Low Culture Boil

Amber and Rax (btw love how we write these in the 3rd person like we have a fancy producer, it's just us) anyway, Amber and Rax (definitely not us) talked about the Goosebumps books series and it's superstar author R.L. Stine. The series is known for getting boys into reading, and being despised by adults and critics, which is how you knew it was cool. Listener beware, you're in for a scare, not really, just some fun facts and opinions on children's books. Amber got most of the information in today's pod from this book! What’s So Scary About R. L. Stine (Patrick Stones, 1998)   Also some good stuff in these articles and interviews: Proposed Goosebumps Ban is Misguided (Coney Kingrey, Biz Journals, 1997)   Giving 11 Year Olds Nightmares Since 1992 (Katy Waldman, Slate, 2012)   R.L. Stine Explains How He Managed to Publish One Goosebumps Book a Month (Ryan Buxton, Huffington Post, 2014) ‘I Never Wanted To Be Scary’: An Interview With R L Stine (Chris Plante, The Verge, 2015)   R.L. Stine’s Top 13 Writing Tips (Bobby Powers, Writing Cooperative, 2021)

Rax and Amber sort of can't believe they've never talked about Goop before, so here it is! Tune in to learn about some of Goop's most insane recommendations, among other things.

In this ep Amber and Rax talk about the video rental store that killed all other video rental stores, Blockbuster. We look back now with nostalgia at the time when we went to a physical Blockbuster before it was ruined by Netflix, but we forget that they were once the bad guy taking out independent video rental stores. We forget that Netflix was once the new kid on the block taking down big bad Blockbuster and their late fees. So the question is, now that Netflix is the big bad guy, who's going to take them out? Maybe it will be NPC tiktoks streamers? Probably not that, but something new will come and Netflix needs to remember that history repeats itself. Oh, for all you article heads, here are the pieces we referenced: Viral TikTok NPC Streamer Pinkydoll Doesn’t Care What You Think (Samantha Coke, Motherboard, July 17 2023) https://www.vice.com/en/article/4a3ny9/viral-tiktok-npc-streamer-pinkydoll-doesnt-care-what-you-think Why Hit Movies AreCalled Blockbusters (Olivia B Waxman, Time Magazine, 2020) https://time.com/5776406/blockbuster-meaning/ Blockbuster: The Rise and Fall of the Movie Rental Store and What Happened to the Brand (Frank Olito and Alex Bitter, Business Insider, April 24 2023) https://www.businessinsider.com/rise-and-fall-of-blockbuster?amp Is Blockbuster Video About To Make A Comeback? (Stuart Heritage, The Guardian Mar 23 2023) https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/mar/23/is-blockbuster-video-about-to-make-a-comeback        

We're baaaaaack! Amber and Rax catch up after a much needed break and chat about the most American foods they can think of. First they chat about the food of the gods, ambrosia salad, you might know it as green stuff or even watergate salad. How did we start mixing cool whip with fruit and coconut and why is it so gooood?! We also chat about micorwave cooking for singles, equally American. Rax wrote a piece for slate where she cooked a holiday meal in the microwave and learned the magic of how to adjust the levels. And for you article heads here are the pieces we read for to learn about fluff salad: Claudia McNeilly, Why ambrosia salad is the forgotten holiday dish that deserves our attention, National Post  Jenny McGruther, Fresh Ambrosia Salad, Nourished Kitchen  Mrs. Barringer (no first name), Dixie Cookery or How I Managed My Table For 12 Years Ellen Gutoskey, Jell-O Journalism: Investigating the Origins of Watergate Salad, Mental Floss 

Rax and Sean KB of the Antifada host another episode of Sean and Rax's Movie Corner Or Whatever We Decide To Call It, this time about the History Channel's flagship reality TV program "Alone."

In today's installment of Sean And Rax's Movie Corner Or Whatever We Decide To Call It, Rax talks to the Antifada's Sean KB about every media goober's favorite prestige dramedy, Succession! Plus, an announcement!

Amber made Rax watch one of the worst movies of all time, Mac and Me and she was not happy about it. So Amber told her the story of how this product placement ET rip off was made. Brought to you by the same producer as Karate Kid! It was supposed to be for the children, it ended up being for nobody but Paul Rudd.

Rax and Amber dive into the insane history of America's favorite blonde with the help of M. Lord's Forever Barbie: The Unauthorized Biography of a Real Doll. If you've ever wondered whether there's a real psychopathic reason that Barbie doesn't have nipples, tune in!

Amber & Rax did a special video episode to talk about the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards. They both agree there should be more slaps and less beige carpet at The Oscars. They also talk about the history of the awards ceremony and how it was made to keep Hollywood talent from unionizing. Check out the youtube video here!

Rax talks to Amber about the classic 90s TV show, Unsolved Mysteries, which is basically Rescue 911 minus the rescue. They solved all the mysteries, the husband did it. Well, they didn't solve the UFO ones, still waiting for the government on that. Around here we like our mysteries solved and our FOs identified. Get on it, government! They also talk about the true crime genre and how they are not pivoting but probably should.