Mt. Rushmore Podcast

When you think of Florida, you probably think of the most ridiculous news story imaginable, involving skeevy people with large criminal records but a small amount of teeth doing things like almost blowing up an ICU by trying to smoke crack or biting off a man’s ear because he wouldn’t give him a cigarette. (Both true stories.) Florida is that, but also so much more. This week we discuss and debate the beautiful weirdness that makes Florida a state we love and perhaps sometimes would like to saw off the rest of the US ala Bugs Bunny. And it’s Part One of our Mix-Up Episodes. This week it’s Michael and Jeff doing the debating, while Richard feels the immense power trip of judging and tries to legally marry Jeff to his cat. SHOW NOTES 2:39 – Miami’s Art Deco (Michael’s Choice) 5:28 – “Florida Man” (Joint Choice) 12:49 – Cocoa Beach (Jeff’s Choice) 19:15 – Okefenokee Swamp (Michael’s Choice) 24:04 – Walt Disney World (Jeff’s Choice) 34:44 – “Floridada” by Animal Collective (Michael’s Choice)

This Thanksgiving, celebrate a topic which is bound to generate more consensus around the dinner table with your questionable uncle... Wait! Whose side of the family is he from now?... than a certain spray-tanned, uncouth, scumbag of a president will with the Mt. Rushmore of Guys in Drag.  From RuPaul to Divine to Dave Foley doing his best work on The Kids in the Hall while wearing a dress, we try to cover the spectrum of men who have donned a frock for entertainment. 

When’s the last time that you bought a movie soundtrack album. OK, trick question: no one buys albums anymore. But if you did, it probably wouldn’t be a soundtrack, because the movie soundtrack is a dying art. Today’s movie soundtracks are usually a collection of songs from the filmmaker’s childhood, plus whatever Rihanna or Katy Perry song didn’t get used for their last album. Basically: a mess. This week we’re looking back to when movie soundtracks mattered. All the way back to…the early 2000s? Wait, that’s almost 20 years ago? Crap, we’re old. Agree or disagree with our picks? Reach out and let us know. SHOW NOTES  6:56 – This Is Spinal Tap (Michael’s Choice) 9:32 – The Graduate (Richard’s Choice) 15:14 – Pulp Fiction (Michael’s Choice) 20:10 – Singles (Richard’s Choice) 29:22 – Trainspotting (Michael’s Choice) 34:03 – A Hard’s Days Night (Richard’s Choice) 38:37 – Rushmore (Michael’s Choice) 45:12 – The Power and the Glory (Richard’s Choice)

Some people say moderation is the key to life. Those people seem like real wet noodles. At the Mt. Rushmore Podcast, we have the self-control of a beagle puppy in a slipper factory. Why stop with “enough” of something when you can go straight on through to “making yourself physically ill?” This week we’re making a Rushmore from things that we’ve binged – from food and drinks to things that we’ve done too much. After you’re done with this week’s episode, why not check out our archives and stuff your earholes with too much podcast goodness? SHOW NOTES Podcasts (Michael’s Choice) Pat and Oscar’s Breadsticks (Richard’s Choice) Chewy Chips Ahoy Cookies (Michael’s Choice) Booze (Richard’s Choice) Netflix TV Shows (Michael’s Choice) YouTube Rabbit Holes (Richard’s Choice) Coca-Cola (Michael’s Choice) Sleep (Richard’s Choice)

The Mt. Rushmore Podcast is now boarding its non-stop flight to airport hell! World traveler and bon vivant Chris Cary is our co-pilot, as we discuss all of the ways that everyone else makes air travel just a little more awful. And remember: no food, drinks or any liquids more than 2 oz. are allowed while listening to this podcast. SHOW NOTES 1:50 - People who cut into the front of the boarding line (Richard and Michael's Pick) 9:02 - Gatecrashing/Lining Up Before Your Group (Chris' Pick) 12:52 - Holding up security (Joint Pick) 18:55 - Security/Ticketing being awful, power-hungry people (Richard and Michael's Pick) 23:43 - Harassing gate agents (Chris' Pick) 27:15 - Person who watches videos at full volume without headphones (Richard and Michael's Pick)

Halloween means that it’s time to eating your weight in mini-Kit Kats, pretend the cobwebs in your living room are “decorations” and listen to some spooky tunes. There are more Halloween songs than inappropriately “sexy” costumes, so narrowing down the right songs to play at your party can be a daunting task. Fear not! We’re selecting the greatest Halloween songs ever and we’ve got some help in mega-Rushmore fan Ryan Love, former college DJ and a certified expert in Halloween music. Check out his incredible four-hour, 120-song Spotify Halloween playlist after you listen to this episode. SHOW NOTES 5:57: “Dead Man’s Party” by Oingo Boingo (Ryan’s Choice) 11:30: “The Monster Mash” by Boris “Boris” Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers (Michael and Richard’s Choice) 17:34: “The Time Wrap” from the Rocky Horror Picture Show (Ryan’s Choice) 21:50: “Dinner with Dracula” by John Zacherle (Michael and Richard’s Choice) 29:44: “I Walked With a Zombie” by Roky Erickson (Ryan’s Choice) 35:40: “Halloween” by The Misfits (Micha

Regrets? We've had a few. And many of them involve making a purchase that you didn't plan on making. This week, we discuss our impulse buys that we immediately regret making. The crazy part is that we keep making these purchases again and again. Why? Because we're dummies, that's why! SHOW NOTES 3:27 - Los Angeles Magazine (Michael's Choice) 7:02 - Shoes (Richard's Choice) 13:16 - Funky Flavored Gum (Michael's Choice) 18:19 - A "Different" Beer (Richard's Choice) 26:41  - Amazon "Fill In The Blank" Purchase to Get Free Shipping (Michael's Choice) 32:04 - Silly Putty (Richard's Choice) 35:15 - One Last Drink at the Bar (Michael's Choice) 37:51 - DVDs of Movies You've Never Seen (Richard's Choice)

When you're an above the line type comedy star, it takes a whole lot to set aside one's ego to play a smaller role. But when the cast is made up of other stars, some opportunities just can't be missed.  Look, we don't believe any of that crap. Each one of us would sabotage the other two to get our own popular podcast. And so would every comedian in Hollywood. But on this episode we debate the Mt. Rushmore of Ensemble Comedic Movies, so we play nice with each other for one more week.  

Richard, Michael and Jeff open their kimonos and let in an expert, Club WAKA events guru Sa Dao, to discuss the thing that has brought them all together in friendship: Kickball. Well, adult kickball. It's the same as children's kickball, but with more taxes, heart attacks and identity crises. SHOW NOTES 2:05 - Team Names (Sa’s Choice/Michael’s Choice) 6:47 - Breakups/Team Breakups (Richard’s Choice) 12:00 - Bunting (Michael’s Choice) 15:30 - Flip Cup (Sa’s Choice) 20:52 - Making Friends/Making Enemies (Richard’s Choice) 26:00 - Don’t Be That Guy Guy (Michael’s Choice) 31:38 - Theme Night Games (Sa’s Choice) 36:55 - First Good Kick (Richard’s Choice) 46:12 - WAKA Reps Running Things (Sa’s Choice) 42:45 - Moving? Join Kickball (Michael’s Choice) 53:43 - Injuries (Richard’s Choice)

We all expect actors to do well when they guest host Saturday Night Live. Performing is literally their job. And while it’s a different kind of performing, you can make the same case for musicians, who have to tell a story with their songs. But athletes? Meatheads? Jocks? They are going to bomb, right? Well, not always. Some of the best SNL skits of all time feature athletes stepping outside of their comfort zone and showing off comedic chops we didn’t know they had. Here’s our Rushmore of the most impressive and downright hilarious SNL sketches to involve athletes. SHOW NOTES 3:25 - Peyton Manning, “United Way” (Joint Choice) 7:30 -  Joe Montana, “Sincere Guy Stu” (Joint Choice) 17:58 - Kerri Strug, “Kerri and Kippy Strug (Michael’s Choice) 22:44 - Michael Jordan, “Daily Affirmation with Stuart Smalley” (Richard’s Choice) 30:58 - Shaquille “Shaq” O’Neal, “Bernard Gets a Spanking” (Michael’s Choice) 33:41 - Connie Hawkins, “One-on-One: Connie Hawkins vs. Paul Simon” (Richard’s Choice)

This week’s we’re discussing the movie oeuvre of Tim Burton, one of Hollywood’s biggest iconoclasts and a man who never met a dark castle he couldn’t make darker, a part that Johnny Depp couldn’t play, or a comb. From his earliest work to upcoming projects (and we’re trying to wrap our heads around what Tim Burton’s Dumbo will be like), we’re celebrating the work of American cinema’s cool but kinda creepy uncle. It’s Showtime! SHOW NOTES 3:20 – Beetlejuice (Joint Choice) 8:13 – The Nightmare Before Christmas (Michael’s Choice) 13:19 – Corpse Bride (Richard’s Choice) 18:08 – Ed Wood (Joint Choice) 24:19 – Superman Lives (Richard’s Choice) 31:08 – Alice in Wonderland (Michael’s Choice)

Maybe the butler didn't always do it, but we've gone and done it - a whole episode about fictional butlers. They might be stuffy, sassy or undead, but they always have one thing in common: they are WAY smarter than the people they work for. Michael, Richard and Jeff are at your service with a platter of hors d'oeuvre, champagne flutes and another great podcast. SHOW NOTES 2:30 – Alfred from “Batman” (Michael’s Choice) 8:23 – Rochester from “The Jack Benny Show” (Richard’s Choice) 12:42 – Wadsworth from “Clue” (Joint Choice) 18:06 – Benson DuBois from “Soap” and “Benson” (Richard’s Choice) 22:09 – Lynn Belvedere from “Mr. Belvedere” (Joint Choice) 29:30 – Lurch from “The Addams Family” (Michael’s Choice)

I would imagine that there’s nothing more frustrating than being a struggling actor, training to perfect you craft and struggling for years to get a big break – only to see someone get a role THAT YOU COULD HAVE KILLED who isn’t even an actor. It would be like a medical student watching a janitor perform an emergency appendectomy. Or a baseball player who sees someone who hadn’t played baseball in a decade get signed just because he was popular at another sport. But I digress. Fortunately, not making acting your first choice doesn’t mean you can’t be a great actor. This week we look at musicians, dancers and regular people who have gone on to become accomplished thespians. And also Shaq. Remember to get your free 30-day trial of Audible by going to www.audible.com/rushmore. You can browse through their massive selection of audio books that are relevant to today’s podcast, such as “Sinatra: The Life”. SHOW NOTES 3:00 – Alexander Gudunov (Michael’s Choice)  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wykwob6IL-Y 7:37 – Fr

Research has shown that the average person spends 78% of their waking lives in business meetings. Fortunately, the vast majority of these meetings are productive, useful and pleasant. Just kidding. We all know that business meetings are nightmarish, hellscapes designed to break down the spirit of any worker. If Kafka was alive today, all of his characters would be involved in setting up monitors for video presentations. We’ve been tasked with creating a three-person committee to review the potential resources available for building a Mt. Rushmore of Business Meetings, empowering the listeners to be entertained at our selections, and a lot of other buzzword garbage. But the good news: free lunch!   SHOW NOTES 2:30 – AV Problems (Joint Pick) 8:33 – Ordering Lunch (Richard’s Pick) 11:41 – Lunch with Clients/Vendors (Michael’s Pick) 18:00 – Why Am I In This Meeting (Richard’s Pick) 21:28 – The Meeting Agenda Going Out the Window (Michael’s Pick) 26:48 – Co-workers “Contributing” for No Reason (Richard’s Pick) 29:

This week we take a look at the songs that define our podcast's hometown. (Well, technically we record in Burbank, but close enough.) Our choices run the gamut to sing along songs you hear after a win by our local sportsball teams to laments about the crushed spirits of dreamers who came here and became broken by the quest for fame. Also: Frank Zappa really hates the way girls from the Valley talked in the 1980s! SHOW NOTES: 2:25 - "Straight Outta Compton" by N.W.A. (Joint Choice) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMZi25Pq3T8 7:15 - "Screenwriter's Blue" by Soul Coughing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR9WJSX9pnU 10:19 - "Los Angeles" by X https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUiZHt6sqg4 14:18 - Get a free 30-day trial at Audible.com by going to www.audible.com/rushmore. This week's audiobook pick: "Under the Big Black Sun" by John Doe and Tom DeSavia. 16:00 - "Valley Girl" by Frank and Moon Zappa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qb21lsCQ3EM 20:16 - "Celluloid Heroes" by the Kinks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rT

This week we take a look at Ad Campaign Villains - the Goofuses to the Gallants for whatever brand created them. Fear is a powerful selling point, and if hideous troll-beasts drilling into your teeth is enough to get you to worry about the quality of your toothpaste, then the ad wizards have done their job. SHOW NOTES 1:55 - Barney Rubble from Fruity Pebbles (Michael's Choice) 5:00 - Kids from Trix Cereal (Richard's Choice) 7:59 - Mayhem from Allstate (Michael's Choice) 10:12 - The Hamburglar from McDonald's (Joint Choice) 15:44 - Get a free 30-trial of Audible, the world's leading audiobook provider, by going to www.audibletrial.com/rushmore. 16:12 - Cavity Creeps from Crest (Richard's Choice) 19:40 - The Bully from Charles Atlas Bodybuilding Ads (Michael's Choice) 23:25 - The Frito Bandito from Fritos (Richard's Choice)

This week we delve into everything Simpsons...except the episodes. Whether it's branded promotional items or causing a moral panic, the Simpsons are everywhere and will still be everywhere long after we are all gone. SHOW NOTES 2:35 - The Simpsons As the End of Family Values (Richard and Michael's Choice) 7:03 - Simpsons Bootleg T-Shirts (Richard and Michael's Choice) 13:53 - Simpsons Porn (Richard's Choice) 19:43 - "The Simpsons Sing the Blues" (Michael's Choice) 24:44 - Simpsons Pinball 30:23 - 7/11 Turning Into Kwik-E-Marts to promote "The Simpsons Movie"

You might have recently heard a certain current President joking that he belongs on Mt. Rushmore. As experts on the matter, we can say this: we certainly don't want him joining Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson and...let me check, it's Teddy and not FDR, right...yes, Teddy Roosevelt on this hallowed monument. However, we have another place he can go. (Well, several, but most of them aren't fit for a family podcast.) In honor of our 75th episode, we build our Mt. Rushless - a symbol of the crummiest Presidents this country has ever seen. WARNING: lots of pre-and post-Civil War leaders ahead! A reminder that our podcast is sponsored by Audible.com. Get a FREE audiobook download and 30-day free trial at www.audibletrial.com/rushmore. Browse from more than 180,000 titles to choose from for your iPhone, Android, Kindle or MP3 player. One great book that relates to this week's episode is "The Teapot Dome Scandal: How Big Oil Bought the Harding White House," which tells you all you need to know about one of the biggest

Canada: our neighbor to the North, with access to everything from free healthcare to French fries topped with gravy and cheese curds. (Note: perhaps there's a correlation between the poutine and the need for healthcare?) They're just like us, except for being much more polite, speaking two languages and having a working system of governance. So when we decided to do our Rushmore of Canadians, we knew we were out of our depths and needed an expert. Fortunately, we were lucky enough to convince Casey Corbin to join us as a guest judge. Casey is one of Canada's most successful stand-up comedians and a REAL CANADIAN who truly understands what makes Canadians tick. (Answer: mostly maple syrup.) If you like funny things (despite your patronage of this podcast), you should definitely follow Casey on Twitter and listen to his comedy album "Vampires Are Popular" on Spotify. And if you like wrestling, also make sure to check out his Talk 'N Wrestling Podcast. So grab a Labatt's, order some Pizza Pizza, turn down the "

This week, the boys are loading up the Big Orange and putting the hammer down on the Super Slab. They've got a load of hot takes on pop culture truckers, and they aren't stopping until they reach the 99. That is, if they can get their convoy past Smokey. Yeah, we really don't know what that means, either, but we know it sounds cool as hell. And that's because truckers are cool as hell. Well, the ones who aren't serial killers, but really, that's such a small population that we shouldn't worry about it. Instead, we're talking nothing but bandits. Outlaws. Good Buddies, if you will. So turn on your CBs and get ready for a big Breaker 1-9 on the Mt. Rushmore of Truckers. HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!! SHOW NOTES 3:16 - Bo "Bandit" Darville from "Smokey and the Bandit" (Michael's Choice) 9:45 - Philo Beddoe from "Every Which Way But Loose" (Richard and Michael's Choice) 17:15 - Anonymous Truck Driver from "Duel" (Richard's Choice) 22:53 - Jack Burton in "Big Trouble in Little China (Michael'