Plum Island sits less than 7 miles off the coast of Connecticut in Long Island Sound. It is completely owned by the federal government and controlled by the Department of Homeland Security. Since 1954, it has been the site of the soon-to-be-decommissioned Plum Island Animal Disease Center.

“All islands carry a certain mystery, but Plum Island has more than its share of stories and secrets,” according to Marian Lindberg.

This hour, a look at the place Dr. Hannibal Lecter calls “Anthrax Island”: Plum Island, New York.

GUESTS:
Ellen Killoran - Staff reporter and editor at Crime Online
Marian Lindberg - Conservation specialist for The Nature Conservancy and the author of Scandal On Plum Island: A Commander Becomes the Accused
Geoff Manaugh - Co-author of Until Proven Safe: The History and Future of Quarantine

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired July 14, 2021.

Plum Island sits less than 7 miles off the coast of Connecticut in Long Island Sound. It is completely owned by the federal government and controlled by the Department of Homeland Security. Since 1954, it has been the site of the <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/when-next-animal-plague-hits-can-this-lab-stop-it/">soon-to-be-decommissioned Plum Island Animal Disease Center</a>.
&ldquo;All islands carry a certain mystery, but Plum Island has more than its share of stories and secrets,&rdquo; <a href="https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/united-states/new-york/stories-in-new-york/saving-plum-island/">according to Marian Lindberg</a>.
This hour, a look at the place Dr. Hannibal Lecter calls &ldquo;Anthrax Island&rdquo;: Plum Island, New York.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>Ellen Killoran - Staff reporter and editor at Crime Online</li>
<li>Marian Lindberg - Conservation specialist for The Nature Conservancy and the author of Scandal On Plum Island: A Commander Becomes the Accused</li>
<li>Geoff Manaugh - Co-author of Until Proven Safe: The History and Future of Quarantine</li>
</ul>
Join the conversation on <a href="https://facebook.com/ColinMcShow">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/wnprcolin">Twitter</a>.
Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired July 14, 2021.

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

Plum Island sits less than 7 miles off the coast of Connecticut in Long Island Sound. It is completely owned by the federal government and controlled by the Department of Homeland Security. Since 1954, it has been the site of the soon-to-be-decommissioned Plum Island Animal Disease Center.

Plum Island: ‘Sounds charming’

‘Tis the season for holiday movies. This hour, we look at this year's offerings from Netflix and Hallmark, discuss what makes a good holiday movie, and get some ideas for what to watch this holiday season.

GUESTS: 
Laura Bradley: Entertainment and features reporter
Amanda Hess: Critic at large for The New York Times

&lsquo;Tis the season for holiday movies. This hour, we look at this year's offerings from Netflix and Hallmark, discuss what makes a good holiday movie, and get some ideas for what to watch this holiday season.
GUESTS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li>Laura Bradley: Entertainment and features reporter</li>
<li>Amanda Hess: Critic at large for The New York Times</li>
</ul>

The joy of Christmas movies, from the classics to the NFL and ‘Hot Frosty’

This hour, we take a look at the legends of King Arthur. We discuss their evolution and why they endure.

Plus, we talk with author Lev Grossman about his new retelling of the King Arthur legend, The Bright Sword.

And, a conversation with an archeologist about excavating the history of Arthurian legends.

GUESTS: 


Lev Grossman: Bestselling author of The Magicians Trilogy. His new book is The Bright Sword


Leah Tether: Professor of Medieval Literature and Publishing at Bristol University, and Vice President of the International Courtly Literature Society


Win Scutt: Archeologist and Senior Properties Curator for the West of England at English Heritage, a nonprofit that cares for over 400 historic monuments

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, which originally aired on July 30, 2024.

This hour, we take a look at the legends of King Arthur. We discuss their evolution and why they endure.
Plus, we talk with author Lev Grossman about his new retelling of the King Arthur legend, <a href="https://levgrossman.com/book/the-bright-sword/">The Bright Sword</a>.
And, a conversation with an archeologist about excavating the history of Arthurian legends.
GUESTS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li>
Lev Grossman: Bestselling author of The Magicians Trilogy. His new book is The Bright Sword
</li>
<li>
Leah Tether: Professor of Medieval Literature and Publishing at Bristol University, and Vice President of the International Courtly Literature Society
</li>
<li>
Win Scutt: Archeologist and Senior Properties Curator for the West of England at English Heritage, a nonprofit that cares for over 400 historic monuments
</li>
</ul>
Join the conversation on <a href="https://facebook.com/ColinMcShow">Facebook</a> and <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 <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://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cub21ueWNvbnRlbnQuY29tL2QvcGxheWxpc3QvYWMwYmU5NjktZDdkZi00NjBjLWE2NmMtYTZmOTAwZTFlYmQxLzcxZGM0YTBmLWU4Y2EtNDAyMS1hZWM5LWFhMDMwMDI2MDQyZC9iNjk1Y2I4Ny1mNmE5LTRjNzYtOGYxMS1hYTAzMDAyNjA0M2IvcG9kY2FzdC5yc3M">Google Podcasts</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.&nbsp;
Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired on July 30, 2024.

The legends of King Arthur and why they still matter today

Samuel and Olivia Clemens and their children moved into the house they’d had built at Nook Farm in Hartford — the house that we now call the Mark Twain House — in 1874, 150 years ago this year.

To celebrate that anniversary, this hour we present a new version of our 2015 interview with the late Hal Holbrook.

Holbrook was probably best known for his one-man show, Mark Twain Tonight!, which he performed for 63 years — longer than Samuel Clemens used the Mark Twain moniker.

Beyond Mark Twain Tonight!, you probably know Hal Holbrook as Deep Throat in All the President’s Men. He’s in a Dirty Harry movie. He’s in a Steven Spielberg movie. He’s in Wall Street and The Firm and John Carpenter’s The Fog. He appeared on Designing Women and The West Wing and The Sopranos and Sons of Anarchy and Grey’s Anatomy.

Hal Holbrook won a Tony Award. He was nominated for 12 Emmys, and he won five. And he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Into the Wild.

We talked to Holbrook on the evening of February 3, 2015. He was two weeks shy of his 90th birthday — which birthday he celebrated by performing Mark Twain Tonight! at The Bushnell in Hartford.

Hal Holbrook died in 2021. He was 95.

GUEST:
Hal Holbrook: Film, television, and stage 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!

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.

This interview was originally produced by Betsy Kaplan.

Colin McEnroe, Cat Pastor, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, parts of which originally aired February 4, 2015, and June 17, 2023, in a different form.

Samuel and Olivia Clemens and their children moved into the house they&rsquo;d had built at Nook Farm in Hartford &mdash; the house that we now call the Mark Twain House &mdash; in 1874, 150 years ago this year.
To celebrate that anniversary, this hour we present a new version of our 2015 interview with the late Hal Holbrook.
Holbrook was probably best known for his one-man show, Mark Twain Tonight!, which he performed for 63 years &mdash; longer than Samuel Clemens used the Mark Twain moniker.
Beyond Mark Twain Tonight!, you probably know Hal Holbrook as Deep Throat in All the President&rsquo;s Men. He&rsquo;s in a Dirty Harry movie. He&rsquo;s in a Steven Spielberg movie. He&rsquo;s in Wall Street and The Firm and John Carpenter&rsquo;s The Fog. He appeared on Designing Women and The West Wing and The Sopranos and Sons of Anarchy and Grey&rsquo;s Anatomy.
Hal Holbrook won a Tony Award. He was nominated for 12 Emmys, and he won five. And he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Into the Wild.
We talked to Holbrook on the evening of February 3, 2015. He was two weeks shy of his 90th birthday &mdash; which birthday he celebrated by performing Mark Twain Tonight! at The Bushnell in Hartford.
Hal Holbrook died in 2021. He was 95.
GUEST:
<ul>
<li>Hal Holbrook: Film, television, and stage 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" data-cms-ai="0">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0AXtqrzWounIoJyIqz003p" data-cms-ai="0">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9b6b3cee-f69b-4729-a78b-181f851d80e8/the-colin-mcenroe-show" data-cms-ai="0">Amazon Music</a>, <a href="https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/The-Colin-McEnroe-Show-p1208473/" data-cms-ai="0">TuneIn</a>, <a href="https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-colin-mcenroe-show-connecticut-public-lXR08dxQSM5/" data-cms-ai="0">Listen Notes</a>, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!
<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/newsletters" data-cms-ai="0">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" data-cms-ai="0">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/colinmcshow" data-cms-ai="0">Twitter</a>.
This interview was originally produced by Betsy Kaplan.
Colin McEnroe, Cat Pastor, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, parts of which originally aired February 4, 2015, and June 17, 2023, in a different form.

Plum Island: ‘Sounds charming’

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