John Steinbeck considered East of Eden to be his magnum opus. And it’s now thought of as one of the great American novels.

Netflix’s new seven-part limited series adaptation is created by and co-written by Zoe Kazan. Kazan’s grandfather, Elia Kazan, directed the classic big-screen adaptation starring James Dean.

This hour, a look at Steinbeck’s epic novel, the original movie, and the new series adaptation of East of Eden.

GUESTS:

• Joel Baden: Professor of Hebrew Bible at Yale Divinity School
• Shawn Murray: A stand-up comedian, writer, and the host of the Fantasy Filmball podcast
• Susan Shillinglaw: Professor emerita of English at San Jose State University, where she was director of the University’s Center for Steinbeck Studies for 18 years; she was also director of the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas from 2015 to 2018
• Lindsay Lee Wallace: A writer and journalist whose latest work includes the cover stories for the four most recent issues of Bat Conservation International’s Bats magazine

Music featured (in order):

• East of Eden (Main Title) – Leonard Rosenman as performed by the London Sinfonietta under the direction of John Adams
• Cain and Abel – Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra
• Steinbeck in the Oblivion – Klint Kratzer
• Salinas – Laura Marling
• Outside of Eden – Jesca Hoop, Kate Stables, Justis
• Adam Lay Ybounden – The Cambridge Singers under the direction of John Ritter