Chances are, you know Richard Thomas as John-Boy on The Waltons. Or maybe you saw him more recently in his many-episode arcs on shows like The Americans and Ozark. You might’ve even seen him on Broadway in Our Town or as Atticus Finch in the tour of To Kill a Mockingbird. He’s in town doing the very first authorized production of Mark Twain Tonight! since Hal Holbrook died.

And John Jeremiah Sullivan has won the Pushcart Prize, two National Magazine Awards, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. His essay “Twain Dreams: The Enigma of Samuel Clemens” ran in the 175th anniversary issue of Harpers.

This hour, Thomas and Sullivan join us to talk Twain.

GUESTS:
John Jeremiah Sullivan: A writer, musician, and editor
Richard Thomas: An Emmy Award-winning and Tony Award-nominated actor

The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Listen Notes, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!

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Colin McEnroe, Robyn Doyon-Aitken, Betsy Kaplan, Cat Pastor, Dylan Reyes, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, parts of which originally aired February 4, 2015; September 14, 2023; and June 5, 2024, in a different form.

Chances are, you know Richard Thomas as John-Boy on The Waltons. Or maybe you saw him more recently in his many-episode arcs on shows like The Americans and Ozark. You might&rsquo;ve even seen him on Broadway in Our Town or as Atticus Finch in the tour of To Kill a Mockingbird. He&rsquo;s in town doing the very first authorized production of <a href="https://theaterworkshartford.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/?utm_campaign=8ffbdb38e8-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_05_05_09_13_COPY_01&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=0_-9719d7e80f-115897302#/events/a0SUg000000dXAbMAM">Mark Twain Tonight!</a> since <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/2024-12-18/our-hour-with-the-late-hal-holbrook">Hal Holbrook</a> died.
And John Jeremiah Sullivan has won the Pushcart Prize, two National Magazine Awards, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. His essay &ldquo;<a href="https://harpers.org/archive/2025/06/twain-dreams-samuel-clemens-john-jeremiah-sullivan/">Twain Dreams: The Enigma of Samuel Clemens</a>&rdquo; ran in the 175th anniversary issue of Harpers.
This hour, Thomas and Sullivan join us to talk Twain.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>John Jeremiah Sullivan: A writer, musician, and editor</li>
<li>Richard Thomas: An Emmy Award-winning and Tony Award-nominated actor</li>
</ul>
The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-colin-mcenroe-show/id714179884">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0AXtqrzWounIoJyIqz003p">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9b6b3cee-f69b-4729-a78b-181f851d80e8/the-colin-mcenroe-show">Amazon Music</a>, <a href="https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/The-Colin-McEnroe-Show-p1208473/">TuneIn</a>, <a href="https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-colin-mcenroe-show-connecticut-public-lXR08dxQSM5/">Listen Notes</a>, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!
<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/newsletters">Subscribe to The Noseletter</a>, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.
Join the conversation on <a href="https://facebook.com/ColinMcShow">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/colinmcshow">Twitter</a>.
Colin McEnroe, Robyn Doyon-Aitken, Betsy Kaplan, Cat Pastor, Dylan Reyes, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, parts of which originally aired February 4, 2015; September 14, 2023; and June 5, 2024, in a different form.

The Colin McEnroe Show is public radio’s most eclectic, eccentric weekday program. The best way to understand us is through the subjects we tackle: Neanderthals, tambourines, handshakes, the Iliad, snacks, ringtones, punk rock, Occam’s razor, Rasputin, houseflies, zippers. Are you sensing a pattern? If so, you should probably be in treatment. On Fridays, we try to stop thinking about what kind of ringtones Neanderthals would want to have and convene a panel called The Nose for an informal roundtable about the week in culture.

<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/about">The Colin McEnroe Show</a> is public radio’s most eclectic, eccentric weekday program. The best way to understand us is through the subjects we tackle: Neanderthals, tambourines, handshakes, the Iliad, snacks, ringtones, punk rock, Occam’s razor, Rasputin, houseflies, zippers. Are you sensing a pattern? If so, you should probably be in treatment. On Fridays, we try to stop thinking about what kind of ringtones Neanderthals would want to have and convene a panel called <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/tags/the-nose">The Nose</a> for an informal roundtable about the week in culture.

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