Advent Calendar House

🎄 It’s 1983, and a young bear and fox are lost in the Big City after accidentally riding the rails on the apparently famous Christmas Tree Train in an obscure special that has little to do with Christmas trees or trains.  🎙 Ethan “The Hungry Reader” climbs aboard as we explore the first holiday special starring Buttons and Rusty, known later as the Chucklewood Critters.  📺 You can watch “The Chr...

🎄 It’s 1984, and all we want for Christmas is our mom back.  🎙 Adam Pope and Steven join us for a roller coaster of emotions from sad raindrop to beautiful snowflake as we turn around back to 1984 with Punky Brewster during her very special, very crucial first Christmas with her new family.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   I totally missed the 2021 “Punky Brewster” revival series on Peacock.  A...

🐰 It’s 1983, and despite replacing our entire body with robot parts, we still can’t plow faster than a rapidly growing magic forest baby.  🎙 Chad Young and Sammy Hain join us as we get things rolling with the mascots of Paas Easter egg coloring kits in a secret hit piece on landlords disguised as a wacky Easter story. On the way, we’ll meet the ever-looming shadow of the Easter Bunny and teach an...

🎄 It’s 1990, and we’re looking a gift horse in the mouth.  🎙 Justin O’Connor joins us on a wild ride to the Bar None Ranch for a Very Special Episode™ of Nickelodeon’s “Hey Dude” disguised as a barely festive Christmas in July special.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   An ode to our childhood friends who lied about having an Uncle Who Worked For Nintendo.  Hey Dude Reviewed’s episode rankings an...

🎄 It’s 1983, and Young Republican Alex P. Keaton is sick and tired of hearing “Merry Christmas.” It was a different time.  🎙 Molly Patton and Joey O. join us as we airlift our dirty laundry back to before “Back to the Future” for a Scrooge Sunday edition of “Family Ties,” in which Michael J. Fox is taken 30 years into the future to fix his family.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   Michael Gross...

🎄 It’s 1984, and it’s time to let the music play down in Fraggle Rock as we ring in Christmas in July on a quest to find the true meaning of the Festival of the Bells.  🎙 Tommy Coombs and Donnie Storms join us on a journey to Outer Space as Doc teaches Sprocket — and us — about the Winter Solstice, Saturnalia, and Christmas around the world.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   A clip from the Brit...

🎅 It’s the 100th episode of the Advent Calendar House, and what better day than Christmas Eve to return to the World of Rankin/Bass?  🎙 Erin Evans , Michael DiGiovanni , Michael May , Brandon Medley , and Joey O. join us as we put one foot in front of the other back to 1970 to revisit a Christmas classic that dares to answer children’s questions about Santa Claus while illegally opening his mail....

🎄 It’s 1996, and we’re holding our football-shaped heads high on a quest to find our neighbor’s long-lost daughter… but first, a pair of highly sought after Nancy Spumoni snow boots!  🎙 Anthony Caruso from Tis the Podcast and Matt Eurich from TGI Podcast join us for a very special Christmas episode that solidified “Hey Arnold!” as an unforgettable Nicktoon.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   The...

🎄 It’s 1984, and the most 1984 pair I can think of, Mr. T and Emmanuel Lewis, are taking us on the most romantic date through New York City on the way to a Christmas party at Radio City Music Hall.  🎙 Guy Hutchinson joins us as we spoil David Copperfield’s magic tricks, leave our emergency contact information with Willie Tyler and Lester, share our favorite Christmas songs with Maureen McGovern,...

🎄 It’s 1986, and we’re hiding out in a cabin in the mountains with modern-day Snow White and real-life Christmas angel Dolly Parton.  🎙 April Ryley joins us as we try to wrap our heads around this Henry Winkler-directed TV movie that gets really weird really quickly.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   “ Dolly Parton Meets the Kids .”  Muppet doppelgänger Polly Darton .  Dolly Parton saved a girl’...

🎄 It’s 1995, and a cozy Christmas at X-Mansion has quickly turned into a risky blood transfusion in a sewer.  🎙 I call upon the raging wind and the retired hosts of The Hourchive — Drew Crowley , John Dedeke , Adam Jurotich , and Nick Main — to send us flying into the Marvel Animated Universe as we size up the X-Mansion Christmas tree, praise Storm’s fashion sense, and berate her leadership skill...

🎄 It’s 1978, and we’re glued to the TV… whether we like it or not.  🎙 Molly Patton and Adam Pope join us as we catch the next reindeer flight to save Santa’s workshop from being taken over by a palette swapped Wile E. Coyote.  ****  “ Raggedy Ann and Andy: A Musical Adventure ” and The Greedy .  Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog , in example: “ A Sheep in the Deep .”  The Gloopstik Corporation’s addres...

🎄 It’s 1978, and celebrities pretending to be ghosts are gaslighting Oscar the Grouch into participating in Christmas. Also, Michael Jackson shows up. 🎙 Alan Johnson and Donnie Storms join us for another Scrooge Sunday episode to witness the 2nd best “Sesame Street” Christmas special from 1978… out of 2.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   Our episode on “ Christmas Eve on Sesame Street .”  I thou...

🎄 It’s 1980, and we’re having a hiccuping fit that can literally move mountains.  🎙 Kristi and Bri from Bad Princess Movies join us on a trip back to the World of Filmation for a barely Christmassy Snow White sequel starring Snow White’s daughter, also named Snow White, who meets Seven Friendly Giants, each with their own involuntary reflexes.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   Bad Princess Movie...

🎄 It’s 1988, and the Care Bears are threatening to take hostages on a quest to save Toyland.  🎙 Lindy Kempe and Karen Flieger join us to stare intensely at the totally nuts series finale of “The Care Bears Family,” the Care Bears’ last TV appearance for 16 years.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   The World’s Smallest Tenderheart Bear .  Karen’s awesome Nutcracker socks .  Abby Hagyard (Ms. Walke...

🕎 It’s 1988, and we’re getting lit at Bubbe’s Boarding House for Hanukkah. 🎙 April Ryley joins us for a spin with a bunch of puppets you’ll never hear from again.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   A Simpsons animator designed the puppets for this weird, wonderful ’80s Hanukkah special (Splinter, 2014)  “ Caps for Sale ”  Anton and his Easter Island head.  April’s very non-kosher latke recipe.  M...

🎄 It’s 1963, and we’re watching a show about a show within a show putting on a show for Christmas. Don’t ask us to make sense of it. We can’t stop tripping over our own home furniture.  🎙️ Tim Babb from the Can’t Wait for Christmas Podcast joins us to watch a show within a show put on a Christmas show, then sing the theme from the show it’s within.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   Dick Van Dyke...

☃️ It’s 1982, and we’re walking in the air. 🎙️ Adam Parker Sibun from the Merry Britsmas Podcast visits the Advent Calendar House as we melt over a British Christmas classic and a personal favorite I wish was more beloved stateside.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   We have a new theme song! Thanks, Bronwen’s Ghost !  Merry Britsmas episode on Raymond Briggs .  The British Film Institute’s Top 10...

🎄 Santa falls off the roof, and a guy who acts like a caveman takes over his job.  🎙 Gerry Davila from Totally Rad Christmas and Sean Sotka from the Christmas Podcasts Podcast join us as we close out another countdown to Christmas in July with a sleigh ride back to the Stone-Age Year of Our Lord 1977.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   Our episode on the Fruity Pebbles Christmas Commercial .  I f...

🦃 We’re talking turkey as we dig up and dig in to a 1983 Thanksgiving special from puppeteer Paul Fusco, the creator of ALF.  🎙️ Chad Young , Tommy Coombs , and Jayme Kilsby join us the follow a turkey’s dream of stardom that ends with dogs and cats living together.  📺 You can watch “A Thanksgiving Tale” on Youtube , with curated retro Thanksgiving commercials.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:  ...

🦖 It’s the most wonderful time of 60 million years ago, so come in and buy paint.  🎙️ Lindy Kempe joins us with frying pan ready to celebrate Refrigerator Day with the Jim Henson Company’s “Dinosaurs,” which is somehow the Advent Calendar House’s first TGIF episode.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   “ The Simpsons ” parodies “Dinosaurs.”  We go from talking about the “Økėÿ Døkęÿ Køøkïñ” segment...

🎄 I know what we’re going to podcast about today!  🎙 James Riley and Brandon Medley join us for a toboggan ride without even getting out of bed back to 2009 to watch Phineas and Ferb save their very nice town’s Christmas Vacation.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   Thomas Brodie-Sangster (Ferb) in “ Love Actually ” and “ Star Wars: The Force Awakens .”  The time James accidentally knocked over Be...

🎄 Garbageman is here for your Christmas spirit.  🎙️ Tommy Coombs and Chad Young join us as we look happily deranged back to 1996 to follow Pete and Pete’s brother, Pete, on their mission to keep Christmas going for as long as possible, and keep their Christmas tree safe from the evil Garbageman.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   Michael C. Maronna (Big Pete) in “ Home Alone ,” and in a series of...

🎃 It’s a wonderful night for eyebrows and the wildest trip to the euphemism we’ve ever taken.  🎙️ James Riley and Ethan “The Hungry Reader” hitch a ride in our paraphernalia wagon as we wheel it back to 1977 for a Grinch Night we’ll never forget.  ****  💬 Topics & Tangents:   The worst, non-candy Halloween treats.  “ Carlton, Your Doorman .”  Longtime Sesame Street composer Joe Raposo compos...

🎄 Happy Back to the Future Day! Set your time circuits to 1845 by way of 1991 for a special Christmas in July episode of the “Back to the Future” Saturday morning cartoon featuring hologram clothes, the hoverboard equivalent to texting while driving, and Bill Nye the Science Guy. 🎙 Joey O. , along with Joseph Wade from Christmas Creeps and The O/S/T Party , are our partners in time for a “Dickens...