Fanacek

Ahh...The Bad News Bears.  One of the greatest kids sports flicks of all time.  We all know what became of Walter Matthau, Tatum O'Neal, and Jackie Earl Haley, but what about the rest of the squad?  Ahmad Abdul Rahim?  Ogilvie? Timmy?  Tanner?  Why don't we know what the hell ever became of these all-stars?  Fear no more as I've done the research and prepared a detailed report to get you up to speed.  Along the way, I also address ...

She's Connie from The Godfather franchise (nepotism much?) and Adrian from the Rocky films.  But what else has Talia done to earn a spot in Fanacek's Hall of Fame?  Follow me as I go through her screen credits and uncover some projects you've likely never heard of.  I will also brighten your day with tales of Roger Corman, folks I knew at The Second City, Troma films, the Big Bopper, and naked Blossom.  I'll even sing some Bobby Da...

My man Robbie Rist is THE original Cousin Oliver!  And, for that, he will always be held in high regard in the annals of pop culture history.  But what else did he do, you ask?  A ton and I take a nice, deep dive on his screen credits while also getting chatty about Friday the 13th Parts 4-6, the Having Babies franchise of the 1970s, Tony Bill & My Bodyguard, David Gordon Green's Halloween trilogy, and watching TMNT with my dau...

I get it.  You like Paul Sorvino.  I like Paul Sorvino.  We all like Paul Sorvino.  But he is a Hall of Famer?  Or is he just the guy from Goodfellas?  He had a long, career.  Some great, some not.  Now it's time to comb through that resume and determine if he belongs in the Hall!  Along the way, we'll chat about some other fun stuff like Robert Mitchum's drunken antics and the time I saw Jonathan Schaech jogging.  I also, in real ...

This is the last one, I swear!  No more TV adaptations of 80s movies ever again!  But let's end it with a bang as I chitchat about 1980's Fame, and as I wax poetic 1983's Blue Thunder, or as I contemplate 1988's Working Girl, all before I finally offer my in-depth thoughts on 1980's Stir Crazy.  Who else would do that for you?  And, as an added bonus, I'll offer up some opinions on Sam Peckinpah's Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garci...

You thought I was done with this topic, didn't you?  Well, I did some sleuthing and found a few more 80s shows that became short lived, unbelievably bad television shows.  And unbelievably bad television shows is kind of my thing!  We're gonna chat about Richard Pryor's Bustin' Loose which did not turn out to be a DYN-O-MITE series.  I'll also enlighten you regarding Down and Out in Beverly Hills, The Four Seasons, and Nothing in C...

The 80s have finally come to a close, and the decade's final moments did not disappoint.  Join me as I discuss the envelope pushing antics of the Conner family on Roseanne, the "they're not lesbians, I promise" relationship between Kate & Allie, and the trauma we all experienced watching Life Goes On.  I'll also crack wise about the comedy stylings of Wes Craven, stars yelling at audiences, and the decision making process that ...

We're closing in on the end of the 80s and things are getting crazy.  Spinoffs are dominating the airwaves as shows like Empty Nest and A Different World crack the Top 10.  Also, our televisions are being assaulted by continuations and reboots that we didn't want as Mission: Impossible, The Munsters Today, and War of the Worlds are brought to life via first run syndication.  The good news is that we also get Vietnam shows, and murd...

This is the 100th episode folks!  100 episodes of me yapping about stuff that most folks don't care about, but I love it and I'm grateful for everyone that listens.  Join me as I take a look at 1987 television as I experienced it.  We're gonna discuss Remington Steele and The Wonder Years.  We're gonna explore how 21 Jumpstreet made me want to be an undercover cop.  We're gonna chit chat about Energizer commercials and New Coke.  A...

1986.  It was a great year to be alive.  Sure, the space shuttle Challenger exploded killing everyone onboard and traumatizing the children who watching it on TV.  But, rather than dwell on that, I'd rather talk about Night Court.  And Amen.  And T.J. Hooker.  Hell, I'm even gonna educate you on Peter Boyle killing a house full of hippies why Whitman Mayo is a national treasure.  Was Rebecca Schaeffer's murder a tragedy?  Yes it wa...

We're halfway through the decade and sitcoms are starting to rule the airwaves!  Audiences are losing interest in the rich folks of Dynasty, Dallas, and Falcon Crest as they fall in love with the likes of Tony Micelli, Alex P. Keaton, and America's favorite gynecologist, Dr. Huxtable.  This episode takes a closer look at classics like The Equalizer, Family Ties, and Alice while also having fun with Courtney Cox's failures, Charles ...

Happy 2025!  A new year and a new season of your favorite (doubtful) podcast, Fanacek!  The next few episodes will deal with the programs that flooded our TV sets in the 80s.  I can't really title the episodes "THE Year in TV" or "YOUR Year in TV" because I often focus on some weird shit.  But rest assured, you'll enjoy learning about obscure TV shows and hearing my thoughts on your favorite classic TV shows as I go year by year ce...

It's finally effing here!  The finale in my 9 part series comparing movie and television actors of the 1980s.  This fun filled episode has me discussing three different actors across two categories: Thank God They Left TV and Now You're Just Showing Off!  The former takes a deep dive into the careers of 2 actors who were the stars of their own television shows before throwing it away to become big screen icons: Geena Davis & Mi...

This is a fun episode, folks.  It's also a little depressing.  But depressing can be fun, right?  Well, fun or not, we're about to take a deep dive on three actors whose fall from grace left television as their only option in the 80s.  George Peppard, George C. Scott, and Jan-Michael Vincent were once stars of the silver screen, bur after years of drinking, financial woes, and poor behavior, found that TV was their last chance for ...