From Wild at Heart to Marriage Story, legendary actress Laura Dern has impacted decades of storytelling with her work on screen. For the next hour, we discuss her early memories of Martin Scorsese, years of teenage activism, her quick pivot from college to Blue Velvet, and how Lucille Ball's “female boss narrative” affected her as an artist and mother. And throughout our conversation, Laura reflects on experiences with beloved collaborators: David Lynch, Jonathan Demme, Robert Altman, Greta Gerw...
Dec 09, 2019•57 min
Before a string of successful plays (August: Osage County, Bug) and brilliant performances on screen (Homeland, Lady Bird, Ford v Ferrari), Tracy Letts was acting on-stage, with his father, in Tishomingo, Oklahoma. As his twenties approached, he pursued love and theatre in Chicago, pivoted to editing textbooks in Florida, and then returned to the stage with the authorship of his first play, Killer Joe. From there, Tracy oscillated between Los Angeles and Chicago, navigating traumatic loss and fe...
Nov 25, 2019•1 hr 30 min
Director Errol Morris—with his brief history as a private detective and door-to-door salesman—has transformed the world with his boundless curiosity. In this hour, we discuss the hostile reaction to American Dharma, how interviewing mass murderers shaped Errol’s theory of language, the role of self-deception in his films, and the subsequently arcane motives of Steve Bannon and Elizabeth Holmes. Errol reflects on his roots in commercial directing, his hatred of standard documentary filmmaking, th...
Nov 17, 2019•1 hr 7 min
This week, Sam sits down with Honey Boy director Alma Har’el. She discusses the sacrificial act of independent filmmaking, the synchronicity of her art and experiences, how making Love True healed her childhood trauma, finding romance in her parents’ turbulent relationship, the profundity of working on Obama's 2008 campaign, her nonprofit's mission to change the consciousness of society, feeling close to strangers watching her film, and finally, examining her own story in projects to come. Visit...
Nov 10, 2019•1 hr 1 min
This week on the show is actor, writer, and comedian Randall Park! He reflects on his strikingly diverse childhood friend group, becoming ‘the entertainment’ at parties, founding the still-active Asian American theatre company at UCLA, pivoting from his masters in Asian American studies to a professional acting career, persisting against viscous stereotypes, solidifying his creative voice through short filmmaking, embracing the steady success of Fresh Off the Boat, and maintaining his humility t...
Nov 03, 2019•58 min
Edward Norton has built a career out of shape-shifting. Just look at his beginning in film: The People vs. Larry Flynt, Primal Fear, Everyone Says I Love You, American History X, Rounders, Fight Club. And it didn't stop there. Throughout the 2000s Norton embraced what he calls his “penchant for mimicry”–a desire to disappear into roles big and small. So, for the next hour, Norton and I reflect on his past and present, from performing in front of Edward Albee at 24 to directing his 2nd film, Moth...
Oct 28, 2019•1 hr 8 min
In 2016 Robert invited me to sit with him at his home away from home: Marco’s in West Hollywood. At his corner table next to the window, he ate there every morning for thirty years. This is one of those mornings. Rest in peace, Bob. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https:/...
Oct 20, 2019•1 hr 18 min
Episode 151 - Gary Gulman by Sam Fragoso Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Oct 13, 2019•58 min
Well, let's give this a go. 150. Hosted by my pal, Harrison Cameron. For more info: www.talkeasypod.com. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Oct 07, 2019•1 hr 14 min
This week, “Hustlers” actress Trace Lysette joins us on the show! She reflects on “giving birth to herself” in New York (8:30), developing “Tribe“ with Devere Rogers (10:30), manifesting an abundance of opportunity for transgender artists (11:40), fighting passivity in storytelling (14:00), facing the duality of success and heartbreak (17:00), navigating dating in Los Angeles (21:00), recognizing and educating against toxic masculinity (27:00), speaking out during the #MeToo movement (35:00), fi...
Sep 30, 2019•50 min
This week we're joined by podcaster/filmmaker/writer Scott Aukerman! He talks about his his first TV appearances back in high school (01:40), his affinity for David Letterman (05:20), how he used humor to dodge playground bullies (09:43), playing a certain kind of character on-mic (17:28), his early days of trying to make it in LA (21:54), a game-changing interaction with Bob Odenkirk (27:07), how his partner became his ex... and then his wife (31:01), the creative differences (and struggles) be...
Sep 22, 2019•1 hr 17 min
Karley Sciortino is on this week! She reflects on her childhood, growing up Catholic in the age of Britney Spears, and sexual awakenings, her parents' steadfast relationship, her first sexual experience, journeying across the pond for college, dropping out and not coming back, living in an "egalitarian-esque" artist commune for 6 years, first reactions to her sex-heavy blog, what "slut" really means to her, how writing helped uncover her sexual identity, falling in love, hard and fast, Eyes Wide...
Sep 15, 2019•1 hr 12 min
This week, Sam sits down with renowned writer, director, and former film critic, Peter Bogdanovich. They discuss the fragmentation of the old Hollywood studio system (00:42), Peter’s pivot from journalism to filmmaking (4:00), his tumultuous experience making “The Last Picture Show“ (12:09), the origin of the title “Paper Moon” (20:40), navigating success and public envy (24:00), how he endured the tragedy of Dorothy Stratten (32:10), rediscovering his filmmaking roots in the '80s (38:30), his o...
Sep 08, 2019•1 hr 7 min
This one has been long over-due... Justin Simien, friends! The sensible mind behind Dear White People talks about his high school days, pointing out how this chapter in his life formed a deep love for the arts (07:13), then delves into theater as an entryway into the realm of storytelling (11:32), the past and putting things in perspective (14:37), an introduction to Fosse, Kubrick, and other cinematic influences (17:38), in some cases... separating the art from the artist (22:05), the evolution...
Sep 01, 2019•1 hr 15 min
We're back, with Whitney Cummings! She starts off with some personal thoughts about love, then discusses her self-perception, being so-called "mainstream", seeking validation as a comedian and person, dealing with self-deprecation, reflecting on high school insights and growing up in a chaotic home that brought her closer to comedy, which led to college success and growth in her field, finding work in Los Angeles, flourishing as a woman in comedy, gaining the lessons she learned in her 20s, faci...
Aug 25, 2019•1 hr 11 min
To celebrate the fiftieth episode of Talk Easy we decided to do something a little different, which ended up being Sam sitting down with his mother for an interview. This episode is not only special for how far the show has come, but the glimpse it gives us into the lives of both Sam and his mother. The love and respect that Sam and his mom have for one another is blatant throughout the entirety of this episode, and we feel lucky to have caught it on tape. In this hour, we learn about her childh...
Aug 18, 2019•1 hr 17 min
Alan Alda ladies and gentleman. We talk M*A*S*H, joke thievery, his childhood in Burlesque, his ongoing battle with face blindness (that's not a joke), and how a brush with death gave him a new lease on life. His latest project is a podcast of his own, Clear+Vivid, and you can find out more at www.alanalda.com. For more info about Alan visit our show notes: www.talkeasypod/alan-alda Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy i...
Aug 11, 2019•53 min
Another classic throwback for you this week! John Cho's career has undergone several transformations in the past two decades, each of them more interesting and impressive than the last. John appeared in several roles in smaller films before breaking through in the 2004 stoner comedy Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. Since then, he's made waves in blockbuster movies like the Star Trek reboot and Harold and Kumar sequels, underrated TV shows including Selfie and The Exorcist, and buzzed-about...
Aug 04, 2019•1 hr 12 min
Another great throwback from the Talk Easy Vault! Lena Waithe has been making waves in Hollywood since she arrived in 2006 from Chicago — you just didn’t know it. Although a writer at heart, Waithe has also learned how to do just about everything else in this industry. She produced Dear White People (the movie), has a role in Steve Spielberg’s next film, and, oh, yeah, created an upcoming Showtime drama called The Chi, due later this year. Most recently, you've probably seen her breaking barrier...
Jul 28, 2019•1 hr 15 min
A throwback to one of my favourite episodes, with Malcom Gladwell... Malcolm Gladwell is a writer best known for his books Blink, The Tipping Point, and David and Goliath. While what he writes about can at points stir up controversy for oversimplification and grandiosity, Gladwell has an infectious curiosity about our world that is far greater than his flaws. On the heels of season 2 (now season 4) of Revisionist History, Malcolm and Sam not only discuss this curiosity, but also their affinity f...
Jul 22, 2019•1 hr 12 min
A throwback to one of my favorite episodes, with Norman Lear. - TV titan Norman Lear joins Sam on the show this week. The 95-year-old is chiefly responsible for changing television. His shows—All in the Family, Maude, The Jeffersons, Good Times—were unlike anything that came before them. Political, combative, funny. Lear’s greatest gift is his endless curiosity in the imperfection of humans. Especially Americans. When Sam and Norman sat down, they discussed his remarkable life, one story at a ti...
Jul 14, 2019•57 min
Ron Perlman! We talk standouts from this week's Democratic debates, the state of independent film, finding a love for acting at 19, the impact his father's death had on him, how he managed ego as success arrived, coming to terms with his body, the (potentially exciting) future of "Hellboy", and what he hopes his legacy looks like. For more, our site: talkeasypod.com Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See o...
Jun 30, 2019•1 hr
Comedy icon Jeff Garlin is on this week! We get into texting/technology woes (07:54), getting divorced after 25 years (11:29), being single again at 57 (13:45), choosing raw honesty in life (17:39), making it in the comedy scene alongside Conan O'Brien, Stephen Colbert and Amy Sedaris (28:55), having an eye for talent (30:02), producing and guiding other comedians like Jon Stewart and Dennis Leary (32:29), what he would say to Eddie Murphy now (36:48), his medical battles and what they taught hi...
Jun 23, 2019•55 min
The brain behind BoJack Horseman, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, is with us this week. He dives right in, talking about the privilege of being a white man in today's entertainment industry, his “professionally Jewish” parents, how ADHD affected him as a teenager, developing his creative voice, the loneliness of first moving to Los Angeles, the enduring impact Gary Shandling and The Larry Sanders Show has had on him, what he actually meant for BoJack Horseman to be, being a show-runner, six season into “B...
Jun 16, 2019•1 hr 9 min
“I feel like I always get asked the same questions," says actor Michael Kelly. Well, hopefully, not today. Kelly joins us on the show to talk his beachy college years in South Carolina (06:40), choosing acting over business and law (09:53), the impact of Arthur Penn and the Actors Studio (14:28), the benefit of his naiveté (18:05), being on set with Milos Forman and Jim Carrey for Man on the Moon (20:15), his 2000 Unbreakable breakout (27:41), the story of how he met his wife, Karyn (33:31), how...
Jun 09, 2019•1 hr 15 min
Gin Queen, Mates! Jacki Weaver is on this week, reflecting on her childhood in Sydney (07:54), an early and undying devotion to acting (09:34), never becoming a social worker (14:09), being a romantic (16:41), the joys and toils of motherhood (18:15), her first marriage at age 19 (20:04), the memoir she never intended to write (21:19), working consistently in show-business through the 70s and 80s (22:49), looking for and finding balance (25:42), life on stage (27:24), not really fearing death (5...
Jun 02, 2019•1 hr 2 min
Sir Kenneth Branagh, friends! Sam and Kenneth discuss the process of making his new film, All Is True, (5:07), the recurring themes throughout his work (10:10), performing Hamlet in front of Queen Elizabeth at age 20 (12:30), directing for the first time in 1989 (18:33), taking a break from Shakespeare with 1992’s Peter’s Friends (22:24), how his father influenced his work (34:52), the darkest (and slowest) period in his career (37:25), the death of “the middle” in contemporary cinema (43:25), a...
May 26, 2019•1 hr 11 min
On the brink of 70, legend Pam Grier sits down to reflect on a series of pivotal moments from her inimitable life. For example: moving to Los Angeles at 18 in 1967, becoming a trailblazer through iconic films like Foxy Brown and Coffy, getting thrown out of a bar with John Lennon and Harry Nilsson in 70s Hollywood, words of wisdom from Eartha Kitt, falling in love with Richard Pryor, overcoming cervical cancer in 1988, and much more. There's only one Pam Grier, and we're honored to have her. To ...
May 19, 2019•1 hr 10 min
Werner Herzog is 76 years old with three films coming out in 2019. I don't know how he does it, but I try to find out in this conversation. From a childhood encounter with god in the Bavarian mountains to sitting across from Mikhail Gorbachev, Herzog shares some pivotal moments from his decade-spanning life and career. In previous interviews he has expressed his disdain for introspection. This is not that interview. This is something different, something – I hope– that's more representative of w...
May 12, 2019•1 hr
Wyatt Cenac is the host of Problem Areas on HBO. It's a new kind of program– think Last Week Tonight meets Frontline, except hosted by someone whose comedy is dryer than the Sahara desert. On the podcast, we talk early stand-up days, growing up in Dallas, Texas, ego in comedy, running a show in 2019, the “anxiety crisis” across America, and why Trump appeals to low-income communities. Oh, and some bits. Lots of bits in this one. For more info, talkeasypod.com Learn more about your ad-choices at ...
May 05, 2019•57 min
