Dean previews his upcoming improv show. Phil previews his forthcoming travels with his cat. Dean and Phil analyze the latest news in the escalating showdown between the Hollywood studios and the creative unions, including the terms of the tentative agreement between the studios and the directors. Then, the rest of the show is about a handful of the greatest films of all time, including Casablanca (with fascinating and surprising stories about its making), Seven Samurai, Pickpocket and Out of the Past, and a couple of truly awful ones (a musical version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde starring Kirk Douglas?!). Discussion of great actors, great editing, great cinematography, and Wabi-Sabi ensues! 

On the 8th of May 2007, good friends and collaborators Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness started to “change the way people listen to the internet” with a free weekly podcast called “From the Heart of Hollywood”. Eventually, of course, the show became known as YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour and today the show turns 16 years of age, old enough to drive itself! Your friends in podcasting (and broadcasting) commemorate the occasion with very special episode where they discuss the ways the world has changed since they started the show 16 years ago, and how they predict the world will be different 16 years from now!

Rabbit, Rabbit! Welcome to May and welcome to the final show of year 15 of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour where Dean and Phil get the ball rolling by discussing the obituary fictional character Dame Edna wrote for her creator prior to his death. Phil remembers the legendary playwright Robert Patrick and he and Dean ponder the life – not the legacy – of the woman who falsely accused Emmett Till. Then, in “Celebrity Deaths”, the towering artistry and humanity of Harry Belafonte gets discussed, as does Belafonte’s friendship with Sidney Poitier. The latest in the pending Writer’s Strike gets analyzed. Facts surrounding three movies discussed last week get revealed, the 1996 classic Irma Vep starring the incomparable Maggie Cheung gets revisited, and the countdown to the end of Netflix results in analysis of both Sean Baker’s Red Rocket and Mike Mills’ C’mon C’mon. Finally, the concluding seasons of “Succession” and “Barry” get hailed.

Phil shares some of his Los Angeles adventures from the past week. Dean shares his latest adventures in painting. Phil celebrates the daily joy of David Lynch reading the weather report. Dean and Phil update on the latest in the battle between two different actors’ union, and on the battle between the Writers Guild and the most powerful agencies in Hollywood. They discuss season 4 of “Fargo” and the work of “X-Files” veteran Daniel Sackheim on “Lovecraft Country”. Phil questions Dean about the comments from comic book legend Alan Moore on the cultural blight that superheroes, superhero comics and superhero movies have become. Several performers and writers get remembered in “Celebrity Deaths”. Dean and Phil bring back “What We’re Reading” and celebrate their all-time favorite bookstores!

Phil reveals good news and terrifying stories about his recovery from eye surgery, he and Dean lay out a wide array of possible solutions to gun violence, they remember a legendary writer, they update the Writers Guild’s battle with talent agents, they reveal new movie theater subscription news and they re-visit what they were talking about 12 years ago this week! All that, plus your friends in podcasting dig deep in their analysis and appraisal of Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, his career output and his place in cinematic history. Finally, they celebrate one of the most important voices in cinema today, Sean Baker, the filmmaker behind The Florida Project, Tangerine and many more.

As many of you know, our ten most recent shows are now available on iTunes and on our newly re-launched website. We would not have made it this far without a lot of hard work without support from several loyal listeners. If you would like to pitch in with a donation to help your friends in podcasting as they continue the time-consuming effort of re-building, please drop us a line (chillpakhollywood at yahoo dot com). The gents will be back on Monday with another brand new episode where they will be discussing some amazing good news to come out of the Notre Dame fire, a preview of their forthcoming trip to Rhode Island, what TV shows Dean is watching now that he resides in the USA again, the breakdown in negotiations between the Writers Guild of America and the talent agents, and three recent movies, including two superhero films! All that plus an Oscar-nominated director fights for life, a brilliant television comedienne is remembered in “Celebrity Deaths”, Roman Polanski returns in a “Lawsuit of the Week” and the yet-to-launch Disney + streaming service announces what film won’t be available and what classic will be edited before it is available. YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour. Back and better than ever. Monday at 5 pm Pacific. Wherever good podcasts can be found!

Today on the program, Dean and Phil discuss the Golden Globes, what ’significant progress’ could mean in regards to the writer’s strike, why Dean goes to see bad movies, the origins of Phil’s illness and much much more (as always).

Dean, Phil, and their special guest Lily Holleman discuss the booming film industry in the other LA (Shreveport, LA, to be precise). More news on the continuing writers’ strike, plus more good reviews for Phil’s new film “Karl Rove, I Love You”.