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PODCAST

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

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.

society & culture film interviews

All Episodes

80:36

Ezra Klein’s Call for ‘Abundance’ in America

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/03/23

In their new book, Abundance, journalists Ezra Klein (The New York Times) and Derek Thompson offer a hopeful vision for what the future of the U.S. can look like. Ezra returns to the show to discuss how his ‘agenda of abundance’ (6:15) is a response to the hollowing out of the middle class (11:26) and the dwindling housing market (16:30). Then, Klein explains how these regulatory inefficiencies have impacted California’s high-speed rail project (27:56), what we can learn from

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48:06

Play It Again: Actor Amanda Seyfried

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/03/16

FromMean Girls to Mamma Mia! to First Reformed, Amanda Seyfried has repeatedly displayed her versatility as a performer. Today, we return to one of our favorite conversations with the illustrious actor. At the top, we discuss her Oscar-nominated portrayal of 1920s and '30s screen star Marion Davies in David Fincher's Mank (6:53), her early years working in the industry (13:13), and the joy of makingMean Girls (15:26). Then, she reflects on the parallels between 1930s Hollywood and today (36:08), how

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82:53

A Portrait of the Artist Tyler Mitchell

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/03/09

What does photography need to do now? Artist Tyler Mitchell has been asking (and attempting to answer) that question since making history as the first Black photographer to shoot a Vogue cover back in 2018. Since then (he was only 23-years-old at the time) his work has been celebrated in museums around the world, featured in publications like Vanity Fair and W, and, ultimately, published in his debut monograph, I Can Make You Feel Good. He joins us this week around the opening of his revelatory

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58:49

Actor Monica Barbaro (‘A Complete Unknown’) Takes the...

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/03/02

In celebration of Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor Monica Barbaro. Her portrayal ofJoan Baez in the Bob Dylan biopic,A Complete Unknown, earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. At the top, we discuss how director James Mangold drew inspiration from Miloš Forman’s Amadeus (7:00), the vocal lessons Monica received in preparation for the role of Baez (10:15), and her affecting rendition of House of the Rising Sun (16:00). Then, we dive into

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60:20

Oscars Week with Jesse Eisenberg (‘A Real Pain’)

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/02/26

In the lead-up to Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor, writer, and director Jesse Eisenberg. At the top, we unpack the journey that shaped his film A Real Pain(9:18), memories from his travels to Poland (15:40), and what he observed about his family growing up in East Brunswick (22:23). Then, Eisenberg reflects on his first jokes written on post-it notes (29:20), his breakthrough acting roles in Roger Dodger (31:35) and The Squid and the Whale (34:37), and formative visits to his aunt Doris in

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63:33

Director RaMell Ross (‘Nickel Boys’) is Redefining...

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/02/23

One week from Oscar Sunday, we’re joined by Nickel Boys director RaMell Ross. At the top, RaMell describes the formal innovations of the new film (6:44), the naivete that allowed him to make this singular project (8:02), and how photography is shaped by race in ways we don’t consider (12:00). Then, we dive into RaMell’s Virginia upbringing (29:28), the hoop dreams that brought him to Georgetown (29:35), and the “question everything” mindset that took flight in his

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45:33

Live From New York: 50 Years of ‘Saturday Night Live’

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/02/20

A celebration of 50 years of Saturday Night Live, featuring stories from Bill Hader, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Jason Reitman. Find links to hear each of these full episodes. Visit Peacock to watchThe SNL Anniversary Special, The Homecoming Concert, and the four-part docuseriesBeyond Saturday Night. Feedback or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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71:26

Are You Not Entertained? Host Chris Hayes (The...

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/02/16

For more than a decade, Chris Hayes has been one of our most incisive political thinkers. He joins us this week in New York City, hours before taping his hit MSNBC show, All In with Chris Hayes, to discuss his new book, The Sirens’ Call. At the top, we unpack America’s constitutional crises (5:30), the editorial inner workings of “All In” (7:00), and how attention became our most endangered resource (12:00). Then, Hayes talks through the challenges of maintaining viewership

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53:07

Mikey Madison (‘Anora’) Enters Her Golden Age

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/02/09

Actor Mikey Madison has delivered the performance of the season with her star-making turn in Anora. She joins us this week on the heels of her recent Oscar nomination for Best Actress. We begin by discussing the organic partnership she formed with writer/director Sean Baker (3:30), the ‘emotional preparation’ required to tell this vulnerable story (7:00), her San Fernando Valley upbringing (11:45), and her formative years working with Pamela Adlon on Better Things (22:38). On the

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73:54

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

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/02/02

FromThe Walking Dead to MinaritoBeef, 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

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41:21

Director David Lynch Transcends

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/01/26

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

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62:03

The Week That Changed Los Angeles

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/01/19

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

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57:47

A Hopeful Climate Conversation with Richard Powers

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/01/12

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

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80:12

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

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2025/01/05

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

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54:29

A ‘Babygirl’ Holiday with Harris Dickinson

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2024/12/29

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) toBabygirl (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

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52:06

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

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2024/12/22

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

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76:35

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

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2024/12/15

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 inThe 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

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44:22

Remembering Poet Nikki Giovanni

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2024/12/11

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

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58:41

Talk Easy in 2024: A Mixtape

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2024/12/08

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

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53:34

Host Padma Lakshmi (‘Taste the Nation’) is Just...

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso ·

2024/12/01

To close out the holiday weekend, we're revisiting our conversation with writer, food expert, and television host Padma Lakshmi. At the top, we discuss her Hulu docuseries Taste the Nation (4:40), a formative episode in El Paso, Texas (8:14), and how the show connects to Padma’s personal history (11:59). Then, she reflects on her childhood in New York City (14:07), a heartbreaking event at seven (17:30*), and her unexpected entry to the modeling industry (25:14). On the back-half, we walk through

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