The Back Room with Andy Ostroy

Latest Episodes:

Peter Frampton Sep 21, 2023

Show notes

Peter Frampton is one of the most celebrated artists and guitarists in rock history. In 2007, he won a Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Album for Fingerprints and in 2014 was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame. His album All Blues was #1 for fifteen weeks on Billboard’s Blues Chart. In 2020 Frampton was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, his autobiography Do You Feel Like I Do?: A Memoir debuted on The New York Times Bestsellers list, and his 2021 album Frampton Forgets The Words was released to widespread critical acclaim. Later this year, he will appear on Dolly Parton’s forthcoming album, Rockstar (out November 17), as the only artist featured on two tracks.

And after 47 years, Frampton Comes Alive! remains one of the top-selling live records of all time selling over 17 million worldwide.

What an absolute thrill to have this music legend in The Back Room! Peter and I chat about his initial exposure to music and the guitar; his life-long friendship with David Bowie; his early music influences; his days playing in the bands The Herd and Humble Pie; becoming pals with George Harrison and playing on his masterpiece album All Things Must Pass; the phenomenal success of Frampton.Comes Alive!; living and creating with Inclusion Body Myositis; and his current tour. And, rumor has it there might just be a live impromptu "talk box" performance!

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Ted Hope Sep 19, 2023

Show notes

Ted Hope has been a producer on over 70 films, CEO of a start-up streamer, co-head of 3 production companies, executive director of a film society and festival, and the former co-head of movies at Amazon Studios, leading the company to 19 Oscar nominations and 5 wins. As a producer, his films have received 25 Oscar nominations, with 6 wins. He is the author of the memoir Hope For Film and writes a Substack newsletter of the same name. Ted helped launch the feature film careers of Ang Lee, Nicole Holofcener, Hal Hartley, and many others. His most recent films include CASSANDRO, the first narrative from Oscar-winning documentary director Roger Ross Williams, as well as the documentaries FREEDOM ON FIRE, directed by Evgeny Afineevsky; Marina Zenovich’s JERRY BROWN: THE DISRUPTER; and Vanessa Hope's INVISIBLE NATION.

When it comes to producing films, Ted's the real deal...with a stellar career spanning over 35 years. We're thrilled to have him in The Back Room sharing his inimitable wit and wisdom on streamers, the studios and the ever-changing movie ecosystem; the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes and the key issues behind them; the impact of AI on content creators; his exciting upcoming film projects; and his love of cheese! He also shares his memories of the early days of indie film, and in particular, working with my late wife Adrienne Shelly and auteur Hal Hartley on THE UNBELIEVABLE TRUTH and TRUST.

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Zerlina Maxwell Sep 16, 2023

Show notes

Zerlina Maxwell is the Senior Director of Progressive Programming for SiriusXM. She is the host of “Mornings w/ Zerlina.” on SiriusXM Channel 127 and hosted “Zerlina.” on MSNBC on PeacockTV for 2 seasons. She’s the author of the book The End of White Politics: How to Heal Our Liberal Divide. She was an MSNBC Political Analyst for a decade. She’s worked on both Barack Obama’s 2008 and Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaigns. She’s also a keynote speaker and writer and has written for numerous national publications on subjects including . national politics, policy and culture issues including race, feminism, domestic violence, sexual assault, victim blaming and gender inequality.

Join us for this truly fun, revealing chat. Zerlina and I talk in-depth about very serious subjects including the media, the law, politics, Trump, Trumpism, racism, #MeToo and her personal experience as a survivor of sexual assault, and we also have a bunch of laughs too discussing her childhood, Burning Man, Barbie, Beyonce, Taylor Swift and her Top 5 musical artists of all-time!

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Yareliz Mendez-Zamora Sep 12, 2023

Show notes

Yareliz Mendez-Zamora currently serves as the Federal Campaign Lead at the Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC)…and is earning her Master’s degree at the University of Miami in Community and Social Change. Born and raised in Miami, she grew up listening to her Nicaraguan family’s immigration stories and constantly draws inspiration from them. At the University of Florida, where she earned her bachelor’s in English and history and minored in Latin American Studies, she was a coordinator of the Latin@ Diaspora in the Americas Program, a Student Government Senator, interned at the Broward Public Defender’s Office, was an ambassador at La Casita, a contributor for The Huffington Post Latino Voices, and is 1/6th of the online Latina Rebels collective.

Please join us for this compelling conversation about one of the most significant, most complex issues facing America today: immigration. Yareliz explains FLIC's mission and shares her thoughts on immigration reform; the recently enacted draconian Florida Senate Bill 1718; the inhumane treatment and transporting of migrants by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis; NYC Mayor Eric Adams' recent inflammatory anti-migrant rhetoric; the existential threat facing DACA/Dreamers; the Hispanic shift to the GOP; and the dangerous impact of Trump and Trumpism on the decades-old immigration debate.

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Kara Swisher Sep 09, 2023

Show notes

Kara Swisher is host of On with Kara Swisher and co-host of the Pivot podcast. She’s also editor-at-large of New York Magazine…and the former host of the Sway and Recode Decode podcasts and the co-founder of the technology website, Recode. Kara has been reporting on the industry since the early 1990s. Once called “Silicon Valley's most feared but revered journalist," she’s established herself as the oracle of the tech world with unrivaled access to the industry's most significant leaders. Her new book, BURN BOOK: A TECH LOVE STORY, is described as “a witty, scathing, but fair accounting of the tech industry and its founders who wanted to change the world but broke it instead”. It’s scheduled for release March 5, 2024.

Kara's back in The Back Room for another fun, insightful, no-holds-barred chat about the $8.5-billion Summer of Barbie, Beyonce and Taylor Swift; "Scott-free August" and her very impressive son Louis' recent Pivot appearance; the Burning Man mess; Donald Trump's legal troubles; Elon Musk, his recent anti-Semitic/anti-ADL rhetoric, and the future of Twitter; her upcoming new book, Burn Book: A Tech Love Story (3/5/24) and its bad-ass cover photo; and more! You're gonna love this chat with one of the planet's smartest, most unique, engaging media voices.

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Ruth Ben-Ghiat Sep 05, 2023

Show notes

Ruth Ben-Ghiat is Professor of History at New York University. She writes about fascism, authoritarianism, and propaganda. She is the recipient of Guggenheim and other fellowships; an advisor to Protect Democracy; an MSNBC opinion columnist and television commentator; and publishes Lucid, a newsletter on threats to democracy. Her latest book, Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present looks at how illiberal leaders use propaganda, corruption, violence, and machismo --and how they can be defeated.

Ruth is back for another insightful, thought-provoking conversation about the increasing threat to democracy from Donald Trump, his corrupt inner circle, his brainwashed cult, and the co-opted Republican Party. We discuss the chilling parallels between their demagoguery and hateful, violence-inciting rhetoric and that of fascist dictators past and present; the rise of fascism and Neo-Nazism; and its impact on American politics and culture.

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

George Hahn Sep 03, 2023

Show notes

Who the hell is better than the inimitable George Hahn?! This actor, writer, podcaster, MSNBC commentator, social media sensation and quintessential bon vivant Manhattan man about town brings his savory snark into The Back Room for a truly fun chat about his Cleveland childhood, work and life in NYC, his nostalgic love of glamour, his big 2020 viral break, his utter disdain for Donald Trump and his MAGA cultists, his epic man-on-the-street rants, and his recent colonoscopy. Plus, a revealing lightning-round and more!

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Steven Hassan Aug 29, 2023

Show notes

Steven Hassan is an author and mental health professional is considered one of the world's foremost experts on mind control and cults. He is the founder of the Freedom of Mind Resource Center which provides training, consulting and support to individuals who are struggling to leave or recover from a cult and to families and organizations that are concerned about cult behaviors. He has been working in the field of relationship, group, and political cults for over 40 years. His latest book is called The Cult of Trump.

Join us for this thoroughly engrossing conversation about the fascinating and dangerous world of cults. Steven shares intimate details of his personal cult journey in 1970's New York City as a 19-year-old college student recruited into Sun Myung Moon’s Unification Church, where he spent over two years; provides keen analysis and insights into why people join cults, why they stay, and how they may eventually get out; and discusses the impact of the Trump cult on America's cultural and political landscapes.

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Mary Trump Aug 27, 2023

Show notes

Mary L Trump is a trained Clinical Psychologist with a PhD from The Derner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies. She’s the author of two New York Times best-selling books… Too Much and Never Enough and The Reckoning. She is host of The Mary Trump Show podcast and is well-known as the niece and outspoken critic of former president Donald Trump.

It's always a real-eye-opener when Mary's in The Back Room! Join us for this fun, insightful chat about her 4-time indicted uncle and what may lie ahead for him; the ongoing threat of Trumpism; the first Republican debate; and more!

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Chrissy Carroll Aug 22, 2023

Show notes

Chrissy Carroll is one of the people I affectionately refer to as my "tragedy buddy". One of the awesome folks I've met and befriended along the way who share with me the loss of a loved one due to a sudden, tragic death such as murder.

On a beautiful Summer night in August of 2017, Chrissy and her husband George--both actors and playwrights--were walking along a Brooklyn Street near their home when horror struck. They encountered a group of menacing men loitering outside an apartment building, words were exchanged, and George was fatally stabbed.

This is Chrissy's story. From the nightmare of that fateful night, to navigating through the hellish trial, and her ongoing journey of rebuilding her life as a crime survivor.

Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy

Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Music by Andrew Hollander Design by Cricket Lengyel

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

The Back Room with Andy Ostroy

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected