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I’ve been writing about pop culture for almost 20 years and I can’t imagine stopping any time soon. Here you’ll find all of my current articles and an archive of the stuff I wrote for my defunct site, Branded in the 80s.
These 1984 Donruss BMX trading cards are Rad!
There are a lot of great 80s era pop culture collectibles on display at Branded HQ; toys,...
Awesome 80s Bedrooms: The Making Contact Edition
It's been a little while since I dove in and deconstructed an awesome 80s era pop culture...
The Official Unofficial Visionaries Collectors Guide & Contest!
**CONTEST UPDATE** And the winner of the Visionaries Collector's Guide is... Ryan,...
Lost in the wonderful world of Mr. Product
As a kid I spent a disproportionate amount of time wandering around supermarkets and discount...
35 Years later this Big Wheel is still tearing up the streets…
It's kind of weird when you think about the difference in experiences between "normal" folks...
From the Archives: The Pee-wee Herman Muppet Magazine edition…
It's been awhile since I've waded into my personal archive of old magazine back issues and...
Transformers & G.I. Joe, finally the shared universe I always dreamed of…
As an 80s nostalgia nerd it's kind of hard to pick a favorite brand or property from my...
Transformers through the eyes of a 10 year-old…
If there's one thing that I try very hard to do with this site it's to attempt to transport my...
Peel Here #118: The Exhaustive Selectra Horror Prism Vending Stickers edition!
As I approach my 10th anniversary of running Branded in the 80s I can't help but feel a pull...
For me the 80s didn’t end with a whimper or a bang, but with a fake puking noise…
I spend a lot of time writing and creating stuff for Branded to celebrate all the things that I...
Interview in Non-Sport Magazine
So, speaking of all these throwback digital trading cards I've been working on, I totally...
You’re in love with a…WTF?!?
While discussing Mannequin on the latest episode of the Cult Film Club (a podcast I co-host) we...
Peel Here #117: Nostalgia from two angles!
Getting old is weird. As if succumbing to the crippling pull of childhood nostalgia in my...
Peel Here #116: The Extra Terrestrial Edition…
Lately I've been going back through some of my older sticker posts here at Branded and looking...
Awesome 80s Bedrooms: Who’s the Boss Edition
While writing about a bunch of these awesome bedrooms from 80s movies I figured at some point,...
Chef Boyardee Mini Ravioli is in my DNA…
Chef Boyardee is what being six years-old tastes like. Of all my senses the sheer power of the...
Awesome 80s Bedrooms: The Boy Who Could Fly Edition!
It's been a little while since I took the time to deconstruct an awesome 80s kid's bedroom and...
Investigating the Young Sherlock Holmes novelization…
This past month it was my turn to pick the movie up for discussion on the Cult Film Club...
Filling a gap in my pop culture past…
There are a million reasons why I’m thankful for being brought into this world in the late...
Peel Here #115: Gizmo Caca….so Toilet Paper…
I often describe the 80s as the pinnacle of pop culture brand merchandising; a time when no...
Voltron Assembler < Voltron Giant Commander
It was nearly impossible to be a kid growing up in the 80s suffering through the onslaught of...
Peel Here #114: The Complete Gordy Scratch ‘n Sniff stickers!
As I get older I often wonder how much the elementary school experience has changed for kids...
Riding the Radical Yuletide!
This past week I shared a scan of an old Town & Country Surf and Skate corporate Christmas...
Wax Paper Pop Art #35: No-stal-stal-N-N-N-Nolstalgia
Since it's sort of been a week or two of a bit more old school Branded-style pieces I figured...
A Very T&C Christmas!
It seems like the older I get the more my collecting urges tend to focus on some weirder...
Peel Here #113: Finally, Rainbow Brite
After breaking out the TV Guides recently and writing about the 1986 Fall Preview issue it got...
The Essential TV Guide Fall Preview Issues of the 80s, Part 10: 1986!
So last month during my blitzkrieg of Monster Squad shenanigans I had the opportunity to check...
Back to the Future: The Other Marty McFly Theorem
November 10th, 1990, a red-letter date in my personal fandom of the Back to the Future...
Saving the world from genre fatigue one Stupid Hero at a time!
There are a lot of really cool small independent companies making some really awesome toys,...
A Month of the Monster Squad comes to an end…
First off, Happy Halloween folks! This past month has been an absolute blast for me. Not only...