We are one week away from Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness celebrating 19 years of “changing the way people listen to the internet” through YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour (now the flagship of the “Chillpak Hollywood Presents” expanded universe of podcasts on Substack). On this week’s show, Dean and Phil come to humorous grips with just how long they have been doing this show through discussions of celebrity deaths and conspiracy theories surrounding dead and missing scientists. They also go deep on the, perhaps unfortunate, legacy of “The X-Files” inspiring people to “trust no one”, especially when it comes to journalists. Two great Vietnam War films get discussed briefly before an in-depth discussion about all that is wrong AND right with the recent blockbuster Project Hail Mary, as well as the most recent installments in both the Predator and John Wick cinematic universes.

After discussing the latest news regarding Netflix, their attempts to purchase Warner Bros, and what the current President of the U.S.A. is demanding they do, Dean and Phil talk about more of the intriguing movies coming out in 2026 (including period pieces, biopics, and crime films). Hollywood still hasn’t recovered from the dual strikes of a few years back, and with the negotiations for new contracts upcoming, the Writers Guild seems to be imploding. Dean and Phil analyze the latest labor strife. The recent movie Anaconda gets reviewed, and the French classic Amelie gets re-appraised in time for its 25th anniversary. In the return of “What We’re Reading” the latest by Dan Brown and a work of historical fiction about legendary filmmaker G.W. Pabst get discussed. Finally the murders of two groundbreaking physicists has Phil troubled, so he asks Dean about whether the deaths might be part of a conspiracy. And speaking of conspiracy, Dean and Phil conclude with the latest news surrounding Ryan Coogler’s reboot of “The X-Files”.

Hop into the car, and head up the California coast with Dean and Phil on this week’s rollicking, free-flowing show! Your journey begins on the mean streets of downtown Los Angeles (just outside a certain “historic building”) and concludes by a babbling creek in the tree-lined splendor of Montecito. At those destinations, and at locales in between, your friends in podcasting and broadcasting opine on a wide variety of topics, including Trevor Noah’s final “Daily Show”, Paramount Ranch, P-22, the DVD Dean once made of a road trip with his father, the life and death of Jordan Maxwell, the career and death of Kirstie Alley, and the turmoil behind-the-scenes in the DC cinematic universe.

Because Phil had to travel to Turlock, that means two things for this week’s show: 1) It features a cameo by Dean’s “Lord Turlock” character, and 2) The show was pre-recorded. And it’s a good one, wherein Dean and Phil drill down into the improv form known as “deconstruction” in “Live Event of the Week” and while posing the question “Why can’t we have nice things?” the bombing and destruction of the Georgia Guidestones gets discussed. In a “What We’re Reading” all about the FBI, the influence of “The X-Files” and misogyny, Dean provides a full book report on a terrific work in anticipation of its author being a guest on a future episode of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour! Instead of “Celebrity Deaths”, your friends in podcasting (and broadcasting) celebrate the 100th birthday of Hollywood’s greatest icon, which leads to favorite stories about Kenny Rogers and Steve Martin. Finally, the Emmy Award nominations get unpacked, with Phil wagging a finger at the omissions of “Reservation Dogs” and Selena Gomez, and particular attention gets paid to “Abbott Elementary” and to the horse race for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

Phil is in Turlock. Dean is “Motor City adjacent”. Special guest Page Branson is in Baltimore. Between the three of them, they have a wide array of topics covered: Memorial Day, the Tulsa Race Massacre, Amazon’s purchase of MGM, the deaths of beloved actor Gavin MacLeod and singing star B.J. Thomas, the forthcoming declassification of government UFO files, another of Dean’s favorite episodes of “The X-Files”, awesome new video games and anime, race relations, Brood X Cicadas, vintage movie ads, and more! It’s funny, it’s heartfelt, it’s disturbing. It’s YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour!

Year 13 of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour gets underway with Phil providing an update on his battle to regain his vision. He and Dean discuss some press they recently received for their film The Lady Killers  as well as the latest progress on part 2 of their documentary The Truth Is Out There. Doris Day gets a few words of remembrance, though Peggy Lipton, Barbara Perry and Jim Fowler get the full “Celebrity Deaths” treatment. David Lynch gets debated (again), especially in light of how much he and Dean have in common! Some news and views on Avengers: Endgame and one excellent, Oscar-nominated film, and two really disappointing 2018 releases get reviewed. Join the Chillpak Mod Squad for year 13!

If you caught last week’s installment of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour, you know that Dean Haglund was attending a convention in Rhode Island this weekend and that Phil Leirness was NOT attending in order that he could get to the bottom of what has become almost total day and light blindness. Your friends in podcasting will regale you with many tales of these adventures on this week’s show. They will also weigh in on all the news surrounding “Avengers: Endgame”, they will discuss M. Night Shyamalan’s rumination on comic books, “Glass”, and they will play a lightning round of “Celebrity Deaths”, including one that hit very close to home for Dean and Phil. A very personal, funny and touching episode. We hope you enjoy!

We have been experiencing great difficulty making this week’s show (recorded on Sunday) available across our usual platform of fine podcast providers! If you have found this episode, we trust you will find it though-provoking. A wide range of topics gets covered, including airplane crashes, anger, gun massacres, distractions, climate change, live storytelling, the history of U.S. Constitutional Amendments and perhaps, the greatest drummer ever! Oh, yeah, and DOBERMAN PUPPIES!

Your friends in podcasting connected via Skype on Christmas Morning to slide down your virtual chimney and stuff your audio stocking full of podcasty goodness! Topics include comic book cataloging, engagement party advice, the role of the arts in the heart of a nation, travel guardian angels, an all-time great voice, a punk rock pioneer, and two actresses-turned-directors who are big reasons why we don’t need to say “female directors” any more. We can just start calling them “directors”. Happy Holidays! We think you will really enjoy this festive, 68 minute installment of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour!

Mattie Giles is a Detroit-based film and television critic who has appeared on YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour in the past. On this week’s show, he Skypes in with your friends in podcasting for a full hour of hilarious, free-wheeling conversation covering such topics as the film scene in Detroit, Detroit barbecue, the TV show “The Detroiters” and more things Detroit in anticipation of Dean’s moving there this fall. The talk also turns to recent movies, and one classic film as well, the TV shows Mattie has been reviewing, “The X-Files”, depression and more. All in all, it’s a truly entertaining hour!