Go Fact Yourself – MFD Spring Break 2025 Special

Podcast: Go Fact Yourself
Host: J. Keith van Straaten
Episode: J. Keith quizzes hosts in MFD Spring Break
Date: March 19, 2025
Theme: A raucous celebration of ‘90s pop culture, music, movies, and Maximum Fun hosts, featuring lively trivia, panel discussions, and surreal comedy vignettes as part of the network’s MaxFun Drive Spring Break Spectacular.

Episode Overview

In a sprawling, boisterous extravaganza, J. Keith van Straaten and a host of Maximum Fun’s best and brightest gather for the network’s biggest Spring Break yet. The episode pays tribute to all things ‘90s: from Eurovision bangers and iconic films to outlandish trivia and hilarious sketches—set against the backdrop of a fundraising drive and a (fictionalized) festival that winds from LA to Basel, Switzerland, Daytona Beach, and beyond. It’s both high-energy pop culture celebration and community game show, with trivia showdowns, music quizzes, expert panels, and tongue-in-cheek interviews.

1. Eurovision Dance Party: Spring Break Playlist

[00:00–13:40]

Discussion Highlights

• Eurovision Explained:
  Eurovision experts Demetri, Oscar, and Jeremy describe the contest as “the gay Super Bowl” and “Street Fighter but with music.”

  • “The short version is, Europe's competing nations all pick a song and an artist, they send it to the host city and they all compete in an amazing showdown to find out what's the best song in Europe that year.” – Demetri [00:02:00]
  • “It's the gay Super Bowl.” – Oscar [00:02:40]
  • “It is Street Fighter, but with music.” – Jeremy [00:03:08]

• Spring Break Playlist Picks:
  The hosts, decked out in a three-headed DJ costume, pick iconic Eurovision tracks fit for a Spring Break dance party:

  • Greece 2001: "Die For You" by Antique
    A devotion anthem with a dance beat.
  • UK 1996: "Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit" by Gina G
    One of the few Eurovision songs to cross over into U.S. clubs.
  • Ukraine 2007: "Dancing Lasha Tumbai" by Verka Serduchka
    Celebrated as the greatest drag performer in Eurovision. Also, “a great anti-Russia imperialism song.”
  • Netherlands 1975: "Ding-a-Dong"
    Dave Holmes calls it: “It makes no sense… It’s everything I prefer.” [00:09:10]
  • Finland 2006: "Hard Rock Hallelujah" by Lordi
    Jeremy: “Just imagining hitting a high right when Hard Rock Hallelujah drops in. I don't know. Feels pretty good to me.” [00:10:35]

• Crescendo Song Picks:

  • Malta 2025: “Kante” by Mariana Kante (“serving singing,” with a chorus of “do re mi fa so so”)
  • Turkey 2009: “Düm Tek Tek” – “Everyone’s walking out happy.”
  • Sweden 2015: “Heroes” by Måns Zelmerlöw

Dave Holmes ends the segment: “I unabashedly love... Sweden, Måns Zelmerlöw’s ‘Heroes.’ When I’m out running and my energy begins to flag a little bit, guess what puts the wind back in my sails? Måns.” [00:13:28]

2. Ultimate Trivia Showdown: Podcast Hosts Battle

[13:41–32:50]

Host J. Keith van Straaten leads a competitive trivia game featuring:

• Alex Schmidt (Secretly Incredibly Fascinating)
• Brenda Snell (Secret Histories of Nerd Mysteries)
• Tom Lum (Let’s Learn Everything)
• Ellen Weatherford (Just the Zoo of Us).

Structure:

Buzzers are first words of each show’s name. Host asks diverse questions about comics, TV, sports, history, language, and pop culture. Fast-paced, with players ribbing and congratulating each other in real time.

Key Moments & Quotes:

• Comics:
  "Timely's name changed to Atlas comics in the 1950s and it changed to what name in 1961?"
  “Marvel.” – Brenda [00:15:03]

• TV Theme Song:
  "Although it's known as the theme from Cheers, what is the actual title...?"
  “Where Everybody Knows Your Name.” – Brenda [00:15:38]

• Star Trek:
  "‘Revenge is a dish best served cold’ is a proverb of what Star Trek aliens?"
  “Klingon.” – Tom [00:17:02]

  • “I can't believe we had that much delay regarding a Star Trek question.” – J. Keith

• Cat Behavior:
  “What is the motion cats make…?”
  “Kneading.” – Tom [00:20:16]

  • “Otherwise known as making biscuits.” – Tom

• Canadian Food Heist:
  “In the early 2000s, thieves stole 3,000 tons of what Canadian foodstuff…”
  “Maple syrup.” – Tom [00:21:05]

• Pop Culture Deep Cuts:

  • Breaking Bad: “throwing pizzas on the roof” [00:22:31]
  • Roseanne: “won the lottery” [00:24:29]
  • Bagged Milk in Ontario: “Bags.” – Brenda [00:26:40]

• Final Result:
  Brenda (Secret Histories of Nerd Mysteries) wins with a correct answer about Canadian milk in bags.

Score Update:

• Alex (2), Ellen (3), Brenda and Tom (4), tiebreaker won by Brenda.

3. “I Was Legally Dead” – Satirical Interview

[32:51–40:49]

Dave Holmes interviews “Thatcher Sawyer,” an Auburn University Spring Breaker who describes dying for 14 minutes and seeing 'heaven.'

Notable Quotes & Moments:

• Thatcher: “I legally died. And I saw heaven itself.” [00:33:07]
• “Mixing tequila, Celsius, and being on a balcony that collapsed... I was legally dead for 14 minutes.” [00:33:40]
• Describing ‘heaven’:
  “It’s just got this wonderful smoky smell…like when human flesh burns…just like gorgeous smells in heaven.” [00:34:30]
• “I was expecting to jam with Hendrix and Bob Marley, but I mostly saw Genghis Khan and Vlad the Impaler.” [00:35:27]
• “I think I’m just, like, excited to finally tell the story of a straight white guy that died. And hopefully others can be inspired by my journey.” [00:37:52]
• Plug for the fictional movie:
  "Thatcher Sawyer's Oops, I Fell and Died comes out this May." [00:38:54]

Tonal Note: Satirical, poking fun at the self-importance of “inspirational” Spring Break near-death stories and movie “representation.”

4. Party Animal Competition: The Fruit by the Foot Pavilion

[40:50–51:04]

Dave Holmes emcees a contest where network hosts introduce their “party animals”:

• Manolo Moreno (Dr. Game Show): Party pig “Piga Chad” [00:41:40]
  • “He just came back from France and learned some French… He said ‘lit.’”
• Jeremy Bent (Eurovangelists): Bonobos (“they tongue kiss just like we do. They like to get down”) [00:43:20]
• Tom Lum (Let’s Learn Everything): A sloth (“chillest hanger in the world… they’ll be up all night”) [00:45:05]
• Ellen Weatherford (Just the Zoo of Us): A swarm of honeybees (“extremely social… communicate with dance moves… bring snacks to the party”) [00:46:08]

Elimination and Winner:

• Finalists: “Piga Chad” the pig vs. honeybees (Ellen).
• Winner: Manolo’s party pig earns the “Fruit Gushers Golden Chalice” [00:50:00].
• Ellen: “The colony’s always here. It keeps. The colony never goes away. This colony will never collapse, baby.” [00:50:47]

5. The 1990s Movie Canon: Maximum Film & Flop House Panel

[51:10–59:50]

Panelists:

• Drea Clarke, Alonzo Giraldi (Maximum Film)
• Dan McCoy (The Flop House)

Iconic ‘90s Movie Picks:

• Fight Club (1999)
  Alonzo: “Set a new tone of dude speak…a certain kind of male ego expressing itself in the culture.” [00:52:11]
• Clueless (1995)
  Drea: “Gave us a whole new vernacular…allowed us to finally all want that aspirational crush on a stepbrother that really, cinema had been begging for.” [00:53:07]
  • “Find me someone who hasn’t dreamt of getting a yellow plaid little suit set and I’ll find you a liar.” [00:53:49]
• Pulp Fiction (1994)
  Dan: “Brought humor and glibness to a pulp crime story in a way that…felt very trend setting…For the next decade, you couldn’t go to a video store without seeing a dozen knockoffs.” [00:55:12]
  • Classic quote reenacted: “They call it Royale with Cheese.”

Further picks in second segment:

• Go Fish (1994): Celebration of new queer cinema [01:24:01]
• Silence of the Lambs (1991): Creation of modern serial killer tropes
• Rushmore (1998): “Established Wes Anderson’s cinematic language.”

6. British Spring Break: UK Panel

[59:51–1:07:18]

Panelists: Ella MacLeod, John Luke Roberts, Ella Hubber, Caroline Roper.

Topics:

• Iconic UK party figures: Timmy Mallet, Black Lace, Chuckle Brothers, Russell Brand, Love Island cast
• University club nights with kid’s TV presenters as DJs (Dick and Dom, Tracy Beaker)
• “Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents”:
  • Reality show where British teens party on holiday, secretly watched by their parents.
  • “It’s always some mother who thinks her, like, precious baby golden boy is an angel. And then he, you know, sleeps with 16 girls and says fairly derogatory things about them.” [01:03:22]
• Rich, surreal window on UK pop culture.

7. Music Quiz at Hard Rock Cafe

[1:07:19–1:33:00]

Quizmaster: J. Keith van Straaten
Contestants: Jeremy Bent (Eurovangelists), John Moe (Depresh Mode), Christian Dueñas (Primer)

Sample Questions & Quotes:

• “Please Hammer, Don’t Hurt ‘Em” featured what song?’
  “U Can’t Touch This.” – John Moe [01:08:01]
• “Who composed soundtrack for Midnight Run, collaborated with Tim Burton and Oingo Boingo?”
  “Danny Elfman.” – Jeremy Bent [01:09:17]
• “First Prince hit to reach Billboard Hot 100 after ‘Soft and Wet’?”
  “I Wanna Be Your Lover.” – Jeremy Bent [01:11:53]
• “What lyric opens ‘When Doves Cry?’”
  “Dig if you will, a picture of you and I engaged in a kiss.” – John Moe [01:13:45]

Fun Fact:

• “The Beatles’ longest studio song is on their longest album – name either.”
  “The White Album… or Revolution No. 9.” – Christian Dueñas [01:16:48]

Final Question (worth 3 points):

• “What jazz fusion legend, a Scientologist, contributed to Space Jazz, the Battlefield Earth soundtrack?”
  “Chick Corea.” – John Moe [01:32:49]
  (Winner! John Moe wins the shrimp.)

8. Daytona Beach Blood Drive: The McElroy Segment

[1:33:00–1:38:53]

Dave Holmes interviews Justin & Clint McElroy:

• Justin: “I want to keep [my dad, Clint,] going just as long as possible, so we have been asking all of our Max Fun family to come in here, do their part, and donate a pint of their young, virile blood for me to pump into my dad…” [01:34:18]
• The duo riff on the absurdity of blood drives turning into a youth-juice hustle, boozy Twinkies, snacks-for-cash, and grungy Dracula costumes.
• “Feel the need, the need for bleed.” – Justin [01:36:10]
• Multilevel parody of wellness trends and charity optics.

9. 90s Movie Canon: Final List

[1:38:54–1:45:09]

Panelists continue and complete their 90s movie picks:

• Alonzo: “Go Fish (1994) – a tipping point for queer cinema, charming and still holds up.” [01:39:07]
• Silence of the Lambs, Rushmore, and more are revisited and praised for their impact.

10. Rapid-Fire Comedy, 90s Karaoke, and Wrap-Up

[Various Throughout]

• Live karaoke highlights: “What’s Up?” by Four Non Blondes [00:34:00], “I Like Big Butts” [01:07:19], “Wonderwall” [01:45:09].
• Classic references, staged mishaps (eg. 90s TV and movie reenactments), and a packed roster of Maximum Fun hosts.

Final Notes/Atmosphere

The show maintains the playful, cheeky energy of a live variety special; house style is witty, rapid-fire, pro-nerd, and wry—a big, loving tribute to pop culture and podcast camaraderie.

Most memorable meta-quote:

“The person who gets the most questions correct will have gotten the most questions correct. Here’s how it’s going to work…” – J. Keith van Straaten, opening the trivia showdown [00:13:58]

For Spring Break and MaxFun Drive diehards, this episode is a non-stop party. For everyone else, it’s an easily enjoyable, trivia-and-comedy-packed primer on why public podcasting can be so much unbridled fun.