Needless Things

One of the world’s most well-known animated shorts, Steamboat Willie, premiered on November 18th, 1928. Since then it's star, Mickey Mouse, has become an almost unparalleled pop culture icon. To celebrate Mickey's 90th birthday Dave West, Sean Reid, Ryan Cadaver, Dan Wilson, and Derek Tatum shared their Mickey memories on this very special episode of the Needless Things Podcast. From toys to carto...

Recorded LIVE at Dragon Con 2018 for the American Sci-Fi Classics Track! Get your annual dose of nostalgia with Dave, Dana Swanson, Nicole Gould, Jon Carr, and Joe Crowe! When these things are recorded live in front of a Dragon Con audience, you know they can get a little crazy. Each panelist came to the table with a few of their favorite pop culture happenings from thirty years ago. From movies t...

Ryan Cadaver stops by the Phantom Zone with a jar of Kelly's Death Pickles and a willingness to see just where the heck a conversation might go! Halloween is in the books, so Ryan and Dave hit a few highlights of the season before looking ahead to the rest of the year. From concerts to Thanksgiving to upcoming toy releases, plenty of topics come up. Plus, Ryan tries Pumking beer and Dave finally g...

Join Dave, Beth, Rad Ranger, and Derek Tatum for a look at the past, present, and future of their Halloweens! What makes this time of year so special to the Needless Things crew and what do we do to celebrate? In this episode the Irregulars look back at their costumes through the years and determine when and if trick or treating was no longer appropriate. As we grow older, we have to find differen...

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films! Cashing in on the Satanic Panic of late 80s America, Hack-O-Lantern brings cults, spooky old dudes, and small town weirdness bathed in a satisfying helping of 80s cheese. When Hy Pyke (Dolemite, Blade Runner) is the marquee name, you know the Irregula...

Recorded LIVE at Dragon Con 2018 for the Horror Track! John Carpenter's Halloween changed horror cinema 40 years ago. Our pal Derek Tatum put together a roundtable of luminaries to discuss the original as well as the upcoming sequel. Our own Dave West moderated a fantastic panel consisting of author Mari Mancusi , author/illustrator Catherine M. Scully , author Valerie Hampton, and author Clay Gil...

The Halloween season has officially begun at Needless Things! It’s the season to focus on the creepy, spooky, and macabre, and Dave has got you covered with special guests Ryan Cadaver, Salena Balls, and RT Ewell discussing all of the things they do to get in a Halloweeny frame of mind! Movies, music, and of course hitting the stores for crazy costumes and spooky décor are all part of the season....

Recorded LIVE at Dragon Con 2018! Needless Things’ own Dave West had the privilege of moderating several celebrity panels at Dragon Con this year. Each was an amazing experience in and of itself, but one of the most moving and emotional experiences came from an hour with professional wrestling legend Ric Flair. Listen in as the Nature Boy shares stories of life, business, and family on the newest...

Ryan Cadaver shows up in the Phantom Zone to discuss the newest entry in the Predator movie franchise! Dave and Ryan are huge fans of the Predator movies, from the 1987 original to 2010's Predators. After hearing Ryan's enthusiasm for The Predator from a preview screening, Dave knew he had to see it as soon as possible. Afterward there were things that needed to be dissected and discussed, so an i...

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films! Special guest KISStorians Evil Jim, Janie, and JR Frazier join the Irregulars for a 40th Anniversary viewing of NBC’s TV special, KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park! This made-for-TV Hanna-Barbera production stars the legendary rock band KISS as super...

  Mike Gordon returns to the Needless Things Podcast for a post-Con report! From game shows and wrestlers to Tikis and comics, Dave and Mike had amazing experiences at Dragon Con 2018. In today's episode our exhausted but enthusiastic duo will recount tales of high adventure and exciting meetings at the greatest convention in the world! Listen in as Dave and Mike recap Nerdy Gras on the newest epi...

  Dragon Con 2018 coverage continues on Needless Things!   On this week’s episode of the Needless Things Podcast, Dave talks to Puppetry Track Director Beau Brown! Puppetry is a massive part of pop culture that is present across the spectrum of genres. As such, the Puppetry Track is one of the most all-encompassing Tracks at Dragon Con.   Plus, this is another year that the National Puppet Slam wi...

  Dragon Con 2018 coverage continues on Needless Things!   On this week’s episode of the Needless Things Podcast, Dave talks to Urban Fantasy Track Director Carol Malcolm and Horror Track Director Derek Tatum. Horror and Urban Fantasy are two separate Tracks representing different aspects of what could be considered the “horror” genre. Find out what the differences are and how each Track determine...

Dragon Con 2018 coverage continues on Needless Things!   On this week’s episode of the Needless Things Podcast, Dragon Con American Sci-Fi Classics Track Directors “Jumpin’” Joe Crowe and “Gregarious” Gary Mitchel return to the show to play another game of Classics Roll-A-Panel and discuss the ins and outs of running a Track for the ever-evolving entity of joy that is Dragon Con!   Listen in as Ph...

  On today’s episode of the Needless Things Podcast Dave talks to writer, producer, director, and production designer Kirk Thatcher!   Kirk Thatcher’s résumé reads like a pop culture wish list – from working as part of Jim Henson’s Creature Crew on Return of the Jedi to being a major part of star Trek IV to writing and directing the Muppets. He’s a man that has seemingly done it all in the enterta...

Needless Things wasn’t in San Diego for Comic Con, but the Irregulars followed from afar and have plenty to discuss!   In this episode Dave, Head of Research Ryan, and Jay run down the biggest and best toy announcements from San Diego. This year was full of surprises and exciting news for the toy industry, as well as a glimpse of what a post-Toys R Us industry may look like.   PLUS!!!!!   Mr. Beau...

Needless Things wasn’t in San Diego for Comic Con, but the Irregulars followed from afar and have plenty to discuss!   In this episode Dave, Head of Research Ryan, and Jay, and Josh run down the biggest and best movie/TV/comic news from San Diego. DC Comics had a huge year and made the most of Marvel's absence, but their were plenty of other exciting happenings, too. From a new Buffy to an old Sta...

I don't wanna grow up, I'm a Toys R Us kid they got a million toys at Toys R us that I can play with I don't wanna grow up, I'm a Toys R Us kid they got the best for so much less, it'll really flip your lid From bikes to trains to video games it's the biggest toy store there is (gee whiz!) I don't wanna grow up, cause maybe if I did I couldn't be a Toys R Us kid more games, more toys, oh boy! I wa...

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films!   Mike Gordon joins the Irregulars for his first viewing of the summer classic, Weekend at Bernie’s!   80s darlings Jonathan Silverman and Andrew McCarthy star in this surprise hit movie about two average schmucks that have to make an entire town beli...

Jon Carr is a writer, performer, and most importantly a storyteller who plies his trade at the renowned Dad’s Garage Theatre Company in Atlanta. His play, Black Nerd debuts on July 13th and will run through August 4th.   On this episode of the podcast Dave talks to Jon about the art of creating. From the root of his desire to create to the process itself, Jon shares the many different factors that...

The dynamite team of Phantom Troublemaker, Beth V, Rad Ranger, and Chris DePetrillo reunite to look thirty years into the past!   1988 was another banner year of the eighties, presenting us with new TV shows and toy lines and an absolutely stellar slate of films from Hollywood! As part of an annual tradition, Dave gathered some of the Needless Things Irregulars to reflect on the pop culture that m...

On this week’s episode Dave talks to two of the minds behind the seminal 90s X-Men animated series!   ­The early 90’s X-Men cartoon (now typically with “The Animated Series” attached) was a landmark in not only comic book adaptations, but in animated storytelling. It presented the complex stories and themes of Marvel’s Mutants in a more palatable, streamlined form while preserving the edgy and mat...

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films!   The Needless Commentary Team welcomes special guest ELZIG to the Phantom Zone for a viewing of the classic Elvis Presley film, Blue Hawaii!   Straight from the strip of HellVegas, just south of Memphis, and just across the Georgia state line – ELZIG...

  Our old pal Mike Gordon returns to the show to join Dave for a recap of MomoCon!   2018 was Needless Things’ first year at MomoCon! Not knowing exactly what to expect, our own Dave West spent two days and a night finding out what the anime/video game/comic book/pop culture convention is all about. From panels to the dealers’ room to guests, MomoCon had a very different set of offerings.   Mike G...

Screenwriter Chad J. Shonk and Needless Things’ Head of Research Ryan Schweck join Dave to discuss the newest Star Wars film!   Initial trailers for Solo: A Star Wars Story were met with mixed responses from fans. Already wary of prequels, many wondered if a Han Solo origin story was necessary. Others took issue with the casting of Alden Ehrenreich as the young smuggler.   Beyond all of that, the...