This hour, author and film critic Alissa Wilkinson joins us to talk about Joan Didion, Hollywood, and how we make sense of our politics.

GUEST:
Alissa Wilkinson: Movie critic at The New York Times. Her latest book is We Tell Ourselves Stories: Joan Didion and the American Dream Machine

This hour, author and film critic Alissa Wilkinson joins us to talk about Joan Didion, Hollywood, and how we make sense of our politics.
GUEST:
<ul>
<li>Alissa Wilkinson:&nbsp;Movie critic at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/alissa-wilkinson">The New York Times</a>. Her latest book is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.alissawilkinson.com/didion-we-tell-ourselves-stories">We Tell Ourselves Stories: Joan Didion and the American Dream Machine</a></li>
</ul>

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.

The Colin McEnroe Show

Alissa Wilkinson on Joan Didion, Hollywood, and American mythmaking

We’ve been doing these shows where we don’t book any guests, where we fill the hour with your calls. And your calls have been interesting and surprising and amusing.

This hour, the conversation winds around to Anthropic, cataract surgery, the burrito vs. bowl debate, Saturday Night Live, the general unhappiness in the U.S., plastics … Anything. (Seemingly) everything.

These shows are fun for us, and they seem to be fun for you, too. So we did another one.

Music featured (in order):
Destination Heaven – Euphoria Again & Dogwood Tales
Farther Along – Ron Carter, Ricky Dillard
Coming Up Roses – Harry Styles (orch. Jules Buckley)
Love, Love, Love – Stephen Sanchez
Sirius – Katherine Priddy
Blind – Yonder Mountain String Band
With a Little Luck – Paul McCartney, Wings

We&rsquo;ve been doing these shows where we don&rsquo;t book any guests, where we fill the hour with your calls. And your calls have been interesting and surprising and amusing.
This hour, the conversation winds around to Anthropic, cataract surgery, the burrito vs. bowl debate,&nbsp;Saturday Night Live, the general unhappiness in the U.S., plastics &hellip; Anything. (Seemingly) everything.
These shows are fun for us, and they seem to be fun for you, too. So we did another one.
Music featured (in order):
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmrlniCB1GY">Destination Heaven</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Euphoria Again &amp; Dogwood Tales</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxO7MwW4nNs">Farther Along</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Ron Carter, Ricky Dillard</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3GKsIFtEoE">Coming Up Roses</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Harry Styles (orch. Jules Buckley)</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZaOon6Yhms">Love, Love, Love</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Stephen Sanchez</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5OkDsykYoo">Sirius</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Katherine Priddy</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yi0ho-hTG-U">Blind</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Yonder Mountain String Band</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6KNiKchr-8">With a Little Luck</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Paul McCartney, Wings</li>
</ul>

All calls: Marty the Robot is gonna kill Colin first chance he gets

Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman premiered in 1949. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play. It’s been said that it’s “probably the most successful modern play ever published.”

This hour, with a new Broadway revival in previews, and with Peter Jacobson playing the title role in a new production at Hartford Stage, a look at Arthur Miller’s masterpiece of American drama, Death of a Salesman.

GUESTS:
Melia Bensussen: Artistic director at Hartford Stage and the director of their current production of Death of a Salesman
Peter Jacobson: An actor; he’s playing Willy Loman in Hartford Stage’s current production of Death of a Salesman
Stephen Marino: Founding editor of The Arthur Miller Journal and the author, most recently, of Arthur Miller’s New York: Visions of the City

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!

Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe, Eugene Amatruda, and Robyn Doyon-Aitken contributed to this show.

Arthur Miller&rsquo;s Death of a Salesman premiered in 1949. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play. It&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1999/01/25/making-willy-loman">been said</a> that it&rsquo;s &ldquo;probably the most successful modern play ever published.&rdquo;
This hour, with a new Broadway revival in previews, and with Peter Jacobson playing the title role in <a href="https://www.hartfordstage.org/death-of-a-salesman">a new production at Hartford Stage</a>, a look at Arthur Miller&rsquo;s masterpiece of American drama, Death of a Salesman.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>Melia Bensussen: Artistic director at Hartford Stage and the director of their current production of Death of a Salesman</li>
<li>Peter Jacobson: An actor; he&rsquo;s playing Willy Loman in Hartford Stage&rsquo;s current production of Death of a Salesman</li>
<li>Stephen Marino: Founding editor of The Arthur Miller Journal and the author, most recently, of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/arthur-millers-new-york-9781350524750/">Arthur Miller&rsquo;s New York: Visions of the City</a></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, Eugene Amatruda, and Robyn Doyon-Aitken contributed to this show.

Attention must be paid: A look at ‘Death of a Salesman’

How does reality television shape our politics and our opinions? This hour two reality TV scholars join us to discuss how reality TV helps us understand (or sometimes misunderstand) actual reality.

GUESTS: 


Danielle Lindemann: Professor of Sociology at Lehigh University and a Visiting Professor in Gender and Sexuality Studies at Princeton University. She is also the author of the book True Story: What Reality TV Says About Us.


Eunji Kim: Assistant Professor of Political Science at Columbia University and Faculty Affiliate at the Data Science Institute. Her new book is The American Mirage: How Reality TV Upholds the Myth of Meritocracy.

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.

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!

Colin McEnroe and Dylan Reyes contributed to this show, which originally aired on July 24, 2025.

How does reality television shape our politics and our opinions? This hour two reality TV scholars join us to discuss how reality TV helps us understand (or sometimes misunderstand) actual reality.
GUESTS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li>
Danielle Lindemann: Professor of Sociology at Lehigh University and a Visiting Professor in Gender and Sexuality Studies at Princeton University. She is also the author of the book <a href="https://daniellelindemann.com/commuter-spouses/">True Story: What Reality TV Says About Us</a>.
</li>
<li>
Eunji Kim: Assistant Professor of Political Science at Columbia University and Faculty Affiliate at the Data Science Institute. Her new book is <a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/ebook/9780691267234/the-american-mirage-pdf">The American Mirage: How Reality TV Upholds the Myth of Meritocracy</a>.
</li>
</ul>
Join the conversation on&nbsp;<a href="https://facebook.com/ColinMcShow">Facebook</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/colinmcshow">Twitter</a>.
<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.
The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-colin-mcenroe-show/id714179884">Apple Podcasts</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0AXtqrzWounIoJyIqz003p">Spotify</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9b6b3cee-f69b-4729-a78b-181f851d80e8/the-colin-mcenroe-show">Amazon Music</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/The-Colin-McEnroe-Show-p1208473/">TuneIn</a>,&nbsp;<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!
Colin McEnroe and Dylan Reyes contributed to this show, which originally aired on July 24, 2025.

Alissa Wilkinson on Joan Didion, Hollywood, and American mythmaking

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