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Culture Freak™ is the leading American & consumer culture studies solution, enabling users to align their intellectual curiosity with their humor needs. Culture Freak 1.0 (print) was introduced in 1995, and the final version, 7.0 was issued in 1999. No further customer support for the print platform is available at this time.

In 1998, in order to meet our clients demands more quickly, and in full color, we introduced culturefreak.com, a robust platform that enables students of history, media, and marketing to explore a variety of seemingly random observations and artifacts from the surreal world that is late 20th- and early 21st-century America. Limited support is available for our most recent version (4.2) of culturefreak.com.

Culture Freak Blog Cabin™, introduced in May 2004, leverages the power of Moveable Type content management to provide a window into the maddeningly serious issues that compose today’s sad reality, as well as our more traditional and humorous CF deliverables, in a real-time environment. Here, our team culture-observing consultants give a 360-degree view of today’s politics, smoke and mirrors, and more.

CF reviews, 1995-2000:

Culture Freak # 3 —  This is an open-eyed look at life in modern America, where chain stores invade every corner of every city, advertising is omnipresent, and television is 'art'.  Brilliant, hysterical riffs on 'Double Stuff Oreos,' working in a pepper mill, and R.J. Reynolds'  purchase of Weekly Reader (will Joe Camel appear on the cover?').  A great read front to back, this is a lot like Beer Frame, only funnier, with less filler, and no boring music reviews. Primo!

— Doug Holland, Pathetic Life (now editor of A Reader's Guide to the Underground Press)

Culture Freak # 3 — 'Imagine if you will, a 50 foot 'Fat Elvis' marching across the few remaining fruited plains.  As he lopes along he holds two six-shooters in his hands, each of which holds an ammunition of Blockbuster video stores, Office Maxes, fake buildings which offer fake food, etc.'  That is Mike's perfect summary for everything that bugs him about the USA.  There are so many faceless corporations and overzealous marketing consultants, that we're choking in a pool of our own sick.  He starts out with the world according to Nabisco and the products that changed the face of cookies forever — double-stuff Oreos.  This lump of sugary lard heralded a cross-product blitz that turned the cookie into no more than a flavor.  KFC Oreo Brownie anyone?  Then in 'Good Chain/Bad Chain,' Mike skewers Blockbuster, Bruegger's Bagels, and Sbarro, but gives Starbucks (!) a hearty endorsement.  What he really want's to see is  the coffee chain combine with Kinko's so he can get all hopped up and work at his 'branch office' all night long.  Job stories, pork bellies futures, Codex Strabismus, it's all here and way cheaper than saying 'Super Size It!') — CWB - Factsheet Five # 60

Culture Freak # 4 — Another killer issue — Michael has just the right cynical edge to deal with this fucked-up world we inhabit.  The zine is indescribable in a short review, so I'll just list some of the contents: 'People I'd Like to See Butchered Like a Hog'; Michael's new job and the evils of chain stores; a review of I Shot Andy Warhol; a funny story about a rental truck, and more. It's packed with stuff that's always fun to read. One of my favorites.

— Joe Gallo,  Zine World

Culture Freak #6 — Cultural havoc is spread all over this fine zine. The writers critique popular culture and its vapid ad campaigns, marketing  strategies, and buyers. Stuff about working for the financial industry, Bottomless Pit Principles, and fucked-up ads. It's frustrating to read something like this and know that most of North America is not monitoring their own stupidity as consumers. If you are looking for another "Adbusters" though, don't let me steer you wrong, this can be much more surreal and freaky.  — MedatMan.com

Culture Freak # 7 — Have you noticed that there are some crazy things going on in the world? You have? Hey, that's good; it means you're not living under a rock. The only way to get from one day to the next (preserving your sanity, I mean) safely is to have a sense of humor. And that's why you need a zine like CULTURE FREAK. At first glance, it looks awfully serious — sort of like one of those "fact sheets" put out by a major corporation when they have to cover up for something they've done. But then you see that, factual through it may be, it's really parodying the insanity rampant around the world. Scattered throughout each issue are "ads" for products that don't exist — at least, they won't until some weirdo marketing person dreams them up! If I have a problem with this zine, it's that you never really know when the next issue is coming out ...That bit of complaining aside, you really ought to stuff $3 in an envelope and send for the next issue. Just don't read it while drinking soda — it's such a terrible feeling to have carbonated liquid shooting out of your nose. — Fred Argoff for Xerox Debt

Culture Freak #7 -  This zine zooms in on everything that's wrong (and really, what's right?) with capitalism, advertising, and trademark law. It's a fun and engrossing read, alternately funny and infuriating, and it'll make you laugh out loud and then leave you muttering under your breath. "Currently, Yahoo! Is trying to sue a group that uses the domain name 'yahooka.com'. Yahooka is a search engine for marijuana links... Oddly enough, they haven't bothered the owners of the search engine 'yahoot.com' or other similar variations. Clearly, Yahoo! Does not like the content of Yahooka. Well, sorry folks, this is a problem. You can't police your trademark solely on the basis of what you do and do not like. If you argue that the Yahooka search engine is an illegal infringement or dilution of your trademark, then the same must be true of the Yahoot! Or Jewhoo! Search engines..." Comes with a huge CF sticker and several smaller stickers either honoring or mocking the Eggo/Hansen joint promotional arrangement — Andrea, A Reader's Guide to the Underground Press

CultureFreak.com — Culture Freak mocks runaway consumerism...It's smart, funny, and he writes the word "fuck" a lot, so it's really a website for all ages. — Fierce.Com [Ed. Note: I don't think I write 'fuck' that often but...]

Executive Leadership
CEO, Curator, Drama Queen -	Tommy Paradise Leisure Consultant Jim Taylor Analyst - beverages, meal solutions, QSRs	Jack VanImpe Biblical Prophecy Rexella VanImpe Platitudes

Copyright 1995-2005, Culture Freak.  Additional materials are used with permission, or within the bounds as written in section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976.

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