The Dinner Party Download

This week, “Portlandia’s” Fred Armisen cops to working blue… legendary satirist/musician/Governor-to-be Kinky Friedman serves up Texas-sized etiquette tips… rockstar classical organist Cameron Carpenter thinks outside the Bach box… We toast an infamous Alabama pest… Fish fraud!… And “Kumare” documentarian Vikram Gandhi teaches you how to become a guru. Plus, a ‘Fun.’ joke, Da Vinci Code: Rhode Island, and your letters… all the way from Kyrgyzstan.

This week: Skateboarding legend Tony Hawk does some extreme couchsurfing… “Beasts of the Southern Wild” director Benh Zeitlin on axe-painting… Controversy-courting essayist Katie Roiphe offers advice… author Susanna Moore dines in wartime Berlin… Brendan learns the difference between jerks and Ethels… and SF band Thao & The Get Down Stay Down give us a tune that gets you up, keep you up. Plus the history of a New-Wave Band Aid, the science of Xmas music, and sherry wine: it’s not just for Grandmas anymore.

This week: It’s an ALL-FOOD episode stuffed with tasty goodness. Gail Simmons of TV’s “Top Chef” survives internship hell and gets her ‘Angel’ wings…We reheat the history of the microwave, then get zapped with a custom cocktail…Fran Lebowitz and other notables share unforgettable mealtime memories…A free-range serving of The New Yorker’s Adam Gopnik… Just in time for Turkey Day, Rico heads to Istanbul to taste some delights… Chef/Memoirist Gabrielle Hamilton on sweetbreads and sweet success…And the War on Drugs supply a soundtrack for your next feast. Plus, History’s forgotten utensil (NOT the spork!), Ireland’s trendiest import, and a meaty joke from actress Alison Pill.

This week: “The Daily Show”‘s Wyatt Cenac gives us some ‘facts’ to chew on… “Life of Pi” author Yann Martel takes us on his favorite literary journeys…’Classic dining’ makes a comeback…A soundtrack from Tilly and the Wall to set the mood… How NOT to feign interest in arthouse cinema… We pay tribute to dunker-in-chief Daryl Dawkins a.k.a. Chocolate Thunder… Stanley Kubrick gets a close-up…Plus, Turkey Day etiquette, flying cellos, and silly headlines.

This Week: Eric Idle of “Monty Python” and “Spamalot” leads us in a singalong… Writer Jon Ronson plays sidekick to a real-life superhero…Folk icon Iris DeMent shares a homey dinner party soundtrack…Adam Pally of TV’s “Happy Endings” revisits his rocky beginnings…And kale invades Thanksgiving…. Plus, the birth of the leotard, the “King” of new music, and video games NOT named “Halo.”

This week: It’s our first ever ALL-BOOK episode – a whole hour of fun with literary luminaries. MacArthur ‘Genius’ Junot Diaz probes the mind of a young cheater…LeVar Burton – beloved host of “Reading Rainbow” – offers life advice for book borrowers… British heavyweight Martin Amis lets his dogs out… And indie queen Miranda July tells us about a print relic… Plus, fun footnotes from T.C. Boyle, YA phenom Leigh Bardugo, and a guy named Shakespeare.

This week: Stephin Merritt’s attraction to love… Actress Amy Brenneman adjudicates listener etiquette… A vengeful lunch with Joel Stein… an Alkaholic drink… Neil deGrasse Tyson defends space… Bill Plympton’s favorite animation… and a 3-song prescription from Dr. Dog. Plus: Aggie yells, a Dinner Party Timeout, and a cross-word joke from singer Cate le Bon.

This week: Ben Gibbard, of the band Death Cab For Cutie, goes solo… Political comedian W. Kamau Bell lists his favorite fake presidents… Swedish rocker Jens Lekman tells of his fake almost-marriage… Advice for debate-watchers and couch-crashers from the Emily Post Institute kids… Top chef Michale Cimarusti makes a big deal about little fishes… and John Paul Getty III’s ear-ie kidnapping. Plus: a new track from Kanye West, the science of disgusting, and trampolines ‘cross the Seine.

This week: Playwright & “Seven Psychopaths” filmmaker Martin McDonagh laughs in the face of death… TV legend Ed Asner calls us out… Mary Elizabeth Winstead lists some sobering cinema… ’5 under 35′ honoree Justin Torres reads from his celebrated novella… New Yorker critic David Denby divines film’s future… and Brendan seeks the *real* American cheese. Plus, a historic Niagara fall, a crushed dinosaur dream, and a wild new track from Tame Impala.

This Week: Oscar-nominated actress Anna Kendrick sings of adorkability… “Weeds”/SNL alum Kevin Nealon blesses us with etiquette advice…”The Perks of Being a Wallflower” creator Stephen Chbosky talks of time and place… Okkervil River runs through a party soundtrack… here comes the (terrorist) bride… And the Primanti Sandwich goes national. Plus: We witness the birth of a clean machine, shine a light on art, and learn the history of comedy.