A New Oral History of HBO

Early in Douglas Stuart’s new novel, “John of John,” the Booker Prize-winning author describes a peculiar irony: “What skinned him was that the closer he got to home, the more lost he felt.” It’s a passing line, but it captures the tension at the heart of this magnificent book: H ... Show More

The editors at The New York Times Book Review spend almost the entire year discussing, debating and sometimes arguing about the year’s best books. We’re halfway through 2026, which means it’s time for the host Gilbert Cruz and the Book Review editors Joumana Khatib and MJ Frankli ... Show More

Today, we want to bring back an episode from our archives. It’s about a book that has real beach read vibes. There’s a lot of water. It’s a relationship drama. And it’s also a daring story of survival. “Marriage at Sea: A True Story of Love, Obsession and Shipwreck" made it onto ... Show More

After spending more than three years working on his latest book, “Tinderbox: HBO’s Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers,” replete with 757 interviews, Origins host Jim Miller decided he hadn’t had enough, and has returned with new interviews to further explore one of the world’s mos ... Show More

HBO has brought us nearly 50 years of riveting movies and TV shows; the behind-the-scenes stories are equally compelling. Journalist James Andrew Miller, who has written definitive oral histories of media institutions like Saturday Night Live and ESPN, tells Recode’s Peter Kafka ... Show More

James Andrew Miller, author of the new HBO oral history "Tinderbox," shares what he learned through his interviews with five decades of network executives, stars and producers. HBO created a "whole new pathway for people to experience television," he says. But now it is under tre ... Show More

<p>Today’s episode is an amazing conversation I got to have with James Andrew Miller NYT, Best-selling author and author of Tinderbox. We discuss everything from his journey through every book he's written including his newest book <em>Tinderbox: HBO's Ruthless Pursuit of New Fro ... Show More

In this week’s episode, we look back at past author interviews throughout the years, and Kendra shares some behind-the-scenes memories around some of her most memorable interviews. Check out our Patreon page to learn more about our book club and other Patreon-exclusive goodies. F ... Show More

<p>The author of Call Me By Your Name (and many other amazing books) joins the pod to discuss memory, desire, exile, happiness, and New York City.</p> 

This week, a special interview with the sociologist Richard Sennett takes us from Roland Barthes to Leonard Bernstein; and Hettie Judah on two memoirs inspired by a love of 17th-century art.'The Performer: Art, Life, Politics', by Richard Sennett'Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and ... Show More