Original Air Date
- June 6, 2024
Part 1 Begins
Hero Song (4:22)
- “Juke Box Hero” by Foreigner
Superhero Smash: Season II (2:00)
- You’re listening to Superhero Smash: Season II!
- Featuring the best in Superhero Music and Comic Book Lore
- Focusing on current superhero movies and popular culture events
- I’m your host, Dr. Gian Pagnucci, a.k.a. The New Professor X
- Playing great music about superheroes as well as music that is featured in superhero movies and shows
- Also talking about comic book history and heroism
- But no matter what cool stuff I discuss, you don’t have to worry because this is a NO SPOILERS show!
- Contact me, the new Professor X, via email: SuperheroSmash2024@gmail.com
Opening Credits Song (2:00)
- Today’s Superhero Smash is all about Doctor Strange
- In the 2016 Marvel film dedicated to the mystical hero, Stephen Strange is a surgeon who’s hands are injured when he crashes his car as he is driving way too fast on a winding mountain road in a rain storm
- So there are a couple ties to the guitar feeling right in the juke box hero’s hands after he was standing in the rain outside a sold out concert, all part of the story of Foreigner’s “Juke Box Hero”
- Foreigner came to IUP a few years ago and performed that song along with all their other great hits in what had to be a sold out show at Fisher Auditorium!
Shout Out to 3 Rivers Comicon (3:00)
- Want to thank Jon Engle, Promotor for 3 Rivers Comicon, who did a great interview with me for last week’s show
- 3 Rivers Comicon
- Taking place in Pittsburgh at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center on June 1-2
- And I especially want to thank Jon for getting me a press pass for the con, one of the coolest collectibles I have ever gotten!
- That helped me to meet a bunch of cool comic creators at the con
- This included meeting Todd Johnson and Larry Stroman who are the creators of Tribe
- Tribe is published by Image Comics
- It is the best selling African American comic by independent creators of all time
- Tribe sold over 1 million copies and were relaunching Tribe at 3 Rivers Comicon
- I got an autographed copy of issue #1 and will doing interviews with them and several other comic creators around the summer Juneteenth holiday
Audio Episode Theme: Doctor Strange (1:00)
- The magical superhero Doctor Strange
- One of the most interesting heroes because his stories include discussion of religion and mysticism
- Since Doctor Strange is all about magic, today I’ll be featuring songs about magic and sorcery and wizards
- And for even more magic songs, check out this cool article:
Heroic Instrumental Theme Song (2:53)
- “Doctor Strange – Main Theme” by Jared Moreno Luna
Part 1 Ends (@15 minutes)
Part 2 Begins (@14 minutes)
Show ID: Superhero Smash 1:00)
- WIUP FM 90.1
- Featuring the best superhero music and comic book lore in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the DC Cinematic Universe, and our Universe too!
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email Professor X using the address SuperheroSmash2024@gmail.com
Collector’s Item Classic Comic Book (4:00)
- Doctor Strange first appeared Strange Tales #110
- Publication Date: July, 1963
- Written by Stan Lee
- Penciled by Steve Ditko
- Steve Ditko was from Johnstown
- He also was the artist who created Spider-Man with Stan Lee
- I met Bruce Wechtenhiser at 3 Rivers Comicon
- Bruce travels to cons talking about his decades long fan relationship with the character Spider-Man
- Bruce is from Johnstown, PA, and he told me that there is now a mural dedicated to Spider-Man and Ditko’s art in Johnstown
- I’ve included a link to the cool PaBuketList.com for you to read more about the mural
- I plan to get out to see the mural myself this summer!
- While Ditko created a really cool and innovative costume for Doctor Strange, Strange did not even get a spot on the cover; instead the superhero on the cover is the Human Torch from the Fantastic Four
- Doctor Strange doesn’t show up in his own story until page 13
- Value on eBay $19,500 (CGC graded 8.0 and signed by Stan Lee!)
Doctor Strange Song 1 (4:57)
- “Magic Power” by Triumph
Doctor Strange’s Origin Story (5:00)
- As I said, Doctor Strange begins as an ordinary doctor named Stephen Strange
- He injures his hands in a car accident both in the comics and in his Marvel film
- Strange was rich and arrogant, but he spends his fortune on experimental medical treatments that all fail to heal his hands
- He becomes a drifter shunned by all his former friends and colleagues
- Eventually he learns of a Chinese wizard and healer named the Ancient One
- He goes to Tibet in search of this wizard
- The Ancient One teaches Strange how to use magic and also heals Strange’s hands
- The Ancient One then tasks Strange with protecting the world from evil as the Sorcerer Supreme of earth
- Importantly, Strange also has to learn some humility along the way
- Which will lead to 2 great songs about strange people and their magic!
Doctor Strange Song 2 (2:13)
- “People Are Strange” by The Doors
Part 2 Ends (@30 minutes)
Part 3 Begins (@30 minutes)
Show ID: Superhero Smash (0:30)
- WIUP FM 90.1
- Featuring the best superhero music and comic book lore in the MCU, the DCU, and our U-niverse too!
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email Professor X using the address SuperheroSmash2024@gmail.com
- I love to hear from the Legion of Superhero Smash Fans
PSA: The British Invasion (0:30)
- In the Marvel films, Doctor Strange was played perfectly by English actor Benedict Cumberbatch
- That gives me the perfect excuse to plug The British Invasion radio show, hosted by my friend David Ferguson on Thursdays from 3:00-5:00 pm all summer long
Doctor Strange Song 3 (4:08)
- “Strange Magic” by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO)
Long Lost Heroine: The Scarlet Witch (4:00)
- Listeners will certainly know the Scarlet Witch from the Marvel movies
- But I’m categorizing her as lost due to what happens to her in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
- In the comics, Doctor Strange and the Scarlet Witch first teamed up in Doctor Strange, Volume 2, #’s 59-62, called The Montesi Formula
- Strange is searching for a magical book called the Darkhold because he wants a spell to kill all vampires, including Dracula
- Doctor Strange enlists the aid of the Scarlet Witch for this effort
- Scarlet Witch was featured in the fantastic Disney series WandaVision
- There’s really no other show like it, particularly as the early episodes of the show pay homage to the history of TV sitcoms over the years
- Elizabeth Olsen plays Wanda Maximoff, a.k.a. the Scarlet Witch in the films
Doctor Strange Song 4 (3:16)
- “Black Magic Woman” by Santana
Part 3 Ends (@42 minutes)
Part 4 Begins (@42 minutes)
Show ID: Superhero Smash (0:30)
- WIUP FM 90.1
- Featuring the best superhero music and comic book lore in the MCU, the DCU, and our U-niverse too!
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email Professor X using the address SuperheroSmash2024@gmail.com
- I love to hear from the Legion of Superhero Smash Fans
Long Lost Heroic Album Cover: Pink Floyd’s A Saucerful of Secrets (2:00)
- I had to mention that the cover art for Pink Floyd’s 1968 album A Saucerful of Secrets borrows its artwork from Strange Tales #158
- Artwork by Marie Severin
- The songs on that album are too long to play in the time I have left
- Pink Floyd’s song “Time” talks about “softly spoken magic spells,” but it’s over 7 minutes long and that would not give us time for…
Romantic Interlude: Doctor Strange & Clea (1:00)
- In the comics Doctor Strange meets a woman named Clea who is a sorceress
- Clea is also the rule of a place called the Dark Dimension
- Clea and Strange marry and eventually she becomes a Sorcerer Supreme
Romantic Doctor Strange & Clea Song 1 (2:02)
- “Witch Doctor” by Alvin & the Chipmunks
-
In the 1960’s Ross Bagdasarian Sr. would often overdub his own voice three times at half the normal speaking rate. He would then speed up the playback to create the high-pitched voices, which won two Grammy Awards for musical engineering.
-
Romantic Doctor Strange & Clea Song 2 (4:34)
- “Moondance” by Van Morrison
Romantic Doctor Strange & Clea Song 3 (2:41)
- “A Whole New World” by Lea Salonga and Brad Kane from Aladdin
Superhero Smash To Be Continued Next Issue (2:00)
- Not quite the Same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel
- Next week I’ll be featuring traveling for my niece Natalia Melbard’s high school graduation party
- Maybe she’ll learn a little magic herself when she heads to college at Duke, home of the Blue Devils
- But only the good kind of magic–no Darkhold spells!
- Sadly, that does mean no Superhero Smash next week, but be back here in 2 weeks for more excitement!
- I’m planning to do a Black Panther and Luke Cage team-up show to celebrate the Juneteenth summer holiday, and that will set us up for the Tribe interview after that
- Contact me, the new Professor X, via email: SuperheroSmash2024@gmail.com
- And always remember: “You don’t need superpowers to be a hero. The only thing it takes to be a hero is the courage to do what’s right when someone needs your help.”–Gian Pagnucci
Doctor Strange Song 5 (4:21)
- “Magic Carpet Ride” by Steppenwolf
End Credits Song (3:50 or 3:01)
- “Dancing in the Moonlight”
- Written by Sherman Kelly in 1970
- It became a #13 hit for King Harvest in 1972
- In 2000, it became a worldwide hit for Toploader
Part 4 Ends (@60 minutes)