Adoption Pop!

Virgin River Season 7 (2026) – Adoption on the Small Screen

E024 | Virgin River Season 7 (2026) – Adoption on the Small Screen What do you get when you take sweeping mountain views, added to a fictional town of 627 people, with a magical sprinkle from the vivid imagination of a showrunner who is also a proud adoptive parent? You get the wildly problematic, seventh season of the cozy Netflix drama, Virgin River. Listen in as podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer read between the lines of this Pop! Star favorite: thank you to Dalia, Lisa, and Karri for suggesting! Virgin River is based upon the books by Robyn Carr. Season 7 Episode 7, "It Takes a Village" was directed by Ruba Nadda, and written by Becky Hartman Edwards, Robyn Carr, and Ildiko Susany. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on May 20, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: Throughout this episode, Sullivan mistakenly refers to the showrunner as "Sean Patrick Smith," as he is named in one of the articles. His name is actually "Patrick Sean Smith." We apologize. (If only everyone were such sticklers for accurate representation). Nellie Andreeva, "'Virgin River' Showrunner on Shocking Season 7 Life & Death Cliffhanger, Mel & Jack's Adoption Journey, Medical Utopia, LGBTQ Representation, & More [https://deadline.com/2026/03/virgin-river-season-7-cliffhanger-mel-jack-adoption-1236746739/]," Deadline (March 12, 2026) John Griffiths, "Life with Fathers [https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/news/features/life-fathers]," televisionacademy.com (June 18, 2015) The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website [https://adoptionpop.com/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/adoptionpoppodcast/], TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@adoptionpop], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLraFKUgqhSF3BWagNt9Grw], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/0ZXqHStGmjCTKSAxUzCWpY?si=77fe1fcb532c4a1f], and Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/adoption-pop/id1853725752]. Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com [http://adopteeson.com/] and on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/haleyradkepodcaster], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/haleyradke], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@haleyradke]. Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net [https://kristalparke.net/], on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/people/Because-Shes-Adopted/61551013663413/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial]. Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com [https://sullivansummer.com/] and on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thesullivansummer/].

Law & Order "Charity Case" (2007) – Adoption on the Small Screen

E023 | Law & Order "Charity Case" (2007) –Adoption on the Small Screen For more than 30 years, the people of New York City have been represented by two separate, yet equally important groups: the police, who investigate crime; and the district attorneys, who prosecute the offenders. This is just one of their stories. Join podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer as we take on a television institution, Law & Order, and just one of the adoption stories it ripped from the headlines over the years. A celebrity adoptive mother, an African AIDS orphan, and those two, iconic notes: duh duh. What could go wrong? Law & Order "Charity Case" aired on January 12, 2007. It was written by Nicholas Wootton and directed by Michael Pressman. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on May 13, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: Dallas Real Housewife LeeAnne Locken's exact quote is: "I'm exhausted. My weave is exhausted. The pantiliner on my underwear is exhausted." And we're exhausted from looking for this video. You can watch it here [https://www.tiktok.com/@rhoutofcontext/video/7535941574362926354]. Licensing the L&O theme song is well beyond the Adoption Pop! budget—even the iconic scene change duh duh is copyrighted music garnering royalties for composer Mike Post. Watch him talk about it, and listen to the real thing, here [https://www.tiktok.com/@nbc/video/7543320254672358711]. Free of charge. Mamuno is a small village settlement on the Botswana side of the Botswana-Namibia border in Africa. Madonna's I Am Because We Are [https://vimeo.com/28120742] (2008) documentary was directed by Nathan Rissman. Journalist Jacques Peretti's counternarrative, Madonna & Mercy 'What Really Happened' is available in six parts on YouTube. Part 1 is here [https://youtu.be/L-xjUk1eCmc?si=39tOjFDUE3-BdWO2]. Koh Ewe, "These Adoptees Were Brought to the US as Babies. Now Some Fear They Were Stolen [about:blank]," Vice (April 27, 2022). Anna Chlumsky [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001043/] (pronounced CH-lum-skee) plays personal assistant and nanny Mary Calvin to Jennifer Beals [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000884/?ref_=tt_cst_t_10]'s Sofia Archer in this L&O episode. Anna entered the GenX zeitgeist as Vada Sultenfuss in 1991's My Girl and, more recently, played reporter Vivian Kent in Netflix's Inventing Anna [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8740976/], about New York City con artist, Anna Delvey [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Delvey]. This is a lot of Annas for one entry. The text of the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 is here [https://www.congress.gov/bill/105th-congress/house-bill/867/text]. Robin F. Hansen, Prison Born: Incarceration and Motherhood in the Colonial Shadow (University of Regina Press, 2024). Listen to an interview with the author here [https://newbooksnetwork.com/prison-born]. You can read more about forced separation of incarcerated mothers and children in Susan Hatters Friedman et. al, "The Realities of Pregnancy and Mothering While Incarcerated [https://jaapl.org/content/early/2020/05/13/JAAPL.003924-20]," The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online (May 2020). Saving Our Sisters [https://savingoursistersadoption.org/] is a registered 501(c)(3) organization empowering families, and providing education and resources to make truly informed decisions in the face of unplanned pregnancy. The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website [https://adoptionpop.com/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/adoptionpoppodcast/], TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@adoptionpop], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLraFKUgqhSF3BWagNt9Grw], and wherever you get your podcasts. Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com [http://adopteeson.com/] and on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/haleyradkepodcaster], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/haleyradke], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@haleyradke]. Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net [https://kristalparke.net/], on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/people/Because-Shes-Adopted/61551013663413/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial]. Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com [https://sullivansummer.com/], on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thesullivansummer/], and on Substack [https://substack.com/@sullivansummer]. RIP Thomas J.

Mommie Dearest (1981) – Adoption on the Big Screen

E022 | Mommie Dearest (1981) – Adoption on the Big Screen For adoptees, Mother's Day can carry complexity and tough emotions. So we decided to lean all the way into the discomfort with a film legendary critic Roger Ebert called "unremittingly depressing," writing that he could not "imagine who would want to subject themselves to this movie." Roger Ebert obviously never met podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer, all of whom subjected themselves to a film that is two hours and nine minutes of pure activation for adopted people: Mommie Dearest. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on May 6, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: Mommie Dearest by Christina Crawford (1978) Christina Crawford on the Phil Donahue Show [https://youtu.be/8WuaPabWi2I?si=c4G7DeQs7XhPK7zS] (1978) "Method" refers to a style of acting preparation developed by actor and director Konstantin Stanislavski, and popularized in the US by Lee Strasberg by which the actor makes use of experiences in their own lives to bring them closer to the character. In the episode, Sullivan references a study showing a prevalence of narcissism in adoptive mothers. She was referring to this study [https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4361974/] which, to clarify, looks at infertile women, not adoptive mothers specifically. Joan Crawford, My Way of Life (1971) A. Ashley Hoff, With Love, Mommie Dearest (2024) Charlotte Chandler, Not the Girl Next Door: Joan Crawford, A Personal Biography (2008) Faye (2024) directed by Laurent Bouzereau American Film Institute's 100 Years … 100 Heros and Villains [https://www.afi.com/afis-100-years-100-heroes-villians/] American Film Institute's 100 Years … 100 Movie Quotes [https://www.afi.com/afis-100-years-100-movie-quotes/] Roger Ebert, "Mommie Dearest Review [https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/mommie-dearest-1981]" (January 1, 1981) The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website [https://adoptionpop.com/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/adoptionpoppodcast/], TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@adoptionpop], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLraFKUgqhSF3BWagNt9Grw], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/0ZXqHStGmjCTKSAxUzCWpY?si=77fe1fcb532c4a1f], and Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/adoption-pop/id1853725752]. Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com [http://adopteeson.com/] and on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/haleyradkepodcaster], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/haleyradke], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@haleyradke]. Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net [https://kristalparke.net/], on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/people/Because-Shes-Adopted/61551013663413/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial]. Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com [https://sullivansummer.com/], on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thesullivansummer/], and on Substack [https://substack.com/@sullivansummer].

Wuthering Heights (2026) – Adoption on the Big Screen

E021 | Wuthering Heights (2026) – Adoption on the Big Screen We went deep into the canon for this one, dusting off and stitching together a whole undergraduate English literature syllabus (with Cliffs Notes, Sparks Notes, note cards, and whatever else we were using to make it through our book reports pre-Chat GPT) to bring you our take on Emily Brontë's 1847 gothic romance classic, Wuthering Heights. Whether you're pro the most recent Emerald Fennell blockbuster, or prefer to stick closer to the original text, you won't be disappointed by hot and steamy (and cringey) adoptee-centered takes from podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer. Thank you to Pop! Star Justin for suggesting we cover Wuthering Heights! This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on April 29, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: Haley's high school literature faves are: Lord of the Flies [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/286951/lord-of-the-flies-by-william-golding/] by William Golding (1954); 1984 [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/326569/1984-by-george-orwell-with-a-foreword-by-thomas-pynchon/] by George Orwell (1949); and Animal Farm [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/124976/animal-farm-by-george-orwell-introduction-by-julian-symons/], also by George Orwell (1945). Can you say "adoptee dystopia?" If you too could use an Earnshaw-Linton family tree, you can find one here [https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wuthering_Heights_family_tree.jpg]. Fun fact: Actor Tom Hardy [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0362766/], Heathcliff in the 2009 Masterpiece version of Wuthering Heights, went on to marry Charlotte Riley [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2731660/], the actress who played his Catherine, and who probably doesn't want to hear Kristal talk about her husband's top lip. Heathcliff is 6 or 7 years old when Mr. Earnshaw returns with him from Liverpool. Catherine is around 17 when she marries Edgar Linton, and dies the following year, making her one half the age of the actress who plays her in the 2026 film version. Eyebrow raise. Licensed Clinical Social Worker Leslie Pate McKinnon does work in the area of genetic sexual attraction. You can hear more from her in Episode 65 [https://www.adopteeson.com/listen/s4e5jane] of the Adoptees On podcast. Actress Alison Oliver [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2519720/] played Isabella Linton in the 2026 film version. Five stars. Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights (1847) has been adapted numerous times. We watched the following versions: directed by Emerald Fennell and starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi (2026 [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32897959/]); for Masterpiece starring Tom Hardy and Charlotte Riley (2009 [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1238834/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_wuthering%20heights%202009]); directed by Peter Kosminsky and starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche (1992 [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104181/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_5_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_wuthering%20heights%202012]); directed by William Wyler and starring Laurence Olivier and Marle Oberon (1939 [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032145/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_wuthering%20heights%201939]). Winifred Gerin, Emily Brontë: A Biography (1971) Muriel Spark and Derek Stanford, Emily Brontë: Her Life and Work (1966) Norma Crandall, Emily Brontë, a Psychological Portrait (1957) Jackie Kay, Red Dust Road (2010) Maja-Lisa von Sneidern, "Wuthering Heights and the Liverpool Slave Trade," ELH (1995) Reginald Watson, "Images of Blackness in the Works of Charlotte and Emily Brontë," CLA Journal (2001) The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website [https://adoptionpop.com/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/adoptionpoppodcast/], TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@adoptionpop], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLraFKUgqhSF3BWagNt9Grw], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/0ZXqHStGmjCTKSAxUzCWpY?si=77fe1fcb532c4a1f], and Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/adoption-pop/id1853725752]. Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com [http://adopteeson.com/] and on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/haleyradkepodcaster], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/haleyradke], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@haleyradke]. Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net [https://kristalparke.net/], on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/people/Because-Shes-Adopted/61551013663413/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial]. Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com [https://sullivansummer.com/], on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thesullivansummer/], and on Substack [https://substack.com/@sullivansummer]. Heathcliff = 3. Catherine = 0.

The Odd Life of Timothy Green (2012) – Adoption on the Big Screen

E020 | The Odd Life of Timothy Green (2012) – Adoption on the Big Screen April showers bring May flowers or, in the wonderful world of Disney, they bring you a whole child. The Odd Life of Timothy Green follows young Timothy Green, a boy who appears to have been born from the garden of Jim and Cindy, played by Joel Edgerton and Jennifer Garner, a couple grieving their inability to have a child. Podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer have a lot to say about this one, on this episode of Adoption Pop! The story The Odd Life of Timothy Green was written by Ahmet Zappa. Peter Hedges wrote the screenplay and directed the film. (How did we miss this during recording? It's like an ice cream man named Cone). This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on April 22, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: The hyacinth macaw is the largest parrot in the world, measuring about 1 meter in length, or 3 feet 3 inches for the Americans, or WTAF is wrong with you for Sullivan. The Giving Tree is a 1964 picture book by author illustrator Shel Silverstein that, according to his website [https://www.shelsilverstein.com/9780060256654/the-giving-tree/], is "a poignant picture book about love and acceptance." Disagree. This tree gives the entitled little shit everything: his apples, his leaves, his branches, even his trunk to sit on when the boy becomes an old man and that fucker never says "thank you" not one time. We love you Shel, but this ain't it. A.O. Scott, "Walking, Talking, Leafy Young Boy Sprouts From a Box of Wishes [https://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/15/movies/movie-review-the-odd-life-of-timothy-green-starring-jennifer-garner.html]," New York Times (August 14, 2012). The Odd Life of Timothy Green was set in the fictional town of Stanleyville, USA, but it was filmed in locations across Georgia and North Carolina, so you can understand Sullivan's confusion. The botanist leaf-snipper in the film is played by Lin-Manuel Miranda [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0592135/], three years before his magnum opus, Hamilton, premiered at New York's Public Theater and turned him, and Alexander Hamilton, into contemporary household names. Jennifer Garner plays adoptive mother Vanessa Loring in the film Juno [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0467406/] (2007). Ann Lieber, "INTERVIEW: Jennifer Garner Finds Color in The Odd Life of Timothy Green [https://www.theatermania.com/news/interview-jennifer-garner-finds-color-in-the-odd-life-of-timothy-green_60433/]," Theater Mania (August 15, 2012). The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website [https://adoptionpop.com/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/adoptionpoppodcast/], TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@adoptionpop], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLraFKUgqhSF3BWagNt9Grw], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/0ZXqHStGmjCTKSAxUzCWpY?si=77fe1fcb532c4a1f], and Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/adoption-pop/id1853725752]. Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com [http://adopteeson.com/] and on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/haleyradkepodcaster], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/haleyradke], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@haleyradke]. Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net [https://kristalparke.net/], on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/people/Because-Shes-Adopted/61551013663413/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial]. Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com [https://sullivansummer.com/], on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thesullivansummer/], and on Substack [https://substack.com/@sullivansummer].