Watch With Jen - S4: E28 - Video Store Weekend '89 with Jordan Harper

Watch With Jen™

I have a pretty busy week lined up so you're getting this new episode early! Returning to the podcast today, we have a fan favorite in the form of Mr. Jordan Harper. One of my dearest friends, this podcast's very first guest, and my Pandemic Movie Club, and Game Night crew buddy, Jordan is the Edgar award-winning author of She Rides Shotgun, Love & Other Wounds, The Last King of California, & Everybody Knows.

Additionally, a screenwriter and producer of such shows as The Mentalist, Gotham, and Hightown, Jordan crafted one of the most beautiful pilots for L.A. Confidential, which CBS stupidly did not pick up, but was so acclaimed he screened and did a virtual panel on the show at the ATX TV Festival. A Missouri native - and yes, that will come up in today's conversation - Jordan currently lives in L.A. along with his talented screenwriter girlfriend Megan Mostyn-Brown, and adorable dog Ellroy.

When Jordan & I planned this episode, we had no idea that we'd wind up recording on Day 100 of the WGA strike, which also happened to be National Book Lovers Day, or that it'd fall on a day when I could really use the distraction of laughing about movies with a good friend.

A very funny, fast-paced, yet intensive blast from the past that celebrates & interrogates our childhood nostalgia, in this 85-minute conversation, we dig through what he's dubbed "a great stack of videos" from 1989. Kicking things off by sharing our thoughts on that bygone video store era (which has been revived in his Eagle Rock neighborhood, thanks to Vidiots), we open with a hilarious foray into two trashtastic films we enjoy throwing on as needed - Road House & Black Rain. Following up our discussion on those with something lighter in the form of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, we conclude the episode with Jordan's thrilling insights into Gleaming the Cube, including a major appreciation of the filmography of actor Max Perlich & the ways in which the brilliant screenwriter Michael Tolkin uses a teen skateboard picture to dig into political issues of the time. Filled with laughter, this one is sure to be a new hit with listeners, & I know it'll brighten your day.

Originally Posted on Patreon (8/13/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/87634121

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

Logo: KateGabrielle.com