#128 – The Puppet Master Special: Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, Punch & Judy And A Lifetime Of Puppetry With Michael McCormick

In an extra-long special episode of GCC, Mike speaks with Michael McCormick; a masterful puppeteer who has taught puppetry for film & TV at New Mexico State University, worked with Jim Henson on Dark Crystal & Labyrinth and even created the Star Wars character Salacious Crumb!

In this conversation, they talk about how Michael first got into puppetry, the influence & reach of Punch & Judy shows, why puppets intrigue Michael, the charactures of puppetry, his time on Dark Crystal, Labyrinth & the set of Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi, his near-death experiences, Brian & Wendy Froud are also mentioned, along with his time teaching puppetry in the New Mexico State University, his work on David Bowie’s costumes on Labyrinth, some stories from being on-set on various productions and it all wraps up with Michael’s idea for a new TV show – so many great topics are covered, this is definitely worth a listen!

Mike has also uploaded the video version of this episode to the GCC YouTube channel so you can see the puppets Michael kindly show us: https://youtu.be/D4kz0jSVoj0

Michael McCormick’s Fandom Wiki Page

Check out the Fight Before Christmas movie to see Michael McCormick doing Punch & Judy on-screen!

Check out Mike’s Patreon, where he releases 1 or 2 episodes of his “Afterthoughts” a week (with 3 episodes now *FREE* to anyone: season 1 of The Witcher, The Phantom Menace & Spider-Man 3!), plus there are unsplit full-length episodes of GCC, additional photos (including early access to photos of comics for this very show) and more, so if you want to support the show and get more content, check it out at http://patreon.com/genuinechitchat
If you just want to hear M&M’s talk about Spider-Man 3, check it out here for free: http://bit.ly/Spiderman3AT!

Mike was on a recent episode of the I Like To Like Things podcast, talking about his favourite TV show (and no, it’s not Star Wars): https://spoti.fi/3xtlBoJ

Mike was on ep 37 of What’s The Topic, to talk about the first episode of Loki, check it out on this very feed: https://spoti.fi/2SkIwDT

Mike is on episode 21 of the podcast Geek Talks on the Fantastic Universes feed: https://spoti.fi/3fOJT5h

Mike also appeared on episode 16 Frank Burton’s I Like The Sound podcast: https://spoti.fi/3ue8ma3

Mike was on the 20th Century Geek podcast to talk about his 3 “Desert Island Comics” here:  http://spoti.fi/3r1UOvZ

Find Mike’s other show; Star Wars: Comics In Canon on Spotify & the other podcast apps on the feed of Comics In Motion. Episodes are out every Saturday; episodes 0-60 are out now, in ep 60 Mike discussed the 5 prelude issues of the War Of The Bounty Hunters crossover event while ep 59 is about the unspeakable rebel super weapon after A New Hope and ep 58 shows how Kanan Jarrus met his master! Previous episodes topics include Lando comics, the Journals of Old Ben Kenobi, Kanan Jarrus, Count Dooku, Kylo Ren, Darth Maul, how C-3PO got his red arm, book reviews & more – https://spoti.fi/3sOtqCw

Instagram – Twitter – Facebook – YouTube – Stitcher – Podbean – Spotify

You can also email Mike at GenuineChitChat@outlook.com with any reviews, comments or suggestions.

#76 Pt 1 – “This Is The Best Thing”: Christmas Movies, Identity Crisis & Michael Jackson’s Blanket With Nick & Ciara

This week Mike is joined by Nick & Ciara of the This Is The Best Thing podcast (also joined by Mike’s girlfriend and self-proclaimed co-host, Megan), to talk about their show as well as hundreds of other tangents & ramblings – this is definitely a show for the sillier members of the audience!

Part 1 of their chat they discuss a huge matter of random things, but in brief; West Side Story-style clicking in schools was discussed (as both Nick & Megan are teachers), Nick’s solo show, why Nick & Ciara started a podcast as well as what it’s all about, censorship in Eminem lyrics, Michael Jackson’s child Blanket, Nick’s identity crisis followed by his dislike of Love Actually, favourite Christmas movies, Robbie Williams & Take That, Kanye West’s Jesus Is King merchandise, favourite restaurants, eating badly and so much more!

In part 2, the four’s tangentical chat continues with a talk on Disney films, Ciara’s & Mike’s youth on YouTube, the issues of being a teacher, how Megan got into being a teacher, Frankie Valli’s impact on music followed by a longer discussion on music & music taste in general, intellectual property and much more nonsense, so if you liked this week, be sure to tune in next week!

Link To Nick & Ciara’s Show – Link To Nick’s Solo Show

In case you missed it, in the last episode of GCC, Mike collaborated with Scott, Chris & Dave of the 20^th Century Geek, Comics In Motion & VHS Strikes Back podcasts for an instalment in the Journey To The Rise Of Skywalker! In part 1, they discuss Episodes 7 & 8 (The Force Awakens & The Last Jedi), regarding plot details, characters, how they compare to the previous 6 movies in the Skywalker Saga, which of the two movies they each prefer, some of the best & worst parts of the new trilogy and more! In part 2 they speculate on what they believe is to come in Episode IX including “Bendemption”, how Palpatine will be involved, what will happen to Leia, Rey and much more!

Promo by Just Conversations Podcast

Genuine Chit-Chat is a part of the Brit Pod Scene, so be sure to check out the other members of the family as well as the BPS podcast – www.britpodscene.com

Instagram – Twitter – Facebook – YouTube – Stitcher – Podbean – Spotify

You can also email us at GenuineChitChat@outlook.com with any reviews, comments or suggestions.