Christine Lakin talks new podcast 'Keanan and Lakin Give You Déjà Vu'& 90's Con

[00:00:00] .

[00:00:09] Steve, thank you for joining me today. Pop Culture Unplugged.

[00:00:11] Yeah, thanks for having me back.

[00:00:14] It's exciting times. I listened to our interview from last time. It was about two years

[00:00:18] ago and you've been busy since it's been two. You've been just grinding away, grinding

[00:00:22] away. You've been stopped.

[00:00:24] You know, I don't stop. I'm someone who can't not be busy. I always got my hands on

[00:00:32] something, doing something and after this last year and with the strike and everything,

[00:00:36] I've just been like dredging up old projects, trying to stoke fires, you know, get stuff

[00:00:41] going.

[00:00:42] What's the goal? Do you still want to like, behind the scenes or do you eventually want

[00:00:46] to come back on screen? What do you think?

[00:00:49] You know, I really love directing. I think because it's a little newer to me and so

[00:00:55] I'm itching to do that again but I never say no to acting. It was my first love. I would

[00:01:00] always be happy to get in front of a camera and do a little something. So I never say

[00:01:06] never. No, I'm open to both, you know, whatever kind of comes my way, I suppose.

[00:01:12] There you go. So congrats on the podcast by the way. We're episode two today dropped.

[00:01:16] So two. Yeah, CNN and Lincoln give you day javu.

[00:01:20] Exciting time. Well, what I remember we talked about this about two years ago. You mentioned

[00:01:25] that you were thinking about doing it and you finally did it after two years. Yeah.

[00:01:28] Well, listen, it's difficult because so Stacy came to me. This is a podcast. It's if you

[00:01:33] don't know, it's hosted by myself in the Stacy Keenan. It's a step-by-step rewatch

[00:01:37] podcast but the unique thing about it is Stacy's never seen the show. So she is watching

[00:01:42] the show for the very first time. She never watched one episode of stuff by step. I watched

[00:01:47] every single episode because I was like a super fan. I was 12 when I got on the show and

[00:01:52] I was just like so into TGIS. So it was like my life. So she approached me and said, Hey,

[00:01:57] I thought this might be really fun. Is this something that would interest you? And I said

[00:02:00] with you and I get to just like have more of an appointment to hang out with you more.

[00:02:04] Yeah, absolutely. I think it would be fun because we have very different takes on our memories.

[00:02:11] So but between, you know, she has a job. She's a lawyer and then I was transitioning to

[00:02:15] directing. So we were both just busy at different times. And so it took a minute to wrangle

[00:02:20] it together. And then when we finally got around to recording it, we made appointments

[00:02:24] to do that. And then it sort of stalemated as we had all this content. We thought now what

[00:02:31] now what are we doing with it? We need an editor. We need a person. We need someone

[00:02:34] to help. And it really started to come together when I had lunch with my old buddy Stephen

[00:02:39] Ray Morris, who I just love. He's an amazing podcast producer, very prolific and just a

[00:02:46] really nice person. And I sort of mentioned it to him and his eyes lit up and we all got

[00:02:51] together and it was just kind of gravy from there. But it took it took kind of the right

[00:02:55] combination of people, I think. And I believe this is the second TGIF podcast that drop because

[00:03:01] now we have pod meets world for boy meets world and I'll be have you. That's right. I mean,

[00:03:06] when it's perfect stranger, we get back together. I don't know. Now be a good one to do.

[00:03:10] I rewatch the series again or that one. That would be a great one to do. Yeah. Well,

[00:03:14] and Jody's got how rude Tann arenos. And that's right. Yeah. So you know, we're just we

[00:03:19] need a family matters. We need a hang with Mr Cooper. And we need a we need a perfect

[00:03:24] stranger. So somebody get on that. There you go. From your perspective now like what

[00:03:30] are you hoping the listeners get out of each episode when they tune in every week? Listen.

[00:03:35] Well, I think a lot of people if you're rewatching the show now is an adult or maybe you're watching

[00:03:41] with your kids because you already watched it and now you're finding new content to watch

[00:03:46] with your kids. I think there's a real nostalgia to it. The other part of it is these are

[00:03:51] a lot of the things we talk about and a lot of the behind the scenes things that we remember

[00:03:56] our stories we've never told before. We know them. We remember them but we've never had

[00:04:02] a platform to really talk about what it was like and what people were really like and

[00:04:06] like the nuances of what the day-to-day was like. Or I remember this episode. I remember

[00:04:11] this storyline or so I think it's a lot of that. It's also she and I talk a lot about

[00:04:17] what it was like to grow up in the 90s before social media. So a lot of the pictures

[00:04:22] and the BTS that we share are things no one's ever seen because they're all pictures.

[00:04:27] They were never posted anywhere. Like I have a box of photos that I'm going through every

[00:04:31] week and like pulling stuff out and marveling at the amount of pictures my mother took. Thank

[00:04:37] God she captured all of this. So it was just a much simpler time I think and it was a very unique

[00:04:43] experience sharing that with somebody in a very similar way. Growing up on television but yet

[00:04:50] going back to a real school and being just a regular kid and going through kids that regular kids

[00:04:55] go go through but somehow also kind of in the limelight. So it was weird you know and I think we

[00:05:02] both sort of speak on that with a bit of perspective now. Now are you rewatching each episode two

[00:05:08] right before you've got to record? Do you like remember everything? No I remember that good.

[00:05:14] I am rewatching them right before we record and we take turns kind of recapping.

[00:05:19] And the funny thing is sometimes I remember an episode really well. Like if it was like

[00:05:24] the episode that dropped today was with Julia White and I remember that one really well but

[00:05:29] that was also a very core memory from my 12 year old brain getting getting to do an episode

[00:05:36] and getting to act with Erkle. You know I was such a fan so I remember a lot of the nuance of

[00:05:42] that week. Other episodes not so much probably because I wasn't I didn't have as much of a

[00:05:47] critical role in the storyline and I was probably out at the school you know the school trailer

[00:05:52] with the other kids and goofing off and that kind of a thing. So it's it's funny to remember though

[00:05:58] because sometimes I can remember the punchline before the person says it and I'm also starting

[00:06:03] to watch some of the episodes with my kids who are pretty shady. I mean they have a lot of opinions

[00:06:09] they're like the two old men in you know in the muppets they like to sit there and just comment

[00:06:13] and be like negative about things and there's too much kissing and like why those two people

[00:06:17] keep kissing and you know so they haven't fully appreciated the genius that a step by step yet

[00:06:24] it's okay. How many episodes have you recorded so far? We recorded 1282 for the first season yeah

[00:06:33] so we recorded all of them for the first season already and I think the other part of that was

[00:06:39] we just we were getting into a groove and we wanted to see how it felt and we wanted to listen

[00:06:44] back and see what we could improve on and what we could change and if we liked the format and you

[00:06:49] know stuff like that. So so far so good I definitely think in season two we'd like to have more

[00:06:54] guests on because it's just been the two of us and depending on where we record season two maybe

[00:06:59] we'll do some more video components because we didn't take any video during this was just solely

[00:07:05] just us just recording but the difference is too like some people do their podcast over zoom

[00:07:10] we actually got them in person to do ours which I think is I think it lends to a little bit of

[00:07:15] a different energy in the room personally. Are you planning to drop the like those like did

[00:07:20] you record any video doing the so you got this season two and drop it on YouTube too yeah there might

[00:07:27] be yeah we'll see. So like diving through these 22 episodes so far that you've done did it bring

[00:07:33] up back and like any certain memories you're like oh my god I don't remember like this happened

[00:07:37] like now it sticks out to you more or certain. Oh yeah I mean there was definitely things that I

[00:07:44] when we talked a lot in episode one about them making up the title sequence because it's so iconic

[00:07:50] everyone remembers the roller coaster you know we're all at this like magic mountain

[00:07:55] amusement parks and flags and I remember it buried this really because it was the first two or three

[00:08:01] days on set. So we didn't even know each other we didn't really know our characters we hadn't

[00:08:07] even really rehearsed yet and yet now we're all pretending to be this like family in this theme park

[00:08:11] and we have all these attitudes and like it was just like so out of body in some ways but there were

[00:08:17] things that I forgot about that I didn't know until we were recording that either were told me

[00:08:23] like by my mom or you know we saw Rich Carell who was one of our directors he directed the pilot

[00:08:29] of Step by Step. He reminded us that we were not allowed to ride the roller coaster because it was a

[00:08:33] liability. So instead they had doubles riding the roller coaster I do remember that because I was

[00:08:39] I was definitely disappointed but what I didn't remember was we all stood in the kitchen set of Step

[00:08:44] by Step and we as the kids all recorded the screaming so those are our voices. The we did it in

[00:08:54] post we did it in an 80 yard and I didn't remember doing that but then he said it and I was like

[00:08:59] wait I think you're right he's like I know I'm right I have a picture of it and I was like what like

[00:09:05] oh my god blow my mind you know so did you post that picture yet anywhere? I don't have it he's

[00:09:10] gonna give it to me though or he's gonna send it to me hopefully we'll have him on the pod yeah.

[00:09:14] That's awesome. So like with Step by Step to it also holds like a special place in everybody's heart

[00:09:19] and then you know when they find out that it's available I think it's available on Hulu

[00:09:23] for streaming too. Yeah well it was for a very long time now I know it's on Max and then

[00:09:28] also just found out there's like a complete series DVD box set which I had no idea even existed

[00:09:34] I mean I know a lot of people don't have the DVDs anymore but we were doing some autograph signings

[00:09:39] and a couple people had to sign them and I was shocked and amazed that those actually exist.

[00:09:45] So what do you what do you think about the show? Like still continues on like people

[00:09:48] still want to go back to watch it what do you think pulls them back into the 90s? I mean I'm a

[00:09:51] huge 90s fan too we grew up in that era but like what do you think pulls us in there?

[00:09:56] I think it's this sense there are some shows that stick out from that era and I don't know if

[00:10:01] you can explain exactly what it is but it's almost like you see yourself in that friend group

[00:10:07] in that family it's like you see yourself as maybe a tangential member of the Step by Step

[00:10:13] Family or like you wish you were one of the friends you know or you like you know you feel like

[00:10:19] family matters that whole family could have lived next door you know so I think there's something

[00:10:24] in there that just feels like home it's like a safe place where you don't have to it's funny

[00:10:31] it's you know there's a little bit of like of of tension or like a problem that has to get

[00:10:38] solved but you know at the end of the day these people do love each other and they will figure it

[00:10:43] out so it's kind of like comfort food in a way and I feel like there aren't a lot of shows anymore

[00:10:49] where we can say to that where we can watch with our parents or watch with our elders or watch with

[00:10:53] our whole family and not feel like it's just a show for kids you know so I feel like it's just

[00:10:59] another time in television and I think that's why it just feels so good. You mentioned earlier about

[00:11:05] the 90s and the clothes and everything I was told to ask you and I wrote it right here because I

[00:11:09] didn't want to forget like uh where did you guys get all these cool outfits from that's what they

[00:11:13] want to know and do you still have any of them. You mean that we wore on the show? Yeah well we had

[00:11:20] the costumeers that did all of the costuming for us and I don't think that we kept this was like

[00:11:28] before actors were really keeping memorabilia and things now I think an actor might ask for this

[00:11:34] or ask for that and to be clear like I wasn't thinking it 12 years old like I've got to keep this

[00:11:40] backwards hat like I just wasn't thinking like that now I wish I had it. I wish I had those

[00:11:45] Air Force ones I wore I've been trying to find them um but you know as we got older I mean there were

[00:11:51] things I think at the end of the series that I took but I certainly I certainly didn't keep them

[00:11:57] from nostalgia purposes I wish I had now but some of the outfits some of them I would maybe consider

[00:12:04] if I had them putting on again today but I would say most of them are are maybe not a look I would

[00:12:10] want to repeat. So you mentioned earlier you know we had a the Boy Meets World which is Pop Meets World

[00:12:16] and we have like a the Full House podcast and then we also had Boy Meets World, Girl Meets World

[00:12:23] we had Fuller House from Full House and it's been talks have you guys had talks about me

[00:12:27] trying to do like a some kind of thing with step by step? I mean there have been some rumbling

[00:12:32] about it um I think it's a little complicated because our show had a couple different producers

[00:12:40] it wasn't just Warner Brothers and ABC it was also this other entity called Lormar I won't get into

[00:12:45] it but they don't exist anymore so if these characters were to come back I think it would really take

[00:12:51] a showrunner who had a love of who they are and a real vision for what it could be

[00:12:57] and to get the blessing of the Miller Boyette family uh to go forward and you know revisit

[00:13:04] these characters that they created in a brand new light but do I think that there's room and space

[00:13:09] for it? Yeah and I I think that in the 90s we talked a lot about step by step being that bridge to

[00:13:16] broken families and new friends of families you know a lot of people didn't there weren't a lot

[00:13:20] of TV shows that dealt with divorce um where the kids it wasn't the Brady Bunch the kids didn't

[00:13:25] magically get along we we were you know constantly trying to navigate those relationships and to

[00:13:33] learn how to be a family and learn how to work together and I think that's all too true today

[00:13:38] people live in in commune with people who are there chosen families and people make it work all

[00:13:44] kinds of ways and or not we're not new to the word divorce or separation or you know any of that

[00:13:52] and I think that that's there are new avenues we could really explore in much the same way

[00:13:55] we did in the 90s and I think people love these characters you know oh yeah exactly and now like

[00:14:01] when you start filming season two of the podcast there's a subit that you can't wait to have

[00:14:05] on the show to talk season two and so on oh yeah I'm real excited you know we just had this

[00:14:11] many step by separate union uh with Patrick and Sasha um and myself and Stacy um we were doing

[00:14:20] a memorabilia show a weekend ago and it was it was just so fun to be in the same room again

[00:14:26] and certainly at 90s con in a couple weeks it's gonna be most of us all together um obviously

[00:14:33] missing Suzanne and a great great capacity um but I think that you know Stacy and I both talked

[00:14:40] about all right well people like this and we want to do a season two you know we definitely have

[00:14:44] to ask people on but I mean I can't wait to have Patrick on I can't wait to have Rich Carrille

[00:14:49] on like he remembers everything and he was there behind the scenes like you hold on stuff that we

[00:14:54] weren't even privy to um I can't wait to see Chris Castile and I were super close because we shared

[00:14:59] a school room together from many many years and I dare say we spent more time together in that

[00:15:05] freaking school room then we did even on set so um we had a lot of inside jokes and I just I

[00:15:11] haven't seen the guy in like 30 years so I'm stoked I can't wait to see Brandon call like same thing

[00:15:17] awesome yeah you mentioned Suzanne Summers what's your favorite memory of her with the show and you

[00:15:24] God I have so many good memories I have so many good memories it's still I still can't quite

[00:15:30] wrap my head around the loss it's still like

[00:15:32] it's still really hard um you know and I think about her and I just can't believe that she's not

[00:15:41] with us it's just she was such a bright light and was so positive and so beautiful and seemed like

[00:15:51] like larger than life in so many ways but yet when you would be around her she made you feel like

[00:15:58] you were the most important person in the room she was really gracious and really down to earth and

[00:16:06] and just self-deprecating and um she just leveled the playing field like you can be such a big star

[00:16:13] and you can be so glamorous and like a diva in your own right but you can also make everybody feel

[00:16:19] so loved and so taken care of so I mean I have a lot of memories about her um I I'll share one small

[00:16:26] one that you know this just meant a lot to me um she um we always say C and I especially we love

[00:16:35] to watch what Suzanne would wear because we were young women and we just thought she was the most

[00:16:39] glamorous woman we'd up her met and always would be and so whether she was wearing jeans and cowboy

[00:16:44] boots and turquoise jewelry like we were always like low-key watching her um she I had this was

[00:16:51] the 90s so spice girls were really big and I had these big chunky boots like the spice girls and I'd

[00:16:56] got them on Miller's Avenue and I thought that was so cool and she was like what are these shoes

[00:17:02] and I said oh and I I was so like taken aback that she loved my shoes um and so I told her

[00:17:09] and I told her where they were and she ended up getting them and we like have the same shoes and

[00:17:14] it just I don't I mean I know it sounds really vapid and it sounds really meaningless but to me

[00:17:18] it was such a compliment from somebody who I just so admired in so many ways so really

[00:17:25] her glamour really and her I don't know her open is just always stick with me

[00:17:30] it's really easy you mentioned out like um the 90 90s con I've been there for the last two years

[00:17:36] it's it's a first start of here in the area um have you heard anything about this how crazy it gets

[00:17:41] in a year yeah I've heard some rumors I've never been but a couple people were like all get ready

[00:17:46] like it's loud it's a dance party it's high energy it's a lot of fun so I'm excited I mean

[00:17:55] it sounds like it's gonna be kind of like a high school reunion I know a lot of the people going

[00:17:58] right it would give you a boyfriend's there who knows and what's great is that like people like

[00:18:04] from one show sometimes always like post pictures with people they haven't seen from other shows

[00:18:08] in a long time so yeah it's like a big huge reunion that's all you see all over social media

[00:18:12] those days oh for sure I mean it's like a social media dream you know getting to like see all your

[00:18:18] friends and and that you haven't seen forever yeah seriously it's like a high school reunion

[00:18:23] so many of us a lot of people don't know because we were on shows at the same time

[00:18:27] we a lot of us would end up at the same events even if we weren't on the same network but we would go

[00:18:32] to like charity events and other things so a lot of us did not each other um is are you guys playing

[00:18:38] to do uh Q&A just that by step yeah we're gonna do a step by step panel for sure yeah that's awesome

[00:18:45] what's the one thing you look forward to for this con I think just really getting the whole most

[00:18:50] of the cast back together we haven't all done this before um we've never been really in the same

[00:18:56] room altogether since the show ended so that camaraderie and that joy I mean there really is sort

[00:19:02] of a shorthand like when you've been on a cast for that long with people it doesn't really matter

[00:19:07] how much time goes by you know there's a little bit of that like shorthand it's like it's like not

[00:19:13] it's like having a best friend that you you don't see for 20 years but then you can pick up like

[00:19:17] kind of right where you left off there's that really just comfortable feeling so I'm looking

[00:19:22] forward to that I'm also looking forward to I think all of us I think after Susan's passing it was

[00:19:28] just really timely that this all in some weird way kind of came up and I think you know life is

[00:19:35] short life is short and it's unpredictable and I think the opportunity for us to get together while

[00:19:42] we're all here and while we all can I think is really really important and it's you never are given

[00:19:47] that impetus of how important it is until you lose someone you care about have you talked to the

[00:19:53] other cast members like about doing this kind like you know there's something around even in the

[00:19:57] industry anymore somebody like Stacy you mentioned you know she's now a lawyer in everything or

[00:20:01] being like I think Christopher isn't he a teacher or professor or something yeah he's a professor

[00:20:05] yeah have you talk to them about doing something when they're now they're gonna come and do something

[00:20:09] like this uh yeah I mean it was actually really interesting how it came together because I was

[00:20:15] approached by Jason Marsden and he and I've been friendly over the years he does a lot of different

[00:20:20] cons and he had sort of asked me if I'd ever be interested in doing them and I was always like yeah

[00:20:23] sure I'd love to um and then we start talking about it and I sort of spoke to somebody that he works

[00:20:29] with and then I think because you know I were getting this this podcast together I said to her you

[00:20:36] know that might if we can go to this it might be really wise because I think we'll be able to promote

[00:20:41] the podcast and get people out there so then it was me Stacy and Jason and then the promoter came

[00:20:47] to me and said hey we're trying to find a couple people but we're having trouble and I said well

[00:20:52] I have an old email for Chris like we spoke a couple years ago I could certainly try I don't know

[00:20:56] if he's into it so I kind of wrote an email there kind of the same thing with Patrick they sort of

[00:21:01] tried through the all the various channels but of course I he and I speak so I told him like we

[00:21:08] were going and would he be interested and especially since you know everything that had happened

[00:21:13] in the fall like it just might be really just a really great time to see each other and strangely

[00:21:19] enough it's over his birthday so like what better time to celebrate with him um so he said yes

[00:21:25] and then I guess Chris said yes so suddenly it just all started to like hum together and then

[00:21:29] um they asked uh if I could reach out to Brandon Cole and I I just had lost touch I just didn't have

[00:21:37] any way to contact him and I just didn't think he would be interested and I told them then I said I

[00:21:41] can you know I'll ask his mom I'll just let her know but and you know but I wouldn't get your hopes up

[00:21:47] and then the next thing I heard they had spoken to him and he was he was sort of the last one

[00:21:50] to say yes so it kind of just all it was like a yeah a bunch of dominoes so

[00:21:57] and what's a good way to promote it there too as I noticed that uh the boy boy meets world

[00:22:02] area had uh will had um cards of the podcast with the the scanner things you could scan

[00:22:09] get the podcast so you might want to print those out or bring those so when people get to your table

[00:22:13] they grab them you're so smart already did it yeah there you go see yeah so when you're there

[00:22:18] you got to pick one up for us that's right that's right uh what now what thanks for you now any other

[00:22:24] projects you got coming out or working behind the scenes that you could tell us about yeah um

[00:22:28] I have a couple things in the works I mean you know the industry is slowly grinding the gears

[00:22:34] but it looks like it's gonna be a pretty busy spring um I'm directing a short um for

[00:22:41] uh in in conjunction with Fuji film which I'm really excited about um and I've got a couple

[00:22:49] choreography things sort of percolating um I have a script I'm working on with a friend that

[00:22:55] we're going out to pitch so that's kind of all like my behind the scenes stuff and then

[00:22:59] a bunch of audiobooks lined up you know I do a lot of voiceover and so you can hear

[00:23:04] you constantly hear my voice hopefully I'm not putting people to sleep these days

[00:23:10] uh Christina Huckandell listeners down the viewers that tune in to find you on social media keep

[00:23:15] up with you without everything and of course all your pictures are even posting lately

[00:23:18] yeah of course uh on Instagram I'm yo lakein I'm at you lakein and on um Facebook I'm Christine

[00:23:27] lakein verified easy Christina I want to thank you for giving me a few minutes so we got to do it

[00:23:31] again sooner not two years please yes great to see you as always so