Pop Culture Phenomena The Podcast

David Bethel, author of the new book, Mapping the Night, dropped by the pod this week. Bethel talked about writing his new book, his overall writing process, how his role working within the U.S. government has helped him as a writer, his future projects, and so much more!

Luke Dimyan dropped by the pod this week to talk about playing Judas on The Chosen. Dimyan discussed auditioning for the role, what it is like to play someone who is hated by the masses, the success of The Chosen, dealing with critics of the show, and so much more!

Carolina Espiro dropped by the pod to talk about directing The Avon Lady. She discussed her inspiration for the movie, how the pandemic shifted her plans, what it was like having her mother star in the film, the challenges of being an independent filmmaker, and so much more!

Ray Proscia dropped by the pod to talk about playing Dr. Lipschitz on the hit TV show Suits. Ray also talked about auditioning for the show, meeting Rick Hoffman (Louis Litt) for the first time, his emotional scene with Gabriel Macht (Harvey Specter), the show ending, the new Suits LA, and so much more!

Gilbert Saldivar dropped by the pod this week to talk about his amazing career as a dancer in the music business. Saldivar has danced on tour with the likes of Christina Aguilera, Janet Jackson, and Jennifer Lopez. He has also performed in three Super Bowl Halftime Shows, two Olympic closing ceremonies, and he is starring opposite of Jennifer Lopez in her newest movie.

Wilf drops by the pod to talk about his time as a traitor on season 1 of The Traitors UK. He discusses the application process, what his mindset was going into the game, Maddy coming after him over and over again, backstabbing his fellow traitors, the parting gift that Kieran left at the round table, and so much more!

The new voice of Barney the dinosaur, Korey Durham, dropped by the pod this week. Durham chatted about becoming the new voice of Barney, how Mattel approached him for the job, how his daughter reacted to him being Barney, what it takes to create all of the voices that he does, and so much more!

The fabulous Ellia English dropped by the pod this week to talk about her incredible career. Ellia shared stories about playing Aunt Helen on The Jamie Foxx Show, what it was like working with Jamie Foxx, playing Mrs. Wentz on Good Luck Charlie, acting side by side with Gladys Knight, stepping away from the business for her family, and so much more.

Arye Campos dropped by the pod to talk about her newest Lifetime movie (She's Obsessed With My Husband), playing Amanda in Passport to Freedom, the start of her acting career, why everyone wants to be in a Hallmark Christmas movie, and so much more!

Patricia Belcher dropped by the pod this week to talk about portraying Mrs. Dabney on Good Luck Charlie, as we as her time on Bones. She discussed what it was like learning some of the required legal jargon on Bones, the audition process for Good Luck Charlie, watching the kids on Good Luck Charlie grow up, what actually happened to Mr. Dabney, and so much more!

Richard Bakewell dropped by the pod this week to talk about his new film, Roswell Delirium. Bakewell discussed the process of writing/directing the film, how he made his casting decisions, what the independent film scene looks like in 2024, what happens when film editing doesn't go as planned, and so much more!

Moira Quirk (Mo from GUTS) dropped by the pod this week to talk about GUTS and Global GUTS. Quirk shared her audition story, what it was like working with Mike O'Malley, why those GUTS trophies were so freaking heavy, what the Aggro Crag is actually made out of, and so much more!

Betsy Randle dropped by the pod to talk about playing Amy Matthews on Boy Meets World. Betsy shared what it was like to be on Home Improvement before BMW, how she felt on Boy Meets World when her character continuously wasn't given big parenting moments, what it was like watching the kids on the show grow up, her stance then and now on Cory and Topanga getting married, her favorite Bill Daniels moment, and so much more!

Eric Kramer dropped by the pod this week to talk about Good Luck Charlie and some of the other iconic TV shows that he has been on. Kramer shared stories about Lois and Clark, Seinfeld, the Good Luck Charlie movie, the backlash from Good Luck Charlie having a same-sex couple on the show, his current projects, and so much more!

Rekha Sharma dropped by the pod to talk about the Season 3 finale of Transplant, which airs on February 9th (the day this episode was released). Sharma shared stories about joining the cast, learning all the medical jargon, and she even talked about some of her previous roles before Transplant (Smallville).

Joseph Marcell dropped by the pod this week to talk about his time as Geoffrey Butler on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Joseph shared with us stories about the show finding success, the importance of being the next major Black TV show after The Cosby Show, what it was like switching Aunt Viv's in the middle of the series, the emotions of the final episode, a funny James Avery story, and so much more!

Kevin Sorbo dropped by the pod this week to talk about Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Sorbo discussed how much of his own stunt work he did, how Hercules led to Xena: Warrior Princess, how Lucy Lawless was not the original Xena, his time as Frank Atwood on The OC, and so much more!

Carolyn Wiger dropped by the pod to talk about being on Survivor, Season 44. She talked about the process of preparing for the show, what it was like to be on the island, and the mental, emotional, and physical toll the game takes on you. She also shared what her life has been like following the show, and what it was like to be named Sia's favorite Survivor player of all-time, by Sia herself.

Amanda Righetti stopped by the pod this week to talk about her role as Hailey Nichols on the hit FOX show, The OC. We also chatted about her time on North Shore, doing her own stunts in Friday the 13th, and how streaming will continue to change the movie and television landscape.

James Urbaniak dropped by the pod this week and he had us "rolling on the laughing floor" as he shared stories about his time playing Rolf on The Office. James also shared his "meeting Justin Bieber" story and what it is like to be a voice actor.