The Bat Segundo Show was a long-running cultural radio program devoted to quirky and very thorough long-form interviews with contemporary authors, idiosyncratic thinkers, and other assorted artists. Guests included David Lynch, Octavia Butler, John Waters, John Updike, Stephen Fry, Marilynne Robinson, Karen Russell, Weird Al Yankovic, Robert A. Caro, and more than 500 others. There was also a program called Follow Your Ears, which was a thematic investigative counterpart, in which I pursued a specific subject through several angles. The entire archive of what I did from 2005 to 2014 is included here.
Patricia Cornwell is most recently the author of Scarpetta. This interview serves as a companion piece to Sarah Weinman’s Los Angeles Times profile. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Checked in for narcissistic personality disorder. Author: Patricia Cornwell Subjects Discussed: The genesis of Kay Scarpetta after three unpublished novels, Sara Ann Freed’s input into Cornwell’s early career, […]
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MoreAllison Amend is the author of Things That Pass for Love. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Pondering the troubling things that pass for love. Author: Allison Amend Subjects Discussed: Dealings with the Atlantic Monthly, what constitutes a proper golf story, miniature golf, how Jewishness and faith relates to sustaining a narrative, speaking multiple languages, Pig Latin, […]
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MorePaul Schrader is a filmmaker who is most recently the director of Adam Resurrected. The film opens in limited release on December 12th. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Waiting for Deborah Harry to call him. Guest: Paul Schrader Subjects Discussed: Being asked to direct vs. originating a film project, Jeff Goldblum working against his natural tics, […]
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MoreNacho Vigalondo is a filmmaker who is most recently the writer and director of Timecrimes, a film that opens in New York and Los Angeles on December 12. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Searching for future Bats. Guest: Nacho Vigalondo Subjects Discussed: What to expect when attending one’s first press day in New York, being isolated […]
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MoreChristopher Plummer is the author of In Spite of Myself. He is also a highly talented and very distinguished actor. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Fleeing from Mr. Plummer’s considerable achievements. Author: Christopher Plummer Subjects Discussed: The roles that get Mr. Plummer the best seats at a restaurant, Lillian Hellman’s control over director Joseph Anthony during […]
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MoreSo far as we know, the National Book Awards has not authored anything aside from programs and informational pamphlets. The people that Our Young, Roving Correspondent talked with on that fateful night, however, have authored a few books. Or at least, this is what they have told us. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Deeply suspicious of […]
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MoreAlex Beckstead is the filmmaker behind Paperback Dreams, a documentary on independent bookstores. The documentary is now touring around the nation and is making appearances on PBS. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Surrendering to hard-boiled journalists. Guest: Alex Beckstead Subjects Discussed: Why Beckstead singled out Cody’s and Kepler’s over other Bay Area bookstores, Kepler’s as a […]
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MoreAlison Bechdel is most recently the author of The Essential Dykes to Watch Out For. To listen to our previous interview with Bechdel, check out The Bat Segundo Show #63. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Overly concerned with modifiers attached to artists. Author: Alison Bechdel Subjects Discussed: The relationship between visual developments and storyline developments, how […]
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MorePorochista Khakpour is the author of Sons and Other Flammable Objects. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Avoiding the seemingly erudite man with the flamethrower. Author: Porochista Khakpour Subjects Discussed: Professional doodling, italics that represent facial expressions, acting out dialogue, the protracted difficulties of editing, the creative benefits of neurosis, thinking of an audience vs. writing in […]
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MoreWe’ve received a few requests from listeners asking us how they can get DVD-ROMs of the show. And since Christmas shopping has started, and some of you out there may be on the lookout for a literary stocking stuffer, we’ve decided to begin offering DVD-ROMs of the first 250 shows of The Bat Segundo Show […]
MoreJust in time for Election Day! David Rees is most recently the author of Get Your War On: The Definitive Account of the War on Terror: 2001-2008. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Struggling to cast his vote. Author: David Rees Subjects Discussed: Why red was selected for the Get Your War On backgrounds, My New Filing […]
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MoreDavid Heatley is most recently the author of My Brain is Hanging Upside Down. Condition of Mr. Segundo: On the waiting list for a brain transplant. Author: David Heatley Subjects Discussed: Surreal dream comics, the Ramones, memory and associations, Francois Truffaut looking at an old school photo and remembering all the names of his fellow […]
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