I like listening to what I call “throwaway” podcasts. That is, podcasts that’ll put me to sleep within minutes and that I don’t mind what I miss because of it. I’ve got a few, and one of them is fairly new — Where Everybody Knows Your Name — hosted by Ted Danson and sometimes Woody Harrelson, both of the hit TV sitcom from the 80’s, Cheers (in case you didn’t know).
It’s a passable podcast, even among all of the podcasts people seem to think they’ve gotta put out there. As Ted would say, “I’m new at this and I’m trying to find my way.” That’s cool. But here’s the deal. Ted Danson’s 76 years old. To some of you young kids, you might think, “So? He’s old.” But of course to us older people, who actually watched Cheers in first run, we can’t help but think, “Ted Danson? 76? Really? The handsome leading man heart-throb kind of bartender on Cheers…76?” Then I remember that Cheers premiered in 1982, when I was a 19-year-old punk learning Chinese in Monterey.
But that’s not the whole of it. One of Ted’s recent shows featured someone who’s closely related in some ways — Tom Selleck. Now, Tom Selleck was even bigger than Ted Danson in the 80’s because of his hit TV show Magnum, P.I. which premiered in 1980, the year before I graduated High School. But Tom Selleck is even older than Ted Danson. He’s 79. 79! This dude was one of the 80s’ biggest heart-throbs, and now he’s 79!
The podcast ran over an hour, and it was really interesting to listen to them talk. Two guys in their 70s — knew a lot of the same people coming up in the same time frame. They even starred together in a couple of movies, most notably Three Men and a Baby — which was the biggest movie at American box offices in 1987. They sounded exactly like what they are — a couple of old guys shooting the breeze and remembering old times. And of course, Tom was making the rounds (this was his first appearance on a podcast ever) because he’s written a book called You Never Know, which I’ve checked out and, while not the best written, works for light reading.
So if you want to hear a couple of old guys, give them a listen. And if you’re old like me, get ready to think about it.