Debut Buddies

For generations, the only sounds at a Major League ballpark were the crowd, the crack of the bat, or the slap of a ball smacking a glove. Then in 1941, we got organs, and an historical journey began. With music, fans were more engaged than ever... and in 1970, one woman joined the Chicago White Sox and brought her musical skill and razor wit to the keys. Thanks to Nancy Faust, inventor of the walk...

It began with a disagreement, and it led to the near total decimation of life on Earth. Those who survived hoped to rebuild society, but they faced foes in the forms of sterility and mutant frogpeople. Then came Sam Hell, and where he came was to Frogtown, and we won't touch the other obvious play on that verb. We're talking about the First Roddy Piper Lead Film Role... 1988's Hell Comes To Frogto...

It's dangerous to go alone... Take this podcast! But make sure you've got your boomerang, bombs, heart containers, bow and arrow, faeries, map, candle, and sword with you because the Triforce ain't just for listening to... it's for assembling! In 1986, Nintendo released a golden game that altered the very idea of home gaming and cross-over media... FOREVER. We're talking about the original Legend...

It took seven seasons, but it finally happened with Gillian Anderson's writing and directing debut, "all things". The FIRST X-FILES EPISODE DIRECTED BY A WOMAN is a poetic meditation on coincidence, circumstance, Buddhism, transcendence and healing. It's got a soundtrack featuring 90s electronic stalwart Moby. And Mulder goes to Stonehenge in it! Plus, there's some sexy stuff too! Join us as we di...

What began as "Russian Mountains" evolved across Europe, and eventually, found their way to the good ol' U.S. of A... In 1884, one man wanted to use his vast fortune--NO! Not to help anyone!--to keep a recently re-unioned American population from getting too drunk, too horny, and too gambly... So he built himself a roller coaster, and with it, he made even more money (which he did not share), but...

It's a fever dream, a dream about a fever, and a fever about a dream. On this episode, we're joined by guest and friend of the pod, Michael J. O'Connor as we talk about 1977's Eraserhead--the FIRST DAVID LYNCH FILM. We're talking strange babies (critters), tall hair, pipes all over town, and next door neighbors. Really, the episode defies a single explanation, just like its subject. Plus, we talk...

Running. You might say it's like walking but faster... Now imagine running for 26.2 miles! That would be a marathon, right? Sure. Now double it. 52.4 miles!? That would qualify as an ultramarathon! But we're not stopping there. Special guest, Cabe Waldrop, tells us a little story about a man named Gordy Ainsleigh who ran 100 miles (in a race for HORSES) to see what the human body, some buttermilk,...

She's the fairest but she isn't always the brightest. We get into the making of and nitty gritty details of 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the FIRST DISNEY ANIMATED FEATURE FILM. As we talk plot and marvel at this animated classic, we also ask the hard questions: Did inhaling a bar of soap kill Dopey? Is Grumpy just a misogynist? What kind of message does this movie send to girls and wome...

In the mid-1980s a publishing conglomerate named for two of America's most popular magazines, TIME and LIFE, put together a 33-volume series exploring aliens, psychic powers, magic and more. Mysteries of the Unknown kicked off its series with a little book titled MYSTIC PLACES, and within you could delve into theories about Atlantis, the Great Pyramid of Giza, Stonehenge, Nazca Lines, the Bermuda...

In 2025, the United States experienced a rarity... a nonconsecutive U.S. President took office and the nation was shook by just how nonconsecutive it was after more than 100 years of unmitigated consecutiveness. But, this wasn't the first time a President failed to continue being President only to unfail that same continuation four years later. On this episode, we explore the First Nonconsecutive...

The U.S. legal system had been trying for a long time... then one day, they were like, "what if people could experience this as a kind of news-entertainment hybrid?" In the days of radio, it was a case of ignorance vs. evolution centered on a man named Scopes. In the days of television, 1979 specifically, a charming narcissist serial killer defended himself poorly and fronted an air of superiority...

Do you smell that? Chocolate. Roses. Some special occasion fragrance. And, of course, the dewy marinara of a romantic pizza tarp! It's Valentine's Day and that's LOVE you're smelling on the air. A smell so potent that this episode is all about the FIRST VALENTINE'S DAY! Was it always about buying stuff for your paramour? We'll let you know, but only if you listen to the show! Plus, we get cinemati...

There's been somethin' strange in the neighborhood for longer than you might realize! I bet you didn't even know who to call, or how to call them. Hint: At least once, you call a Gorilla using a talking-self-destructible fish. On this episode, Chelsea, Kelly, and Nate put on their jumpsuits, grab their De-Materializers, and discuss 1975's The Ghost Busters--a television show that may well have cha...

While we obviously do Debut Buddies for the Money, what really drives us is the ceaselessness of Time and maybe a little Brain Damage. It's not just Us and Them, either, a whole host of folks are preparing for The Great Gig in the Sky. We discuss Pink Floyd's FIRST #1 RECORD, The Dark Side of the Moon with special guest writer and educator, Steve Livingston. Plus, we talk prog rock, being old, and...

Sometimes a FIRST isn't something that's sought, but something that seeks you. Back in 1887, Susanna M. Salter became the First Woman Elected Mayor in the U.S. and it's a heck of a story. Join us, and special guest Julia Clausen (Book Club with Julia & Victoria) as we unravel and unwind, and manage to discuss Susanna Salter's story. Plus, we touch on myriad topics political, pop cultural, and more...

Crafts... they're fun, they're hands-on, they're practical and evolutionary. And they had to start somewhere. We take our Debut Buddies Time Machine back to 30,000 BC to discuss the FIRST CRAFT(S)! Maybe it was pottery, maybe it was weaving and looming, but one thing's for sure, we each tried to do a craft and some of us (Chelsea and Kelly) succeeded in creating NON-ABOMINATIONS! But Nate's pot is...

**SPOILERS** for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice! (You've been warned!

It's a plane, it's Superman... it's a... BIRD! Let's take Ye Olde Timed Machinerium back to the Jurassic Period shall we? It's time to for the Debut Buddies to find the FIRST BIRD. This "ancient wing" hung out mostly in Germany, probably listening to Kraftwerk, but now it's a fossil and--boy--are we feeling paleontological! After digging into our newest fine, feathered friend, we talk MouthGarf, a...

PANTS! They were essential to Western Expansion in the 1800s... but damn if they didn't suffer frequent "blow outs" to the pockets and crotch! That's embarrassing! Luckily, a tailor named Jacob Davis took up the challenge to reinforce denim and found a partner in a certain famed jean magnate, way before he was even a jeans gent! Fast forward to today and we're all pretty much always wearing jeans...

In 1869, a crew secretly dug a tunnel under Broadway in Manhattan. That tunnel became a huge attraction that proved scientific potential, supporting Civil War orphans, and eventually fell into disrepair. On this episode, we discuss the First New York City Subway and its creator, Alfred Ely Beach, who was one of those few-and-far-between Good Dudes of History. We also find some great birds and a tr...

A colorfully named cast of suited criminals with equally colorful vocabularies walk into a diamond heist... If you haven't heard this one before, you'll want to check out 1992's Reservoir Dogs, the first film by Quentin Tarantino. With special guest, Eric Weintraub, author of the books South of Sepharad, and Dreams of an An American Exile, we Buddies explore the low-budget, tautly scripted, bloody...

Let's talk about labor, their trials and travails, their battles with oppressive and abusive employers, their wresting from beneath the boots of all systems monarchical, oligarchical, and industrial. On this episode we dive into the First Labor Union, with special appearance by Weavers, Cordwainers, Blanketeers, Spenceans, and more. Join us because collective knowledge is collective power. We also...

If a footage falls in the woods and no one finds it, is it ever even really a movie at all? On this episode, we dig into the First Found Footage Film, 1961's brilliant indie THE CONNECTION. We also discuss the oft mislabeled First Found Footage Film, 1980's CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (about 1:10 - 1:30). **Trigger Warning: sexual violence, animal cruelty.** We discuss the virtues and violations of each fi...

Back in 2007, a review of Cameron Crowe's ELIZABETHTOWN on a little website called The A.V. Club set off a cultural firestorm by birthing the term "Manic Pixie Dream Girl". On this episode of Debut Buddies, we get into the origins of (and problems with)  the term, discuss the original MPDG in question (as played in the film by Kirsten Dunst), and consider the implications for films featuring ebull...

Once there was a dog, and it was hot. Then, there were more of these hot dogs, and they were pursued by insatiable eating machines that sought only their delicious destruction in horrifying numbers. Now, we celebrate these eating champions as gods among humanity, turning what could be months of school lunches for a child into 10 minutes of gladiatorial gastronomy! That's right, we're talking about...