If you've spent time on the internet, you've probably experienced the feeling of going down a rabbit hole. This hour, we talk about that feeling, how Lewis Carroll invented such a powerful metaphor for the digital world, and, of course, real rabbit holes. GUESTS:  Franziska Kohlt: Researcher in Science Communication and the History of Science and Literature. She is currently the LeverhulmeResearch Fellow at the University of Leeds and Inaugural CarrollianFellow at the University of Southern California Annie Rauwerda: Writer, comedian, and Wikipedia influencer, who created “Depths of Wikipedia.” She was named “Wikimedian of The Year” in the media category for 2022, and she is currently working on a book about Wikipedia Dominic Couzens: Award-winning nature writer, who’s just finished his 45th book on wildlife

When’s the last time you read a short story? This hour, we talk about why short stories are so popular in the classroom, but why adults don’t seem to read them much once they’re done with school. And we make the case for why you should. Plus, a look at the art of the short story with some masters of the craft. You can read Rebecca Makkai’s Substack post that inspired this show here.  Here is the story that is discussed in the final segment, “How I Became a Vet” by Rivka Galchen.  As part of this show we asked each of our guests to recommend a short story, a collection, or an author. Here are those recommendations: Rebecca Makkai: “The Dinner Party” by Joshua Ferris George Saunders: “The Stone Boy” by Gina Berriault, “The Conventional Wisdom” by Stanley Elkin Deborah Treisman: Liberation Day by George Saunders, After the Funeral by Tessa Hadley, “The Haunting of Hajji Hotak” by Jamil Jan Kochai Amy Bloom: “The Dead” by James Joyce, stories by Edward P. Jones, essays by Samantha Irby Irene Papoulis: “Drinking Coffee Elsewhere” by ZZ Packer Brian Slattery: “Hell is the Absence of God” by Ted Chiang Colin McEnroe: “The Hole on the Corner” and “What’s the Name of That Town?” by R.A. Lafferty GUESTS:  Rebecca Makkai: Author of the Pulitzer Prize- and National Book Award-finalist The Great Believers, among other books; her newest book is I Have Some Questions For You, and she is artistic director of StoryStudio Chicago George Saunders: Author of twelve books; his most recent is Liberation Day, a collection of short stories Deborah Triesman: Fiction editor for The New Yorker and the host of their Fiction Podcast Amy Bloom: Author of four novels and three collections of short stories; her most recent book is the memoir In Love Irene Papouli: Teaches writing at Trinity College Brian Slattery: Arts editor for the New Haven Independent 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, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Listen Notes, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode.  Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed on November 22, 1963. It would be hard to argue that the modern American era, the era that we’re still living in 60 years later, didn’t begin on that Friday afternoon in Dallas. It would be hard to overstate the effect and influence of that event, that act on the American psyche. This hour, a look at the shadow that the JFK assassination still casts over our news and politics, our movies and music, our media and culture. GUESTS: Stephen Battaglio: Writes about television and the media business for the Los Angeles Times Timothy Hampton: The author of several books, including Bob Dylan: How the Songs Work Sean O’Neal: A writer, a contributor to Texas Monthly, and the former editor-in-chief of The A.V. Club Steve Rose: Assistant features editor at The Guardian Philip Shenon: The author of A Cruel and Shocking Act: The Secret History of the Kennedy Assassination The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, 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, Joey Morgan, Cat Pastor, Lateshia Peters, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, part of which originally aired in a different form November 22, 2017.

Illeana Douglas’ new book is Connecticut in the Movies: From Dream Houses to Dark Suburbia. It isn’t just an encyclopedia of appearances by and references to Connecticut in movies. But rather, it’s a history and theory of ‘Connecticut movies,’ something close to a genre unto itself with its own set of signs and meanings. This hour, Illeana Douglas and David Edelstein join us to take a Not Necessarily The Nose-style look at the Nutmeg State on the silver screen. GUESTS: Illeana Douglas: The Official Movie Star of The Colin McEnroe Show and the author, most recently, of Connecticut in the Movies David Edelstein: America’s Greatest Living Film Critic The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, 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 and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

What’s in your pockets right now? Phone, wallet, keys… maybe some discarded receipts or old gum? This show’s all about what we carry with us every day: from flashlights the size of a lip balm to a life-saving medicine. GUESTS: Bernard Capulong: Founder and Editor-in-Chief of everydaycarry.com Hannah Carlson: Senior Lecturer in the Apparel Department at the Rhode Island School of Design. She’s also the author of “Pockets: An Intimate History of How We Keep Things Close” Dr. Mona Gohara: Private practice dermatologist and Associate Clinical Professor of Dermatology at the Yale School of Medicine. She’s also an advocate around increasing inclusivity in dermatology. Peter Canning: Hartford paramedic and an EMS coordinator at John Dempsey hospital. He’s also the author of “Killing Season: A Paramedic’s Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Opioid Epidemic” Drew John Ladd: Writer Join the conversation onFacebook and Twitter. The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, 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. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

There’s currently a debate in America about what students should be learning about U.S. history. Some say we don’t revere American exceptionalism enough. Others say we're giving ourselves an A+ by excluding the tests we failed. HumoristAlexandra Petri says both sides are wrong. We just don’t know enough about the things we need to know, such as how inventor Nikola Tesla fell in love with his pigeon or about the secret tapes of Nixon yelling at his dog Checkers. This hour, an irreverent look at how we teach, learn and remember U.S. history. GUESTS:  Alexandra Petri is a humorist, a columnist for the Washington Post and the author of Nothing Is Wrong and Here is Why, which was a Thurber Prize finalist. Her new book is Alexandra Petri’s US History: Important American Documents Mike Pesca is host of the podcast The Gist, author of the Substack column Pesca Profundities, and the editor of Upon Further Review: The Greatest What-Ifs In Sports History Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Cat Pastor, Lily Tyson, and Jonathan McNicol contributed to this show.  The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, 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.

There’s a theory that people are drawn to work that fits their name. This hour, an exploration of nominative determinism. Plus, a look at the different ways your name impacts your life. GUESTS: David Bird: Emeritus professor of wildlife biology and director of the Avian Science and Conservation Centre of McGill University Brett Pelham: Professor of psychology at Montgomery College Tess Terrible: Senior producer of Where We Live on Connecticut Public Laura Wattenberg: Naming expert, author of The Baby Name Wizard, and the creator of Namerology The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, 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, Jonathan McNicol, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired February 16, 2023.

Journalist and author Lisa Belkin spent 10 years retracing the ancestry of three families, over four generations, to understand how a series of random encounters between three men led to the 1960 murder of a Stamford, Connecticut, police officer. Genealogy of a Murder: Four Generations, Three Families, One Fateful Night looks at how family “truths” passed down through the generations can influence the choices of the descendants that follow. How do family stories, happenstance, and the cultural ethos of the moment shape the people we become? GUESTS:  Lisa Belkin: A journalist and the author of Genealogy of a Murder: Four Generations, Three Families, One Fateful Night Doreen Troy Dolan: Daughter of David Troy Kelsey Rose Dolan: Granddaughter of David Troy The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, 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 and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

You’re probably familiar with the panicked rush that comes when you’re running around your house, looking for keys or a wallet you’ve misplaced. It’s an awful feeling. But maybe there’s some value in the process of searching for lost things — beyond the prize you may (or may not) find at the end. This hour, we’re talking to some professional “lookers” to find out: Is there joy, or hidden value, to be found in the search process? Can we learn to be better lookers? GUESTS: Chris Turner: CEO of Ring Finders, a global directory of metal detecting specialists James Renner: Journalist and author Walter Wick: Photo-illustrator and picture puzzle designer known for the “I Spy” and “Can You See What I See?” series Join the conversation onFacebook and Twitter. The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, 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. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

Have you heard the music of Connie Converse? She was a singer-songwriter in New York City in the middle of the 20th century, who, in her lifetime, never received widespread recognition. Then, at 50, she drove off, and was never heard from again. This hour, a look at the life, music, and legacy of Connie Converse and what her example teaches us about how we think about the role of art and artists in our society. GUEST: Howard Fishman: Musician, frequent contributor to The New Yorker, and author of To Anyone Who Ever Asks: The Life, Music, and Mystery of Connie Converse The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, 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 contributed to this show, which originally aired May 2, 2023.