The Conner & Smith Show

Episode 228 — Sleepy Hollow (1999) Day 17 of 31 Days of Halloween brings Ryan and me to Tim Burton’s Sleepy Hollow—and what an amazingly gorgeous adaptation it is! From its foggy woods to its wonderfully Gothic atmosphere, there’s so much to love just looking at this movie. But how does the rest of it hold up? We talk through the pros and cons, what works for us, and where this take on the Headles...

Episode 227 — Night of the Living Dead (1990) Day 16 of 31 Days of Halloween brings me to the 1990 remake of Night of the Living Dead—and for me, this one is… okay. There are some good performances, but there’s also some bad dialogue delivered poorly. It’s fun to go back to that farmhouse and see it in a different light, even if some parts work better than others. I’m glad I revisited it, but when...

Episode 226 — Play Misty for Me (1971) Day 15 of 31 Days of Halloween brings me to Clint Eastwood’s directorial debut, Play Misty for Me—and this one has always creeped me out! I’ve always thought being a late-night DJ taking calls from strangers was like spinning a roulette wheel. Especially at that hour, you never really know who’s on the other end of the line—or what a little attention might me...

This is a repeat. But still good one.

Episode 224 — WKBW’s War of the Worlds (1968) Day 13 of 31 Days of Halloween brings me to WKBW’s 1968 radio broadcast of War of the Worlds—and I absolutely love this version! I love the original Orson Welles broadcast so much, and nothing can touch that. But WKBW’s take brings the terror a little closer to our own era, making it feel more immediate and relatable. It’s a different way into a story...

Episode 223 — The Day of the Triffids (1963) Day 12 of 31 Days of Halloween brings me to 1963’s The Day of the Triffids—and this one comes with a childhood memory! After school, the bus would drop me off at my house, and I’d have to walk through the woods to my nana’s house. With woods on either side of the path, there were plenty of places for my imagination to hide something. After watching this...

Episode 222 — The Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue (1974) Day 11 of 31 Days of Halloween brings me to 1974’s The Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue. Is it a great movie? Not really—but it’s fun, it’s creepy, and there’s plenty to enjoy once it gets going. I talk about its weird insect-killing technology that brings the dead back to life, some unintentionally comical acting, and my favorite s...

Carrie (2026) Day 10 of 31 Days of Halloween brings me to Mike Flanagan’s Carrie, currently streaming on Amazon—and I’ll admit, I wasn’t eager to watch it. With so many Carrie remakes already, I wondered whether we really needed another one. But this is incredible! From the cast to the modernization of the story, it’s really fantastic. I talk about how it won me over and why I’m so excited to see...

Episode 220 — Martin (1977) Day 9 of 31 Days of Halloween brings a very different kind of vampire story as Ryan joins me to discuss George A. Romero’s Martin—and one big question: is Martin really a vampire? Ryan thinks he is. I think he isn’t. It feels so Romero to create a vampire story where the vampire might not actually be a vampire! We debate what to believe and whether the horror comes from...

Episode 219 — Thriller/Chiller Sound Effects Cassette Tape (1980s) Day 8 of 31 Days of Halloween takes me back to the days of cassette players and homemade haunted houses as I talk about Fun World’s Thriller/Chiller Sound Effects tape! I revisit this little piece of Halloween nostalgia and the fun of setting a spooky mood with a cassette full of creepy sounds. Sometimes all you needed was a tape p...

Episode 218 — House of Frankenstein (1944) Day 7 of 31 Days of Halloween brings a monster mash as Ryan joins me to talk about 1944’s House of Frankenstein—kind of like the first Avengers movie, only with Universal monsters! We get into some surprisingly cool stunts and the fun of bringing these monsters together, but ultimately find the film pretty subpar compared to its predecessors. We also talk...

Episode 217 — Backrooms (2026) Day 6 of 31 Days of Halloween finds Ryan and me venturing into the Backrooms—and quickly discovering that we don’t like it there and want out. We talk about how an intriguing YouTube short ballooned into an unscary big-budget movie that leaves plenty to be desired. From its eerie beginnings to its disappointing expansion, we get into why this creepy concept loses its...

Episode 216 — The Strangers (2008) Day 5 of 31 Days of Halloween brings a knock at the door as Ryan joins me to talk about 2008’s The Strangers—and why it’s creepy as hell. We get into the film’s iconic moments, the terror of someone lurking in the background, and how it makes an ordinary house feel utterly unsafe. We also talk about where things go a little off the rails in Act 3, even after such...

Episode 215 — Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) Day 4 of 31 Days of Halloween takes a wonderfully twisted turn with Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? — and I’m joined by Matt Conner in a rare 31 Days of Halloween appearance to talk about this iconic 1962 psychological horror classic. We get into the camp factor, why we enjoy it, and why, underneath decades of quotable lines, impersonations, and...

Episode 214 — This Island Earth (1955) Day 3 of 31 Days of Halloween blasts off into 1950s sci-fi with This Island Earth . I look back at this strange, colorful classic and the thing that first grabbed me as a kid: that unforgettable alien design. And I can’t help wondering if that wonderfully bizarre look helped inspire the aliens in Mars Attacks! Aliens. Mutants. Flying saucers. Interplanetary c...

Episode 213 — The Deadly Mantis (1957) Day 2 of 31 Days of Halloween takes us back to the golden age of giant 1950s creature features with The Deadly Mantis. Stephen celebrates this wonderfully ridiculous monster movie, its Washington, D.C. rampage, and the simple joy of a giant prehistoric bug wreaking havoc. Giant bug. Bug gets loose. Bug goes on rampage. Movie. Support The Conner & Smith Show o...

Episode 212 kicks off 31 Days of Halloween on The Conner & Smith Show ! We begin with one of Stephen’s favorite Halloween cartoons, Disney’s Trick or Treat (1952), featuring Donald Duck, Huey, Dewey and Louie, and the unforgettable Witch Hazel. It’s a little Disney history, a little Halloween nostalgia, and the perfect way to start 31 days of spooky fun. Support The Conner & Smith Show on Patreon:...

The Conner & Smith Show
 Episode 211: The Mystery of the Mary Celeste Fall is here—and with it, the beginning of spooky season. In Episode 211, Ryan, Matt, and Stephen venture out onto the Atlantic to explore one of history’s most enduring mysteries: the Mary Celeste, the ship discovered adrift in 1872 with its cargo and belongings largely intact—but its captain, his family, and entire crew nowher...

The Conner & Smith Show — American Summer Episode 210: “End of Summer” All good things must come to an end—even summer. In Episode 210, Ryan, Matt, and Stephen gather one last time for American Summer to talk about that particular melancholy that arrives as the season begins to fade: the days getting shorter, routines returning, and the unmistakable feeling that fall is waiting just around the cor...

🎭 Episode 209: SSMT — Our Shenandoah Summers ☀️ Welcome back to The Conner & Smith Show! This week, Matt, Ryan, and Stephen continue our American Summer series with Episode 209: SSMT — Our Shenandoah Summers. For all three of us, summer and Shenandoah Summer Music Theatre are forever intertwined. Across many years, we each found our way to Winchester, Virginia, and the stage at Shenandoah—perform...

🍦 Episode 208: Ice Cream Sunday 🍦 Welcome back to The Conner & Smith Show! This week, Matt, Ryan, and Stephen continue our American Summer series with Episode 208: Ice Cream Sunday. What would an American summer be without ice cream? From the unmistakable sound of the ice cream truck coming down the street to childhood trips to the ice cream shop, favorite flavors, cones and sundaes, and all the...

Welcome back to The Conner & Smith Show! This week, Matt, Ryan, and Stephen continue our American Summer series with Episode 207: American Heroes. Who are America’s heroes? The answer goes far beyond superheroes in capes. From Captain America and other comic book icons to military heroes, civil rights leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, pioneering NASA legends Katherine Johnson...

Welcome back to The Conner & Smith Show! This week, Matt and Stephen continue our American Summer series with Episode 206: The Boston Tea Party…or at least our best attempt to remember it after having a drink. Armed with confidence, questionable memories, and absolutely no history books, we set out to recount one of America’s most famous acts of rebellion. Unsurprisingly, we eventually realize we...

Welcome back to The Conner & Smith Show! This week, Matt, Ryan, and Stephen continue our American Summer series with Episode 205: Summer Blockbusters—a celebration of the movies that turned summer into Hollywood’s biggest season and became the soundtrack of our vacations, school breaks, and childhood memories. In this episode, we dive into the history of the summer blockbuster, exploring how films...

Welcome back to The Conner & Smith Show! This week, Matt and Stephen continue our American Summer series with Episode 204: The Fourth and 5th of July—a celebration of two back-to-back holidays that have always felt like one big weekend in Stephen’s life: America’s birthday on July 4th and his own birthday on July 5th. In this episode, Ryan, Matt, and Stephen explore the unique connection between I...