Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

Mar 30 2025 475 ep. 61 mins 695
Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso Podcast artwork

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso is a weekly series of intimate conversations with artists, activists, and politicians. Where people sound like people. Hosted by Sam Fragoso. New episodes every Sunday.

  Society & Culture  TV & Film
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Hollywood Plays Itself in Seth Rogen’s ‘The Studio’

Mar 30 2025 69 mins  
Actor, writer, director, and producer Seth Rogen came up in an age of abundance—a Hollywood that made big-budget comedies with box office success: The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Superbad, Pineapple Express. That era recently inspired his new Apple TV+ show The Studio. On the heels of the series’ premiere, Rogen joins us to discuss its key influences (6:15), from Ro

Ezra Klein’s Call for ‘Abundance’ in America

Mar 23 2025 80 mins  
In their new book, Abundance, journalists Ezra Klein (The New York Times) and Derek Thompson offer a hopeful vision for what the future of the U.S. can look like. Ezra returns to the show to discuss how his ‘agenda of abundance’ (6:15) is a response to the hollowing out of the middle class (11:26) and the dwindling housing market (16:30). Then, Klein explains how these

Play It Again: Actor Amanda Seyfried

Mar 16 2025 48 mins  
From Mean Girls to Mamma Mia! to First Reformed, Amanda Seyfried has repeatedly displayed her versatility as a performer. Today, we return to one of our favorite conversations with the illustrious actor. At the top, we discuss her Oscar-nominated portrayal of 1920s and '30s screen star Marion Davies in David Fincher's Mank (6:53), her early years working in the industry (13:13

A Portrait of the Artist Tyler Mitchell

Mar 08 2025 82 mins  
What does photography need to do now? Artist Tyler Mitchell has been asking (and attempting to answer) that question since making history as the first Black photographer to shoot a Vogue cover back in 2018. Since then (he was only 23-years-old at the time) his work has been celebrated in museums around the world, featured in publications like Vanity Fair and W, and, ultimately, pub

Actor Monica Barbaro (‘A Complete Unknown’) Takes the Stage as Joan Baez

Mar 02 2025 58 mins  
In celebration of Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor Monica Barbaro. Her portrayal of Joan Baez in the Bob Dylan biopic, A Complete Unknown, earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. At the top, we discuss how director James Mangold drew inspiration from Miloš Forman’s Amadeus (7:00), the vocal lessons Monica received in prepa

Oscars Week with Jesse Eisenberg (‘A Real Pain’)

Feb 26 2025 60 mins  
In the lead-up to Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor, writer, and director Jesse Eisenberg. At the top, we unpack the journey that shaped his film A Real Pain (9:18), memories from his travels to Poland (15:40), and what he observed about his family growing up in East Brunswick (22:23). Then, Eisenberg reflects on his first jokes written on post-it notes (29:20), his br

Director RaMell Ross (‘Nickel Boys’) is Redefining Cinema

Feb 23 2025 63 mins  
One week from Oscar Sunday, we’re joined by Nickel Boys director RaMell Ross. At the top, RaMell describes the formal innovations of the new film (6:44), the naivete that allowed him to make this singular project (8:02), and how photography is shaped by race in ways we don’t consider (12:00). Then, we dive into RaMell’s Virginia upbringing (29:28), the hoop dreams

Live From New York: 50 Years of ‘Saturday Night Live’

Feb 20 2025 45 mins  
A celebration of 50 years of Saturday Night Live, featuring stories from Bill Hader, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Jason Reitman. Find links to hear each of these full episodes. Visit Peacock to watch The SNL Anniversary Special, The Homecoming Concert, and the four-part docuseries Beyond Saturday Night. Feedback or future guest ideas? Email us at [email protected] omny

Are You Not Entertained? Host Chris Hayes (The Sirens’ Call) on the Attention Age

Feb 16 2025 71 mins  
For more than a decade, Chris Hayes has been one of our most incisive political thinkers. He joins us this week in New York City, hours before taping his hit MSNBC show, All In with Chris Hayes, to discuss his new book, The Sirens’ Call. At the top, we unpack America’s Constitutional crises (5:30), the editorial inner workings of “All In” (7:00), and how att

Mikey Madison (‘Anora’) Enters Her Golden Age

Feb 09 2025 53 mins  
Actor Mikey Madison has delivered the performance of the season with her star-making turn in Anora. She joins us this week on the heels of her recent Oscar nomination for Best Actress. We begin by discussing the organic partnership she formed with writer/director Sean Baker (3:30), the ‘emotional preparation’ required to tell this vulnerable story (7:00), her San Fernan