Writer-director Robert Siegel wanted to explore a career in either comedy or journalism. It turns out he got to do both as Editor-in-Chief of The Onion. But while The Onion was mostly comedy tinged with ...
Listen →Episodes
Episode 1384 - Bruce Wagner
When Marc reads the works of author and screenwriter Bruce Wagner, he starts to question reality. Bruce’s depictions of Hollywood personalities and show business darkness cut close to the bone and leave ...
Listen →Episode 1383 - Wes Bentley
American Beauty completely changed Wes Bentley’s life and is still doing so today, considering he got his current role in Yellowstone because of his performance as Ricky Fitts. But the sudden exposure to ...
Listen →Budd Friedman from 2012
From November 2012, Marc talks with Budd Friedman, the man behind the comedy club boom in America. Budd died on November 12, 2022 at the age of ...
Listen →Episode 1382 - Quinta Brunson
Quinta Brunson didn’t pave the traditional path to a hit network sitcom. In fact, she paved a path that didn’t really exist. Quinta and Marc talk about how she was one of the first people on Instagram to ...
Listen →Episode 1381 - Elizabeth Banks
Elizabeth Banks says she’s the kind of person who likes to get ‘A’s on tests. And in show business, directing feature films for Hollywood studios is the ultimate test. Elizabeth and Marc talk about how ...
Listen →Episode 1380 - Chris Redd
Chris Redd knows what it’s like to have dreams and then watch them shift in the face of reality. It happened first with the dream of being a rapper, but then Chris realized he had a knack for this comedy ...
Listen →Episode 1379 - Armando Iannucci
Veep creator Armando Iannucci knows his job as a purveyor of political satire becomes more difficult as politicians become more absurd and cartoonish. In fact, just hours before recording this episode, ...
Listen →Episode 1378 - Ron Carter
Ron Carter is one of the architects of modern jazz. The Guinness Book of World Records cites him as the most recorded bassist in history and his influence has stretched well beyond jazz to a host of ...
Listen →Episode 1377 - Jeremy Strong
Jeremy Strong can’t help being honest. His honesty around his job as an actor is what leads to magazine profiles where he’s portrayed as “intense” and “serious.” His honesty also allows him to admit that ...
Listen →Episode 1376 - Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. believes we must understand who we were in order to understand who we are. That goes for individuals, which is at the core of his PBS series Finding Your Roots, as well as society, ...
Listen →Episode 1375 - Ralph Macchio
Everyone knows Ralph Macchio as Daniel LaRusso from The Karate Kid. In fact, so many people know him as Daniel LaRusso, he wrote a book about spending his life as that character. Ralph and Marc talk about ...
Listen →Episode 1374 - Béla Fleck / Michael Morris
Béla Fleck is more than a virtuoso banjo player. He’s also a banjo missionary, an evangelist for an instrument he feels is often misunderstood and pigeonholed. Béla talks with Marc about how he wanted to ...
Listen →Episode 1373 - Zahn McClarnon
Zahn McClarnon’s early experiences with reservation life helped him add some personal touches as a cast member of Reservation Dogs. But it was actually his experience with the musical Jesus Christ ...
Listen →Episode 1372 - Jann Wenner
Jann Wenner’s life as the co-founder and publisher of Rolling Stone Magazine has been chronicled in other books, but Jann says he needed to write a memoir to declare what his generation actually stood ...
Listen →Episode 1371 - Tony Gilroy
Writer-director Tony Gilroy is the man behind one of Marc’s favorite movies of all time, Michael Clayton. They get into everything it took to get that movie made and its surprising legacy. But the rest of ...
Listen →Episode 1370 - Abigail Disney
Abigail Disney feels the burden of her last name, particularly due to the practices of the global company that was founded by her grandfather Roy and grand uncle Walt. Marc talks with Abigail about her ...
Listen →