por Storytime with GamerDude
In this week's episode, GamerDude talks about how the corona virus, which is on everyone's mind these days, has reintroduced people to the ideas his mom drilled into his head when he was young, like washing your hands and covering your mouth when you cough. He then takes a more serious look at the fear and anger that the virus has stirred up in society. He talks about the importance of recognizing these emotions, and not acting out of fear, or anger, or panic. He talks about the importance of understanding the underlying facts of a situation, and using common sense when dealing with something as serious and unique as the virus. He also talks about the fear and panic that followed the attacks on 9/11 and how it took time before reason and common sense returned to how people handled the aftermath. GamerDude also tells a couple of stories from when he was younger that involve reacting to fear and anger. He talks about the time his father had to drive for an hour to pick GamerDude up after his car broke down, and how angry his father was at having been inconvenienced by something that was out of everyone's control. GamerDude also tells the story of when his oldest son lent his car to a friend, who promptly drove it into a tree. He talks about dealing with the fear and anger that arises out of that kind of situation, and how he had to combat that in order to deal with the realities of the accident.
As regular listeners know, food is one of GamerDude's favorite subjects. This week, he talks about meal time, and how his mother's homemade biscuits were part of many of the meals he had while growing up. He talks about the biscuit as a side dish, and as the base for his mother's homemade strawberry shortcake. He talks about his struggles trying to learn how to make good biscuits on his own, and how his early efforts were little more than baked hockey pucks. He also talks about how he discovered the secret ingredient to good biscuits: White Lily Self-Rising Flour, which is only available in the Southern US. He talks about ordering a bag of White Lily through Amazon, and the delicious biscuits that resulted. GamerDude also shares the recipe off the bag of White Lily, and walks you through how to make good biscuits. GamerDude also talks about how he learned how to make chili. Once he discovered what seasoning was, and how it made everything tastier, learning how to make chili was the natural result. He talks about the different styles of chili, and the different meats you can use in it. He then gives you his recipe for a basic, relatively mild chili that you can modify to make as hot and spicy as you like, and walks you through how to make it.
As regular listeners of Storytime know, GamerDude is a huge fan of the movies. In this "Best Of" episode, GamerDude has compiled many of the movie tropes he loves to hate. From the "always present parking space" that's always there for the protagonist, to the "easily exploding car" that so many action movies seem to have, to someone always running upstairs, or onto the roof, to escape pursuit, to the arch-villain's "this is why I'm doing it" speech at the end of the film, GamerDude talks about all of the tropes you can find over and over again in the movies these days.
As GamerDude has mentioned numerous times, the way society viewed things, and the way things were when he grew up, was very different than it is now. In this episode, GamerDude talks about how embarrassing it was to have to go into a store and buy "prophylactics," which is what condoms were called when he was a kid. He talks about how he felt guilty and embarrassed about the whole "condom buying experience," and how that was a function of society attaching "shame" to the concept of anything related to sex. He also remembers finding his dad's cache of "girlie magazines." Playboy was every young man's fantasy when he was a kid, but just like buying condoms, there was guilt and shame attached to the idea that teenage boys would want to look at naked women. He talks about how, just like condoms, the adult magazines were kept behind a counter so that you had to ask for them, which by itself, attached a level of embarrassment to the process. He talks about how Playboy tried to legitimize itself with its famous "Interviews," and how various popular authors also wrote articles for it as well. He also talks about other adult magazines, including Penthouse, Cavalier, and several others, and explains how these were one of the few avenoues available for guys who wanted to see nude women. He also talks about how Stephen King's earliest short stories were published in the men's magazine Cavalier. GamerDude also talks about going to his first X-rated movie: Debbie Does Dallas. He also talks about how adult movies eventually moved to cable TV, and how you had to watch through the scrambled signal if you couldn't get your parents to pay the additional cost for those adult channels.
This week's episode is all about TV. In the first part, GamerDude talks about several TV plots that have been re-used and recycled over the years in the various TV series he's watched. He talks about several different plot points, including how tired he is of the "Falsely Accused" plot, and the "Is Our Hero Dead?" plot. Unless it's a series finale, GamerDude is quite certain that the hero is not dead as a result of the freak explosion, the car crash, or the missing plane.GamerDude also talks about "Mistaken Identities" and "Evil Twins," as well as several others. In the second part of the episode, GamerDude takes a musical trip through TV, sharing some of his favorite themes from shows in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Okay, maybe they're not all "favorite" songs, but all of the themes are quite memorable, quite catchy, and a few are actually quite iconic. No spoilers! You'll have to listen to hear which 15 theme songs are featured this time! *Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS*
GamerDude grew up with a lot of things that were part of his everyday life that either no longer exist or have become obsolete. In this episode, he talks about a few of them. He remembers when "going on-line" involved using a dial-up connection and a modem for the phone; you can even relive the "excitement" of the dial tones and the static that everyone heard as they tried to go on-line before the days of cable connections, wifi, and hot spots. He also talks about how encyclopedias used to be the only way to start a research project, before researching became as easy as typing a few terms into a search bar. He also talks about how people used "personal ads" in the newspaper as a way to find dates - or mates. He also remembers bench seats in cars, and how you used to be able to fit 7 or 8 people in your vehicle, before the days of bucket seats, consoles and cup holders. He talks about the ash-trays that were standard equipment in cars, and how everyone used them, either for cigarette butts or as a place for change for tolls. He also remembers how ash trays and lighters were fixtures in most homes because smoking was so prevalent, and how even non-smokers had ash trays - some very fancy - for when their smoking friends visited. He remembers all the tools of the photography trade, and talks about taking pictures with instamtic cameras, and 35mm cameras, and having to take film to a developer in order to actually see your pictures. He also remembers photo albums, slides, and slide projectors, and talks about how none of these things are really used anymore. GamerDude also talks about our changing relationship with our telephones. We used to have rotary phones and phone booths; now, our phones are in our pockets, but we rarely use them to talk. He also talks about answering machines, and trying to get his parents to use one.
GamerDude revisits the topic of games, which he first talked about in Season One. This time, he takes a deep dive into some of the games he enjoyed as a kid. He talks about how he enjoyed playing games so much that he would sometimes play four person Monopoly and play all four seats. He talks about how he developed a love for trivia games, starting with the early editions of Go To The Head Of The Class. He shares some of the "easy" questions from the 1957 edition his dad picked up at an auction one year; you can test your knowledge on the "junior level" questions! GamerDude also talks about the APBA sports simulation games he played, when he tried to recreate full sports seasons using charts and dice, long before the days of Madden, MLB, and FIFA on today's gaming consoles. GamerDude also talks about all of the home versions of TV game shows he had, from The Joker's Wild to The Price is Right to Concentration. He also talks about how chess, checkers and backgammon are the "classic" games that should be in any "Hall Of Fame" of all time great games. He also talks about how games like Jenga and Twister have not held up for him over the years. GamerDude also include his Top Ten Games list, and shares some stories about why these ten games make his list. Give a listen to find out where Clue, Stratego, Monopoly and Scrabble (as well as six other games) fall on the list.
When GamerDude was growing up, a "normal" relationship in society was a father who worked and a mother who stayed at home and cooked, cleaned, and took care of the kids. Dating back then - whether conciously or unconciously - was geared towards finding a mate to complete this "normal" relationship. GamerDude talks about how the attitudes of parents, and schools, helped cement this mentality of what "normal" was, and how this mind-set was reinforced by the movies and tv shows everyone watched. He talks about how Leave It To Beaver and Father Knows Best depicted the "typical" home, and how they showed the goal for a "good" relationship. He also talks about classes in school that helped further confirm this. Boys took shop class - either wood or metal shop, so that they would learn marketable skills, and girls took home economics classes, where they learned to sew, and cook, and clean. It wasn't until the 1960s and the 1970s that these attitudes and these "norms" were really challenged. He talks about how the sitcom Three's Company presented a challenge to what was "normal" and acceptable. GamerDude also talks about the importance of recognizing equality in a relationship. When he grew up, the man had to "conquer" the woman in order to make her "his own." There was an objectification of women that was very prevalent when he was a kid and still persists today. He talks about how important it is to recognize that all people have rights, and recognizing those rights is paramount to establishing a good, strong, lasting relationship. He also talks about how sex is an important part of a relationship, but is only part of the overall equation.
GamerDude continues to share his passion for movies in this episode. He talks about 10 classic, pre-1980 movies that you'll probably enjoy. He goes back to the era of "film noir" for three films, including the classic Double Indemnity. He then talks about seven more classic films, which run the gamut from Whatever Happened To Baby Jane to Monty Python and the Holy Grail. (As usual, you'll have to listen to the episode for the full list!) GamerDude also talks about some more of the over-used movie tropes we see all too often. He talks about the lack of primary colors in most dystopian futures, the horrors of high heeled shoes on women, the fact that every bar in movies apparently has a tap that just says "Beer," and the interrupted kiss (plus six more). He also talks about two "bonus" tropes that he actually enjoys.
GamerDude has gone back to Season 1 for some stories for this "Best of" episode. He brings back the story of learning to drive when he was 11, while visiting his aunt. He also tells the story of learning to bake with his dad. He also brings back the story about his "golden age" of television, and the syndicated shows he watched on the six television channels that existed in his area when he was growing up. He also talks about his greatest moment in his pick-up basketball career - his buzzer-beating shot when he was playing for the basketball team for the radio station he worked at.