Sewers of Paris: A Gateway Drug to Fabulous (Ep. 360 - 80s Cartoons/Ted Biaselli)

At first glance, Elvira — the late-night movie hostess — looks like a character custom-engineered to appeal to straight men. So why do so many gays love her? I’ve got a new video up on YouTube exploring that very question, with help from someone who knows a thing or two about the character — her longtime collaborator and writer, Ted Biaselli, who also happens to be Director of Original Series at Netflix. Several years ago I interviewed Ted for The Sewers of Paris, and this week we’re returning to that conversation about his work with Elvira, aka Cassandra Peterson, as well as his journey from a flamboyant child in Pennsylvania to an art-school gay to developing shows that will hopefully speak to weird little kids like the one he used to be.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First a reminder to check out my YouTube channel where I post videos about queer pop culture. And you can also head over to my Patreon to watch hours of bonus videos featuring stories of TV and film history.

And check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

And a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris at Patreon.com/mattbaume. And to everyone who’s left a review on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen.

The Drama Kid (Ep 359 - Funny Girl/David Pevsner)

My guest this week is David Pevsner, writer, actor, and erotic blogger. His book Damn Shame, a memoir of desire, defiance, and show tunes comes out in January (it’s available for pre-order now) and catalogs his adventures on Broadway and on TV, as an escort, and as a naked Tumblr star. It all starts with a kid dancing in secret to Barbra Streisand records.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First a reminder to check out my YouTube channel where I post videos about queer pop culture history — I’ve got a new one coming this weekend about how Elvira became a gay icon and the Queen of Halloween. And you can also head over to my Patreon to watch hours of bonus videos featuring stories of queer TV and film history.

And check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

And a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris at Patreon.com/mattbaume. And to everyone who’s left a review on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen.

My Space-Brothers (Ep 358 - Star Trek DS9/David)

My guest this week has some catching up to do. David is a writer who grew up in a religious family, and until his early 30s was closeted and struggled through ex-gay treatments until he finally came out. Helping him to make the adjustment: Star Trek, where he came to realize he’d picked up more of his sense of right and wrong than from the church. After cutting ties with his old life, he sold almost everything he owned for a one-way bus ticket to LA, where a couple of lucky breaks kept him from living on the street and got him into the industry he’d always dreamed of joining.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris at Patreon.com/mattbaume. And to everyone who’s left a review on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen.

Also don’t forget to check out my YouTube where I post videos about queer pop culture history — I’ve got a new one all about The Paul Lynde Halloween Special. And you can also head over to my Patreon to watch hours of bonus videos featuring stories of queer TV and film history.

And check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

A Big Purple Man in a Loin Cloth (Ep. 357 - Fazaad/Gargoyles)

Next week is the anniversary of the premiere of the show Gargoyles, an animated 90s series with queer subtext simmering just under the surface — and that’s according to the show’s creator. In honor of that anniversary, we’re diving back into the Sewers archives for a chat with Fazaad Feroze, who became obsessed with the show when he was young. The child of immigrants from Guyana before moving to the United States, he only has to look back one generation on his family tree to see a life that is unrecognizable to him. And as you can imagine, the family’s introduction to American culture wasn’t always easy and came with frequent surprises — including, when Fazaad was a teenager, the discovery of his real name.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris at Patreon.com/mattbaume. And to everyone who’s left a review on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen.

Also don’t forget to check out my YouTube where I post videos about queer pop culture history — and you can also head over to my Patreon to watch hours of bonus videos featuring stories of queer TV, film, and Broadway history.

And check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

Always Pushing Boundaries (Ep 356 - Madonna/Farhad Dadyburjor)

My guest on the Sewers of Paris podcast this week is the author of The Other Man, a forthcoming novel set in Mumbai about two men from very different cultures falling in love. Farhad Dadyburjor knows a thing or two about bridging cultures — growing up in India, he developed a deep obsession with western pop stars like Madonna and even came out to a friend via a carefully phrased comparison to George Michael. These days he’s gained a much richer understanding of himself and his community — thanks to a combination of queer literature and dance parties.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris at Patreon.com/mattbaume. And to everyone who’s left a review on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen.

Also don’t forget to check out my YouTube where I post videos about queer pop culture history — and you can also head over to my Patreon to watch hours of bonus videos featuring stories of queer TV, film, and Broadway history.

And check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

Sexy But Secret (Ep 355 - Twilight/Ian Lockwood)

My guest on the Sewers of Paris podcast this week would like you to see him at his worst. Ian Lockwood is a New York based pop music comedian who makes goofy music videos in which he plays his messiest self. It’s a style inspired in part by his relationship with the Twilight novels — which he started reading as a joke, and was then startled to discover that he unironically loved.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. And don’t forget to check out my YouTube where I post videos about queer pop culture history — I’ve got one coming this weekend about how queer activists teamed up with the producer of Bewitched and Barney Miller to overcome network censors and put the first recurring gay couple on television. You can also head over to my Patreon to watch hours of bonus videos featuring stories of queer TV, film, and Broadway history.

And check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

Big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris at Patreon.com/mattbaume. And to everyone who’s left a review on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen.

It Opened a Portal in my Brain (Ep 354 - The Ice Storm/Craig Johnson)

My guest this week is Craig Johnson — director of the movies Skeleton Twins and Alex Strangelove, among many other projects. His creative interests straddle two very different worlds: Troubled suburban families, and weird creepy monsters … which maybe aren’t so different after all. Fortunately, he gets to explore those topics on screen — thanks to a phone call many years ago that changed his life forever.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First — a reminder that I’ve been posting lots of fun videos about queer pop culture history over on my YouTube — I just released a new one about the gayest week in television history. And you can also head over to Patreon to see even more bonus videos.

Also check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

Also a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris on Patreon. And to everyone who’s reviewed it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen.

Life is Drama, Make me Laugh (Ep. 353 - Dan Savage)

Eleven years ago this week, Dan Savage founded the It Gets Better Project, and this week we’re diving into the Sewers archives to revisit my conversation with him in 2017. You've probably heard Dan speak at length about sex and love and news and politics -- but this conversation is going to be a little different as we dive into 8-track tapes, secret bike rides, family arguments, and a rule-breaking theater troupe where Dan honed his sense of shock and showmanship long before he was known for dispensing Savage Love.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First — a reminder that I’ve been posting lots of fun videos about queer pop culture history over on my YouTube — I’ve got one coming this weekend about how one weird week in 1976 became the gayest couple of days in television history. And you can also head over to Patreon to see even more bonus videos.

Also check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

Also a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris on Patreon. And to everyone who’s reviewed it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen.

Called to the Kitchen (Ep 352 - Cookbooks/Adam Roberts)

My guest this week is a writer who’s found a way to blend an unlikely combination of genres — comedy and food writing. You may know Adam Roberts for his blog and his cookbook, The Amateur Gourmet, or from his work as a writer on the show The Real O’Neals. None of this was supposed to happen — Adam’s career kicked off with a short stint in law school before he realized it wasn’t for him, and food writing was something he just did for fun until he discovered, to his surprise, that it had become his whole life.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First — a reminder that I’ve been posting lots of fun videos about queer pop culture history over on my YouTube — I just posted one about the beloved 80s movie Mannequin and the unlikely queer heroism of the character Hollywood Montrose. And you can also head over to Patreon to see even more bonus videos.

Also check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

Also a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris on Patreon. And to everyone who’s reviewed it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen.

Queer Dark Souls (Ep 351 - Dark Souls/Illusory Wall)

My guest this week is the YouTuber who goes by the name Illusory Wall. He’s dedicated himself to unraveling the mysteries of the often-bewildering games in the Dark Souls franchise — dark gothic mysteries full of strange horrors and hidden treasures. What was once a niche interest has become an obsession, and, as of very recently, his full time job.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First — a reminder that I’ve been posting lots of fun videos about queer pop culture history over on my YouTube — I’ve got one coming this weekend about the movie Mannequin and the unlikely queer heroism of Hollywood Montrose. And you can also head over to Patreon to see even more bonus videos.

Also check out my cute little newsletter where I share sneak peeks at what I’m working on at mattbaume.com.

Also a big thanks to everyone who supports the Sewers of Paris on Patreon. And to everyone who’s reviewed it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen.