The Colin McEnroe Show

We’ve all heard the generational stereotypes, and rolled our eyes at them. This hour: we investigate generational groupings to discover why we’re interested in separating people into generations, when it is useful, and when it is not. GUESTS: Ziad Ahmed: CEO and co-founder of JUV Consulting Justin Charity: Senior staff writer for The Ringer, where he published “It’s Time to Accept That Millennials and Gen Z Are the Same Generation” Bobby Duffy: Professor of public policy and director of the Policy Institute at King’s College London, and the author of The Generation Myth: Why When You’re Born Matters Less Than You Think 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, Gene Amatruda, and Jonathan McNicol contributed to this show, which originally aired January 27, 2022.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Snacking on snacks, savory or sweet, has become a way of life. This hour, a look at our snack-food obsessions. GUESTS:  Andrea Hernández: Founder of SnaxShot Julia Pistell: Freelance writer and co-founder of SeaTea Improv in Hartford, Connecticut Chris Prosperi: Chef and owner of Metro Bis restaurant in Simsbury, Connecticut Mark Schatzker: Writer in residence at the Modern Diet and Physiology Research Center affiliated with Yale University and the author of The End of Craving, The Dorito Effect, and Steak 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, Cat Pastor, and Lily Tyson contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Nose is off this week. In its place, a look at movie trailers. Maybe you wonder what a movie critic thinks of trailers. Actually, critics don’t see as many as you do because they often go to special screenings. Colin asked America’s Greatest Living Film Critic, David Edelstein, about trailers. Here’s what AGLFC said: “Actually, I avoid them like the plague. I don’t watch them online, and when I see movies in theaters, I often whip out my Kindle and plug my ears. If I’m on the aisle, I leave and get a Diet Coke. Trailers give away everything. They give away jokes. More than that, they orient you to the narrative in a way I don’t like being oriented. (Of course, I have the luxury of going into a movie not knowing what it’s even about because I get paid to do so, but that’s my preferred way to work — to be left in the hands of the storyteller.) As for as awful ones I have seen… I remember Nebraska in particular as being terrible because the pace and tone of that movie are antithetical to the way mainstream trailers work. It said quirky. Offbeat. Lovable. Among the best, I recall Batman Returns as being so great. I thought the movie itself was an overrated shambles — a really terrible piece of storytelling — but even Tim Burton’s worst movies have so many good images and set-pieces that they really read in trailers.” For the rest of us, trailers are either a pain or a pleasure. Some stuff that happened this week, give or take: Claes Oldenburg Dies at 93; Pop Artist Made the Everyday Monumental Taking ordinary objects like hamburgers and household items, he sculpted them in unfamiliar, often imposing dimensions — what he called his “Colossal Monuments.” Janeane Garofalo Never Sold Out. What a Relief. That concept might be the reason her trailblazing stand-up career has been overshadowed; it may also be the reason she’s still so sharp, our critic argues. Read this: How fake accounts and a powder-keg fandom helped Zack Snyder restore his Justice League It might be hard to believe, but the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement was even weirder than we thought Jennifer Lopez Becomes Jennifer Affleck, Now Please Sign Up for Her Newsletter And other reflections on her recent wedding. Raving for Shrek, the Swamp Comes to Brooklyn A party in East Williamsburg invited fans of the 2001 film to translate into reality their online obsessions with the titular ogre. Can’t Talk, I’m Busy Being Hot A social media movement inspired by the rapper Megan Thee Stallion strikes back at the gatekeepers of beauty. The 50 Greatest Fictional Deaths of All Time The most tearjerking, hilarious, satisfying, and shocking death scenes in 2,500 years of culture. Ethan Hawke: I’m at ‘the Beginning of My Last Act’ as an Actor In an extensive conversation with IndieWire, the actor explained the impulse behind his new docuseries “The Last Movie Stars” and his uneasy relationship to fame. Amazon Is Giving Prime Video Its Biggest Redesign In Years New navigation, a top 10 list, and a very familiar look and feel How Did Yellowstone, America’s Most Popular Show, Get Totally Ignored by the Emmys? Taylor Sheridan’s universe of shows is a juggernaut, but awards still go to “stuff that appeals to the coastal elite.” Quidditch rebrands as quadball and further distances itself from Harry Potter author ‘The Bear’ Is Why We Must End The Reign Of TV’s Vibes Cartel Celebrities Continue to Be Richer Than You TVs Are Too Good Now Why does Home Alone look better than the latest Marvel fare on the most advanced displays? America’s Most Misunderstood Marsupial The opossum might be snarly and a little bit scraggly, but she deserves our admiration. GUESTS: Allan Arkush: Contributor to Trailers from Hell; he worked in the trailer department for Roger Corman Stephen Garrett: Founder of Jump Cut Sam Hatch: Co-hosts The Culture Dogs on WWUH Kevin O’Toole: Co-hosts The Culture Dogs on WWUH 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, Lydia Brown, John Dankosky, Greg Hill, Tucker Ives, Harriet Jones, Betsy Kaplan, Patrick Skahill, Catie Talarski, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, which originally aired July 2, 2014.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malls are an important gathering place for people of all ages to shop, eat, be entertained, walk, and enjoy the controlled temperature. This hour, the history of malls in America, their unique design, and a look ahead to the future of those spaces, now that there are dead malls all over the country. Plus: the art of curating mall music. GUESTS: Michael Bise: A former Gap employee who runs a blog where he collects Gap music playlists Alexandra Lange: Author of Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall Erik Pierson: Videographer of the YouTube channel Retail Archeology 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, Ray Hardman, Greg Hill, Tucker Ives, Jonathan McNicol, Cat Pastor, Patrick Skahill, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Baseball’s All-Star Game was Tuesday night. (The American League won for the ninth year in a row, which doesn’t matter at all.) As such, the sports calendar is basically empty today. So why not spend the hour talking about sports? And why not start with baseball? It’s how our conversation about this show started sometime last week. Me, a Yankees fan: “I do think the Yankees being historically great should be a topic.” Colin, a Red Sox fan: “In other words, you think I’ll be dead by showtime.” But: The New York Yankees are on pace for a 113-win season, and their star outfielder Aaron Judge is on pace for a 58-home run season in his free agent year. And, not for nothing, the New York Mets are also good! The Boston Red Sox, on the other hand, lost their last two games before the All-Star break by a combined score of 27-3. I can’t remember to which team. I’ll look that up. Plus: The New Yorker’s Sarah Larson wonders if pickleball can save America. And finally: A look at some enterprising Indians and the whole cricket league they fabricated to dupe some Russian gamblers. GUESTS: Kyle Barr: Breaking news reporter at Gizmodo Michael Baumann: Staff writer at The Ringer covering sports, culture, and politics Sarah Larson: Staff writer at The New Yorker 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 Lily Tyson contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Conspirituality is a convergence of right-wing conspiracy, New Age spirituality, and grift. The throughline from a left-leaning yoga instructor to a right-wing QAnon conspiracist is skepticism of institutional authority and Western medicine. Skepticism within both groups accelerated during the pandemic, making wellness communities more vulnerable to the anti-vax, anti-COVID messaging QAnon packaged in softer tones and imagery that appealed to women concerned with health and wellness. This hour, we explore how conspirituality plays out in our current political climate. We also talk about how conspiracy theories can sometimes cover up real conspiracies. GUESTS:  Derek Beres: Senior Editor at Eco a co-host of the podcast Conspirituality; he’s currently co-writing Conspirituality: How New Age Conspiracy Theories Became a Public Health Threat with Matthew Remski and Julian Walker Julian Walker: Co-host of the podcast Conspirituality; he has taught yoga in Los Angeles for 27 years Sarah Kendzior: author of  three books including The View from Flyover Country: Dispatches from the Forgotten America; her new book, They Knew: How a Culture of Conspiracy Keeps America Complacent, will be published in September, and she’s the co-host of the podcast Gaslit Nation 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, Jonathan McNicol, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Elvis left two legacies. Musically, he pulled several American musical traditions out of the shadows, braided them together, and made them mainstream. Personally, he created a far darker template for the way a musical celebrity could be devoured by the very fame he avidly sought. Recorded live in front of an audience — long before the pandemic — as part of Colin’s Freshly Squeezed series at Watkinson School, an hour about the artist who defined the birth of rock and roll and was the genre’s first superstar. GUESTS: Jim Chapdelaine: Guitar and vocals Latanya Farrell: Vocals Steve Metcalf: Piano and vocals 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. This show originally aired February 20, 2019.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Nose shows no hails from the surface or sub-space chatter. No interplanetary traffic. Not one orbital dock. This week, NASA released the first images sent back from the James Webb Space Telescope. They are mind-boggling. They are meme inducing. They are … mouth watering? Sort of relatedly: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is the 11th Star Trek television series and the fifth series in Alex Kurtzman’s expanded Star Trek universe. It tells the story of Christopher Pike’s time as captain of the USS Enterprise in the years before Captain Kirk. Its first season concluded last week on Paramount+. A second season is currently in production. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: ‘Sopranos’ actor Tony Sirico dies at 79 Larry Storch of TV’s ‘F Troop’ dies at 99 The Wild Bunch Star L.Q. Jones Has Died At 94 Bond theme composer Monty Norman dies aged 94 Norman was commissioned to create the score for the first Bond movie, Dr. No, and wrote one of the most iconic guitar riffs in the process The Hottest Streamer (Right Now) The top three spots get a shake-up in our annual power ranking. Paul Rudd becomes a real-life hero for a bullied Colorado boy 10 per cent chance falling rockets will hit someone in next decade Humans are sending ever more rockets up into space – bits of them falling back to Earth could result in casualties, unless action is taken Yes, Chef: How The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White Became the Breakout Star of Summer In FX’s surprise hit, the 31-year-old actor plays a tormented culinary genius who returns home to run his family’s Chicago sandwich shop. We caught up with White in his native Brooklyn to learn what it took to get in the kitchen. A Hookup App for the Emotionally Mature Modern romance can feel cold and alienating. Feeld, by encouraging open-mindedness and respect, suggests a way forward. Where the Crawdads Sing Author Wanted for Questioning in Murder A televised 1990s killing in Zambia has striking similarities to Delia Owens’s best-selling book turned movie. The Winners and Losers of the 2022 Emmy Nominations ‘Squid Game’ and ‘Abbott Elementary’ defied the odds while sentimental favorites were snubbed, but in the end, maybe there’s just Too Much TV Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’ Belongs to Everyone What is it about the once virtually unknown song that inspires so many musicians to make it their own? BMW starts selling heated seat subscriptions for $18 a month The auto industry is racing towards a future full of microtransactions Elliot Page Brings His Misfit Characters to Life Even before Page—and his character on “Umbrella Academy”—came out as trans, he had a gift for playing people who were restless in their identities. Hybrid Work Is Doomed Office workers work in offices, for better or for worse. Bill Burr’s Exhausting, Frustrating, Fascinating Battle With Himself How to Successfully Smash Your Face Against a Tree A new study refutes the widespread idea that woodpeckers have shock-absorbing heads. Leonard Bernstein movie ‘Maestro’ starring Bradley Cooper filming in Fairfield this week ‘Bada-Bing’: Improvised Nonsense Turned Mobster Argot The late James Caan slipped a few syllables of gibberish into ‘The Godfather.’ Now they have their own entry in the Oxford English Dictionary. GUESTS: Jim Chapdelaine: An Emmy-winning musician and a patient advocate for people with rare cancers Mercy Quaye: Founder and principal consultant for The Narrative Project and the cohost of the Untold podcast with John Dankosky Bill Yousman: Professor of Media Studies at Sacred Heart University Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show. 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.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 — calls about grammar, gardening, long-distance dialing, autotune. Anything. Everything. These shows are fun for us, and they seem to be fun for you, too. So we’re doing another one. In other words: Give us a call during the 1 p.m. EDT hour about whatever you want to talk about. 888-720-9677.‌ Or join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Homer’s The Iliad is a literary classic. This hour, we look at some of the many ways the epic applies to life today, from our understanding of plague, death, politics, and anger. We discuss the value of returning to the story over and over again and learn about how it can be used as a framework for other stories. GUESTS:  Emily Katz Anhalt: Professor of classical languages and literature at Sarah Lawrence College and the author of Embattled: How Ancient Greek Myths Empower Us To Resist Tyranny and Enraged: Why Violent Times Need Ancient Greek Myths  Joel Christensen: Professor of classical studies and senior associate dean for faculty affairs at Brandeis University and the author of The Many-Minded Man: ‘The Odyssey,’ Psychology, and the Therapy of Epic Maya Deane: Author of Wrath Goddess Sing  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, Jonathan McNicol, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.