Several recurring features and segments of the show are defined here.
Audio Cues
Producer Ben often overlays particular audio samples when certain subjects or phrases come up during an episode. By no means is this a complete list, but these are the ones that have been used most often and in multiple episodes.
- The chimes of Big Ben
- "Fingered"
- "It's called Improv"
- "Twisted"
- "Unbreakable"
- "Shhh... Logan is a secret Western!"
- BRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHM
- (ding) right answer
- (buzz) wrong answer
The Box-Office Game
At the end of many episodes, Griffin and David play a game relating to the film under discussion. David uses the Box Office Mojo website to look up the top five earners at the box office for the first weekend of that film's release, and Griffin attempts to name all five, in order. As the game goes on David provides hints until the title is guessed. The game is a good way to think back on what kinds of movies were big in a given year or era. Griffin is a box office savant.
The Burger Report
A glorious feature that has absolutely nothing to do with anything related to the actual purpose of the podcast.
Whenever anyone on the show has a story about seeing a Fame-o eat a hamburger, they can file a Burger Report on the podcast. Recently a hotline for listeners to file Burger Reports via voicemail has been established, and those reports are eligible to air on the show.
To file a Burger Report: call 1-802-8-BURGER and leave a clear, complete, and concise voicemail with the name and perhaps the fame-o-worthiness of the Fame-o, where you saw them eating a burger, and any details you might have on the burger itself.
Burger Reports are included in, but not necessarily limited to, these episodes:
- #046 Lady In The Water (debut)
- #052 Bound
- #054 The Matrix
- #060 Sense8
- #064 Singles (actually a variant called "Orange Twist File")
- #074 Under Siege 2: Dark Territory (in the form of a mostly-written song by Griffin)
- #078 The Abyss (first report filed by a guest)
- #112 The First Blank Check Mailbag
- #139 Avatarland/The Second Blank Check Mailbag (first report from a blankie, via hotline)
- #146 The Third Annual Blank Check Awards (multiple hotline reports)
- #153 Terms of Endearment (from the guest, and a big batch from the hotline)
Episode-Integrated Ad Copy
Early on in the show Griffin demonstrated great enthusiasm for the opportunity to read ad copy during episodes, but advertising was not a part of the podcast until after the show eventually migrated from UCB Comedy to Audioboom.
The ads have frequently taken the form of improvised skits with characters and impersonations. Unlike typical recorded advertisements on podcasts which are quickly skipped past or tuned out, the ad segments on Blank Check are quickly becoming something that Blankies actually look forward to hearing.
Refer to the Advertisements page for a list of episodes with ad copy, as well as descriptions of the bits and characters.
Intro and Outro
In each episode, Griffin reads an opening which incorporates the word "podcast" into a prominent line from the movie. The word "podcast" is usually shouted. Occasionally David participates to set up the line.
At the end of each episode, Griffin uses a closing line, "And, as always..." and then a pithy observation couched in something that came up during the episode's discussion.
On Ben's Choice episodes or other rare occasions, Producer Ben or the featured guest will handle the intro and outro.
Merchandise Spotlight
Griffin is a toy boy, and loves talking about (and spending too much money on) all the movie tie-in merchandise that he can get his hands on. In the Blank Check episodes featuring movies that spawned toys or collectibles or other merchandise items, Griffin will discuss them in a segment called Merchandise Spotlight.
Early on this recurring segment was of course dominated by all manner of Star Wars merchandise but later included many, many other movies including The Matrix, Aliens, RoboCop, and more - even the extremely unlikely Say Anything... with its Lloyd Dobler action figure.
Producer Ben Nicknames
When Griffin introduces Producer Ben by name at some point within each episode, he also lists the nicknames he has given him throughout the history of the podcast. He usually lists the nicknames in the form of "aka Prodoer Ben, aka The Hoz," etc, and takes pride in listing them off the dome without aid of a recorded list.
Refer to the Ben Hosley biography page for a complete list of nicknames and source info.
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