Walter Yetnikoff

Aug 11, 2021 | Authors, Music, podcasts

When I heard that Walter Yetnikoff died Sunday (just days before his 88th birthday), I remembered the conversation I had with him in 2004 — one of my all-time favorites. Yetnikoff was the president of CBS (Columbia) Records from 1975 to 1990, when the label had...

Book Review: “Mike Nichols — A Life”

May 7, 2021 | Authors

Mike Nichols had an extraordinary career. On Broadway, he won Tonys for directing “Barefoot In The Park,” “Luv,” “The Odd Couple,” “Annie,” “Spamalot,” “Death Of A Salesman,” and a few more. In...

Book Review: “We Had A Little Real Estate Problem”

Mar 24, 2021 | Authors, Comedians

A little more than five years ago, I interviewed Kliph Nesteroff about his book, “The Comedians,” a terrific history of the last century of American comedy, from vaudeville right up to today (you can listen to that conversation here). Now Kliph is out with...

Norton Juster

Mar 10, 2021 | Authors, Blog

I was sad to hear of the death at 91 of Norton Juster, author of what I consider the greatest book of all time, “The Phantom Tollbooth.” Here’s how the book is aptly described on Wikipedia: “The Phantom Tollbooth” is a children’s...

Book Review: “Weird”

Jul 28, 2020 | Authors

I’ve just finished a fascinating book by Olga Khazan, “Weird: The Power of Being An Outsider In An Insider World.” Having immigrated to the US as a child and growing up in a very conservative small Texas town, Khazan knows what it’s like to be...

Book Review: “Barry Sonnenfeld, Call Your Mother”

Jun 12, 2020 | Authors

Barry Sonnenfeld has had an amazing life. He started his professional career as a cinematographer, working with the Coen Brothers (“Blood Simple,” “Raising Arizona,” and “Miller’s Crossing”), Penny Marshall...