Paid in Puke Podcast: S10E1: Abortionpalooza 2024

It’s our Season TEN premiere AND our ONE HUNDREDTH EPISODE! Thank you to all of our listeners! We are thrilled to be back with our third Abortionpalooza, but much less stoked about the fact that thanks to the overturning of Roe V. Wade, uterus-owning Americans currently have less bodily autonomy than they did in Nineteen Hundred and Seventy Three. 

We kick things off with a brief history of abortion depiction on television and examine season 3, episode 5 of the teen cop drama, 21 Jump Street“Whose Choice is it Anyway?”. It originally aired on December 11th 1988 on the Fox network. It stars Holly Robinson-Peete, Stacey Edwards, and Dana Ashbrook (Twin Peaks). The teleplay by Michelle Ashford (Masters of SexCat Person), is surprisingly progressive and they even go so far as to make an anti-choice terrorist the villain. 

Then we tool around with Lily Tomlin and Julia Garner in 2015’s “Grandma”, directed by Paul Weitz (American PieAbout a Boy), and co-written by Tomlin, who put a lot of her own voice in it. Garner plays a high school girl who asks her free-wheeling grandmother (Tomlin) to help her scrounge up enough money to make it to an abortion appointment by 5 pm. Judy Greer, Marsha Gay Harden, Laverne Cox, and John Cho round out a fun supporting cast. 

We touch on themes such as who *needs* to be involved in deciding what to do about a pregnancy (*spoiler alert* it’s pretty much just the person carrying the fetus), where should kids get information about pregnancy and birth control, and why women should be valued for more than just their fertility. 

On the Lunchtime Poll, we reveal some information we wish we had never received.

Listen to the episode!

Paid in Puke Podcast S8E10: Batman Returns w/ Daniel Waters

It’s the big Season 8 Finale! We are thrilled and honored to bring you our first (and probably only) cis male guest: Daniel Waters! He gets a P*ssy Pass for writing the film that inspired our podcast theme (Heathers) and another feminist classic: Batman Returns.

This 1992 comic book sequel was directed by Tim Burton, and stars Michelle Pfeiffer in an absolutely iconic role that launched one million sexual awakenings. It was written by Waters, from a script by Sam Hamm, and then unsatisfactorily finished off by a real Normie named Wesley Strick. We consider it a Catwoman movie with 3 male villains hellbent on stopping Selina Kyle from embracing her true nature.

Join us as we pester Daniel Waters with questions about Heathers, and discuss what went wrong as well as what went SO. VERY. RIGHT. with Batman Returns.

And because it’s a Christmas Movie, our Lunchtime Poll is about worst and best Christmases. 

Listen to the episode here!

Paid in Puke Podcast S8E9: The Lost Daughter

On this episode of Paid in Puke, we get lost in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s 2022 directorial debut. The Lost Daughter stars Olivia Coleman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson, and Dagmara Dominczyk. The film tackles biological motherhood in a way that is so candid, the author of the source material used a pseudonym to avoid backlash. Among the Pukettes, two mothers and one childfree woman all saw completely different things in the intentionally ambiguous narrative. The Lost Daughter is a mirror that reflects our own experiences. One thing we agree on is that it’s a staggering debut from Gyllenhaal and, to quote Leda, “motherhood is a crushing responsibility”. 

Listen to the episode here!

Paid in Puke Podcast 2023 Oscars Special



It’s the Paid in Puke 2023 Oscars Special! We were lucky enough to get Denise Rodriguez back to round out the panel. Between the 4 of us, we’ve seen almost everything (except The Whale, for reasons we GET. IN. TO.) We go full At the Movies, with wildly different opinions on MANY of the films. The hot takes are flying. But we all agree that the Everything Everywhere leads and Angela Bassett deserve Legacy awards and that Colin Farrell is a lovely man. 

Paid in Puke Podcast Special: The Pukettes Interview w/ Ann Magnuson!

Welcome to our bonus interview with Ann Magnuson. In addition to behind-the-scenes look at filming “Making Mr. Right” in Miami in 1986, Ann discusses her early influences and media consumption, coming up in the 70’s NYC and London punk scenes, why her appearances in Hollywood films were rare, a juicy tidbit about the casting process of “Fatal Attraction”, the roles on her resume that are closer to her real persona, and auditioning for SNL. She’s living the true Art Life. We could have listened to her for hours. We hope this interview inspires you to dive deep into Ann’s staggering back catalog and then make some art of your own. As Ann says, “There’s no time to waste!”

Ann Magnuson Instagram

Ann Magnuson website

Buy a signed copy of new Blu-Ray of Making Mr. Right!

Ann’s You Tube channel

Paid in Puke Podcast: S8E7 – Making Mr. Right

On series 8episode 7 of Paid in Puke, we’re thrilled to bring you this deep cut gem from 1987: “Making Mr. Right”Susan Seidelman’s retro-futurism genre bender stars the incomparable Ann Magnuson, as well as Glenne Headly, and Laurie Melcalf. We were lucky enough to snag Ann for an interview!

We discuss pop culture’s timeless obsession with A.I.. This movie presents so many themes that were later explored in more serious properties like “Her”“Ex Machina”, and “Westworld”. It also depicts a rare character in cinema (especially in 1987): a nuanced working woman who isn’t driven by her need to find and keep a man. The film is also stylish, hilarious, and truly unique!

Throughout our discussion, we include clips from our interview with Ann, who discusses working in Miami, bringing her prodigious London and NYC underground experience to a Hollywood rom com, and why the time is right for a film that celebrates good will and charm.

Listen to the entire interview in our bonus episode and buy the special edition blu-ray of Making Mr. Right – out now, including commentary from Seidelman and Magnuson!

Ann Magnuson on instragram

Ann Magnuson’s website/store (including SIGNED Making Mr. Right blu-rays)!

Clips from Ann’s incredible interpretation of David Bowie’s “Moonage Daydream” peppered throughout

Paid in Puke S6E5: Zola

On this episode, we’re on an emotional rollercoaster with Janicza Bravo’s 2021 crime drama/comedy, “Zola”, based on the viral Twitter thread by Detroit waitress A’Ziah “Zola” King in October 2015. It stars Taylour Paige as the titular protagonist, and Riley Keough as the shady lady who roped Zola into a nightmarish weekend in Florida. It’s possibly our shortest Hot Probs segment to date, as Bravo knocks this one out of the park.

This discussion inspires a new t-shirt (it’s always a good idea to MIND THE VIBES) and several P.S.A.’s.

You won’t wanna miss this Lunchtime Poll, as we tell stories of times we got in over our heads with some sketchy people. 

PS: Forget that Rolling Stone article. Allison P. Davis has the real scoop at Vulture. 

Paid in Puke is available on all major podcast platforms or you can download this episode directly by clicking here!

Paid in Puke S6E4: Carol

On today’s episode, we’re falling in love with Todd Haynes’ 2015 romantic period drama, Carol, starring Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, and Sarah Paulson. We’re joined by special guest, Alicia Mullins of Gal Pals Watch Podcast, who gives us all the Superfan details about the film and the source material (Patricia Highsmith’s semi-autobiographical novel, “The Price of Salt”). 

There’s an awful lot of Harge hate and swooning over Cate Blanchett’s ethereal presence and silky voice, as well as marveling at Carol’s brass ovaries for standing up for herself in the 1950s, despite having so much to lose. Carol simply rules.  

Paid in Puke is available on all major podcast platforms or you can download this episode directly by clicking here!

Paid in Puke S6E3: Abortionpalooza 2021

On today’s episode, we’re discussing the tragic state of underage abortion rights in the United States through thematically similar, but tonally opposite films: Eliza Hitman’s 2020 drama Never Rarely Sometimes Always starring Sidney Flanigan and Talia Ryder; and Rachel Lee Goldenberg’s 2020 comedy, Unpregnant, starring Haley Lu Richardson and Barbie Ferriera. 

There are some Hot Probs, but these films are both great in their own right and feature some really incredible debut performances.

Despite the heavy subject matter, we manage to keep it light on the Two Lunchtime Polls for the Price of One! 

Paid in Puke is available on all major podcast platforms or you can download this episode directly by clicking here!

Paid in Puke S6E2: I, Tonya



On today’s episode, we’re setting the record straight with Craig Gillespie’s 2017 bio dramedy, “I, Tonya”, starring Margot Robbie, and Allison Janney. This film is a little miracle with its pitch-perfect performances, Rashomon story-telling, meta fourth-wall breaking, Cohen-esque comedy, ACAB-ery, and a bangin’ soundtrack to boot. We manage to have a very fun conversation about a very HEAVY-hitting story, the egregious double-standards in sports crime prosecution, and what happens to a woman who is “the wrong kind of poor” in this country.

This episode references a groundbreaking piece on Tonya Harding by Sarah Marshall. Check it out.

Paid in Puke is available on all major podcast platforms or you can download the episode directly by clicking here!