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We Regret To Inform You: The Rejection Podcast

Rejecting Back To The Future

Season 1, Ep. 14

Back To The Future sits proudly in the Library of Congress National Film Registry as a work of enduring importance to American culture. But nearly 40 years ago when Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis first wrote the script, it was rejected. 40 times. Join us this week at the Twin Pines Mall as we tell the film’s incredible story. From being told by studios it was “too sweet” for the rebellious ‘80s youth to becoming a billion dollar franchise.

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  • 19. Rejecting Eddy Goldfarb

    34:13||Season 5, Ep. 19
    You may not know the name Eddy Goldfarb, but you know his work. Goldfarb is the inventor behind over 800 toys and games – including Kerplunk, the "Yakity-Yak" wind-up Chattering Teeth, the Bubble Gun and Stompers. His incredible career has spanned eight decades. But before selling his first toy, Goldfarb was rejected. Over and over again. Then he made one very bad business deal. It’s quite the story. Hope you’ll join us.
  • 18. Short Stories: Rejecting No Doubt & Chappell Roan

    37:58||Season 5, Ep. 18
    This week, it’s pop rock debut rejections. We look at the stories of No Doubt – who rose to superstardom in the late ‘90s, and Chappell Roan – who was born in the late ‘90s. Both known for blending genres – both rejected by their own record labels – both persevered through it all. Hope you’ll join us.Ask Us Anything:Record a Question.Tweet or DM us. Email us: hello@apostrophepodcasts.ca
  • 17. Rejecting Ellen DeGeneres, Part 2

    32:42||Season 5, Ep. 17
    In Part Two of our Rejecting Ellen DeGeneres episode, DeGeneres reads a shocking headline in the trades, Oprah Winfrey and Laura Dern take career hits, and DeGeneres learns to just keep swimming.Ask Us Anything:Record a Question.Tweet or DM us. Email us: hello@apostrophepodcasts.ca
  • 16. Rejecting Ellen DeGeneres

    30:03||Season 5, Ep. 16
    Ellen DeGeneres has 34 Emmy Awards and a Presidential Medal of Freedom to her name. Her talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, ran for nearly 20 years. But back in 1997, DeGeneres was starring in the sitcom Ellen, when she made a historic decision: to come out as gay. Making DeGeneres the first openly gay star of a television show. But what came next, not even her critics could have predicted.You might think you know this story, but take a listen. You may just learn something new. Hope you'll join us.Ask Us Anything:Record a Question.Tweet or DM us. Email us: hello@apostrophepodcasts.ca
  • 15. Meet The Worst Podcast

    37:16||Season 5, Ep. 15
    This week, we’re excited to share a brand-new podcast we think you'll enjoy. From our friends over at Canadaland, meet The Worst Podcast.Hosted by award-winning filmmaker (and noted curmudgeon) Alan Zweig, The Worst Podcast is Canadaland’s first celebrity interview pod. Zweig finds typical celebrity interviews surface-level and predictable, so he found a solution: conversations with notable guests about the worst things in life. Rejection, anyone?In this episode, Zweig sits down with Ron MacLean. Find The Worst Podcast wherever you’re listening right now.Ask Us Anything:Record a Question.Tweet or DM us. Email us: hello@apostrophepodcasts.ca
  • 14. Rejecting A Wrinkle In Time

    32:21||Season 5, Ep. 14
    A Wrinkle In Time has sold 16 million copies worldwide. Time Magazine named it one of the 100 best fantasy books ever written, and the 1962 bestseller is still in print today. But when established author Madeleine L’Engle first pitched the novel to publishers, she was told it was too…strange. 10 years of rejection. 30 rejection letters from editors. One great gesture of renunciation.This rejection story is out of this world.Ask Us Anything:Record a Question.Tweet or DM us. Email us: hello@apostrophepodcasts.ca
  • 13. Rejecting Still Alice

    32:57||Season 5, Ep. 13
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  • 12. Rejecting Yennier Cano

    33:42||Season 5, Ep. 12
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  • 11. Rejecting Sir Harold Ridley (Inventor of Modern Cataract Surgery)

    35:29||Season 5, Ep. 11
    Cataracts are the leading cause of blindness worldwide – 50% of the world’s blindness is a result of cataracts. For 200 years, treatment of the condition involved removing the lens of the eye and substituting the function of that lens with a pair of thick glasses. But in 1949, Dr. Harold Ridley had another idea. What if he replaced the natural lens of the eye with an artificial one? Well, let’s just say the field of ophthalmology didn’t see the vision. Hope you’ll join us.