Hello, Hubsters!
Happy Memorial Day to all those who celebrate. I hope you’ve had a fun and relaxing long weekend. I myself have had much time off, first with my sister visiting NYC (we saw David Hallberg in a stunning performance of “Giselle”) and then with me returning the favor and visiting her in Colorado, where I am right now. Ah, vacation time is good, and I certainly hope both Stephen and Jon have enjoyed their well-earned break. But, fortunately for us, their time off is nearly over, and I’m sure we’re all waiting impatiently to have them back and mocking. All in all, it’s been quieter than usual while they’ve been away, so there isn’t one big, you-know-they’ll-cover it story waiting. But with the election coming ever closer, Europe flailing, the continuing political unrest in the Middle East, and events swirling around the Catholic Church, I’m sure they’ll find plenty of material to play with.
It certainly looks like a very exciting (though holiday-shortened) week with great guests for both our boys. So let’s go….
Tuesday, 5/29: Charlize Theron
Are you a fan of “once upon a time?” served up sugar-free and violent as fairy tales originally were? Then Academy Award-winning actress Charlize Theron’s latest film is for you. The second cinematic take on Snow White to come out this year, Snow White and the Huntsman will be released in the US on June 1st. Theron stars as the wicked stepmother—you know, the one who looks in the magic mirror and asks: Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all? In this version, Snow White (Kristen Stewart) prepares to avenge the Queen’s treachery by studying the art of war with a Hunstman who was originally sent to kill her; this pretty princess fights tough. (Here’s the film’s official website, where you can watch the trailer, purchase tickets, download apps, find out about the soundtrack, play games, and get dozens of links to Facebook, Twitter, and more.)
Theron, a former model, has had a rather unique and dramatic life. She grew up on a farm in South Africa, where she suffered through some serious childhood illnesses and also had to cope with the fact that her mother shot her abusive, alcoholic father to death in self-defense. (The court acquitted her mother, and Theron has publicly supported her actions.) Hoping to become a dancer, she studied ballet seriously for many years until a knee injury put an end to those dreams. Theron then shifted gears and ventured to LA with the intention of breaking into movies. She succeeded relatively quickly, appearing in a number of prestigious films, including The Cider House Rules. But she truly came into her own playing the serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster, a role for which Theron disguised her considerable beauty—and received that prized Oscar®. Golden Globe® and Emmy® nominations also came her way for her turn as the sexpot Britt Ekland in an HBO film, The Life and Death of Peter Sellers.
Coming up later this summer for Theron: the release of her next film, Ridley’s Scott’s Prometheus, in glorious 3-D. It’s expected to be summer’s big blockbuster. Also, let’s offer our congratulations to this new mom on her recently adopted son, Jackson.
Like her on Facebook. Or go to her Africa Outreach Project on FB.
Watch her on Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis.
Visit Theron’s official website.
In 2008, Theron appeared on The Daily Show to discuss her film, Battle of Seattle .
What would this beautiful woman want to change about herself—especially now that’s she’s about to appear in 3-D? Read all about it (but she is joking).
A writer for The Daily Beast critiqued a comment Theron made to The Help star Viola Davis when Davis discussed the difficulty of being a black actress in Hollywood.
Theron discusses Prometheus, and her sexy co-star Michael Fassbender. Clip included.
Here, the actress discusses her human and canine babies. (She’s a PETA supporter. And warning—there’s some pretty amazing cuteness here with dog and son.)
Wednesday, 5/30: Alan Alda
This should be fun: one of Hollywood’s most notorious liberals coming face-to-face with our favorite faux-conservative pundit. And what’s even better is, they’re going to discuss something unexpected—science education! In addition to his award-winning acting, Alda founded The Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University in upstate New York, and he recently spearheaded the Flame Challenge, which concluded in early May. It seems like a delightful idea: as the website states: “Alan Alda asked scientists to answer the question – “What is a flame?” – in a way that an 11-year-old would find intelligible and maybe even fun.” There were 822 entries (706 from the US), judged by 11-year-olds themselves. The winners will receive their honors at a ceremony to take place on June 2nd. By the way, Alda may not be a scientist in real life but he played one on stage – Richard Feynman, in the play QED.
Alda’s achievements are nothing short of mind-boggling: he received 33 Emmy® nominations (he won six) for his role as Hawkeye Pierce on MASH as well as for his appearances on West Wing, 30 Rock, and the telefilm Kill Me If You Can; won six Golden Globes®; received the D.W. Griffith Award and the NY Film Critics Award as Best Supporting Actor for Woody Allen’s Crimes and Misdemeanors; and garnered TONY® nominations for David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross, Neil Simon’s Jake’s Women, and the musical The Apple Tree. He not only acted in MASH, but wrote and directed several episodes, and has also written and directed such films as The Seduction of Joe Tynan, The Four Seasons, Sweet Liberty, A New Life, and Betsy’s Wedding. And, yes, that directorial role led to more honors—three Director’s Guild Awards. Plus, for 11 years he hosted the award-winning series Scientific American Frontiers on PBS .
I am thrilled to see him visit the Report. He’s the perfect guest—smart, funny, and a sure-to-be it-getter.
Visit his official website, where you can also order his book, Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself (released a few years ago).
Read this fascinating little bio of Alda: apparently as a child he had polio and he has also served in the military, which probably deepened his appreciation of the lunacy depicted in MASH.
Here’s a Long Island Newsday article, written by Alda, about his efforts in science education. Or read this New York Times interview.
Like him on Facebook.
Let’s not forget he’s still acting. He’s got a role in Showtime’s successful series, The Big C, starring the marvelous Laura Linney.
Check out his IMDB page to see everything he’s done on the big and small screen.
Go to the website for his PBS programs The Human Spark.
Hear him on NPR asking scientists to describe “What is a flame?”
Watch an interview with him at the Archive of American Television.
He previously visited The Daily Show in 2005.
Thursday, 5/31: Jack Hitt
America has always been a country of tinkerers—and much of the creative work happens not in corporate and college labs but in garages and kitchens and other unprofessional spaces. Jack Hitt journeyed across the US in search of the kind of enterprising people who have fueled our success since the the colonial days, people with a dream and the ingenuity to make it come true. Starting with Benjamin Franklin and his legendary kite and key, Hitt’s new book, Bunch of Amateurs, examines America’s adventurous and inventive spirit through history and shows how it still lives. It sounds like fun trip to me, and the perfect follow-up to Alda’s focus on science education. After all, how can you invent if you have no knowledge of science and mechanics?
Like Stephen, Hitt is a native of Charleston, SC, and he works as a contributing editor to a variety of newspapers, magazines and programs, including The New York Times, Harper’s, and NPR’s This American Life. He’s won the Peabody, Livingston, and Pope awards, and one of his books—Off the Road: A Modern-Day Walk Down the Pilgrim’s Route into Spain—was made into a film starring Martin Sheen. Hitt’s website showcases the wide array of media he’s been involved with (books, cinema, theater, radio), as well as his supposed “controversies” (none, at the moment, but it’s under construction) and upcoming events. Amusingly, there’s also a tab for opera, with a witty little “just kidding” when you click on it.
One of Hitt’s newest off-the-page ventures is a one-man show called Making Up the Truth, in which he melds tales about his life with facts about cognitive research on the act of storytelling. He recently performed it at the famed Spoleto festival at home in Charleston as well as in other cities. More shows are planned.
Listen to him on NPR (and read an excerpt from his book, too).
Read the short Vanity Fair review of Bunch of Amateurs.
Take a look at this article on the book on boing-boing.
Check out some of Hitt’s earlier books on the Simon and Schuster author page.
Here’s an enthusiastic review of Making Up the Truth in a hometown Charleston paper.
Read a conversation with Jack Hitt in The Atlantic.
The New York Times “Arts Beat” covered Hitt. And here’s one of his own articles for the paper.
Follow him on Twitter.
And now let’s check in with our good friend, Jon Stewart!
Jon’s got a prestigious list of guests this week.
Tuesday, 5/29: Michelle Obama
Oh, Michelle, Michelle – how soon you betray! Barely any time at all has passed since your visit to Stephen and now you’re on TDS. Well, everyone, I don’t have to tell you who she is, do I? Since she discussed the military on TCR, it looks as if she’ll be discussing her healthy food campaign with Jon. We shall see—I’m just judging from the links on the TDS site.
Buy her book, American Grown.
Visit her website on children’s exercise and nutrition, Let’s Move.
Like her on Facebook or follow her on Twitter.
Here’s her previous appearance on TDS, parts 1 and 2.
Watch her with Stephen–also parts 1 and 2.
Wednesday, 5/30: Dan Rather
A former CBS mainstay who worked as a correspondent on 60 Minutes and anchored the CBS News, Dan Rather now hosts the Emmy®-winning Dan Rather Reports on HDNet. His new book is Rather Outspoken, in which the acclaimed newsman discusses the contemporary state of journalism as well as his life. I’m looking forward to what he has to say in the wake of the sad curtailment of New Orleans’ famed Times-Picayune newspaper.
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like Rather’s show on Facebook.
Watch his previous appearance on The Daily Show, in 2009.
Rather hasn’t neglected Stephen; he was on TCR, too.
Thursday, 5/31: Jim Parsons
Jim Parsons has won two Emmys, along with a host of other awards, for his role on the popular sitcom The Big Bang Theory. He plays a brainy character on the show—the Star Trek-obsessed Sheldon Cooper–and clearly he’s got smarts in real life, too, having earned a BA in theater from the University of Houston an an MA in classical theater from the University of San Diego. Currently he’s exercising those theatrical chops on Broadway in a role that Jimmy Stewart made famous on film: Elwood P. Dowd in Harvey, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Mary Chase about a man who has an invisible rabbit as his best friend.
Take a look at the website for The Big Bang Theory.
Like him on Facebook.
Only days ago, he came out as gay.
Here’s a fan site for him.
That’s it for this week! I’m sure everyone’s excited for the new shows—but who are you most looking forward to seeing? (Besides Stephen himself, of course!)
Cheers, all.
Better Know a Guest
Hello, Hubsters!
Happy Memorial Day to all those who celebrate. I hope you’ve had a fun and relaxing long weekend. I myself have had much time off, first with my sister visiting NYC (we saw David Hallberg in a stunning performance of “Giselle”) and then with me returning the favor and visiting her in Colorado, where I am right now. Ah, vacation time is good, and I certainly hope both Stephen and Jon have enjoyed their well-earned break. But, fortunately for us, their time off is nearly over, and I’m sure we’re all waiting impatiently to have them back and mocking. All in all, it’s been quieter than usual while they’ve been away, so there isn’t one big, you-know-they’ll-cover it story waiting. But with the election coming ever closer, Europe flailing, the continuing political unrest in the Middle East, and events swirling around the Catholic Church, I’m sure they’ll find plenty of material to play with.
It certainly looks like a very exciting (though holiday-shortened) week with great guests for both our boys. So let’s go….
Tuesday, 5/29: Charlize Theron
Are you a fan of “once upon a time?” served up sugar-free and violent as fairy tales originally were? Then Academy Award-winning actress Charlize Theron’s latest film is for you. The second cinematic take on Snow White to come out this year, Snow White and the Huntsman will be released in the US on June 1st. Theron stars as the wicked stepmother—you know, the one who looks in the magic mirror and asks: Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all? In this version, Snow White (Kristen Stewart) prepares to avenge the Queen’s treachery by studying the art of war with a Hunstman who was originally sent to kill her; this pretty princess fights tough. (Here’s the film’s official website, where you can watch the trailer, purchase tickets, download apps, find out about the soundtrack, play games, and get dozens of links to Facebook, Twitter, and more.)
Theron, a former model, has had a rather unique and dramatic life. She grew up on a farm in South Africa, where she suffered through some serious childhood illnesses and also had to cope with the fact that her mother shot her abusive, alcoholic father to death in self-defense. (The court acquitted her mother, and Theron has publicly supported her actions.) Hoping to become a dancer, she studied ballet seriously for many years until a knee injury put an end to those dreams. Theron then shifted gears and ventured to LA with the intention of breaking into movies. She succeeded relatively quickly, appearing in a number of prestigious films, including The Cider House Rules. But she truly came into her own playing the serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster, a role for which Theron disguised her considerable beauty—and received that prized Oscar®. Golden Globe® and Emmy® nominations also came her way for her turn as the sexpot Britt Ekland in an HBO film, The Life and Death of Peter Sellers.
Coming up later this summer for Theron: the release of her next film, Ridley’s Scott’s Prometheus, in glorious 3-D. It’s expected to be summer’s big blockbuster. Also, let’s offer our congratulations to this new mom on her recently adopted son, Jackson.
Like her on Facebook. Or go to her Africa Outreach Project on FB.
Watch her on Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis.
Visit Theron’s official website.
In 2008, Theron appeared on The Daily Show to discuss her film, Battle of Seattle .
What would this beautiful woman want to change about herself—especially now that’s she’s about to appear in 3-D? Read all about it (but she is joking).
A writer for The Daily Beast critiqued a comment Theron made to The Help star Viola Davis when Davis discussed the difficulty of being a black actress in Hollywood.
Theron discusses Prometheus, and her sexy co-star Michael Fassbender. Clip included.
Here, the actress discusses her human and canine babies. (She’s a PETA supporter. And warning—there’s some pretty amazing cuteness here with dog and son.)
Wednesday, 5/30: Alan Alda
This should be fun: one of Hollywood’s most notorious liberals coming face-to-face with our favorite faux-conservative pundit. And what’s even better is, they’re going to discuss something unexpected—science education! In addition to his award-winning acting, Alda founded The Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University in upstate New York, and he recently spearheaded the Flame Challenge, which concluded in early May. It seems like a delightful idea: as the website states: “Alan Alda asked scientists to answer the question – “What is a flame?” – in a way that an 11-year-old would find intelligible and maybe even fun.” There were 822 entries (706 from the US), judged by 11-year-olds themselves. The winners will receive their honors at a ceremony to take place on June 2nd. By the way, Alda may not be a scientist in real life but he played one on stage – Richard Feynman, in the play QED.
Alda’s achievements are nothing short of mind-boggling: he received 33 Emmy® nominations (he won six) for his role as Hawkeye Pierce on MASH as well as for his appearances on West Wing, 30 Rock, and the telefilm Kill Me If You Can; won six Golden Globes®; received the D.W. Griffith Award and the NY Film Critics Award as Best Supporting Actor for Woody Allen’s Crimes and Misdemeanors; and garnered TONY® nominations for David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross, Neil Simon’s Jake’s Women, and the musical The Apple Tree. He not only acted in MASH, but wrote and directed several episodes, and has also written and directed such films as The Seduction of Joe Tynan, The Four Seasons, Sweet Liberty, A New Life, and Betsy’s Wedding. And, yes, that directorial role led to more honors—three Director’s Guild Awards. Plus, for 11 years he hosted the award-winning series Scientific American Frontiers on PBS .
I am thrilled to see him visit the Report. He’s the perfect guest—smart, funny, and a sure-to-be it-getter.
Visit his official website, where you can also order his book, Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself (released a few years ago).
Read this fascinating little bio of Alda: apparently as a child he had polio and he has also served in the military, which probably deepened his appreciation of the lunacy depicted in MASH.
Here’s a Long Island Newsday article, written by Alda, about his efforts in science education. Or read this New York Times interview.
Like him on Facebook.
Let’s not forget he’s still acting. He’s got a role in Showtime’s successful series, The Big C, starring the marvelous Laura Linney.
Check out his IMDB page to see everything he’s done on the big and small screen.
Go to the website for his PBS programs The Human Spark.
Hear him on NPR asking scientists to describe “What is a flame?”
Watch an interview with him at the Archive of American Television.
He previously visited The Daily Show in 2005.
Thursday, 5/31: Jack Hitt
America has always been a country of tinkerers—and much of the creative work happens not in corporate and college labs but in garages and kitchens and other unprofessional spaces. Jack Hitt journeyed across the US in search of the kind of enterprising people who have fueled our success since the the colonial days, people with a dream and the ingenuity to make it come true. Starting with Benjamin Franklin and his legendary kite and key, Hitt’s new book, Bunch of Amateurs, examines America’s adventurous and inventive spirit through history and shows how it still lives. It sounds like fun trip to me, and the perfect follow-up to Alda’s focus on science education. After all, how can you invent if you have no knowledge of science and mechanics?
Like Stephen, Hitt is a native of Charleston, SC, and he works as a contributing editor to a variety of newspapers, magazines and programs, including The New York Times, Harper’s, and NPR’s This American Life. He’s won the Peabody, Livingston, and Pope awards, and one of his books—Off the Road: A Modern-Day Walk Down the Pilgrim’s Route into Spain—was made into a film starring Martin Sheen. Hitt’s website showcases the wide array of media he’s been involved with (books, cinema, theater, radio), as well as his supposed “controversies” (none, at the moment, but it’s under construction) and upcoming events. Amusingly, there’s also a tab for opera, with a witty little “just kidding” when you click on it.
One of Hitt’s newest off-the-page ventures is a one-man show called Making Up the Truth, in which he melds tales about his life with facts about cognitive research on the act of storytelling. He recently performed it at the famed Spoleto festival at home in Charleston as well as in other cities. More shows are planned.
Listen to him on NPR (and read an excerpt from his book, too).
Read the short Vanity Fair review of Bunch of Amateurs.
Take a look at this article on the book on boing-boing.
Check out some of Hitt’s earlier books on the Simon and Schuster author page.
Here’s an enthusiastic review of Making Up the Truth in a hometown Charleston paper.
Read a conversation with Jack Hitt in The Atlantic.
The New York Times “Arts Beat” covered Hitt. And here’s one of his own articles for the paper.
Follow him on Twitter.
And now let’s check in with our good friend, Jon Stewart!
Jon’s got a prestigious list of guests this week.
Tuesday, 5/29: Michelle Obama
Oh, Michelle, Michelle – how soon you betray! Barely any time at all has passed since your visit to Stephen and now you’re on TDS. Well, everyone, I don’t have to tell you who she is, do I? Since she discussed the military on TCR, it looks as if she’ll be discussing her healthy food campaign with Jon. We shall see—I’m just judging from the links on the TDS site.
Buy her book, American Grown.
Visit her website on children’s exercise and nutrition, Let’s Move.
Like her on Facebook or follow her on Twitter.
Here’s her previous appearance on TDS, parts 1 and 2.
Watch her with Stephen–also parts 1 and 2.
Wednesday, 5/30: Dan Rather
A former CBS mainstay who worked as a correspondent on 60 Minutes and anchored the CBS News, Dan Rather now hosts the Emmy®-winning Dan Rather Reports on HDNet. His new book is Rather Outspoken, in which the acclaimed newsman discusses the contemporary state of journalism as well as his life. I’m looking forward to what he has to say in the wake of the sad curtailment of New Orleans’ famed Times-Picayune newspaper.
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like Rather’s show on Facebook.
Watch his previous appearance on The Daily Show, in 2009.
Rather hasn’t neglected Stephen; he was on TCR, too.
Thursday, 5/31: Jim Parsons
Jim Parsons has won two Emmys, along with a host of other awards, for his role on the popular sitcom The Big Bang Theory. He plays a brainy character on the show—the Star Trek-obsessed Sheldon Cooper–and clearly he’s got smarts in real life, too, having earned a BA in theater from the University of Houston an an MA in classical theater from the University of San Diego. Currently he’s exercising those theatrical chops on Broadway in a role that Jimmy Stewart made famous on film: Elwood P. Dowd in Harvey, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Mary Chase about a man who has an invisible rabbit as his best friend.
Take a look at the website for The Big Bang Theory.
Like him on Facebook.
Only days ago, he came out as gay.
Here’s a fan site for him.
That’s it for this week! I’m sure everyone’s excited for the new shows—but who are you most looking forward to seeing? (Besides Stephen himself, of course!)
Cheers, all.