This week, Stuart Heritage reports from the U.K. on why The Salt Path, the inspirational best-selling memoir by Raynor Winn, now seems to be a hive of untruths. Then, on the subject of deceit, J. Randy Taraborrelli, the author of a new book on John F. Kennedy, discusses why the former president spun so many lies—and why, in the last year of his life, he had a reckoning with himself. And finally, Linda Wells tells us everything we need to know about the latest in beauty and wellness. See Privacy ...
Jul 19, 2025•32 min•Ep. 253
This week, author Jane Boon recounts her friendship with Matthew Pietras, a dashing, handsome fixture on the New York social scene who worked for the Soros family and whose life now seems to have been an enormous grift. Then Elena Clavarino reports from Italy on how some of the country’s most cherished artworks may in fact be smuggled Mafia booty. And finally, Clint Eastwood has dominated Hollywood for longer than most anyone else, all while containing countless contradictions. Shawn Levy has wr...
Jul 12, 2025•34 min•Ep. 252
It was almost a year ago that a young man named Thomas Crooks tried to assassinate Donald Trump. Yet, all this time later, he and his motives remain essentially a mystery. Our writer Rich Cohen has been looking into Crooks’s life and death and is here with a revealing report. Then, everyone knows Burt Reynolds as the wry, handsome star of such 1970s hit movies as Deliverance. But as Josh Karp writes, Reynolds also had a dream: to open a dinner theater next to a truck stop in the middle of nowher...
Jul 05, 2025•35 min•Ep. 251
This week, Ashley Baker reports on why London is a steal if you want to live abroad. Then, James Sikura tells us how famed Hollywood producer Robert Evans was behind the making of one of the most star-studded—and least effective—anti-drug specials of all time. And finally, Linda Wells, the Editor of Air Mail Look, has what we all need to look healthy and glowing this summer. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-...
Jun 28, 2025•27 min•Ep. 250
This week, Mitchell Prothero joins us with his report on why Jared Kushner is pursuing a multi-million-dollar development deal on an uninhabitable former Cold War air base in Albania. Then, many of you are no doubt watching Outrageous, the new series on BritBox that charts the dazzling and controversial lives of the Mitford sisters. Well, our colleague George Pendle reveals that the glamorous sisters' lives were more complicated than we knew, filled with suicides, Nazi-esque orgies, and a classi...
Jun 21, 2025•30 min•Ep. 249
It may feel like the world is going to hell, but for Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez, it’s a Bonfire of the Vanities moment. In a little less than two weeks, the billionaire and his fiancée will take over Venice for the wedding that will be a three-day party, and Stuart Heritage tells us what we can expect. Then, speaking of the ultra-rich seizing control of beautiful destinations, Joseph Bullmore reports from the Cotswolds on how Stephen Schwarzman, the billionaire chairman and C.E.O. of Blacksto...
Jun 14, 2025•33 min•Ep. 248
Oscar-winning actor Jared Leto has starred in films ranging from American Psycho to House of Gucci. Now he stands accused of impropriety and grooming by 10 women. Our writer Elena Clavarino has her report. Then our correspondent in Moscow, Katya V., joins us to discuss the mood in Russia as Putin seems strangely vulnerable. Later, George Pendle reveals how one of Africa’s richest men did the impossible—made Trump shut up. And finally, Gracie Wiener explains why the popular crafting site Etsy has...
Jun 07, 2025•35 min•Ep. 247
This week, Sam Tanenhaus discusses the life of William F. Buckley Jr., the man who set the blueprint for the modern conservative movement, which has reached a new iteration in Donald Trump. Then, speaking of consequential figures, we consider a man who left an enormous impact on Hollywood: Desi Arnaz. Todd S. Purdum tells us all about Arnaz’s groundbreaking life and career. And finally, a special treat: Cazzie David joins us from Los Angeles to share her answers to 50 of life’s most pressing que...
May 31, 2025•38 min•Ep. 246
This week, Carrie Monahan reports from East Hampton on a shooting range for locals that has allegedly been peppering million-dollar homes of part-time residents with bullets. Then William D. Cohan looks at the new flex for billionaires—building private golf clubs. And finally, Molly Haskell remembers filmmaker Robert Benton, who gave us Bonnie and Clyde, Kramer vs. Kramer, and other masterpieces. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/p...
May 24, 2025•36 min•Ep. 245
This week, Jeanne Malle reveals why some Gen Z college graduates are choosing blue-collar jobs instead of working on Wall Street. Then Stuart Heritage reports on the family drama that’s riveted the U.K. No, it’s not the rift in the House of Windsor; this is the rift in the House of Beckham. And finally, Elena Clavarino has the story that’s scandalized Italy: how the son of the family that once owned one of Venice’s grand hotels now stands accused of forcing hundreds of women into making pornogra...
May 17, 2025•31 min•Ep. 244
This week, Leigh Giangreco reports on why so many foreigners—as well as American citizens living abroad—are now afraid to travel to, of all places, the United States. Then, Clara Molot has an update on a mysterious cancer surge among young alumni of Roanoke College. And finally, Carrie Monahan looks at the general store in the small Long Island town of Sagaponack and its new proprietor who, it turns out, is a billionaire. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Not...
May 10, 2025•35 min•Ep. 243
This week, David Kamp explains why it’s time to make Trump deport the creator of Saturday Night Live, Lorne Michaels. Then, Stuart Heritage tells us how and why the notorious Fyre Festival is back. We think? And finally, Jean Marsh, one of the great actresses of the past 50 years, who also co-created the beloved and influential television series Upstairs, Downstairs, died recently, and Michael Lindsay-Hogg will join us to share his tribute to the beautiful woman he knew and loved. See Privacy Po...
May 03, 2025•31 min•Ep. 242
This week, Jacob Silverman looks at what he believes is the biggest financial fraud in American history: how the Trump family reportedly made $100 million from trading fees on their own crypto-currencies.Then, speaking of murky businesses, Dana Vachon has his wild report on how drug traffickers in Europe have taken to using submarines in order to move their goods onto the Continent. And finally, Sloane Crosley tells us about the joys of paperback books. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/pr...
Apr 26, 2025•31 min•Ep. 241
This week, Jennifer Gould reports on Ivy League professors living the Handmaid’s Tale life—fleeing America for Canada out of fear for their freedoms. Then, Barbara Schroeder looks at the murder that shocked Los Angeles and its impact on the victim’s family and the community. And finally, Kevin Evers of the Harvard Business Review looks at the creative and business decisions that transformed Taylor Swift into a multi-millionaire, and what we all can learn from her. See Privacy Policy at https://a...
Apr 19, 2025•34 min•Ep. 240
This week, Mark Seal reveals the amateur detectives who busted a group of cyber-scammers who impersonated Brad Pitt and swindled a woman out of more than $850,000. Then, speaking of swindles, Jeffrey Toobin explains why no one can stop Trump from handing out pardons. And finally, Mark Ellwood reports on the island of battling billionaires. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Apr 12, 2025•32 min•Ep. 239
This week, Andrew Zucker reports on the latest luxury for Ivy League nepo babies of the 1-percenters: private, white-glove housing stocked with amenities. (So long, grungy communal bathroom down the hall!) Then, George Pendle takes us inside what he calls the March (of) Madness—his version of college basketball’s March Madness bracket, but this is your chance to choose which of Trump’s actions in the past month has been The Worst. And finally, Linda Wells discusses Ozempic 2.0, how to schedule a...
Apr 05, 2025•35 min•Ep. 238
The founder and Co-Editor of AIR MAIl, Graydon Carter, has written his long-awaited memoir, entitled When the Going Was Good: An Editor’s Adventures During the Last Golden Age of Magazines, and we’re excited to have him join us to talk about his book, the enduring magic of New York, and more. Then, for years Danny Elfman was one of the most sought-after composers in Hollywood, writing scores for movies such as Beetlejuice, Batman, and The Nightmare Before Christmas. But now his reputation is in ...
Mar 29, 2025•41 min•Ep. 237
Would you be surprised to learn that the man Putin has tapped to negotiate a Ukraine peace agreement with Trump is a rich, Ivy League smoothie who spent time on Wall Street? Andrew Ryvkin tells us about the man who has Trump’s ear. Then Alessandra Stanley explains why the Anti-Defamation League should be standing up to the president, rather than coddling him. And continuing on the theme of organized criminal behavior, Michael Sragow joins with his review of the new Robert De Niro gangster movie,...
Mar 22, 2025•36 min•Ep. 236
If you think things can’t possibly get worse, you might want to duck and cover. John von Sothen has the incredible story of how the U.S. Air Force dropped a nuclear bomb off the coast of Savannah, Georgia—and it is still there. Then, there was a time when New York’s Waldorf Astoria was the epitome of a great hotel … until the Chinese Communist Party bought it. What could possibly go wrong? Our writer Ben Ryder Howe reports. And finally, with the arrival of an outpost of one of France’s most infl...
Mar 15, 2025•32 min•Ep. 235
This week, is Donald Trump smarter than we think he is on foreign policy? Could he, as some say, be pulling a "Reverse-Nixon"? Our colleague George Pendle joins us with his insights. Then, Tesla used to be the car of choice for virtue-signaling Democrats. Now, as liberals all over the world unload what some are calling their "Swasticars," in anger at Elon Musk, our writer Simon Mills asks if MAGA loyalists will step in to help with the drop in sales. And finally, Linda Wells stops by with the la...
Mar 08, 2025•28 min•Ep. 234
This week, Air Mail Co-Editor Alessandra Stanley explains how Trump has replaced D.E.I. with his own brand of affirmative action. Something you might call L.O.O.—loyalty, obsequiousness, and obedience. Then, everyone knows Annie Hall as one of the great movies of the past 50 years. But Alex Belth reveals how Woody Allen’s 1977 love story was considered a total fiasco when he first edited it and how the director and his team reconceived the movie in the cutting room. And finally, as the founders ...
Mar 01, 2025•35 min•Ep. 233
Elon Musk is all over Washington, D.C., these days. But did you know that before he became the emperor of DOGE, he was a needy recipient of government spending? Oz Woloshyn reveals all the details. Then Lesley M. M. Blume tells the riveting story of a woman who discovered her grandfather’s secret history: he survived a Nazi death camp and was the subject of a powerful profile written by one of the great journalists of World War II. And finally, here at Air Mail, we have a new podcast. It’s calle...
Feb 22, 2025•35 min•Ep. 232
It’s become a common worry in America: why can’t we listen to each other? Well, 60 years ago, the great American writer Studs Terkel showed us all what happens when we do listen to the stories and perspectives of others, when he wrote his landmark book, Division Street, and Ash Carter tells us why the book is more relevant than ever. Then Simon Mills joins us from London with his investigation into how and why Aperol has, like a bubbly orange tsunami, overtaken cocktail lounges from Naples to Ne...
Feb 15, 2025•33 min•Ep. 231
Tom Goldstein was one of Washington, D.C.’s top lawyers, arguing 44 cases before the Supreme Court. Yet few knew he was also one of the world’s highest-rolling—and most reckless—poker players, racking up millions of dollars in winnings and losses. Then his worlds collided. Our writer George Pendle has the full, jaw-dropping account. Then, after an almost 10-year absence, a new Bridget Jones movie is coming to theaters, and two of our writers, Carolina de Armas and Victoria Herman, couldn’t help ...
Feb 08, 2025•36 min•Ep. 230
Under Donald Trump, crypto-currency is challenging the dollar’s supremacy, and Jacob Silverman is here to explain why, in doing the bidding of crypto’s boosters, Trump has inadvertently revealed the industry’s true face—and it’s not pretty. Then Howard Blum has an update on the story of Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of killing four University of Idaho students. And finally, Johanna Berkman tells us about her exclusive interview with Alice Nderitu, the former U.N. special adviser on the preven...
Feb 01, 2025•35 min•Ep. 229
This week, David Christopher Kaufman explains why Trump’s first shot in the war on woke could backfire. Then, it was a cold-blooded murder that shocked the country when Luigi Mangione allegedly gunned down Brian Thompson, the C.E.O. of UnitedHealthcare. Bethany McLean will join us with her perspective on the case that’s riveted the nation. And finally, Nick Turse will tell us why a shot of a certain bourbon costs $300 and bottles of it trade for $100,000 on the black market. See Privacy Policy a...
Jan 25, 2025•35 min•Ep. 228
Across the U.S. and Europe it’s ski season, and Simon Mills will join us with his report on an exclusive destination in France that was once the domain of oligarchs and that has now been taken over by a very different group of high-rollers. Then, if you were in New York in the 1980s, you surely remember the infamous “Preppy Killer”—a 19-year-old named Robert Chambers who met an 18-year-old Jennifer Levin in an Upper East Side bar and strangled her later that night in Central Park. It was a killi...
Jan 18, 2025•36 min•Ep. 227
Blake Lively vs. Justin Baldoni—it’s the battle that has captivated Hollywood. But just what the hell’s going on and who is to be believed? Stuart Heritage gives us his insights. Then Carrie Monahan, who worked as a fact-checker at Facebook, has some thoughts about Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to kill off fact-checking at Meta. And finally, you may have missed some news on the street— Sesame Street , to be exact. The long-running series finds itself looking for a new home on television. Warner Bro...
Jan 11, 2025•35 min•Ep. 226
It’s the beginning of a new year and a time of resolutions, and if you are thinking of taking time to reflect on what you want to do in 2025, Pico Iyer joins us from Tokyo to share what he learned during his time at a secluded monastery perched high above the Pacific. Then, if seclusion is less your thing and indulgence is where you live, Rob LeDonne joins us from Williamsburg, the New York neighborhood where almost everything has changed, except for Bamonte’s, the beloved 125-year-old Italian r...
Jan 04, 2025•39 min•Ep. 225
This week, the man behind our infamous Attention-Whore Index, George Kalogerakis, takes us inside the year-end awards for the biggest winners—or, really, losers—of 2024. Then, it’s been 40 years since the television show Miami Vice debuted, and Josh Karp is going to tell us how a show about two cops in the modern-day Casablanca transformed television and set the mold for The Sopranos, Breaking Bad, and more. And finally, Joseph Rodota has his report on Dr. Mary Calderone. In the 1970s, this woma...
Dec 28, 2024•34 min•Ep. 224
