WEBVTT - 9 Super Catchy Facts About Theme Songs

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<v Speaker 1>You're listening to Part Time Genius, the production of Kaleidoscope

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<v Speaker 1>and iHeartRadio. Guess well, will what's that?

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<v Speaker 2>Mango?

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<v Speaker 1>So I have been practicing mentalism.

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<v Speaker 2>I hate to say this, but I actually find that

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<v Speaker 2>hard to believe.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm gonna prove it to you so I can make

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<v Speaker 1>you and everyone listening to this think of the same

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<v Speaker 1>word at the same time. All Right, I'm ready, Okay,

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<v Speaker 1>here we go. Who are you gonna call?

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<v Speaker 2>Ghostbusters? I mean, that's funny, but I don't think that

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<v Speaker 2>counts as mentalism. Mango.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I know. It just really proves how iconic the

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<v Speaker 1>song is. But apparently the Ghostbuster's theme song was difficult

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<v Speaker 1>for composer Ray Parker Junior to write. And why is

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<v Speaker 1>that Well, for one very specific reason. He had trouble

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<v Speaker 1>figuring out a way to fit the word ghostbusters into

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<v Speaker 1>the lyrics. It turns out it's a pretty weird word

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<v Speaker 1>to put in a song starting with what are you

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<v Speaker 1>gonna rhyme with Ghostbusters? Lackluster?

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<v Speaker 2>I get a feather duster insurance adjuster, Like. It feels

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<v Speaker 2>like he had a few options there.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, but none of those are going to get people

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<v Speaker 1>hyped at a party. But According to Ray Parker Junior,

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<v Speaker 1>the director Ivan Rerightman was adamant that the word ghostbusters

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<v Speaker 1>being the lyrics. Apparently, the music itself came pretty easy.

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<v Speaker 1>When Parker joined the project, the movie was in the

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<v Speaker 1>editing stage with I Want a New Drug by Huey

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<v Speaker 1>Lewis as a placeholder theme song, so Parker created a

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<v Speaker 1>track with a similar riff, but he just couldn't figure

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<v Speaker 1>out how to sing the word ghostbusters in a catchy way,

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<v Speaker 1>and he was actually down to the wire with the

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<v Speaker 1>deadline to get this done. Finally, inspiration struck when he

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<v Speaker 1>remembered that in the movie the guys have a commercial

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<v Speaker 1>with their phone number, and that led to this undeniable line,

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<v Speaker 1>who you Gonna Call Ghostbusters? Which I will now have

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<v Speaker 1>stuck in my head for the rest of the day.

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<v Speaker 2>But I'm not complaining.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, get used to the feeling, because today we're uncovering

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<v Speaker 1>some real earworms. We've got nine catchy facts about theme songs,

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<v Speaker 1>so let's dive in.

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<v Speaker 2>Hey, their podcast listeners, welcome the part time genius. I'm

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<v Speaker 2>Will Pearson and as always I'm joined by my good

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<v Speaker 2>friend Mangesh hot Ticket. And there on the other side

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<v Speaker 2>of the booth. Wait, where did where did Dylan go?

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<v Speaker 1>I don't know, but I think I hear that song

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<v Speaker 1>Return of.

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<v Speaker 2>The Mac in my earphones. Okay, yeah, he's actually walking

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<v Speaker 2>into Return of the Mac like it's his own personal

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<v Speaker 2>theme songkh He's so smooth. That's our paler introducer Dylan.

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<v Speaker 1>That song is catchy, and I'm also really glad he

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<v Speaker 1>returned to the book.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, me too. We need this episode recorded. And actually,

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<v Speaker 2>to bring it back to your incredible mentalism trick, my

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<v Speaker 2>next theme song has a similar widespread impact. It's the

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<v Speaker 2>one that starts in West Philadelphia ring a bell.

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<v Speaker 1>There born and Raise exactly.

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<v Speaker 2>It's from the Fresh Prince of bel Air. And here's

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<v Speaker 2>what's funny. The show almost didn't have that iconic wrap

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<v Speaker 2>because executive producer Quincy Jones wrote a whole different song

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<v Speaker 2>for the theme. But when Will Smith heard it, he

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<v Speaker 2>hated it.

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<v Speaker 1>Can you imagine telling Quincy Jones that you don't like

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<v Speaker 1>something he wrote.

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<v Speaker 2>I have never told Quincy Jones that. But he had

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<v Speaker 2>produced so many hits, from Sinatra's Fly Me to the

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<v Speaker 2>Moon to Ray Charles in the Heat of the Night

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<v Speaker 2>to We Are the World, so many of Michael Jackson's

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<v Speaker 2>hits from bad to thriller, don't stop to you gain enough?

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<v Speaker 2>I mean Will Smith knew Quincy was a very big deal.

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<v Speaker 1>Now.

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<v Speaker 2>Of course, Will Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff had won

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<v Speaker 2>a Grammy in nineteen eighty nine for parents Just Don't Understand,

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<v Speaker 2>which I think puts them in exact same selon right.

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<v Speaker 2>So this was Smith's first major acting job. So as

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<v Speaker 2>he was telling Jazzy Jeff he couldn't speak up about

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<v Speaker 2>the songs, Jazzy Jeff came up with a different solution.

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<v Speaker 2>He said, why don't we try recording our own version

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<v Speaker 2>of a theme song?

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<v Speaker 1>So much humors? Yeah? I know.

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<v Speaker 2>So in a later interview, Jeff explained that Will Smith

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<v Speaker 2>often struggled with developing a concept for a song, but

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<v Speaker 2>once the concept was there, like in this case, the

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<v Speaker 2>plot of the show, it was easier for him to

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<v Speaker 2>write the lyrics. So it actually came together really quickly.

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<v Speaker 1>And how does Quincy Jones react to all of this?

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<v Speaker 2>So, according to Smith, when he played it for Jones,

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<v Speaker 2>he said, quote, that's good. Mine's a piece of You

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<v Speaker 2>can use your mentalism to fill in the blank. So

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<v Speaker 2>the song was approved and just in the Nick of

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<v Speaker 2>time jazz. Jeff remembers there being just three weeks between

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<v Speaker 2>recording the theme song demo and the day the show

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<v Speaker 2>actually premiered.

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<v Speaker 1>That is incredible. Well, I think we can give Quincy

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<v Speaker 1>some consolation with this next one, because even if he

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<v Speaker 1>didn't write the Fresh Prince song, he did did write

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<v Speaker 1>the Austin Powers theme and he did it in just

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<v Speaker 1>twenty minutes.

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<v Speaker 2>I actually didn't remember I had anything to do with that,

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<v Speaker 2>and that is unbelievably.

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<v Speaker 1>Fast, truly, and it's a piece with so many parts.

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<v Speaker 1>There are flutes, trombone, drums, and they all add so

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<v Speaker 1>much character throughout the track. The song is called Soul

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<v Speaker 1>bossa Nova. I love that, but he didn't write it

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<v Speaker 1>for the movie. Jones actually wrote this piece way back

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<v Speaker 1>in nineteen sixty two, so that's over three decades before

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<v Speaker 1>Mike Myers danced to it in the opening scene of

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<v Speaker 1>Austin Powers. The song is really a product of its

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<v Speaker 1>time though. Bossa Nova was a trendy genre of Brazilian

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<v Speaker 1>music in the early sixties. And I didn't know this before,

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<v Speaker 1>but the term means new thing or new style.

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<v Speaker 2>Which I guess could also describe Mike Myer's comedy in

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<v Speaker 2>the nineteen nineties. But what set this new style apart well.

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<v Speaker 1>The bossonova genre was defined by its quieter sound compared

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<v Speaker 1>to the traditional samba. It was rhythmically complex and this

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<v Speaker 1>jazzy style, but it usually featured flute and saxophones. Quincy

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<v Speaker 1>Jones had spent time in Brazil during this Boston Nova

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<v Speaker 1>movement and he got inspired, so he wrote Soul Bosonova

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<v Speaker 1>soon after he left the country. He'd eventually make a

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<v Speaker 1>self proclaimed fortune on the song, but that almost didn't happen.

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<v Speaker 1>In his autobiography, Jones writes about a failed tour of

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<v Speaker 1>Europe where his all star band was incredibly successful, but

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<v Speaker 1>the budgeting was terrible and he calls it an economic disaster.

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<v Speaker 1>He said the tour taught him the difference between music

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<v Speaker 1>and the music business, and he had to actually sell

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<v Speaker 1>his music catalog to make up for the losses. But

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<v Speaker 1>as he made money, he bought back the rights to

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<v Speaker 1>his song for one hundred five thousand dollars, a price

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<v Speaker 1>seven times higher than he sold him for. But as

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<v Speaker 1>Quincy Jones put it, quote that song, it won't go away.

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<v Speaker 1>Mike Myers used it for the themes of Austin Powers films.

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<v Speaker 1>It was also used in the movie The Pawnbroker and

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<v Speaker 1>a Woody Allen film, Take the Money and Run. But

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<v Speaker 1>perhaps most importantly, it was the theme song for a

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<v Speaker 1>popular Canadian game show called Definition that ran from nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>seventy four to nineteen eighty nine, which is how he

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<v Speaker 1>really made his money on this song, and it's also

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<v Speaker 1>where young Mike Myers.

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<v Speaker 2>First heard it.

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<v Speaker 1>By the way, the piano player on the track is

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<v Speaker 1>Leilo Schiffrin, who wrote the Mission Impossible theme song, which

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<v Speaker 1>I know is on your list.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, no, spoilers, stopped piking my list, but yes, the

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<v Speaker 2>Mission Impossible theme song was written by Argentinian jazz pianist

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<v Speaker 2>Leilo Schiffrin. This was in nineteen sixty six, and this

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<v Speaker 2>song is known for its unique use of a five

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<v Speaker 2>to four time signature. I think we can all hear

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<v Speaker 2>it in our heads. But the notes go from two

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<v Speaker 2>long beats to two short beats and then that repeats.

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<v Speaker 2>Of course, well, those long and short notes can actually

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<v Speaker 2>be translated into Mars code as dash dash dot dot. Now,

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<v Speaker 2>in Morse code M is two dashes and I is

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<v Speaker 2>two dots, so the song actually spells out m I

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<v Speaker 2>that is.

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<v Speaker 1>Really cool, and it's kind of like an easter egg

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<v Speaker 1>in music notes exactly.

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<v Speaker 2>But also that rhythm and those notes make it very identified,

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<v Speaker 2>which is basically Schiffrin nailing the assignment.

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<v Speaker 1>I think, why why is that? Well?

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<v Speaker 2>When the show's creator, Bruce Geller called Schiffrin to ask

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<v Speaker 2>him to write the song, he had a very detailed request.

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<v Speaker 2>He said he was looking for something that when a

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<v Speaker 2>viewer went to the kitchen to get a soda, if

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<v Speaker 2>they heard the theme music, they would immediately know that

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<v Speaker 2>Mission Impossible was playing on TV.

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<v Speaker 1>I love that. That's how he was thinking about it,

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<v Speaker 1>and obviously that's what theme songs do. It's still true today.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, and Schiffrin gained some pretty high profile fans for it. So,

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<v Speaker 2>for example, he went on to score Bruce Lee's Enter

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<v Speaker 2>the Dragon. Lee requested him personally because he liked listening

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<v Speaker 2>to the Mission Impossible soundtrack while he was working out.

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<v Speaker 1>I love the idea of Bruce Lee just like listening

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<v Speaker 1>to the Mission Impossible soundtrack over and over, punching and kicking. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>oddly enough, my next theme song also has a hidden

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<v Speaker 1>message in it, and I want to tell you about it.

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<v Speaker 1>But first a little break. Welcome back to Part Time Genius,

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<v Speaker 1>where we're counting down nine facts about some of our

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<v Speaker 1>favorite theme songs. If you like what you're hearing, be

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<v Speaker 1>sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast app, and please

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<v Speaker 1>leave us a rating and review. We love, love, love

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<v Speaker 1>hearing from you.

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<v Speaker 2>All right, well, speaking of things we love to hear,

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<v Speaker 2>I'm curious what's your next fact?

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<v Speaker 1>So if you've ever wondered what's going on with the

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<v Speaker 1>Frasier theme song, first of all, you are not alone,

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<v Speaker 1>and second, I have answers. So if you're called a

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<v Speaker 1>theme song, there's a line that goes toss salads and

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<v Speaker 1>scrambled eggs have a combination that no one has ever

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<v Speaker 1>ordered or wanted to eat together. And yet it's in

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<v Speaker 1>the intro to one of the most beloved nineties sitcoms.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I have to man, I never understood what that

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<v Speaker 2>was about, so apparently there's some metaphor built into it.

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<v Speaker 2>The composer of the song is Bruce Miller, and the

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<v Speaker 2>producer has asked him to create something jazzy and play

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<v Speaker 2>him this Joni Mitchell song for inspiration. They also didn't

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<v Speaker 2>want a song to reference psychiatry, psychology, or really anything

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<v Speaker 2>specific about the plot of the show. I guess unlike

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<v Speaker 2>Fresh Prince.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, it's kind of the opposite. But Miller went to

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<v Speaker 1>his friend Darryl Finnissy to write the lyrics, and Finishy

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<v Speaker 1>sent back the version We Know and Love Today with

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<v Speaker 1>all that like toss salads and scrambled eggs lines. He

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<v Speaker 1>used those foods as a veiled reference to Fraser's patients,

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<v Speaker 1>things that were quote mixed up, and the rest of

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<v Speaker 1>the lyrics have meaning as well. I hear the blues

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<v Speaker 1>of Colin. Those are obviously Fraser's patients calling into his

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<v Speaker 1>radio show and he's got them pegged, which is how

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<v Speaker 1>he can help them through their problems. And yet those

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<v Speaker 1>toss solads and scrambled eggs calling again at the end

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<v Speaker 1>of the song. That's you know, the callers still calling.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I mean, I really thought those lyrics were just

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<v Speaker 2>kind of nonsense and more creating a vibe or something.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, me too. And another interesting tibit is that Bruce

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<v Speaker 1>Miller wanted meltor Mae to sing the theme song, but

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<v Speaker 1>Kelsey Grammer told the show's producers he wanted to sing it,

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<v Speaker 1>and obviously Grammar got the gig.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, huh, that's pretty fun.

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<v Speaker 1>All right.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, I'm going to one up your old sitcom theme song.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm going even older Mango to the theme the Gilligan's Island,

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<v Speaker 2>written by show's creator and producer Sherwood Schwartz with George

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<v Speaker 2>wil who also wrote the song It's the most wonderful

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<v Speaker 2>time of the year. As most of our older listeners

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<v Speaker 2>will know, the theme song was a TV classic, using

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<v Speaker 2>a sea shanty style to describe how Gilligan and the

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<v Speaker 2>gang they got stranded on this island after what was

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<v Speaker 2>supposed to be just a three hour tour, of course,

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<v Speaker 2>but there were actually different versions over the years. In fact,

0:11:37.920 --> 0:11:41.040
<v Speaker 2>the original Gilligan's Island theme didn't even mention Professor or

0:11:41.120 --> 0:11:42.360
<v Speaker 2>Mary Anne. Can you imagine this?

0:11:42.760 --> 0:11:45.040
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I mean those are pretty big characters to leave out.

0:11:45.120 --> 0:11:46.200
<v Speaker 1>So how did this happen?

0:11:46.480 --> 0:11:48.680
<v Speaker 2>Well, the story goes that it was because of actress

0:11:48.720 --> 0:11:52.640
<v Speaker 2>Tina Luise's contract. She played Ginger the movie star, and

0:11:52.679 --> 0:11:55.200
<v Speaker 2>apparently one of the details in her contract was that

0:11:55.240 --> 0:11:58.000
<v Speaker 2>she would be named last in the credits. So the

0:11:58.040 --> 0:12:01.400
<v Speaker 2>song finished with the movie and the rest without any

0:12:01.480 --> 0:12:05.160
<v Speaker 2>mention of the Professor or Mary Anne. Sherwood Schwartz wrote

0:12:05.160 --> 0:12:07.880
<v Speaker 2>a book about his time working on Gilligan's Island, and

0:12:07.920 --> 0:12:10.840
<v Speaker 2>while he didn't exactly confirm that fact, he did write

0:12:10.840 --> 0:12:13.640
<v Speaker 2>that quote. The characters had to be introduced in a

0:12:13.640 --> 0:12:17.440
<v Speaker 2>certain order because of contractual obligations. But before season two,

0:12:17.520 --> 0:12:20.640
<v Speaker 2>the actor who played Gilligan, Bob Denver, requested the other

0:12:20.679 --> 0:12:23.000
<v Speaker 2>two cast mates be added to the song, and of

0:12:23.040 --> 0:12:26.000
<v Speaker 2>course they were, but Don Wells and Russell Johnson, who

0:12:26.040 --> 0:12:29.640
<v Speaker 2>played Marianne and the Professor, seemed unbothered by the original emission.

0:12:29.880 --> 0:12:32.040
<v Speaker 2>According to Wells, they used to write each other notes

0:12:32.080 --> 0:12:33.720
<v Speaker 2>signed love the rest.

0:12:34.360 --> 0:12:37.560
<v Speaker 1>I love that. So jumping from the sixties to the seventies,

0:12:37.600 --> 0:12:40.199
<v Speaker 1>I discovered a story of a theme song composer who

0:12:40.240 --> 0:12:42.400
<v Speaker 1>also wanted to be the lead part in the project.

0:12:42.559 --> 0:12:45.960
<v Speaker 1>And I'm talking about Isaac Hayes, who composed the theme

0:12:46.080 --> 0:12:48.800
<v Speaker 1>from Shaft. He was approached to score the movie in

0:12:48.880 --> 0:12:51.640
<v Speaker 1>nineteen seventy one, but he was more focused on whether

0:12:51.679 --> 0:12:55.120
<v Speaker 1>he could play the lead role of private detective John Shaft.

0:12:55.640 --> 0:12:58.600
<v Speaker 1>And he asked the director, Gordon Parks, if he could audition,

0:12:59.000 --> 0:13:02.800
<v Speaker 1>and he kind of got this lukewarm response. The director said, okay,

0:13:02.840 --> 0:13:05.760
<v Speaker 1>but remember you've got to do the music. According to Hayes,

0:13:05.800 --> 0:13:08.400
<v Speaker 1>he went home and immediately started telling all his friends

0:13:08.400 --> 0:13:10.120
<v Speaker 1>about how he's going to try out for the role,

0:13:10.480 --> 0:13:13.880
<v Speaker 1>not even mentioning the actual job he had scoring the music.

0:13:14.320 --> 0:13:16.839
<v Speaker 1>Within about two weeks he found out, however, that Richard

0:13:16.880 --> 0:13:19.560
<v Speaker 1>Brountree was cast a Shaft and he'd just be doing

0:13:19.559 --> 0:13:20.080
<v Speaker 1>the music.

0:13:20.559 --> 0:13:22.720
<v Speaker 2>I mean, I guess he overcame his disappointment and did

0:13:22.760 --> 0:13:25.280
<v Speaker 2>make one of the most iconic theme songs of all time.

0:13:25.360 --> 0:13:29.319
<v Speaker 1>Right, yeah, it's pretty unforgettable and amazingly, the Shaft single

0:13:29.320 --> 0:13:32.640
<v Speaker 1>and album hit number one. Hayes also earned an OSCAR

0:13:32.760 --> 0:13:35.920
<v Speaker 1>for Best Original Song, making him only the third black

0:13:36.040 --> 0:13:38.160
<v Speaker 1>artist to do so at the time. All right, well,

0:13:38.240 --> 0:13:40.280
<v Speaker 1>let's go back to the small screen for the next one.

0:13:40.440 --> 0:13:43.200
<v Speaker 1>So the Rembrandts are famously known for the Friends theme

0:13:43.280 --> 0:13:45.680
<v Speaker 1>I'll be there for You. In fact, mentalf loss Rights

0:13:45.760 --> 0:13:48.920
<v Speaker 1>quote when Friends producer Kevin S. Bright sent the pilot

0:13:48.960 --> 0:13:52.640
<v Speaker 1>episode to the Rembrandts, its placeholder theme song was RIM's

0:13:52.720 --> 0:13:53.720
<v Speaker 1>It's the end of the World.

0:13:53.800 --> 0:13:55.720
<v Speaker 2>We know it and I feel fine. We all know

0:13:55.840 --> 0:13:58.160
<v Speaker 2>that song very well, which he was hoping they could

0:13:58.200 --> 0:14:01.080
<v Speaker 2>emulate if they took the gig. But before they could

0:14:01.080 --> 0:14:04.720
<v Speaker 2>get to writing. Apparently, Friends co creator Marta Kaufman's husband

0:14:04.760 --> 0:14:07.280
<v Speaker 2>Michael Scloff wrote the song and he got help with

0:14:07.360 --> 0:14:10.240
<v Speaker 2>the words from Ali Willis, who co wrote Earth Wind

0:14:10.320 --> 0:14:14.400
<v Speaker 2>and Fire's hit September, and then the rem Brands brandified it.

0:14:14.440 --> 0:14:15.679
<v Speaker 2>I don't know if you knew that term.

0:14:16.320 --> 0:14:16.560
<v Speaker 1>So now.

0:14:16.600 --> 0:14:18.480
<v Speaker 2>At the time, the rem Brands were working on their

0:14:18.559 --> 0:14:21.240
<v Speaker 2>third album, and because this was just a theme song

0:14:21.360 --> 0:14:24.200
<v Speaker 2>for a TV show, the original version was only forty

0:14:24.240 --> 0:14:27.160
<v Speaker 2>two seconds long, but as the song became a hit,

0:14:27.240 --> 0:14:29.960
<v Speaker 2>the theme song did too. In fact, the band learned

0:14:30.000 --> 0:14:32.360
<v Speaker 2>that a radio station in Nashville was playing the track

0:14:32.440 --> 0:14:35.320
<v Speaker 2>on a loop just to satisfy the crazy call and

0:14:35.480 --> 0:14:39.320
<v Speaker 2>listener demand. But the idea started spreading to other stations too,

0:14:39.400 --> 0:14:42.600
<v Speaker 2>and other DJs got the same idea, So the band

0:14:42.640 --> 0:14:45.560
<v Speaker 2>wrote an extended version to add it to their album,

0:14:45.920 --> 0:14:48.040
<v Speaker 2>even though one hundred thousand copies of the album had

0:14:48.080 --> 0:14:51.200
<v Speaker 2>already been printed. They decided to do this anyway, and

0:14:51.240 --> 0:14:54.000
<v Speaker 2>because the producers of Friends had helped write the theme song,

0:14:54.400 --> 0:14:57.200
<v Speaker 2>they were in the studio along with the Rembrandts working

0:14:57.240 --> 0:15:00.640
<v Speaker 2>on that extended track. Pretty wild, isn't it now? First,

0:15:00.680 --> 0:15:02.720
<v Speaker 2>the rem Brands were pretty annoyed by having to add

0:15:02.760 --> 0:15:04.920
<v Speaker 2>the sitcom track to the album because it didn't really

0:15:04.960 --> 0:15:07.000
<v Speaker 2>fit into the arc of the album that they had

0:15:07.040 --> 0:15:09.800
<v Speaker 2>already made. But in the end they were pretty okay

0:15:09.840 --> 0:15:12.520
<v Speaker 2>with it since it helped them sell a lot more copies.

0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:15.080
<v Speaker 2>By the way, here's a little quiz for you. How

0:15:15.080 --> 0:15:17.120
<v Speaker 2>many claps do you think are in the song after

0:15:17.160 --> 0:15:23.840
<v Speaker 2>that first line? Hmm? It's kind of a trick question.

0:15:23.960 --> 0:15:24.760
<v Speaker 2>What were you going to say?

0:15:24.760 --> 0:15:24.920
<v Speaker 1>Though?

0:15:25.040 --> 0:15:28.600
<v Speaker 2>For I think or okay, there are four claps then

0:15:28.600 --> 0:15:31.680
<v Speaker 2>a drum comes in. But for anyone who was unsure,

0:15:31.720 --> 0:15:34.480
<v Speaker 2>there's no need to be embarrassed. Apparently Matt LeBlanc didn't

0:15:34.480 --> 0:15:36.720
<v Speaker 2>know how many claps to do when filming the recent

0:15:36.840 --> 0:15:38.120
<v Speaker 2>Friends Reunion either.

0:15:39.840 --> 0:15:43.440
<v Speaker 1>Well, speaking of friends, that ties perfectly into my last

0:15:43.480 --> 0:15:46.800
<v Speaker 1>fact about two unlikely friends brought together by a theme song.

0:15:47.200 --> 0:15:50.800
<v Speaker 1>And I'm talking about Paul Simon and baseball great Joe DiMaggio.

0:15:51.160 --> 0:15:54.240
<v Speaker 1>And the song, of course is Missus Robinson, written by

0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:57.200
<v Speaker 1>Simon for the film The Graduate. Now the song today's

0:15:57.200 --> 0:16:00.520
<v Speaker 1>the lyric where have you Gone? Joe DiMaggio? Only Joe

0:16:00.520 --> 0:16:03.320
<v Speaker 1>DiMaggio didn't know how to feel about that question at first,

0:16:03.600 --> 0:16:05.600
<v Speaker 1>and a few years after it came out, Simon and

0:16:05.680 --> 0:16:09.040
<v Speaker 1>Dmaggio ran into each other at a restaurant. According to Simon,

0:16:09.080 --> 0:16:12.120
<v Speaker 1>DiMaggio said, quote, what I don't understand is why you

0:16:12.160 --> 0:16:15.040
<v Speaker 1>ask where I've gone. I just did a mister coffee commercial.

0:16:15.080 --> 0:16:17.880
<v Speaker 1>I'm a spokesman for the Bowery Savings Bank. I haven't

0:16:17.920 --> 0:16:19.000
<v Speaker 1>gone anywhere.

0:16:20.560 --> 0:16:23.840
<v Speaker 2>It's a pretty hilarious way for Joe Demaggio to describe himself.

0:16:23.640 --> 0:16:26.840
<v Speaker 1>Right, And this gave Simon the chance to explain the line.

0:16:26.920 --> 0:16:30.000
<v Speaker 1>What it meant was where have all the heroes gone?

0:16:30.120 --> 0:16:32.360
<v Speaker 1>You know, all the great heroes? And he didn't mean

0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:36.400
<v Speaker 1>Demagio specifically. And I guess the explanation satisfied Demagio because

0:16:36.440 --> 0:16:39.320
<v Speaker 1>the two became friends for life. Simon even wrote an

0:16:39.360 --> 0:16:43.160
<v Speaker 1>obituary for DiMaggio after he passed and sang the song

0:16:43.280 --> 0:16:46.080
<v Speaker 1>in centerfield of Yankee Stadium to honor him. Now, the

0:16:46.120 --> 0:16:49.280
<v Speaker 1>irony is, according to Paul Simon, he was always more

0:16:49.320 --> 0:16:50.600
<v Speaker 1>of a Mickey Mantle guy.

0:16:52.160 --> 0:16:54.000
<v Speaker 2>I have to say a mango that fact is worthy

0:16:54.000 --> 0:16:58.160
<v Speaker 2>of today's trophy. So congratulations, I love it.

0:16:58.200 --> 0:17:00.720
<v Speaker 1>Well, that is it for today's episod. We'll be back

0:17:00.840 --> 0:17:04.280
<v Speaker 1>next week with another brand new episode, and in the meantime,

0:17:04.359 --> 0:17:06.480
<v Speaker 1>you can find us on Instagram at part Time Genius.

0:17:06.720 --> 0:17:08.760
<v Speaker 1>Research and writing for this episode was done by our

0:17:08.800 --> 0:17:13.320
<v Speaker 1>old friend Meredith Danko. Thank you Meredith, and from Dylan, Gabe, Mary,

0:17:13.440 --> 0:17:28.000
<v Speaker 1>Will and myself, thank you so much for listening. Part

0:17:28.040 --> 0:17:31.679
<v Speaker 1>Time Genius is a production of Kaleidoscope and iHeartRadio. This

0:17:31.800 --> 0:17:35.600
<v Speaker 1>show is hosted by Will Pearson and Me Mongage Heatikler

0:17:35.960 --> 0:17:39.960
<v Speaker 1>and research by our good pal Mary Philip Sandy. Today's

0:17:39.960 --> 0:17:43.320
<v Speaker 1>episode was engineered and produced by the wonderful Dylan Fagan

0:17:43.400 --> 0:17:47.000
<v Speaker 1>with support from Tyler Klang. The show is executive produced

0:17:47.000 --> 0:17:50.560
<v Speaker 1>for iHeart by Katrina Norvell and Ali Perry, with social

0:17:50.600 --> 0:17:54.280
<v Speaker 1>media support from Sasha Gay, trustee Dara Potts and buy

0:17:54.320 --> 0:17:58.880
<v Speaker 1>Any Shorey. For more podcasts from Kaleidoscope and iHeartRadio, visit

0:17:58.920 --> 0:18:02.840
<v Speaker 1>the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to

0:18:02.840 --> 0:18:16.879
<v Speaker 1>your favorite shows.