The C-Word

Wendi Deng was the third wife of media magnate and billionaire, Rupert Murdoch. The public was quick to call her a gold digger, latching onto the 38-year age difference in their marriage, Wendi’s humble upbringing in China, and her controversial involvement in the Murdoch family business. But despite criticism and rumors about her personal life, Wendi leveraged Rupert’s connections to build a name...

Lena and Alissa pick up where they last left Whitney Houston in Part 1. In the second half of Whitney’s career, her reputation as America’s pop sweetheart was hindered by tabloid speculation about drug use and criticism of her live performances. In this episode Lena and Alissa discuss the phenomenon of the Diane Sawyer interview, Whitney’s stint on reality television, her daughter Bobbi Kristina B...

Whitney Houston: “The Voice,” the myth, the legend. She sang her way into the hearts of America, moving a nation and bearing the weight of its attention on her psyche. As her star grew, Whitney faced backlash, questions about her identity, and intense intrusion into her personal life. In the first of two parts, Lena and Alissa chart the young Whitney’s rise to fame, her essential early relationshi...

Yoko Ono: The woman whose name for decades was a codeword for "Somebody who ruins things." Beatles fans called her a villain, obscuring who she really was: a multidisciplinary artist, pioneering social activist, and visionary. In this episode, Lena and Alissa trace Yoko’s unlikely journey, from her childhood as a musical prodigy to her years as a fixture of the New York art scene to her legendary...

Mary Shelley is known as the mother of the science fiction genre for her groundbreaking novel, ​Frankenstein​. But beyond the page, she faced a life of personal tragedy and a society unprepared to grapple with her public persona. As the daughter of legendary proto-feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Shelley was born into controversy. In her adult life, her entanglements with celebrity Romantic poet...

Daul Kim, it-girl and Chanel muse, was one of the most iconic models of the 2000’s. As she came to prominence in her late teens, she gained a cult following and fell under intense scrutiny for her candid blogging about her experience in the industry. In this episode, Lena and Alissa reflect on the life and death of Daul, from her public displays of depression to the torrential pace of her young li...

Jessica Savitch: the original anchorwoman. An NBC mainstay, Jessica was an audience favorite, but despite trailblazing and receiving public praise, the star struggled. In this episode, Lena and Alissa dive into the woman behind the desk: from her incredible ambition and subsequent drug use, to the workplace culture that led to the downfall of her career.  This episode was first published on 06/25/...

​Dare Wright, the author, photographer, and model best known for writing ​The Lonely Doll​, had a lot in common with her titular character. In this episode, Lena and Alissa unpack Dare’s life, spanning from her all-consuming relationship with her mother to her tragic demise. Then, Alissa sits down with Jean Nathan, author of the definitive work on Dare’s life, to get a more intimate look at the st...

Paula Yates was a TV presenter and icon of British pop culture in the 80s and 90s. Her life with England’s beloved Bob Geldof seemed perfect until musician Michael Hutchence came into the picture — their love triangle turned bad romance was tabloid fodder for years until their tragic end. Lena and Alissa discuss undeniable sexual chemistry, perfectionism at the root of addiction, and motherhood in...

​Paula Goodspeed was best known for being a Paula Abdul-obsessed singer whose act left her ridiculed on the national stage. In this episode, Lena and Alissa go deeper into Goodspeed’s story, unpacking her attempts at fame on American Idol, her lifelong search for self, and her tragic end.  This episode was first published on 03/19/2020.

​Lena and Alissa discuss Lourdes Gruart, the Cuban-American former model who vanished under mysterious circumstances. They take you through her days in Milan and Paris, the decline of her career, and her attempts to preserve the life she once lived. Alissa also speaks to Vanessa Grigoriadis, who penned the definitive work on Gruart’s life.  This episode was first published on 03/05/2020.

Lena and Alissa unpack the persona of Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, multihyphenate artist and one third of the R&B group TLC. In Lopes’ life her immense talent and style stood alongside personal struggle, culminating in a tragic end. To many, she was the so-called “crazy” in CrazySexyCool, but the truth is much more complicated.  This episode was first published on 02/20/2020.

Welcome to unPAUSED, the podcast where bold, unfiltered conversations take place about what it really takes for women to thrive in the second half of life. Every week, Dr. Mary Claire Haver, a board-certified Obstetrician-Gynecologist, Certified Menopause Practitioner, and #1 New York Times best-selling author, tackles the conversations women actually need to hear. Dr. Haver sits down with a varie...

​“If I am a legend, then why am I so lonely?” When we last left Judy Garland in part one of this deep dive into her rise and fall, she’d just had a big hit with the film Meet Me In St. Louis​, she was married to Vincent Minnelli, and she had baby Liza in her arms. But things go downhill from there, as her addiction, health, debt, and “unpredictable” behavior worsens through the 1950s and 60s. Lena...

​Legend Judy Garland has been called a Hollywood icon and the greatest entertainer of all time. She’s also been called “crazy” for behind-the-scenes bad behavior, nervous breakdowns, suicide attempts, and several marriages to gay men. In this episode, Lena and Alissa talk about Judy’s early years — her vaudevillian roots, her stage mom who introduced her to the pills she’d rely on for the rest of...

You may know Jocelyn Wildenstein from those clickbait “PLASTIC SURGERY GONE WRONG” articles, but her story is deeper—and weirder—than you can even imagine. The wife of art-dealing royalty with a flair for acquiring wild animals as pets, Jocelyn made headlines as “Catwoman” for her plastic surgery obsession and her dishy, expensive divorce. But in the end, Jocelyn prevailed and walked away with a p...

The world learned about Kiersten Rickenbach Cerveny in October 2015 when she was found dead in an East Village apartment. A wealthy Long Island dermatologist and mother of three kids, Kiersten’s life looked flawless from the outside. Lena and Alissa discuss Kiersten’s life and death, the disconnect between private vs. public life, and what it means to party when you’re in your 40s.  This episode w...

​Rosemary Aberdour seemed to most like a shy, awkward wallflower, but underneath her drab exterior lurked an appetite for jewels, parties, and larceny. Born into an unassuming middle-class English home, Rosemary secretly stole thousands of pounds to fund her new glamorous identity as titled aristocracy—that’s “Lady Aberdour” to you! Lena and Alissa cover Rosemary’s wild parties, outrageous schemes...

Barbara Hutton, the "quintessential poor little rich girl,” was an American socialite and heiress to the Woolworth dime-store fortune. Tabloids ridiculed her for her seven divorces (including to Cary Grant) as she suffered from anorexia and alcoholism. She threw money at everyone around her, but never got the one thing she wanted: love.  This episode was first published on 11/29/2019.

Sean Young got her big break when she was cast in Blade Runner at 22-years old. But after rumblings that she was “difficult to work with,” and troubling romantic rumors, her reputation plummeted. Lena and Alissa trace Sean’s career through her plea to play Catwoman to some ill-fated talk show appearances to Hollywood outcast.  This episode was first published on 11/14/2019.

Maryam Irene Haley was known as adult actress Haley Paige. She engaged with intense online scrutiny before her death at age 25. Lena and Alissa discuss 2000s internet forum culture, why people consume the downfall of women and then forget about them, and what Maryam means to Alissa.  This episode was first published on 7/20/2019. It has been slightly edited from the original version.

Lena and Alissa dive into the story of legendary love-scammer Miranda Grosvenor, a woman who anonymously enchanted Hollywood’s most famous men over the phone. Some of her confirmed callers include Warren Beatty, Robert DeNiro, and Billy Joel. Lena and Alissa discuss the isolation of fame, the long-lost magic of landlines, and then talk to Sia about the intentions behind hiding one’s face. This epi...

Jean Seberg was a French New Wave actress and pixie cut icon. She was also an active supporter of the Black Panthers Party. As her career floundered and rumors hurt her reputation with the public, Jean became convinced the FBI was surveilling and sabotaging her because of her political activity. At the time everyone thought she was paranoid, but the truth is much darker. This episode was first pub...

Margaret Cho joins Lena and Alissa to discuss The Han Twins. Sunny and Gina Han were twin sisters and best friends. They were even joint valedictorians at their high school graduation. But only a few years later, Gina plotted to murder her sister and steal her identity. The tabloids dubbed it the case of “good twin versus bad twin” but the real story is much more complicated. This episode was firs...

Lizzie Siddal was an iconic Victorian-era model, muse, and poet. Lena and Alissa discuss her tumultuous relationship with painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti, her addiction to laudanum, her reputation as a ill-tempered redhead, and the appeal of sickness. This episode was first published on 06/15/2019.