Next Question with Katie Couric

It should have been our summer of joy but the pandemic rages on, surpassing a grave new milestone this month: more than 200 million global COVID cases. On this special bonus episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie has a conversation with Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical officer to the president, about how we can push to the end of this collective nightmare. There’s a lot to catch up on: breakthrough COVID cases, vaccine mandates, booster shots, when and where you should be masking up, and the possibility of a variant worse than Delta (and what we can do about it). Katie and Dr. Fauci cover it all and get to all of your most pressing questions. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sharon Stone is known for portraying a certain type of brash, cunning villain, like Catharine Tramell in “Basic Instinct,” Lori Quad in “Total Recall,” or, more recently, Lenore Osgood in the Netflix series “Ratched.” In reality though, Sharon Stone is shy and introverted and, despite her fame, has led a very private life. But now, the actor is in the midst of a very public and personal re-examination of that life in her memoir, “The Beauty of Living Twice.” On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie and Sharon talk about the trauma she has endured, from being molested as a child, to the sexual harassment in Hollywood, to the stroke that nearly killed her in 2001 (and the interview Katie did with Sharon nearly 20 years ago). They also talk about the memoir writing process, life under the glare of the spotlight, and finding a new sisterhood — and inspiration — in the movie industry, post #MeToo. For more information about “The Beauty of Living Twice,” by Sharon Stone, or where to buy your copy go to Penguin Random House.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the course of her impressive career, Julianna Margulies has starred on some wildly popular television shows. She played Nurse Carol Haloway on the definitive medica drama, ER. She starred as the disgraced politician’s wife, Alicia Florrick, in The Good Wife. And coming this September she’ll be joining the stellar cast of “The Morning Show.” The award-winning actress, and producer, is going behind the scenes of some of those shows and taking a look at the impact of her nomadic childhood and upbringing in her memoir: “Sunshine Girl: An unexpected life.” On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie and Julianna dive into all of that — Julianna’s cross-continental childhood, her complicated hippie mom, the backlash she experienced leaving ER (and turning down a $27 million contract), why she just couldn’t shake Alicia Florrick and so much more. Find out more about Julianna’s memoir, “Sunshine Girl: An unexpected Life,” and where to get your copy at Penguin Random House.Katie and Julianna’s conversation was recorded by the Wilbur Theater in Boston, on behalf of Brookline Booksmith, as part of Julianna’s virtual book tour.And if you’re interested in seeing Katie when she goes on her book tour (“Going There” is out Oct. 26) you can go to Ticketmaster.com/goingthere to find out when and where she’s headed and get your tickets.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Justin Baldoni is a producer, director and actor who is probably best known for his long-running character on “Jane the Virgin.” Across the show’s five seasons, Justin played Rafael Solano, the sensitive, reformed playboy who fell in love with the titular Jane, a virgin. But the actor, whose acting work tends to embody a certain type of shirtless machismo masculinity, is on a new mission to help change the way men — and society — think about masculinity. It’s an idea he first explored on social media, and then in a Ted Talk in 2017, and then in a web series and now in a memoir-ish book called “Man Enough: Undefining My Masculinity.” On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie and Justin discuss the often toxic grip masculinity has on our society and what Justin thinks we can all do to change that. They also talk about Justin’s personal exploration — as a son, husband and father — of what it means to be a man. Find out more about “Man Enough” and where you can buy your copy at HarperCollins.Interested in seeing Katie when she goes on her “Going There” book tour this fall? Find out when and where she’s heading and get your tickets at Ticketmaster.com. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ursula Burns has had an impressive career that is often summarized by an historic achievement: that when she became the CEO of Xerox in 2009 she was the first every Black woman to head a Fortune 500 company. But there is so much more to Ursula’s career and life story, which is movingly detailed in her memoir, “Where You Are is Not Who You Are.” In it, Ursula gets very personal, sharing her childhood growing up in public housing in New York City, her Catholic-school days, her marriage, and, yes, her 30-year ascent to the tippy top of Xerox’s ladder. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie and Ursula talk about why writing that life journey was one of the most difficult things she has ever had to do, how she lead Xerox at a time when no one needed Xeroxing, and why we all need to continue to push the business world to diversify their ranks (and what corporations are missing out on if they don’t). You can find more about “Where You Are is Not Who You Are: A Memoir” and where you can buy your copy at HarperCollins.Interested in seeing Katie when she goes on her “Going There” book tour this fall? Find out when and where she’s heading and get your tickets at Ticketmaster.com. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In March 2020, as COVID-19 started to grip the nation, fitness entrepreneur Amanda Kloots was settling into a new city (Los Angeles) with her husband Nick Cordero and their new baby. By July 2020, Amanda would become a very public COVID widow. Some of what happened to Amanda and Nick during those four months played out in incredibly personal posts and videos on Amanda’s Instagram feed. But there is so much more to Amanda’s pandemic story and the improbable death of her young, fit Broadway star husband who was just 41-years-old when he died from COVID-19 complications. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie talks with Amanda about her new memoir, “Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero,” which Amanda wrote with the help of her sister Anna. Katie and Amanda talk about the writing process, about Nick and their marriage, about grieving live on Instagram and finding heartbreak and healing in a community of strangers. You can find out more about “Live Your Life” and find out where to buy your copy at HarperCollins. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you’re going to have a summer series on memoirs, there is truly no better person to begin with than the boss of memoir herself, Mary Karr. In 1995, Mary Karr published her debut memoir, “The Liar’s Club,” an engrossing, tragicomic telling of her childhood in a poor, industrial East Texas town. “The Liar’s Club” took the publishing world by storm and inspired a wave of confessional memoirs. Mary then followed it up with “Cherry” in 2000 and “Lit” in 2009. She also wrote a how-to book about the genre called “The Art of Memoir” and is now working on her fourth memoir. In addition to her memoir career, Mary is also the author of five celebrated volumes of poetry and is a longtime professor of English at Syracuse University. And on this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie and Mary dive into it all: the writing process, books that impacted her life and career, her faith, aging gracefully (or not), even cherished Winnie-the-Pooh poems. It’s such a fun, hilarious and absorbing conversation and a real treat to kick off the summer. Enjoy and make sure to check out Mary Karr’s oeuvre. Links below. The Liar’s ClubCherryLitThe Art of Memoir Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s summer! And here on Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie’s celebrating the shortest season with a fun series on books! But not just any books — memoirs!. Katie just finished writing her own memoir (which comes out this October — stay tuned!), so she wanted to spend time with other people who have shared their stories and put themselves on the page. She has a huge range of guests from actors Sharon Stone and Justin Baldoni to business leaders and entrepreneurs like former Xerox CEO Ursula Burns, Sarah Jakes and Amanda Kloots, and the memoir boss herself, Mary Karr. There’s so much to discuss, too: the pain of writing, the revelations of looking back on your life, and the triumphs of TMI. New episodes start July 1. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Emmy season and on this bonus episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie shares “The Handmaid's Tale” cast and creators panel she hosted for awards consideration. The dystopian Hulu drama just wrapped its dramatic, twist-heavy and pandemic-filmed fourth season, so be forewarned, there are spoilers ahead! There are so many talented people behind the ensemble show that the panel was split into two: the residents of Gilead and the refugees in Canada. The episode begins in Gilead with, in order of appearance, executive producer and showrunner Bruce Miller, Joseph Fiennes (Commander Fred Waterford), Yvonne Strahovski (Serena Joy Waterford), executive producer, director and star Elizabeth Moss (June Osborne/Offred/Ofjoseph), Madeline Brewer (Janine Lindo/Ofwarren/Ofhoward), Ann Dowd (Aunt Lydia Clements), Bradley Whitford (Commander Joseph Lawrence), McKenna Grace (Esther Keyes), and Max Minghella (Commander Nick Blaine). In the second half of the episode, Katie talks with the refugees in Canada including executive producer Warren Littlefield, Bruce Miller, Elizabeth Moss, O.T. Fagbenle (Luke Bankole), Alexis Bledel (Dr. Emily Malek), Samira Wiley (Moira Strand), Sam Jaeger (Mark Tuello), and Amanda Brugel (Rita Blue). This interview was organized by Hulu for its Television Academy FYC event for The Handmaid’s Tale. We are sharing a lightly edited version of the conversation. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this sponsored episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie sits down with Dr. Julie L. Gerberding, the executive vice president and chief patient officer of the biopharmaceutical company Merck. As a company with a long legacy of research in infectious disease, Merck has been in the thick of the COVID crisis, mobilizing its scientific expertise to help address the pandemic. Katie and Dr. Gerberding talk about the waning months of this historic pandemic, the lingering concerns about vaccinations and variants, COVID’s lasting impact on public health and how we can better prepare for emerging diseases. Merck is a partner of Katie Couric Media. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.