Pop Trash Podcast

It’s our second annual attempt at predicting what will resurface in pop culture nostalgia! As we head into a new year, look back at what psychic friends Eric and Mike got right or wrong about 2022 and then peer into the future to see what’s to come.

Get an extra helping of ham as special guest Ben Pickard joins us for an episode full of holiday cheer! Three wise men bearing vintage holiday TV offerings discuss The Best Christmas Pageant Ever and A Mom for Christmas. Plus, test your retro smarts with a bonus trivia game that stretches the limits of our Loretta Swit knowledge.

What do Burt Reynolds, Penny Marshall, Reba McEntire, and Bruce Boxleitner have in common? They all know the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat that comes with acting in competitive sports films. This episode, we're talking sports themed made-for-TV movies from the 70s - 90s!

There's no denying made-for-TV movies built around the "dangerous woman" genre are a huge part of TV history. We revisit A Woman Scorned, Mother Knows Best, and Face of Evil to relish in the camp performances by three actresses playing unhinged characters.

Scandalous news and made-for-TV movies are a match made in nostalgia heaven. Hosts Mike and Eric talk about a pair of 1990s movies based on true stories that gripped the nation. We follow America's growing fascination with the tabloid gossip of the time which probably paved the way for bizarre reality shows in the years that followed.

Most people probably expect "drama" when they think about the TV movie genre, but some made-for-TV comedies indeed do exist. Judith Light singing in a bowling alley? David Hasselhoff pretending to be gay? Carol Burnett stuck in suburban hell? Get your funny bones ready for our season 3 opening episode all about TV movies making room for laughs on the network's schedule.

Get a sneak peek of season 3! Tune in for a TV Movie bonanza, as we look at the legacy of network made-for-television events and the impact they had on 20th century pop culture. All season we'll be digging up some lesser-known movie gems from the depths of TV entertainment history. 

This “Top of the Flops” season finale revisits infamous final episodes of popular TV shows that missed the mark with audiences. Hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones discuss several ways a beloved series can turn a swan song into a swan dive. Along the way, we make the case for what happened that botched the last episodes of “Seinfeld” and “Quantum Leap.”

When every critic gives a negative review to a film, it gets a 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But do all certified zeroes actually deserve their bad reputation? Hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones are here to squash a few movie flop myths. We’re discussing "Jaws: The Revenge" and "Killing Me Softly" to see if we can squeeze out a little more juice from these crushed tomatoes.

Should pirate movies walk the plank? Many have sunk to the bottom of the box office, so we have to ask: is there still buried treasure to be found in this genre or are these types of adventures destined to be exiled to a cutthroat island? Join your hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones as we look at some high profile pirate movie flops and uncover why the pirate movie has been largely cursed for decades...

They say imitation can be the sincerest form of flattery. But sometimes imitation can be the fastest road to a flop. Join hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones as they look at “copycat” sitcoms created in the wake of blockbuster hits like “Friends” and “The Cosby Show,” that were supposed to be the next big hit, but ended up in the TV graveyard.

Some box office failures refuse to remain relegated to bad movie status. What does it take to bring a once-panned film back from the brink and cement it in pop culture history as a cult classic? Hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones discuss some flops that rebounded years later thanks to devoted fans.

What happened in the 1990s that derailed the cartoon express? Saturday morning cartoons had been an American institution for generations of kids from the 60s through the 80s. Hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones discuss the end of an era and pour out a bowl of sugary cereal in memory of NBC's last cartoon lineup. As we remember our favorite gone-too-soon cartoons, we'll also revisit a surprising cartoo...

Pop culture history is full of product launches that fell flat with consumers. We revisit some food and drink casualties—including what took the fizz out of the Cola Wars and some specialty pizzas that didn’t exactly deliver hot out of the oven.    So drink up and grab that extra slice as your Pop Trash Podcast hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones take a bite out of two of the biggest food and beverage...

We’re kicking off season two by going on a diva trip! This episode, we’re discussing some early career falters for Madonna, Mariah Carey, and Jennifer Lopez as they tried to make the jump to the silver screen.  Hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones touch on the films Who's That Girl?, Glitter, and Gigli to find out why pop music royalty status alone might not be enough to save a movie from bombing. How...

Join hosts Eric and Mike for all new episodes exploring the stories behind some of the most notorious failures in pop history. Here's a quick preview of season two that we're calling "Top of the Flops."

It’s the new year! There's no better time to make some bold (but maybe not so beautiful) predictions about what pop culture treasures from the past might have a rebirth in 2022.  From beloved TV and movie icons who might return to the screen to classic game shows perhaps ripe for a rematch, hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones peer into crystal balls to foresee what nuggets of nostalgia may see new mom...

Grab your wash tub bass as we head to Frogtown Hollow in the 1970s and visit an impoverished otter family who find hope amidst hardship in the charming Jim Henson Christmas special “Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas.”  Your pop culture Christmas elves, Eric Grigs and Mike Jones, make the case for this TV special as the perfect cure for your holiday anxieties and also explore the technical genius be...

We’re making a list and checking it twice… a list of four favorite Christmas sitcom episodes! Revel in the seasonal delights of classic TV from the 70s through the 90s. These special holiday shows were comedy juggernauts, skilled at pulling in a sleigh full of laughs. Your Pop Trash Podcast hosts Eric Grigs and Mike Jones hop in our time machine and travel between 1977 and 1995 to discuss warm mem...

Here’s the story… of a lovely reunion with one of the most beloved families in all of TV history! Our first episode revisits the 1988 holiday TV movie hit “A Very Brady Christmas.” There’s no better way to celebrate the spirit of the season than mixing some “Ho Ho Ho” with “Marsha, Marsha, Marsha!” The Brady gang’s mostly all back (sorry, Cindy!) as the original cast of The Brady Bunch returns 14...