In a cold open, Phil tells of the “Live Event of the Week”. Then, in the return of “Lawsuit of the Week”, the ongoing saga of Paramount’s desired merger with Warners gets updated, and the recent UK privacy lawsuit involving such notables as Prince Harry, Elton John and Liz Hurley gets analyzed. Two listener emails pertaining to the recent, epic episode of “Deep Dive” exploring 1940s Film Noir get shared. The incredible, just-released episode of “The Wayback Machine” gets discussed and Phil follows up on what was covered in that show by asking Dean about the hit 2009 film District 9 and by quizzing Dean on hit sci-fi television of the past 20 years. Phil has fun discussing the attitudes of fans that have assumed “public ownership” of beloved properties (like “Star Trek”) and Dean makes a plug for his favorite band! Finally, Phil discusses the great Jafar Panahi’s multi-Oscar nominated It Was Just an Accident and this leads to he and Dean comparing notes on their go-to streaming channels or apps.

In a cold open, Dean and Phil share how impressed they are with an animated short made by the college student son of one of Phil’s high school classmates. In the return of “Lawsuit of the Week”, the most recent threats and developments surrounding Paramount’s desired merger with Warners get fully explained and analyzed. Phil shares sadness surrounding the impending departure of longtime favorite son of Los Angeles, Gustavo Dudamel, who is leaving the L.A. Phil to take over the New York Philharmonic. A great story about Lily (Holleman) Leirness’ encounter with Dudamel gets shared. Dean has started watching “Diarra from Detroit” at Phil’s urging and loves it! A loyal listener has a slight correction to something Dean said on the recent, epic episode of “Deep Dive” exploring 1940s Film Noir. Phil follows up on a couple of films discussed in that show, offering greater context to the writing of The Stranger (1946) and Sidney Greenstreet’s performance in The Maltese Falcon (1941). Chris Carter’s “director’s cut” of the 2nd “X-Files” movie has been released and … Dean and Phil have thoughts. Phil re-watched Citizen Kane, which inspires in-depth discussion of that film’s continued greatness and resonance, and which inspired his watching the recent Japanese psychological suspense film Exit 8, a film Dean is now ready to reappraise!

In some ways, Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness pick up where last week’s show (the one thousandth episode of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour) left off, by reminiscing about a couple of their early years spent “changing the way people listen to the internet” and by examining more in the shifting release strategies for television and the viewing habits of television viewers. They also go deeper still into the issues surround the soon-to-be-litigated proposed Paramount merger with Warners. They continue their ongoing analysis of the potential benefits, and current costs, of our evolving relation to Artificial Intelligence. They also discuss one video game movie, one sci-fi comedy from the 1980s, and one current samurai era “whodunit”. They share their love of a raft of different contemporary television series and reveal which streamers they enjoy the most and which shows keep them excited between seasons. Also, they preview this week’s release of an R-rate “director’s cut” of the second “The X-Files” feature film!

Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness commemorate this, the one thousandth episode of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour (originally called “From the Heart of Hollywood”), by reminiscing about their first few years of “changing the way people listen to the internet” by examining how the media landscape has changed since they started podcasting, and how that landscape might evolve moving forward. The in-depth topics that get discussed include the podcasting field itself, the ways episodic television programming has changed, the dire need to change facing Netflix, and why binge watching quickly brought an end to the 21st century “golden age” of television. After a shameless (and hilarious) music plug for another podcast in the ever-expanding “Chillpak Hollywood Presents …” universe of shows, the topic turns to AI, the coming revolution revolving around artificial general intelligence, whether humanity can adapt, and whether an economy altering AI “bubble” may be on the horizon. Finally, the latest news in the now-frozen Paramount merger with Warner Bros. gets analyzed. Trust us, even if you only want to listen to one of our one thousand episodes, you can’t do wrong with this one!

This week’s show begins with a round of Dean and Phil’s vintage movie ad game before becoming a preview of April events to which Dean and Phil are looking forward. From there, the show seques into a discussion of the latest news surrounding the Rust on-set shooting trial as well as the latest news involving the ever-expanding on-screen universes of John Wick and Blade Runner, during which Phil questions whether the USA can ever rid itself of gun violence when we so profoundly enjoy fictional depictions of such violence. Two cinematic classics by the great French director René Clément get discussed (one a 1960 adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley and the other a 1970 Lewis Carroll and Alfred Hitchcock-inspired film that turned Charles Bronson into the biggest global box office draw), and a circus film from Carol Reed gets celebrated, along with the body of work by its star, Burt Lancaster. In “Celebrity Deaths”, the original Wednesday Addams, the co-creator of “Sesame Street”, and the star of “James at 15” and “Salem’s Lot” all get remembered. Finally, your friends in podcasting and broadcasting commemorate the 12th anniversary of THE “comedy soundcast soundcast” Succotash!

The first half of this week’s show is all about the art and craft and future of podcasting! Storyteller Dave Pickering joins us from his home in Lancaster in the north of England to talk about his brilliant podcasts (“Getting Better Acquainted”, “Down to a Sunless Sea”, “The Family Tree” and more), about college lectures he gives about podcasting, about where he sees the art form at present, and what he thinks the future might hold. Actress Lily Holleman drops by in the second half of the show to reveal her Screen Actors Guild Awards ballot and to discuss what she looks for in performances. A whole bunch of great movies and performers get discussed. Great podcasts and great movies – truly two of our favorite things!

In the first half of this week’s show, Dean and Phil discuss the latest controversial news surround filmmakers Joss Whedon and Woody Allen and ask how do we separate the art from the artist? And should we? After that, a Motown great, a rap great, the Godfather of salsa, a groundbreaking singer and DJ, and a pioneer of jazz fusion all get remembered in “Celebrity Deaths”. The second half of the show is part 2 of the roundtable discussion that began last week, where special guests Marc Hershon and Suli McCullough compare notes with Dean about pursuing careers in comedy. On this week’s agenda are the topics of the pandemic and how it has and will change professional comedy, and the importance of pain in comedy.

This week’s installment of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour is part 1 of a 2 part special episode as Suli McCullough and Marc Hershon return to the show to participate in a panel discussion with Dean, moderated by Phil! Dean, is, of course, known the world over for “The X-Files” and “The Lone Gunmen”. In addition to his many and varied pursuits, he is a veteran of the Vancouver Theatre Sports League, is a renowned improv comic, and has toured the world with his one man improv comedy shows. Marc is a teacher of improv comedy, he has run comedy clubs, he is the creator “Succotash”, the now long-running Comedy Soundcast Soundcast, he has reviewed comedy podcasts for both the Huffington Post and Splitsider, he is the writer of a trio of made-for-TV movies, he is the co-author of “I Hate People” (the guide for getting along in the workplace), and he’s the award-winning editorial cartoonist for the Half Moon Bay Review. Suli has been a stand-up comedian for more than 30 years. As an actor, he has appeared in such movies as the popular spoof Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood and on television in a recurring role on “The Jamie Foxx Show”. He has both written and produced for television, boasting such behind-the-scenes credits as “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”, ESPN’s “ESPY” Awards, “Lopez Tonight”, the MTV Music Awards, the BET Awards, “Last Comic Standing” and “Def Comedy Jam”. He recently appeared discussing the legacy and influence of Garry Shandling in the Emmy winning documentary, “The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling” and he produced the documentary feature film about stand-up, Dying Laughing. In part 1, the three men field questions about, and compare notes on, pursuing careers in comedy. They discuss their influences, and reveal when it was that they knew comedy was the life for them!

How much longer will your friends in podcasting keep doing YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour? Climb into the backseat as Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness drive from Los Angeles International Airport to a certain “historic building in downtown Los Angeles” to find out the answer to this question as well as to learn about Polar Vortexes, Chief Financial Officers, Phil’s bachelor party plans, the Garry Shandling Learning Studio, the Time’s Up “4 percent challenge” and more!

On this week’s brand new installment #609, your friends in podcasting discuss the adventures they are looking forward to in 2019. From an update on a certain graphic novel, to an X-Files convention in Illinois in June where the Lone Gunmen will reunite, from Phil’s wedding weekend, to the three or four feature film projects they will be working on, Dean and Phil point the compass of their brains to a journey on the map of the entire infinite! Then, they welcome a special guest, producer and host of Succotash, Tyson Saner! And if you can’t get enough of hearing Dean and Phil, or hearing ABOUT their film, The Lady Killers check out this interview Tyson did with them all about the movie!