The Ceiling Fan
The Ceiling Fan is a fan podcast inspired by Adventures in Odyssey, the popular Evangelical Christian-themed radio drama/comedy series created by Focus on the Family in 1987. The first episode was uploaded on Friday, August 1st 2008. The episode included the voices of show creator Kevin McCreary and his friend Charlie Roth. Both worked as interns for Focus on the Family that summer.
Contents |
Mission
According to the Ceiling Fan's website, it claims to be a satirical Adventures in Odyssey fan podcast. The goal of this podcast is to both entertain current and past fans of the Focus on the Family show Adventures in Odyssey and to spread the word about Adventures in Odyssey to those who have never listened.
Format
The Ceiling Fan is made up of two primary segments:
- The Ceiling Fan Odyssey News Update: the part of the show where a humorous, tongue-in-cheek news report is given about made-up events in the town of Odyssey.
- Odyssey with Ethan: Originally the part of the show where the host, Ethan Daniels, gives his perspective on Odyssey and related... and sometimes not so related material, but has transformeed into a part of a continous storyline, different every season.
Background and Development
The Ceiling Fan was started by Kevin McCreary in the summer of 2008 during his internship at Focus on the Family. Kevin is quoted as saying:
It started out as a response to Odyssey fan podcasts. Not that the other podcasts were bad, but I wanted to provide something different; something that might inspire creativity.
This first episode was simply entitled, “Episode One” and it contained a fast past intro which began with a countdown followed by an explosion sound with a radio announcer style voice saying, “The switch has been flipped, The Ceiling Fan is on.” The music then leads into the shows “Host,” Ethan Daniels, introducing himself and welcoming the listeners. This intro was preceded by a slight remix of the original intro music of Adventures in Odyssey. After the music, the show fades into an Onion style news report about how KYDS Radio is shutting down after investigators found the Imagination Station was in direct violation of FCC standards. After the News report segment ends, music leads the show back to Ethan Daniels, where he cleverly announces and upcoming event in the real world of the Odyssey radio show, by telling people not to attend.
The format of the original episode has remained the basic format of most of the shows following, with a few changes and adjustments from show to show. For example, the intro is slightly different each show, though it always contains some variation of the Odyssey intro remix.
The voices have developed over the episodes as well. In the first episode, Ethan Daniels had a similar voice to Rodney Rathbone, a highly mischievous character in Adventures in Odyssey. However in more recent episodes the voice of Ethan has developed to a more kid-like-voice, with many of his own original mannerism. Tom Artichoke, the chief news correspondent in the shows news segment was originally spoken by Charlie Roth in the very first episode, but was replaced by show contributor, Mark Jones in all episodes following.
While the very first episode was written, directed, produced and voiced by Kevin McCreary, Mark Jones began contributing to every episode thereafter. Thus expanding the shows creativity and quality. In episode 7, the show introduced a new character named Phil Jinkus, who is voiced by Mark Jones and is said to be the new co-host of the show. Though the show is an Odyssey Fan podcast, It tends to differ from other fan podcasts. Kevin McCreary said this: “The other podcasts are already doing what they do, so I don’t want to step on their turf. I want this to be a show, not about odyssey, but about a boy named Ethan who happens to be a huge odyssey fan.” The show often shows the characters’ lives “off-mic.” This gives the audience a look at the characters, when they are not doing their podcast.
Main Characters
- Ethan Daniels
- Phil Jinkus
- John Watsonburger
- Tom Artichoke
- Intern James (Beginning Season 2)
- Intern Aaron (Beginning end of Season 2)
- Uncle Bernie (Season 3)
Contributors
- Kevin McCreary: Writer, Producer, Director, Sound Design, Voice of John Watsonburger, Ethan Daniels, and additional voices.
- Mark Jones: Writer, Producer, Director, Voice of Tom Artichoke, Phil Jinkus, and many others.
- Lara Eller: Voice talent of Ethan Daniels’ mother
- Ivanna Gorla: Voice talent of Phil Jinkus’ mother
- Ariel Sepala: Voice of local parent Angela Bryson in Episode 4 and News Corresponded Trish Lesley in episode 6.
- Charlie Roth: Original voice of Tom Artichoke (currently developing other shows for Tadpole radio)
- Cody Fields: News Reporter
- Loren Crisp: Artist, Writer, Voice of James the intern, Robert Skeed, Hank Conway, and others.
- Garrett Vandenberg: Writer, composer, producer, musician, Voice of Intern Aaron and others.
- Jacob Isom: Website Consultant, Graphic Designer, Promotions for The Ceiling Fan
- Tracy Lyn Holland: Voice of Jessica
Guests and Interviews
- Katie Leigh, voice of Connie Kendall
- Nathan Hoobler, writer/director
- Dave Griffin, voice of Jimmy Barclay
- Chris Grubb, "the hand guy"
- Josh Shepherd (uncredited), former Assistant Manager of Product Marketing at Focus on the Family
- Charlie Roth, co-creator
- Loren Crisp, voice of Robert Skeed, James the intern, Hank Conway, and others
- Jacob Isom, webmaster of The Odyssey Scoop fan site
- Joanna Crisp, voice of Summer Summers, and girl at the pound.
Recurring themes and Running jokes
The Ceiling Fan intro changes every episode, yet still contains the same elements of previous shows. Almost a remix of a remix. The shows main character, Ethan Daniels, often implies that he has a crush on voice actor for Adventures in Odyssey, Katie Leigh. He is heard making references to hoping to meet her. He asked Nathan Hoobler for her number. He was heard attempting to chase her down during his visit to Colorado Springs. Ethan Daniels often taunts listeners by claiming to be the biggest Odyssey fan ever, yet consistently displaying his ignorance about the show. This has led to many listeners becoming very upset with Ethan, which then encourages him to continue the taunting. In the very first episode he made this claim and then followed it up the next episode by reassuring the doubters it was true. He also attempted to get Nathan Hoobler to confirm the claim in their interview. More recently, Ethan announced that he had started a poll on The Ceiling Fan Blog where fans could vote for the biggest fan. However, fans were disappointed when they got to the site when they found that Ethan was the only choice on the pole. The description of every episode through episode 22 began with “The very…” followed by the number of the episode. Ethan Daniels tends to tell lies. He also displays his ignorance to most everything. He can be pushy and insistent to others to help him without regard to their needs. Fans have often contacted Kevin with complaints about something Ethan has said or done. Kevin is known for responding to these emails and messages telling them to take the matter up with Ethan and not him. Phil Jinkus tends to be a typical 25-year-old loser, yet Ethan thinks he is the coolest guy ever.
Tadpole Radio and Kmap Studios
Every episode ends with the announcement that “The Ceiling Fan is a presentation of Tadpole radio…and is produced by Kmap studios.” Tadpole Radio is an entertainment group focused on podcasts. Kevin McCreary and Charlie Roth founded Tadpole Radio. The group currently only has one show, The Ceiling Fan, but it has announced the development of two other shows, The Tadpole and The Man Outstanding in His Field. The name Tadpole comes from the name of one of the main characters of the upcoming show The Tadpole (which is the first show idea that inspired the creation of the group. The show is being written by Charlie Roth) The Characters name will be Tyson Avery Davis, but his friends call him TAD and his mother called him her little tadpole. Therefore, the group’s name is a tribute to the show. Kmap Studios, is an audio production company founded and ran by Kevin McCreary. The name is an acronym meaning Kevin McCreary Audio Productions. The Company mainly focuses on projects relating to podcasting and audio drama.
Episodes
| Number | Date | Link | News Report Headline | Odyssey with Ethan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 08/01/08 | Listen | KYDS Radio faces legal trouble | About the upcoming live show |
| 02 | 08/22/08 | Listen | Rapper, “Ice Cream” gets the cold shoulder in Odyssey | Interview with Odyssey writer Nathan Hoobler |
| 03 | 09/03/08 | Listen | Eugene Meltsner is chased by police. | Ethan’s adventure to Colorado Springs to see BTV: Live |
| 04 | 09/22/08 | Listen | Odyssey Coyotes baseball team gets 2 balls and one strike | Announcements of upcoming Odyssey products |
| 05 | 10/10/08 | Listen | Gang violence escalating in Odyssey | Ethan celebrated his 5th podcast by having an extra long show. He interviewed a lifelong fan of Odyssey, Chris Grubb, who had a special talent. He also interviewed a few voice actors who didn’t quite make the cut when it comes to working for Odyssey. |
| 06 | 10/29/08 | Listen | Fictional town of Odyssey may not be as fictional as we all thought | Contained an interview between Ethan Daniels and Kevin McCreary |
| 07 | 11/15/08 | Listen | Ignorant Americas make history | Introduced Phil Jinkus and discussed the recent election |
| 08 | 11/27/08 | Listen | A special Thanksgiving episode: A discussion with the creators of the show, Kevin McCreary and Mark Jones about what they are thankful for | |
| 09 | 12/21/08 | Listen | No toys at Harding’s toys; where will we buy Christmas now? | A special Christmas special parodying the Charles Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol, as only The Ceiling Fan can. |
| 10 | 01/11/09 | Listen | Odyssey is under attack | Celebration New Years and ten episodes. |
| 11 | 01/28/09 | Listen | Wonderworld Treehouse Visited by its Creator. | A Day in the life of Ethan Daniels |
| 12 | 02/12/09 | Listen | It's Electric!!! | Special interview with Katie Leigh. |
| 13 | 02/22/09 | Listen | Whit's end is near | Interview with Kevin McCreary and Charlie Roth creators of The Tadpole |
| 14 | 03/20/09 | Listen | A clown sets a local resident off at Burger World, causing a completely chaotic scene. | Ethan and Phil announce the start of their new Odyssey tribute band, M'KALISTER PARK. |
| 15 | 05/09/09 | Listen | N/A | It's time for Ethan Daniels to overcome his nerves as his new band, M'KALISTER PARK, steps up to the stage in the local high school talent show. But will celebrity guest judge Dave Griffin (voice of Jimmy Barclay on Adventures in Odyssey) be the cause of failure for their budding band? |
| 16 | 05/24/09 | Watch | In The Ceiling Fan's first video podcast, the mayor of Odyssey signs a stimulus package for a Trickle Lake bailout, but the town may be getting themselves into deep water. | Join Kevin and Mark in the "studio" as they talk about the production process. |
| 17 | 07/20/09 | Listen | Something fishy seems to be going on at Waneright plastics. | Meanwhile, Ethan hosts the top ten ceilingfan moments of season 1 |
| Number | Date | Link | News Report Headline | Odyssey with Ethan |
