Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

Este Haim reflects on HAIM's summer tour with Taylor Swift and her pivot into scoring feature films. She talks about growing up in a family band and the musicians that inspired her. She discusses the early years of HAIM, collaboration with Ludwig Göransson, and the misogyny in the music industry. Este closes with a love letter to LA and a tribute to Talking Heads' Tina Weymouth.

Today, our conversation with actor and writer Abbi Jacobson! We sat with Abbi last summer around the release of her latest series, A League of Their Own (5:35), to discuss the legacy of the 1992 film (10:35), her earliest comedic influences (15:05), moving to New York City post-college (21:04), falling in love with improv at UCB (25:08), the night she met Ilana Glazer (32:40), and a handful of memories creating Broad City (37:20). On the back-half, Abbi tells the story behind her book I Might Regret This (43:33), how heartbreak brought her to Los Angeles (46:22), what she hopes her sixty-year-old self looks like (50:42), and why she wants to continue making ‘inviting work’ (54:12). To close, she tells us a love story (1:03:16). You can watch the first season of A League of Their Own on Amazon Prime.  To learn more about Abbi and her work visit our site.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For over a decade, composer and record producer Ludwig Göransson has created some of the defining music of our time. This week, he sits with Sam to discuss his latest work in Oppenheimer. At the top, Göransson describes the collaborative process with director Christopher Nolan (6:48), the instrument at the heart of the film (9:30) and its hauntingly beautiful theme (11:06). Then, we walk through Ludwig’s instinctive approach to making music (13:07), his coming of age in Sweden (15:20), and the influence of Metallica and Danny Elfman (18:51). On the back-half, Ludwig reflects on his early years in Los Angeles (24:56), finding kinship with director Ryan Coogler (27:55) and polymath Donald Glover (34:53), and how he slowly began to understand his voice (38:21). To close, he shares how his process has evolved from Black Panther to Oppenheimer (42:30), the potential impact of AI on the music industry (44:58), and what he hopes for in the years ahead (49:15).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As a fourth generation border resident in El Paso, politician Beto O’Rourke has long been making the case for immigration reform. He’s continued to do so this summer, as the humanitarian crisis at the Texas-Mexico border has accelerated under Gov. Greg Abbott. After a check-in with Dad Fragoso (4:08) we sit with O’Rourke to unpack the severe anti-migrant tactics carried out under Operation Lone Star (15:50), the dangerous rhetoric that delivered this crisis (28:00), and the checkered history of immigration reform in Texas (31:10). We also walk through the focus of Beto’s new book, We’ve Got to Try: How the Fight for Voting Rights Makes Everything Else Possible (35:47), the four-year aftermath of the El Paso shooting (38:38), and why he continues fighting for change in the state (42:45). On the back-half, O’Rourke reflects on his recent Gubernatorial campaign (46:36), how the Texas electorate has shifted since his 2018 Senate run (49:53), his unwavering belief in people (55:55), how he hopes President Biden mitigates the cruelty at the border (1:00:00), and to close, a story about fatherhood (1:05:10). Join the fight down in Texas alongside Powered by People. To watch Sam's film, Sebastian, visit our show-notes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For over three decades, legendary costume designer Ruth E. Carter has created the looks of our most era-defining films. Today, we're celebrating those pieces chronicled in her new book, The Art of Ruth E. Carter: Costuming Black History and the Afrofuture. At the top, we discuss the current labor movement in Hollywood (5:03), Carter’s upbringing in Massachusetts (8:50), and a formative Langston Hughes poem (12:56). Then, she reflects on her early years in Los Angeles (19:45), the night she met a lifelong collaborator in director Spike Lee (21:52), and the process of making School Daze (25:49), Do the Right Thing (29:06), and Malcolm X (37:42). On the back-half, Carter describes her innovative work on the Black Panther films (50:40), which earned her two Academy Awards (54:33), the enduring influence of her mother, Mabel Carter (1:03:10), and how she continues to tell the story of the Black experience through costume design (1:04:35).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a moment of historic upheaval in Hollywood, screenwriter and labor activist Alex O’Keefe (The Bear) believes he can turn the tide. The Writers Guild of America has been on strike since May 2nd. Actors represented by SAG-AFTRA joined the fight earlier this month. We begin by discussing the WGA’s key demands (7:30), O’Keefe’s experience inside writers’ rooms (13:12), the pushback from the studios thus far (17:01), how the divisive ‘interim agreements’ recently issued by SAG-AFTRA (27:40) stem from a checkered history of union organizing in Hollywood (29:13), and why O’Keefe believes this cross-union solidarity is unprecedented (33:29). On the back-half, we walk through his origin story in Florida (35:40), his background in politics and speechwriting (44:57), the inspired words of screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (50:50) and how they’ve shaped O’Keefe’s vision for the future of his industry (1:02:44).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Legendary photographer Joel Meyerowitz discusses his career, the challenges of the past year, the power of photography and poetry, reflections on love and personal growth, capturing the disjunction between youth and leisure, shifts in perspective, and the philosophy of pleasure and age.

Last summer, we traveled to Princeton, New Jersey to sit with legendary writer Joyce Carol Oates. The talk begins with her daily routine, from writing to revision (6:34), the real-life events that inspired her recent novel, Babysitter (9:09), and why she’s fascinated with examining violence in her work (14:06). Then, we walk through Oates’ early years: growing up on a farm (17:45), her literary influences (22:22), and the lasting relationship she formed with libraries (27:01). On the back-half, Joyce revisits a 1977 journal entry on writing (28:30), how she grapples with criticism (31:20) and her complex relationship to Twitter (33:20). To close, we sit with love (40:05), loss (43:40), and why, at age eighty-four, she continues to tell new stories (50:22).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the closing of the latest season of The Run-Up, political reporter Astead Herndon (The New York Times) returns to the show. At the top, we discuss the recent impactful decisions issued by the Supreme Court (6:36), what to expect from the GOP primaries (8:54), and the potential of a third-party ticket (17:32). Then, we dive into the kitchen table issues guiding the electorate (22:55), Herndon’s early years at The Times (24:40), and why he believes in the power of grassroots journalism (25:38). On the back-half, we examine his mission statement as a reporter (29:30), what he believes The Times has learned in the years since the 2016 election (42:30), and who he ultimately makes this work for (59:06).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, on his 67th birthday, we’re joined by actor Tom Hanks! We begin by discussing his debut novel, The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece (6:45), his nomadic upbringing across California (13:56), and the Stanley Kubrick film that made him want to be an artist (19:50). Then, we talk about his early work at the Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival (23:38) and moving to Los Angeles for his television debut in Bosom Buddies (28:42), before pivoting to dramatic roles in films like Philadelphia and Forrest Gump (33:00). On the back-half, Hanks describes the transformative, eight-year process of making Cast Away (36:40), receiving an AFI Lifetime Achievement award for his work at age forty-six (39:12), the vital performances that followed (40:21), and his insatiable desire to reflect the human experience (45:43).  To close, Hanks reflects on the kinship he found with Yankee hall of famer Joe DiMaggio (47:52), his formative friendships with actor Holland Taylor (50:17) and the late Nora Ephron (52:32), and the Cecil B. DeMille story he hopes to keep telling (53:20). Read the full transcript of this episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.