It Happened One Year

1984 Episode 22 - Ghostbusters: The Franchise That Won't Die

What is left to say about Ghostbusters that hasn't already been said? Sarah & Joe take a swing at it in this spooky It Happened One Year entry! They cover their personal relationships with the property in the 1980s, the reemergence of the franchise in the past decade, and how it compares to other film series where the first film was a big commercial and critical success, and then just coasted forever after. Along the way they're talking casting in the original film, the different versions of that script, how the 2016 reboot could've worked better, what other '80s films benefited from its huge success, and much more! Then - stick around to the end for a preview of the new scripted episode - Big Bucks, No Whammies - coming June 8th!

Coming Soon - Big Bucks, No Whammies!

Michael Larson was an out-of-work ice cream truck driver, struggling to make ends meet for his young family (and multiple ex-wives) in Lebanon, Ohio. His penchant for get-rich-quick schemes caused few to take him seriously, and so when he announced he was going on a game show, no one thought much of it. But his subsequent run on CBS's Press Your Luck in 1984 would go down in television history. It Happened One Year presents its fourth fully scripted audio dramedy, this time written by great friend of the show Nick Perfetto, and featuring dozens of performers from the Mighty IHOY Players! Listen to the trailer now, and tune back in for the whole shebang on June 8th!

1984 Episode 21 - Sisters are Doing It For the First Time!

Strap in, folks! It Happened One Year commemorates recording on International Women's Day with tales of exploration, politics, murder, and music, with some truly unhinged interludes along the way! Listen as Sarah & Joe wander off into the pointlessness of space walks! Gasp at Sarah's suggested names for this episode, and whether this sets feminism back decades in the doing! Marvel at the hosts' high school superlatives! Experience possibly the greatest song ever written about one's own grandfather being poisoned!

In the Wake of O.J. Simpson and 1994

The most unexpected of bonus episodes arrives here in the midst of season three, as It Happened One Year harkens back to its early days in the form of finally discussing murderer and Heisman winner O.J. Simpson! Despite putting out shows dealing with Kato Kaelin, F. Lee Bailey, Naked Gun 33 1/3, and Al Cowlings (the inaugural episode of the entire show), Sarah & Joe never solely concentrated on the villain at the center of the whole event, and on the occasion of his death it felt high time to do just that. And boy does it get deep - not just opinions about the trial and the verdict, but America '94 versus America today, the early days of the show and the pandemic, the utter failure of the justice system then and now, cancel culture, the Me Too era, redemption, vengeance, Rodney King, George Floyd, Marcia Clark's hairstyles, the Dancing Itos, and more. 

1984 Episode 20 - Love & Dissolution

It's time for another round of everyone's favorite alcove in the It Happened One Year complex of topics - The Love Corner! Sarah & Joe run down the list of marriages and divorces from 1984, from the titans of politics to the seedy philanderers of Tinseltown, with much classic digressing along the way. Hear tales of the hosts encountering many of today's subjects in the various movie theaters, comedy clubs, and street corners they frequent! Listen as they cannot recall which band sang what song and debate who exactly DeBarge is! Witness cameos from the likes of G.E. Smith, Pierre Trudeau, Mary Poppins, Apollo Creed, Paul Thomas Anderson, Adrienne Barbeau, UHF, and many more! Love goes where my rosemary grows this week on the big show!

1984 Episode 19 - All of Me, the Steve Martin/Lily Tomlin/Carl Reiner Classic

The fourth and final pairing of Steve Martin and Carl Reiner created arguably their best movie, in the form of 1984's All of Me, and It Happened One Year is there to discuss! Sarah & Joe breakdown their memories of the star's films, why this movie may not be resonating down through the ages like some of their other projects, the somewhat odd circumstances of seeing both of these legends in person, and much more, including cameos from show favorite Speed, making friends on the internet, The X-Files, Louise Fletcher's parents, and Sarah forgetting how we typically wrap up an episode.

1984 Episode 18 - Theoretically, There Could Be Anything Out There

In the midst of all the pop culture items crowding the subject year, the hosts managed to dust off the rarely-used science corner and see what - theoretically - was taking place in outer space in 1984! Two main topics comprise most of Sarah & Joe's stumbling through the cosmos - the Nemesis Star/Death Star theory and the SETI project, both concocted to take wild swings at what might be going on in the extraterrestrial plain! 

1984 Episode 17 - The Timeless Question: Who's the Boss?

The Ballad of Tony & Angela, or is it The Odd Couple meets The Brady Bunch meets the horniest of Golden Girls? ABC's long-running family sitcom Who's the Boss? checks all these boxes, and Sarah and Joe dig in deep to discuss the many facets of this until-recently difficult to watch show! Along the way are comparisons to other family fare of the era, how it stacks up against other Tony Danza works, questions about Jonathan Bower's purpose in things, why Samantha was the preeminent '80s teen sitcom figure, Tony Micelli's ability to master all sporting contests, and the two (count 'em!) awards the show won during its lengthy run. There is more to life than what you're living, this week on It Happened One Year!

1984 Episode 16 - The Macintosh Apple Super Bowl Commercial

"You'll see why 1984 won't be like 1984!" With this is awkward-ass phrase, the era of Super Bowl commercials fully began, and home computers took over the world. Sarah & Joe cover the impact of this short Ridley Scott directed spot, take a trip down internet-laden memory lane, and go over some of their favorite Super Bowl commercials - with many cameos from Budweiser, McDonald's, Groundhog Day, wrestlers, Mean Joe Greene, David Letterman, and the walking horror that was Puppy Monkey Baby.

1984 Episode 15 - The Hail Flutie

Just in time for the Super Bowl, It Happened One Year is heading back to the gridiron to talk a little football! Sarah & Joe very quickly discuss the Super Bowls surrounding 1984 - both blowouts - before transitioning into rare collegiate sports talk in the form of Heisman Trophy winner and future Buffalo Bills great Doug Flutie! The Boston College legend's Hail Mary to defeat Miami is possibly the most famous play in college football history, and one of the defining moments of '80s sports, and it leads into the larger discussion of Flutie's pro career - with stops along the way in Chicago, Calgary, Edmonton, Buffalo, San Diego, and many more locations! Cameos abound from the likes of Frank Thomas, Tom Brady, Teen Mom's Farrah Abraham, Duke Ellington, the Cameo website, Pokemon Go, and political debate icon Ken Bone. Then the hosts look back at their predictions for the current NFL season from August - both in an overall sense and in a local Chicago Bears way - and take some swings at guessing this year's championship game.