Somacow

SomaCow is an American Internet radio show created and hosted by Geoff Peace. The hosts address humorous events in their lives, and they also satirize current events, pop culture and other aspects of life. The show bills themselves as "The Greatest Internet Radio Talk Show, Ever."

SomaCow broadcasts live shows online on Friday nights while they record the podcast. Episodes of the podcast are released three times a week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday between midnight and 6am Eastern.

The Program Name

The name "SomaCow" came from Geoff And Co-host Mickey looking for a name that was not registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office or found on Google. Geoff and Mickey were previously part of another podcast entitled "The Syndicate". Due to copyright issues, that name was surrendered.

Geoff's wife Jennifer suggested that the show include the name of an animal because according to her, "everybody loves animals". Geoff then suggested that "Soma" be used to pay tribute to Aldous Huxley.

Hosts

The show is hosted by Geoff, Mickey and J with Ross holding a producer role.

Geoff

Geoff is the creator and host of SomaCow. Geoff directs the flow of each episode and steering the conversation.

Geoff makes adjustments to the format of the show based on user feedback. He also uses the live show chat room to determine the mood of the audience.

Geoff's life is the main focus of the show including major events that he has had to endure. Such incidents include the temporary death of his wife while she was giving birth to their child, the death of his brother, the death of his father-in-law, and remodeling his house.

Geoff reviews a book each week during the Friday episode in a segment called, "The Weekly Constitutional".

Mickey

Mickey says stuff on mic.

Mickey gives life lessons during his segment called, "Life Coaching With Mickey".

J

J came in as a guest. During the first live show, Geoff determined that a third person was needed to help with the overall flow of the show. J was asked if he wanted to become a full member of the SomaCow podcast and joined during the second week of recording.

J does the NewsBomb.

Jen

Jen was the producer of Geoff and Mickey's former podcast, and remained in that role during the name change. She was a silent producer and rarely spoke during the show. Jennifer is currently on maternity leave.

Ross

When Jen the producer took a leave of absence from the show, Geoff and Mickey asked Ross if he would like to join the SomaCow podcast. Ross had been interested in radio and internet radio for a long time and welcomed the opportunity.

The Heard

The fan base of the SomaCow podcast and live show are referred to as The Heard

ChrisP

ChrisP began emailing the hosts of SomaCow in November of 2007 to inform them that J had made a mistake regarding the ingredients of Tootsie Rolls. Since then, ChrisP (aka Chris from Philly, Chris from Deleware, Chris from PhiliDeleJersorkimore) has sent in his thoughts on each show.

MustangSally and Shiva

MustangSally and Shiva are fixtures in the SomaCow live show chat. Shiva has been a guest on the show on two occasions. His first appearance was to give a tarot reading for the hosts which resulted in the largest live audience in teh shows history. MustangSally is quick witted and often keeps the hosts themselves entertained.

SeaDad

Seadad is a member of the armed forces who is stationed overseas. He was responsible for having a flag flown over a United States Naval vessel in honor of SomaCow.

Randolph Lalonde

Randolph Lalonde began listening to the show and enjoyed Geoff's book reviews. As a self publishing author, he seized the opportunity to get the word out AbOUT the book that he had written. He sent several books to the members of the SomaCow podcast. SomaCow also conducted the first interview with Randolph Lalonde about his science fiction titles. .

Live Shows

In the beginning, SomaCow was broadcast live through ShoutCast.

Live shows went from audio-only stream to video broadcast over Ustream.tv in January of 2008.

Notable Segments

The show has several features each week that include "The Weekly Constitutional", "Life Coaching With Mickey" and "The NewsBomb".

There are also a number of running jokes and inside references.

The Weekly Constitutional

As a child, Geoff was an avid reader. He consistently reads about two books a week, depending on the size. Many of the listeners responded to quips and subtle references to books that Geoff had read. One audience member suggested that Geoff should reviews books as a spotlight segment.

The intro to "The Weekly Constitutional" includes sound drops of Roger the Alien from American Dad, because several audience members remarked how much Roger and Geoff sounded alike.

Life Coaching with Mickey

One day Geoff and Mickey were watching The Soup and saw a clip from Dr. Phil. Mickey remarked how incredibly stupid Dr. Phil's advice was and Mickey believed anyone who could speak could be a life coach. Geoff challenged him to come up with some advice for the listeners.

The NewsBomb

J takes center stage to present big stories that are occurring in the news. The news stories are often peppered with off color humor and subtle innuendos.

The News Bomb was created by Mickey as a way to vent his frustration at an impending lawsuit. When Geoff and Mickey were part of a podcast called "The Syndicate", they received a Cease and Desist letter from a lawyer representing a promotions company who owned the trademark for "The Syndicate". The lawyers name was Nuesbaum. It was originally a break during each episode where the hosts would mock a current headline. Mickey would discuss world news, Geoff would give his take on sports, and J would discuss entertainment news.

Due to the recording and release schedule, Geoff felt that the headlines were old by the time the podcasts were released. The schedule was changed to only have the News Bomb segment during the Monday episode. Again, due to audience feedback, Geoff handed full control of the News Bomb to J as his weekly spotlight.

Achievements

Ustream iPhone App

In early 2009, SomaCow was named one of the featured shows for the newly introduced Ustream iPhone App .

Top Orlando Twitters

The Orlando Sentinel listed SomaCow as one of the city's top Twitter users .

Rock For Hunger

SomaCow helped local charity Rock For Hunger raise awareness to help feed poor and homeless people in Orlando .

Top 10 Comedy Podcast

SomaCow was voted one of the top 10 Comedy Podcasts at Podcast Alley

Top Podcast

Listed as the top Podcast on Tallstreet.com

Independent Portal

Listed in the IndieBible as an independent music portal under SCOW from Orlando, Florida.

Mahalo Approved

Listed on the Podcast Page on Mahalo as an approved Podcast Networks, Directories, and Popular Shows

Published Review

Critical Review of Science Fiction author Randy LaLonde Spinward Fringe Series included on back of jacket

Podcast Education

The staff of SomaCow have helped teach locals, including Connecticut School of Broadcasting graduates, how to podcast.

External links

• The Official SomaCow Website - show archive and a blog to correspond with each episode.
• SomaCow Forum - The official SomaCow Forum.