Verge of the Dude

Hey Dude, I riff and ramble about taking a second crack at the "podcast novel" using a new program that might really tie the room together. QUOTE: "When I first saw S-Town in my mind's eye." PEOPLE: Individual-1 , Caryl Chessman , Barbara Graham , Al Matthews , Blayney Matthews , Joan Anderson , Yogi Berra , John Clellon Holmes , Lewis MacAdams , Jack Kerouac PLACES: Venice , The Gas House , Burba...

Hey Dude , I express my deep love for the TV show Columbo after watching "pioneer of American cinema" John Cassavetes guest star alongside his friend and collaborator Peter Falk . QUOTE: "I started to measure time by how many Columbos"  PEOPLE: Howard Hughes ACTORS/FILMMAKERS: Peter Falk , John Cassavetes , Blythe Danner , Myrna Loy , Martin Scorsese , Gena Rowlands , Wim Wenders , Joseph Doughert...

Hey Dude , I ramble about my "fans" in Pakistan back in the year 2000 and my excitement about my new surge of listeners in India.  PEOPLE: George Clooney , Joseph Campbell PLACES: Pakistan , England , Europe , Scotland , Canada , Los Angeles Valley College , India THINGS: This American Life , 9/11 , FBI , DHS , Department of Justice , comparative religion , Hinduism , Buddhism , Christianity , Her...

Hey Dude, I called to riff about recording my Uncle Woody's fantastic stories and to geek the enduring influence of the film My Dinner with Andre.  PEOPLE: Bob Dylan , Howard Hughes , Blayney F. Matthews , Jack L. Warner , Al Matthews , Caryl Chessman , Barbara Graham , Gene Siskel , Roger Ebert , Ed Masry , Albert Finney ,  Erin Brockovich , Danny Wolf PLACES: Los Angeles , Venice , The Gas House...

Hey Dude , I riff and ramble about the time my dad and I dodged a bullet up in California Gold Rush country. PEOPLE: Tom Bopp PLACES: Zane Grey Estate , Yukon , Alaska , California Gold Rush Country , Yosemite , Mariposa , Oakhurst , Wawona , Central Valley THINGS: Yukon Gold , El Capitan , Half Dome , California State Route 49 , California State Route 140 , California State Route 41 , Ozark SOUND...

Hey Dude , I finally watched Joker, so now I can belatedly make amends to "podcast pioneer" Marc Maron for not coming to his defense against the comic book geeks . QUOTE: "Some people aren't in on the joke. That applies to their lives too." PEOPLE: Johnny Cash , Andy Kaufman , Steven Wright , Brother Theodore , Sandra Bernhard ,  David Letterman FILMMAKERS: Joaquin Phoenix , Heath Ledger , Christo...

Hey Dude, I rant about how Trump 's hair alone was enough to disqualify him to be president. QUOTE: "My haystacks weren't tied down and I was beginning to fear the wind." - Bob Dylan ( Chronicles Volume One ) PEOPLE: Red Hot Chili Peppers , Bob Dylan PLACES: The Grove , CBS Television City , Fairfax District , Fairfax High School , Washington, D.C. THINGS: The Kennedy Assassination , Air Force One...

Hey Dude , while standing in the rain, I riff about three towering North Hollywood Huskies: musician D.J. Bonebrake , writer Susan Sontag , and artist Bobby Doran . PEOPLE: X , Erin Moran , John Williams , Garry Marshall , Patti Smith , Lenny Kaye   PLACES: North Hollywood High School THINGS: "Alphabetland" , "On Photography" , Facebook , YouTube SOUNDS: rain, footsteps, "Laguna Cowbell Chimes", a...

Hey Dude , I riff about my internal conflict between recording audio versus video. Plus I rant about bad pedestrians and Dylan 's new song. PEOPLE: Ken Dougherty , Chef Todd Payden , Walt Whitman , William Wordsworth , Bob Dylan PLACES: Glendale , Burbank , Theatre Row THINGS: tiny living , Ralphs , "Murder Most Foul" SOUNDS: birds, wind, palm trees GENRE: storytelling , personal narrative , perso...

Anyways Dude , I riff about telling stories on video again, inspired by Story Salon. Then I trip on my cheap new voice recorder and the challenges of recording outdoors.  PEOPLE: Captain Crozier , Spalding Gray , Casey Stengel , Dean Sharp PLACES: China , Los Angeles City, Los Angeles County , Altadena THINGS: Sony , buffs , Survivor , bandana , coronavirus , Story Salon , 90 Second Stories , jani...

Hey Dude , in my new garden studio, I ramble about everything from coronavirus to nudism . I also riff on Dean Sharp ,  Bob Dylan , Patti Smith , the Beats and bidets .  PEOPLE: Dean Sharp , Patti Smith , Gregory Corso , William S. Burroughs , Allen Ginsberg , Bob Dylan , Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. , Lee Harvey Oswald , James Baldwin PLACES: Burbank , Laguna Beach , Oregon , Washington , Calistoga...

Hey Dude, I check-in from my new pad, where I'm hunkered down for who knows how long. I also riff on my plan to gather and share my family's trippy stories. PEOPLE: Joan Anderson , Neal Cassady , Jack Kerouac , Zane Grey   PLACES: California , Burbank , Mt. Olympus , Sunset Boulevard , Laurel Canyon , Warner Bros . THINGS: The Handmaid's Tale , Pulitzer , Peabody Award , S-Town , podcast novel , B...

Hey Dude , I finally say goodbye to the Zane Grey Estate with a wistful tear in my eye. I also riff on moving my stuff, cats, Tim Coyne and Grant Baciocco PEOPLE: Zane Grey , Tom Mix , John Wayne , Dan Klass , Bob Dylan , Woody Allen , Jimi Hendrix PLACES: Zane Grey Estate , University of Cambridge THINGS: Talkies , The Hollywood Podcast , Craigslist , Ancient Aliens , Bigfoot , "All Along the Wat...

Ah Dude, the impending move from the Zane Grey Estate inspired a trippy dream featuring Flea and his shape shifting boogie board. CHARACTERS: Zane Grey , Corey Feldman , Corey Haim , Individual 1 MUSICIANS: Red Hot Chili Peppers , Bob Dylan , Billie Holiday , Bruce Springsteen , Keith Richards , Patti Smith LOCATIONS: Oakwood Apartments , San Pedro BOOKS: Acid for the Children , Chronicles: Volume...

Hey Dude, my old friend Nicky reminded me that she shares a birthday with Elvis and David Bowie , so I recall my abstract connections to all three rockers.  CHARACTERS: Zane Grey , Orson Welles , Jeff Slate , Frank Sinatra , Bob Dylan , Iggy Pop , Paul McCartney , Paul Simon , Debbie Harry , Alex Trebek , The Gluey Brothers LOCATIONS: New York City , Burbank , Notre Dame High School , Corvallis Hi...

Hey Dude , our impending move from Zane's forces us into a deep dive of downsizing. Only the sparks of joy are spared as we hatch our plan to ride the climate change wave in a tiny home. CHARACTERS: Zane Grey , Bryce Langston , Marie Kondo , David Letterman , Marc Maron , Adam Carolla , Dan Klass LOCATIONS: Pasadena , Rose Bowl , Saigon , New Zealand , Las Vegas , Australia , Full Circle Thrift Sh...

Anyways Dude , I was cash poor so I took my gas can full of coins to the local Coinstar machine and metaphorical chaos ensued. I later found redemption by watching The Two Popes about the friendship between Pope Francis and "the dude with the red shoes." CHARACTERS: Zane Grey , Pope Benedict XVI , Anthony Hopkins , Jonathan Pryce , Orson Welles , Eddie Murphy LOCATIONS: California Bohemian Leather...

Hey Dude, I riff about how my friend Krissy Teegerstrom creates "a little piece of art" with her Beyond and Back Podcast . Then I rant "that just because you're a podcaster, it doesn't mean you're an artist." CHARACTERS: Zane Grey , De Niro , Pacino , Joe Pesci , Jimmy Hoffa , Shepard Fairey , Jakob Dylan , Allison Anders , Siri , Minus One LOCATIONS: California Bohemian Leather (Workshop) , Zane...

Hey Dude , I cheered myself up by celebrating Jeff Bridges ' 70th Birthday. It's a crazy heart of a call, that is both a fragmented and an incomplete recap of his amazing film career .  CHARACTERS: Zane Grey , The Dude , Cybill Shepherd , Clint Eastwood , Stacy Keach , Sally Field , Arnold Schwarzenegger , James Woods , Minus One , Jon Voight , Rachel Ward , Robin Williams, Rosie Perez , Oliver Be...

Ah Dude, the other night I held a reunion of the "original"  LA Podcasters that was more of a requiem. Also I realize that "nobody cares" is both a bad and a surprisingly good thing. Lastly, my long goodbye to Zane begins. CHARACTERS: Zane Grey , John Wayne , Dan Klass , Grant Baciocco , Steven Wright , Paul Barre , Jason Tucker , Tim Bourquin , Ibarionex Perello , Charles Dickens LOCATIONS: Catal...

Anyways Dude , I go back in time to search for the future, as I reflect on the past year of calls I made to you. Also I give thanks to those who've supported me along the way. CHARACTERS: Dan Klass , Evo Terra , Grant Baciocco , Aidan Rosewell , The Illusive Host , Matt Lazarus , Krissy Teegerstrom , Shepard Fairey , John Lurie , Sugar Man LOCATIONS: New York City , Sunset Strip , North Hollywood...

Anyways Dude , I trip out on the abstract connections between my old friend Rod Sweitzer and Sam Shepard , with an assist from an artistic nude photo of Patti Smith shot by Robert Mapplethorpe . CHARACTERS: Fred "Sonic" Smith , Bob Dylan , Seth Meyers , Larry "Ratso" Sloman , Matthew McConaughey , Sam Elliott , Paul Newman , Kris Kristofferson , Johnny Cash LOCATIONS: New York City , Toluca Lake T...

Anyways Dude , for years Halloween was my favorite holiday, now it just bums me out. You'd think if you lived in a "real" haunted house Halloween would be epic, sadly it isn't, at least not at Zane's. CHARACTERS: Santa Claus , Bob Hope , Zane Grey , Jason Voorhees , Michael Myers   LOCATIONS: San Gabriel Valley , Studio City , Studio City Recreation Center , Toluca Lake , Disneyland , The Haunted...

Anyways Dude , the recent Shine a Light exhibition at Descanso Gardens , specifically the multi-media installation, inspires me to want to do my own collaborative exhibit featuring my beloved palm trees . CHARACTERS: Carole Kim , Bobby Doran , Alex Schaefer , D.J. Bonebrake , X (the band) , Diana Bonebrake , Reese Witherspoon , Individual 1 LOCATIONS: Walter Reed Junior High School , San Fernando...

Anyways Dude , a bunch of "broken shoelaces" on my birthday weekend sent me into a tailspin, until my hope was restored after meeting an old friend at Bob's Big Boy to talk about collaborating on an audio drama podcast. CHARACTERS: Zane Grey , Charles Bukowski , Siri , Aiden Rosewell LOCATIONS: West San Fernando Valley , South Los Angeles , North Hollywood High School , Lakewood , Toluca Lake PODC...