Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

Thirty years. Over 850 episodes. Nine Peabodys. One Pulitzer. And yet somehow, three decades in, This American Life (and its co-founder, Ira Glass) remains as innovative and timely as ever. We begin with a week in the life of Ira: a typical Monday at This American Life (4:52), the rigorous notes process (6:05), and how the team selects the stories it wants to tell that Sunday (8:23). Then, we unpack Trump’s ongoing threats to slash government funding for public media (14:14), Glass’ formative days as a teenage intern at NPR (19:06), and the radio mentors who shaped his ideas around narrative (27:18). On the back-half, we discuss how his taste and talent eventually converged (42:03), what makes a good interview (45:36), the guest he most identifies with (1:00:25), the episode he’s most proud of (1:15:31), and, naturally, the future of This American Life (1:20:07). We’re now on YouTube! Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. Learn more at talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Television, perhaps more than movies, has a way of etching its stars in stone. And few actors seem to be able to break the mold more than once. Which is what makes Penn Badgley’s career—first on Gossip Girl then You—special. We sit this week around the fifth and final season of You (7:00) to unpack its shocking series finale [spoiler] (9:13) and the political climate in which the show is coming to a close (12:10). Then, Penn opens up about the solitude of his west coast upbringing (19:50), his years as a child actor (23:19), and his beloved portrayal of Dan Humphrey on Gossip Girl (33:12). On the back-half, Badgley’s transformative trip to South America in 2012 (39:46), his spiritual journey into the Bahá'í Faith (42:38), and how these experiences led him to his wife, Domino (44:30). To close, he describes the intense physical experience of filming the You finale [spoiler] (51:36), what the ‘fantasy of Joe Goldberg’ reveals about masculinity today (55:55), and a fitting Dave Eggers passage from the prologue of The Executioner’s Song (1:03:22). We’re now on YouTube! Drop us a line at mail@talkeasypod.com. This episode was recorded at Spotify Studios. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Before Viola Davis (How to Get Away with Murder) became an EGOT-winning actor, she was an observer. Her work takes the human experience and transmutes it, offering a mirror and a window into ourselves. Today, we sit to unpack her recent, liberating projects in The Woman King (4:24) and G20 (4:50), the formative years she spent growing up in Rhode Island (13:52), and how she captured those familial memories in her 2022 memoir Finding Me (17:12). Then, we talk about Viola’s start as a performer (23:40), what she learned attending Juilliard (31:57), and the quagmire she faced as a Black actor emerging on Broadway and in Hollywood post-graduation (35:10). On the back-half, Davis reflects on a scene from August Wilson’s play Seven Guitars (37:50), her singular experience acting alongside Meryl Streep in Doubt (47:25), and the ways her life transformed during Shonda Rhymes’ How to Get Away with Murder and Steve McQueen’s Widows (53:00). To close, Viola shares her views on legacy (1:01:05) and how she finds her way back home, each and every day (1:05:20). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An outspoken advocate for working families, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) has made a career out of taking on Wall Street, Silicon Valley, and the Beltway. And while she may be tired of Washington, she’s not too tired to make it better. At the top, we discuss the constitutional crisis (5:00) surrounding the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia (9:00), this administration’s attack on public education (12:00), and the GOP’s fealty to Donald Trump (15:00). Then, we dive into Senator Warren’s proposed bill to limit the power of Special Government Employees like Elon Musk (25:00), her fight for campaign finance reform (27:00), and the values her Oklahoma upbringing instilled in her (40:00). On the back-half, Senator Warren reflects on her early work in bankruptcy law (45:00), why she’s devoted her career to fighting for the middle class (50:00), the challenges she’s faced in the past decade in office (55:00), and what she sees for the future of the Democratic party (1:10:00). Feedback, guests ideas, or a power-ranking of your favorite Warren takedowns? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. This episode was recorded at Spotify Studios. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“Everything’s changed,” says author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. “I’ve changed, and every book is a different person.” It’s true: in the 12 years since the release of her best-seller, Americanah, Adichie has oscillated between beloved novelist, public intellectual, and feminist icon. This spring, however, she’s returned to her true love: fiction. We sat recently to discuss her excellent new book, Dream Count (5:00), the decade-long writer’s block she pushed through to publish again (7:00), the profound, familial loss that upended her life (16:00), and the experience that turned her into a feminist (25:00). Then, Adichie reflects on her childhood growing up in the aftermath of the Biafran War (28:00), the importance of seeing yourself in literature (34:00), her affinity for American universities (42:00), and how her racial awakening culminated in Americanah (42:00). On the back-half: a wide-ranging, candid exchange around the erosion of free speech (53:00) and the American left (58:00), how she’s grappled with backlash (1:09:00), her case for intellectual curiosity (1:19:30), the prophetic work of W.E.B. Du Bois (1:25:00), and where she finds inspiration for the page (1:28:00). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jenny Slate returns today for her fourth appearance on the program. We discuss how this role in the new FX series Dying for Sex offered her ‘full wingspan’ as a performer (5:45), embodying best friend and caretaker of Molly, played by Michelle Williams (9:25), and what she extracted in herself to play a confrontational character (12:30). Then, Jenny describes her relationship to motherhood (17:30), her breaking point while making her 2019 film The Sunlit Night (22:32), and how some timeless words from her first story collection Little Weirds help make sense of this moment (28:56). On the back-half, we unpack Jenny’s journey to healing from social media (33:11), a token of advice from her father, poet Ron Slate (41:48), and, to continue our tradition—Slate’s personal and creative aspirations for the years to come (43:51). To close, a formative passage from Shakespeare’s The Tempest (51:57). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Actor, writer, director, and producer Seth Rogen came up in an age of abundance—a Hollywood that made big-budget comedies with box office success: The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Superbad, Pineapple Express. That era also guided his new Apple TV+ show The Studio. On the heels of the series’ premiere, Rogen joins us to discuss its key influences (4:00), from Robert Altman’s The Player to The Larry Sanders Show (10:00), the evolving state of “show business” (17:00), and a life-changing piece of advice from director and producer Judd Apatow (23:00). On the back-half, we dive into his early years writing comedy in Vancouver (27:00), formative memories making Freaks and Geeks (30:00), the challenges of working inside the studio system itself (40:00), and how This Is the End, the meta-comedy from 2013, was a precursor to this latest project (50:00). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In their new book, Abundance, journalists Ezra Klein (The New York Times) and Derek Thompson offer a hopeful vision for what the future of the U.S. can look like. Ezra returns to the show to discuss how his ‘agenda of abundance’ (7:00) is a response to the hollowing out of the middle class (15:00) and the dwindling housing market (20:00). Then, Klein explains how these regulatory inefficiencies have impacted California’s high-speed rail project (30:00), what we can learn from international construction (35:00), and why it’s so difficult to build in Blue states (40:00). On the back-half, we discuss the future of AI in the workforce (45:00), whether “Abundance” can serve as a prescriptive text for the Democratic Party (1:00), the hope he aims to engender in readers (1:10:00), and our path to meaningful progress in 2025 and beyond (1:15:00). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From Mean Girls to Mamma Mia! to First Reformed, Amanda Seyfried has repeatedly displayed her versatility as a performer. Today, we return to one of our favorite conversations with the illustrious actor. At the top, we discuss her Oscar-nominated portrayal of 1920s and '30s screen star Marion Davies in David Fincher's Mank (6:53), her early years working in the industry (13:13), and the joy of making Mean Girls (15:26). Then, she reflects on the parallels between 1930s Hollywood and today (36:08), how she found her footing (41:51), and where she'd like to go in the years ahead (45:32). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What does photography need to do now? Artist Tyler Mitchell has been asking (and attempting to answer) that question since making history as the first Black photographer to shoot a Vogue cover back in 2018. Since then (he was only 23-years-old at the time) his work has been celebrated in museums around the world, featured in publications like Vanity Fair and W, and, ultimately, published in his debut monograph, I Can Make You Feel Good. He joins us this week around the opening of his revelatory exhibition, Ghost Images, now available at the Gagosian Gallery in New York City. View the works discussed in our virtual gallery here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In celebration of Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor Monica Barbaro. Her portrayal of Joan Baez in the Bob Dylan biopic, A Complete Unknown, earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. At the top, we discuss how director James Mangold drew inspiration from Miloš Forman’s Amadeus (6:00), the vocal lessons Monica received in preparation for the role of Baez (9:00), and her affecting rendition of House of the Rising Sun (13:00). Then, we dive into Monica’s California upbringing (18:00), her pivot from dancing to professional acting (24:00), and the winding journey that led her to A Complete Unknown (29:00). On the back-half, we talk about her breakout role in Top Gun: Maverick (36:00), her evolving relationship to perfectionism (40:00), the deep, autobiographical research she did to portray Joan Baez (43:00), and what she hopes for in the years to come (50:00). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the lead-up to Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor, writer, and director Jesse Eisenberg. At the top, we unpack the journey that shaped his film A Real Pain (9:18), memories from his travels to Poland (15:40), and what he observed about his family growing up in East Brunswick (22:23). Then, Eisenberg reflects on his first jokes written on post-it notes (29:20), his breakthrough acting roles in Roger Dodger (31:35) and The Squid and the Whale (34:37), and formative visits to his aunt Doris in New York City (35:32). On the back-half, we talk about his transformation in The Social Network (41:15), the erotic dream that inspired his play The Spoils (42:48), the real anxiety he explored while writing A Real Pain (46:39), lessons on directing from Richard Ayoade and Greg Mottola (51:14), and why he cares so deeply about his art (1:00:10). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One week from Oscar Sunday, we’re joined by Nickel Boys director RaMell Ross. At the top, RaMell describes the formal innovations of his new film (5:00), the naivete that allowed him to make this singular project (8:13), and how photography is shaped by race in ways we don’t consider (12:00). Then, we discuss RaMell’s upbringing in Virginia (16:00), the hoop dreams that brought him to Georgetown (25:00), and the “question everything” mindset that took flight in his college years (32:00). On the back-half, Ross explains the cinematic lineage of his Oscar-nominated documentary Hale County This Morning, This Evening (40:00), his aim to portray the American South in a new light (47:00), and why Nickel Boys is just the beginning of this next chapter in Black cinematic history (55:00). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A celebration of 50 years of Saturday Night Live, featuring stories from Bill Hader, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Jason Reitman. Find links to hear each of these full episodes. Visit Peacock to watch The SNL Anniversary Special, The Homecoming Concert, and the four-part docuseries Beyond Saturday Night. Feedback or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For more than a decade, Chris Hayes has been one of our most incisive political thinkers. He joins us this week in New York City, hours before taping his hit MSNBC show, All In with Chris Hayes, to discuss his new book, The Sirens’ Call. At the top, we unpack America’s Constitutional crises (5:30), the editorial inner workings of “All In” (7:00), and how attention became our most endangered resource (12:00). Then, Hayes talks through the challenges of maintaining viewership in the era of cord cutting (14:00), the diversity of his primetime audience (25:00), and how he balances the performative elements of the job with his authentic self (44:00). On the back-half, Hayes describes the challenges of reaching a wider audience in our increasingly partisan political landscape (50:00), his tenure on television (55:00), his formative years writing at The Chicago Reader (1:05:00), and a short story from Albert Camus that keeps him on course (1:10:00). Feedback or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Actor Mikey Madison has delivered the performance of the season with her star-making turn in Anora. She joins us this week on the heels of her recent Oscar nomination for Best Actress. We begin by discussing the organic partnership she formed with writer/director Sean Baker (3:30), the ‘emotional preparation’ required to tell this vulnerable story (7:00), her San Fernando Valley upbringing (11:45), and her formative years working with Pamela Adlon on Better Things (22:38). On the back-half, Mikey reflects on her breakout part in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (30:30), the sex professionals who helped inform her work in Anora (32:50), how she excavated her past to create in the present (43:10), and where she hopes to go on the other side of this towering achievement (49:50). Feedback, future guest ideas, or thoughts on Anora? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From The Walking Dead to Minari to Beef, Steven Yeun has become one of the most singular performers in Hollywood today. With his latest role in the sci-fi romance Love Me, we look back at our conversation with the leading man. At the top, Yeun unpacks his acclaimed Netflix series Beef (5:09), a powerful church scene from the show (11:30), and his personal experience immigrating to the US from Seoul as a child (18:15). Then, we walk through Steven’s coming of age in Michigan (21:24), his memorable audition for The Second City Touring Company (25:29), and his pursuit of on-screen work in Los Angeles (33:40). On the back-half, Steven reflects on his portrayal of Glenn on The Walking Dead (36:22), the films that followed, including Okja (48:10), Burning (50:02), and Sorry to Bother You (51:16), his transformative experience making and premiering Minari (55:42), and to close, a poem that guided him on set by the great Wendell Berry (1:08:19). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at sf@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David Lynch was an artist in every sense of the word. Rest in peace to the legendary filmmaker, who passed away this month at the age of 78. Today we present a tribute to Lynch, featuring excerpts from two of his most enduring collaborators: actors Kyle MacLachlan and Laura Dern. In each conversation, they reflect on the early projects they worked on with Lynch—together in Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks, separately in Dune and Wild at Heart. They also discuss David’s original creative process, his fascination with the mysteries of life, and memories from over three decades alongside the beloved director. To close, a love letter to the movies and a piece of music by Lynch himself. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Writer Emily Witt (“Health and Safety: A Breakdown”) has spent the past two weeks on the ground covering the Los Angeles wildfires for The New Yorker. Her latest story centers around the Benns (7:00), a multigenerational Black family with deep ties to Altadena (9:30), where they’ve raised children in homes they’ve owned dating back to the late 1950s (16:00). We discuss how they’re managing as the Eaton fire continues to rage (17:00), the value of community in crisis (19:00), and the measures the city was urged to take to mitigate this disaster (23:00). On the back half, Witt reflects on her 2023 interview with Mayor Karen Bass (30:00), the prophetic work of Altadena author Octavia Butler (37:00), how on-the-ground reporting offers a chance to “write a first draft of history” (45:00), and where Los Angeles goes from here (55:00). To help support the Benn family, visit their GoFundMe or text “Talk” to 858-358-5881. And special thanks to Weyes Blood. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, we revisit a soulful conversation around climate change and the restorative power of nature with author Richard Powers. We begin by defining the thematic through-line between The Overstory and Bewilderment (5:06), the eco trauma articulated in each text (9:10), how we may redefine hope today (16:08), and what the pandemic taught us about the climate crisis (26:18). Powers also details the ecological shortcomings of capitalism (29:00) and our myopic interpretation (and fear of) death (30:56). On the back-half, we unpack why he writes (33:48), the need for “productive solitude” (40:40), and the singular way he writes analytical and emotional characters (44:42). To close– a fitting scene from one of Powers’ earlier works, Plowing the Dark (50:30), in which an older man enters an used bookstore, unable to find the book intended. And in the absence of that book, Richard Powers will continue to do so (52:50). Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at sf@talkeasypod.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.