Hyperobject Industries / Sony Music Entertainment
21 episodes listed below
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We’re getting into 1950s Hollywood, ground zero for a cultural transformation that would upend every aspect of Americans’ lives. A movie theater in every city, a TV in every living room, and a Post-war America determined to be happy at any cost. Also during this period… a slew of untimely Hollywood deaths. The rules of the road for the next seventy years were being written in real-time, and not everyone would make it out alive. This is the story of how Hollywood sold us on a new American Dream, and left a few unlucky stars holding the bag. Hosted by Ada...
Based on 5 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Death on the Lot turns Hollywood biographies into pointed histories of celebrity, institutional power and the damage concealed behind screen personas.
Death on the Lot uses individual Hollywood lives to reveal the pressures surrounding fame, power and the screen industry's public myths. Adam McKay leads a produced narrative format that combines historical commentary, interviews and dry comic turns.
John Wayne's Geiger counter goes wild; your old-Hollywood nostalgia may need a second opinion.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A sharp look at fame and power that lets Hollywood's machinery show through the star image.
The episode begins with Errol Flynn's 1957 What's My Line? appearance and uses that polished public face to open onto Hollywood's machinery. It then moves toward Barrymore and the strange, ugly aftermath around his last days, letting the absurdity register without sanding down…
Hattie McDaniel's Oscar night is presented as a celebration shaped by the room around her.
The episode begins at Hollywood Forever Cemetery and uses that setting to give Hattie McDaniel's 1940 Oscar night a quiet sense of ceremony. Its sharpest contrast is social, not dramatic: she is welcomed on entry, then placed at the edge with her escort and an agent while the…
A conversational bonus episode that revisits the season's stories, omissions, and James Dean questions.
Death on the Lot uses its bonus episode as a relaxed end-of-season check-in. Jody Abergain, Adam McKay, Brian Steele, and Hadley Mears revisit stories told, stories left untold, and what making the series over Zoom brought into focus.
Hollywood history with nuclear anxiety, studio power, and one stubborn Geiger counter in the frame.
John Wayne needed to make a movie in 1954, and the story tracks how that urgency ran into Western stardom, nuclear anxiety, studio power, and a very American faith in the machinery around him.
British nostalgia, ranked and cheerfully misremembered.
Oscar history, watched one nominee at a time.
In 1954, John Wayne needs a movie, and he gets one.
Jody Abergain hosts a bonus roundtable with Adam McKay, Brian Steele, and Hadley Mears.
The episode introduces a true crime podcast series that investigates a series of untimely deaths in 1950s Hollywood.
This episode explores the life of Errol Flynn, a Hollywood swashbuckler whose predatory behavior with underage girls was overlooked in the 1930s-50s.
The episode opens at Hollywood Forever Cemetery on one of LA's perfect days, using the sprawling grounds and their notables to frame Hollywood's memorialized past.
This episode explores the mysterious death of hairstylist Fabio and includes a PSA from James Dean about fast driving, setting up a series about untimely Hollywood deaths.
This episode explores the suspicious death of actor John Garfield during the Hollywood blacklist era.
A 1955 bombing murder of a man living a suburban dream is investigated, revealing hidden secrets.
This episode investigates the murder of a hairstylist in his own backyard, exploring the bizarre and heartbreaking truth behind the case.
This episode recounts the suicide of NBA player Ricky Berry, exploring his life and the circumstances leading to his death.
A man recounts a traumatic incident from 1984 when he shot someone after a confrontation over a stolen $10.
Analysis of Michael Jordan's Hall of Fame speech and his competitive nature, focusing on past slights and potential rivals like Len Bias.
The host reminisces about growing up in the 1970s and the rise of basketball culture, focusing on NBA legends like Michael Jordan and Dr.
This episode recounts the 1980 NBA Finals between the Lakers and 76ers, highlighting Magic Johnson's rookie season and Finals MVP.