Purple Stuff Podcast: The Future Show!
The Purple Stuff Podcast is kicking off the new year with a trip to THE FUTURE!
We’re looking at things that were either set in the future, or that just seemed futuristic in their time. It’s a super eclectic mix loosely bound to one vague subject, but hey, that’s us!
Get set for an hour with me and Jay from Sludge Central, as we ramble on about everything from Photon guns to Casio calculator watches to a little-known movie called Star Crystal.
Click here to listen to this week’s show!
As a reminder, we’re also on Patreon, where you can grab an exclusive bonus show every month. It’s a good time to sign up: January’s bonus show is already live, and we’re planning *two* bonus shows in February. Thanks so much for your support! Read More…
TMNT References in Television and Movies!
It’s tough to exaggerate how popular the Ninja Turtles were in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. Batman may have been a bigger movie and The Simpsons may have been a bigger TV show, but the thing about the Turtles is that they hit into EVERYTHING.
All at once, they had a white hot cartoon, a white hot movie, a white hot toy line, a white hot arcade game, and a comic book series that was at least red hot, but probably white, too.
When something gets into the zeitgeist to that degree, its reach keeps expanding even when it’s not doing anything. From their halcyon days, below are five times the Ninja Turtles were referenced in movies and TV shows. (You know you’ve made it when Sophia Petrillo namedrops you!)
TMNT 2 VHS on Step By Step! (1992)
In Back to Basics (S2), Carol fumes over the kids’ financial irresponsibility — mostly thanks to a rented copy of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II, which got lost under a bed for so long that she had to buy it outright.
Frank is less annoyed, because he’s heard great things about The Secret of the Ooze. Surely there are worse things to be saddled with than a movie wherein David Warner uses magic slime to grow a werewolf. Frank can’t wait to kick back and relax with the Ninja Turtles and a cold can of… Sprit?
Props to the prop department: Not only is that a legit TMNT II videocassette, but it’s very specifically a rental copy. You can tell by the cumbersome hard plastic sleeve. (I couldn’t stand those. They may have been protective, but I hated having to shake them like maracas to get the tapes out.)
(Big thanks to Looey Q Comics for tipping me off about this!)
TMNT Cereal on 21 Jump Street! (1989)
In the opening seconds of Mike’s P.O.V. (S4), a high school student (that’s Mike) breakfasts on TMNT Cereal before heading off to school. Oh, and because this is 21 Jump Street, he kills someone on the way to class.
The cereal wasn’t just a cute reference or a matter of happenstance — it helped establish that Mike was still a kid. Given that the guy who played him (Donovan Leitch Jr.) was over 20 at the time, that was pretty essential.
A mix of cheap Chex and chalky marshmallows, TMNT Cereal wasn’t one of my favorites. That never kept me from grabbing it, because the Ninja Turtles were my gods and they demanded tribute. (And also because of the way-cool giveaways, like those bowls that came shrink-wrapped to the boxes!) Read More…
Dino Drac’s January Funpack is here!
Time to launch the first Funpack of 2021! (And yeah, there are finally slots available for new subscriptions! As of this writing, at least!)
UNITED STATES ONLY! LIMITED SUPPLY!
I’m thrilled with how the January 2021 Funpack turned out, and I hope you will be too. It’s a strong mix of serious collectibles, goofy novelties, awesome snacks and more. If this stuff doesn’t put a smile on your face, you’re reading the wrong website.
Y’all know the score. Subscriptions are $25 a month (including shipping), and for as long as you remain subscribed, you’ll keep getting boxes of old-and-new nonsense each and every month. (And you can cancel anytime without penalty, of course!)
Scroll to the bottom to start your subscription, or keep reading to learn about everything in this month’s box! Read More…
Five Retro TV Commercials, Part 38!
Let’s ease out of the holidays and into 2021 with some random TV commercials from 30 years ago. (That line played better in my head, but since nobody reads intros, better to be clunky now than later.)
Rare TMNT PPV Promo! (1990)
Here’s an extremely rare promo that ran on preview channels for the Ninja Turtles’ Coming Out of Their Shells Tour, live on PPV!
Picture TMNT as an odd mash of NKOTB and Van Halen. The Turtles really did tour nationally, but this pay-per-view was for their kickoff show at Radio City Music Hall.
Given that this went down when the cartoon, toy line and live-action movie were all white hot, I’m guessing that the PPV did huge business. Pretty shocked that I didn’t order it myself, but then, I had an irrational fear of music before high school.
Maaaaan, I miss the hell out of PPV preview channels. Are they still a thing? Way back when, I’d let them play for hours on end, slowly memorizing every trailer, and even the order in which they appeared. It was like radio for the radio-averse.
Nestle Alpine White! (1986)
Wait, have I really never featured this spot on Dino Drac before? I know I covered the second version with the female vocalist, but this is the original — one of the definitive 1980s commercials, with a jingle so good it should’ve been released on vinyl.
God knows what compelled Nestle to be so “extra” about Alpine White candy bars, but I’m not complaining. Available with and without almonds, the bars were otherwise pure white chocolate.
White chocolate is still rare in the candy arena, but it was positively alien during the ‘80s. Which meant that Nestle could define it however they wanted. Hence, we got this batshit awesome commercial where winter models stood moody and mute, only ever opening their mouths when it was time for another bite. A+. Read More…