It Happened One Year

Three Minutes to Midnight - Part One

Should the government allow as Christian a symbol as a nativity on town property? Some crusading figures in Fitchburg, Massachusetts sure didn't think so. And the events that followed grew into a local scandal and international punchline in 1984, with the nativity in Monument Park the new epicenter for this ideological battle! Vandalism, kidnapping, chicken throwing, and social commentary abound, and now, It Happened One Year brings you the whole approximate tale with its sixth fully-scripted production!

 

Written & Directed by Joe Cetta

Cast

Michelle Auffrey/additional - Sarah Rusakiiwicz

Freddie Auffrey - Dane Bower

Karl Daigle - Brent Hutchins

Karen Daigle - Lana Cooper

Patrolman Anne Dandy - Kristin Mann

Sgt. Furrier - Bear Savo

Judge Membrino/additional - Joe Cetta

Vito Vitale/Bailiff/Jack/additional - David Munchak

Rocky Cannavino - Bill Randall

Radio Margaret - Jo-Elle Munchak

Officer Rodriguez - Krispy

Attorney Henshaw - Matthew Hinton

Michelle P. - Jennifer Nack

Michelle R./Atomic Scientists/additional - Angie Buonincontro

Courtroom Assistant Marsha - Dina Udomsak

Stenographer Alice - Shannon Hosey

Reporter Hildy - Matt Moran

Reporter Gail - Graceann Dorse

Reporter Howard/additional - The Batman

David Wittman/additional - Adam Carpenter

Irving R. Levine/additional - Dave Gardon

Additional voices - Danielle Harris, Michael Buonincontro, Jerron

Dead Milkmen - Bill Honchell

Dead Kennedys - Kate Langan

Heaven 17 - Reid Mosley

 

And tune back in next week for the conclusion!

1984 Episode 38 - Wiseguys, Cannoli, and Manhattan Murders

A relic from the days of yore! It Happened One Year finally rolls out its episode about the New York mafia of the 1980s, recorded so long ago we still thought there was a chance Donald Trump might go to prison! Ah, those innocent days! Sarah & Joe - at the tail end of Memorial Day weekend, 2024 - tackle a variety of mob related antics from 1984 and the surrounding days, including Rudy Giuliani's RICO takedown of organized crime (a story which was very fresh in the news again nine months ago), Big Paul Castellano's murder, the rise of John Gotti, Joe Columbo's Italian American Civil Rights League, Joe Profaci's descendants, the extensive crimes of Roy DeMeo, The Godfather's Albert Ruddy, The Sopranos in pop culture, Russell Bufalino, mob tours in Chicago, and much more!

Coming Soon! Three Minutes to Midnight

"We have Jesus. We will hang him unless the police leave five cases of Budweiser here January 1st." This was the anonymous ransom demand left at the scene of the nativity heist that made international news out of Fitchburg, Massachusetts in December of 1984. But the identity of the culprits and their true motives were a mystery to law enforcement and the rosary-clutching public. Was the objection on religious grounds? Was it someone with a vendetta against the Fitchburg police? Or was it all a light-hearted prank that got out of hand? The fourth and final scripted episode from It Happened One Year for 1984, Three Minutes to Midnight imagines the daring crimes and colorful figures involved in this semi-forgotten incident, brought to life by dozens of members from the Mighty IHOY Players! Tune back in March 14th & 21st for the epic, two-part tale!

1984 Episode 37 - Roger Moore's Mid-Bond Thriller, The Naked Face!

For the first and only time this season, It Happened One Year is doing a fabled Road Episode - this time the show's first from outside the country! Recorded Christmastime in the Notting Hill area of London, England, Sarah & Joe tackle the coincidentally Chicago-set Sidney Sheldon thriller 1984 adaptation The Naked Face, starring Roger Moore, Rod Steiger, Elliott Gould, Art Carney, Anne Archer, and Navy Pier, baby! Come for the breakdown of the melodramatics - touching quickly on Roger Moore's career and life, with appearances by Scaramanga himself Christopher Lee, Harry & Sally, the local Tesco - and wrap up with some truly mediocre impressions. Look, it was a recorded on a long vacation at the end of a long day, it was bound to be a little odd, even by IHOY standards.

1984 Episode 36 - The Cabbage Patch Kids' First Christmas!

Having largely dealt with 1984's Christmas season last year, It Happened One Year had to dig deep to unearth the Xmas episode topic this time around, and what better place to turn than to the cabbage patch itself! Sarah & Joe take a look at the big ABC special that aired December 7th, 1984 - The Cabbage Patch Kids' First Christmas, discuss the casting and bizarro plot, and attempt to track backward into Cabbage Patch lore to figure out what the hell is going on here. Along the way, the visit the oddball Cabbage Patch event center Babyland, chat about the connected books and records of the franchise, give some quick love to the Garbage Pail Kids, and quickly shout out last year's epic scripted episode Jingle Hell.

1984 Episode 35 - The Great, Grand Epic of Amadeus

After trudging through many years of popcorn entertainment and bikini skydiving thrillers, It Happened One Year finally tackles highbrow, award-winning cinema in the form of the glorious biopic Amadeus, and you are there! Listen as Sarah & Joe recall hazy memories of watching the film in decades past, debate whether the film justifies its runtime, breakdown the near-casting and complex adaptation from play to opera to play to film, and ultimately discuss whether Mozart's music did indeed have too many notes.

1984 Episode 34 - Mike Hammer, Airwolf, and the Entire CBS November 3rd Lineup!

The old standard returns! It Happened One Year is once again looking at what aired on November 3rd in 1984, checking in over a year since exploring ABC's programming! This time, Sarah & Joe delve into the hard-boiled, sexy, action dramas that were Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer, Airwolf, and Cover Up! Along the way, much discussion is made about Stacy Keach's mustache, how Oscar winner Ernest Borgnine found himself flying that helicopter, the tragedies and controversies of Cover Up, the poor adult audience subjected to early '80s television, and of course, the glorious return to It Happened One Year of show favorite, Bubba Smith.

Ferraro! An Afterlife Cabaret

Geraldine Ferraro is dead. So are Eleanor Roosevelt, Jackie Kennedy, Pat Nixon, Lady Bird Johnson, and all the members of the Female United Politicians of America, but that isn't going to stop them from lending their assistance to the 2024 Presidential campaign on Earth, from their gathering place at the Radisson Valhalla Inn & Suites located on the celestial plane. President Biden's alarming debate performance has the group worried about the future of democracy, and so they take a trip through history to the 1984 Election, to see what can be learned from the first time a woman featured on a major party ticket.

It Happened One Year presents its fifth fully scripted, full cast episode, featuring this supernatural take on the election year frenzy. Be sure to vote next Tuesday, but first come along for this wonky look at the great beyond!

Story by Sarah Rusakiiwicz

Written by Sarah and Joe

Directed by Joe Cetta

Cast

Geraldine Ferraro - Lana Cooper

Eleanor Roosevelt - David Munchak

1984 Geraldine Ferraro - Sarah Rusakiiwicz

Walter Mondale - Matt Moran

Jackie Kennedy - Kristin Mann

Pat Nixon - Angie Buonincontro

Lady Bird Johnson - Alex Ferrer

Bella Abzug - Jo-Elle Munchak

Betty Freidan - Shannon Hosey

Joan - Jennifer Nack

Martha Mitchell - Monica Mauricio

Edith Wilson - Danielle Harris

Elizabeth Cady Stanton - Sam McChuri

William Henry Harrison - The Batman

Charles Manatt/Mario Cuomo - Nick Perfetto

John Zaccaro - Joe Cetta

Mark the Announcer - Jon Deiner

Cathy the Announcer - Kristen Gaydos

Gloria Coppernotch - Nancy Cohen

Redbook Interviewer - Becky Schmidt

Dave Wizardsleeve - Duke Tumbleweed

Irving R. Levine - Dave Gardon

Katie Porter - Abigail Perfetto

1984 Episode 32 - Decision '84! Reagan v. Mondale!

With Election Day right around the corner, It Happened One Year finally gets around this season to discussing the biggest news story of 1984 - the Presidential election between Ronald Reagan and Walter Mondale! Sarah & Joe being the political nerds they are go deep into the Democratic primaries, discussing Ted Kennedy's reluctance, Gary Hart's late surge, Jesse Jackson's implosion, and Mondale's emergence, which leads directly into his desperation choice of a running mate - the first woman to feature on a major party ticket, Geraldine Ferraro! Campaign ads, other potential veeps, the debates, and the stunning outcome all factor in, as the hosts desperately try to avoid talking about the onrushing 2024 election. 

Coming Soon - Ferraro! An Afterlife Cabaret

The first presidential ticket to feature a woman was formed in 1984, when Walter Mondale selected Geraldine Ferraro as his running mate, and history was made! In 2024, with another historic Election Day bearing down, It Happened One Year transports you to the great beyond, as a coalition of female political figures gathers in hopes of aiding a current candidate to gain the title of Commander in Chief! Written by Sarah & Joe, Ferraro! is the fifth scripted episode in the show's history, and features dozens of performers from that illustrious group - the Mighty IHOY Players! Listen to the trailer now, and tune back in on November 1st for full epic tale!