Bring Back TV Theme Songs!

Summary

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The Nightly – “Bring Back TV Theme Songs!”

Podcast: The Nightly by Hatch Podcasts
Episode Date: December 25, 2025
Hosts: Sophia & Jack East (“Jacquees”)

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Episode Overview

In this cozy and nostalgic episode, Sophia and Jack East snuggle into the “Hatch Pillow Fort” to unwind and air some lighthearted grievances, focusing especially on a shared lament: the fading art of TV theme songs. The episode moves fluidly between personal check-ins, pop culture nostalgia, and relatable urban complaints (especially about public transit), all with the show’s signature warm and playful tone.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Life Updates & Personal Metaphors (00:28–07:22)

• Check-in with the hosts: They each describe their week as if it were a book title.

  • Jack: “This is 40.”
    • Talks about returning to basketball and feeling his body age (despite being in his late 30s).
    • “My mental part is there, but like afterwards, my body is like, why were you taking hits and doing all these things that you didn’t need to do to score four and a half points?” (03:28 – Jack)
  • Sophia: “Let’s Hit the Road.”
    • Expresses feeling claustrophobic in NYC and her need to escape to nature.
    • Plans a getaway to Vermont and discusses state travel and wanderlust.

• Mini game: The duo compares how many US states they’ve visited, bantering about places like Vermont (and Vermont maple syrup), Wyoming, and aspirations to see more national parks.

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2. Airing Grievances: The Vanishing TV Theme Song (07:25–13:38)

• Jack’s Big Grievance:
  • Laments the disappearance of memorable TV theme songs in modern shows.
  • Stresses their importance for setting the mood and fostering nostalgia.
  • “Anybody listening, we got to bring back TV theme songs. Our attention span can’t be that broken that we can’t sit down and enjoy a 30 to 45 second or longer theme song… I’m still up here singing the Full House theme song, Family Matters, Fresh Prince, Sister, Sister. I miss them.” (09:45 – Jack)
• Memorable TV Themes Mentioned:
  • Classics: I Love Lucy, Three’s Company, All in the Family, The Beverly Hillbillies, I Dream of Jeannie, Good Times, Amen, 227
  • 90s/2000s Icons: Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Full House, Family Matters, Sister, Sister, Friends, The OC
  • Modern Standouts: Stranger Things, White Lotus
• White Lotus & Stranger Things:
  • Sophia points out White Lotus as a rare contemporary example with a notable original theme.
  • Both recall that even when music wasn’t written for the show (e.g., The OC, Friends), theme songs became part of the show’s lore.
  • “It makes it more ceremonious… it gets you in the mood, and it’s like a beautiful framing device.” (13:08 – Sophia)

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3. Sophia’s Complaint: The Unreliable NYC Bus (13:39–18:43)

• Sophia’s daily frustration:
  • Struggles with unpredictable bus arrival times in NYC, sharing her (unsuccessful) tactics for tracking buses.
  • “I really am constantly being disrespected by the bus.” (14:04 – Sophia)
• Comparisons & Solutions:
  • Jack reminisces about more reliable public transport in Chicago and, especially, Japan:
  • “Now if you want buses that come on time, of course, they [Japan] like… whatever the schedule is at the beginning of the day, that’s the schedule it’s gonna follow.” (16:01 – Jack)
  • Both joke about moving to Japan or just buying a moped to sidestep the whole issue.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On aging and sports:
  “My mental part is there, but afterwards, my body is like, why were you taking hits… to score four and a half points?” (03:28 – Jack)
• The nostalgia for theme songs:
  “I’m still up here singing the Full House theme song, Family Matters, Fresh Prince, Sister, Sister… I miss them.” (09:45 – Jack)
• Theme song as ceremony:
  “It’s so fun. It gets you in the mood, and it’s like a beautiful framing device.” (13:08 – Sophia)
• Modern TV “skip intro” culture:
  “Now we live in a generation of television where skip intro is such a heavily used, like, part because, like, the beginning of a show is so insignificant now that it is so sad to me.” (09:04 – Jack)
• On the NYC bus:
  “I really am constantly being disrespected by the bus.” (14:04 – Sophia) “I think your grievance is you just gotta leave New York.” (18:15 – Jack)
• On other solutions:
  “Buy a moped, live in Japan for a year and experience what like an efficient city is like.” (18:25 – Jack)
• Wrapping up:
  “Well, Jacquees, I feel more tired. I feel lighter from airing my grievances. I hope you feel the same. I think it’s time for me to turn in.” (18:43 – Sophia)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:28-07:22 – Weekly Book Title Game, Travel Banter
• 07:25-13:38 – Grievance #1: Bring Back TV Theme Songs
  • 09:45 – Jack’s passionate argument for theme songs
  • 10:46 – Sophia highlights White Lotus as a modern exception
• 13:39-18:43 – Grievance #2: The NYC Bus & Urban Transit Frustrations
  • 14:04 – Sophia’s memorable “disrespected by the bus” line
  • 16:01 – Jack’s comparison to Japan’s punctuality
  • 18:15 – Suggestions to leave NY or buy a moped
• 18:43-18:56 – Good Night wind-down

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Conclusion

This episode delivers a comforting blend of camaraderie, nostalgic pop culture longing, and relatable (and sometimes funny) urban angst. With a particular focus on the lament for classic TV theme songs—a symbol of a slower, more ceremonial TV era—Sophia and Jack connect generational experience to everyday frustrations, reminding listeners of how the little things can frame our day-to-day. Appropriately, it’s as cozy and reassuring as a familiar opening tune.

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Transcript

[A]

Hello. You're about to drift into an episode of the Nightly a podcast designed to help you unwind and relax. For the full phone free immersive light experience, visit Hatch Co. Enjoy.

[B]

Hey there. I'm Sophia.

[A]

And I'm Jack East. Welcome to the Nightly on Hatch where the Sleepy Time Tea Bear is a style icon. What's up, Sophia? How you doing tonight?

[B]

I'm doing pretty well. That one made me laugh. The Sleepy Time Tea Bear.

[A]

Sleepy Time Tea Bear, you know.

[B]

Do you ever drink that?

[A]

I have, I have. It doesn't. It doesn't do much for me. Yeah, it doesn't do much for me.

[B]

I drink it for the flavor.

[A]

What is the flavor? Is it, you know, like throat coat? I do throat coat a lot and that has like a distinct flavor to me. Yeah, I can't remember the sleepy time tea flavor.

[B]

Sleepy time is chamomile and mint and they have like different variations on it I think also. But the, the classic is chamomile and mint, which I like that flavor a lot. In the pillow fort we have sleepy Time tea on tap. So how are you doing, Jacques?

[A]

I'm doing pretty good. I'm doing pretty great. I am feeling great tonight. It was a beautiful day today, so I'm feeling good tonight.

[B]

I have a question for you.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And I'm wondering if this week was a book, what would the title of your book be?

[A]

You know, for this past weekend and today? I normally play baseball and basketball on the weekends and I hadn't in the past like two or three weeks and I got back into it this weekend.

[B]

Okay, Fun.

[A]

Which was beautiful. It was fun. It was great. But the title of my book this week is this is 40. Even though I'm not quite 40, I'm not 40 yet. I'm still in my 30s, holding on, but like my body is like, ah, this is 40. This is what it feels like when you take a couple weeks off or you know, just kind of laze around and eat everything and you know, you come back and running up and down the court and playing these kids games. You know, my body feels it. So.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah. Well, they're high impact too.

[A]

Basketball is super high impact. And like I go through spurts with basketball throughout my life where like I play a lot and like, you know, knock all the rust off and I'm playing well and things like that and then I'll not play for a while and then come back to it. And you know, that was much easier in my teens and twenties. But in my late thirties, whenever I Go away from the game and come back to it. I'm at a place now where my body picks up the game pretty quickly again, as far as just like, the. The moving around and the playing and things like that. But my body is like, we are still old, bro. And so, like, I'm. But I'm up here bumping around and spinning and, you know, jump stopping and stuff, which. Because, like, that's what you do when you play. My mental part is there, but, like, afterwards, my body is like, why were you taking hits and doing all these things that you didn't need to do to score four and a half points?

[B]

You're a true competitor.

[A]

I guess so.

[B]

You can't help it.

[A]

I can't help it. I can't help it. Which, look, that's also 40.

[B]

This is. This is 40.

[A]

This is 40.

[B]

That's a good one.

[A]

Yeah. What about you, Sophia? What. What's representing you this weekend?

[B]

I guess if I had a title for my book this weekend, I would say maybe it's, let's Hit the road. I'm feeling claustrophobic in New York. I'm feeling like I gotta get out of here. I am feeling like I gotta be in nature and I need to be out of the city a little bit. And so I think I'm gonna say, let's hit the road. Cause I'm just in a mood to. I'm in a mood to escape.

[A]

That's fair.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Where do you want to go?

[B]

I'm gonna go to Vermont next weekend, which will be really nice. It's really. Let's hit the road. Caus. Not like, let's fly somewhere, go crazy. I'm just like, let's drive somewhere and be in the trees. Okay.

[A]

You just want a little. You want a mini vacay?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

You want to feel. You want to actually get back to earth?

[B]

I want to get back to earth.

[A]

Hands in the dirt, filling the earth span. I feel you. I feel you.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

I've never been to Vermont. I just did one of those. How many states have you been to?

[B]

Mm.

[A]

Like little quizzes.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I met, like, 30 or 31 states.

[B]

Okay, that's good.

[A]

Um, yeah, but Vermont is one that I've never been to that I would be interested to go to.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Especially, like, is it. Is the maple syrup really all that?

[B]

I think the maple syrup is pretty good, but I also think it's, like an export. So I don't think that, like, you necessarily have to get it from Vermont. I'm like, is it true that they just tap the tree and it comes out.

[A]

I would love to think that. And me too. As of now, since you don't know, I'm gonna go ahead and keep my illusion.

[B]

Yeah, let's have that be the reality.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But it is good. But I don't. You can kind of. I think you can get it other. Other places too. But Vermont's beautiful. Yeah, it's lovely.

[A]

That's dope.

[B]

I recommend it. I wonder how many states I've been to I have never taken that. I should see.

[A]

I should see.

[B]

I've done some road trips, so I feel like I've hit a lot of them, but not in, like, any super meaningful way, if that makes sense. I get you kind of an overnight pit stop situation for a lot of the states I've been to.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah. You look, when I did my state, when I did them, you know, I was like. I said like 31. So I have like 19 or 20 to go. I can't remember if I was 30 or 31. There are a few that I have no intention on ever going to, probably.

[B]

Which ones?

[A]

I don't want to offend anybody.

[B]

Okay. But now I'm so curious.

[A]

I'll still say it. I just don't want to offend anybody.

[B]

So we're prefacing this with no offense, but yes.

[A]

This is no offense. It's not so much that I don't want to go to it. I just will never see a reason. But I'll be in, like, Wyoming, for instance. Totally.

[B]

See, I'm like. And I'll say this, like, all love to Wyoming. Cause I'm like, dying to go spend time in Wyoming.

[A]

Really?

[B]

Yeah. It's just so pretty.

[A]

That's what. Okay.

[B]

There's some good national parks. Okay.

[A]

Okay. See, that's the. And I do want to go to more national parks. So maybe Wyoming needs to be on. This is what I need. I need to say, like, I haven't had a reason to want to go yet, and I need reasons.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

To want to Go. That's a good book title, though. I love that.

[B]

Thank you. Let's hit the Road.

[A]

Let's Hit the Road.

[B]

Something like that. But. Okay. Jacquees, I thought that we could air some of our grievances.

[A]

I love it. I love it. I love getting things off my chest.

[B]

It feels so good.

[A]

Yes, it feels great.

[B]

So, Jacques, what's on your mind tonight?

[A]

You know, I have this tattooed on my leg. I am an 80s baby 90s kid, which means I'm a millennial. But because of that, you know, I feel like people in my generation, we have a very good connection to this. This is about to be a long roundabout to get to my grievance.

[B]

Take your time.

[A]

Let's go to television. Like, when I was growing up, you know, even though I was born in the mid-80s and, like, grew up in the 90s, we had our own television shows and things we were watching. I was still also watching a lot of the shows from the 50s, the 60s and the 70s, you know, so I grew up on I Love Lucy's. I grew up on the Threes Companies. I grew up on, like, all those shows, all in the Families. And then we had our shows in the 90s and the 2000s. And there's one thing about all of those shows that this generation of television is missing, and that is theme songs.

[B]

That's true.

[A]

We don't have television theme songs anymore. And it is so sad. Like, that was when you sat down and watched tv or when I would watch, like, a lot of times, like for old school shows like I Love Lucy or I Dream of Jeannie or the Dick Van Dyke show or any of these show the Beverly Hillbillies, like, you would. The first thing you would remember which would draw you to these shows was the theme songs. And then, like, when I was growing up, we had. So every show had, like, the theme song was just as synonymous with the show. Like, I was vacationing somewhere and somebody threw on the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme song and the entire stadium went crazy. Like, we were so happy to hear this song, right? And now we live in a generation of television where skip intro is such a heavily used, like, part because, like, the beginning of a show is so insignificant now that it is so sad to me. And like, anybody listening, we got to bring back TV theme songs. Like, our attention span can't be that broken that we can't sit down and, like, enjoy a 30 to 45 second or longer theme song for a show to, like, get us into it. Like, we still. I'm still up here singing the Full House theme song, Family Matters, Fresh Prince, Sister, Sister. I'm still singing Come and Knock on My Door. Like, I'm still singing, like, all the theme songs. Yeah, I miss them.

[B]

Oh, I know.

[A]

It's. It's so. It's so upsetting.

[B]

That is very true. The only thing I thought of is this, which is the one show that I think has successfully brought back a theme song to me has been White Lotus.

[A]

Okay, now that's one show I don't Watch. And I should.

[B]

The theme song is always like, kind of like it's a big part of the show. It often, like, goes viral, whatever.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And then he'll also do in the show, like. Cause I've been with people. It's like, you'll watch it with people. And that's one of the shows where people will say, like, don't skip the intro. Like, listen to it.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

And whenever I watch it, I don't skip it.

[A]

Yeah. Is it original?

[B]

It is. They're original to the show. Yeah. Okay, great. And he'll have them be also, like, he'll bring them back, like, reprise them kind of like throughout the show as like the soundtrack in the show as well. But for the most part they aren't around. And there certainly aren't. I feel like anyone's with lyrics anymore.

[A]

Yeah. No lyrics.

[B]

Yeah. That is kind of on the outs.

[A]

Lyrics was. Lyrics was so like, even I'm thinking like 227 good time. This is. I mean, this is damn near before my time. So it's definitely before your time. Like, if you remember or ever heard of the show. Aman. It was Sherman Helmsley, who was George Jefferson. And it was set in the church. It was a comedy, very fun show. But the intro to that song was just like a gospel song banger.

[B]

It was just great.

[A]

White Lotus, though. All right.

[B]

Yeah, those were good. Those theme songs are good. They really hit.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

I know when you said Full House, I'm like, oh, my God, I have to listen to that song. And I'm trying to think what other ones. Or even we recently. Ish talked about the OC that has an amazing theme song.

[A]

Absolutely.

[B]

Which isn't original.

[A]

I don't think it's not original. But like, nobody knew that. So I. That they may have made that song for that. Or it was a very not known song. And then that song, you know, which.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

The same thing for like Friends. That was a thing. The late 90s 2000s did start to bring songs that were not written for the show, but became part of the show's lore, which I'm also okay with. We don't even really have that anymore.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Like, which is so disappointing.

[B]

And they certainly aren't doing the, like, intro, like videos or. What would you even call that?

[A]

Yeah, the intro videos. Which was also like.

[B]

Yeah. Like thinking about Friends, I'm like, that's iconic.

[A]

That's iconic.

[B]

Or like any of them.

[A]

Fresh Prince still. The song and the video, like, you know, it. It goes hand in hand.

[B]

I know it's sad because it also is, like. Makes it more of, like, ceremonious. Like, I love. I don't know. It's so fun. It gets you in the mood, and it's like a beautiful framing device.

[A]

Yeah. When the Stranger Things themes come on, like, it's just like, all right, we know what we about to get into. Like, that's true. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. Wow. Stranger Things does seem like one of the last ones as well, huh? It is, because I can, like, hear that in my mind. Wow.

[A]

Yeah. I needed to get that off. I hope. I hope. I hope everyone agrees with me.

[B]

I. I really agree with you.

[A]

So, Sophia, I. I've unloaded. I have to allow you the opportunity to unload. What. What you feeling okay?

[B]

I'm just feeling like the bus never comes on time. That's how I'm feeling.

[A]

Especially in New York.

[B]

Yeah. I really am constantly being disrespected by the bus. I think the best way to know when it's coming, which I actually. I was kind of thinking about my grievance, and then I was like, maybe I poked a bit of a hole in this, but I came up with a system that I can do moving forward is just that, like, so if you're using, like, an app, like, if I'm using, like, Google Maps or whatever, it. You know, you can like, see the times of, like, when any public transport comes. But with the bus, it's just never accurate. So the only accurate thing is to go to the bus station. There's a little number that they give you, a phone number, a quote, unquote phone number that you text, and then you text the bus code of your bus. So if I'm on the B42 or whatever, I'll text this certain number to a certain number, and it'll say, like, the next bus is two minutes away. So oftentimes it feels like I'm having to go to the bus station, and then I get there, and then the bus is not coming for, like, 20 to 30 minutes. And I'm like, this cannot be right.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I'm realizing now what I should probably do is Google the codes for the.

[A]

Bus and, like, find out.

[B]

But that's also, like, that's so much work.

[A]

That's so much work.

[B]

It feels like there should just be a better way, because then oftentimes, like, I'll go to the bus stop, and then I'm like, well, guess what? Now I gotta. I gotta drag my butt to a different bus stop. Because this just isn't it.

[A]

It's not, that's not it. New York is a special case. You know, like I live in Los Angeles where I grew up in Chicago. So Chicago is a very heavy public transportation place. Right. And back in the day we used to have the seats GTA tracker which I think is still a thing. But it did start to give a little more accurate, you know, because it was just basing off the gps.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Of the bus. And so that was nice.

[B]

See it's like you say it and it's so simple.

[A]

It's so simple.

[B]

Right. And then I'm like, what is going on?

[A]

Then it goes down. But you know, nowadays, you know, so have you been, have you ever been to Japan?

[B]

I have been to Japan.

[A]

Now if you want buses that come on time, of course they like. And you don't even, you don't need another app or anything. It literally whatever the schedule is at the beginning of the day, that's the schedule it's gonna follow. Or you can go on your Google Maps.

[B]

Well and I also feel like those are coming frequently enough that it's okay. Like the bus, it literally will be like 30 minutes away. Which like, if you're going to like Japan or like someplace in Europe, I feel like the bus is never gonna be 30 minutes away. The bus is gonna be coming every five to a lot of times.

[A]

Yeah. I was in Kyoto though and it was during Golden Week, which if anybody has been to Japan during that time or is from there, you know, that's like one of the most busiest times in Japan. And so it was a lot of traffic on the street and like, you know, I'm from America where our public transport isn't great. I've lived in Chicago, I know New York well. I'm looking at this traffic. I was like, ain't no way this bus coming at this time. Like, you know.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And lo and behold the bus was rolling up. Right. And I'm like, they have this so down packed. So I think it's a New York issue too.

[B]

I think that like statistically or whatever, New York has like the slowest buses of any major city in America. Yeah, I think it's certainly a New York issue. Yeah, I'm just like, come on guys, if it's gonna be slow, I at least need to know when it's coming. Right. Come on.

[A]

Especially cause for four to six months of the year the weather ain't hitting no no, you know, you ain't trying to be outside in the winter.

[B]

I'm really relying on the bus in Brooklyn because the Trains are not wanting to take me to a lot of the places I want to go to. But yeah, this is all part of also my bigger conspiracy, which is the conspiracy around me needing to buy a car.

[A]

So not in New York. You don't need it.

[B]

I want one so bad. Yeah, two of my friends have little vesp. Well, one of my friend has a little Vespa. The other one has a moped. So I'm like, maybe I'll get one of those.

[A]

That's what you should get. Get one of little mopeds or scooters or whatever. Yeah, I want one of those in la.

[B]

And yeah, it's cute.

[A]

We don't take the bus or anything. We just don't. But it would be nice to go close places.

[B]

Yes. Yeah. Yeah.

[A]

All right. Well, I think your grievance is you just gotta leave New York.

[B]

Yes, that's my. The answer is I need to leave New York and buy a moped.

[A]

Well, buy a moped, live in Japan for a year and experience what like an efficient city is like.

[B]

Yes. And then come back and it'll be even worse than before.

[A]

Yes, like come back, come back. And your grievance will be this every single night.

[B]

Yes, exactly.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

Well, Jacquees, I feel more tired. I feel lighter from airing my grievances. I hope you feel the same. I think it's time for me to turn in.

[A]

I will talk to you next time. Good night, Sophia.

[B]

Good night, Jacques.

[A]

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