In 1987, a very strange broadcast intrusion occurred in the city of Chicago. For just a couple of minutes, the odd TV character Max Headroom appeared onscreen in the middle of an episode of Dr. Who. He spoke in garbled tones, brandished a marital aid, and was spanked on the rear with a fly swatter by a person dressed in Annie Oakley garb. If this sounds weird, it is. It's the Max Headroom Incident. Find out all about it in this classic episode.
AI Summary
# Stuff You Should Know Episode Summary
Join Chuck and Josh as they dive into one of the strangest unsolved mysteries in television history—the Max Headroom broadcast intrusion incident of 1987. They explore the origins of the iconic '80s character Max Headroom, explain how the cyberpunk icon became a cult phenomenon, and then recount the bizarre night when someone hijacked Chicago's airwaves, transmitting an incomprehensible video of a masked figure wielding a rubber penis and spouting cryptic messages before vanishing without a trace. This is a wild ride through 1980s nerd culture, broadcasting technology, and an unsolved crime that still baffles investigators decades later.
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
1989
PG
1h 30m
★ 6.8
"Like Neo's apartment. Yeah, why not? Or what was the other one he was in before? The mnemonic? Yes. Yeah. Bill and Ted. — Josh briefly mentions Bill and Ted while discussing other Keanu Reeves films with cluttered hacker aesthetics."
— Josh
Clutch Cargo
1959
TV-G
★ 4.5
"Then he starts humming the theme song to the 60s show clutch cargo, which is weird in and of itself. — Josh mentions the intruder humming the Clutch Cargo theme, which was significant to WGN."
— Josh
"they were airing an episode of Doctor who called the horror on Fang island. — Josh describes the Doctor Who episode that was interrupted by the second broadcast intrusion."
— Josh
Johnny Mnemonic
1995
R
1h 37m
★ 5.8
"You went to their apartment and it was just like, it looked like a computer hoarder. Mess of wires and computers and equipment. Like Neo's apartment. Yeah, why not? Or what was the other one he was in before? The mnemonic? Yes. Yeah. Bill and Ted. Yeah. Johnny Mnemonic. — Josh uses Johnny Mnemonic as a comparison for how a hacker's apartment might look cluttered with computer equipment."
— Josh
Max Headroom
1987
TV-PG
★ 6.9
"I watched season one, episode one. Oh, really? In full of Max Headroom. — Josh mentions watching the Max Headroom TV series to prepare for discussing the broadcast intrusion incident."
— Josh
Max Headroom: 20 Minutes into the Future
1985
57m
★ 6.6
"starting in 1984, there was a movie called Max Hedroom Colon. So, you know, it's an important movie 20 minutes in the future. — Chuck introduces the original Max Headroom film that started the character before the TV series."
— Chuck
Murphy Brown
1988
TV-PG
★ 6.5
"He was a colleague of Murphy Brown on the Murphy Brown television. — Chuck references Murphy Brown to help identify actor Matt Fruer who played Max Headroom."
— Chuck
Pulp Fiction
1994
2h 34m
★ 8.5
"If you've seen pulp Fiction, it was the scene where Bruce Willis was a kid and Christopher Walken comes in with the wristwatch scene. — Josh references a Pulp Fiction scene to explain where Clutch Cargo appeared in pop culture."
— Josh
Revenge of the Nerds
1984
1h 30m
★ 6.5
"look at revenge of the nerds, right? Yeah, exactly. They came out on top. — Chuck uses Revenge of the Nerds as an example of early nerd culture celebration in media."
— Chuck
RoboCop
1987
1h 42m
★ 7.4
"Robocop is supposedly cyberpunk. Right. It's like a bleak technological future. — Chuck uses RoboCop as an example of cyberpunk cinema to help explain the genre."
— Chuck
The Emerald Forest
1985
1h 54m
★ 6.6
"And it was kind of a cyberpunk movie, dystopian future, very Terry Gilliam Brazilish. — Josh compares the original Max Headroom film to Terry Gilliam's Brazil to describe its dystopian style."
— Josh
The Matrix
1999
2h 16m
★ 8.2
"You could probably make the case that the matrix is as well. All right. Sure. — Chuck suggests The Matrix could be considered cyberpunk along with other films they discussed."
— Chuck
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