Rudy Panucci On Pop Culture

Month: December 2015 (Page 2 of 5)

Christmas with The Laser Beams on The RFC MINI SHOW

Image5We have a special Christmas edition of The RFC MINI SHOW starring The Laser Beams, recorded at their Charleston Holiday Show earlier this month at The Blue Parrot. You will hear the band perform “Run, Run, Rudolph,” plus two original tunes, “The Krampus Song” and “I Built A Snowman.”

The original plan was for the band to release a Christmas EP in time for the holiday, but the hectic pace of planning shows in three cities meant that we will have to wait until next year for the proper release of the holiday tunes. There’s a chance that rough mixes of some of the songs might turn up on their Facebook page before Christmas, but you can watch this show now to boost your spirits to the holiday mood, because this year, the weather sure isn’t going to do that job.

Anyway, please enjoy this last-minute holiday treat from The Laser Beams and Radio Free Charleston.

Sunday Evening Video: The Louis Prima Primer

10So, do you know who Louis Prima was? He wrote “Sing, Sing, Sing. He was the voice of King Louie in Disney’s The Jungle Book. David Lee Roth had a huge 1980s hit with a cover of Prima’s “Just a Gigalo/I Ain’t Got Nobody.” And his Vegas lounge act with Keely Smith was the inspiration for Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin to take their own Rat Pack antics to the stage.

Watch the above documentary for more about “The Wildest, Louis Prima.” One of the most entertaining performers to ever take the stage.

RFC Flashback: Ghosts of Christmas Past

xmas 002Back from hiatus after the ridiculously-long PopCult Gift Guide, the RFC Flashback today brings you most of the Radio Free Charleston Christmas shows, beginning with last year’s. This year’s holiday show debuted just a few days ago, and plans are to have an XMas RFC MINI SHOW on Monday.

Last year we brought you holiday music sung by lovely female voices. You will hear Melanie Larch accompanied by Mark Scarpelli, Marium Bria, Lady D-Doris Fields and The Laser Beams, plus we had an epic cartoon about the war on Christmas by Jacob Fertig.

rfcxmascollageAbove it’s our first Radio Free Charleston Christmas show, episode eleven from 2006, with music from Clownhole and Melanie Larch and lots of animation and weird stuff, hosted from the original location of The Purple Moon.

Below it’s Christmas 2012, hosted from the Marx Toy Museum in Moundsville, with music from The Charleston Gay Mens Chorale, the cast of MARY, Prank Monkey and the duo of Pepper Fandango and Lee Harrah. There’s also animation and a holiday message from Razor Sharp Studios.

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Star Wars, Nothing But Star Wars (and Stuff To Do)

OriginalTheatricalStarWarsPoster-thumb-550x869-41517The PopCulteer
December 18, 2015

Still worn out from the epic 2015 PopCult Gift Guide (check out the Master Index HERE), this week your PopCulteer will bring you a weekly column that is mostly Stuff To Do.

However, last night the pop culture event of the year happened, and I really need to acknowledge it. Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens opened, and I’m certain that we will learn that box office records were shattered. I wasn’t there.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved Star Wars when I saw it on opening day (in Charleston) back in June, 1977. The Empire Strikes Back is another movie that I greatly enjoyed. In those days I was definitely in the thrall of Star Wars, seeing the movies, reading the books and comics and buying up magazines about what was, at that time, my favorite movie.

4271758-star_trek_vs_star_warsThen Return of the Jedi came out, and the Ewoks showed up, and my interests turned to less disappointing fare. I observed with slight amusement the way that Marvel cancelled the comic books and Kenner discontinued the toys in the late 1980s, and then watched with a twinge of nostalgia in the early 1990s as the toys returned to stores, and the property became robust again, having attracted a new generation of fans who weren’t born when the original movie opened. It was cool to see Star Wars back in the mainstream again.

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The PopCult Bookshelf gift Guide

bookshelf indexWe just concluded the PopCult Gift Guide for 2015 last Sunday. It was a daunting task assembling, and probably reading it, but if reading is pleasant for you, or for the people on your gift list, we re-present just the book part of the list.

Today we bring you an index showing you just the stuff you care about. We’re almost a week away from Christmas, so if you want to give these gifts, chances are you’d best be checking off the “expediated shipping” options.

Books/Comics/Graphic Novels

Humans of New York: Stories
Harry Potter Coloring Book
bs 005Sandman: Overture
INVICTA Challenge: Flash and Thunder
Beatles 1+ Deluxe Edition
King of the Comics: One Hundred Years of King Features Syndicate
Superheroes: The War Years
“Invisible Ink” by Bill Griffith
The Creeps Magazine
“Unstoppable” by Bill Nye

bs 004

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Official A Game of Thrones Coloring Book
bs 002David Synn “Art of Disillusionment”
Ghosts and Girls of Fiction House!
Appalachian Winter Hauntings
Gilliamesque: A Pre-posthumous Memoir
Walt Kelly’s Fairy Tales
The Deadly Scarab (Crime Cats Volume 3)
The Walking Dead: The Pop-Up Book
Mego 8 Inch Super-Heroes: World’s Greatest Toys!
Dennis The Menace Comic Books
New Adventure Time Book
Steve Ditko Shorts
Charlton Neo and More Charlton Coolness
Mountain Mysts: Myths and Fantasies of the Appalachians
The Complete Beatles Songs

The PopCult Toybox Gift Guide

toybox indexWe just wrapped up the massive PopCult Gift Guide for 2015 last weekend, but if all you care about are the toys and games, today we’re bringing you a whittled-down index showing you just the stuff you care about. We’re less than ten days away from Christmas, so if you want to give these gifts, you’d better get moving!

Toys

The 2015 Hess Toy Truck
Large Gorilla Money Bank
INVICTA Challenge: Flash and Thunder
Santa Claus 8 Inch Retro Action Figure
BLACK HELICOPTER Strikeforce: 8pc Plastic Army Men Playset
toybox 002Wabi Sabi Cat Plushie
Lil BUB Glow & Purr Plush
Canned Unicorn Meat
Many Moods of Gumby
Wild Adventure Action Figures
Talking Ron Burgundy Action Figure
KISS Demon Action Figure With Blood-spitting Action
Ghostbusters Slot Car Racing Set
Tentacle Kitty
The Scottish Explorer
toybox 004Glow In The Dark Skeleton Army
The Monster Times Trading Card Collection
Zombie Shelf-Sitters
The Best of the West (Johnny West Figures and Horses)
Bucket of Army Men from TimMee
Big Bucket of Astronauts

toybox 001Games

Classic Yahtzee
INVICTA Challenge: Flash and Thunder
Ideal’s Booby Trap Game
Pac-Man Connect and Play
Stinky Pig

Radio Free Charleston’s Christmas of Giving

Let the Guilty Hang

Let the Guilty Hang

Our Christmas show for 2015 captures songs from a benefit show put on at The Empty Glass on December 12. The Logan-area band, let The Guilty Hang, lost all their equipment, merchandise, instruments and equipment cases in a fire in October.

To help raise money for the band, Jeff Ellis, Sheldon Vance, Aaron Fisher, Speedsuit and Farnsworth all performed, with all the proceeds going to help this band get back on their feet.

This was the true spirit of the season. Musicians came together, giving their gift of music to help raise money for fellow musicians down on their luck. When I first heard about this concert, I felt that it would make for a Christmas show more appropriate for the season than anything that I could contrive (especially since I was considering hosting it as Count Rudolf).

Chris Vance, of Farnsworth, put this benefit together, and he and his fellow musicians, all veterans with multiple appearances on RFC under their belts, deserve our respect and admiration for rallying around their fellow artists.

Kudos also go to The Empty Glass for hosting the evening. Everyone earned major Karma points, but that wasn’t even their consideration. They did it because they wanted to help. Details on the artists follow, below the jump…

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Monday Morning Art: Steppenwolf

steppen 002

Steppenwolf Theater, on North Halstead in Chicago, is a very special place to your PopCulteer. It’s where he married Melanie Larch in August, 2014. It’s also one of the most innovative and original theater companies in the world. Our art this week is a mildly surreal digital painting of the building in which I got hitched. Click to enlarge.

In case you missed it, scroll down for the Master Index for The 2016 PopCult Gift Guide. It was a whapper, clocking in at over 26,00 words, all telling you about cool gift ideas that you may not have known about.

later Monday, look for the Christmas episode of Radio Free Charleston, this year with not a single holiday tune.

The 2015 PopCult Gift Guide Master Index

index masterIt’s been going on for more than a month, and it’s run over 26,000 words, but the 2016 PopCult Gift Guide has finally come to an end. Since this is the tenth anniversary year for PopCult, and the eleventh annual Gift Guide, your PopCulteer decided to pull out all the stops and bring you one hundred gift suggestions, spread out over more than 90 posts.

Keeping track of that is a bit much to ask of the average reader, so tonight we wrap the Gift Guide with the Master Index. All of the items I suggested are listed here, organized by category, with links that will take you right to the post in question. Some gift ideas will appear on this list more than once, since they qualify in more than one category.

Thanks for reading this beast of a PopCult Gift Guide. I hope that some of you got some useful ideas from it.

Art

index 001Donald Trump “They Live” T Shirt
The Monster Times Trading Card Collection
Support Your Local Artist
The Walking Dead: The Pop-Up Book
Glen Brogan Art
Brenda Pinnell’s Hepcatz
The Art of Ian Bode
PICTURES WITH KRAMPUS!

Books/Comics/Graphic Novels

Humans of New York: Stories
Harry Potter Coloring Book
Sandman: Overture
INVICTA Challenge: Flash and Thunder
710ruxFRduLBeatles 1+ Deluxe Edition
King of the Comics: One Hundred Years of King Features Syndicate
Superheroes: The War Years
“Invisible Ink” by Bill Griffith
The Creeps Magazine
“Unstoppable” by Bill Nye
The Official A Game of Thrones Coloring Book
David Synn “Art of Disillusionment”
New Adventure Time Book
Ghosts and Girls of Fiction House!
Appalachian Winter Hauntings
index002Gilliamesque: A Pre-posthumous Memoir
Walt Kelly’s Fairy Tales
The Deadly Scarab (Crime Cats Volume 3)
The Walking Dead: The Pop-Up Book
Mego 8 Inch Super-Heroes: World’s Greatest Toys!
Dennis The Menace Comic Books
Steve Ditko Shorts
Charlton Neo and More Charlton Coolness
Mountain Mysts: Myths and Fantasies of the Appalachians
The Complete Beatles Songs

Cooking/Food Items

index 003The Cuisinart Dual-Sandwich Grill
Star Wars Death Star Waffle Maker
Bread In A Can
The Walking Dead Pudding Can Lunch Tote
Canned Unicorn Meat
Eating Out
Zombie Jerky
Albert’s Chocolate Ice Cubes

Decor

Double-Sided Star Trek Canvas Room Divider
Ray Gun Metal Signs
Large Gorilla Money Bank
Space-Jet-Gun-Metal-Sign_-TINSJG_image1__61577.1438876516.600.600The Avengers Defend Earth Fleece Throw
Disney Frozen Canvas LED Wall Art
WWE Bedding
Zombie Shelf-Sitters
PICTURES WITH KRAMPUS!

Entertainment Hardware

Roku 4 Streaming Media Player
Pac-Man Connect and Play

index 004Games

Classic Yahtzee
INVICTA Challenge: Flash and Thunder
Ideal’s Booby Trap Game
Pac-Man Connect and Play
Stinky Pig

General Advice
Shop Local
Eating Out
Support Your Local Artist

Headgear/Accessories/Jewelry/Apparel

The Pith Helmet
The Walking Dead Pudding Can Lunch Tote
Doctor Who Analog Gallifreyan Watch
Justice League Unlimited Blu Ray and T-Shirt Bundle
Donald Trump “They Live” T Shirt
Glen Brogan Art
Brenda Pinnell’s Hepcatz

Toys

71o+71W3Y+L._SL1200_The 2015 Hess Toy Truck
Large Gorilla Money Bank
INVICTA Challenge: Flash and Thunder
Santa Claus 8 Inch Retro Action Figure
BLACK HELICOPTER Strikeforce: 8pc Plastic Army Men Playset
Wabi Sabi Cat Plushie
Lil BUB Glow & Purr Plush
Canned Unicorn Meat
Many Moods of Gumby
index 006Wild Adventure Action Figures
Talking Ron Burgundy Action Figure
KISS Demon Action Figure With Blood-spitting Action
Ghostbusters Slot Car Racing Set
Tentacle Kitty
The Scottish Explorer
Glow In The Dark Skeleton Army
index 007The Monster Times Trading Card Collection
Zombie Shelf-Sitters
The Best of the West (Johnny West Figures and Horses)
Bucket of Army Men from TimMee
Big Bucket of Astronauts

Video

81xyobwH7XL._SL1500_Forbidden Zone Ultimate Edition Blu Ray
Monty Python and the Holy Grail Limited Edition Castle Catapult Gift Set
The Beatles 1+ Deluxe Blu Ray
Twin Peaks: The Entire Mystery
Rocko’s Modern Life: The Complete Series
Justice League Unlimited Blu Ray and T-Shirt Bundle
The Secret Squirrel Show
index 005X-Files: The Complete TV Series and Movie Collection
Mighty Mouse The New Adventures
Regular Show: The Movie
Fear The Walking Dead
Frank Zappa-Roxy The Movie

Music

John Inghram’s Slugfest
Spencer Elliott “Some Forgotten Color”
KANSAS Original Album Classics Box
The Beatles 1+ Deluxe Blu Ray
index 009A Soldier’s Song Veteran’s Benefit CD
Jack Griffith CD
Ultimate Sinatra
MARY A Rock Opera
ELO “Alone In The Universe”
Queen Complete Studio Box Set
The Music of Todd Burge
The Complete Beatles Songs (Book)
Frank Zappa-Roxy The Movie

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