Hello, Hubsters!
Boo! Happy Halloween, and wishing you all treats and no tricks. I’m so happy to be back, and my sincerest thanks to CN Helper for living up to her name and saving me last week by doing this post.
I’ve just been over the moon lately with the show; Stephen’s been at his edgiest and funniest, taking the Report to new heights. I didn’t think something so wonderful could keep on getting better, but it is, week by week. On this anniversary of the great Rally to Keep Fear Alive–oh, okay, to Restore Sanity, too–I feel so grateful to Stephen and Jon for continuing to fight the good fight. (And Jon has recently been at his very best, too. What combined joy.)
I’m very, very happy with this week’s guest list, particularly Yo-Yo Ma and Nathan Wolfe. There’s nothing to equal a great musician and an esteemed scientist on the Report. And by the way, it looks as if the show’s booker is creating a music day each week. Maybe that’s just a matter of chance in the past month, but I’m hoping it will continue.
Now, everyone: have you ever had more fun with “The Star-Spangled Banner” than you did with Stephen and Toby Keith? No–I didn’t think so! Onward to the guests…
Monday, 10/31: Neil MacGregor
Meet “Saint Neil” (his nickname), author of the newly released A History of the World in 100 Objects, based on a BBC radio show that aired last year. The Scottish-born MacGregor currently serves as director of the world-renowned British Museum, and he’s chosen 100 objects that he feels best illustrate humankind’s achievements and behavior. Every item–coins, mummies, axes, statues, glass beakers, and even a solar powered lamp and charger–comes from the museum’s estimable collection, and as a whole, they represent a diversity of cultures from across the globe. Using them as examples, MacGregor takes us from the Ice Age to the first cities, to the Age of Confucius and through the Empire Builders, Status Symbols, and today’s World of Our Making. MacGregor himself hosted the radio programs, each broken into a 15-minute segment.
MacGregor’s a frighteningly accomplished man: He studied modern languages at Oxford; philosophy at the Sorbonne (mais, oui! Paris, c’est la ville de philosophie); law at Edinburgh University; and finally, the childhood passion that became his life’s work: art history. He went on to teach, to assume the directorship of several museums, to edit Burlington magazine, and to host various TV and radio programs on the BBC. Plus, he was appointed to the Order of Merit by the Queen.
Here’s his profile at the British Museum site.
This Sunday’s New York Times had a cover story on the book.
Here is an excerpt from his book, focusing on the history of money.
Read a review of the book in the Telegraph.
Go to the BBC site to see all 100 objects.
Want to listen to him? Here are the podcasts of his 100 Items radio shows.
Tuesday, 11/1: Yo-Yo Ma
Oh, I’m looking forward to this! World-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma already had a most delightful and funny appearance on The Colbert Report and now he’s back. (Unfortunately, Part 2 of his visit, where he actually plays his cello, is no longer available. Perhaps the music rights are a problem). You’ll probably also remember that, like Stephen, Ma was profiled on Henry Louis Gates’s Faces of America, where Gates surprised Ma with an incredible genealogical find in China that revealed his whole family history.
Although Yo-Yo Ma made his name as one of the most brilliant of all classical musicians, he also enjoys trying his hand at a range of styles—from his Silk Road Project to Cole Porter to Brazilian (Obrigado, Brazil). On his website, this is what his bio says about his goals: “One of Mr. Ma’s goals is the exploration of music as a means of communication and as a vehicle for the migrations of ideas across a range of cultures throughout the world.” And, as he told Stephen on that last visit, he likes being surrounded by people. His newest work, The Goat Rodeo Sessions, just came out on October 24th, and though it’s hard to tell until I hear it, this bluegrass-themed album almost seems to be a response to Stephen’s request that he do something with an American down-home influence. Here’s one song, “Attaboy,” from the disc. Ma recorded it with three other string musicians: fiddler Stuart Duncan, bassist Edgar Meyer and mandolinist Chris Thile. Is it really wrong of me to wish Steve Martin were participating too, since this is his style of music?
Ma’s many honors include countless Grammy Awards (including a Latin one), the National Medal of Arts, and just this year the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 2005, he received an honorary Doctor of Musical Arts from Princeton.
Visit Yo-Yo Ma’s official site where you can see more videos, read his full bio, and check out Ma’s tour dates and the latest news.
Follow him on Twitter.
Read about the album on Billboard.
Because I love Sesame Street: Yo-Yo Ma and the Honkers!
Wednesday, 11/2: Michael Pollan
Thought for food, anyone? It’s the perfect segment in tandem with tonight’s return guest. In recent years New York Times bestselling author Michael Pollan has become one of the foremost chroniclers of our eating habits in the modern age thanks to his books An Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food. (“Eat food. Real Food. Less of it.”) And out on November 1st is a new illustrated version of Food Rules, with pictures by the quirky and marvelous artist Maira Kalman. This short little manual helps guide you to a healthy diet by laying out some good principles in a simple, concise, and lighthearted way. So, for example, he’ll tell you not to choose foods with high-fructose corn syrup, that contain ingredients your grandmother wouldn’t recognize, or that won’t eventually rot–eg Twinkies or Cool Whip. Really they don’t disintegrate. It’s true. Try it yourself and see!
In addition to food, Pollan has written about the natural world and our relationship to the earth in such books as Second Nature (about horticulture, including Americans’ fondness for lush lawns), A Place of My Own (he builds his own house with his own hands), and The Botany of Desire (about domesticated plants).
The Long Island-born Pollan studied at Bennington College, Oxford University, and Columbia University. He now is the John S. and James L. Knight Professor of Journalism at UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism, and the director of the Knight Program in Science and Environmental Journalism.
Visit his official website to learn more about his books, see some videos, and read some of his articles.
Follow him on Twitter.
Here’s an article he wrote for The New York Times’s recent Food and Drink issue. You can also read an earlier article for the Times, “Unhappy Meals.”
Want a plant’s eye view of the world? Listen to Michael Pollan at the TED conference.
He has previously been a a guest on both The Colbert Report and The Daily Show.
Thursday, 11/3: Nathan Wolfe
What strikes the most fear into your heart? A possible terrorist attack? Encountering a serial killer? How about a virus? They’re lethal, from the flu epidemics that wiped out thousands to AIDS, which first decimated the gay and Haitian communities (as well as several African countries) before spreading to a wider population. And, as our brief but deadly experience with the swine flu reminded us not too long ago, we do not know how to cure them. Not one. Not even the common cold. In The Viral Storm: The Birth of a New Pandemic Age, Nathan Wolfe explores the origins of various viruses—and warns us about how vulnerable we still are in spite of modern medical science.
Wolfe , who teaches at Stanford, is the founder and CEO of the Global Viral Forecasting Initiative (GVFI), which tries to predict and prevent the next pandemic. The GVFI serves as a form of early warning system; it battles our complacency by reminding us that we can’t just “wait and-respond” to a crisis because it takes far too long to develop a successful vaccine and millions could die in the meantime. He has a doctorate in Immunology and Infectious Diseases from Harvard, and received both the National Institutes of Health International Research Scientist Development Award and the NIH Director’s Pioneer Award. In addition to being widely published in scientific journals, Wolfe conducts research and administers public health initiatives throughout Africa and Asia.
Visit the GVFI’s website to find out more about its mission and activities.
Wolfe was one of TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people this year.
Follow him on Twitter.
Read an article on him in National Geographic. It’s scary to hear him say that: “Today, global disease control is in the stone age.” Yikes.
Take a look at another article on Wolfe, following him as he goes about his work, from The New York Times.
Here’s a review of The Viral Storm from Britain’s Guardian.
Listen to Wolfe speak at the TED conference, or on NPR.
And now, let’s check in with our good friend Jon Stewart!
Monday 10/31: Mindy Kaling
In the six degrees of separation game, Mindy is only one away from John—because she writes for and stars in The Office, and appeared in The 40-Year-Old Virgin with former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carrell. Perhaps she was destined for a career in comedy, because even though Mindy’s given name is Vera Chokalingam, her mother nicknamed her for the eponymous character in the TV sitcom, Mork and Mindy. Kaling has been nominated for and won both Emmys and Writer’s Guild of America awards for her work on The Office.
In addition to having co-written the well-reviewed indie play Matt and Ben (Damon & Affleck, that is), Kaling has just published a memoir, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns), which will be released on November 1.
Follow Kaling on Twitter.
Visit her website (and find out about the omitted chapter from her book).
Mindy also has a blog, “Things I Bought That I Love.”
The New York Times spent a “Day at the Office” with her (dual meaning intentional).
Tueday, 11/1: Condoleezza Rice
Ugh. George W.’s Secretary of State has a new book out, No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington. Rice, who was raised is Birmingham, Alabama when it was still a segregated city, holds three degrees (including a PhD in political science, a subject she taught at Stanford), and is a professional-level piano player. She’d be admirable, if only she weren’t so…unadmirable while serving in the Bush Administration. Condi has recently been protesting the way former Vice President Cheney depicted her in his book, and angrily denied his assertion that she came to him crying. One thing she absolutely did do? Accidentally refer to her boss Bush as “her husband” at a dinner party. Oops. She had to correct herself very swiftly.
Rice is also the author of Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family, which went into paperback just last month.
She’s been on The Daily Show before–the last time, almost exactly a year ago. See Part 1 and Part 2.
One person who liked (was obsessed by?) Rice: Qaddafi, who had a scrapbook devoted to her.
Read about Rice’s response to the Cheney memoir.
In August, the Guardian reported on what her new book might cover.
You can follow Rice on Twitter (but don’t expect to see me there).
Wedneday, 11/2: Tom Brokaw
Wasn’t he just on The Colbert Report? Obviously our favorite false reporters enjoy having real ones around. Tom Brokaw is the former host of the NBC Nightly News and writer of the bestselling book about the “greatest generation.” His newest gig involves something completely different: this past May, he started hosting The Boys in the Hall, a weekly half-hour baseball documentary series for Fox Sports Net.
Brokaw shares his favorite books and explains why he enjoys reading.
He answers some fun questions from New York Magazine—and note what claims to do for Jon (I wonder if he’ll get called on it) and what he likes to watch before bed!
Huff Post covers his last visit to The Colbert Report + video.
Watch Tom on a previous visit to The Daily Show.
Take a look at his website.
Thursday, 11/3: Brad Paisley
Country music? Hey—that’s Stephen’s terrain! Well, I guess it’s Jon’s this evening as he hosts Brad Paisley. Paisley’s most recent CD is This Is Country Music, released this past May, and featuring a distinguished roster of guests including Don Henley, Clint Eastwood, Sheryl Crow, Marty Stuart, Carl Jackson, Carrie Underwood and Blake Shelton. He also has a brand-new book, Diary of a Player: How My Musical Heroes Made a Guitar Man Out of Me. Then, on November 9th, he’s capping it all off by hosting the CMA Awards with Underwood.
If you’ve got cash to spare, you can help Paisley do good: he’s selling an autographed guitar to raise money for the Water = Hope campaign. You can find the information on his official website where you can also get news, see videos, and find out if he’s coming to your town on tour.
Follow him on Twitter.
Like him on Facebook.
Watch the video of his duet with Carrie Underwood, “Remind Me of You.”
Well, that’s all, folks! (Can you tell I love Warner Bros. cartoons?) Let me know what guest you’re most looking forward to. And if you have special memories of the rally–whether you were there or enjoyed it on TV–share them with us!
Cheers.
Better Know a Guest – October 31st – November 3rd, 2011
Hello, Hubsters!
Boo! Happy Halloween, and wishing you all treats and no tricks. I’m so happy to be back, and my sincerest thanks to CN Helper for living up to her name and saving me last week by doing this post.
I’ve just been over the moon lately with the show; Stephen’s been at his edgiest and funniest, taking the Report to new heights. I didn’t think something so wonderful could keep on getting better, but it is, week by week. On this anniversary of the great Rally to Keep Fear Alive–oh, okay, to Restore Sanity, too–I feel so grateful to Stephen and Jon for continuing to fight the good fight. (And Jon has recently been at his very best, too. What combined joy.)
I’m very, very happy with this week’s guest list, particularly Yo-Yo Ma and Nathan Wolfe. There’s nothing to equal a great musician and an esteemed scientist on the Report. And by the way, it looks as if the show’s booker is creating a music day each week. Maybe that’s just a matter of chance in the past month, but I’m hoping it will continue.
Now, everyone: have you ever had more fun with “The Star-Spangled Banner” than you did with Stephen and Toby Keith? No–I didn’t think so! Onward to the guests…
Monday, 10/31: Neil MacGregor
Meet “Saint Neil” (his nickname), author of the newly released A History of the World in 100 Objects, based on a BBC radio show that aired last year. The Scottish-born MacGregor currently serves as director of the world-renowned British Museum, and he’s chosen 100 objects that he feels best illustrate humankind’s achievements and behavior. Every item–coins, mummies, axes, statues, glass beakers, and even a solar powered lamp and charger–comes from the museum’s estimable collection, and as a whole, they represent a diversity of cultures from across the globe. Using them as examples, MacGregor takes us from the Ice Age to the first cities, to the Age of Confucius and through the Empire Builders, Status Symbols, and today’s World of Our Making. MacGregor himself hosted the radio programs, each broken into a 15-minute segment.
MacGregor’s a frighteningly accomplished man: He studied modern languages at Oxford; philosophy at the Sorbonne (mais, oui! Paris, c’est la ville de philosophie); law at Edinburgh University; and finally, the childhood passion that became his life’s work: art history. He went on to teach, to assume the directorship of several museums, to edit Burlington magazine, and to host various TV and radio programs on the BBC. Plus, he was appointed to the Order of Merit by the Queen.
Here’s his profile at the British Museum site.
This Sunday’s New York Times had a cover story on the book.
Here is an excerpt from his book, focusing on the history of money.
Read a review of the book in the Telegraph.
Go to the BBC site to see all 100 objects.
Want to listen to him? Here are the podcasts of his 100 Items radio shows.
Tuesday, 11/1: Yo-Yo Ma
Oh, I’m looking forward to this! World-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma already had a most delightful and funny appearance on The Colbert Report and now he’s back. (Unfortunately, Part 2 of his visit, where he actually plays his cello, is no longer available. Perhaps the music rights are a problem). You’ll probably also remember that, like Stephen, Ma was profiled on Henry Louis Gates’s Faces of America, where Gates surprised Ma with an incredible genealogical find in China that revealed his whole family history.
Although Yo-Yo Ma made his name as one of the most brilliant of all classical musicians, he also enjoys trying his hand at a range of styles—from his Silk Road Project to Cole Porter to Brazilian (Obrigado, Brazil). On his website, this is what his bio says about his goals: “One of Mr. Ma’s goals is the exploration of music as a means of communication and as a vehicle for the migrations of ideas across a range of cultures throughout the world.” And, as he told Stephen on that last visit, he likes being surrounded by people. His newest work, The Goat Rodeo Sessions, just came out on October 24th, and though it’s hard to tell until I hear it, this bluegrass-themed album almost seems to be a response to Stephen’s request that he do something with an American down-home influence. Here’s one song, “Attaboy,” from the disc. Ma recorded it with three other string musicians: fiddler Stuart Duncan, bassist Edgar Meyer and mandolinist Chris Thile. Is it really wrong of me to wish Steve Martin were participating too, since this is his style of music?
Ma’s many honors include countless Grammy Awards (including a Latin one), the National Medal of Arts, and just this year the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 2005, he received an honorary Doctor of Musical Arts from Princeton.
Visit Yo-Yo Ma’s official site where you can see more videos, read his full bio, and check out Ma’s tour dates and the latest news.
Follow him on Twitter.
Read about the album on Billboard.
Because I love Sesame Street: Yo-Yo Ma and the Honkers!
Wednesday, 11/2: Michael Pollan
Thought for food, anyone? It’s the perfect segment in tandem with tonight’s return guest. In recent years New York Times bestselling author Michael Pollan has become one of the foremost chroniclers of our eating habits in the modern age thanks to his books An Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food. (“Eat food. Real Food. Less of it.”) And out on November 1st is a new illustrated version of Food Rules, with pictures by the quirky and marvelous artist Maira Kalman. This short little manual helps guide you to a healthy diet by laying out some good principles in a simple, concise, and lighthearted way. So, for example, he’ll tell you not to choose foods with high-fructose corn syrup, that contain ingredients your grandmother wouldn’t recognize, or that won’t eventually rot–eg Twinkies or Cool Whip. Really they don’t disintegrate. It’s true. Try it yourself and see!
In addition to food, Pollan has written about the natural world and our relationship to the earth in such books as Second Nature (about horticulture, including Americans’ fondness for lush lawns), A Place of My Own (he builds his own house with his own hands), and The Botany of Desire (about domesticated plants).
The Long Island-born Pollan studied at Bennington College, Oxford University, and Columbia University. He now is the John S. and James L. Knight Professor of Journalism at UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism, and the director of the Knight Program in Science and Environmental Journalism.
Visit his official website to learn more about his books, see some videos, and read some of his articles.
Follow him on Twitter.
Here’s an article he wrote for The New York Times’s recent Food and Drink issue. You can also read an earlier article for the Times, “Unhappy Meals.”
Want a plant’s eye view of the world? Listen to Michael Pollan at the TED conference.
He has previously been a a guest on both The Colbert Report and The Daily Show.
Thursday, 11/3: Nathan Wolfe
What strikes the most fear into your heart? A possible terrorist attack? Encountering a serial killer? How about a virus? They’re lethal, from the flu epidemics that wiped out thousands to AIDS, which first decimated the gay and Haitian communities (as well as several African countries) before spreading to a wider population. And, as our brief but deadly experience with the swine flu reminded us not too long ago, we do not know how to cure them. Not one. Not even the common cold. In The Viral Storm: The Birth of a New Pandemic Age, Nathan Wolfe explores the origins of various viruses—and warns us about how vulnerable we still are in spite of modern medical science.
Wolfe , who teaches at Stanford, is the founder and CEO of the Global Viral Forecasting Initiative (GVFI), which tries to predict and prevent the next pandemic. The GVFI serves as a form of early warning system; it battles our complacency by reminding us that we can’t just “wait and-respond” to a crisis because it takes far too long to develop a successful vaccine and millions could die in the meantime. He has a doctorate in Immunology and Infectious Diseases from Harvard, and received both the National Institutes of Health International Research Scientist Development Award and the NIH Director’s Pioneer Award. In addition to being widely published in scientific journals, Wolfe conducts research and administers public health initiatives throughout Africa and Asia.
Visit the GVFI’s website to find out more about its mission and activities.
Wolfe was one of TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people this year.
Follow him on Twitter.
Read an article on him in National Geographic. It’s scary to hear him say that: “Today, global disease control is in the stone age.” Yikes.
Take a look at another article on Wolfe, following him as he goes about his work, from The New York Times.
Here’s a review of The Viral Storm from Britain’s Guardian.
Listen to Wolfe speak at the TED conference, or on NPR.
And now, let’s check in with our good friend Jon Stewart!
Monday 10/31: Mindy Kaling
In the six degrees of separation game, Mindy is only one away from John—because she writes for and stars in The Office, and appeared in The 40-Year-Old Virgin with former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carrell. Perhaps she was destined for a career in comedy, because even though Mindy’s given name is Vera Chokalingam, her mother nicknamed her for the eponymous character in the TV sitcom, Mork and Mindy. Kaling has been nominated for and won both Emmys and Writer’s Guild of America awards for her work on The Office.
In addition to having co-written the well-reviewed indie play Matt and Ben (Damon & Affleck, that is), Kaling has just published a memoir, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns), which will be released on November 1.
Follow Kaling on Twitter.
Visit her website (and find out about the omitted chapter from her book).
Mindy also has a blog, “Things I Bought That I Love.”
The New York Times spent a “Day at the Office” with her (dual meaning intentional).
Tueday, 11/1: Condoleezza Rice
Ugh. George W.’s Secretary of State has a new book out, No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington. Rice, who was raised is Birmingham, Alabama when it was still a segregated city, holds three degrees (including a PhD in political science, a subject she taught at Stanford), and is a professional-level piano player. She’d be admirable, if only she weren’t so…unadmirable while serving in the Bush Administration. Condi has recently been protesting the way former Vice President Cheney depicted her in his book, and angrily denied his assertion that she came to him crying. One thing she absolutely did do? Accidentally refer to her boss Bush as “her husband” at a dinner party. Oops. She had to correct herself very swiftly.
Rice is also the author of Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family, which went into paperback just last month.
She’s been on The Daily Show before–the last time, almost exactly a year ago. See Part 1 and Part 2.
One person who liked (was obsessed by?) Rice: Qaddafi, who had a scrapbook devoted to her.
Read about Rice’s response to the Cheney memoir.
In August, the Guardian reported on what her new book might cover.
You can follow Rice on Twitter (but don’t expect to see me there).
Wedneday, 11/2: Tom Brokaw
Wasn’t he just on The Colbert Report? Obviously our favorite false reporters enjoy having real ones around. Tom Brokaw is the former host of the NBC Nightly News and writer of the bestselling book about the “greatest generation.” His newest gig involves something completely different: this past May, he started hosting The Boys in the Hall, a weekly half-hour baseball documentary series for Fox Sports Net.
Brokaw shares his favorite books and explains why he enjoys reading.
He answers some fun questions from New York Magazine—and note what claims to do for Jon (I wonder if he’ll get called on it) and what he likes to watch before bed!
Huff Post covers his last visit to The Colbert Report + video.
Watch Tom on a previous visit to The Daily Show.
Take a look at his website.
Thursday, 11/3: Brad Paisley
Country music? Hey—that’s Stephen’s terrain! Well, I guess it’s Jon’s this evening as he hosts Brad Paisley. Paisley’s most recent CD is This Is Country Music, released this past May, and featuring a distinguished roster of guests including Don Henley, Clint Eastwood, Sheryl Crow, Marty Stuart, Carl Jackson, Carrie Underwood and Blake Shelton. He also has a brand-new book, Diary of a Player: How My Musical Heroes Made a Guitar Man Out of Me. Then, on November 9th, he’s capping it all off by hosting the CMA Awards with Underwood.
If you’ve got cash to spare, you can help Paisley do good: he’s selling an autographed guitar to raise money for the Water = Hope campaign. You can find the information on his official website where you can also get news, see videos, and find out if he’s coming to your town on tour.
Follow him on Twitter.
Like him on Facebook.
Watch the video of his duet with Carrie Underwood, “Remind Me of You.”
Well, that’s all, folks! (Can you tell I love Warner Bros. cartoons?) Let me know what guest you’re most looking forward to. And if you have special memories of the rally–whether you were there or enjoyed it on TV–share them with us!
Cheers.