After Veterans’ Day weekend and ten days at the National Peanut Festival, shazbazzar and JediShua emerge from the Hall of Justice to experience kid-friendly fun times from November 1977.
The Muppet Show introduces a space “soap” opera with Pigs in Space as the success of Star Wars continues to grip the nation while Disney draws families to see Pete’s Dragon.
Kickin’ It on the Griddle with Pigs and a Dragon
Figs and Flagons? No. Jigs and Wagons? Nope. Pigs and Dragons? Exactly. That’s what’s on the ‘Dads’ minds this week as they dive into 77 minutes of fun from 1977 (and other days of youth) for memories and laughs on this week’s episode of TechnoRetro Dads.
In the NEWS…
There’s a new Hershey bar coming soon and it’s gonna be gold! IDW comics chronicle the further adventures of Jules Verne, er Jules and Verne Brown in a new Back to the Future miniseries. Disney Infinity isn’t over after all! Though the game is now defunct, the stylized characters will be repurposed for a new cartoon.
We Love Our Cereal
You might call her the “Queen of Cereal”. She’s certainly royalty, and she begins her day with a bowl of cereal with fresh fruit. Who is she? Tune in and find out!
Aftershocks of 1977
Captain Link Hogtrob, First Mate Piggy, and Dr. Julius Strangepork first boarded the Swinetrek in November 1977 during the second season of The Muppet Show as the “Pigs in Space” segment was introduced. The success of Pigs in Space secured its reappearance on the variety show thirty-one times over the next four years plus spots on an album and even launching into space on the Space Shuttle Columbia.
TechnoRetro Arcade
Although it was never a coin-operated video game, the Atari rendition of “Pigs in Space” launched in 1983 as the last game in Atari’s children’s line. The game was divided into three parts, one for each of the main characters aboard the Swinetrek. Link Hogthrob fought off “Chicken Invaders” in a stylized version of “Space Invaders”. First Mate Piggy had to navigate her way back to the Swinetrek through lanes of noodles and meatballs in “Pastaroids” which more resembled “Frogger” than “Asteroids”. Dr. Julius Strangepork pilots the Swinetrek through an abandoned pizza mine guarded by weirdos in “Escape from the Planet of the Gonzoids”. The games are fun, but tough to get going on a computer ported version.
Pete’s Dragon (1977)
One of the first movies the ‘Dads ever watched in theaters was Pete’s Dragon, a Disney musical that combined an animated dragon with live action actors in an anachronistic adventure of unbelievable proportions. With the combined talents of Mickey Rooney, Helen Reddy, Red Buttons, Jim Dale, and Jim Backus, this tale of an orphaned boy and his protective dragon engaged the imaginations of ‘70s kids everywhere.
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Join shazbazzar and JediShua each week for a look back at the ’70s and ’80s as they share the fun and also fandom of their youth with their families, friends, and EarBuds. Topics include TV, film, music, toys, and games of the ’70s and ’80s as well as franchises which have continued into the 21st Century, like Star Wars, TRON, and Buck Rogers. TechnoRetro Dads is a blend of new stories as old legends are then passed down from one generation to the next.
If you’re a TechnoRetro Dad, the child of one, or appreciate the ’70s and ’80s, then this podcast is definitely for you!