Searching for POG

Original cover for Searching for POG.

Searching for POG is the first video in the POG Trilogy, and as such it introduced us to most of the characters in the series. It is also known as Herbie J. Winkleman Goes Searching for POG: The Video. It was originally released in 1994, and is followed by 1995’s The Legend of POG.

Approximate running time: 25 minutes.

Click here to see the full credits.

Back Cover Copy:

Join rookie newspaper reporter Herbie J. Winkleman as he goes “Searching for POG™”.

Herbie’s boss, Eddy Tor, wants the story and he wants it now! Lots of hilarious things happen as Herbie travels all the way to beautiful Hawaii to find the true origin and secrets of POG™. Don’t miss this wacky adventure that’s loads of laughs for the entire family complete with great music by Janet & Judy.

Synopsis:

Our story opens with Eddy Tor, editor of the Daily News, receiving a call from his granddaughter, who demands that he run a story about POG in the Sunday edition. He calls Miss Smedley and Miss Smedley (his twin assistants) into his office and asks them, “What is POG?” It quickly becomes obvious that they have no idea, but they suggest the new, young, and smart reporter, Herbie J. Winkleman, for the job. Herbie accepts, and with that, the adventure begins!

Herbie meets the Old Wise Man.

Herbie starts by visiting a local diner to collect his thoughts. Stella, a psychic waitress, “overhears” him thinking about POG and suggests he speak to the Old Wise Man who sits at the top of the mountain. Herbie climbs the mountain and reaches the Old Wise Man, who is nuts, but Herbie is desperate and follows his advice, which is to fly to “an island surrounded by water” where he will find the Wiser Old Fisherman, who “holds the answer”.

Herbie arrives in Hawaii, and is promptly overwhelmed. He is truly a stranger in a strange land. While passing by a fish market, he receives a call from Mr. Tor, who inquires about his progress. Since Herbie is currently without any leads, he panics, and tells Tor the first thing that comes to mind: that he must “interview the fish”. Unable to bear the burden of the lie, he convinces himself that it is in fact the truth, and he travels deep into the ocean to speak to the fish—who answer him! “Cow!” they say!

Herbie at the dairy farm.

Herbie proceeds to a nearby dairy farm, and mistakes the lowing of the cows for the word “muʻumuʻu”, and calls to a nearby woman in a muʻumuʻu. Astonishingly, she knows of POG, and directs him to the plant in which POG is made. Believing himself to have found the answer, he calls Tor and explains that POG stands for “Passion Orange Guava”, the names of the three fruits that make up the drink called POG. Ecstatic, Tor calls his granddaughter, who explains that she wanted to know about POG the game, not POG the drink.

Enthusiasm undiminished by the news, Herbie is confronted by the Wiser Old Fisherman, who tells him he has further still to go. But instead of pushing on, Herbie decides to take a shower, causing him to miss a special report on television that reveals the secrets of POG! POG, it explains, is a popular game that originated in Hawaii and is played with collectible milk caps.

Herbie learns the truth.

After his shower, Herbie once again sets out blindly to find POG, and eventually happens upon the Wisest Old Man, who tells Herbie of the two ways to find POG: 1) Slay the Dreaded Dragon in the Cavernous Cave, saving the Merry Maiden Mary. Or, 2) Go to any corner store, where POG is available for purchase. The Wisest Old Man then produces a pack of POGs, and Herbie achieves nirvana.

Herbie now experiences a series of strange and inaccurate visions of earlier events, which somehow compel Herbie to drive a tractor into another dimension.

To be continued…

Free POG cover for Searching for POG.

Notes:

Searching for POG had two covers—the original cover featuring POGMAN™, the World POG Federation mascot, and a second cover featuring the Smedley sisters and advertises the two limited-edition milk caps included with the video.

Each video advertises 2 limited-edition milk caps “FREE INSIDE”, though the maintainers of this site have never seen any of them (our tapes didn’t include any). And honestly, we’re not entirely sure how two milk caps could be included inside a VHS tape box without leaving any impression in the cardboard. If anybody out there has any information regarding these milk caps, please post in the comments! We’re understandably curious, and have nothing to offer in return!