Today, we sit with filmmaker Nicole Holofcener! We discuss the making of her new A24 film You Hurt My Feelings (5:44), her creative upbringing in the ‘70s (15:00), and the Jim Jarmusch film that made her want to become a director (17:25). On the back-half, Holofcener reflects on her early apprenticeship on Hannah and Her Sisters (23:54), her intensely personal collaborations with actors Catherine Keener and Julia Louis-Dreyfus (26:20), and a defining scene from her latest film (32:05). To close,...
May 28, 2023•43 min
As we approach the series finale of Barry , we return to our talk with actor and director Bill Hader. We discuss the thematic evolution of his hit HBO series (7:02), and how it draws from films like Taxi Driver and Goodfellas (10:36). Then, Bill reflects on growing up in Tulsa, Oklahoma (13:16), the influence of his late grandfather (17:04), his path from community college to his early PA jobs in Hollywood (18:25), landing on Saturday Night Live (21:36), the weekly pressure of the show (26:07), ...
May 24, 2023•51 min
Today, we’re joined by actor Alan Ruck! At the top, we dive into the Election Day episode of Succession (4:00), the ensemble’s first table read during the 2016 presidential race (7:23), and how that fateful night shaped the arc of the series (8:59). Then, we walk through Ruck’s iconic role of Cameron Frye in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (9:54), memories on set with Matthew Broderick (12:05), and his winding path that followed (17:19). On the back-half, he describes a mid-90s stretch of performances ...
May 21, 2023•45 min
Today, we sit with writer and television host Padma Lakshmi! At the top, we discuss the return of her Hulu docuseries Taste the Nation (6:40), a formative episode in El Paso, Texas (10:14), and how the show connects to Padma’s personal history (13:59). Then, she reflects on her childhood in New York City (16:07), a heartbreaking event at seven (19:05*), and her unexpected entry to the modeling industry (27:14). On the back-half, we walk through the early years of her trailblazing career (35:52),...
May 14, 2023•57 min
Today, we're sharing a preview of an original new audiobook produced by our colleagues at Pushkin Industries. It’s entitled So Many Steves: Afternoons with Steve Martin . The book is an engrossing audio-biography centered around a series of conversations recorded at Martin’s home with his long-time friend and neighbor, New Yorker writer Adam Gopnik. To hear the full audiobook, So Many Steves, visit pushkin.fm/ . See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See omnystudio.com/listener for...
May 10, 2023•11 min
Today, CEO and activist Jay Jordan tells his story. We begin in Stockton, California (13:31), where he came of age on the heels of the 1994 Clinton Crime Bill (16:33) before being arrested at eighteen (19:47). In stark contrast to former President Trump’s arraignment (3:17), Jordan then details his experiences navigating the judicial system (24:15), his years in prison (28:30), and stints in solitary confinement (31:55). On the back-half, Jordan reflects on the end of his seven-year sentence (38...
May 07, 2023•1 hr 29 min
Today, we sit with actor Betty Gilpin! We talk about her role in the prescient new Peacock series Mrs. Davis (6:35), her relationship to technology and social media (8:54), and growing up around actor parents (17:25). Then, we discuss her early years studying acting (20:51), under the legendary Dianne Wiest (22:10), and her path from college to off-Broadway theater (26:30). In the back half, we walk through her rapid ascent from Nurse Jackie to GLOW (35:28), the ‘seesaw of acting’ she experience...
Apr 30, 2023•54 min
Today, on her 90th birthday, a celebration of Carol Burnett! After seven decades in the industry, Burnett sat down with Sam to discuss her upbringing in the Hollywood Arms Apartments (4:25), a mysterious envelope of money that allowed her to study at UCLA (8:00), a generous loan that catapulted her to New York City (13:06), and her “big break” in 1957 (23:30). Then, we walk through how Julie & Carol at Carnegie Hall came to be (31:40), finding her place in “a man’s game” on network televisio...
Apr 26, 2023•59 min
Today, we’re joined by cook and food writer Alison Roman! We discuss her new dessert cookbook Sweet Enough (4:55), her early years as a restaurant pastry chef (12:24), and the chaotic conditions of working in the service industry (14:50). Then, Roman describes working at the experimental bakery Milk Bar in New York City (18:09), hosting cooking videos at Bon Appétit (22:40), and eventually working as a food columnist at The New York Times (25:18). On the back-half, we talk about the criticism sh...
Apr 23, 2023•1 hr 3 min
Today, we sit with brilliant actor Michelle Williams! At the top, we walk through the making of Showing Up (6:05), Williams’ fifteen-year partnership with director Kelly Reichardt (8:10), and her upbringing in Montana and San Diego (10:42). Then, she describes coming of age on the set of Dawson’s Creek (14:50), her pivotal turn in Tracy Letts’ Killer Joe (20:00), and her path to Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain (26:10). On the back-half, we discuss a healing passage from Rebecca Solnit’s A Field Gui...
Apr 16, 2023•54 min
Today, we sit with actor Steven Yeun! At the top, we discuss his new Netflix series Beef (3:40), a powerful church scene from the show (12:10), and his personal experience immigrating to the US from Seoul as a child (18:44). Then, we walk through Steven’s coming of age in Michigan (21:35), his memorable audition for The Second City Touring Company (25:56), and his pursuit of on-screen work in Los Angeles (34:22). On the back-half, Steven reflects on his portrayal of Glenn on The Walking Dead (36...
Apr 09, 2023•1 hr 14 min
Today, we’re joined by writer and artist Jenny Odell! At the top, we discuss the recent legislation regulating social media in Utah (4:02), how these platforms affect our perception of daily life (5:20), and the relationship between time and power Odell unpacks in her first book, How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy (6:41). Then, we talk about ‘productivity bros’ (13:05), our culture of self-optimization (16:35), and the social inequities that shape our relationships to time (20:31...
Apr 02, 2023•54 min
Today, we sit with legendary actor and comedian Bob Odenkirk! At the top, we discuss his new AMC series Lucky Hank (6:10), the parallels between his character Hank Devereaux and Saul Goodman of Better Call Saul (8:15), and how Monty Python shaped his early ideas of comedy (9:40). Then, Odenkirk reflects on his coming of age in Naperville, Illinois (10:43), the influence of cult comedy legend Del Close (19:21), his years writing at SNL (22:56), and performing at The Second City (27:50). On the ba...
Mar 26, 2023•1 hr 8 min
Margaret Atwood is the author of over 50 books of poetry, critical essays, graphic novels, and fiction. Her latest short story collection, Old Babes in the Wood , was recently published this March. Today, we revisit our 2022 conversation, beginning with essay collection Burning Questions (4:47), which wrestles with catastrophe (5:28), Atwood's upbringing in the wilderness (7:36) under egalitarian parents (10:30), and how she circumvented the traditional roles for women of the 1950s (12:55). She ...
Mar 22, 2023•51 min
Live from On Air Fest in Brooklyn, our talk with award-winning author Min Jin Lee! At the top, we discuss the roadmap to her upcoming third novel, American Hagwon (4:25), immigrating from Seoul to Queens in the 1970s (7:10), and the violence her family endured working in America (15:50). Then, Lee reflects on her years at Yale (19:15), a life-changing diagnosis in college (21:37), and the criticism she overcame as a young writer (25:26). On the back-half, Lee reads a personal passage from her Ne...
Mar 19, 2023•55 min
To celebrate Oscar Sunday, we return to our talk with actor Ke Huy Quan! At the top, he reflects on the making of A24’s Everything Everywhere All At Once (3:35), growing up in Vietnam (6:36), and his family’s perilous journey to Los Angeles in the late seventies (7:33). Then, we walk through Ke’s breakout role in Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (13:45), his pivot from acting to stunt choreography (24:20), and working under the tutelage of director Wong Kar-wai (25:38). On...
Mar 12, 2023•52 min
Ahead of this year’s Academy Awards, we sit with “RRR” actor Ram Charan! At the top, he reflects on his experience observing Ayyappa Deeksha (3:09 and what it meant to join forces with actor NTR Jr. (7:05) on the Oscar-nominated Indian epic (7:50), guided by the singular vision of director S.S. Rajamouli (12:18). Then, Charan shares how the viral ‘Naatu Naatu’ dance number came to be (16:25), the privilege of filming in pre-war Ukraine (18:03), and the influence of his father, actor Chiranjeevi ...
Mar 08, 2023•52 min
Today, we sit with brilliant actor, director, writer, and producer, Natasha Lyonne. At the top, we walk through the inspiration behind her hit Peacock series Poker Face (6:30), including shows and films like Columbo , Night Moves , and California Split (7:40), and a deeply personal scene with Nick Nolte, directed by Lyonne herself (10:50). Then, she reflects on her childhood acting in New York City (14:44), the new creative path she forged for herself at sixteen (22:40), and her healing road to ...
Mar 05, 2023•1 hr 3 min
Today, we sit with Congressman Maxwell Alejandro Frost (FL-10). At the top, we discuss the five-year aftermath of the horrific shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida (2:29), his first two months in Congress (4:10), and the legislature he’s fighting for to reduce gun violence (9:14). Then, we walk through the Congressman’s response to the Sandy Hook shooting at fifteen (11:40), how it solidified his early commitment to politics (18:17), and how, as a child of adoption, he b...
Feb 26, 2023•57 min
For the long weekend, we return to one of our favorite talks with actor Pedro Pascal! At the top, we discuss his role in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (5:02), working with childhood idol Nicolas Cage (6:50), why his parents left Chile (11:40), the John Hughes classic his dad wouldn’t let him watch (17:00), and the Tony Kushner play (20:21) that inspired him to give acting a go in New York City (25:07). On the back-half, Pedro reflects on his first jobs on screen (27:52), the story of h...
Feb 19, 2023•53 min
Today, we’re joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and critic Hilton Als! To begin, we unpack his approach to writing profiles (5:50), inspired by the words of photographer Diane Arbus (6:10), and how he captured Prince in a new, two-part memoir entitled My Pinup (7:55). Then, Als reflects on his upbringing in Brownsville, Brooklyn (10:25), a timely passage from his 2020 essay "Homecoming" (14:40), and formative works by writers Adrienne Kennedy (20:58) and the late Joan Didion (27:05). On the...
Feb 12, 2023•52 min
Today, we sit with actor and activist Nazanin Nour. At the top, we discuss the ongoing protests against the Islamic Republic (3:35), her transformative work in meetings with the UN (7:10), and some of the history that has brought Iran to this moment (10:40). Then, she describes her upbringing in Northern Virginia with immigrant parents (15:56), her complicated relationship with home (21:57), and how she connected her two identities through art-making (23:56). On the back-half, Nour shares her pa...
Feb 05, 2023•55 min
Today, we sit with renowned artist Kehinde Wiley on the opening night of Colorful Realm , his new exhibition at Roberts Projects in Los Angeles. At the top, Wiley walks through the Japanese influence behind his latest paintings (5:05), his upbringing in South Central Los Angeles (10:36), and the profound impact of artist Kerry James Marshall’s 1993 piece De Style (12:57). Then, he reflects on a formative MFA program at Yale (19:41), his residency at the Studio Museum under Thelma Golden (19:41) ...
Jan 29, 2023•41 min
On January 22nd, 1973, the Supreme Court passed Roe v. Wade, a landmark decision preserving the right to abortion across the country. Today, we sit with Dr. Ghazaleh Moayedi, a board-certified OB/GYN, who’d been providing abortions for over a decade—until last summer, when the protection was repealed. We talk about the conditions Dr. Moayedi faces as a physician in Texas (5:29), the critical reality and travel faced by patients in states where the procedure has been outlawed (13:29), and how she...
Jan 22, 2023•53 min
Today, we sit with actor Ke Huy Quan! At the top, he reflects on the making of A24’s Everything Everywhere All At Once (5:40), growing up in Vietnam (9:10), and his family’s perilous journey to Los Angeles in the late seventies (11:20). Then, we walk through Ke’s breakout role in Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (15:35), his pivot from acting to stunt choreography (22:26), and working under the tutelage of director Wong Kar-wai (27:12). On the back half, Ke describes how C...
Jan 15, 2023•55 min
This week, we’re joined by actor Claire Foy! We discuss her compelling performance in Sarah Polley’s Women Talking (5:10), the painful journey of her character, Salome (7:50), and a pivotal scene from the film (11:50). [To skip ahead, the conversation around Women Talking ends at 15:10.] Then, Foy describes growing up in England (16:08), her path to drama school in Liverpool (21:49), and her on-screen debut in the BBC adaptation of Little Dorrit (26:24). On the back-half, she describes working w...
Jan 08, 2023•49 min
Happy holidays! For our sixth annual Talk Easy holiday special, we've partnered with the Audre Lorde Project to celebrate. Named after the titular feminist, poet, and activist, the Audre Lorde Project is an NYC-based community organizing center for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two-Spirit, Trans and Gender Non Conforming (LGBTSTGNC) people of color. Through the end of December, we're donating 100% of the proceeds from our shop to their services. These programs include educational events, social justic...
Dec 25, 2022•1 hr 28 min
As we near the end of 2022, we sit with trailblazing journalist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa. We begin by unpacking the fragmenting effects of social media (5:08), how the Internet is giving power to authoritarian regimes around the globe (7:49), and Ressa’s past five years uncovering those operations (8:20). Then, we walk through her early years: moving from the Philippines to suburban New Jersey at age ten (13:08), three lessons from childhood (15:52), and the books that impacted h...
Dec 18, 2022•1 hr 3 min
Today, we sit with actor, writer, and director Lake Bell! With the release of the her new audiobook (“Inside Voice: My Obsession with How We Sound”) we pinpoint the origin of this passion: growing up in Manhattan in the 1980s (8:10), being drawn to actor Lauren Bacall’s register at age six (11:18), and capturing an array of voices via tape recorder at age fifteen (15:25) before writing/directing her debut film on the subject, “In a World,” in 2013 (22:05). On the back-half, we chart the changes ...
Dec 14, 2022•53 min
Today, we sit with musician Dev Hynes (Blood Orange)! We start by discussing his new EP (3:15), performing at Madison Square Garden with Harry Styles this fall (4:40), and the process that guides much of his music (6:39). Then, Dev describes growing up in Essex, England (7:04), falling in love with music at his sister’s piano lessons (11:00), his dreams of entering the New York punk culture of Please Kill Me (20:30), early performances with the band Test Icicles (22:08), and how he’s been inspir...
Dec 11, 2022•1 hr
