The Colin McEnroe Show

Harvey Fierstein has won four Tony Awards, for writing and acting in Torch Song Trilogy, for writing La Cage aux Folles, and for acting in Hairspray. He has appeared in Mrs. Doubtfire, Bullets Over Broadway, Independence Day, Death to Smoochy, and more. He has sung to Muppets, he has voiced Disney characters, and he’s been in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Armistead Maupin has called Fierstein “a true American original who has blazed his own trail through popular culture for half a century.” Harvey Fierstein joins us for the hour. GUEST: Harvey Fierstein: An actor on stage and screen, a playwright, and a screenwriter; he is the author of I Was Better Last Night: A Memoir The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Cat Pastor, and Michael Savitt contributed to this show, which originally aired March 10, 2022.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The purpose of incarceration in America is supposed to be a balance between punishment and reform, with the scales tipping toward reforms that can lead to redemption and a second chance after release. But that’s not been the experience of many currently and formerly incarcerated people. Incarcerated influencers are sharing a view of prison life through TikTok videos, podcasts, and journalism that shows a more nuanced look at prison life, including the network of support, friendships, and mentors the incarcerated share with one another in the absence of significant reform. The content challenges misperceptions about incarceration that are often depicted in popular culture, and it exposes the lack of formal opportunities available to help the incarcerated prepare for life after release. GUESTS: Emily Bazelon: Staff writer for The New York Times Magazine and the co-host of the Slate Political Gabfest; she recently started The Prison Letters Project Robin Kaiser-Schatzlein: A freelance writer who writes about American life for numerous publications including The New York Times, The New Republic, and The Baffler John J. Lennon: An incarcerated journalist writing from Sullivan Correctional Facility; he is a contributing editor at Esquire magazine and a frequent contributor to The New York Times Justin Paperny: A prison consultant, the co-founder of White Collar Advice and Prison Professors, and the author of Lessons from Prison The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Jonathan McNicol, Cat Pastor, and Lily Tyson contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Nose uses the rug as its plan B. Abbott Elementary is a mockumentary sitcom that airs on ABC, created by and starring Quinta Brunson. Think The Office, but set in a Philadelphia elementary school. It won two Primetime Emmy Awards last week, and its second season premiered this week. And: Apple made a movie, Emancipation, that it expects will be worthy Oscar fodder. The only catch: It stars Will Smith, who is, ya know, banned from the Oscars and things. So now what? Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: 24 Reactions To The “NyQuil Chicken Challenge” That Give Me A Spoonful Of Hope For HumanityFrom the same internet that brought you greatest hits like the “Tide pod” and “snorting condom” challenges comes a new, dangerously dumb trend that you must not attempt at all costs. Adam Levine’s (Alleged) Sexts Are Amazingly Bad Famous people have never had to beg for a morsel of attention; it makes sense that their sexts might suck. The moment you’ve all been waiting for: The Space Force has unveiled its official song Gen Z Never Learned to Read Cursive How will they interpret the past? How Student Debt Killed the Plot Fictional characters, too, are saddled with college loans, and struggling to keep the story of their lives moving forward. The Enduring Wisdom of ‘Goodnight Moon’ It’s the first book many babies receive as a gift, and one of the few that parents will keep when their child is grown. Why does this 75-year-old story have such staying power? An Ode to Being Read To Bedtime stories aren’t just for children. Drew Barrymore challenges Andrew Garfield’s six-month celibacy with, “Yeah, so?” The Under The Banner Of Heaven star recently divulged details of his method acting processes MI6 Is Looking for a New Bond. I’ve Got Some Suggestions. Warner Bros. Discovery Has Bigger Problems Than Its DC Search The film studio’s hunt for its own Kevin Feige may be complicated by key questions about what’s next for the heavily indebted company — and whether another major deal is on the horizon. Chess Is Just Poker Now A cheating controversy involving two grandmasters shows how computers have transformed the game. Every Marilyn Monroe Movie, Ranked Woody Allen Walks Back Claims, Says He Has ‘No Intention of Retiring’ Mariah Carey says we should finally hear her secret 1995 grunge album Life on Screen: A Reality Television Reading List A Gnarly New Theory About Saturn’s Rings The story of a long-lost moon This Is Neptune? The James Webb Space Telescope has captured a mesmerizing view of the planet. The ‘Grand Theft Auto’ Leak Is Enormous News That May Not Matter A massive leak of footage from the next big Rockstar Games release recently shook the video game industry. What does it mean for ‘GTA,’ fans of the franchise, and the way games get made? Separating Sports by Sex Doesn’t Make Sense Though school sports are typically sex-segregated, a new generation of kids isn’t content to compete within traditional structures. Wait, Is Taylor Swift Just Giving Us Straight Answers? Preview the Art Show Entirely Inspired by Nicolas Cage and His Cat GUESTS: Sam Hadelman: Works in music public relations and hosts The Sam Hadelman Show at Radio Free Brooklyn Carolyn Paine: An actress, comedian, and dancer; she is founder, director, and choreographer of CONNetic Dance Gene Seymour: A “writer, professional spectator, pop-culture maven, and jazz geek” The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Eugene Amatruda contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Well designed queues give you hope and feel fair, while poorly designed ones can ruin your day. Queues are everywhere around us, and not all are designed well. This hour, the art of the queue, the challenge of waiting in line, and when, if ever, cutting in line is appropriate. GUESTS: Jennifer Goff: Owner and founder of Skip the Line Marie Helweg-Larsen: Professor of psychology at Dickinson College Richard Larson: Professor of data, systems, and society at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Steven Soifer: President of the American Restroom Association The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Jonathan McNicol, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all do some bad thinking sometimes, whether in relatively minor ways or relatively major ones. This hour, we look at why bad thinking happens, how reasoning errors are embedded in the way we think, and how we can all learn how to think better, through lessons from philosophy and psychology. GUESTS: Woo-kyoung Ahn: Director of The Thinking Lab at Yale University and the author of Thinking 101: How to Reason Better to Live Better Steven Nadler: Co-author of When Bad Thinking Happens to Good People: How Philosophy Can Save Us from Ourselves and a philosophy professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Larry Shapiro: Co-author of When Bad Thinking Happens to Good People: How Philosophy Can Save Us from Ourselves and a philosophy professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This hour, a look at the path to sainthood and how it’s changed over time. Plus: the local example of the Rev. Michael McGivney. GUESTS: Teresa Berger: Professor of liturgical studies and Catholic theology at Yale Divinity School Joseph Laycock: Author of The Seer of Bayside: Veronica Lueken and the Struggle to Define Catholicism Rachel McCleary: Lecturer in the Economics Department at Harvard University and a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute James Sullivan: Rector of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Waterbury, Connecticut The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Sara Gasparotto, Jonathan McNicol, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired March 31, 2022.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’ve been doing these shows a couple times a month where we don’t book any guests, where we fill the hour with your calls. And your calls have been interesting and surprising and amusing. This hour, the conversation winds around to a number of whys: Why do people speed? Why do cigarettes come in packs of 20? Why do we say “beyond the pale?” Why did the Hartford Courant leave the queen’s funeral off of today’s front page? Why do we still make pennies? Anything. (Seemingly) everything. These shows are fun for us, and they seem to be fun for you, too. So we did another one. Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Nose watches two recent comic book television adaptations: She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, from Disney+, and the recently canceled Paper Girls, from Prime Video. GUESTS:  Rich Hollant: Principal at Co Lab, founder of Free Center, and Commissioner on Cultural Affairs for the city of Hartford Jacques Lamarre: Playwright, and Chief Communications Officer at Buzz Engine Tracy Wu Fastenberg: Development Officer at Connecticut Children’s Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jill Sobule is back in town and in our studio. This hour: songs, seventh grade, fanny packs, the power of sad music, and much more. These are the songs featured in the show: “A Good Life” “Island of Lost Things” “Jetpack” “Rainy Day Parade” “Strawberry Gloss” Jill Sobule performs at The Mark Twain House on Friday, September 16, 2022. GUEST: Jill Sobule: Award-winning singer, songwriter, and guitarist The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Eugene Amatruda, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Most of us have books that we just can’t finish, no matter how many times we try. This hour, a look at those books that we find unreadable, whether they’re too long, too difficult, too confusing, or too dated. What makes a book unreadable? Plus: The Voynich Manuscript, an unreadable and undeciphered book, housed at Yale University’s Beinecke Library. We asked our listeners for their list of unreadable books. Here are those responses: The Bible Mansfield Park by Jane Austen Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt Rim by Alexander Besher The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins Collapse by Jared Diamond Great Expectations by Charles Dickens A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens S. by JJ Abrams and Doug Dorst The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald anything by William Faulkner Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking Catch-22 by Joseph Heller Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas Hofstadter Les Misérables by Victor Hugo A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving 50 Shades of Grey by E.L. James The Dubliners by James Joyce Ulysses by James Joyce Wicked by Gregory Maguire One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez Moby Dick by Herman Melville Faithful by Stewart O’Nan and Stephen King Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon How to Write by Gertrude Stein Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace GUESTS: Ray Clemens: Curator of early books and manuscripts at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library Rand Richards Cooper: Fiction writer, contributing editor at Commonweal, and restaurant critic for The Hartford Courant Dennis Duncan: Lecturer in English at University College London and the author of Index, A History of the: A Bookish Adventure from Medieval Manuscripts to the Digital Age Juliet Lapidos: Ideas editor for The Atlantic and the author of Talent The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.