Claim OwnershipBullseye with Jesse Thorn
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Bullseye is a celebration of the best of arts and culture in public radio form. Host Jesse Thorn sifts the wheat from the chaff to bring you in-depth interviews with the most revered and revolutionary minds in our culture. Bullseye has been featured in Time, The New York Times, GQ and McSweeney's, which called it "the kind of show people listen to in a more perfect world."
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With a little help from the smash hit Cannonball, The Breeders became one of the biggest names in early '90s alternative rock. In 2018, we chatted with the band's lead guitarist and singer Kim Deal. The band just released their first new record in 10 years. Just this past month, Deal recorded her first ever solo album: Nobody Loves You More. She talked about the music scene in her hometown of Dayton, Ohio, how unintended her success was, and transitioning from the Pixies to The Breeders.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
In this bonus episode, we're taking a moment to remember the life of Rickey Henderson. The legendary baseball player died on December 20. He was 65. First, we'll revisit an essay written by Jesse Thorn in 2017 about what made Rickey one of the best to ever play the game. Then, an interview from 2022 with writer Howard Bryant, author of Rickey: The Life and Legend of an American Original.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Each year, Bullseye looks back on the year in stand-up comedy by presenting listeners with an annual end of year stand-up comedy showcase! The Bullseye team combed through dozens and dozens of albums to bring you some of the best comedy of 2024. That includes stand-up from: Kyle Kinane, Kimberly Clark, Rory Scovel, Tig Notaro and more!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
We're celebrating the holidays this week in a big, exciting way. It's the Bullseye Holiday Special! We've got Jennifer Hudson, Judy Greer, Zach Cherry, Tower of Power and Jesse's mom! So much holiday cheer it'll make you flip out.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Rachel Bloom is a comedian and songwriter. She created and starred in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. The spring of 2020 was a tough time for a lot of us. It took Bloom a few years to process all that, and now we have the result: Death, Let Me Do My Special on Netflix. Bloom joins us to talk about her special. We get into what it was like to see the world grieve the loss of his writing partner, Adam Schlesingler, so publicly. Plus, we talk about Bobi, a dog who lived to be over thirty years old!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Ken Burns is one of the greatest documentary filmmakers of all time. He's dedicated much of his life to covering the story of America through his works: The Civil War, Country Music, Jackie Robinson, just to name a few. His recent work ventures outside of The United States to record one of the greatest minds in history: Leonardo da Vinci. Ken Burns comes to Bullseye to discuss the renaissance man, quilts, and so much more.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Come to the table and join us, as we celebrate "Hanksgiving." That's right, our guest this week is Tom Hanks! He joins the show to talk about the limits of charm, shares driving etiquette tips and his shift from comedy acting to working in drama.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Canonball is a segment that takes a closer look at albums that should be considered classics. This time, MC Skiz Fernando joins Bullseye to discuss the game changing album Operation: Doomsday by MF DOOM. Skiz just released a book that records the life and death of the hip-hop legend. It's called The Chronicles of DOOM: Unraveling Rap's Masked Iconoclast. Skiz stops by to key us into the classic album, including songs like: "Tick Tick" and "Rhymes Like Dimes."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Paul Williams has lived an extraordinary life. He's a songwriter who's written songs performed by Three Dog Night, Tiny Tim, The Carpenters, and David Bowie. On the latest episode of Bullseye we get into it all: Falling out of airplanes. Dressing as an Orangutan from Planet of the Apes on Carson. The simple genius of Kermit the Frog's Rainbow Connection, which was surprisingly complicated to write.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Tavi Gevinson is a very talented actor and writer. She was just fifteen years old when she founded the fashion magazine Rookie, a smash success that is still beloved today. She returns to the show to talk about some of her new projects, what impacts social media has had on her career and how she dealt with the pressure of being called a wunderkind.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Connie Chung is a TV legend. She is an Emmy-winning newscaster and interviewer, and the first Asian American to host a major network news show. She chronicles her life and career in her new book Connie: A Memoir. Connie joins Bullseye to talk all about her memoir, what she misses the most about reporting the news, and the wonder of the modern standing desk.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
2J. Kenji López-Alt is a food writer and chef. He wrote the books The Food Lab and The Wok: Recipes and Techniques. The holidays are coming up – if you're looking for some new recipes to try, some of our favorites at Bullseye include López-Alt's roasted potatoes, chocolate chip cookies and standing prime rib. Making your own mayonnaise the López-Alt way only takes two minutes! A version of this interview originally aired in March of 2022. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
"Weird Al" Yankovic is the undisputed king of parody music. He's been recording music for over four decades and sold millions of records. Al just turned sixty-five, and we're celebrating with a look back at our conversation with the music icon!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
James Adomian is a comedian with a foot in two worlds. He's a stand-up comedian and impressionist who's performed on the Late Late Show, Conan, Jimmy Kimmel Live and many more. He's got a brand new stand-up special out now called James Adomian: Path of Most Resistance. He joins us to talk about the new special and even does a few impressions.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
DeMar DeRozan is a basketball player for the Sacramento Kings. He's a six time NBA All-Star and an Olympic gold medalist. DeRozan just released a memoir: Above the Noise: My Story of Chasing Calm. He joins us to talk about some tough subjects covered in the book like his struggle with depression. He also gets into what it was like to be named dropped in one of the hottest songs of summer – Not Like Us by Kendrick Lamar.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Good gourd! It's a very special Halloween Spooktacular edition of Bullseye, where we're revisiting some of our best Halloween interviews. First up: R.L. Stine, creator of the Goosebumps series. Then, a very special visit from comedian Andy Daly with the song that changed his life: The Monster Mash! Finally, the "damned" finale: Cassandra Peterson, the woman behind Elvira, Mistress of the Dark.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Nicolay of the Foreign Exchange joins us to talk about the song that changed his life. A Prince track that, honestly, we were very surprised hadn't been picked yet.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
MAVI is a rapper from Charlotte, North Carolina. In recent years, he's become one to watch. On his latest album Shadowbox his flow teems with self doubt and anxiety. The melodies and samples linger long after the record's finished. MAVI joins us on the latest episode of Bullseye to discuss the record. The themes in his albums are often filled with pain and loneliness, so get into how he's been doing lately to handle those feelings.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Jordan Morris is a comedy writer, podcast host, and author. His new graphic novel Youth Group follows a teen who apprehensively joins a Christian youth group and comes to find that demons are real! Fear not, as the youth group is intent on exorcising the demons from whence they came. We get into Jordan's graphic novel and so much more on Bullseye.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
What do the films Men in Black, The Addams Family and Raising Arizona all have in common? They were all shot by cinematographer and director Barry Sonnenfeld. He's responsible for filming and directing some of the biggest movies from the 20th century. He joins us to talk about his new memoir and reflect on his many years in show business.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
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This is a clear example of why I stopped listening to NPR programs years ago. Thankfully Matt is a pleasant guy. The show was listenable but just. The whole episode had the air of an uninformed dink trying to hang with someone and convince them they are cool. Anytime a host has to tell someone multiple times "I really mean it" or "honestly it's true" you can feel the eye rolls. I'd rather hear click and clack repeats and leave interviews of people to Iunno..... professionals?
Pathetic gotcha interview.
OMG! I just love Rosie! Thanks Jesse! I never knew she was a Fly Girl. ILC was my second exposure to hip hop, first being MTV.
CV bc bc see if at all is car or see see see see see see see something m see see see see see see see n I'm
If you like cool people and things, this show is for you. Jesse books great guests and he does a good job keeping his interviews interesting. The music and comedy bits he plays between interviews are the best bits that you probably haven't heard. Subscribe.
I wish there were more shows like this on public radio. It's like Fresh Air, if Fresh Air was into the stuff I'm into... the theme song is called Maximum Fun, and that's what I usually get out of it. Definately my favorite podcast, I'm surprised it isn't on more radio stations. I love the comedian interviews, but I find that I'm always finding out about someone really cool from this show. This is a must-subscribe, as far as I'm concerned.
My hands-down favorite podcast. Try any of the "comics and comix" series. The interviews can be a bit long sometimes, but they are always interesting and funny.