We’re The Nostalgia Test!
Join us (Dan & Manny) as we go back to see if our pop-culture past passes the ultimate test--THE NOSTALGIA TEST!
We met over 20 years ago in our high school Sports Marketing class on Long Island, NY wondering, “What the hell is Sports Marketing?” In our 20+ years as friends we’ve been to numerous concerts, watched an untold amount of insane movies & television, ate too many midnight meals, had deep conversations about the philosophical genius of comedian Mitch Hedberg, and drove a 6-week cross-country loop through the US. It was fate that one day we’d end up sharing our tangent-filled memories with the world.
Fast forward to 2020, and I’m (Dan) living and teaching in LA and Manny is co-owner of Lithology Brewery in Farmingdale, Long Island. One day on a walk, I called Manny and asked him if he’d want to start a podcast. Before I could fully explain the premise, Manny was like, “Let’s do it, as long as we start with Cocktail,” and the rest is history.
Since then, we’ve unapologetically put anything and everything from our pop culture past to the ultimate test, we’ve met other amazing podcasters, talked with pop culture scholars and authors from all over the world, interviewed so many amazing professionals from filmmakers to the creator of Q*bert, the toy designer behind Tickle Me Elmo, the stars of the indie hit Snack Shack, and so much more.
The best part of The Nostalgia Test is how it’s become this growing archive and history of our friendships. Some of the most memorable episodes have been with our other friends, because we want the podcast to feel like hanging out with your best friends late into the night.
We’re planning to expand our content by writing posts here as well, and planning some exclusive content, so be on the lookout.
Come along for the ride, grab a seat and a drink, and hangout with your new best friends!
Join The Nostalgia Fam!
If you’d like to follow all The Nostalgia Test antics please subscribe. At the moment, everything is available for free, but if you’d like to support The Nostalgia Test, please consider a paid subscription!
The Nostalgia Test Rubric
What Gets Put To The Test: In order to be put to the ultimate test, the piece of pop culture has to be at least 10-years old from the date of recording the podcast. Why? We don’t know. It just seemed like a good rounded amount of time.
Passing The Nostalgia Test: This means whatever we’re testing is still good, it has withstood the test of time and is something we’d go out of our way to watch, listen to, eat, etc. Basically, we’d recommend it, unironically.
Doesn’t Pass The Nostalgia Test: This means it’s just nostalgic. It doesn’t mean it’s bad, it’s just something that gives us that warm fuzzy feeling of nostalgia, like it reminds us of “home.”
Fails The Nostalgia Test: If it’s so bad that it’s not even nostalgic then it fails and basically is something we wish we never went back to, and probably won’t ever again. It’s so bad you’re trying to erase it from your memory
Nostalgia Test Podcast Episode Types
The Nostalgia Test Podcast is not just the classic Nostalgia Test Podcast, we have two other amazing series that makes the podcast a true one-stop-shop type of podcast for pop culture.
Nostalgia Test Now! This series is all about putting current pop-culture that’s less than 10-years old to the ultimate test. If there’s a new movie, album or song, some sort of new show, a reboot (ugh) or sequel, that we want to see if it passes the test to be remembered after 10-years, it’s a Nostalgia Test Now!
Nostalgia 101: This is our classroom. Nostalgia 101 is a great series where we get to talk to scholars, professionals, creatives, and authors all about pop culture and their expertise. We’ve had guests as far as India on to talk to our amazing audience, and we are always looking to learn.
Nostalgia Test Mini: This is a new series. Sometimes we don’t need a full ep, so we just do a mini and get it over with. And sometimes we have to deliberate whether a topic deserves a full ep. That’s what the mini is for.
Nostalgia Test News: There’s so much that goes on in the pop culture world, and sometimes we need time to talk about those events. Nostalgia Test News is a kind of monthly episode that goes into several pop culture topics.
