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Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso is a weekly series of intimate conversations with artists, activists, and politicians. Where people sound like people. Hosted by Sam Fragoso. New episodes every Sunday.

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

It’s been a year. And while we’re not quite done with it (3:15), we wanted to take a moment to celebrate some of our favorite episodes and guests from 2024. 
 
On the front half, we revisit passages from actor-turned-director Dev Patel (5:45), the legendary Francis Ford Coppola on Jacques Tati and failure (11:45), filmmaker Ava DuVernay on the state of Hollywood (17:47), and Dr. Seema Jilani on her work in Gaza (26:36). 
 
On the back end, Abbi Jacobson’s interview with Sam (35:05), NYT reporter Astead Herndon on why the 2024 election was not inevitable (42:47), and national treasure Julia Louis-Dreyfus (“Wiser than Me”) on perseverance and posterity (49:55). Plus, a Joker ending (1:08:00).
 
What was your favorite from the past twelve months? Write us below or say hello at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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Talk Easy in 2024: A Mixtape

For the past 50 years, Nikki Giovanni has been one of our preeminent poets. Rest in Power to the legendary writer and activist, who passed this week at the age of 81.
 
Today we return to our conversation from 2021, reflecting on how her childhood led to a life of writing (6:21), the enduring impact of a televised conversation with James Baldwin (13:40), the story behind her famous poem, “I Married My Mother” (18:30), and why she doesn't believe in role models (28:15).
 
On the back-half, we work our way to the present, as Nikki shares her experience of visiting the African American Museum (30:14), the evolution of her poetry (36:40), and how she grappled with two cancer diagnoses (40:20). To close, Nikki reads from her inventive about the author page (45:49).

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Remembering Poet Nikki Giovanni

Actor Sebastian Stan has built a career out of shapeshifting.
 
This week, he joins us to discuss the process of transforming into Donald J. Trump in The Apprentice (8:27), his personal relationship to the American dream (15:35), and the extensive research that went into recreating 1970s-1980s New York City in the film (17:27). Then, we unpack Sebastian’s Romanian upbringing (29:00), the gift of his unconventional, nomadic childhood (34:40), and what the film represents in this post-Election moment (38:30).
 
On the back-half, we talk about the impact of the late director Jonathan Demme (50:45), Stan’s radical and stunning work in A Different Man (55:08), what both of his new films reveal about reality (59:14), and what the silencing of The Apprentice—and his Actors on Actors shutout—reveals about the entertainment industry (1:00:00). To close, a reflection about control and how Sebastian embraces everyday life (1:17:55).
 
Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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The Year of Actor Sebastian Stan (‘The Apprentice’)

For the holiday week, we’re revisiting one of our favorite conversations with Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and critic Hilton Als.
 
At the top, we unpack his approach to writing profiles (5:50), inspired by the words of photographer Diane Arbus (6:10), and how he captured Prince in a new, two-part memoir entitled My Pinup (7:55). Then, Als reflects on his upbringing in Brownsville, Brooklyn (10:25), a timely passage from his 2020 essay "Homecoming" (14:40), and formative works by writers Adrienne Kennedy (20:58) and the late Joan Didion (27:05).
 
On the back-half, we discuss the interplay of memory and writing (36:38), Hilton’s writing routine (40:55), his sources of hope today (44:30), and to close, a dialogue from Jean Rhys’ unfinished autobiography Smile Please (48:25).
 
Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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Writer Hilton Als on Prince and ‘What Joan Didion Means’

To close out the holidays, our conversation with actor Harris Dickinson.
 
We discuss his latest role in Halina Reijn’s Babygirl (6:50), Nicole Kidman’s “disarming and generous” quality on set (9:27), and the exploration of masculinity in Harris’ roles— from Beach Rats (12:48) to Triangle of Sadness (13:03) to Babygirl (13:24). Then, we dive into the online discourse about his new performance (15:52), his upbringing in Walthamstow, England (17:10), and the early short films he made with his high school mates (20:20).
 
On the back-half, Harris unpacks his formative university years (24:45), his post-grad search for purpose, first in the military (30:20) then working at a hotel in east London (33:26), and the inspiration behind his forthcoming directorial debut (34:25). To close, we talk about the parallels between filming fight scenes (43:50) and intimate scenes (44:48) and the Charles Bukowski poem that keeps him creating (52:25).
 
Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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A ‘Babygirl’ Holiday with Harris Dickinson

Writer Jia Tolentino (The New Yorker) became a literary sensation in 2019 upon the release of her best-selling essay collection, Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion. She joins us this week to ring in 2025.
 
We start by discussing the erosion of privacy online (11:26), the potentially forthcoming TikTok ban (13:32), and how she circumvented self-surveillance technology in her Hidden Pregnancy Experiment for The New Yorker (15:28). Then, we unpack how data is monetized online (18:00), as depicted in an unsettling scene from Succession (21:50), the harmful effects of screen time on children (26:10), and her writerly upbringing in Houston (31:48).
 
On the back-half, Jia recounts a formative summer in Venice (41:55), her subsequent decade working at The Hairpin and Jezebel (50:43), the trad wife phenomenon (55:00), how she swings between pessimism and optimism (1:12:19), and why writing still retains the power to liberate (1:17:00).
 
Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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A New Year with Writer Jia Tolentino (‘Trick Mirror’)

This week, we revisit a soulful conversation around climate change and the restorative power of nature with author Richard Powers.
 
We begin by defining the thematic through-line between The Overstory and Bewilderment (5:06), the eco trauma articulated in each text (9:10), how we may redefine hope today (16:08), and what the pandemic taught us about the climate crisis (26:18). Powers also details the ecological shortcomings of capitalism (29:00) and our myopic interpretation (and fear of) death (30:56).
 
On the back-half, we unpack why he writes (33:48), the need for “productive solitude” (40:40), and the singular way he writes analytical and emotional characters (44:42). To close– a fitting scene from one of Powers’ earlier works, Plowing the Dark (50:30), in which an older man enters an used bookstore, unable to find the book intended. And in the absence of that book, Richard Powers will continue to do so (52:50).
 
Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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A Hopeful Climate Conversation with Richard Powers

Writer Emily Witt (“Health and Safety: A Breakdown”) has spent the past two weeks on the ground covering the Los Angeles wildfires for The New Yorker.
 
Her latest story centers around the Benns (5:39), a multigenerational Black family with deep ties to Altadena (8:35), where they’ve raised children in homes they’ve owned dating back to the late 1950s (16:13). We discuss how they’re managing as the Eaton fire continues to rage (17:00), the value of community in crisis (18:40), and the measures the city was urged to take to mitigate this disaster (23:28).
 
On the back half, Witt reflects on her 2023 interview with Mayor Karen Bass (32:40), the prophetic work of Altadena author Octavia Butler (39:28), how on-the-ground reporting offers a chance to “write a first draft of history” (46:30), and where Los Angeles goes from here (56:10).
 
To help support the Benn family, visit their GoFundMe or text “Talk” to 858-358-5881. 
 
And special thanks to Weyes Blood.

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The Week That Changed Los Angeles

David Lynch was an artist in every sense of the word. Rest in peace to the legendary filmmaker, who passed away this month at the age of 78.
 
Today we present a tribute to Lynch, featuring excerpts from two of his most enduring collaborators: actors Kyle MacLachlan and Laura Dern. In each conversation, they reflect on the early projects they worked on with Lynch—together in Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks, separately in Dune and Wild at Heart. They also discuss David’s original creative process, his fascination with the mysteries of life, and memories from over three decades alongside the beloved director.
 
To close, a love letter to the movies and a piece of music by Lynch himself.

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Director David Lynch Transcends

From The Walking Dead to Minari to Beef, Steven Yeun has become one of the most singular performers in Hollywood today. With his latest role in the sci-fi romance Love Me, we look back at our conversation with the leading man.
 
At the top, Yeun unpacks his acclaimed Netflix series Beef (5:09), a powerful church scene from the show (11:30), and his personal experience immigrating to the US from Seoul as a child (18:15). Then, we walk through Steven’s coming of age in Michigan (21:24), his memorable audition for The Second City Touring Company (25:29), and his pursuit of on-screen work in Los Angeles (33:40).
 
On the back-half, Steven reflects on his portrayal of Glenn on The Walking Dead (36:22), the films that followed, including Okja (48:10), Burning (50:02), and Sorry to Bother You (51:16), his transformative experience making and premiering Minari (55:42), and to close, a poem that guided him on set by the great Wendell Berry (1:08:19).
 
Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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The Humanity of Actor Steven Yeun (‘Love Me’)

George Saunders (“Tenth of December”, “Lincoln in the Bardo”) is one of the finest American writers working today. With the release of his new book, “A Swim in a Pond in the Rain“, we talk about combating cynicism (5:00), the power of Chekhov and Tobias Wolff (8:52), regarding literature as a fondness for life (12:30), a summer of Steinbeck (15:00), deconstructing the (male) mythology of Hemingway (26:45), and how starting a young family changed his life (35:00). On the back-half, we talk craft and process (39:00), his conversations with the late David Foster Wallace (42:15), and his aim to entertain any kind of reader (44:39). To close: he shares an excerpt from his short story, “Love Letter” (49:02), and the need to live urgently (53:43). 

 
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Short Stories with George Saunders

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