Cats: Crime of the Century?

Cats: Crime of the Century?

Author: Tess Barker July 11, 2024 Duration: 38:56
“Cats” is a musical so ridiculous that it often drives people to anger. So why has this absurd show made so much money, and how does it keep taunting us all with its reemergence into culture? Jellicle journalist, comic, and pop culture junkie Tess Barker is on the case.    Featuring interviews with actor Sara Jean Ford (On Broadway:  “Phantom of the Opera; “Finian’s Rainbow;” “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying;”  “Cats:” ) and musicologist and dramaturg Dr. Lynda Paul (professor, Yale University; PhD music history/ethnomusicology/performance studies).    Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod    Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.   Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.   Abigail Keel was a consulting producer on this episode.    Special thanks to voice actors Sean Green and Babs Gray.    Clearance Counsel is  Dale Nelson and Jacqueline Swett at Donaldson Callif Perez, LLP   Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod   Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic wherever you get your pods.    Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!  

Ever find yourself rewatching an old awards show clip or remembering a bizarre celebrity headline and wondering what really happened behind the scenes? That’s the territory explored in Pop Mystery Pod. Hosted by investigative journalist Tess Barker, this podcast applies a reporter’s rigor to the glittering, often baffling world of pop culture. Barker, whose own deep research and firsthand reporting were instrumental in the #FreeBritney movement, brings that same tenacious curiosity to each story. Rather than just rehashing gossip, she treats these cultural moments like unsolved cases, digging into the archives and seeking out context that was missing when the story first broke. You’ll hear episodes that dissect events everyone talked about but maybe never truly understood, or incidents that seemed to vanish from the headlines a little too quickly. It sits at a compelling intersection of documentary, history, and societal observation, all filtered through the lens of film, TV, and celebrity. The result is a series that feels both like a detective story and a time capsule, revealing how these mysteries shape our collective memory. Tune in for a thoughtful, thoroughly researched deep dive that changes how you see the stories we think we already know.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 86

Pop Mystery Pod
Podcast Episodes
The Olsen Twins: The Origin Story (With Guy Branum) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:03
The Olsen twins are endlessly fascinating celebrities. They were selected for stardom before they could walk. They’re both an inspirational story and I cautionary tale. They’re just so important. Joining Tess to talk thr…
Jojo Siwa and Unhappy Pop Star Campers (with Jade Catta-Preta) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:19:34
Before she was proclaiming she’d invented “gay pop,” child dance phenom-turned heavily costumed try-hard helmed a junior girl group called XOMG. The group claimed to offer aspiring pop stars as young as 8 years old a lin…
Blake Lively vs Justin Baldoni: It Ends Here (For Now) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:20
Cameras wrap on “It Ends With Us.” Now, the real battle begins. After Blake Lively alleges that she’s been harassed while filming this movie, her attempts at wrestling back agency stall out. Ultimately, Lively is able to…
Blake Lively vs Justin Baldoni: The Beginning [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:22
Betrayal. Gaslighting. Things not being what they seem. These are themes in the movie “It Ends With Us,” but they could also describe the dramatic and seemingly constantly escalating conflict between actor and fashionist…
Diddy, Biggie, and Tupac (with Wynter Mitchell Rohrbaugh) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:34:27
Few murders have rocked the music world like the untimely deaths of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. Neither slain rapper has ever had their killer brought to justice. Recent allegations against Sean Diddy Combs, the prod…
The Babe Vegetarians [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:28
A sweet movie about a talking pig turned a whole new generation of children into vegetarians. Those children often remained vegetarians into adulthood, and played a role in transforming the plant-based food industry. How…
The Bromance of Dennis Rodman and Kim Jong Un (With Megan Koester) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:14
So this actually happened: one of the most unpredictable and eccentric NBA players of all time put the entire United States (and maybe the whole world) at risk when he found himself cozying up to one of the world’s most…