Today's Guests: Legendary MAD Magazine and Humbug! cartoonists Al Jaffee and Arnold Roth. My mother bought me my first MAD magazine off the newsstand at a Stop & Shop supermarket in 1969. The cover featured a Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid parody that I believe was drawn by Jack Davis. I read... Continue Reading →
Robert Hofler on life-changing movies! PODCAST INTERVIEW
Today's Guest: Robert Hofler, author, Variety's The Movie That Changed My Life Nobody asked, but here are a couple of the movies that changed my life: The Out-of-Towners with Jack Lemmon. The first movie I ever saw at a drive-in with my parents. Scared me out of New York City for years. Superman with... Continue Reading →
African-American editorial cartoonists go ’round the table! PODCAST INTERVIEW
Today's Guests: Tim Jackson, David G. Brown, Ron Rogers, Barbara Brandon-Croft, Dr. Yaounde Olu, editorial cartoonists These are days when the rules are being rewritten by the hour, a time when the old ways seem quaint and antiquated, a period in history when perhaps we can no longer rely upon history to guide the future.... Continue Reading →
Paul Dergarabedian, HOLLYWOOD.COM movie box office guru: Mr. Media Interview
It’s Friday, Feb. 20—two days away from the biggest event on Hollywood’s calendar: the 2009 Academy Awards. Joining me today to talk about the financial side of the movie industry’s big love fest is Paul Dergarabedian, Hollywood.com's box office guru and president & founder of the box office tracking firm, Media by Numbers. Paul is... Continue Reading →
Don’t Stop Believin’ in karaoke’s ability to embarrass! PODCAST INTERVIEW
Today's Guest: Brian Raftery, author, Don't Stop Believin': How Karaoke Conquered the World and Changed My Life There are only two places that I will sing out loud: number one, if I’m alone; and number two, if I’m driving somewhere with my son. I’ve been singing out loud to him since the first day I... Continue Reading →
Mac Montandon has Jetpack Dreams of flying here to there! PODCAST INTERVIEW
Today's Guest: Mac Montandon, author, Jetpack Dreams: One Man's Up and Down (But Mostly Down) Search for the Greatest Invention That Never Was I want a damn jetpack. Is that so hard to understand? There was actually a guy on the “Jimmy Kimmel Show” recently who had one and used it to fly around... Continue Reading →
The B List does not include film critic David Sterritt! PODCAST INTERVIEW
Just a few weeks ago I was telling my wife about the scariest movie I ever saw: Tales From the Crypt. This 1972 gore fest came replete with a psycho Santa and a beating heart – left in a crumpled up letter, as I recall. I was 12 when I saw it at the... Continue Reading →
Top Chef judge, Food and Wine editor Gail Simmons spills! PODCAST INTERVIEW
Gail Simmons, editor-in-chief of Food & Wine magazine, has the best gig of all the judges. Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio have to hang around each day for most of the challenges while Gail helicopters in for the final tastings and judgings. She always looks composed and ready, sharp and spicy assessments ever at... Continue Reading →
Cold, wet respect at last for The History of the Snowman! PODCAST INTERVIEW
Today's Guest: Bob Eckstein, author, The History of the Snowman My guest today is Bob Eckstein, author of The History of the Snowman and a humor columnist and cartoonist. But first, I’d like to set the tone for this interview by reading from a poem that Bob found on a needlepoint throw pillow sold... Continue Reading →
Socializer-in-chief Laurel Touby explains MediaBistro.com! PODCAST INTERVIEW
Today's Guest: Laurel Touby, founder, MediaBistro.com When Laurel Touby started MediaBistro.com in 1996, being a freelancer in the media business was a fairly solitary position. She became the socializer-in-chief, organizing events to draw writers and editors together, posting media jobs, which led to educational programs and daily news updates. In other words, she gave... Continue Reading →