November 10, 2021

I Miss Chris Farley

November 10, 2021/ Ty

This past Friday, during date night, I showed my wife one of my personal favorite comedies from the mid 90's. The movie was "Tommy Boy". I watched that movie over and over and over again when I was a teenager. It was the best. And I think it still holds up. There are a few problematic things and words used in the movie, that is for sure. But other than those very short, very few not so great words and scenes, I found myself cracking up just like when I was a kid. My wife wasn't laughing as hard as me, but she did say it was funny. She was also very clued in to why I loved, and still love, this movie so much.

I'm not here to talk about the movie. I love it, as I said. I want to talk a bit about Chris Farley. Farley was a comedy legend. He was one of the greatest "SNL" actors ever. He owned the comedies he starred in in the 90's. He was lightning in a bottle. He was this physical mastermind who also happened to be extremely hilarious. Farley had it all. And as a young teen, that was exactly what I wanted when I watched comedy. Farley was pretty much my entryway to comedy. I did not start to really dig deep into comedy until I discovered Farley. He was a gateway drug for me.

Unfortunately, he also lived his life way too hard. He died way too young. He could have done so much more in his life. But drugs are bad and addictive. He relapsed a ton. He did not take care of himself at all. He lived too fast and died much too young. He truly lived like his idol, John Belushi, to the fullest extent. Which is a bummer.

Watching him in "Tommy Boy" was amazing. When he did cartwheels after passing his test I was amazed at how athletic he was, but I was also cracking up. Seeing him lead this comedy was incredible. He was a force of nature. But he also handled the very minor dramatic moments really well in the movie. He had range. The same could be said for some of his other movies. He was amazing in "Coneheads". He had a very small role, but it was memorable. "Beverly Hills Ninja" would be unwatchable with any other actor in the lead role. The movie is not good, at all, but Farley is good in it. He makes it watchable. I saw it in the theaters simply because of Farley. He has some of the most quotable and memorable lines from "Billy Madison". He is so awesome as the bus driver. After doing "Tommy Boy", he and David Spade teamed up again for "Black Sheep". I saw that movie almost as much as "Tommy Boy". It is like an unauthorized sequel, and it is a decent movie. Farley, again, totally carries the movie. The scene at the Rock the Vote festival is one of the funniest things I have seen in a movie in quite some time. And his role in "Dirty Work" is so god damn cool. He is in full Farley mode, and it rules. And of course we have "SNL". He was, as I said before, one of the best actors that show has ever seen. His work on "SNL" is, for me at least, the best and most memorable of all time. From the GAP workers, to the Chippendales skit, to his talk show, to jumping in the cage at the zoo, to Matt Foley, and so many more I cannot think of right now, he was simply the best. The physicality was second to none. His timing was impeccable. He was made for live TV. He lived in the moment, and when it was his time, he seized on it. He was amazing.

I really miss Chris Farley. He was one of my favorite actors of all time. Watching him in "Tommy Boy" last week has me wanting to revisit a bunch of his other work. I have rewatched some of his "SNL" skits since Friday. I plan on watching "Black Sheep" soon. I want to see "Beverly Hills Ninja" again just to see if he still carries it like he did so many years ago. Farley was an amazing talent who lived his life much too hard. I highly recommend everyone go and check his stuff out if you haven't, or if you just want to revisit it. Farley was a once in a lifetime talent. I really, really miss him.

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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January 19, 2021

Better Late Than Never on the Great Movie "A Futile and Stupid Gesture"

January 19, 2021/ Ty

This past weekend I sat down and watched "A Futile and Stupid Gesture". This movie has been on my list since it came out in late 2018, but I just never got around to it. Other stuff came up, other shows were on, I forgot about it and then this past weekend, I noticed it was still streaming, and I just happened to have two spare hours. So, I finally watched it.

I am bummed it took me so long to watch this great movie. This one is totally on me. I should have watched it in 2018 because I really, really enjoyed this movie. For those that may not know, "A Futile and Stupid Gesture" is about the creation of the National Lampoon magazine, and the people who helped create it. And for those that may not know what National Lampoon is or was, it was a parody magazine, and then it became a movie making studio, creating "Animal House" and "Caddyshack" along the way. The leads, Domhall Gleeson as Henry Beard, and Will Forte as Doug Kenney, were great. Gleeson was very monotone and gave one word answers and never really changed his facial expression. He also happened to be extremely funny, and knew how to run a business. Forte, who I am a big time fan of, was perfectly cast as the wild and crazy and equally hilarious Kenney. Doug Kenney was the idea man, who would go for it no matter how many people told him no. He never quit. He was also heavily into drugs, was not the greatest husband at all and went a little too nuts sometimes. But hey, he co created National Lampoon, and he wrote both "Animal House" and "Caddyshack". He gave us two of the greatest comedies of all time. It takes a little crazy to pull that off. "A Futile and Stupid Gesture" is Kenney's story too. This is a dramatized autobiography of his life, that he personally cut short. This movie gave Forte a chance to shine, and he totally nailed it. As I said, he was perfectly cast, and for someone so self centered and egotistical, I rooted for him at times, and was saddened by the end. Forte brought that to this movie.

While Gleeson, and more so, Forte really shined, the rest of the cast was awesome. Thomas Lennon as Michale O'Donoghue was almost as perfect as Forte. He was rude, crude and crazy. Natasha Lyonne as Anne Beats, especially in her intro scene, was stupendous. Matt Lucas, you all may know him as Rebel Wilson's writing partner, was great as Tony Hendra, the English comic who had to leave Ed Sullivan because it wasn't edgy enough for him. Neil Casey was excellent as the weird and crazy and odd, but also hilarious, Brian McConnachie. Ed Helms popped us as Tom Snyder in a hilarious scene. And all the people they got to play the really famous people, the people who did the radio show, and then ended up on "SNL", were great. They were cast as to not look like the people they portrayed either. Jackie Tohn was Gilda Radner, Jon Daly was Bill Murray, Seth Green was Chris Guest, John Gemberling portrayed John Belushi, Rick Glassman was Harold Ramis and Joel McHale totally knocked it out of the park as Chevy Chase. None may have looked like the people they played, but boy did they crush everything else. Gemberling did a great Belushi when Belushi did Joe Cocker. I already mentioned McHale's performance. Tohn was as funny as I imagine Radner was. Daly did some excellent imitations of Murray on the "Caddyshack" set. And Glassman as Ramis was pitch perfect. That was one of the many things I loved about this movie, was the talk of all the very famous, very important comedy people that got their start at National Lampoon. It helped that I just read a book on "SNL", and watched the "BELUSHI" doc on Showtime because all this is fresh in my mind, but I think the way they showed it would help someone new to this.

While this is a very funny movie about very funny people, there is heavy stuff. Kenney was not a good husband, and this movie shows that. He wasn't a great friend either. He also made life hard for a lot of people that counted on him. He constantly lived in his brother's shadow, even though his brother passed when he was a kid. His parents were tough on him. And, spoiler alert, although it is common knowledge among comedy fans, Kenney did die young. Some say suicide, others say to was an accident caused by too many drugs. Glassman as Ramis said it best at the funeral, and supposedly this was a true statement, when asked how he thought he died, he said, "he probably fell while looking for a place to jump". That was a pretty telling statement coming from Ramis. It kind of perfectly encapsulates his life.

I highly recommend fans of comedy definitely check out this movie, but I also think it could pull in some outside fans. I think people that like decent biopics will enjoy it. People who like Foret will love. And people who lived in that generation will most likely have a good time with it. I know I loved it, and I think you will too. Give it a shot if you haven't already, if only for Forte's performance.

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

December 05, 2020

SeedSing Classic: Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Music: Day 5 - I Wish it was Christmas Today

December 05, 2020/ RD Kulik

ed note: This article was originally published on December 5th, 2015

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we are looking back at the great holiday music, movies, television episodes, and food of this great season. Enjoy

Day 5: "I Wish it Was Christmas Today" by Julian Casablancas

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four

The conventional wisdom tells us that the winter holiday shopping season peaks on Black Friday. Once the day after Thanksgiving doorbusters are exhausted, the general public falls into a slower holiday shopping pattern. I disagree with this theory. Black Friday does have a large mob of people looking to score off brand electronics for ultra low prices, but the majority of sane people save their holiday shopping for after the mayhem. The first weekend of December is when the holiday shopping season really kicks into high gear. This is when the Christmas spirit starts its full invasion into our culture.

"I Wish it Was Christmas Today" started out as a simple SNL sketch featuring Horatio Sanz seemingly playing a novelty guitar and singing, Chris Kattan head turning and holding a very large keyboard, Jimmy Fallon providing backing vocals and very rarely playing the keyboard, and lastly Tracy Morgan awesomely dancing in place. Every few years the quartet would add a few lyrics, but the singing and dancing remained the same. Tracy Morgan is great in nearly everything he does, but I do think this is the funniest skit that Sanz, Fallon, and Kattan have ever done. Every year I would look forward to hearing "I Wish it Was Christmas Today" on SNL. The simple tune immediately put me into the holiday spirit.

In 2009 The Strokes lead singer Julian Casablancas released a cover of "I Wish it Was Christmas Today". The simplicity of the SNL version was replaced by a hyper kinetic ultra joyful new song to celebrate the holiday season. Casablancas version of the song starts at the top and never relents. For just under 4 minutes, the holiday season gets the positive excitement it so truly deserves.

Both the SNL and Casablancas versions of "I Wish it Was Christmas Today" celebrate the happiness of Christmastime. There are endless stories on the news of people complaining about the length and commercialism Christmas. Fox News invented the moronic War On Christmas to continue their agenda of splitting the country and feeding the idea of white christian victim-hood. "I Wish it Was Christmas Today" leaves all the negativity behind and says that Christmas kicks ass.

Today I will be out starting my holiday shopping. My house is decorated. my spirit is getting into high gear, and "I Wish it Was Christmas Today" will be on my playlist. The crowds at the stores, the idiots at Fox News, and all the naysayers will not dampen my holiday spirit. I love the awesomeness of the holiday season. I do't care what anybody says, I wish it was Christmas today.

RD Kulik

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing. He is hungry right now and really wishes it was Thanksgiving today. Tell us about your favorite time of year by writing for SeedSing.

December 05, 2019

SeedSing Classic: Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Music: Day 5 - I Wish it was Christmas Today

December 05, 2019/ RD Kulik

ed note: This article was originally published on December 5th, 2015

Day 5: "I Wish it Was Christmas Today" by Julian Casablancas

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four

RD Kulik

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing. He is hungry right now and really wishes it was Thanksgiving today. Tell us about your favorite time of year by writing for SeedSing.

December 05, 2016

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Music: Day 5 - I Wish it was Christmas Today

December 05, 2016/ RD Kulik

ed note: This article was originally published on December 3rd, 2015

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday song for every day of Advent. This is the greatest music of the season. Enjoy.

Day 5: "I Wish it Was Christmas Today" by Julian Casablancas

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four

RD Kulik

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing. He is hungry right now and really wishes it was Thanksgiving today. Tell us about your favorite time of year by writing for SeedSing.

December 02, 2016

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Music: Day 2-Baby It's Cold Outside

December 02, 2016/ Ty

ed note: This article was originally published on December 2nd, 2015

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday song for every day of Advent. This is the greatest music of the season. Enjoy.

Day 2: "Baby It's Cold Outside"

Opened Doors: One

Ed note: I was originally going to write about "Baby It's Cold Outside" and talk about how much I liked the song in spite of the frightening message. There are great renditions of this song always coming out, including the gender reversal version with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Lady Gaga. Ty wanted to get into the fun so he gets the floor for today,

Continuing the new countdown of holiday music, the "Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Music", I'm going to write about a very famous holiday song that has an extremely horrifying scenario proposed throughout its entirety. The song I'm speaking of is "Baby It's Cold Outside".

Everyone knows this song. It was written by Frank Loesser in 1944 and it's been performed by a lot of musicians, most notably, Dean Martin and a female chorus in 1959. Some other notable performers include Sammy Davis Jr and Carmen McRae, Ray Charles and Betty Carter, Robert Palmer and Carnie Wilson and most recently Michael Buble and Idina Menzel. This is a very famous, very popular holiday song, but as I've gotten older and listened to it more and more, it portrays a possible sexual assault.

My wife loves holiday music and I've never been that much of a fan. It's too slow and makes me tired. I also dislike the new fad of playing holiday music before Thanksgiving is over. Let Thanksgiving be its own holiday. But, I'm not going to make my wife listen to only my music, I've stated before that I have very different taste in music from my wife, so it's easier to just let the holiday music play until the holiday is over. With that being said, I've heard "Baby It's Cold Outside" about ten million times in the past nine years. I've heard a lot of holiday songs, but "BICO" is the one that sticks out most to me. I originally thought it was a pretty cool tune. I never really thought about the song, but the more I heard it, the more I listened and started to make out the lyrics to this song and they are disturbing.

The song opens with the lady saying, "I really can't stay" and the man responds, "But baby it's cold outside". The following lyrics in the first verse are as follows, with the lady singing first, then the man, "I've got to go away", "but baby it's cold outside", "the evening has been", "been hoping you'd drop in", "So very nice", " I'll hold your hand, they're just like ice". Let's break this down. Right off the bat the lady is ready to go. She's stated that she REALLY has to go. She clearly doesn't want to stay. But, the guy insists she stays by telling her it's too cold outside. The lady follows up saying she has got to go away. She is trying anything to get away from this man. The man, once again tells her it's too cold for her to leave. I imagine some creep standing in the doorway, a la Christopher Walken on the SNL skit, "The Continental". Then the lady even pays the man a compliment by saying the evening was nice, but reiterates the fact that she has to go. The man, unrelenting, tells her he will hold her hands to warm her up. In the next verse, the creepiness is ramped up. Throughout the second verse, the lady claims that her parents will worry if she's not home soon. She even claims she has to scurry. But, the man turns on the "charm" and calls her beautiful, asks her what's her hurry, proclaims he has a great fireplace, then makes her a drink. So, she starts out by telling the man that she has to leave because her folks will worry and this creep makes her a drink. This is beyond creepy now, this is sexual assault territory. In the third verse, the lady begins to worry what the neighbors will think if they see her there. The man once again hits her with the fact that it's cold and snowy outside, as if to say that the neighbors will be too preoccupied with the weather to worry about the upcoming sexual assault that most assuredly is going to occur. Then, the most messed up line of the whole song happens. The lady asks, "what's in this drink". Okay, back in the 40's that may have been cute, but in the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's 2000's and especially now, how is that anything but a roofie in that drink. He's clearly slipped her something to make her inhibitions go away.

So creepy and just wrong.

Go and listen to the Buble and Menzel version and try not to be creeped out when you hear this line. The lady follows that up with "I wish I knew how to break this spell". The guys only response, there are no cabs, her eyes look like star lights and he takes her coat and hat, complementing her hair. What a god damn creep. The lady goes on to say she ought to say no to this man, he decides to move closer. She says that she will tell people at least she tried, almost saying, she tried to get away from him, but she was drugged. The man's response, "What's the sense of hurting my pride". What an asshole. This lady wants nothing to do with him, but he cannot take a hint. The lady then says things like "I simply must go", "the answer is no", the man's reply to this, "baby it's cold outside". So what if it's cold, she can make her way home. She's said no to you multiple times now, let it go, she doesn't want your company. Later, after talking about how her parents would worry, she starts to bring up her brother, sister, aunts and uncles. This lady is really grasping at straws trying to get out of this horrible situation. The creepy guys responds with stuff like, "never such a blizzard before", "waves upon a tropical storm" and the most creepy pick up line of all, "gosh your lips look delicious". What the hell is that! Is this some frat boy that won't take no for an answer? By this point, the lady should say no means no, blow her assault whistle and call the cops because this guy has bad intentions.

Thankfully, the lady finally gets out of the situation by grabbing her coat and saying she will see this man tomorrow. He responds with by asking how could she do this to him and think of his sorrow and even telling her she will get pneumonia and die. This guy is a straight up douchebag. He is what I envision every frat boy that's even been accused of sexual assault acts and looks like. Who gives a shit about your pride and sorrow, you slipped drugs into a lady's drink to try and get laid. You're a monster.

I CANNOT believe that this is a classic holiday song. It is the Christmas version of "Blurred Lines". Next time you hear "Baby It's Cold Outside", think about how disturbing this song truly is. I cannot hear it the same anymore. The creepiness has been burned into my brain. The fact that it's still performed and beloved is astounding, especially in the new PC culture we live in. I thought the song was ok before, but now I hate it since I understand how disturbing it is.

It's frightening.

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He doesn't care how cold outside it is, if Michigan Football is on he is going home. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

September 16, 2016

Human Joke Jimmy Fallon Plays with Human Trash Donald Trump

September 16, 2016/ Ty

So today, I'm going to keep it short and angry.

I awoke this morning to the horror that was the "Jimmy Fallon Show" interview of the garbage monster Donald Trump. Right off the bat it needs to be known that I am not a Jimmy Fallon fan. I did not like him on "SNL". He broke too much. He couldn't get through a scene without laughing. I also did not like any of his characters or his impressions. He was, and always will be, a hack. I also do not think he is a leading man type actor. Hell, he'd be lucky to be a character actor, let alone a leading man. He proved how terrible of an actor he is in such movies like "Taxi" and "Fever Pitch". I know that people say that his talk show is different and better, but I don't buy it. He is too nice to everyone, and he wants to be everyone's friend. The good thing about guys like David Letterman, Stephen Colbert, Conan O'Brien, and even to a lesser extent, Jay Leno, when they had a controversial figure on, they asked tough questions, or they just flat out wouldn't have someone on that they did not like or agree with. Look at Seth Myers, he said he will not put that piece of trash Trump on his show. Where Meyers has integrity, Fallon lacks any sense of any kind of integrity.

The Trump interview last night was an absolute joke and a complete ratings grab. Fallon is clearly losing the late night audience to guys like Conan and James Corden, so what does he do, he invites that racist asshole Trump to be on his show, and it was a total puff piece. You need look no further than all the media outlets showing photos of Fallon tosselling that monster's "hair". What a piece of trash the two of them are. You'd think a young guy like Fallon would have more sense, but clearly, he doesn't.

Who is he trying to get to watch his show by having that stupid idiot Trump as a guest? If he is looking for the 18-49 viewing audience, the goal of all shows, he is shit out of luck. I know zero 18-30 year olds that support that stupid son of a bitch. There are a few 30-40 year old moronic racist assholes that support that piece of trash, but I guarantee that they are not watching Fallon because they are too busy being brain washed by Fox News. The only group in the coveted TV watching group that may have had more dumbass Trump supporters are the 41-49 year olds, but those people clearly have no souls and they only care about rich people that will make them richer. And that is exactly what this interview was, 2 rich guys laughing and having a good time like a couple of dickheads. I cannot believe that something like this was allowed to happen.

This, in my opinion, is so much worse than when that punk ass Trump hosted "SNL". "SNL" has been very, very bad for the past 5 or 6 years, so the fact that they let that douchebag host, who cares, no one was watching. But, to have that ass face on a late night talk show as a guest, what a crock. And then, to make it a puff piece, that is a straight up shame. If you are going to put a real life super villain on your late night talk show, at least give him some tough questions. Don't laugh and joke with him and play with his hair.

I'm also very curious to know how the Roots, Fallon's house band, felt about this. They are one of the most politically conscious hip hop groups of all time, and they had to sit there and watch this nonsense. I mean, Questlove and Black Thought had to be losing their minds. If it was me, I would have refused to step on the same stage as that piece of trash. That was a low, cheap and dirty move by Fallon, and his staff, to schedule that sorry excuse of a human being on their show, and then to have a laugh with him while his house band has to sit there and watch this all unfold, that's embarrassing.

I guess what I really want to say, first, screw you Jimmy Fallon, but also, this showed me everything I needed to know about your true character. You are clearly a money and ratings grubbing asshole that is afraid to ask any tough questions because you want to be the late night host that is everybody's friend. This was disgusting and a slap in the face to the people that watch your show regularly. Anyone that allows that racist, arrogant, selfish, bullish piece of shit to speak on a late night talk show deserves the ill fate that is assuredly coming their way. I hope Jimmy Fallon reads everything that is being written about him today, and I hope it makes him literally sick. That is what you deserve you punk. I did not like him before last night, and I hate him even more now after last night's atrocity. Screw you and I hope Trump knows how much of a loathesome figure he truly is, no matter how much he lets Fallon play with his stupid hair.

This was an absolute travesty.

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is not a fan of Donald Trump. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

January 21, 2016

"Serial" Season 2 Joins the Ranks of Disappointing Sequels

January 21, 2016/ Ty

Brings the good, and the boring, to your ears.

As the entire podcast listening world knows by now, season two of Serial began about 2 months ago. This season, Sarah Koenig is talking about Bowe Bergdahl. He's the soldier that was captured by the Taliban, but, others say that he is a war deserter. Opinions vary about both situations and Koenig and her podcast are trying to show both sides. One week it seems that he was legitimately captured and the next week, I change my mind and feel that he deserted the war because of the poor living conditions and war is scary as hell. I personally do not know where I fully stand yet, there's still a long way to go before they get to the bottom of this case.

The path to the bottom has gotten a whole lot longer with the news that they are switching from every week to every other week. Also, this season of Serial doesn't feel the same as the first. That first season of Serial was phenomenal, although the finale left a lot to be desired, and this season just seems to be falling flat. During the first season, I was on pins and needles before, during and after each episode. Did Adnan do it, or was it one of many other suspects? Why would a seemingly good natured high school student turn on a dime like that? Did he really have this insanity deep down in his body? Did his attorney screw him over? Was he set up by his "friends" that were interviewed? What cell phone tower picked up the calls from that night the best? I could ask about a million more questions pertaining to Adnan Syed. For the record, I do not think he did it and I feel very sorry for him that he has had to spend the majority of his life in prison for a crime I don't think he committed. His new trial can prove me wrong and I'll sound like an asshole, but I don't think he did it. My wife, on the other hand, is 100 percent convinced that he did it. She thinks he's guilty, showing no doubt in her face or voice when we talk about it. We still talk about it to this day by the way. That first season had everything. Drama, intrigue, horror, guilt, flip flopping, it was perfect. I would be scared to go to sleep some nights, just thinking about it. I also have had sleepless nights thinking about whether Adnan is guilty or not. That is the mark of good podcasting.

This season of Serial doesn't have the same allure of the first season. That's my point today. I know it's very hard to follow up something that was so big and virtually came out of nowhere, at least to my generation. "Serial" type stories have been around as long as talk radio has been around, but with my generation, this was the first "serial" story we'd really paid attention to. I also think that expectations, mine included, were way too high going into this second season. There was no way Koenig could top the first season, but I thought she had a chance. It's like a sequel to a great movie. Not every sequel will be "Terminator 2:Judgement Day" or "The Godfather: Part 2", not even close. Most sequels are more "Speed 2: Cruise Control" or "The Godfather: Part 3". They are usually much, much worse because it's so hard to recreate what the actors and director nailed the first time around. It usually backfires and I feel that's what's happening with the second season of Serial. I don't find myself waiting for the new episode every other Thursday. Now, don't get me wrong, I still listen, but it feels like homework this time around. I feel almost obligated to listen because the first season was so groundbreaking. You should never feel obligated to listen to something that you get for free. It should be fun and you should want to listen to it. Much like the first season, you should be on pins and needles waiting for the new episodes.

A deeper problem I think they're having with this season, most people, if not everyone, knows the Bowe Bergdahl story, or they know of it. That wasn't the case with Adnan Syed. I had never even heard of this story that happened in Baltimore more than a decade ago. It was great to hear her uncover new evidence and things that the police and the attorney's missed the first time round. Every week she'd peel back a new layer on the onion of this pretty much unknown story to anyone outside of the Baltimore area and it was great. Like I said before, anytime there's new news on Bergdahl, it's national news. We all find out about it the same time Sarah Koenig does. There's no intrigue or drama in that. It's no fun. She will bring some "new" news to the story and I'll sit back, listen and yell into my phone, "We all already knew that!", there is nothing that she can bring to this story that we all don't already know. I still listen because I like the way Sarah Koenig speaks. She has a very calm, perfect for NPR voice that only Cecily Strong from "SNL" can replicate. I commend her for taking on a much bigger story for the second season of Serial, but it just doesn't carry the same weight the first season did.

Hopefully for the third season, there will definitely be one, she picks a smaller story again that the entire nation doesn't already know about. This season though, has been pretty dull, at least so far.

Ty is the Pop Culture editor and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He loves great storytelling, but dislikes being bored. Ty is a great storyteller who is not boring. Find out for yourself by following him on twitter @tykulik.

November 17, 2015

Marc Maron's interview of Lorne Michaels was mostly gristle and very little steak

November 17, 2015/ Ty

Sometimes a sword, sometimes a surrender flag

Last Monday, Marc Maron finally got his white whale.

He had an interview with Lorne Michaels. Saturday Night Live has been a big obsession for Maron. He has interviewed many SNL cast members. He is always very forward with these people. He wants to know about their audition. He wants to know about fellow cast members. He wants to talk about certain hosts and musical guests. But, most importantly he wants to know about Lorne Michaels. He has so many questions about Lorne Michaels. It can get uncomfortable at times and you can hear in some of the interviewees voices that they're uncomfortable with the barrage of questions about Michaels. Sure, most of them aren't on the show anymore, but they don't want to speak ill of Michaels. In most cases, he gave them their break, and without him, they probably wouldn't have a real career.

I, for one, like when Maron pushes the envelope. I like all the questions, because I want to know too. I'm from Saint Louis and New York and SNL are like mythical beings to me. I have a real love hate relationship with SNL, and I want to know all I can. I like to hear from these people about their experience. I like knowing that SNL is a cutthroat place to work, and you have to stay on your toes if you want to keep your job. But, much like Maron himself, I want to know about Lorne Michaels. He is a mysterious show biz person and he seems to be a real hard ass. He, at least on the surface, doesn't seem like a guy that takes crap from anyone. He's a star maker and may be a career ender, if you cross him.

I've been listening to Maron's podcast since the beginning. I'm a big fan of his and I look forward to listening to his podcast every Monday and Thursday. He's gotten pretty big recently as well, the interview with President Barack Obama putting him on everybody's map. I weirdly looked forward to this interview as much as I did the Presidents. As I stated before, I love SNL and I was very interested to see how hard Maron would come at Lorne Michaels. Maron has had a bone to pick since he wasn't picked to be on the show when he auditioned back in the 90's. He's brought this up a lot, so when I saw that Lorne Michaels was going to be on last Monday, I figured he would press him hard on this, and a lot of other things. The fact he wasn't picked for SNL has always been a big bone of contention for him. I figured, finally, some closure.

Then, I listened to the interview. It was fine. Maron asked some questions and Lorne Michaels answered in kind. But, the questions were softballs in my opinion. He just kind of lobbed some stuff to Michaels and he answered very predictably. It kind of felt like Maron was told by Michaels people that he could only ask certain questions, and to not push him too hard on the tough questions. The interview was like an appetizer. It was good, but not filling. We just got the tip of the iceberg. This was a two hour interview also, so the fact that nothing was pressed on Michaels, in two hours, left me disappointed. When Maron did ask about his audition and the process of not being selected, Michaels gave a very typical answer. He told Maron that "his voice wasn't right for the show". Yeah, no duh Lorne Michaels. Maron is a foul mouthed comedian. He is filthier than Norm Macdonald on his filthiest day. Maron assumed that he would be a Weekend Update guy, and while that fits his identity, his style isn't a good fit at SNL. We all already knew this. This was no revelation.

After they settled Maron being passed over, the rest of the interview was very blasé. It was like a pat on the back session after that. Lorne Michaels praised Maron's comic voice and what he's done with the podcast medium. I say again, we all know what he's done. They talked about doing an internet show before the internet was popular. Not that big a deal. Maron never really asked any really tough questions. When it comes to Lorne Michaels, he couldn't have been more congratulatory of himself. He gave himself the credit for young generations wanting to be on TV and do comedy. He credited himself for making Jimmy Fallon a late night star, something which makes me angry because I cannot stand Jimmy Fallon. He said that he's never forced anyone out of SNL, and that he's still friends with "pretty much everybody". He couldn't have been more pleased with himself. I understand what he's done for late night TV, and how big he made SNL, but show some humility. He claimed that while he wasn't the guy in charge for 5 years, he never watched the show. I believe that, because he comes off as arrogant, so why would he watch something he had nothing to do with?

I guess, overall, I was just disappointed with the interview. It left so much to be desired. And even at the end, when Maron does his usual sign off, he said he got closure. I don't know, because as a listener, I felt like he could've gotten so much more out of this once in a lifetime interview. My excitement was dashed pretty early on in this WTF episode, but not all of them can be winners. I think even Marc Maron would agree with me about this. I should also temper my expectations because, not every interview is going to be President Obama's interview. I love WTF and I'm a big Marc Maron fan, but this episode just left me wanting more.

Oh well, this Monday he has Harry Potter himself, Daniel Radcliffe on. Hopefully, this one will be better.

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He figures Lorne Michaels should have more humility after the Donald Trump SNL appearance last week. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

September 17, 2015

The Great Characters of "Key and Peele" Will Be Missed

September 17, 2015/ Ty

Toss out the tv, there is nothing good on anymore

Last week one of the greatest sketch comedy shows on TV aired their final episode.

"Key and Peele" has their series finale last Wednesday. I know I'm a week late, but I needed this time to reflect on what made "Key and Peele" so great. This show came out of nowhere to me. I knew of Keegan Michael Key and Jordan Peele from their appearances on "MadTV". They were the only ones on that show that left an impression on me. I'm a SNL fan, so "MadTV" was, basically, a joke to me. It came and went, and people may say, look at Will Sasso he's been mildly successful, or look at, I've already run out of names after one person. Keegan Michael Key and Jordan Peele came later, and they were the only memorable ones on the show. When I heard, three years ago, that they were working on a sketch show for Comedy Central, I was excited. I like both of them, and they each would pop up in movies or shows every once in a while, but the fact that they were getting their own show, had me intrigued.

The first season of the show was just as great as I hoped it would be. In the first sketch of the first season, they put out one of the most quotable and memorable skits that lasted all the way through the five seasons, coming to an end in the final episode. Two husbands were hanging out, with their wives in other rooms, and they were complaining about their significant others. They would get to the end of the complaint, lean in and whisper, "I said biiiiiiitch", and each of the guys would congratulate the other one for standing up to his wife. But, when the wives would enter the room, both men would tense up and say, "we aren't talking about anything". It's one of, if not their most, memorable sketches. Through all the seasons we were also introduced to recurring characters like Wendell, Luther(Barack Obama's anger translator), Andre and Meegan, substitute teacher Mr. Garvey, the East/West Shrine Bowl players(some of the funniest names I've ever heard), MC Mom and many, many other hilarious characters. Wendell, played by Jordan Peele, was a nerdy, loner that would order a pizza, or go to a sex addicts group and make up wild stories. He would always claim to have way more friends than he actually had, his friends were his action figures, and his stories got larger and less true as they went on. Barack Obama's anger translator, Luther, was one of the best characters on sketch TV of all time. Keegan Michael Key played Luther, and Jordan Peele would do his spot on Obama impression, and when Obama spoke, Luther translated every word into a super loud, very angry speech. In the final season we even got a Hilary Clinton anger translator to argue with Luther. It was very funny. Luther was such a popular character, he actually spoke at one of Obama's recent speeches. It was great. Andre(Key) and Meegan(Peele) were your typical mid twenties, douchey couple. Andre was a total pushover, dressed head to toe in gaudy Ed Hardy gear, and he would literally follow Meegan to the ends of the Earth. Meegan was the epitome of a bitchy, over privileged, snotty twenty something year old. Her high pitched tone and the way she treated people was so grating, that everyone who came in contact with her hated her, except for Andre. They almost broke up in the final episode, but Meegan tricked Andre into staying together. The East/West Shrine players had some of the funniest, most ridiculous names I've ever heard. Key and Peele's portrayal of these players were spot on. Some of the names included Hingle McCringleberry or X Wing @aliciousness, just absolutely absurd. Some rumors were, they got the idea for this recurring sketch when they heard there were real players named D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. Those are real football players, with Clinton-Dix actually appearing in one of the East/West sketches. MC Mom seemed to be almost a throw away character, but the further she got into her rap, the better the sketch became. This portrayal by Peele was phenomenal and it brought back one of "Key and Peele" most famous catchphrases, "Put the Pussy on the Chainwax!". Fans of the show know exactly what I'm saying with that catchphrase. Substitute teacher Mr. Garvey was the best recurring character on this show. Played to perfection by Keegan Michael Key, Mr. Garvey had an anger that only a substitute teacher could have, and he pronounced all the students names wrong. For example, Aaron was pronounced A a ron or Denise was pronounced De Nice. It is such a funny, yet at the same time, true sketch for all of us who've ever had a substitute. There's so many more excellent characters that they both played, but these are my favorites.

When the show premiered, they used to do it in front of a studio audience, a la "Chapelle's Show" and I really liked that. In the third season, they switched to the two of them driving in a car on a long stretch of road with the desert to each side of them. I was frustrated at first, but as it went on, some of the funniest moments were produced between the two of them simply talking to each other. In the long run, it was clearly a set up to end their very first sketch, the "I said biiiiiiitch" sketch, and it totally paid off.

Both of these guys will continue to work because they're so talented and I'm glad that Comedy Central gave them a platform so more people could find out how funny they are. The two of them wrote a movie that will be filmed soon, and both are working in TV and movies very consistently now. I will miss you "Key and Peele".Wednesday nights will not be the same without you, but you ended the show at the right time for yourselves and it was a very pleasing ending to fans like me. Thanks for the three plus years and five seasons of some of the most hilarious sketch comedy I've ever seen.

You guys definitely put the pussy on the chainwax.

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the co-host of the X Millennial Man podcast. With all of his shows ending, what will he watch next? Supergirl? Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

May 29, 2015

Before you watch Tracy Morgan on Today, Ty remembers what made him so damn funny

May 29, 2015/ Ty

Tracy Morgan is a personal comedy idol of mine

This coming Monday, June 1st, I want all fans of comedy, especially my generation(millennials) to tune in to the Today Show and watch Matt Lauer's interview with the great Tracy Morgan. This will be his first interview since the horrific accident with a WalMart semi truck nearly a year ago. In fact, the first stand up show I saw was Tracy Morgan at the Saint Louis Funny Bone. I feel like a lot of people have forgotten how hilarious a sketch performer and comedic actor he is. He was a phenomenal cast member on Saturday Night Live with such memorable characters as Brian Fellows, Astronaut Jones and who could forget his great portrayal of Star Jones(quintessential line, "Yes, I am a lawyer" starting every sentence of the character). He was revitalized with his role as Tracy Jordan on 30 Rock. He's also criminally underrated as an actor. He's the only one worth watching in a crappy movie like "Cop Out" and his scenes in the fantastic Chris Rock movie "Top Five" are some of the best comedic parts in a very funny movie. The fact that this accident happened was a terrible thing. Amongst the many reasons why it was so awful was, he was in development with FX for a TV series that for all intents and purposes seemed to be on the fast track to hilarity.

I don't think Tracy Morgan gets the credit he so achingly deserves. He's so very, very funny. So, do me and yourself a favor and tune in, as I will be doing, or DVR the interview with Matt Lauer and sit back and enjoy the mere fact that, at the very least, Tracy Morgan is on his way back. Let's just hope his full recovery comes sooner rather than later because the world needs some more hilarity from the great and very underrated Tracy Morgan.

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for Seed Sing. Give him a follow on twitter @tykulik

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