51. King Kong

Kong! The king himself! The Eighth Wonder of the World! And the subject of this episode of Adapt or Perish.

For this episode, we watched and discussed:

• King Kong, the original movie from 1933, directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, written by James Creelman and Ruth Rose, and starring Robert Armstrong, Fay Wray, and Bruce Cabot. Watch it on iTunes or Amazon.
• The Dino De Laurentiis-produced 1976 remake, directed by John Guillermin, written by Lorenzo Semple Jr., and starring Jeff Bridges, Charles Grodin, and Jessica Lange. Watch it on iTunes or Amazon.
• Peter Jackson’s 2005 remake, directed by Jackson, written by Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens, and starring Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, and Andy Serkis. Watch it on iTunes or Amazon.
• 2017’s Kong: Skull Island, directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts, written by Dan Gilroy, Max Borenstein, and Derek Connolly, and starring Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, Brie Larson, John Goodman, and John C. Reilly. Watch it on iTunes or Amazon.

Footnotes:

• Visual effects pioneer Willis O’Brien
• Adapt or Perish episode 39: Godzilla
• King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)
• Special makeup effects creator Rick Baker
• Godzilla (1998), Mighty Joe Young (1998), and Planet of the Apes (2001)
• Jurassic Park (1993)
• The Lord of the Rings composer Howard Shore
• Godzilla (2014) and Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)
• Honest Trailers - Kong: Skull Island w/ Jordan Vogt-Roberts on YouTube
• Sparks Nevada, Marshal on Mars from the Thrilling Adventure Hour podcast

50. Charlotte's Web

It’s episode 50! This is crazy! In this milestone episode of Adapt or Perish, we discuss the stone-cold children’s classic Charlotte’s Web!

For this episode, we read and watched:

• E.B. White’s original 1952 novel. Read it on iBooks or Amazon.
• The 1973 Hanna-Barbera animated musical, directed by Charles A. Nichols and Iwao Takamoto, written by Earl Hamner Jr., and starring Henry Gibson, Debbie Reynolds, and Paul Lynde. Watch it on iTunes or Amazon.
• The 2006 live action movie, directed by Gary Winick, written by Susannah Grant and Karey Kirkpatrick, and starring Dakota Fanning, Julia Roberts, Steve Buscemi, and Sam Shepard. Watch it on iTunes or Amazon.

Footnotes:

• E.B. White’s “A book is a sneeze” from Letters of Note
• John Hodgman, fellow podcaster and peer, of Judge John Hodgman
• “How to Succeed in Animation Chapter 28: A Tangled Web” by Gene Deitch
• “There Must Be Something More” from the 1973 Charlotte’s Web
• Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries and fellow Boston podcast Every Lady Needs a Hobby
• Actor Kevin Anderson’s IMDb bio

49. The Karate Kid

In this episode of Adapt or Perish, we wax on, we wax off, and we get into the ring with The Karate Kid!

For this episode, we watched:

• The original movie from 1984, directed by John G. Avildsen, written by Robert Mark Kamen, and starring Ralph Macchio, Noriyuki “Pat” Morita, Elisabeth Shue, and William Zabka. Watch it on iTunes or Amazon.
• The 2010 remake, directed by Harald Zwart, written by Christopher Murphey, and starring Jaden Smith, Jackie Chan, and Taraji P. Henson. Watch it on iTunes or Amazon.

Footnotes:

• The Karate Kid series: The Karate Kid Part II (1986), The Karate Kid Part III (1989), and The Next Karate Kid (1994)
• My Cousin Vinny
• “Jackie Chan: How to Do Action Comedy” from Every Frame a Painting