December is a special time for us because it marks the anniversary of when we started our podcast six years ago back in 2018. And this holiday season is even more special because (as you probably know) this is our last month as a podcast! Earlier this year, we announced that this would be the final season of the Black Case Diaries Movie/TV Podcast. And in the spirit of saying farewell, we thought it would be fun to revisit our first official episode as The BCD: The Case of A Christmas Carol(s). 

Back during our first year of podcasting, we did a special episode about A Disney Halloween or Disney’s Halloween Treat, an early 1980s made-for-TV Halloween special. When we were thinking about what to do for this year’s Halloween episodes, we thought it might be fun to return to that topic and have an episode that highlights more of our favorite spooky season TV specials. 
Of course, there are hundreds of incredible TV show episodes that focus on frights. The perfect Graveyard Shift episode of SpongebobSquarepants, the unforgettable And Then There Was Shawn episode of Boy Meets World, and the multiple Halloween Heist episodes of Brooklyn 99 just to name a few. But tonight we’re not talking about those. No no, we’re going to do something much scarier: we’re going to talk about a couple of slightly more obscure specials from our childhood! (cue evil laugh)

Coraline premiered in 2009 as the debut feature of LAIKA, a fledgling animation studio born from the defunct Will Vinton Studios. Despite the fact that Coraline was based on a best-selling book, the dark subject matter and the stop-motion medium meant that the film would be a major risk to produce. Not to mention the fact that it came from a studio with little-to-no name recognition with audiences. But, LAIKA pushed ahead, developing a dark and unusual masterpiece that resonated with millions of people. It was a film that proved once again that animation isn’t just for children, but that children and adults can both appreciate the artform. It also opened the door for more off-beat and spooky content. 

So, let’s venture back to The Pink Palace and revisit the twisted tale of Coraline!

In March of 1975, an audience in Dallas, Texas sat in tense silence during the first screening of a new film from Universal. The director, a young man in his late-20s, stood nervously by the exit, ready to duck into the lobby should the event go sideways. For the last year, his life had been completely dedicated to the 2 hour and 10 minute monstrosity before them, a motion picture that started production without a complete script, and that ended up taking three times longer to film than scheduled. Each day he faced the prospect of losing his job and saying goodbye to his lifelong filmmaking dreams. All of that culminated there, in that theater in Dallas, in front of the first audience that would ever lay eyes on the finished product. And if the film was a financial failure, it surely meant the end of this young man’s career. 

The director was Steven Spielberg, and the film was Jaws, the 1970s aquatic thriller that many credit as the first blockbuster. Partway through the screening, the audience started to have audible reactions to the film. Soon, they erupted in screams, and even began cheering after major sequences. Spielberg even noticed a man in the audience get up from his seat and run toward the bathroom, only for him to vomit on the lobby floor. By the film’s end, the audience stood and erupted in applause, a response that no one, especially not the film’s embattled crew and producers, could have ever expected. 

Universal gave Jaws an unprecedented simultaneous wide-release in theaters all across the country. It became the highest grossing movie of its time, turning Steven Spielberg into a household name. It was a film unlike anything anyone had ever seen–a HItchcock-esque thriller masquerading as a monster movie. It launched a film franchise and inspired an entire generation of young filmmakers. Nearly 50 years after its release, Jaws is still widely considered to be an essential film that changed the course of movie history. 

So today, we’re headed back to Amity Island and diving deep into the history of Jaws!

There’s a chance that you’ve never heard of Laurel and Hardy, a comedy duo that famously attempted to deliver a player piano up a large flight of stairs (and won an Oscar for it). You’ve probably heard of The Marx Brothers, or at least you’ve seen the infamous Groucho Marx glasses sold in novelty stores. And if you like baseball or Frankenstein, you might have heard of Abbott and Costello. But there’s one group of comedians that became so well-known, their name is one of the most famous in comedy history: The Three Stooges. 

Over the past 90 years or so, Moe, Larry, and Curly have maintained a status that no other comedy group has achieved. Their influence on modern comedy is undeniable, with gags that are so commonly referenced, audiences can recognize them without ever having watched a single Stooges short. At first glance, the stooges seem like nothing more than three goofballs smacking each other around, but their work was filled with wit and charm that captured the attention of audiences everywhere. 

So, with Dad (Bob) as our guide, we’re going to outline the history of one of America’s most famous trios: The Three Stooges!

In the summer of 1964, Walt Disney released his latest live-action film. Although his studio began by focusing on animated movies, Disney had been producing several live-action classics starting in 1950 with Treasure Island which he followed up with films like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Old Yeller. But this picture, a musical starring a young, lesser-known stage actress as the title character, would become Disney’s crown jewel. It was a film with all the right ingredients: music, magic, family, and a spoonful of sugar. 

Mary Poppins became an instant classic the moment it premiered sixty years ago. Based on the books by Pamela Lyndon Travers, it was a film over twenty years in the making. Yet, it took the world by surprise. Not only was it filled with memorable songs and unforgettable performances, it also blew audiences away with its incredible visual effects. But even deeper than that, this film was riddled with deeply personal touches by Walt Disney himself, and the story touched the hearts of moviegoers everywhere. While most adults may have expected a film made for and about children, they soon found that the movie’s greatest lesson wasn’t for children at all. 
So, hold on tight to your umbrellas, Cassettes; the winds of change are headed this way! Come with us on an adventure into the history of Mary Poppins.

Hey Cassettes and welcome back to ANOTHER episode of The Black Case Diaries! Last week, we started our two-part saga on the making of Chicago, the hit 2002 movie musical. We covered the real-life history behind the film and some of the behind-the-scenes aspects as well. Today, we’re continuing our deep dive on Chicago by covering the film’s actors, songs, reception, and more!

It’s safe to say that in the late 90s, movie musicals weren’t as popular as they were in the 1940s and 50s. It had been decades since the likes of Gene Kelly and Ginger Rogers danced across the screen, and there was a shared perception among Hollywood that modern audiences were no longer interested in the genre. In fact, some would go as far as to say that it was dead. 
But in the early 2000s, movie musicals made a place for themselves in the American zeitgeist once more, and among them was one of the most successful and celebrated Broadway-to-film adaptations of all time: Chicago. Based on a 1926 play by Maurine Dallas Watkins, Chicago is an endlessly entertaining satire that highlights the problem with celebrity worship and corruption in the criminal justice system. It’s packed with musical numbers inspired by vaudeville and the music of the jazz age, performed by an incredibly talented cast that seemed to fit their roles like a glove. 

As this year’s Animation April comes to a close, we thought we could discuss a topic that has been on our list for quite some time. During past years, we’ve covered the histories behind several animation studios like PIXAR, Laika, Cartoon Saloon, Amblimation, and Bluesky. We’ve discussed the history of animation, the rise of Walt Disney, and even the history behind a few specific animated films. And after poring over countless articles, watching several documentaries and DVD commentaries, and tracking down dozens of library books on the topic, we noticed that there was something–actually a lot of things–missing from the history of animation: women. 
But it’s not as though women simply weren’t there in the early days of animation. In fact, women worked on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, one of the first full-length animated films. However, women were almost always relegated to ink and paint departments, which meant that they were responsible for creating animation cells based on drawings. It was an incredibly important part of the medium, but these women had no creative input on the final product. For many years, women were either consistently rejected from animation and story departments, or they were hired and not given credit for their work.

Littlefoot, Fievel the Mouse, the heroic Mrs. Brisby; these familiar characters left a lasting impression when they made it to the big screen in the 1980s. In an era when the animation juggernaut known as Walt Disney was struggling to bring in viewers, these were the characters that carried on the tradition of beautifully crafted hand-drawn animation. They captured the imagination of children and adults alike, and showcased the talent of Don Bluth, the creator behind such classics as The Secret of NIMH and An American Tale. 

When Bluth and fellow animator Gary Goldman left Disney Animation Studios in the early 1980s, they sent waves through the film industry. Several talented animators followed Bluth and Goldman because they too were concerned about the direction in which Disney animation was heading. When he founded his own studio, Bluth’s goal was to create the kind of animation that Walt Disney himself would love, while also providing healthy competition to Bluth’s former employer. 

But this is just one part of Bluth’s life and career. Today we’re taking a look at the animator’s life, and celebrating just some of the art that he has created (so far). So fire up those VCRs and settle in, friends! It’s time to learn about the life of Don Bluth.

As we continue onward into Animation April, we thought it would be fun to do another prompt episode. This week, we were prompted to each come up with an underrated animated TV show (or cartoon) that we love. 

Animation has been around for a very long time, with its earliest forms appearing in cave paintings. But ever since animation appeared as we know it today, the medium has had a tough time getting the general public to take it seriously. Even in the early days of Mickey Mouse, audiences just thought of animation as a silly gimmick that played before the real movie began. Although many filmmakers and artists have attempted to change the public’s perception that animation is a subgenre of children’s entertainment, the painstaking work of animators is often dismissed as just a silly cartoon. 

Today we are going to talk about three of those cartoons. These are animated series that we believe deserve more exposure. So without further ado, here are our choices for underrated animated shows!

In the mid-1990s, Walt Disney Animation was several years into an era that would become known as their Renaissance. Recent releases like The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin had dazzled audiences with their beautiful visuals, great storytelling, superb acting performances, and of course, their music. In June of 1994, Disney proved that its box-office reign was far from over, with the release of a film that many consider to be the best animated Disney movie of all time: The Lion King.

In 1986, the unofficial “King” of horror (Stephen King) unleashed what would become one of his quintessential stories. It was a saga about a group of outcasts that bands together to survive–and then later–take down a horrifying monster that feasts on children. The book’s title, IT, played on one of the key ingredients to a truly terrifying villain: not knowing what it is. 

Only a couple years later, ABC was considering making a made-for-TV film based on the novel. The task was ambitious to say the least, since the source material is over a thousand pages long. The network also faced the challenge of towing the line between being a faithful adaptation and getting past the TV censors.
So, let’s head into the town of Derry, Maine, and learn more about the 1990 mini series based on Stephen King’s novel, IT!

We’re traveling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. Your next stop, the Twilight Zone!

Created by Rod Serling in the late 1950s, The Twilight Zone became one of the most influential series’ in television history. Across its five seasons and 156 episodes, this anthology series delivered biting social commentary masked behind seemingly simple science-fiction plots. In a time when television was considered lesser entertainment to film, The Twilight Zone brought the medium to new heights with its impeccable writing, high quality set design, superb acting, and an unforgettable opening theme. 

So let’s investigate this groundbreaking series by taking a detour through The Twilight Zone.