Erin Brockovich Redux -- Where *did* she get that gumption?
Episode description
In this era of uncertainty and anxiety, some things are a reliable fixture. Exhibit A: The tenacity of Erin Brockovich, who took on PG&E for its water contamination, won a mammoth settlement for her clients, and inspired an Oscar-winning film.
In the eponymous role, Julia Roberts was plenty feisty but by many accounts she wasn't as in-your-face fiery as the real Erin Brockovich, a self-described "foul-mouthed, short-skirted blonde woman from Kansas."
Brockovich has a new book, Superman's Not Coming: Our National Water Crisis and What We the People Can Can Do About It.
“We are amid a major water crisis that is beyond anything you can imagine,” Brockovich writes. The book is filled with righteous anger directed at corporations who “lie, cheat, sue, intimidate, falsify documents, and outright bully."
The book is getting rave reviews, so it seems fitting to replay the episode from a few months ago, in which Erin talks about her mother Betty Jo Pattee, who passed on to Erin her own stick-to-itiveness.
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Music composed and performed by Andrea Perry.
Artwork by Paula Mangin. (@PaulaBallah)
Producer: Alice Hudson
Intern: Rosie Manock (@RosieManock)
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