Original Air Date
- June 27, 2023
Part 1 Begins
Hero Song (2:54)
- “Best at Loving You” by Michael Franti & Spearhead
- While that song might seem romantic, Franti has said it is about a father’s love for their child, in his case his young son Taj
- Franti and his band were just in the Pittsburgh area and put one one amazing show
- His music is upbeat, positive, and has a perfect summertime vibe, like a Jimmy Buffet for today, so check him out
Superhero Smash (0:30)
- 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 the best music that features superheroes and is highlighted in superhero movies and shows
- Also talking about comic book history and heroism
- But no matter what cool stuff I discuss on the show, you don’t have to worry, this is a NO SPOILERS show!
Special Radio Guest Star
- Anna Pagnucci
- Professor of Art at Coastal Area Community College in North Carolina
- Adjunct Art Faculty Member At Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA)
- She’ll be talking about the costumes from Black Panther
Audio Episode Theme: The Black Panther (3:00)
- Black Panther
- Summer is the time for swimming
- I just got back in the pool myself
- And Black Panther: Wakanda Forever features Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner, one of the all time great water-based superheroes
- Namor actually first appeared in Marvel Comics #1
- The comic was published by Timely Comics, but the title is what Marvel Comics eventually took as their company name
- Along with Namor being an excuse for a show about the Black Panther, there is also a current art exhibit at North Carolina Museum of Art
- The art of Ruth E. Carter, Academy Award winning costume designer for the Black Panther movies
Instrumental Theme Music (1:17)
- “Black Panther” from Wakanda Remixed by Ludwig Goransson and featuring Ame Kora
- From Wakanda Remixed
Collector’s Item Classic Comic Book (2:00)
- The Black Panther’s First Appearance: Fantastic Four #52
- Publication Date: July 1966
- Publisher: Marvel Comics
- Writer: Stan Lee
- Artist: Jack Kirby
- Value on eBay today: Decent copy for around $600–CGC’d 3.5 on a 10.0 scale
Black Panther Song 1 (4:29)
- “Can’t Stop” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers
- The song is featured in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- Special Agent Everett Ross is listening to “Can’t Stop” while out for a run, just before he meets with the Black Panther’s sister, Shuri, and General Okoye who leads the Wakanda army
Show ID: Superhero Smash (2:00)
- WIUP FM 90.1
- Alternative music for the MCU, the DCU, and our U too!
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email Professor X using the address superherosmash2023@gmail.com
- Lots of great shows coming up
- I would love to get your input
Part 1 Ends (@15 minutes)
Part 2 Begins (@15 minutes)
The Impact of Black Panther (2:00)
- The Black Panther was a cultural phenomenon and, like the Chili Peppers song, the movie just couldn’t be stopped!
- The film earned $1.3 billion
- It’s $200 million budget was a record for Marvel at the time, and Marvel studio head Kevin Feige said ““It’s a big story that deserves to be told in a big way, for all of the cultural and political reasons that people talk about,” as Feige told the online entertainment website Vulture for the article “Why Marvel Spent More Getting Black Panther Just Right”
- It was the highest grossing film ever featuring actors of color
- Playing King T’Challa who possessed the powers of the Black Panther was a tour de force for actor Chadwick Boseman who sadly passed away in 2020 after a four year battle with colon cancer (R.I.P.)
- The film received a Best Picture nomination from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts
- Tre Johnson, in an article for the online news site Vox, says, “the film Black Panther is in many ways a love letter to black culture. Africa has traditionally been an unsophisticated bit player in American media, often portrayed as backward, savage, and chaotic in everything from news coverage to films. It’s a portrayal that has left little room for other interpretations, which is why Black Panther’s vision of Wakanda as a bustling metropolis of vibranium-powered futuristic skyscrapers, racing trains, and soaring spaceships feels so refreshing.”
- Vibranium is a special metal that was used to make Captain America’s invulnerable shield, among other things.
- Black Panther received 7 Academy Award nominations, including for Best Picture, and won 3 Oscars, including for Best Original Score by Goransson, which I just featured at the start of the show
Station ID: WIUP FM 90.1 (1:00)
- Alternative music for Indiana County and beyond
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email Professor X using the address superherosmash2023@gmail.com
- And now our special guest, Art Professor Anna Pagnucci
Black Panther Costume Exhibit (5:00)
- Anna, welcome to the show
- Anna, please tell us a little about this costume exhibit, “Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design” at the North Carolina Museum of Art”
- As Johnson explains,”Black Panther’s costuming was an opportunity to infuse meaning and pride into the movie. As the film’s head costume designer, Ruth Carter, shared with NPR, the costumes, like Wakanda itself, needed to evoke a place and people that had “never been colonized, one that looked toward the future but was based on a real past. Carter and her team drew on Kenyan, Namibian, and South African reference points to complete the film’s array of looks, reflecting not only the tribal diversity that exists within Wakanda but the diversity of black culture and identity as well.
- Ruth E. Carter won an Academy Award for her costume designs for Black Panther and again for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- And our next song also received a Best Original song nomination from the Academy
Black Panther Song 2 (3:52)
- “All the Stars” by Kendrick Lamar and SZA from Black Panther: The Album
Station ID: WIUP FM 90.1 (1:00)
- Alternative music for Indiana County and beyond
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email Professor X using the address superherosmash2023@gmail.com
- I’m back with our special guest, Art Professor Anna Pagnucci
Black Panther and Afrofuturism (5:00)
- In the article I cited earlier, Johnson says, “The film is a crucial stamp of validation for black people hungry for the opportunity to celebrate everything from Afrofuturism to the natural hair movement that’s often been derided in mainstream spaces.”
- Anna, tell us a little about this concept of “Afrofuturism”
Black Panther Song 3 (2:11)
- “Black Panther” by Kendrick Lamar from Black Panther: The Album
Station ID: WIUP FM 90.1 (1:00)
- Alternative music for Indiana County and beyond
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email Professor X using the address superherosmash2023@gmail.com
Part 2 Ends (@35 minutes)
Part 3 Begins
ComiCon Update (2:00)
- “Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design”
- The exhibit will be at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, NC, now through August 6
- And, you can have double the fun by also attending GalaxyCon in Raleigh July 27-30
- Tickets are selling out fast!
- I just got mine last night so I can meet Daredevil himself, Charlie Cox
- Look like it will be a great ComiCon
Final Thoughts from Our Special Guest (2:00)
- Anna Pagnucci’s final comments
Black Panther Song 4 (2:51)
- The stories of both Black Panther and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever are all about who gets to be king
- Namor even tries to tempt T’Challa’s sister Shuri away from being king and instead to rule as his queen in Atlantis
- Becoming king is always a battle because, after all, who wouldn’t want to be king
- I got an email from one of our most loyal listeners, someone named Simba
- Simba said, in honor of King T’Challa, we had to play this song as part of the Black Panther show
- “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” by Jason Weaver, Rowan Atkinson & Laura Williams
Part 3 Ends (@40 minutes)
Part 4 Begins
Romantic Interlude (2:00)
- In the comics, T’Challa’s main lover is the X-Man Storm, Ororo Munroe, who has weather powers
- They even get married in the comics
- But since the X-Men were licensed to Sony Pictures when Black Panther premiered, instead Marvel chose to highlight the romance between T’Challa and a woman named Nakia played by Lupita Nyong’o
- Nakia is a warrior in her own right
- She and T’Challa have a child, Toussaint, and Nakia raises him in secret outside of Wakanda to keep him safe
Romantic Melody (7:09)
- “No Woman No Cry”
- The Tems released a version of this song for the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever album
- But “No Woman No Cry (Live 1975)” by Bob Marley & The Wailers is the true classic
PSA (1:00)
- Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, the final Indiana Jones film starring Harrison Ford, premiers on Friday June 30th
- At age 80, Ford seems a little advanced in years to be adventuring, but he can still wield a bullwhip pretty well, so more power to him!
- The previews of the film look pretty good
To Be Continued Next Issue (1:00)
- Same Bat Time, same Bat Channel–Tune in next time for a 4th of July holiday special featuring the Star-Spangled Avenger Captain America
- I’ll also have another Special Radio Guest Star for that show, English Doctoral Student Brian Sateriale
- Songs with Stephanie coming up at noon
- Contact me, the new Professor X, via email: SuperheroSmash2023@gmail.com
- And 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.
End Credits Song (3:31)
- One more great song from Black Panther: The Album
- “Pray for Me” by The Weeknd and Kendrick Lama
Part 4 Ends (@60 minutes)