09.10.2023 LET'S GET PHYSICAL!!! With TOM SAWYER!
MONSTER PARTY GOES ON A TACTILE TIRADE!
JAMES GONIS, SHAWN SHERIDAN, LARRY STROTHE, and MATT WEINHOLD, make their case for what is clearly the most reliable way to get, and keep, your favorite movies and TV shows! When it comes to media, MONSTER PARTY says... LET'S GET PHYSICAL!!!
In this episode, MONSTER PARTY salutes physical media in all its forms. We're look at the early days of 8mm, Super 8 films, and 16mm films, the Betamax vs. VHS war, the birthof bonus supplements with the introduction of the laserdisc, the incredibly brief run of the stylus based videodisc, the DVD and Blu-ray revolution, the selective appeal of home 3-D, and try to answer the question, "To 4K or not to 4K?" And if that were not enough white-hot format talk for you, we even sing the praises of the Viewmaster, and it's predecessors, the Stereoscope and Stereoopticon!
Joining us for this audio innoculation for "streamingitis" is not only an expert on the subject of phsical media, but a man who is nothing short of showbiz nobility. He's a comedy club trailblazer who owned and operated the legendary, Cobb's Comedy Club (featured in the award-winning documentary, The Comedy Club) and helped guide the careers of many of a comedy star. If that were not enough, he's also a quite talented voice artist, actor, and improviser, as well. Making his MONSTER PARTY debut, please welcome... TOM SAWYER!
IF YOU'RE LIKE US AND WANT TO BE BURIED IN VHS CLAMSHELL-SHAPED COFFIN, THIS IS AN EPISODE YOU CANNOT MISS!
Guest(s)
Tom Sawyer:
Follow Tom: Tom Sawyer Voices I Voice-Over Actor I Home
Key Topics Discussed
The Evolution of Home Viewing Formats: The hosts and their guest trace the lineage of physical media formats, journeying from the early days of View-Masters, 8mm, and Super 8 projectors, through the VHS vs. Beta format wars, all the way up to LaserDisc, DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K.
The Tangible Magic of Collecting: A deep dive into why holding a physical movie or album—whether it's an oversized VHS clamshell, a heavy box set, or a textured vinyl cover—creates a nostalgic and emotional connection that streaming or digital downloads simply cannot replicate.
The Wild West of Bootlegs and Conventions: The group shares memories of hunting down rare, unreleased, or international cuts of genre films at local conventions, including stories about the unforgettable, eccentric vendors who supplied these underground physical media treasures.
Format Flaws and Recording Mishaps: A humorous look at the downsides of vintage media, including the struggles of terrible tape speeds (like EP mode), the childhood horror of accidentally recording over important family audio tapes to capture TV broadcasts, and the financial pain of constantly upgrading a collection.
Drive-In Theaters and Uncut Broadcasts: The crew reminisces about the formative experiences of watching classic sci-fi and horror movies at the drive-in—complete with terrible window speakers and distracting sibling dynamics—as well as the shock of catching unexpectedly unedited films on local television stations.
TIMESTAMPS
00:02:53 - Introducing comedy club trailblazer, actor, and voiceover artist Tom Sawyer
00:10:30 - The industry shift from expensive video rentals to affordable VHS sell-throughs
00:14:54 - The hosts discuss their prized autographed VHS tapes
00:20:11 - Nostalgia for the sheer size and weight of vintage VHS clamshell cases
00:26:38 - Matt's childhood fail: recording a horror movie over his father's recordings
00:30:12 - Revisiting the revelation that James has never watched an episode of Star Trek
00:35:14 - Sourcing bootlegs at conventions and the legend of the lovable vendor Raven White
00:42:32 - The 3D magic and beautiful puppet dioramas of vintage View-Masters
00:49:23 - Matt's deep appreciation for 16mm films and the mechanical sound of physical projectors
00:54:19 - The financial pain of format upgrades and the realization of dropping $7,500 on LaserDiscs
01:00:35 - Post-apocalyptic fears of streaming failures and the importance of true physical media ownership
01:05:54 - The great collector debate: letting toys breathe versus Larry's mint-in-package obsession
01:13:38 - The exhaustion of constant format upgrades and buying the same movie multiple times
01:19:31 - Miserable childhood drive-in memories, complete with burned popcorn and terrible car speakers
01:21:52 - Sneaking into R-rated movies, uncut television broadcasts, and the trauma of accidental drive-in nudity
Resources/Links Mentioned
Films
I Was a Teenage Frankenstein: Projected onto a closet door from a friend's Super 8.
The Poseidon Adventure: Remembered as an 8-minute condensed Super 8 reel.
Planet of the Apes: Another movie that got the condensed Super 8 treatment.
Star Wars: Watched as an 18-minute Super 8 for stoner friends, the cause of the "Episode IV" VHS argument, and Tom's sealed LaserDisc.
Logan's Run: Mentioned as an 18-minute Super 8 release.
Alien: Another 18-minute Super 8, later praised for its incredible physical media documentaries.
The Empire Strikes Back: The 24-minute Super 8 film run through a stereo system.
The Towering Inferno: Recalled as a time when owning a VHS cost between $80 and $125.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan: The movie Paramount experimented with by selling it for $29.95.
Night of the Living Dead: Finding it as a $9.99 tape.
Attack of the Killer Shrews / The Killer Shrews: A cheap tape, and later the co-feature on the new Film Masters Blu-ray.
The Skull: The Peter Cushing tape ruined by being recorded on "EP" watercolor speed.
Godzilla vs. Megalon: Kept entirely because of the misleading World Trade Center cover.
Luna: Tom's go-to Jill Clayburgh party movie.
The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms: The prized VHS autographed by Ray Harryhausen.
This Island Earth: The prized VHS signed by Rex Reason.
The Thing (John Carpenter's): The high-dollar VHS auction, its superior practical effects, and the pristine 4K release.
Jaws: The heavy LaserDisc box set with the groundbreaking documentary.
1941: The Universal LaserDisc that included an isolated score.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial: A prestige Spielberg LaserDisc box set.
The Godfather (and Part II): The rare 3-tape VHS that edited the films in chronological order.
The Godfather Part III: Briefly mentioned to agree that nobody likes it.
Tales from the Crypt (1972): Remembered for coming in a giant VHS clamshell box.
Willard: Tucked in the back as another giant clamshell box.
The Zombies of Mora Tau: The movie Matt accidentally recorded over his dad's recordings to get.
Piranha: Essential Roger Corman drive-in viewing.
Starship Troopers: Joking about actors who just show up to get killed by a monster.
The Stranglers of Bombay: Buying the shittiest bootleg copy just to finally see it.
The War of the Gargantuas: Raven White's bootleg tape that ended weirdly.
Godzilla 1985: Roger Corman's 90s release.
Godzilla vs. Biollante: Picked up by HBO.
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah: The amazing subtitled bootleg VHS found in a Sawtelle video store.
Shogun Assassin / Lone Wolf and Cub: Brought up to ask if Godzilla movies ever did mashup edits.
Godzilla's Revenge: Reusing special effects footage to manage costs.
The Flintstones: Mentioned alongside surviving 3D View-Master puppets.
The Jungle Book: Another original View-Master puppets.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: A beautiful, surreal View-Master reel.
Deep Throat: A quick View-Master joke by James.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind: A later View-Master reel in Tom's collection.
The Wolf Man: A Reader's Digest 8mm version advertised in Famous Monsters.
The Deadly Mantis: Matt's condensed 16mm sound reel.
The Abominable Dr. Phibes / Dr. Phibes Rises Again: Creating a fear of 16mm screens thanks to a hidden assistant.
Oppenheimer: The magic of seeing a 70mm print at the Alamo Drafthouse.
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: Another great 70mm theater experience.
Buckaroo Banzai: A pristine Blu-ray upgrade with a great cast documentary.
Police Story: Jumping the gun to buy the UK Jackie Chan box set right before the US release.
Army of Darkness: The film released on physical media about 87 different times.
Basket Case: Getting the boutique treatment with 19 hours of extras.
Dressed to Kill: Criterion adding 5 seconds of elevator footage back in.
Ferris Bueller's Day Off: The annoyance of breaking the fourth wall, and the joke prequel theory.
American Psycho: The joke fan theory about Ferris Bueller.
Dawn of the Dead: Holding onto the textured 1978 Varese Sarabande soundtrack LP.
Death Race 2000: A three-week drive-in run featuring points for running people over.
One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing: A boring Disney drive-in movie.
The Exorcist: Catching a traumatizing glimpse of Linda Blair on the adjacent drive-in screen.
The Big Red One: An uncomfortable movie to see with a high school girlfriend's parents.
Fear No Evil: An 80s horror movie seen on a drive-in double date.
Class of 1984: "Class of 1984 is going to hell."
Papillon: Falling asleep in the back of the van at the drive-in.
Last Summer: Waking up in the van just in time for the R-rated experimental scene.
Two-Minute Warning: The family's shocking introduction to HBO's lack of commercials and sudden nudity.
Walkabout: Seeing Jenny Agutter uncut on Saturday afternoon television.
Sheena: Queen of the Jungle: Surprise PG casual nudity.
The Beastmaster: More surprise PG nudity.
The Dunwich Horror: Tame movie nudity with "never two boobs at once."
Big Bad Mama: The unexpected William Shatner sex scene.
Avatar: Not wanting to interact with the blue people in a VR movie.
The Shining: The DVD documentary shot by Stanley Kubrick's wife.
The Night of the Iguana: The next pick for the hosts' physical media movie night.
The Invitation: The upcoming Halloween movie night pick with the great ending.
The Comedy Club: Tom Sawyer's documentary.
The Outlaw Josey Wales: The inspiration for Tom's spot-on John Vernon impression.
The Driver: The intro to Tom's Bruce Dern impression.
Silent Running: Bruce Dern's emotional speech about the food having a taste.
Black Sunday: Another Bruce Dern film reference.
Murder by Decree: James Mason trying to wrestle the last pea on his plate.
The Giant Gila Monster: The upcoming Film Masters Blu-ray featuring audio commentary by the podcast crew.
Television
F Troop: Taping episodes to carefully cut out the commercials.
Fernwood 2 Night: Taping and saving all the episodes on VHS as a time capsule.
Creature Features: Shawn and Matt recording the audio of the Saturday night horror broadcasts on a tape player in Northern California.
Star Trek: James shockingly admitting he has never seen an episode, and the story of recording the opening theme song on a Radio Shack cassette recorder.
Happy Days: Memorizing the specific episode where Fonzie jumps his motorcycle.
Beavis and Butt-Head: Relying on convention bootleggers to find specific episodes that MTV wouldn't rerun.
UltraSeven: Buying a bootleg of the entire series, including the infamous banned episode featuring radiation burn monsters.
Ultraman: Mentioned briefly as the predecessor series to Ultra Seven.
Hogan's Heroes: Used as an example of a show that is perfectly fine to watch on a standard DVD and doesn't require a 4K upgrade.
Collector's Call: Matt and Larry's upcoming appearance on the MeTV series to showcase Matt's physical media collection.
Moonbase 3: The obscure 1970s British sci-fi series brought up to highlight Ralph Bates doing a Russian accent.
Books, Comics, etc.
Famous Monsters Magazine: Mentioned as the publication where the hosts would look in the back pages at the ads to order condensed, "Reader's Digest" 8mm or Super 8 versions of classic monster movies.
