Phil is in the nation’s capital, and reveals that he really doesn’t understand much about weather at all. Dean is in Birmingham, Michigan, where the ongoing airport delays prevented him from participating in this weekend’s “No Kings” protests. Phil shares with Dean the favorite signs he saw while protesting with his in-laws! Last week, Dean and Phil discussed the 107 year-old Santa Monica Airport, soon to close operations for good and set to become public parkland. Phil regales Dean with tales of one very famous and beloved movie filmed there. This leads to a discussion about built sets that were too big for any studio soundstage to hold. After that, three very disparate, and somewhat unusual, films get analyzed: the recent Japan-set Rental Family starring Brendan Fraser, the 1978 sci-fi schlock movie Starcrash (featuring Christopher Plummer!) and the 2025 faith-based historical fiction family film Sarah’s Oil. Finally, Dean and Phil do more exploring in the Time Out list of the 100 Greatest Movie Theaters in the World RIGHT NOW. Oh, and a belated Happy National Respect Your Cat Day to all who celebrate!

Big changes are coming, with much more content each week. This week, Dean and Phil hint more at what these changes might bring, while whetting the appetite thru discussions of art, culture, television, movies and acting. The festivities begin with Dean revealing which of the cities he has lived in most inspired his painting. The return of Vince Gilligan to the small screen gets discussed, the hilarious new sitcom “Stumble” gets reviewed, and the cancellation of Rian Johnson’s “Poker Face” AND his plans to revive it get analyzed. In “Celebrity Deaths”, the maverick independent filmmaker Henry Jaglom gets remembered and his ongoing legacy and influence are pondered. Then a whole raft of new Netflix films get mentioned before Dean doffs his cap at Guillermo del Toro’s Netflix version of Frankenstein, and Phil wags his finger at the preposterous The Woman in Cabin 10. Finally, The Fantastic Four: First Steps gets revisited before the state of acting in the 1970s gets hailed as, perhaps, the all-time peak of screen acting.

Dean and Phil have quite the array of topics to discuss, including a recent Marvel film, a Neil Simon comedy from the 1970s, all the big award-winners at the recent Cannes Film Festival, and a director’s cut of Chris Carter’s The X-Files: I Want to Believe. Both the Australian and the American versions of “Laid” get discussed, and art, architecture, history and more get discussed in the return of “What We Are Reading”. Two beloved television stars and a legendary comedian get remembered in “Celebrity Deaths”. Finally, good pal of the show Marc Hershon drops by to offer up two new television show recommendations that both sound awesome!

During this week in 2007, YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour was born! Of course back then, we were called From the Heart of Hollywood until a “cease and desist” led to us … ceasing … and desisting. This week, your friends in podcasting and two special guests on Monday as they celebrate (in style!) the show that continues to “change the way people listen to the internet” becoming old enough to be out on its own! They will discuss the “Poverty Row” studios of the silent film era, the “soundies” of World War II, Las Vegas casinos circa 1980, a current Jazz artist making a name for herself, the late great Jill Sobule, the current movies Sinners, The Surfer, and The Wedding Banquet, The Muppets, Jim Henson, Star Wars Day, “Andor”, and more! And please, don’t be happy about the 18 years of shows that have passed. Instead, be sad about the 18 years of shows still to come!

Your friends in podcasting have returned from travel adventures and have tales about art galleries in the nation’s capital and jazz clubs in the Big Easy. You will learn more about they year 1874, and more about the Marigny District of New Orleans, than you have ever heard before on this show! Much of this week’s episode involves movie box office news, movie award news, and movie reviews. In fact, two current releases and one recent release get deep-dive analyses: Conclave, Anora, and Longlegs.

Happy Birthday to our friend in podcasting, Phil Leirness, who is celebrating many returns of the day in New Orleans today! Before departing Los Angeles, and before Dean Haglund departed the environs of Detroit to head to the nation’s capital for Thanksgiving, they convened via zoom to record this week’s show. In it, they discuss their travel plans, before Dean regales with tales of his recent improv performance (with Gary Jones) in San Jose. Then, a discussion of Dean’s forthcoming European wedding leads to Phil revealing his new plans for Arctic Circle adventures and a follow up to last week’s discussion of the Aurora Borealis. Several new or recent movies get reviewed, including My Old Ass, Deadpool & Wolverine, and His Three Daughters, as well as the 2020 Oscar winner for Best Documentary (My Octopus Teacher) and a horror film from 1988 that was one of the first starring roles for both Hugh Grant and Peter Capaldi (The Lair of the White Worm). Finally, in an almost-all-jazz edition of “Celebrity Deaths”, four jazz greats and two Bee Gees drummers get remembered!

This week’s episode finds Phil in the “DMV” (DC-Maryland-Virginia) area and Dean safely ensconced back in Michgan. Phil quizzes Dean about Renaissance man Martin Mull, iconic Winnipeg musician and broadcaster Ray St. Germain, two Oscar-winning composers, and an Oscar-nominated documentarian. Dean and Phil also sing the praises of perhaps the greatest actor to NEVER get nominated for an Oscar! Such streaming fare as “Tulsa King”, Season 4 of “The Boys”, “Ripley”, Season 2 of “Tokyo Vice”, and Richard Linklater’s Hit Man all get reviewed as well.

In a cold open, this week’s show begins where last week’s show left off, with Phil delighting Dean with some surprising facts about the late comedic genius Tommy Smothers. After that, Dean and Phil dive into “Awards Season” news, offering up thoughts on the recent Emmy Awards, the forthcoming Oscar nominations, and on how viewing of awards shows might change in the years to come. Suffice it to say, your friends in podcasting and broadcasting have both bones to pick and things they hope to see. Speaking of “see”, Phil saw The Zone of Interest in the recently remodeled and re-opened movie theater where he was married. Dean saw the highly acclaimed romantic comedy from Finland, Fallen Leaves, and explains why he did not enjoy it. He also takes the time to explain why Phil does not enjoy the all-time classic screwball comedy Bringing Up Baby! Dean and Phil also weigh in on their thoughts regarding Alec Baldwin (once again) getting charged with involuntary manslaughter for the on-set death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. All that, plus Phil turns “Celebrity Deaths” into a game, quizzing Dean on his cultural literacy, and there is a crackerjack production meeting on the air!

Making every Monday night merry and bright since before many of you were even born, your friends in podcasting and broadcasting hope you are all enjoying a wonderful Christmas. Unless you don’t celebrate Christmas, in which case, Dean and Phil hope you are having an awesome Monday! Among the many topics to be enjoyed in this week’s audio stocking stuffer are an honor being bestowed upon one of the most important directors of “The X-Files”, the brilliance of actors Jamie Foxx and Mahershala Ali, two of the best Christmas films of all time (and both are brand new theatrical releases!), animated superhero movies, Netflix movies, a UK Northern Soul legend, a star of TV’s “Route 66”, and the Detroit art scene.

A question about UFO Disclosure from a listener leads to a fascinating, hilarious and inspiring opening to this week’s show. Afterwards, Dean and Phil follow up on their (ongoing) discussion surrounding the Kirk Douglas-starring musical version of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by appreciating the all-too overlooked actress Susan Hampshire and by revealing something Douglas’ co-star Donald Pleasance once revealed about the making of that film. After that, Dean and Phil follow up on last week’s discussion about the silent classic Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans by exploring the fascinating life story of that film’s star, Janet Gaynor. One new film and two Disney classics get appraised, and two Oscar-winning stars get remembered in “Celebrity Deaths”!