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Relaunching a horror icon and the worldof pop culture and collectibles with Tyler Ham
1 Playsin 1 day
This week we're joined by Tyler Ham, a creative with a history that's seen him work with SEGA, Disney, ILM, Mego, and now — the Jason Universe! Erik chats with Tyler about his decades spanning career across pop culture and what it's like to be part of the team relaunching Jason Voorhees.
Follow Tyler @tylerjham on Instagram or online https://www.tylerham.com/
Follow us @aic_podcast on Instagram, Facebook, X, and YouTube
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Intro and other voices by Joe Azzari
https://www.instagram.com/voicesbyjoe/
Theme Music is "Game Boy Horror" by the Zombie Dandies
Proudly part of the Non-Productive Network
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Transcript
Introduction to the Podcast
00:00:03
Speaker
Are you ready, kids? Get your parents permission, check your mailbox and grab your shopping cart. It's time for the Adventures in Collecting podcast. I'm Eric and I'm Dave.
00:00:16
Speaker
Welcome to Adventures in Collecting, where we talk toy news, culture and hauls along with our journeys as collectors. Hello, everybody, and welcome back to Adventures in Collecting.
00:00:32
Speaker
It is weird doing that intro without Dave being here. um So he gets to laugh at this later. ah Well, welcome back to Adventures in Collecting. I am here by myself. I'm flying solo this week. Dave is currently enjoying Gwen Stefani and and the the band of No Doubt inside the sphere in Las Vegas. If you are in Las Vegas and you happen to see Dave...
00:00:59
Speaker
Say hi. Buy him a donut. He likes donuts. He posted a picture of some really cool looking no doubt donuts earlier today and I am very jealous because I also love a donut and I am currently in calorie deficit which is super super not fun and all I can think about is donuts. So ah there's that.
Special Guest and Giveaway Tease
00:01:19
Speaker
um But yeah, we have a really ah fun guest this week. i Somebody that we have been talking to kind of behind the scenes for what feels like years. And we finally have, have ah instead of like like ships crossing in the night, we've we've finally got our our signals together and we're excited to have this guest on. and I'll bring him on in just a moment. ah But first, as is usual as is usually the case, we do have a little bit of housekeeping to tend to. So, of course, i it is still May, ah which means that we have a giveaway.
00:01:59
Speaker
And ah our giveaway this month, as we mentioned on the last episode, we have ah partnered, collaborated with our friend Ahsoka the Geek. So that's at Ahsoka the Geek on Instagram to give away the McFarlane Toys Batman 89 inspired joker ah You will get a brand new in box one, but ah this figure is incredible. It is remarkable that it exists.
00:02:30
Speaker
um They did some some very clever skirting to make sure that this that this figure was based on a comic book edition of the Joker inspired by this look and not a certain Jack Nicholson likeness, but it, uh, it looks amazing. Uh, it is sold out everywhere and we have an extra one, so we're giving it away. So like I said, we partnered with our friend, Ahsoka the Geek. Uh, you can head on over to Instagram at AIC underscore podcast. Look for the pinned post and and enter to win. you So you have the entire month of May to do that. One winner, one edition of the Joker. So thanks again to our friend Ahsoka for you know helping.
00:03:14
Speaker
Helping spread the word here and and joining us and in giving one of these awesome figures back to the
New Merch Announcement
00:03:20
Speaker
community. um And while we're talking about fun things available on our Instagram, this is a reminder that we do have a merch shop now. so Adventures in Collecting, you can find us at our Dashery store, which is AICpodcast.com.
00:03:37
Speaker
Dashery.com. We have a ton of original designs that ah that that we have all. we I designed these. um I am not a designer, but I really am proud of the designs that I came up with um because everybody's doing everything with AI and I'd not do these with AI. So I'm excited to put them out there into the world, but we have a bunch of nerdy toy adjacent inspired designs. Everything from from video games to i different toy sayings. We've got G.I. i Joe themed ones. We've got, I really like the AIC gym one. But yeah, so a perfect shirt for your next toy hunt, your next convention appearance, wherever.
00:04:30
Speaker
Uh, we've also got ones with Archie with our logo, who is, uh, who is lovingly designed by, plastic vampire art on Instagram, Chris Ramo, uh, who is on the NECA team, super talented artists. We are very, very fortunate and very lucky to have had him design Archie for us. So, uh, you can, you can again find, ah these t-shirts, uh, or you can put these designs on, on coffee mugs and excuse me, hats and socks and shorts.
00:05:00
Speaker
whatever you want to put them on. They give you tons of options and colors. If you don't like these colors, you could pick different colors. Uh, that's my sales pitch. So, uh, support adventures in collecting, get a funny shirt. And if you have like a fun idea, like if they're like, Hey Eric, I would love an adventures in collecting shirt that is, does this, I will try to figure out a way to skirt around copywriting, copywritten things to make a logo that's inspired by that. So yeah. Uh,
00:05:30
Speaker
Again, AICpodcast.dashery.com. That is the end of my sales pitch. That is the end of housekeeping, and i am excited to bring on our guest this
Interview with Tyler Hamm
00:05:44
Speaker
week. So this week's guest has worked with the likes of Mego, Disney, Tippett Studio, Kyle,
00:05:51
Speaker
So excited to talk about that. Helping bring characters, creatures, and collectibles to life across toys, entertainment, and pop culture. From modernizing classic toys to working on effects-driven projects and licensed collectibles, his career has touched ah ton of the stuff us collectors know and love.
00:06:09
Speaker
Most recently, he's become involved with the Jason Universe projects, helping shape the future of one of horror's most iconic franchises and opening the door for a whole new era of Jason collectibles. This week, we're talking toys.
00:06:25
Speaker
We're talking horror. We're talking creature design, collecting, and the creative road that connects all of it with Tyler Hamm. Tyler, welcome to Adventures in Collectibles.
00:06:37
Speaker
Thank you so much. I'm so glad to be here. Like you said, we've sort of been behind the scenes talking about this. And I've been a listener for such a long time. And like I've known people that have come on and I've always been like, oh, God, like i really I really want to get on this show. And so it's so it's almost surreal actually finally getting to be a guest versus just like a listener and like behind the scenes like DM harasser to to you all.
00:07:04
Speaker
Well, it has not been harassing. I feel like if anything, it's the other way around. Like I'm always like messaging you like this cool thing that you did. I want to talk about it. um Yeah. So i'm I'm glad we finally made this happen. i'm If anything, it's like, yeah i am too i get you I get you all to myself. I don't have to share you with Dave this week.
00:07:23
Speaker
So hopefully I can, I can fill, fill the the missing Dave gap a little bit. ah Well, to start off, first thing that we ask all of our guests, what are you currently collecting and and what has you kind of excited about whatever it is that you collect?
00:07:41
Speaker
ah Right now, it's funny. I'm usually a very specific collector. I collect a lot of, you know, I mostly collect vintage vintage toys and some vintage comic books. But lately I've sort of been ah like like, I actually have it right here. Like i bought a... um Like this is like a first printing of i am legend, which is one of my favorite books. And so this is yeah, the first print I always wanted one. This is the first so I'm actually so I'm dyslexic and I always had a hard time reading.
00:08:09
Speaker
And so this was the first kind of ah book I bought as an ah like an adult. I think it was 16 or 15 or And this is the first time actually searched out and found a book that I wanted to read. And of course, it's horror and vampires. And when the this came up from a bookseller on Instagram, I was like, God, I have to i got grab that. And i just ah I just sort of dabbled. And unfortunately, it's coming tomorrow. I'd show you. I bought an original piece of ah Disney pre-production art for Peter Pan that I'm super excited about.
00:08:43
Speaker
And so that's kind of like my toes dipping into kind of like original comic art. So that's sort of where my where my focus is kind of these days. And I also like I have limited space. You know, i'm I'm in my what's my office now and I have three shelves back there, but it's incredibly quick to fill three shelves when there's like 12 big Rubbermaid tubs in the garage with all the rest of my stuff.
00:09:06
Speaker
So I try to tread a little lightly. i I feel you. Space is certainly a ah a a ah commodity that goes fast for collectors in general. like i i I often tell people, like if I could spin the camera around and show you the madness that is my very small... like My ceiling is right here.
00:09:27
Speaker
this is This is a very small space and it is it is very filled. It is it is very filled. so Is it like an attic type thing? like is it Is it a roof that goes down like this?
00:09:40
Speaker
Yep. I'm in a ah small house in New Jersey and my home office I share with my with my wife. so Her desk is on the other side of like my monitor situation here. and we could not be more distinctly opposite. she I'm looking at her desk and she she does not have a single piece of decoration accoutrement on it it. is her computer, it's her monitor, and it's her Cricut machine. That's it. That's the only thing that's on her desk.
00:10:12
Speaker
Mine, I probably have about 150 200 figures of some kind just... because part of it is like I practice my posing for like toy photography on one part of my desk and i just never put things away. So I have like a custom Batman that I'm working on right now. I've got vintage collection figures. I've got all kinds of things happening over here in various stages of posing. So, yeah, space. Yeah, that's ah this is like the area like I said, like I actually like I happen to have that book right here.
00:10:44
Speaker
Coincidentally, and it's like Lego minifigures, the little Simpsons Treehouse of Horror figures that came in the advent calendar this year. Like all that stuff under here. Yep. and So yeah, you like they like you know, here like Lego Davy Jones, you know, that they just kind of swarm around me. yep Yep. Yep. I feel you.
00:11:05
Speaker
i' Got Lego. Exactly. Little little Mayday. um Yeah, it's it's amazing how it ends up happening. And like every other every collector that I talk to has kind of like that chaotic kind thing where it's like, I know I have stuff that I need to put away, but I'm not done looking at it yet. I've always been so, like my grandpa was a collector, but he collected stamps and he had a stamp collection that was spectacular. I mean, spectacular. I mean, each album was probably six inches thick.
00:11:37
Speaker
ah And I mean, so I don't even know how many pages were in each one, but there's probably, you know, hundreds to maybe a thousand pages in each one. And each page had 20, 30 stamps and he had 20, a dozen of these albums and so he had this immense stamp collection but it was just like nicely put in this closet and he closed the door like no space issue at all and so I've always been like slightly jealous of those like very compact collections but I just can't do it I can't do it I could rent a warehouse and still probably fill it
00:12:11
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, I've got bins and thankfully, like technology, right? Like I imagine, you know, if I had the collection that I have now when I was a kid, I would probably, we've we've actually talked about it on the show before. our my My brother and I, our father, um he was one of those guys that like, was like a serial, like taped things on TV type of guy. Sure.
00:12:36
Speaker
um Oh, we had we had these built in bookshelves in the house we grew up in that were filled with VHS tapes. And there was this little blue, like vinyl covered book that had like the the three ring like pop in it where you could put, you know, add additional pages if you needed. But he had single tape numbered.
00:12:59
Speaker
And not only was every single tape numbered, but in the book, you could go to that number and look at the timestamps for where the movie on the tape would start. And we we had like a full like people would come over and be like, what movie you want to watch? Well, let me see if I got it in there. Like go through our thing and like, you know, fast forward on the tape to a certain point and boom, there it was.
00:13:21
Speaker
That's such an impressive level of organization. Like I would aspire to do that. Like I visually know where things are, but there's, you know, it's the classic garage full of gray bins. Like i don't know what's in any of them.
00:13:33
Speaker
Yep. And to just have that, do you still have the tapes? A lot of them. Yeah. I believe a lot of them are still there and I believe the the blue book is still there. um I haven't, I haven't looked for it next time. I next time I go over ah my my mother's house, I have to, i have to check it out, but um it's how I experienced a lot of movies for the first time unintentionally. Right. Cause like I would go to the book and I'd be like, I want to watch never ending story. Right. So like I'd find the tape, never ending story on it, but yeah,
00:14:03
Speaker
You know, my my father at the time was not thinking like, oh, one day a child might watch this. So like right after Never Ending Story, it goes right into like Halloween three season of The Witch. Yeah. like the Shining. Yeah. Yeah. Seriously. yeah I get it.
00:14:19
Speaker
And, you know, a lot of times, like I would put the movie on watch whatever I wanted to watch. And I'm sitting there playing with my guys on the floor and watch a movie. And then all of a sudden, like something else starts. And I'm like, hmm, what's this? I probably shouldn't be watching Nightmare on Elm Street 2. But that sounds interesting. um i don't want to get up and turn it off. but But like back in the days when there weren't remotes or they were really bad. Yeah, I remember because we're discussing, I'm a bit older than you were.
00:14:45
Speaker
but Like there were just times you just didn't want to get up. So it just became the default. I'm just going watch what's next. Yep. And those tapes were, in a lot of cases, like Russian roulette. Like, you aren't if you weren't looking in the book, boy you don't know what you're going to get next.
00:15:01
Speaker
um But, yeah, I mean, speaking of growing up, I mean, you mentioned your grandfather, you know, a stamp collector. So that that that collector gene, you know, is in your blood. But ah what were, like, the the toys um and and and movies and characters that kind of really – sparked your imagination, got you got you interested in in in doing what you're doing today?
00:15:23
Speaker
I mean, i would arguably say i was very fortunate to, as a, like a toy kid, a to have been born when I was, because, and I think, you know, you talk to different people from different, this kind of wave of this era, um then they all kind of say like, we had it best, but I grew into toys in that like early 80s through mid to late 80s period.
00:15:45
Speaker
where it was just like we had Star Wars. We had the end of Star Wars. We had the G.I. i Joe. We had Masters of the Universe, Transformers, Voltron. And my mom would buy me these niche robots. they ah my parents traveled overseas quite a bit. And so she'd go to England and she'd buy me these robots called Godekins, which were these big metal robots that like had shot missiles out of everything.
00:16:05
Speaker
And then we still had the classics like like Lego um and all kinds of, you know, like... I think they're called like Tinker Toy type things. But there was just, there were, and you know, probably the last toy line I kind of remember buying to still play with was Ninja Turtles.
00:16:22
Speaker
And so I kind of had like from the from Star Wars to Ninja Turtles era. And kind of all the greats. I mean, they they had to be because they're still making all of them. And now they're just making them for 50-year-olds. But they're all still going and hybridizing. And, you know, you can get a Ninja Turtle Masters of the Universe figure now. and Transformers is still going strong. So those were kind of my foundational toy lines.
00:16:46
Speaker
And with movies, I would say, um it wasn't necessarily the movies themselves, but we had a little video store in town. And two videos I constantly rented were the making of Michael Jackson's Thriller.
00:17:02
Speaker
Yeah, which is ah such a great documentary. Yeah. and And the ah the from Star Wars to Jedi, the making of a saga. And so I was old enough, like I saw Empire. i was born when Star Wars came out, so I didn't see that in the theater. But I saw Empire in the theater. I saw a Jedi in a theater, and I was old enough to actually get it with Jedi.
00:17:22
Speaker
And so then to see the making of the, you know the cult to making of a saga, but it's essentially Jedi focused. That's what sort of gave me that... like someone makes these, like this is magic. And you're still sort of like a magic maker, but this all looked so insanely cool. like There's three people inside Java, you know, and there's there's balloons under this makeup on Michael Jackson's face that are slowly turning him into this, I thought it was a werewolf at the time. I didn't realize there was technically a werecat. But he turns into this werecat and you see these things. And I think that was what,
00:17:57
Speaker
kind of was the initial pull. And also, coincidentally, when I was a kid, they shot an episode of Knight Rider at my house. And so, wow yeah, they shot the season three, episode one, just like the opener is called Night of the Drones. And they shot parts of that at my house. And so as this little kid too, I got to literally see behind the scenes, you know like camera people, lighting people, how they did stunts, you know, how Kit moved, how Kit drove and all those, that sort of combination all happened in a pretty, rapid-fire timeframe. You know, it's all like 83 to 85. And that specifically is what made me start to get interested in a ah film career.
00:18:44
Speaker
That's amazing. And, you know, it's so interesting. Like, I think thriller is one of those things where even, even like somebody, you know, my age, like, you know, there's, there's a gap between us. Like, I remember that music video had such a visceral effect on me, like as a, as a yeah person, like I can,
00:19:02
Speaker
almost remember like where I was the first time I saw it. And then, you know, I remember watching the the behind the scenes you know documentary on that as well. And it again, it was just one of those things where like, i don't know if you've ever been to Universal Studios in in Florida. And I don't know if it's not in Florida, but in Los Angeles, I've been.
00:19:22
Speaker
Okay, there in in Florida, there used to be this show called like Monsters Makeup and Mayhem or something like that. i think it's still there. And it it had like elements of like they would pull American Werewolf in London up on on screen and like show that incredible transformation and then break it down like here's how they did it and like then do like kind of ah ah almost like a...
00:19:49
Speaker
a demonstration of it live on stage. And like it like that stuff for me at like a very young age really was like super impressionable on me. And i it's it's just, ah it's amazing how some of those effects and some of those like small pieces in cinema history have have really kind of rippled for for generations at this point.
00:20:14
Speaker
ah Yeah, movies are so magical, especially at that point when you're both a child and you don't understand what a visual effect is. you know There's no such thing as CG at that point. And it's you're kind of in that point of if you see it, it has to be real.
00:20:30
Speaker
And when you find out that, like, oh, this isn't real. Oh, and, like, someone is making this. And and this can be – like, my dad was a contractor. It's like I don't have to be a contractor. Like, I can – you know, or a police officer, all you like yeah can make these monsters. And there's still no idea how to get from A to B. But just knowing that that was a possibility, it was incredibly inspiring, even as just a little kid.
00:20:53
Speaker
Yeah, and that's one of those things too where where I don't think toys get enough credit sometimes, ah especially in in the 80s and 90s and really like seventy s
The Role of Toys in Storytelling
00:21:05
Speaker
right? Before we had instant access to revisiting these films and TV shows and things that we loved. Like this was a continuation. Well, not this one.
00:21:16
Speaker
this This was a continuation of Batman. exactly. that man Like you got to continue the story at home before, like you saw it in theaters and who knew when the next time you were going get to see it. But like, you know, you got to keep the story moving. Like Kenner was making this happen, you know, in a small scale vehicles. And like, you know, we, we, we talked to to Steve Evans from the Hasbro team on on the last episode. of first Steve's great.
00:21:43
Speaker
I always enjoy Yeah. i always enjoy it when he's on. he's He's fantastic. But like we we we talked about it. like you know You didn't always have access to the property like after you saw it. So you had what you remembered.
00:21:58
Speaker
And then you had toys were the way for you to kind of like continue that storytelling. And i I think a lot of people lose the fact that you know, these are more than just kind of play things or collectibles. Like when they were, were, you know, in our hands as kids, it was how we continued to tell the story.
00:22:19
Speaker
Yeah. or youd Or you'd have like a crossover event, you know, or you could, you could just do, you know, like you're making your own fan fiction or reliving it because yeah, in those days,
00:22:31
Speaker
You know, it wasn't, it wasn't, and it's funny, so in the town I live in, in Oregon, we have a ah functioning blockbuster video. It's the last one. And so you can still go down there and rent movies. And I take my kids down there now, and their their minds, remember especially the first time I took them there, their minds were kind of blown.
00:22:49
Speaker
that they could walk around and because all they had known was just scrolling through you know thumbnails selecting and you go and there's movies and it's like the movie's actually here you know and it wasn't easy like that like if you wanted to go see star wars you'd have to go you know get your parents drive to the video store and there was you know they had one copy and there was a chance someone else had wanted to see it so then you're like well i guess i'll settle for you know whatever else you know star crash or whatever other like second rate sci-fi movie when the one that you wanted wasn't there nope nope and i i actually recently explained that to uh uh mike we we just watched the new super mario movie right it's ah available on digital to right now um which was fabulous by the way i loved it so i haven't seen it yet i loved the last one though
00:23:40
Speaker
Yeah, the fantastic. If you loved the last one, going to enjoy the hell out of this one. I'll put it that way. But... ah yeah I was saying to them, like, it still blows my mind as, you know, a near 40 year old man at this point that like I could sit on the couch and go like, I want to watch this now. And I actually explained to them, I was like, when a movie came out at home, it was literally like, hey, mom, no, you need to take me to the video store now because there's only five copies of it. And I already know three people that that also want it in this town. So like, we got to go like clock's ticking.
00:24:14
Speaker
um and they they were like what do you mean you couldn't just go and get another copy of it like they what you mean they only had five i'm like that video store would only there wasn't another copy yeah yeah i worked at a video store for a couple of years when i was like 15 and the hot movie would come out and people would call and then they would reserve it or something and then you'd have to put it behind and someone would want it and they'd get mad because they couldn't have the copy behind the game it was like this whole cultural thing that just does not exist anymore Yeah, it's it's correct it's absolutely crazy how important that was like to to ah ah to us like socially, and is just a completely dead medium at this point. like the The process, the culture does not exist, well, except for the one blockbuster that's left in Oregon. That's... yeah
00:25:02
Speaker
But like renting a movie was a cultural thing. Like you go, you pay her four bucks, you'd have friends over. it was like an event, you know, with everything available to you. i know it's not free, but it it feels free because you're not handing over money. There's no, there's no desire to sit and pay attention. You know, it's like, let's watch this for 15 minutes. Oh, like now let's watch this. for Let's watch some YouTube videos. Let's watch. There's that, that thing of like renting a video and getting a pizza delivered was essentially like the micro version of a night at the theater.
00:25:32
Speaker
h Yep. Yep. That's why I love, i love all of those videos. i think, I think the term that they use now is, is ah millennial millennial dread, i think is the, is actually the the like phrase for it, but it's the like, remember in the nineties when the phone had a cord attached to it. And you know, yeah if you get out of the way, like you'd be like wrapped up against the wall when your mom walked through with a really long phone cord and, You know, you had to rent a video and the yeah pizza was delivered and you'd go to Pizza Hut and they had the red cups like all Like all of those like little like feely things that like is just lost on the next generation. It's crazy to think about. Yeah, I mean, childhood defining and they're just gone.
00:26:18
Speaker
gone Yeah, yeah. Well, one of the things that I think is is really interesting about your kind of career path is you've kind of got your handle on this this whole fit, like, harnessed to this whole concept of, like, pop cultural awareness and just...
Tyler's Career Journey and Mentorship
00:26:36
Speaker
you know design and art and and you have been like seemingly everywhere. your Your career spans sculpting, branding, visual effects, licensing, toy development. ah when When you look back at your career now and ah you you know spanning decades, like when did you it kind of dawn on you like, oh, I'm actually in this industry. I'm here.
00:27:01
Speaker
i'm here It's funny because I sort of define, like my career has been these swings between like drastic overconfidence and then imposter syndrome. And so it kind of goes one way or the other, like saying things I don't know if I can do or or doing things and not knowing if I'm doing them right.
00:27:24
Speaker
So there's never there's never been this comfortable middle where I can say I kind of made it. um One thing that was kind of one of one of my personal career highlights was ah well a just getting a job at ILM was a highlight. Like that's when I was in high school, I started getting into film, then film school, all they wanted to do was work at ILM.
00:27:46
Speaker
I already lived in the town where it was. And so actually getting that job was kind of a highlight. And that was validating in one sense where, you know, yeah I was like, quote, it's like, a good enough for ILM.
00:27:58
Speaker
But when you walk around ILM, there's this kind of funny phenomenon where there's a lot of people that have been there for a long time. And oftentimes some of the employees, especially those who worked on set, are in the backgrounds of films. You know, they'll be like a background Jedi or like walking across the screen. And it felt like such this like elite club of people who worked at ILM, but were also like in things.
00:28:19
Speaker
And so we did years ago, and this is kind of like a forgotten thing at this point. col Stephen Colbert used to, his previous show was The Colbert Report. yeah And he did this thing about like know your districts.
00:28:31
Speaker
And he was talking about Marin County, which was where ILM and at least at that point, I mean, ILM had moved to San Francisco at that point, but Lucasfilm was still in Marin. yeah And he got in front of a green screen and he just started like goofing around talking about being at ILM and he makes a joke about like, hey, Jar Jar.
00:28:47
Speaker
And someone actually keyed him out of the green screen and put him in with a rancor and sent it in. And so he did this, the Colbert Report green screen project. And um a couple people, was kind of like like low level, was like whispering, it was kind of secret. They were kind of had this plan like we should we should do one. but we have Like, we're going to keep it secret. And like, you know, are you interested? Are you interested? And was like, yeah, I'm interested. I'll do my part, you know, as a layout artist. I can do the layout. And then there was someone who could do some animation and rendering and compositing. and um
00:29:20
Speaker
And so we were kind of like meeting in private, like four or five people that were going to do this secret thing. And... ah somehow, I guess, George found out. I don't know how he found out.
00:29:32
Speaker
And he like, loved the idea. Like, he loved it. He a big Colbert fan himself. So all of a sudden, this, like, weird little secret thing we were doing... it became an an official show. So like we were on, I think, Pirates the Caribbean 2 or 3 and like Transform, like all these major shows were going on, which we were assigned to. and then we had this like little five or seven person sub crew that was on the Colbert Report show.
00:29:57
Speaker
And when we were doing that, there's this whole conversation sequence where he's talking to Jar Jar, but we didn't have the footage of that. And so they asked me, they were like, do you want to stand in for Stephen Colbert?
00:30:12
Speaker
for for the stigma. And so I got to stand in, you know, i'm just standing against a green screen. It's just the back of my head and I'm kind of wobbling just yeah just to make some weird body movements. and But when you actually see it, like, you know, Ahmed Best voiced Jar Jar. Like, I'm in that same frame talking to Jar Jar. There's a scene where i had to deflect a ah just a blaster bolt from hitting R2. So it's, you know, you see like my stomach in a tie. i get actually holding like an island made lightsaber, though you can't see me. And so being in that, was like, cool. Like I got to hold ah a real lightsaber. Like I'm actually talking to Jar Jar. I saved R2-D2. Like that felt so weirdly, validatingly cool. And then it was on Comedy Central. Yeah. And so I'd say like, that's when it started to feel like, like I'm in the industry.
00:31:00
Speaker
You know, I've been in it for a while now, but like I, I'm in an official Star Wars thing now. I could, that's it. Like that's, I could quit tomorrow. yeah like goal achieved.
00:31:11
Speaker
That is so cool. So cool. Yeah. It was really fun. I'm on my wall right here. i actually, I mean, I can, I can get it Ahmed Best did a send in signing.
00:31:24
Speaker
And so I took a screenshot of it and I sent it in and had him sign it. So that's that's the backum that's the back of my head. It's getting a glare there. But yeah, Jar Jar, the back of my head.
00:31:36
Speaker
i mean, it was just I always wanted to meet him to to get him to sign something. But I kind of realized he and I are probably not going to be in the same room together. So, hey, you never know. You've been in a lot of rooms with a lot of people at this point. So I've been in a lot of rooms, but yeah, maybe. And then maybe I can get ah another one signed.
00:31:53
Speaker
yeah you'd have to You'd have to get a picture of the two of you together and then transfer that to a frame with a two picture thing. And yeah. Yeah. See, that could do that. That'd be fun. Yeah. Yeah. um But, you know, you've worked across, like you said, so many different corners of of pop culture. you know, we mentioned at the top, know, Mego, Disney, Tippett Studio. um Were there any kind of people in your life, mentors, like early on in your development that that helped you kind of figure out which direction you wanted to go in at any given time? Yeah.
00:32:27
Speaker
Yeah, there was ah probably the most important was, and he just passed, he's a guy named Bob Burns, and he was a big Hollywood kind of an archivist, I guess. Like if you were going to, he did so much, but I guess like the the most correct thing would be to call him an archivist. But I mean, he helped launch careers. He just fingers in a lot of things through like the 50s, 60s, 80s.
00:32:51
Speaker
And i had met him through an introduction with Dennis Murin. um And as I was trying to transition into, as going from the film industry to the toy industry, ah the first two projects I was ever given, the first two things I ever sculpted were Universal Monsters based.
00:33:09
Speaker
And the first one was the fossil claw from the Creature of the Black Lagoon. um which you can see but behind me, it's right next to red helmet right here. And the other one, which is also pretty close, a kind like a cane section in my office, it's weird, is the Wolfman cane from the Wolfman topper.
00:33:29
Speaker
And these are both things because like I took these jobs. i was talking earlier about overconfidence. Like I took those jobs not knowing how to sculpt. I just wanted to do them because i was a Universal Monsters fan. And so, you know, can you sculpt these? Yeah.
00:33:43
Speaker
like And then it was like, just go home and now how do I sculpt? And Bob, Bob was, and his wife Kathy were just these cheerleaders. Like Bob didn't own the original Creature Claw. That's that's long gone But he knew the guy who made it at Universal in 1956, and that guy had made himself one, and he had all these great color photos of the time Chris Mueller Jr. came over with his creature cloth. And because back then, I don't remember if, like, the Blu-ray was out yet.
00:34:14
Speaker
So it wasn't, i mean, which feels like so aging myself. You know, like, there wasn't good HD shots of a lot of this stuff. you know um and so but bob's And then all of a sudden Bob's like, oh, you you want this? And it's this big, like never before seen color photo of the thing I'm trying to sculpt. It's amazing. And then with the Wolfman cane, he actually owned the Wolfman cane.
00:34:38
Speaker
and so he took yeah he about that original cane topper was in his collection and so he's taking detail photos and i'm sending him pictures of where i'm sculpting and he's you know like oh the ear goes a little bit like that more down or up and it just a hundred percent helpful only supportive like as close to a mentor as I probably had in the industry.
00:35:03
Speaker
Because um in the visual effects industry, it's hard to kind of have a mentor relationship because you're incredibly busy. There's not really time. Like I try i used to try to mentor when i was in layout, i would try to mentor younger artists.
00:35:18
Speaker
whenever I could, but sometimes you just can't because you know, especially on these like we call them like 911 shows where those are the ones where you're working 10 12 hour days you're working Saturdays, you know, you're just trying to maintain sanity.
00:35:30
Speaker
But Bob was like, no like I'm going to be as generous as I can with my time. Here you go. Here you go. You know what else it was always what else do you need. So I owe quite a bit of that transition to him and just his generosity with time and confidence, especially on the Wolfman cane.
00:35:45
Speaker
That was one where I just didn't know. Like i said, I didn't know how to sculpt anyway. I had done the creature claw, um but like I had to learn sculpting software. I did that in 3D. Like I and so, you know, it's like learn the software, figure out how to sculpt, then do it well enough that someone wants to put it in a production by it.
00:36:07
Speaker
And with the Wolfman cane, that cane has like a fur texture to it. It's it's not it's subtle, but it's fur. And I didn't know how to do that. Like that was just hard. It's just, you know, I i couldn't even figure out the sensitivity on the on the brushes I was using digitally. um So that was one where it was like, I'm going to give up and return the deposit and I'm never going to sculpt again.
00:36:35
Speaker
You know, it it was, it was the, this almost broke me. My wife kept pushing me to keep going forward. i ended up actually going back traditional that way. I just was like, how'd they do it in 41? Probably started with a lump of clay. And so I just went and got Sculpey, you know, and kind of started messing with it. And then eventually it just, you know, i I took Bob's good photos. I printed them out the size I needed it to be. And I was like sculpting over the actual printout on paper, you know, just kind of old schooling it.
00:37:02
Speaker
And again, like it just kind of worked. Yeah. Yeah. i like I don't know how. I was going to say, you know, and in in terms of of learning that skill for the first time, I was curious whether it was purely digital or whether you did do any, you know, kind of traditional sculpting methods with like wax or clay or anything like that.
00:37:20
Speaker
Then sculpting this thing. And I wasn't even ah good at 3D modeling. I mean, I'd taken 3D modeling classes, but ah like those were the ones in art school where I got Cs. I didn't like it. i ended up getting that creature job because a friend of mine was the creative director for the company that was producing it. And we ran into each other at kind of an industry event.
00:37:41
Speaker
And he's like, do you know anyone who, you know, i want to sculpt this, but no one will take the job. I can't find someone to do it. Would you like to do it? Can you sculpt? And I was a big Creature fan. And it was like, yeah, I can sculpt, you know. and But then it got in this thing where he's like well, how long will it take you? It's like, i don't I don't, like two weeks? I don't know. You know, like yeah how much money do you want for, you know, what do you charge for sculpts? It's like, I don't know. Like, you you know, and I kind of pushed that off. And it's like, tell me what you think it's worth when I'm done. And then we'll just go from there.
00:38:11
Speaker
so So it's kind of this like sideways lie into the industry. But I mean, I mean, we we kind of hear that stuff all the time. when when We're hearing like origin stories, you know, especially people that have you a creative mind. it's it's like, know, like like me, like I cannot make anything with my hands. It is just a disaster. Like I can't I can't draw. that's Like I mentioned at the top that i did a couple of shirt designs. well Yeah, they are very. They are very rudimentary. Like, i yeah, but you know, what they're all great.
00:38:44
Speaker
I love them all. Yeah, they all look really good. um You know, like i i'm I'm a creative director by trade. Like that's my my role outside of doing this podcast. But I deal with usually written...
00:39:00
Speaker
copy like i am a yeah creative director for for content creation sort of thing um and i a lot of times like i know what looks good so like i'll get brought in to you know give feedback on on some visual things but like it's so funny because i don't know how to actually fix it myself but i'm like hey this logo should be kind of bigger here and it like you know like maybe lines and like the way that it's laid out like i i understand that concept but i cannot execute on any of it so like it always blows my mind when when when somebody you know like yourself is just like oh yeah i've i i've never sculpted before but i could do that sure and yeah i mean i was as surprised as anyone uh yeah it's it's just again you know there's no there's no secret to it You know, people, I've i've gotten this question before, you know, like, how'd you get your start in the industry? How'd you learn how to sculpt? Like, how did you, you know, how to you how did you do this? How'd you this?
00:40:03
Speaker
And it was like, I just, and that's why I was kind of saying, it's like, well, you know, i went to visual effects school and then like, you know, I always wanted to sculpt toys. So I just lied and said I could and then figured it out.
00:40:15
Speaker
You know, that's that's it. I mean, all this is learn. It's learnable. You know, there's always there's been there's always this, like, conceived notion that, like, creativity is you're born with it.
00:40:27
Speaker
And people are born with it. you know, there's people who are so substantially gifted early in their their careers or just in life. You know, like a guy go Instagram, this creature kid, Adam. I don't know if you've ever looked at his work. That kid was a kid. He's not a kid anymore. And when I met him, he was still a kid. But he was sculpting.
00:40:50
Speaker
He's a beautiful, much better sculptor than I am. And he he was a much better sculptor than I was when he was like 14. He was doing professional, I think he was sculpting like model kits for companies and stuff at like 14, 15. Just so there is that aspect to it where you was some you are born with it and it's a big advantage.
00:41:09
Speaker
But... Drawing can be learned. 3D modeling can be learned. Sculpting can be learned. Like photography can be learned. All these arts can be learned. You know, it's just like, you know, it's it's it's like being born in genetics that make you 7'5 versus 5'6. And if you want to play basketball, like, you know, you can still be a good basketball player at 5'6, but if you're 7'4, you're probably going to better basketball player.
00:41:32
Speaker
Kind of same same same thing. Yeah, not everybody can be Muggsy Bogues. Not not everybody. just No, that's a name from the past. Oh, I loved Muggsy Bogues.
00:41:44
Speaker
And now, a word from our sponsors.
00:41:52
Speaker
This segment is brought to you by our friends at Chubsy Wubsy Toys. A traditional mom and pop toy store in Little Falls, New Jersey, Chubsy Wubsy Toys brings you the best new toys from the brands you love without the hassle of pounding the pavement searching for them at larger retail stores.
00:42:09
Speaker
Visit them in person at their brand new home at 101 Newark Pompton Turnpike Suite 1 in Little Falls, New Jersey, or online at chubzywubzy.com.
00:42:21
Speaker
That's
00:42:27
Speaker
And tell them that Adventures in Collecting sent you.
00:42:33
Speaker
And now back to the show. So one of the things that I, i you know, I think is is really interesting, right, is the time that you spent working with
Innovations in Toy Design
00:42:42
Speaker
Mego. So we we had Marty Abrams on this show got for forever ago. One ah one of my favorite interviews. I listened to it.
00:42:49
Speaker
yeah I have ever done. Marty is a hoot, a fellow East Coaster. He's out here somewhere. I think he's in New York somewhere. um But you kind of helped bring a little bit of that modern you know digital sculpting to Mego, which was historically you know like a classic you know, sculpted design of a figure? What what was it like kind of taking what you had now harnessed, you know, through some of those Universal Monsters projects and and bringing it to such a, you know, storied line like Mego?
00:43:23
Speaker
Oh, Mego is, it's one of those toy companies. Like you said, it's it's a legendary company. And it's one of those companies too, though. I never played with Mego as a kid. It was like there were always Migos, but they were kind of like in the toy box. like every one of my friend's toy boxes had like a broken Hulk at the bottom.
00:43:40
Speaker
You know, and so I was aware of them and I liked them. I i grew to enjoy them. You know, i kind of think if you were to ask me what a perfect action figure, like a perfect vintage action figure is, it would be the Mego Spider-Man.
00:43:52
Speaker
i mean, that is a perfect vintage action figure. to Hands down. yeah But... I ah like a lot of old companies and marty's Marty's great because he's kind of this weird combination of extremely old school but like still presently relevant. There's not a lot of guys that that bridge that yeah that gap. you know There's not a lot of the old schooler guys left.
00:44:21
Speaker
And when, so i I met, ah so Paul, who who's kind of the head the head of, i don't know, you technically call him like a sort of a creative director, like head of production there and under Marty.
00:44:34
Speaker
I had met him at like a Monsterpalooza or something and and we were chatting. And then when he came and started actually relaunching Amigo proper, I reached out and I said, you know, like I, Mego fan, it's kind of one of those things, you know, like want to you know, I want to work for ILM, you know, I want to, don't know, like write a comic book. You know, you kind of have this like career checklist. It's like, I want to sculpt a Mego action figure.
00:44:59
Speaker
And so then he was like, you John, can you sculpt a Rocketeer? And it was like, yeah, I love the Rocketeer. Of course I can sculpt Rocketeer, ah but I do digital. And that was still early enough where that wasn't as, it wasn't as accepted as it was here. So I got i got into three d printing.
00:45:17
Speaker
like a little bit before it kind of went mainstream and it just happened yeah because ah I got hired at a boutique printing agency back when like there were no there there were but there were super crude home printers and this this agency was doing like super high fidelity very early on and there was some transition there because it was kind of before people knew that there were printers that could print well. Everyone was still used to that, um, what do you call it? It's like, know, like ratcheting along the sides.
00:45:48
Speaker
And so, because for a long time, up until that point, people were digitally sculpting, but the fidelity of clay and wax was substantially better than you could get in 3D prints. And that's what I really had to push across where it wasn't, it wasn't, don't like be afraid of this. Like it's, you know, it was, this can be as good as you think it can be.
00:46:10
Speaker
And it was another one of those things. It was like with the creature claw, you know, you know, let me prove it to you. Like, I'm just going to do this. You know, here's what I would charge. I'm just going to do it. And I'm going to send it to you.
00:46:20
Speaker
And a, Hey, like, if you like it, like then pay me and we'll go forward. And I sent, um there wass like It was like a vampire head that never got produced.
00:46:31
Speaker
And that was one of the first things I'd done. And I just had a little home printer, a little resident home printer, and I sent it to... to ah can't i god i can't remember the woman's name who I'd sent it to, and who was there at the time.
00:46:45
Speaker
But her and Paul emailed me, and they were like... I didn't even know these prints could look this good. You know, it was this like, ah. And then they they started to see this because they were still doing like the 8-inch and the 14-inch. And the they used be like sculpt an 8-inch head, sculpt a 14-inch. You know, now it's like you sculpt an 8-inch head and you can scale it to 14 inches, 24 inches,
00:47:08
Speaker
three inches And so it was like, okay, then I'm in. I've proven that this is um a usable concept. But then it was also like, how how am I going to help them figure out this digital pipeline next? You know, like sending 3D files factory direct. You know, I still had to make extra prints because one had to be painted for photography. And then they had other artists that they started training up on 3D. And then, you know sometimes I would be fixing...
00:47:38
Speaker
issues with with those sculpts. And I would 3D scan some of their, like, legacy sculpts and tidy those up. So, because this was all actually during COVID. And there was one week, i mean i I think I can tell this, i don't i don't know, like...
00:47:54
Speaker
One week and the factories were, you know, over in China, factories were being shut down. there were it was really a ah very touch and go there. And ah Paul was like, can you sculpt four heads this week? Like we have a window.
00:48:11
Speaker
that we have to get in the thing. Can you do these four heads this week? And so it was like Monday do one, Tuesday do one, Wednesday to do one, Thursday one, and like email the files off because that was the factory window. And it was the same thing where he was like, hey, like we need to get tease these legacy sculpts made as 14-inch figures. i got what What do I do? was like, I'll 3D scan them. I'll fix them up. We can just send them right away. and So it all had to happen really fast just by necessity. So it's the factory's like, all right, here's your window. if you miss this window, it's going maybe six months before we get another one. Yeah. And so they were, it was, we we met each other at a mutually beneficial time where I was already familiar with this pipeline and they needed to learn it because of what was going on in the world at the time.
00:48:57
Speaker
And now they're all digitally sculpted. But the Rocketeer, if you look back, the Rocketeer is the first digitally sculpted Mego. Wow. Yeah. And that's a good looking Mego. I remember when that came out. I i can remember seeing it. was like like on a silver card, I think. Silver card back. I was so proud of that.
00:49:12
Speaker
ah still yes so I am. I loved the Rocketeer. That Mego relaunched, like around the time when we had Marty on and you know, when when you were there doing that work, I mean, some of those figures that were coming out at that time, like, especially like the Hammer Horror ones.
00:49:28
Speaker
um Yeah, I did a couple of those. came out Yeah, like the the the Mummy was, I think that was one of yours, right? like you did Yeah, that was one of mine. yeah Yeah, and I did the Phantom of the Opera and I did the Gorgon, which they swapped out and they said, we did it, and then they found out, we took photos of it, and then I guess they found out it wasn't actually in their contract.
00:49:54
Speaker
And which worked out really well for me because I originally, I thought they said, sculpt Gorgon. And so I made kind of this traditional yeah um you know, like Greek in Gorgon. And then he was, they called there like, no no, no, like actually we need, it's this Gorgon. And then when that one got canceled, um the people, you know, it's like Joel and Paul and some of those guys actually had really loved the head I did of my Gorgon, like mine. yeah And so then Paul's like,
00:50:22
Speaker
send me that head like they all love it so we're we're just going to do that one so that's one of my favorites because it's one of those times where it's like I actually got to design it is it just came out of my head and then it's on amigo figure like that's like that's the check mark you know and you designed a very good looking steak if I remember correctly um like i did so I did so many accessories for Mego as well. There was like 30 heads and I don't know how many accessories, but there was, could be one of those quick things because was a quick sculptor. You know, like follow guy. Can you do Chucky's knife? Like when?
00:51:04
Speaker
Now? Like today? You know, can you can you do can you do a trinut? When do you need it? i mean Right now. so it was I like it. Yeah, exactly.
00:51:18
Speaker
The thing every creative loves to hear. I needed yesterday. Make it pop, make it 30% bigger. And I needed it yesterday. Yeah. And make it yesterday. But I like working like that. It's actually, it's it's fun for me. You know, there's like the whole visual effects industry is kind of like that.
00:51:34
Speaker
Like there's no, everything is an emergency. yeah So this isn't that much different from that. You know, it's just how I've always worked. Yeah. And it's fun.
00:51:46
Speaker
So, you know, you've you've worked with companies that work with all these different licenses, you know, like, you know, kind of all over the place, you know, shifting your creative you necessity, right? Like ah to to brands like like Disney, where you have just kind of more of a like a broad, like family oriented ah yeah deliverable. what what What's the difference you know working with somebody where you know you kind of have this more open-ended, far-reaching, broad appeal versus something that's a little more like targeted?
00:52:19
Speaker
it's I've been very fortunate where it's it's very similar. Like sculpting a Disney character versus sculpting, you know, like the Phantom of the Opera or some horror character. There's, ah you know, it's it's similar in the in the sense that, like, there are so guides you have to follow and guidelines. And there's still approval processes at companies like Paragon FX Group. You know, that's...
00:52:42
Speaker
ah that's um ah that is like a meticulous eye. So whether it's something from a horror film, a sci-fi film, a Disney film, it's that same level of let's break this down and get every detail as accurate as possible. And so like the process stays the same, you know, and and our customer base is is pretty much the same. If it was selling to to children, it would be different. And it's different for a lot of reasons too, because when you start selling to children, there's different, um like different,
00:53:11
Speaker
um Gosh, and it's the the word's escaping me. There's just different like safety standards. You have to get through different safety testing, different safety standards. yeah you know and But for adults, you know you don't have to...
00:53:25
Speaker
worry, like morally worry, or really legally worry about, you know, this is so small, a kid could choke on it, or this could break and cut a child, you know, so I never had to worry about that. And that was also by design, like, that's one of the things i don't want to worry about, you know, even though wouldn't I'd feel really bad if I made something that broke and like stabbed a kid, you know, a sharp thing, or it was just like, I don't need that on my conscience. So yeah this kind of targeting adults, know,
00:53:53
Speaker
really frees you from that. and And it's really nice. But on the flip side, adults are way more particular. and So you have to nail the detail. Yeah. you Adult collectors being particular, like who would have thought?
00:54:06
Speaker
Yeah. That's a... That's one of the first things I remember when I got my first job in the industry and I had done that creature claw and I was so proud of it. And it was just about to come out and the guy who owned the, know, who was running a company, he's like, I'm going to tell you this because I think it's great.
00:54:25
Speaker
Don't go, going be tempted. Do not read reviews of your work. I was like, oh, he's like, just don't, never. He's like, never read. hes and he And he was like an old timer. He's like, I have never read a review of anything I've made.
00:54:39
Speaker
He's like, going to say make you feel bad. So did you follow his advice? I didn't on that one. And that was actually, i was fortunate because was actually pretty universally liked. i sculpted an Archer. Remember the show Archer?
00:54:52
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. I sculpted an Archer action figure and it was going to go into production like it was like it was gonna be a line of six inch action figures. Yeah, but the guy who owns the company at the time wanted to rush and make a San Diego Comic-Con exclusive version. So in turn, he pushed the factory to make a different variation. And like factories are great for replicating, but they're not good for innovating.
00:55:18
Speaker
And so, you know, he went from Archer's classic suit like a tux. But like, I didn't sculpt the tux. You know, the the factory kind of did it and um They added some clunky articulation and it just came out like just not right.
00:55:37
Speaker
And i just people who never even i i i screen captured so many of the really super mean things people said, but like like like ah venomously gnarly like about like It's like the sculpture should be killed and then resurrected and then fired and then killed again. and like like it's just like, yeah this is the worst sculpture of any toy that's ever existed. like Fight me. there's There is no toy. It's not even that bad. And the part about that that sucked so bad was all the things that people hated were the things that weren't in my control.
00:56:14
Speaker
it It was stuff that I had, you know, it was things about like the legs were too narrow. That wasn't me. Like the licensor wanted the legs too narrow. He had really fancy weird shoes that the licensor told me to do that. You know, I didn't design the articulation, all the stuff everyone hated.
00:56:30
Speaker
was yeah from licensing and and production not not like the poor sculptor in the background that's why i feel so bad when people are ripping on stuff in videos that it's not you need toy industry insider knowledge to to know how toys are manufactured but they they place blame on people who aren't the problem and it's like i because i've been on the other side of that it's just like man like it just really it it kind of i mean i've got really thick skin but it does kind of suck and it sucks to be blamed for something you didn't even do oh yeah that's that's a bad feeling no matter what no matter what you do for a living getting getting you know falling yeah know anything sword never never a good time never no good time
00:57:19
Speaker
Well, but it's one of the things always, always. and And I like as somebody who I don't like to think of myself as a toy YouTuber because I don't do like as many reviews as a lot of other toy toy YouTubers do. I do them from time to time, but like not as many.
00:57:38
Speaker
But yeah, like, i you know, some of my peers out there just eviscerate. some of these poor guys for, you know, things that are very out of their control, like from, from like an individual level, like, sure. You want to be mad at the company for the end end product. And, you know, it's not the thing that, that was in the render or like, you know, something softened in production. Like, sure. You could, you could go be mad at the company, but like,
00:58:05
Speaker
Oh, the poor designers and sculptors, man. they they take they You guys take a beating sometimes. On behalf the entire toy blogging journalist space, I apologize on behalf of everybody. Well, thank you.
00:58:20
Speaker
but But speaking of horrors, ah you're you're you're no stranger to horror. We've discussed ah yeah the the work that you've done with Universal Monsters and Mego.
00:58:32
Speaker
And before we get into your new project, there is one thing I wanted to shout out. There is something that we have never talked about that I only realized literally today as I was doing a little bit of last minute research.
00:58:46
Speaker
you One of your real life horror stories was featured on my favorite podcast, Radio Rental. Yeah, yeah, yeah. ah It was. and i think was 30. It was episode 36, think.
00:59:02
Speaker
I love that show. i love that show too. And the the whole thing. It's so funny. that you're the for This is the first time anyone's ever mentioned that. like yeah god i Like i said, I was doing a little bit of just digging to make sure that I had my my ducks in a row. And I totally missed when you posted about this on Instagram.
00:59:24
Speaker
um Yeah, I love that show. And I remember that story. Like I remember. That's so funny. I've listened to every single episode. absolutely love it. And I love like the in-world story of like Terry being off looking for his long-lost wife in the void. Malachi in the void. Uh-huh.
00:59:48
Speaker
ah now Now, yeah, Foxworthy's running it as like a weird tarot card reading guy. Like, I love that show. I listen to it when I go on runs and and workouts and stuff. So um was it just like you submitted a story and like got it on or like, do you have some sort of connection there No, in fact, I didn't submit that at all. If you remember in the in the old episodes, he's moved on, it was Payne Lindsey was always on and doing the, and he was the producer. And I think he created it. I think he created it yeah and produced it.
01:00:19
Speaker
And so I'd written that story and just put it on Reddit. And um I forget where I put it. i just put it on some like, hey, this weird thing happened to Reddit. You know, there's all sorts of stuff like that. Yeah. And because it was, it was weird. And I got, he instant messaged me on through Reddit. He's like, hi, I'm Payne Lindsey. have this podcast. You know, it's called Radio Rental and got Rainn Wilson. ah Do you mind if or not do you mind if, it's do you want to come on and read this story for for the show? And I was already a fan of this. i was like, yeah, yeah i want to do that. And so they sent me all this recording equipment and they call you up and they kind of guide you through, you know, they kind of turn it into a Q&A. So they kind of guide you through the story that you're recording and, you you know, it's it's like a nice setup they send you and then you pack it all back in a bag and mail it over to them.
01:01:12
Speaker
It was a really, really cool experience. That's awesome. Yeah. I mean, like but the experience itself that I wrote about was a little nerve wracking, but the experience of recording the podcast, flawless. very very good.
01:01:27
Speaker
Yeah, I so I went to a for previous job. I was doing a podcast for that company um and they sent me to like a podcast conference. They're like, hey, this is really good. Go be better at it. Right. And they they paid for me to go to Florida to go to a podcast conference.
01:01:46
Speaker
And Payne was one of the speakers there and he hadn't launched Radio Rental yet. It was that first show. I think Up and Vanished was was his like first like big. I think that was his first. Yeah.
01:01:58
Speaker
And sort of like investigative journalist podcasting and so pseudo horror, you know, true crime type of thing. But yeah he he was one of like the keynote speakers there, and it was this like small room, and there were there there weren't that many people there listening to him, and I was just like enamored, because I was already a fan. and like I was actually um in the seat, because I really wanted to be there for the the next ah the next guy speaking, and I was trying to like camp out the seats. interesting. I was for Aaron Mankey, for Lore. Oh, yeah. I'm a big fan of Lore.
01:02:35
Speaker
Yeah, so he was he was like the next speaker, and I was like, i do not want to miss him. This room is going to fill up. im I've been to New York Comic Con before. I know how to camp in a seat. And and it just so happened that Payne was right before him and totally like blew my doors off. I was like, this is incredible. I'm going to listen to everything this guy does from here on ah out. And then like Radio Rental shortly followed, and...
01:02:58
Speaker
Yeah, it's it's literally like when they're in between seasons, I like don't know what to do with myself. I know I define substitutes in between. Yeah. So I'm glad they're back on now.
01:03:10
Speaker
Yeah, I am too. From one podcast to another podcast. Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely love that. But um yeah, I can't believe you were on that. that i That was something I found out today and I had to bring it up because, oh my God, it's just the best. Yeah. It's it's so funny, I can't actually remember what, I always think it's up episode 33, but it's not, actually, let me look, it's the, which episode was that? It was 36, and if anyone is interested in listening, the there's only two per per issue, but our mine was called Storage Unit. and I think it was the first one, because the other story on that one's actually pretty creepy.
01:03:49
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. And they're they're usually like pretty well themed, like the sort of kind of same vibe for each story. but yeah, if you like horror, listen to that podcast. It rules.
01:04:01
Speaker
Yeah, I guess I would you have to do like a a trigger warning because there's a like potential animal violence in my story. So just but but before you go over, if you want to listen, finish listening to this and then go check out Radio Rental episode 36.
01:04:18
Speaker
Yes. And speaking of horror, Jason Universe.
Reintroducing Horror Classics
01:04:23
Speaker
So the the icon of of New Jersey fictional horror, ah you know, there there has been a lot of things happening with the license and murkiness. And we're finally moving forward with the launch of of Jason Universe. So tell us a little bit about how you got involved in that and when what you're doing to kind of help ah relaunch Voorhees.
01:04:49
Speaker
It was one of those times where, of those very rare times when two things I know I can do ah collided. I know I can do merchandise and toys on on the approval process. And I'm just a huge, like,
01:05:05
Speaker
yeah like back to the 30s era horror fan. And so when this opportunity came up, because it is, it's basically the relaunch of Jason Voorhees. Because, you know, it was with Warner Brothers, then there was the lawsuit, and everything was just sort of kind of murking in the middle, and there wasn't much of stuff being made. Because a lot of times when licenses end up like that, you know, there's not really...
01:05:28
Speaker
Like no one can really license at that point because there's still this legal battle of, well, who actually has the rights to do that? That's been all cleared. you know there's There is a path forward. you know kind i kind of say you know like I'm and but essentially a consultant, and so I'm i'm heavily NDA'd. So I'm going to try to be say say what I can while still being careful and respectful of that.
01:05:50
Speaker
But there is, like, they have a plan. You know, they're Jason isn't being forgotten. hes He's being taken into this next era of media, you know, for new fans. You can try to do this, you know, with Crystal Lake is announced,
01:06:09
Speaker
And that that'll be coming out at the end of this year, the prequel series. Yeah, October. Yeah. And they're going to have, they have other plans that I can't talk about. But every, I i believe, and I'm not just saying this as, i mean, I'm not a spokesperson for the company, but from what I know, i feel like the fans of this franchise are going to be really happy with what's coming. And hopefully, it's going to pull new fans in. Because there hasn't been a Jason movie since...
01:06:37
Speaker
I believe 2009 when they did that remake. Yeah. The, the, yeah, the remake with, I think that was Tyler Bates. If I remember. yeah ah I believe so. I'm, I'm, I always blank on his name.
01:06:51
Speaker
Yeah. And I, I, Is it Tyler Maine? Tyler Maine. That's right. Yeah, no, I was like, the Tyler part's right. I couldn't remember his last name. yeah But um was it Tyler Maine? No, it was ahric Derek Mears. Yeah, Derek Mears. Yeah, the stuntman. and so, you know, like horror has changed since then. You know, and so I think i think it's goingnna be it's going to be good. like I'm excited. I'd be excited even if i wasn't working with them.
01:07:19
Speaker
So, because i'm I'm a big Jason fan. Who isn't? The first horror movie I rented a Jason... I think it was it was one with Corey Haim, part four.
01:07:30
Speaker
Yeah. And I was, like, way too young. I kept bugging my dad about it because it was, like... trying to act bigger than I was, you know, because you go to the video store and you walk by and there's the VHS tape with like the hockey mask and the lights going through it. And I was, you know, I'd be like, dad, you're going to let me rent Friday the 13th. know, just knowing in my heart, I would be safe because he would say no.
01:07:53
Speaker
And then yeah one day he was just so sick of me asking. He's like, yeah, let's get it. And it was kind of one of these, yeah, I don't really, but it was, you know, there's an old story about like dads who catch their kids smoking and then make them smoke a pack till they get so sick they don't want to do it again. It was essentially like the VHS version of that. And it's like, no, you've been asking for this. So you're going to watch it.
01:08:17
Speaker
way too young, take like ruined. And then I had to go to summer camp that year and there was like swim tests and it was just like muddy like the lake, you know, was all brown and gross and cold. i mean, it's just all bad. but ive I've been to the camp where the original Jason was filmed, Camp Noby Bosco here in in ah in New Jersey. I've always wanted to check it out.
01:08:42
Speaker
Because they do screenings sometimes, don't they? Like they'll open it up for a screening once in a while. I've heard it's like, it's very, because private property and they're very much, you know, don't come see Crystal Lake. But then I've heard they do events where they do welcome the horror community and people out there.
01:08:57
Speaker
So they'll do Friday the 13th. Like when Friday the 13th rolls around, they'll they'll do tours. They usually do like midnight like tours. um It is an active Boy Scout camp. Like it's it's it's an active like – Is that wild? Yeah.
01:09:12
Speaker
um so Supposedly, like, so there are hiking trails here in New Jersey that go through it. So you're on a hiking trail, some of them will meander and it's like, oh, I know where I am.
01:09:23
Speaker
um Supposedly, there are rumors. I don't know if these are are true, but supposedly the mechanism that was used to, what like, launch prop Jason out of the lake is, like, still very much so buried in the lake. Like, it's still, like, there. They just left it.
01:09:41
Speaker
which blows my mind um i also believe that one of the cabins has like a jason like display in it for as like a you know has some pieces and props and things in it but oh that's cool More recently, I actually got to see some filming of Crystal Lake because they were back in New Jersey. They filmed a bunch of it in New Jersey. So I got to see the the like 70s, like, you know, Crystal Lake, ah you know, cop cars and things like like it was it was really cool. i didn't get it. I didn't get to see Linda Cardellini on. I love her. I love her so much.
01:10:21
Speaker
she's so great. I'm very excited. i'm i am very, very excited for that that show. like yeah i mean Even if I wasn't attached to the company, just her being in it would just give me faith. like i love I've loved every single thing she's done.
01:10:35
Speaker
Yeah. um And Pamela Voorhees is a, is a tremendously underrated slasher. I mean, she's, she's totally tremendously underrated and yeah to get her to, to, to see her at a at a younger age, potentially as unhinged as we saw her in the first installment of the film.
01:10:56
Speaker
Um, Yeah, honestly, i'm i'm I'm very, very excited. And you we we talked you know previously ah you know before we started rolling here that um you know as we're recording this, we're we're a little bit ah ahead of licensing expo, but the Jason Universe folks did put out a, um you know through Striker Entertainment, put out a press release um Giving some some some insight into some of the things we might be you know expecting you know from gaming and toys. yeah they They dropped names like, obviously, Jason will be back in Fortnite, which is exciting for a lot of people. Fortnite Mares is always the thing that I look forward to most in that game every year.
01:11:36
Speaker
But um the thing I think that surprised a lot of people wasn't the like NECA, Funko, Mondo, you know, ah handmade by robots, like those companies that make things like for collectors. And we've you know seen the incredible pieces that NECA has done over the years, especially. But I think the thing that that people got people talking was in the toys category. So like Jazwares, Jaxx,
01:12:03
Speaker
Brick Crab, Basic Fun, Well-Played Toys. like Some of these companies that make like the blind box, blind bag type experiential stuff that you know isn't always marketed towards collectors and is like, um we're getting Jason toys, which is i mean, I'm all for it. ah but i yeah Yeah, I mean, I am too. you know That the brand is headed in that direction.
01:12:30
Speaker
It just, it shows sort of the evergreenness of that brand. And Jason, i mean, a lot of the 80s slashers have too, but Jason's kind of taking that that path that, um you know, they they tried to they tried to do it with Freddy Krueger in the 90s when they, when they he he's still scary, but he's accessible because kids are older now. He's hilarious. Yeah. You know, and and it's, you know, like I, I, I used this story story as an example of that where I was years ago, i was in line and there's a girl in front of me and she had shorts and she had this big creature from Black Lagoon tattoo on her calf and it was beautiful.
01:13:16
Speaker
And I commented and I said, you know, that's that's a really nicely done tattoo. And she's like, thanks. And I kind of said something, you know, like I love the, you know, the creature Black Lagoon. It's, one of my favorite classic films. And then she looks at me, she's like, yeah, one day I should probably watch it.
01:13:31
Speaker
And it's like, that's that was that was such an ah odd, it was an odd response, but it just showed how that character's design Transcended film, you know, it was just sort of this girl. It's just this cool i mean she's clearly like a monster girl, you know, but she uh Just the design was cool enough to have it put on your skin as this like underwater prehistoric thing and like the hockey mask iconography is very much the same, you know like you can see that hockey mask and And I would say, you know, depending on, like, where you're standing, you see a picture a hockey mask, you know, you ask 10 people, ah yeah some of them are going to say Jason Borges before they default back to goalie.
01:14:20
Speaker
Oh, yeah. You know, it's it's just become this iconic thing. And so, and it's still love. People still love it And I'm really kind of flattered that I get to be part of essentially like reintroducing it like a generation has passed since the last film yeah so there's a whole new generation of people that this is going to be new for and the thing that i really like about seeing some of these brands in that like and again i'll i'll say for those of listening i'm i'm heavily air quoting like toy category right like we grew up in a time where xenomorphs
01:15:00
Speaker
were so not appropriate for children, but made some really killer toys. um Made some great toys. Like there there has been a long line of sci-fi and horror properties that transcend from the inappropriate again air quotes inappropriate for children on the from the source content into just fun toys like really good toys and to your point like jason's iconography has certainly transcended that the same way that like you know people walk around with the misfits shirt you know with that fiend on it like it's just it's and yeah and probably have never heard a misfit song um you know my my daughter or they don't know what the crimson ghost is
01:15:45
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. exactly Exactly. It's like double, double and incentive. Yeah. um Yeah. Or the ah the the other Misfits logo that they pulled off of the cover of, i think it's Chris Star, Marvel's Chris Star number eight.
01:16:03
Speaker
Oh, yeah. danic yeah The Danzig skull, yeah yeah, that they pulled off that. like No one knows where that's from, you know unless you're like Christar in the 80s. It's kind of become a more known thing. But yeah, I'm always shocked with people who walk around with Misfits shirts and have no idea that that fiend is, you know at this point, 80 years old. I think i think that serial was in the 40s. He's like universal classic monster.
01:16:32
Speaker
era and yeah yeah there's like this is just a it's this is a misfit shirt what are you talking about like you like i'm the crazy one you're like the old old man crimson cri who's the crimson ghost yeah yeah he's not red oh yeah yeah yeah but like you know my daughter 10 years old She knows what what Jason Voorhees There were kids last year in her Halloween parade that have definitely never seen a Jason film or God, I hope they haven't. um You know, at at nine, but like totally. I stuff is Jason for Halloween. And like, like.
01:17:07
Speaker
Yeah, it's it's time to get him back on the screen. i know like people have like wish lists of things that they want to see, especially yeah yeah he's near and dear to us us New Jerseyans.
01:17:20
Speaker
um But the one thing that i I still hope, now that the license has you know is figured out, and like you said, there's a path forward. um And I know I'm not trying to get any information out of you. I'm just using this as as an opportunity to say the the one thing I have always wanted to see in a Jason movie. One thing.
01:17:37
Speaker
New Jersey, we have great summers. We have great lakes. We have great camping. We have really great winters too. And the one thing that I would love to see at some point is like a winter hiking excursion in that happens to wander into like a frozen like a winter camp. bla ah
The Importance of Authenticity in Collectibles
01:17:57
Speaker
ah but That would be very cool. Like, come on.
01:18:01
Speaker
And especially, like I'm such a fan of winter horror. You know, like The Thing, or ah even like The Hateful Eight, which is kind of like a hybridized horror. You know, like nothing is better than, because it's just that, like those movies that make you feel cold when you're watching them. And so you go kind of go back to like those October nights, you can like wrap yourself up, and like you're cold, it's cold outside, you're watching the cold.
01:18:27
Speaker
it's ah It's a whole different feeling. It's like a whole different vibe and it's scary. The winter is scary. Yeah. And there's a lot of hiking that happens in New Jersey in the in the winters here. Like it's, it's, it's a thing that like, and well, mean, you're in, you're in Oregon, you you know, know how winter outdoorsy people like to do winter outdoorsy things. um Oh yeah. Yeah.
01:18:50
Speaker
it's to me it's a it's a no-brainer and i and i know like from like a production standpoint shooting like first of all finding somewhere that looks like new jersey in the winter guaranteed to have snow and like it's there's a lot there's a lot you probably have to build a new jersey in canada yeah i don't yep yep where did they film they film lot of stuff and like in in toronto right i always see like the at the end of the movies like the like yeah thank you you know toronto film board or whatever and i just think it was so funny where it was like movies that are supposed to take place in la like in hollywood and then at the at the end you see that like filmed in vancouver they just rebuilt it was just easier to rebuild los angeles in vancouver than it was to shoot in los angeles
01:19:41
Speaker
So the one thing about Jason that I wanna ask you, and again, this isn't, this has nothing to do with announcements or anything, but like when you think of a great like product, like a great Jason collectible, something from that universe, like what are the, to you, the most important things about, you know, getting that right? Like what what makes a really great Jason Voorhees Friday the 13th collectible?
01:20:10
Speaker
It's I believe i this always this kind of sounds followed but it's it's sincere. There is that every Jason is distinctly different.
01:20:22
Speaker
There are differences and there and some are incredibly subtle and some are incredibly obvious. And so just paying just due diligence to the Jason that you're representing, even when you go and do like the retro game Jason's or things like that, like the new Jason has some some subtle like very distinct subtleties, you know, the part Well, but like the part two, Jason, is still has the bag with the eye cut out, but like the yeah the part three mask, the four mask, the five mask, you know, it's like the Roy mask, all these different little things are, and I'm actually, one thing I love, i mean, of course, i i mean I co-founded a company to make these, I love one-to-one prop replicas.
01:21:02
Speaker
And so like something, you know, like you get those just and sometimes like the the fans will do them where they'll make them ah and they're just, they look they look like you've just reached into the screen and pulled it out. like I love stuff like that. You know, it's again, like behind me, it's hard to see, but I got like a Luke Jedi lightsaber, Blade Runner blaster, some Batman stuff back there.
01:21:24
Speaker
Anything that kind of makes you feel like like you have walked into the movie, that's the stuff that really gets me excited. And like, I love it. i Like, don't get me wrong. Like, I love a Nekatoy. Like, i I don't have a bunch of...
01:21:40
Speaker
You Funko Pops, but like i enjoy that form factor. I have one, have like a Robbie the Robot up there. Like there's obvious things to enjoy, but the stuff that I really love most is that stuff that feels in-universe. Because that's what we're all trying to do. Like I think that's why we buy toys. Like that's why we talked earlier. It's like I had my Star Wars toys, these little five point of articulation pieces of plastic.
01:22:02
Speaker
that roughly represented actors, but it took you in-universe. You know, you were in Star Wars. You were on Bespin. That's just the adult evolution of that.
01:22:16
Speaker
is like, I can put this on, I can hold this. you know and And for most of us don't have the disposable income to go to like a prop store auction and actually buy the real thing. Yeah. so yeah One of the things that has been on on my list for a long time is a a i would love a one-to-one scale, like part three mask. Like from when he first gets it for the first time, you know before he's got the you know the the slash in it, like the pristine mask.
01:22:45
Speaker
Oh, what's the name of the guy that that he gets it from? <unk> a The guy, like that that prankster. they can call it like feel like because They keep saying his name, so he keeps annoying everyone. ah Like, if I wasn't on the spot, I would remember it.
01:23:03
Speaker
Is this part three your favorite? Yeah. Yeah. And I, it's, it's killing me that I can't, I can't remember the name of it. And I'm going to have, I'm going to have to look it up while we're i know or it's worth talking about it.
01:23:18
Speaker
and
01:23:20
Speaker
uh they keep saying that it's on the tip of it's on the tip of my my tongue too and it's gonna kill me as soon as they see that i want to say it's like reggie or jesse or something like that but that's it's like an e at the end but i can't think uh i can't think of the rest of it i think it's so annoying it's so annoying in that movie Yeah.
01:23:44
Speaker
I've always loved part seven. Part seven's sort of been my, and that's like no one's favorite, but i I love that one with the girl who's telekinetic. Oh, yeah. i Well, that's i just me. It's funny. Like my favorite Jason mask is part three. And that's my favorite movie just because love the weird like 3D gimmick. And like if you can find the version of it that you can watch with the um with the Anaglyph glasses like Shelley Shelley.
01:24:13
Speaker
Yeah, I was I was cool. um Yeah, the E part I got. I couldn't remember the yeah the first two thirds. Part seven, which is basically a superhero movie.
01:24:24
Speaker
um Yeah. That's actually my favorite look of Jason. Like the way he, the like zombie Jason in that. He looks so scary in that movie.
01:24:35
Speaker
It's, it's perfect. And I mean, that's my, my favorite version of him. Like, that's what I have on display. Like the NECA figure
Horror Movie Fandom
01:24:42
Speaker
from part seven and the way that they did the the mask that like can come apart in two and it,
01:24:49
Speaker
It's and the chain, the like broken chain hanging around the neck. And it's just like that's that's like zombie. ja Like to me, there's two. There's there's three different versions of Jason. There's set of Jason. There's part three Jason with the the hockey mask. And then there's zombie Jason. And that's like, yeah, there's indestructible Jason. Yeah. Part seven takes Manhattan where he looks like he's covered in like tar the whole movie. Like, yeah.
01:25:15
Speaker
Even that one, I have such a soft spot for that. And part seven has my favorite kill, though. it has the sleeping bag kill, which they big like, they parody that one in Jason X when and they do they put him in like the the hollow chamber.
01:25:27
Speaker
Yeah, the virtual reality thing. And he yeah like immediately knows what to do. Yeah, and he's just hitting one sleeping bag with the other sleeping bag. It's the best. And that movie doesn't get enough credit, too. You know, i Uber Jason...
01:25:42
Speaker
It doesn't. That was one of my favorite actual theater experiences. I went and saw that at like the midnight opening screening. And you're just there with diehard fans. And so everyone's like, everyone's laughing at the absurd and like cheering at the kills, you know, and there's such an energy there. And it was so fun. You know, I've gone to, you know, it's like going to Star Wars on opening days where you're just there with people who really want to be there. So they're cheering at all the right moments, laughing at the right moments. you know sometimes people are like even crying at moments yeah and every but everyone is you're just it's community you're there with a community of people and it's so fun it's so fun when those things work out and they always seem to work out best in horror movies yep because yeah that was the first one i got to see in theaters personally like that that's the first one i was like old enough to see in theaters
01:26:37
Speaker
I think that was the first one I saw in theaters, actually, also. Oh, wow. Yeah. cause It was an awesome experience. I'll never forget when he dunks the one lady's head in the liquid nitrogen and then shatters it. That is such a great kill that no one... yeah i don't i feel like that's probably the most unappreciated kill in that whole franchise.
01:26:58
Speaker
Yep. Because that is just gnarly. yeah there's There's some gnarly stuff in that movie, like in general. There really is. The whole side story with like the the masochistic, like professor that is getting tortured by his students to get better grades. Like there's a lot of weird. There's a lot going on in there.
01:27:18
Speaker
But that's just what makes it great. You know, that's the thing that we say about horror movies. Like you can be a great horror movie and people love it. and You can be a mediocre horror movie and people love it. can be a bad horror movie and people love it. You know, horror is a great, it's a good, loyal, it's a great genre. I feel so, and I think I always wanted to work in and I never got the the chance really. Like I've worked on horror, ironically, like I've worked on horror product and I've worked on,
01:27:43
Speaker
um I guess even been in visual effects, I worked on a Korean horror film called The Host, which is a big creature film. Great movie. But I didn't get to a ton of horror movie stuff. And so actually getting to kind of be part of this is really, like I said, it's cliche, but it is like a dream come true.
01:28:01
Speaker
That's awesome. Very cool. Well,
Closing Remarks and Tyler's Online Presence
01:28:03
Speaker
Tyler, um you know, thank you so much for taking the time to chat through, you know, your, your extensive career with us, you know, we're, we're excited about, um you know, ah the Jason universe and what's to come and can't wait to see, you know, more of of Jason and and kind of like the Voorhees story. But more importantly, where can remind our listeners, our watchers, where can they keep up with you and all of the, the really cool stuff that you're up to?
01:28:32
Speaker
I mean, everything is linkable off my main site, which is just tylerham.com. And so that's everything from like, businessy stuff that I do to like Substack where I'll write some of these stories like the, you know, um like the radio rental story. You know, like I'll put stuff like that up on Substack. That is a link to my TikTok and Instagram where I'll just put kind of, you know, 90 second Q&As about Toy World. And so everything, everything you'd ever want to know about me is on tylerham.com.
01:29:02
Speaker
Awesome. Yeah, we'll we'll make sure we put a link to that in the in the description. And also, if you are not following ah Tyler on Instagram, his you I love your videos. Those little nuggets of it. Thank you. They're so much fun.
01:29:15
Speaker
um you and And there are so many up there now. Like if you are ah if you are a new follower, there's a lot of really fun content for you to to explore in there. So we'll make sure we put links to that as well.
01:29:27
Speaker
Yeah, I used to be on a really good schedule with that. And then I've sort of fallen off. I'm looking forward to doing it again. Because again, like I didn't want to i didn't want it to turn into like toy influencer stuff. You know, and and so i was kind of trying to keep it, you know, or behind the scenes. And then kind of when we were having the tariff wars explaining how that's impacting toys or telling, you know, weird stories on the set. And so I have actually a kind of a mental plan of how to continue some of that stuff. So I'm excited to get doing those again. I really enjoyed them.
01:29:54
Speaker
Good, good. Yeah, I'm excited to see them. But ah yeah, with that, I usually have i usually have Dave sign us off, but he's not here. And I can't think of a good pun. So um with that, I i think it's it's time to say good evening and... um i
01:30:16
Speaker
Thank you, dear listener, for hanging out with us today. Subscribe, rate, and review us wherever you listen, and then tell your friends to do it. Thanks also to Joe Azari, the golden voice behind our intro. Our music is Game Boy Horror by the Zombie Dandies. Find more about them both in our show notes.
01:30:33
Speaker
Follow us on social media at AIC underscore podcast on Instagram and Twitter. Stop by and say hi. Show us your toy hauls and share your toy stories. Maybe we'll talk about it in a future episode.
01:30:48
Speaker
Don't try this at home. Voidware prohibited in some assembly required. Each sold separately. Not a flying toy. Consult a physician if your toy run exceeds more than four hours.
01:30:56
Speaker
This has been a non-productive media presentation. Executive producer, Frank Hablaui. This program and many others like it on the Non-Productive Network is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives License. Please share it, but ask before trying to change it or sell it. For more information, visit non-productive.com.