The Colin McEnroe Show

A hard-boiled private eye, a glamorous blond, and a hapless drifter all sit at a bar on the seamy side of town. It's night, the streets are wet, the shadows are long. They each nurse a drink to the notes of a mournful saxophone and a lonely piano.  Smoke from the cigarettes swirls in the darkness.  We all know classic noir when we see it and hear it and read it; yet, we don't really know how to define the dark plots that expose humanity in all its moral ambiguity and loneliness.  Noir arrived in America with German emigre's escaping the Nazis and fit well with the bleakness of Americans reeling from a depression, two world wars and later, the threat of nuclear annihilation. It continues to resonate and has transposed its style across genres. ​ Today, a deeper look at noir - then and now. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, a two-part show. The first part is with an impeachment expert on the House inquiry into whether President Trump abused his power for personal gain. How much trouble is the president in? In the last two weeks, diplomats and senior advisors have testified against White House orders. They've each told a similar narrative in which all paths lead to the president.  On Thursday, acting Chief of Staff, Mick Mulvaney all but confessed to the quid-pro-quo many Republicans have made a criteria for considering impeachment.  The second-part is for your calls.  The president has become increasingly brazen in his effort to distract from the impeachment proceedings. As we've seen in Syria this week, his reactions can have serious consequences. How low might the president go to loosen the vise that's tightening on him? How will the president react as the inquiry progresses? How will the inquiry affect the 2020 election? How will it end - will the Senate convict? If not, what happens next?  Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Martin Scorsese is a grump. He doesn't like Marvel movies. He says they aren't "cinema." He says they aren't even narrative films, and "we shouldn't be invaded by it." The internet, as you can imagine, has takes. And: The Eddie Murphy comeback is on. He appeared on Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee this summer. He's hosting Saturday Night Live in December. He's got multiple standup comedy specials in the works. And right now he's starring in the briefly-in-theaters-but-hitting-Netflix-next-weekend biopic Dolemite Is My Name.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"Hate" is the imprecise word we use to describe a group of ideas that have moved out of the shadows of American public life and into its center ring. At the core of these movements sits one common idea: that all people are not equal. This hour, we discuss the challenges this moment poses to educators, politicians, business leaders and journalists as recorded live at Watkinson School in Hartford as part of Colin's Freshly Squeezed series. GUESTS: Steve Ginsburg - Director of the Anti-Defamation League's Connecticut Regional Office Jennifer Herdt - Gilbert L. Stark professor of Christian ethics at Yale Divinity School Molly Land - Professor of law at UConn School of Law Richard Wilson - Gladstein chair and professor of anthropology and law at UConn School of Law Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From the penny press, to yellow journalism, to supermarket tabloids and beyond, sensationalized news has been around for centuries. But while this style of reporting may have its critics, it may also serve as an important reflection of American culture and democracy. This hour we speak with journalists and historians about the evolution and influence of tabloid journalism. We'll also discuss the alleged connection between President Trump and various tabloid publications, the true nature of which continues to unfold.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In January of 2018, a seemingly racist incident occurred on the National Mall. Photos and videos were posted to social media showing a group of MAGA hat-wearing high school students from Covington Catholic High School in Kentucky. One of them, Nick Sandmann, seemed to be mocking and blocking the path of Native American activist, Nathan Phillips. People either jeered or cheered on social media, depending on how it was perceived, long before most of us had any idea of the context of the situation.  An investigation cleared the students of wrongdoing. What happened is less important than understanding how that incident triggered strong convictions that varied by political affiliation and remained resistant to changing after the investigation. Today, we talk about how this cultural moment is making all of us arrogant intellectual know-it-alls.  Also this hour: One man's quest to be the smartest man in the world. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Trump leaves chaos in his wake. There is chaos in Syria. Turkish artillery fire is targeting the Kurdish-led militia that has been allied with U.S. Special Forces over the last five years in their war against ISIS. Syrians are fleeing their homes, ISIS prisoners are escaping from prisons no longer guarded by the Kurds, and the last U.S. troops pulled out on Sunday. The developing crisis has heightened criticism of President Trump, who agreed to move American troops out of Turkey’s way in a phone call with Turkey’s president last week, despite strong opposition from U.S. military officials and the State Department.  There is chaos surrounding the impeachment inquiry. The White House is threatening to defy subpoenas of documents and witnesses key to the investigation. The president is defending his personal lawyer whose behavior is being investigated and lashing out on Twitter about those who oppose him.  Today, we have two segments. The first will be with a guest on the unfolding crisis in Syria. The second is your phone calls. What are your predictions for what's going to happen in the House impeachment inquiry? Where will we be on January 1? On March 1?  GUEST: Robin Wright - Correspondent for The New Yorker and the author of seven books on the Mideast, most recently, Rock the Casbah: Rage and Rebellion Across the Islamic World. She’s a joint fellow at the U.S. Institute of Peace and the Woodrow Wilson Center. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joker is director Todd Phillips's modern take on movies like Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy. It stars Joaquin Phoenix in the title role in what happens also to be... a Batman movie. It's been called "a gloriously daring and explosive film" and "a movie that borders on genius" but also "bleak and juvenile" and "a movie of a cynicism so vast and pervasive as to render the viewing experience even emptier than its slapdash aesthetic does." And: Toy Story 4 is out on Blu-ray and iTunes and such this week. In its theatrical run, it became the highest-grossing G-rated movie ever made, the fifth-highest-grossing animated movie ever made, and the third-highest-grossing movie of the year so far. And it is "perhaps the bleakest (and most beautiful)" of all the Toy Story movies. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: Le Creuset Announces STAR WARS Line of Cookware Raking leaves again this fall? Stop right now Filming the Show: Pardon the Intrusion? Or Punish It?A seized phone. A stopped concert. A text from Rihanna. All are new fuel for a heated debate about theater etiquette in the digital age. Trustworthy and chill: Alex Trebek, we're rooting for you New Dr Pepper and Cream Soda is Coming Soon GUESTS: James Hanley - Co-founder of Cinestudio at Trinity College Irene Papoulis - Teaches writing at Trinity College Pedro Soto - President and CEO of Hygrade Precision Technologies Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Chion Wolf contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On January 31, 2018, Kristin and Mike Song's 15-year-old son Ethan Song, accidentally shot and killed himself at his friend's house. They were handling a gun they knew was kept in a bedroom closet. The gun was one of three guns owned by the friend's father. They were in a cardboard box inside a tupperware container that was hidden in a bedroom closet. The guns had locks but the keys and ammunition were in the same box.  The son was charged with manslaughter. The dad was not charged. There was a loophole in Connecticut's law. The Song's channeled their grief into political action that led to "Ethan's Law." Today, we talk about how citizens can use their power of self-government to make change happen at a time when so many of us feel powerless. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listen Wednesday at 1:00 pm.  Jimmy Webb was possibly the most successful songwriter of the 1960's and 1970's. Classics like "Galveston," "Wichita Lineman," "Up, Up, and Away," and "MacArthur Park," were recorded by hundreds of artists from Glen Campbell to Donna Summer. Webb wrote the songs that others made famous. Colin has wanted to interview Mr. Webb for a very long time, and on September 5, the CMS team made the trek to Glen Cove, New York to meet the musician, and his wife Laura Savini, at a recording studio.  Our adventure was not without adversity. We had to catch a very early ferry from Bridgeport to Port Jefferson and drive across Long Island. A flat tire forced us to miss our ferry back home to Connecticut (and our dinner). It didn't matter though. What we took home from our day were the sweet remains of time spent with friends, great music, and a spectacular sunset.  For the first time in CMS history, we decided to create two shows from our time with Mr. Webb. It was too good to cut. Today, we bring you part two of our two-hour show with Jimmy Webb. Listen to Part One.  GUEST:  Jimmy Webb - Songwriter, pianist, composer, storyteller. He’s won Grammy Awards for his music, lyrics and orchestration. His songs include “Galveston,” “Wichita Lineman,” and “MacArthur Park.” He’s the author of Tunesmith: Inside the Art of Songwriting, and his 2017 memoir, The Cake and the Rain. His latest album is Slipcover. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.