Culture Gabfest

This week, Dana, Julia, and Stephen begin by talking about the return of the Starz comedy Party Down. Then they discuss Andrea Riseborough’s Oscar-nominated performance in To Leslie. Finally, NPR’s Aisha Harris joins to chat about the newest entries to the Black Film Canon; a collaboration between Slate and NPR. In Slate Plus, the panel talks about the controversial changes to Roald Dahl’s books. Email us at culturefest@slate.com.Endorsements: Dana: Nathan Hiller’s article ‘The End of the English Major’ in The New Yorker.Julia: Art But Make It Sports on InstagramStephen: ‘Are You Sure’ by Willie Nelson from The Demos Project: Volume OnePodcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "Backwards" by Staffan Carlen.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on the Culture Gabfest. Sign up now at Slate.com/cultureplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Dana and Stephen are joined by Jamelle Bouie, and they start by discussing Marc Maron’s new HBO comedy special From Bleak to Dark. Then they review the Oscar-nominated Polish film EO. Then, Slate writer Dan Kois joins to talk about his article on the importance of hanging out. In Slate Plus they talk about the Bing Chatbot and this article in the New York Times:https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/16/technology/bing-chatbot-microsoft-chatgpt.htmlEmail us at culturefest@slate.com.Endorsements: Dana: A YouTube user named “nobody.” They post all these incredible baroque playlists with great names. Jamelle: The films of Satoshi Kon. Stephen: Listen to Barry Harris, a solo piano album by Barry Harris. Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "Forbidden Love" by OTE__Make an impact this Black History Month by helping Macy’s on their mission to fund UNCF scholarships for HBCU students. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Dana, Julia, and Stephen start by talking about Rihanna’s Super Bowl Halftime performance with Slate’s Nadira Goffe. Then they discuss the new mockumentary series Cunk on Earth. Finally, they chat about Oscar-nominated documentary All That Breathes.In Slate Plus, the hosts discuss Leslie Jamison’s article in the New Yorker, “Why Everyone Feels Like They’re Faking It,” about Imposter Syndrome.Email us at culturefest@slate.com.Endorsements: Dana: Burt Bacharach’s live concert with Elvis Costello at The Royal FestivalJulia: Prince’s Super Bowl XLI Halftime Performance and the oral history behind this iconic performance.Stephen: Essay in the Dublin Review of Books titled, Problems, problems by Johnny LyonsBonus from Nadira: Rihanna’s VMA MedleyPodcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "Break The Line" by Coma Svensson.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on the Culture Gabfest. Sign up now at Slate.com/cultureplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of The Relentless, host Kristen Meinzer is joined by, not one, but two fearless Michelles who know that to be a successful leader, you need to take risks and have a strong support system. First, she speaks with Michelle “Mace” Curran, a former F-16 fighter pilot and the second woman to fly as Lead Solo in the Air Force Thunderbirds. Now an entrepreneur, Curran has made it her mission to empower others to make bold and brave choices.Afterwards, Kristen talks with Michelle Fermin, Team Lead of the Fermin Group at Century 21 North East. An expert, on-the-ground team builder, Fermin shares her secret to being a good leader: inspire and be inspired by those around you.GuestsMichelle “Mace” Curran: Combat Veteran, Former Thunderbird & Fighter PilotMichelle Fermin: Team Lead of the Fermin Group, Century 21 North East  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Dana, Julia, and Stephen start by talking about the new AppleTV+ series Shrinking. Then they discuss the Oscar-nominated film Triangle of Sadness. Finally, they chat about modern etiquette, inspired by The Cut’s piece on the topic.In Slate Plus, the panel talks about the closing of the “World’s Best Restaurant” Noma.   Email us at culturefest@slate.com.Endorsements: Dana: I have great, great affection for Jason Segel. Nobody is talking about his children’s books. It’s this series called Nightmares! that he co-wrote with Kirsten Miller. There are also two sequels. Any kid about 10 or 11 years old can handle them. Julia: OG food friend of the program Dan Pashman has followed up his invention of an entirely new pasta shape (Cascatelli) in 2021 with the release of two more shapes: Quattrotini and Vesuvio. These aren’t inventions, they are less commonly found shapes that he is helping bring to a larger audience of eaters. Dan is continuing his partnership with Sfoglini and you can buy the shapes on their site. [Producer note: Gluten free people can enjoy a gf version that Dan made in partnership with Banza.] Stephen: I enjoyed the Nordic crime series The Bridge. It introduced me to Kim Bodnis, a great actor Americans would get to know as the assassin handler on Killing Eve. I finally caught up with the third season and it’s great. Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "If Only I Was a Poet" by Staffan Carlen_Make an impact this Black History Month by helping Macy’s on their mission to fund UNCF scholarships for HBCU students. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Dana, Julia, and Stephen start by talking about Natasha Lyonne’s modern take on Columbo, aka the new Peacock series Poker Face. Then they discuss Netflix’s Oscar-nominated All Quiet On The Western Front. Finally, the chat about the changed aesthetics of shopping, inspired by this Grub Street article. In Slate Plus, the panel talks about the sleepover panic.   Email us at culturefest@slate.com.Endorsements: Dana: Kiss Me Petruchio is an hour long documentary about the 1981 Shakespeare in the Park production of The Taming of the Shrew starring a young Meryl Streep and a young Raul Julia. Julia: The third episode of HBO’s The Last of Us featuring Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman. Stephen: I couldn’t let the death of Tom Verlaine go unremarked. The albums Adventure and Marquee Moon that he made with his band Television are both absolute stone cold masterpieces. And a discovery: Skeeter Davis, anybody? Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "Stone Cookies" by Dusty Decks.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on the Culture Gabfest. Sign up now at Slate.com/cultureplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Dana, Julia, and Stephen start by discussing the film, Women Talking. Then they chat about the new U.K. import Traitors with Slate’s own Carl Wilson. Finally, they finish by talking ChatGPT and the coming of AI chatbots.In Slate Plus, the panel talks about this year’s Oscar nominations.   Email us at culturefest@slate.com.Also, we're hiring! If you'd like to apply to be the production assistant for the Culture Gabfest, please send a cover letter with two suggestions for topics to culturegabfestassistant@gmail.com.Endorsements: Dana: Werner Herzog is in his somber, elegiac mode with The Fire Within: A Requiem for Katia and Maurice Krafft. Not to be confused with Fire of Love, about the same people, but made by Sara Dosa. Julia: Endorsing the third season of Never Have I Ever. It’s such a good show. Sometimes I take for granted the variety of things being made. Stephen: Two things: 1. I am comically late on Better Call Saul. 2. Sam Gendel is a young L.A. jazz guy with a DGAF attitude towards even the music he makes, in a weird way. The album is called blueblue. Just amazing. Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "Last Sunday" by OTE.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on the Culture Gabfest. Sign up now at Slate.com/cultureplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Dana and Julia are joined by Slate writer Dan Kois. They start by discussing HBO’s new series, The Last of Us, a video game adaptation with culture editor and writer at The New Yorker, Alex Barasch. Then they discuss the French film, Saint Omer, shortlisted for Best International Film at the 2023 Oscars. Finally, they finish by talking about Dan's essay on how the Trunchbull, the formidable villain of Roald Dahl’s 1988 novel Matilda, is still evolving. Email us at culturefest@slate.com.Endorsements: Dan: Two books publishing this week, an anti-romantic comedy, Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey, about a young woman in Toronto failing to deal with her divorce, and a novel by Matthew Salesses titled The Sense of Wonder about the ways Asian Americans navigate the worlds of sports and entertainment when everything is stacked against them. Julia: The Smitten Kitchen recipe for seven-yolk pasta dough.Dana: An unexpected yet beautiful viral Twitter thread by @annethegnome about mushrooms.Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "Pull Me Out" by Mike Stringer.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on the Culture Gabfest. Sign up now at Slate.com/cultureplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Dana, Julia, and Stephen begin by reviewing the very buzzy horror comedy M3GAN. Then the panel dives into Slate’s annual movie club. Finally, L.A. Times columnist Carolina A. Miranda joins to talk about her article on how TikTok is changing our culture.  In Slate Plus, the panel answers a listener's question about whether it is more fun to love or hate a piece of art when working as a critic. Email us at culturefest@slate.com.Endorsements: Dana: Eleonor Bindman is an incredible pianist, arranger, and transcriber. Her big thing is transcription of Bach for four-hand piano. I’ve seen her play a duet with another person and the four hands do things the two hands can’t. Her newest release is J.S. Bach: Orchestral Suites (transcribed for piano duet by Eleonor Bindman), which is performed by Bindman and Susan Sobolewski. Also, go follow her on social media and just learn about Bach from her. Julia: I think regular listeners know that I like to bake. I am endorsing a cookbook that was recommended to me by the L.A. Times newsletter. It’s A Good Day to Bake: Simple Baking Recipes for Every Mood by Benjamina Ebuehi, who was a contestant on The Great British Bake Off. For my husband’s birthday we made a olive oil flourless chocolate cake that you cover in a ganache frosting. Wow, it’s a great recipe. BONUS: Here's Julia's piece about her family's famous potato balls: https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2022-12-21/holiday-family-german-potato-ballsStephen: Zadie Smith has written a definitive essay about the movie that most stayed with me from last year: Tár. It is a masterpiece. My admiration for Zadie Smith as a critic is hitting a zenith and I thought it couldn’t get any higher than it already was. Dear God, the woman is just deft and delightful and deep.Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "Self Made Woman" by Katharine Appleton.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on the Culture Gabfest. Sign up now at Slate.com/cultureplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Dana, Julia, and Stephen bring you their yearly call-in episode where they answer questions from Culture Gabfest listeners. In Slate Plus, the panel answers one final question from a listener named James. Email us at culturefest@slate.com.Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Yesica Balderrama.Outro music: "Blue Nights and Yellow Days" by Matt Large.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on the Culture Gabfest. Sign up now at Slate.com/cultureplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices