The Nick D Podcast on Radio Misfits

Nick catches up with Monica Eng from Axios to talk through the stories she’s been covering lately. They get into Governor J. B. Pritzker’s push for new nuclear power facilities in Illinois, ways to celebrate the Lunar New Year, and the annual joy of Paczki Day. Monica also shares thoughts on the new production of “Hamnet” at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, her first experience trying a Dirty Soda, and highlights from a recent trip to ...

Nick welcomes Forbes music journalist Jim Ryan back for another round of concert stories and backstage encounters. They talk about recent shows including the Lemonheads at Thalia Hall and Sons of the Silent Age at Metro, then swap stories about run-ins with Flavor Flav of Public Enemy, Chip Z’Nuff of Enuff Z’Nuff, and Al Jourgensen from Ministry. They also look ahead to upcoming tours and vent about just how expensive c...

Nick is joined again by film critics Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy for a packed round of new movie reviews. They break down the latest take on Wuthering Heights starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi, the chaotic sci-fi satire Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die with Sam Rockwell, and the thriller Crime 101 featuring Chris Hemsworth and Halle Berry. They also weigh in on the animated sports comedy Goat, with plenty of agreemen...

Nick welcomes Dan Fienberg from The Hollywood Reporter back for another wide-ranging TV catch-up. They talk about how Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline stole the show on the latest SNL, why the new version of The Muppet Show works so well, and take a moment to remember the recently lost Catherine O’Hara. The conversation also takes a sharp turn into Super Bowl territory, breaking down the game, the commercials, and reactions to the ...

Nick welcomes back Nell Minow, better known as The Movie Mom, for a wide-ranging conversation that moves easily from Washington politics to movies. They talk through what’s happening in DC, run through several new film releases, look ahead to the upcoming Academy Awards, and take a moment to remember the remarkable career of Catherine O’Hara. It’s the kind of discussion that blends smart analysis with genuine affection for th...

Herb Weisbaum is back just in time for tax season, and he comes loaded with advice that actually matters. We talk through smart tax-time tips, how the AI boom has quietly pushed up the price of computers and phones, and the ways marketers are getting sneakier when it comes to kids. Herb also puts me on the spot with a few questions from the College of Knowledge quiz, which goes about as well as you’d expect.

Car Guy Tom Appel from ...

Nick welcomes Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy back fresh from Sundance with stories, opinions, and plenty to argue about. They break down what they saw at the festival, including early reactions to upcoming releases like the Courtney Love documentary Courtney Love, Olivia Wilde’s new comedy The Invite featuring Edward Norton, Penélope Cruz, and Seth Rogen, and a film with the refreshingly subtle title of The Shitheads. A few new w...

Nick catches up with Dan Fienberg from The Hollywood Reporter for another round of TV talk, starting with a few standout documentaries from Sundance and the latest run of SNL episodes. From there, Dan digs into a busy slate of new shows, including Memory of a Killer starring Patrick Dempsey, The Beauty from Ryan Murphy, The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins with Tracy Morgan, and a new spinoff from the Game of Thrones universe.

Esmer...

Nick kicks things off by diving into the 2026 Oscar nominations, running through his predictions and unloading on the snubs and head-scratching choices that immediately set him off. There’s praise where it’s earned, frustration where it’s deserved, and plenty of strong opinions about how the list shook out.

Marnie Shure returns to talk food, fear, and a little chaos. She brings along her monthly Horror Report with thoughts on 28 Ye...

Nick is joined by former radio producer and longtime movie obsessive Tom Hush for the debut of what instantly feels like a dangerous new segment, Tom’s Theater of Trash. The two dive headfirst into the world of gloriously bad and forgotten films, starting with Tom’s love for the sharksploitation oddity Jaws 5: Cruel Jaws. That spirals into a conversation about the history of the subgenre, the fine art of stealing footage, why low-b...

Nick is joined by film critics Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy for the first round of new movie reviews of 2026, and they jump right into a mixed bag of releases. The conversation covers the fourth entry in the horror franchise with 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, the historical musical drama The Testament of Ann Lee starring Amanda Seyfried, and the gritty cop thriller The Rip featuring Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. They also get ...

Nick catches up with Dan Fienberg from The Hollywood Reporter to break down the Golden Globe Awards while they are still fresh. They talk through the winners and losers, how the broadcast actually played, and what worked and didn’t with host Nikki Glaser. It’s a straight-shooting reaction to an awards night that gave everyone plenty to argue about.

Dan also weighs in on a few new things worth watching, including the Amazon series T...

Nick welcomes Monica Eng back for her first visit of 2026, catching up as she prepares for a colonoscopy and somehow still manages to be the hungriest person in the room. The conversation moves through the latest local and national stories she’s been covering for Axios, along with a rundown of the ten best things she ate in 2025 and five Chicago-area restaurants she’s watching closely. There’s also a sober moment on how everyday co...

Herb Weisbaum sits this one out while he recovers from a hip replacement, but the show rolls on with a look back at the biggest consumer stories of 2025 and a few trends already shaping how people will spend and shop in 2026. Herb will be back next month with fresh intel and, by all accounts, a much more flexible outlook.

Car Guy Tom Appel from Consumer Guide Automotive jumps in to talk about the cars he has been driving lately and...

We sit down with film critics Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy for an extended, no-rush conversation about what 2025 looked like at the movies. It was a strange year, sometimes exciting, sometimes frustrating, and we dig into what worked, what didn’t, and why the box office and streaming landscape felt so uneven. Trends, surprises, and a few head-scratching moments all get their turn.

From there, things get very opinionated. Erik a...

Nick brings pro wrestling expert Dr. Keith Lipinski back to look over a busy, often chaotic year in the ring. They walk through the biggest stories across WWE, including John Cena’s retirement tour and heel turn, the return of AJ Lee, and a string of injuries that reshaped the roster. The conversation also shifts to All Elite Wrestling, spotlighting standout matches and the strong year turned in by Hangman Page, Toni Storm, and Wil...

Nick welcomes music journalist Jim Ryan from Forbes back for a wide-ranging look at a year filled with memorable shows and standout conversations. Jim talks about recent concerts that left an impression, including a night with Evan Dando and a still-amazing performance from Paul McCartney. The discussion expands into Jim’s personal highlights from 2025, touching on favorite interviews, albums, and live moments that defined the year...

Nick welcomes Hollywood Reporter TV critic Dan Fienberg back for a packed conversation that jumps from recent SNL episodes to the new documentary “Breakdown: 1975,” along with a thoughtful look at the long, influential career of Rob Reiner. Dan also unveils his picks for the Best Television of 2025, spotlighting standouts like “The Lowdown,” “Andor,” “Pluribus,” “Adolescence,” and several others that made the year feel unusually st...

Nick teams up with film critics Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy for an expanded round of movie talk as the year end release rush hits full speed. They dig into a packed slate that includes the newest chapter in James Cameron’s Avatar saga, Timothée Chalamet’s latest turn in Marty Supreme, and Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson fronting a Neil Diamond tribute band in Song Sung Blue. The conversation also covers Will Arnett as a down-on-h...