinematographers! And I'm sure 8/10 British cinematographers would recommend you listen to this episode! Miss Piggy crashes through a stained glass window on a motorbike looking fabulous! What more do you want?

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Nothing thicker than a knife's blade separates melancholy from happiness."

Queer temporality, gender expression and sexual fluidity - we are nourished by Sally Potter's beautiful reworking of the "unfilmable" 1928 novel by Virginia Woolf, starring Tilda Swinton as the title character who experiences an extended life as both a man and a woman.

A Bronski Beat angel, gorgeous production design and costumes, Billy Zane on a horse, precocious library-lending, colour-shifting eyes, that maze sequence and trans icon Quentin Crisp, the true Queen of England, await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

This future of yours, when it's gonna begin? Today? Or, is it always tomorrow? Listen and find out!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"What ya looking at? Never seen a guy who slept with a fish before?"

Ahoy! We're joined by Christian Garcia from That Ol' Gay Classic Cinema podcast to discuss Ron Howard's smash hit mermaid romcom that launched Tom Hanks into superstardom and gave us an unforgettable underwater performance from Daryl Hannah.

The symbolic power of mermaids, queer-coded secrets, consumerist satire, a koi-inspired tail, 80s comedy yelling, a scary sea hag deleted scene and the Touchstone Pictures of it all await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

Would we trade a fountain for a necklace? Listen and find out!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"I just wanted to eat."

We're going off-menu and off-piste for this little slice of late 90s Cosmopolitan culture NYC romcom ridiculousness. It's less Sex and the City and more Crabs in the Kitchen as Sarah Michelle Gellar gets some culinary help from a magic crustacean.

Emotionally-imbued food, public orgasms, special effect failures, Betty Buckley and our dream restaurant pairings of dishes with SMG projects await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

Poppadoms or bread? Listen and find out!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.