Misfits Makin' It: Oddballs Doing Cool Stuff on Radio Misfits

“If someone’s watched this thing I think maybe their heart can be softened in some way but how do you get them to watch it in the first place. ” -Alex Parks “There’s an old adage about film that to make a great film you’ve got to make it three times. You’ve got to write a great film, you’ve got to shoot a great film, you’ve go to edit a great film…At any of those phases it can fall apart.” -Alex P...

“The way to deal with rejection is to be sad for a few seconds, minutes, or however long it takes you, and then write something else.” – Felipe Torres Medina Today I interviewed Felipe Torres Medina from Late Show with Stephen Colbert In this episode we speak about how: His path to late night at the Late Show with Stephen Colbert Tracking and using ideas Handling rejection Then Melania asks...

“I’m still interested in what’s going on emotionally for those people. Because that never goes away.” – Michelle Bossy Today I interviewed Michelle Bossy, director of the feature film Under the Lantern Lit Sky. In this episode we speak about: Her journey making Under a Lantern Lit Sky How she became a director The power of story and great performances Then my character Candice Twyla tries to...

“These conversations, whether you’re negotiating with an insurance company or dealing with Thanksgiving dinner, it’s all about how you sequence the conversation. ” Derek Gaunt Today I interviewed Derek Gaunt, former FBI hostage negotiator and now negotiation coach at the Black Swan Group In this episode we speak about how: How to deal with dinner table negative comments How to use tactical e...

“I found there was this very rich tradition of Italian American anti-fascism, not just Italian anti-fascism, across the pond, but anti-fascism here. ” – Christine Grimaldi Today I interviewed Christine Grimaldi who reports on reproductive policy and politics for outlets like VICE , Vogue , SELF Magazine , GEN Magazine , among other outlets. In this episode we speak about how: The history of...

“Writing with other people makes the solitary writing life a lot more fun, especially when it’s the same sensibility which is a rare thing.” – Mike Sacks Today I interviewed Scott Jacobson, Todd Levin, Jason Roeder, Mike Sacks & Ted Travelstead. Authors of Sex: Our Bodies Our Junk and humor articles for The New Yorker. In this episode we speak about their ongoing writing collaboration. ...

“It just comes down to a few things and that is: have a good attitude and get into it because you’re interested not for the money, and keep moving forward. Just keep moving and good things tend to happen. ” – Mike Sacks Today I interviewed Mike Sacks Mike Sacks works for Vanity Fair and contributes humor to The New Yorker, Time, Esquire, GQ, Believer, Vice, Salon, McSweeney’s, The New York T...

Ross Buran was born in San Francisco where he was confident he was excelling at sports. Eventually, he grew to realize his own mediocrity and set out to find answers in the Arts. He attended USC’s School of Theater and is a Writer/Actor and 3x Emmy Nominated Producer (Funny or Die’s Gay of Thrones). He currently lives in Los Angeles where he clings to the hope that his athletic abiliti...

“What about the artist sentiment. … Where are we? Where do we stand as a society?” – Onir Today I interviewed Onir. Onir is an Indian filmmaker, producer, screenwriter and editor. He is best known for his film My Brother…Nikhil, based on the life of Dominic D’Souza, starring Sanjay Suri, Juhi Chawla and Purab Kohli. It was one of the first mainstream Hindi films to deal with AIDS...

“Good producing is about finding ways to help people tell the stories in ways they didn’t know they could. Giving them the resources and the permission to make their voices heard.” – Michael Melamedoff Today I interviewed Michael Melamedoff from Cowboy Bear Ninja. Michael Melamedoff is a partner in New York based production company Cowboy Bear Ninja, where he heads up their film and televisi...

Today I interviewed Doug Brady and Robyn Adams who produced on Triumph the Insult Comic Dog Election Special and more! Doug Brady is an Emmy-Nominated, Webby-Winning Producer / Writer. He’s Showrun for a few comedy shows including “Billy On The Street” and most recently “Last Night’s Late Night” for Quibi. (RIP Quibi) Check out more about Doug at  dougbradywork....

“The balance is to amplify voices when I can and to put together interesting events that are going to excite people.” – Sabir Sultan Today I interviewed Sabir Sultan of Strand Book Store Sabir Sultan is the Director of Events at the Strand. Prior to that he was the Events Manager at Barnes & Noble 5th Avenue. He loves reading books, thinking about books, talking about books, and programm...

“How much further down this abyss of complete hatred of each other are we willing to go. And for what?” –  Dr. Lindsay Hoffman Today I interviewed Dr. Lindsay Hoffman. Dr. Lindsay Hoffman joined the faculty of the  Department of Communication  at the University of Delaware in September 2007 after receiving her Ph. D. from The Ohio State University. Her research examines how citizens use inte...

“A lot of people are annoyed by differences and they are scared of it. … If they can only see how being different enriches a place, a community, it doesn’t take away from it. ” – Bassem Youssef Today I interviewed Bassem Youssef Bassem Youssef, dubbed the Jon Stewart of the Arab World, was the host of popular TV show AlBernameg – which was the first of its kind political satire s...

“Anything I can find that inspires me, propels me, goads me, is great.” – Henry Alford Today I interviewed Henry Alford. Henry Alford is a humorist and journalist HA writes for the New Yorker and Airmail. His six books include Big Kiss, which won a Thurber Prize, and most recently, a book about dancing called And Then We Danced. In this episode we speak about how: changes in audiences throug...

“[Moonstruck] represents a part of our culture that doesn’t always get the spotlight.” – Dom Nero Today I interviewed Dom Nero. Dom Nero is a staff video editor at Esquire Magazine, where he also writes about film, television, and video games. He’s the co-host of Eye of the Duck, a podcast about movies and the scenes that make them special. In this episode we speak about: being Italian...

 “There’s nothing better than satirizing what’s going on right now and knowing that thousands of people are reading it. ” – Jay Martel Today I interviewed Jay Martel. JAY MARTEL is a novelist, essayist, screenwriter, director, actor, and TV producer. The science-fiction comic novel “Channel Blue” was published by Head of Zeus in 2013, and “The Present” was released as an Audible Original in...

We’re back with Season 2 of Reconcile the Aisle!

“They do change and that’s what these messages mean. People do change .” – Sammy Rangel Today I interviewed Sammy Rangel of Life After Hate In this episode we speak about how: The far right exploited the pandemic to terrorize vulnerable communities. Far right groups are stealing recruitment techniques from ISIS. The work continues – the election outcome does not change that people have...

This bonus episode gets us ready for the election in 2020 — and beyond! The lessons in this episode apply to the Democratic process overall. Danielle Holtz is a historian of US political culture, intellectual history,and US foreign policy, Dr. Holtz focuses on conservatism and white supremacy in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. She is currently working on a book manuscript about racial nati...

“We think about [Democracy] happening someplace else … and how I think about it and encourage students to think about it: it’s there yes … but it’s also in you.” – Timothy Shaffer, PhD Today I interviewed Timothy Shaffer, PhD Timothy J. Shaffer is an associate professor in the Department of Communication Studies and director of the Institute for Civic Discourse and Democracy at Kansas State...

“The fundamental principle of a testing desert is: you’re in a county and there’s not a single test site. … About 40% of rural counties in the United States are testing deserts.” – Dr. Sema Sgaier of the Surgo Foundation Today I interviewed Dr. Sema Sgaier. Dr. Sema Sgaier is Co-founder and Executive Director of Surgo Foundation, a privately funded action tank whose mission is to bring preci...

“To me what movement work means is creativity.” – Jeannine Cook Today I interviewed Jeannine Cook, For the last 10 years Jeannine Cook has worked as a trusted writer for several startups, corporations, non-profits, and influencers. In addition to a holding a master’s degree from The University of the Arts, Jeannine is also a Leeway Art & Transformation Grantee and a winner of the South P...

“You’re not a rockstar and I’m not an angel either, and that’s why we need each other, and that’s why we need empathy, actually.” – Fritz Breithaupt Today I interviewed Fritz Breithaupt. Fritz Breithaupt is a provost professor at Indiana University, Bloomington since 1996, since 2010 as a full professor of Germanic Studies, an adjunct professor of Comparative Literature, and an affiliate pro...

“We get into this weird thing, that if politicians don’t get made fun of [by The Capitol Steps] they get mad.” – Mark Eaton of the Capitol Steps Today I interviewed Mark Eaton of The Capitol Steps. The Capitol Steps began as a group of Senate staffers who set out to satirize the very people and places that employed them. The group was born in December, 1981 when some staffers for Senator Cha...