2018 Tedium Highlight by David Buck: The strange, fascinating career of Tom Bodett, who parlayed NPR radio essays into the longest-running spokesperson gig around. Not that it’s all he does. 

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David Buck’s 2018 Highlights

December 2018

The Bagdasarian Effect

How one man’s discovery of a clever sound effect gave us Alvin and the Chipmunks, one of the most enduring novelty musical acts of all time.
November 2018

Kicking Out The Jams

The unlikely rise and amicable fall of the world’s funniest alt-rock, DIY band—The Presidents of the United States of America, who only needed five strings.

His Name Was Larry

The offbeat stylings of Larry "Wild Man" Fischer, an outsider icon with ties to Frank Zappa and a wild voice who generated a cult audience against all odds.
October 2018

Bizarro Mash

Around the time of “The Monster Mash,” another icon of horror was getting in on the music game—and John Zacherle had his own take on the graveyard smash.

Doin’ The Mash

The history of the world’s favorite Halloween carol, Bobby “Boris” Pickett’s “The Monster Mash.” Here’s how a song about dead creatures came to life.
September 2018

Super (Small) Models

Pondering the postwar scale modeling boom, as well as where scale model enthusiasts are getting their fix today.
August 2018

The Podcasting Puppet Master

A puppeteer for Mystery Science Theater 3000 explains how a comedic passion—particularly Dr. Demento—led to a diverse career in podcasting and puppeteering.
July 2018

Command Line

Nearly 40 years ago, DOS reshaped computing on the IBM PC. These days, nostalgia for that era—and a dose of fresh creativity—is keeping its legacy alive.
June 2018

Absolutely Brilliant!

The British company Codemasters, best known for the Game Genie, didn’t let a pesky lack of license get in the way of creating some of the NES’ best games.

What if Tedium … Had Lyrics?

A conversation with video game music icon Brent Black (aka Brentalfloss) about his music, thoughts on YouTube, and using your words.
May 2018

Nintendo Still Rocks

How music from the 8-bit video game era has inspired an entire generation of modern musicians and created new musical genres.

WebTV’s Greatest Celebrity User

Turns out R. Stevie Moore, a Tedium favorite, was a very active user of WebTV, an under-loved icon of the early internet. It’s apparent in his video work.
April 2018

Not Just Nostalgia

The strange and wonderful world of homebrew games for the original Nintendo Entertainment System. Yes, new games are still being made three decades later.
March 2018

Mystic Knights of the Movie Soundtrack

How Danny Elfman's Oingo Boingo permeated popular culture, especially in the early '80s, thanks in no small part to the rise of movie soundtracks.

New Wave Titans

How Oingo Boingo, which began as a theatre troupe, forged an endearing legacy and launched the career of one of the most popular film composers of our time.
February 2018

Leavin’ The Light On

The strange, fascinating career of Tom Bodett, who parlayed NPR radio essays into the longest-running spokesperson gig around. Not that it’s all he does.

Oh? Haven’t You Heard?

How a single novelty song capture the public imagination, influenced punk rock and became a cultural institution. Yes, bird is, in fact, the word.

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