Cultural Futures Exchange
by Cultural Futures Exchange
Here’s the place where we examine different elements of cultural ephemera, be it music, movies, tv, stage and dive into the context and time that they came out, what’s happened since, and our take on the future “valuation” on an imaginary stock exchange of this item in terms of if you should go long--the value will go up--go short--the value will decrease, or stay neutral. Join us!
Episodes
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Ep 66: Joni Mitchell Album War-Blue vs Court & Spark
Prepare for battle because this week CFX is waging another album war episode. And, this time, the stakes are high because we are covering one of the great geniuses of popular music, Joni Mitchell. Joni was already one of the most talented and innovative musicians ever, with her multilayered…
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Ep 65: Real Genius
This week CFX takes on one of Jeff’s favorite movies, the 1985 comedy Real Genius. Featuring a very young Val Kilmer, Real Genius does some of the same classic tropes as other teen comedies of the day, and it may break the record for the “most montages in a single film”, but it really is a cut...
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Ep 64: 70's Variety Shows
To celebrate the holidays and ring in the new year CFX is rolling it all out: Songs! Elaborate Dance Routines! Corny Banter! Skits! Sketches! Disco! Ice Skating! Washed up old celebrities! Sid and Marty Kroft! Fred Silverman! Uncle Milty’s schlong! The 70s! That’s right, the CFX Holiday 2025 70s...
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Ep 63: Devo
Q: Are we not men? A: We are DEVO! With that simple question, the world was introduced to one of the strangest, most unique, innovative and irreverent music/art projects of all time.. DEVO! So, put on your hazmat suit, monkey mask and don that energy dome, because this week your resident CFX spud...
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Ep 62: The A-Team
This week CFX goes on the lam riding shotgun with that ragtag squad of noble ex-Special Forces mercenaries, The A-Team. One of the most popular shows of the 1980s, The A-Team combined ridiculously over the top action,broad comedy and larger than life characters into a “must see” TV formula that...
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Ep 61: Repo Man
We know what you’re thinking… PLATE OF SHRIMP! Are we right? That’s crazy, but since the fabric of the universe is just a lattice of coincidences, it’s only right that just when you were thinking that, CFX decided to cover Alex Cox’s 1984 film Repo Man, a satirical, punk rock, sci fi cult classic...
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Ep 60: Toto
This week CFX switches gears to evaluate the pop culture impact of the world’s most innovative maker of toilets, the Japanese company, Toto LTD. Just kidding! We are of course talking about the band Toto. Started in the late ‘70s by a bunch of San Fernando Valley high school friends who also...
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Ep 59: Grease
This week CFX covers one of the most popular OLD movies ever, Grease. This classic 1970s/1950s musical about a bunch of high school SENIORS, with its mix of fun musical frivolity and MATURE subject matter, seems to have AGED well....or has it? We do the usual..going into the whole 1970s/1950s...
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Ep 58: The Six Million Dollar Man
This week CFX takes you back to a simpler time, a time when bionically enhanced astronauts and former tennis pros saved the world from Bigfoot, aliens, Russian death probes and evil "robuts"—all while wearing fashion tracksuits and the finest fashions that the Sears Roebuck catalog had to offer....
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Ep 57: Talking Heads Part 2
Well, we know where we’re going and we know where we have been. It may seem like we were on a road to nowhere with Talking Heads Part 1 since it’s been a while, but the future is certain because here we are with Part 2. We start things off with a bang, with 1980’s Remain in Light and then cover…
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Ep 56: Talking Heads Part 1
This ain’t no party. This ain’t no disco. This ain’t no foolin’ around. This is CFX. Episode 56: Talking Heads and we get so “lovey dovey” that “we ain’t got time for that now”. That’s right, we had to split this into two parts. In this first part, we go into our personal histories, the zeitgeist...
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Ep 55: Does Anyone Remember Laughter? (The Best of Stage Banter)
Alright, internet! How y’all doing out there? You wanted the best and you got the best…stage banter that is. That’s right, this week we take a look at the best and worst stage banter in history for the first (and maybe only… we’ll see…) time. There’s no Grammy award for best stage banter and we...
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Ep 54: Judy Blume
Are you there Judy? It’s us, CFX, and this week we are here to ask you, when will we grow? Haha, all kidding aside. That’s right, we are covering the great Judy Blume, an author who has influenced several generations with her frank, honest and realistic books for kids and young adults. We go into...
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Ep 53: Purple Rain
Dearly beloved CFX fans, we are gathered here today to evaluate this thing called Purple Rain. Will it stand the test of time forever or just a mighty long time…well, we’re here to tell U. That’s right, we evaluate the film, the music and the artist (thankfully known as Prince which is good…
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Ep 52: Bosom Buddies
When we first came up with the concept of the show, namely leveraging our pop cultural expertise to put cultural artifacts under the CFX microscope to see if they will stand the test of time, the short lived early ‘80s sitcom, Bosom Buddies, was one of the first shows we both thought of covering....
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Ep 51: Warren Zevon
This week CFX covers Warren Zevon, an artist that the general public, if they’ve heard of him at all, usually think of as a one hit wonder and associate him with one that song, “Werewolves of London”. As great as that song may be, CFX, as you’ve come to expect, digs deeper to discover the real...
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Ep 50: Rush-Part 2 of Synth
Part 2 picks up right where we left off on Part 1, by tackling the post-Moving Pictures journey of our Canuck music heroes. They’ve just experienced their greatest commercial success (artistic as well, at least according to CFX) to date and ready to fire the up the synths for some emotion...
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Ep 50: Rush-Part 1 of Fear
ATTENTION PLANETS OF THE SOLAR FEDERATION! WE HAVE ASSUMED CONTROL! WE HAVE ASSUMED CONTROL! That's right, eh! This is the big one, episode 50, and so, it's time to grab a Molson Golden, don that kimono, and tuck into some poutine, because CFX are covering one of the all time greats, Canadian…
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Ep 49: The Breakfast Club
Teen archetypes! Melodramatic method-inspired soliloquies! Stepford Wives teen makeovers! Flaring nostrils! Hairy butt loving sportos! Quarterflash sound-alikes! And, who could forget… Neo-Nazi Zoom DWEEBIES?! If you’re wondering what we’re talking about, you’ve obviously never seen the 1985...
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Ep 48: Firefly
This week CFX takes on the short-lived cult sci-fi show, Firefly. We dive into the history of the show, explore its eleven TV episodes and the 2005 fan-driven film Serenity to decide whether this oddball mix of western and space opera is “shiny” or just a whole lot of “Fei-oo”. What about this…
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Ep 47: The Catcher in the Rye
This week CFX tackles one of the most popular and controversial books of all time, J.D. Salinger’s 1951 coming of age novel The Catcher in the Rye. This is a book that nearly everyone has read and we talk about how the book affected us when we read it as teenagers and how we view it now. We got...
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Ep 46: Thin Lizzy
This week CFX celebrates St. Patrick’s Day by covering the greatest Irish band in history, Thin Lizzy! And if you consider that to be a controversial statement, we understand because as great as Thin Lizzy were, they weren’t nearly as popular as they should have been. Why weren’t they absolutely...
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Ep 45: The Exorcist
This week, the power of CFX compels you to listen to our second Satanic episode in a row! That’s right, for Episode 45, we take on 1973 horror classic, The Exorcist! Is this the greatest, most shocking horror film ever made or just a pile of pea soup colored puke? We answer this by digging into...
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Ep 44: Here’s to My Sweet Satan
This week CFX takes on the whole idea of Satanic music and the phenomenon of backmasking. Are rock artists intentionally hiding secret Satanic messages that are only revealed when the record is played backwards? And can our subconscious minds pick up on these messages somehow when the records are...
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Ep 43: Strangers with Candy
We’re back! And, this week, we take on the short-lived landmark cult comedy show, Strangers With Candy. This is an episode that really demonstrates, perhaps more than any other we have done, how the prospects of a CFX artifact can change so quickly. This show is only just a little over 20 years…
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Ep 42: Creedence Clearwater Revival
Proud Mary! Lodi! Bayous! Prince Valiant Hairdos! Flannel! Lawsuits! Self-plagiarism! That’s right, this week, there’s a whole lotta chooglin’ goin’ on as CFX takes on Creedence Clearwater Revival, the short-lived, but critically and popularly acclaimed rock band helmed by American icon, John...
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Ep 41:War Games
Do you want to play a game? Let’s play… Global… Thermonuclear… War. That’s right, this week CFX takes on the classic 1983 technological thriller, WarGames, the film that introduced most of the world to a new kind of hero/villain, the “hacker”. But we put kind of a different spin on things as we...
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Ep 40: Ratt’s Out of the Cellar
This week CFX takes on Out of the Cellar, the 1984 debut of hair metal icons Ratt. We do our usual dive into band history, influences, our personal histories, but then we take on this would be classic track by track and decide whether you should come “back for more” or flee the “scene of the...
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CFX Special Episode: In Memoriam-A Tribute to Don (Slip’s Dad)
He is known by many names: Don, Slip’s dad, Uncle Donnie, Brother, Papa Don, HB Ol’ Dude and Mr. Bitchin’ to name a few, but to all who knew him he was known as one of the smartest, funniest and friendliest guys ever. He passed away this year and instantly the world became a less awesome place.…
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Ep 39: The Twilight Zone
Imagine if you would, a podcast—one of style and taste, and intellectual insight…Instead, however, you’re here with us! On this episode of CFX we’re going into a dimension not of sight or sound, but of mind to examine one of the most iconic TV shows in history: The Twilight Zone. We go over the...
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Ep 38: Ocean’s 11 (1960)
E-O 11!!!! For this episode we head back in time to 1960, to a Technicolor Las Vegas where we catch up with the Rat Pack who are trying to pull off an amazing (and yes, far-fetched) casino heist. We tag along with Danny Ocean (Frank Sinatra), Sam Harmon (Dean Martin), Josh Howard (Sammy Davis…
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Ep 37: Joe Jackson-Look Sharp! vs Night & Day
This week CFX presents our second album war. This time we try to decide between Joe Jackson’s classic 1979 debut album, Look Sharp!, and his 1982 blend of Latin jazz and pop, Night and Day. Jeff presents the case for Look Sharp!, while Slip backs Night and Day. As with our AC/DC album war, this…
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Ep 36: Beverly Hills 90210
This week on CFX, we put the super popular, landmark TV show, Beverly Hills 90210, under the CFX-o-scope and let’s just say it gets ugly. We talk about the hackneyed, repetitive plots, the often terrible acting, the dubious social commentary, the futile attempts at hipster credibility and just…
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Ep 35: Escape From New York
We’ve done a lot of good episodes, but this might be “A #1”! That’s right, this week takes on John Carpenter’s (not Ritchie Blackmore’s!) post apocalyptic 1981 film Escape From New York. We dive into the details on the making of and do a complete walk-through of the film, extolling the virtues of...
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Ep 34: AC/DC-Highway to Hell vs Back in Black
On what may be the best episode we have ever recorded, we try to do the impossible by trying to decide which of these two classic AC/DC albums is better. Jeff thinks Highway to Hell is better and Slip thinks Back in Black wins. But talk about a “Sophie’s Choice”! Really we both still go back and...
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Ep 33: As Seen on TV
“What would you pay?...while supplies last…four easy payments…but wait there’s more! Has this ever happened to you? There’s got to be a better way”. That’s right, this week, on Episode 33: As Seen on TV, CFX delves into the world where television entertainment and marketing meet. It’s a world of...
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Ep 32: Commando
This episode of CFX is action packed (literally!) since we discuss the 1985 Arnold Schwarzenegger action film, Commando. While the film is not one of the mega Schwarzenegger box office blockbusters, Commando, with its explosion filled action sequences, overt homo-eroticism and clever one-liners,...
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Ep 31: Whatever Happened to Billy Squier?
This week on CFX we explore the career of singer, guitarist, songwriter and “fancy dancer” Billy Squier. Most importantly, we try to find out whether what seemed destined to be a successful career was prematurely ended by what many claim is the most notoriously bad music video of all time, or if...
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Ep 30: Midsomer Murders
Well, if you’ve ever had any doubt that we’re a couple of old chaps, then I think this episode will put that to rest. We are! That’s right, this week, on CFX, we are talking about the favorite television show of not only the late Queen Elizabeth II but every British pensioner, Midsomer Murders!...
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Ep 29: SIMON & garfunkel
Hello podcast listeners, our old friends, it’s time for CFX again! This week we take on that dynamic duo, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel. We know what you’re thinking… How boring! Well, nothing could be further from the truth. We take you through the ups and downs of what has been a sometimes tense...
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Ep 28: WKRP in Cincinnati
This week CFX heads back into the world of ‘70s AM radio, heading up and down the dial, to tackle one of the most beloved sitcoms of all time: WKRP in Cincinnati. We go into the backstory, cast, and characters of this groundbreaking show and then we try to decide if its ability to stand the test…
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Ep 27: Donna Summer
Thank God it’s our 27th Episode and this week we talk about the Queen of Disco, Donna Summer. We decide if she’s an under-appreciated diva who broke new musical ground or if, well, Disco sucks! We take you through not only through the very interesting and unexpected twists and turns of her…
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Ep 26: Meatballs
This week CFX heads back to Camp Northstar to evaluate Bill Murray’s 1979 big screen debut, Meatballs. While this film was very influential on teen movies of the ‘80s and made Murray a star, does its story of a camp full of loser underdogs pitted against the snobby rich kids of Camp Mohawk, stand...
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Ep 25: Rumours
Being that this is our 25th Episode, we decided to cover a major blockbuster album, Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 album Rumours. Now, while it might seem a little pointless to ask whether this album will stand the test of time given that it’s more popular now, nearly fifty years after the fact, than it…
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Ep 24: Bugsy Malone
This week CFX examines one of the strangest children’s films of all time, renowned filmmaker Alan Parker’s debut, Bugsy Malone. Does this eccentric and artful alternate universe gangster film, with its whip cream-powered “splurge” guns, sarsaparilla-serving speakeasies and Flintstone-like pedal...
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Ep 23: Fantasy Island
“De Plane! De Plane”, “Smiles, everyone smiles”… welcome to Fantasy Island, episode 23 of the CFX podcast. This week we take on one of the bat-shit craziest shows ever made. A show that featured everything from ESP-powered sasquatches to psychedelic ventriloquist dummies while churning through a...
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Ep 22: 70’s AM Radio Gold
On this special holiday episode of CFX (Ok, it just happens to come out on Xmas Day…) we take on ‘70s AM hit radio, also known as ‘70s AM Gold. Like we did on our Game Show episode (Episode 18: https://apple.co/3WebSzL), we explore the hits and misses, the long and short of this classic era. We...
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Ep 21: Holy Diver
In this episode we face evil, magic, wizards, witches, kings, TIGERS and even Ritchie Blackmore to cover one of the most seminal albums of the heavy metal genre: Holy Diver by Dio. Even though we aren’t even close to being worthy to judge such an obvious hard rock deity, we do our best to answer...
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Ep 20: Fast Times at Ridgemont High
This week we take on what may be the ultimate high school film ever made, Fast Times at Ridgemont High. This 1982 film is a comedy-drama that addresses such serious topics as abortion and masturbation and still somehow manages to be funny. We do a deep dive on this film to see whether it stands…
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Ep 19: Pat Andrzejewski Benetar Giraldo
On Episode 19 we talk about the great Pat Benatar (aka Pat Andrzejewski Giraldo), who not only was a groundbreaking female rock star but who also has one of the greatest rock and roll voices in history. We review her entire career with a particular focus on her early albums to decide whether she...
About this show
Here’s the place where we examine different elements of cultural ephemera, be it music, movies, tv, stage and dive into the context and time that they came out, what’s happened since, and our take on the future “valuation” on an imaginary stock exchange of this item in terms of if you should go long--the value will go up--go short--the value will decrease, or stay neutral. Join us!
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Cultural Futures Exchange