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Spoiler Specials: Star Trek: Picard Mar 27, 2020

Show notes

On the Spoiler Special podcast, Slate critics discuss movies, the occasional TV show, and, once in a blue moon, another podcast, in full spoiler-filled detail. This week, Slate staffers Marissa Martinelli, Daniel Schroeder, and Megan Kallstrom spoil Star Trek: Picard, which picks up years after Admiral Jean-Luc Picard has separated from Starfleet over ideological differences. The Star Trek legend has retreated into retirement on Earth when the daughter of an old friend—the android Data—shows up, leading Picard to amass a new crew to track down her sister before sinister forces beat him to it.

You can read Marissa Martinelli’s review here.

You can read Megan Kallstrom’s piece here.

Note: As the title indicates, this podcast contains spoilers galore.

Email us at spoilers@slate.com.

Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and access to exclusive shows like Dana Stevens’ classic movies podcast Flashback. Sign up now to listen and support our work.

Podcast production by Rosemary Belson.

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Thirst Aid Kit: Maximum UST Mar 26, 2020

Show notes

Maddie and David. Will and Alicia. Ichabod and Abbie. Brennan and Booth. Moonlighting, The Good Wife, Sleepy Hollow, and Bones all showed us the magic of UST-- unresolved sexual tension. In most of these examples, we got the kissing (and more) we’d been craving, and these television shows knew how to string us along until we thought we’d die from longing. That’s the hallmark of a job well done-- transferring the desire of a show’s leading couple to its audiences. In this episode dedicated to ultimate UST, we talk about what works and what doesn’t; what happens when the resolution is everything we could want… and when we’re denied.

Slate Plus members get a bonus segment on Thirst Aid Kit each week. Sign up now to listen and support our show.

In this week’s Slate Plus, it’s Nichole’s turn in the court of ‘Explain Yourself’. She breaks down her attraction to Irish crooner Hozier, but Bim is a hard juror to convince.

Follow us on Twitter @ThirstAidKit. Our music is by Tanya Morgan. You can find show notes, gifs and so much more on our Tumblr at thirstaidkitpodcast.tumblr.com. Remember, you can send us your own (short) drabbles by emailing thirstaidkit@slate.com.

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Culture Gabfest: Walking into the Abyss Mar 25, 2020

Show notes

This week on the Culture Gabfest, Dana Stevens rejoins Stephen Metcalf and Julia Turner from her book leave for a few segments. First, Steve and Dana chat with Slate’s books and culture columnist Laura Miller about The Plot Against America. Next, Steve, Dana, and Julia talk about the power of walking, particularly in this time of quarantine, and the literary history that precedes the activity. Finally, Steve and Julia chat with Slate staff writer Dan Kois about the 1996 film Big Night, a delicious comfort watch.

On the Slate Plus segment this week, the panel checks in with each other about how they’re doing during this time of quarantine.

Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. Production assistance by Rachael Allen.

Outro Music: “Higher Love” cover from Kygo & Whitney Houston

Endorsements

Dana: “Kasha is the new nutmeg.”

Patti LuPone’s basement tours.

Julia: “Higher Love,” the Whitney Houston and Kygo remix.

Steve: “Buh Black Snake in New England,” by Benjamin Anastas in Oxford American.

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Flashback: What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) Mar 22, 2020

Show notes

Flashback is usually available only to Slate Plus members. Sign up now to listen to the archive and future episodes.

In the new episode of Flashback, movie critics Dana Stevens and K. Austin Collins discuss the psychological drama What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?(1962), directed by Robert Aldrich.

Other titles mentioned in the episode:

Sunset Boulevard(1950), directed by Billy Wilder

Limelight (1952), directed by Charlie Chaplin

All About Eve (1950), directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Singing in the Rain(1952), directed by Gene Kelly

Gypsy (1962), directed by Mervin LeRoy

Mommie Dearest(1981), directed by Frank Perry

Feud (2017), created by Ryan Murphy

Parachute Jumper(1933), directed by Alfred E. Green

Sadie McKee (1934), directed by Clarence Brown

Psycho(1960), directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Witness for the Prosecution(1957), directed by Billy Wilder

The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), directed by Orson Welles

Hush…Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964), directed by Robert Aldrich

What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice? (1969), directed by Lee H. Katzin and Bernard Girard

Kiss Me Deadly(1955), directed by Robert Aldrich

Three Days of the Condor (1975), directed by Sydney Pollack

Comments or suggestions? Email us at flashback@slate.com

Production by Chau Tu.

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Decoder Ring: Rubber Duckie Mar 19, 2020

Show notes

Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.

How did the humble rubber duck become an icon of bath time? On this episode of Decoder Ring we talk to rubber duck experts, enthusiasts, and manufacturers to find out how the rubber duck evolved, why it's so appealing, and why there are thousands of them lost at sea.

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Thirst Aid Kit: Thirst Buckets Galore! Mar 19, 2020

Show notes

‘Thirst In The Covid-19 Era’ could well be the title of this episode or an academic paper in the year 2050 — but we’re not doing that! No, we decided to dip into our inbox to take on some of the burning thirst queries from our wonderful listeners. It was a mailbag of… many tastes. Drabbles about musicians Raphael Saadiq and Hozier, Large Boy Adam Driver, and Lee Pace on a farm? Plus we did our best to provide alternative thirsts in a bumper Thirst Sommelier segment that covered tastes as diverse as Magnum PI and 90s era Ralph Fiennes. YOU’RE WELCOME.

Slate Plus members get a bonus segment on Thirst Aid Kit each week. Sign up now to listen and support our show.

In this week’s Slate Plus segment, we break down A Clean Plate, that is the significance of a man’s appetite in popular culture. From Cool Hand Luke to Phantom Thread, what does a man’s hunger tell us, if anything, about the type of person he is?

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Sponsored: The Power of Mentorship with Chefs Gavin Kaysen & Chris Nye Mar 19, 2020

Show notes

In this episode, host Julie Gurner talks to a fascinating mentor-mentee pair who have become successful collaborators in the culinary world: Chef and Restaurateur Gavin Kaysen and Executive Chef Chris Nye.

Gavin Kaysen is a two-time James Beard Award-winning chef and owner of Soigné Hospitality Group. When he was starting his career in New York City, Gavin worked under world-renowned chef Daniel Boulud who became his mentor. He went on to spend seven years as Boulud’s Executive Chef and Director of Culinary Operations. Gavin continued that tradition of mentorship with Chris Nye, who he met when Chris was working the line at Café Boulud. Today, Kaysen helps the next generation of young chefs as one of the founders of Ment’or, a leading nonprofit organization devoted to inspiring culinary excellence in young professionals.

Whether you’re paired up through a program or your partnership forms organically, a mentor-mentee relationship can be an invaluable professional asset. A mentor can be the guide who jumpstarts your ambition, sharpens your focus, and nudges you to take a risk. Alternately, a mentee can inspire an industry veteran with fresh perspectives and surprising insights. And like any relationship, success requires work, communication, and dedication from both parties.

Download and subscribe to The Relentless onApple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn, Overcast, or wherever you listen.

This paid podcast is produced by Slate Studios and Century 21 Real Estate.

© 2020 Century 21 Real Estate LLC. All rights reserved. CENTURY 21®, the CENTURY 21 Logo and C21® are registered marks owned by Century 21 Real Estate LLC. Century 21 Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each office is independently owned and operated. This material may contain suggestions and best practices that you may use at your discretion. The opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the individuals featured and not necessarily of Century 21 Real Estate.

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Culture Gabfest: Viral Songs and Quarantine Culture Mar 18, 2020

Show notes

This week on the Culture Gabfest, Stephen Metcalf, Julia Turner, and guest host and Slate staff writer Dan Kois talk about the film Spenser Confidential, starring Mark Wahlberg on Netflix. Next, they discuss Reply All’s recent episode “The Case of the Missing Hit.” Finally, the panel is joined by Dana Stevens to lay out how they approach culture during this time of quarantine. How much do we lean into escapism?

On the Slate Plus segment this week, the panel takes on Steve’s own “missing hit” mystery.

Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. Production assistance by Rachael Allen.

Outro Music: Lost Something in the Hills" by Sibylle Baier.

Endorsements

Dana: Colour Greenby Sibylle Baier.

Dan: The “Sondheim at 90” package by the New York Times.

The album Side by Side by Sondheim.

Julia: The poem “My Heart Leaps Up” by William Wordsworth.

Steve: Always Narrating: The Making and Unmaking of Umberto Eco by Costica Bradatan in the Los Angeles Review of Books.

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Spoiler Specials: Contagion Mar 17, 2020

Show notes

On the Spoiler Special podcast, Slate critics discuss movies, the occasional TV show, and, once in a blue moon, another podcast, in full spoiler-filled detail. This week, Slate Senior Editor Sam Adams is joined by Slate Staff Writer Rebecca Onion to spoil Contagion, Steven Soderbergh’s 2011 pandemic movie. Not dissimilar to the coronavirus, the fictional virus, MEV-1, started off transferring from infected animals to humans. MEV-1 infected Gwyneth Paltrow’s character on a work trip. Then she traveled back to the Midwest, spreading the virus. Can the institutions in charge find a vaccine before the virus decimates society?

You can read Rebecca Onion’s piece about the lessons to take from Contagion here.

You can read Sam Adams’ interview with the screenwriter here.

Note: As the title indicates, this podcast contains spoilers galore.

Email us at spoilers@slate.com.

Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and access to exclusive shows like Dana Stevens’ classic movies podcast Flashback. Sign up now to listen and support our work.

Podcast production by Rosemary Belson.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Culture Gabfest: Cows and Capitalism Mar 11, 2020

Show notes

This week on the Culture Gabfest, Stephen Metcalf, Julia Turner, and guest host and Slate staff writer Dan Kois talk about Kelly Reichardt’s film First Cow. Next, they bring on Slate television critic Willa Paskin to discuss the latest episode of her podcast Decoder Ring, which dives into the real-life bookstore battle behind You’ve Got Mail. Finally, the panel dives into Molly Fischer’s feature in the Cut on the millennial aesthetic.

On the Slate Plus segment this week, the panel discusses the cancellation of Woody Allen’s memoir.

Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. Production assistance by Rachael Allen. Additional production help by Rosemary Belson.

Outro Music: "Party All The Time" by Eddie Murphy

Other items discussed on the show:

“I Made the Oily Cakes From First Cow,” by Dan Kois in Slate.

“Bookstores That Live Only in the Mind,” by Dan Kois in the New York Times.

Endorsements

Dan: The March Badness bracket of songs.

Julia: Print out your cooking recipes.

Steve: “Reading Richard Rorty in Tehran” by Samuel Thrope in the Nation.

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