Tony sits down with Brandon Davis, from NPR Illinois for the first of two episodes with the host of "Front Row Classics" podcast! In this first, we trace Brandon's path from grandma’s Rodgers and Hammerstein VHS tapes to a 350+ episode archive of interviews with film historians, authors, TCM personalities, and even cast members of "The Love Boat". What starts as a get-to-know-you quickly turns into a golden age tour of "what-ifs"—Bette Davis and James Mason in "Who’s Afraid of Virginia ...

Get ready to "Sparkle, Neely, Sparkle" for Part Two of our special "Dollapalooza" tribute to the "Citizen Kane" of camp, 1967's "Valley of the Dolls." We start with the music. Andre and Dory Previn’s title theme? Gorgeous, melancholy, timeless. The rest? A tour of mid-century TV-variety vibes that never quite match the film’s ambition. From Patty Duke’s surprise dubbing and the myth of the star-making number to Judy Garland’s earlier pass at “I’ll Plant My Own Tree,” we map out how dir...

Dolls! Dolls! Dolls! We're climbing Mount Everest today...the Mount Everest of Camp, that is...to reach our ultimate destination, the "Valley of the Dolls" (1967). In Part One of our two-part "Doll-apalooza", we dive headfirst into "Valley of the Dolls" to explore how a record-shattering novel morphed into a glossy, chaotic cult classic that refuses to fade. From Travilla’s couture and 60s hair architecture to the film’s stubborn 1940s morality, we map the exact fault lines where ...

We interrupt our scheduled programs for a special milestone: one million views on Tony's "Wired" interview on YouTube! This occasion opened the door for a bigger conversation, so we pulled up a chair and dug in. Brad asks some questions that blew past the YouTube cut: what we actually know about Natalie Wood’s final night, why rumor loves tidy villains, and how to honor a legacy without letting tragedy swallow it whole. From there, we build a clear, no-filler Elizabeth Tayl...

The residents of 1313 Mockingbird Lane get ready for their close-up, as we wrap up our spirited “Addams v. Munsters” debate with a nostalgic deep dive into the classic sitcom “The Munsters”. We explore what sets it apart from “The Addams Family”—not just visually, but culturally—and reminisce about the show’s offbeat charm, its subtle social commentary, and the chemistry between cast members, highlighting icons like Fred Gwynne, Yvonne DeCarlo, and Al Lewis. Join us as we break down two...

Are you a Morticia, or are you a Lily? That's a question that has plagued TV views since a single autumn week in 1964 that featured two seismic TV debuts—"The Addams Family" and one week later, "The Munsters". In this two-part episode, we answer it for ourselves. We also zoom in on why audiences were ready for supernatural comfort, how the networks raced to premiere first, and what made these two “normal” families feel so different once the front door swung open. Think urban...

Oh, Rhoda! Before the iconic Ms. Morgenstern, there was another Rhoda...a 9-year-old psychopath that struck terror in her enemies, torment in the hearts of her loved ones, and unintended laughter from the audience watching her exploits. Yes, it's the camp classic, "The Bad Seed" from Warner Bros in 1956, starring the iconic Patty McCormack and the insufferably dramatic Nancy Kelly. A nine-year-old with perfect penmanship and a talent for murder shouldn’t be funny—yet "The Bad Seed" some...

We dive into Jesus Christ Superstar as a human story told through rock, politics, and performance, balancing reverence with critique. From a bus in the desert to tanks on the dunes, we trace how Norman Jewison’s choices turn myth into modern memory. Text us & We'll Respond on an Episode Links to Tony's website, and Brad's website at www.goinghollywoodpodcast.com Follow us on Instagram @goinghollywoodpod To watch "The True Story of the Barrymores," go to https://www.amazon.com/gp/vide...

Picture it: Hollywood 2025. Forty years after four unlikely roommates gathered around a kitchen table in Miami, “the Golden Girls”remains one of television's most beloved and groundbreaking sitcoms. In part two of our special 40th birthday celebration, we explore what made the show so revolutionary and why its legacy continues to resonate with audiences today. We’ll deep dive into the “Golden Girls” universe, from untangling the complex web of family relationships, to the meticulo...

Picture it: Hollywood 1985 A TV show premieres about about 4 women, well over "thirty-something", sharing their hopes, their dreams, their stories, and lots of cheesecake, in the youth-obsessed TV culture of the 1980s. Does the show survive? Get a clue, slut-puppy! It not only survived, it shot to the top of the ratings and dominated them for over 6 years. Yes, it's "The Golden Girls", and it's their 40th birthday-- so we're gonna celebrate! From the show's groundbreaking pilot to...

Yowza! Yowza! Yowza! In the darkest year of the Great Depression, a group of desperate strangers gather at a seaside dance hall for a grueling marathon contest. The prize: $1,500 – enough money to transform their broken lives. The cost: pushing their bodies and minds beyond all human limits. Director Sidney Pollack crafts a mesmerizing allegory about capitalism and exploitation that still resonates decades later. "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" (1969) takes us inside this bruta...

Well, hello, Jupiter Hollow! There's something fishy going on up in the big city, and we don't know about you, but we're as mad as a wet wasp!! So, grab your Tuesday panties, your culottes, and your snake bracelets and join us, as we set out to kick some snooty New York ass up at the legendary Plaza Hotel in the name of "Big Business" (1988). This delightful little farce starring the incomparable Bette Midler and Lily Tomlin is basically a re-telling Shakespeare's "Comedy of Errors", se...

"Grand Hotel...people come, people go. Nothing ever happens." With all due respect Lewis Stone, the actor who utters these immortal lines in this MGM classic, we couldn't disagree more! Grand Hotel (1932) stands as one of the most significant achievements in early Hollywood cinema, not only for its revolutionary approach to casting but also for its sophisticated storytelling and visual innovation. "More stars than there are in the heavens" was MGM's famous tagline from the 1930s, ...

The fictional St. Eligius Hospital (nicknamed "St. Elsewhere" for being a dumping ground where other hospitals sent unwanted patients) became the setting for television's first truly realistic medical drama. The doctors were flawed and worked in less-than-ideal conditions. Multi-layered narratives interweave throughout episodes, with character arcs spanning entire seasons. St. Elsewhere balanced serious themes and controversial subjects with unexpected humor. It's possibly Brad's favorit...

"Dying is easy, comedy is hard." So were the alleged dying words of great English actor Edmund Kean in 1833. He couldn't have known that he was giving a perfect review of our film for today, Stanley Kramer's legendary comedic epic of money-grubbing greed, "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World" (1963). A dying criminal's roadside confession about "$350Gs" buried under a "Big W" transforms a group of ordinary motorists into a crazed mob racing across Southern California in an epic tr...

We’re having a heat wave this week on "Going Hollywood" as we tackle one of the most iconic--and controversial--films in Hollywood history, starring one of it's greatest stars. Marilyn Monroe in Billy Wilder’s “The Seven Year Itch" (1955) The film represents a pivotal moment in Hollywood history – a technicolor confection where Marilyn's screen persona fully crystallized into the irresistible combination of sexuality and childlike innocence that captivated the world. We dive deep into what m...

Boy, do we have some ‘splainin to do! In this very special episode we dive into the revolutionary legacy of a television pioneer whose contributions have been overshadowed for decades- Desi Arnaz. While Lucille Ball rightfully earned her place in entertainment history, her husband and business partner fundamentally transformed how television works—from filming techniques to syndication models that still influence the industry today. We begin by exploring the “I Love Lucy” episode, "Ric...

Macguffins, albinos and dwarves, oh my! There is that and so much more in our film for today, 1978's "Foul Play". This perfect summer escape film stars Goldie Hawn, Chevy Chase and a whole slew of wonderful and eccentric characters (including a pre-"Arthur" Dudley Moore) all under the guidance of filmmaker extraordinaire, Colin Higgins. Higgins, the creative genius behind "9 to 5," "Harold and Maude," and "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" is sadly little known today, but we in...

Why return to Minneapolis in the summertime? Because some television landmarks deserve multiple visits. After our first "Mary Tyler Moore" episode last season became one of our most popular, we knew we had to revisit the WJM newsroom and dive deeper into what makes this revolutionary sitcom the gold standard against which all others are measured. The magic of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" lies in its perfect balance of humor and authenticity. In this episode we discuss 4 MOORE landmark episode...

Movie Stars, ahoy! And “The Love Boat” it ain’t— it’s the granddaddy of all disaster films: Irwin Allen’s 1972 classic, “The Poseidon Adventure”. A wave crashes, a ship flips, and suddenly a boat-load of Oscar-winners find themselves in a fight to survive when the world turns upside down. This groundbreaking 1972 disaster film didn't just entertain audiences—it created the template that would define an entire genre for decades to come. There’s got to be a morning after when ...