Chasing Chevy Chase Podcast

Episode 24: Vegas Vacation (1997)

The Griswolds hit the Strip in Vegas Vacation (1997), the fourth installment in the beloved National Lampoon series and one that doesn't get nearly enough credit. Mark, Chris, and Mike cash in their chips on this sun-baked comedy that transplants Clark Griswold's particular brand of well-intentioned chaos from the open road to the neon-drenched excess of Las Vegas. Chase is at his most endearingly unhinged here — a man who can lose a fortune at the blackjack table while somehow radiating pure, oblivious optimism — and the guys make the case that this late-era entry deserves a second look from fans who wrote it off as a franchise on fumes.From the Hoover Dam to the casino floor, the trio dig into how Vegas itself becomes as much a character as any Griswold, and whether the film's sharper satirical edge on American excess and gambling addiction sneaks in something smarter than it's given credit for. Chevy Chase fatigue be damned — this one might just hit the jackpot.

Episode 23: Man of the House (1995)

Chevy Chase tries to trade sarcasm for step-dad duty in Man of the House, the 1995 family comedy that pairs him with sitcom royalty and a Tiger Scout troop. Mark, Chris, and Mike dig into Chase’s turn as a well-meaning attorney trying to win over his girlfriend’s skeptical son, played by Jonathan Taylor Thomas at peak mid-’90s fame. Add Farrah Fawcett, George Wendt, and a script credited to Don Calame, and you’ve got a movie engineered for broad appeal—and uneasy laughs.The guys weigh how the film fits into Chase’s post-Vacation trajectory, how it softens his prickly persona for family audiences, and why the culture-clash humor (complete with faux-Native American pageantry) lands differently today. 

Episode 22: Cops and Robbersons (1994)

Mike, Mark, and Chris revisit Cops & Robbersons, a mid-’90s Chevy Chase outing that jams suburban family comedy into a would-be cop thriller. Chase plays Andy Robberson, a lackluster father whose life implodes when a volatile detective (Jack Palance) moves in to surveil a killer (Robert Davi).The discussion looks at where the film sits in Chase’s post-Vacation career, Michael Ritchie’s shaky tonal control, and the odd-couple dynamic between Chase’s flustered everyman and Palance’s granite-jawed intensity. Is this an overlooked curiosity, a misjudged genre mash-up, or just another example of how badly a Chase vehicle can skid without a sharp satirical edge?

Episode 21: Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992)

Chevy Chase takes an unexpected turn into sci-fi thriller territory with Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992). Directed by John Carpenter and adapted from H.F. Saint’s novel, the film follows Nick Halloway (Chase), who becomes invisible after a freak laboratory accident. As he grapples with the perks and pitfalls of invisibility, he also tries to evade ruthless CIA operative David Jenkins (Sam Neill) and connect with Alice Monroe (Daryl Hannah). It’s an ambitious mash-up of comedy, romance, and paranoia that didn’t quite land with audiences or critics at the time but remains one of the oddest entries in Chase’s career. Mike, Mark, and Chris break down the film’s tonal shifts, behind-the-scenes clashes, and its place in both Chase’s and Carpenter’s filmographies.

Episode 20: Vacation (2015)

Mike, Mark, and Chris revisit the 2015 Vacation, a remake-sequel that tries to chart a new path while carrying the Griswold name. They examine how the film reframes Rusty as the next-generation family man, what works (and what doesn’t) in its mix of callbacks and updated comedy, and how the movie handles the legacy of the original series. The trio also considers Chevy and Beverly D’Angelo’s brief return and whether the film earns its place in the larger Vacation lineage.