The CN Tower is now as old as Hip Hop…which is wild.
Hip Hop officially celebrated its 50th anniversary on August 11, 2023. 50 years later from that humble DJ Kool Herc jam in the Bronx, it’s impossible to even contemplate a world without Hip Hop. Hip Hop is the universal crayon that has coloured every aspect of our pop culture from music to movies to fashion to swagger to language and so much more.
It’s practically impossible to imagine a world without hip hop culture. A world without hip hop is like Toronto without the CN Tower…it’s just always been there. I had the fortunate experience to check out And Mark’s documentary is startling because there’s footage of Toronto It breaks your brain…it’s unfathomable. No matter where I am downtown I dance with the CN Tower like characters romping through a musical. We play hide and seek from behind certain buildings. It effectively measures distance — what Grover professionally terms as Near and Far. When your travels have taken you away from the city and you return, it’s a warm greeting. With all the upsetting changes in Toronto — oh god: we’ve all lost so much — it remains a fixed constant. A timeless, comforting bulwark against all the careless gentrification. The CN Tower is a Canadian North Star. Happy 50th birthday to the CN Tower.
And it is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2026.
Which, like Hip Hop, has coloured my entire happy world.
You can celebrate the CN Tower’s birthday on Saturday, September 19: The Tower That Built a City is playing at Hot Docs Cinema.
And that special screening is of course… #PantsWorthy.
Here is your handy August Pop Culture Radar: a cultural almanac that edges into sweet September events.
August 21–23: Serling Fest 2026 — The annual three-day celebration honors the legacy of legendary Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling in his hometown of Binghamton, New York. Hosted by the Rod Serling Memorial Foundation, there’s expert panel discussions, live readings of Serling’s vast TV work and just general fan connection and community. This is the 10th Serling Fest and I’ve always wanted to go…oh and 10, so far. (More on this? Check out #EarJoy below.)
Big Apple Pizza — “To our Canadian neighbours: New York City is ready to welcome you.” Hah, NYC spelled neighbours with a U…colour me impressed. NYC’s Northern Neighbour Deal is an attempt to lure Canadians back to NYC. You hafta be drunk or high or dumb to give up joints like NYC for 4 years over some phony Canadian solidarity because President Trump issued some silly comments. Unlike Regina NYC has been good to me. Oh man...if only the dollar was better. NYC is always #PantsWorthy.
August 27–30 is Fan Expo Canada — Comic Convention Season > Wedding Season. One of the largest nerdfests in North America will be unfolding in downtown Toronto next weekend. I’ll be issuing a proper Fan Expo dispatch in this space, soon.
I’ll have a My Summer Lair booth on Friday, August 28. I’d like to believe I am #PantsWorthy. (But if you show up without pants, I’m also pleased: #DownWithPants!)
Next Guest Needs No Selection: “Netflix will roll out the next season of David Letterman’s interview show My Next Guest Needs No Introduction later this year…”
7 seasons in, I still don’t grasp how Letterman’s interview show My Next Guest picks guests. I saw Letterman live with Mellencamp at Tribeca in 2023. That interview has never been broadcast. Was it just for fun? Letterman and Will Arnett were on stage last month at Just for Laughs in Montréal. Yet Arnett isn’t listed in this upcoming season. So yeah, I don’t understand this selection process. Therefore, if you see a Letterman live show? Go!You Suck: The Toronto Star is reporting: “Research suggests Kremlin-backed content farms and popular American influencers are increasingly flooding social media with content boosting the Alberta separatist movement.” Yeah. It’s not the algorithm. It’s you.
You can click on anything you want online...and that’s what you decided to click on?!
You can forward or share anything you want online...and that’s what you decided to share?!
The problem is strictly you. Don’t blame others for your stupidity.
2 Guys Who Battled Rocky: On September 8, Netflix will stream Mr. T: I Pity the Fool. Word, Mr. T got a Last Dance. He is currently in remission and you’d think if anybody was gonna beat cancer it was gonna be Mr. T. Well to that victory list add Dolph Lundgren, who is now cancer free but also has a documentary coming out this October. Details on his doc: Dolph: Unbreakable and his cancer fight are covered in this EW interview. I’m 100% IN for the Mr. T doc and later, Dolph’s doc.
Wake Me Up Before You TV TV: Wham! 10 Days In China will be broadcast on the BBC on August 29 at 9 p.m. and it’ll stream on iPlayer.
I know…we’re not British (even though I drink a lot of tea). But this compelling Cold War/Pop doc is now on TV and as soon as there are any US and/or Canadian broadcasts I’ll let you know. (More on this? Check out #EarJoy below.)Retro Watch: Ramy: Seasons 1-3 has jumped from Hulu (and Crave) to CBC Gem.
When it was broadcast on Hulu, I described Ramy: Season 1 as Atlanta but like set in New Jersey and with Muslims. The official description is: “Ramy Hassan is a first-generation Egyptian-American who is on a spiritual journey in his politically divided New Jersey neighborhood. He becomes caught between a Muslim community that thinks life is a moral test and a millennial generation that believes life has no consequences.” Oh, that’s much better.
Be sure to look out for Dave Merheje over the 3 seasons…dude’s fresh!The Apple Never Falls Far From The TV: Apple TV is gonna have a strong Fall: Season 6 of Slow Horses kicks off on Wednesday, September 16 while Bad Monkey: Season 2 is expected on December 2nd. And finally—finally!!—Murderbot: Season 2 is in production (shooting in Toronto. Though unlike Reacher you won’t recognize any key locations.)
I highly recommend all 3 TV shows: they cover an incredible range from sci-fi to spycraft to…I dunno what genre Bad Monkey is. Sassy noir?
If all you know from Apple is Ted Lasso or Shrinking, fire up any of those 3 shows…you’re welcome.
Trial By Trailer #1: Bust out your best bucket hat: this is not a pop culture “Oasis,” this is a documentary about the recent Stop Crying Your Heart Out reunion tour.
Oasis returned to live shows after 16 years…is this a break or a break up? And this documentary covers that whole Supersonic glorious return as if it was all a Masterplan. The doc on these British Rock ‘n’ Roll Stars is by Steven Knight, the Peaky Blinders, dude: D’You Know What I Mean?
So if you know what a Wonderwall is, chances are you’ll check this out on September 11. Sammy Verdict: I’m 100% IN.Trial By Trailer #2: Linkin Park: Unshatter looks fascinating: “After seven years, Linkin Park’s surviving members reunite with two new bandmates to forge a path forward following Chester Bennington’s death.”
Like, Queen and INXS have struggled: you can’t replace Freddie Mercury or Michael Hutchence as easily as you do burnt out lightbulbs. So, how do you keep going? And not ruin all the magic you had before? Sammy Verdict: I’m 100% IN; I wanna learn about their Hybrid Theory. Release Date: September 30, 2026.Weird Al Yankovic: Tiny Desk Concert: How is Weird Al not in the Rock Hall of Fame?! It’s just getting rude at this point.
They Live: “These monsters have been living in my head long enough.” That’s how John Carpenter introduces Cathedral, his first original graphic novel. His compelling quote is a reminder: Sometimes ya gotta percolate before ya can circulate. You can read the Storm King graphic novel online at Hoopla. (If you have a library card.) Yo. This #NewBookSmell is someTHING special.
75 Years Of Catching Kids: The NY Times wrote: Holden Caulfield, the Ultimate Adolescent, Is Turning 75. One of my favourite novels. I’m long overdue to reread it.
Currently Reading: Voice-A-Versa by Billy West. Who is your favourite Futurama character? Obviously it’s not Zoidberg! (Shots fired...) If a fresh Futurama season (now streaming on Hulu) reminds you how brilliant Billy West is...Good News Everybody! Billy also voiced Ren & Stimpy, Bugs Bunny in OG Space Jam against Michael Jordan and more. I haven’t gotten to those pop culture chapters yet. I’m impatiently at the start of his journey. It’s dark and it’s rough…I don’t know much about him. Anyways, just a Nixon head’s up for this #NewBookSmell.
Fast & Furious: To celebrate its 25th anniversary, Universal Pictures has re-released the 2001 original The Fast and the Furious in cinemas for a limited theatrical run starting August 21, 2026. I wrote about Fast & Furious in 2026: We Built This: A Gen X Manifesto of New Gods. Easily one of my favourite My Pal Sammy dispatches. It’s in yo’face, it’s true and it needed to be said. We want thanks, yo.
Twilight Zone & Rod Serling: Nicholas Parisi is a speaker at Serling Fest 2026. He wrote Rod Serling: His Life, Work and Imagination. Nicholas was an MSL guest and I’ve written about Twilight Zone in previous My Pal Sammy newsletters: Droning On About the Twilight Zone and Timeless Tales & Galactic Hope: A Journey Through (60 Years of) Time & Space.
Wham! 10 Days in China!: While we impatiently wait for the TV roll out of the documentary, you can enjoy: A Cold War Careless Whisper: Inside Wham! 10 Days in China. One of the most popular My Pal Sammys I issued in 2026. It features an interview with the doc’s director: Mike Christie.
Sigh. Summer is practically over. The CNE is now open and the CNE bandshell has offers a plethora of musical guests running from August 21 to September 6.
Headliners include Lupe Fiasco, Lights, Shaggy, Finger Eleven, Bif Naked, Bran Van 3000 and yes, lots more. There’s something for you on this list.
Just don’t be dazzled by all the bright lights in the big city or the tanned girls in their Summer clothes.
Rather...look down.
There are tickets to be found and claimed on the sidewalk...on the closed roads...all around as you wander the CNE getting your 10K steps in.
Free tickets waiting to be claimed for attractions like Haunted Mansion. Save yourself money and have a good time.
Last time I visited the CNE, I found a handful of tickets waiting in line for ketchup ice cream. Look down...your focus is your fate.
And? Should you fail to find any tickets for your efforts...that’s okay you can still impress your date by gently kicking broken glass outta her way.
“Do you know what he did the first time I went out with him? We were walking across that 7-Eleven, and he pointed out some glass to walk around. And I always think of that when people ask me what I’m doing with Lloyd Dobler.”
Get down...that’s the best way to do the CNE.
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Sammy Younan
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Sammy Younan is the affable host of My Summer Lair podcast: think NPR’s Fresh Air meets Kevin Smith: interviews & impressions on Pop Culture.
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