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Episode 58

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Published on:

8th Oct 2025

National Lampoon's Class Reunion | S2E16 (Bet you didn't realize this existed!)

Today we’re rewinding to 1982—a year packed with iconic hits and trends—but instead of E.T. or Fast Times, we’re looking at a National Lampoon experiment that didn’t quite land: Class Reunion.

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Transcript
Katie:

Hello.

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Hello, I'm Katie and welcome back to Retro

Made where we dive into the movies and

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moments that shaped our pop culture past.

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Today we're rewinding to 1982, a year

packed with iconic hits and trends.

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But instead of each year, fast Times

at Richmont High, we're gonna look

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at National Lampoons experiment that

didn't quite land class reunion.

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Now, today I am gonna go guest free solo.

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So, I hope you like it.

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Now, the reason for that is because this

lovely movie, uh, not readily available.

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And so what I do a lot of times when this

happens, which isn't super common, but

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in the rare instances where it does, I go

the extra mile and I will tell you guys, I

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want the extra, extra mile for you today.

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Believe it or not.

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Some of you might be wondering,

Katie, how old are you?

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Use the library.

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Heck yeah.

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It has this feature called Prospector,

where you can search for the

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title that you're looking for and

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branches might be in another Denver

library branch, but more often

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than not, it's from a participating

branch somewhere in the network

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. One.

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One thing that I was

highlighted by my doing this is.

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that dvds can be damaged and thus

unplayable There were scene chapters,

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so I could tell that I had only seen

a, a small portion of it, so I went

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to YouTube for clips to fill in the

blanks even that was hard to come by.

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So I pieced together as much as I

possibly could, um, from the synopsis

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online and the YouTube clips.

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And, you know, I, I did a little

bit of guesswork, but, um.

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This is maybe gonna be a shit show of an

episode, but I hope you tune in anyway.

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And, um, you know, if you're

thinking, well, Katie, I'm not sure

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why you went to such trouble for

this movie that no one knew existed.

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Well, I can't help it because I did on

this season set out to cover John Hughes

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and Damnit, I'm going to complete it.

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And now it would be a good

time to request a tip.

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Uh, if you appreciate the effort,

you can check the show notes for a

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link to my tip page on Captivate.

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It's the last link.

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If you've never done that before,

I'd certainly appreciate it.

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There is a lot of effort

that goes into this.

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I'm also using, a different software to

record this episode, because each piece

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of software that I use costs a few hundred

bucks a year, and so I'm thinking about

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consolidating because now the software

that I use to edit also offers a way.

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To record video.

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So I'm testing that out on this

episode, so perhaps I can, uh,

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consolidate and get rid of what

I had been using to just record.

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So, uh, we shall see.

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So anyway, , hey, this isn't

free, it's a hobby podcast.

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I'd appreciate a tip if

you feel so inclined.

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Alright, let's get into it.

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This is a great time to also tell you that

if you have thoughts, requests, anything,

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email me Retro Made podcast@gmail.com.

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Now, one person who did just that,

Zoe from Backlog Cinema podcast, he

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writes and this is in reference to

the last episode that I'm sure some

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of you missed as well because it

was on Flubber, but you shouldn't.

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I do highly recommend you listen

to it because even if the movie

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doesn't trip your trigger, perhaps

the episode covering it might 'cause

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sometimes those kind of movies, um,

have some interesting discussions.

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At any rate, Zoe writes,

thank you for watching Flubber

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so that I wouldn't have to.

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Disney probably saw

that movie as a failure.

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Is, there are a few things that

Disney needs for a movie to do

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for them to consider it a success.

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Um, and he's got some bulleted points

here, which I very appreciate one.

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It had to have made at least

three times it, its budget.

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Two, it had to drive traffic

to the amusement park.

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And nowadays Disney plus three,

it had to drive merchandising,

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like toys and clothes.

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And the last point, he says it had to

drive sequels, prequels, or remakes.

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This is a big one because

like a car salesman, they're

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not selling you one movie.

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Three.

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Those are my theories.

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Thanks again for all you do.

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See you around.

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Well, thank you Zoe.

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I very appreciate your

thoughtful insights.

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And like I said, if you wanna

be like Z, send me an email

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Retro Made podcast@gmail.com.

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Okay, this is 1982.

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And there are no other John Hughes

ies that we're gonna cover in:

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There were a couple in 83, but we shall

do an abbreviated version of the time

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capsule so that we don't miss some of

fun pop culture memories from:

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So let's open the time capsule.

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This movie came out October 82, so

yes, we will consider this a spooky

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season episode for a couple of reasons.

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We'll get into it, but before we

get into the movie, let's talk about

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some of the movies that were in the

theater that did well unlike class

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reunion, uh, at the box office.

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Now, since I'm going solo, I am

going to still ask these in the form

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of a question so that you at home.

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It can, uh, test your knowledge

and see if you can guess.

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The movies, the number one movie

at the box office for:

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Here's your clue, guys at home.

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This film was so successful that it

displaced the original Star Wars as

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the highest grossing film of all time.

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Its screenplay, was a joint effort

between Melissa Matheson and its Oscar

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winning director who chose not to use

the character's signature flying ship

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and instead depicted his transportation

via a child basket and a bicycle.

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I think I just gave it away.

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What was this film, you guys?

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Yes, of course.

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It was E, the Extraterrestrial.

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Okay.

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Number two, this might be a little.

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Tougher.

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This 1982 comedy drama features a

character played by Dustin Hoffman,

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who takes on a new identity, including

a specific hairstyle after finding

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inspiration from a real life Broadway

producer he'd worked with previously.

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What film is this?

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Yeah, I guess I'm kind of surprised

this was the number two film,

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but it is Tootsie, you guys.

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Tootsie, number two, film 1982, man.

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All right, number three.

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In this drama, a key sequence

involves a character played by Richard

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Gere, probably giving it away end.

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During punishing physical training

at the mercy of a sergeant

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portrayed by Louis Gossett Jr.

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Gossett Jr.

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Famously stayed in his roles persona

offset and in once seen Ashley

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injured gear while berating him.

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I didn't know that, but what

was this film, you guys?

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Yep, an officer and a gentleman.

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Number four.

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A.

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Um, I'm gonna be really disappointed

if you guys don't get this immediately

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because there's no way to give a clue

for this movie without giving it away.

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I think, um, this boxing sequel

introduced a new theme song I of the

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Tiger by the band's survivor after

the original theme was unavailable.

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PS bonus points.

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If you know what the original

song they wanted was.

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The film also features the professional

wrestling debut of Hulk Hogan in

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a match with the title character.

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What was this movie?

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There's also another, I think,

introducing, of course, it's

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Rocky three, and who was the other

character that I'm referring to?

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Obviously Mr.

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T.

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And who was the original song

that they wanted is the theme

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other than I have the Tiger.

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I'm so glad that it's, I have the

tiger, but Rocky nerds know this,

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but if you're not a rocky nerd.

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It's Queens.

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Another one bites the dust.

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Number five.

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This ComEd's infamous shower scene

takes place at the fictional Angel

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Beach High School in Florida.

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This film was actually produced in Canada.

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Well, I didn't know that.

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And the school scenes were

shot at a real high school that

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had been temporarily closed.

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What is this film?

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I didn't realize this was such

a popular movie in the theaters.

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The answer's porkies.

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I sort of thought it was just like

a video rental that I don't know.

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Anyway, yeah, there we go.

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Alright, . I'm, cherry picking

are categories because this is an

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abbreviated version since I don't

have a guest to spin the wheel with.

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And I'm just asking you

guys some questions.

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Here we go.

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No.

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I was gonna do tv, but we did

a lot of the tv last season.

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And to be honest with you.

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They're not as fun.

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80, the early eighties are just all soaps

and I didn't really care that much about

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them, so, so I'm skipping those and,

um, yeah, I think let's go, let's just

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skip down to do the boombox bangers.

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Maybe here are your trivia questions for

e top five Billboard songs of:

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Let's see.

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They're all super easy.

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One of which is a total giveaway, okay.

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What Pop Rock Single, which was

the highest ranking song of:

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had its first 10 weeks at number

one split between 81 and 82.

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Hopefully that's a, a good clue for you.

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Olivia Newton, John's Physical.

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It is a really great song.

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But yeah, so it was super popular

under 81 and then continued its

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popularity so much so in 82, that

it was the number one song for that

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year, even though it came out in 81.

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Okay, number two, what song, which

reached number one for seven weeks

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in 1982 was originally released

by the Arrows in:

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by Alan Merrill and Jake Hooker.

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I don't know who they are, nor

have I heard of the arrows.

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If you do bonus points,

but what was this song?

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It is, I Love Rock and Roll by

Joan Jet and The Black Hearts.

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Okay.

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Number three, this song from 1982.

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Uses a black and white piano keys as a

metaphor for racial harmony and unity

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with the message that different people

can live together in perfect harmony.

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It was a collaboration.

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Who were the collaborators

and what was the song?

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Ebony and Ivory by Paul

McCartney and Stevie Wonder.

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Number four.

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This song was famously

featured as the theme for.

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For one of our top movies, the band

was inspired to write it after being

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asked to compose it by the director

of that movie, uh, himself, who

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was a fan of their previous single

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poor Man's Son.

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Okay.

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Tried to make it a little

harder than originally was.

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What was this song?

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It is Eye of the Tiger by Survivor.

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Yes.

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Hopefully you got that.

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'cause I gave away one of the movies.

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This is The last one.

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What was the title of the number one

ingle from Jay Gilles Band in:

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which featured a music video centered

around a high school newspaper and

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its editor's crush on a past model.

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I actually don't think

I've seen this video.

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But yeah, I think the only song I

know by Jake Isles band is this one.

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Centerfold.

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Okay, you guys, that was 1982.

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Our little abbreviated time capsule with

movies and music, but now it is time to

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get into National Lampoons class reunion.

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Okay, so did anybody

know about this movie?

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Has anyone seen it?

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You have to let me know now the title.

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I think is a little misleading and we'll

get into that a little bit more, in

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a little bit, but yes, it is actually

very, very much in theme with spooky

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season because it's a parody, slapstick,

comedy and horror as the, um, actually

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I will just read you I will read you

from the actual DVD cover some stuff.

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It says, written by the creator of Ferris

Bueller's Day Off and the Breakfast Club.

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Let's see, it says Screening

International apparently said that

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it is splendid outrageousness packed

with sight gags and good one liners.

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Hmm, interesting.

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Eh, or it says this is what

it's about from National Lampoon

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screenwriter, John Hughes.

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And writer Michael Miller of

Silent Rage, which we'll talk

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about, comes this very funny teen

horror parody set in the hallowed

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halls of a boarded up high school.

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It's not boarded up, so I dunno why it

says that, but it's the Lizzie board

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in high school, I think, I don't know,

I don't know what's happening here.

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This movie, this, there's, there's

bait and switch all over the place with

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this, but, um, it, okay, it goes on

to say, then featuring Oscar nominee.

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Michael Lerner, and he was Oscar nominated

, for his supporting role in Barton Fink.

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Okay.

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Class reunion will make you

scream and shake with laughter.

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It's been 10 years since Lizzie Borden

high school's class of 72 graduated,

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and everyone the preppies, the

hippies, and the in-crowd has returned

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to reminisce over good times past.

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But classmate Walter Baylor has

returned two with a vengeance.

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While the rest of the gang is

misbehaving at their alma mater, Walter,

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. Who was a misunderstood freak then and

a certified psychopath now is still not

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over a prank plate on him a decade ago and

out to wreak havoc of a different sort.

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Okay, so that's at that.

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That's actually what happened.

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So that's what it's about.

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And based on the name of this, you would

not know that that's what it's about.

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I sort of thought we were gonna be in for.

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You know, like, uh, like an animal

house style, like class reunion.

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Like we, we get some of your typical

high school stereotypes and what usually

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goes on at class reunions, and there's

a lot of fun to be had with that.

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But they used that and also

combined it with, a satirical

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play on horror movies of the time.

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So it is right at R and it did

come out just before Halloween

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in 1982 October 29th to be exact.

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It's pretty short.

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It's only an hour and 24 minutes,

which is wild considering that

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there were several scene stretching

tactics going on in this movie.

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Okay.

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If you're wondering, geez, Katie.

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I've never heard of this.

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Is it good?

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Well, it's a 4.6

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on IMDB and, uh, let's talk about that.

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So, national Lampoon's class

reunion was the second big screen

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movie that was released from the

original National Lampoon Company.

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The movie did have a huge buildup because

of, uh, animal House, I believe, and

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viewers expected it to be another hit.

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Yeah.

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As a follow up to Animal House,

their first big screen released in

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1978, which for comparison has a 7.4

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on IMDB.

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That is shocking to me, and I, I

don't think I've seen Animal House.

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It's possible I've seen clips, but

for whatever reason, I don't know.

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It was that time.

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I, it missed me and I

never came back to it.

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And, uh, I don't think

it sounds that great.

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Um, but it does have a 7.4,

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so stay tuned.

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We shall see.

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Maybe I'll give it a watch at some point.

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Also what's interesting is that this is

the third film actually from the magazine.

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It was the second film released

because there was another movie

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that should have come out before

it, but was delayed, and that is.

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Also a movie I'd never heard of.

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National Lampoon goes to the movies.

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It was filmed in 81, so before

this one, but it was delayed and

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not actually widely released.

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I think it had like a really small

release at some point in 82, but

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not widely released until 1983.

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So interesting.

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Sort of, I guess now Michael

Miller is our director here.

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I am not familiar and

you might not be either.

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He did direct Jackson County Jail in

:

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Apparently we are supposed to,

um, know him from Silent Rage

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that maybe is like his most known

movie and I've not seen that.

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So, sorry.

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John Hughes, the whole season we're

doing on Retro Made on John Hughes.

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He is a writer here.

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He, this was the first produced

cinema movie screenplay,

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solely written by John Hughes.

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He admitted to not being

particularly proud of the script.

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Gee, I wonder, so he claims that he

was actually fired from this movie.

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His quote is, they didn't

even want me around and I was

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shocked when I saw the movie.

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He said my screenplay had been

completely butchered and my name will

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nevertheless be on the credits forever.

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Now, I feel like he's said

this a number of times.

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So whether purposefully or not

purposely as we've gotten to in show

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in, you know, some of his later work,

I think he had just given up and

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pulled some of his, tropes into a hat

and pulled them out and bing, bang,

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boom, here's a script, a La Leber.

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But this movie maybe he was, you

know, he was still kind of, not

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still, he was actually trying to

make a name for himself at this time.

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It was early on in his career.

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But I guess I would be very curious

to see what his original script

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was and how it differs from what

we got because it's very, it's

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hard to even describe this movie.

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It's different than what you

think it's gonna be there's

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certain parts of it that are fun.

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There's certain parts of it that are

like, what on earth is happening?

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And none of it makes any sense.

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But there's little, little things

here and there that are kind of smart.

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But yeah, I mean, like for example,

this is the graduating class of

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the Lizzie Borden High School.

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It says on the invitation the

opening credits is actually kind of.

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Unique, or at least it's kind of a,

a unique way of introducing us to the

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characters by showing us their yearbook

pictures and like who they were in

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high school, what clubs they were in.

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This person was, voted to be most likely

x, y, z, that, that kind of a thing.

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So that was, , a nice way of

introducing us to who these people

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were in the opening credits.

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And I think then.

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After that, then there's a

little, a little scene from

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10 years ago, and then we

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we show like the invitation

in script writing with the

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picture of the high school.

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And I think there was

something like there.

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Uh.

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Their motto or something in this high

school is like a cut above the rest.

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So little, little touches like that.

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And so I'm open-minded watching this.

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I'm like, okay, this is gonna be fun.

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I mean, this is not, I'll be

honest, this is not usually my,

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my genre, but I can have fun.

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I can have fun with slapstick

and I like a parody.

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I don't love horror.

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There are exceptions of those,

but I'm like, oh, score, like

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a parody of horror movies.

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I'm in for this.

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But it was, well, yeah, we'll get to

it in a little bit, but, um, but, so

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yeah, let's, now before we get into the

meat of the movie, let's introduce you

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guys to who some of our players are.

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Um, some of them you'll be

familiar with and some not.

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Again, this is a movie from 82.

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I, I mean, like, I'm a year

old at this point, so I don't

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know very many of these people.

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But I did look them up and I'm like, okay,

they're, so and so from such and such.

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Our top build actor here, I

do know because he was in a

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movie we covered last season.

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Garrett Graham plays Bob

Spinnaker, and he is your typical.

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Like he was the class president.

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He's your typical, popular high school

guy, and now he's a snooty yacht salesman.

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And we talked about him last

season because he played Jeff in

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used cars with Kurt Russell and.

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From 1980.

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So yeah, I mean this, the early eighties

seemed very seventies esque to me.

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I've talked about this on the show

a lot too, where the eighties are, I

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wonder if all decades are this way.

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'cause I feel like the nineties

were similar, early nineties,

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very different from the late

nineties, but I feel like the.

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Eighties had three distinct periods.

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The early eighties, the mid

eighties and late eighties.

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Anyway, this is the early eighties,

which wreaked of late seventies still.

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So anyway, Garrett Graham.

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So I'm like, all right, score.

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And then Michael Lerner he plays Dr.

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Robert Young, so he is the doctor

of this insane asylum the killer.

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Spoiler, there's a killer on the loose.

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:

The killer breaks out

of this, asylum and Dr.

382

:

Robert Young is from there.

383

:

He's played by Michael Lerner and some

of you might be familiar with the name.

384

:

If not, he's very familiar looking

and like I mentioned, he actually

385

:

won an Oscar for his role in

Barton Fink, and that was in 91.

386

:

He also played a gangster

in Harlem Knights.

387

:

An 89 movie.

388

:

And then also a movie that you'll

all probably be rewatching in the

389

:

upcoming holiday season is Elf.

390

:

And he played Buddy's Boss in in Elf.

391

:

So that's Michael Lerner.

392

:

He's in this.

393

:

Then we have our, our in the

yearbook is listed as the Class Zero.

394

:

No one rem remembers him.

395

:

And that's kind of the gag

of, you know, of the movie.

396

:

Literally, he was a nobody in high

school and no one remembers him now.

397

:

His character's name is Gary Nash.

398

:

Really generic dude's name.

399

:

Well, he's played by Fred McCarran.

400

:

And, uh, just like his character, he

is your typical every man character.

401

:

Just your like very av I mean, he's like

kind of all right looking typical white.

402

:

Normal looking everyday guy.

403

:

Right?

404

:

And that's who he plays.

405

:

Like he's known for those,

those types of roles.

406

:

'cause he, I mean he looks like that.

407

:

Well, I did not know that there was

a TV movie version of used cars that

408

:

came out four years later in 1984.

409

:

And, um, this Fred McCarran

played Rudy Russo in that.

410

:

I don't know why we needed another

version of it, but apparently we got one.

411

:

And then this Fred he had a lot of

other episodic TV work including a

412

:

number of episodes on Hill Street

Blues, gimme a Break Too Close For

413

:

Comfort And The Golden Girls, Miriam

Flynn is another character that must be

414

:

it's interesting because Hughes has

his people, and this is very early on

415

:

with Hughes, but Miriam Flynn plays

Bunny, the Class Ts, and she's like

416

:

kind of in charge of the reunion, and I

think it's particularly her hairstyle.

417

:

She.

418

:

Fucking looks 50, but these people are 28.

419

:

Okay.

420

:

It's 10.

421

:

I mean, they're supposed to be

playing 28 year olds, which is wild.

422

:

Um, but they all look 45.

423

:

But Bunny especially looked 50 because

she has that old lady hairstyle and

424

:

her dress, like, she's just very,

I don't know, prim and proper.

425

:

And she's in pr so she's just

like, um, just like a phony type.

426

:

You know the type everyone.

427

:

So that's, bunny played by Miriam flm.

428

:

We talked about her actually in

two episodes from:

429

:

she played ca cousin Catherine in

vacation, also National Lampoons.

430

:

And then she also played Annette in Mr.

431

:

Mom.

432

:

And Annette, I think was the one

who was like really, really angling

433

:

after, uh, Michael Keaton's character.

434

:

Those were both from 1983.

435

:

She also, has a lot of voice work.

436

:

She voiced ma in Babe, for example.

437

:

We have like your kind of slovenly

like sheisty guy that wears

438

:

a lot of chains, overweight.

439

:

Everybody thinks he's gross.

440

:

Hubert Downs is this character's name.

441

:

He's played by Steven first, and

uh, he was also in animal house.

442

:

He playing flounder.

443

:

So there you go.

444

:

There's a blind girl and this is

played for gags 'cause she has a

445

:

seeing eye dog that doesn't behave.

446

:

And so obvious, very cheap humor.

447

:

But being blind is played for gags

here, the character's name is Iris GaN.

448

:

She's played by Maria Small, which I

guess she goes by Muse Small now, but

449

:

in 1982 she went, her name was Maria.

450

:

She, uh, is known probably most

for her character Candy and one

451

:

flew over the Cuckoo's Nest.

452

:

And then our pretty glamorous, the

popular girl who was used in the

453

:

prank that was played on the killer.

454

:

And we'll talk about that.

455

:

But Meredith is the character's name.

456

:

She's the pretty popular girl,

and she comes to the reunion in

457

:

an evening gown but a sexy one.

458

:

And I think she's, supposed

to be quasi famous.

459

:

I can't remember where they say she,

oh, I just came from blah, blah, blah.

460

:

She probably does local commercials

or something dumb like that.

461

:

But yeah, so she's, she's

the pretty attractive one.

462

:

Played by Shelly Smith.

463

:

She kind of looked familiar to me,

but I didn't, I don't, I mean, maybe

464

:

you guys know her, but she didn't.

465

:

Nothing popped out at me that she was

super well known for anything specific.

466

:

But most of her work was episodic tv and

she even had several recurring roles on

467

:

shows, like several episodes on a TV show,

but they were TV shows I'd never heard of.

468

:

So maybe that's just me.

469

:

And then we have Dolores Salk

which was an interesting character.

470

:

Because she was the quote unquote cripple.

471

:

But she's not crippled anymore

at the reunion because she says

472

:

she sold her soul to the devil

and now she's kind of possessed.

473

:

She has fire breathing, abilities.

474

:

She's able to just like conjure

fire at will, and she's able to

475

:

put spells on people, mainly Bunny.

476

:

But she is played by Zane Busby.

477

:

That is a super fucking fun name.

478

:

She does have some other acting credits,

but she's really more a director,

479

:

including several episodes of my two dads

Charles in Charge, blossom, and Sister.

480

:

Sister.

481

:

So now you know who Zane Busby is.

482

:

Now one of the most famous

people is funny, but like

483

:

us, 80 kids, eighties kids.

484

:

No.

485

:

Ann Ramsey, the actress's name.

486

:

Ann Ramsey was in this and she's, mama

Fratelli from Goonies and also Mama

487

:

Lift from Throw, mama from the Train.

488

:

Those are probably her most famous

roles, you guys know who she is,

489

:

like she's very specific looking.

490

:

Well, apparently for this class

reunion, they brought the cafeteria

491

:

ladies back to serve cafeteria.

492

:

At the reunion.

493

:

I don't know why.

494

:

But she plays one of the

cafeteria ladies, Mrs.

495

:

Zuki.

496

:

And that's played for laughs too.

497

:

'cause it's super gross.

498

:

Cafeteria food, her cigarettes

in everybody's food.

499

:

, Now Walter is the character

who is our killer.

500

:

He's our escaped psychopath

from the mental institution.

501

:

Walter is played by Blackie, dammit.

502

:

Do you guys know who

Blackie Damme is or Damme?

503

:

Maybe it's not dammit.

504

:

Maybe it's Damme.

505

:

Well, and you can tell once

I learned this fact, you can

506

:

totally tell by the way he looks.

507

:

He is Anthony Kit's dad from

the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

508

:

Blackie, dammit.

509

:

Look it up.

510

:

Damme.

511

:

D-A-M-M-E-T-T.

512

:

Interesting, eh.

513

:

And then there are two characters

that are a duo of stoners

514

:

who have not changed at all.

515

:

It's Chip Hendricks and Carl Clapton.

516

:

Those are the characters

names, and they're played by

517

:

Barry Diamond and Art Evans.

518

:

So gags and sue with a couple

of stoners throughout the movie.

519

:

And then we have a character named

Mary Beth, who's also part of the,

520

:

um, like committee for the reunion.

521

:

Her and Bunny kind of put the reunion on,

and she is played by Marla Pennington.

522

:

She did look familiar to me, but I

couldn't place her until I looked her up.

523

:

Well, she played the mom.

524

:

On the TV show.

525

:

Small Wonder with the little robot girl.

526

:

Yeah.

527

:

Also, if you guys watched

the TV series soap.

528

:

I did not, but she played

Leslie Walker in that.

529

:

So maybe you know her.

530

:

And then another high

school alum is Cindy.

531

:

She's played by, and the

only reason I bring her up.

532

:

Is because of who played her Misty Rowe.

533

:

And apparently that's a big deal.

534

:

I did not know who she was,

but she was known because she

535

:

was on the variety show Heehaw.

536

:

Anybody seen Heehaw?

537

:

I have not.

538

:

And also this entire time until I looked

it up, I've heard of Heehaw and I just

539

:

assumed it was, um, like a scripted.

540

:

Western Comedy television show?

541

:

No, no.

542

:

It's a variety show, I guess.

543

:

Didn't know.

544

:

Now I do.

545

:

What are we missing?

546

:

You guys, we've covered the

stereotypes the dorks, the nobodys,

547

:

the popular kids, the pretty girls.

548

:

Who are we missing any stereotypical high

schooler that should be at this reunion?

549

:

The exchange student.

550

:

I don't know why he or she would come

to the 10 year reunion, assuming they

551

:

went back to wherever they came from.

552

:

The character's name is super fun.

553

:

Egon Von Stoker.

554

:

And he is the Transylvanian

Exchange student.

555

:

'cause why not?

556

:

And yeah, he had like Dracula teeth.

557

:

He was played by Jim Stahl.

558

:

I don't know who he is.

559

:

I feel like I forgot to look him up.

560

:

But anyway, that was just fun.

561

:

Now John Hughes actually

has an uncredited role here.

562

:

He plays the girl with the bag.

563

:

On her head.

564

:

And that's part of the gag

from the 10 years ago time.

565

:

That was such a traumatic experience for

our killer Walter that caused him to go

566

:

insane and then come back 10 years later

to seek revenge on his shitty classmates.

567

:

We will talk about what

that was in a second.

568

:

But yeah, John Hughes plays that

girl, uh, with a bag on her head,

569

:

and then wildly Chuck Berry performs.

570

:

This high school reunion as himself,

the real Chuck Berry plays a

571

:

melody of some of his famous songs.

572

:

So we are to believe that this high school

reunion committee, instead of having a

573

:

nice catered meal, they thought, Hey,

let's bring the cafeteria food back and

574

:

get the cafeteria ladies to serve us.

575

:

But.

576

:

They were somehow able to get Chuck Barry

to perform at a high school reunion.

577

:

So this is the movie we're in

you guys, so it is a wild ride.

578

:

We have the music by Peter

Bernstein and Mark Goldenberg.

579

:

I don't know who they are.

580

:

Clearly there are no awards.

581

:

For this movie, the budget, while I

couldn't find an exact number, it is

582

:

estimated to be less than 4 million,

somewhere between like two and 4 million.

583

:

It made about 10 million, which

is actually more than I thought.

584

:

So it at least made, doubled

its budget, estimated budget.

585

:

Okay.

586

:

So that's our cast of characters who

was responsible for making this movie.

587

:

It was advertised as a school related

comedy, from the people who brought

588

:

you National Lampoon's Animal House.

589

:

There was no mention in the

poster or teaser of the horror

590

:

parody angle, nor in the, trailer.

591

:

No, no information about

the horror parody angle.

592

:

Just that this movie was often perceived

erroneously as being a sequel or

593

:

sequel of sorts, and totally wasn't.

594

:

But I, so that's why it was like a

bait and switch, like maybe on purpose.

595

:

I don't know.

596

:

I don't know.

597

:

I, executive producer Maddie Simmons

described the film as a broad Marx

598

:

Brothers type parody of the horror genre.

599

:

Like I mentioned, the trailer has

absolutely nothing to do with anything.

600

:

There aren't even words in it.

601

:

It's just a visual of a stage with things

related to high school being thrown at it.

602

:

And so you guys, if you're listening

to the audio version of this, and the

603

:

first 30 seconds of this episode, you

were like, what the hell's going on?

604

:

That's the trailer and you should

go check out the YouTube version so

605

:

you can see what I'm talking about.

606

:

Now clearly, uh, class Reunion

is known by many as a bad movie.

607

:

However, it must also be noted that

it's also a parody of bad movies.

608

:

So take that all with a grain of salt.

609

:

I'm still, I'm trying to be, trying

to give it as much courtesy as I

610

:

can, and clearly this is John Hughes.

611

:

Trying to find his footing

early on and, one of his first

612

:

screenwriting credits, key piece

of his filmography because of that.

613

:

But he, uh, reportedly

dislikes it after the studio.

614

:

Clearly made significant changes,

as we talked about earlier.

615

:

They, he even claims.

616

:

Like they fired him from it.

617

:

And I, I don't know, I don't know.

618

:

Maybe he was kind of a difficult

'cause we learn through doing this,

619

:

that he can, I, I think he can kind

of be difficult and it's easy to get

620

:

in a little bit of a feud with him.

621

:

So if he was that way early on in

his career, um, that's interesting

622

:

that he was even able to have one.

623

:

But he did have talent later the

hybrid is unusual, so it combines

624

:

like lowbrow teen comedy in the

vein of Animal House, which is.

625

:

Typical, like that's what we would kind

of expect from LA National Lampoons.

626

:

They even advertise it bait

and switchy style as sort of

627

:

like a pseudo sequel to it.

628

:

But then they also combine that

with a parody of popular slasher

629

:

films of this particular era.

630

:

And the, it's, the mashup

clearly did not work.

631

:

It was unsuccessful.

632

:

A lot of critics believed, that this was.

633

:

Partially why the movie didn't work.

634

:

They just kind of tried to combine

two genres that, and it didn't,

635

:

didn't work in such a short movie.

636

:

They were just throwing things in

for the sake of throwing things in.

637

:

And then they found some scenes for filler

that we'll talk about in, in, uh, musical

638

:

numbers that went on for fucking ever.

639

:

Okay.

640

:

So this is 1982.

641

:

So they're graduating class of 1972.

642

:

It is disrupted when an escaped

mental patient, a former student,

643

:

crashes the party seeking revenge.

644

:

Now, why was he seeking revenge?

645

:

What was the impetus of that?

646

:

Well, when we were shown this scene

right after the opening credits,

647

:

we get a scene like 10 years ago.

648

:

And we believe it to be a senior party.

649

:

'cause there was a bonfire it

was a bunch of people drinking.

650

:

There's a flashback revealing

the traumatic senior prank

651

:

that, drove Walter insane.

652

:

So Bob, the class

president sets Walter up.

653

:

He's like, Hey, Meredith, like the

popular girl, you know, she's into

654

:

you, she's over in so-and-so's car.

655

:

Like she's super into you.

656

:

She, she wants to make

out or, or whatever.

657

:

And it turns out like we

don't know what happened.

658

:

We see her basically jerking him off.

659

:

Like there's something going on

in the car, but the girl, oh, and

660

:

Bob tells Walter, you know, she's,

she's kind of like, she doesn't want

661

:

people to know it's her whatever.

662

:

Like she's kind of nervous.

663

:

So she has a bag over her head.

664

:

And then.

665

:

While they're in the car, we see the

bag is taken off and they are horrified

666

:

when, and we don't see who she is.

667

:

We just see the two people in the car

that were just about to get it on are

668

:

horrified and we don't learn the reveal as

to who that is until a little bit later.

669

:

As to why that drove him insane.

670

:

Well, it turns out that was his twin

sister and it's played by him in a dress,

671

:

so it's, but so, so that was the prank.

672

:

Now I thought that they knew that,

and that was part of the prank.

673

:

But then I saw something later

like a scene because I wasn't able

674

:

to actually watch every scene.

675

:

I was looking up some synopsis and I saw.

676

:

Or synopsis.

677

:

I saw something about Bob, somewhere

it said he was also surprised

678

:

to learn that it was the sister.

679

:

I don't think he realized, I don't know.

680

:

I don't really buy that.

681

:

I'm not certain.

682

:

So maybe that makes no sense.

683

:

Like it kind of doesn't make sense.

684

:

I feel like the gag would be

you're kissing or like getting

685

:

it on with your twin sister.

686

:

I mean, and that would be

effing traumatic, right?

687

:

So that was the prank.

688

:

So now, at the reunion, people are

starting to get picked off, right?

689

:

Uh, Walter starts picking off

his former classmates in a series

690

:

of really over the top deaths.

691

:

We don't, we don't really see

the deaths, we just see the

692

:

aftermath of it, which is fine.

693

:

Like that's, that's fine.

694

:

And then, so the remaining eccentric

alumni are forced to band together

695

:

to try and stop the killer.

696

:

Then there's a reveal where the doctor Dr.

697

:

Robert Young, played by Michael

Lerner is actually a mask.

698

:

This is, it's wild.

699

:

'cause like it's, he's clearly

like a short stout man.

700

:

But then he pulls that, that

mask off and actually it's Walter

701

:

underneath, so there is no Dr.

702

:

Lerner.

703

:

That's how he was able to get in

and infiltrate and lock everybody

704

:

in by pretending he was the doctor

there to, to confiscate this escapee.

705

:

So yeah, that's that.

706

:

, And then the ending is somehow.

707

:

I thought I had missed

something, but I didn't like it.

708

:

Ends really with, they catch him,

put him in a straight jacket, but

709

:

then they're just all dancing.

710

:

It's like a line dance like soul

train style, like a line dance.

711

:

Where they're all just dancing.

712

:

And that's the end of the movie, like a

celebratory end of the movie where he's

713

:

just, there he is in a straitjacket,

but he's dancing with everybody.

714

:

It is what it is.

715

:

Like you could take it for what it

is and enjoy it for what it is, but

716

:

there were a lot of missed marks.

717

:

So I did read that some critics were

like they set up some storylines and

718

:

then they were just completely dropped.

719

:

And I kind of have to go with

that because I wasn't actually

720

:

able to see the whole movie.

721

:

I was only to see bits and

pieces after the first third,

722

:

and then the character arcs.

723

:

There really aren't any character arcs.

724

:

Like there's just these characters

doing weird things just for

725

:

the sake of doing weird things.

726

:

And sometimes movies do that.

727

:

So like, I don't know.

728

:

That's fine, I guess.

729

:

But setting up a storyline and

then dropping it, that's lazy.

730

:

Like why didn't you

close the loop on that?

731

:

Yeah, so clearly nobody liked this movie.

732

:

It has a low IMDB rating,

like not that low though.

733

:

What did I say it was?

734

:

It's, um, a 4.6,

735

:

so like approximately

half, so it could be worse.

736

:

I feel like there are movies

that, that are lower than that.

737

:

In fact, now I'm wondering what

flubber, I feel like Flubber iss

738

:

lower than that, as it should be.

739

:

Jesus.

740

:

But yeah, so the critics

didn't like it either.

741

:

So this was a flop of a

movie and it was just wild.

742

:

Like clearly it was a bait and switch.

743

:

You can't tell by the.

744

:

Trailer, any of the ads for it,

even how they set the movie up,

745

:

the name of it, everything makes

you think it's one kind of movie.

746

:

And then you're like, oh, it's

not that kind of movie, but okay,

747

:

let's, let's see what this is about.

748

:

You know, okay.

749

:

It's not what I thought it was

gonna be, but let's sit through

750

:

it and see what it's about.

751

:

It's super fascinating that this is.

752

:

A stepping stone for John Hughes in

one of his early works, despite him.

753

:

I really wish I was able to see what

his actual script was, that that would

754

:

be, I really wish maybe we got that,

because it doesn't sound like we got

755

:

that unless he's kind of copying out.

756

:

Because it was, you know how

sometimes people do that, they're

757

:

like, oh, it didn't work out.

758

:

Uh, I, I'm gonna distance myself from

it, but let's assume there were at

759

:

least tenets of his writing in this.

760

:

So it's very raw and unpolished, which

is in stark contrast to the Breakfast

761

:

Club, which is I think kind of a

masterpiece of writing for Hughes.

762

:

Just a few years later, that was 85.

763

:

That was just a few years later.

764

:

I still like the people

don't look 28 I like at all.

765

:

And I, and I know we talk

about this all the time, why?

766

:

I know it is the hairstyles

to some degree and maybe the

767

:

fashion too, but they looked.

768

:

My age or older than me, and

they were supposed to be 28.

769

:

So yeah a lot of dance and singing

numbers that went on far too

770

:

long and for absolutely no reason

in this, just to eat up time.

771

:

Also, those stoners had a lot of

time in this movie for no reason.

772

:

That's not that funny.

773

:

I don't know, maybe it was in in 82,

but just like incoherent, stoner.

774

:

Tropes, so there's that.

775

:

Now let's talk about some

of the pros, I guess.

776

:

There was a transgender classmate

they're like going through there was

777

:

a slideshow portion and they're like,

oh, and that's so and so who's now a

778

:

mother of three in such and such suburb.

779

:

And it was like, no big deal.

780

:

Which I gotta give them credit for

that because it is no big deal.

781

:

No one told them yet in 1982 that

they should be outraged by this.

782

:

So if you just allow yourself to

enjoy this type of movie, you might

783

:

find some, shall we say, smart, even.

784

:

Albeit outrageous components.

785

:

So even with the script that John Hughes

later disowned National Lampoon's class

786

:

reunion does include some genuinely smart.

787

:

Albeit blink, and you'll miss it.

788

:

Details that reflect his satirical roots.

789

:

You do have to kind of be watching for it

and you'll be like, oh, you know, they're,

790

:

they're very slight, which I quite enjoy.

791

:

We talked a little bit about it, but

including the opening credit sequence

792

:

that's designed as a yearbook.

793

:

It is a trove of hidden jokes in

introducing our characters, not just with

794

:

their photos, but their nicknames and

their absurdly specific club memberships.

795

:

And ironic, most likely to accolades.

796

:

For instance, the vapid snobbish

cheerleader Bunny Packard is

797

:

listed as being in the future

Mothers of Children Club.

798

:

Like I just, I dunno,

I found that hilarious.

799

:

Perfect slice of dark

humor that both plays on.

800

:

As well as subverts the typical

teen comedy stereotypes.

801

:

The film setting at the Lizzie Borden High

School Whom's motto is a cut above the

802

:

rest pitch black Bit of foreshadowing.

803

:

Winking wildly at the audience before the

slasher parody elements fully kick in.

804

:

So that's a good point.

805

:

That can be listed in our pro column.

806

:

And then another small but sharp

detail involves the class nerd

807

:

Gary Nash, who's inability to be

remembered by anyone is a running gag.

808

:

A nuanced piece of commentary

on how high school hierarchies

809

:

impact long-term memory.

810

:

Okay.

811

:

Even the stoners were like best

friends in high school, but they

812

:

couldn't remember each other.

813

:

That was a running gag

throughout the movie.

814

:

So there are some small overlooked

quips that can showcase some original

815

:

talent that I would like to credit

to Hughes like that, that , those

816

:

little touches, even in a project

that by all accounts was mishandled

817

:

after he finished the screenplay.

818

:

And there was one question

that I, had to look up.

819

:

I was like, did I miss a scene?

820

:

'cause I clearly missed

a lot of the movie.

821

:

But I tried to watch some clips and

look into some synopsis of this movie.

822

:

So Walter, as the killer is wearing

the dress that we see played as

823

:

his twin sister in the original

prank that's played by him.

824

:

So I was curious.

825

:

I'm like, okay, well, what are

we supposed to glean from this?

826

:

Right?

827

:

You know, maybe this is like

symbolic of his revenge.

828

:

Maybe this is to make us think

that there's actually two killers.

829

:

But I think I was overthinking this

and it's, uh, I think it turns out that

830

:

it was just supposed to be a visual

gag and was not otherwise meaningful.

831

:

Couple bits of trivia

you guys for this movie.

832

:

This is spoiler, but it's the

notable distinction that National

833

:

Lampoon's class reunion has.

834

:

It's being the first slasher

film to offer redemption to

835

:

its psycho killer at the end.

836

:

I hadn't really considered that

because I'm not a connoisseur of

837

:

slasher films, but yeah, he's like

accepted sort of as part of the class.

838

:

Just like everybody.

839

:

Also, like no one learns

their lesson in this movie.

840

:

There's no, I guess as one critic put,

there's no arc to these people, but

841

:

everybody is who they were in high school.

842

:

Like to a t.

843

:

So including there's like

Cheryl, Walter, Walter, like,

844

:

all right, you're a murderer.

845

:

Like, that's okay.

846

:

You just murdered like half of

our class reunion, but whatever.

847

:

Joining our little dance

at the end of this movie.

848

:

Now the setting, and we are shown this

at the beginning, so the invitation to

849

:

the class reunion has a drawing of the

high school, the Lizzie Borden High.

850

:

And then that kind of fades into our

first scene of like from afar, a shot

851

:

from afar of an actual building that is.

852

:

That is supposed to be Lizzie Borden

High, and it's at nighttime with clouds.

853

:

It's ominous.

854

:

There might even be thunder.

855

:

And then we get introduced, I should

say, to our characters at the reunion.

856

:

Well, the University of

Pasadena's Pasadena College.

857

:

Oh, that's a mouthful.

858

:

The University of Pasadena's, Pasadena

College of Chiropractic that plays.

859

:

Lizzie Borton High School.

860

:

So it's a real place and

it looks really scary.

861

:

Like I actually really enjoyed that scene

because it reminded me of the spooky

862

:

castle in the beginning of Scooby-Doo.

863

:

But that's a real place, I guess.

864

:

Maybe not the outside shots.

865

:

Maybe they meant the inside shots.

866

:

I don't know.

867

:

It doesn't matter.

868

:

Anyway, who has seen this movie,

national Lampoon's class reunion?

869

:

You must tell me.

870

:

You have to write in and let me know

your thoughts if you've seen it.

871

:

There's no more to say.

872

:

I, I mean, I could

blabber on, but I won't.

873

:

So that was National

Lampoon's class reunion.

874

:

It was definitely a misfire in 1982

cinema, but I will be honest, even

875

:

with its flaws, it was still 10

times more watchable than flubber.

876

:

Revisiting the pop culture around it

makes the stumble worth talking about.

877

:

'cause there were some great movies, great

music, lots of pop culture is the reason

878

:

that we do this with the time capsule.

879

:

So I will keep pulling on these threads

as we explore the highs, lows, and

880

:

everything in between from the past.

881

:

And hey, don't just

disappear after the credits.

882

:

Drop me an email with your

thoughts, or even better leave a

883

:

review wherever you're listening.

884

:

It really is the best way to keep the show

going and help more retro fans find it.

885

:

Think of it as your ticket to

the next nostalgia trip, and

886

:

until next time, be kind, rewind.

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About the Podcast

Retromade
Your pop culture rewind
Welcome to the Retromade Podcast, where we take a nostalgic trip down memory lane and explore the best of the 80s and 90s pop culture.

Join us as we dive into the iconic movies, TV shows, music, fashion, cartoons, toys, and other cultural trends that defined these two decades. From the classic coming-of-age films of John Hughes to the unforgettable TV shows like The Cosby Show, Cheers, The Golden Girls, Friends, and Seinfeld; we’ll explore the moments that shaped our childhoods and continue to resonate with us today.

Get ready to reminisce about the music that dominated the charts, from the hair metal of Guns N’ Roses to the pop hits of Madonna and Michael Jackson. We’ll also take a look at the fads and trends that defined the era, from the neon colors of fashion to the boombox on every street corner.

But it’s not just about the big names and big moments. We’ll also dive deep into the lesser-known corners of 80s and 90s culture, from cult classic movies like The Breakfast Club and Big Trouble in Little China to underground bands that never quite made it big. And of course, we can’t forget the deliciously retro snacks & cereals that were a staple of our childhoods.

Join us as we explore the pop culture of the past, and discover how it still shapes our lives today. Whether you’re a child of the 80s, 90s, or just a fan of retro culture, this podcast is for you. So grab a slice of pizza, put on your favorite band t-shirt, and tune in to the Retromade Podcast.
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