May 29

Nothing But Trouble , 1991

Welcome back to another exciting, all new installment of Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers! J. Blake and Dion Baia are getting lost in the backwoods this week, covering a cult classic and very polarizing film, Dan Aykroyd‘s only directorial effort, Nothing But Trouble, from 1991.

The boys talk about the script changes and editing to make it a PG-13 from a Rated R, as well as how wacky this comedic-horror genre is, and perhaps why this zany film bombed at the box office. Is it really that bad? They also go through the insane story that Warner Bros. let Aykroyd put on the screen. So come on down and bail Dion and Blake out before it’s too late as they give some love to this forgotten gem, on this hilarious and fun all new edition of the Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers‘ podcast!

Extras!

Have a look at the amazing unused Boris Vallejo poster for Nothing But Trouble !

Check out Digital Underground‘s music video for Some Song (Featuring 2Pac), with cameos from Dan Aykroyd, Daniel Baldwin and even Eazy-E and Dr. Dre!

December 6

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, 1989

It’s that time of year again! J. Blake and Dion Baia are getting ready for the holidays at Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers and bringing down the decorations from the attic! They have on deck, an iconic film that has become an absolute cult classic, and one that turns 30 this year. So, this week the boys are taking on Chevy Chase‘s National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, from 1989!

Dion and Blake jump right in, exploring the history of National Lampoon Magazine, and how it went to presenting movies, and how a short story by a young writer named John Hughes morphed into an epic and iconic franchise. So come listen to the fellas put the Christmas lights up outside on the house, in this all new exciting, informative, and hilarious edition of Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers!

And thank you to this week’s sponsor, Skillshare!

(*In the cast Dion mentioned that Chevy Chase left SNL after the First Season– in fact, he did perform in a handful of episodes of Season 2 before he jumped ship.)

Extras!

Check out the original short story by John Hughes that appeared in 1980 in Nation Lampoon called Christmas ’59, that was the basis for the 1989 feature film!

March 3

Wayne’s World, 1992

Party-hearty! Welcome to another episode of Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers! Your most excellent hosts, J. Blake and Dion Baia are heading back to their early teenage years and celebrating a film that turned 25 on Valentine’s Day, and became a vehicle that propelled two character’s from a skit on Saturday Night Live into the urban lexicon, becoming a world-wide phenomenon. It was so influential that it introduced several sayings and phrases that have been imprinted in our collective brains for decades now. That’s right, it’s time to party-on because this week the boys are talking Wayne’s World, from 1992.

Wayne's World

That’s right, it’s (Saturday) Night, it’s 10:30, and it’s time to party. Dion and Blake start off my reminiscing about their shared history of making home-movies growing up, specifically genre installments for Blake and sketch comedy influenced by Saturday Night Live, for Dion. They discuss SNL as it was for them growing up, and Dion laments about the huge impact the show had on him, specifically as an adolescent, watching it religiously from 1989 up until the early 2000’s. They discuss the memories they had from the show and the several now-famous moments they remember with the cast members of the era. The boys debate the popularity of SNL back in the late 80’s and early 90’s, and get into a gentleman’s disagreement about what demographic this feature film, Wayne’s World, was actually trying to target. The fellas go into the history of the Wayne’s World skit, and it’s origins that predate Saturday Night Live entirely. They also explain the seemingly forgotten Rob Lowe sex tape controversy from the 1989. They may even break news and connect Chris Farley‘s cameo in this film and his win at the inaugural Borgnine Night in New York City, both of which occurred 25 years ago, in February of 1992. They also chart the rise of this film and examine it’s release and serendipitous timing, coming out exactly at the most perfect time it could have, becoming engrained in our collective consciousness. So how was the energy onset; were the rumors true of the difficulty working with comedian Mike Myers? What music group’s career did this movie help completely reinvent? What music group did the studio actually want, which Myers threated to leave the film if his wish’s weren’t followed? And does Myers actually hate this film? Well buckle yourselves in, because we’re heading back to 1992 and reliving a visual time capsule of that era, in this most-excellent edition of Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers! Party on!!!

EXTRAS!

Check out the origins of Wayne’s World, specifically the original skit(s) that evolved into what we know them as today, from 1987 on It’s Only Rock and Roll, called Wayne’s Power Minute!

Have a look at the first Wayne’s World skit on Saturday Night Live, from 1989!

Take a look at this rare teaser trailer for the original Wayne’s World.

Discussed in the podcast, here’s a look at the tie-in book called Wayne’s World: Extreme Close-up.