As I write this, America and the world are commemorating the 25th Anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Much will continue to be said in the days and weeks to come about this anniversary, where we are as a nation…and where we’re headed.

My goal today is to…well, move on, keep things positive, and talk about lots of other things. In other words, after a day of reflection on Friday, the mission here is a fun diversion on Saturday. Here goes, what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week.

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Watching: The Latest Edition of The Vandy Program — My Interview with PR Pro David Eckstein

I’ve had many chats with David Eckstein over the years; we first met doing fintech PR in the late 2010s and have kept in touch. He was on The Vandy Program earlier in the year, but this repeat appearance was all about the intersection of Sports and PR.

SPECIFICALLY, what about some of these “unforced errors” that are committed by big sports brands like the Los Angeles Clippers, or LSU — really, though, Lane Kiffin — or The University of Michigan. (That last one might be the fault of the Big Ten Conference; an outfit that forgot how to count in the early 90s and ceased to be a geographic league when they added west coast teams.)

It was a really good chat. Link to the video below, like and subscribe and all that fun stuff.

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Reading: The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White

Show of hands: when were YOU asked to read this? For me: Junior Year of High School. Colloquially known just as Strunk and White by those of us who have, at one point or another, written for a living, William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White provided a classic with their The Elements of Style.

What’s most interesting to me about this book, which you can pick up for a few bucks at the above link, is that Strunk wrote the first edition in 1918 (!) and White — yes, THAT E.B. White, he wrote Stuart Little and Charlotte’s Web — edited it and republished it in 1959 (!!).

How’s this for an example of style: one excerpt about using concrete language.

Listening to: Mitski

I just dig her and her work. That’s all. If you haven’t heard of Mitski here’s a quick primer.

Newer stuff: “If I Leave.” (Definitely on my 2026 Top Ten List.)

But wait, hasn’t she been aroud a little while? Yes. In fact, here’s one of her older tunes: “Washing Machine Heart.” 180 Million views and counting.

And finally, here’s “My Love Mine All Mine.”

We could all use a little more Mitski.

Rediscovering: A Really Bad Rendition of The National Anthem

This is Fergie at the 2018 NBA All-Star Game.

(Of course, when my daughter showed me this, I had to counter with… “Oh yeah?” See the following.)

Finally: Toby Keith, ‘Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue’

Nothing better to listen to right about now, IMHO. On September 12, 2001, we were all Americans, one people, together, looking to stamp out evil and preserve our way of life. Will we ever get back to that kind of America?

Here’s to you, dear reader. Thanks for checking out The Saturday List.

Dave

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Wait, It’s September Already?

Yes, that’s right. Blink and Summer will be over. But not just yet, as we have three more Summer Saturdays to explore.

Let’s get to it…here’s what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week. (After the Subscribe button…would love to have you on board and it’s totally free.)

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Watching: Never Too Small (A Channel About Small Living Spaces)

Okay, I mentioned a couple of weeks back that I’m semi-obsessed with the content from Living Big in a Tiny House — the YouTube channel that lives up to its name — and so I can thank/blame the YT algorithm for delivering this recommendation: Never Too Small.

If Living Big… is a testament to independent places that are mostly nature-adjacent, then Never Too Small brings you a much different take: how to live if you are in a big city and have to shoehorn all your stuff into a really small apartment space.

(Also, and bear with me here, there’s a little bit of a “hey, we’re architects” angle to these stories, and/or an “access to capital” thing that makes these places work.)

For starters, take a look at this chap, a New Zealand architect who converted a garage — which his charming Kiwi accent calls a “GARE-ij” — into an apartment that needs to be seen to be believed.

This next one is in Milan, and is a much-smaller space than the New Zealand one above. Ultra-chic; and it helps that the designer has also worked designing hotel experiences, so some of the little touches are really fun. (TV cart on wheels that serves as a room divider?)

Finally, this one is in Lisbon and…the courtyard? Oh. My. Goodness. The transformation must be seen to be believed.

Never Too Small has its own print magazine, and you can subscribe at this link.

Reading: ‘Semisesquicentennial Frustration,’ An Essay from John Puccio

This was excellent. John Puccio has been a friend for more than 20 years, and his writing on his Substack — called Sailing to Byzantium — goes deep into American History.

In this particular place, John spends time researching just where in the town of Chatham, New Jersey — John’s former hometown — General George Washington may have visited a family that suffered a brutal Revolutionary War loss in their family.

You can read more at this link below. I loved this article, as it channeled my own inner Ken Burns.

Sailing to Byzantium

Semiquincentennial Frustration

As part of my December essay Semiquincentenial Fever, I told the story of Hannah Ogden Caldwell, who became a martyr for the cause of American independence after being killed by a British soldier in 1780. Her death was a tragedy that reverberated throughout New Jersey…

Read more

8 days ago · 1 like · 1 comment · John Puccio 🔅

Listening to: Two Recent Song Obsessions…from Wednesday and Ladytron

I’ve got a buddy from school named Ken and we like to send music recommendations back and forth. He sent me a song from the band Wednesday and I had to share it here; in part because he found it, sent it to me, and then…like magic…I seem to hear it everywhere. (Bonus points for the 12:5 aspect ratio in this video.)

I responded with this: a live KEXP performance by the band Ladytron that I cannot get out of my head.

Please enjoy, especially lead singer Helen Marnie’s IDGAF energy, and her glorious gray hair. We Stan.

Rediscovering: NBC’s ‘Get High on Yourself Week’

It was a September 1981 NBC experiment, of sorts; it also may have been part of a Hollywood producer named Robert Evans fulfilling his public service requirement after a cocaine possession charge.

Much has been said this past week about Ryan Reynolds remarking that the 80s traumatized him; this video may be part of the reason why.

Finally: My Interview with ‘Handy Ginger Gal’ on The Vandy Program

Yeah, this was big fun: what happens when a couple decides to decamp from Canada — think COLD WINTERS — and move to Costa Rica? Ginger spills the details.

Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend, y’all!

Dave

What struck me about this death and the aftermath is how Dolly was so uniquely American that we may never see the likes of her again.

To wit: President Trump ordered flags at half-staff for a week and pretty much everyone immediately complied; the LGBTQ community considers her an icon; Fox News went for (by my estimate) three straight hours of coverage of the breaking news of her death without stopping for commercial; Nashville wept; Dolly’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was subsequently covered in flowers; the phrase “universally beloved” was uttered probably a million times.

I’d be a moron if I didn’t make this an All Dolly edition of The Saturday List.

Reminder: please subscribe, as it’s free and helps the algorithm and my ego. Button below.

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Now, onto what Dolly-related content I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week, the 43rd Straight Saturday — 53rd edition overall — that we present The Saturday List.

Watching: Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square

This was Dolly’s last film. Released on Netflix in 2020, Christmas on the Square tapped into the Hallmark Christmas Movie zeitgeist, with just enough camp. And, as we channel Saturday Night Live’s Stefon, this film had everything:

• Dolly as an angel (that tracks!)

• Treat Williams (RIP) AND Christine Baranski

• Jenifer Lewis

• Choreography by Debbie Allen!

Come on, we could all use a little Christmas in August. Right?

NOTE: She won an Emmy for Outstanding Television Movie for this film.

Reading: The Dolly Parton Wikipedia Entry

I mean, there’s a whole lot jam-packed into her 80 years.

Dolly was the closest thing we will have to American royalty. And just look at the photo Wikipedia used.

Listening to: “He’s Alive,” sung by Dolly Parton

It’s a Gospel song and nobody performed it like Dolly in 1989.

Rediscovering: Dolly — Her Variety Show — with Kermit the Frog

I was surprised that The Muppet Show never had Dolly as guest host.

But, Dolly had her own variety show, in 1987, and she performed with Kermit the Frog. Why not?

Finally: My Favorite Dolly Parton Song (And It Isn’t One of The Two Most-Popular Ones)

Dolly Parton gave us more than a lifetime full of music; I gotta be honest that not even “Jolene” or “I Will Always Love You” brings back the memories that this song does.

“Here You Come Again” transplants me to the 1970s. The title track off her 1977 album, it got to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart — her first mainstream hit, and, other than “9 to 5,” the only Dolly song to even make the Top 10 — and of course was certified Platinum and all of those things.

It would be her 6th song to reach the top of the Country charts.

Back before MTV, when artists regularly crossed over and back, Dolly was an original who could, actually, do it all.

Thanks, Dolly. Rest easy.

I’ll see y’all next week. Be good to each other.

Dave

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Howdy! It’s been a week of travel for me — more on that below — but now that I’m back on terra firma, it’s time to share what I’m currently consuming in various media genres. OR, what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week.

Here’s that Subscribe button, though. Happy to have you on board, a subscription is free, tell a friend, etc., etc.

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Watching: My Wide-Ranging Interview with John Ziegler

This was quite fun. John Ziegler has been an online friend for a couple years now, and, earlier this year, I interviewed him about Penn State’s Jerry Sandusky scandal. (He may know more about all the nuances of that incident than anyone else; Here’s a link to that full interview: The Vandy Program Interviews John Ziegler.)

This time, though, we talked about some of the other things going on in the sports world and the world at large. Including…

• The WNBA

• College Football Then and Now (Hint: It’s Worse Now)

• COVID: Lockdowns, Anthony Fauci, etc.

• The Political Landscape going into 2028

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Reading: Read The Paper — A Substack from Randy DeCleene

Full Disclosure: I’ve known Randy DeCleene since we were both youths in Mishawaka, Indiana. After reconnecting online maybe a dozen years ago, we’ve shared a few Zoom calls in the past few years.

He has relaunched his Substack called Read The Paper and you can subscribe for free below.

The idea is this: if you are of a certain age — Randy and I are both Generation-X, if you haven’t yet surmised that fact — you likely have some sort of memory of reading an actual physical newspaper. Randy digs up newspapers from throughout the country and shares those papers from important historical dates.

READ THE PAPER

Old newspapers. We read and write about them.

By Randy DeCleene

I was reminded on Friday that August 21, 1959 was the date that Hawaii became America’s 50th State. Why not take a look at what the Honolulu Advertiser had to say on that momentous day?

READ THE PAPER

RTP Weekday: August 21, 1959 🗞️

Today, READ THE PAPER goes back exactly 67 years to the day to look at the newly minted state of Hawaii. The headline and story in The Honolulu Advertiser on August 21, 1959, was not big in size, but was significant in placement…

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23 days ago · 1 like · 1 comment · Randy DeCleene

Excerpt:

“The front page editorial almost read like a poem —

• “Today — Aug 21, 1959 — is the day toward which these past emotional, excitement laden months have been leading.”

• “Today — at 10 a.m. Hawaiian time — President Eisenhower will sign the proclamation of Statehood.”✍️

• “Today — after 40 years of struggle — Hawaii will end its 60 years as a territory and become forever the 50th State.”

• “This is a day for Thanksgiving, for ceremony, for rejoicing — and for resolution.”

• “It is a day to rejoice that at last we have attained full status in the union, that at last we are masters of our own affairs, that at last we have voting representation in the Congress of the United States.”

• “…that we shall be a living example for the nation and the world of the spirit of Aloha.”

It’s a really fun read. I invite you to check it out.

Listening to: The Works of Ken Nordine

He had one of those voices that was unmistakable. You may remember hearing Amoco commercials in the 1990s — these were ubiquitous in Chicagoland and the Midwest — or, maybe even further back, in the 1970s, in ads for Levi’s.

Here are a couple of those ads.

Ken Nordine was one of a kind, as a voice-over artist, actor, and musician. He died in 2019 at the age of 98.

It’s that musician thing that really got my attention in the mid-90s.

So here’s Ken’s breakthrough 1957 album, called Word Jazz. Backed by The Fred Katz Group, Ken narrates a series of stories and the band backs him up. It’s an absolute hoot.

Rediscovering: One Crazy Sales Letter from 1995

Context: in the early 1990s, I was the Sports Information Director at Chicago State University. Yes, as I predominantly White guy working at a predominantly Black school on Chicago’s South Side, I could write a book.

The concept of the “sales letter” may appear to be the oeuvre of folks like Frank Kern or Alex Hormozi, but the tale is as old as time; or at least from the 1990s. Sales letters need to set the scene, tell you what is going on, give the details, and, finally, give you a call to action.

With all due respect to Jay Cranford — and props to his business for, according to my search, still being active today! — this letter is all over the map. There’s a reason I kept it after 31-plus years.

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Finally: A Song…That Was Played 75 Million Times on YouTube…That I Just Heard For the First Time This Week!

I’ll admit two things about my musical tastes: (1) They have always been eclectic and (2) Sometimes something will slip through the cracks.

Case in point: The band Gossip and their song “Heavy Cross.”

Turns out, this BANGER of a single was so popular in 2009 (!) that it made it to #8 on the Billboard US Dance chart. And the band, fronted by Beth Ditto, worked with Rick Rubin (!) on the album this was from, Music for Men.

Thanks to SiriusXMU and specifically Jenny Eliscu for the earworm. I’m late to the party, but at least I’m…at the party.

Have a wonderful weekend, a phenomenal week ahead, and pick up the phone and call someone you haven’t chatted with in a while, will ya?

Dave

We’re in the back nine of Summer, somewhere near the 11th hole — that’s if my math is correct — and why not finish strong? Here’s what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week. First, though, the Subscribe button…

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Watching: Living Big in a Tiny House

I have a new obsession: seeing how “the other half lives,” provided that other half is into minimalism. In other words, the “tiny house” movement is all sorts of cool — and works with a variety of lifestyles, from those who want to go green to those who are just looking to downsize to those who need to go off the grid — and nobody seems to have tapped into the zeitgeist as well as Bryce Langston, host of Living Big in a Tiny House.

As a show host and interviewer, Bryce does an outstanding job; even the small quirks like beginning each show with a discussion outside the property, followed by his asking permission to “take a look inside” before the host invites him in. It’s a fun way to spend 20 minutes. I’ll share three videos below.

First up, a Canadian couple in Auckland, New Zealand stretches the definition of “tiny” just a bit; most tiny homes are on top of trailers — so they’re like mobile homes — and this one has three units on top of three trailers. Still, fun to watch.

Beyond the typical “tiny house,” this next design — in New South Wales, Australia — was small-ish, but a “shed house;” and the couple that put it all together has that eclectic vibe that will get you thinking pretty creatively. (The ceiling? Recycled chicken coop.)

Finally, we’re on Australia’s West Coast, in Perth, and…Oh. My. Goodness. Talk about maximizing a small space.

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Reading: The Revenge of Geography by Robert D. Kaplan

One of my Twitter mutuals — y’all can call it X if you want, but it’ll always be Twitter to me — decided to recommend this book earlier this week and I rushed to purchase it.

So far, it has not disappointed. The author of The Revenge of Geography, Robert D. Kaplan, has an amazingly prolific background; I lost track of how many books he has written.

Tom Sauer’s tweet above sums up the book’s premise quite well: “Physical geography impacts people, nations, wars, and history far more than most people are willing to admit.”

Listening to: Some Really Cool Instrumental Songs

We’re gonna go in chronological order here, with three songs that are…well…from three completely different genres.

First up, 1978. Giorgio Moroder was dubbed “The Father of Disco,” and this song was part of the soundtrack to the movie Midnight Express; it also happened to figure promiently in Notre Dame football highlights for what seemed like every Fall weekend on the coaches show between 1978 and maybe 1984.

Next up, The XX, with “Intro.” The band formed in 2005, released this song in 2010, and can best be described as an eclectic electronic outfit. (Yes, there’s a little background “ah” and “oh” stuff happening. Still, mostly instrumental.)

Finally, Sound City was a Dave Grohl documentary project in 2013. Grohl (on drums) got together with Josh Homme (on bass) and Trent Reznor (keyboards) for a song called “Mantra;” The instrumental version of this song was so well-cemented as awesome in my mind that I refused to listen to the other version, with vocals, that followed it. Nor will I share that here. Find it on your own time.

(Here’s a screenshot of the sound engineer, at the 5:10 mark of the video, who cannot believe his good fortune.)

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Rediscovering: Newhart, S7, E14, ‘The Nice Man Cometh’

An absolute classic. Bob Newhart gets one of his best friends, Don Rickles, to guest star as Don Prince, an aging TV host who used to have a hit show called It’s Always Moishe. When the bosses at the TV station see the response to Don insulting Bob’s character, they want more.

This 1989 episode, from the penultimate season of Newhart, also includes Ed McMahon as a special guest star.

Peak late-80s sitcom excellence.

Finally: Why Not? Here’s One Last Tiny House…But It’s A Grain Silo!

Couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share this one: a farm in Australia (also in New South Wales) that took a grain silo and reconfigured it as an AirBNB.

Make it a great weekend, and a great week ahead. See you next Saturday!

Dave

Hello there! It’s Saturday, August 8; that means time for what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week. 40 straight weeks we’ve brought you this post. First up, the big button…then we’ll dive in.

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Watching: Jury Duty

This goes back a few years, but wow was this something to experience. And, it seemed like it came out of nowhere and was kinda close to a monoculture moment. Maybe.

In any event, if you haven’t seen Jury Duty, imagine a situation where everyone is in on a joke but you, and you don’t know you’re the mark, but…you roll with it because everyone else does.

It’s one of those things that needs to be seen to be believed and still seems impossible to pull off.

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Reading: O. Henry (Well, Some of His Works)

Born William Sidney Porter in 1862 in Greensboro, North Carolina, O. Henry established himself as one of the best authors of short stories in American history.

To tell you about how prolific O. Henry was, on the American Literature website — where you can read quite a few of O. Henry’s works — it’s claimed that he wrote nearly 300 stories. But, at the promotional page for this Amazon book, The Best Short Stories of O. Henry, the blurb says that number is more like 600.

(Sure, everyone loves The Gift of the Magi, but, trust me on this, there’s a whole lot more from this unique writer’s perspective of late 19th- and early 20th-Century Americana.)

Listening to: Wu-Tang Clan x Led Zeppelin

Must be heard to be believed; also NSFW and nothing to…mess with.

Rediscovering: The History of Gatorade

Of course we all know that it’s called “Gatorade” because it was invented at the University of Florida and their teams are the Gators. Right?

But there’s a heck of a lot more to it.

Here’s a video from the Science History Institute.

Finally: Khurangbin, “Time (You and I)”

This video is just pure fun.

We’ll see you next week. Don’t forget to share with a friend, using the button below. Have a great weekend, and a great week ahead!

Dave

Hello, and welcome to…August? Yes, Father Time is unbeaten, and we’re 7 months down in 2026.

So why not sit down and enjoy what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week? Plus the Finally kicker-meets-closing note thing.

Watching: Predictable with Stu Burguiere — A YouTube Channel AND Substack Page Devoted to Prediction Markets (?)

Ads for prediction markets are seemingly everywhere; Kalshi has gone from something that sounds like a yogurt brand to a household name.

So of course there’s a YouTube channel AND website devoted to the ins and outs of these markets and how to watch them to (1) spot trends in politics and sports and (2) potentially profit.

It’s that second part that should give folks pause, and I like the approach of this show, Predictable with Stu Burguiere. A long-time producer for Glenn Beck, Stu Burguiere has gone “All-in” on prediction markets, but has a boatload of caveats that you can hear in this episode. (The show lives on Substack and here’s his subscription page.)

PREDICTABLE

Founded by Stu Burguiere, PREDICTABLE is a daily lens on the news through prediction markets.

By Stu Burguiere

This particular episode? Well, a good snapshot of what is going on with politics these days, with primaries coming up next week in Michigan and Tennessee; and a cautionary tale about what can happen when the bots get it wrong (from a baseball game that was first thought to be over the over/under, then was actually correctly determined to be under the over/under).

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Reading: The Work of Author Tom Shanahan (A Recent Guest on The Vandy Program)

Okay, I’m plugging my own podcast, The Vandy Program, while at the same time suggesting you check out a couple of books from the writer I interviewed earlier this week, Tom Shanahan.

Tom’s website is here: tomshanahan.report and we had a really good discussion that I’ll link to below. Tom is making it his mission to tell some of the forgotten or overlooked stories from college football’s history of integration.

You can get his books at his site, and one of them is Raye of Light, which tells the story of Jimmy Raye, who became the first Black quarterback from the South to win a national championship at Michigan State in 1966. The coach of that team was Duffy Daugherty, who, thanks in part to Tom’s work, won’t be ignored for his role in recruiting Black players from the South to play Division 1 football.

You can listen to our full conversation here:

Listening to: Editors, Including a Cover of ‘Killer’ by Seal

Here’s an underrated band with incredible staying power; Editors is the name of the group and I’ve always thought lead singer Tom Smith’s baritone was top-notch.

The band’s early work includes the song “Munich,” off their debut The Back Room (2005). If you’re looking for a song that defines “2000s Post-punk,” this will help.

My introduction to this band came in 2009, thanks to an amazing song called “Papillon.” One of the coolest videos in the history of ever. 10/10, no notes.

That brings us to this glorious cover of “Killer” by Seal.

If you remember picking up Seal’s self-titled debut — not to be confused with his second album, also called Seal — in 1991, you know this song: it kicked off the disc and, while not the breakout hit that was “Crazy,” it did go to #8 on the British music charts.

Seal’s version of this song takes me way back to college; Editors treat the song extremely well in this live version.

(Here’s the original…)

AND…Editors are still making solid music here in the Year of Our Lord 2026. Here’s “Call It In.”

Rediscovering: In Search Of…with Leonard Nimoy

In my neck of the woods, the South Bend, Indiana area, this aired on Sunday nights on our CBS affiliate. In Search Of… was must-see TV.

Hosted by Leonard Nimoy, it was part-rabbit hole and part-precursor to Discovery, the cable channel.

Here’s an episode where they are in search of… The End of the World.

Finally: Radio Giscard, an AI-Generated French Instrumental Music Channel

Okay, it’s AI-Generated. I get it. It’s supposed to sound like it actually existed in the 1970s in France.

Don’t care, it’s actually quite cool. Please enjoy. Or don’t.

Thanks, as always, for visiting The Saturday List. You can subscribe at the button below.

Dave

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That makes this the 38th consecutive edition of The Saturday List.

Let’s celebrate — after the Subscribe button, of course — with what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering.

AND, as we continue tweaking the format of this here newsletter, we’re starting to add a section called “Finally” at the end; something that serves as the nightcap. So you’ll see that below.

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Watching: My Interview with Sean McGinnis from The Manager Vault

Sean McGinnis and I go back…a few years. He is an executive, currently working in the Cleveland area, and he — along with co-founder Ashley Walton — has created a site called The Manager Vault.

Let’s face it, managing people is one thing, but leading people is entirely another.

We talk about this, and the type of advice he and Ashley share twice a week on their site, in an hour-long interview in a recent episode of my podcast, The Vandy Program.

Reading: Magnificent Humanity by His Holiness Pope Leo XIV

One of the sites I subscribe to is Word on Fire, which offers Catholic programming in video and in print. They were one of several groups that reprinted Pope Leo XIV’s Magnificent Humanity, which was his first “Papal Encylcical,” published in the Spring.

It features a foreword from Word on Fire founder Bishop Richard Barron and will certainly make you think about the role of technology in our lives now and in the future.

I’ve begun diving into the book, but the subtitle is On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence. An excerpt from very early in the book — and again I’ve just begun reading — brings up the “Tower of Babel” in the Book of Genesis:

“We must, then, avoid the ‘Babel syndrome,’ namely the idolatry of profit that sacrifices the weak, a uniformity that neutralizes differences, and the pretense that a single language — even a digital one — can translate everything, including the mystery of the person, into data and performance.”

Listening to: Ned’s Atomic Dustbin

What? Who? What kind of name is that?

Ah, if you’re uninitiated, here’s a really underrated band from that dates back to 1987 (!) and continued to produce bangers into the 90s. From the United Kingdom, I present Ned’s Atomic Dustbin.

First up, one of their biggest hits — but released only in the US and Australia — is “Grey Cell Green,” off of the album God’s Fodder (1991).

The band’s biggest alternative hit, reaching #1 on Billboard’s US Alternative chart, was “Not Sleeping Around,” off of the band’s album Are You Normal? (1992).

I’m sure you’re wondering: hey, Dave, what’s your favorite Ned’s song? I’ll answer that this way: off of the 1995 album Brainbloodvolume, here’s “Stuck.”

Rediscovering: Dawn of Def Jam: Rick Rubin Returns to His NYU Dorm Room (a Rolling Stone Film)

This is a 10-minute joyride. Life was…different back in the 1980s.

Rick Rubin is a legend, and you can see where it all started.

Finally… Ryan Fox — Winner of Golf’s Open Championship — And His Origin Story

This video popped up on Facebook this week, and it was created six years ago. Note that the DP World Tour of golf changed the headline of the video, as Ryan Fox won the (British) Open Championship golf tournament last Sunday.

It’s a neat 13-minute look at Fox as a golfer who grew up in a family of New Zealand sports royalty; It’s also a fun snapshot of Kiwi life, too.

Make it a great weekend, and a great week ahead!

Dave

New here? Glad to have you! I’ve curated this list from the internet and beyond for (checks notes) 37 straight Saturdays, and next week we’ll celebrate one full year of TSL. (Well, minus one day, as the first Saturday of The Saturday List was July 26, 2025.)

Alas, time to dig in — after the button, of course — on what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week.

Watching: The Sandlot

Did you see the tribute to America at the MLB All-Star Game with Ray Charles singing “America The Beautiful”? The throwback to The Sandlot was a sweet touch.

The Sandlot was more than just a movie that spawned a whole bunch of memes and the “You’re Killing Me, Smalls” phrase. It’s probably one of the best baseball films of all time. Trailer below, and you can watch now on Disney+ or Hulu.

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Reading: The Age of Extremes: A History of the World, 1914-1991 by Eric Hobsbawm

Warning: This is not going to be for everyone.

The Age of Extremes: A History of the World, 1914-1991 reads like a World History textbook, probably because it’s…pretty much a World History textbook. (So if, like me, you were a US History minor in college, you might dig this quite a bit.)

Eric Hobsbawm passed away in 2012, but not until after he had become one of the pre-eminent historians of late 19th Century and 20th Century world history. (He wrote two other historical tomes: The Age of Capital (1848-1875) and The Age of Empire (1875-1914).

Beginning with “A Bird’s Eye View” of the century, Hobsbawm does a deep dive into just about everything from Franz Ferdinand to The Fall of the Soviet Union. You can’t digest this in a weekend — I’ve tried; it’s one of those books that takes a lot of time to get through — but it’s worth it for Hobsbawm’s analysis.

Listening to: Depeche Mode

On my personal list of favorite bands, Depeche Mode makes the Top 10. Why not throw back to some of their past hits, and share a couple recent songs, too? It’s Saturday, this may help put you in a good mood.

The band formed in 1980, with Dave Gahan singing lead and Martin Gore as guitarist and Andy Fletcher on keyboards and bass; those three were stalwarts of the band after original co-founder Vince Clarke left the band in 1981.

Gore took over as the songwriter and is one of the masters of the craft, IMHO. Fletcher died in 2022, and the band honored him with their most-recent album, Memento Mori. (More on that below…)

Violator, released in 1990, is one of the band’s best albums, and the track that put the band on the map is “Enjoy the Silence.” The song got as high as #8 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was #1 on the US Alternative chart.

My personal favorite song of DM’s is this one, “Precious,” written by Gore to his children after his divorce.

The 2023 album Memento Mori was a tribute to Andy Fletcher, and the song “Ghosts Again” is stirring as heck. And it showed that the band could still…produce a powerful tune.

Rediscovering: Victory

Sunday is the FIFA World Cup Final, featuring Argentina against Spain. May as well suggest checking out one of the most iconic soccer movies of all time: Victory. Released in 1981 under the title of Escape to Victory in some non-USA markets, Victory seemed to be a staple of early 1980s HBO.

Featuring Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, and Pele (YES, Pele), the movie was directed by the legendary John Huston and told the story of a group of POWs in World War II who were (1) good at soccer and (2) aimed to use an exhibition soccer game as a ruse to escape their camp.

The late Pele did all of the soccer “choreography” in the movie, including this crazy bicycle kick goal toward the end of the game — this doesn’t give away any plot points, so you can enjoy it even if you haven’t seen the movie — and I sorta forgot that Pele died in 2022.

Victory can be found on Sling as part of a subscription, or can be rented for $3.99 from a whole host of services.

Finally…

Yeah, the World Cup has been amazing, so we’ll leave you with a compilation of visitors sharing their stories about what makes this country so great.

We’ll see you next week…have a wonderful weekend!

Dave

Well, whether you have or you haven’t…time for the weekly debrief. Here’s what I’m Watching, Reading, Listening to, and Rediscovering this week.

Watching: An Interview with Matt Sieger on The Vandy Program

As I’m not one to shy away from controversial topics on my podcast, The Vandy Program, I recently connected with Matt Sieger, an expert on the intersection of sports, religion, and culture in San Francisco.

Matt is a retired sportswriter who has written a couple of books, and one of them served as the backdrop for our discussion: The God Squad: The Born-Again San Francisco Giants of 1978.

If you’ve been following the story of the 2026 San Francisco Giants, you might wonder about the connection between the 1978 team and this year’s squad; as we dug in on the parallels, it became pretty apparent that the clash of ideals was between the religious members of the team and the city’s liberal culture. (And, believe it or not, winning fixes a lot.)

It’s a fascinating issue that’s about more than just religion and homosexuality; should players be forced to support something that they believe is not in line with their religious beliefs?

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Reading: ‘The End of Reading Is Here,’ Rose Horowitch in The Atlantic

The whole article…is something to behold. Rose Horowitch studies the fact that we — as a society; she focuses on Americans here — are not reading. “The End of Reading Is Here” is the name of the article. And it’s pretty crazy. Two excerpts follow and the above link is a “Gift Article.”

(I guess I’m trying to do my part with this newsletter on a weekly basis; but still, this is a sobering article.)

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Listening to: Bonnie Tyler (1951-2026)

We lost Bonnie Tyler this week. Consider the staying power of her music: three songs are still culturally relevant today. Here they are. Rest easy, Bonnie. And thank you.

Here’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart”…

And “Holding Out for a Hero”…

Finally, “It’s a Heartache”…

Rediscovering: A 1995 BBC Documentary on Currency Traders

This pulled me in instantly. It’s a combination of nostalgia, the energy of an actual trading desk, and the fact that the BBC followed three traders, on three continents, for an entire day — and the blind luck that that day turned out to be rather crazy — that made this one of those videos that can’t be explained.

Plus, there’s ubiquitous cigarette smoking and Reuters terminals and pagers. And bad music.

It continues to be a pleasure to deliver this newsletter to you; this was our 36th consecutive edition of The Saturday List. Make it a great week, will ya? We’ll see you next Saturday.

Dave

250 years ago today, July 4, 1776, Philadelphia. The Declaration of Independence was ratified, and a new nation was born.

Sure, the process of getting the signatures might have taken awhile — copies had to be printed the old-fashioned way; can you imagine life without email? — but the fact is that this date is cemented on the calendar.

Happy Birthday, America! Now, onto this week’s list.

Watching: The Patriot

Not to be confused with the TV show Patriot, about which I wrote last year, this is The Patriot, which was the revolutionary war film that starred Mel Gibson.

(My suggestion for a title was The Passion of The George, but this movie was not written or directed by Gibson, so that joke falls flat. Also, it’s not about George Washington.)

While the film is historical fiction, it does a really good job of painting the human cost of the revolution. The scene below serves as a little foreshadowing of what was to come later in the film; and it includes the late Heath Ledger, fellow Oscar winner Chris Cooper, and Gibson as the lead character, Benjamin Martin.

Worth a watch on a day like today.

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Reading: All About The Declaration of Independence

How about a patriotic rabbit hole?

The National Archives website provides just that opportunity, and one thing I’ve been digging into all week is the list of the signers of The Declaration of Independence.

There are some expected names: John Adams, John’s second cousin Samuel Adams, Ben Franklin; and there are some fun names, like Charles Carroll of Carrollton, or William Williams. And George Washington’s name ISN’T there (he was busy, in New York, leading an army).

Realize this, though: it took…a while…to get all the signatures, and the last of the 56 was secured on August 2.

On the site you can play around quite a bit, even adding your own John Hancock to the document. And you can spin through the other big documents from our nation’s founding, including the Constitution of The United States and the Bill of Rights.

Listening to: SiriusXMU’s ‘All-American Indie 250 Countdown’

SiriusXMU is one of my presets, and it’s the station I’m most likely to have on in the car. (There’s a Yacht Rock channel, though, that also gets fired up on longer trips.) All weekend, they’re ranking their take on the best songs from American artists in Indie rock history.

Anyway, I figure that, since the music I share here is probably more “Indie” than anything, why not share three songs that I’ll bet you’ll hear on the list; or at least that I’d put on this list.

The Strokes, “Juicebox.”

Sure, “Last Nite” is likely the song that put them on the map — and I bet it’s pretty high up on the XMU list — but I’m a big fan of this song.

Built to Spill, “Carry the Zero.”

Just a fun, kinda-trippy, late 90s Indie rock anthem.

Sufjan Stevens, “Chicago.” Uber-talented, puts on a tremendous live show, clever as heck — “Come on, feel the Illinoise!” — and “Chicago” is still amazing.

Rediscovering: The Greatest Performance of The Star-Spangled Banner…Ever

I will accept no debate on this subject.

Wayne Messmer, Chicago Stadium, NHL All-Star Game, 1991. During the Gulf War.

Wherever your celebrations take you this year, make them safe and extra-special. Thanks for hanging out with us each and every Saturday.

Dave

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Watching: The Changing Face of the Entertainment Industry, An Interview with Anthony Palomba, Ph.D.

I had the pleasure of sitting down for an interview with Anthony Palomba, a Ph.D. and professor at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, to talk about what exactly is happening with media. Fun interview for me, and there’s a lot here:

• The success of movies like Obsession and Backrooms;

• The changing landscape at CBS;

• How advertising has gotten granular, and if it can go farther in that direction;

• The future of late night programming;

• And what he sees coming down the pike.

It’s the latest edition of The Vandy Program and you can check it out below:

Reading: When Money Destroys Nations by Philip Haslam (with Russell Lamberti)

Avid readers of this newsletter are familiar with this concept, as I suggested a similar book, When Money Dies by Adam Fergusson, and I seem to be drawn to books about hyperinflation. When Money Destroys Nations by Philip Haslam (with Russell Lamberti) is another such book; though it is from a more recent phenomenon.

This book studies Zimbabwe’s hyperinflation, the seeds of which were sown perhaps when the country became Zimbabwe in 1980 — the book, rather eerily, does not even mention that the country was known as Rhodesia and declared its independence from the United Kingdom in 1965 — and certainly beginning in 1999, when inflation was a mere 57%.

It got so bad that the country printed what was the largest denomination of any note ever: the $100 Trillion bill.

It’s a sobering read about what really happens in a country when there is zero confidence in the government and its finances.

Listening to: Three Songs I Heard on Taco Bell Radio’s 80s Station (PLUS BONUS MATERIAL!)

I realize that sounds like it could be the title of a Coen Brothers movie. Alas, in celebration of just how good the Taco Bell Radio 80s station is, here are three songs I heard back-to-back-to-back on my recent burrito run. (And there’s a bonus song following each.)

Bananarama, “Cruel Summer.” They may be better known for their only US #1 hit, “Venus” — which is a cover of a song originally done by a Dutch band called “Shocking Blue” — but this, to me, is peak Bananarama. Nothing says “it’s really hot out, plus I’m eating Taco Bell by myself” more than the song “Cruel Summer.”

BONUS: Here’s Shocking Blue with “Venus.”

The next song actually SHOCKED me, because I just shared it on socials within the last month.

The band Boys Don’t Cry named itself (we think) after a song by The Cure of the same name. (The Cure’s “Boys Don’t Cry” came around in 1979, so it’s a likely story for a band to be formed four years later; the movie Boys Don’t Cry came around in 1999.)

In any event, “I Wanna Be A Cowboy” was kitchsy and fun and an immediate earworm for me; alas, most of the world forgot about it.

But not Taco Bell.

Here’s “I Wanna Be A Cowboy.”

BONUS: Here’s The Cure with the above-mentioned song.

What came after “I Wanna Be a Cowboy?”

38 Special, of course. Co-founder Donnie Van Zant is the younger brother of Ronnie Van Zant — the founder of the band Lynyrd Skynyrd — and 38 Special had a couple hits in the early 80s before catching fire with the next song on the Taco Bell playlist.

“Second Chance” was the band’s biggest hit in the US, going to #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and all the way to #1 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.

BONUS: Here’s “Simple Kind of Man” by Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Rediscovering: How ABC News Covered July 4, 1776

This should get you ready for next week’s party!

Part 1 is a setup, with coverage from across the country; Part 2 features the tall ships.

In Parts 3-5, we hear from President Gerald Ford and then it’s back to some tall ships.

Sprinkled throughout, the coverage is anchored by Harry Reasoner and you’ll see ads for ABC’s coverage of the 1976 Summer Olympics.

There’s nothing political about this coverage, no whining about whether or not the correct kinds of people are present. Just full-throated patriotism.

Thanks, as always for reading. We’ll see you on July 4, 2026.

Dave

Let’s get rolling…right after the Subscribe button…

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Watching: She Spent a Year Renovating an Abandoned General Store

I am now asking myself…how did I miss this?

No worries, as vlogger Emma Shaye catches us up on her progress taking an abandoned general store and turning it into a home and homestead.

The video below is a 40-minute recap on Year One; and, if you subscribe, you can catch up on what she’s done since.

It’s darn impressive.

Reading: The 4-Hour Body by Timothy Ferriss

This may have been the book that brought us the concept of “biohacking.” Timothy Ferriss entered the American psyche with his first book, The 4-Hour Workweek, in 2006 and followed it up in 2010 with The 4-Hour Body. Both were bestsellers.

The subtitle of The 4-Hour Body reads as follows: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman. I’ll leave the last two pieces up to you to review on your own, but I can certainly vouch for the “Rapid Fat-Loss” element.

Ferriss led the charge with what’s called the “Slow-Carb Diet,” which can work — YMMV, talk to your doctor before trying any new diet and all that — by zeroing in on low carbohydrates, high fiber, and giving your body one “cheat day” each week.

The book is chock full of other advice; for example, certain exercises have much more return on time invested than others. (Squats, for instance, are the kind of compound-exercise that, if done correctly, can really pay off.)

Listening to: Oliver Tree (1993-2026)

Singer, songwriter, rapper, artist, producer; Oliver Tree was a man of one bowl cut and many talents.

Oliver Tree died in a helicopter crash in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday, June 14, 2026.

I had not heard any of his music before he died, so, like many others, I am just now discovering his work. I figure his two most popular songs would be worth sharing here.

Here’s “Life Goes On.”

And here’s “Miss You,” which he performed with Robin Schulz.

RIP Oliver.

Rediscovering: Glengarry Glen Ross…And the Legendary Alec Baldwin Scene

I recall seeing this movie for the first time when it arrived in a Netflix envelope. Released in 1992, Glengarry Glen Ross is the movie adaptation of David Mamet’s 1984 play of the same name. It’s profane, raw, and brilliant.

You can find it on quite a few streaming services; here, we’re sharing Alec Baldwin’s scene. That one. “Put that coffee down!”

For some of us, it’s been…a week. For others, maybe the official start of Summer will kick things into a positive gear.

In any event, thanks so much for reading. We’ll talk to y’all next week.

Dave

It’s the biggest World Cup ever — 48 teams; IMHO it’s 16 too many — AND it’s being co-hosted in three countries — 2002 was the first-ever co-hosted tournament, with games in both South Korea and Japan — AND since three countries are hosting — The USA, Canada, and Mexico — all three get automatic berths into the field. So you’re gonna have Canadians and Mexicans and Americans all trash-talking about their home teams.

So, in the spirit of the FIFA World Cup, let’s spin through the world of…well, a few other things that aren’t soccer-related, but are from around the world.

First, the Subscribe button.

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Watching: David Hockney: The Art of Seeing (BBC)

David Hockney died on Friday at the age of 87.

I saw the report on Sky News Friday morning — I’ll admit to only having heard of Hockney and his work — and figured the guy was a big deal when the newsreader said that Hockney “did for British art what The Beatles did for British music.”

Then Sky devoted the first 18 minutes of the A-block to Hockney and his work.

I found, then, this documentary called David Hockney: The Art of Seeing that aired on the BBC a year ago. It’s captivating. Worth spending some time on this weekend.

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Reading: The Brand Positioning Workbook by Ulli Applebaum

I met Ulli Applebaum online last year and had the pleasure of interviewing him for an episode of The Vandy Program this past Wednesday. (A link is below.) Keeping with our global theme for the World Cup, Ulli is German but has lived in the Twin Cities for a long time; he brags about his “Eastern Minnesota accent.”

We actually spent most of our time talking about brand associations, so here’s another angle to explore: brand positioning.

In The Brand Positioning Workbook, Ulli walks you through WHAT that means and HOW to do it at an organization. It’s part art, but mostly science, something Ulli talks about in our interview; the workbook serves as a guide to sorting out the science part through the 26 “success triggers” behind an effectively positioned brand.

And here’s a link to my discussion with Ulli.

Listening to: Two Canadian Bands…The Beaches and Japandroids

In keeping with our global theme, let’s go with two bands from Canada that happen to represent the two Canadian cities hosting World Cup games: The Beaches (from Toronto) and Japandroids (from Vancouver).

I’m a pretty big fan of The Beaches and it’s great to see them getting credit for being pretty darn awesome. Named for a neighborhood in Toronto, the all-female band had a debut album called Late Show and here’s “T-Shirt.”

“Blame Brett,” off of the album Blame My Ex, made Dave’s Top Ten Songs of 2023 list, clocking in at #9. (It went #1 in Canada.)

I’m also a big fan of the song “Edge of the Earth,” also off the Blame My Ex album.

Japandroids were…pretty different. Two guys. One played guitar (that was Brian King) and the other, David Prowse, played drums. Both sang.

No longer touring or releasing albums, the band formed in 2006, developed a cult following, and had a breakthrough with their Celebration Rock album in 2012; that disc was so good that they were named Spin magazine’s Artist of the Year.

Here, then, a concert from the band at Massey Hall in Toronto from a band that I was able to see live. Just once, in Chicago. Memorable show.

Rediscovering: Charlie Brooker’s ‘How to Report the News’

We’ve been international with this edition of The Saturday List, having bounced between a British artist, a German author and strategist, and a couple Canadian bands.

Why not give England another victory — they haven’t won a World Cup since 1970 — by throwing back to Charlie Brooker — yes, the creator of Black Mirror — from his program called Newswipe and an all-time classic: “How to Report the News.”

Me…wishes you a great week ahead.

Dave

Well, we thought we’d start out this newsletter by watching a blow-by-blow of another franchise relocation that rocked the sports world: The Seattle Supersonics leaving for Oklahoma City and becoming the Oklahoma City Thunder. That kicks off this week’s newsletter, our 31st consecutive edition of The Saturday List. (Right after the Subscribe button, of course. See below.)

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Watching: Sonicsgate: Requiem for a Team

So Hammond is in Chicagoland — a broad term coined by Col. Robert McCormick to describe the region; sort of like Greater New York to include city and suburbs — but it’s still across state lines, so this is a blow.

But imagine the blow that Seattle residents felt when their beloved Supersonics departed for… Oklahoma? This is worth a watch in that it explains a lot about human nature.

Note that all hope is not lost for Seattle, which is supposedly on the NBA’s expansion shortlist for the next time the league adds teams. But, after watching this documentary, you can’t be blamed if you’re asking whether you can believe anyone in pro basketball.

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Reading: Fluent Forever by Gabriel Wyner

I’ve got a confession to make: I wish I had picked up another language. There was the 2 1/2 years of high school French, followed by the 2 years of college French; but I never quite mastered that language.

Then there was the fact that my Dad and my Grandma used to speak Flemish to each other when they didn’t want us to know what they were talking about. Did I pick any of that up? NO.

Did I yell when The New York Times started talking about a Flemish singer named Pommelein Thijs and said that she was singing IN DUTCH when I saw that she is from Belgium and is singing in FLEMISH?!?!

I digress. (Here’s a non-NYT article on Flemish singers.)

Enter Gabriel Wyner whose book Fluent Forever might change the way you look at language-learning. (And if the book doesn’t, the app of the same name might.)

To wit, Wyner learned the hard way that there had to be a better way. Through a combination of memorization and understanding how the mind works — plus the power of things like flash cards and, if you use the app, the phone — Wyner has figured out how to learn a language fast.

Listening to: Arctic Monkeys…Including One of the Greatest Live Performances EVER

It’s not hyperbole, what I said above. We’ll get to that in a second, but imagine my surprise as I look back at the chart of all of the editions of The Saturday List and realize I have yet to mention one of the absolute coolest bands in rock history?

DAVE! What are you doing???

First, though, a primer. Arctic Monkeys literally burst onto the scene in 2006 with what was, at the time, the fastest-selling debut album in British music history.

Read that sentence again. Take some time to digest it. Realize what country they hail from.

The album, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, featured their breakout single, “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor.” If the band looks like they were just kids it’s because they were: Lead singer Alex Turner just turned 40 this year. (Also, the stripped-down video served as foreshadowing of the band’s energy performing live.)

Their second album, Favourite Worst Nightmare, also went #1 on the UK Album chart — all but ONE of the band’s studio albums have gone #1 in the UK; the most-recent, The Car, only went to #2 — and here’s a live performance from one of the singles off of that disc, “Fluorescent Adolescent,” on Late Show with David Letterman.

It’s from that disc, Favourite Worst Nightmare, that we get the song “505.” Before setting up the live performance that may go down on the Mt. Rushmore of Live Performances, allow me to share the studio version.

The song, which is completely ambiguous about what or where “505” is, leaves no doubt that it is a love song.

“But I crumble completely when you cry

It seems like once again you have to greet me with goodbye.”

It took off on TikTok, a decade-plus later, and, while it only made it to #74 on the UK Singles chart when released in 2007, it reemerged on UK, US, and global charts in 2022; this was due in part to lines like the one above.

Bringing us to the live performance. Reading, 2022, closing out the concert, and the night. Audience knowing every single word. Alex Turner giving Frank Sinatra vibes — yes, I said it; The Chairman of The Board had impeccable timing and breath control and Alex has a similar jazz-singer sound here — and the crowd has been captured.

Rediscovering: The 1986 FIFA World Cup

Yes, the World Cup is coming back to (North) America. It’s the first time Canada will play (co-)host. It’s the second time the USA will host; the last World Cup in the USA was the first time it came to North America, in 1994.

BUT Mexico is also a co-host this year, and Mexico did host the tournament in 1986.

And 15-year-old Dave ate the whole thing up.

55-year-old Dave is waxing nostalgic about the 1986 World Cup, including the “Hand of God” and the insane performance by Argentina and its Diego Maradona — who will defend its 2022 title starting in just a few DAYS — so why not look at a BBC documentary on the 1986 World Cup?

Friends, it continues to be a pleasure to deliver this newsletter to you. Thanks for reading, and please don’t hesitate to share and subscribe.

Dave

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Watching: The Vandy Program Presents The News Of The Day with Andrew Donaldson

Andrew Donaldson is a friend of the show, works for the website Ordinary Times, and is quite the media darling, appearing on television shows and podcasts throughout North America.

We sat down for a wide-ranging discussion for The Vandy Program, which is my podcast, doing a semi-regular segment I call The News Of The Day. Lots here, and, given the 24-hour news cycle, it’s surprising that some of it isn’t old news by now (we recorded on Wednesday, March 27).

Here are a couple guys talking about Iran, Paxton vs. Talarico, UFC on the White House Lawn, and a bunch more. Big fun.

Reading: Experience Is Everything by Jeannie Walters

This can ALSO serve as a BONUS “Watching” segment of the newsletter, as Jeannie Walters was also my guest on The Vandy Program this past week (Tuesday).

She’s an expert on Customer Experience; and she’ll tell you that it is different from Customer Service. We chatted about that and some of the other concepts in her book, Experience Is Everything. Video link below the book cover photo.

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SIDEBAR: Jeannie and I were able to reminisce about early social media days in Chicago…I was able to keep up my commitment that, if you and I are friends and you wrote a book, I’ll buy it, read it, and have you on my show.

Listening to: Black Thought Freestyles

“Black Thought is here!” That’s a phrase that lives rent-free in my head; in 2017, the rapper and co-founder of The Roots joined Hot 97 in New York to provide freestyle rap unlike anything you’ve ever heard.

Yes, it’s freestyle. As in, if you asked him to do it again, it wouldn’t sound the same.

Apologies for any NSFW language. But this is downright amazing; even those who don’t like rap can appreciate the sheer brilliance.

Rediscovering: Gizmo! (1977)

This film, which I first saw in high school, is rather…bonkers. And must be seen to be believed. Gizmo! is the brainchild of Howard Smith and succeeded in hoding the attention of Young Dave back then. It should do the same for you now. Please enjoy.

I hope it’s a wonderful weekend, and a great week ahead.

Dave

First up, the “Subscribe” button…thanks as always for your support, as I keep this newsletter free.

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Now, before I get to what I’m Watching, here’s a little background, in the form of a screenshot of a viral tweet.

Now, the meat of the newsletter.

Watching: Allrecipes Presents Lazy One-Pan Dinners and Depression-Era Recipes

I gave some thought to shifting the order of things this week — DID I MENTION I WENT VIRAL on X??? — because of all of the discussion about cooking, meal-prep, and saving money by doing it yourself.

TL;DR: lots of people weighing in on whether or not Gen Z should be buying $28 lunches, and that gave rise to whether or not Gen Z has been taught to cook at all. (My viral tweet above was adjacent to the subject; some of the responses were in the “Stay In Your Lane, Boomer” category.

But if you’re struggling with where your food money goes, you may not have a handle on some of the basics — and you may think you don’t have (1) time or (2) the ingredients or (3) the skills — to whip something up for lunch or dinner.

Enter Allrecipes and the delightful Nicole McLaughlin, who is the culinary director for the site and it turns out she has a metric crapton of content on YouTube.

I share a couple of her videos here, because they’re great and timely.

First up, Lazy One-Pan Dinners for When You’re Too Tired to Cook. (That was one of the threads permeating the online commentary this week: I can’t cook because I’m too tired and also it’s easier to just do DoorDash.) I get it.

BUT…I happen to like cooking. Even if I don’t totally feel like making something complex with multiple steps, there IS something about homemade that works for me.

(And the Chicken and Dumplings recipe? Instant add to the rotation.)

The next video was quite a bit of fun, actually. 10 Depression-Era Recipes That Still Taste Amazing Today is the video. My favorites were Egg Drop Soup and something called “Water Pie.” Huh? It seriously looked awesome.

Reading: The Day After Tomorrow by Allan Folsom

You may be thinking “I saw that movie!”

Well, you are thinking of a different version of The Day After Tomorrow. This one, by Allan Folsom, a screenwriter who had worked on shows like Hart to Hart in the 80s, set a record before it was even published: Warner Books purchased the novel for $2 Million, which was the highest amount at the time (1994) for a first-time novelist.

Speaking of movies, I’ve often wondered why this story didn’t get turned into a movie. I bought it when it came out and just bumped into my copy again; so time for a reread of a really fun novel.

(Another fun read from Folsom: Day of Confession. Vatican intrigue. Better than Conclave.)

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Listening to: In-Studio Performances on KEXP

If you are into music like I am — and that means…eclectic tastes punctuated by serious obscurity — you’ve possibly bumped into Seattle’s KEXP, which is a stalwart of the indie rock scene.

And…they get really good guests.

First, and thanks to Canadian Steve for this one, here’s Band of Horses performing “The Funeral.” (This is a song that always gives me chills.)

Broken Bells is a combination of Brian Burton — you know him as DJ Danger Mouse — and James Mercer, the lead vocalist for The Shins. Their song “The High Road” got the KEXP treatment eleven years back.

And, to round out the performances, why not nearly 30 minutes of… The Pixies?

(BTW, KEXP is “listener-supported,” and you can find them at KEXP.org.

Rediscovering: Art — Not Propaganda — From the Soviet Union

There’s a real sense of mystery to the Soviet era; Gen-Xers like me were taught to fear the evil empire — and we’ve since learned that Communism actually really sucks and we should underscore the fact that it actually really sucks when talking about the scourge of Communism — but we were less-inclined to understand the people that tried to live within its constraints and actually produce something of value.

Artists, however, sallied forth and some of the work is rather exceptional.

Socialist realism was a thing. There was a fine line between art and propaganda, and some of the pieces had no choice but to cross that line and then try to cross back.

Jordan Peterson — yes, I’m a fan; he’s also had some continuing health challenges so here’s hoping he’s on the mend — semi-famously collected hundreds of Soviet paintings after the end of the Cold War.

The channel Museum Fatigue on YouTube does a great job of breaking down the why behind both Peterson’s interest in the genre and the art itself. (The channel is great and you should consider subscribing.)

The website Russia Beyond also has some examples of Soviet Art that’s pretty interesting. My favorite is below, Yuri Pimenov’s “New Moscow” (1937).

I pulled the screenshot with the caption of “Tretyakov gallery” from the Russia Beyond website, but then I realized that the Tretyakov Gallery has its own Google page. Woah!

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Anyway, that’s this week’s Saturday List. Thanks a bunch for reading.

Have a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend.

And remember those brave souls who fought and died for the freedoms we hold dear.

Dave

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Watching: Network TV is a Parallel Universe, A YouTube Video from Wade Stotts

If you don’t watch a ton of traditional network TV, you aren’t alone. And you might wonder why some of these shows are still on TV?

I mean, we’ve all heard about the big drop in ratings, and how the only monoculture moments anymore are things like the Super Bowl. But there’s a steady diet of shows like NCIS and its ilk (CBS), or Chicago Fire and its brethren (NBC), or ABC’s offerings that are connected to emergency services (more on that one below). Someone needs to study this phenomenon, and needs to do so with a heavy dose of snark.

That someone is Wade Stotts, who hosts programs on Canon Press, which is a Christian publishing house that also does some rather interesting pop-culture stuff. In this video, Stotts studies those shows and zeroes in on the formula. Specifically, we’ll hear about Marshals and Tracker on CBS, and then he’ll do a deeper dive on 9-1-1 on ABC.

Stotts is absolutely hilarious in his 24-minute breakdown. And you might find it especially funny if you do ask yourself: “Who watches this?” (Unless the answer to that question is…you.)

Reading: Why Did LLMs Steal Our Em-Dashes?, An Essay by Lia Erisson, An Undergraduate at McGill University

This was the deepest dive I’ve seen yet into the reasons why the “em-dash” (“—”) became a sign of AI use.

And it makes total sense, as Lia Erisson, who is an Undergraduate at McGill University in Montreal, writes:

The whole essay is great and actually gives me hope — I grew up reading the writing of Sports Illustrated, whose writers seemed to adore the em-dash; I’ve probably used it for 40 years — that I will someday be able to sprinkle them throughout my writing without worrying about being called a “bot.”

N.B. If you want a writing tip AND you have a number pad on your keyboard, you can insert an em-dash by doing as follows:

1. Hold down the “Alt” button on your keyboard;

2. While holding it down, use the number pad to type the following four-number sequence: “0-1-5-1.”

3. — is the result. It’s still glorious. I’ll keep using ‘em. (Ha.)

Listening to: The Twilight Sad

Something about a band from Scotland called The Twilight Sad just hits right these days. Maybe it’s the “Scottish-forward” voice of lead singer James Graham or maybe it’s the fact that I have always liked “post-punk” even though I have struggled for a definition of the genre.

In any event, Messrs Graham and guitarist Andy MacFarlane are a recent discovery of mine, and it turns out they’ve been around for a while. Here are a couple songs to introduce you to the band — or re-introduce you, if they’re someone you’ve heard of but have forgotten about — and there’s something new, and something from what seems like ages ago.

First, here’s “Designed to Lose,” off of 2026’s It’s the Long Goodbye:

Off of 2009’s Forget the Night Ahead, here’s “Made to Disappear” — performed live on Seattle’s KEXP (with thanks to the SiriusXMU crowd for putting this on the other day):

Finally, from the band’s first album, Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters, here’s “That Summer, At Home I Had Become The Invisible Boy”:

Rediscovering: Bruno Mars, Super Bowl XLVIII Halftime Show (2014)

In honor of Bruno Mars arriving in Chicago for a couple nights where he’s playing Soldier Field — and in anticipation of a day when the Chicago Bears will eventually leave Soldier Field for a Chicago suburb that may or may not be in Illinois — let’s throw back to his performance at Super Bowl XLVIII.

It doesn’t get mentioned in the same vein as Prince, nor is it as notable as the Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake “Wardrobe Malfunction,” but it was pretty darn good.

You want 13 minutes of energy like Bruno provided, and you want a surprise guest appearance from Red Hot Chili Peppers. So 9/10 for Bruno.

If you’re seeing him on his tour, here’s hoping it’s excellent; the list of solo artists that can sell out Soldier Field and its ilked is pretty limited, so he’s likely to deliver.

Thanks for reading; I’ll give you another “Subscribe” button below, and here’s hoping it’s an impeccable week.

Dave

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What I’m Watching, since we’re one year plus one day after the announcement of a native Chicagoan being installed as Pope, might not be surprising. (First, though, the button…)

Watching: All Things Pope Leo XIV, One Year Later

This, for me, can be summed up with the phrase: “Into. My. Veins.”

If you went to Catholic School, as I did, and you’re Gen-X like me, you may have had your share of nuns who told you “We’ll never have an American Pope.”

So imagine the surprise when the white smoke came up from The Vatican on May 8, 2025, and then the announcement of a guy FROM CHICAGO???

Anyway, here are a few pieces that are worth your time if you’re interested in All Things Pope Leo XIV.

NBC Chicago’s Mary Ann Ahern has been covering Rome and the Catholic Church for the station for years; she was one of the few Chicago-based reporters who were in the right place at the right time a year ago.

Ahern also sat down with Chicago’s Cardinal Blaise Cupich to discuss the Pope’s impact one-year later.

Here’s a different take and one that’s less Chicago-focused, from Currents News.

Finally, if you’ve not watched the Amazon Prime movie Conclave, you can just skip that and watch an inside report on last year’s actual conclave. It’s called Inside the Conclave from Vatican Access and the Catholic News Service.

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Reading: David Oglivy’s How To Write and Writing That Works by Kenneth Roman and Joel Raphaelson

Looking back at the chart that keeps track of what I recommend here, and it dawned on me that I have yet to mention David Ogilvy’s advice on writing. So I’ve pasted it below.

The book he recommends, Writing That Works, is quick to read and the advice is…still relevant. Even though it’s 45 years old! Authors Kenneth Roman and Joel Raphaelson talk about writing for things like “decks,” presentations that were common in business — but might have been slide shows as opposed to PowerPoint documents — as if they saw the future.

Here’s a link to the book on Amazon; funny, I purchased my copy in 2014. Still refer to it for advice.

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Listening To: A Couple Older Songs That Got Airplay Thanks to TV Shows

Maybe this could be in the “Rediscovering” section, but we’ll shoehorn them in here.

First up, The English Beat. “Save It For Later” remains an absolute classic. Might have been buried in the memory bank for a while, but, thanks to The Bear, it enjoyed a renaissance. (And a cover version by Eddie Vedder.) Here are both tunes.

Here’s Eddie.

Here’s another song from The Bear, “Let Down” by Radiohead. First, as seen in Season 1’s finale.

And here’s the official audio from the band.

Some pretty good music can also be found in the Canadian television show Heated Rivarly, including the re-emergence of Montreal band Wolf Parade, whose “I’ll Believe in Anything” features prominently in the show about a hockey romance.

The song is 19 years old! Here it is and it’s big fun.

Less ancient, Harrison released “All the Things She Said” 3 years ago. It’s now becoming popular thanks to Heated Rivalry, so if you dig a trance-dance-techno thing, here you go.

Rediscovering: The Tragically Hip

I just returned from a few days in Toronto, so I figure why not share the group that has been called “Canada’s Band,” The Tragically Hip.

My favorite song of theirs is “Nautical Disaster,” which might be the second-best song about a nautical disaster — Gordon Lightfoot’s “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” has to check in at number one, eh? — and here’s a live version from the band’s “That Night in Toronto” concert film.

“Natuical Disaster” is off the album Day for Night, which also produced this gem of a song — the band performed both tunes on SNL in 1995 — called “Grace, Too.”

The band’s second-highest charting song in Canada was “Bobcaygeon,” which made it all the way to #3; the line “That Night in Toronto” led to the title of the concert film from which we get this video.

When lead singer Gord Downie was diagnosed with glioblastoma in late 2015, the band decided to go out with an absolute bang. Here’s “Ahead by a Century” from the band’s farewell show on August 20, 2016 in their hometown of Hamilton, Ontario; this was the band’s only number one song in Canada.

The concert, which was carried live on CBC, was watched by an estimated 11 million people. Downie died on October 17, 2017.

But oh, what a farewell!

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re facing a life-threatening diagnosis or a minor health-blip; whether you’ve got too much on your shoulders or, perhaps, feel like you don’t have enough; and if you feel a little lost or untethered: here’s to you, to the power of faith and of human potential, to friendships, to family, and to making the most of the hand you’re dealt.

Make it a great week, everyone!

Dave