by Patrice Downing, Contributing Writer
Have you ever driven by a repurposed building and in the back of your head giggled with nostalgia thinking about the original restaurant it housed? Trapezoidal windows topped with a bright hat-like roof could only mean one thing: That’s right, the Bud Hut dispensary of Walsenburg, Colorado. Okay, yeah, obviously it used to be a Pizza Hut. The story of the eclectic group of entrepreneurs repurposing these iconic standalone buildings across America, preserving a very specific time in our culinary history is an interesting one. But what do symmetrically off-kilter windows have to do with a film following a friendship between an elderly widow and a scarlet cephalopod? Good question: nothing! Absolutely nothing. However, the road that led me to discovering the history of how these magnificent, red-roofed buildings became part of America’s architectural zeitgeist most certainly does. If it’s your first time here, allow me to explain. I am a ravenous devourer of documentary content. Almost anytime I watch a show or movie, I follow up with a trip down the fact-finding rabbit hole in search of the tiny kernels of truth that have burst into that engaging story. In this particular case, after starting a rewatch of the underseen gem, Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place, I went on a bit of a dig into the popularity of pizza. Starting by revisiting the many pizza-centric offerings available on Weird History Food’s YouTube channel and ending with the 2024 documentary Slice of Life: The American Dream. In Former Pizza Huts., where I learned of the oodles of businesses calling prior Huts home. Featured toward the tail end of this zesty little doc is Mike Neilson. This clever creative began the Used to Be a Pizza Hut website back in 2008, where users can search, add, and upload pictures of past Pizza Hut parlors where you can also view the aforementioned Bud Hut. Among the diverse collection of companies sporting the iconic identifiable windows are funeral homes, car dealerships, a Domino’s, credit unions, After Dark Adult Store of Muncie, Indiana, and of course The Rooster’s Call. Now, that last one could have gone either way from the picture posted to the site but I’m happy to report it is one of Kalamazoo, Michigan’s many wonderful ways to wrangle yourself a waffle. Armed with all this admittedly useless but nonetheless amusing knowledge of historical pizza lore, it’s time to switch gears and turn to the sea. No, “C” as in cephalopods, actually I guess sea works too. Either way, let’s dive in and begin our next journey by filtering through the flotsam, jetsaming junque, and exploring the expanse in search of the Fact on Fiction.
This time we’re jumping down the rabbit hole (maybe more like diving into a crevasse?) to learn more about our surreptitious cephalopod amicus, the octopus. As the plot of the new Netflix release Remarkably Bright Creatures centers around the bond formed between a human character and a sea creature on display, there were a couple ways to go with my recommendation. First I thought to just go straight up, scientific fact-packed, let’s learn about these aliens of the ocean on a biological level. How do they hunt, learn, hide, evade, and reproduce? If a study in cephalopod is what you want, look no further than the 2024 miniseries Secrets of the Octopus. Narrated by the endlessly charismatic Paul Rudd and told in 3 parts each focusing on a specific aspect of octopus life (Shapeshifters, Masterminds, and Social Networkers). Enjoyable delivery, crisp cinematography, and in-depth aspects of all parts of the eight-legged creatures’ life cycle are covered. It felt less like learning and more like tagging along on a research expedition, but 3 episodes may be a bit much for some, and I get that. So, I thought, maybe My Octopus Teacher is more digestible and equally relevant. Thought provoking for sure, though perhaps more psychological than biographic in tone. But you know what? If there are two things I think can always be said of this article series it is: You’re gonna learn something new and hopefully have a little fun doing it. My Octopus Teacher may be a lot of things (Oscar winner for one); however, I don’t think fun would even crack the top ten words I would use to describe my viewing experience. To be clear, I am absolutely not saying that’s a bad thing. I just had a little something different in mind.
2025’s Octopus! has it all! It is the perfect mix of science, psychology, culture, creativity, and of course quirk…can’t forget the quirk. Narrated by the phenomenal Phoebe Waller-Bridge, this two-part docuseries balances scientific exploration into the unique abilities of octopuses (and yes octopuses is correct and appears to be used more commonly in scientific circles) while dipping their toes into the psychology of why humans find them so fascinating. Waller-Bridge provides some of the more comedic moments, but she isn’t the only off-kilter presence enlightening us about the enigmatic magicians of the deep. Allow me to introduce you to Dr. Jenny Hofmeister, Senior Environmental Scientist Specialist for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife in San Diego. Hofmeister is quite the character herself. We meet her as she is plugging away on an octopus quilt; later in the doc, we join her as she’s getting tattooed in tentacles. I promised you quirk, and she is the perfect person to pair with the dry but droll delivery of Waller-Bridge’s voiceover. These two loquacious ladies had me giggling all the way from the docks to ocean depths as they guide an exploration of both the physical and social impacts of the titular intrepid invertebrates. But they aren’t the only connective tissue woven throughout the series. We need to talk about Doris. No, Doris is not another biologist, an interviewee, or even…well, living. Ooh, nice try, not a boat either. Doris is an octopus dramatized through the use of gloriously textured stop motion reminiscent of the sequences found in Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. As the episodes progress, so does Doris as we see her flow through the circle of life from a tiny rice-sized paralarva, bursting free from an egg to her eventual death following her own eggs hatching. Much like the yarns, wools, and burlaps used to craft the crimson cephalopod, her story is richly textured, adding another layer of interest throughout both episodes. Overall, an interesting and informative watch, filled with impressive footage of octopuses showing off their almost CGI-looking ability to adapt to their surroundings.
And with that we have reached the end of this investigative journey into the titans of camouflage, octopods. I hope you enjoyed the adventure and will join me again next time as I sift out the silt, rummage beneath the waves, and probe throughout the oceans of content in my quest to find the Fact on Fiction.
You can read more from Patrice Downing, and follow her on Serializd and Letterboxd