TV Guidance Counselor

July 4-10,1987 This week Ken welcomes old friends, David and Christopher Walsh, collectively known as The Walsh Brothers. Ken, David and Chris discuss family dynamics, alternate universe Walsh Brothers, why Ken is not a conservative Southern politician, inserting the disc, commuting to school, the subtleties of Boston public transportation, Texas Chainsaw Massaca, when your childhood home because an area of refuge, Charlestown, living in the projects, cops, your non-comedian brother getting a TV credit before you do, Max X, TV38, Boston, more Boston, LA Sex porches, Kari Wuher, Monday Night's CBS line up, Ken's status as a sophisticated Boy, Alf, George Carlin, your preferred alias, The Spectre, Valerie, calling family meetings, being drawn to stability, love of absurd comedy, the terror of a minor key theme song, Alan Thicke: Musician, the terror of the news, European Vacation, classic video store memories, Corvette Summer, LA Mall filming locations, Chopping Mall, Alyssa Milano, cartoon boobs, disabled actors in starring roles, The Wizard, Fast Times, Ed O'Neil, Popeye Doyle, Dutch, Mike Hammer vs. Sledge Hammer, Perfect Strangers, when Dan Fielding was in Charlestown, finding a way, Highway to Heaven, angelic vigilante justice, Head of the Class, fighting prostitutes, Night Court, MacGuyver, Dana Delaney, Hockey, the opiate problem in Charlestown, Star Man, Channel pliers, Somerville Lumber, theme restaurants, Indiana Jones knock-offs, Where the Boys Are, Darkman, LA Law, Gremlins, Brocktoon, Mr. Belvidere's Balls, going Commando, HBO's Made for TV Movie quality, hiding the news, 21 Jump Street, and the art of prank phone calls.

In this episode Ken welcomes comedian, actor, producer Paul Provenza. Ken and Paul discuss Kids Court, robbing drug dealers, growing up in New York, being chained to development deals, failing to update I Spy, growing up a comedy nerd, comedy LPs, the crossroads of comedy's past and future, Graham Norton, claims of a lack of English language skills, the power of comedians, being a teenage stand up comedian, Robert Kline, taking down the system from the inside out, Tubby Boots, Gabe Kaplan's dire warnings, Jazz Club Comedy, Jay Leno, Comedy as the road to sitcom, DIY ethos, finding your audience, the power (or lack of it) of Late Night shows in the 21st Century, I Spy, Man from U.N.C.L.E., TV Comedy as processed junk food, Everybody Loves Raymond, Seinfeld, All in the Family, The Marx Brothers, the anarchy of 20s-30s comedy, the essential nature of live comedy, Johnny Carson, Steve Allen, Letterman, Ha! + The Comedy Channel = CTV - Canada = Comedy Central, Comics Only, Comedy MTV, Bill Hicks, the dark, sick, twisted sketches on Comics Only, getting away with things using the power of secret fax machines, the power of critical thinking, being a warm up comedian, Pursuit of Happiness, The Facts of Life, Cloris Leachman, North Exposure, mistakenly engaging internet critics, The magic "100 Episodes", plagiarism, The Green Room, Bugs Bunny vs. Mickey Mouse, the pains of growing, When Stand Up Stood Out, and the weirdness of Boston Comedy.

April 4-10, 1992 This week Ken welcomes stand up comedian and mastermind behind the Competitive Erotic Fan Fiction empire Bryan Cook. Ken and Bryan discuss bi-coastal hoarding, the standard cleaning fee for removing TV Guides from a rental car, those sexy soaps, growing up in Maine cable-free, Satellite Dish culture, old people scent, Brian Dennehy's gift, Willfred Brimley's laundry, Gulf War trading cards, Cocaine busts in Boston, the birth of reality television, Billy's Head of the Class spin off, travel shows, UK Stand Up Comedy, TV kids having fast aging disease, Alyssa Milano leading to 4th grade troubles, bottle episode love, moving to LA for a writing job, the fashion police, Competitive Erotic Fan Fiction, Roc, Mann and Machine, favorite Pun TV Show titles, In Living Color, the lonesome death of James Carey, Anton's pickle jar, the first time seeing a black person, Teacher bangin', Dollar Store TV, physical altercations over Star Trek, cold calling girls you like, future cops, Herman's Head, Tea Leoni, Basic Instinct loving Dads, hitchhiking, Get Smart, Grittas, way up in Maine, working at Electrical Supply Companies, renting mannequin parts, flea markets in New England, Rescue 911, disproving Home Improvement, Billy Crystal on Lifetime, bring comedy to the U.S.S.R., Wonder Years, the 60s portrayal of family life, being blamed for other kid's smoking habits, Davis Rules, Bonnie Hunt, Nell Carter is not the Fat Man, Duff, The Three Faces of Mike McDonald, Hocus Pocus vs. The Witches, The Simpsons vs. Cosby, Futurama, Mr. Rhodes, the toaster oven/TV Week parallel, the ladies of Cheers, Beyond 2000, Roy from Wings: Super Sleaze, Tim Daly: World's Best Superman, banned shows from CEFF, Charles Rocket, Dinosaurs, Uncle Buck TV vs. Movie, AMC's long strange journey, disdain of Tequila and Bonetti, Scorch, Nightmare Cafe, Fish Police, America's Serious Home Videos and country's own C+C Music Factory.

In this one year anniversary special of the show, guest TV Guidance Counselor Sean Sullivan welcomes Ken Reid to the show. Ken and Sean review this week's edition of TV Guide and go through Ken's picks of two weeks of modern television from Monday February 16 to Sunday March 1, 2015.

In this special Holiday Mini-Episode (the first of 2015 and the last until the Fall) Ken discusses his thoughts on Valentine's Day, his Valentine traditions, and his recommendations for Valentine's viewing. Ken recommends staying in doors, drinking rose flavored soda and watching My Bloody Valentine, The Prowler, The Boogens, The Adventures of Pete and Pete, Mad About You, the Love Boat, Moonlighting, Brimstone, Chuck, Cheers, Cybill, The Facts of Life, Forever Knight, Gimme a Break, Growing Pains, Hey! Arnold, magic episode 18s, Mr. Belvedere, Newhart, Night Court, Punky Brewster, Roseanne, Spin City, That 70s Show, Supernatural, Wings, and The Wonder Years.

This week Ken travels to Los Angeles and welcomes writer/actress Christine Elise(Child's Play2, Beverly Hills 90210) to the show. Note: Christine's website is http://www.itschristine.com/ Ken and Christine discuss their mutual Boston punk rock pasts, Roslindale, the disappointment of Boston University's rules, The Ball Busting nature of Boston, never wanting to live in Boston again, finding your business, the mechanics of film, Pulp fiction, Film Noir, being robbed of computer programming, being burnt out on punk rock, turning 50, working for a living, the value of a job well done, looking younger than your age, Head of the Class, Lea Remini, China Beach, ER, natural seduction instincts, TV Movies, almost giving up, Brad Pitt, Facts of Life, Bad Comedy, Child's Play 2, being snubbed for premiers, Christine's novel, The Cramps, writing Beverly Hills 90210, Jason Priestly's business acumen, using the access you have, Gilligan's Island, the ease of guest writing an established show, how Hip Hop makes you dumb, the fluid familial relations of television, Matlock, not meeting your heroes, being an asshole, Black Mirror, working with Carol O'Connor, swear words, the depowering of the old Networks, The Young Ones, instant cultural saturation, the individual soul of a performer, Elvis, Summer Seasons, Aaron Spelling's genius, In and Out Burger's awful fries, The revival of Fantasy Island, wanting to be Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Roxette, self-hate, being mobbed by 90210 fans, Baywatch, signing conventions, Billy Wirth's skill with the pugil stick, and the disappointment of American Horror Story.

July 31 - August 6, 1993 In this episode Ken welcomes fellow Boston Comedian and social media exploitation king Will Noonan. Ken and Will discuss Patrick Stewart, The Real World, Tammy's "Wasn't Not Funny", Bloopers and Practical Jokes, SNICK, COPS, being a hypochondriac, what it means when you are peeing all the time, Alfonso Robero's Globe of Death, MTV Sports, House of Style, comedian nick names, The Comish, Doing the rubber, America's Funniest Home Videos, FOX, Idalis, Herman's Head, lusting after Reba McIntire's Doritos, Blossom, George Bush, Laugh-In, Cynthia Rothrock, parents intervening during inappropriate viewing material, Problem Child, Christmas in August, Rescue 911, Nova, getting that tingle, DIC, Roseanne, Third Rusty, Coach, Wonder Years, Unsolved Mysteries making you shit out your own ghost, the original Comedy Central, Home Improvement, Hal Hartley, Thursday Nights are unstoppable, David Crosby, Summer School, TV38's Movie Loft, which Brother from Wings you are, Don "the Dragon" Wilson, TV Guide's hatred of Martial Arts movies, Down the Shore, Urkel, Night Court, Step by Step, Brooklyn Bridge, Stacey Keenan's dangerous prank phone calls, Perfect Strangers money, Cherry 2000, Pay-per-view study guides, and when Micky Mouse met Charlie Brown.

In this special LIVE! Edition of the show recorded at the Smell in Downtown Los Angeles during the 2015 Riot LA Comedy Festival Ken welcomes voice over legend Billy West (Futurama, Ren & Stimpy, Doug). Ken and Billy discuss their mutual experiences playing the Rat in Boston, Roslindale, cocaine, Greeks, the entertainer economy, Kardashians, the power of guitars, the tolerance of Boston, being shy, Roasts, the salvation of TV and Radio, early Elvis impersonations, the nature of stage clothing, Boston's reputation, Boston's North End, Beach Parties, Aerosmith, broken dreams, the nature of scenes, James Brown, the Record Garage, The Cars, The Ding Ho, the 80s Boston Comedy Scene, Barry Crimmins, the transition from music to comedy, playing with Brian Wilson, Howard Stern, playing sleazy lounges, Happy Days causing destruction, spandex, Touched by an Old Person, breaking the 10 Commandments, religion, The Three Stooges, Jimmy Stewart's racism, Larry Fine, Philly accents, minimizing your talents, shampoo, the dark days of Jell-o, feminism, Jay Leno, radio, almost dying, being a man, what women want, Big Dumb Radio Announcers, replacing your heroes, discovering the credits, depression, James Earl Jones' cookies, thinking you're better than everyone, Daws Butler's real voice, Billy's Real Voice, Fry, self compressing, being technical, Stephen Hawking, tracheotomies, pawning your body parts, Future voices, humor as healer, Ren & Stimpy, hearing your voice coming from toys, being recognized by voice, Cosby, Doug, Futurama, Zoidberg, and flying brains out.

July 7-13, 1990 This week Ken welcomes author, comedian and NPR Radio host extraordinaire Ophira Eisenberg (The Moth, Ask Me Another). Ken and Ophira discuss warm television memories, Canada, Australia, small pop cultural differences, a youth without MTV, YTV, Buckshot, King of Kensington, Mr. Dress Up, Neighbours, Dogs in Space, INXS, Calgary, Facts of Life's Pippa, The Best and the Worst of 1989/1990, Twin Peaks, Laura Palmer's Diary, future generations lack of shared experience outside of tragedies, Moonlighting, Bones, why every single show doesn't need an arc, police procedures as pure science fiction, The US Health Care System, suspicion, accents being made up for comedic effect, Nickelodeon, foreigners confusion of US geography, Soap Opera Guides as a prehistoric internet, the basement as home of "the good TV", sibling TV rivalries, Star Trek, the love of action, Honey West, Curse of the Gold Monkey, keeping Bruce Campbell's secrets, 80s fears, Saturday Night Potentials, The Buddy Holly Story, Archeology, The Sudan, classic Discovery Channel, Jason Bourne: The TV Series, how we've solved the environmental issues of the 80s (by not solving them), Women in Politics, the pain of Monday Nights, school picture day horrors, MacGuyver, Murphy Brown and her effect on US Politics, WKRP in Cincinatti, Loni Anderson, Roseanne, Reading on TV, Poor Little Rich Girls, Nova, Wonderlands turning into wastelands, wanting to be the mice in Cinderella, couch cushion forts, secret passageways, found art, Prime Time Primates, prime time Cartoons, Charlie Brown, Night Court, the education of dating older guys, Cosby Show, JAWS, Canadian Tire, Cheers, Bebe Neuwirth, 80s Glam, mindless Family Feuds, Newhart, how animals are people too, Tales from the Crypt, censorship rules, sneaking sleepover softcore pornography, and letting the pilot fire burn itself off.

In this LIVE! Special edition of the show recorded at NorthEast ComicCon in Wilmington, MA on December 7, 2014 Ken welcomes Willy Wonka's Mike Teevee, Paris Themmen. Ken and Paris discuss what the hell a TV Guidance Counselor even is, the weight of secret society chairs, growing up in Manhattan, The Wire and gritty realism, how the golden age of television might bum you out, Deadwood, dissolving the lines between actors on a set, being on Broadway at age 8, being wise beyond your ears, It's a Wonderful Life, TV in 1967, The Monkees, Star Trek, Marine Boy, Jeopardy, having a disdain for canned laughter filled sitcoms, bubblegum pop, being a classicist, traveling to 61 countries, modern TV as karaoke, RiF, Pinocchio coming out of a Whale's Mouth, Will Wonka, the agelessness of being a child actor, kids vs. parental reaction to actors getting older, Francis Ford Coppola's parties, Jack Albertson, dislike of Barney Miller, being in the Rothchilds with Hal Linden, being on the Ed Sullivan show, being picky, judging, being a newlywed, waiting to marathon a show for your significant other, Survivor, Little Britain, living as the locals do, Anthony Bourdain's Travel shows, being a teen idol, the audition process, adapting your communication style, overlapping dialog, being very East Coast, the chameleon, capturing the real New York on film, Seinfeld, the grit of Barney Miller, niche marketing, obvious comedy, "second acting", TV rotting your brain, wanting to know your motivation as an 11 year old, feelin' 1970s, and planning ahead.