TV Guidance Counselor

June 20 -26, 2004 Today Ken welcomes magician, comedian and master pickpocket Ben Seidman to the show. Ken and Ben discuss dogs, weird relationships with TV, learning magic, what TV Guide has in common with Playboy, Ken's time in the UK, growing up in Milwaukee, Mid-west eyes, Butter Burgers, being an only child, central time, being an indoor kid, Prince, how practice makes friendless, martial arts, Making Believe, Krystyn Lambert, Boston bullies, Myq Kaplan, David Blaine, David Williamson, Penn & Teller, The Pendragons, Ricky Jay, David Copperfield, magic on TV, math, prank shows, developing original content, Charmed, being engaged, Paula Dean getting hit in the face with a frozen ham, Fabio's bird killing face, meat slap, Eggs and Well Being, French Bread Fencing, Survivor, Colleen Haskell, Fear Factor, twins, the 2004 Salem's Lot, The Sandlot, TV movies, The Prestige vs. The Illusionist, Doug Henning, Totally Hidden Extreme Magic, Scare Tactics, Ken's hatred of Pulp Fiction, Guy Pierce's Ultimate Guide to Tigers, This Old House, Scrubs, Graham Norton, Jacob's Ladder, Seinfeld, Joan of Arcadia, Comedy Central Presents, Mario Caontone, selling out, actors in commercials, Ken's old man complaints, Penn & Teller's Magical Mystery Tour, expecting better from Charlie Sheen and limp vasectomy themes.

This week Ken welcomes Tubes' frontman Fee Waybill to the show. Ken and Fee discuss tax free New Hampshire, moving from Omaha to Arizona, horses, small town theaters, Westerns, Frances the Talking Mule, serials, Commando Cody, The Lone Ranger, Cisco Kid, James Garner Maverick, The Rifleman, Chuck Connors, Branded, Wanted Dead or Alive, Steve McQueen, SCTV, the Serious Moonlight Tour with David Bowie, Canada, Edmonton, Wayne Gretzky, Big Bucks Bob, John Candy, The Fishing Musician, sushi, Ladies and Gentlemen the Fabulous Stains, real coke dealers, The Sex Pistols, Diane Lane, improv, San Francisco, living in a ghost town, being a real cowboy, playing logs, The Red White and Blues Band, Steve Miller's equipment, Wallace and Ladmo, playing vegetables, Tom Snyder, turning down SNL, Alice Cooper, playing in the UK, golf lessons, theme songs, Have Gun Will Travel, singing mentors in High School, musicals, having long hair, meeting Rod Stewart, gameshows, and the ins and outs of polo.

This week Ken welcomes BACK to the show (after appearing on a live edition at last year's Women in Comedy festival) comedian Erin Maguire. Ken and Erin discuss Ken's odd carnival prizes, East Coast anxiety, Psychic Storefronts, Arlington mobs, lottery studio, accents, nicknames, The Winter Hill Gang, SATs, five and dime stores, Boston's WHDH kid's show "Ready to Go", New Kids on the Block, Heathcliff, The Three Stooges, Roof Kids, Scott Grimes, two gingers, Night Life, Joey McIntire, Spenser Gifts, The Meadow Glen Mall, airbrushed sweatshirts, Wild Cards, Orange Julius, citrus cankers, Papa Gino's, dangerous childhood birthday parties, carving stations, ODing on Horse Radish, make up mirrors, California Games, the KenCade, surfing, Kathy Griffin's haircut, Matthew Broderick, Bay Coven, Halloween, Space Camp, aliases, day drinking, bars, no Irish food, The Storyteller, Jim Henson, Pam Dobber, Newhart, Maddie Grimes, Moonlighting, The 'burbs, Cheers, Night Court, the best episode of Highway to Heaven, Stoogemania, Ken's African Grey, the Curly Shuffle, anxiety, exercise, cultural movements, latex, tribute acts, Zima, dropping Jolly Ranchers, Disney Monster Hits, circuses, Emma Samms' unfolding flower, and how Ken's dog Larry is a NARC for kisses.

This week Ken welcomes fellow former Boston Punk Rock kid, the fantastic musician, writer and all around entertainer Storm Large. Ken and Storm discuss being North Shore, Framingham, being shocked that Massachusetts is a Democratic state, Boston's racism and segregation, bring back "fine", 90s lingo, Bad Brains, wanting somebody to sing to you from jail, going to an all boys school, sausage forests, growing up as a punk rock kid, San Francisco, drag queens beating frat boys with platform shoes, #MeToo, depictions of rape on television, Barney Miller, Welcome Back Kotter, Mr. Belvedere, AIDS, the tonal whiplash of very special episodes, Benson, the shallow unbelievable characters of real life, The Twilight Zone, The Electric Company, being star struck by Kevin Seconds and Rita Moreno, Jabberwocky, Captain Bob, Big Black's Songs About Fucking, Stolen '68 Blue Mustang's vs. Truckers, Hubba Hubba, Vinyl, why we haven't had a great scripted show about being in a band, Dreams, California Dreams, the Freaks and Geeks Black Flag episode, Hardcore Logo, X, realizing at 23 you should be in a band, meeting Henry Rollins, fanning out at celebrities, Dennis Rodman, stumble on culture, The Damned, The Young Ones, stand up comedy, late night bookers changing your comedy set, being forced to be somebody else by industry, the power of social media and DIY culture, affectation, Rock Star Supernova, Tommy Lee, Motley Crue, Dave Navaro, being a big mouth, Mark Burnett, singing the national anthem, Jenny Jones, boxing, school shootings, Brazil, Monty Python, puppet masters, faith in humanity, the importance of empathy, Toast of London, Clem Fandango, live experiences, Bill Cosby, loving Richard Pryor's comedy albums, bloopers records, Pam Grier, the privilege we experienced not being shot by cops, the great social awakening, Hail Hail Rock n Roll, David Cronenberg's The Brood, looking within, being bummed out by Taxi, how many licks it actually takes to get the center of a Tootsie Pop and becoming the Queen of Frogger.

This week Ken welcomes singer/songwriter Nellie McKay to the show. Ken and Nellie discuss dogs, growing up in Harlem, warming yourself by the TV when the heating is turned off, David Letterman, subversive art, Conan O'Brien, Ferguson, the cutting edge on the internet, The Jimmy Dore Show, when comedy becomes the gatekeeper of the status quo, corporate overlords, Jimmy Fallon: Comedy Eunuch, Joan Rivers, leaning into viral content, cool music on TV, COPS, not watching TV shows about New York when you are actually IN New York, Catwoman, Batman '66, Eartha Kitt, Julie Newmar's cheese, your music being used in television, representation on TV, how money can corrupt, morality and humanity in art, the Telecommunications Act of 1996, State TV, fake news, commercials, reflective TV vs. aspiration TV, Roseanne, the conflict of entertaining and informing, Malcolm X's friendship with Red Foxx, the DIY Dream come to life, the comfort of money, lottery winners, accents, culture wars, Cheers, The Friends of Eddie Coyle, sports culture, Up the Down Staircase, homelessness, poverty, the wonder of old movies, William Shatner's music career, contrived popstars, Margaret Thatcher's self loathing, and everyone's grandmother's love of TV Guide crosswords.

Today Ken welcomes screenwriter, director and actor Guinevere Turner to the show. Ken and Guinevere discuss growing up in the Lyman Family, Ryan Walsh's Astral Weeks, Mel Lyman's Lords List of movies, not being allowed to watch TV, being obsessed with Dallas, The Twilight Zone, being the keeper of the commercial clicker, The Three Stooges, M*A*S*H, refusing to acknowledge Daylight Savings, getting TV Guide, Go Fish, making a movie for lesbians, falling in love with Kermit the Frog, Charles Manson, Bettie Paige, the 90s obsession with serial killer before it went mainstream, American Psycho, watching things wrong, watching E.T. every day, Hellzapoppin, how there's no context on Twitter, being scared of scary things, My Bloody Valentine, Dragnet, The Findlay's movie "Snuff", Killing Eve, Danse Macabre, On Writing, partying with Leo and ending up with his vacation photos, hating people touching you without permission on a set, sucking so much that people think you are sick, Dick Cheney's heart, finding the humanity in a monster, why "Stone Cold" is the single greatest action movie of all time, short actors, Preaching to the Perverted, being in pain due to wardrobe, getting mistaken for Parker Posey, MTV, screenplays, and being the queen of darkness.

Today Ken welcomes actor, producer, director and all around talent Toy Newkirk to the show. Ken and Toy discuss the Hollywood Hills, growing up a tomboy, donut families, Fonzie's swimming hole, the 1970s, the golden age of porn valley, not being allowed to watch TV, growing up with the Zappas, from Maryland to California, being an engineer, being a kid on sets, curiosity, throwing dirt at a commercial director, riding horses, ice skating, going on vacation with Kim Fields, auditioning for everything, the Hollywood African american support circle, being a tech geek, learning all the jobs on a set, MeToo moments, being a P.A., working your way up through the business, standing up for yourself, building your reputation, being a supervising producer, working for MTV, Room Raiders, working on the Howard Stern show on E!, having to deal with Trump producing a beauty pageant, seeing Obama speak, dealing with siblings who have passed away, feeling obligated to be the keeper of somebody's legacy, Nightmare on Elm St 4, representing the under-represented on screen, doing conventions, 227, celebrating fandom, having to be "on" all weekend, having a diverse crew, people helping people who remind them of themselves, moving to New York the week of 9/11, the feeling of community, finding the heart in a character, how great Michael Chiklis is, how great the current generation of crew is, breaking the norms, Hulu, loving movies, and having "Friends".

January 22-29, 1977 Today Ken welcomes comedian, podcaster and dork forest ranger Jackie Kashian to the show. Ken and Jackie discuss welcoming yourself to you, SCTV, Roots, having a liberal stepmother, bedtimes, Wonder Woman, Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, decoding the Hallmark Christmas movies, Marvel Team-Up, Spider-Man, reading weird Australian biker books, Spenser for Hire, Wisconsin, Fonzie Statues, Happy Days, weird Milwaukee-isms, WI Gangsters, Laverne and Shirley, Starksy and Hutch

January 7-13, 1989 After a long delay Ken finally welcomes comedian Mehran to the show. Ken and Mehran discuss Ken's aversion to coming into the city, murderous athletes, the Venn Diagram of Euro-trash and townies, the J. Fred Muggs Awards, Geraldo, White Supremecists, representation on television, Adam Walsh, Stranger Danger, Iran, being an anchor baby, butt tapes, HBO's America Undercover, having a big dump in your pants, waiting on Mike Tyson, Night Court, sleazy TV, Golden Girls, LA Law, Scarface, the infamous Monroe assault episode of Too Close for Comfort, Hairspray, John Waters, reclaiming JAG, Larry Sanders, Tracy Ullman, ALF, not Newharting, MeToo, Les Mooves - scumbag, recovering alcoholics, Roseanne, Moonlighting, Growing Pains, born again shills, The Cosby Show, Jasmine Guy, A Different World, feeling bad for Benny, Perfect Strangers, Full House, Andrea Martin, and cracking the code of Neptune King of the Sea.

October 22 - November 2, 1979 Today Ken welcomes actress Cathy Podewell (Dallas, Growing Pains, Night of the Demons) to the show. Ken and Cathy discuss her pre-work, Studs Terkel, Riverdale, growing up in Chicago, the coolest artifact ever brought on the show, TV Forecast, Kukla, Fran & Ollie, golden age of live TV, legacy acting families, Lady Blue, why everyone should wait tables for two weeks, the importance of empathy, Halloween, Nightmares, The Beverly Center, Eight is Enough, Charlie's Angels, Saturday Night Live, CHiPs, Earth Angel, Erik Estrada, Made for-TV Movies, Love Boat, Cindy Williams, Mark Hamill, getting to work with amazing people, being surprised by your own experiences, Spenser for Hire, Dallas, Growing Pains, being famous for TV, doing stand up for Jennifer Garner, Justine Bateman, Nielson families, Ken's dream guests, being on Oprah, Paul Reubens, still having your wedding dress from marrying J.R., kissing Brad Pitt on tape, famous hunks who are bad kissers, Night of the Demons, shared experience, return to Dallas, staying at The Biltmore while they were shooting Mad Men, The White Shadow, The Bradys, Dramas spun off from comedies, Steve Johnson, the comfort of clunky dials, The Waltons, Johnny Depp, John Malkovic stories, people who become movie stars, Christine McCormick in Night of the Demons 2, Shelley Long, being afraid of Paul Williams, the horrors of Phantom of the Paradise, how far TV goes today, getting back into acting but hating the business of the business, Chuck Jones, the Pumpkin Who Couldn't Smile, The Great Pumpkin, Real People, Salem MA, and the wonders of water skiing squirrels.