CNN anchor Jake Tapper joins Liza in another special bonus episode to discuss how a 2-party system can look a little bit like a long-term marriage… that neither partner actually signed up for. How has this relationship evolved over the years and in what ways do the parties rely on each other? Liza and Jake discuss all this and more. We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then, we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you lis...
Jan 12, 2023•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Significant Others is back with another bonus episode! Liza is joined by Dana Schwartz, host of the popular podcast Noble Blood , which explores the stories of the world’s most fascinating nobles. Today, Dana takes us on a crash course through the complicated dynamics of royal marriages and answers our burning questions! What set Catherine the Great apart? Did Anne Boleyn play her cards right? And who was the first appointed royal spouse that was male? Turns out that relationships aren't so easy...
Dec 19, 2022•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Significant Others is back with a bonus episode! Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Stacy Schiff returns to discuss her new book The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams , which examines the essential (and somewhat forgotten) role of Samuel Adams during the Revolutionary War. Liza and Stacy explore why he has become more known as “the beer guy” than for his contributions to the cause, and ask - was Samuel Adams the Significant Other of the American Revolution? We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then, w...
Dec 01, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Best-selling author and journalist Malcolm Gladwell joins Liza to discuss the concept of “celebrity doctors” and the destructive dynamic between the famous Dr. Spock and his complicated wife Jane.
Sep 08, 2022•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care altered parenting forever and made Dr. Benjamin Spock a household name. But his wife Jane, who not only helped him get the book down on paper but introduced him to the very concepts that were so revolutionary in his work, was ruined by his success. Source List: Dr. Spock, An American Life , by Thomas Maier Doctor Spock: Biography of a Conservative Radical , by Lynn Z. Bloom “Public vs. Private: Dr. Spock, Mr. Hyde,” by Mary Jo Kochakian “Parents and...
Sep 07, 2022•52 min•Transcript available on Metacast Parenting expert Julie Lythcott-Haims sits down with Liza to explore what parents should and shouldn’t want for their children; and whether or not Sir Leslie Stephen may have gotten some things right.
Sep 01, 2022•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Virginia Woolf’s father, Sir Leslie Stephen, wanted nothing more than to be a genius—but he created one instead. Starring: Jameela Jamil as Virginia Woolf and Luke Millington-Drake as Sir Leslie Stephen. Source List: “Virginia Woolf and Leslie Stephen: History and Literary Revolution,” by Katherine C. Hill To The Lighthouse , by Virginia Woolf A Room of One’s Own , by Virginia Woolf A Writer’s Diary , by Virginia Woolf Virginia Woolf , by Hermione Lee The Common Reader , by Virginia Woolf Virgin...
Aug 31, 2022•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast Journalist and biographer Mark Harris joins Liza to discuss the legacy of Elia Kazan and whether or not there is such a thing as a happy ending in Hollywood.
Aug 25, 2022•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast Legendary filmmaker Elia Kazan gave us such cinematic classics as On the Waterfront and A Streetcar Named Desire , but he made himself a pariah when he named names to the government . Without his wife, Molly Day Thacher, he might never have made his controversial decision–nor even had a career to begin with. Starring: Lisa Kudrow as Molly Day Thacher and Paul F. Tompkins as Elia Kazan. Also featuring: Jack McBrayer, Jim Rash, Adam O’Byrne and Larry Powell. Source List: A Life , by Elia Kazan Eli...
Aug 24, 2022•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast Author and comedian W. Kamau Bell joins Liza to discuss the legacies of Maya Angelou and James Baldwin, and the importance of affinity groups.
Aug 18, 2022•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Without the profound connection between these two artists, would the world ever have gotten I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings ? Starring: Christina Elmore as Maya Angelou and Larry Powell as James Baldwin. Also starring Angelica Chéri as Lorraine Hansberry. Source List: James Baldwin: A Biography , By David Adams Leeming The Three Mothers , by Anna Malaika Tubbs Notes of a Native Son , by James Baldwin At 80, Maya Angelou Reflects on a ‘Glorious’ Life , NPR, 2008 The Collected Autobiographies of M...
Aug 17, 2022•46 min•Transcript available on Metacast Biographer Stacy Schiff joins Liza to discuss the lengths she went to in researching her Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, Véra . A full list of Stacy Schiff’s books can be found here: https://www.stacyschiff.com/books-and-essays-by-stacy-schiff.html
Aug 11, 2022•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast Vladimir Nabokov is best known for writing the highly controversial yet critically revered novel, Lolita. But the book might never have made it onto the shelves were it not for the other Nabokov—Vladimir's enigmatic and elusive wife, Véra. Starring: D’Arcy Carden as Véra Nabokov and Dan Bucatinsky as Vladimir Nabokov Source list: Véra by Stacy Schiff Letters to Véra by Vladimir Nabokov, Ed: Olga Voronina and Brian Boyd Vladimir Nabokov, The Russian Years by Brian Boyd Vladimir Nabokov, The Ameri...
Aug 10, 2022•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Liza is joined by her significant other, self-proclaimed Lincoln super-fan Conan O’Brien, to discuss how crucial Mary Lincoln was to her husband's political career.
Aug 04, 2022•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mary Lincoln is the First Lady everyone loves to hate. But without her, would Abe Lincoln even have been president in the first place? Theirs is a love story that contains many tragedies—and a key to how America became the country it is today. Starring: Rita Wilson as Mary Lincoln and Timothy Olyphant as Abraham Lincoln. Also featuring Matt Gourley and Mike Sweeney. Source List: Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, by Doris Kearns Goodwin Miller Center, The University of Virg...
Aug 03, 2022•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Playwright Dipika Guha joins Liza to give insight into the complicated relationship between her home country of India and Gandhi's legacy in this time of call-out culture.
Jul 28, 2022•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mohandas Gandhi helped India win independence from Britain through nonviolent resistance but little know that he credits the inspiration for his tactics to his wife, Kasturba. So, who was the wife of this renowned saint? Starring Dipika Guha as Kasturba Gandhi and Samrat Chakrabarti as Mohandas Gandhi. Source List: The Woman Beside Gandhi: A Biography of Kasturba, Wife of the Mahatma , by Sita Kapadia Gandhi on Women , by Madhu Kishwar, Economic and Political Weekly , vol. 20, no. 41 Why Mahatma...
Jul 27, 2022•50 min•Transcript available on Metacast World-renowned psychotherapist Esther Perel joins Liza to discuss the dynamic between Leo and Sophia Tolstoy and whether the issues Sophia faced were a product of the times she lived in. This bonus episode is a discussion of Episode 1 of Significant Others, "Countess Sophia Tolstoy." Listen to it here .
Jul 21, 2022•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast Leo Tolstoy is widely regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time. Yet, without his wife, Sophia Tolstoy, would the world have been gifted with such literary classics as War and Peace and Anna Karenina ? Starring Megan Mullally as Countess Sophia Tolstoy and Nick Offerman as Leo Tolstoy. Source List: Tolstoy, A Biography by A.N. Wilson, 1988 WW Norton & Co Song Without Words: The Photographs & Diaries of Countess Sophia Tolstoy by Leah Bendavid-Val, National Geographic Society Leo Tolsto...
Jul 20, 2022•45 min•Transcript available on Metacast Did you know that the novel "Lolita" would not exist if Vladimir Nabokov’s wife hadn’t stopped her husband from burning the manuscript? Or that Gandhi learned his legendary method of passive resistance from his wife? Alongside any famous name, there is often another story to tell—of an intimate relationship that made all the difference. Starting July 20th, join Liza Powel O’Brien as she explores the stories of the little-known individuals just beyond the spotlight of history. Because no one live...
Jul 12, 2022•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
