Welcome to WRITE AFTER WRITE, a mini-series covering the Laverne & Shirley tie-in novels, Lisa is joined by @paulaschaffner476 of the "Becoming Human" podcast. The ladies take on "Teamwork" - the first of the novels written by "Con Steffanson." Ostensibly about Shirley falling into full starstruckdom over a Martin/Lewis-style comedy and music act, the story ends up taking wild turns with a mob plot, kidnapping, human trafficking (?!), a Squignowski Ex Machina, and way too many side character...
Oct 19, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Season 9Ep. 1
This is it, folks! The final episode of L&S gets a review! When Frank and Rhonda realize that Carmine has broken up with his girlfriend, turned off his utilities, and quit his job they fear the worst. But Carmine confesses to them that he's decided to leave California for busier pastures; the isle of Manhattan and the chance to be on Broadway. With the support of his friends and all of Laverne's waterbed money, he heads for New York. There, he auditions for a new musical called "Hair" and me...
May 03, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 8Ep. 21
Laverne's pop, Frank DeFazio, gets a visit at his Cowboy Bill's establishment by a local city councilman named Pike. Pike's corrupt tactics and avaricious plans will end up bulldozing the place and kicking him out for the sake of Pike's own gain. It gets Frank's dander up, and he decides to run for election against him. He gets the gang to collaborate on the campaign trail: Rhonda goes door to door, Carmine roots him on from the sidelines, Squiggy strategizes, and Laverne makes the signs (even t...
Apr 26, 2024•44 min•Season 8Ep. 20
When Squiggy's sister (Squendolyn, also played by David Lander) comes to visit her brother after a messy divorce, she takes a real shine to Carmine. Seeing a chance to keep her out of his hair, Squig offers to pay a frustrated Carmine a couple hundred bucks to show the sister a good time... even though Carmine doesn't like Squendolyn and thinks quite lowly of her based on her appearance. But when it all comes to a head at a Hollywood party full of other crappy folks, what will Carmine learn from...
Apr 12, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 8Ep. 18
** SOME EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING ** (just a bit) The boys think they've discovered a treasure map when they find some junk at a swap meet, sending Lenny and Squiggy on a quest to find it somewhere out in the Mojave Desert. Stopping off at Cowboy Bills on the way, they accidentally blurt their plans out to Frank and Carmine, causing the two to argue that if Pop's going to give supplies at a discount and Carmine gave them the money to go to the swap meet, that they should be in on the take. So al...
Apr 05, 2024•27 min•Season 8Ep. 17
**EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING** Ghost episodes of sitcoms should be funny and weird, right? When Laverne leaves for a ski trip for singles, she has Carmine watch the place, but tells him that there's something weird with the lights and sink. Turns out her apartment is haunted by the ghost of an athlete who's upset at the outcome of the Summer Olympics. When Rhonda puts together a séance to quell the angry spirit, it causes him to possess Laverne's body instead. He asks that they reenact the track ...
Mar 29, 2024•29 min•Season 8Ep. 16
**EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING** Time for Chris to lose his mind again! In the episode reviewed, Laverne is busy as heck. She's so busy, she ends up dealing with a schedule logjam when her promise to babysit Chuck's young chimpanzee, Chucky Jr., overlaps with her plans to perform with The Spinners in concert. When she calls on her grumpy Pop, she brushes off his exceptional anger at women in general, even as he nails closed the ladies' room door at Cowboy Bills. A desperate Laverne dumps Chuck Jr. ...
Mar 22, 2024•32 min•Season 8Ep. 15
It's time for the last Mike Bailey episode to get reviewed! For once, Laverne's latest relationship is going well. Her beau, Mike Bailey (Larry Breeding), is a fashion photographer who likes her and connects with her. The two of them share their romance in a comfortable, healthy, mature way. But, there's one problem - Laverne's jealousy flares up as she sees how close Mike is to the models he photographs. She decides to go to a big internationally- themed fashion show Mike has been commissioned ...
Mar 15, 2024•30 min•Season 8Ep. 14
Laverne's nursing an ulcer with an awful diet and doctor's orders to rest. At work, her colleague Chuck (Charles Fleischer) tries to cheer her up with playing his harmonica and introducing her to his own love of music. Realizing he's actually pretty good, Laverne encourages him, bringing up how much Bob Dylan makes. But, Chuck dreams big, getting his science buddies together to form a band, quit their jobs, and become a success. But Laverne and Carmine realize immediately that these nerds do not...
Mar 08, 2024•41 min•Season 8Ep. 13
Laverne is surprised to find out that Alvinia Plout (Vicki Lawrence), her former Sergeant in the Women's Army Corps, is back in town with two big surprises. Those surprises: she's been married and divorced since Laverne last saw her, and now has a baby on the way. Hesitant to send Alvinia on her way, Laverne lets her former superior stay with her. She helps Alvinia get a job at Cowboy Bills and supports her efforts to win a Mother To Be contest for a lifetime supply of baby food. But when Frank'...
Mar 01, 2024•48 min•Season 8Ep. 12
When a pair of Russian ballet dancers with plans to defect to the American side and use the bathroom at Cowboy Bills as a weigh station toward freedom, hijinks ensue. While Boris Squiggmanoff succeeds in getting away, his KGB handlers capture his wife, and then mistake Squiggy for the defecting dancer. Mr. Squiggman finds himself living in captivity, forced to fulfill Boris' ballet commitment on pain of death. Soon figuring out that this Squig-shaped guy in the apartment isn't the real deal, Lav...
Feb 23, 2024•33 min•Season 8Ep. 11
*** EXPLICIT LANGUAGE & WARNING *** This podcast video includes discussions of topics such as rape, religious guilt, victim-blaming, and alcohol-induced blackouts. LISTENER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. Laverne wakes up from a black-out drunk evening on top of an aircraft carrier with her clothing torn and disheveled. On her way off the boat, she gets saluted by the sailors on board for reasons she cannot recall. By the time they "toot the big horn" at her, she suspects the worst. Running to the ne...
Feb 09, 2024•42 min•Season 8Ep. 10
The one where we talk about Adam West! When Rhonda shows up with a spare date for Laverne, it turns out to be Edgar Garibaldi, a once great gymnast. Immediately smitten with her, Edgar takes Laverne out, but he keeps calling her by the name Louise. Laverne sticks with the relationship nevertheless and he eventually invites Laverne to his manor abode for a lovely weekend getaway. While there, Laverne learns Eddie's got a history with this Louise gal: his prior partner. Several more clues and the ...
Feb 02, 2024•31 min•Season 8Ep. 9
Laverne's new fella "Weezer" takes her on a double date with Carmine and his new gal Suzy to a French restaurant, only for a couple of hoods to try and hit on the girls. After Carmine and Laverne take the tough guys outside and give them a thrashing, Weezer feels incompetent about his masculinity and ability to protect Laverne. The two argue, he has a wild dance-number laden dream about it, and eventually Laverne gets her pop to set up a "bully" for Weezer to win against. But will he see through...
Jan 26, 2024•48 min•Season 8Ep. 8
**EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING** The doldrums of Season 8 of Laverne and Shirley continue with this filler-esque episode. Laverne disregards a chain letter she gets in the mail and immediately a string of bad luck seems to follow her. She steps on Rhonda's dress and rips it before a big performance for a talent agent, she sprains Carmine's wrist while helping him off the floor, and while playing fetch with Chuck's dog she ends up tossing the ball over the balcony of the apartment building, leading ...
Jan 19, 2024•22 min•Season 8Ep. 8
*** EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING *** We cover one of the most infamous episodes of Laverne & Shirley this week. Laverne tries to scam a free set out of her local bank by creating a fresh account. But during her latest attempt at chicanery, with an equally-disguised Rhonda at her side, she's spotted by a couple of revolutionaries casing the joint for a heist. The revolutionaries, led by Aaron (Ben Powers) and Sheba (Laraine Newman) worm their way into Laverne's life by using a mix of moral guilt...
Jan 12, 2024•54 min•Season 8Ep. 6
It's time to add a little T&A to your L&S! Laverne does a quick favor for a very busy Rhonda and runs down to the soon-to-be-opened local Playboy™ Club to pick up an application. Rhonda hopes to become a bunny tail wearing hostess, but a still money-hungry Laverne finds herself signing up for a try-out. Laverne soon starts training along with her new pal/possible co-worker Cathy (the effulgent Carrie Fisher). After they both pass the "Squiggy" test where they have to tolerate their "forw...
Jan 05, 2024•44 min•Season 8Ep. 5
Laverne finally lands a new job thanks to her Pop calling in a favor with a war buddy. Mr. Ajax turns out to be a big wheel with a place in a future-facing industry, with his company making aeronautics supplies for NASA. There, her stern boss, G. Bullets Klein, puts her to the boring task of testing various products which are slated to go up into space on the latest shuttle, then boxing them up. Her new co-worker, Chuck (Charles Fleischer), asks Laverne for help clandestinely testing a new anti-...
Dec 29, 2023•47 min•Season 8Ep. 4
When Laverne and Carmine return to the apartment after attending the Burbank Business Association's Dancing Contest, they find that all of Shirley's things are gone ... along with the lady herself. All that's left is a single note waiting for Laverne -- a goodbye letter from Shirl that seems to brush off the many years of friendship and sisterhood. Seeing Laverne devastated by the news, Pop and Carmine and all the others try their best to lift Laverne's spirits, from helping her search for a new...
Dec 22, 2023•49 min•Season 8Ep. 3
**EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING** Laverne and Shirley get a big opportunity at their department store job, only it's the kind where they have to live in an "apartment of the future" for a week. Realizing she's come down with a case of claustrophobia, Laverne isn't sure she can pull it off. With some coaxing and encouragement from their neighbor Rhonda, they seek the help of a hypnotist... but when a mistake during the session leads the girls to acting like chickens (and not knowing it afterward), hi...
Dec 15, 2023•37 min•Season 8Ep. 2
**EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING** The beginning of the end! With another time-jump, Shirley reveals that the guy she's been dating, Walter Meeney, has proposed! Laverne is ecstatic for her best friend. But as the two begin putting the wedding together, the timeline for it speeds up, as Walter, an Army medic, gets his orders to ship out soon. So Laverne and Shirley go into overdrive for the Feeney/Meeney wedding, only to be once more be thwarted - Walter's got a full body rash! In the end, they have ...
Dec 08, 2023•1 hr 18 min•Season 8Ep. 1
CUE THE ORGAN MUSIC! It's time for a soap opera parody in which Shirley's guilt over borrowing Laverne's purse without permission -- and then losing it -- fuels her dreams while she falls asleep watching TV. The Baublenik family is a dynasty built on flapjack restaurants, but Shirley's dream keeps taking sinister, raunchy turns. Will "Charlene Baublenik" be poisoned to death? CAN you find a good chauffeur these days? And what is the next leading brand of Dose-a-coma?! On pod, we are joined by sp...
Nov 03, 2023•1 hr 25 min•Season 7Ep. 22
The girls suspect they're being robbed (repeatedly!) after Shirley loses her (labeled!) keys at Disneyland. Food and a record player go missing from the apartment, causing them to call the police. Then the girls head off for a vacation to Palm Springs, leaving Frank and Carmine to figure out who's robbing the place. After some some snooping, trap-setting, and stories about Anzio, they capture first Squiggy and then Rhonda in the process of breaking into the apartment. But are either of them the ...
Oct 27, 2023•31 min
When Carmine is struck by lightning and, while still addled, thwarts a robbery at Cowboy Bills, a nearby news reporter takes it upon himself to dub him "Lightning Man." Carmine discovers that the public thinks he's a superher and Squiggy seizes this opportunity and signs Lightning Man to a brand new Squignowski Talent Agency contract. Within days, Squiggy starts booking deals for Carmine and scheduling him for personal motivation sessions with troubled kids. But Squiggy's next big gig for him in...
Oct 20, 2023•40 min•Season 7Ep. 20
Get your tap shoes on, we've reached the anthology episode! After Carmine performs a Tom Jones song for Frank, the two get into a debate about music and entertainment through the years. They fight over what's better - the rock 'n' roll stylings of the 1960s or the classics of yesteryear. As they banter, the audience is treated to renditions of Blue Moon, Call the Police, an old-fashioned vaudevillian comedy sketch, a tap dance duet, and a full-on original operetta. Each number features the Laver...
Oct 13, 2023•30 min•Season 7Ep. 19
***EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING*** Time for some Lenny & Squiggy feelings! When Squiggy's deadbeat, absentee dad Helmut shows up in Burbank, Andrew jumps at the chance to bond with his pop. Though everyone around him responds to Helmet's return to his life with concern and skepticism, Squiggy shows his pop how much he's grown up in twenty years. But, it doesn't take long for Helmut to show off some bum-like tendencies. While Lenny determinedly sits this one out, declaring himself a 'silent part...
Oct 06, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Season 7Ep. 18
Time to hit the slopes, kids! In another episode where Laverne and Shirley comb the west in pursuit of dateable bachelors, they head to the snowy slopes of Northern California after receiving a hot tip from their neighbor Rhonda. But instead of romance, the twosome find a fight. After arguing over whether they should be hanging out in the lodge or shushing down the slopes, they find themselves stranded in mid-air when a ski lift breaks down. Physical comedy ensues! On pod, we do our best to cove...
Sep 22, 2023•28 min•Season 7Ep. 17
***EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING*** As foreshadowed back in the second episode of the season, it's high school reunion time. The girls and Carmine head back to Milwaukee sans Lenny and Squiggy to attend their tenth, resulting in a cavalcade of familiar faces. Yay, there's Terri Buttafouco! There's Rosie Greenbaum! There's... Eraserhead! They're all suddenly acting like the girls are the best thing since sliced bread -- even Big Rosie! -- and everyone wants to make out with Carmine. Why? It turns out...
Sep 15, 2023•48 min•Season 7Ep. 16
It's time for another episode where Laverne dates a married man. Sigh. While Shirley's away for a few days, Laverne has a chance encounter with a fella named Hank. In spite of some very red flags, she goes out on a date with him to a seafood restaurant. But a miscommunication with his so-called answering service leads to the revelation that Hank's married - and to his wife showing up at the same restaurant thinking he has asked *her* out for the night. Panicking, the philandering jerk tosses Lav...
Sep 08, 2023•53 min•Season 7Ep. 15
** EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING ** We cover the episode where Laverne and Shirley fight back against the tabloids. When the girls have a bad experience with crooner Johnny Velvet, they hatch a plot to get payback. After pouring over some gossip rags, they decide to smear his name in The Peeper, helmed by the oily anything-for-a-sale head editor Tidmore. The two successfully get into Johnny Velvet's green room, score some decent dirt on him (including catching him physically abusing his assistant!),...
Sep 01, 2023•53 min•Season 7Ep. 14
