Gilded Trash
Ride shotgun with Comedian Scott Reed and Creator AlannaB as they travel the country in search of ...what? When they figure it out, you'll be the first to know!
Gilded Trash
All I Want for Christmas is Yinz
Ever wondered what Christmas would be like if Santa sported a Steelers jersey or if Ace Ventura had a holiday special? Join us on a whimsical journey as we explore these playful ideas and rekindle our love for classic holiday films, with a special highlight on our unforgettable interaction with Macaulay Culkin at a cozy event in Johnstown. Despite the low-key promotion, meeting the iconic "Home Alone" star was a bucket-list moment, filled with nostalgia and shared laughter among fellow fans. We also share light-hearted stories about Culkin's quirky fashion sense and exciting news about his upcoming role in the "Fallout" series, adding a sprinkle of anticipation to our festive reflections.
The magic of watching "Home Alone" with a live audience is nothing short of electrifying, even if the snack bar fails to meet expectations. This experience brings back the charm and thrill of seeing it in theaters for the first time. As we reminisce about our Christmas traditions, we can't help but discuss how the holiday spirit has evolved over the years, especially post-COVID. From the joy of Christmas caroling to the nostalgic tunes that fill our hearts, we look back on our fondest memories and ponder the differences in celebrations across various climates, including the curious notion of a snowy Christmas in Florida.
Our festive journey takes a deeper dive into the rich history and evolution of Christmas traditions. We trace the roots back to ancient pagan festivals and explore how these celebrations transformed into the beloved holiday we know today. From the iconic poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" to the mischief-filled antics of Christmas past, we discover how cultural milestones and historical figures shaped modern festivities. Through personal stories of family gatherings, cherished childhood toys, and sentimental holiday songs, we capture the essence of the holiday season, creating a heartfelt tribute to the magic of Christmas past and present.
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Oh, I love it. I love it. I didn't even look at my notes. I was supposed to do that while I was out. Merry Christmas, it's Christmas.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, it's the best time of the year.
Speaker 1:That's all you're going to say. There's a reason they say that, though it really is the best time of the year.
Speaker 3:It's a great vibe.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean. The only other thing that I could think of is if they'd somehow really do like a nightmare before Christmas and somehow put Christmas and Halloween together. But Halloween to Christmas really is just one long, beautiful season.
Speaker 2:It is.
Speaker 1:Called the fall into winter.
Speaker 3:It is, but I like them being two distinct and separate holidays.
Speaker 1:Oh, I do too.
Speaker 3:They have very different vibes.
Speaker 1:But what if, like Santa, just started wearing black and orange? What if Santa started wearing black and yellow? There is a Steeler Santa, steeler Santa. Yeah, his name's Bright Kiesel. No, I'm kidding, you've ever been. Yeah, oh, okay, just making sure.
Speaker 2:Fear the beard.
Speaker 1:Fear the beard. I'm pretty sure he owns a bar called Red Beards. I don't know if it's in Pittsburgh or not, but I've seen like I haven't heard of it. Posts of it and various Steeler things, but I'm not, like I said, I'm not sure if it's in. It might be in his hometown. You know what I mean. Like instead of like in Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh.
Speaker 3:What's his hometown?
Speaker 1:I have no idea. I don't know anything about the guy Other than he has a beard. He was one hell of a model American. You don't know what that's from no, ace Ventura. When he's talking about it, he's like. He's like when he goes to the house he's like what do you know about Ray Finkel, the guy that answers the door to his dad? And Jim Carrey's like. He's like graduated from Collier High and he like rattles off like a hundred statistics and he's like says something that at the end of he goes in one hill. A model American, okay.
Speaker 1:A little Ace Ventura Easter egg.
Speaker 3:Easter egg. That has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas.
Speaker 1:I mean, although Ace Ventura has a lot to do with Christmas, Because I don't know. I felt like there was some kind of Ace Ventura Christmas thing going on.
Speaker 3:You were about to pull a Ken on the Masked Singer and make some weird crazy fucking.
Speaker 1:Is it Christmas in the first one? They're in Miami, so the weather plays no part. And they're in football season. Oh no, they're playing in the Super Bowl. So it's January. So maybe it's Christmas at the beginning. Maybe, it could very well be, did you just?
Speaker 3:find a clue.
Speaker 1:I might have I just solved the mystery of when is Ace Ventura?
Speaker 3:what season does Ace Ventura take place in?
Speaker 1:but no, it is Christmas, as evidenced by the 14 times that I've watched Christmas Vacation 17 viewings of Home Alone. Ooh yeah, we went 14 times that I've watched Christmas Vacation 17 viewings of Home Alone Ooh. Yeah, we went, we seen we were Kulka maniacs. We were Kulka maniacs.
Speaker 3:So yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, go ahead Tell about it.
Speaker 3:So not only have we watched Home Alone four bajillion times, but we got to.
Speaker 1:We were literally like 10 feet from Macaulay Culkin, listening to him talk about Home Alone.
Speaker 3:Yes. Q&a session after the viewing it was really cool.
Speaker 1:I wish every 80s and early 90s movie people, I mean they might a lot of them do, I'm sure, but he's never done anything like that for for him alone really Right and uh to have. He only did it in, I think, 13 cities and for some strange reason that I still haven't figured out, he did one in Johnstown.
Speaker 3:I mean, and he had a decent crowd, oh yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean it wasn't. It's not so much that it's just weird. Well, here, it's not so much that it's just weird. Well, here's the thing is, I think that he none of them were. I think he did do one outside of Chicago and he did one like in Milwaukee, but still, and I think he was doing one in like Buffalo, but all of them were like smaller, right, you know what I mean. It's not like Milwaukee is New York City, right, but like and the one that was in Chicago was like outside of Chicago.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean. It wasn't like downtown.
Speaker 1:I mean because I think they wanted a small, intimate audience.
Speaker 3:I get that, but they still could have done slightly better on the promotional package, and I don't blame him for that. Whoever's people are.
Speaker 1:Right, I mean, but if you look at it, I mean relatively low production cost.
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh Right.
Speaker 1:It's just a money making. I mean, he's making all kinds of money from it.
Speaker 3:Yeah absolutely, but I mean, it was just really cool to hear the stories. I mean, that was, it was fantastic.
Speaker 1:And to watch Home Alone with an audience. Yeah, that was cool, it's like when you ever get to watch a movie like that, you know like it was pretty cool. Yeah, it reminded me when I saw it in the theater. Yeah, seeing the little new rose pizza guy.
Speaker 3:Uh, just come running and just knocking into that thing when he's driving in and like I'm so adhd that I thought that I was going to be bored in the watching the movie because I'd seen it so many times and normally when we sit at home I'm doing other things like on my phone or whatever.
Speaker 1:I was so engaged because, the audience was engaged the only thing that would have made it better would have been hot popcorn. They dropped the ball a little bit on the snacks they didn't drop the ball yeah, absolutely, that was venue, venue, drop the ball.
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely, that was so there was a venue change and if they would have had it at the um first summit arena, which is where it was originally booked um the freaking snack bar there, right because where they ended up having it at the college, that's not really a movie venue, correct?
Speaker 1:and people don't necessarily snack the same way they do in a movie versus like a theater performance right or performing arts of any, yeah, of any kind. They have light refreshments, much like what we had yeah but they don't have anything. You can't get a hot dog, you can't get no nachos.
Speaker 3:I mean they had candy but they had kettle corn and I'm like it's a movie.
Speaker 1:You could have just got regular salty hot pot. It's Home Alone, for God's sake.
Speaker 3:I would have made it homemade and brought it home.
Speaker 1:They should have had an ice cream bar. They should have had hot cheese pizzas for everyone. Hot cheese pizzas for everyone.
Speaker 3:It was cool, though it was a really good experience. They did have cotton candy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that was cool. Yeah, like of all the things. So they have like bullshit and then they have cotton candy, which is awesome, which you don't usually get. I wish they had cotton candy at the regular movie theater.
Speaker 3:And they have bottles of soda which for some people that is preferential, for something that is preferential.
Speaker 1:I mean I'd always rather have, unless I can just have access to like a small cup that I can refill, like when viewing a movie or something. I actually, at a movie, I prefer water because it's like because you're eating. So much other richness of. I'm just pounding down popcorn and candy like it's 1922.
Speaker 3:Can we just call this out, though, about the whole thing, because it was awesome. It was an amazing experience, very awesome. Macaulay Culkin was high as a motherfucking kite.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, he was like whack-a-loon he was, he like it was funny. Though it was funny, I mean he was very wackalooned.
Speaker 3:He was he like it was funny. Though it was funny, I mean, he was very much himself like it was, I wasn't what's crazy is.
Speaker 1:You know, I take notice of things and he absolutely had like a super comfortable pair of moccasins on. I was watching him in the one ad that he has for whatever, he's wearing the same moccasins Cool. So he must really like them. So it's kind of like with Dusty Slay's shoes. I know it's his too.
Speaker 2:Are they, hey dudes?
Speaker 1:I don't think so. No, they don't look like it. That's like the thing right now. I guess I mean that was the thing like five years ago, but they're still very popular. They're still very popular. They're still very popular. But I think that's set to change. But if I'm thinking about getting them, it's definitely on its way out.
Speaker 3:It's definitely on its way out if it's made its way to me um, the other cool thing about it obviously was some of the stories he told about being on set and the nice people and everything like that, and you can elaborate on that, because I I got fangirled when I forgot to remember that he was married to Brenda Song, who I absolutely just love she's like a cool Brenda.
Speaker 1:Sing Song.
Speaker 3:She's the coolest. She's just so cool. She was one of the Nickelodeon kids that I just heard.
Speaker 1:I remember her on the only one that I ever watched Was she on the Suite Life of Zack and Cody.
Speaker 2:Mm-hmm, yeah, that's what I remember her from.
Speaker 1:Not because I watched, like that wasn't, but you know what I mean.
Speaker 3:I can't think of her name now, but it was like a Paris Hilton-esque name. I can't remember what it was at this moment, but yeah, she was on there. I just she was just, I just love her. Um, and I just I can't wait to see their kids.
Speaker 1:I haven't looked them up yet, but I bet you they're so effing cute Like little.
Speaker 3:Macaulay Asians. Yeah Little Asian Macaulkins.
Speaker 1:Little Asian Macaulkins.
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh. So that was a cool experience, but yeah, like so movies I mean it's a Christmas tradition anyway, and to share that with Macaulay Culkin. Yeah, that was hella cool.
Speaker 1:I mean yeah, for sure.
Speaker 3:I mean it's definitely like a bucket list type item. Sure For sure.
Speaker 1:And sitting so close to him, it felt very like we were sitting like in his living room.
Speaker 3:Yeah, oh, and he gave us um the tea on a show he's gonna be on I mean, by the time this drops, everybody knows, but he's gonna be on the news season of fallout of fallout, which I think we're gonna start watching um, or at least try. I like I looked the. It's just not my cup of tea.
Speaker 1:That was a fun story too, because he said that like he watched the show. Yes and like wanted to be on it, and then he's on it.
Speaker 3:Yeah, he said whenever they were watching it, brenda was like you need to be on this yeah yeah, and then, like he got the call, so that's kind of cool.
Speaker 1:He got the call. He got the call.
Speaker 3:Oh, that was one of my favorite other stories that he told.
Speaker 1:It was just how Joe Pesci was like look what you did, you little jerk. No, joe Pesci tried to serve underage minor alcohol.
Speaker 3:To be fair, though, Macaulay Culkin is like a little man.
Speaker 1:He was probably an adult when he was seven and, to be fair, joe Pesci is like an old school, like they were given Henry Hill wine and stuff.
Speaker 3:Yes, he's an old school Italian.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean, not that that's really Joe Pesci, but it's really him in my book.
Speaker 3:It wasn't weird in my book, Like it didn't strike me as odd.
Speaker 1:It was like well, because here's the thing that people don't ever want to talk about Before, that's who used to introduce you to alcohol.
Speaker 3:Right, it was like an adult.
Speaker 1:It was like you got let to have a beer, or like a half a beer.
Speaker 3:Right, whatever they weaned you on it before they had to wean you off of it 29 years later.
Speaker 1:Yeah, they eased you into it and they eased you right on out of there.
Speaker 3:But my movie to kick off the holiday season always is the Family Stone. That is my. It's a Saturday morning, right when Christmas season is getting ready to hem up, probably like the week before Thanksgiving even, I turn on Family Stone a ball like a little bitch.
Speaker 1:Not to be confused with Love the Coopers, also starring Diane Keaton.
Speaker 3:Also an equally good movie. I like Love the Coopers for very different reasons.
Speaker 1:Right, it's not quite the movie that Family Stone is. Family Stone is a fantastic movie because you have great performances by that of like Luke Wilson or what's. Rachel McAdams or what's Claire Danes? Claire, I mean yeah, she's very good in it, Like yeah, yeah, Sarah, I mean.
Speaker 3:Sarah Jessica Parker.
Speaker 1:Oh, she's fantastic in it. Craig T Nelson, it's loaded with superstars.
Speaker 3:Yes, it's loaded, loaded, loaded, loaded loaded. However, it's just a really good family movie it's a very good story.
Speaker 1:There's a deaf gay kid. Yeah, I mean, it ticks all the boxes it's, it's like it's a.
Speaker 3:Actually it's a good commentary on the pre-woke woke, to be honest with you yeah, a little bit, a little bit, a little.
Speaker 1:I mean, if you've seen the movie.
Speaker 3:The scene I'm talking about. Sarah jessica parker was a fool for carrying on the conversation. However, that's what made me movies, so whatever.
Speaker 1:But right, I mean, I get it, it's.
Speaker 3:It does have a very uh, very um but love the coopers was filmed in pitt in Pittsburgh, which is one of the reasons why I absolutely love it. Plus, I love that one kid that's in it.
Speaker 1:It again packed with superstars Marissa Tomei, anthony Mack, john Goodman, diane Keaton again.
Speaker 3:Oh, what's his name? Diane Keaton Timothy Chalamet. Timothy Chalamet when he was a child is he? Oh, he's the young. Ed Helms what's his wife? What's her name? The chickadee from from the family.
Speaker 1:Guy voice Alex, alex, alex. Guy voice lo. Uh, lois's voice alex alex. Yeah, alex borstein, alex borstein. Um, and then what's amanda? What's her name? Is it amanda siegfried or oh?
Speaker 3:yeah, she's in it. And then um the chickadee from house. What's her name?
Speaker 1:olivia, I can never remember which one she is Wild. Olivia Wilde Is it Olivia Wilde, Okay, and then it also has who's the old man? You know who I'm talking about. He's famous too. I can't think of what his name is.
Speaker 3:Army no.
Speaker 1:No, but regardless, we don't need to sit here and read the cast.
Speaker 3:But it is such a stellar cast and it's a great movie, but it's underrated, I think.
Speaker 1:Bless you, my child no, it is very underrated. Plus, it's got the army guy whatever his name is. I love him, he's very good. But the movie, all those are like great big families where there's a lot going on, everybody's coming home for Christmas. It's a trope that they use in movies. It's the big family Christmas, everybody's coming home. They're all in different places. There's 19 kids.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. Like they all have different stories, they all have different romantic interest.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:They call it the old Christmas Come home.
Speaker 3:Is that what they call it?
Speaker 1:Yeah, in Hollywood.
Speaker 3:It's one of the. It's one of the hallmark templates.
Speaker 1:It's yeah, that's what they call it In Hollywood Hollywood Um what other?
Speaker 3:I mean there's so many, we could have a whole. I mean, I mean there's so many, we could have a whole episode just on movies.
Speaker 1:Well, yeah, that's the thing, but that's a big part of the Christmas season for me, though I mean not just in term of like Christmas movies, but then we watch episodes of shows about Christmas. Yes, like the Christmas episodes of House. The Christmas episodes of Monk. The Festivus episodes of Science the New Girl, the Festivus, the rest of it.
Speaker 3:No, I mean yeah, that's all cool.
Speaker 1:Because that's what you have playing, even when you're not doing that. You're like put something Christmas on. Yes, yeah Put something Christmas on oh the playlist.
Speaker 3:I love when Sirius starts doing their. Christmas channel. It's all so fun, but my favorite episode-wise is of course SNL.
Speaker 1:Oh, the Christmas specials, christmas time for the Jews.
Speaker 3:Oh my God, that's my favorite song. What's that lady's name? Darlene Love? Maybe Darlene Love, no? That's not her, maybe it is, I can't remember. But oh my God, that song is so good. I mean, I grew up on Motown. That was my dad's music, so that song just really hits home for a lot of reasons. Plus, I love the Jews and I love the concept of Christmastime for the Jews. Like I love Jews, chinese food, you love Jews. That's what I'm talking about yeah, exactly the way that she wrote.
Speaker 1:it is hilarious because it's so true Getting to see actual Jewish people.
Speaker 3:What did you say? Dying in love? No, Darlene Love.
Speaker 1:Darlene Love? That sounds like a stripper name from the 1970s and they're introducing her like coming to the stage next. Guys, get ready for the lustful ebony Darlene Love.
Speaker 3:I feel like I gotta to look that up now or we'll call it back in the recap before we recharge. He's talking about SNL.
Speaker 1:Christmas traditions of getting ready for Christmas.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I love, although I will say you don't feel it every year.
Speaker 3:No.
Speaker 1:Certain years. It's like you can go anywhere and you feel Christmas in the air Like everywhere, everywhere, yeah. I'm not feeling it this year.
Speaker 3:Same. I feel like.
Speaker 1:COVID broke that a little bit, I don't know I haven't been keeping a spreadsheet of every Christmas so I can't really remember when the last one that I felt it was.
Speaker 3:But I'm with you and I used to think that it was like snow and things like that. But I think it's just people having a positive attitude and right. And for the past like I won't say four years, but I'll say four years people have like really shitty attitudes.
Speaker 1:Well, not only that, but like people talk about Christmas magic. But it's real Right, Because when you're a kid it feels like it every year, all the time, 100%, because that's like your primary focus. You're like it's fucking.
Speaker 2:Christmas.
Speaker 1:I'm fucking going to nail down on this. We got a big vacation from school. We're getting presents.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. Like you're geared up as a kid for it. So the magic is already in the air. Just in that anticipation. As an adult, you have none of that to look forward to.
Speaker 3:Right and like our kids are grown, grown and there's no grandkids. So it's like and like there's a generational gap right now where a lot of I don't know it feels like there's there's not a lot of kids in our circle for some reason.
Speaker 1:So and there's there's not a lot of kids in our circle for some reason. So and uh yeah, and I mean too a lot of it has to do with weather yeah, I mean when it's like it's got to be like the right temp well, that's so I also think that there's not as many people putting up christmas lights, at least around here yeah, I would agree with that too. It's like the bees.
Speaker 3:We do have a really cute block by our house and a really cute old time home.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, Village Street is beautiful.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:They do it up every year. It's very nice. It's the nicest thing in Moxham.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it really is.
Speaker 1:I mean it really. I mean it's not even close the nice things they do at Moxham.
Speaker 3:it's not even close Village Street is the nicest, and the Moxham House or whatever that thing is called, the Russell House, the Russell House, yeah where they do the wagon rides and stuff.
Speaker 1:It felt like Central Park down there the other day.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and he sent me a picture and he was behind a horse and buggy Clunk, clunk, clunk, clunk.
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh, I love it, I was pissed the whole way.
Speaker 1:I was like Jesus, fucking Christ. Now this is what I got to deal with. Bad enough, they're shooting. Not very often do you have shootings within two blocks of carriage rides.
Speaker 3:Central Park.
Speaker 1:I mean, how many shootings are in Central Park?
Speaker 3:Central Park and Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
Speaker 1:No, I'm going to look it up. I don't think there's any shootings in Central Park. Stabbing Sure, stabbing Sure, but shootings Anyways, they attract too much attention.
Speaker 3:Shoot. I thought of something whenever you were talking about that. Now I can't remember what it was, because you were saying about people, the lights at Village Street.
Speaker 1:The only thing that would make Village Street nice is if there was something there to go to that's Christmas, if there was a restaurant right there, and I know there is.
Speaker 3:Like a restaurant.
Speaker 1:It's not open at nighttime. It's only open for breakfast.
Speaker 3:Right, it's a cafe. Yeah, it's a cafe. Yeah, it's a cafe. It's not a restaurant, right.
Speaker 1:But that could do like a Christmas theme there, yeah.
Speaker 3:That would be fun to have a business there to do something. Let's just turn Moxham into a Christmas village and make it Christmas town. No, oh, that's what I was going to tell you. So, like one of the things that I worry about moving into hotter temperatures, moving to warmer temperatures is not having like the christmas weather when we were on our team huddle at work this week, the ladies like you, like 40 of my team lives in florida somewhere, or in warmer weather even, and so like they're like no, because first of all, you get to enjoy the christmas lights when the weather is still nice. You get to enjoy the Christmas lights when the weather is still nice. You get to enjoy caroling while the weather is still nice, and not only that, but more people put up lights and you've got the boat things with the boat lights, so you don't lose Christmas spirit when you don't have snow is what I'm hearing.
Speaker 1:Although Try to tell our boys in South Vietnam that, no, I'm hearing. Although Try to tell our boys in South Vietnam that, no, I'm teasing.
Speaker 3:No, no. But then one of my girlfriends that lives in India wants to come here and experience a Christmas with snow.
Speaker 1:Yeah, of course, because that's the way it's supposed to be. Santa don't live in Miami, Santa lives in Canada.
Speaker 3:Is that where the North Pole is?
Speaker 1:I mean, that's the only place that I feel like it's kind of like that. I feel like he's just way up there.
Speaker 3:There is a North Pole, Alaska. My friends that were on the military base. Lived up there.
Speaker 1:Yeah, alaska's remote man, it's remote.
Speaker 3:So let's get into I don't. Do you want to do the history of christmas, or do you want?
Speaker 1:to do. I want to talk a little bit about the rowdies the rowdies okay yeah, remember christmas was filled with rowdies, okay, and people hated it. So hold on a second.
Speaker 3:Let's get into the history of Christmas, which was not originally on December 25th.
Speaker 1:That's not Jesus's birthday, Despite what you heard we could get into a deep, deep, deep discussion right now. Yeah, let's skip the Jesus stuff.
Speaker 3:I don't want to get into that because, like here's the thing is, I what we skip the Jesus stuff. I don't want to get into that because, like here's the thing is, we'll talk about it. I love celebrating Jesus on Christmas, like.
Speaker 2:I really do. I love Christmas. We don't love. Jesus on Christmas.
Speaker 1:It's his day.
Speaker 3:I love going to church, it's his day, but that's not what the ancients intended, right? And it wasn't even moved to December 25th until 300 years later, to december 25th until 300 years later. Um, and so then, obviously you've heard the stories, or maybe not, because you tune them out, but, um, it actually coincides with the saturnalia festival yeah, not only saturnalia but lots of the yule celebration of the north.
Speaker 1:Yes, I mean, they just basically took everybody was celebrating something around this time of year anyway because of the winter solstice, because of the changing of the season, everybody like held that time of year to something, no matter where you are in ancient times. Yes, because. But regardless of any of that, they just took all the different things and kind of over time that eventually led to what was christmas traditions, and then christmas traditions were different everywhere else but, and what we know of is like modern christmas traditions really are that modern?
Speaker 3:right, oh my gosh, like the last 200 years modern.
Speaker 1:Yeah, oh yeah everything that we know about christmas and the way it's celebrated is most of it, more modern than that.
Speaker 3:Right. Oh, way more modern.
Speaker 1:But the idea of Santa gifts, how we celebrate Christmas now, is very much.
Speaker 3:The last 125.
Speaker 1:Well, no, I would say 200 years, because it was like 1822 was night before Christmas, right, and they're saying that's 200 years because it was like 1822 was night before Christmas, right, and they're saying that's the. That's 200 years ago, right, that's the one that like changed. It was a game changer, right. People could not. It was like movies or music nowadays People could not wait to read this fucking poem, dude. They were psyched. People have never been so pumped about a poem in the history of humankind.
Speaker 1:They were like you got a copy. You got a copy. Let me read it man and they read it and they loved it and they couldn't get enough of it.
Speaker 3:I was getting ready to ask you if you know what the original title of the Night Before Christmas was Ooh, we did talk about this in our study group Shit.
Speaker 2:What was it?
Speaker 1:Santa's Helpers no. A Dream of Santa no.
Speaker 3:It's not fucking Jeopardy the.
Speaker 2:Wall.
Speaker 3:No. A Visit from St Nick.
Speaker 1:A Visit from St Nick Nicholas, actually Nicholas Nicholas.
Speaker 3:And do you know where it was first published?
Speaker 1:What do you mean? Like in what magazine or periodical? The Old Farmer's Almanac, no, what?
Speaker 3:The Troy New York Sentinel.
Speaker 2:Oh 12-23-1823.
Speaker 3:Oh 1823. On this very night.
Speaker 1:On this very night, 201 years ago.
Speaker 3:Exactly On a night much like tonight. So that was published in 1823, and then Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol was published in 1843.
Speaker 1:And it wasn't until the early 1900s. You know who gave the Santa the modern look? Norman Rockwell. Saturday evening. That's where he changed, Because before that he was dressed in American furs and stuff. Because of being in the Americas he was dressed in like furs. He had like a lot of different color but like he's, the one that gave him a red coat was like this is what he looks like. He made the jolly santa that we knew today did he yeah because I heard otherwise what did?
Speaker 2:you hear.
Speaker 3:It was one, l Frank Baum.
Speaker 1:L Frank Baum was until 30 years later. When did L Frank Baum do that?
Speaker 3:1910.
Speaker 1:That's probably a real close race.
Speaker 3:It is probably a real close race, but he wrote the Life and Adventures.
Speaker 1:I think Rockwell did it in 1906. No, I'm being serious.
Speaker 3:He wrote the Life and Adventures of Santa Claus Santee. He was Santee, yes. Santee Claus, and he was given credit to pulling together a lot of the lore from the various stories into one little kind of Into the legend of Santee Claus.
Speaker 1:Yes, but yeah, l Frank Baum.
Speaker 3:Oh and.
Speaker 1:Who told you to put a bomb on? I didn't tell you to put a bomb on.
Speaker 3:Let's put to bed the Mandela effect that everybody's trying to crop up and pop up right now About what? The last line of Twits the Night Before. Christmas.
Speaker 1:Originally said Happy Christmas, and they changed it. I don't know who they are, but those motherfuckers do a lot of stuff Same people that edit Wikipedia. Originally said Happy Christmas, happy Christmas, y'all. And they changed it. They did change it.
Speaker 3:I don't know who they are, but those motherfuckers do a lot of stuff.
Speaker 1:Same people that edit Wikipedia pages.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, exactly. So that is our little rundown on Christmas, but you wanted to talk about.
Speaker 1:Oh, the rowdies, the town rowdies. No, christmas used to be like Halloween Nefarious. People would go nuts in the colonies. Yes, people would be going crazy, throwing shit through people's windows, acting rowdy. And they said we got to put a rest of these town rowdies because the Puritans were having. They were not happy about it. The Puritans yeah, the Puritans, and they were not happy about it. And they said we got to figure out a way to control these town rowdies. So they wanted to start to push. Other groups wanted to control the chaos of Christmas. It was wild, wild dude. Control the chaos of Christmas. It was wild, wild dude, worse than Halloween, like what we think of how kids just misbehave on purpose.
Speaker 3:It was wild Drunkards, people would come to your door and if you didn't give them a drink, they'd throw shit through your window. Well, they said that the 12 nights of Christmas bore more debauchery than the entire rest of the year.
Speaker 1:Yeah, they did more damage to Christ's name in the 12 days of Christmas than the whole rest of the year. That's what they said.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:And um, so that's why they wanted to start to push.
Speaker 3:Yes.
Speaker 1:A more quiet, family oriented gift giving, commercial Christmas, christmas, commercial, commercial Christmas, but Commercial Christmas, commercial.
Speaker 3:Christmas, but so like when I was growing up. So my dad's mother was Eastern Orthodox, right that's where Santa comes from. Is this what you wanted?
Speaker 1:No, that's where the what was his name Sinterklaas. Sinterklaas is Dutch. Yeah, that's all the what was his name Sinterklaas.
Speaker 3:Sinterklaas is Dutch.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's all the same people over there they all had the same traditions, all the Latvians and the Lithuanians.
Speaker 3:Miracle on 34th Street. She sings that song Dun dun, Sinterklaas, Sinterklaas.
Speaker 1:Sinterklaas, but anyway, I live in Latvia.
Speaker 3:So my dad's mother was Eastern Orthodox, but I don't think that my dad went to church with her. I don't know, and so well, his grandparents were Polish Ukrainian.
Speaker 1:That's Lithuanian.
Speaker 3:But anyway. So we left our tree up until January 7th and it was always understood that January 6th was Christmas and some years we would get something on that day, Some years we wouldn't. It was no big deal to us because we didn't like really understand. And now, as an adult, putting all the research together, it finally dawned on me and clicked that the 12 days of Christmas are from December 25th through January 6th, which is the epiphany.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I always understood that because growing up in church the bullet I read every bulletin because I was bored as shit.
Speaker 3:Oh, I didn't pay attention to any of that.
Speaker 1:Well, they always had at the top of the like the bulletin. It would always say the date, and then it would let you know. It would always say the date, and then it would let you know. So there's like liturgical seasons and they always had the liturgical season date as well, so it would be like third Sunday after epiphany or whatever. There's like different seasons and I don't remember them all.
Speaker 1:Right but like obviously Advent Christmas, right, you know what I mean. Like epiphany, I remember all that stuff because it's. But yeah, so I with global partners, right.
Speaker 3:So everybody was talking about their traditions and one of the most common themes through everybody's tradition, if you grew up in like the 70s and 80s, was an orange and a coin or money of some sort and a small ham. Is that what Santa gave you? No, but, like in my like, in our stockings when we were younger, we got a toothbrush, an apple, an orange and candy. That's what we got and a coin. But that was because I didn't realize until we talked about it that the coin symbolized wealth for the coming year and the orange symbolized that you were never going to get scurvy ever again.
Speaker 1:So let's talk about what goes into stockings, because it's just brought me to a different thing. So what we used to get was we would get one small gift in your stocking around $5, like that kind of item.
Speaker 3:We did as we got to be older, yeah.
Speaker 1:Around $5, like that kind of item we did as we got to be older. Yeah, and then you would get a Slim Jim toothbrush and then various candies and whatnot. But I mean, that was Slim Jim. You kidding me, buddy? Slim Jim and candy.
Speaker 3:I loved when I was old enough to wear makeup, because then we started getting makeup and little hairspray and well at dad's we used to get.
Speaker 1:He would get us. You would get instead of getting. You would get one big slim gym, but then you would also get a smaller pack of like the little ones, the box like seriously, when we go to for christmases, if scott doesn't come home with a Slim Jim, he is or other various types of smoked meat products. It doesn't have to be specifically a Slim Jim. Just when I was a kid it was, I'll take jerky.
Speaker 2:I mean let's be real, I'm not even that big of a fan of a Slim Jim, although I will eat them.
Speaker 1:I do like them.
Speaker 3:So what else from that time frame though that I just love? I well, I've said it before, I think on another episode, that I think that the movie feast of seven fishes captures.
Speaker 3:It's a great movie the whole 70s, early 80s vibe of christmas to me like living in western Pennsylvania and like all the things we didn't do feast of seven fishes. But it was very similar in the food prep and like everybody coming in and out of the house and hanging out and drinking and people at the bar, and then they would come back from the bar and eat a plate and then go. All of that happened. It didn't have to be fish or Italian people. That all happened right when I was growing up and I loved it.
Speaker 1:I mean we had cookies and stuff. We didn't really have set meals, maybe some little wieners.
Speaker 3:What on Christmas Eve? Yeah, oh, ours is like.
Speaker 1:Well, if we'd be at dad's, we would get to open one gift on Christmas Eve.
Speaker 3:We didn't do that at mom's, but I like I don't think we were ever allowed to give gifts on christmas eve, even when we were a teenager. My dad gets a really big kick out of the whole surprise on christmas morning thing, so he was very much all for that, I think, like I don't. Here's the thing is I don't remember a lot of my childhood, so I I'm just piecing together what I do remember. But I also lived with both of my parents my entire life too, so we didn't have a lot of moving around.
Speaker 3:Right, right, right, you know what I mean. Yeah, so we always had a ham on Christmas Eve. Always had a ham on Christmas Eve.
Speaker 1:What's weird is, like I said, I don't remember any food being a part of. Like I said, I don't remember any food being a part of. I mean, obviously I'm sure we ate, but for me not to remember it must not have been that big of a deal.
Speaker 3:I mean, ours is very, very bland. No like on.
Speaker 1:Christmas. We would always be going to grandma's and stuff, so it was ham or whatever, but at home on Christmas Eve. I don't remember anything specific.
Speaker 3:I don't know.
Speaker 1:I would have liked to have had a food tradition.
Speaker 3:I feel like it's a Western Pennsylvania thing because, like we would do so we would go to church.
Speaker 3:All the lights would be down low and only the Christmas lights would be glowing. Right, so it had the ambience. Gumballs and Christmas music would be playing and people would be doing whatever, like playing cards or whatever. Adults would play cards. But the food was always the same it was a ham with rolls if you wanted to make sandwiches, but like no side, and then shell, like nuts in a shell, a big bowl of those that you had to crack open yourself a big fruit platter, and then we always this was like the 80s charcuterie was the uh, hickory farms, the big hickory farms boxes we would just cut those are the best.
Speaker 1:The spread, the cheese spread oh my god, I need one right now. What? Time is it no seriously 6.14 it might be a little too late to get a hickory farm.
Speaker 3:I don't even know if they still have those anymore you're goddamn right, they do no.
Speaker 3:So you guys got together like on Christmas Eve oh, yeah, always both my grandmothers, so either at my grandmothers or so either at my grandmother's or at my aunt's house and at my parents house there'd always be a spread, so we would go visit for a little bit in the evening, then come back to my parents and hang out and then like because there were so many cousins, like some of the cousins would come like, especially once we started getting gaming systems. Then all of my mom's brothers are my age right, so all of the teenagers would be, or they were a little bit older than me, so like they would all be at my house playing video games and eating fucking snacks all night. I like that, not leaving until five o'clock in the morning.
Speaker 3:I would have loved your Christmas Helping my mom build bikes or whatever I would have loved them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I would have loved your Christmas Helping my mom build bikes or whatever. I would have loved them. Yeah, see, for us Christmas Eve was always private, Not private but like it was just we went to church and then we went home and we're like, we're like in bed by like eight.
Speaker 3:Well, see that was. The other thing is that I also got to experience Susie's family from the time I was like 12 until the time.
Speaker 2:I was what did they?
Speaker 3:do? We went to church with Susie's family on Christmas Eve. So if I was with Susie's family that year and it was, there were years where we weren't hanging out a lot, but most of the years in that time we were, and so we would go to church and then Susie's mom always had a bunch of food at her house. Plus, the church had something after church. They would have like cookies or whatever.
Speaker 1:I am Now. It depends on your church too.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Because, like we would go to Quincy, that's at 7 o'clock, you're done, you're home, you're in bed. I do vaguely remember a couple of McDonald's trips on Christmas Eve, which really makes me kind of hungry for McDonald's. But second, off, I could go for mcdonald's but second off, if you went to norm's church that was at not, didn't even start till 11 that's my favorite and you're rolling out of church at like midnight buddy when I tell you that I'm emotional.
Speaker 3:I cannot sit through a candlelight service at Christmas without sobbing, Sobbing.
Speaker 1:They break into the little town of Bethlehem, buddy it's over. It's over.
Speaker 3:Even at the old Remember we did go to Quincy one time on Christmas Eve.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that was cool.
Speaker 3:That was real cool.
Speaker 1:I love Quincy on Christmas Eve because they do the little candlelight thing and it's so small. There's like five rows at Quincy, Right. So you're in this like the sound is great though they. That's what I love about the church is like it's got like five rows of pews but they have a pipe organ that was made for like a fucking cathedral you know what I mean, and so it's like it sounds like beethoven. Yeah, boy, you know what I mean it? Hits that heavy like you're like what?
Speaker 3:is going on now I know it fills your. It's meant to fill your soul.
Speaker 1:It does, oh my god pipe organs will fill your soul.
Speaker 3:That's a whole vibe right there, organs yeah.
Speaker 1:That's why I like Norm's church. Norm's church's organ is way bigger than the one at Quincy and it has way more stuff. But you don't hear it in the same way.
Speaker 2:Because of the size of the sanctuary it's huge and it just gets lost in the mix.
Speaker 1:It doesn't fill the room.
Speaker 3:Yes, but what I looked forward to every year with the church, every single year. It didn't matter if me and suzy were hanging out or not. I was in a play, a chorus thing what do they call those?
Speaker 1:it's like the reenactment of the nativity, but it has a name you're absolutely right.
Speaker 3:I can't think right now but yeah, I was always doing that um, so and singing I love, like I was in the chorus in school and all that, so like, oh my god. So I always just loved singing. Um, I'll never, I never forgot this uh one song it was in I think I was in seventh grade course, and it was Santa Claus. Santa Claus, you are much too fat. I was sleeping peacefully and now my bed is flat. Santa Claus, santa Claus, how much do you weigh? I'm glad I'm not a reindeer that has to pull your sleigh, that's funny.
Speaker 3:It was fun. Um it was done to the tune of Jingle Bells.
Speaker 1:I just don't feel like singing right now no, I mean that's I wouldn't want you to. I mean driving around and look at christmas lights. That's something we used to do on christmas eve a lot. Yes, I love that on the way home from church or whatever. Yes, um, you know. However, it went um trying to think of some of the other things that we did that like stand out to me we went Christmas caroling you went Christmas caroling?
Speaker 3:yes, I've been to Christmas caroling at least, at least 20 times like 20 yeah, in my entire life I've been Christmas caroling at least 20 times. I would sign up to do like. Sometimes we would do it three nights in a row.
Speaker 1:I think I did go once One time in Hagerstown and around Norm's church around Christmas. I think I did go once the youth group or something did it. I love it, but I think that's the only time that I ever went caroling. And I never received a caroling either.
Speaker 3:I've never been a caroling, I've never received a caroling either.
Speaker 1:I've never been a caroling. I've never been a caroling. I don't think I would like it.
Speaker 3:I don't think I would. After watching Christmas with the Cranks, I'm pretty sure I would be terrified.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I don't think I would like to be a caroling. Where are all these people caroling at, though? If you've never been a caroling and I've never been a caroling, where's the caroler? No one knows. That's the secret they don't tell you they don't do it anymore.
Speaker 3:The world's a dangerous place nowadays you could probably look up.
Speaker 1:There's probably more than one crime that's been committed against Christmas carolers. There's probably enough to make an entire ID series called Carol to Death.
Speaker 3:Oh, my Atlanta.
Speaker 1:I mean, they literally have an entire program where crimes just occurred on streets named Elm.
Speaker 3:Right, well, no, I know.
Speaker 1:Like seasons worth.
Speaker 3:So what was the decoration sitch in your house growing up?
Speaker 1:There was one red cardinal that we put in the tree and I remember one year dad must have zapped out like three things of lights. This is back when you would burn out a whole fucking set of lights.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:If even the slight, if you blew on it the wrong way, and it would just say that something happened. It the wrong way and it would just say that something happened. And dad, mom, had this. It was a red cardinal, but it had like wire feet to like put it in the tree with and oh my god christmas vacation zapped out like three sets of lights on this thing, and I don't really know why.
Speaker 3:I'm not sure what was happening but um, because they have metal feet in the wire. But fucking christmas trees in the 80s were uh dangerous and then we had a lot of mix.
Speaker 1:That was part of my other thing. I love decorating the tree yeah, with my with mom and my brothers and like I'll take turns doing it and we would get to put up our own, like ones that were for us, because we had, like you know, baby's first Christmas, yada, yada. So you would get to put up your own. And then there was like ones that were like community ones that anybody can put up, right, if you were in rotation.
Speaker 3:I can't believe y'all had to do it that way.
Speaker 1:Nobody like in my house, nobody wanted to decorate the tree. You kidding me by the time.
Speaker 3:I fight about it by the time I was 12, I was doing it solely by myself. Everybody else was preoccupied. I'm pretty sure my sister was already drinking it. That's no, I'm joking she would have been eight.
Speaker 3:No, but no, I mean, I just I'm. But I'm also like you have to consider that we know this now, but I was autistic back then and nobody knew it, so like I would have hissy fits if ornaments weren't placed perfectly. So my parents just gave up. They're like, fuck it, let her do it. She loves to decorate, she's crazy and she needs the decorations to look just so.
Speaker 1:Did any of the tree decorating involve candy canes and or popcorn strings? No on the popcorn strings because my mom was terrified that we would get bugs we made well, we made one one time at gravel reeds, and we got about seven kernels of corn in before we gave up and just ate the popcorn how could you not? Oh my god, but grandma reed always had candy canes on her tree which I love because then it was just a candy cane free for all.
Speaker 1:We didn't do that at mom, or I think they might have did that at dad's linda so at dad's we didn't touch the tree.
Speaker 1:Linda had very specific way of decorating the tree. She did all of that and we were not to touch the ornaments, play with them in any way, shape or form. And um, there may have been candy canes that we weren't allowed to eat on there, or maybe we ate them, I don't really remember. I can't tell you. It wasn't the free-for-all of the candy canes that Grandma Reed's was. Grandma Reed had boxes of candy canes that she could reload.
Speaker 3:Reload. That's how my dad was. She's like oh what. You ate nine candy canes. I've got seven more boxes. Here you go. Yeah, that's, that's what my dad was doing with. Our christmas tree is reloading after everybody ate a candy cane, and especially like once the flavored ones came out that's what she had.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it started off as peppermint. Yeah, there was like a point in the 80s where those cherry malt they're cherry flavored but they're multicolored. They're rainbow they became very popular and then when she started getting those, it was game over. Guess who's saying to grandma's tonight and eating 47 candy canes this guy so what's crazy about me having OCD with decorating?
Speaker 3:I mean, obviously it's not as bad now is that when the older two of my kids were really little, like under five, I would let them decorate the whole tree, and then I would wait until they went to bed and I would yeah, I would just have to take care.
Speaker 1:I will bring this up, though, and I need to get my videotapes of my christmases from when I was a child into digital media. I really need to get on that before those tapes disintegrate to nothing right regardless of any of that.
Speaker 1:There is one on there. There's a video of this. In 1989 they came out with the real ghostbusters action figures for the tv show the real ghost Ghostbusters. I got Dr Peter Venkman on Christmas morning in that stupid little Pomeranian fox. He somehow got my toy. When I got my toy, Peter had no head, no arm. He was chewed to bits and you could not find them Like anymore. After you know what I mean, it wasn't like you could go to the store and you could get E them like anymore. After you know what I mean. Like it wasn't like you you could go to the store and you could get a egon oh, I thought you could get ray and find the parts.
Speaker 1:I was like they were in his oh no, I think you couldn't replace it, like the time that I once got two of the same barbie for my birthday let's.
Speaker 3:Can we talk about this? Because we haven't talked about this on any episode yet what Barbies. Scott played with Barbies.
Speaker 1:Hell, yeah, I did. I played with action figures as well. They were getting them Barbies. I used to put the covers. How I would do it is I'd put them under the cover.
Speaker 3:Can we not talk about your performance and I'd pull it If they were.
Speaker 1:I didn't know what doing it was. You're like seven, but you know there's something, so I would pull the cup.
Speaker 2:I'd have them laying there next to each other. I'd put an arm over.
Speaker 1:So he was like holding Barbie's back and then I would put the covers up so it would just come up so they'd be nestled in their blanket.
Speaker 3:Oh my.
Speaker 1:Atlanta and it wasn't so much Barbie as it was Jem I played with toys for my shows.
Speaker 3:Truly outrageous, and I liked Jem.
Speaker 1:Jem got it, although the GI Joes. It was a little awkward because Jem was like three times their size, so the GI Joes couldn't get it. She had to get more with like a wrestling figure or an X-Man oh my god, or something. Did you write storylines for them? No, but I'd play with them. Okay, she slept with the great wrestler Terry Funk one time, jim, didn't she, terry Funk? I had an old rubber, terry Funk doll, and he was holding his hand up like this.
Speaker 3:I was like more obsessed with fashioning my Barbies, like I mean, cause design is like my thing or whatever. So I was always like trying to see if I could sew their clothes differently or cut their hair.
Speaker 1:I was more into. They were like I was always wrestling any, all my figures, so they were like part of the wrestling stories. No, they were like managers and stuff or like whatever, or women wrestlers. I would wrestle them and but yeah, and like I said, it was more gym than Barbie, although I did have a few barbies because there wasn't that many gem characters. But one time for my birthday I got two of the same one and it was like a tragedy and I had to go out to ames and get a different one.
Speaker 1:I used to embarrass the embarrass the shit out of too, because dad said we'd be at the store and he'd be like pick anything you want. I'd be like I want the Barbie pole. No, dad, I want the Barbie pole. You don't want the GIJ? No, I want the Barbie pole.
Speaker 3:That's fantastic, though I mean it's. It's a great commentary because you're such an alpha male now. They do grow out of it sometimes, I mean.
Speaker 1:I'd be concerned if it was, if I didn't have wrestlers trying to fuck barbies.
Speaker 3:The Barbie pool was actually for after wrestling. I have to do.
Speaker 1:I do have to say this. So Gremlins is a great Christmas movie and I, as a kid, I wanted nothing more. I mean, I had like a back. Before books on tape, they had books on record. Do you remember?
Speaker 2:that, yeah, I do Like for mostly kids' books, because it was like you know, and I had the Gremlins like book.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. That they wrote it was just like a you know, they made it for kids.
Speaker 3:Wait, was the book a book before the movie, or no?
Speaker 1:oh, it's when they used to take movies and like yeah, yeah, yeah, it was just like a book for kids. It was like, you know, it was just the gremlin story, but it was like in a book, a kid's book, and but I had the. It was like four different records and I used to man, I love that buddy. It was spooky too. I wonder if I could get that hold of them. But yeah, gremlins is always a big Christmas thing for me too.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I wasn't, like I wasn't a big fan of Gremlins.
Speaker 1:But I wanted a Mogwai. But I did one More than anything in the whole life.
Speaker 3:Oh, what were those things called though?
Speaker 1:Alf. I wanted an Alf too.
Speaker 3:Everybody was getting Remember when they had the Alfs yeah.
Speaker 1:Everybody got one, and I wanted one, so bad, and I didn't get one.
Speaker 3:No, I'm talking about something that.
Speaker 1:I've had, since we've been together A Furby. A Furby. Yes, I remember when Matt got a Furby. A Furby, yeah, I remember when Matt. Matt got a Furby one year and it was like a big deal.
Speaker 3:At one point I had like seven different Furbies, cause I used to love them and I used to train in the talk and all that stuff.
Speaker 1:But it's one of those things.
Speaker 3:I think I still have a Furby in the basement somewhere. Probably you know start talking to me. I know, no, you're right. I think I did actually destroy the last one I had.
Speaker 1:They look like evil demons.
Speaker 3:I know they were like the fake ones.
Speaker 1:But they were a mogwai ripoff. Yeah, whoever invented Furby, fucking ripped off the gremlin guy a million bucks.
Speaker 3:Yeah, agree, my hair split like Morticia Adams and it's driving me insane. I don't usually have a widow's peak like that. It's weird. I mean I do, but you can't a widow's peak. Um, oh, I know what I was gonna ask you. So through your you know teenage years, through high school, if you could say one gift that was your absolute the best gift ever. What was it?
Speaker 1:I don't know about teenage years. I mean, the best gift I probably ever got of all time and I was probably like 12, was Tecmo Super Bowl, Because I wanted that more than anything on the face of the earth.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:So much so. And then mom tricked me to try to teach me a Jesus lesson. No, well, so, mom. So basically we knew kind of like what our limit was. Like moms, you could ask for one big gift, and it was like around $50. Okay.
Speaker 3:Is the range, cause Santa was going to bring you something else anyway.
Speaker 1:No yeah, oh. I don't know if kids are oh, that kid's no but seriously, though, like we knew that, like that was our rank, because, like once you know that there's no santa, you know, you like want to ask for, you know, and that was like our limit was like, and even that was a lot because it meant I wasn't going to get a lot else right if I was getting this 50 toy which was tecmo super bowl right, which was 50 for the game, and to get a lot of L's Right.
Speaker 1:If I was getting this $50 toy which was Tecmo Super Bowl Right, which was $50 for the game, and that's a lot of money in 1992 or something or whatever it is, and I wanted it so bad and I didn't. I opened all my presents that were under the tree. I didn't get it and mom was like they pulled one of those, like mom and dad weren't together then, and mom was like what's the matter? I was, you know, like you're happy with everything you got, yeah, and like sad because I didn't get this. And then it was like hidden under the tree skirt and she's like I think I see something sticking out. And then it was Techno Super Bowl, oh wow. And I flipped out. I played it for like eight, nine years straight.
Speaker 3:That's hilarious, because one of the movies that we just watched Christmas movie the kid that's what he carried with him was Techno Super Bowl.
Speaker 1:Oh really.
Speaker 3:He's grown, but yeah, Mine was. I don't even know. I'm just going to say what we called it back then. We called it a boom box, right.
Speaker 1:Oh, good call.
Speaker 3:But it was a dual cassette.
Speaker 1:Dual cassette.
Speaker 3:Dual cassette and it was this big, like it was the big one.
Speaker 1:Like I couldn't just yeah, it was a shoulder, yes and um, and I got some tapes with it.
Speaker 3:It was a big one, like I couldn't just Shoulder only. Yeah, it was a shoulder, yes, and I got some tapes with it, like. So my parents were like they listened to oldies and they didn't know a whole lot about modern music for a 12 year old right. Right, so they got me, they were norm. They got me like Billy Joel's greatest hits, but it was like the eighties only.
Speaker 1:Speaking of, I got to remember, remind me to show you this meme. Like, did you see Randy Collier's meme? No, about Billy Joel. No, oh, it's hilarious Anyway.
Speaker 3:And then, um, my uncle knew that I was getting it, so he knew I was getting it for Christmas, so my mom had him like dub some of his tapes for me, so it was like it was oh, it was the Chop Gun soundtrack. That was the first tape that.
Speaker 1:I.
Speaker 3:Danger zone. Yeah, oh, I can't remember what the slow song was, but I was like singing it all the time.
Speaker 1:Oh, no, that was Offset, and.
Speaker 3:Gentleman, was it Turn around? Every now and then I get a little bit old. Never come around. No, I don't think that was it.
Speaker 1:No.
Speaker 3:Oh, and the Dirty no, no, no, no Wait, would I have been old enough? No, the Dirty Dance soundtrack came out way after that. I was only like 12 when I bought that, but the only other thing that I really what was it, though there had to be a slow song.
Speaker 1:Oh, there was, I remember it but.
Speaker 3:I don't but anyways, any usual um. So the other gift I remember is only because it's literally the only memory ever that I have of my dad's mom and she brought me when I was very, very young, like three, a doll that you like, pulled the string in the back and it grew. It was terrifying, but I remember that for some reason.
Speaker 1:I remember that. So when I was at the about the age of like where's you know, you stopped believing Santa. So six, seven, something like that, eight, I don't know, for me it was five, but that's grandma read. No, I mean, it's whatever time, like you're at school or whatever like when you, that's when you figure it out well, I just picked it up because I paid way too much attention to adult conversations when I was that age well, also too like.
Speaker 1:But here's the thing is like I had suspicions, but like I tried to hold out.
Speaker 3:Right.
Speaker 1:And I'd be like, well, maybe he doesn't, it's like Jesus, like he's kind of like a figurehead, like he doesn't really do that oh see Like he doesn't really. There is a Santa but he doesn't really deliver presents, he just is. It's like the spirit of Christmas, whatever I don't know.
Speaker 3:But I was too nosy Like. But I was too nosy Like I wanted my mom to let me help her with the little kids stuff.
Speaker 1:So I just told my mom that I knew so I could help her. But Grandma Reed tried to like I'd be like, do you believe in Santa? You know, just like Christmas, santa Claus, do you believe in Santa? Yeah, and I'd be like, do you believe in Santa Graham? And she'd be like I believe in him. I know that he's real. She said your dad met him one time and she said that dad wanted nothing more than this. I think it was a robot toy of some kind or some kind of action figure and it was a robot and he wanted nothing more than this robot. Was it Dad or was it Uncle Bo, I don't remember? And that he got the robot but it was broken and Santa personally told him it was because Rudolph stepped on it by accident and he got to meet Santa because his robot got broke.
Speaker 3:Oh.
Speaker 1:And you know what I mean. Like he had to meet him so he could apologize for Rudolph breaking his. So that kept me going for about another year probably, I think. On that one I was like, well, all right, well, if Graham says it, it meant him. I mean Right, who am I to argue?
Speaker 3:Right, forget what, dustin in my class said no, like thinking back on it now, my mom probably knew that if she didn't appease me by letting me know that I was right, that I would like bring my brother and sister into it and screw it up for everybody. So Scrooged. No, let's talk about some Christmas music. So what's your favorite?
Speaker 1:Favorite Christmas song. Oh, it's so many. I like the one where they're like, is it? Oh Holy Night?
Speaker 3:Oh Holy Night, is my hands down, absolute favorite of all time.
Speaker 1:I like so many of them. I like Good King West. Holy Night is my hands down absolute favorite of all time. I like so many of them. I like Good King West's Nosleus. I like Hark. The Herald Angels Sing that's always been one of my favorites. Blue Christmas is probably my favorite commercial one.
Speaker 3:Yeah, is that the? I like the Elvis version. Yeah, yeah, elvis. Yeah, yeah, yeah yeah.
Speaker 1:Me like licky macaidad. I love that. Um, yeah, I mean, there's so many there is um but I do enjoy. Probably, I guess you have to go with a holy night because when they're when they hit, like when you have somebody really doing it and they hit those big moments. Or there's like an orchestra and it's like magic. Yeah, yeah, yes.
Speaker 3:One of my favorite versions, even though I'm not like a huge fan of hers. Carrie underwood has a really good version of no holy night.
Speaker 1:I think carrie underwood's a good singer she's a good singer, I just don't yeah I mean, I don't care for her either, but yeah, she's a good singer and it's not like that's. You know what I mean? That song, you just want a good singer, somebody that can hit those big notes. Like big, the way they're meant to be hit.
Speaker 3:But I feel like there was somebody else that had a version that I oh I know whose version was my hands down favorite for a long time and I listened to it on repeat forever. It was Christina Aguilera.
Speaker 1:My favorite Christmas song, though, is probably it's Christmas Time in Hollows Queens.
Speaker 3:What.
Speaker 1:You know Run DMC Christmas in Hollis.
Speaker 3:I don't know that song yes you do, do I?
Speaker 1:It's like the most famous Christmas rap of all time.
Speaker 3:I didn't know there was one.
Speaker 1:You know Christmas time in Hollis. Really, really. In what Def Jam world are you living in?
Speaker 3:I wasn't allowed to listen to those songs when I was a kid, I don't know.
Speaker 1:That's very bizarre. I can't believe you don't know that. I'm really shocked. I thought you did. They sing it in Night Before. Oh, that's what they're doing karaoke to it's Christmas time in Hollis Queens. Okay, I love that movie and colored greens.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but I didn't know that. I thought that that was new.
Speaker 1:Oh, my God. I thought they wrote it for the movie no that's a run DMC song from the 1980s called Christmas Time in Hollis Queens.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I probably wasn't allowed to listen to it.
Speaker 1:I thought that was going to hit a good note there.
Speaker 3:Now I learned something new, because I do love that movie and I know exactly which song you're talking about now but. I didn't know it was run DMC yeah.
Speaker 1:Run DMC. We'll watch it after we're done with this. Yeah, not the movie, just the video. Yeah, not the movie, just the video yeah.
Speaker 3:We just watched the movie the other night.
Speaker 1:My other favorite Christmas rap is Wonder why Christmas missed us. It's just one line, but no.
Speaker 3:I do know that one.
Speaker 1:Who's your favorite reindeer?
Speaker 3:Vixen Mine's.
Speaker 1:Comet you ever seen? Seen that movie. That's a good movie, comet yeah yeah, that's good, or prancer prancer is a good movie I don't think it's comet, it's prancer. Prancer is my favorite, like there is a movie called comet there might be, but I think it's prancer is the one I'm talking prancer is a great movie prancer's got sam elliott in it.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, that's the one I'm talking about, but Vixen's my favorite just because I like the word Vixen, right.
Speaker 1:I mean, if I was picking it purely off a name, then I'd probably go with I don't know four of them.
Speaker 3:Dasher Dancer Prancer Vixen Comet Cupid Donner Blitzen.
Speaker 1:What was it?
Speaker 3:Tate.
Speaker 2:Slough.
Speaker 3:Slasher Dancer, prancer Vixen Comet Cupid Donner.
Speaker 1:Blitzen.
Speaker 3:I guess Blitzen, yeah, because that sounds like it's the second one. Fun to say Blitzen.
Speaker 1:It sounds like something. It sounds like a play. The Steelers run on Christmas Day against the Chiefs. All right, we got the Blitzen package. Reindeer, reindeer.
Speaker 3:So the other two things that I wanted to talk about before we wrap up Christmas around Christmas are one is again Waffle House Christmas.
Speaker 1:You just broke my heart. No, we used to go every year with my mom and my stepdad to Waffle House on Christmas morning. That was a big part of our, that was our big thing, and there's a song about it. Christmas morning, that was a big part of our, that was our big thing, and, uh, there's a song about it. Well, apparently it's a big thing. In the South, people love Waffle House Christmas, don't they? They do. When you go on Christmas, it's usually, it's always busy.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And everybody's very festive and uh yeah it's a good time.
Speaker 3:I love a waffle house christmas.
Speaker 1:I mean, I love a waffle house. I'm trying to I take it a waffle hat.
Speaker 3:Put it this way waffle house tuesday, monday, thursday all as good as waffle house christmas absolutely, and the other thing that we didn't touch on, which um is of days gone by as far as I'm concerned, is malls during.
Speaker 1:Christmas. Who didn't love a mall between Thanksgiving and Christmas? Yeah, you'd have that one day as a family. It was like an outing and you're like we're going to the mall, yeah, and it'd be like all day and you would be eating at the food court.
Speaker 3:If you were young enough, you're seeing Santa, maybe gotten some pictures.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, Santa was always hanging oh Sears or getting a family photo at Sears.
Speaker 3:Yes, yeah.
Speaker 1:Those are always fun, so much fun. I remember the Sears and Hairstown had a so it the photo thing. They had like a machines with candy in them and at that one you could stick your hand up and just pull candy out and we did gumball city, baby, gumball city of course you know this.
Speaker 3:Oh my god.
Speaker 1:I remember that alright.
Speaker 3:So, um, we are going to wrap oh my God, I remember that. All right, so we are going to wrap up our Christmas celebration with you guys. We are splitting this episode into two episodes and we will be back with you on New Year's Eve to give you a rundown of everything that we've done this year and everything that's been going on in the world this year.
Speaker 1:And now it's time for Scott's thoughts. And here at Christmas time, at Gilded Trash, we like to think about the little guy. So this is called Compliments from the Garbage man. Christmas comes and Christmas goes, with summer rain and winter snows. The garbage man who always goes fighting mankind's every foe. He's poor and humble and knows no wealth but is ever guarding the public health. No wealth, but is ever guarding the public health. He works in cheer, drinks lots of beer of the deadly germ that is always near. So don't forget him when Christmas comes, to help him make his loved ones dear with just a little Christmas cheer. So put something out for the garbage man.
Speaker 3:So we will see you in a week, not two weeks this time all right.
