Retrospective-a-Rooney: A Liv and Maddie Podcast

19/07/2023

Here are some lovely messages from the cast and crew of Liv and Maddie wishing the show a happy 10th anniversary! Thank you to everyone for participating; I had so much fun putting this together!

19/07/2023

“When you have a family like that, it can be ten years, and it still feels like no time has passed.”

A decade ago today, the first episode of Liv and Maddie premiered on Disney Channel!!! I’ve had this anniversary in the back of my mind for years now, even before I thought of the podcast, and I knew I had to do something big for it. I’m happy to say I did in fact do something big: hosted a panel with four of the most important people involved in making this show from its beginning to its end!

You’ll hear…
- Original concepts for the show that didn’t make it
- What went into developing the first episode and alternate plotlines that were considered
- How the premiere of Teen Beach Movie being paired with the first episode drove production
- A Lartie/Lolden debate (which is to be expected)
- The uncovering of a mystery about Paulie the Porcupine
- Some rapid fire top 10 favorites
- What went into the making of Froyo Yolo
- Stories about some notable guest stars
- How they feel about the show turning 10
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

18/07/2023

Tomorrow is Liv and Maddie's 10th anniversary and we have some big things coming. Stay tuned!!!

09/05/2022

“It’s always nice to make television that is making a difference and making people think in addition to entertaining them.”

Our first new episode of the year! First, I’ll give you an update of what’s been going on during our hiatus and what to expect from the future of the podcast. Then, enjoy an interview with Jody Margolin Hahn, director of six episodes of Liv and Maddie, three in season 2 and three in season 3, recorded last summer. (I had intended to release this late last year but was unable to until now due to some schedule shuffling.)

You’ll hear…
- roasts of Ron Hart
- what it was like introducing Dump Truck in Detention-a-Rooney
- about the musical element of Band-a-Rooney and how the Say Hey scene is like a music video
- about Frame-a-Rooney and how fun it is working with Jimmy Bellinger
- about tackling a more mature subject in Ask-Her-More-a-Rooney and handling it so it wasn’t talking down to the audience
- what her favorite episode that she directed was
- how her son and Tenzing became great friends in high school
- what Liv and Maddie fans will enjoy about Side Hustle

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

03/11/2021

I'm so excited to have gotten the chance to collaborate with one of my favorite YouTubers, Jonasalmostfamous, to talk about Liv and Maddie history on her show, DCOMmentary! Check it out and be sure to check out all the other episodes of Jona's awesome show to learn more about the making of Disney Channel original shows and movies!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAvMjCLF62w

I'm so excited about this episode because I have Amanda Shake from Retrospective-a-Rooney to talk all about Liv & Maddie! I learned a lot from doing this and...

01/11/2021

28/10/2021

Our friends are known for epic Halloween looks 🎃 Comment whose look you're stealing for Halloween!

16/10/2021

“I’m in the Writers Guild of America because of Liv and Maddie. I have health insurance because of Liv and Maddie. It gave me so much.”

Johnathan McClain wrote four episode of Liv and Maddie, one per season, with his writing partner, Kali Rocha, who you may know better as Karen Rooney. He joins us today to discuss his experience writing for the show!

You’ll hear…
- how Liv and Maddie kickstarted his Disney Channel career
- what it’s like writing with someone who also acts in the show
- what it was like crafting the characters of South Salamanca and Holden, and where their names came from
- how he handled heavier subject matter like Tiny-House-a-Rooney and Pete and Maddie’s heart-to-heart in Vive-la-Rooney
- how his writing style on the show evolved over the course of four seasons
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

02/10/2021

One of the aspects of Liv and Maddie that has always made it stand out to me is its Easter Eggs; clever references and in-jokes that are always fun to find as an audience member! Today’s episode is dedicated to them, and we’re gonna see just how many we can find!

I’ve categorized the Easter Eggs as such:
- name nods
- notable cameos
- other project references
- references to Dove playing twins
- Syracuse references
- and miscellaneous

I think this is one of the most interesting episodes I’ve done yet so I hope you enjoy it! Link in bio to listen!

18/09/2021

“I just remember it being such a yummy experience overall, so fun!”

Today, we are joined by Aunt Dena herself, Jolie Jenkins! Hear all about her experience on Liv and Maddie, from the funny to the emotional and everything in between.

You’ll hear…
- who she originally auditioned for
- what she and Dena have in common
- about the emotional experience of shooting the finale
- what it was like for her working on the show having just become a mom
- her experience returning to Disney Channel on Sydney to the Max
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

04/09/2021

Liv and Maddie had four fantastic seasons, but how do they stack up? Find out on today’s new episode in which we rank them all!

I break it down into five categories:
- the twins’ relationship
- Liv’s development
- Parker
- the season arc
- and recurring characters

That’s all I’m gonna share with you for now so as to not spoil any of the results!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

02/09/2021

We've entered quadruple digits!! Wow!! Thank you all so much for supporting the podcast, we have big things to come so stay tuned!

21/08/2021

“(Liv and Maddie) was one of the highlights of my career, and Heather probably feels the same.” “Yah, for sure!”

They’re Linda and Heather, best friends! Hear from the original Linda and Heather, co-executive producers and writers, on today’s new episode!

You’ll hear…
- regular roasts of Ron Hart
- how some of their real life experiences helped inspire episodes like Brain-a-Rooney and Rate-a-Rooney
- the genesis of the Linda and Heather theme song and how the show within the show came to be
- my podcast almost getting cancelled
- the vicious pranks that were pulled on them during the show’s run
- how they crafted Song-a-Rooney; my favorite episode
- how Linda ended up owning the two kittens who played Stacy/Liv
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

07/08/2021

🎶I’m so over all of these voices around, they’ve said enough, it’s my turn, let’s get loud!🎶

Each season of Liv and Maddie has had its standout “feminism” episode in my opinion, and I’ll be analyzing all four of them on today’s episode! Each one of them conveys an inspiring message to young girls, but each in its own unique way.

You’ll hear…
- how Brain-a-Rooney helped reshape Liv’s character (and maybe that’s why they used to air it a lot?)
- how Rate-a-Rooney had a realistic but still happy ending, and why that was the right thing to do
- why Josh Wilcox is the king of respecting women
- the interesting programming strategies behind Ask-Her-More-a-Rooney
- how the plot of Roll-Model-a-Rooney is sort of meta
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

24/07/2021

“I would love to say, they were all some of my favorite (episodes) to ever film out in Los Angeles in general…it was the people there, you always had fun, like we didn’t have a dull day on set, we didn’t have a bad day. It was always just so much fun to be there and just interact with people.”

You’ve all heard me rave about Josh Wilcox plenty up to this point, now it’s time to hear from Josh himself! Lucas Adams (whose birthday is today!) joins the podcast to discuss his time on the show and what it was like to create this character.

You’ll hear…
- what Josh’s original name was and who he originally auditioned for
- the differences and similarities between him and Josh (the latter including his love of baseball)
- an in-depth discussion of Mosh
- why Jax and Max deserve to take over Hollywood
- hilarious stories involving Nerf guns and Dove completely missing the basketball hoop
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

22/07/2021

For Throwback Thursday, here's a promo for 2015's Whodunit? Weekend which included Frame-a-Rooney! I discussed this weekend on the most recent podcast episode.

https://youtu.be/j2xs1ervyo0

Whodunit? Weekend is back! 8 new episodes full of mystery start Friday July 24 at 8p on Disney Channel!Don't forget to subscribe for be the first to see when...

10/07/2021

Each season of Liv and Maddie has an episode or two that's always stood out to me as its funniest, and we'll be talking about and analyzing those episodes on today's podcast! I'm diving into what about these episodes always leaves me in stitches.

You'll hear...
- the concept I've developed called "the chaos episode"
- whether each episode is mostly filler, mostly important to a bigger arc, or somewhere in between, and what that has to do with its humor
- how even the weirdest possible thing wouldn't be out of character for Joey because...he's Joey
- the way in which these episodes "go the extra silly mile" even when they don't have to
- Vive-la-Rooney's real-life connections to Dove and Kali, even down to some specific details
- about one of my favorite forms of comedy, actors acting like they're acting
- why I wish Ex-a-Rooney was worse (trust me, it makes sense in context)
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

26/06/2021

“I try to run a focused set and I try to be focused myself, but I love to have some fun and I love to have some humor and I love that everybody knows it’s not really life or death.”

Leonard R. Garner, Jr., director of six episodes of Liv and Maddie, joins us today to discuss his experiences on the show and how much he enjoyed working on it!

You’ll hear…
- his approach to directing more relationship-heavy episodes
- what it was liking helping put side characters in the lead in Friend-a-Rooney
- how he approached the feminist message of Roll-Model-a-Rooney
- what it was like directing the Power of Two music video
- some of his experiences working on other Disney Channel shows and Side Hustle
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

17/06/2021

John Starr, aka Terry the Clown, was nice enough to make a video about our recent podcast episode! Check it out and check out the podcast episode if you haven't!

https://youtu.be/CzjwbpxJLwc

PORCH PLAYHOUSE (John Starr)Terry the Clown | Disney's LIV AND MADDIE

12/06/2021

We have another individual episode analysis for you today! My friend, David, joins me again today to discuss Flashback-a-Rooney and its significance in the latter half of season one.

You’ll hear…
- why we enjoyed getting to see a snapshot in the Rooney family’s life in the flashbacks
- breakdowns of other important scenes such as when Liv confesses to Maddie and when Maddie says she made the junior olympics team
- how this was the first episode where we hear the twins’ full names
- the connection this episode has to The Tell-Tale Heart
- why the ending was confusing for me initially
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

08/06/2021

Have you listened to our episode with John Starr, aka Terry the Clown, yet? If you want to learn more about him, check out his website here! https://www.johnstarractor.com/

31/05/2021

John and I discussed this video on our episode, go check it out! And check out the rest of his channel, too!

https://youtu.be/-68CgS9Dd58

PORCH PLAYHOUSE (John Starr)

29/05/2021

“It’s a very lucky day in Hollywood when you work on a great show that people love and they treat everyone on it with respect and you have fun doing it.”

The man who brought to life one of the most memorable recurring characters on Liv and Maddie is joining us on the podcast today! 🤡 John Starr, aka Terry the Clown, and I have an intriguing and fun conversation about his time on the show.

You’ll hear…
- why New-Year’s-Eve-a-Rooney was his favorite episode to work on
- how the studio Liv and Maddie shot at had a family connection for him
- an issue he had with balloons in his first episode
- how Liv and Maddie contributed to him improving his costume (which he made himself!)
- where he sees Terry today
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

15/05/2021

Each season of Liv and Maddie has a special few stand out episodes in my opinion, so today we’ll be discussing them all! We’ll go through each episode and look at its strengths, many of which these episodes have in common.

You’ll hear…
- how, admittedly, twin fluff is my reason for most of these episodes making this list
- why a balance between humor and heart is such a major strength in this show
- analyses of some specific scenes
- why pacing is so important and why this show is incredible at it
- me getting emotional about Californi-a-Rooney again
- what B-plots get “extra points”
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

13/05/2021

For Throwback Thursday, here's a Disney Channel interstitial about Dove from the very early days of Liv and Maddie. We'll be talking about this a bit in this week's episode!

https://youtu.be/R10QnGZuBHI

Liv and Maddie's Dove Cameron shares her favorite hobbies!Watch Liv and Maddie on Disney Channel!Check out more at http://www.DisneyChannel.comClick the SUBS...

01/05/2021

We have a new two-parter episode for you! First up, we have our very first individual episode analysis (Cowbell-a-Rooney) with returning guests Janelle Cordova and Katy Titus. Then, we’re joined by the director of that episode, Adam Weissman, to discuss that episode as well as the 12 others he directed!

In the first segment, you’ll hear...
- how we’ve noticed that the way each character “cowbells” matches their personalities
- our appreciation for how the b-plot shows Parker messing with Joey, but is ultimately helping him
- how we love how the episode both establishes Josh as a character and begins to establish Maddie and Josh’s relationship
- our ideas for dog AUs (it’s important, trust me)
- an over-analysis of the line “ay, are you a Scorpio?”
- a re-enactment of one of our favorite scenes
- and more!

In the second segment, you’ll hear...
- how Liv and Maddie compared to and differed from other Disney Channel shows Adam has worked on
- discussions on individual episodes he directed in addition to Cowbell, such as Rate-a-Rooney, Bro-Cave-a-Rooney, Californi-a-Rooney, and more
- a funny story about the first time he met Joey
- the unique way in which Tenzing took bites from him
- what Liv and Maddie fans will enjoy about his work on Side Hustle
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

23/04/2021

Liv and Maddie has officially come home to Disney+!

23/04/2021

It's almost here!!!

The finale of Marvel Studios’ The Falcon and The Winter Soldier will debut Friday, bringing the six-episode season to an exciting conclusion.

17/04/2021

“It seemed overall kind of like Disney still using the same formulas for everything that they used when I was a kid, but it seems like it’s developed and evolved a little bit.”
My friend, Amanda, had never seen Liv and Maddie and had little familiarity with it...until now! She binged the show recently to bring the podcast an outsider’s perspective, which you’ll hear us discuss on today’s new episode!

You’ll hear...
- our comparisons between Liv and Maddie and the Disney Channel shows we grew up with, as well as aspects that differed
- how we ended up sharing a lot of the same favorite ships like Mosh and characters like Dump Truck and Evan
- our discussion on the importance of shows taking “baby steps” towards being more progressive
- what we want to see for Pete and Karen post-finale
- how we seem to share a single brain cell, probably because we have the same name
- how Netflix has some episodes in a strange order (hopefully, Disney+ will fix that!)
- why Joey, Johnny Nimbus, and John Mulaney should be a comedy troupe
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!

03/04/2021

“I remember when they were like, ‘Okay, we’re gonna have Dove do (this scene) by herself, and me and Emmy, we’re sitting there, we’re like, ‘...are we losing this job? Are we getting fired?’ I mean, like, good if this works without us, but, like, I hope this doesn’t work without us!” “And it didn’t.”

Today, I am joined by two actresses who were crucial in bring the characters of Liv and Maddie to life! Emmy Buckner and Shelby Wulfert talk with me about what it was like being body doubles for Liv and Maddie respectively, as well as playing Linda and Heather!

You’ll hear...
- what their audition processes were like and how they were similar to and different from one another
- about bringing the characters of Linda and Heather to life, including first finding out they were getting an entire special episode
- about fun costumes they got to wear such as the kangaroo suit
- about John Beck’s iconic laugh
- a funny story about when the power went out on set
- how they had their own versions of Liv and Maddie during rehearsals since they didn’t have to match Dove
- what it was like filming Helgaween-a-Rooney now that there were triplets
- a lovely anecdote about Terry the Clown
- and more!

Link in bio to listen! We hope you enjoy!