Bullseye with Jesse Thorn

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John Carpenter Oct 15, 2021

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John Carpenter has made an impact on film in two different disciplines. As a director , there's so many memorable movies in his filmography: Halloween, Escape from New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Thing, and They Live – to name a few. His work as a composer is just as iconic. Carpenter scored many of his early films – including Halloween. The music he wrote has influenced an entire generation of horror soundtracks. His latest work can be heard in Halloween Kills, the latest installment in the Halloween franchise. It's out now in theaters and the streaming platform Peacock. When Bullseye got the opportunity to talk with Carpenter, we knew just the person for the job: April Wolfe. She was previously a film critic, and former host of the Maximum Fun genre film podcast Switchblade Sisters. These days she's a screenwriter. April takes a deep dive with John Carpenter on various number of his movie projects and film scores including his Apocalypse Trilogy and Assault on Precinct 13. He also breaks down how he first composed the original Halloween theme – you might be surprised to learn bongos played an important role.
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Sonia Manzano on playing "Sesame Street's" Maria and creating "Alma's Way" Oct 12, 2021

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For nearly 5 decades, Sonia Manzano played the part of Maria on Sesame Street. The role came to be during her college years while she was studying acting. She had just gone back home to New York for her first gig, which was a role in an off-Broadway musical called Godspell. While she was there, she auditioned for a part on Sesame Street, and her life changed forever. Now, Sonia has a show of her own called Alma's Way. It is an animated kids series that centers around the show's title character, Alma Rivera. She's a 6 year old Puerto Rican girl living in the Bronx alongside her family, friends and community members. Sonia joins the show to talk about her new PBS Kids series Alma's Way and her many years on Sesame Street. She'll also share what it's like when she meets fans in real life. Plus, she talks about her time performing in Godspell.
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Mac McCaughan: Superchunk, solo records, Merge Records Oct 08, 2021

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In 1989, Mac McCaughan co-founded the band Superchunk. The band was abrasive and vulnerable; Guitars dominated their sound, with Mac's voice sitting low in the mix. The band caught on and became huge. So big, they helped coin the Gen X term "Slacker" with their 1990 hit "Slack Motherf--ker." To release Superchunk's albums, Mac and his bandmates started their own label: Merge Records. Mac is also a solo artist. He's released a handful of albums and EPs under his own name, in a broad range of genres. He's made everything from folk rock to ambient music. His latest record is called The Sound of Yourself. It's a fun pop record that caught the ear of our friend Jordan Morris. They talk about recording an album during lockdown, using samples in songwriting, and what makes a good sax solo on a pop record.
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Photographer Gusmano Cesaretti, and graffiti artist Chaz Bojórquez Oct 05, 2021

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The photography book Street Writers: A Guided Tour Of Chicano Graffiti was first published in 1975. To the extent that a photography book can be a cult classic, Street Writers is one. The book featured black and white photographs, mostly portraits, all shot in and around Los Angeles' East side. In Street Writers, you see a lot of young people – teenagers, children, young adults. They're sitting on bleachers, playing in the storm drain, jogging past a liquor store. It was all shot by this young Italian photographer – Gusmano Cesaretti. And pretty much all of Gusmano's photos have one thing in common: graffiti. Street Writers was re-published earlier this year for the first time in decades. Jesse Thorn talked with Gusmano, and Chaz Bojórquez , a veteran street artist and one of the book's original subjects. They'll talk about how the Los Angeles neighborhoods Gusmano photographed have changed. Plus, Chaz on his decades long career as a graffiti artist, and the thrill he gets knowing he's never been caught doing graffiti.
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Mark Mothersbaugh: The Craziest Day of My Entire Career Oct 01, 2021

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Mark Mothersbaugh doesn't need much of an introduction. He's a composer who's worked in TV and film for almost 40 years now. And, of course, he's also the co-founder and frontman of Devo, the beloved new wave/post-punk band. The band got its start in Ohio in the early 1970s, and had hits like 1980's Whip It. And they're touring again! So we figured we'd reach out to Mothersbaugh for a segment we call The Craziest Day of my Entire Career, and boy oh boy, did he deliver! This story has it all: celebrities, disco, wild miscommunication, Andy Warhol. You should also know that there's some drug use and descriptions of violence in this segment. Mark is still scoring movies and TV shows — you can hear his music in the upcoming movie Hotel Transylvania: Transformania, which also stars former Bullseye guests Kathryn Hahn and Steve Buscemi.
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G Perico Sep 28, 2021

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G Perico is a gangster rapper from Los Angeles. That puts him firmly in a tradition stretching from Ice T and the DOC in the 80s through Ice Cube and Snoop Dogg in the 90s and on to hitmakers like The Game and YG in the 21st century. Listen to one of his tracks, and it's hard not to hear the echoes of thirty-some years of records about cruising, barbecuing and throwing gang signs in the streets of LA. He talks about his lived experiences in his music. He raps about the LA he grew up in from cookouts and car shows. And where there is always danger around the corner. G Perico broke through in 2016 with his project **** Don't Stop. That record established him at the vanguard of LA street rap. In the five years since, he has recorded nine albums. This includes four he has released this year, with the latest being called Play 2 Win. He joins Bullseye and reflects on his upbringing, the music he listens to, and embracing his imperfections. He also talks about his creative process and his love for writing. Plus, he talks with Jesse about the people in his life that influenced his signature hair style.
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The Song That Changed My Life: Buddy Guy Sep 24, 2021

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The Song That Changed My Life is a segment that gives us the chance to talk with some of our favorite artists about the music that made them who they are today. This time around, we're joined by guitarist Buddy Guy. Buddy is one of the greatest blues guitarists alive today. From his home studio in Chicago, Buddy took us back to his childhood in Louisiana. He explains how John Lee Hooker's song Boogie Chillen' encouraged him to learn the guitar in his early teens. Plus, he shares a story about getting to meet his hero, John Lee Hooker; and becoming friends with him, too. Check out Buddy Guy: The Blues Chase The Blues Away on your local PBS station or on PBS.org.
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Jessica St. Clair and Dan O'Brien Sep 21, 2021

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Jessica St. Clair is a comedy writer and actor. Alongside Lennon Parham, she created and starred in the comedy series Playing House, which aired for three seasons on USA. Dan O'Brien is her husband of 15 years and works as a poet and playwright. He is also a former Guggenheim fellow whose work has shown off-Broadway and in London. Jessica and Dan have experienced and survived cancer together. They both had separate diagnoses and different treatments. A few years back, Jessica was diagnosed with breast cancer, and shortly after Dan was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer. It was an intense and freighting time for both of them and as they have recovered, it has inspired their work. They join Bullseye to talk about Dan's new book Our Cancers and the year and half of being treated for cancer that inspired it. Jessica and Dan also talk about how their battles with cancer affected their child, their relationship, and their careers.
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I Wish I'd Made That: Nick Offerman Sep 17, 2021

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Artists, musicians, and filmmakers are often inspired by what they see or hear. Sometimes that thing is so great, they tell us they wish they made it themselves. It happens so often we made a segment about it called I Wish I'd Made That. The one and only Nick Offerman joins us this time around. Nick is probably best known as Ron Swanson on Parks and Recreation. When we asked him if there was any TV show, movie or album he wishes he made, Nick said he leaves that to the professionals. Usually, our guests pick a movie or a TV show they love. But, Nick decided to channel his love of woodworking and tell us about the greatest guitar he ever held in his hands: The Gibson J-200.
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Remembering Michael K. Williams Sep 14, 2021

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Actor Michael K. Williams died earlier this month. He was 54 years old. He was best known for playing Omar Little on The Wire. Michael began his career in entertainment first as a dancer in New York, then an actor with a handful of walk-on credits. By the time he auditioned for The Wire he was in his mid-30s. When Jesse Thorn talked with him in 2016, he was starring in a show called Hap and Leonard. When we heard the news about Williams' passing, we went into the archives to listen back to our conversation. There's some stuff you might've heard in the past, a lot of stuff you haven't.
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