Judge John Hodgman - Do You Want to Hoard Some Snowglobes?

Episode Date: January 21, 2015

A man wants to dedicate a room of his house to the movie Frozen; his husband objects. With special expert witnesses Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez!

Welcome to the Judge John Hodgman podcast. I'm bailiff Jesse Thorne. This week, do you want to hoard some snow globes? Sean brings the case against his husband, Jamie. They recently bought a home and they differ on issues of decor. Jamie wants to have a themed room dedicated entirely to one of his favorite movies, Frozen. Sean says an entire frozen room would be too much. Who's right? Who's wrong? Only one man can decide. Please rise as Judge John Hodgman enters the court. Passengers, eternal order flows from the sacred engine. We must occupy our preordained position. I belong to the front. You belong to the tail. Know your place. Keep your place. Shut your piehole when so ordered. Jesse Thorne, swear them in. Please rise and raise your

right hands. Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God or whatever? I do. We do. You swear to abide by Judge John Hodgman's ruling despite the fact that an entire wing of his manse is themed out in honor of the film The Great Mouse Detective I do I do very well Judge Hodgman

how did you know Jesse I've been there you made me sleep there you were going to be my rat Watson. Sean and Jamie, for those of your names, you may be seated for an immediate summary judgment in one of yours favors. Can either of you name the piece of culture that I paraphrased as I entered the courtroom? I cannot. Who speaks?

That was Sean. All right, good. Yeah, the problem is we look alike, too, so it doesn't really help in a podcast. Not in my head. I can't see you, and you look very different from each other. But your names, for some reason, I keep wanting to call you John and Shamey. And I might. Yeah.

So that was Shamey talking? That was Shamey. This is Shame Jamie talking. And it sounds like the Tilda Swinton role in the – what's the recent – who's that with the hot guy with Chris Evans? The recent movie. Snowpiercer? I was really hoping you weren't going to be able to name it oh is that is that jamie yes all right you win stop john can i suggest that we just do the case

sort of on a pro forma basis sure well no we'll have to go through the but jamie automatically wins yeah but i mean we could do an as if. Like, as if. Yeah. Well, like an alternate universe? Yeah. Yeah. There is based on the many universes theory, a universe in which every possible outcome has happened

or will happen. And we'll just teleport over to the universe where, Jamie, you did not know how to have a good time. Or I should say, we should teleport over to the universe where, Jamie, you did not know how to have a good time. Or I should say we should teleport over to the universe where Jamie knew how to be a contestant on a podcast. Done. It is from Snowpiercer. So sad that you couldn't get that, Jamie.

I thought for sure you were going to get Tilda Swinton and then Chris Evans and then not get the name. I should have jumped in sooner. Oh, sorry. But then you got the name Snowpiercer. And because today's case involves the movie Frozen, I decided to use a quote from Snowpiercer, which is frozen for 40-year-old male children. Frozen for 40-year-old male children. It's about a train in a frozen world where they, at one point, very presciently decided to build bridges across the oceans so the train could go around the world all the time. Can I just go ahead and say I don't want a Snowpiercer room, regardless of the outcome?

No Snowpiercer. Yeah, we're both good with that. Sean, you want a frozen room, but I had not considered ordering you to have a snowpiercer room, and now I'm thinking about it seriously. Honestly, if I could suggest, be careful what you say you don't want because you might end up with a dune room. Hey, a David Lynch's dune?

Of course. That would be a beautiful, beautiful room. Just to clarify, though, it's Jamie that wants the frozen room and Sean doesn't want the frozen room. All right. And you are Sean talking right now. And it's me that wants the Jodorowsky's dune room. Yeah, no, I understand. You live in East L.A. and have a beard. Of course you want the Jodorowsky's dune room. Oh, this judge is humbled because his obscure cultural reference was not obscure enough or off topic enough.

But I still run this courtroom. So, Jamie, you want the frozen room? I do want the frozen room. Sean, you do not. Sean, you are bringing this case to court. You seek justice from me. You seek an order from me to not allow Jamie to have a thing that he wants. Tell me all about it, Sean.

So we recently purchased a house in October. It is not a manse, so no mousetrap wing will be in this house. The original novel was Basil of Baker Street. Basil of Baker Street was the original novel. They changed the name to make the movie unsuccessful. Go on. So I think it started as a joke. We were looking at this house that eventually we did wind up accepting.

We did wind up putting an offer on. And Jamie said, oh, but wow, what if we had a frozen room? And I could see that look on his face and I could see the wheels turning and as... What do you mean that look on his face? Is he always is he always kitting out rooms to movies? Like, is this a

hobby? Is this a habit? No, it's more of a pattern with him where he gets an idea and then I can see the wheels turning and I see into the future and realize, oh, there's nothing I can do to prevent this, which is exactly the position I found myself in because – And you had only one hope, which was to appeal to me. Well – To rob your partner of joy. Are you married?

We are married, yes. All right. To rob your spouse of joy. How long have you been married, Jamie? About a year and a half. About a year and a half. And where is this house that you have bought? It's in Hyattsville, Maryland, right outside D.C.

Hyattsville, Maryland. Well, that's the frozen capital of the world. Exactly. And which room – just for those who don't know, Frozen is an extremely popular animated – 3D animated adventure film in which princesses kick princes in the teeth and sing songs that are great. And we'll get to those in a moment. And the world goes frozen and Josh Gad plays a – what do you call it a snowman's olav yes oh sorry i apologize i forgot that i'm talking to the the king of frozen fandom you know what how would you describe it since you love frozen so much if you had to give a synopsis for your podcast listeners

mr snow piercer how would you describe it uh I would say that it's a very empowering film made by Disney. And it's one of the first films that features two female stars and or two female characters who empower one another. And yeah, it's it's I think it's a great story about redemption. And and again, the music, and, again, the music. Like you said, the music is phenomenal and one of the, I think, certainly one of the greatest scores out of a Disney film I've seen or heard. Second to the Great Mouse Detective.

Second only to the Great Mouse Detective, which I saw in theaters. But Frozen, I think it's very popular. It's the biggest selling, most successful animated film of all time. Is that so? That says something. Yes, it is. Is that so?

I did not realize that. Okay. I was pretty sure it was heavy metal, but okay. Close. Well, you have done my job for me because by mentioning the great score and, of course, the now iconic song from that film, Let It Go. And because we're neighbors and I love them, I decided to invite two expert witnesses to help decide your fate. expert witnesses to help decide your fate. Kristen Anderson Lopez and Robert Lopez, who wrote the song Let It Go and all the songs in that movie, are on the line with us now.

What a surprise. Hello, you guys. Hi, guys. Hi. Jamie wins. I knew it was going to happen just like that. No matter what. Oh, man.

Now, you guys are known to each other. I didn't realize when I suggested you guys as expert witnesses, but you know at least one of the litigants? We know Jamie. We go way back with Jamie. Oh, okay. He may have been straight when we knew him. Entirely possible. Fantastic. And then you know him from the musical theater community.

That's right, yes. Right. So then he got into musical theater and discovered his true self. He was empowered. He let it go. He let it go. Just like us. the expert witnesses are not advocates for either side, but given the unlikelihood that I'm going to find in Jamie's

favor today, after he snow-pierced me, I will allow you to advocate on his behalf. And so, sorry, Sean, it's you and me against the world. That's our animated film. Jamie, explain to me precisely what it is you propose for this frozen salon in your home.

Well, it's a 1920s Sears house. It has a lot of small rooms throughout. What is a Sears house. It has a lot of small rooms throughout. What is a Sears house? You used to be able to order a house from Sears catalog back in the 1920s. Just like Nelson Van Alden did on Boardwalk Empire.

Precisely. Yes, actually. That was also a Sears house. So you would buy this house from a catalog? Yep. We did not buy it from a catalog because we weren't around then. But we have this house from a catalog. Yep. We did not buy it from a catalog because we weren't around then. But we have this this house with a lot of small rooms. And there's one room at the top of the house that's at the front. And it's it's it's a very sweet room.

It used to be the sewing room on the old the old floor plan for the house from Sears. And we had talked about it. And at first it started as a bit of a joke because we were like, oh, what are we going to do with all these rooms? And I was like, oh, we can have a frozen room. And that's how it started. And what goes in a frozen room? In a frozen room goes things that are tasteful that remind us of the things.

OK, things that are tasteful that remind us of the things... Okay, things that are tasteful. Things that are tasteful that remind us of a movie that I certainly love and Sean also loves. You know what? You're being very coy with me here, Jamie. You're not describing... Go on. You're not telling me the things that are going in this room, which is my only question. Do I have permission to treat you as a hostile

witness? Yes. I grant myself permission. So the things that are already in this room... I don't need anyone else's permission. I'm just going to let it go. I'm going to build my own castle up here on this mountain and look down on all of you now.

The last person who needed empowerment was Judge John Hodgman. What? Where didgman where did that who did that sorry that was out of order Bobby I ban music in my kingdom good luck feeding your family now songwriter

where are the movies that empower straight white men? Why am I not represented in, oh, I am, in everything. Excuse me, I apologize. Now, what kind of tchotchkes are we talking about? Okay, in the things that are in the room currently, I have this actually lovely- Oh, so this is a frozen complete.

Thank you. Yes. Right now, it's a library, and it has all our books in it, and it has some things from our wedding in it, and little tchotchke that we have around. But also, it has a little Elsa and Anna statue that I got from Disney Movie Rewards that I was very excited about. What else? There are some decals. Hold on. Hold on.

Start the train, Snowpiercer. So you belong to a loyalty program of some kind? Through Disney movies? Yeah, absolutely. Tell me all about it. You remember old Columbia House records where you would get like 34 records to the postcard and get just destroyer and the monkeys yep i i did it so they do one for disney

movies too and uh i i am a disney movie collector so i like disney films and uh when i buy a certain amount i get credit with the disney movie rewards program this is now a commercial for them you're welcome i know this is a lot of buzz marketing all around here but it helps bobby and kristin I get credit with the Disney Movie Rewards Program. This is now a commercial for them. You're welcome. I know this is a lot of buzz marketing all around here, but it helps Bobby and Kristen pay their mortgage, so I like it. Plus, it helps him get a free six-inch sub. It must be very exciting to be a Disney movie collector because that way you get to buy the movies five times every time they release them on a different format. Precisely. We're opening the vaults to sell you the same thing again.

Only it looks slightly better now. Great Mouse Detective Double Platinum Gold Edition. But it has deleted scenes. I don't think they left anything on the table when it came to the Great Mouse Detective. I don't think they left anything on the table when it came to The Great Mouse Detective. So right now you have a wonderful mixed-use library full of mementos of all different aspects of your life, books that you presumably were culled from your personal collections and your personal libraries that are now melded together in your life together, libraries that are now melded together in your life together, photographs of the wedding honoring your union, two live actual non-fictional human beings. And it's a general purpose shrine to all of your shared interests. And Jamie, you want to turn it into a personal theme park for your obsession. Sorry, I need to interject here because I need to redirect.

I need to correct the record on some of these things. Who's speaking now? This is Sean. Sean. The mixed use that you're talking about has actually only come into play since I originally submitted this case. It is a development. submitted this case. It is a development. When I originally submitted this, there was nothing in that room, and he has only

recently put in all of these other things to mask his true intentions. So this was sort of false flag operation? This went from frozen to gone girl pretty quick. It was all part of his weird

scheme. That's right. I'm being slowly gaslit by this frozen obsession. So you're saying all these books and mementos and photos from your wedding are all camouflage? It could have been planned the whole time. I don't know. I wouldn't put it past him. Not true. So when we first saw the room.

I don't want to hear any more of this story. I understand you saw the room. You had different visions for it. We're not talking about the past anymore. We're talking about the room. I don't want to hear any more of this story. I understand you saw the room, you had different visions for it. We're not talking about the past anymore. We're talking about the future. And one of the things I like about this case, actually, Sean, one of the things I like about this case is that Jamie has already started. He didn't wait for a ruling. He already started building his obsession palace. And this makes it even like this is two thirds of the law, right? There's an eminent domain issue. You're right. Thank you very much, Bobby. And all those rights. Yeah, there's squatters rights. And the best part about this is like, it's very rare. Like there are times when I

get to make a judgment that will crush someone's dreams, or forestall someone enacting their dream is very rare that I actually get to have the opportunity to possibly make a judgment to tear something down. But my question is, it seems like you don't have enough stuff, Jamie. Do you have the Olaf doll that you pull his head off and he says, why are you all touching my butt? Do you have the dolls that they touch hands

and only then can they sing in counterpoint and their abdomens light up? No, where do you get these? Oh, any Toys R Us or large department store. The Disney store is good for these too. We have many. We'd be willing to send you. Yeah, it sounds like you're trying to offload a lot of junk you got for free.

Somebody just got a care package from the 99 cents only store. Just trying to find some long-term storage. I just have a feeling because you guys wrote Let It Go like a package shows up every week from Disney like here's some more toys. Not every week. But we did get a large supply from the Ice Show merchandise. The Ice Show merchandise is

quite fine. Have you been to the Ice Show, Jamie? No, but like 400 people have told me I need to go. You have to go! Where is the... This is Frozen on Ice? This is Frozen on Ice. Which I know is sort of redundant. I know it was

originally going to be called Frozen Frozen. Frozen Frozen. Frozen Squared. It is a traveling ice show. And I think it was just in your area, Jamie, I believe. But John, it was not even half area, Jamie, I believe. But John, it was not even half a mile from your house

in December. I went twice. Where was it? At the Barclays Center. I've never set foot in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Really? Oh, it's nice. And I won't set foot

in it until we have our live Judge Sean Hodgman show there. There we go. Then I will go to the Parkway Center. We'll write you the theme song. You know, I never hesitated on taking this case, but I am really allowing you guys to do a lot of advertising for a big company. I didn't realize exactly what was going on. But I won't – if Disney wants to buy Judge John Hodgman, that's fine. Yeah, it's available.

Yeah, right. As the owner of MaximumFun.org, I can confirm. Right, exactly so. It's like, you know, we have some very – listen, Disney. We have some very serious interest from Malort Liqueur of Chicago. Malort Disgusting Liqueur of Chicago. Some very – we're getting a lot of, you know, Utz Brand Snacks is sniffing around. This is your chance.

I want to retitle it The Judge with the Great Mustache. That's fine. I'll do it. You know, you've got Marvel, you've got the Muppets, you've got Star Wars. It's time for your next big cultural touchstone property. MaximumFun.org

Judge Sean Hodgman on ice at the Barclays Center. It'll work. It's going to work. Then you can make the room at the top of the stairs a maximum fun shrine. So, all right. I've been talking for a while.

And, Jamie, I hope I've given you some time to think and ruminate over the question that I asked at the beginning of this podcast that you refused to answer. What is this thing going to look like if you have your way? If I have my way, it will remain very similar to what it is, with a few more touches of Frozen in there. There are some things that my brother sent me. Stop being coy! Oh, Lord. Specificity is the soul

of obsessive weird rooms. What are you going to put in the room? What do you have your eye on? I know you have been looking at things and catalogs and on the web. I know you have been looking at things and catalogs and on the web. I know you have been coming home late from work, stopping off at the Disney store for a while, planning this out in your head. I want to live and see and be in this room. Okay, so there's a few more Disney things that I want, a few more Frozen things that I want in there.

I would like some themed lighting, maybe some nice blue lighting in there. What are the frozen... Jamie? Yes? Yes? Sean? Decals. I want decals on the walls. Now we're getting somewhere. Decals. Yes. Now we're getting to the heart of the matter.

That's all you needed to say? Well, no, you need to say more. I would like to paint more things blue in there. Okay, you need to say more. I would like to paint more things blue in there. Okay, you want to repaint. I would like light. I would like it to be light and airy and fun and be something that is a tribute to our own childhoods because we – actually, that's the reason we got married. We got married because – or one of the reasons we got married, but we wanted to pay tribute to our own childhood because growing up, we never thought we'd live in a place where we would be able to be married legally.

So our childhood is a really big part of our lives and honoring the kids inside us is a big part of it. Sure. But Frozen was not part of your childhood. It was part of everyone's childhood. Wait a minute. We're all Elsa and Anna, John.

Are you guys 12? No. See, this is what I was so worried about. Were you married? I did not marry a 12-year-old. Is same-sex 11-year-old marriage now legal in Maryland? This is the slippery slope they were worried about. So there's another piece of this, that like that i i want to mention is

that i have a background in animation as well and i do voices for cartoons which ones i've been a voice actor for pokemon and yugioh for the past like 15 years so it's a big part of it stop rewind what voices you do on pokemon uh pokemon i've've been Barry and Tripp for the past couple of years, Ash's primary rivals. And I also play Grumpig, who is Pokemon. Well, give me a little Grumpig. Grump, grump, Grumpig. That's Grumpig for sure.

You're welcome. I choose you. Grumpig, I choose you. Exactly. To stop talking for a second. Sean. No, you know, I can't even go to you, Sean, because what I want to say now to Sean is why is this so bad? But I don't, I still don't, like you keep telling me the why, Jamie. And the why is meaningless to me until I know the what.

So right now, this is what I understand so far. You want to repaint in Frozen-themed colors, icy blue and icy white, right? You want to keep your Elsa and what's the other one? Anna. Sorry. You want to keep your Elsa. Isn't that sad? Everyone forgets Anna.

That's the whole story. This whole story of the movie, right? Yeah. You want to keep your Elsa and your Anna dolls. And you want to put some track lighting in there or something to open it up. And some decals on the walls. Anything else? Perhaps not track lighting so much.

Just like Christmas lights. That was my joke. Okay. Well, track lighting so much. Just like Christmas lights. That was my joke. Okay, well, track lighting is nice too. I know that you have taste. I don't know. He just said he's going to do it with Christmas lighting. Are you going to get some rope lighting up in there? Absolutely, yes.

Yeah. The LEDs, you can get these tapes of tiny LED lights that have their own remote that change color. Yeah, you can set it to blue and all that. You can buy them on the internet. So something classy. that Jamie is a liar and a schemer. Do you believe that what he describes is what will happen in that room if I rule in his favor?

Not even remotely. Tell me. So the history of the frozen room, see, it's also, I agree with you, it's hard to nail down. He has said at times that he wants to be shifting. Yes, he wants it to be classy but there's actually no evidence of that of that existing point in fact we went to a big

chain market store which i will not i will not name here and there was a whole frozen display just do it it was bed bath and beyond and there was a whole uh aisle essentially dedicated to frozen and i'm sitting there staring at it realizing that we already own about 40 to 50 percent of that merchandise. And it's already in our home. In fact, Bobby and Kristen, there's no need for you to send us any Frozen merchandise because people have already done that. This situation has blown out of control to the point that people are now mailing us to our home frozen merchandise. One thing. One thing.

This podcast will totally take care of that. Well, the question is, do you guys already have a frozen branded Roomba? No. Did they make those? Probably at Bed, Bath & Beyond's frozen section. Just get a Roomba and put a decal on it and you got it. I don't know why Jesse finds Bed Bath & Beyond hilarious. Well, just as a specific – I assume they would suggest a place that sold children's goods such as a toy store or a department store with a toy area.

You didn't see BB&B coming? I did not see Bed Bath & Beyond coming. The prospect of frozen cleaning products and as seen on TV devices. You joke, but this is my frozen hell that I'm living in. You think that's going to happen. That's the thing. As soon as you suggest something, it's like it incepts into the world and it's a thing then. Sean, first of all, thank you for a specific example of what you're talking about, talking about going to see this aisle and seeing this merchandise. And you came to the conclusion that you already owned 40 percent of that merchandise.

40% of that merchandise. So I'm getting two very different stories because all I've heard about is an Anna and Elsa duo doll and the possibility of some decals. No, the decals are real. The decals were given to us by Jamie's brother, my brother-in-law,

for Christmas, and they're gigantic. And they're wall stickums, basically? Yes. No, wall stickums doesn't do them justice. They're almost life-size. Of the characters? Yes.

Anna and Elsa and any of the others? All of them. I'm familiar with this. You know this one, Chris? Yeah, they're fat heads. They're called... I don't know what. It's the name of the company.

They make wall decals. Oh, boy. I'm glad another company got in there. Oh, boy. I'm glad another company got in there. Judge Hodgman, you're not familiar with these types of wall decals. You didn't grow up with a childhood bedroom that had the 1992 USA Basketball Dream Team on it. No, I didn't. Thanks to upper deck wall stars?

No, no, no. I just framed covers of The New Yorker and put them up. I only wish I were joking. I had a Purple Rose of Cairo poster in my room. Just to give you some perspective, we actually have a freight New Yorker with cartoon characters on it already. I got it at the Purple Rose of Cairo aisle at Bed Bath & Beyond. But to show my age, it was just called Bed and Bath then. Do you guys remember that? Boy, oh boy, am I old. Okay, these decals.

Tell me about some of the merchandise you already own, Sean. Well, first of all, I don't own this. This was purchased by my husband. Oh, guess what, buddy? This is what marriage is all about. You own it too. You own it too. And I hope that you guys stay

together forever. But, you know, if you were to ever hope that you guys stay together forever. But if you were to ever split, you guys would be fighting over those decals so hard. Well, perhaps most offensively to me, there are two frozen nightlights that always frighten me when I see them in the dark because I kind of forget about them. There's one right outside of our bedroom when you walk towards the kitchen and there's one upstairs and they both project Anna and Elsa into the night air in our house in the middle of the night when I wake up. You mean they project an image up onto the ceiling or the wall or whatever? None of the things that I have mentioned thus far are contained within the frozen room. It behooves me to point out.

So there is no, I have no evidence that the frozen room will stay in the frozen room. Currently,hooves me to point out. So there is no, I have no evidence that the frozen room will stay in the frozen room. Currently, it's, they're all over the place. Yeah, but let me ask you this question. If,

if I ordered Jamie to make his frozen paradise and all, all of the frozen stuff had to go into that room and this was enforceable somehow through spot checks by me through my various – when I'm riding the circuit through Maryland. Would that not be a comfort to you, Sean? Would that be acceptable?

Would that be better than it currently is? Better than it currently is, yes. Yes, I would say that's better than it currently is. But, you know, better than hell is, I don't know what that is. Why do you find this stuff distasteful, Sean? Well, I'm glad you asked that. I'm a fan of the movie. I've seen it multiple times.

We saw it together. We watch it, I wouldn't say all the time, but I'm a fan of the film. I've seen it multiple times. We saw it together. We watch it, I wouldn't say all the time, but I'm a fan of the film, right? I just feel like because we've spent money on this house, we're adults, that we should, I don't know,

live our lives with some modicum of taste. I don't think that's so much to ask. Can I add something here? I find the Frozen Room merchandise to be distasteful. It's't think that's so much to ask. I find the frozen room merchandise to be distasteful. It's tacky. It's not to your taste. You consider it to be tacky

and juvenile. And it alternately cringes, causes you to cringe or freak out when you are surprised by a light. Correct. Can I add here?

Who is this? Is that Jamie? This is Jamie, yes. What do you – Can I just add that we already have – like we have a portrait of Big Bird in our living room. Not helpful. We have Bird and Ernie in our living room. Who did the illustrations?

Carol Spinney, who actually is the voice. I know who Carol Spinney is, sir. I knew you would. Carol Spinney, who performs Big Bird in Oscar. Not just the voice, he's the puppeteer as well. Yeah, he's in the suit. Carol Spinney drew a Big Bird? Yep, for me.

For you? Yeah. Yeah, Jamie, let me explain the difference to you between art and garbage. legendary, unparalleled puppet performer, one of the greatest puppeteers in the modern history of the art form, took his hand, the drew a portrait of the iconic character that he portrays. And he did it for you. That is an incredible keepsake. A work of art that is irreplaceable. It is – you know – have you ever read Walter Benjamin's Age in the Art of – I

mean Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction? I have not. You better get that in your library quick. That is the authentic. That is a thing that does not exist anywhere else in the world except in your living room. Even if he did it for a bunch of weird Muppet freaks and it's hanging in their livings room. None of them are the same as that one. Okay? That is art. What you want to transform, and I say this without judgment, what you want to transform that room into is a dumpster full of garbage. Or if I could put it more kindly, mass-produced trinkets and souvenirs designed to steal money from you based on your interest in a thing. Now, these things may give you joy to be sure, right?

And I would never deny you your right to joy. And yet you have to – using your hand-drawn portrait of Big Bird as counter evidence to Sean's good taste makes me wonder if you know anything about taste at all. Because you're buying merch, right? When you go and see a thing that you like and you buy a T-shirt or a doll or a figurine or even a – you know, or a coaster or whatever, when you buy merch, you're voting with your dollars to say, I like this thing and I want to be a part of it. Right? That is a form of consumerism. Right?

And consumerism is not an art form. Consumerism is consumerism. Not an art form. Consumerism is consumerism. Now, these things, these souvenirs, they remind you that you're a part of the tribe that loves Frozen enough to have a light-up abdomen Anna and Elsa touching and singing in their house. Right? That's a signifier that you belong to that tribe and it's a potent signifier because you know that there are many, many, many other people in your tribe who have the exact same piece of mechanically reproduced garbage that they paid for to have in their home. But no one has that same thing, that same portrait of Big Bird in their home but you.

So that's a crucial difference that I encourage you to explore and think about. You have me teary-eyed. If you can't tell, I'm really offended. Not really. I really want that thing. I want Carol Spinney. How did you get a Carol Spinney original? At the New York Comic Con. I want that thing. I want Carol Spinney. How did you get a Carol Spinney original?

At the New York Comic Con. Oh, so – and was he in the artist's alley? He was in the artist's alley. Which one? What year? Oh, God. This is probably like five or six years ago. Five or six years ago.

Oh, boy. Oh, boy. You know, Carol Spinney was a guest on Bullseye, my public radio show, six or eight months ago, and he did not draw anything for me. Yeah, no. He did? Oh. Oh, Julia is checking in right now in my headphones, and she says that

he drew a picture of Big Bird in our guest book. Yeah. Oh, my gosh, that's amazing. I did get to take a picture with Oscar the Grouch. Look, clearly Carol Spinney our guest book. Yeah. Oh my gosh. That's amazing. I did get to take a picture with Oscar the Grouch. So clear, look, look, clearly Carol Spinney is just hashing these things out for money.

There are a lot of them out there. But only, only that one is yours. I'm jealous. I'm jealous of you. And he's not a young man, either. You guys,

the value of that thing is going to go up. I'm telling you right now. That's a terrible thing for me to say carol spinney i i i love i love you i love you carol spinney and i and i thank you for all the good work you continue to do and and i look forward to your good health and long life for many many years to come it's just like you can't you can't trash the cops or Carol Spinney without giving some explanation. Judge Hodgman, may I ask a question? Yes, thank you, Kristen. Please. I'm curious to get your insight on the idea that perhaps Jamie working in the medium of Frozen merch, using the medium of these beloved objects.

This was going through my mind, too. Could actually create a wonderful installation or work of art that is one of a kind, that represents Jamie's expression of his love of this story about owning your own true self and lifting each other up and that perhaps his knowing Jamie as we do his creativity and sensitivity and the fact that he pours his emotion into absolutely every choice he makes in his life would actually create a magical place that anyone who enters would be enchanted and changed by. And it would be one of a kind in this house. Artists make art out of anything. If I may, counselors, I appreciate your impassioned plea.

And truly, if Jamie had described a vision to me of what he was going to do in this room, other than put up some rope lights and some stickers. Removable stickers. He can't even commit to the stickers. Might I say that I think that that actually sounds like a great idea, what Bobby and Kristen put out there? You mean you didn't have it already? I mean, they just repeated what I was thinking in that moment. Yeah, absolutely. Maybe just spinning off of this whole Carol Spinney thing, no pun intended,

spinning off of this whole Carol Spinney thing, no pun intended, maybe a few songwriters we know might want to go over there and make their own art or whatever about Frozen in this sewing room using garbage from the Bed Bath & Beyond or whatever it is they want to use. But, Jesse, we should tell you in our house, we have a tiny little room called the Imagination Room. And it has a rainbow floor and a chalkboard wall and all of the princess costumes and lion costumes and doctor costumes. And these are all children's size, of course. I really –

The things really took a left-handed turn there. Thank you very much. If I could communicate with you telepathically, Kristen, I would have interrupted you in there yelling, but you have children. And then you would have said, oh, the children aren't allowed in there. I wish you all could see the look on his face when you were saying that. This is another fait accompli. I'm seeing a second podcast and it worked. I have to say that I watched the movie Frozen and really enjoyed it,

particularly the beautiful music. In my house, I have a book called Step Into Reading Disney Frozen The Christmas Party, which was selected by a younger member of my family from his book order form. And it's literally the worst book I've ever read. It is so horrible. It doesn't even have a story. It's insane.

They have a Christmas party? But is it getting your younger member of your family reading? No. No? All right. No, it gets him interested in watching the movie Frozen. Does it get him interested in going to the Broadway show that will exist in three to five years? Yes.

Why would you even mention that? Do you have any particular interest in that being a success? No, it's just because of the big company and all. We just want to help the big company. Me too. Me too, big company. Don't hate me. Don't destroy me.

Sean? What do you think for Judge John Hodgman? Like 1.5 million? I wouldn't put a price. You're asking us? No, I'm asking John. John and I are partners in this endeavor. Bobby and Kristen, after you

get off the phone, call Disney. Let them know you're interested? Let them know. Let them know. Let them know. Judge interested. Let him know. Let him know. Let him know. Let him know. Judge John Hodgman is for sale. There's the Lord and not his potato chips.

It's not just potato chips, Kristen. It's cheese balls. It's pork rinds I think they do a pork rind maybe they don't no the Utz BBQ corn chips were like my favorite one year let me tell you something

they do an Old Bay seasoning chip called the crab chip which is incredible they do salt and pepper chips which are amazing they do grandma Utz which is kind of hard to find. But when you get it, you should give it a try because it's one of the very few remaining potato chips imprints that the chips are fried in lard, which is an interesting experience.

And then let me tell you guys, I've said before and I'll say it again until Utz sponsors me. I like the Utz Specials pretzels. Those are good. But you get the Specials Extra Dark. Oh, boy. They leave them in the oven just a little bit longer. Apropos of nothing, we were walking to the – I'm not done talking about Utz.

No, this is similar. We were walking to the 2-3 chain the other day, and there was a bag labeled pork clouds. And I thought... Oh my god. I think they were chicharrones. What are pork clouds? Have you ever had a pork cloud? Yeah, but that's... I think

that has to be a proprietary thing, because I think that's describing a chicharroni, like a puffed pork skin. I actually have a pork cloud room in my house. That's where I go to imagine the possibilities of the world. I think I've heard everything that I can possibly get out of Jamie regarding his pork cloudy vision. Now that Kristen mentions the idea of making it beautiful and nice, I think that's a good idea. I can't believe you didn't think of that.

Sean, I'm going to just ask Sean some very simple questions because I think I have everything I need. But, Sean, how many rooms does your house have? Don't say it's not 11. It's five, I would say. Four bedrooms. Four bedrooms. Wait a minute. How can one of you think 11 and the other five? He said rooms's not 11. It's five, I would say. Four bedrooms. Four bedrooms. Wait a minute.

How can one of you think 11 and the other five? He said rooms, not bedrooms. Why don't you want us to know that your house is 11 rooms? It's not a mansion. I'm not suggesting it's a mansion. I just want to know what reality is. We know that it's not a mansion because it was built from a catalog kit by Nelson Van Alden in the 20s. It has the standard number of rooms plus four bedrooms. How's that?

Does that give you a perspective? Right. And it's the two of you living there, right? Correct. No kids, which is important to point out. Yet. Okay. But that may be in important to point out. Yet. Okay. But that may be in your future.

Yes. All right. I think yet should hold a little weight. It depends on what kind of costumes they... Do you have a basement? Yes. Sean, you love Frozen. Do you have a favorite movie that is not Frozen?

Or a favorite TV show or a thing that you love as much as Jamie loves Frozen? I see where you're going. I do not. You don't see where I'm going. Just answer the question. No. Not that I could think of. Jamie, is Sean telling the truth or is there something he really loves?

There is something he really loves. What is it? He loves Peter Pan and I'm bringing it into it. So our bedroom. Are you revealing that he loves Peter Pan or are you telling him that he loves Peter Pan? Oh, no, no, no, no. He loves Peter Pan. All right.

We have a bedroom that is already slightly Peter Pan themed. How so? Alison Williams is in there. There is a painting that I found at a yard sale that was actually painted by Ivan Earl, who did all the background paintings for Disney's Peter Pan and Sleeping Beauty. It's a great print. Sean,

we put it up on the wall. Is it original? It's a print. It's a number signed print. Sean, be quiet. Go ahead, Jamie. There is also we just picked up an alarm clock, like an old-fashioned alarm clock

that looks like the alarm clock that the crocodile swallowed in Peter Pan. We also have a little pirate ship that we're waiting to build for the room. Subtle, very subtle touches, and we agree on all the touches that make it subtle. Less subtle than the frozen room, I will admit. But that room exists, and it was Sean's idea.

Sean contends that it was some sort of agreement that we came to beforehand, which we did, but he doesn't like the painting very much. And he thought that that was a way to put the painting, not in the living room. That's what he says after the fact, now that I've brought it up to you. He doesn't like, he doesn't like the, the, the painting, the Peter Pan painting that you bought for him. No, this is Sean, the painting that he's, that he's referring, which he should not

have brought into evidence in this courtroom. Uh, it actually was purchased. He asked me if I, he sent me a picture of it and asked me if I liked it. I said, I hated it. It's in a cheesy gold frame. It's like, it's one cascading LED waterfall away from being Pan-Asian mall art. And I looked at it and I said, I didn't like it. So of course, it wound up hanging in the living room of our previous apartment. So this was the compromise measure to get this painting, which I really do not like, out of the living room and away from the eyes of casual visitors to our home so that I would not have to keep explaining over and over and over again and relitigating the case of this terrible, tacky painting that I don't like. I'll add that it costs $20 and it's worth $5,000. Just saying. Is that true that it's worth $5,000? To whom?

Yes. To people on eBay and collectors of Ivan Durrell art. All right. I've heard everything I need to make my decision. I'm going to, I'm now going to go into my snowpiercer room and, and contemplate this and I'll be back in a moment with my decision.

Please rise as Judge John Hodgman exits the courtroom. Jamie, how are you feeling about your chances right now? I feel like they're not great with the judge, but I think they're wonderful with the expert guest witnesses. You know that they don't get to decide, right? It's disappointing, but yes. Sean, how are you feeling? Well, I was steamrolled with the addition of expert witnesses

that were clearly not on my side. But I actually think I'm feeling good. I had my day in court. I got to say the things I needed to say. And so even if the frozen room happens, well, I had my say, I suppose, but I'm feeling pretty good about it. We'll see what Judge John Hodgman has to say about all this when we come back in just a minute. Hello, I'm your Judge John Hodgman. The Judge John Hodgman podcast is brought to you every week by you, our members, of course. Thank you so much for your support of this podcast and all

of your favorite podcasts at MaximumFun.org, and they are all your favorites. If you want to join the many member supporters of this podcast and this network, boy, oh boy, that would be fantastic. Just go to MaximumFun.org slash join. The Judge John Hodgman podcast is also brought to you this week by the folks over there at Babbel. Did you know that learning, the experience of learning causes a sound to happen? Let's hear the sound. Yep, that's the sound of you speaking a new language in as little as one, two, three weeks. Let's hear that sound. Babbel's tips and tools are approachable, accessible, rooted in real-life situations, and delivered with conversation-based teaching.

So you're ready to practice what you've learned in the real world, and you get to hear this sound. It's not just like a game that pretends to teach you a language. So you're ready to practice what you've learned in the real world. And you get to hear the sound. It's not just like a game that pretends to teach you a language. It's also not a rigid, weird, hyperacademic chore. It is an actually productive app that actually teaches you while you are actually having a nice time. And you get to hear the sound. Here's a special limited time deal for our listeners right now. Get up to 60% off your Babbel subscription, but only for our listeners at babbel.com slash Hodgman. Get up to 60% off at babbel.com slash Hodgman spelled B-A-B-B-E-L dot com slash Hodgman.

Rules and restrictions apply. The Judge John Hodgman podcast is also brought to you this week by our pals over at Made In. Jesse, you've heard of Tom Colicchio, the famous chef, right? Yeah, from the restaurant Kraft. And did you know that most of the dishes at that very same restaurant

are made with Made In pots and pans? Really? What's an example? The braised short ribs, they're made in, made in. The Rohan duck, made in, made in. Riders of Rohan, duck. What about the Heritage Pork Shop? You got it. Made in, made in. Made in has been supplying top chefs and restaurants with high-end cookware for years. They make the stuff that chefs need. Their carbon steel cookware is the best of cast iron, the best of stainless clad. It gets super hot. It's rugged enough for grills or an open flame. One of the most useful pans you can own. And like we said, good enough for real

professional chefs, the best professional chefs. Oh, so I have to go all the way down to the restaurant district in restaurant town? Just buy it online. This is professional-grade cookware that is available online directly to you, the consumer, at a very reasonable price. Yeah. If you want to take your cooking to the next level, remember what so many great dishes on menus all around the world have in common. They're made in made in save up to 25 this memorial day from the 18th until the 27th visit made in cookware.com that's m-a-d-e-i-n cookware.com please rise as judge john hodggman reenters the courtroom. For a time, I had a small column in the New York Times Magazine front of the book section. It was an 85-word column, a columnella, a columnette, where I would resolve Judge John Hodgman disputes. That column no longer exists.

Through no hard feelings, there was a new editor of the magazine and they decided to cut that entire page. I'm still friends with the magazine and they're with me and maybe someday I'll write for them again. Hint, hint. But in that column, I was asked to resolve an issue. A guy had been collecting plastic baseball hat Sunday cups from every major – he had them from every major ballpark and now is moving on to minor league ballparks. And his wife was not into it. And she wanted them to be moved out to the garage. And I said from the cupboards in which they were in regular everyday routine use as Sunday cups for their children. And I said that there is a thin line that divides a collector from a hoarder.

And that line is in the shape of a display case. shape of a display case. If you are collecting stuff with consciously and with taste and with an eye towards its provenance and with purpose, and you are displaying it and that gives you pleasure, then that is a collection. If you are buying stuff indiscriminately, without care of where it comes from, without care towards its craftspersonship, and you are throwing it anywhere in the house that it will fit, then that's garbage. And this case really speaks, I think, to this issue, because what is happening is that already Jamie is acquiring stuff that is not to the taste of his spouse and putting it all over the house and seems to want to stop just acquiring stuff and start actively collecting Stop just acquiring stuff and start actively collecting and displaying things that are meaningful to him in a contained environment. And the question is whether Jamie has the taste and the discrimination to do so because he conflates Anna and Elsa Nightlights with an original piece of art by Carol O'Connor. Carol O'Connor, that would be interesting. Carol O'Connor.

I would pay a bunch of money for a big bird that was drawn by Carol O'Connor. Or an Anna and Elsa. I'd like Anna and Elsa by Carol O'Connor. Exactly so. Or an Anna and Elsa. I like Anna and Elsa by Carol O'Connor. What is your vision for this? Because some of the stuff you were discussing, Kristen, really resonates with me because there is something in this new world where we're all consumers of culture and yet we're also all kind of creators of culture where fandom has become a kind of art form. People who create elaborate cosplay are not working within a world that they created, but they are incredible lovers of things and often incredible seamstresses You know, and yet – and without wanting to single out a single monolithic cultural product company, there are companies that put out a lot of junk in order to get money from people who love a thing real hard. people who love a thing real hard and buying a piece of junk uh and and by by junk i mean uh a piece of poorly manufactured plastic uh that was made by mate you know like it's not very empowering to to to to to or honoring of an empowering children's film to buy a piece of plastic that was made by a child in China. That's not empowering.

Right? And there are things that are a beauty made around a piece of culture that are worth collecting in their own right. For example, I love The Dark Crystal and I love The Art of the Dark Crystal by Brian Froud. That's an amazing book that I would buy or if someone wanted to send it to me because I lost mine. Potato chips? Are you listening you know this is sometimes surrounding culture beautiful artifacts are made uh and uh and sometimes you know uh having worked in the book industry uh books are commissioned uh around a piece of culture that are great and then books are commissioned around a piece of culture that are terrible like the one that lives in your house. Oh, boy.

You know, someone gets hired to write a few words and you put these characters on a thing. That does not mean that it is a good book and nor does it mean that it's necessarily inspiring children to think creatively. I mean – If I could just interject, I'm pretty sure it wasn't written by a person. Right. There are these things that are stamped out by machines and you bury them. I guess you could use the Billock argument from Raiders of the Lost Ark. You bury them under the earth for 5,000 years. They become priceless.

of the earth for 5,000 years, they become priceless. But if you are going to build a collection of meaningful artifacts that express your love for a thing, and that thing is something as big and huge and admittedly beautiful and wonderful as Frozen, that there's a lot of just a lot of merch that's been pumped out into the world. You need two things. You need to be discriminating. You need to think about what these objects mean to you and whether they are things of intrinsic beauty and how they're going to fit into the collection and what will make the collection complete and how they'll be displayed. And you need to display them in a display case and contain them in a room. So what I'm saying is I'm finding in Jamie's favor. Jamie, I'm going to let you mess up a room in your house.

Oh, my God. Even though Sean didn't want to reveal it, you have 11 of them. And you're not going to do any sewing up there. And I, maybe I will. Maybe. Well,

you know, well, that's the thing. It's like, you know, I, I have intense, I have intense admiration.

I tend to be, I tend to be a little sniffy, the fandom as art form crowd. Like I love a thing so much and I'm the best retumbler of memes from this thing. That's not art. You're taking something someone else made and identifying with it in a very active and passionate way. But that's not art. But when you sit down and you make a really amazing Jean Grey as Phoenix costume, that takes real skill, right? Absolutely. When you buy a nightlight, that's not art, right? But when you curate a collection of original Big Bird drawings, That's a different form. And I feel your love and I don't want to deny you your joy for Frozen. And I feel you yearning

because you're going to, even though your Peter Pan painting was a big bust with regard to your spouse, he hates it. Your heart is in the right place because you're yearning towards seeking out an interesting thing that is connected to a thing that is loved, in this case, by your spouse or by you, is more interesting than going to BB&B and just like buying out half the junk and throwing it into a room, right? So you're clearly – even though you're having a hard time articulating the vision and the very idea of doing something with taste and beauty came as something of a surprise to you when Kristen suggested it. I can tell that you are leaning in that direction and you deserve the opportunity to explore it in that room and in that room alone. to explore it in that room and in that room alone. All of the frozen merchandise in your house has to come out of the wall plugs and off the walls and out of the corners.

Wherever it is, it's got to go in that room. And you've got to look at it and you have to curate your collection so that it will be pleasant even for a non-frozen person to walk into that room and go wow this is kind of beautiful but you don't you don't want someone to go in and go oh are you all right it's never going to happen that way and i and i suggest you sell that peter pan painting for five thousand dollars and use that as your budget to make your dream frozen room. And then you put a lock on it and you lock the door and you don't give the key to Sean and Sean,

you just pretend that it doesn't exist and you go down and you turn your basement into a shrine to boardwalk empire in memory of Nelson Van Alden and the Sears and the Sears catalogs. He likes catalog. What's that? He likes legend of Cora. It's that? He likes Legend of Korra. It's a Nickelodeon show. Yeah, no, no.

I know. I wish I had known that. We would have drug Janet Varney in here. But too bad. You just got Kristen and Bobby. Kristen and Bobby, thank you so much for your service. Thanks for having us. And for so swiftly replying to the summons and not giving us some BS excuse why you couldn't serve and try to postpone your service.

You will find a letter from Bailiff Jesse that absolves you from serving again for eight years in the state of New York. So good job. Keep that. And if you get called again, you can show us the letter and you won't have to come in. But I hope you will. I hope you will. I hope you will. And, you know, I love all the music that you guys write, whether it's for Frozen or Book of Mormon or the musicals that you are writing and working on on your own. And I wish you all the success in the world.

And I can't wait to get back to Brooklyn and meet you at Little Purity and have some bacon and eggs. Thank you. Thanks. Thank you so much. And Sean, I offer you the only consolations that you'll never be scared by Elsa and Anna in the middle of the night again. And I give you full and complete reign. If you do not want to build a Boardwalk Empire shrine in your home, I give you full and complete

reign to decorate the home as you like, because I'm giving this guy a whole room for his frozen thing. The rest is up to you. This is the sound of a gavel. Judge John Hodgman knows that is all. Please rise as Judge John Hodgman exits the courtroom. Sean, how do you feel right now? I get the whole rest of the house. I think I can live with that.

And I'm going to be a tyrant about it. You have any good ideas? Not yet, but oh man, do I have, I'm gonna. Man, keep it classy. Just Christmas lights throughout. Oh, minimalist. Everything's going to be black. It's going to be wonderful. Pretty good to one room black. One time my dad said to me, Jesse, did I ever tell you about the time I spent a whole summer painting my bathroom to look like the inside of a serviceman's coffin?

I'm like, no, you never mentioned that to me, Dad. Fun story, though. So just like that. Exactly like that. It'll be just like that. Jamie, how are you feeling? I feel great. It's exactly what I hoped for, to be tasteful. And Sean, for most of that judgment, Sean was thinking that he was going to win.

And we were taken aback by the final words of the judge. Yeah, that's why you can't see what I'm doing. You understand, Sean? words of the judge. Yeah, that's why you can't see what I'm doing. You understand, Sean? I see what you're doing, Judge. No, you didn't see it. You didn't see it. I announced from the beginning that Jamie was

going to win this thing. He won the Snowpiercer contest fair and square. Oh, that's right. Yeah, but because I'm a master storyteller, I misdirected you. Yeah, but because I'm a master storyteller, I misdirected you. I made you. That's the beauty.

The greatest trick in storytelling is you create an expectation, and then you make people forget about it until it comes. Misdirection. Thank you very much, guys, for being a part of the show. Sean, Jamie, thanks for joining us on the Judge John Hotchman podcast. And Kristen Anderson Lopez, Bobby Lopez, thanks for being our expert witnesses. Thank you. Thank you.

Bye. Hello, teachers and faculty. This is Janet Varney. I'm here to remind you that listening to my podcast, The JV Club with Janet Varney, is part of the curriculum for the school year. Learning about the teenage years of such guests as Alison Brie, Vicki Peterson, John Hodgman, and so many more is a valuable and enriching experience, one you have no choice but to embrace,

because, yes, listening is mandatory. The JV Club janet varney is available every thursday on maximum fun or wherever you get your podcasts thank you and remember no running in the halls if you need a laugh and you're on the go try s-t-o-p-p-o-d-c-a-s-t-i hmm are you trying to put the name of the podcast there yeah i'm trying to spell it but it's tricky let me give it a try okay if you need a laugh and you're on the go call s-t-o-p-p-p-a-d-i it'll never fit no it will let me try if you need a laugh and you're on the go, try S-T-O-P-P-P-D-C-O-O. Ah, we are so close.

Stop podcasting yourself. A podcast from MaximumFun.org. If you need a laugh and you're on the go. Let it snow, let it snow. That's the name of the song, right? J.J. Ho. J.J. Ho. of the song, right? J.J. Ho. J.J. Ho. J.J. Ho.

J.J. Ho. J.J. Ho. The pie hole never bothered me anyway. Thanks to Avi Don Eckerson for naming this week's program. And for having a cool name. Oh, and how. Avi Don, longtime Max Fund supporter. I often enjoy looking at his name

when he tweets something to me on Twitter. Thanks, Avi Don. If you want to name an episode of Judge John Hodgman, it's easy. Just like Judge John Hodgman on Facebook. Join the Judge John Hodgman Facebook group. Follow us on Twitter. I'm at Jesse Thorne.

I'm at Hodgman, H-O-D-G-M-A-N. There's a lot of great ways to name an episode of Judge John Hodgman. Those are the top few. That's easy. I guess it just comes under the wire of easy. Yeah. It's not peasy. No, but it's easy.

There's a lot of words there. It's easy. It's easy. It's easy. Hey, guess what? We're headed to San Francisco for SF Sketch Fest. What, right now? No, no, no, no. In a few weeks.

We'll be there February 6th, 7th, and 8th. Judge John Hodgman is February 7th. I believe that's sold out. However, if you want to come on Thursday night, Judge John Hodgman is going to be with our pals from Riff Trax. And on Saturday afternoon, I'm going to be doing Jordan Jesse Go with my brother,

my brother, and me at Cobb's Comedy Club. There are lots of ways that you can see us and also see great comedy all over the town of San Francisco.

And in addition to all of that, no matter where you live, you can support the Kickstarter for MaximumFun.org's first ever video program. Unless you live

in Lincoln, Nebraska. For some reason, it's a legality. Yeah, no, it's an Amazon payments issue. Yeah, you can't. They don't accept any payments from anyone in Lincoln. But the Kickstarter, Jesse, what's it for? Okay, so Brian Fernandez, the producer of Jordan, Jesse, Go, and Lindsey Pavlis, our donor relations coordinator

and the producer of Wham! Bam! Pow! have teamed up for a show called Brian and Lindsey Will Totally Eat That. On each episode of the program, we throw some food at them. They are then required to eat it and evaluate it. Do you literally throw the food at them? Absolutely. Yes, we literally throw the food at them. Oh, I have just upped my donation level.

As executive producer of the program, that was an innovation that I added to the show. Well done. Thank you very much. Nice note, Jesse. Thank you very much. You can watch the pilot right now on the Kickstarter page and kick in a few bucks so that we can make more. There's also a challenge grant from our friends at Hover who have offered to match the first $10,000 we raised. Let me get in there.

If we make it to $10,000, we'll get an extra $10,000 from our pals at Hover. So thank you very much to them for that. Anyway, it's literally the first time we've ever tried to make video content. I think you'll really like it. I think it's a really great show. I hope people will check it out and kick in a few bucks. I'm really proud of it. If you want to see it happen, you know?

I do want to see it happen. So I'm going to kick some starts in. Thank you very much. You're welcome. If you want to talk about this week's program, go to forum.maximumfund.org, the Max Fund Forum, on Reddit, maximumfund.reddit.com, on Twitter with the hashtag JJHo. If you have a case for Judge John Hodgman, go to maximumfund.org slash JJHO. No case too big or too small. Uppercase, lowercase, all cases are allowed.

Absolutely. Maximumfund.org slash JJHO. Our show is produced by Julia Smith. Julia Smith. Edited by Mark McConville. Mark McConville. Thanks for listening to the Judge John Hodgman Super Podcast. Court is adjourned.

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