Episodes

What's up, dudes? Remember standing in line for hours to get that one toy? Your parents probably did, especially after you sat down and circled all the toys you wanted in the Wishbook? Vinnie Brezinsky from hueyandbax joins me to talk holiday shopping and wishbooks! Malls and shopping and commercials! Oh my! Don't forget to vote for your favorite worst impression! 

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What's up, dudes? Totally Rad Christmas All-Star Thom Crowe from 'Tis the Podcast sits with me to talk his favorite album growing up. Yep! It's the Caroleers and Peter Pan Records. "Santa Claus is Coming to Town?" Check. "Who's That Up On the Roof?" Check. "The Christmas Tree That Ran Away?" Got that one too! But wait! Irwin the Disco Duck tags along too! Don't forget to vote for your favorite worst impression! 

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What's up, dudes? This week I've got Mike and Rusty from the Snow in Southtown podcast talking Will Vinton! Yep, it's the Claymation Christmas Celebration breakdown. We get into the rights issues, the composer, the waffles and waddles. Oh yeah, and the California Raisins come out! Check out the latest episode, and don't forget to vote for your favorite in Gag Me with a Spoon!

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What's up, dudes and dudettes? It's the second mini episode (minisode?)! After every 10 episodes we'll toss in one of these in to keep things fresh and lively. Again we look into Santa's mailbag via S.D. Kluger, take some suggestions, and decide which Christmas movie has the best intro! Oh yeah, there's also a rad '80s Christmas mixtape!!! Check it out!

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What’s up, dudes? I’m joined by the Saturday Morning Mafia to break down the Knight Rider Christmas episode “Silent Knight!” That’s right! Michael Knight, K.I.T.T., bank robbers, a Christmas banquet, and one very talkative Trans Am all collide in a holiday adventure that somehow mixes goodwill, turbo boost, and early-’80s action-TV weirdness.

The episode kicks off with Michael and K.I.T.T. on the way to pick up a tuxedo for the Foundation’s Christmas banquet when they run into a young boy named Tino. Tino has lifted a gold watch from a group of bank robbers, which means he has accidentally made himself the one kid in town who can identify the bad guys. Michael figures out the situation, K.I.T.T. scans the evidence like the world’s coolest rolling detective, and suddenly a simple holiday errand becomes a protection mission.

As the crooks close in, Michael has to keep Tino safe, deal with the local community, and stop the robbers before they can get away. Along the way, K.I.T.T. pulls out the gadgets, Michael does the smooth David Hasselhoff hero thing, and the episode wraps its action plot in enough Christmas spirit to justify the title. Gerry and the Mafia dig into Michael’s backstory, K.I.T.T.’s capabilities, the episode’s very ’80s terminology, and why “Silent Knight” is such a strange but memorable holiday entry in the Knight Rider canon.

Talking cars? Check. Tuxedo errands? Got it. Bank robbers getting outsmarted by a Trans Am with better manners than most people? Definitely! So buckle up, hit turbo boost, protect that pocket watch, and join us for Knight Rider “Silent Knight!”

Christmas Clatter
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The Wonderful World of Nothing

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What’s up, dudes? Making our way the only way we know how, Gerry and Jason Rhodes head down to Hazzard County to talk The Dukes of Hazzard! There are dirt roads, car jumps, Boss Hogg schemes, Rosco confusion, and a Christmas episode with enough Santa suits to make the Boar’s Nest look like the North Pole got pulled over for reckless driving.

In “The Great Santa Claus Chase,” Bo and Luke Duke are hauling a truckload of Christmas trees meant for needy families when Boss Hogg, in full Scrooge mode, hires three crooks to steal the trees and pin the whole thing on the Dukes. The plan is classic Hazzard County nonsense: hijack the truck, make it look like Bo and Luke are thieves, and let the town turn against the family that was actually trying to do something good. Naturally, Rosco and company are chasing the wrong people while the real crooks work the holiday angle.

But this is The Dukes of Hazzard, so the solution involves speed, stunts, disguises, Cooter, and the General Lee doing exactly what the General Lee does best. As the crooks double-cross Boss and multiple people start dressing as Santa Claus, Bo and Luke race to recover the trees, clear their names, and restore Christmas spirit to Hazzard County. It’s country-fried holiday chaos with stolen trees, crooked schemes, CB-radio energy, and enough yee-haw momentum to jump a creek in slow motion.

Stolen Christmas trees? Check. Boss Hogg acting like bargain-bin Scrooge? Got it. Multiple Santas and the General Lee flying through the air? Yee-haw! So grab your bow and arrow, slide across the hood, fire up the CB, and join us for The Dukes of Hazzard!

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 What’s up, dudes? It was December 24th on Hollis Ave in the dark! I’ve got Anthony Caruso from ‘Tis the Podcast with me to talk about the Run DMC classic "Christmas in Hollis"! We get into all of it: lascivious Santa samples, lyrical eggs, synthesized breakdowns, etc.

When Bill Adler asked Run-DMC to contribute to A Very Special Christmas, they refused. The album was a promotional fundraising effort by various artists to benefit the Special Olympics. Adler, the director of publicity for Rush Productions which managed Run-DMC, then gave the band the idea for "Christmas in Hollis." They changed their minds and agreed to be on the album. Rick Rubin helped produce the track, which was also released as a single by A&M in 1987. The track samples Clarence Carter's 1968 Christmas song "Back Door Santa." The musical interlude features classic songs "Frosty the Snowman", "Jingle Bells", and "Joy to the World." The title refers, of course, to Hollis, Queens, the New York City neighborhood where the group were raised.

The music video for "Christmas in Hollis" takes place at the North Pole and in Hollis. At the end of the video, Santa flies away with a dog pulling his sled. Or is it an ill reindeer? The video was directed by Michael Holman with cinematography by Mark Richardson, both NYU film students at the time, and features a cameo appearance by Bannah McDaniels, DMC's adoptive mother. "Christmas in Hollis" went on to win Rolling Stone's Best Video of the Year award in 1987, beating out Michael Jackson's "Bad" directed by Martin Scorsese."

Rhymes so loud, I'm proud you hear it? Check. Jack Frost chillin'? Yep. Is the time now and the place here? Definitely! So grab Santa's wallet, mail it back, and dig in to this episode!

‘Tis the Podcast
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What’s up, dudes? This week Glen Warren from Season’s Eatings and I take a culinary tour through some of the most memorable Christmas meals of the era! They’re talking the Griswolds, the McAllisters, and the Arbuckles, which means dry turkey, cheese pizza, Garfield-level indulgence, and enough holiday food trauma to make your oven nervous. Which meal works best? Which one collapses fastest? Tune in and loosen your belt.

First up, Christmas Vacation turns the holiday table into a full-contact comedy event. Clark wants the perfect family Christmas, but the dinner becomes a parade of disaster: overcooked turkey that basically exhales dust, questionable side dishes, relatives everywhere, and Cousin Eddie adding exactly the wrong kind of ambiance. The food isn’t just food; it’s the punchline to Clark’s impossible dream of controlling the holiday through sheer Griswold determination.

Then Home Alone makes food part of Kevin McCallister’s fantasy of independence. Cheese pizza becomes the spark that sets the whole family meltdown in motion, junk food becomes a kid’s dream dinner, and microwave macaroni and cheese becomes a strangely sacred pre-battle meal before the Wet Bandits arrive. Meanwhile, A Garfield Christmas Special goes full cozy farmhouse with Grandma Arbuckle, family recipes, enormous appetites, and the kind of old-fashioned holiday table that actually does feel like home. Gerry and Glen chew through all of it, from slapstick food failure to sincere Christmas comfort.

Dry turkey? Check. Cheese pizza all for Kevin? Got it. Garfield eyeing every edible object in the room? Definitely! So grab your carving knife, preheat the microwave mac and cheese, save room for Grandma’s cooking, and join us for Christmas Food in Movies, part one!

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What’s up, dudes? Duane from Tinsel Tunes is here with me to talk about the 1984 Christmas mega hit “Last Christmas” by Wham! This catchy tune still holds a spot on most terrestrials radio playlists to this day!

Wham! soared onto the charts in ‘84 with several memorable pop songs when George Michael dreamed about having a Christmas hit. One day, while watching football, the melody came to him. Of course, he ran upstairs to his room to record it his idea, and by the end of the night, he had written a killer tune!

Featuring melodic synths and steady drum machines, the final song competed with Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” for the UK Christmas #1. The music video boasts cinematic scenery, and tells the story of a jilted love. Of course, it ultimately lost the battle for #1, but Wham! donated the proceeds to famine relief efforts anyway. 

Poppy synthesizers? Check. Ugly Christmas jumpers? Got ‘em. Ski resort meet up with your ex and her new boyfriend? Well… so grab your skis, settle in for a cozy Christmas, and jam out to this episode on “Last Christmas!”

Tinsel Tunes
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Townshend Lights

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What's up, dudes? This week I talk the holiday classic "A Christmas Story" with Kristin and Josh Black from Decorator's Warehouse, Texas' #1 Christmas store! Yep, it's Ralphie's quest to get the Red Ryder bb gun! It's bunny suits, and frozen tongues, and bullies! Oh my! Don't forget to check out Gag Me with a Spoon and vote for your favorite! Laters! 

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What’s up, dudes? This week Tim Babfrom Can’t Wait for Christmas and I travel from Krypton to Kansas to Metropolis to talk Superman! That’s right! It’s Christopher Reeve, John Williams, Richard Donner, and enough mythic superhero sincerity to make you believe a man can fly. They deep dive the score, the performances, the origin story, and why this 1978 classic still feels huge, hopeful, and totally cinematic.

The story begins on the doomed planet Krypton, where Jor-El warns the ruling council that their world is about to be destroyed. They ignore him, because apparently even super-advanced space governments have meetings that should’ve been emails. Jor-El and Lara send their infant son Kal-El to Earth, where he lands in Smallville, Kansas, and is raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent as Clark. As Clark grows, he hides his incredible powers, learns humility, suffers the loss of Jonathan, and eventually follows a mysterious green crystal north to discover the Fortress of Solitude and his Kryptonian destiny.

Years later, Clark arrives in Metropolis as a mild-mannered reporter at the Daily Planet, where he meets Lois Lane, Perry White, Jimmy Olsen, and the entire world he’s meant to protect. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor cooks up a real-estate scheme involving missiles, earthquakes, and absolutely zero concern for human life. Superman saves Lois, catches helicopters, stops criminals, battles disaster after disaster, and finally breaks every rule of time and space to undo tragedy. It’s earnest, epic, romantic, goofy, and somehow it all works because Christopher Reeve plays Clark and Superman like two completely different people.

Kryptonian crystals? Check. Farm boy wisdom? Got it. Gene Hackman in an underground lair with Otis and Miss Teschmacher? Absolutely! So grab your cape, warm up the John Williams brass, duck into the nearest revolving door, and join us as we fly around the world with Superman!

Can’t Wait for Christmas
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 What’s up, dudes?  Mike Westfall from Advent Calendar House and I take a trip to Emily Bear's house to visit the Muppets! That's right! We're talking the 1987 special "A Muppet Family Christmas"! We get into obscure cameos, Sam Eagle's one-liners, and more! 

Kermit and the gang travel to Fozzie's mom's house to surprise her for Christmas. Little do they know that Emily Bear has planned a vacation and has rented her house to Doc and Sprocket as an air BnB. The sheer volume has Doc building bunk beds to accommodate the crowds. Fozzie builds the perfect comedic partner snowman, and the Swedish Chef invites a turkey to stay with them in the hopes of cooking him for dinner. After watching a Muppet Babies home video, Gonzo almost gets into a fight with the lecherous turkey. The Sesame Street crew wassails into the farmhouse, and Kermit and Robin pass it on with the Fraggles. When Piggy is caught in a snowstorm, Doc rides to her rescue! Then the annual carol sing ensues!

A "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" play? Check. An Electric Mayhem performance? Got it. A two-headed monster Santa? Yes, but only if the other monsters pull the sleigh! So grab some shredded wheat and cranberry sauce, watch out for the icy patch, and sing along to this episode all about "A Muppet Family Christmas!"

Advent Calendar House
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WWhat’s up, dudes? Is it a hallucination? No, it’s a funny Dickens classic with television executives, tiny antlers, and Bill Murray melting down on live TV! Chris and Kris from Christmas Time in the City join Gerry to talk Scrooged, the 1988 Richard Donner Christmas comedy that turns A Christmas Carol into a screaming, slapstick, late-’80s network nightmare. They get into Frank Cross, the ghosts, the production chaos, and why this movie is both deeply cynical and weirdly sincere.

Frank Cross is the ruthless president of IBC, a television network staging a live Christmas Eve broadcast of A Christmas Carol. Unfortunately, Frank is more interested in fear-based promos, ratings, and corporate power than goodwill toward men. After he fires Eliot Loudermilk for questioning a violent commercial and brushes off his old flame Claire, Frank is visited by the ghost of his dead mentor, Lew Hayward, who warns him that three spirits are coming to save him from becoming the same kind of lonely, unloved creep.

Of course, those spirits are not exactly the polite, candlelit ghosts of a Victorian parlor. The Ghost of Christmas Past is a cigar-smoking cab driver who drags Frank through his lonely childhood and lost love. The Ghost of Christmas Present is a gleefully violent fairy who clocks him with a toaster and shows him the people his selfishness has hurt. Finally, the Ghost of Christmas Future gives Frank a terrifying glimpse of Claire gone cold, Grace’s son institutionalized, and Frank himself headed for a very lonely cremation. Naturally, Frank crashes his own live broadcast, apologizes to everybody, reunites with Claire, and leads the whole studio in “Put a Little Love in Your Heart.”

Network ghosts? Check. Bobcat with a shotgun? Got it. Carol Kane committing holiday assault with household appliances? Definitely! So grab your antlers, cue the live broadcast, staple the little mouse ears on, and join us for this totally rad trip through Scrooged!

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What's up, dudes and dudettes? It's the first mini episode (minisode?)! after every 10 episodes we'll toss in one of these in to keep things fresh and lively. Enjoy the look into Santa's mailbag, the suggestions, and the quick description of a big musical joke from genius composer John Williams!

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What's up, dudes and dudettes? We've got Totally Rad All-Star Danny Davila here to talk about my Christmas present in 1989, Mega Man! He's the Blue Bomber! He's the Super Fighting Robot! Released on December 17, 1987 for the NES, it's a science fiction side-scrolling action platformer about a robot who must defeat the nefarious Dr. Wily! 

In the year 20XX, Mega Man is a robot originally named Rock, created as a lab assistant by the scientist Dr. Light with his partner Dr. Wily. The treacherous Dr. Wily reprogrammed most of Dr. Light's robots, so Rock volunteered to be converted into a fighting robot. Now ready to defend the world from Wily's violent robotic threats, Rock became Mega Man. As the years progressed, Dr. Wily created his own robotic masters, each designed with a specific weapon system. 

Utilizing his Mega Buster arm cannon and his ability to copy the special weapons of the boss robots he defeats, Mega Man traversed harsh environments in order to bring Wily's menace to an end. With the help of his creator Dr. Light and his assorted cybernetic companions, Mega Man's eventual goal is to one day achieve everlasting peace for both humans and robots. 

Robotic dog named Rush? Check. Robotic reindeer? Uh huh. Oh, and yes! the infamous "Dr. Wahwee" pronunciation gets mentioned! Enjoy the Hap, Hap, Happiest Christmas memories, and remember to vote on the best worst impression on our social media sites for an extra special chance to win some Mega Man merch!

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What’s up, dudes? Turn up the boom box! April Ryley and I talk Band Aid’s 1984 charity single “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” It’s a massive ’80s music moment packed with British and Irish pop royalty, big choruses, urgent synths, and more famous faces than a holiday issue of Smash Hits.

Bob Geldof and Midge Ure organized the project to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia, gathering artists such as Bono, Sting, George Michael, Boy George, Phil Collins, Simon Le Bon, and many more. Recorded in London in November 1984 and released just in time for the Christmas charts, the song became a defining charity single and helped set the template for later all-star benefit records.

The episode digs into the voices, the recording, the personalities, the cultural impact, and the complicated legacy of a song that is both undeniably iconic and still widely debated. It’s catchy, huge, very ’80s, and absolutely loaded with moments where you can point at the speakers and say, ‘Wait, is that who I think it is?’

Sting? Check. Phil Collins on drums? Got ’em. Bono belting the line everyone remembers? Oh my! So grab your boom box, cue up the charity single, and sing along to this Band Aid episode!

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What's up, dudes and dudettes? Let's take a trip to Babyland General Hospital with special guest Julia Colburn from 'Tis the Podcast! We talk BunnyBees, Col. Casey, and all things Cabbage Patch Kids! Did you know there was a Cabbage Patch Christmas special? It's pretty bonkers! Oh yeah! Garbage Pail Kids get a mention too! 

The Cabbage Patch Kids are getting ready for Christmas when Xavier Roberts teaches them about Christmas spirit. Desiring to know more about this peculiar spirit, they venture out of the patch to visit the city. As they escape, they run into Lavendar MacDade and her henchmen Cabbage Jack and Beau Weasel! After escaping via Christmas tree (don't ask), they finally make it to the city! Of course, they immediately run into carbon copies of the MacDade gang named Bertha, Gus, and Fingers. The kids find the city full of Santas, carolers, and toys. After a brief bout with traffic, a childless couple helps them out. The husband drops his wallet, and the kids try unsuccessfully to return it.  After running from the pickpockets again, the kids hide in a random house with a lonely girl. Jenny, a handicapped orphan, was left alone for Christmas, decorating a coat roack. The kids know the couple would adopt her and sneak her out. The pickpockets then spot them and chase them into a park. The pickpockets get the wallet, but the police arrive and save the day! The man and woman are so happy that they not only adopt Jenny, but also take Paula Louise with them too! The rest of the kids go home for Christmas, and the next day the man and woman send them all presents. Yay! Happy ending!

Stork caretaker? Check. Adorable little orphan girl? Yup. Two sets of criminal trios? Definitely! So grab your army helmet, run past the waterfall, and find the Christmas spirit with this episode!

‘Tis the Podcast
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What’s up, dudes? Gerry is joined by Michael Christelman from The Wonderful World of Nothing to talk M.A.S.K., the Mobile Armored Strike Kommand toy line that felt like G.I. Joe and Transformers crashed into each other in the best possible way. It was the 5th bestselling action lines of Christmas 1985, and it came loaded with masks, vehicles, secret identities, and V.E.N.O.M. skullduggery.

The magic of M.A.S.K. was the transformation gimmick. Cars became combat vehicles, motorcycles became attack machines, helmets unleashed wild powers, and every kid suddenly needed Boulder Hill, Thunderhawk, Condor, Rhino, and every other piece of Kenner covert-ops plastic they could get their hands on. It was espionage with spring-loaded features and theme-song adrenaline.

Gerry and Michael dig into the line’s place in the ’80s toy ecosystem, its mashup appeal, its Christmas-list power, and the wonderfully strange fact that M.A.S.K. later became folded into G.I. Joe continuity. That’s right: if your childhood carpet battles already crossed the streams, canon eventually caught up with you.

Masks? Check. Transforming vehicles? Got ’em. Matt Trakker joining the G.I. Joe universe? What?! So strap into Thunderhawk, activate Spectrum, and roll out undercover with this M.A.S.K. episode!

The Wonderful World of Nothing

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What's up, dudes and dudettes? By the power of Grayskull, we've got a masterful show here with special guest Thom Crowe from 'Tis the Podcast! We talk all things He-man and She-ra. Skeletor has a crisis of conscience?! Not even! --Even! Enjoy the Hap, Hap, Happiest Christmas memories, and remember to vote on the best worst impression on our social media sites!

What’s up, dudes? By the power of Grayskull, Gerry is joined by Thom Crowe from ’Tis the Podcast to talk He-Man & She-Ra: A Christmas Special! It’s Eternia, Etheria, Earth kids, space shuttles, Christmas spirit, and Skeletor experiencing the most confusing emotional crisis of his entire skull-faced life.

The Filmation special begins with Orko accidentally blasting off in the Sky Spy and crash-landing on Earth, where he meets Miguel and Alisha. Before long, the kids and their Christmas tree are transported back to Eternia, and Horde Prime decides the Christmas spirit is dangerous enough to require immediate villainous intervention. Naturally, Skeletor and Hordak both want the reward.

The joy of the episode is watching the cosmic toy-commercial universe collide with sincere Christmas messaging. He-Man and She-Ra punch through danger, the villains compete, the kids explain Christmas, and Skeletor discovers that warmth, puppies, and holiday goodwill might be harder to resist than Castle Grayskull itself.

Orko in a spaceship? Check. Earth kids stranded on Eternia? Got ’em. Skeletor not being nice or  kind or wonderful? Not even! Even! So raise your Power Sword, hop on Swift Wind, and celebrate Christmas across dimensions with this He-Man & She-Ra episode!

'Tis the Podcast

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What’s up, dudes? Anthony Caruso from 'Tis the Podcast is here for a fantastical journey into Rankin/Bass’s 1985 adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus! It’s Santa origin-story time, complete with immortals, forests, found family, and that particular Rankin/Bass flavor of cozy and bizarre.

Things get wonderfully strange when L. Frank Baum and Rankin/Bass decide Santa Claus needs a full-on fantasy origin story complete with immortal beings, talking animals, ancient forests, and an existential debate about mortality. Gerry and his guest dive into the bizarrely beautiful world of Burzee, where the infant Claus is discovered in the woods by the Great Ak and raised by the wood nymph Necile among fairies, knooks, and creatures that feel more “high fantasy epic” than traditional Christmas special. Along the way, young Claus discovers humanity, becomes obsessed with bringing joy to children, and accidentally invents toys after carving a wooden cat for a lonely child. Naturally, this leads to toy workshops, enchanted paints, magical helpers, and some of the most ambitious worldbuilding Rankin/Bass ever attempted.  

Of course, because this is late-era Rankin/Bass, things eventually escalate from cozy toy-making and snowy forests into invisible demons stealing presents, immortal councils debating Claus’s fate, giant fantasy creatures marching into battle, and Santa Claus essentially earning eternal life through the sheer power of Christmas spirit. Gerry and his guest discuss the special’s darker tone, its gorgeous Animagic puppetry, the haunting “Ora e Sempre” sequence, and why The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus feels less like a normal Christmas special and more like somebody adapted ancient mythology into an ‘80s fantasy movie for kids. So grab your wooden toy cat, harness up Glossie and Flossie, avoid the Awgwas in the forest, decorate your memorial tree, and join us as we explore one of the most ambitious and underrated Rankin/Bass specials ever produced. 

Forest of Burzee? Check. Immortals debating Santa’s fate? Got it. Toymaking as mythic destiny? Absolutely! So grab your wooden lion, follow the nymphs, and journey into this Life and Adventures of Santa Claus episode!

'Tis the Podcast
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