The Sewers of Paris Matt Baume

My guest this week is Eli McCann, a lawyer, a humor columnist for the Salt Lake Tribune, and a devotee of Lucille Ball since the age of six. That made him an easy kid to shop for, and by the time he was a teen he’d amassed a treasure trove of Lucy memorabilia … which nearly led to a crisis when he caught wind of his classmates’ plan to ambush him at home and reveal what had been, until then, a mostly private obsession.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, a reminder that if you like The Sewers of Paris, you’ll probably also enjoy my new podcast where we dive into the 90s TV series My So-Called Life, one episode at a time. It’s available now wherever you listen to podcasts — just search for Matt’s So-Cast Pod.

And you may also like my YouTube videos for a queer look at movie and television history, my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my email newsletter. You can get all that and more at MattBaume.com.

My guest this week is writer and artist Tim Fish. I first came across his work in the book Liebestrasse, written by Greg Lockard and illustrated by Tim. It’s the story of two men connecting in Berlin in the leadup to World War II, and it’s typical of Tim’s interests — personal, emotional, and thoughtful. Tim’s always been interested in comics, but for many years it was something of a secret identity for him — a passion that he thought was just a hobby, until he turned thirty and realized he wanted to walk away from his day job and become a full time artist. To make that work, he had a rich vein of inspiration to draw from, starting with Hanna Barbera cartoons.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, a reminder if that if you like The Sewers of Paris, you’ll probably also enjoy my new podcast about the 90s TV series My So-Called Life. The podcast is called Matt’s So-Cast Pod, and it’s available now wherever you listen to podcasts.

And you may also like my YouTube videos for a queer look at movie and television history, my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my email newsletter. You can get all that and more at MattBaume.com.

Next week, comedy legend Carol Burnett turns 91 years old, and in honor of her amazing career and life, for this week’s episode we’re diving into the Sewers of Paris archives to revisit my 2018 chat with Carol superfan Justin Root. Justin’s entry to showbiz was kind of a cliché: a pretty young face who arrives in LA with no plan other than getting famous in movies. And yet, within a few days of moving from Ohio to Hollywood, Justin found himself in front of movie cameras. It didn't take long for the entertainment industry to discover Justin, but it took another decade -- and some terrified cruising in the local video store -- for Justin to find himself.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, a reminder if that if you like The Sewers of Paris, you’ll probably also enjoy my new podcast about the 90s TV series My So-Called Life. This week’s episode features the wonderful Guy Branum, talking about his experience writing for television and why he’s a superfan of actress Bess Armstrong. The podcast is called Matt’s So-Cast Pod, and it’s available now wherever you listen to podcasts.

And you may also like my YouTube videos for a queer look at movie and television history, my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my email newsletter. You can get all that and more at MattBaume.com.

My guest this week is author Rasheed Newson, a TV writer who got his start on the show Lie to Me and has gone on to write for The 100, Narcos, Bel Air, and more. Last year his debut novel, My Government Means to Kill Me, made a big splash — it’s the story of a young gay black man who moves to New York during the HIV epidemic. And although Rasheed didn’t experience that world first-hand, he discovered during his writing process that in a strange way, he’d been preparing himself to tell that story for years without ever realizing it.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, a reminder if that if you like The Sewers of Paris, you’ll probably also enjoy my new podcast about the 90s TV series My So-Called Life. This week’s episode features the delightful Anthony Oliveira, who appeared on The Sewers of Paris just a few weeks ago. We talked all about My So-Called Life episode 3, in which we learn a lot more about the gay teen named Rickie — and we also talked about Anthony’s own experience as a semi-closeted teen in Catholic school, and how his secret boyfriend wasn’t quite as secret as he thought. The podcast is called Matt’s So-Cast Pod, and it’s available now wherever you listen to podcasts.

And you may also like my YouTube videos for a queer look at movie and television history, my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my email newsletter. You can get all that and more at MattBaume.com.

My guest this week is director Monty Wolfe, whose queer romcom Exploding Boy is now available on streaming. Monty’s path to filmmaking took a lot of swerves over the decades — starting with a teacher who saw the potential in a young teenager, and maybe something a little queer. That was followed by some less helpful guidance from other adults in his life, a job at a news station that he landed by accident, a decision to completely upend his life and move across the country in part to get as far as possible from a homophobic coworker, and a boyfriend who believed in Monty’s dreams and pushed him to go after them.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, a reminder if that If you like this podcast, you might enjoy my new show about the 90s TV series My So-Called Life. The podcast is called Matt’s So-Cast Pod, it features a bunch of fabulous guests, and it’s available now wherever you listen to podcasts.

And you may also like my YouTube videos about movies and TV shows, my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my email newsletter. You can get all that and more at MattBaume.com.

My guest this week is Jesse Murray, who got hooked on soap operas as a kid when he watched them with his mom … and then as an adult, found himself working in writer’s rooms at ABC, helping to make soap operas for a new generation. As a young viewer, Jesse’s enthusiasm for the soaps was bolstered when he saw gay teenage characters on daytime TV. It’s a measure of inclusivity that’s steadily improved in the years since — thanks to folks behind the scenes who appreciated its importance.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. And by the way, speaking of gay teens on television: If you like this podcast, you might enjoy my new podcast about the 90s TV series My So-Called Life, which featured a groundbreaking gay teenager named Rickie, played by Wilson Cruz. The podcast is called Matt’s So-Cast Pod, it features a bunch of fabulous guests, and it launches March 25, 2024. You can subscribe now wherever you listen to podcasts, and at SoCastPod.com.

And you may also like my YouTube videos about movies and TV shows. I just premiered a new video about the 1961 movie Victim, which helped overturn England’s 400-year-old ban on homosexuality. Also check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, my email newsletter. You can get all that and more at MattBaume.com.

And by the way, here are some fun soap clips that Jesse sent along:

Susan Lucci being amazing as Erica: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-YlCHBbE_8

Susan Lucci being even more amazing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RT98I87Fsaw

Another fun Erica scene, ending on a hilarious delivery of “I’m not even that rich!” https://youtu.be/RT98I87Fsaw?si=Sg_B6i-91L7W-aOU&t=444

Erica compares herself to Yoko Ono: https://youtu.be/NH9xsXKbpuA?si=oiXnjNdZZlEmCFHe&t=323