Episodes

Episode 283: Mike Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Michael Buckner/Getty Images for SXSW
Michael Buckner/Getty Images for SXSW

This week: Filmmaker Mike Leigh talks about crop circles (yes, those crop circles) … Actor Gina Rodriguez explains how “Breaking Bad” is crazier than a telenovela … What we can learn about dictators from thier food obsessions … A replay of the history of the replay … Joseph Gordon-Levitt on art outside the Hollywood machine … Lambs on the run … And we read Dick Cavett’s new book, even though he thinks that’s kind of naive.


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Gina Rodriguez - "Math Problems"

Icebreaker

Gina Rodriguez, the Golden Globe-nominated star of "Jane the Virgin," opens the show up with this book-joke.


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A Be-Sweatered Sheep, Loose in Omaha

Small Talk

There is a sheep. Lost in Omaha. Wearing a Christmas sweater.


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Replaying the Story of the Instant Replay

A History Lesson With Booze ®

In December 1963, CBS’ Tony Verna changed the world of sports by replaying a crucial moment in an Army v. Navy college football game.


Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty

Gina Rodriguez Has Zombie Ambitions

Guest List

Gina Rodriguez just picked up a Golden Globe nomination for her starring role in the hit TV show "Jane the Virgin," a winking adaptation of a kooky Venezuelan telenovela, relocated to Miami.


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Conflict and Crop Circles with Mike Leigh

Guest of Honor

Lauded filmmaker Mike Leigh is known for coaxing emotionally rich performances out of actors through unusual technique. His newest, "Mr. Turner," offers more compelling evidence of this skill.


Studying the Food of History's Most Infamous

Main Course

Victoria Clark and Melissa Scott bite off a very specific bit of history with their new book, "Dictators' Dinners: The Bad Taste Guide to Entertaining Tyrants." They discuss the paranoias, obsessions, and just weird tastes of these figures.


Dick Cavett Gets Kicky

Etiquette

Dick Cavett swapped stories with the biggest stars of the 1960s and '70s and set the template of the modern talk show host. He returns to our show this week to answer, rather than ask, the questions -- from you, our listeners.


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Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Experiment in Collaborative Culture

Chattering Class

Joseph Gordon-Levitt's televised experiment in crowdsourcing creative work, "HITRECORD ON TV," has just released a DVD of its first season.