Deep Dive
Shownotes Transcript
Hello, Rammies. Hello, Lammies. Lammies. That is true. We're back with our little babies. With our babies. We appreciated all of the people that wrote in. Yes. Our Patreon. Yes. Because remember, that is a perk of Patreon. You get to choose episodes. So we appreciated all of the subjects that you guys thought about. It's so much better when you guys suggest it because then I know you want to know about it. Exactly. You know? Exactly. Yeah. Happy Thanksgiving week. Happy Thanksgiving week.
Tess, what's your favorite Thanksgiving food? Stuffing. Same. I don't find it that often. It's just like I will always choose the carb out of every meal. Of course. Like over a meat or over even like an appetizer or dessert. I just want like bread. Same. Although dessert is right up there for me, but the bread.
Yeah, just like anything that's like toasted and soaked in something. Like bread and butter, honestly. Bread and butter. You don't need anything. Bread and butter is my bread and butter. Do you put any gravy or cranberry sauce on your stuffing? Cranberry sauce is hit or miss for me. Really?
Gravy. I like gravy on my mashed potatoes. So yeah, I guess I do like, I would just sprinkle gravy over everything. Me too. Salty. Oh, I love it. I like, I'm one of those mixers for the Thanksgiving food. Oh, okay. Got it. I don't need to keep it separate. Here's a question for you. What time do you start Thanksgiving activities? And please take me through the journey. Well, Thanksgiving activity. I know. Just say it. I do run on Thanksgiving.
This is like a very tough point in mine and Tess's relationship. But I have to say, I so usually Claire and I fight about like working out on Thanksgiving because I'm like families that do that are crazy. Why do you need to do it?
But then last year I went to a row class on Thanksgiving. Oh, you did? I did. I don't know if I even told you. I don't think you hit that part of yourself for me. I think I probably did because I was like, am I a hypocrite? And then I was like, do I like working out on Thanksgiving? What do you think? What was the verdict? I think I do because it's such a day of like you're just inside cooped up for most of the day. And it's not about like how much you're going to eat.
eat. I think like that's what sometimes bothers me of like Americans of like we have to do this so that we can like feast. That narrative is so sick. And that is like what is often the narrative. Truly. And so I think that was my judgment over a lot of families like going on a run together because I was like, why today? Like, right. But I now understand that like it just feels good to like get some movement in before you're just in the kitchen for 12 hours. That's literally what it is. It just feels good to be outside. Yeah.
Totally. Yeah. I apologize. Yes. I accept it. And I welcome you to this journey. And if you don't want to run on Thanksgiving, more power to you. Who gives a shit? I don't know why I had such anger towards it. Someone in my past life really fucked me over. That's what it was. That's what it was. Maybe I died working out on Thanksgiving. Oh, possibly. That could explain everything. I think that's what it was. Yes. But continue. After that, I watched...
I am a tradition person. And if you check that out on our Patreon, it's because of one of the signs in my chart, we realized that. - It sure is. - It's a nostalgia, but I always watch the parade.
And I always watch the dog show. I've never watched anything on Thanksgiving. Really? Well, okay. So also, I'm not sitting down and watching. I am some of it, but it's more on the background while you're cooking. Got it. Okay. The dog show, football, the Cowboys always play on Thanksgiving. Cute. I used to always watch an episode of Thanksgiving Friends. Oh.
I know. It's a long day, I guess. But then we eat dinner around five or six. Okay. That's like same with us. Yes. We don't have your day. We just don't have like that. I mean, I guess last year, which we might do again, we did go to a row class and then followed by just a little cleaning of the house, starting to cook. One year we went to the movies, which used to be- On Thanksgiving? Yeah. You at the time? Was it before or after? Before.
I feel like we went to like a matinee show. I think this was one year where my brother was gone and like everyone else was gone because we usually have my mom and my brother and then like people that are left in the city that don't go back home. Yes. So like in the past, we've had a couple of family friends. Then we'll have a few of Adrian's friends, a few of my friends, and that's what's happening this year. Love that. But the year is just my mom and I think we were like, fuck it, let's go see a movie. I love that. And I think we like even we ordered from somewhere and it was just like really nice. So it's pretty casual. Changing it up. Changing it up. I love that. But yeah, we don't eat in the city.
until five or six, I think as well. I mean, Corey, literally the other, I don't know if I told you this. I think I did yesterday. Actually, I asked him, I was like, what time should we eat this year? Like five or what time do you think? And he was like, I don't know, four. And I was like, we are not those people. We do not eat at four. And I freaked out on him. And he was like, why did you even ask?
He's like, it's literally an hour before you suggested. He's like, don't ask questions you don't want the answer to. Yeah, but we just like to keep them on their toes. We do. They're like, uh-huh. Just shaking. Listen to this.
So yeah, we usually do five or six. I will never understand people who eat at like 11. It is confusing to me. It scares me. Holiday traditions are fascinating. They are. So let us know what time you guys eat. That can be a good place to start. Yes. And let us know if you work out on Thanksgiving. Yes. Because people can change and people can be more empathetic, as I have learned.
We're always learning. We're always growing here. We are. Yeah, we are. But anyway, today we're going to be giving you a quick, quick whammy. We're going to be in and out. We're going to talk about something that I feel it pains me when I think of this place. Because it pulls on your heartstrings. It pulls on my heartstrings. And it is just a reminder that times are so different. I know. In great ways, but also in ways that it's just like...
It's upsetting a little bit. It's a little upsetting. So that would be the one, the only Blockbuster. Our old pal. So I'd like to start out, Claire, by asking you, do you remember the first time you went into Blockbuster? No, I definitely don't remember the first time I went into Blockbuster. Yeah.
I was probably like a baby, but I remember. That is true. We used to go every Sunday, and I would always beg to rent Cats, the musical on Broadway, and I would fall asleep within the first five minutes every time. My mom's like, I'm not renting this for you anymore. Not again. So that's a big Blockbuster memory for me. Do you remember your first time in Blockbuster? Yeah.
I don't remember my first time, but my dad's office in downtown Palo Alto was above Blockbuster. Tell this, Tess. Tell it. And he had some extra storage space in his office. And so he lent it out to Blockbuster for free with the exchange of us getting free rentals. The business deal...
Of a lifetime? Of a lifetime. Like, what did we do to deserve that? That's, I mean, wow. So they once told us that the only people that they did this for in the country was the Bush administration or the Bush family and us.
Couldn't find a family more different. We had like a special like, yeah, very opposite end of the spectrum, you could say. But yeah, we had a special code. We were like known when we went in. It was like probably the first time I got a little hint of like what it's like to be VIP. And I really took advantage of it. And I liked it. And I liked it. And we started stealing. We wouldn't return them. And so our basement where we watched movies was filled shelves and shelves of just blockbuster videos because we would never sell.
Why would you need to? And they never eat. They were always like, if you guys could, you have about like 600. Like they would always like tell us how many because they had to, but they would be like, just go. There was this man working. His name was Juan. He kind of like did something for me as like an eight year old. I was like, huh? He was a cute, cute kid. He like was one of the first crushes of your life. Kind of. I was like, I would always want to like look cute when I went in. Of course. Well, he like knows about movies and. Yeah. Yeah.
Wonder where Juan is now. I wonder as well. But my second question before we get into a little history. Do you have any specific memories of what posters stood out to you? I've already thought about this. Please. I'm trying to think of, well, I remember seeing the posters, but for me it's more of seeing the cover of the movies on the shelves. Yes. So those totally. Any of that. Dick with Kirsten Dunst and Michelle Williams. Same.
Same. Really? Can all I just watched that in New York and I was like, this is a blockbuster like image to me. It always, always. Oh my God. Oh my God. I can't believe it. We grew up in totally different parts of the country guys. Truly. Oh my God. That is incredible. So definitely that. Okay. Um, another one that just came to mind strangers with candy with, um, what is her name? Amy Sedaris. I think she's like, looks like a very old leathery tan woman. Um,
Okay. Yes. With a high pony. It's a little scary. We'll post all of these. Yes. We will post all of these. And then I'm trying to think. I can't think of any right off the bat.
I have the memory of Down With Love with Renee Zellweger. It's like in the 50s and she's wearing like a pink and like, I think like a checkered skirt. Oh, I have another one. Tell me. It's not another cheerleader or is that what that's called? Not another cheerleader or something like that with the woman from Orange is New Black. Yes. I'm totally forgetting her name. I'm not a cheerleader. Something like that. I think you're screaming. I think I'm not a cheerleader, right? Something like that. Yeah. Yeah.
Sorry to interrupt. Also, Hope Floats with Sandra Bullock is a big visual for me. That sounds so familiar, Hope Floats. And God, I mean, there's so many. It's like when I see it, then I'm always like, damn, like the memories are just flooded back. Totally. But we'll get more to that later because you know that we'll do Love It or Leave It at the end of the episode. I can't wait. We will. Okay, so let's just talk about our little blockbuster. Okay. So blockbuster, before there was Netflix, HBO Go, Amazon Prime, Hulu.
You name it. YouTube TV. Peacock. There's so many. Disney Plus. Some could say too many. I would say too many. It's a little overwhelming. There was Blockbuster.
Throughout the 90s and early 2000s, Blockbuster was the top video rental company in the United States. But that didn't last forever. I just realized that there might be some Gen Z listeners that we have that have literally never been to a Blockbuster. That's a great point because I just assume that everyone can remember what it looked like, what it smelled like, the plastic smell. So specific. And the plastic of the balloons. Did you have balloons in yours? We had balloons on white sticks.
And the balloon always fell off. Oh, yeah. There were balloons. And the candy station. Oh, the candy. Yes. So much plastic. Okay, sorry. No, no. That's a good point. Because I was... Maybe we should even explain what it looked like. Yeah. I mean, imagine... Because I was going to say it was like a Borders. But they probably don't know what a Borders is. It's so crazy. I feel ancient right now. I know. Same. But it really wasn't that long ago. No. It just all changed. But there was like...
movie posters on the front and there was a bell sign when you walked in. Oh, on the side of the door there was a return slot. The return slot was when my brother found out about 9-11 when he was putting a movie back in and then as he was putting it in some woman came up to him and was like, did you hear? Did you hear what they did to the Twin Towers? What? So Blockbuster has a very special place in
Oh, Adrian was a teenager, right? Yeah. But still an insane thing to come up to. I was imagining him like eight, but he was probably, he was like 14 or 15. He was, I think, 14 or 15. Our siblings are the same age. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So yeah, the return slot. So you basically, to explain this to you kids that were born before...
Or after. After. Who even knows? After 2000? Because you're not going to have like... That's true. It was like 2007, 8 is like when Netflix started coming onto the scene. Oh, God. That's true. So you just walk in and it's a store filled with VHSs and then DVDs. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Pretty big. I remember it being big, but I'm like, was that just because I was a kid? Right. But I remember... And it was divided by sections too, genres. Yes, genres. Yeah.
And the thing was, is that if you wanted to go and let's say watch Mean Girls, which I remember specifically always going in to get, or probably not often, or not more than once because I would steal it. But...
It might not be available to you. There's like three discs that they have. And if three other people have already rented this movie before you, you're shit out of luck. And then you go up to the front desk and you're like, hey, do you have it? And they're like, nope, we're out for the night. And they check on their computer. They type into their old Mac. Yes. Yes. Oh, God, I'm like sweating thinking about it. Or they're like, we have it, but we haven't rewound it yet. Do you have a few minutes so that we can rewind it for you? Be kind, rewind. That's right. That's right.
Oh my God. Guys, just imagine a time before everything was so easily accessible. Just imagine. It's crazy. So,
So, obviously, as more dynamic services emerged and customers complained about late fees, not being able to whatever you want, it wasn't in stock. It took a lot of time. It was a lot of friction to get a movie, drive home, watch it. Sometimes you have to rewind it. Remember when it was due. All that stuff. People were like, what the fuck is this? So then, of course, 2007, 2008, everything starts to go to streaming. Wow.
Thus being, there's one store left in Bend, Oregon. That is where...
My boyfriend's family lives. I'm like, privacy? Don't say the adjunct. No, I will not. So we go to Bend often, but we still haven't been. Do people go in and buy? Great question. I'm like, can you even rent a movie? I think there's a documentary on the last Blockbuster. But we've been needing to take a Bend trip. So a Ramfield trip, this has to be one of our stops. We will go out into the field. And Bend is amazing. I mean, breweries, nature, what more could you need? It looks just so lovely every time you go. Stunning.
So I'm glad that that's its home right now. I am too. And like what a place. The last time I went into one was in Bowling Green, Kentucky in 2015. And there was one there. And then I'm sure it like... I can't believe you've been in one so recently. It was crazy. I wish I was high. So they just have to have VHSs and DVDs. It's all... So at least in 2015, it was all DVDs. Of course. Yeah, I guess that would make more sense. And...
Yeah, it was all DVDs. No one has DVD players anymore. I have a portable one for my laptop. Because even laptops now don't have the slot for a CD or DVD. No, exactly. I have like a portable thing now. Yeah. It's crazy. I do miss a DVD. Do you? You know what I kind of miss sometimes? What? Do you ever have a LaserDisc? Why is that? Oh, the floppy? No, the floppy disc. They were the big...
No, I don't think so. And I think they came out before DVDs, but then they became kind of like cool and like collector's items. So they looked like record players. What? Not record players. Records. Vinyls? Vinyls, yeah. What was the machine? It was just like a huge, it just looked like a huge CD player. It was just like a big CD, everything. I've never seen it.
My family was really into them. I think it was kind of nerdy and they were one of a kind. What's it called again? Laser discs. I'll post. Let me know if you ever used a laser disc. It might be a douchey thing to say, but I don't know. I don't think it would be douchey. It's tech. Hey, I was in the Bay Area. Don't blame me. Here's what happened in Blockbuster's 35 year history in the movie rental business. David Cook opened the first Blockbuster in 1985.
Is he related to... Wait, where? In 1985 in Dallas, Texas. Oh, in Dallas. In Dallas. Wow. I think he did like computer software shit. Oh, for some reason, mine's going to Tim Cook.
I don't know. I've hit the pen a few times. I haven't hit the pen even once yet, and I feel like I need to. I'm hotboxing Tessa's closet. Once again, we're in the closet. If anything, for a blockbuster, I mean, you know that every employee was just stoned out of their mind working there. I wish so badly I could go into one high. You know what I mean? Oh, me too. We could. To bend. To bend we go. One left. Dallas. So Dallas, his company was different than any other rental store because it offered customers a selection of 8,000 VHS tapes with
with the help of a modern computerized checkout process. So for this time, when you would just go and be like, do you guys have this? And like we said that they could check something in. I know it's so crazy for us and silly to be like that was like revolutionary, but it was. Yes. Like just get movies now.
Yeah. Was there movie rental places before Blockbuster? I think there were. So it says that there were smaller rental stores, but they can only offer a couple hundred movies. Right. So this was like, this was a big deal. Yeah. Especially for movie buffs that were like, there's so much access and like. I can't imagine not being able to watch movies anytime I wanted. Because before this, like you could see it in theaters. And then you watch it again. Wow. That is crazy. Yeah.
That is crazy to think about. I have so many questions about the past. I do, too, of like... How did you do it? I know. I was thinking of this about GPSs. That's what I was literally about to say. That's the one that gets me the most. It stresses me out. Me, too. It stresses me out. So then in 1987, three major investors took Blockbuster to the next level. They invested almost $20 million in Blockbuster. Oh, wow.
According to Quartz. Guys, this is a Business Insider article. We are business. We are sourcing it. We're chic. We are entrepreneurs. Later that year, Cook left the company and the headquarters moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Gross. They're in a lot of...
I'm just kidding. Really Republican areas. Well, is Dallas like? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Of course. It's really only Austin, right? And yeah, I mean, I'm sure there's liberal people in Dallas. Yeah. Hey, I mean, I was surprised with the midterms with, um, what's his name? Beto. Beto had like a 49% or 46%. That's actually like amazing progress. There is nothing sexier than a blue Texas.
We've always said it. We need to get that on a t-shirt. We do. Listen to our episode with Benji. That's right. Check it out. So under new management, the company brought up local video stores, bought up local video stores. So there's like we are changing the atmosphere. We're changing everything under the Blockbuster branding. So they had 800 stores in the 90s. Blockbuster hit a major milestone when it opened its 1000th store.
And then they go to the UK. Oh, really? Which I didn't know. I thought it was just here. But they opened almost 3,000 Blockbuster stores over there. Holy shit. And then in 1994, Viacom bought the video rental company for $8.4 billion. Wow.
In the 90s? Yeah, in 94. Holy shit. Oh my God. So then Viacom took Blockbuster public, which is great because of stocks. Yeah, stocks. And the number of stores reached 6,000 globally.
I feel like there's 6,000 globally. That's it. I feel like there's like 6,000 in my hometown. I know. That's how I feel too. I'm like, I think there's actually only one in Palo Alto. I didn't think of two blockbuster. I guess just one in my town, Springdale and Fayetteville are different. So yeah. Yeah. That's crazy. I'm like, so how many would there be in each state? Let's say.
6,000 divided by... Well, that's globally. Oh, right. That's true. Wow. Guys, we're not going to do the math. No. But you can let us know. Yeah. But trouble's on the horizon. Oh, no. Everyone. In 1997, sooner than we would like to think. Oh, yeah. No kidding. So this is what I found interesting. Netflix was founded in 1997. Netflix was. Netflix. Sorry, I was looking at you. I was like, wait, what were they doing? Netflix was. Yeah.
Netflix, not Blockbuster. Netflix was founded. I think that's when someone had probably the idea. Sometimes things just take time. You know? And what a great example of that. No kidding. I'm sure that some, I actually don't know who founded Netflix. That would have been nice to put in. But some man or woman that was just high in their room being like, you know what would be awesome? If you could just watch with a click of a button. Well, that's not even how it started out though. How did it start out?
Oh my gosh. I remember so perfectly when my friend first got Netflix. Oh. You picked out your movies that you wanted for the week. Wait, right. On Monday and they got sent to you like by DVD. So you were guaranteed to be able to watch it. You were guaranteed to get it on that night and they were sent to you. It is all coming back to me. Yes. Oh, right. So it was delivered with a DVD. Yes. It wasn't a VHS at that time. Oh.
Um, I, we were all, I think they probably had the option of VHS cause it was like 2007 or 2008. Oh my God. I totally forgot. I remember my mom doing this and be like, what do you want for the weekend? Yes. I remember if you're listening, Kinley was my friend in junior high and I remember her family being like, cause I was going over that weekend and they be like, well, let's pick out our movies now cause we have this thing called Netflix.
And the commercials, remember they have like the movie character scenes like in different scenarios, right? God, that's wild. Okay. So someone was like, this will be great, but it's going to take 10 years to even make it happen. So here's the trouble. Blockbuster was known for charging customers a fee for every day. They were late.
I remember the fear in my mother's eyes. What did you think of a late piece of blockbuster? Truly, I can just imagine that you had a few. I just like, I thought that was the scariest thing in the world. We got to get it back now. You're like, I got it. Yeah. Well, I don't remember the prices, but I think like you could get the movie. If you got on a Friday, I think you had to return it like Monday or Tuesday. I think it was a three or four. I think so too. And then after that, I think every day was like,
God, I want to say it was like $1.99 to $3.99 for every day it was late. I can't imagine being like, shit, I've had this movie for two weeks. I know. Or like you lost it. That's why we just never returned them. So people aren't liking this. Yeah.
Blockbuster said that it made $800 million in late fees or 16% of its revenue off of late fees alone. So that was kind of where the money was at. And that's actually a pretty good business structure because you know that it's just not going to happen. No. Unless you put a fucking reminder, no one's going to return it on time. Right. That's crazy. 16% of that was just from late fees. Wow.
People were like, no, no, no. Netflix founder Reed Hastings. Here we go. Hastings said that he founded Netflix because he did not want to pay the $40 fine he acquired at Blockbuster. Only $40. But every week. Think about that. Because people, you rent movies every week. Oh, that's so true. That's so true. Yeah.
In its early stages, Hastings Company, which had no late fees, would send DVDs straight to your house for a flat monthly rate. That's right. That's what it was. Yeah. Because I remember, yeah, saying we got Netflix. Wow. Goddamn. Is it the same Netflix founder? Is he, like, gray hair? Probably. Yeah. Unless they got... I don't know if they... I don't know. If someone else took over. This is the history of Netflix, though. But it all kind of goes together. That's true. Because Netflix is...
This is a dumb question. Netflix is a public company. I don't know. I'm not. Like you can get stocks and like. All I know about stocks is what I learned from our Enron episode. So. And Martha. And Martha. Martha's taught us everything. That's true. So in 2000, Blockbuster made the first mistake that would mark its demise.
You know what Blockbuster did? What? What did it say no to, do you think? Streaming. The company decided not to buy Netflix. Oh, honey. Blockbuster. It is tough. Blockbuster considered buying the Netflix service for $50 million, but the company decided to not make the purchase. Netflix went on to become even more popular and obviously more profitable than Blockbuster. My heart hurts for Blockbuster. I just feel like it's the kid that like...
Did something amazing that was revolutionary. But then as time goes on, they just don't want to take chances because they get more scared. And then they look around and they're like, all these other kids are like going off and chasing their dreams. But I'm frozen in time. Blockbuster peaked in high school. But how is it to know? Almost Blockbuster peaked in like middle school. Oh, that was tough. That's the toughest of them all. You're right. You're right.
They peaked in middle school. And then in 2002, it just keeps getting more sad. Oh, no. Blockbuster's other big competitor, Redbox, launched. Oh, my God. I forgot about Redbox. So do you remember, kids, when you would go into the grocery store? Walgreens. With your mom or dad. Or Walgreens. And there would be a box. It looks like a phone booth almost. A Redbox. And you could...
search for movies and they would come out of a slot. It's like a vending machine for movies. But also had a certain period, like you had to give it, you had to return it into the, you had to return it back in probably three or four days. Maybe a little bit longer grace period with Redbox. Same.
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The company started making major changes in the early 2000s that would ultimately lead to its downfall. They were like, guys, we got this. But then Viacom parted ways with Blockbuster. They were like, it's just not going to happen. The company launched Blockbuster online, but it was already years behind Netflix. At the same time, Blockbuster decided to end late fees. They were like, guys, guys, guys, it's cool. Oh, no. It's cool. It's cool.
I feel so bad for them. Same. It's like breaking my heart, kind of. I know. It was estimated that it would cost the company $200 million to stop collecting late fees, another $200 million to start the new venture, Blockbuster Online. So everyone was just like, I think it's just going to come to an end. From 2003 to 2005, the company lost 75% of its market value, Forbes reported. And then in 2010, Netflix went to online. Yeah.
Oh, no. And that was it. And that was that. And that's the little history of Blockbuster. And it pretty much ends there. There's no really pretty way to wrap it up. I just I am so I'm humanizing Blockbuster. I really am. I mean, it was there for me so much. I know. I feel like we're protective of it because it did so much for us. Yeah. In our childhood. And we kind of ran faster away from it.
But we're going to end on a positive note. Okay, thank you. We're going to end with a little this or that blockbuster style. Everyone at home, all you millennial kids, please do it with us. And if you're Gen Z, I guess you're on TikTok or something. I don't know.
Just attack us. Yeah. No, we do love our Gen Z listeners. Oh, of course. And I think I'm just jealous of you guys. Yeah, that's really what it is. We should do a whole episode on like what we wish we could have had that you guys have. No kidding. You guys are cool. You guys are cool. So would you want to go alone or with a friend or with your mom? Or Carolyn? Okay. To Blockbuster? Yes. Oh, yeah. No, we...
I always love a pal at Blockbuster. Got it. I guess that is normal. I would go alone because I would just go down from the office and I liked being there alone. I didn't want anyone to tell me. I'm sure that was really nice to have that time. You can browse on your own time. Yeah. It was magical. I always knew it was like a party was coming up, like a movie night. Totally. Yeah.
Would you get one movie for the night or multiple for the weekend? What was your stack like when you left? I think we did three usually. Perfect. Like two for Friday night, one for Saturday night maybe? Yes, exactly. Exactly. What about you? We... Well, yours was free, so... You walked out. I remember leaving with like 15. Oh my God, that's amazing. And being like, we'll give them back to you Monday. And I'm just staring, being like, fuck you, you old spoiled brat. There's no way you can watch 15. Like, thanks, Juan. Yeah.
He's just silent. Fuck you. Oh my god, I'm dying. Would you return on time or keep too long and get charged? I'm pretty sure that we got charged. It's just impossible. Impossible. Impossible.
A rom-com or like a thriller that everyone watches together and gets scared. We did rent a lot of scary movies for some reason. It was a thing of Blockbuster. Yes. I can't explain it. We rented Amityville Horror all the time. Yep. The Ring. We rented The Ring all the time. 2002 and its finest. Exactly. And I remember The Hills Have Eyes once and I was like, enough. Yeah. It was such a thing to be like, we're going to have a scary movie night. Yes. My other heavy rotation was The Benchwarmers. Oh, yeah.
Oh, yeah. Have you ever watched that movie? I feel like I haven't watched it since I was a kid. I had that movie memorized at some point. We used to reenact the scenes and film them. Lindsay Parker, you know. We were obsessed. So, anyways. Oh, that and School of Rock really had this, like...
boy humor I guess like very strange humor well when I met you I thought that you were just like a tomboy that like hung out with the boys that's so funny because I don't have any male friends and then people were like she's one of the guys or someone was like oh she's part she's like one of the guys she watches football and I was like but I met you and I was like she has a feminine
energy so like I think you're wrong I think I think they're wrong too but hey my taste in comedy at nine was some bro time some bro humor yes uh would you buy candy or popcorn there candy yeah because it's like the popcorn wasn't I don't remember getting oh well it was the act act two popcorn we had the microwavable popcorn yes yes that's what the ones that we had what candy would you get
When I was little, I really liked Sour Patch Kids, but I also really liked Milk Duds. Same, but mine were Sour Punch Straws. Love the straws. Oh, I don't discriminate with sour candy. Yes, I always got the green apple. They also had the fridge there, and I would get dibs, those little balls of ice cream. Oh, those are so good. I love dibs. Me too. The last episode, I watched the Kardashians. Yeah, so problematic.
If you guys watch Kardashians, you know. So stupid. So stupid. She was eating dibs. And she was being like, I can't believe I'm eating dibs. And I was like, sweetheart, you should eat more dibs. You'll be happier. No kidding. Would you have a Blockbuster card or the Blockbuster key chain that you kept with your keys? I think my mom had both. Oh, my God. It's all coming back to me now. I know. It's making me sick to my stomach. Yes. We think we had both. Love. What about you? Cheek.
I feel like we just had the card. Yeah, I think we had the card. Would you read the back of every VHS or DVD case or would you just pick based on the photo, on the poster? Photo. Same. Yeah, it's not reading. What would you do if you got home and the VHS didn't match the case? Did this ever happen to you? I think what I'm thinking of is when the DVD was scratched.
That would happen too. But I'm sure that, oh, I'd probably like throw it across the room. I just remember that so specifically being like, what the actual fuck? Then I can't watch this. It would just be like a terrible movie that's in there. Like devastated. Wow. Because then you're like, oh, I guess we're not going to watch anything this Friday night. I mean, that's horrible. Well, hopefully you get your money back. I don't know. It's free. It's free.
So do she ever hate you? Hate you for this episode. Love you for this episode. Well, that's really about it, guys. That is the history of Blockbuster. May it rest in peace. May it rest in bend. May it rest in bend. It might be. We have to go. We have to get high out of our minds. Stop. And spend like two hours in there. Well, you know, mushrooms are legal in Oregon. Perfect. If you guys don't know what we're doing next year for MIA. MIA. Write it off. Write it off. That's right off. Exactly.
So that's Blockbuster. Before we go, any Blockbuster standouts to you that you're heavy rotation? Did I ask you already? I don't think so. I think I just talked about myself. I just really remember, I remember Sweet Home Alabama. Oh, we had that on DVD. So yeah, we didn't have that on DVD. God, it's hard to say because then, yeah. Sweet Home Alabama, I think 10 Things I Hate About You, Legally Blonde, and
I don't know if I should say this. If my mom will be like, why are you saying this? I'm just going to say it. Dib, my mother, is an angel. And she was very protective over what sort of movies I watched growing up, especially in middle school, where I think she just was like, I don't want her watching things with like... She wasn't strict or overprotective. But I think with movies, she was like, I don't want her getting her information, especially about being a woman and being sexualized. So she was very, very...
intense about it. And when I watched Legally Blonde, I can still remember to this day. So she would watch it first. And then she would go to this website, which she would never tell me what it was named. So now I still don't. She told me like eventually. But something for like really Christian parents that would go on. It would say at what point in the movie, how many times they swore. Oh, wow.
When they talked about sex, like when there was violence. And so she would always bleep out, not like swearing or violence. She would bleep out. And I remember this because Legally Blonde. Do you remember when she's like, oh, how did you pass Spanish class to one of her sorority sisters? And she's like, I gave the teacher a lap dance. Yes. She bleeped that out. Well, I mean. For like two years. And I just remember being like, what is that? And she would sit there with me and she would make a note of it in this little binder she had. And she would fast forward it. Oh, yeah.
The patience Div had, I'd be like, I don't want to watch a movie with you tonight. I love her for it now because I know the intention behind it was just, you know, media can be toxic. Well, yes. And then you're going to say, what's a lap dance? And then you have to do that whole thing. Totally. And I think she was like, I don't want her thinking like she can get like anything. I mean, I think it's great. So it's like, it's great. But at the time, I'd be like, why are you doing this to me?
But the power of our mothers, you know, just trying to get by and protect us. I know. God, it makes me want to sob. It makes you want to sob. So, Dib, I love you and thank you for doing that. Thank you for your service. But that is really blockbuster. So, I love you, blockbuster. We love you. We wish you were still here in some ways. But in other ways, it's nice to watch whatever we want. Yeah. Whatever we want.
Love ya. But things are way better now. Truly. They are. I mean, they just are. They just are. And yeah, let us know your memories. Please send us what were your imprint movies or your rotation movies, your candy. All the things. If you had balloons at yours. Yes. Please. Please. We love you. We love you. Happy Thanksgiving. Happy Thanksgiving. Bye-bye. Bye-bye.