The Colin McEnroe Show

You know Michael Schur from the shows he’s created, like The Good Place, Parks and Recreation and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. This hour we talk with Schur about his latest project, his book, How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question. Through the conversation we discuss moral philosophy, and big moral questions like “should you return your shopping cart to the cart corral?” GUEST: Michael Schur: TV writer and producer and the author of How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question 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, which originally aired February 3, 2022. Our programming is made possible thanks to listeners like you. Please consider supporting this show and Connecticut Public with a donation today by visiting ctpublic.org/donate.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’ve been doing these shows a lot of weeks where we don’t book any guests, where we fill the hour with your calls. We don’t even, anymore, start with the suggestion of a topic that your calls might, potentially, be about. We’ve had fun with these shows, and you seem to like them too. So we’re doing that again. In other words: Give us a call during the 1 p.m. EDT hour about anything at all. 888-720-9677.‌ Or 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. Our programming is made possible thanks to listeners like you. Please consider supporting this show and Connecticut Public with a donation today by visiting ctpublic.org/donate.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Nose thinks the less it says, the less it gives away. But, really, it’s the opposite. Obi-Wan Kenobi is a six-part Disney+ limited series. It’s mostly set 10 years after the events of Revenge of the Sith, with the Empire in power and Kenobi in exile on Tatooine. Three episodes are available so far. And: A recent Reddit thread on the ways different cultures handle feeding their houseguests has spilled out onto the wider internet and caused a bit of a discussion. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: LARPing Goes to Disney World Amber Heard Defamed Johnny Depp, Jury Decides The jury decided Amber Heard’s statement in her Washington Post op-ed was false and defamatory, and that Heard intended to defame Depp. Behind Netflix’s Leaner Movie Mandate: Bigger, Fewer and Better The Scott Stuber-run division is adjusting to a new set of realities as it readies a $200 million-plus ‘The Gray Man’ from the ‘Avengers: Endgame’ helmers and a pricey set of ‘Knives Out’ sequels. Donald Trump’s Media Company Plans “Non-Woke Alternative” To Netflix And Disney+; Streaming Slate To Feature “Cancelled Shows” Does a Comedian Really Need an Audience? Filmed during lockdown, a new Netflix special from Norm Macdonald and outtakes from Bo Burnham’s “Inside” suggest that crowd laughter can be limiting. We Must Defend Thanos’s Constitutional Right To Snap His Fingers and Make Half of the Universe Disappear The BuzzFeed App Is Now 100% Kardashian-Free (If You Want It To Be) One click to mute them all. DeLorean is back (to the future) with an electric car, and some caveats New Haven, Conn.: More Than Just Academics and Mozzarella After decades of crime, the city is ‘coming up’ — with the cuisine and culture of a major metropolis, but the laid-back vibe of a smaller place. “It Really Wasn’t What They Said It Was”: LeVar Burton Opens Up About ‘Jeopardy!’ and Hosting the National Spelling Bee What really happened with Burton’s ‘Jeopardy!’ host audition? What’s the latest with his Trivial Pursuit show? And is spelling a sport? The ‘Roots,’ ‘Star Trek,’ and ‘Reading Rainbow’ legend has the answers. With Cameras on Every Phone, Will Broadway’s Nude Scenes Survive? Audiences are increasingly asked to lock their phones in pouches at comedy shows, concerts and some plays. But what happens onstage doesn’t always stay onstage. The Mona Lisa was attacked again … this time with a slice of cake A man, who’s since been arrested, created an elaborate disguise in order to get close enough to the masterpiece How Love Island Became a TV Reality of Sex, Fame, and Sometimes Tragedy Starring swimsuit-clad cast members plucked from obscurity, the reboot of Britain’s Love Island promised to be the dating show for our self-made, self-aware era. After a series of high-profile suicides, including that of former host Caroline Flack, a darker reality set in. Ahead of the new season, here’s a look inside the highly produced machine. Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary team up for The Video Archives Podcast The two friends, filmmakers, and former co-workers will watch and discuss movies from the VHS archives The Woes of Being Addicted to Streaming After a decade under the influence of music algorithms, a look at what streaming services afford the most engaged fans and what lingers below the surface. GUESTS: Jacques Lamarre: A playwright and the director of client services at Buzz Engine Pedro Soto: President and CEO of Hygrade Precision Technologies Tracy Wu Fastenberg: Development officer at Connecticut Children’s Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Humans have long been interested in the possibility of extraterrestrial life. This hour, a look at why that interest has persisted. Plus, we talk to a scientist who is looking for extraterrestrial life and a linguist who is preparing in case we ever receive communications from extraterrestrials. GUESTS: Kate Dorsch: Historian, philosopher of science, and the associate director of the philosophy, politics, and economics program at the University of Pennsylvania Amanda Rees: Historian of science based at the University of York Seth Shostak: Senior astronomer at the SETI Institute and host of the radio show and podcast Big Picture Science Sheri Wells-Jensen: Associate professor of English and linguistics at Bowling Green State University who is on the board of directors of METI International 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.

When was the last time you had fun? I mean the kind of fun where you lost track of time, you didn’t care what others were thinking of you, and you felt connected to the people you were having fun with. We all know what fun feels like, so why don’t we make time for it? We tend to think of fun as a side dish, something to eat if you’re not too full. That’s wrong. Fun should be the main course. Fun nourishes our mind and body as much as healthy food and productive work. This hour, we talk about fun, including why we’re not having it, why we need more of it, and how to have it. GUESTS: Liliana DeLeo: A certified laughter yoga master trainer and the founder of Living Laughter Julia Pistell: Founding member of Sea Tea Improv Catherine Price: A science journalist and the author of The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again 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, which originally aired December 21, 2021.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Touch, grip, read, dance, gesture — what can't they do? Our fingers are so vital to our everyday life, sometimes it seems they have minds of their own. In this hour, we talk about the hidden language of finger gestures, the future of Braille, and the joys and challenges of animating fingers for DreamWorks. GUESTS: Kensy Cooperrider: Cognitive scientist, writer, and host of the podcast Many Minds Jonathan McNicol: Producer of The Colin McEnroe Show Sile O'Modhrain: Professor at the University of Michigan studying sound and touch and the ways in which they interact Carlos Fernandez Puertolas: Animator with DreamWorks 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.

This week’s Nose is the first one to say it’s a great country, but it’s a strange culture. George Carlin’s American Dream is a new, two-part, nearly-four-hour HBO documentary directed by Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio. At 225 minutes, it actually runs 45 minutes shorter than Apatow’s previous HBO doc, The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling. And: Brigsby Bear is a 2017 comedy-drama written by Kevin Costello and Kyle Mooney from a story by Mooney and directed by Dave McCary. Mooney is one of four major departures from the cast of Saturday Night Live last weekend. Brigsby Bear stars Mooney, Claire Danes, Mark Hamill, Greg Kinnear, Andy Samberg, and Matt Walsh. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: ‘Goodfellas’ Star Ray Liotta Dies at 67 Colin Cantwell, The Concept Artist Who Designed The Death Star, Dies At 90 Andy “Fletch” Fletcher Dies: Depeche Mode Keyboard Player, Founding Member Was 60 Ricky Gervais’ Netflix Special Draws Criticism for Graphic Jokes Mocking Trans People I Watched the New Ricky Gervais Stand-up Special So You Don’t Have To John Mulaney Draws Criticism for Having Dave Chappelle Open, Tell ‘Transphobic Jokes’ at Ohio Show The Kids in the Hall Have Gotten Old. Their Comedy Hasn’t. A new documentary explains the undersung Canadian troupe’s brilliance, and a new season of its sketch show confirms it. The 100 Greatest Stools in Stand-up Special History A ‘Jaws’ actor is named police chief in the town where the iconic movie was filmed Broadcast TV’s reduced role made clear in fall presentations How Wordle brought us back together Spelling Bee, too, and Words With Friends. Who knew online word games would get us talking to each other again? Why the Depp-Heard trial is so much worse than you realize Amber Heard is just the first target of a new extremist playbook. As Frank Langella Defies His Firing, More Details About Inappropriate Behavior Claims On Set Of Netflix Series Emerge Rita Moreno to Play Vin Diesel’s Grandmother in ‘Fast X’ Conan O’Brien’s Podcast Company Sells to SiriusXM in Deal Valued Around $150 Million The sale of Team Coco comes as audio companies make deals with podcasters with large followings How Reality TV Stars Conquered Your Bookshelves Has Time Passed ‘Stranger Things’ By? In 2016, the Netflix hit became a zeitgeist-driving sensation. But in a streaming landscape that’s much more competitive, the supersized and long-awaited Season 4 may have a harder time standing out. ‘50% sweet, 50% salty’: Oreo, Ritz team up to make limited edition cookie-cracker snack A Brief History of the Cheez-It America’s iconic orange cracker turns 100 this year How Top Gun Became A Gay Classic Inside the Ambient Music Streaming Boom As more people turn to ambient playlists for sleeping, meditating, and growing houseplants, what does it mean for the artists behind the serene soundscapes? LARPing Goes to Disney World On a “Star Wars” spaceship, the company has taken live-action role-play to a lavish extreme. Guests spend days eating, scheming, and assembling lightsabres in character. ‘Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey’ Director Teases Slasher Film Plot: ‘Pooh and Piglet Go on a Rampage’ GUEST: Shawn Murray: A stand-up comedian, writer, and the host of the Nobody Asked Shawn podcast Carolyn Paine: An actress, comedian, and dancer, and the founder, director, and choreographer of CONNetic Dance Bill Yousman: Professor of Media Studies at Sacred Heart University Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You probably know when you’re feeling happy, sad, or angry. But our range of emotions stretch beyond the language we have for them. This hour, we learn what emotions are and give names to ones you’ve probably felt without ever having had a word for them. GUESTS: Edgar Gerrard Hughes: The editor of How Do You Feel? A Spectacular Compendium of Ideas, Interactive Games, Provocations, Tests, and Tricks that Explore the World of What You Feel and Why and a researcher at the University of London’s Queen Mary Centre for the History of the Emotions John Koenig: Author of The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows 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, which originally aired January 10, 2022.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s something almost romantic about airships. The image of a giant, floating aircraft feels both nostalgic and futuristic. In the early 20th century, airships were on the leading edge of aviation; today, they mostly live on in the domain of steampunk art and speculative fiction. But a number of companies are betting they can bring airships out of the history books and into modern real-world applications like cargo transport and military uses. This hour, the past and future of airships, both real and imagined. GUESTS: Nick Allman: Chief operating officer of Hybrid Air Vehicles Jeanne Marie Laskas: A journalist and the author of eight books; in 2016 she published “Helium Dreams” in The New Yorker Ken Liu: A futurist and author of speculative fiction, including The Dandelion Dynasty, an epic fantasy series featuring airships 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, which originally aired November 1, 2021.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This hour, we’re joined by Kelefa Sanneh, author of Major Labels: A History of Popular Music in Seven Genres. We talk about music genres and look back at the history of music. GUESTS: Kelefa Sanneh: Staff writer at The New Yorker and the author of Major Labels: A History of Popular Music in Seven Genres 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, which originally aired October 25, 2021.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.