Thoughts (loosely) inspired by Malcolm Gladwell's book Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders, and the Rise of Social Engineering (and everything else Malcolm Gladwell has written).
Thoughts (loosely) inspired by S.A. Cosby's Southern noir novel The King of Ashes and Tana French's wild tale of undercover infiltration The Likeness.
Thoughts (loosely) inspired by Tana French's "Dublin Murder Squad" series and Anthony Horowitz's "Magpie/Moonflower/Marble Hall Murders" series. You will be tested.
Thoughts (loosely) inspired by the Charles Portis novel Gringos . . . and living at the beach for a month. Salt life!
Thoughts (loosely) inspired by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa's classic Sicilian novel "The Leopard." A meditation on how place influences psyche (with some help from Bon Jovi and Bruce).
Thoughts about narration, reliable and otherwise, loosely inspired by the novels of Jim Thompson and the Richard Russo essay "In Defense of Omniscience." There is also a film quiz . . . see how you fare.
Thoughts on creativity and identity (or the lack thereof) loosely inspired by the SNL Weezer sketch, Jonah Lehrer's article "Groupthink, Song Exploder episode 70: Weezer "Summer Elaine and Drunk Dory," the Atlantic article "Is This the Worst-Ever Era of American Pop Culture?" by Spencer Kornhaber and a bunch of other stuff.
A philosophical, literary, and musical meditation on creativity and good ideas. Thoughts (loosely) inspired by Jonah Lehrer's article "Groupthink," Plutarch's "The Ship of Theseus Dilemma," and Steven Johnson's book Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation.
A meditation on wealth and its consequences, at both the human and national scale. Thoughts and theories (loosely) based on Taffy Brodesser-Akner's novel The Long Island Compromise and Andrew Bacevich's political critique The Age of Illusions: How America Squandered Its Cold War Victory. Special Guests: Tana French, Pat Martino, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Tom Wolfe, Ayn Rand, Bret Easton Ellis, Gordon Gekko, Noam Chomsky, Ross Perot, and Miley Cyrus.
Thoughts (loosely) inspired by various articles on the L.A. Fires, Ralph Waldo Emerson's essay "Nature" and Joan Didion's essay "The Santa Anas." Special Guests: The Bicycle Man, Conrad Bain, Nellie Bowles, David Gelles and Austyn Gaffney, Leighton Woodhouse, The Rivieras, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the delta smelt, the gang from Full House, and the gang from WKRP in Cincinnati.
Thoughts loosely inspired by Ian Mortimer's history book Medieval Horizons: Why the Middle Ages Matter, Christopher Buehlman's fantasy novel Between Two Fires, and Connie Willis's science fiction novel The Doomsday Book. Special Guests: Jim Carrey, Matthew Broderick, Janeane Garofalo, The Beastie Boys, George Carlin, Rick Moranis, MF Doom, the Monty Python Troupe, Kiefer Sutherland, 100 Gecs, Metallica, Arya and the Hound, Jimmy Walker, the Wu Tang Clan, and medievalist professor Dorsey Armstrong.
Thoughts on the history and future of the American suburbs (loosely) inspired by four books: Disillusioned: Five Families and the Unraveling of America's Suburbs by Benjamin Herold The Fifties by David Halberstam Outside the Gates of Eden: The Dream of America from Hiroshima to Now by Peter Bacon Hales The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit by Sloan Wilson Special Guests: Monty Python, Bill Cosby, Rush, Descendents, Bob and Doug McKenzie, Edward Scissorhands, Arcade Fire, Dead Milkmen, Malvina Reynolds, Helen Keller, Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Bruce Springsteen, and The Who.
Thoughts (loosely) inspired by three Paul Tremblay horror novels: Horror Movie, The Cabin at the End of the World, and A Head Full of Ghosts. Special Guests: Joe "the Zombie" Biden, Donald "Apocalypto" Trump, Foghat, Bernard Herrman, John Carpenter, Evil Dead, Hector Berlioz, Joey, Rachel, and Randy Meeks.
Thoughts (loosely) inspired by Halle Butler's novel The New Me. Special Guests: The Who, Moira and David, Larry and Susie, Norm, and Radiohead.
Thoughts (loosely) inspired by Halle Butler's novel Banal Nightmare. Special Guests: Ween, OK Go, Morrissey, Pink Floyd, The Beatles, Suzanne Vega, Bill Bryson, and The Kids in the Hall.
The top three reasons to read Shakespeare, dramatically presented in five acts. Special Guests: Bill Bryson, Bill and Ted, James Shapiro, Ron Popeil, The Beatles, George and Jerry, Gretchen Wieners, Miles Davis, an articulate homeless man, Stunna Girl, Rollie, Drew, Paapa Essiedu, Tim Minchin, Benedict Cumberbatch, David Tennant, Rory Kinnear, Sir Ian McKellen, Dame Judi Dench, and King Charles.
A review of Shakespeare's most notable lines, plays and genres-- in the form of a quiz. Good luck!
An introduction to Shakespeare's art and how it connects to his life and times. Thoughts (loosely) based on A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare:1599 by James Shapiro, Shakespeare: The World as a Stage by Bill Bryson, The Elizabethan World Picture by E.M.W. Tillyard and countless years of teaching Shakespeare to high school students. Special Guests: Tim the Enchanter, Cole Porter, and, of course, the Bard himself.
Thoughts (loosely) based on John Wyndham's post apocalyptic sci-fi novel The Day of the Triffids. Featuring an Auditory Apocalypse Quiz. Special Guests: Skeeter Davis, Vic and his telepathic dog, Tool, Kent Brockman, The Presidents of the United States of America . . . plus a host of others (which cannot be revealed because-- duh-- there's a quiz).
Thoughts (loosely) based on Rob Russell's book "The Adventures of JoJo the Small Town Hound: Volume 1, Leesburg, Virginia and the Curious Case of the Dog Money." Special Guests: Rob Russell, Method Man, and George Costanza.