Best Generalknowledge Podcasts (2025)

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254. 'The Exorcist' Part 2: Rewatch 45:33

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5h ago45:33

45:33

The 2nd episode in a series of episodes about 'The Exorcist' is inspired by my rewatch of the film. My original plan: to meticulously dissect each of three sections of the film in three subsequent episodes. My new plan? To get this episode filled with my enthusiastic and emotional reactions out to you ASAP. And to follow with two subsequent episode…

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253. 'The Exorcist' (1973) Part 1: Origins 1:21:45

3d ago1:21:45

1:21:45

In this first of a multi-part exploration of William Friedkin's ground-breaking and massively successful adaptation of William Peter Blatty's best-selling novel 'The Exorcist': Friedkin & DP Owen Roizman coming off 'The French Connection' and into 'The Exorcist' Casting travails involving Jack Nicholson, Paul Newman, Jane Fonda, Anne Bancroft, and …

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252. 'Back To The Future' (Part 2) 47:02

6d ago47:02

47:02

Here's the 2nd and final episode of my 'Back to the Future' revisit, enjoy! Huey Lewis guitarist Chris Hayes plays his signature parts from 'Power of Love'.By Meetinghousetv.com

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251. 'Back to the Future' (Part 1) 48:15

14d ago48:15

48:15

It's the 40th Anniversary of 'Back to the Future' and I read a review of Michael J. Fox's brief new memoir about the making of the film, and about his life before, during, and just after the film's release. This sent me to finally watch 2023's 'Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie', a brilliant documentary from noted director Davis Guggenheim (An Inconven…

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250. 'Tropic Thunder' 51:34

24d ago51:34

51:34

Like a thunderbolt from another dimension, a dimension where $90 million-dollar comedies with top-tier talent and a first-class, Oscar-winning cinematographer combine with an expensive location shoot in Hawaii (standing in for Viet Nam) to gross $200 million dollars and spawn at least two Pantheon-level comedy characters in Tom Cruise's Les Grossma…

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249. Diane Keaton in 'Annie Hall' 46:21

26d ago46:21

46:21

Diane Keaton died over the weekend at the age of 79, and it's been fascinating to read her various obituaries and memories of her being shared. Also interesting to contemplate what a singular presence she was for more than 50 years on stage and screen. 'Annie Hall' won Diane Keaton her only Academy Award, although she was also nominated for 'Reds',…

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248. 'Drugstore Cowboy' (1989) 1:06:26

1M ago1:06:26

1:06:26

Gus Van Sant's 2nd feature, starring Matt Dillon, Kelly Lynch, James Le Gros, Heather Graham, William S. Burroughs, James Remar, and Max Perlich.By Meetinghousetv.com

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247. 'Jeremiah Johnson' (1972) 1:08:56

1M ago1:08:56

1:08:56

Continuing the Redford Appreciation Episodes with a revisit of Sydney Pollack and Robert Redford's 1972 deceptively revisionist Western, 'Jeremiah Johnson'. Shaped by Redford and Pollack from an apparently off-the-wall John Milius screenplay, and only shot on location in the Utah wilderness through Redford's intervention with the studio, 'Jeremiah …

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246. Robert Redford & 'All Is Lost' (2013) 58:03

2M ago58:03

58:03

JC Chandor's 2nd feature film after 'Margin Call' was 2013's sailing-catastrophe film 'All Is Lost', and it's a unique film in that it has virtually no dialogue and a single cast member in Robert Redford, who delivers a tour-de-force of non-verbal acting filled with pathos, regret, and rueful recognition of one's own self-delusions. As we continue …

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245. Robert Redford is Dead at 89 55:10

2M ago55:10

55:10

I'm joined by Charles Fleming, LA-based writer, author and returning FCAC guest to talk about todays news of the death of Robert Redford. We discuss Redford's extraordinary career and difference-making life, including his environmental activism and the Sundance Film Festival and Institute. Redford was born in Santa Monica and after a peripatetic yo…

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244. Empathy and Revisiting 'Brother's Keeper' (1992) 39:59

2M ago39:59

39:59

Recent events have gotten me thinking about Roger Ebert's quote about movies being empathy machines, bringing us closer to people we might think we have nothing in common with. When I first saw the Berlinger/Sinofsky documentary 'Brother's Keeper' I was overwhelmed with empathy and heartbreak and humor and feeling for these odd-duck brothers and th…

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243. 'Making Monsters' With KNB FX Founder Howard Berger and co-author Marshall Julius 1:24:41

2M ago1:24:41

1:24:41

Howard Berger and Marshall Julius have a brilliant new book out called 'Making Monsters: Inside Stories From The Creators of Hollywood's Most Iconic Creatures'. It's an indispensable oral history and visually spectacular compendium of Hollywood history and personal reflections from the industry's pre-eminent special make-up effects artisans, and ac…

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242. 'Videodrome' (1983) 58:58

2M ago58:58

58:58

David Cronenberg's 'Videodrome' remains a shockingly prescient vision of the world we're living in now: technology overlords using computerized developments for their own nefarious means...except in the case of 1983 Toronto, personal enrichment isn't the end game: elimination of the freaks and geeks is. Featuring a tour-de-force performance from Ja…

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241. Just Kids 58:18

3M ago58:18

58:18

I recently learned of the senseless death of a friend from elementary school—someone I hadn't seen in over forty years. His name was Joe Kane. The news reached across all that time and unexpectedly unlocked a reservoir of childhood emotions I didn't even know I was still carrying. Letting those feelings out left me feeling connected to Joe's spirit…

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240. 'A Civil Action' (1998) 1:23:29

3M ago1:23:29

1:23:29

Here's the next episode in a little courtroom-drama jag I've been on; it's about the second of screenwriter Steven Zaillian's three directorial efforts, 'A Civil Action', from Zaillian's adaptation of the best-selling Jonathan Harr nonfiction book of the same name. Like 'The Rainmaker', 'A Civil Action' provides a large roster of fantastic actors o…

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239. Dead & Company 60th Anniversary Shows, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA 1:15:52

3M ago1:15:52

1:15:52

Dead & Company's 60th Anniversary three-show stand is an opportunity to talk about about the living history that the band's music represents, the ongoing and still-vital multi-generational pull of the concerts, which drew about 175,000 people, and the fascinating real-time challenge represented by sitting in with the band. Using Sturgill Simpson an…

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238. John Grisham's The Rainmaker 1:17:02

3M ago1:17:02

1:17:02

In 1996, Francis Ford Coppola needed the money. He was coming off a run of films that included The Godfather Part III, Bram Stoker's Dracula, and Jack. His critical and box office results were at a career nadir. So he agreed to direct an adaptation of the John Grisham bestseller 'The Rainmaker' for Paramount. He wouldn't direct another film for 10 …

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237. '2010 The Year We Make Contact' 50:34

4M ago50:34

50:34

Well, it's come to this. Was it curiosity? Was is discovery? A sense of completism? Oxygen deprivation? Whatever it was, I've now watched '2010: The Year We Make Contact' and I leave it for you to decide whether I'm any better for it.

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236. '2001: A Space Odyssey', Part 4 57:48

5M ago57:48

57:48

We've come to the end...or is it the beginning? This is part 4 of my series of episodes about the emotional and intellectual contact Stanley Kubrick made between movie-goers and his epic science-fiction film of 1968. Here's the amazing mashup between Pink Floyd's 'Echoes' and the final sequence of 2001. Please sign up for my newsletter if you haven…

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235. '2001: A Space Odyssey', Part 3 1:05:37

5M ago1:05:37

1:05:37

In Part 3, I geek out into how incredible and evocative the HAL sequences are in this film; what an amazing sense of character and personality Kubrick creates through the use of Doug Rain's iconic, best-in-class voiceover and the varying cutaways to HAL's electronic eye in scenes featuring the computer. Be sure to check out my other episodes coveri…

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234. '2001: A Space Odyssey', Part 2 1:05:46

5M ago1:05:46

1:05:46

In part 2 of my four-part series on 2001, I am going through the TMA-1 (Tycho Magnetic Anomaly One) sequence in which Dr. Haywood Floyd of "The Council" visits the International Space Station, diverts some Russian scientist attentions, presents a specious, US Governmental coverup of the Clavius discovery to a group of cowed committee members, and t…

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233. '2001: A Space Odyssey', Part 1 49:06

5M ago49:06

49:06

The first of my four-part series on Stanley Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey' covers some introductory approach notes and the first sequence in the film: 'The Dawn Of Man'. In these episodes I want to avoid a nerdy technical discussion about how the filmmakers did what they did in this extraordinary, still-vital film masterpiece and instead focus o…

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232. 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' & 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre II' 49:06

5M ago49:06

49:06

I'd never seen Texas Chainsaw Massacre before this episode. I had also never seen Texas Chainsaw Massacre II. Regrets, I have a few. And this apparent chainsaw-sized hole in my film-going life is at the heart the Brad Caleb Kane Experiment In Terror that are our Cannon Fodder series of episodes. Find out what happened in this chaotic mess of an epi…

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231. Cannon Fodder: '52 Pickup' (1986) 1:00:29

5M ago1:00:29

1:00:29

Cannon Fodder continues! John Frankenheimer finds himself directing for Cannon Films with Roy Scheider starring in Elmore Leonard's own adaptation of his 1974 novel 52 Pickup. Watch 52 Pickup on Prime before it leaves this weekend. Watch the excellent Cannon Films/Golan Globus unauthorized documentary Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Ca…

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230. Cannon Fodder: Charles Bronson in '10 to Midnight' (1983) 55:09

6M ago55:09

55:09

In this week's episode it's the debut of 'Cannon Fodder', a recurring series of episodes where I watch a curated selection of films made by schlockmeisters Golan/Globus in the 1980's for their Cannon Film Group, one of the most entertaining production shingles you'll ever hear or see. In Brad's view, he is a man of the people's cinema and I am a hi…

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229. 'The Big Picture' (1989) 1:20:22

6M ago1:20:22

1:20:22

Long before 'Waiting For Guffman', Christopher Guest directed 'The Big Picture', a heartfelt, hilariously incisive movie about making movies. The film was greenlit during British film executive David Puttnam's brief tenure running Columbia Pictures. Co-written by Guest's 'Spinal Tap' co-star Michael McKean, who also turns in an unexpectedly warm an…

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...is this thing on? 7:20

6M ago7:20

7:20

We're BACK, BABYYY! Let's Learn About... is returning at the end of May 2025, just with a few changes. I can't wait to crawl inside your ears again and teach you new things! 🧠 --- Send Us a Voice Note! Want to feature at the start of an episode? Please send us a voicenote with a fun fact you've learned, or something you found particularly interesti…

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228. 'Sinners' 1:13:56

6M ago1:13:56

1:13:56

Ryan Coogler's original film 'Sinners' defied the so-called conventional wisdom of Hollywood and dropped only 6% week-to-week in its box office performance. It was also the subject of a fascinating online discourse about how the film's box office performance was written about in industry media. In this episode I recount the online controversy surro…

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227. 'Caddyshack' (1980) 1:15:23

7M ago1:15:23

1:15:23

'Caddyshack', it turns out, is kind of a miracle of last-minute producer-led stitching together and salvaging, resulting in one of the more quotable films in comedy history. Hard to believe that at the time, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, and Rodney Dangerfield were not yet the massive film stars they'd become as a result of this movie. This episode del…

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226. 'A Minecraft Movie' 37:57

7M ago37:57

37:57

Why doesn't anyone believe me when I say I loved going to see this movie??By Meetinghousetv.com

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225. Val Kilmer: I'm Your Huckleberry 1:31:54

7M ago1:31:54

1:31:54

An episode in memoriam of Val Kilmer, who died this week. Mentioned in this episode: 'Val', the excellent, moving, insightful, thoughtful documentary compiled from decades of Val Kilmer's home movies. 'Tombstone' is many people's favorite Kilmer film. 'Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's The Island of Dr. Moreau' is a fantastic makin…

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224. Don Simpson and the Hollywood Culture of Excess 1:12:19

7M ago1:12:19

1:12:19

Don Simpson was one-half of one of the most successful production partnerships in Hollywood history. His reality-distortion-field helped bring about films like Flashdance, Top Gun, Beverly Hills Cop, The Rock, Crimson Tide, and Days of Thunder, films that collectively grossed more than $3 billion dollars. Don Simpson's life is a cautionary tale wit…

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223. 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy' (1979 BBC Series) 1:55:35

8M ago1:55:35

1:55:35

What does it say about your favorite podcast host that he considers the 1979 BBC adaptation of John le Carre's seminal espionage novel 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy' to be COMFORT VIEWING?? Nonetheless, as Smiley would say, there we are. In this episode, curiously one in which I am still totally unresolved as to how best to approach this series in …

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222. Gene Hackman Appreciation Episode 1:58:08

8M ago1:58:08

1:58:08

Considering the versatile, endlessly watchable and iconic American actor Gene Hackman.By Meetinghousetv.com

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221. Oscar Recap 2025! 45:26

8M ago45:26

45:26

HERE IT IS! Your most-anticipated episode of the year.By Meetinghousetv.com

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220. OSCAR SPECIAL: Ranking The Best Picture Nominees w/ @vhsrevolution 1:22:56

8M ago1:22:56

1:22:56

I'm joined by David Schumann of the IG and YouTube accounts @vhsrevolution as we each offer up our Top Five out of the 10 Best Picture Nominees ahead of Sunday night's Academy Awards telecast. And yes, I will be doing my Postmortem Recap episode following the broadcast. Follow David on Instagram here. Check out David's YouTube Channel here.…

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219. 'Slap Shot' (1977) 1:34:14

9M ago1:34:14

1:34:14

Here's the third of my episodic trilogy about George Roy Hill's films 'Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid', 'The Sting', and, now: 1977's 'Slap Shot'.By Meetinghousetv.com

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218. 'Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid' (1969) 1:38:54

9M ago1:38:54

1:38:54

My deep dive into the films of Director George Roy Hill continues with the most iconic Western ever made: "Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid".By Meetinghouse Productions, Inc

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217. 'The Sting' (1973) 1:41:14

9M ago1:41:14

1:41:14

George Roy Hill's 1973 masterpiece 'The Sting' (released December 1974) grossed in 1974 what would be over 900 million dollars today. It's a deceptively simple, stealthily subversive and counter-cultural film wrapped in the meticulous trappings of a 1930's Warner Bros gangster picture, and re-teaming Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid with that film'…

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216. 'An American Werewolf In London' (1981) 1:42:06

10M ago1:42:06

1:42:06

In Hollywood, the story beats of werewolf movies were codified in 1941 by a German-Jewish emigrant to Hollywood via London named Curt Siodmak, who wrote the seminal film 'The Wolf Man', starring Lon Chaney, Jr. 40 years later, John Landis made the most important and enduring and influential werewolf film ever made in 'An American Werewolf in London…

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215. 'No Country For Old Men' (2007) 1:47:18

10M ago1:47:18

1:47:18

Sparse. Laconic. Expansive. Languid. Wry. The Coen Brother's 2007 Neo-Noir Western 'No Country For Old Men' moves to the fatefully ticking beat of it's own Grandfather Clock. It's a film that rewards close viewing and is astoundingly faithful to Cormac McCarthy's novel while also being so completely a "Coen Brothers film" even as it's their (only?)…

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214. 'Liquid Sky' (1983) 58:24

10M ago58:24

58:24

'Liquid Sky' was a $500,000 largely experimental film by the Russian expat director Slava Tsukerman that sprung from a group of friends and colleagues surrounding School of Visual Arts acting teacher Bob Brady. What's it about? Heroin, Cocaine, Aliens, Art, Fashion, Dancing, Nightclubs, Science, Sex, Lesbian Knife Fights, Androgyny, Shrimp, Berlin.…

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213. 'Raising Arizona' (1987) 1:17:29

11M ago1:17:29

1:17:29

'Raising Arizona' was the 2nd film written and directed by The Coen Brothers, and it's one of my most foundational movies; a movie that spoke to who I was at 18, when I first saw it in 1987 and continues to be one of my favorites today. In this episode I revisit the film, tell some anecdotes about the making-of, and revel in the wonderful, nuanced …

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212. 'Casino' (1995) 1:29:01

11M ago1:29:01

1:29:01

Our episodic roll of the Scorceseverse dice comes up a winner here with a look at 'Casino', Marty's unofficial "sequel" to 'Goodfellas' and a treatise on the inevitable end of mob controlled Vegas casinos. If you're interested in how we got here, check out my episodes about Goodfellas and 'Mean Streets': Goodfellas Part 1 Goodfellas Part 2 Goodfell…

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211. 'Mean Streets' (1973) 1:49:08

12M ago1:49:08

1:49:08

The Full Cast and Crew MartyVerse run continues with the first of Scorcese's unofficial trilogy of gangster films, 'Mean Streets'. In this episode: Marty's Little Italy, Family, High School, NYU, Los Angeles, and early directorial experiences and how they influence and inspired 'Mean Streets'. How 'Mean Streets' was very nearly a blaxploitation fil…

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210. 'Goodfellas' Part 4: All of DeNiro's Scenes 1:52:08

12M ago1:52:08

1:52:08

OK, so I wasn't quite done with Goodfellas, try as I did...one more bridge episode here before we get into 'Mean Streets' and 'Raging Bull'... In this episode, we consider Marty's Oscar frenemyship, DeNiro's screen qualities, his most famous and best onscreen performances, and, finally...FINALLY...all of his scenes from "Goodfellas" considered from…

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209. 'Goodfellas' Part 3 1:30:37

12M ago1:30:37

1:30:37

In part 3 of my three-episode take on Martin Scorcese and Nicholas Pileggi's masterpiece 'Goodfellas', we pick the film up just after the halfway point, which is Tommy's killing of Spider. Test audiences and studio executives were completely discombobulated by the loss they felt of the breezy, funny, enjoyable glamorization of the gangster life tha…

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208. 'Goodfellas' Part 2 1:54:15

1y ago1:54:15

1:54:15

In Part 2 of my 3-part exploration of the brilliance, humor, and bravura filmmaking of Marty Scorcese's 'Goodfellas', I talk about iconic scenes from the film's first half, including: The Bamboo Lounge Crew Introduction scene with Pete The Killer, Freddie No-Nose, and Jimmy Two Times. The Jimmy/Henry "I'm a clown" scene. The Copa Entrance scene. Th…

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207. 'Goodfellas' Part 1 1:07:27

1y ago1:07:27

1:07:27

This is the first of at least 2 episodes about Martin Scorcese's 1990 masterpiece 'Goodfellas'. Let's be honest: it'll probably take three episodes to cover all the genius onscreen in this epitome of the perfect film. In this episode, I explore the film's roots in Nick Pileggi's classic non-fiction book 'Wiseguy', and the early involvement of vital…