Oddity Archive

• 1. The Max Headroom Incident of 1987

  12m

  On the night of Sunday, November 22nd, 1987, a mysterious figure in a Max Headroom mask hijacked two Chicago TV stations. Spoiler alert: The perpetrators were never found.

• 2. Emergency Broadcast Salute

  17m

  An informal (not to mention, loose) history of Civil Defense Broadcasting in the U.S.

• 3. TV Sign-offs

  15m

  Remember when TV stations used to go off the air late at night? Anyone?

• 4. Local TV Special

  21m

  Interested in seeing a clown so laid-back, he forgets he's on camera? Now about a Hawaiian teen idol with a pen fetish? Maybe an American Bandstand ripoff with an evil spirit hosting? If you answered yes to any of these questions, watch this episode--then seek immediate professional help.

• 5. American EXXXtacy (and other C-band nastiness)

  16m

  The Archive's most infamous episode--for some reason.

• 6. Conservative Folk Music

  16m

  Meet the artists that made the likes of Joan Baez and Pete Seeger fear for their careers.

• 7. Format Wars

  21m

  VHS or Beta? Laserdisc or CED? What the hell is a CED anyway? These burning questions (amongst others) answered in this episode!

• 8. 1-900-ARCHIVE

  21m

  Join Ben as he launches his own 1-900 number. What could possibly go wrong?

• 9. Halloween Special 2012 (Strange VHS Endings)

  37m

  We still get a lot of flack for this episode (did you really think there were 37 minutes of odd VHS endings out there?). Nonetheless, it's still a favorite.

• 10. Captain Midnight / Vrillon

  14m

  An Archive double header: The two most famous occurrences of Broadcast Signal Hijacking (well, save for the Max Headroom Incident) are discussed here.

• 11. Pay TV (but not Cable or Satellite)

  14m

  The Oddity Archive will now be switching to scrambled mode. Please turn on your (preferably, circa 1984) decoder box now.

• 12. Top (Thanksgiving) Turkeys of the (19)90's

  19m

  Because we always like to go the extra mile (at least, when it's convenient), the Archive tackles TWO lists of the worst of the (19)90's: The top 4 Trendy Turkeys and the top 4 Technological Turkeys of the (again, 19)90's.

• 13. Local TV vol. 2 (Kiddie Show Hosts)

  32m

  The 13th episode is a very unlucky one for Ben as he discusses some (all too often, rather off) U.S. Kiddie Show hosts from the early 1950's through the late 1990's.

• 14. Christmas Special (A Fair Use Christmas)

  23m

  All Ben wanted for Christmas was a silent night...

• 15. Teletext Heaven (or Hell)

  16m

  Ceefax and Keyfax, Nite-Owl and Cable Chuckles, oh my...

• 16. Intermission

  13m

  It's movie day at the Archive! Unfortunately, due to copyright issues, you're not invited. But, at least you can join us for an intermission reel (conveniently containing all Public Domain footage!).

• 17. Prehistoric Television

  16m

  Given how much we discuss TV on the Archive, a history lesson seemed in order.

• 18. gniksaM sdrawkcaB (Backwards Masking)

  24m

  ?segassem lanimilbus tahW ?huH Everyone knows there are no subliminal messages in music...(!slatrom nwod wob ,woN)

• 19. Valentine's Day Special (Dating Services)

  26m

  Join Ben as he discusses some of the Dating Services of the 1980's to present. And, if you're good, maybe Ben will let you join him in his own quest for a date.

• 20. Local TV vol. 3 (Public Access)

  20m

  Temporarily exiled from the big leagues of Internet TV, Ben (again, temporarily) sets up camp at his local Public Access outlet.

• 21. Protect & Survive

  16m

  It's the feel-good episode of the year as Ben discusses the (in)famous British Nuclear War preparedness campaign.

• 22. Duck & Cover

  17m

  Because you can (apparently) never have enough nukes...

• 23. Scary Logos (and other Nostalgic Video Terrors)

  23m

  What is it about end logos and FBI Warnings that scared so many children of the VHS era?

• 24. Hell's Bells (The Dangers of Rock and Roll)

  22m

  Can pure rock sound really hard-boil an egg? Of course not. It does make for some wicked "deviled" eggs though.

• 25. Employee Training Videos

  29m

  Things have gotten so dire at The Archive that Ben's been forced to take a "real" job. Join him as he takes a look at his potential employers' training videos.

• 26. VHS Vault vol. 1 (Amvest Video)

  22m

  Ever wanted to know the absolute root of the Oddity Archive? Well, it involves a creepy guy in a Hamster costume...

Cast