Episode 83 - PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON

Gentleness is a virtue in Puff the Magic Dragon, a touchy-feely cartoon special inspired by what's either one of the most anodyne pop music hits of all time, or a devious Trojan horse planted by the counterculture. That's a pretty unfair legacy for a short film that explores concepts like anxiety and alienation, though its deeply 1970s sensibility doesn't exactly discourage the double entendres.

So with that being said, grab a few buds and enjoy this high flying episode posted on the innocuous date of April 20!

Puff the Magic Dragon (1978)
Directed by Charles Swenson and Fred Wolf
Produced by Charles Swenson, Peter Yarrow, and Romeo Muller
Written by Romeo Muller
Aired by CBS on October 30, 1978
Starring Burgess Meredith, Philip Tanzini, and Robert Ridgely

Episode 82 - 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU

To an American high school student, few writers seem as imposingly archaic as William Shakespeare. Yet ol' Billy Shakes understood, perhaps better than anyone else, the romantic warfare that is a quintessential part of the teenage experience. That feisty, melodramatic spirit animates the backbiting and bon mots of 10 Things I Hate About You, a memorable part of the Bard's cinematic renaissance in the 1990s.

Guest host Lindsay Marie Mead is our prom date for this lighthearted story of accidental infatuation adapted from The Taming of the Shrew, which updates the timeless tale with prescient casting, wacky interpretations of high school clichés, and a healthy dose of rock 'n roll girl power.

10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
Directed by Gil Junger
Produced by Andrew Lazar and Jody Hedien
Written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith
Based on The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare
Starring Julia Stiles, Heath Ledger, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik, Andrew Keegan, David Krumholtz, Gabrielle Union, Susan May Pratt, Allison Janney, Daryl Mitchell, and Larry Miller