Now that we’re in October already, it’s a fine time to reflect on the uncanny grasp that horror has in the hearts of so many queer people. So for this week’s episode, we’re heading into the Sewers archives for a chat with director Jeffrey Schwarz, for whom horror is just one small slice of the story. Jeffrey’s made a lifelong study of film, starting with an early job editing the documentary The Celluloid Closet, right up to today with documentaries about people like Divine, Vito Russo, and horror icon William Castle. I chatted with Jeffrey back in 2017, when he was about to debut a documentary about the flamboyant producer Alan Carr — a fitting subject, since as a young gay man, Jeffrey found kindred spirits in people who, like him, reveled in intensity and excess. 

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First, a reminder that I have a new YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] out about the movie Kiss of the Spider Woman [https://youtu.be/ZtGKiiNfai8]. That’s available now at youtube.com/mattbaume [http://youtube.com/mattbaume].

And also! For the entire month of October I’m hosting livestreams of films by and about James Whale, the iconic director behind 1931’s Frankenstein and many other classics. Join me every Saturday and Sunday on Twitch for movies like The Old Dark House, The Invisible Man, and of course Frankenstein and The Bride of Frankenstein. This weekend we’ll be watching clips from the 1994 film Gods & Monsters, and examining how closely that fictional account of Whale’s life follows the reality. That’s at Twitch.tv/mattbaume [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume] this Saturday and Sunday.

And as always, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, support the show on Patreon [http://patreon.com/mattbaume] at Patreon.com/mattbaume [http://patreon.com/mattbaume].

Swept Away by Dracula (Ep 540 - Frankenhooker/Jeffrey)

My guest this week is writer Mark Waddell. His novel, Colin Gets Promoted and Dooms the World [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/761622/colin-gets-promoted-and-dooms-the-world-by-mark-waddell/], comes out next week on October 7 — a queer story about an office worker whose career advancement involves world-ending consequences. There’s an autobiographical edge to the story, since in his real life Mark had a dream job going back to childhood… and it was only after he achieved it that he realized just how harmful his dreams were, and decided to leave it all behind to become a writer.

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First, a few announcements: As I’m sure you know, I make YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] about iconic movies and TV shows, and I have a brand new video out now about the movie Kiss of the Spider Woman [https://youtu.be/ZtGKiiNfai8] — and how it was made in defiance of the film industry, in defiance of Ronald Reagan, and in defiance of multiple fascist dictators. That’s available now at youtube.com/mattbaume [http://youtube.com/mattbaume].

The topic of next month’s video is the iconic 1931 Frankenstein film and its maker, James Whale — and in his honor, for the entire month of October I’m hosting livestreams of films by and about James Whale. Join me every Saturday and Sunday on Twitch for movies like The Old Dark House, The Invisible Man, Gods and Monsters starring Ian McKellen and Brendan Fraser, and of course Frankenstein and The Bride of Frankenstein. These films helped define a century of scary movies, and they are incredibly queer. It all starts this Saturday October 4 at noon pacific at Twitch.tv/mattbaume [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume].

It Was Really Dark and Kind of Scary (Ep 539 - The Neverending Story/Mark Waddell)

As you may have seen, I have a new video premiering this weekend about the 1985 film Kiss of the Spider Woman, which features an iconic performance from a then-obscure actor named Raul Julia. Thanks to my research into Raul’s career, I’ve had another of his iconic roles on my mind lately — that of Gomez Addams in the Addams Family films. 

So for this week’s Sewers of Paris, we’re diving into the archives to hear from someone whose creative work was heavily inspired by the Addamses. Back in 2020, I spoke with Hamish Steele, whose graphic novel Deadendia had just been adapted into an animated series at Netflix. Drawing from his love of Dr Who, The Addams Family Values, and other queer-ish ensembles, Hamish’s work in print and in animation has its own devoted cult following.


We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon [http://patreon.com/mattbaume] at Patreon.com/mattbaume [http://patreon.com/mattbaume]. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have a new video premiering this weekend about the movie Kiss of the Spider Woman. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume]; also check out my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo! [http://gaysitcoms.com]; and my email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com [http://mattbaume.com].

Demons & Ghosts (Ep 538 - The Addams Family/Hamish Steele)

My guest this week is David Secter. As a student in the 1960s, David bluffed his way into getting equipment, money, and crew to make a groundbreaking queer film called Winter Kept us Warm. And despite the fact that he went in with zero filmmaking experience, the movie wound up becoming the first English-language Canadian film to screen at Cannes … and went on to inspire the work of many other filmmakers, including David’s classmate David Cronenberg. 

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon [http://patreon.com/mattbaume] at Patreon.com/mattbaume [http://patreon.com/mattbaume]. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have a new one coming up about the movie Kiss of the Spider Woman. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume] where we’ll be watching the behind-the-scenes commentary on Victor/Victoria this weekend; also check out my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo! [http://gaysitcoms.com]; and my email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com [http://mattbaume.com].

I Bluffed (Ep 537 - David/Winter Kept us Warm)

I’m chatting this week with two guests: TV producer David Moor and historian Dr. Lee Arnott of the delightful podcast The Problematic Gaze [https://theproblematicgaze.buzzsprout.com/] — that’s “gaze” as in an intent stare, though they’re the other kind of gays as well. David and Lee both grew up in small towns where it felt like life would never begin, but the lure of London called them to greater, gayer things…as did their passionate fandom for a show about a strange man who suddenly appears to rescue humans from their mundane lives.

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon [http://patreon.com/mattbaume] at Patreon.com/mattbaume [http://patreon.com/mattbaume]. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have a new one out about why the X-Men are so very gay. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume] where we’re halfway through our watch-along of Victor/Victoria, starring Julie Andrews; also check out my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo! [http://gaysitcoms.com]; and my email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com [http://mattbaume.com].

The Lure of London (Ep 356 - Dr Who/Lee and David)

My guest this week is the Reverend Joseph Peters-Mathews, the vicar of St. Hilda St. Patrick Episcopal Church in Lynnwood Washington. Joseph’s path to the clergy took him from the small-town South to New York City, along the way developing a love for musical theater that he puts to work in his sermons … and that inspired him and his husband to propose to each other.

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon [http://patreon.com/mattbaume] at Patreon.com/mattbaume [http://patreon.com/mattbaume]. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have a new one out about why the X-Men are so very gay. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume] where we’re about to start a watch-along of Victor/Victoria, starring Julie Andrews; my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo! [http://gaysitcoms.com]; and my email newsletter full of stories about the making of gay movies and TV. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com [http://mattbaume.com].

Feeding the Hungry & Getting Close to the Naked (Ep 535 - Next to Normal/Joseph)

I have two guests on this week’s Sewers of Paris, both of them connected to a secret society of mutants. JP Karliak is the voice of Morph on X-Men ‘97, among many other roles; and Anthony Oliveira is a writer of many Marvel comics, among many other books. I spoke to them both about why the X-Men hold particular importance for them — part of my research for a new video about the 2000 X-Men films. That video goes live this Sunday, August 31, 2025, and it’ll feature excerpts from my conversations with Anthony and JP. But I wanted to make my full conversations with them available for you to listen to here.

Watch my video about the X-Men films: https://youtu.be/ZhtkT0IeavA

Watch the video version of my conversation with JP: https://youtu.be/xkjMkk5wARM

Watch the video version of my conversation with Anthony: https://youtu.be/vBKeVctu-PM

Check out Anthony's comics: https://www.marvel.com/comics/creators/14145/anthony_oliveira 

Read his award-winning book, Dayspring: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/713616/dayspring-by-anthony-oliveira/ 

Listen to Anthony's podcast, The Devil's Party, on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/meakoopa 

Join him in Toronto for Dumpster Raccoon Cinema: https://anthonyoliveira.com/dumpster-raccoon-cinema 

Learn more about Queer Vox: https://queervox.org/ 

Follow JP on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jpkarliak/ 

Another great chat with JP about their work on X-Men 97: https://youtu.be/3OfYfwp_GUs 

More of JP's work: https://www.jpkarliak.com/ 

What makes X-Men so Queer? (Ep 534 - JP Karliak & Anthony Oliveira)

My guest this week is David Duffield, who simultaneously lives in the past, the present, and the future. David’s work as a historian excavates queer histories that had previously been withheld from public view. It’s a project that gives those of us alive today a connection to the lives of people who came before us. And it’s inspired, in part, by David’s connection to values he picked up from his love of science fiction.

Find David’s work at the Colorado LGBTQ History Project: https://lgbtqcolorado.org/programs/lgbtq-history-project/

The Words We Teach: TheWordsWeTeach.com [http://thewordsweteach.com]

The Denver Principles: https://thedenverprinciples.com/

GLBT Historical Society: https://www.glbthistory.org/

History Unerased: https://unerased.org/ 

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon [http://patreon.com/mattbaume] at Patreon.com/mattbaume [http://patreon.com/mattbaume]. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have one coming up about the X-Men. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume] where we’ve been watching the X-Men films; my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo! [http://gaysitcoms.com]; and my email newsletter full of stories about the making of gay movies and TV. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com [http://mattbaume.com].

Thirst Trap Daddies (Ep 533 - Star Trek/David)

My guest this week is Jon Kinnally [https://jonkinnally.com], author of the new memoir I'm Prancing As Fast As I Can: My Journey From a Self-Loathing Closet Case to a Successful TV Writer With Some Self-Esteem [https://bookshop.org/p/books/i-m-prancing-as-fast-as-i-can-my-journey-from-a-self-loathing-closet-case-to-a-successful-tv-writer-with-some-self-esteem-jon-kinnaly/22172508?affiliate=14040&ean=9798888459508&next=t&next=t]. Jon knew from an early age that he wanted to entertain people, and he got his shot in the ‘90s when, barely making ends meet as a cater-waiter, he landed a dream job writing for a new show called Will & Grace … and suddenly found himself at the center of a phenomenon that made him feel like a star at a rock concert.

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon [http://patreon.com/mattbaume] at Patreon.com/mattbaume [http://patreon.com/mattbaume]. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume] where we’ve been watching the X-Men films; my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo! [http://gaysitcoms.com]; and my email newsletter full of stories about the making of gay movies and TV. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com [http://mattbaume.com].

It was a Rock Concert (Ep 532 - A Star is Born/Jon Kinnally)

My guest this week is from the future. Sean’s the host of the TrekCulture podcast [https://shows.acast.com/trekculture], an expert on all things Star Trek, and his name is even the inspiration for a Star Trek character in one of the novelizations. That’s fitting, because it was a novel that helped point Sean in the right direction with his life — not a Star Trek novel, but the story of a gay teen in Ireland in the mid 90s. I was recently a guest on Sean’s podcast [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXz3b-eVadU], where we went deep on sci-fi, and now I’m thrilled to have him join me here.

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon [http://patreon.com/mattbaume] at Patreon.com/mattbaume [http://patreon.com/mattbaume]. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos [http://youtube.com/mattbaume] about the making of iconic movies and TV shows — I’ve got a new one out about the movie But I’m a Cheerleader. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch [http://twitch.tv/mattbaume] where we’ve been watching the X-Men films; my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo! [http://gaysitcoms.com]; and my email newsletter full of stories about the making of gay movies and TV. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com [http://mattbaume.com].

Old Enough to be a Geek (Ep 531 - Star Trek/Seán)

Revealing stories about the books, movies, tv, music and more that have changed the lives of gay men. Each week, a guest plucks a piece of entertainment from their past, and answers the question: how did it change your life?