Obscure Obsessions: A Pop Culture Podcast

This year, Taylor & Nick are joined by show correspondent (and their middle cousin) Anthony for some Halloween movie recommendations: First up, The Changeling (1980): a grief-stricken composer moves into a dilapidated mansion. When he comes to believe that the mansion is haunted, he discovers the dark history of the family that once lived there. Then in Australia, a widowed mother and her son conf...

To celebrate the Season 4 finale, Taylor & Nick travel to Aurora, Illinois to help Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar put on a concert in Wayne’s World 2 (1992) __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Godzilla vs. Kong. Alien vs. Predator. Hercules vs. Aladdin? This week, hear all about “Hercules and the Arabian Night” (1999), the Aladdin crossover episode of Hercules: The Animated Series __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Taylor, Nick, and Sigourney Weaver crash land on a prison planet, where they battle the xenomorph and the meddlesome studio executives who bedeviled the production of Alien 3 (1992). Remembered more for its troubled production than the movie itself, this third installment in the Alien franchise nearly derailed the burgeoning career of its young director, David Fincher.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…...

To clear his name of a murder he did not commit, a man goes on the run to find the real killers and clear his name. No, not the Fugitive! It’s Wrongfully Accused, an outlandish and nonstop parody of man-on-the-run movies. Leslie Nielsen stars in this favorite of your hosts.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Nick & Taylor go west to help the Olsen Twins save a dude ranch from a very villainous Martin Mull in How the West Was Fun (1994).  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Did you know that The Dead Pool (1988) is not a superhero movie starring Ryan Reynolds? It’s actually the fifth and final Dirty Harry movie, starring Clint Eastwood. Hear all about it on today’s episode!  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Join Taylor & Nick as they celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the UK release of Supergirl (1984). This spin-off of the Christopher Reeve-Superman series follows the Man of Steel’s cousin Kara as she journeys to Earth to retrieve a magic orb from a witch with globe-conquering aspirations (Faye Dunaway). __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Produce...

For over 20 years, Taylor could not remember the name of this movie about paperboys, guard geese, and Freddy Krueger’s Robert Englund. Thanks to Nick’s prodigious memory, your hosts look back at this long-forgotten TV movie, The Paper Brigade (1996).  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

From the studio that brought you Godzilla, Mothra, and Rodan, comes one of the most bizarre movies ever made: Frankenstein Conquers the World, aka Frankenstein vs. Baragon (1965).  The plot? You ready for this?…. After the Nazis steal the heart of the Frankenstein Monster, they transport it to Hiroshima, where the nuclear bomb mutates the heart into a 65-foot giant, who battles a subterranean dino...

Nick & Taylor love the films of Kevin Smith. So imagine their excitement when they came across a strange curio from the View Askewniverse. Shortly after the massive success of Smith’s classic indie hit Clerks, ABC attempted to turn the raunchy flick into this sanitized and family-friendly sitcom pilot (1995).  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Directo...

In this spoiler-filled episode, Nick answers Taylor’s many questions about Star Trek: Insurrection (1998), the truly weird and bizarre ninth installment in the Star Trek film series.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

When you hear “Rocketman”, you think of Elton John. When Taylor & Nick hear “Rocketman”, they think of the vastly underrated Disney comedy from 1997. Harland Williams stars as an accident-prone computer geek who gets the chance to join the first manned mission to Mars.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Nick & Taylor’s flight to a private island crashes into the ocean, trapping all the passengers one hundred feet underwater and air is running out! We’re headed to Airport ‘77 (1977) this week, the third installment in the classic disaster movie series.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Taylor & Nick conclude their Joe Dante marathon with one of their favorite underrated movies: Matinee (1993). This love letter to sci-fi/horror B movies stars John Goodman as a flamboyant filmmaker who uses outrageous gimmicks and the Cuban Missile Crisis to promote his new creature feature.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Edito...

Taylor & Nick continue to celebrate director Joe Dante with The ‘Burbs (1989). Tom Hanks stars in this quirky satire of suburbia as a burnt-out everyman who suspects his new neighbors are up to no good.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Taylor & Nick celebrate Joe Dante with a three-part look at the acclaimed director’s films. They begin with Explorers (1985), a science fiction fantasy about three boys, including River Phoenix and Ethan Hawke, who use advanced technology to build a spaceship.   __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

Taylor & Nick traverse the Forbidden Zone in search of Charlton Heston and end up encountering a race of subterranean telepathic mutants in Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970). __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor 

Despite being enormous fans of Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, Nick & Taylor long avoided its follow-up, Big Top Pee-wee (1988). Moved by the passing of Paul Reubens, your hosts finally checked out this less-loved sequel. The big adventure this time? Pee-wee, now a farmer, finds himself caught up in a love triangle when the circus comes to town.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Write...

It should come as no surprise that Taylor and Nick are obsessed with the Adam West Batman series and Scooby-Doo, but did you know that there was a two-part crossover special during the mid 1970s? Featuring the Joker, the Penguin, inflatable clown punch-balloons and all sorts of other weirdness, this is one mystery you won't want to miss! __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Wri...

Just when you thought Theodore Rex was the worst dinosaur movie ever made… you have Adventures in Dinosaur City (1991). With the aid of YouTube to access this long out of print movie, Taylor & Nick are transported to Saur City, where they encounter cavemen gangs, prehistoric political intrigue and a young Omri Katz (Max from Hocus Pocus).  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Write...

With camping gear and plaid shirts in tow, Taylor & Nick head off into the forest, encountering Grizzly (1976). In this low-budget Jaws rip-off, a park ranger, a scientist, and a helicopter pilot hunt down a prehistoric monster-bear before it stuffs itself full on campers.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor 

Strap on your rocket-powered rollerskates, folks! We’re joining the surreal ongoings at a roller disco in Skatetown, U.S.A (1979). Featuring Scott Baio (Chachi from Happy Days), Maureen McCormick (Marcia from the Brady Bunch), and the screen debut of Patrick Swayze (who hated this movie so much that he bought it and refused to let it be seen.)  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer,...

This week, Taylor & Nick explore a truly wretched sequel: King Kong Lives (1986). In this follow-up to the 1976 remake of the classic story, Kong receives both a heart transplant and a love interest: Lady Kong.  __________ Taylor Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario…Host, Director, Producer, Editor

In which our heroes wrap-up Season 3 and 2023. __________ Taylor Zaccario….Host, Director, Producer, Writer  Nick Zaccario….Host, Director, Producer, Editor