Looking for a TV-show Title

August 26, 2004 2:48 PM

I remember a TV-show, oh so very vaguely, that I want to say was called "Popcorn." But it's not, apparently, according to Google and IMBD...

It would have been mid-late 80's or MAYBE early 90's, judging by the haziness of my childhood memory. I cannot remember any specifics about it, except that it had a theme song that I think of as "the Popcorn song" -- a synthy intrumental thing featuring a "pop" like synth sound playing the melody.

I've heard the song once or twice in the last ten years. I remember watching SOMETHING, I have a sense that it was pretty geeky and possibly on public television, but I'm going fucking bats trying to figure out what it is that I'm thinking of.

posted by cortex to Media & Arts (19 answers total)

It's no help at all but here's a cover of the popcorn song [2.35MB] that might help people remember... remember... remember...
posted by holloway at 3:31 PM on August 26, 2004 [1 favorite]

well, holloway beat me to that. I don't know if this one is the same version. I have covers of it by 6 other people/groups if you are really nuts about the song.
posted by gluechunk at 3:34 PM on August 26, 2004

No, it's a different cover. I'll put both on loop this afternoon and see who in the office breaks first.
posted by holloway at 3:44 PM on August 26, 2004

Ahhhh, I know it, ..... ARGHHH!!
posted by Quartermass at 4:08 PM on August 26, 2004

Response by poster: Gluechunk: that's the song, by god. It's not really germane to my inquiry, but I'd love to hear the other covers, yeah. (Holloway, that cover is AWESOME.)

Do y'all know who is responsible for the original recording? Might make crossreferencing possible.
posted by cortex at 4:19 PM on August 26, 2004

This guy
posted by holloway at 4:33 PM on August 26, 2004

Were you watching WPIX in New York? According to one Erik Pflaumbaum (about 3/4 of the way down) they used Popcorn as the background music for their "techinical difficulties" display.
posted by CrunchyFrog at 6:14 PM on August 26, 2004

There used to be a web site dedicated to the song. It's gone now, replaced with a "buy this domain, and look at all these swell popups and install this adware on your machine" site, but the Wayback machine still has it:
Popcorn sightings.
There was a series of short children's films called "Snipets" with Popcorn as the theme.
posted by CrunchyFrog at 6:29 PM on August 26, 2004

Here's the part of CrunchyFrog's link that's going to drive us all crazy:

I do recall another show using the very same song as theme song, sadly I'm unable to remember what it's called, or what it was called. All I can recall is that it was a science program for kids that I watched about 15-16 years ago.. I can still remember a bit of it..
posted by iconomy at 6:35 PM on August 26, 2004

cortex, here's the popcorn folder with some of the covers I mentioned.
posted by gluechunk at 6:59 PM on August 26, 2004

I remember that show too. It had that music and some weird cgi popcorn [or real? was it the 80s] flying around the screen as a bunch of kid/teen voices yelled "popcorn" as the music faded out. I suspect that it was more of a PSA type thing, maybe a part of something else we watched [like Schoolhouse Rock]?
posted by jessamyn at 7:10 PM on August 26, 2004

Response by poster: All I can recall is that it was a science program for kids that I watched about 15-16 years ago.. I can still remember a bit of it..

See, dammit, that could totally be it. (Given the vagueness of my memories, this may hinder as much as help, but I seem to remember a guy with short curly blond hair, skinny geek dude, teenaged.)

I'm also thinking of (imagining?) a "POPCORN" title screen with sort of crazy off kilter letters in a balloony sans-serif font, in yellow. I honestly don't know if I didn't dream it at this point, but I think I'm actually remembering.

CrunchyFrog: no, this would have been in Portland or Clackamas, OR, and it was definitely part of a show of some sort. Good catch with the Wayback, btw.

gluechunk: awesome, thanks.

jessamyn: further corroboration! Fantastic. Maybe it was an Electric Company skit, or something?

Gah!
posted by cortex at 7:12 PM on August 26, 2004

I should also add that a long long time ago I learned "the popcorn dance" at 4-H camp. The dance went along to the popcorn song. It may have simply been something the counselors invented. In any case, I've never heard of a tv-related popcorn program.
posted by gluechunk at 7:35 PM on August 26, 2004

Can someone post an Mp3 of the original?
posted by Quartermass at 7:46 PM on August 26, 2004

I vaguely remember the show, but I can't help you out (ah the 70's of my youth). But all these Popcorn covers remind me of the Moog Cookbook; This seems to be right up their alley. Whatever happened to them?
posted by Duck_Lips at 8:23 PM on August 26, 2004

Here is another page full of "Popcorn" covers. (See how many you can get stuck in your head simultaneously!) It's pretty versatile, though I still love the original Hot Butter hit from 1973 the best. (Page via Scrubbles.)
posted by lisa g at 8:39 PM on August 26, 2004

I think I have an answer for you, especially as you say it was on Public TV, as The Great Egg Race was made in Britain, and was certainly very geeky. Scroll down the page here for a fuller description and a link to the almost-but-not-quite Popcorn theme tune.
posted by viama at 9:53 PM on August 26, 2004

Response by poster: viama: I have no idea what that show is -- it's certainly not the mystery program that's driving me crazy. Good find though.

Also, I apologize -- sort of -- to everyone who has had and will continue to have Popcorn stuck in their head.
posted by cortex at 9:57 PM on August 26, 2004

Best answer: I've been playing this music all afternoon. They're all whistling along now and saying they hate me. Fantastic.
posted by holloway at 10:00 PM on August 26, 2004