Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Now What? With Carole Zimmer is an interview podcast that features conversations with extraordinary people from various walks of life. The host explores how these individuals navigate challenges and obstacles in their personal and professional journeys. Each episode offers insights into resilience, creativity, and the human spirit. Listeners gain perspective through candid stories about overcoming adversity and finding purpose.
Episodes
A Conversation with Siri Hustvedt
Novelist Siri Hustvedt knows a lot about grief. Two years ago, her husband, the writer Paul Auster, died. They had an extraordinary life together as parents, romantic partners, and authors who shared their work. Hustvedt was devastated by Paul's death. In her book Ghost Stories, she explores what happens when someone who has been your partner for more than 40 years disappears and how she remains h
A conversation with Mary Alice Williams and Mary Murphy
I've always loved being a journalist and I'm excited to catch up with two of the best people in the business. Mary Alice Williams was there when CNN made history, becoming the first 24-hour news network. She was appointed CNN Vice president, making Williams one of the highest-ranking female executives in American television. Mary Murphy spent four decades at PIX 11 News reporting on mob hits, drug
A Conversation with Zayd Dohrn
Zayd Ayers Dohrn was born in a safe house during the decade his parents were in hiding. In 1969, Zayd's mother and father, Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn, founded the revolutionary group called the Weather Underground. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover declared Bernadine the most dangerous woman in America. In their lives underground, Ayers and Dohrn committed acts of violence like bombing government b
A Conversation with Matthew Zachary
For Matthew Zachary, the subject of cancer is up close and personal. He was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor at the age of 21. Having survived the odds, Zachary became a patient advocate, founding a non-profit called Stupid Cancer which supports young adults with the disease. Zachary celebrated the publication of his memoir We the Patients, by sitting down at the piano on the stage of Manhattan's
A Conversation with Kathryn Grody
Kathryn Grody is an actress who has appeared in films like Reds and The Lemon Sisters. She's also been married to actor and singer Mandy Patinkin for more than 45 years. They have two children: Isaac and Gideon. During the pandemic, the family retreated to their house in upstate New York. That's when Gideon began filming the daily lives of his parents and posting the videos on Tik Tok, Instagram a
A Conversation with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi
Ibram X. Kendi became a star when his book How to Be an Antiracist landed on the bestseller list. Kendi, who's now a Professor of History at Howard University, gained a reputation as a racial-reconciliation guru. He's also the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship which is known as the genius award. Now, Kendi has written a book called Chain of Ideas: The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age. It focuses
A Conversation With Gina Gershon
Actress Gina Gershon hadn't had what you'd call a traditional Hollywood career. So, it's no surprise that she's written a memoir with an in-your-face title. Alpha Pussy: How I Survived the Valley and Learned to Love My Boobs. Gershon says the alpha pussy part has something to do with the fact that she raises male cats. As a result of her roles in films like Bound and Showgirls, Gershon has become
A Conversation With Andrew Yang
In 2019, At the age of 45, Andrew Yang decided to enter the race for President of the United States. He'd never run for any elective office before. Yang hoped his signature proposal of giving every American adult a universal basic income of $1,000 a month would help get him into the White House. Though he wound up with a dedicated group of tech-savvy followers known as the Yang gang, the candidate
A Conversation With Graydon Carter
He was editor of Vanity Fair for 25 years during a time that big glossy magazines ruled. Its pages were filled with stories about Hollywood royalty, Brangelina, fashion icons like Calvin, Giorgio and Donatella. Even Graydon's hair became famous for the way it took off on the sides like a winged creature. Graydon knows everyone and has juicy stories to tell. All this at a time when people turned re
A Conversation With Ani DiFranco
Singer Ani DiFranco's career took off in the 90s when she became a big hit with people from the millennial generation, like my son Jon who spent his teenage years listening to DiFranco's song Untouchable Face over and over again. Her lyrics speak to the raw emotions of adulthood, especially when it comes to relationships and identity. And all these years later DiFranco's career is alive and well.
A Conversation With Jeanette Winterson
Jeanette Winterson is a writer who grew up in a Pentecostal evangelical family in a little town in the north of England. She was adopted. Her parents were poor. There was no indoor bathroom. Winterson dreamed of escaping that life. When she was 16, she fell in love with a woman. Her parents were scandalized. Winterson left home, slept in her car and managed to get into Oxford. She's fascinated by
A Conversation with Caroline Paul
Caroline Paul is an adventure seeker. She's been a white-water rafting guide and pioneered first descents on unexplored rivers in Borneo. To experience wing walking, she strapped herself to the top of a biplane while it performed maneuvers like loops and rolls. She's also racked up credits as a luge athlete, that crazy sport where you race down steep, icy tracks on small sleds, lying on your back.
A Conversation with Jimmy Wales
When Jimmy Wales was 3, growing up in Huntsville, Alabama, a door-to-door salesman sold his mother a copy of the World Book Encyclopedia. Jimmy fell in love with it. As an adult he had the idea of creating an online encyclopedia that would give everyone free access to the sum of all human knowledge. The result is Wikipedia, which Wales co-founded 25 years ago. Though not without controversy, Wikip
A Conversation with Emi Nietfeld
Until she was 10, Emi Nietfeld led a pretty normal life. It was when her parents divorced that her world fell apart. The parent she knew to be her father transitioned to a woman named Michelle. Her mother was a police photographer with serious psychological problems. In her book, Acceptance, Emi who is now 32, talks about the price she paid for working so hard to overcome circumstances that no chi
"Now What?" Best of 2025
It hasn't been a great year when it comes to treating our fellow human beings with dignity and respect. But it's been a great year for talking to extraordinary people on "Now What?" Larry Charles is a true character who wore his pajamas to work and directed Sacha Baron Cohen in the movie Borat. Along with Gilda Radner and Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman was a hilarious member of the original cast of S
A Conversation with Gabrielle Hamilton
Gabrielle Hamilton's father always told his five kids they had to do something practical with their lives and whatever they did, they had to be excellent at it. Mediocrity was a family sin. In 1999 Hamilton opened Prune, a 30-seat restaurant in the East Village, to rave reviews. She was honored with a James Beard award for Best Chef in New York City in 2011, followed by Outstanding Chef in 2018. H
A Conversation with Calvin Duncan and Sophie Cull
Calvin Duncan grew up in the ninth ward in New Orleans. His mother died when he was very young. He stole food so he'd have enough to eat. When he was 19, Duncan was arrested for allegedly killing a man during a robbery. He was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison, spending more than 28 years in Angola, Louisiana's notorious state penitentiary. That's when Duncan began s
A Conversation with Laraine Newman
Picture this. It was my first job in radio. I decided to do a series about women and comedy. The idea coincided with the birth of Saturday Night Live. The first interview: Gilda Radner. We sat on the floor, right across from Studio 8H where the show is still performed. Gilda told me all about what life is like when you become an overnight star. Then I talked to Jane Curtin about people asking her
A Conversation with E. Jean Carroll
E. Jean Carroll is a brave woman. In 2019, she sued Donald Trump for calling her a liar after she went public with the accusation that he had raped her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room. There was a second trial. This one was about defamation and sexual abuse. Juries in both cases found Donald Trump guilty. E. Jean Carroll was awarded more than $88 million in damages. Now, President Trump has as
A Conversation with Paul Krugman
Paul Krugman is proud of his accomplishments including being chosen as the sole winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his contributions to new trade theory. When it comes to trade, Krugman is no fan of President Trump's tariffs. And President Trump is no fan of Paul Krugman. Trump has called Krugman a "deranged bum," a description Krugman considers a great honor. After 25 yea
A Conversation With Jake Tapper
Jake Tapper anchors several programs on CNN including the Sunday morning public affairs show State of the Union. Tapper has been reporting on politics at the network for more than 12 years. He recently conducted a controversial text interview with President Trump. Tapper has written two books so far this year including the best seller Original Sin about Joe Biden's mental and physical decline duri
A Conversation with James Comey (Re-Release)
Former FBI Director James Comey is at the top of President Donald Trump's enemies list. Trump has made no secret of his dislike for Comey, who was in charge of the FBI probe that looked into whether Russia had interfered with the 2016 election. In May of 2017, Donald Trump fired Comey. The President has prodded the Justice Department to go after his political opponents. Now, Comey has been indicte
A Conversation with Robin Givhan
Virgil Abloh is a designer who broke the mold when it comes to the world of design. He had a degree in architecture, not fashion when he started out designing tee shirts. Kanye West became Virgil's mentor at a time the rapper's own career was taking off. Virgil went from designing streetwear to becoming the first Black artistic director of the French luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton. Robin Givha
A Conversation with Rax King
Rax King is a writer. Her first book of essays is called Tacky. Her new one is Sloppy. King prides herself on being a model of bad behavior. Name a vice and she's got it: overspending, shoplifting from Brandy Melville, lying, former cocaine abuser. She likes to wear low cut tops to show off her numerous tattoos. A prominent ink decoration that curves around her neck says "I'll go on." It frames he
A Conversation with Kenneth Cole
Footwear runs in the family. Kenneth Cole's father had a shoe manufacturing company in Brooklyn. Cole's brand is also known for the social issues he embraces, from combating HIV/AIDS to calling attention to the stigma of mental illness. The new documentary A Man with Sole looks at how Cole's company took off after he parked a trailer in front of the Hilton Hotel, installed a red carpet and sold 40
A Conversation With Laurie Woolever
Laurie Woolever was chef Mario Batali's assistant at a time when his hit restaurant Babbo was attracting celebrity diners vying for reservations. Then she spent almost a decade working for Anthony Bourdain. Woolever made haircut appointments for the TV host in New York and she found places in Singapore or Mumbai where Bourdain could practice Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu when he was on the road filming his
A Conversation with Maira Kalman (Re-Release)
Maira Kalman is one of those multi-talented people. She writes children's stories and books for adults. She's also a contributor to the New York Times, creates covers for the New Yorker and sets for operas. Her latest book, Still Life with Remorse, includes family stories, paintings and vignettes about historical figures like Leo Tolstoy and Franz Kafka. She also likes to dress up like like those
A Conversation With James Carville
James Carville's nickname is The Ragin' Cajun. He became famous when Bill Clinton hired him as his lead political strategist in 1992 and Carville helped the guy from Hope beat George H.W. Bush to become the 42nd U.S. president. Carville's aggressive tactics are highlighted in the documentary "The War Room." He's also famous for being part of a couple who are on opposite sides of the political spec
A Conversation With Larry Charles
Larry Charles is a true character. He liked to wear his pajamas to work. He was one of the original writers of Seinfeld. He also wrote and directed Curb Your Enthusiasm episodes. In between, Charles made a movie with Bob Dylan called Masked and Anonymous that was never released. He also directed Sacha Baron Cohen in Borat and Bruno where Cohen ran down the street in an orthodox Jerusalem neighborh
A conversation With Paul Hawken
Paul Hawken has racked up several notable accomplishments in his life. As a teenager, in the mid-60s, Hawken headed south to join the civil rights movement. He's always had a strong sense of social justice and he started several companies that emphasized operating in a socially responsible way including The Erewhon Trading Company, a natural foods wholesaler, and the garden supply company Smith an
A Conversation With Penn Jillette
Penn Jillette and his partner Teller have created one of the most successful and lucrative careers in show business by using mind bending effects and revealing the secrets behind their magic tricks. Teller is the short one with sleight of hand who doesn't speak. Penn is 6 feet 6 inches tall. He's the juggler who talks and plays the double bass. They're the longest-running headliners in the history
A Conversation With Alison Bechdel
Alison Bechdel is a cartoonist and graphic novelist. She first started getting attention for her comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For and later wrote a graphic memoir called Fun Home which is about her father's troubled life and her own experience of coming out as a lesbian. In 2015, Fun Home was produced as a Broadway musical and won 5 Tony Awards. Her new graphic novel Spent is about an artist try
A Conversation with Sophie Gilbert
Writer Sophie Gilbert has a theory about the early 2000s. In her new book Girl on Girl, she's written about some disturbing trends in popular culture focusing on the way that girls were portrayed in magazines and TV shows. Britney Spears, the "Princess of Pop," appeared on 8 Rolling Stone covers dressed in scanty outfits and striking provocative poses. Lindsay Lohan became a pop idol at the age of
A Conversation with Amy Irving
Amy Irving's film career soared in the 1980s. She was featured in the film Yentl, a role that earned her an Academy Award nomination. In the movie Crossing Delancey, Irving plays a single woman who falls in love with a pickle merchant. In real life, Irving married Steven Spielberg, a relationship that ended in divorce. She co-starred with Willie Nelson in the film Honeysuckle Rose and that was the
A Conversation With E.A. Hanks
Elizabeth Anne Hanks is a writer. She's also the daughter of Tom Hanks. Her mother Susan was married to Tom Hanks before he became a movie star. Elizabeth grew up with her mother and older brother in Sacramento while her dad's career in Hollywood took off with lead roles in movies like Big and Forrest Gump. Elizabeth could relate to something the character of Forrest said in the film. "Life is lik
A Conversation With Pico Iyer
Pico Iyer is a travel writer and a novelist who has spent time in far flung places like Ethiopia, Tibet, North Korea, Bhutan and Nepal exploring the history, culture and food of diverse cultures. In contrast to his life on the road in places, Iyer is now spending more time exploring his inner life. That's what his latest book called Aflame Is all about. Several times a year, Iyer visits a Benedict
A Conversation with Jeffrey Toobin
Pardons are about presidential power. Many presidents wait until the end of their term to issue them. Not Donald Trump. He has pardoned more than 1500 people who took part in the assault on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. President Trump has also issued more than 70 executive orders, another instrument of presidential power. They focus on shrinking the government, imposing tariffs on Mexico,
A Conversation with Laraine Newman
Picture this. It was my first job in radio. I decided to do a series about women and comedy. The idea coincided with the birth of Saturday Night Live. The first interview: Gilda Radner. We sat on the floor, right across from Studio 8H where the show is still performed. Gilda told me all about what life is like when you become an overnight star. Then I talked to Jane Curtin about people asking her
A Conversation with Rick Steves
Rick Steves is a travel writer who's on a mission. His name appears on guidebooks to nearly every country on the continent including Croatia and Slovenia as well as France and Italy. His television series Rick Steves Europe debuted on PBS 25 years ago. Steves advises travelers to get off the beaten trail and head for villages where they can see the way local people really live. He's also a passion
A Conversation with Alan Lightman
Alan Lightman likes to look at things very closely. Lightman is a physicist at MIT who has written 7 novels including the best-selling Einstein's Dreams. Lightman, who writes poetry in his spare time, calls himself a spiritual materialist. That's a belief that you can find the spiritual within the realm of science. Lightman was also the host of the PBS television series Searching: Our Quest for Me
A Conversation With Maira Kalman
Maira Kalman is one of those multi-talented people. She writes children's books and books for adults. She's also a contributor to the New York Times. She creates covers for the New Yorker and sets for operas Her latest work is a book of essays called Still Life with Remorse that includes family stories and paintings she's done. It also includes vignettes about historical figures like Leo Tolstoy a
The Best of "Now What" 2024
We're speeding towards the end of the year, a time for remembering and reflecting. When I think of "Now What?" I think of the extraordinary people I was privileged to speak with this year and that's why this episode is a Best Of. Jane Fonda, who just celebrated her 87th birthday, shared a lifetime of experiences including information about her sex life. And when you talk about inspiring, there's n
A Conversation with Rabbi Andy Bachman
I first met Andy Bachman when he was a rabbinical student and he tutored my son Jon for his bar mitzvah. Bachman later served as Senior Rabbi at Congregation Beth Elohim, the reform synagogue in Park Slope, Brooklyn. In August, Bachman was supposed to participate in a discussion at the Powerhouse Arena bookstore. When he arrived, he found a sign in the window that said the event had been cancelled
A Conversation with Amanda Palmer: Re-Release
She used to make her living standing in Harvard Square as a statue known as the Eight Foot Bride. Then Amanda Palmer founded the punk cabaret band The Dresden Dolls. And she's not afraid to tell you what's on her mind. Palmer shares her feelings online and when she performs on stage. Her fans are passionate about the musician and the person. Palmer has more than 24,000 supporters on Patreon. She's
A Conversation With Gracie and Rachel
Gracie and Rachel met in high school and they've been playing music together ever since. You can hear the connection they feel with one another in their lush harmonies, haunting melodies and lyrics that express vulnerability and emotional depth. Gracie and Rachel tour extensively and record on Grammy-winning singer Ani DiFranco's Righteous Babe Records. I spoke to them in the Brooklyn loft where t
A Conversation With Garrison Keillor
Garrison Keillor spent 42 years as the host of "A Prairie Home Companion, a folksy show that was performed live on Saturday nights and broadcast on hundreds of public radio stations. Keillor, who likes to wear red sneakers, brought his audience news from Lake Wobegon, a fictional town in the state of Minnesota where he grew up. He also performed in skits where he played Guy Noir, Private Eye. Keil
A Conversation With Don Lemon
He worked for CNN for 17 years. One day last year Don Lemon woke up to find out he he'd been fired. He'd won Emmys for his reporting and also hosted Don Lemon Tonight where he talked about controversial topics with politicians and newsmakers. It was after Lemon began co-hosting a morning show that he ran into trouble. He made a comment about a former Republican Presidential candidate in a discussi
A Conversation With Stan Milford Jr.
Stan Milford is a Navajo Ranger who spent more than a decade investigating paranormal activities. Milford says he examined hauntings, witchcraft and skinwalkers. He also looked into reports involving dozens of witnesses who claim to have seen a creature known as Bigfoot on the Navajo reservation, an area of 27,000 miles that runs through 4 states. Milford says he took the reports of all these inci
A Conversation With David Rohde
David Rohde is a National Security reporter for NBC News and a longtime foreign correspondent. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the war in Bosnia. When Rohde was a reporter for the New York Times, he was kidnapped by the Taliban and held for 7 months before he managed to escape. Rohde's latest book is called Where Tyranny Begins. He looks at all the ways in which former President Donal
A Conversation with Griffin Dunne.
Griffin Dunne grew up in Beverly Hills in a family of storytellers. His father Dominick was a celebrity journalist. His uncle, the screenwriter John Gregory Dunne was married to the Pulitzer prize-winning writer Joan Didion. Griffin starred in Martin Scorsese's 1985 black comedy "After Hours" and he made a movie with Madonna called "Who's That Girl?" He also played Uncle Nicky in the streaming ser
A Conversation With Charles Busch: Re-Release
Charles Busch made a name for himself as a playwright and a leading lady in drag with productions like the off-Broadway cult classic Vampire Lesbians of Sodom. Busch was recently inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame for his Tony-award winning play The Allergist's Wife. He appeared in the TV show Oz where he plays a cross-dressing homosexual. When it comes to playing male roles, Busch says he's
A Conversation with Susan Seidelman
She's a film director who made a movie called Desperately Seeking Susan. It's a caper that revolves around mistaken identity starring Rosanna Arquette and a then unknown Madonna. Seidelman went on to direct She Devil with Meryl Streep in her first comedic role. But Hollywood is a tough place for women directors. Nora Ephron came on the scene and directed Sleepless in Seattle and You've Got Mail in
A Conversation With Chelsea Devantez
Chelsea Devantez is a writer and comedian who has a good time being outrageous. She grew up in a family that moved around a lot when she was a kid. They never had much money. She was a victim of domestic violence. Chelsea had always wanted to be an artist. And her dream came true when she was hired to perform as part of the improv team at Second City in Chicago. Chelsea got her next dream job whe
A Conversation With Chuck D
I started to think a lot about music when I knew I'd be talking to Chuck D, the rapper and frontman of Public Enemy. Some critics point to the group as a revolutionary voice in hip hop. Chuck D and Flavor Flav formed Public Enemy in 1985. Their songs became known for political messages on albums like Fear of a Black Planet. But in the decades since becoming a legendary rapper, Chuck D has develop
A Conversation With Nick Kristof
Ever since he was a kid, Nick Kristof dreamed of being a foreign correspondent. And that's what he spent decades doing, traveling to more than 150 countries to cover conflicts and crises. Kristof is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner for his reports on the deadly Tiananmen Square protests and for columns focusing attention on genocide in Darfur. Kristof has also been called the moral conscience of
A Conversation With Gail Godwin
Gail Godwin has written 18 books. Many of her novels were best sellers including Evensong. Three of them were finalists for the National Book Award. Her book Grief Cottage features a boy who has a relationship with a ghost. Godwin says she herself has seen ghosts. When she was a reporter, an apparition dressed in a medical uniform used to visit her in the middle of the night. Godwin's new book is
A Conversation With Jhumpa Lahiri
Writer Jhumpa Lahiri grew up in Rhode Island after her family emigrated from India when she was a toddler. Her first language was Bengali and she spoke English in school. When she was 32, Lahiri won a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for her first book Interpreter of Maladies. It was an honor but it also put a lot of pressure on her as a writer. Then Lahiri fell in love with the Italian language and whe
A Conversation with Carrie Sun
What's it like to earn hundreds of thousands of dollars a year working as the personal assistant to the billionaire founder of a famous hedge fund? Pretty tough according to writer Carrie Sun. Sun's memoir Private Equity tells the story of working 24/7, being at the beck and call of a demanding boss and feeling so stressed that she developed an eating disorder. There are also the perks like a $250
A Conversation With Frank Bruni
Frank Bruni used to be a restaurant critic for the New York Times. Now, he's a Contributing Opinion writer for the paper and a Professor of Journalism and Public Policy at Duke University. Bruni has written a book called The Age of Grievance about what's going on in Trump World and the MAGA Universe. One of his theories is that the people who are the most furious feel they're losing because someo
A conversation With Brett Gelman
You may know him from his role as Murray Bauman in Stranger Things and as Martin in the BBC comedy Fleabag. Brett Gelman has dreamed of being a famous actor since he was a child growing up in Highland Park, Illinois, where he wanted to make the other kids laugh and wound up feeling like an outcast. Gelman has written about his childhood and his neuroses in a book called The Terrifying Realm of the
A Conversation With Bill Bradley
Bill Bradley is one of those wildly talented people, a star athlete with a brilliant mind. He went to Princeton University where he was the 1965 NCAA champion of the year. Then it was on to Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. But basketball still called to him and he joined the New York Knicks, playing on the dream team which won two NBA championships. After life on the court, Bradley decided to try polit
A Conversation With Ed Begley Jr.
As a child, Ed Begley Jr. watched his dad act in films like Sweet Bird of Youth, a role that earned him an Oscar. His father's career inspired the younger Begley to go into acting where he has appeared in hundreds of films and TV shows including Better Call Saul and Young Sheldon. In his twenties. Ed Begley, Jr. drank too much and abused drugs. Addiction is now in his past. Begley is also a passio
A Conversation With Lucy Sante
Lucy Sante is a well-known author and critic who has written more than 10 books. Her latest is the memoir l Heard Her Call My Name. It's the first book she's written under the name Lucy. Lucy started out life with the name Luke. At the age of 67, she decided to fulfill a long-held desire to transition to a woman. It's now been three years since Lucy came out. We talk about the challenges of changi
A Conversation With Suleika Jaouad
Who faces death at the age of 22? Suleika Jaouad did. After Suleika was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer, she had a bone marrow transplant. At the age of 26 Suleika was declared cancer free. Suleika is the author of the best-selling memoir Between Two Kingdoms. She's married to Jon Batiste, the former band leader for the Late Show with Stephen Colbert and a 5-time Grammy award winner. Two years
Jane Fonda Tells All
No one embodies the concept of change and staying power like Jane Fonda. She started out as the daughter of Hollywood royalty. Her father was the revered actor Henry Fonda. Jane Fonda has appeared in more than 50 films, earning Oscars for Best Actress for her roles in Klute and Coming Home. And she's also famous in political circles for her anti-war activism and demonstrations against climate chan
A Conversation With Jane Fonda
No one embodies the concept of change and durability in one lifetime like Jane Fonda. She started out as what some might call a Nepo Baby, the daughter of Henry Fonda, an actor who was considered Hollywood royalty. During her long career, Jane Fonda has appeared in more than 50 films, earning Oscars for Best Actress for her roles in Klute and Coming Home. Fonda became as famous for her politics as
A Conversation With Dr. Anthony Fauci
In 2023, 83-year old Dr. Anthony Fauci retired as the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a job he'd held for 38 years. Once called "America's Doctor," Dr. Fauci had often been vilified for his role on the White House Coronavirus Task Force under President Donald Trump. In the past year, Dr. Fauci's critics have only gotten louder. In his book on the scientist, P
A Conversation With Lisa Cortes
Filmmaker Lisa Cortes brought a 1950s rock 'n' roll legend to life again in her rollicking new documentary Little Richard: I Am Everything. Richard, who was known for hits like Long Tall Sally and Tutti Frutti, was a complicated personality who felt he never got the kind of recognition that he deserved. But in Cortes' film, celebrated musicians talk about how Richard influenced their work. Mick Ja
A Tribute To Norman Lear
I was so lucky to have spent a few hours with Norman Lear who recently died at the age of 101. Lear was 95 at the time we talked. In the 1970s he created a television empire with shows that dominated the network ratings like All in the Family, Sanford and Son, The Jeffersons and Maude. These series changed television forever by tackling subjects like racism and social inequality. Lear was also an
A Conversation With Charles Busch
Charles Busch made a name for himself as a playwright and a leading lady in drag with productions like the off-Broadway cult classic Vampire Lesbians of Sodom. That campy theatrical spoof was followed by Psycho Beach Party and Pardon My Inquisition, or, Kiss the Blood off My Castanets. Busch also appeared in the TV show Oz where he plays a cross- dressing homosexual who smothers his Mafia cellmate
A Conversation With Paulina Porizkova Re-Release
Paulina Porizkova, who was a supermodel in the 80s, has one of those rags to riches stories which she talked with me about on "Now What?" in December 2022. That conversation has just been honored with a Clarion award for Best Podcast given by the Association of Women in Communications. Life has not always been star turns for Paulina who was born in Eastern Europe. She began modeling in Paris at th
A Conversation With Walter Mosley
When it comes to the word prolific, Walter Mosley fits right in. He's written about 60 books. His latest is the sci-fi novella Touched. Mosley's first work of crime fiction, Devil in a Blue Dress, features the character of a black private detective named Easy Rawlins who lives in the Watts neighborhood of LA. It was made into a film starring Denzel Washington. Mosley was also brought up in LA with
A Conversation With Roz Chast
Roz Chast is an award-winning cartoonist who started working for the New Yorker 45 years ago. Her comics examine our everyday neuroses and anxieties. As an only child growing up in Brooklyn, Chast worried that a fire could break out in the wall and burn up her family. Or that she'd suddenly have an appendicitis attack and wind up in the hospital like Madeleine in that children's story. Chast hates
A Conversation With Avi Loeb
Avi Loeb is probably the most famous practicing astronomer in the country. He's the founding director of Harvard University's Black Hole Initiative and was the longest-serving chair of Harvard's Department of Astronomy. Now, Loeb is also one of the most controversial astronomers in the country. In 2018, he proposed that an object named Oumuamua that had been detected by a telescope in Maui may hav
A Conversation With Gay Talese
Gay Talese is known for his dapper wardrobe and distinctive writing style. He became famous as a writer who helped to define the New Journalism in the 1960s. He wrote block buster best sellers like Honor Thy Father about the Bonanno crime family. The Voyeur's Motel focuses on a motel owner who spied on his guests. Talese also calls himself a voyeur. He spent 8 years researching Thy Neighbor's Wife
A Conversation With Amanda Palmer
She used to make her living standing in Harvard Square as a statue known as the Eight Foot Bride. Now, Amanda Palmer is the leader of the punk cabaret band The Dresden Dolls. And she's not afraid to tell you what's on her mind. Her fans are passionate about her. Palmer has 1 million followers on X (formerly Twitter) and 10,000 patrons on Patreon who support her work. She's open, honest and outrage
A Conversation with Ben Smith
Ben Smith had a front row seat to momentous shifts in the media that changed newspapers and magazines forever. In the early 2000s, readers began flocking to websites like Gawker and the Huffington Post for gossip, news and information. After Smith became the founding editor of BuzzFeed News, he decided to publish the Steele Dossier, the controversial report containing allegations about a conspirac
A Conversation with John Waters (Re-Release)
John Waters is having a moment. The filmmaker, who's also known as the Prince of Puke and the Duke of Dirt, is getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He says he hopes it will be near the one celebrating Alvin and the Chipmunks. Plus, LA's Academy Museum of Motion Pictures is honoring Waters with an exhibit that features some of his old cameras and props like the exploding wig worn by Debbie
A Conversation With James Comey
At 6 feet 8 inches tall, people say Jim Comey could have been a basketball player. Instead, he became the top law enforcement official when President Barack Obama appointed him FBI Director and he led an investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server. After concluding that there was no national security breach, less than two weeks before the Presidenti
A Conversation with Dave Barry
Dave Barry wrote a humor column in the Miami Herald for more than 20 years that earned him a Pulitzer Prize for Commentary. He also writes books. His latest is called Swamp Story. It's very funny with a totally ridiculous plot that takes place in the Everglades. There's a character who runs around pretending to be a creature called the Melon Monster and a support boar, as in wild pig, who pees on
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The Articulate SpecialOne
Difference Makers
