Flushed Away From Memory
This week on Culture Dumps we explore one of the most popular documentaries of all time, “Super Size Me.” Was Morgan Spurlock just blowing off steam or did his experiment truly influence the fast food market? Ryan is joined by Eric D of MethSyndicate once again to dive deeply into the genre defining film. Also, the Filet of Fish is bomb and Spurlock is kind of a creep.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Olean is the brand name of the fat substitute Olestra. The product would add no fat or extra calories to food products, without losing any of the taste! The miracle oil took off in the mid 90s, during a wave of other “low fat” and “fat free” products. Most notable was the Wow! chips brand during this time. However, just as Olean fever started to take off, a very undesirable side effect, was noticed. Welcome to our most literal episode of Culture Dumps yet.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Planet Hollywood was part of a trend of themed restaurants that really had a peak in the 90s. Patrons could enjoy the feeling of eating on a movie set, while also admiring Hollywood memorabilia on display. With several A-list endorsements, the restaurant quickly became a huge success. The problem was, they took it too far too quick. That, and the food was terrible. On this episode we examine how the most profitable theme restaurant became the biggest joke in the food biz. Ryan is joined by Eric D of MethSyndicate.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Parks is joined by his two friends (Leeza and Hayley) who were both competitive figure skaters. This bonus episode is a fascinating deep dive into the intensely competitive world of figure skating. Leeza and Hayley also shared how the Tonya Harding incident affected the skating community. They also dish on some pretty wild stories from their skating days. A couple bombshell revelations!!! Listen for some in depth insight on one of sporting’s biggest scandals.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
We reach the inevitable conclusion on the Tonya Harding saga. The Nancy Kerrigan attack is what most people know Tonya for. We trace the steps to this infamous event, from her abusive relationship with Jeff Gillooly to his crew of wannabe criminal goons. Tonya really did get mixed up with the wrong crowd here. We delve into Nancy Kerrigan and cultural aftermath of the attack. Plus we cover what Tonya Harding has been up to recently. In a good twist of fate, she is still skating and pretty damn happy.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Tonya Harding is a renowned and accomplished figure skater and a two-time Olympian for her achievements on the ice. She was the first American skater to successfully land a triple Axel in competition. However, she is known primarily for her connection to the infamous 1994 attack on fellow skater Nancy Kerrigan. This attack was one of the biggest sporting controversies in the 90s. In part 1, we examine her tumultuous upbringing. Often skating was her escape from a never ending torrent of abuse from her family and her lovers. We discuss a revealing 1986 documentary called “Sharp Edges.” Lace up for Tonya!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
To celebrate Ryan and Parks’s reunion they chose the 2005 classic buddy film, Brokeback Mountain. A movie about two cowboys just doing cowboy stuff, the real dump was the huge cultural reaction to the movie. The term “Brokeback” became a meme within itself. Yee haw.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
In this episode we welcome Parks back and cover the most successful magicians of all time. Siegfried and Roy came from less than humble backgrounds and dominated the Las Vegas entertainment scene. Performing a total of over 30,000 shows during their career, the duo brought a level of showmanship to magic that the world had never before seen. Oh! And one of them almost got eaten by a damn tiger.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Thomas Kinkade, aka the “Painter of Light” was the most successful commercial artist of his time. At the peak of his popularity it was estimated that one in 20 American homes owned a Kinkade print or product. His whimsical portraits of cottages, lighthouses, Christmas imagery, and overall kitschy shit raked in millions upon millions of dollars, but, underneath the veil of wholesomeness, existed some very non-whimsical demons… Ryan is joined by friend Kailyn Sciberras.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Bo Derek’s appearance in the 1979 film “10” made her an instant star. Running down the beach in a bikini with her hair in braids, the scene was parodied many times and turn Derek in an 80s sex symbol. Her screen time in the movie is relatively short, yet the resulting celebrity status was huge. She starred in a series of 80s movies, directed by her then husband John Derek. These movies contain a combination of terrible acting and a lot of nudity. She has won multiple Golden Raspberry awards for worst acting. The peak of this Bo Derek mania is the 1984 movie “Bolero,” a truly bizarre piece of cinematography.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download